Operation Wolfe Cub: A Chilling Historical Thriller (THE TIME TO TELL Book 1) (6 page)

US-1 purposely waited a good while before he finally turned the underwater lights on.

US-2 quivered with goose bumps then jumped to snicker about it. “
He he
, yeah,
whu-ho
…yeah,
he he
…if you’re trying to scare me, it won’t work, prick. Are you forgetting? I get off on this kind of work…is this great or what?”

US-1 reclined his chair then relaxed with his hands behind his head. “
Ahhh
yes…smooth as glass, Blondie…life doesn’t get any better than this. First we’re on top, now we’re here…all in the nice, warm comfort of our sealskin chairs… so, the lights didn’t scare you?”

“You’re going to have do better than that, Curly…
ahhh
, life doesn’t get any better than this…hey, listen real hard… so quiet.”

US-1 switched the rest of the lights on, completely lighting up the empty, dark, watery scenery around them. Slowly and willfully, a few small schools of tiny fish drifted past, soothing their eyes as they rocked back and forth with them.

In the midst of almost being hypnotized by the little fish, US-2 muttered, “How different two worlds can be. Who would have thought I’d get the chance. And you? What about you?”

US-1 didn’t really answer immediately. Instead, he reached for more controls then flicked a few more toggle switches. “Okay, this should do it. We’re deep enough… switching to stealth propulsion…right about nowwww. There now…all good, set to gyro-pilot for the evening.”

US-2 barely heard a word. He almost fell into a daze, looking out into the haze of blue as far as their lights could see. He muttered, “So, what are you going to do when we get to America?”

“Who me? I haven’t really given it a single thought.”

“I know…you’d better find a job because you’ll be out of one when we land.”

US-1 adjusted in his chair. “I suppose you’re right for once.
Hmmm
, maybe I’ll start a business or something. I don’t know. What about you?”

US-2 started picking his fingernails, thinking. “Hey, I know. I’m going to track me down one of those American women—maybe get one on a farm. You know, the call for settling down.”

US-1 snickered, “What? You? Settle down? When hell freezes over.”

“What? You don’t believe me? Well, maybe I’ll try out a few before I settle down. I read about it. That’s what they’re starting to do over there. There’s supposed to be bright lights, dancing girls, big cars. I mean
big
. And money everywhere…I can buy whatever I want.”

US-1 shook his head. “Free to do as you wish, I guess. You should fit right in.”

“What’s wrong with free?”

US-1 ignored him, basically thinking himself into a trance before he began to yawn. He closed his eyes, only to struggle with opening them again. “Buoyancy set on automatic... depth set to fifteen fathoms.”

As their vessel began to slow, the schools of fish caught up with them again, except this time they tried to look inside the
glass porthole closest to where Randolf was sleeping in his crib. Then suddenly, without explanation, the entire school of fish swirled up to the bow of the vessel and began to dazzle themselves over the deck where the underwater lights shone the brightest.

US-2 pointed out. “Hey, look at those silver sides. Looks like they’re playing…maybe they like me or something,
huh
?”

“
Naaa
, not you…got to be the baby. They came to greet him, you clown.”

“No, it’s me…the last one they want to see is you. Try not to scare them off with your face, will you?”

US-1 smiled. “If they came to see me, they’d be stuck to our glass, kissing it. Then they’d jump in my frying pan after I snap my fingers.”

“
Ho ho
…whatever you say. Dreaming, dreaming.”

US-1 reclined in his chair, dipping further into a daze as he watched a school of larger fish suddenly swoop in over the deck.

US-2 looked mildly surprised. “Dog-eat-dog world out there…look at those bigger fish trying to gobble up those poor, little guys. What kind are they anyway?”

US-1 yawned. “Don’t know…a kind of sea bass. Say, are you good staying awake? I mean, I can maybe try to stay awake for you.”

“What? You kidding me? I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Sure I’m sure…go to sleep if you have to. We’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”

Immediately, US-1 took him up on it.

Surprisingly, US-2 didn’t last nearly as long as he thought he would. Almost as quickly as his comrade, he dozed off in his chair too.

Soon, both of them slumbered below the wide-open, titan sea. Blackness gloomed everywhere beyond their lights
as they glided through the water on autopilot, steady and straight. Their vessel was only a speck in the immense abyss.

