Gates of Neptune (4 page)

Jere said quickly, “You will not have to swim. If you
will but trust me one more time, I will take you to my home, and you will be as safe there as you are in this boat.”

Josh stared at her, and so did all the others.

The silence was thick enough to cut with a knife, and finally it was the smallest and youngest member, Wash, aged twelve, who spoke. “Miss Jere, I'll go with you. I believe you wouldn't hurt us.”

That saved the day for the Sleepers, for if Wash, small and young and deathly afraid of water as he was, would agree, how could the rest refuse?

Josh said at once, “It's settled, then. We'll go.” He turned to Jere. “How do we get down there?”

Instead of answering, Jere opened a locker on the side of the sled. She pulled out a small package and handed it to Josh. “I have one of these for each of you.” She touched her own plastic-looking uniform. “This diving suit, as you might call it, will protect you. Put them on at once.”

“Over our clothes?” Abigail demanded.

“No, they are swimsuits that fit all sizes. One for men and one for women. If you girls will go to the front of the boat, the young men will turn the other way while you change. Then you'll do the same for them.”

And that was the way it went. When Sarah opened her package she found a sea-green one-piece bathing suit, much like the one she had worn to the beach. But this suit was both flexible and hard and seemed to be made of overlapping green scales. Quickly she slipped into it, and Jere said, “Now, put on your diving suits.”

Sarah stepped into the plastic uniform, pulled it up, and found that it closed around her neck tightly. She pulled out the belt and was surprised to find how heavy it was.

When all had on their swimsuits and uniforms, they gathered about Jere.

“The belt is your life-support system,” she said. “It is what will let you live under the sea. It contains compressed air in three of these pockets. It has a tiny radio, so that you will be able to communicate, even under water, not only with those close to you, but even with those who're far off.”

Then Jere taught them how to attach the tubes and wires. “Slip the hood over your head, and you'll find it will tighten with this fastening.”

The young people awkwardly did as she told them.

As soon as she had hers on, Sarah had a moment's fright. “I'm going to smother,” she cried out.

“No, simply turn that button on the front of your belt.”

Sarah did so, and immediately a gust of fresh oxygen poured into her suit. It inflated the suit slightly, and she was amazed to find that now she could not feel the warm wind.

“It's insulated so you won't feel the cold of the ocean,” Jere said. “You can all breathe?” She inspected their air hoses and then stood back. “Now, you must not be afraid. I know this is a new world for you, but Goel never fails.” Then she reached down, took out the small horn, put it to her lips, and blew again.

For what seemed a long while, there was nothing, and then suddenly the ocean boiled.

“It's porpoises! With the same kind of harnesses that Captain has,” Josh called out.

Sarah asked, “Are we supposed to ride these?”

“Yes, they will take you down to the city,” Jere said. “All you have to do is get on and hang on. You can breathe, you can shut your eyes if you want to, and when you open them you'll be safe in Atlantis. Come.”

The young people scrambled to the side of the boat. One by one Jere called the great porpoises forward and assigned a porpoise to each Sleeper.

Sarah stepped out of the boat and settled awkwardly into the saddle. She was delighted by the sleek touch of the porpoise and how well she seemed to fit. There was a harness that he held between his teeth, and she gripped it tightly. She did call over, “Reb, you ought to be better than any of us at this, since you're a rider.”

Reb grinned at her, his white teeth flashing in the sun. “Well, I hope so. But I never rode a critter like this without no feet.”

Then Jere said, “Remember, you must hang on. Do not turn loose. Remember to breathe—don't try to hold your breath. In the name of Goel, we go to Atlantis!”

F
or Sarah, the sudden plunge under the surface of the sea was one of the most frightening experiences of her life. She had never swum in anything except a swimming pool, and now as the porpoise twisted and her arms were pulled by the bridle, fear ran through her. The only shock of coldness, however, was on her hands, the one part of her body that was left uncovered. She was grateful for the warm diving suit, but this was probably her only consolation.

