The Neptune Project Read online

  :All right,: I say, :let’s see if she can understand anyone else.:

  One by one, different members of our group try to call Mariah to them. She hovers in the water next to me while Tisi plays with an orange puffball sponge nearby. Dai tries longer than anyone else, frowning with effort, but Mariah can’t understand him.

  Just when I’m sure no one else in the group will be able to speak to her, Mariah surges through the water and gently pokes her beak into Tobin’s belly.

  Tobin’s face lights up, and he reaches out to scratch her melon. :She just told me she likes to be scratched right here. She says she can understand me almost as clearly as she can understand you.:

  From the way Mariah remains with him, I can tell she likes Tobin. Next, I call all the dolphins, and they go to the human partners I’ve already assigned them. I ask joyful Laki to work with Penn, and sweet-tempered Mona to work with Kalli. I show everyone the basic hand signals the dolphins know for fetching, finding, protecting, and towing. At the end of my hour, I tell everyone to go off and play with their assigned dolphins.

  Before long, Robry and Nika get a wild game of tag going. Towed by our dolphins, we chase one another over and around the Alicante and in and out of the kelp forest nearby. Although I’ve played tag with Robry and the dolphins before, it’s much more of a rush when so many of us are darting and twisting through the kelp. I grin when I hear Bria shriek with laughter as Kyel and Kona manage to tag her. Everyone joins in by the end except for Dai. He just watches, looking perplexed and increasingly bored.

  :Tomorrow we can work on sending your dolphin partners visual messages,: I say, happy to see that most everyone is smiling as we wrap up the session.

  The humans stop to eat. After lunch, Kyel sends us out in teams of three and four to go on patrol with our dolphins. I sigh when I find I’ve been assigned to patrol with Ree, Thom, and Robry. Thom and Robry I can work with, but I’m not looking forward to a whole afternoon of swimming around with Ree.

  Kyel tells us to skirt the eastern tip of the island and patrol the waters to the south. He orders us to report any contacts with boats but to make sure we stay out of sonar range.

  The first two hours of our patrol pass smoothly enough. I’d forgotten how beautiful the waters around the Channel Islands are. We pass steep rock walls covered with pinkish-red gorgonian sea fans and carpets of delicate orange and white brittle stars and neon-colored nudibranchs. Robry spots a family of sea otters playing in the kelp. Even Ree ends up smiling as we pause to watch the bright-eyed animals twisting and diving as they chase one another.

  We make it to the tip of the island without encountering any boats or danger. We slow our pace as we approach the series of rocky pinnacles and shoals that form the most northeastern tip of Santa Cruz.

  As we thread our way through those pinnacles, I think I hear a boat engine, and I ask our group to stop. I tell Sokya to go find it and tell me what type of boat it is.

  :What are we waiting for?: Ree asks me impatiently.

  :I hear a boat out there somewhere.:

  :Well, I don’t hear anything, so it can’t be very close.:

  Robry speaks up. :I hear it, too.:

  I look uneasily at the rocky shoals and towers all around us. :Sound can do strange things underwater,: I warn Ree. :That boat is probably miles away, but surf, surge, and shoals like this can really distort sound waves.:

  Ree starts swimming forward. :I don’t want to hang out here all day. I just want to get this stupido patrol done.:

  Thom and Robry stay with me. :You should wait until Sokya checks back with me.…: I call after Ree.

  Seconds later, Sokya arrows toward me, whistling and sawing in fear.

  :net! net! net!: she cries and sends me a chilling image of a seine net rushing through the water. The rest of the dolphins start whistling and clicking wildly. They are terrified of fishing nets.

  :Ree, get back here! There’s a fishing boat out there pulling a net. Sokya, Densil, Nika, Pani—get back by these rocks!:

  :You’re crazy.: Ree turns around to face us. :I still don’t hear anything.:

  I spot the tall black net rushing toward her. :Ree, swim toward us! Swim back to us, NOW!:

  Startled, she looks over her shoulder and finally sees the net. She sprints toward us, her legs kicking wildly, but it’s too late. The fishing net sweeps her up and drags her away.

  :SOKYA, I NEED A TOW NOW!: I call as I kick desperately after Ree.