Safely tucked in, peaceful and warm was the supposed guardian crew, holding the golden egg of world peace. They were quite a special team, it seemed. Now they dreamed into no-man’s-land while their vessel cruised along seamlessly, without a wakeful pilot to show them the way.

Though there was quietness of the great ocean beneath, all wasn’t quiet inside the vessel. While the snoring was going on at different levels of the vessel, the baby was lucky to be isolated in his capsule where he couldn’t hear much.

Randolf was the one among them who didn’t seem sleepy. To the contrary, his eyes were wide open, bright and blue, looking for something fun to do. He didn’t take long to find it either. Just outside his porthole window, he spotted something shadowy and it was keeping up with the vessel. It was immense enough to completely shade the multitude of navigation lights on the port side of the vessel all at once. After several more shady passes, it revealed only a portion of its scarred-up, white underside before unintentionally showing its huge rows of chiseled teeth against the glass. It revealed itself to be a monstrous great white shark as it swam up over the deck to take a better peek inside the cockpit. Much to the old shark’s delight, two healthy-looking men were lying motionless, wrapped up in real sealskin chairs. Naturally, the shark bit into action, but it soon discovered an invisible bubble of glass. Still, the shark was determined.

Bump. Bump. Bump
.

US-2 moved to his other side, mumbling, “Knock it off Curly, trying to sleep.”

Bump…bump, bump
.

US-1 kept snoring when suddenly, he heard it again. “Knock it off, I said.”

US-2 looked out in front and fell from his chair. “
Aaaah-AAawwwww!
” Immediately, he backpedaled until he fell
again, all the way down to the deck below where Doc was sleeping.

Craaaaaassssh!

US-1 woke up to the same ugly sight. “
Aaaah-AAawwwww
!” He cried out too before backpedaling and falling right on top of US-2.

Thud! Crash!

Doc jumped out of his bed, looking like the entire ship was sinking, until he woke up. Before him was his crew of two, tangled up with each other on the floor. Without saying a thing, he looked for clues, but all they could do was grab their heads and moan. As quickly as he could, he rushed up to the main deck to investigate, but everything seemed fine. The controls, their chairs, the deck, and even the scenery outside were all clear.

US-1 hobbled up on deck, rubbing his knee, pointing out into the abyss. “It was there—a monster shark.”

US-2 poked his face up on deck. “Son of a bitch…you fell right on top of me!”

US-1 helped him up on deck. “It’s your fault you carefree. You didn’t flip down the blinds like Doc said!”

Doc looked back and forth. “Shark? What shark? Blinds?
Ohhhh
, the shutters? I see. You two left the scale shutters open,
Dummkopfs!
⁴
”

US-1 pointed to his comrade. “No, not me…US-2 went to sleep and forgot. I told him to shut the damn things down.”

US-2 blurted, “Who cares! It was a monster shark. His head was gigantic! I mean big enough to swallow all our chairs!”

Doc whipped his head back, then squinted out into the abyss then remembered he didn’t have his spectacles on. “
Hmmm, dummkopf
….there’s nothing out there. Can’t you see?”

US-1 walked up to the edge of the glass. “I’m sorry about this, Doc but—I saw it too. It was maybe twenty meters—as big as the front of the ship.”

US-2 stepped up from behind, “More like thirty meters long, damn it. It was huge, right there—in front of my face.”

Doc moved aside. “I don’t have time for fish stories, gentlemen.”

Just about then US-2 spotted another shark, one quarter the size, circling the bow. “Look, Doc, see?”

Doc barely caught a glimpse of it. “
Pssss
, that? Get a hold of yourself, Christ O’Mighty. You two are beginning to worry me already.” He then pushed a button on the control panel, closing the scale shutters, “I told you two to close the shutters. Now don’t forget next time.”

Just then, Randolf began to cry, catching Docs undivided attention. “There, look, see what you did? We woke him up… one of you stay on watch and do it right. I don’t care who it is. I’ve got to go down to quiet the poor lad. We’ve got a big day ahead of us…I’d best be gone for now to get some sleep.”

Chapter 3

The next day’s bright, early morning spread itself across the wide, open sea. No discernible trace of light, however, was visible inside the US
Wehrwolf
several fathoms beneath the surface.

