Artie stood in the dark hallway and listened to the sound of his own breath. It was a wet, raspy sound. He had been a deep-sea diver for ten years until the accident in the North Sea. People said he was a drunk. They said he was a coward who let his crew drown. Now, he was twelve miles down in a tin can that was about to pop. He had a hole in his soul that only a win could fix. He needed to prove he was still a man.
The facility groaned. It was a deep, metallic moan that felt like it was coming from inside his own teeth. The water was pushing against the glass walls with billions of pounds of force. Artie could see the tiny cracks forming. They looked like spider webs made of light. He touched the cold metal of the wall. It felt greasy and slick with sweat. He was terrified. He was so scared that his knees felt like they were made of jelly.
He heard a sharp click. It was the sound of a gun being readied.
“I know you’re in the pipes, Artie,” a voice called out. It was Knox. Knox was the head of the corporate team. He was a man who looked like he was carved out of gray stone. He didn’t care about the ocean or the poison. He only cared about the data. “Just come out. We can make this quick. You don’t want to be here when the walls cave in.”
Artie didn’t move. He held his breath until his lungs burned. He watched a single drop of water fall from a pipe above him. It hit the floor with a tiny splash that sounded like a bomb in the silence. He noticed the way the light from his flashlight caught the salt crystals on his glove. Everything was so bright and sharp. He could see the texture of the rust on the bolts. He could hear the hum of the cooling core. It was a low, sick sound. It sounded like a heart that was about to stop beating.
He had to reach the core. He had to turn the cooling back on before the whole place blew. If it blew, the chemicals inside would turn the ocean into a graveyard. Artie started to crawl. The floor was freezing. It felt like ice against his palms. He moved like a ghost through the shadows.
He turned a corner and saw a shadow move. It was Sia, one of Knox’s guards. She was holding a black rifle. She looked like a predator in the dark. Artie felt a cold shock go through his body. His skin broke out in goosebumps. He felt a sudden, sharp pain in his gut. He was trapped.
Sia raised her gun. Artie didn’t think. He grabbed a heavy wrench from his belt and threw it. The metal tool hissed through the air. It hit a steam pipe next to her head. A cloud of white, hot air exploded. Sia screamed and fell back. The sound was high and jagged. It cut through the air like a knife.
Artie ran. His boots hammered against the metal floor. Clang. Clang. Clang. The sound was too loud. It told everyone where he was. He reached the core room and slammed the door. He locked it just as a bullet punched a hole through the steel. The hole was small and neat. It let in a tiny ray of light that danced in the dust.
The core was a giant tower of glass and spinning lights. It was glowing a dull, angry red. The heat in the room was thick. It smelled like burning hair and ozone. Artie ran to the control panel. His fingers were shaking so hard he could barely hit the buttons.
“Come on,” he whispered. “Come on, baby.”
The door behind him began to bend. Knox was hitting it with something heavy. Each boom made the whole room shake. The glass walls of the facility let out a long, slow whistle. The ocean was coming in. Artie felt the pressure building in his ears. It felt like someone was shoving needles into his brain.
He saw the manual lever. It was painted a bright, happy yellow. It looked out of place in this dark, dying room. He grabbed it. It was stuck. He pulled with everything he had. He thought about the faces of the men he had lost. He thought about the blue water above him. He didn’t want to die a coward.
He screamed. It was a raw, ugly sound. He pulled again.
The lever moved.
There was a deep, rolling thud. The red lights turned to a soft, cool blue. The core began to hum. The heat started to fade. Artie leaned his head against the cold glass. He was crying, but he was laughing too. He had done it. He had actually done it.
The door burst open. Knox stood there. His face was red and covered in soot. He looked at the blue lights. He looked at Artie. He raised his gun, but then the floor tilted. A huge wave of water smashed through the outer windows. It was a wall of black, crushing weight.
Knox was swept away in a second. He didn’t even have time to yell.
Artie grabbed a safety rail. The water hit him like a freight train. It was so cold it felt like fire. He held his breath. He felt himself being lifted. He felt the facility breaking apart around him. He saw the data drive floating in the water. He snatched it out of the air.
He was pushed up a maintenance shaft. The air was screaming as it was forced out by the water. He popped out of a hatch and into the dark, open sea. He was inside a small emergency pod. He hit the release.
The pod shot up like a cork. Artie watched the facility turn into a tiny spark of light below him. Then, there was a flash. The proof of the conspiracy was in his hand. The ocean was safe.
When the pod hit the surface, the sun was just starting to come up. The sky was pink and orange. It was the most beautiful thing Artie had ever seen. He cracked the hatch and smelled the salt air. It didn’t feel heavy anymore. It felt light. He felt light.
He sat on the edge of the pod and watched the waves. He was tired. His body was covered in bruises and his lungs hurt. But for the first time in three years, he didn’t feel like he was drowning. He was alive. He had won. The salt on his skin felt like a crown.