  :but the net—: Sokya protests, and I can sense the terror in her mental voice.

  :It’s already passed us. I promise it won’t catch you. But it has caught my friend. Please, Sokya, before it’s too late.:

  The fishing boat is traveling so quickly, if we don’t catch up to it in the next few minutes, Ree will be beyond our help. Her panicked shouts buffet my mind.

  Sokya appears beside me, and I catch hold of her fin.

  :We’re coming!: I call after Ree. Then I urge Sokya, :Swim fast! We’ve got to catch up with that net.:

  I concentrate on hanging on to her dorsal and making my body as streamlined as I can. Sokya surges through the water, her powerful tail propelling us forward.

  I can see the net now. It’s like a giant black spiderweb spun across a huge expanse of sea.

  :Take me close to Ree, and I’ll catch hold of the net.:

  :I try,: Sokya says, but I can sense she is straining. Soon she will run out of air in her lungs, and she will need to surface. We have to catch the net before then, or poor Ree will be crushed by the fish caught in the net or captured by the fishermen, who will probably turn her over to the Western Collective.

  I don’t like Ree, but I can’t leave her to be crushed or captured.

  With a final burst of speed, Sokya pulls me right up below Ree. I let go of Sokya’s fin and lunge forward. I wrap my fingers around a section of net. My arms jerk, my shoulders pick up the strain, and suddenly I’m being towed forward through the water on the outside of the big net.

  :Go breathe, and then please stay close,: I say to Sokya while I struggle to pull myself closer to Ree. :We may need your help to get away.:

  It’s hard to keep my grip against the power of the water rushing at me. I feel like I’m fighting a strong riptide. Ree had the sense to get out her dive knife, but she’s having problems sawing through the thick strands. The force of the water keeps pushing her body against the net.

  Holding on tight to the net with one hand, I work my dive knife free of its sheath on my belt. I hook my left arm through the net and set to work on a section next to the one she’s cutting.

  :Thanks for coming,: Ree grits as she saws away.

  :We can’t afford to lose our best hair braider,: I say while I focus on slicing through the thick black fibers.

  Ree keeps looking over her shoulder as frantic fish dart past her. A big green sea turtle is clawing at the net below us.

  :I can’t believe all the stuff they’ve caught in this thing,: Ree says shakily. :I think there’s a pretty big shark in here, too.:

  Moments later, she lets out a startled yelp and drops her dive knife as the frantic turtle bumps into her leg. I glance down and realize it was forced upward because the net is getting smaller. The fishermen must be winching it in.

  Robry and Nika appear beside me. Agile as a monkey, Robry catches hold of the net and lets go of Nika’s dorsal.

  :Ree dropped her knife and we’re running out of time,: I tell him breathlessly. :Try to cut through that section there.: I point, and Robry sets to work on it. Our dive knives are incredibly sharp, and we’re sawing at the net just inches away from each other’s hands.

  As the net tightens, the frightened creatures inside it are forced closer together. Ree turns, sets her back to the net, and uses her speargun to fend off the turtle and a bat ray that are frantically ramming their heads against the net right next to her.

  The last strand separates in my section. Immediately, I start on the section Ree was cutting.

&nbs
p; :Nere, they’re pulling us up now,: Robry warns me.

  :I know. Keep cutting.:

  :I can see the boat!: Ree cries in panic.

  Folds of the big net begin to close in around us. If we’re not careful, Robry and I could get tangled in it.

  :I’m through!: Robry yells.

  I push harder on my knife, and a second later, it severs the last strand. Now there’s a good-sized hole in the net.

  :Ree, turn around!: I shout.

  Robry and I force the opening wider, and Ree tries to thrust her head and shoulders through it. Her broad shoulders catch. I’m afraid she can’t possibly fit. I yank the net over her right shoulder; she kicks and twists desperately, and she’s free.

  Robry and I let go of the net, and we watch as it continues to constrict, forcing the frantic sea creatures inside closer and closer together. A few frightened mackerels slip out through the hole we cut, but the turtle and the bat ray are pinned against the sides by the rest of the catch. The turtle will probably drown before it’s hauled out of the water, and the bat ray will be crushed.

