by Russ Elliott
So close to them now, the whales seemed impossibly enormous in these live conditions. Like glowing serpents, streams of morning light slithered along their gray bodies. Their haunting moans echoed around him.
Descending beneath them now, Nathan turned his attention away from the sprawling giants overhead and focused on the seafloor. Off to his right was a kelp forest. A kick of his fins, and he dove beside the magnificent display of sea vegetation. The towering vines of seaweed and leaf-like blades swayed gently with the current. Another pump of his fins, and he examined the rocky seabed. And there it was, the flashing green light of the camera and transmitter laying at the edge of the kelp forest.
He reached the seafloor in a puff of silt. Picking up the homing device, he inspected the camera, slowly turning it in the haze. Other than a slight scratch on the lens, it appeared to be undamaged.
Then out of the corner of his eye, Nathan noticed a large plume of bubbles rise from the kelp forest. Gracefully, the silver froth floated up through the darkness toward the surface light, slowly dissipating before the whales. He followed the bubbles back down to their point of origin.
His blood ran cold.
Between the tall, waving kelp vines, he saw a set of enormous interlocked teeth and long jaws. Behind them, the kelp forest offered glimpses of an impossible length of gray, tiger-striped skin.
He dropped the camera to the seafloor as he ducked back, hiding behind the kelp. But the monster remained still, it’s burning red eyes locked on the whale pod.
There was a series of clicking sounds from above. Near the surface, three bull sperm whales broke off from the pod. They drew closer and began to circle as if to investigate the enormous intruder.
Nathan watched the bulls move in closer. With every pass, the whales drew nearer. The water displaced from their massive bodies, making the kelp come alive.
Still, the pliosaur did not move.
Closer . . . and in the blink of an eye, the monster launched, using all four of its enormous paddle fins, latching its jaws onto the neck of the closest whale. Using its full weight, the pliosaur veered the whale around and released it toward the seafloor.
Nathan ducked as the whale barreled through the kelp, just missing him, and crashed into the seabed, shaking the seafloor. With a horrible moan, the creature twisted and rolled across the seabed in a huge cloud of sediment. Blood poured from its gaping wound.
Nathan felt a massive surge of water. He turned away from the whale writhing on the seafloor behind him. Through the haze, he saw the vast underbelly of the second whale flash overhead.
The pliosaur slowly rose from the towering vines of kelp. Vines tangled around a rear paddle fin were uprooted and rose with the beast. With the thrust of a front paddle fin, the monster pulled its head back as the second whale barreled by, just missing its pebbled skin.
Around Nathan, the seafloor fell dark as the pliosaur rose higher, blotting out the surface light. He could now see the creature’s full form: the giant reptilian head, the four paddle fins that protruded out from an enormous tiger-striped body, slowly tapering down to a thick tail.
The colossal head methodically turned. Its front paddle fins swept out, ready for battle. Burning eyes searched for the whale.
The second whale appeared out of the gloom, picking up speed. As the whale closed, Nathan noticed the flashing green light on its back.
~~~
Inside the surveillance cabin, Nemo had both hands covering his mouth, stupefied, as he stared at the war being waged on monitor two. It showed the whale’s perspective as it zeroed in on the pliosaur. The screen filled with the monster’s spreading jaws. “This can’t be happening!” gasped Nemo, flipping every switch on the console to make sure he was recording.
Back on the battle, the second whale barreled straight at the pliosaur.
Closer . . . And at the last second, the giant reptile twisted, avoiding the collision but still able to sink its barbaric teeth into the passing flank.
Captain Nemo nearly fainted.
~~~
In one of thousands of classrooms around the globe, a young teacher adjusted a TV set in front of her unruly third graders. She was pleasantly surprised when blue ocean water appeared on the screen. “Students, look now. We’re getting a live transmission from the Nauticus II!” She pointed at a gray mass at the bottom of the screen. “Everyone look . . . see the top of the whale’s head?” She stepped back, cocking her head to one side. “Hmmm. Why does it look like its spinning?”
Just then, a swath of blood washed over the whale’s head and filled the screen.
Ooohs and aaahs spread through the classroom.
