The Eye of Neptune (21 page)

‘The beginning of the end,’ Dakkar finished. For a moment he felt numb. It all sounded unreal but he knew thousands of people would die. The world would be turned upside down.

‘The beginning of a new age,’ Cryptos corrected, clapping his hands. ‘One that, ultimately, you will inherit.’

Chapter Twenty-Five

The Test

Since Dakkar had declared his allegiance to Cryptos, Oginski proved sullen and uncommunicative as they worked on the
Liberty
. Two days had passed and they fitted her out in virtual silence. Sometimes Cryptos stood and watched them with narrow eyes as if searching for some evidence of a plot.

A guard still followed them wherever they went, shadowing them. Olszar waited on Dakkar too.

Despite this, Dakkar found he was free to wander the labyrinth of tunnels. If he came close to a door that concealed something sensitive, his guard would grunt and slam his spear butt on the ground.

‘We are forbidden to enter, my prince,’ Olszar would say.

One door was painted red. Dakkar noticed copper lining the base of the door and the floor.

‘Explosives?’ he whispered to Olszar, who nodded.

‘How did you know?’ the servant whispered back.

‘The copper. It reduces the chance of men’s boots striking a spark,’ Dakkar murmured. The guard banged his spear to the floor and they moved on but Dakkar made a mental note of where the door was.

Another slave hurried to meet them and said something in the strange gurgling language of the Qualar.

‘It seems Cryptos wants you in the throne room,’ Olszar interpreted as they hurried up the steps.

Cryptos sat in his chair as Dakkar entered. Georgia was slumped in the corner of the tank just as she had been when he’d last seen her. She jumped up when he came in and pressed her hands to the front of the glass box.

‘My guards tell me that you’ve been exploring the complex,’ Cryptos said, leaning forward in his chair.

‘Don’t you trust me?’ Dakkar countered.

‘Should I?’ Cryptos replied, sitting back in his seat.

‘Probably not, if you want me to be ruthless,’ Dakkar said. ‘I haven’t forgiven you any more than I’ve forgiven Oginski. I will have my revenge on both of you.’

‘Dakkar?’ Georgia said, the glass muffling her voice. ‘What’s going on? Where is everyone?’

Dakkar looked at her tear-stained face and gritted his teeth, forcing down the stab of regret.

‘I’d be disappointed if you didn’t want my head,’ Cryptos said, leering at him. ‘But I need some kind of assertion of loyalty to our cause.’ He stood up and walked over to Georgia, who spat at the glass in his direction. The eels squirmed and wriggled in their slimy tank next to hers.

‘Kill her,’ Cryptos snapped, stepping back to allow Dakkar access to the lever that would release the eels.

Dakkar bit his tongue and felt the blood drain from his face. Georgia’s eyes widened and she slammed her fists against the side of the tank.

‘Prove to me that you are committed to the cause of Count Cryptos,’ he hissed. ‘Pull the lever. Kill her.’

‘Very well,’ Dakkar said, swallowing hard. His throat felt dry as he walked over to the lever. He reached out to grasp it.

‘What are you doing?’ Georgia yelled.

His sweating fingers closed around the ivory handle.

‘Dakkar, have you gone mad? It’s me, Georgia!’

‘Don’t you ever shut up?’ Dakkar snapped, and tensed his arm muscles as if to slam the lever down.

‘Stop!’ Cryptos barked. His face split into a broad grin.

Dakkar dropped his hand. For a moment, Georgia’s breathless sobs were the only noise in the room.

‘Why did you stop me?’ Dakkar frowned, doing his best to look frustrated.

‘We need her a little longer,’ Cryptos said. ‘Fulton and Oginski would down tools if they knew she was dead already. The
Liberty
will be ready tomorrow. Oginski will show you how to control the pincers and then we will take the Eye of Neptune.’

‘Can I go now?’ Dakkar murmured. He felt cold inside.

Georgia had recovered her breath and stood glaring at Dakkar.

‘Just you wait, mister!’ she bellowed. ‘When I get out of here, you’ll be so sorry.’

Dakkar didn’t look at her as he stalked out of the room.

