Page 47 of Heart of the Deep

Sometime later — she could’ve asked Sam how long it had been, but it seemed unimportant — Dracchus tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She lifted her head and met his gaze. He nodded toward something over her shoulder, and she twisted around to look.

The darkness ahead was broken by a cloud of illumination, and huge shapes loomed in the light.

Buildings, she realized with wonder.

There were at least three, each easily a hundred meters from one end to another, but it was the foremost that drew her attention. The outside wall was bathed in cones of light from fixtures on its exterior, all of which were spaced at almost even intervals — a few gaps indicated that some of the lights had failed.

She counted at least six windows, though all but one was dark. As Dracchus brought her closer, the details of the structure grew more distinct — there were large-but-subtle geometric patterns on the wall, lines and rounded rectangles breaking up what might otherwise appear monotonous and bland.

As they approached the building, they swam between a pair of functioning light posts that stood free on the seafloor. Dracchus directed them toward a metal door with a red light over the top of it and a keypad at its side.

“Do you require entry?” Sam’s voice startled her.

Larkin glanced at Dracchus. “Um, yes.”

The light above the door switched to green. The door opened.

“Sam, what is this place?” she asked.

“This isPontus Alpha, an Interstellar Defense Coalition research base built with the assistance of Tureon Industries, Incorporated.”

Dracchus carefully swam through the open doorway, angling himself to prevent Larkin from bumping into anything. Once they were inside the chamber, she watched over his shoulder as he raised one of his tentacles and pressed a button on the wall behind him. The door slid shut.

“Re-pressurization sequence initiated,” Sam said.

“Well, hell. And no one knew about this place? How is that possible?”

A low hum pulsed through the water around them, just strong enough to be noticeable. Larkin tightened her grip on Dracchus, glancing around the room.

“Pontus Alpha is a classified base,” Sam said. “Only authorized personnel are briefed on its location and functionality. Please contact your commanding officer with further questions.”

As the waterline fell, her body felt heavier. It made holding onto Dracchus harder, but she worried that she’d collapse the moment her feet were beneath her.

“This is your home? The facility you told me about?” she asked.

“Pressurization complete,” said a feminine voice from somewhere overhead as soon as the water was drained. “Welcome back, diver six-two-zero.”

“Yes,” Dracchus said. Larkin felt one of his tentacles brush the side of her leg, and another door whispered open behind her. “You may remove the mask. It is safe.”

“Oh.” She reached up and tugged on it; the mask didn’t budge. “Um, Sam, how do I remove the mask?”

“The mask can be released by utilizing your wrist controls, or through a simple verbal request,” Sam replied cheerfully.

“Sam, remove the mask.”

There was a faint hiss, and the mask sagged forward into her waiting hand. She lowered it and drew in a tentative breath; the air was surprisingly clean, with only the faintest scent of brine.

“I guess I should let go of you now,” Larkin said, smirking at Dracchus.

“If you wish it,” he said. “Your weight is slight.” The glint in his eyes suggested he didn’t want her to let go.

She found that she didn’t want to, either. She liked this closeness with Dracchus. Their evenings together had given her a sense of who he was — someone who’d shield her from anything but who’d never belittle her. His strength didn’t make her feel inferior; it empowered her to have him at her back. She had the sense that he’d never treat her as lesser, despite his prowess.

Larkin’s thoughts gave her pause; these were sentiments people felt toward loved ones. They’d known each other for less than a week, and she’d helped to capture him, had enabled his torture. There couldn’t be anything between them — she was human, and he was kraken. Larkin and her people had brought suffering to Dracchus and his.

She lowered her legs from his waist, welcoming immediate pain. Knees wobbling, she released her hold on him.

Dracchus reached for her as she lost her balance, but she caught herself against the wall and held up a hand to stop him, shaking her head.

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