~~~
Inside the surveillance cabin, Nemo remained riveted to monitor two, watching the red cloud thicken on the screen. Then his eyes happened to drift down to the white light flashing beneath the monitor, and two words lit up: Transmitting Live.
He’d hit the wrong switch for recording. “Oh no! Can’t have the kids seeing this.” He quickly flipped the switch to off, holding his heart as he leaned heavily back in the chair. The flip of Captain Nemo’s switch to OFF triggered thousands of disappointed moans in classrooms around the world.
~~~
Peering up from the seabed, Nathan saw the pliosaur deepen its grip on the second whale. The whale’s enormous fluke kicked madly, but only managed to turn the interlocked beasts in a circle.
With a bellowing moan, the whale rolled. But the pliosaur, using its weight, rode the behemoth down toward the seafloor, its massive jaws closing, blood billowing like smoke from a chimney.
Nathan scurried back across the seafloor, trying to create some distance between himself and the fury.
The two giants slammed into the seabed, sending out a massive cloud of silt. The sperm whale squirmed madly. The monster’s jaws twisted, sinking deeper. The blood cloud grew thicker. Nathan could barely see the pliosaur’s head which was deep into the whale.
A horrible moan rose from the whale. The nearby kelp swayed crazily from its thrashing fluke. But the colossal jaws around the whale only sank deeper.
Deeper . . .
Finally, with a tremendous plume of blood, the whale’s head dropped. Its rear section plopped in the opposite direction, still squirming. Blubber spilled, bathing the seafloor in an ivory gelatin.
The whale was completely bitten in half.
Through the red cloud, Nathan could just make out the pliosaur’s nose rising. The jaws cracked open and unleashed a gurgling roar, expelling bubbles until the victorious beast completely disappeared behind a crimson haze.
But it wasn’t over. The vast underbelly of the third whale soared overhead.
Nathan scurried across the seafloor. Disoriented and blinded by the bloody silt, he stumbled on, trying to distance himself from the titanic battle. Like tentacles, long vines of kelp reached through the silt, swirling around him. He was in the Kelp forest. He was going in the wrong direction. A swaying kelp vine nearly tore off his mask. Nathan sprung from the seafloor. Ducking and dodging his way through the tangle of vines, he made a break for the surface. He rose, swimming madly, but there seemed to be no end to the blood cloud.
Eventually, the haze began to thin out. He could finally see the hull of the ship about fifty feet above. Still, he couldn’t resist a glance back at the battle.
The pliosaur slowly rose from the enormous red cloud. With a thrust of its forefins, the beast slowly turned around. Bloody blubber strung from its jaws.
The third sperm whale appeared even larger than the others. The massive whale veered around, its enormous fluke pumping, picking up speed.
Closing . . .
The monster locked eyes with the whale. All four paddle fins rose, ready for the third round.
The whale drew closer.
The pliosaur’s head cocked back. Its jaws stretched open, and it unleashed a bellowing roar—a primal war cry, echoing through the sea.
Duly warned, the sperm whale quickly turned tail and he
aded in the opposite direction.
The pliosaur dropped its head, and with a thrust of all four paddle fins, lifted off like a dragon taking flight. The behemoth charged through the sea, every pump of its huge fins bringing it closer to the whale.
~~~
Nathan broke the waterline just in time to see the colossal splash as the pliosaur caught the whale. A giant paddle fin rose high, towering into the blue sky as the monster rolled over the whale, driving it beneath the waves.
Beyond the splash, Nathan saw the frightened whale pod dispersing, bumping one another, fleeing in every direction.
He made the short swim to the ship’s stern in record time. He grabbed onto the ladder. Once his fins were out of the water, he collapsed onto the ladder, catching his breath. Slowly, he gained the strength to move.
The moment he set foot on deck, Erick appeared before him. The wide-eyed boy was pointing at the whale pod. “Did you see that? Some kind of dinosaur just hit a whale. You should have seen it!”
Nathan raised his mask, “You saw it?”
“Yeah, what was it?”
“You tell me,” muttered Nathan as he plodded his way to the stairwell.