On the evening of the next day, Cryptos summoned Dakkar to the cave to be familiarised with the controls. Dakkar hurried down, followed by Olszar and the guard. They gasped and gulped as they tried to keep up with him.

‘You race to the cavern,’ Olszar grunted, catching up with him. ‘In the water we would beat you, but on land we are slow!’

Dakkar glanced back at the struggling guard. ‘If you can,’ he whispered to Olszar, ‘give me a few seconds alone with Oginski. I need to talk to him.’

Olszar frowned but nodded and slowed down as the guard caught up.

Cryptos paced the jetty, rubbing his hands. Oginski and Fulton stood, flanked by guards, their arms hanging limply at their sides. Oginski looked defeated.

Behind the
Nautilus
, like a duckling with its mother, the
Liberty
bobbed on the illuminated water. She was tilted forward slightly by the weight of the hurriedly built arms that poked in front of the craft.

‘At last,’ Cryptos snapped. ‘Once I have the Eye of Neptune, the Mole will be complete.’

‘And not just the Mole, Count Cryptos,’ said Dakkar. ‘You said the Eye could be used to power a whole fleet of submersibles and, I imagine, all manner of other terrible machines.’

‘If my research is correct,’ Cryptos said, his eyes gleaming, ‘then the Eye of Neptune is a Voltalith, a meteor that carries a massive electrical charge. Only a mere fragment will be needed to turn the giant auger.’

‘Then what are we waiting for?’ Dakkar clambered on to the
Liberty
. ‘Oginski will show me how to operate the pincers.’

Dakkar gave Olszar a meaningful glance and clambered down into the
Liberty
. Dakkar’s guard and Oginski followed. It felt good to be back in the familiar surroundings and, for a second, Dakkar almost forgot the rift between them. Dakkar removed his black linen jacket and laid it on the cases that held the Sea Arrows. Oginski showed Dakkar the levers that opened and closed the pincers and the lock that screwed shut once the object had been picked up.

Dakkar’s guard stood over them watching every move. Olszar appeared, climbing down the ladder.

‘Did I ask you down here?’ Dakkar said, raising his eyebrows at Olszar.

‘No, but . . .’ Olszar began, looking deep into Dakkar’s eyes. Dakkar gave a slight nod.

‘Don’t answer me back!’ Dakkar snapped. ‘Get out now!’

Olszar gave a roar and clamped his hands round Dakkar’s throat. Immediately the guard lunged forward and ended up grappling with Olszar, blocking the hatch and stopping the others from climbing down. Dakkar staggered away from the wrestling pair.

‘Is that your toolbox?’ he hissed, nodding at the long rectangular box at Oginski’s feet.

Oginski nodded and then his eyes widened as Dakkar whipped open the lid to the Sea Arrows and pulled one out. He dropped it into the toolbox and flicked the lid shut.

Grabbing a large spanner, he swung it down on Olszar’s head. The Qualar crumpled to the floor, leaving the panting guard to struggle to his feet.

‘What is going on in here?’ Cryptos shouted, as he climbed down into the lower cabin.

‘Olszar attacked me,’ Dakkar said. ‘But I knocked him out.’

‘He shall pay with his life,’ Cryptos hissed.

‘No,’ Dakkar said, kicking the unconscious Qualar. ‘Make him work. Make him a slave like the rest of his people. Such a humiliation would be worse than death to him.’

‘You’re learning fast,’ Cryptos said with a snigger. ‘Take him to the slave pit and throw him in!’

Dakkar gave Oginski a fleeting grin and watched the crumpled, defeated look vanish.

‘Cryptos, look out!’ Dakkar yelled. ‘He has an explosive in that box!’

Oginski stared in disbelief as the guard stamped forward and whipped the butt end of his spear at him. The wood made a hollow clunk as it struck Oginski’s temple, sending him tumbling to the ground.

Dakkar snatched the Sea Arrow from the box and held it up for Cryptos to see.

‘Well done, my apprentice!’ he enthused. ‘If I doubted you before, I no longer do.’

‘Dakkar . . . you betrayed me . . .’ Oginski stammered as two guards dragged him to his feet.

‘Now you know how it feels,’ Dakkar said, gritting his teeth.

‘Lock him away,’ Cryptos said, stroking his chin. ‘Secure the submersible and prepare supplies. Tomorrow we seek the Eye of Neptune.’