Quickly she looked around and realized, to her surprise, that she could see almost as well under the water as above. The plastic that covered her head served as a diving mask. She saw the lovely blue-green water lit by the sunshine above, and for one moment she forgot her fear.

Josh was close on her right, hanging onto his reins with both hands. He gave her a sudden glance. She saw his lips move and was delighted to hear his voice. It came through a tiny radio that was built into the diving suit.

He smiled brightly. “Hang on, Sarah, we're going to make it fine.”

Apparently all the others heard him too—the radio seemed to transmit to all the Sleepers. Sarah noticed that Wash and Reb, who had become friends after a rough beginning, were sticking close together. Reb looked as if he were enjoying the ride, but Wash was hanging on grimly, his eyes shut tight.

“Watch Wash carefully,” Josh ordered. “Don't let him fall off.”

The others seemed to be doing well. Dave was side by side with Abbey, reaching out to her from time to time and murmuring encouragement.

They descended deeper and deeper, and Sarah was startled to see more fish than she'd ever seen in her life. A swarm of brightly colored scarlet fish, thousands and thousands of them, passed below, almost turning the water crimson with their fiery color. Then, as if at a signal, they all turned at once and made their way off through the green water.

I wonder how they all know to turn at the same time?
Sarah thought.

Down, down, down they went. Several times she saw strange spectacles. One rather frightening sight was a school of barracuda. They hung suspended in the water, their lower jaws unhinged, and there was a cold hunger in their eyes.

“Don't worry,” Jere said. “They won't attack. You're all doing fine. And it isn't far now.”

The water became somewhat darker, but still visibility was good.

Suddenly Jere said, “There it is. That's my home, Atlantis.”

Below them was a display that Sarah would never forget—the lost city of Atlantis. She almost forgot to breathe and then, remembering Jere's warning, took several gulps of air.
Why, it's beautiful,
she thought.

The city had high towers and turrets much like a castle, except that it was built of a strange material, somewhat like the coral she had seen. It reared itself up from the depths of the sea and glowed with a faint light. Here and there what appeared to be bright-colored stones dotted the walls of the towers and parapets. She could also see small, thick windows. She could not see inside, but there seemed to be light.

“Careful now,” Jere cautioned. “We're going into an air lock. Just follow me very closely. The porpoises know how.”

Sarah watched as Jere slowed the pace of Captain and approached what seemed to be a round dome on the ocean floor. There was a passageway, six or seven feet wide and at least eight feet tall, and the water seemed to flow in and out of it.

Jere drew up her porpoise by the door and turned to smile at them. Waving at the entrance, she said, “All inside now.”

Sarah was the first to enter. She passed through the portal of the bubble, and for a moment all was dark. Then a brilliant light shone. Suddenly her head broke water, and she gasped with relief. She found herself in a large domed room. The ceiling glowed with some sort of light she didn't understand.

One by one the other Sleepers popped up around her, and finally Jere herself entered. She raised her head above water and sat there looking at them. “I congratulate you Sleepers,” she said with a smile. “You've done well. You can remove your hoods now.” As she removed her own and watched as the others did the same, she seemed amused at their relief.

Josh took a deep breath. “Why, that's fresh air. How can that be down here, Jere?”

Jere slipped off her porpoise, for the water was only waist deep. “It's supplied by pumps that bring the air down from above. Come now, we must go to the palace.”

Taking deep breaths, Sarah thought the fresh air seemed as sweet as anything she had ever taken into her lungs.

Jere moved out of the water and stepped up onto a small platform. “This way.”

She approached a door, which opened without her even touching it, and the Sleepers crowded close behind
her. They entered a long corridor where the ceiling and walls glowed with the same kind of light that had lit the pressure chamber.

Jere said, “Quickly now.” She hurried along the passage until she came to a large door. She spoke a word that Sarah did not understand, and the door, which seemed made of stone, swung slowly open. Jere said, “This way,” and stepped inside.

