Cry For Tomorrow (28 page)

“Well, do I pass inspection?” Ben laughed when I continued to gape at him.

“Umm, yes, I mean—” I knew I was blushing.

Jennie smirked at me as she pushed past and onto the dock. “Where do we go now?” she asked Rainor as she looked around. “Does the trail pick up on the other side of your village?”

“Well, not exactly.” Rainor smiled down at her. “I have something a little faster in mind. As I told you all earlier, under-world consists of a whole lot of ocean with thousands of islands scattered across it. Surface travel is normally reserved for the transport of large amounts of supplies or longer treks, but traveling from island to island is usually done via a network of
tubes
that connect the islands to each other. The glow-worms living in the shallows surrounding the larger islands produce some exceptionally large globes that are perfect for constructing the tubes.” At that moment, the smooth surface of the lagoon exploded with splashing water and the heads of more than a half-dozen dolphins like the ones we’d seen playing in the lagoon with the children.

“With the aid of the steeds, we’ll get there faster and won’t get as tired,” Rainor explained.

“Hey, wait a minute now, pal,” interrupted Ben, “in case you failed to notice, we all don’t come with gills and fins like you do.”

“Oh, that won’t be a problem.” Misty laughed. “The tubes are filled with the
bubbles
the glow-worms breathe out when they’re working underwater.”

“Yes,” Rainor smiled at the looks on our faces. “You see, the glow worms are basically animate plants. They separate the oxygen and hydrogen from the water and expel bubbles of oxygen which are trapped in a semi-liquid form within the walls of the tubes. Whenever a tube is getting low on air we just herd a few of the glows into it and let them do their thing.”

“So you can both swim and breathe inside the tubes,” added Misty.

“Great, now we get to breathe glow-worm farts!” grumbled Jake.

“Yeah, but that also means that we each get to swim with one of these.” Kelly smiled delightedly as she stroked the slick skin of a pretty, rainbow-colored dolphin. “This is going to be sooo great.”

“Wait a minute.” I raised my hand and backed up. “We have one little problem.” I nodded at the dog that had returned to my side. “Most dogs don’t swim underwater very well.”

“Ah, but yours is about to learn how.” Rainor turned and looked to a pair of men emerging from between two of the huts. “Have you got the sled ready?”

“I think this will do it,” answered Orin. He laid an object closely resembling a large snowshoe constructed of woven sea grass with a harness attached to it, on the dock at our feet. “If you will have the dog lay flat on her belly, you can strap her into this
sled
. I’ll swim beside you and carry one side so that we can tow her between us.”

“But will she be able to breathe all right?”

“Sure. She might be a little frightened at first, but the bubbles will work the same for animals as they do humans,” Orin assured me.

“Well, okay.” Trying to contain my anxiety, I peered over the side of the dock at the children floating about on the chariots and curiously watching the adults.

“And just how are we going to access this
tube
of yours?” Ben asked as he looked around.

“No problem, here they come now,” Rainor pointed to a ramp leading into the water a few yards along the dock. Four young men were wading up it, dragging with them a tube made of a string of the large glow-globes that were fused together. There was an opening that was perhaps twelve feet across at the end they were carrying that seemed to hold a froth of large bubbles. When the tube was well anchored on the ramp, they stepped back and waited.

“Here, you’ll find these make it much easier to focus your eyes while swimming,” Misty said as she began passing out goggles similar to the masks commonly used by divers on the over-world.

We each took a pair of the goggles before converging on the tube to better examine this contraption we were being asked to trust our lives to.

“Hey, these
are
air-bubbles,” laughed Jake as he withdrew his head from the froth.

We each had to thrust our head into the bubbles to test the truth of this before we were satisfied.

“Orin! Will you carry that sled down here so that Halie can strap the dog in? We really need to get going.” Rainor looked up at the sky for a moment as if judging the time of day. “I would like to reach the City before evening.” He shook his head in concern. “Even in the tubes, it’s too dangerous in the open waters after dark.”

Reminded of the creatures that had crawled out of the sea to attack us only a few hours earlier, I picked up my pace, hurriedly arranging the straps on the sled.

