Novo Cetus

Chapter Four

Chapter 4

The family of whales enjoyed the cooler sea-surface temperatures, deep canyons and pitched drops of the continental slope in the Pacific. They alternated between resting and foraging. The more restless whales dove deep for giant squid, seeking out depths where the eerie glow of iridescent fish and the florescent bodies of squid replaced the brightness of sunlight. Wrinkled skin puckered further as the crushing pressure of the deep compressed their bodies. Blubber contracted against the weight of the water as the sperm whales' flexible ribcages folded in against deflated lungs.

Each whales' sonar pinged and sent back ghostly images of towering peaks and steep drop-offs along the ridge. Excitement reverberated throughout the hunting party; giant squid had been located. One by one the whales positioned themselves and surrounded the squid, their behavior evolved by centuries of cooperative hunting.

The Giant squid felt the echolocation ping off his boneless body and flattened himself against a ridge, brightly flashing red and white. Its hard gladius, the internal structure of the mantle, stopped it from completely disappearing into the structure, however the tentacles and tail fin settled into the crannies of the erection. Water whooshed out of its funnel at an exaggerated rate as its respiration increased. Instinctively, this squid knew he was in mortal danger.

Gray pumped her tail up and down as she hurtled through the complete blackness of the deep abyss, her sonar focused on the beast. She bared down on her target, prepared to suck the creature down her gullet at the very moment she reached it. A hammer in the deep; she smashed into the protruding gladius and knocked the giant out of its cranny. Gray grabbed the monster by its head as it attempted to flee; wiry tentacles slashed backwards tearing chunks of flesh from her face. She sucked in the architeuthis, her stomach muscles crushing its internal shell as it traveled down the digestive tack. Acid in her guts dissolved the cephalopod skin and muscles leaving only the horny beak as evidence of its existence. The clan watched; pleased to give their mentor the first kill of the day. Confident all would eat their fill today.

The clan continued its journey south, pausing along the Tropic of Cancer. They enjoyed all the ocean provided, relishing cooler air and the warmer top water of the coastal region. They stopped for rest and refueling before making the long trip south past the equator to the Galapagos Islands.

Several healthy bachelors grew restless. Biology urged them to break away from the confines of the pod. Adolescent males reached record size, nearly that of adult females – thirty feet in length and fifteen tons heavy. Successful hunting had led to exponential growth for all pod members.

Young males, ready to leave the pod, squared off and rammed each other in mock battle, repeatedly ricocheting off each other's bulbous brows. Young females on the edge of sexual maturity watched the affable rivalry. They slapped at the surface delightedly with their tails and pectoral fins, and clapped their jaws together in appreciation of the display. Slow clicks from the usually silent males and elongated creaks from vocal females were a constant background noise.

The whales in the nursery practiced synchronized coda. Mamas and babies faced each other and reflected each other's clicks and creaks. A symphony of duet chains, reciprocal coda and matching vocalizations pealed out from the nursery. All of this activity reinforced the social bonds of the pod.

The glittering calf hung in the deep. No longer unblemished, his skin bore hard-won battle badges from the clawed tentacles and razor sharp beaks of the giant architeuthis. He stretched over forty feet in length and weighed twenty-five tons. None of the males challenged him in competition, however every so often the calf rose to the surface and lob-tailed around the mock battlefield in spectacular pageantry.

The calf enjoyed the days of play. He particularly liked the constant sounds and voices echoing through the clan. These friendly noises almost drowned out the relentless whir and rattle in his head. Nanos intercepted his thoughts when consciousness edged him toward examining what had happened to him or why he was different. Nonetheless, he knew he was changed. Whales visited daily and told him stories of the surface. They described the stampede of dolphins when tens of thousands of white-sided dolphins crisscrossed through the pod. He particularly loved their story of the group of high-spirited blue whales that passed through their clan. Pod-mates revealed how the blues had rollicked and rolled through the pod, unhinging their lower jaw and scooping up tons of krill that swarmed the surface.

Coached by a twisted combination of nature and nano nurture, he co-existed with his pod.

Steve Martinelli captained the cruise ship Ali-Goren. Several hours ahead of schedule, he allowed the unusually swift current to move his ship silently along the continental shelf. Coasting with engines cut, provided an eerie experience. Accustomed to the constant hum and forward motion of the powerful engines, drifting provided all aboard the opportunity to enjoy the quiet and stillness of sea life. This practice evoked Captain Martinelli's childhood memory of sailing his beloved blue and yellow skiff when the wind happened to die. Stalled for hours, he learned that when completely quiet; the fish in the water didn't seem to notice him.

The whales logged in the water, resting as the cruise ship with the diamond logo displayed on its side approached. Unaware of the silent danger gliding toward them, the pod drifted motionless on the top-water, their heads, blowholes and dorsal knuckles exposed to the surface.

The ship knifed into the clan. Its bow sliced the matriarch, slashing open her melon and cracking her skull. Wax oozed out of the spermatici organ and air hissed as it escaped from her torn distal sacs. The impact lacerated her blowhole and exposed the folds of skin, called monkey lips, which lay deep within the blubbery exterior of her blowhole. The ship severed the tendons holding her lower jaw in place, and her mouth hung open in a never-ending scream. Where her blowhole used to be, let loose a mournful wail. The intensity of the cry, so similar to the sound of his dying mother, jarred the calf's memory. His hippocampus flooded as his mind flashed back to the explosion. Nano linemen systematically rerouted energy, to maintained order as chaos flared up in the mainframe. They disconnected and interrupted the pathways recalling the shocking trauma.

Anguish quickly turned to anger and nanos knew what to do with anger. The energy it created went directly to the defense system. Incorporated into the pectoral fin's design, were missile launchers. The nanos sent a message to a muscle in the fin. It contracted, firing a missile into the cruise ship.

Captain Martinelli needed no military training to recognize they had been fired upon. He issued a ship-wide emergency action command and sent out a distress signal. He ordered the crew to engage the engines in an effort to get closer to shore. He hoped the passengers paid attention to the mandatory emergency information meeting at the start of the cruise and would find their way to life vests and vessels if needed. He scanned the waters to get a glimpse of what and who had fired. The only activity he identified was a pod of sperm whales as they swam frantically away.

The pod went in one direction, and the cruise ship in another. The rebuilt whale waited until the cruise ship wobbled away, then followed his pod. As he approached, he could see several matrons under the matriarch holding her at the surface. Clan members crowded around her, touching and caressing her, each nudge and stroke a loving tribute to their leader. Several males formed a rosette around their family, warding off predators attracted by the scent of blood.

The rebuilt whale approached the cluster of clan members and the whales moved reluctantly out of his way.

Nanos examined life signs from the dominant whale: marginal signal emitted from cerebral cortex, body temperature cooling, breathing labored, circulatory and respiratory systems failing. Conclusion: Death.

The altered whale skimmed softly along the length of his mentor's body and gently nuzzled her injured frame. Perfect vision was unnecessary to see what was happening; the life spark that shone in her eye was dark, and she quaked with each intake of air. No click or coda could convey his grief as he sensed her life slip away