~~~
Barefoot and still in his wetsuit, Nathan burst into the surveillance cabin, dripping water. Nemo turned away from the monitors and locked eyes with his assistant. Their reeling minds couldn’t find the words.
Nemo pointed at monitor two. “Was that . . . that what I think it was?”
Nathan dropped his hands to his knees, catching his breath. “It was enormous, Captain. Some kind of pliosaur . . . the size of a whale! Could you see it?”
Nemo gave a wide-eyed nod. “Saw it from the camera on whale two. Right as it charged the beast and got away. Then I lost the visual.”
“Afraid whale two didn’t get away. Trust me. I had a front row seat for the Battle Royale.”
“Impossible,” grumbled Nemo. “Whale two is still moving.”
Nathan shook his head.
Dumbfounded, Nemo swiveled around to face the smaller monitors with gridded screens used to track the whales’ positions. He pointed to the red dot on monitor two. “There’s whale two. See, it’s moved approximately fifty yards. It’s just off starboard.”
“I don’t think so, sir. The last time I saw whale two, it was lying in TWO pieces on the seabed,” Nathan said, his voice rising as he remembered the scene.
Nemo pointed to the red dot on the gridded monitor. “Well, this dead whale’s doing better than thirty knots, son. See, it was here five minutes ago. Look how far it’s moved.”
Nathan approached the monitor to see for himself. There was no mistake. Unzipping his wetsuit, he said, “The creature must be carrying part of the carcass to a different area to feed.”
“Not at that speed. It’s carrying a full-grown sperm whale! Or at least half of one.”
Perplexed, Nemo sat back in his chair. Then behind him, the second monitor on the wall crackled and came back on. It showed the blue ocean waters.
“Look at the video monitors,” said Nathan. “The one showing the live feed from whale two is back on!” Nemo quickly turned around. Nathan added, “It is moving! You can see bubbles flowing across it.”
“Mmm . . . I’m not so sure the whale’s still moving,” replied Nemo. “It could be the passing current making it look that way.” Nemo again turned to the gridded monitors to check the whale’s position. “It’s still moving, all right . . . now it’s off our starboard.” Still trying to rationalize, he said, “There’s a strong underwater current near here. Maybe part of the carcass dropped in the middle of it.”
“I don’t think so, sir.”
“But how can it be? This makes no sense!” The image on screen shifted. A long, white object now covered part of the screen. Nathan squinted and he finally put it together. “That’s it,” he whispered. “Camera two is still moving . . . but it’s not on the whale.” He ran his finger along the object crossing the screen. “Do you see what I see?”
Nemo grumbled in the negative.
“Look closer. See that ridge, and those vertical scars?”
Nemo’s lips slowly parted. Realization flared in his eyes, “Unbelievable . . . that’s a tooth!” He stepped closer. “You’re right! I don’t believe it, but it has to be! The beast consumed the camera and homing device when it attacked the whale. That explains the movement.”
Slowly, the captain stepped back from the monitor and sat down beside Nathan. They continued to watch as the creature’s mouth closed, leaving only the glaring light from the camera reflecting from the insides of the interlocked teeth.
“Well, how long do you think that camera will hold up trapped in its jaw like that?” asked Nemo.
“I’m amazed it’s still working at all. But I don’t think it’ll last much longer than the creature’s next meal. Wow! Did you see that?” Nathan scooted closer to the monitor. “He’s opening his mouth.”
Again, the blue waters filled the monitor, framed by the edge of the white tooth. The water faded and a gray mass filled the screen. The image bobbled and turned to snow.
“What was all that gray?” asked Nemo.
Nathan looked at the gridded monitor to check the position of the homing device. His eyes slowly rose from the monitor. “Sir, I think it’s our hull!”
Frantically, Nemo snatched the mike off the console. “Roger, tell Freddie I want him on the main deck, pronto! There’s a rare . . . specimen off our starboard. We need to get it on film NOW!” Racking the mike, Nemo sprang from his chair. “I’m going up on deck to have a look.”
The moment the captain reached the doorway he stopped, frozen in his tracks. “Did you feel that?”
Nathan looked down at the floor. “Like a vibration.”
“Is that what I think it is?” asked Nemo without moving a muscle.