“Dusty! Come here, girl,” I coaxed the suddenly suspicious dog. “Now is the time to trust me when I tell you this is going to be okay.” I stroked her head as I began fastening the harness around her. “Okay, that should take care of it.” I looked up at the people patiently waiting for me before pulling the goggles down over my eyes.

“Let’s do it.” Orin grinned as he took hold of one side of the sled and helped me float it onto the water and toward the mouth of the tunnel.

Rainor’s sharp whistle brought the small school of dolphins surging towards us. “Into the tunnel, my friends!” he ordered. “You too, Ralph.” Chirping happily, the frogg leaped into the water and dove into the froth.

The steed disappeared into the foaming tunnel mouth only to return a moment later, laughing loudly at this joke.

“Ben, if you will bring up the rear of the procession, I think we’re ready.” Rainor slid into the mouth of the tunnel. “Now if you will each follow my example, I’ll lead the way.” With his one arm wrapped over the back of the nearest steed, the pair disappeared into the froth of bubbles.

Jake and Jennie gave each other a nod and did the same.

“I get the pink one!” Kelly laughed as she followed them to the tunnel mouth and the dolphins floating on the surface of the bubbles.

“Ready?” Ben asked as he waded through the water to stand beside me.

With a nod, Orin and I each grabbed hold of a handle on the side of the sled between us and reached our free arms over the back of the steeds that were patiently bobbing at our sides.

“Okay, I’m as ready as I will ever be,” I answered. I was
really
nervous about this whole
tunnel-full-of-bubbles
thing, but there was no way I could chicken out now. I adjusted the goggles over my eyes and sank into the froth of bubbles.

I kept my grip on Dusty’s sled, but my own eyes and lungs were nearly popping before I finally surrendered and took a breath. I felt the dog relax and stop struggling, too, as she was forced to breathe the strange atmosphere.

We were moving along at a pretty good clip, but it was a few moments before I realized that my kicking was actually hindering the steed’s efforts. It was difficult, but I forced myself to relax and only use my legs to guide my body and let the dolphin flexing at my side do her job as we glided through the tunnel.

Now that I wasn’t struggling, I began to take notice of the terrain we were passing through. The tube sections were translucent and I could see the large rock and coral formations and schools of fish surrounding us. I jerked a little at the arrival of a large red and blue striped squid on the surface of the tube but relaxed again when I realized that it couldn’t hurt us. It stayed with us, crawling across the tube, staring at the tempting creatures swimming within for a mile or more before suddenly darting away into a forest of coral.

Guess it decided to try its luck elsewhere
, I thought as I watched it disappear. I’d returned to watching the scenery flowing past when a sharp, darting movement to one side of a large fan of coral caught my attention. As I was towed past the spot, I turned my head, trying to focus my eyes on the image swimming just beyond the limits of visibility. And I was staring at the gleaming teeth of a shark-like creature charging the tube.

I tried to scream, but didn’t know how and only coughed on the bubbles that filled my open mouth. I tried to get the attention of the man swimming on the other side of Dusty, but Orin wasn’t looking in my direction. Desperate, I jerked on the sled between us.
Look at me!
When his inquisitive gaze turned my way, I shook my head and nodded toward the dark image that was now pacing us.

Orin lurched against the sled and nodded his head in understanding. I was a little surprised when he clenched his eyes shut for a moment until I realized that the sharp buzzing I was hearing at the back of my mind was probably a telepathic warning to Rainor and the steeds at the front of the procession. It only made sense that a species of people that lived most of their lives underwater would have some form of communication other than verbal.

Tightening my grip on Dusty and the dolphin, I turned my upper body around in an effort to see where Ben was. He should be right behind me.

He was. Ben waved one hand and nodded that he’d seen it.

I was beginning to hope that maybe the creature was just window-shopping when it slammed into the tube a few feet ahead of me.

Grabbing the sides with its two clawed hands, it stared at the swimmers within. Startled by the attempted attack, the dolphins squealed a high-pitched warning that made my ears ring and my head throb. I was hoping that the message I knew they’d just sent to the other steeds had been received.

