The Founders (A Project Gauntlet Mission Book 2) by Richard Turner

Author:Richard Turner [Turner, Richard]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Richard Turner
Published: 2017-04-30T05:00:00+00:00

At the stern of the ship, the five hundred-meter-long nets were slowly being pulled back in. David Long’s wet cigarette dangled from his mouth as he watched the fish tumble out of the net into the trawler’s first storage bin. Although dressed from head to toe in rubber garments, Long and the ten men under his direction were already soaked to the bone. His breath hung in the cold air. Long hated his job, but since he couldn’t get work elsewhere because of his extensive criminal record, he was grateful for the money he earned.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something large fall out of the net, only to be covered right away by thousands of smaller fish. He thought about calling the bridge to let them know, but decided against it. In a couple of minutes, whatever it was would be found by the men working in the ship’s fish processing room. As far as Long was concerned, it was probably just a seal, and the men belowdecks could deal with it. He turned his back and helped pull the nests aside, so they could be stored away for the long journey home.

Back on the bridge, the XO reported to Lin, “Captain, the nets are almost all aboard.”

Lin nodded. By the looks of things, they had brought in three-quarters of their usual catch. Perhaps he was being overly pessimistic. With the price of fish increasing daily, he and his crew might just break even.

A phone rang. The XO reached over and picked it up. Right away, his brow furrowed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t get that,” said the XO. “Calm down, Yong, and repeat your message.”

“What is it?” asked Lin, sensing something was wrong.

“Sir, the call was from the processing room. I couldn’t make out what was being said, but it sounded like men were screaming, and then nothing.”

Lin snapped his fingers. “Get down there immediately, and see what is going on.”

The XO nodded and rushed to head belowdecks.

Lin’s guts were churning worse than the storm battering his ship. He took a deep breath to calm himself. The last thing he needed was for his crew to see how scared he was. From experience, Lin knew that fear was like a disease, which could, if not held in check, run rampant through a vessel.

“Captain, it’s back,” called out a sailor.

Lin turned on his heel and walked over so he could look out of the windows. His eyes widened when he saw the disc was no longer under the waves, but floating in the sky about fifty meters off the starboard side of his ship. The craft’s orange and white lights pulsed on and off like a heartbeat.

“What is it, sir?” asked a frightened crewman.

“I have no idea,” he replied, running a hand over his unshaven chin.

Without warning, every electrical circuit on the ship went dead. Less than a second later, the ship’s diesel engines ceased to operate. The bridge plunged into darkness.

“Switch on the auxiliary power,” ordered the captain.

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