The Adventures of Phineas Frakture (15 page)

Episode
6

“Ah, my adoring fans,” said William as they were bombarded by the applause of hundreds of Atlanteans. “Why are they clapping again? I don’t recall us doing anything extraordinary lately.”

“I think that they put too much faith in us,” Phineas responded as he looked around at the gathering. A sea of blue-green looked down on them as they were led onto a dais where the ministers waited. Several Atlantean maidens approached the pair and hung wreaths of colorful sea leaves and shells around Phineas’ neck; however, as they approached William, they quickly shied and hurried away.

“I am going to start taking this personally real soon,” William said into Phineas’ ear. His friend responded by removing several of his wreaths and putting them around William’s neck.

“Better?” asked Phineas with mock sarcasm.

“Yes, much better.”

The ministers held up their hands for silence and then, as one, the congregation went down on one knee and bowed their heads.

“Now this is going too far,” stated William, who then received an elbow in his side from Phineas as his attention was directed to Ashira entering the auditorium. “Oh.”

Reluctantly, they both joined the congregation’s example. Although their nation was governed by an emperor, Americans still believed themselves to be equals and never kneeled, bowed, or otherwise to any official in their country. Being that these people were their only means of reaching the surface, however, they felt it wiser to do as the Romans did, or in this case, the Atlanteans.

“Rise,” Ashira said almost as quickly as the congregation had kneeled. “For too long, we have been removed from our home by the insidious kraken men. Though now, we have been brought a sign of our imminent return in the form of our visitors and my
Comptala
, Phineas Frakture.” The audience applauded but was silenced by Ashira’s hand. “We are not soldiers, but we will fight as one under the direction of the surface dwellers, who are far more adept at killing than we, the peaceful Atlanteans.”

“Adept at killing? What did you tell them?” whispered William. “We never killed anything in our lives, except fish face back there, but you did that. I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Hopefully, we won’t have to do any killing…but if the time comes, just think of them as fish. Those things are more calamari then men,” said Phineas.

“
Comptala
? Do you have any ideas for the return of our people?” asked Ashira.

Phineas, suddenly put on the spot, hesitantly walked over to her. “Do you have a map of the city?” he asked.

Ashira nodded to one of the ministers, who then flipped a switch on the wall. The fluorescence dimmed and then several hundred pinpoints of light from above began dancing around the dais. Faster and faster they moved until a three-dimensional schematic of a domed city coalesced in the center of the stage. Phineas and William circled the ‘light model’ in awe, and William wiped his hand through it, surprised that it had no substance. Never before had anyone from above the sea seen this type of technology, and it was all Phineas could do to contain himself from ripping apart the room to figure out how it was created. Instead, he studied the layout in silence as he circled the image, while the audience seemed to hold their collective breath, waiting for his answer.

Phineas withdrew his tesla rod and used it as a pointer. Without hesitation, he began laying out a plan before the audience as easily as if he was giving a lecture to his students. When he was finished, he turned to Ashira.

“Does that seem like a reasonable plan?” he asked.

She smiled, as did all of the ministers. “I believe that will work. What do you need from us?”

“Do you have a lab that I could use?” Phineas asked with a touch of hopeful glee in his voice.

Behind him, William cringed inwardly, knowing full well what that tone of voice meant.

Abigail stood at one of the windows, looking out into the black. Her mood was still foul, and she began sinking into a feeling of resignation…that she might have to accept the fact that she had lost him. She knew that the big idiot would never have gotten married on purpose, but if she had thought that tricking him would work, she would have tried that a long time ago. On top of that, he had the audacity to give her a birthday gift right after telling her that he was married.

He remembered her birthday.

A sudden elation replaced the morose mood that she was in and a tear rolled down her cheek. Out of all the bad luck they had had these past hours, that one tiny act seemed to brighten everything.

Abigail unconsciously began walking and found herself back at the room. Hesitantly, she entered but found it empty. They were probably off exploring the area, or worse, finding ways to disrupt the lives of the Atlanteans.

An object on the floor caught her eye, and she picked up the box that she had knocked from Phineas’ hand. Sitting down on the bed, she turned it over in her hands. Finally, Abigail opened it, somewhat fearing what she would find inside.

It wasn’t anywhere near what she expected.

The oval locket inside was fairly simple: silver with a cog design in relief on the cover. It hung on a short silver chain that brought it just below her neckline. Abigail snapped the locket open and was even more surprised to find one of the most flattering photos of Phineas that she had ever seen—not that there were many of them. The only time she saw any photos of him, he was scowling or totally disinterested in the photographic process.

Abigail turned the locket over in her hands and then undid the clasp. It took some effort with her slung arm, but she managed to get it around her neck and secured. For some reason, it seemed strange. In the past, what gifts he did give her were practical, though personal in their own way. Abigail wasn’t used to this sort of intimacy from Phineas, which made her believe that Mrs. Popkiss had a hand in this somehow. Honestly, she believed that he would feel closer to her if he had bought her that collection of
Popular Mechanika
that she had had her eye on for some time.

Finally, Abigail resolved to give Phineas a break. After all, it wasn’t his fault that he was so scatterbrained at times that he would miss his own wedding even while he attended it. She was sure that there was a way out of this. Chalk it up to misunderstanding, miscommunication…or just plain stupidity. If there was no way out, however, she could go with her first instinct and just kill the bum. Abigail toyed with the idea for a fraction of a second and then realized that it would be less hassle to just let the Atlanteans kick him out for blowing something up, as he would probably end up doing anyway.

Time to find the terrible twosome, she thought. Lord knows what trouble they were getting into this time.

“Sorry!” William yelled across the room after a tesla bolt blasted a rack of beakers and tubes, sending glass shards scattering across the floor. Several Atlanteans glared at Phineas, who had sent the arc in their direction. “A little too much power, I would say,” cautioned the assistant.

“I agree, though it might come in handy if there are larger mutations. Who knows what else is out there.”

“Where do you think they came from?” asked William.

“I have a hunch, but I don’t want to jump to conclusions just yet. A more pressing concern is that we need to figure out how to build enough tesla guns to arm all of these people, or at least a majority, so that we have an advantage,” said Phineas.

“We do have weapons, sir,” said a voice from behind them. Phineas and William both turned to find Milos standing there with a sheepish grin on his face.

“Why haven’t you used them then?” Phineas asked.

“We are a peaceful people, though we do have the need to hunt for food. It isn’t in our nature to fight…we need to be led in that way.”

“By all means then, show us what you have.”

They followed Milos through a couple of rooms until they entered one that had several rows of shelves. Milos picked a box off of one of the shelves and opened it. Expecting to see some sort of harpoon, Phineas was taken aback by the unusually delicate looking pistol resting in the box. Milos took it out, turned a knob on the side of the gun, and fired it at a passing Atlantean. Several visible circular ‘waves’ exited the barrel and struck the man, sending him into convulsions, and he then collapsed to the floor. Phineas and William both raised their eyebrows, looking from the man on the floor to Milos.

“Oh, don’t worry. He is all right. The stun setting is slightly more powerful in the air than in the water. He will sleep for an hour or two.” The Atlantean handed the pistol to Phineas and then dragged the sleeping man out of the way.

Phineas turned the gun over in his hands, amazed at how light it was and at the absence of moving parts. “An Atlantean ray gun,” stated Phineas. “Remarkable.”

“Ahh…new toys,” said William.

“How many weapons do you have here?” asked Phineas.

“At last inventory, we had seven hundred eighty-two,” replied Milos.

“Yes, a very peaceful people,” Phineas said to William.

“It is not as peaceful as you would think down here,” spoke up Milos. “The sea creatures this far down will take anything as a meal, and we can’t very well hunt food with just our bare hands. These weapons leave an absence of blood in the water that would otherwise attract more predators. Hunting parties go out in large numbers to bring in mass amounts of food at once, hence the number of weapons.”

“Of course…seems logical. Well, since we have all of these, then I see no reason to delay. If you could spread the word for everyone to get armed and to their vehicles, we can go take back your city,” said Phineas.

“As you wish,” Milos said. He began spreading the word and soon Atlanteans were arriving to collect their weapons.

Phineas pulled four boxes from the shelves and handed them to William, then grabbed another one for himself.

“Should we take so many?” asked William.

“Two for each of us. More than enough…and they have plenty to spare.”

“True…and if one or two happens to find their way into your luggage at the end of all of this?”

“All in the name of science, of course.”

“Of course,” William smiled. The duo began walking back to their quarters to collect their things. “Where did you come up with a plan like that anyway? The last I checked, you were totally against warfare.”