Nathan turned to the gridded monitors, his eyes locked on monitor two. “I think so, sir. It’s right under the ship.
Another long scrape vibrated from the ship’s hull.
Erick appeared in the doorway. “Is that the dinosaur? Is it gonna eat the ship?”
Suddenly, monitor two came back on. It showed the ship’s gray hull beside the edge of the tooth. From the doorway, Nemo looked at the monitor and stepped back into the room. Erick came closer to Nathan, ever curious. “What’s that gray thing on the monitor? Is it coming from one of the whale cameras?”
“The camera’s in the pliosaur’s mouth. Apparently it’s running its jaws along our hull,” explained Nathan. “Looks like he’s trying to get a taste sample to see if we’re suitable for consumption. Look, feel that! Every time the camera shakes you can feel the ship vibrate.”
“Wow!” Erick sounded awestruck. “First you put a camera on a whale’s back. And now you mounted one inside a dinosaur’s mouth. Man, you guys are good.”
They continued to watch the screen as the image shook every time the ship vibrated beneath their feet.
“Can it hurt the ship, scraping it like that?” asked Erick.
“No, I think it’s just checking us out,” said Nathan. “Once it realizes we’re not a whale carcass, it’ll probably—” And that’s when the ship dipped port side. Nathan caught himself on the console. “Unbelievable!”
Erick and Nemo slowly came to their feet in the swaying room. “No, no way,” Nemo said, bracing himself in the doorway. “That had to be a wave. We’re a two-hundred-twenty-foot research ship! Not a canoe!”
“This isn’t good, Captain. You saw it . . . the screen went out at exactly the same time,” said Nathan. The moans of twisting metal echoed beneath their feet. The ship settled. Nemo froze behind Nathan’s chair while everyone listened in silence.
Another long, scraping creak echoed from below.
“We’ve got to get a shot of this beast!” bellowed Nemo. He pointed at Erick. “Boy, make yourself useful and run up to the deck and help Freddie look for it. Now chivvy along!”
Nathan turned to protest,
“No, Erick, stay away from the rail—”
But the enthusiastic boy was gone.
~~~
On the main deck, a thin man in his forties with slicked-back black hair, a thin moustache, and goatee leaned over the starboard rail. Craning his neck, Freddie stared straight down to where the hull met the waterline. After nearly losing his balance, he looked back to port side where Erick and his dog were standing. “See anything on that side?” he shouted.
“No!” yelled Erick. “How about you?”
“Nothing yet, but keep ‘em peeled. It’s gotta come out sooner or later.” Time to get ready, thought Freddie. Pulling the camera up to his eye, he looked over the rail and adjusted the focus on the telescopic lens. Through the camera’s eye, the glimmering wave tips softened then slowly became more defined as he continued to adjust the lens. Again, the blue waters softened, then with another twist of the lens became clear. But this time, the water was pitch black. Freddie tried to adjust the lens one more time, but the black water remained.
Realizing the problem wasn’t with his camera, he took a look with the naked eye. Slowly, he lowered the camera. Directly below was a shadowy head beyond his comprehension. The massive nose pulled out farther from beneath the hull, and flickers of light revealed enormous interlocked teeth. A glowing red eye appeared. Freddie stood frozen for several seconds, resisting the temptation to step back from the rail.
The colossal head turned and rose to the surface. Instinctively, the camera rose back to Freddie’s eye. Click! He snapped off a quick shot, then stepped back to get the entire head into frame. Click! He moved back farther. “Smile, baby! I don’t know what you are, but you’re the next cover of National Geo—woooah!” The moment he touched the button, the enormous head lunged from the water, jaws swelling.
Whhham! The head slammed the hull just below the side rail. Unleashing a deafening roar, the massive creature dove. Water pulled in behind the descending bulk drew the ship to starboard, throwing Freddie back onto a large a crate. Splinters shot into his back, and his shirttail pushed up to his shoulders as he slid down the side of the crate. He hit the deck hard and slid face-first toward the side of the ship, camera extended out from his side in attempt to protect it. He stopped just as his head poked beneath the side rail. Breathing a sigh of relief, he gazed down the hull.