Sarah saw that they were now in a very large room indeed—obviously some kind of meeting room, for there were long tables and chairs, carved with fantastic designs. And suddenly Sarah knew what it looked like. “It looks like a dining room in a large castle,” she said aloud.

“Why, that's right,” Dave said. “I've seen them on TV and in books.” He turned to Jere. “Is this some kind of banquet room?”

“Sometimes it's used for that. It's also a place where we meet to take votes on different matters.”

“You must be a democracy then,” Jake said with interest, his blue eyes glowing. “Do you have a president?”

“President? Democracy?” Jere shook her head. “I don't know about any of those. We have a king and a queen, but still the people may say what they wish, and the king will listen. Come now.”

But before she could move, Reb made a discovery. “Look,” he cried out, running over to the wall. “There are windows. You can see out.”

The Sleepers crowded around what seemed to be portholes, which looked directly out into the sea.

“Why, it's like being inside an aquarium. Look at that!” Reb shouted. “A shark!”

A huge tiger shark rolled by, his old eyes seeming to glance toward them, and then he moved on silently.

Josh asked, “How can all this be? What keeps the water out, Jere?”

“This city was once above the ocean floor—at least we think so. On an island,” she answered. “But it sank beneath the sea, as islands sometimes do. My people came many, many years ago. We began to seal the buildings. It was a slow process, but we discovered how to compress the air and how to make the joints tight. So now what we're living in is really a sealed city.”

“A city under the sea,” Abbey said with a smile. “You know that's rather nice. I think it's romantic. Don't you, Dave?”

Dave frowned. “Well, I don't know about romantic, but it sure is impressive.”

Josh said, “Look at that! What's that out there?”

“Those are the guards of our city—our navy,” Jere said quietly.

Sarah moved closer. She saw sharks—killer sharks, she thought. They were coming in ranks like soldiers, and mounted on each shark was a man wearing a plastic diving suit and cradling in his arms some sort of weapon. It looked like a powerful spear gun but with a larger base than she had ever seen.

“That's the second battalion of our navy, led by Lord Daveon,” Jere said. “You have come to Atlantis at a bad time—a time of war.” She blinked. “But no more of this. I know you're all tired. I'll show you to your chambers.”

“What will we do next, Jere?” Josh asked.

Jere smiled, looking lovely in the light that came from the ceiling. “For a while, we will rest. Then later we will meet with the king and queen, and you will find out more. I'll show you your rooms.”

* * *

The Sleepers, despite themselves, their excitement, and the tense situation, did rest.

Sarah was awakened some time later by a knock. She
opened the door of the room she shared with Abbey and saw a tall, handsome young man of sixteen or seventeen years, with dark hair and dark eyes. He wore a sea-green uniform having a gold dolphin over his breast. “My name is Valar. I have come to escort you ladies to the king's table.”

Sarah stared, for she had never seen such a handsome young man in all of her life.

He was fully six feet tall and strong, in spite of his obvious youth. He stood smiling down at her as Abbey joined them. “May I know your names?” he asked.

“I'm Sarah, and this is Abbey.” Abbey too, she was aware, was filled with wonder at the regal bearing of the young man, but not so awestruck that she could not smile—which caused her dimples to appear. This, Sarah also knew, was a fact of which Abbey was well aware, and she did it when she wanted to attract attention. “We're ready, I suppose. But we don't have anything to wear to a royal banquet.”

“Later on, you will be provided with suitable clothes. But for now, His Majesty and the queen will understand.”

He led them down several corridors and finally stopped before a large door where two guards stood posted with powerful looking spear guns in their hands. They stepped aside, opened the doors, and Valar waved a hand saying, “You may enter now.”

The two young women went in and discovered that the boys were already there.

“Over here,” Valar said. “You can all sit together.” And taking the arm of each young lady, he led them to a place at the long table. He saw them seated, then stepped back.

Across the room Sarah saw a man and woman sitting on a raised platform—obviously the king and queen of Atlantis—and beside them, to the king's right, sat Jere!