“Desperate times, my friend. Besides, plotting a strategy is no different than planning mechanical engineering. Every piece has its purpose and it is all a matter of making the parts fit while working towards the common goal. I simply took the number of occupants in the hall, divided them amongst the most likely targets and points of entry, taking into consideration the probability of resistance that we would meet, and devised the plan from there. Simple.”

“If you say so.”

“Relax. It will be fine. You have been in enough scrapes in the past month to get you ready for this.”

“But I don’t remember any of them. As far as I know, I may not be that good of a fighter.”

“When the time comes, just unleash the beast within.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of, Phineas. That’s what I’m afraid of...”

“Afraid of what?” asked a familiar voice from around the corner. Abigail appeared and Phineas immediately noticed the locket around her neck. He felt a rush of relief until she stepped right past him and grabbed hold of William by the arm.

“Um…afraid that we will be sushi before this is over. That’s all. Look,” he said holding up the boxes. “New toys!”

“Before what’s over?” Abigail forced the issue.

“Well,” said William, “Phineas has declared war on the kraken men.”

Episode
7

“Isn’t that exactly what I told you
NOT
to do?” asked Abigail, pointing her finger right under Phineas’ nose.

“If you would let me explain…” Phineas said while holding up his hands and backing into the wall.

“No,
you
keep quiet. William?”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Give me a reason why I shouldn’t push him out an airlock.”

“Because…”

Phineas looked at his friend and gestured with his hands for him to hurry up.

“Sorry, buddy. I have nothing,” said William meekly.

Phineas’ shoulders sagged. “You’re a lot of help.”

“Look,” said William, “he has a good plan and we can’t get out of here until we help the Atlanteans…and we have really nice rayguns.”

“And we need you too,” added Phineas.

Abigail’s expression softened. “All right. I won’t put you out an airlock, but don’t think this means that you’re off the hook,” she added harshly.

As they returned to their quarters, Abigail was filled in on the details of the operation. She had the same reaction to Phineas’ plan as William had.

“You are a dangerous man, Phineas Frakture,” she said as they lugged their bags through the complex. “And when is this all supposed to happen?”

“Actually…right now,” Phineas said. It wasn’t until then that they noticed a large amount of foot traffic heading in one direction. All of the Atlanteans were carrying weapons of some sort, while only a few, mostly males, were wearing upper body armor.

Abigail continuously wiped her mouth as they walked past, while Phineas smiled stupidly when the women went by. William, given a wide berth by all, just smacked his hand across his companions’ heads whenever they became too enamored.

“This place is huge,” mentioned Abigail as they finally neared their destination. “I wonder how big the city will be.”

“Big,” said Phineas and William at the same time.

They followed the Atlanteans into a massive hub where, through glass windows, they could see all manner of underwater craft docked to the various levels of the station. Within the hub, there were several open water bays where larger craft were moored; the largest, they assumed, was the princess’.

It was unlike any of the submersibles used by their own military. Obviously, these ships were much sturdier, having to operate at such depths. The large one was approximately fifty feet in length and fairly cylindrical in shape with the front end becoming bulbous. Fins were folded against the sides and a tail was flattened behind. When the ship was in operation and these were extended, it would look like a monstrous fish. The other craft had similar designs, though individualized to look like various fish.

“The deepest that we have ever gone is a hundred feet. This is remarkable,” said Abigail, running her hand over the hull.

“And since when were you an expert on all things nautical?” asked William.

“You didn’t think that my expertise was limited to aircraft now, did you? I do have other interests, you know. This metal…it’s the same as the walls of the complex.”

Both Phineas and William touched it and agreed.

“What do you think it is?” asked Phineas.

“Not iron or steel…though it has properties of both…and more. I would have to take a sample of it to a metallurgist I know to find out for sure. How much punishment do you think it could take?”

Phineas pounded on it with his fist and then shook his hand. “A lot,” he said, rubbing his little finger.

Milos’ head popped out of the hatch on the side of the ship in response to the banging. “Good, you are here. Are you ready to go? The princess is already aboard.”

“Ready as we’ll ever be,” said Abigail with a smile as she approached the Atlantean.

When it was Phineas’ turn to step through the portal, he quickly stopped and looked from the inside to the outside.

“Is there something wrong, sir?” asked Milos.

“The hull is less than an inch thick. Is this thing safe?”