Blang-alang-alang-alang!

The sound of an alarm clock suddenly raided the inside of the cockpit down at the feet of both officers sleeping all too deeply, but to the foggy dismay of just one of them, it kept ringing. US-1 was the one awakened by it first. It took some time before he realized the dreadful sound intruding into his dreams wasn’t supposed to be there. Slowly, he began the dizzying task of finding the location of the nuisance. Since his eyes didn’t want to open too well, he felt around for the clock first. That didn’t work, so he staggered to the more plausible areas around his chair and on the floor. It wasn’t anywhere in sight, so he relied more on his ears. Unfortunately for him, the entire cockpit sounded like an alarm clock.

Frustration bubbled, until finally, he started to get used to the obnoxious sound. While in the midst of his quandary, he glanced over to US-2, only to be splashed by a new frustration. Jealousy must have looted what little bit of good feelings he had left, for his comrade was still fast asleep. To make matters worse, he even looked comfortable through the continuous ear-piercing assault.

US-1 found the clock in short order after that. It was hidden in one of the most inconspicuous areas on the floor,
beneath the control panel and in a place where he could barely stretch far enough to grab onto it. As he looked at the clock in his hand, he spewed with disbelief that it was actually there. After shutting it off, he fell back into his chair, wondering why someone would set it in such an area. The puzzling idea wasn’t worth the weight of the clock, so he pitched it aside and nudged his comrade. “Hey, wake up…it’s. It is oh-six hundred hours…did you put the stupid alarm clock where nobody could find it?”

US-2 rolled over, stretching. “No...Doc must have brought it along…you took long enough to find it. You’re so hopeless.”

“What? You mean you were? Why didn’t you get up and find it yourself? It was over by your feet!”

“I knew you would, that’s why.”

US-1 opened the scale shutters. “Well, I guess that’s all the relaxation we’re going to get for now. Another day of glory and greatness to be put to rest for Operation Wolfe Cub.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

US-1 shrugged his shoulders then scratched his armpit. “Nothing, you wouldn’t understand. Wow, look…look at the instruments. We covered quite some distance last night.”

“Yeah, well I’m curious to see what the weather’s like above…that was one spooky storm last night. If I paid attention to myself any more, I’d swear the devil was riding in on it.”

“Wild comments you have…it’s called ‘sixth sense.’ Anyway, you don’t have it.”

“If I don’t have it, nobody’s got it…why don’t you get yourself on your submarine controls and get us up to see the light of day.”

US-1 positioned himself in his chair more appropriately and began switching toggles and turning knobs. “Okay—sounds fine with me. Switch on a few lights and—okay, got it.
A switch or two here and there and, got it…sequence is set. Buoyancy control next…almost done…we are headed up to see the surface right about…nowww. Stealth propulsion good…you ready, Blondie?”

“Well yes, that’s what I was saying.”

“Stand by for your part when we get there. Preparing stationary ascent.”

“How far do we have? How deep are we now?”

“Just about seven fathoms to go, looks like.”

US-2 grabbed his pack of cigarettes, lit one, and cocked back in his chair, thinking. Mildly amused, he blew his first thin stream of smoke and watched it curl up across the glass of the cockpit. “Looks like it’s sunny up there to me.”

“What? How can you see? Looks like smoke and fire.”

US-2 took another drag from his cigarette. “There’s no fire up there. What are you talking about?”

“Your cigarette fire.”

“Oh, does it bother you?”

“Not yet.” US-1 leaned over to switch on the fans, dissipating the smoke throughout the cockpit.

Soon, the sunlight’s rays became overwhelming. The splendor of sparkles raised smiles across their faces as colorful prisms of light were cast about. Right at the surface they crested into the brightest point, making it difficult for them to adjust their eyes.

When the vessel broke onto the surface, she did so quickly, leaving nothing more than gleaming streams of water trickling down her flat, jet-black surface.

The day was grand. Even last night’s wind was gone. In fact, almost all of the morning’s beginnings were cheerful, from the clear blue ocean to the silver-lined clouds. Furthermore, the good day looked like it was there to stay.

Both of them were thinking about Doc who should have been on deck. Presumably he was still sleeping. They seemed not to care after a while, for they were too busy glancing
around at the prevailing sense of goodness that surrounded them.