Deep Seas War 5.2

The Depth

The Captain was taken aback by the request if they wanted s single or double berth. He leaned down to look at the Ticketing guy for asking him such a rude question.

“She is my daughter’s age, you landlubber.” Captain Arthur snapped back.

“How would I know? You had my Maisie on the same berth twenty years ago.” The reply was a shocker to the Captain. He peeked harder at the sodden face there and then smiled.

“Percy Banks! You weasel. I have not seen you since …” Percy Banks was Arthur’s good friend before he went sailing.

“Yeah, before you shagged my Maisie just before you left for the sea.” The bespectacled man replied before he pulled at the suspenders on his chest. “You bastard gave me the jitters if it was my son that she had.”

“Did he have any dimples like mine?” Captain Arthur frisked his beard. “You can’t see it now but I had lovely ones then.”

“Fuck you. That will be three Shillings for the tickets and its double berth.” Percy replied before handling over the tickets.

“Percy, for old friend’s sake. I left my purse at the church by the pier. Could I be spare some credits?” Arthur smiled at the man.

They were given the credits to sit at the last wagon with the poor and needy which included five families. One of the family was a young lady with her son all curled up at the corner. And the loving sheep with the handler. It was then Captain Arthur told Stacy of the new expedition.

“I met Lord Henry then during the war. I was the Captain of the Casper then.” The Casper was a fifty foot fishing trawler that was doing the rounds behind the boundary to the deep seas. “The ship was a cover for our real purpose which was to ship the lads to the enemy zone. We moved mostly during the dark.”

“On that day, I was told meet him at the coordinates in the sea lanes. I was baffled because we were in the busy lanes and the authorities then have their regular patrols there. It was a dangerous mission for me and my crew but we acted on it. We waited out there with our excuse that the steamer engine was not working. It was near morning when I heard the knocking on the starboard. We had picked up swimmers; they are the crazy ones to do it then with the water swarming with predators.”

“I checked it and saw the most horrendous sight of my life then. It was the Major then in the water but he was emerging from what appeared to be a fish but it was metal built with the dorsal and fins. It was about fifteen feet in length and five feet across the beam with a three feet draft line. The Major was half appeared from the top hatch at the fin.”

“This is Doreen. She is a prototype for the submarines.”

“Doreen was a new design submarine then as they were named. She was operated by the electrical generator powered by the mini turbine which was fed by the water currents during her voyage. The two men crew survived by the air provided ballast or in the case of dive, they will switch to the portable units. They have the breathing air for one hour.”

“The submarine was designed to go down to below fifty feet in the water and its speed was maximum three knots. It however has a periscope to see above the water surface or in the depths. It held a double harpoon on its side and three mini charges.”

“Its purpose was to do recon.”

“On that night our mission was to pull the Doreen back to port. She had suffered some engine problem and could not dive.  I had her tied to the stern and then we dragged her home.”

“So where is the fuck? I knew you are just telling me the foreplay.” Stacy voiced out. The young mother with the young child curled up further into the corner on her outburst. Captain Arthur laughed out and then apologies to the young single mother.

“It was near dawn when we were to clear the patrols, and then the unexpected happened. A patrol boat was hailing us form the portside. I doubt they seen the submarine which we were hauling but it was decision time. Now then the trawler did hold a Lewis gun but it was based on the aft. I round up the crews to get armed but the Major had dived in on the blind side. I knew he was going for his submarine but I was more concerned on ma own ship. I cut the engine and waited for the patrol boat. It came alongside and the other officer there began hollering on the standing orders. I nodded and smiled like a sea gull with a fish caught on the beak.”

“Then the officer told me that he was coming on board. That was unusual for they seldom do unless we are considered as suspicious. I nodded and held out the gang plank. The engines were slowed down to idling then. I assigned the crews to watch the water for any leaping sharks. They do as you may know.”

“The officer trod over with three of his crews. They were armed and ready for a fight. So were we but I did not know what happened first. The shooting or the explosion? Suddenly we heard an explosion on the other boat. She was hit on the stern. It was then my crew took out their guns and fired on the boarding group.”

“I gave out the order to pull away from the patrol boat. They had turned their guns on us by then but a second explosion tore through the portside. We pulled away for about fifty yards when I saw the submarine have come in between us. It was still dragged by the rope but there was some slack to it. Just when I thought it was impossible, the submarine released its harpoons onto the draft line. Both harpoons slammed into the boat at close proximity. It bored two puncture holes there and the salt water was surging in.”

“I then called on the engine section bring us clear. It was tricky for the submarine was still moored to us. We crew did it and soon we were given round side seats to the sinking of the patrol boat. We had to do the mercy thing and shot them those in the waters. It was the decent move then. We cannot be carrying prisoners and above all, they stood no chance in 

the water.”

Stacy nodded to that. She knew the consequences of floating in the water. Most crews will opt to drown then float.

“The Major?” Stacy asked.

“Well, he made it back, and soon we were good friends.” The Captain replied.

“Murderers…” The single mother cried out before slinking back into the dark corners. Captain Arthur sighed but he knew during war time there was no burden of guilt in killing more so when it’s in the name of mercy.

“The new expedition?” Stacy was ever insistent.