Deep Sea Chapter 2

2.

The Surface

The Ministry of Food and Natural Growth was located inside a tropical garden grown in a glasshouse covering over a hundred acres. It was an unusual structure for outside of that glass enclosure was the natural surroundings of thick smog and varying temperatures, although the structure was built outside the city boundaries. Anyone would have stated that the glass panels for the structure were an invitation to intruders or pranksters but no one dared to intrude there. It was guarded by a company of guards with the armored vehicles to ensure the growths there has their peace of mind to survive in solitude.

The amount of food was near to starvation level then, when the world’s population exceeded its supply. It was not the fault of the growers or breeders, but the land was just not assisting in the process of growth. The soil of the lands was getting rancid with the previous impregnation of fast growth additives. It had mutated the soil to reject new growths or manifested into toxic produce.  That good produce lands slowly and eventually dwindled into pockets of these places. While the growing soils were getting smaller, the land creatures themselves have also evolved into carnivores and devoured the others in the name of survival. The creatures have more than evolved but digressed into their previous molds. The predators became larger while the surviving breeds also evolved to become more resilient to their predators. The man was the culprit but they also turned to be saviors albeit it was a last resort move. They tried to reclaim the lands by nurturing the soil but it was a

tedious job. More so when on the land were predators of their own and also of the others. It was compounded by the pangs of hunger of the mass. It was once remarked that the poison of one was the meat for the other. Man embarked on hunting expeditions to seek more food for the mass. They rounded up the living creatures and penned them into corrals to breed and to slaughter for food. With the new supply mode, the perpetrators soon displayed their greed to outdo the other. Hence the war started for the hunts and breeding

“It’s a senseless war.” Lord Henry raised his point to the assembled at the Great Hall of the Ministry of Food and Natural Growth. It was a grand hall with the decorated ceiling that was garish with the drawings of organic growths and some living docile creatures. Lord Henry sniggered when he saw the drawing included a stallion with an obvious marker protruding. Obviously, the artist had a unique sense of humor. They gathered in the hall and were seated on both sides with the high back chairs situated on four elevated rows of the platform. Each side of the seats could seat a hundred persons and both sides were filled to the last seat. They gathered there on the right includes the large corporations that funded the hunting and breeding expeditions. The Ministry was hospitable to have two long tables laid out on that side with the lavish spread of food including the fresh growths. The offered food of the Ministry would alleviate anyone of their hunger pangs after all these discussions do drag long into the wee hours of the next dawn. Sadly, none of the gathered there took notice of the food but they consumed what they had brought with them in their personal valise. It was not that the food was not appetizing but each plate was viewed with contempt for fear of being poisoned.

“Irony for us that we are fighting a war over the production of food when ….” Lord Henry’s voice was drowned out by the producers and breeders with their fists banging and their feet in resonance to protest on the word ‘war’ imposed for the current conflict. He decided then to move from the podium back to the left side of the hall where the other group of them gathered there. They were not of the other side but they were the mass elected representatives to voice out the concerns of the mass. Ironically they do attend the gathering although for the wrong reason. They came for the lavish food served there although theirs was on separate tables with the equal offered delicacies.

“Jolly bad turnout, huh?” Lord Henry looked to the one who had whispered to him. It was Lord Ian Stuart, a jolly turbulent figure with a penchant for the three-piece suit although his preferred design of crimson red had failed to hide the scant leftovers on his crude gobbling.

“No, the turnout is good. It was just the listening crowd that was deplorable.” Lord Henry replied with sarcasm. He looked hard into Lord Ian.

“Could I place my trust with you?” Lord Henry whispered to the other. He did not await the reply and continued on.

“Do you think we should seek new pasture for our food source?” Sir Henry was all excited about it. “I am talking of the open seas.”

“Don’t be daft, Henry.” Ian hit back. “The open sea is a dangerous place. I will be darned even with the hills yonder our hunters are already quivering in their knees and yet you want to tempt the open seas with the depths unknown.”

“Could you do not settle for the beaches and the jetties?” Lord Ian continued his disagreement then. “We have enough casualties there with those …what they call them…. sharks taking bites off them.”

“I know, Ian. I am referring to the open sea with the correct equipment. We can bring in the larger catch of fish and heck it might even run over the loads they could breed in six months.” Lord Henry was past listening and found the needed ears for his idea.

“Good Lord, Henry. You will be ruined if you proceed.” Lord Ian pleaded with the other. “Be a jolly chap and retire please.”

Lord Henry had stood up when he saw the gathered had adjourned the session. He stood up and moved off to his next audience. Lord Ian asked where he was headed.

“The Chamberlain Office.” Lord Henry called back.  The Chamberlain was the channel to the Head of the Ministry.

“Good Lord, is the man going to meet the main monster straight on.” Lord Ian muttered to himself. “The other knew not of his own limits.”