Dakkar grinned and picked up his linen jacket, hugging it to him.

‘You like the trappings of wealth and power, I see,’ Cryptos said, nodding at Dakkar’s fine jacket.

‘Oh yes,’ Dakkar murmured, and clambered out of the
Liberty
, still clutching it. He hugged the second Sea Arrow, wrapped in the fine cloth, to his chest like a baby.

Chapter Twenty-Six

The Eye

Dakkar stood poring over the sea chart. The contour lines snaked and swirled in front of him in a confusing mass. Here and there rock escarpments and coral reefs jutted out, deep chasms that scored the seabed.

‘Although the Qualar fear this area, they could describe it to a degree,’ Cryptos said, tracing a long, black fingernail across the paper. ‘The chart I had drawn from their descriptions may be unreliable but it’s the best we can do. The volcano vents out here and apparently smoke boils from the seabed. The Eye of Neptune can’t be missed.’

‘The seabed looks treacherous,’ Dakkar murmured, craning his neck to look at the chart.

‘Two days from now, my plan will be complete,’ Cryptos said to himself, stroking his straggly beard. ‘Two days . . .’

‘I’ll need the Fulton girl,’ Dakkar said, cutting over him.

‘What?’ Cryptos said, scowling. Dakkar could see a vein pulsing at his temple. ‘What on earth for?’

‘She’s as good a captain as me,’ Dakkar said reasonably. ‘She’ll be able to hold the
Liberty
steady while I grab the Eye with the pincers. I can’t do it on my own.’

‘But Phoebus can do that,’ Cryptos said, clenching his fists.

‘Can he describe what he can see as he captains the ship?’ Dakkar said with a dismissive gesture. ‘Has he sailed her across the ocean?’

‘No, but he is reliable,’ Cryptos said.

‘Don’t you trust me?’ Dakkar asked, raising an eyebrow. ‘I saved you from Oginski’s bomb. I’ve shown you that I’ll happily take the girl’s life if she causes trouble.’

Cryptos narrowed his eyes. His mouth became a thin line. ‘Very well,’ he said. ‘But Phoebus Blight goes with you too. That girl is too handy with her fists.’

Dakkar hadn’t expected Georgia to be quite so handy with her fists.

‘How could you betray us like that?’ she hissed, bounding at him and pinning him to the ground. ‘You . . .’ she punctuated each phrase with a blow, ‘ . . . would . . .’ stars flashed in Dakkar’s eyes, ‘. . . have . . .’ his head banged against the decking of the jetty, ‘. . . killed me!’

Grabbing her shoulders, Dakkar rolled and tried to free himself. The iron taste of blood filled his mouth and his head echoed with the painful thump he’d just received. The guards managed to drag her off him.

‘And you want to take this wildcat with you?’ Cryptos laughed. ‘I did warn you.’

‘She’ll calm down,’ Dakkar said, staggering to his feet and wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

‘We trusted you, Dakkar,’ Georgia yelled, lunging at him again. ‘And you let us down!’

‘It was the only way,’ Dakkar said, spitting blood into the water. ‘Now, are you going to help me get the Eye of Neptune or do you want to go back to your eel tank?’

‘I think I prefer the eels to you,’ Georgia snarled.

‘Enough of this prattle,’ Cryptos cut in. ‘I’m impatient to have the Eye of Neptune in my grasp. If Miss Fulton will not cooperate, then you’ll have to take your chances with just my man.’

Phoebus Blight shuffled forward and stared at Dakkar.

‘I need you to come with me,’ Dakkar said to Georgia in a low voice, his eyes pleading.

Georgia frowned. ‘All right then,’ she said slowly. ‘But don’t think I’ve forgotten.’

They climbed into the
Liberty
followed by Blight, who made eager grunting noises, running his hands over the controls and the brass rails.

‘One day, my friend,’ Cryptos said, staring down at him from the hatch above, ‘you will have a whole fleet of these to command.’

‘Nnngh!’ Blight lifted his scarred face to Cryptos and gave a twisted grin.

Dakkar and Georgia climbed down into the lower cabin while Blight sat in the captain’s seat above, admiring the controls.