Page 20 of Hunter of the Tide

“Remain close at all times,” Dracchus said. “We will hunt only fish and bottom feeders, keeping the Facility within view as much as possible.”

Randall rounded his lips and released a slow breath. Anticipation thrummed through him, speeding his heartbeat and heating his blood. The water rose past his waist.

Some small part of him wondered why he wasn’t planning an escape.

This wasn’t his world, these weren’t his people. What future could he have down here, really? Half the kraken wanted to kill him and most of the others didn’t care if he lived or died.

His sister and father cared, though. How long would it be before they came looking? If Jon Mason made it back to the fort with news of the kraken’s existence, Randall’s father would come. And when they discovered Randall was missing…

He didn’t want Elle caught up in any of this. He’d nearly lost her once already, long ago, and couldn’t bear that pain again. As much as it hurt to think he’d never see her again, at least she was safe at Fort Culver. But if their father brought her here, used her skills against the kraken, she’d be in immense danger.

He cast those worries aside as the water lifted his feet off the floor and he was completely submerged. None of this was easy, none of it was without danger, but when he thought of Rhea, Melaina, Ikaros, and the others, he knew it was worth the risks.

Ikaros darted around Randall, thick tail moving like a paddle to propel the prixxir through the water. Randall smiled, watching the little creature until a green light came on over the exit.

“Pressurization complete,” Sam chimed.

Randall slipped the harpoon gun off his shoulder, ensured the safety was engaged, and fastened the loop dangling from its grip around his wrist. He met Dracchus’s gaze and the two exchanged a nod. The kraken reached forward and pressed the button on the wall, and the door slid open.

Ikaros bolted into the open water. Randall and Dracchus emerged a moment later, watching the creature zip along. The prixxir used its webbed paws for increased mobility, keeping its legs folded along its belly. Randall didn’t know if Ikaros was faster than a kraken, but there was no question of the prixxir being faster than a human, suit or no suit.

As Ikaros swam farther away, his form darkening in the cerulean water, fear gripped Randall’s insides. It was one thing to say he’d be fine with Ikaros leaving, but now that the possibility stared him in the face it was impossible to ignore.

The door closed behind them, but Randall was only distantly aware of it, just as he was only distantly aware of Dracchus floating nearby.

Keeping his eyes on Ikaros, Randall swam forward. His limbs moved with surprising ease, as though the water put up no resistance, and each motion propelled him farther than it seemed it should have. He was certain his muscles would eventually ache if only because they were unused to the movements, but even his shoulder felt good for now.

He glanced down. The seafloor below was a mixture of sand, stone, and scattered vegetation, as varied and vibrant as anything on land. His eyes roved over his surroundings, drinking in the details within his limited field of view — on the surface, one could see for kilometers under the right conditions, but down here everything succumbed to the blue haze of unending water looming in all directions. It was at once immense and oppressive.

Something rubbed against his leg. He glanced down to see Ikaros’s tail curled around his calf. The prixxir chirruped — the sound was higher and eerier in the relative silence of the ocean — and released its loose hold to swim around Randall in quick circles.

A flash of color to the right caught Randall’s attention — Dracchus. The kraken reverted his skin to its normal shade and motioned for Randall to follow.

They moved at an easy pace, keeping a few meters above the bottom, and approached a jutting rockface. Coral and tall, swaying stalks of purple and green seaweed ran along its crest. As they neared the exposed stone, Randall noted tiny creatures moving over it and weaving in and out of its holes and recesses — some looked like fish, others were wormlike or serpentine, and yet more resembled hard-shelled insects.

Dracchus led them up the steep incline, gesturing for Randall to keep near the rock. Ikaros fell into place beside Randall, whiskers twitching and eyes darting from sea creature to sea creature. Somehow, the prixxir remained close, resisting what must’ve been an instinctual drive to pursue prey.

As they reached the crest, the extent of the vegetation atop it became clear — this wasn’t a field of seagrass, but an underwater forest, granting only fleeting glimpses of the larger creatures lurking within. Some of the fish drifting through the stalks appeared to be more than a meter long, though it was impossible to know for sure.

Dracchus slowed to a stop three or four meters from the edge of the seaweed and sank to the sand. Randall lowered himself nearby. Only Ikaros ventured closer, dropping to slither along the bottom on his belly, going so far as to slip the tip of his snout into the vegetation. His whiskers swept forward and brushed along the stalks, and his spine fin rose and fell.

Randall turned to Dracchus. The kraken went through a series of gestures — pointing to his eyes and then the weed, flashing his skin a shade of green just off that of the vegetation, and then indicated Randall’s harpoon.

Watch for something green in the vegetation and shoot?Randall could only hope that was the kraken’s meaning.

Altering his color to match the plants, Dracchus crept forward, drawing himself along with his hands, and vanished into the swaying forest. Randall shifted into a sitting position, leaned back, and swung the harpoon gun into his hands, angling it slightly upward and releasing the safety. He ran his eyes along the seaweed to watch for movement beyond the ordinary. Ikaros moved back and forth along the bottom of Randall’s vision, whiskers alert, slow but impatient.

The diving suit transmitted audio from the surrounding water, but it was muted, and Randall couldn’t be certain which sounds were normal. His gaze drifted toward the surface high overhead, through which shafts of sparkling light poured to cast restless, web-like shadows on the seafloor. The ocean cradled him, making him feel weightless. All in all, it was a soothing environment, one that wanted to lull him into relaxation and comfort.

And for that, he didn’t trust it. The jungle was always at its most dangerous when it was quiet; the ocean’s similar quiet set off all his internal alarms.

The first hint that something was approaching came from Ikaros. The prixxir halted his restless swim-walking and raised his head, whiskers flaring. He backed away from the edge of the vegetation with his spine fin raised.

Randall followed Ikaros’s gaze with his own and adjusted his hold on the harpoon gun. Something moved within the stalks, and the water displaced by its movement rippled through the seaweed. Whatever this was, it was big. That it might’ve been Dracchus didn’t cross Randall’s mind. The big kraken took hunting as seriously as Randall did, and wouldn’t pull such a stunt — not even to prove some sort of point.

Inhaling, Randall moved two fingers over the lever that served as the harpoon gun’s trigger. His heartbeat quieted, his thoughts stilled, and even the anticipation churning his gut couldn’t break his focus.

A sea monster erupted from the seaweed in a torrent of rushing water.

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