  :Let’s get out of here before they pick us up on sonar,: Robry says unsteadily.

  :Right,: I say as I sheathe my knife with trembling hands. They’re going to be sore later. I ask Sokya and our other patrol dolphins to tow us out of the boat’s sonar range. As we hurry back the way we came, I grow angrier at Ree.

  We see Thom and Densil rushing toward us. That’s when I realize cutting Ree free probably only took us a few minutes at the most. Thom smiles shyly at her.

  :I’m glad you aren’t going to end up in a can of tuna fish. Are you okay?: he asks her.

  :I’m a little shook up, but yeah, I’m okay, thanks to these guys.: She sends a sideways look at Robry and me. I wonder if that’s as close as she’s going to get to thanking us.

  :I’m sorry I couldn’t catch up with you in time to help out.: Thom looks embarrassed. :I think I’m a lot for him to tow.: He nods to Densil.

  I can’t hold in my anger a moment longer and turn on Ree. :Rushing ahead like that was incredibly stupid. We all could have gotten killed just now.:

  Without another word, I swim past her and head for the pinnacles and shoals at the tip of the island. We stop there to rest. After a quick, tense discussion, we decide we’ve done enough patrolling for one day.

  When we start heading back to the Alicante, Robry and Thom take the lead. Ree falls back to swim along beside me, but I do my best to ignore her.

  :You’ve got every right to be mad,: she says after a while. :I was muy estúpida. Thanks for coming after me anyway. I owe you big-time.:

  :You don’t owe me anything,: I reply shortly. I want to go back to ignoring her, but she looks so sorry I say, :Listen, it’s okay. We’ve got to look after each other down here.:

  :Yeah, well, you seem to be looking after everyone else better than we’re looking after you.:

  Her words make me uncomfortable. :I think I’ve just spent more time in the sea than the rest of you, except maybe for Dai.:

  :Speaking of Dai, I thought I really liked him, but he’s barely talked to me since we met up with you, except to tell me to take out my silver hoops before a barracuda bit my ears off.:

  I stare at Ree. Does she think Dai likes me?

  :I just wanted you to know, I’ve decided you can have him. He’s one of the most guapo guys I’ve ever seen, but there’s just something really off about him. Kyel’s more my type anyway.:

  :Kyel?: I can’t hide my surprise. Somehow I can’t see Kyel being into any girl.

  :Hey, even tough guys need girlfriends. Kyel just doesn’t know he needs me yet,: Ree says with a smile that lights up her whole face. :But here’s some advice. Flirt and have fun with Dai, but Tobin’s a better bet for you in the long run. You’re the smart, quiet type, and so is he.:

  I feel my cheeks starting to burn. :Um, I think we need to figure out how to survive down here first.:

  I’m really relieved when Ree gets off the topic of guys and starts talking about her past instead. She tells me she was a Chica Malas, a girl from one of the gangs who roam the hills above the drowned, tyrox-ravaged city of LA. Her father was a genetics professor, which Ree thinks is how she became part of the Neptune Project. Her dad was arrested and taken away when she was so young, she barely remembers him. When her mother and her little sister, Isa, died in the last famine, Ree joined the gang to survive.

  :I still miss Isa,: Ree admits. :She could be a real pain, like when she was always begging me to play with her, but she was my sweet little amiga, too. When Bria smiles, she reminds me of Isa so much sometimes…: Ree stops speaking for a moment and looks away from me before she resumes her story.

  :Then this weird young guy showed up and hung out with our gang for a while. He told me he knew why my eyes and my lungs were so weak. My lung attacks were getting pretty bad, so I agreed to go down to San Diego with him. There in his secret lab, he gave me some lung meds and told me all about the Neptune Project. He’d already found Tobin and Bria. Kyel and Thom showed up a few weeks before we went through the final transformation together.:

  :And what about Dai?: I try to sound casual.

  :He met up with us a few days before you did, just south of LA.:

  I blink. I thought he’d been a part of Kyel’s group from the start. :Was there anyone with him?:

  :Just that big dolphin.:

  :Did he say where he came from?:

  A familiar male mind touches mine. :If you’re that curious about me, Nere, just ask.:

  Dai swims out to meet us, his expression tight. With a start, I realize we are almost back to the Alicante. There’s a challenge in Dai’s gaze that makes my stomach clench.