“Most assuredly, sir. This ship can withstand the pressure down here and the grasp of an air kraken. No need to worry about your safety,” replied Milos proudly.

“Amazing,” Phineas muttered, not only to the structure, but to what it contained. The interior was lavishly decorated with several padded chairs, an oval table for dining, and a small library, and the walls were lined with painted images of what Phineas assumed was the history of Atlantis. In the aft of the craft there was a chamber for sleeping.

Phineas caught a glimpse of Ashira in the back and quickly turned his attention elsewhere. After a brief examination of the craft, he made his way to the front, where Abigail was already seated in the pilot’s chair, getting a tutorial from Milos. A strong twinge of jealousy coursed through his body until it was quickly replaced with a feeling of elation. Phineas was suddenly aware of Ashira standing behind him and he suddenly forgot about Abigail and Milos.

“She is a quick study, though Milos is also an excellent instructor,” Ashira said.

Abigail’s head snapped around at the sound of Ashira’s voice, and Phineas could have sworn that she had bared her teeth at her for a quick moment before a smile came over her face as Milos put his hand on her shoulder.

“She’s the best pilot I know,” Phineas said proudly. “Abigail is probably teaching him right about now.”

Two of the five ministers boarded as well as four heavily armed and armored Atlanteans. They all took seats near the front of the ship, and Phineas noticed that William had been surreptitiously guided to the back chair. The hatch was secured after they were seated, and the princess showed Phineas to two seats behind the pilots’ chairs.

“Are we ready?” asked Ashira.

“Everyone reports that they are in their craft,” said Milos.

“Take us home then,” ordered the princess.

“Go ahead,” Milos prompted Abigail. “That lever there…now pull that knob…you have it…good.”

The ship submerged into pitch black and Abigail suddenly panicked.

“I can’t see! Where am I going?”

“Relax,” said Milos, “here.” He twisted a dial and suddenly the window seemed to brighten. The exterior became as clear as day, as if the water had just disappeared.

“Wow!” exclaimed both Phineas and Abigail.

“Just another way that we have adapted under the water all these years,” Milos half bragged. “Can you handle it now?”

“Just watch me,” said Abigail. She pulled a few more levers, extending the ‘fins’ which majestically flanked the craft. She put the ‘engines’ to full, though there was no sound, and the ship leapt forward, skimming the bottom of the hub. As soon as they were clear, she brought the ship into a climb and checked its maneuverability by putting it through a series of turns, loops, and rolls. Somewhere behind them, Abigail heard someone retch, and she felt satisfied with the ship’s abilities.

“Do you always have to do that with a new craft?” yelled William from the back.

“Very well done, Ms. Bentley,” lauded Ashira. “Milos, please inform the others to fall in line and you can lead us.”

“With pleasure, cousin.”

For close to an hour, the tension slowly built in silence as progress was made. The undersea world was astonishing, revealing wonders that could only have been conjured up in the imagination. A pod of air kraken glided by, not paying any attention to the oncoming fleet. The surface dwellers each held their breath while the Atlanteans smiled at their unease, knowing full well how protected they were.

On a few occasions, a bored William tried to get a better view up front, only to be politely moved back by the ministers. Phineas, though perturbed by this, knew that the ministers were greatly restraining themselves and could sympathize with their discomfort. He didn’t know what triggered William’s ‘outbursts’, and for all he knew, one could happen while they were trapped inside this enclosed space.

Something caught Ashira’s attention and she leaped from her seat and ordered the fleet to halt. Perplexed, Abigail turned and asked why they were stopping.

“There,” Ashira said, pointing. “I was hoping to avoid it, but fortune is not with us this day.”

Everyone strained their eyes to see what it was; even William had made his way to the front to see without incident.

“What is that?” Abigail asked.

On the sea floor, a giant mechanical beast lumbered along. Its armored body bristled with cannons pointing in every direction.

“It came shortly after the kraken men did,” said Ashira. “The beast’s guns pierced our hulls as we tried to escape, killing countless Atlanteans. At least three others like it surround our city and prevent our people from leaving. Our weapons are useless against it. We cannot stop it.”

Phineas leaned forward and stared at the behemoth. “I can stop it,” he said.

“How could you possibly stop it?” asked Abigail. “It’s huge!”

Phineas, with a look of contempt, stood up. “I can stop it…because I designed it.”