Obviously frightened and not sure if they should charge ahead or turn back, the steeds slowed their pace when they reached the section where the shark-creature was clinging to the tube, and I got a much closer look than I really wanted at this version of shark and its short muzzle of deadly teeth. Fearing the worst, I made the decision for them. Kicking my feet, I and leaned my weight against the sled to get us further away from the face of the great predator grinning down on us. I was relieved when Orin added his strength to dragging the awkward contraption away from the predator.

Moving in from behind me, Ben drove his steed between me and the wall of the tube so that he could slam a fist against the translucent wall in an effort to drive the creature away.

It was not impressed. Backing up, it ran at us again, this time ramming its great head into the tube.

Lost in a blinding froth of bubbles, we were thrown from side to side of the tube—and over the sloshing of the water in my ears, I could hear the
screech!
of teeth sliding along the crystalline shell. When the turbulence settled, Ben signaled to Orin and me to pick up our pace—maybe we could put some distance between it and us,

But the creature was not to be discouraged so easily. Wrapping its short arms and legs over the outer wall of the tunnel, it worked its thick body to the top of the tube and began creeping along. I was very much aware of the big predator’s black, soulless eyes tracking our every move and the thick, slimy saliva frothing around the tips of the triple rows of jagged teeth filling its great maw.

As frightened as the humans, the dolphins increased their speed and we’d finally left the shark’s dark form behind us when we reached a sharp right-hand bend in the tube. Still very frightened, the steed towing Orin hit the outside of the tube, dragging all of us with him. Unable to stop so suddenly, Ben’s steed slammed into us, adding to the confusion.

Thrown together in a froth of bubbles, the two men and I were left trying to untangle feet, fins and the thrashing and the very frightened dog we were towing.

Easy now, easy, girl. Everything is going to be okay,
I thought at her, wishing desperately that I could communicate on a telepathic level as I knew Orin was doing with the dolphins. I was relieved when Dusty responded to the gentle but firm hands on her and finally lay quietly quivering under my hand.
Or maybe she’s just too frightened to move.

The men had finally calmed the steeds and we were beginning to move ahead again when the shark-creature caught up to us. Jumping on the bend in the tube with all four stumpy legs, it closed its jaws on the crystalline bubble.

At first there was only the scraping and screech of those jagged teeth but a nerve shattering
crack
was followed by the snap of breaking glass—and a star-burst of cracks expanded around the globe. The shark-creature shook its head and twisted and the tips of its teeth punched into the outer surface.

I took a hesitant breath of air, afraid I would taste salt on it, but was relieved that the thick silica material of the bubble was holding up to the assault. Thoughts of an impending rupture made me wonder just how deep in the ocean we were and whether I could hold Dusty’s muzzle closed long enough to reach the surface before we both drowned. As if hearing my thoughts, Orin grabbed my shoulder and shook his head no. Pointing to the teeth now
trapped
in the tough material of the globe, he then pointed to the passage ahead.

Nodding my head in understanding, I tightened my hold on the steed’s fin and let it pull me along the tube. Orin was right. The shark was trapped where it was—for now. But I wondered what would happen when it finally did get free and destroyed that section of tubing as well.

We quickly caught up to the rest of the group, who had slowed to wait for us. Now that we were together again, the steeds increased their pace considerably, as if they were determined to out-swim the rogue shark-creature we had just left behind—and I was sure that I could taste just a hint of salt-water in the bubbles I was breathing.

Much to the relief of the human travelers, and a very frightened dog, we reached the end of the tube a short time later.

The tube, at this end, had been permanently fixed between some stout beams so that its mouth opened upward like a fountain. The bubbles fizzing from the mouth over-flowed in a pretty stream on the surface of a large pool of water.

Careful to hold the sled carrying the dog well above the surface, Orin and I released the pair of dolphins so that they could leap into the pool after their friends. Ben rose from the water beside us and added his hands to the sled so that we could each swim over the lip of the tube before turning to take a side of the conveyance.