  :All right,: I reply. I don’t like his eavesdropping on my private conversation with Ree, but he looks so angry that I decide to wait until later to call him on it.

  :We have to report to Kyel, but then I do want to hear your life story,: I declare while I carefully close my mind to him.

  And I want to know how, exactly, you came to have a deep-sea dolphin and learned how to kill sharks with your dive knife.

  KYEL CALLS A MEETING in the wheelhouse so everyone can hear about the patrols. Thom, the official leader for our patrol group, matter-of-factly reports what happened to Ree. Robry and I receive some curious looks by the end of his report, and Dai gives me a mock salute. After Thom finishes, Kyel nods to Robry and me.

  :Nere, Robry, that was quick thinking. Now we know we need to watch out for fishing nets. And Ree, now you know you’ve got to stay with your travel group.:

  Then Penn reports in for his patrol, and it’s clear from the start that he’s excited about something.

  :We found a Marine Guard vessel anchored in a natural harbor ten miles to the west of here. It’s the Defender, the same one that chased Sara, Kalli, and me out of Oxnay. She has at least twenty crew aboard her.:

  I draw in a breath. It is not good that a Marine Guard vessel looking for Neptune Project kids has turned up here.

  :I think we should go back there tonight and sink that ship with a mine,: Penn declares, his dark eyes smoldering with hatred. :I bet they won’t be watching for us on their sonar scopes at night.:

  :You might as well walk right up on the beach of Santa Cruz and tell the Western Collective that we’re hiding out here,: Tobin speaks up. :The Marine Guard knows we have mines now, and if we sink this ship, they’ll guess we did it.:

  :But these are the same men who killed Sara,: Penn says angrily. :We can’t let them get away with murder.:

  :This is an excellent chance to strike at our enemy with only a small possibility of casualties,: Kyel adds, so calmly that a chill goes down my back.

  :But that’s not our job,: I burst out. :Our job right now is to learn how to stay alive down here. We can’t fight every Marine Guard vessel we come across.:

  :Penn, I know they killed Sara, but sinking this ship isn’t going to bring her back,: Lena adds quickly.

  Ree straig
htens up and crosses her arms. :Kyel, mi amigo, you’re not leading some guerrilla group that’s dedicated to bringing down the Western Collective anymore. Me, I’m dedicated to staying alive for another twenty-four hours, and based on my mess-up with that net, survival’s a big enough challenge for us right now.:

  :I agree. Going after Marine Guard boats is a crazy idea,: Kalli adds.

  :Have any of you actually read the information in our seapacks?: Robry asks, his expression earnest. :The mission of the Neptune Project is not to attack boats or to try to topple any government. Our mission is to establish a colony in the sea and build something new and better under the waves. We risk all that if we try to fight the Collective’s ships while there’s still so few of us.:

  Kyel’s face is impassive as he considers our words. :My primary mission has been and will always be to take down the Western Collective. It’s a corrupt, rotten regime responsible for the careless deaths of millions. We’ll head out for the Defender as soon as it’s dark.:

  The fanatical light in his eyes seems oddly familiar to me, and suddenly I remember the way my mother looked when she was talking about the Neptune Project.

  :Kyel, I’m sorry,: Tobin says, :but you and Penn are dead wrong to go after this Marine Guard boat. If you’re determined to ignore us, I propose we hold another election for leader right now.:

  He looks at each of us and adds, :And I nominate Nere Hanson.:

  I stare at Tobin. My stomach starts twining and twisting like an octopus. Is he crazy? I can’t possibly lead this group. If Kyel, with all his years of guerrilla training, has difficulty getting this group to follow orders, I don’t stand a chance. I have problems just leading a lesson on how to work with dolphins.

  :I think Nere would be a good leader for the following reasons,: Tobin declares. :She thinks fast, she has the guts to act on her decisions, she knows the ocean, her dolphins give her vital information that has already helped save lives, and, most importantly, she understands that our survival in the sea comes first.:

  :I second that idea.: Lena stuns me by agreeing. :She knows more than any of us about the sea, and she has the common sense not to go around blowing up boats.: