Page 89 of Treasure of the Abyss

“Halorium is a stone found on the ocean floor,” Arkon replied. “It emits blue light. Our ancestors were tasked with gathering halorium for the humans who dwelledhere.”

“It does strange things to human machinery.” Jax frowned; the stuff was rare, but it was out there… Would it interfere with Macy’s suit like it did everythingelse?

Macy swiped her finger across the screen, and an image appeared. It was a shard of halorium, spinning in place and pulsing light, so real that Jax wondered if he could reach out and touchit.

“Computer, what is the Halorium Project?” Macyasked.

“The Halorium Project is a joint venture between Tureon Industries and the Interstellar Defense Coalition with the goal of harvesting a rare mineral on Halora. It was founded when scouting ships discovered halorium deposits after first landing on Halora, in 2455SGY.”

“What isSGY?”

“Standard Galactic Year. A system put in place so colonies across the galaxy could operate on a unifying measure of the passage of time, regardless of local planetary orbits androtations.”

“So how long ago was2455?”

“Three hundred and seventy-seven Halorian yearsago.”

“What did they want withhalorium?”

“Halorium emits a form of radiation that has not been found anywhere else in the known galaxy. This radiation has proven harmless to living creatures during tests conducted in this laboratory. Because of its unique properties, halorium can be used as a powerful and extremely long-lasting source of energy. This facility is powered entirely byhalorium.”

Macy lifted her hand and touched the tip of the shard; its movement altered, and it tumbled slowly, end-over-end. “Jax said it does strange things to humanmachinery.”

“Specifically, the energy fields emitted by halorium interfere with electronics. It must be kept in specially shielded containers to protect such devices from its effects. The halorium reactors of this facility are shielded at three times the recommended standard to protect the facility’soperations.”

“Why did the kraken mineit?”

“I do not understand your question,” the computersaid.

Macy looked at Jax andArkon.

“Who are the kraken?” sheasked.

“The kraken was a mythological sea creature from ancient Earth legends,” the computer replied. A new picture flashed up, this time flat. It was black and white, a series of lines that came together into a coherent image — a huge, tentacled creature dragging a ship with three masts into the water. “It was believed to be a cephalopod of immense size, and ancient sailors believed it was capable of pulling men overboard, breaking ships in half, and dragging vessels into thesea.”

“It is the name our people took,” Jax said, “to make humans fearus.”

“What did they call you beforethat?”

He shook his head, staring at the image. He’d never seen anything like it. Arkon was even more intent, leaning so close his face nearly touched the projection, eyes roving over every line. There were clear similarities between the kraken of Halora and the one depicted in the picture. It made Jax proud, for some reason, but also sorrowful. “We don’t know. The kraken cast off the name given to them by humans many years before mybirth.”

Macy tilted her head. “Computer, who harvested thehalorium?”

“Initially, it was harvested by human divers. After several fatalities connected to electronic and equipment failure, halorium harvest was shifted to octopoidlaborers.”

“Octopoid,” Macy mumbled, glancing down at Jax’s tentacles. “Tell me about theoctopoids.”

“Octopoidis an unofficial term used to designate a genetically modified, aquatic race of humanoids. They were created by an integrated team of Tureon and IDC scientists, using a splice of human and cephalopod DNA as their basis. The octopoids were designed to be intelligent enough to follow orders and are adapted specifically to Halorianoceans.”

“What does that mean?” Jax asked, looking from the screen to Macy. “Human and cepho-pod?”

“Computer, show me acephalopod.”

The screen changed, displaying a creature very much like the kraken it had before. But — like the halorium shard — this creature looked like it was there. It had eight tentacles, all covered with suction cups along their undersides, and a bulbous head attached directly to its lower half. Its eyes were familiar; they were the same as Jax’s, or Arkon’s, or any of theirpeople’s.

“I think…” Macy turned her face toward Jax, “you’re part human and partcephalopod.”

Jax’s hearts thumped as he exchanged a glance with Arkon. He didn’t understand much of what the Computer had said, but Macy’s summary was clear. The kraken had always known they’d been created by humans, but had never known — with any degree of certainty, anyway — they wererelatedtohumans.

---