The Depth

The Sea King measured four hundred feet and sixty across the beam with a draft of twenty feet. It held a displacement of over seven thousand tons with full speed knots of eighteen knots.  With these dimensions, even the high crest of the waves still towered over its beams. It was one thing to run into a wall of saltwater but the lurking danger was what it may hold inside.

“Portside, First Officer.” Captain Arthur called out when he saw the sea serpent that was hiding in the waves. “Steer to port and keep it steady.”

First Officer Stacy pulled at the ship wheel to steer the ship away from the serpent’ path. It was not a hard task for the ship’s wheel was powered by the shifting gears that eased the pressure of the pull but the force of the waves outside was had caused a drag. She struggled with the wheel with her strength while the Captain called on the crews to man the positions needed in such happening. In the crew’s quarter which could house up to sixty crews, they were roused by the siren which told them that the ship was in danger.   

Elise pulled herself up from the flooring after she had pushed Arnold off her. She stood up and pulled on her yellow pantsuit before she trod off to the kitchen. Arnold meanwhile had sat up with his lower half of the body naked with a glistening and unsatisfied need. He heard the siren and reached for his pants. He was soon stepped or pushed aside by the storming pace when they rushed to their positions.

“Watch where you…” Arnold could not complete his statement when one of the crews stepped on his left knee. He cried out in pain but no one pays heed to him. During such an emergency, every crew member was concerned about the ship. Arnold was trying to stand up when someone assisted him up. He turned to look and saw it was the Boatswain. He was a short squat man with a body frame dyed with seventy different tattoos. He had then done for every fishing expedition and that had averaged three per year.

“Next time get a room.” Martin Anjou grabbed Arnold by the back of his neck and threw him out alongside his pantsuit lower half. “Get to your position.”

Arnold ran off with his clothes toward the upper deck. His position was at the portside to man the crane. He crawled into the crane seat and strapped in. It was then he saw the serpent which swam effortlessly in the waves. It was huge; a hundred and twenty feet in length with a sleek scaled body that breathed over eight feet across and the head was a snakehead the blue slits for eyes with a wide jaw that could have swallowed a man. Inside the serpent’s jaws were the three rows of sharp teeth that prevent the catch from escaping its bite.

 “It’s a Medusa breed.” Captain Arthur called out on the communication links. These serpents are deadly but they are also highly-priced for their succulent flesh. “I want her.”

Stacy bit her lower lips on the order. The Captain has a tendency of calling all the sea monsters by feminine names. She knew that serpent as the sea monsters and it was sufficient for her to avoid if she can. The Medusa was a rare catch for it was known to strike down smaller ships and their crews. The Sea King was bigger than the serpent but the later was known to swim in pairs.

“Keep an eye for her mate. She does not swim alone.” True to the Captain’s warning, the second serpent appeared on the starboard side. She was a beauty too with her open deadly jaws and no bigger than the earlier one at over a hundred feet in length.

“Holy mackerel! That is a huge one.” Stacy called out but the Captain was focussing on the crews who were in their assigned position. He saw Martin had strapped into the harpoon turret.

The Frenchman has then activated the harpoon gun to be brought up. It was laid beneath the turret for secure holding. When the Frenchman pulled at the lever, it will move the gears into motions which will pull the hoist that will, in turn, raised the harpoon gun. These actions were activated from the steam generated turbine which fed the electrical generators. The harpoon gun was a five feet long rotating barrel muzzle loading design with a breach firing trigger. The trigger mounted on the back of the gun. The breech block would be fed with a cartridge that contained gunpowder to create an impact for the propulsion of the harpoon. Once it’s fired the breech lock will be manually opened by rotating its cover to dispense off the spent cartridge casing before a new one is inserted. Then the cover is rotated to seal the breech lock. The harpoons are loaded by the turret loading mechanism which was similar to an overhead beam with the spring released hanging two feet length harpoons over the gun.

The beam loading mechanism held four harpoons per load. The gun will position to its vertical position for the loading of the harpoon. The harpoon will drop into the barrel and ready for firing. Each loading and firing will take no more than twenty seconds. When all the four harpoons are fired, the beam will be lowered to the loaders below to reload it. That will take about thirty seconds to reload. The effective range was only five hundred yards. The Sea King held six of these harpoon turrets with three on each side while on the stern was the heavier double harpoon gun with the double displacement in weight. The extra length barrel extended over twelve feet has an effective range of over five hundred yards.

In addition to that the deep fishing ship held eight machine gun turrets armed with the Lewis machine guns. The gun was gas-operated with an aluminum barrel-shroud that cools it. The gun held a pan magazine with 97 rounds each. It has an effective range of eight hundred yards. Those were the standard weapons configuration of deep-sea fishing ships. The sea posed more dangers than a normal hunting expedition.

“Serpents alert!” Captain Arthur called out.