Maura tugged her luggage toward ground transportation. It felt good to finally stretch her legs. It had taken her nearly half a day to fly from Philly to Doha. Maura had never been aboard Qatar Airways before. The plane was spotless, the crew almost too eager to please. The German sitting beside her certainly didn’t need a fifth scotch and coke. He’d drifted off and Maura had to dig her elbow into him more than once to avoid being used as a neck pillow.

  The flight from Perth wasn’t much better. She sat glued to the window, staring down at the devastation from that summer’s brushfires. Oddly shaped shadows seemed to fall across forest and farmland alike, revealing large swaths of scorched earth. She watched each blackened rectangle pass with an odd sort of detachment. It was hard to care about every disaster in the world when they kept happening all at once and with greater frequency.

  Maura stepped through a set of sliding doors to the pick-up area. Groups of tourists tried to make sense of their surroundings. A little girl tugged at her mother’s sleeve while her older sister scrolled through her phone. The sister was tall and tan, and for a moment Maura felt something tighten in her chest.

  She’d been told her driver would meet her at Bay 19. As she dragged her luggage over, her mind drifted back home. Telling her father had been worse than she had anticipated. The old man barely said a word. But when she left that night, she noticed him standing near the window, watching her drive off. She’d managed to find someone to cover the worm shop while she was away. One of the diggers she trusted a bit more than the rest. She was pretty sure her father would be down there showing him the ropes whether he liked it or not.

  Maura found herself near Bay 19. A Japanese man shuffled around under the sign. His shoulder-length hair was parted down the middle and he wore a faded T-shirt with Godzilla on it, except with the head of an Egyptian Mau. Their eyes danced around each other for a moment, until a man in a faded chauffeur’s hat stepped up on the curb.

  “Mr. Tanaka?”

  The Japanese man gave a slight nod.

  “And you must be Dr. Kates?”

  “That would be me.”

  She and the Japanese man finally exchanged a nod.

  “Well, looks like you two are the last ones.”

  Last ones? She wasn’t sure what that meant, but she was happy to have someone take her bag. He led them to his cab.

  “Don’t worry. We’re not going far. Private strip. Just a few minutes away.”

  They climbed inside.

  “If you’re thirsty, there are waters back there.”

  Maura hated the overuse of plastic. But the water was welcome and cool. She drank it down then decided it was time to break the ice with her new companion.

  “Are you here on behalf of the Chinese Mineral Resources Research and Development Association?” It didn’t exactly roll off the tongue. The man beside her giggled. They had been instructed not to talk about why they’d been hired, but Maura somehow already felt at ease with her friend in the backseat.

  “Yes, as a matter of fact I am. You could say I’m here on scientific business.”

  He said it in a silly, hushed tone which made Maura smile. She couldn’t help but grin at all the unnecessary secrecy.

  “Me too.”

  Maura’s eyes drifted down to his graphic tee.

  “Can I ask—What’s that on your shirt?”

  “Oh, this? This is Catzilla.”

  “Catzilla?”

  “It’s not real.”

  “It’s cute.”

  He laughed.

  “Thank you. What does the B on your hat stand for?”

  “Boston.”

  “Are you from there?”

  She shook her head.

  “I’m from Maine.”

  He stared at her blankly.

  “Maine. Lobster…”

  Minato nodded.

  “And you’re from…?” Maura continued.

  “Kyoto.”

  Maura had heard of Kyoto. She’d once gone to a performance of the Kyoto drummers at the Bangor Civic Center. She couldn’t tell you where it was on a map, but their drummers sure put on one hell of a show.

  “I’m Maura, by the way.”

  The man gave her his hand.

  “Minato.”

  They were only on the airport loop for a moment before taking a detour to a deserted airstrip. Waiting was a sleek black and red helicopter, rotors powered up. It was chunky and wide, and Maura thought it resembled a bus on skids. She collected her luggage, and watched as Minato wandered across the tarmac to a tall gentleman with an elegant herringbone suitcase. The two men embraced, clapping each other on the back. Maura wondered if she’d have any old friends on this flight.

  “Ma’am? I need you to stay low as we approach the bird.”

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  The co-pilot, a woman with aviators and a ponytail gestured for her to crouch as they crept toward the door. She took Maura’s luggage, stowed it below, then swiftly ushered her into the copter.

  The inside was not at all what Maura expected. The seats were spacious and plush, three to a row with a walkway down the middle. It was already half-full with passengers. A quick scan picked up several hard-scrabble men in the back, roustabouts most likely, mechanics working on the extraction team. There was a middle-aged man with his shirt unbuttoned, exposing a smooth red chest. But it was the person immediately to her left that most struck her. Maura didn’t need to wait long to see if she’d have any acquaintances onboard.

  Amy stared out the window, seemingly unaware of Maura’s presence. Maura hadn’t seen her since the hearings. She hadn’t been sent a list of crew members beforehand, just told that she would be working with “the best.” It was unlike her to accept an invitation on such uncertain terms, but then again, the offers weren’t exactly plentiful.

  Amy looked different. Her piercings were gone and her edgy hairstyle had been replaced with a standard-issue bob. She wore a blazer and a pair of slacks and almost looked professional. Everything about this trip just kept getting stranger.

  Maura slid into a seat on the other side of the helicopter and was soon joined by Minato and his friend. The pilot announced it was time to fasten seat belts. Soon they lifted into the air. She watched the airport disappear along with a strip of white hugging the coast. The closest to the beach she was going to get on this trip. They flew out over tankers, delivering liquid gas back to whole cities, before hitting the open ocean. The roustabouts in the back were laughing and horsing around while the rest of them remained silent. Maura stole a glance at Amy, trying to make eye contact, but Amy stayed glued to the window.

  “Maura? This is my friend and colleague, Lucas. Lucas King this is Maura Kates.”

  They shook.

  “Dr. Maura Kates… I peer-reviewed your work on ecological connectivity in Pacific deep-sea hydrothermal vents.”

  “Really? Hope you didn’t find anything askew…”

  He laughed.

  “Quite the contrary. I found it fascinating. Especially, your hypothesis that hydrothermal vents may have acted as evolutionary stepping stones, introducing the first molecules for life.”

  “Just a hypothesis.”

  “Yes, but if true, a game changer.”

  “Sorry, but I’m not familiar with this theory,” Minato interjected.

  “Well, Dr. Kates could probably explain it better herself, but essentially, hydrothermal vents, due to their high temperatures, alkalinity, and unique chemical conditions, may have actually been the places where life on Earth first emerged.”

  Maura shrugged, uncomfortable in the spotlight.

  “Ah. The divine source. Intriguing.” Minato murmured.

  “Like I said, just a theory,” Maura was stopped by a thought, “And you’re Lucas King, of the Port Phillip Cnidarian Research Center?”

  He nodded.

  “I met your wife at a conference. Sorry to hear about her…”

  “Thank you. Yes, she was one of a kind.”

  “I’ll say. I distinctly remember attending a cocktail party where she was dancing.”

  “She loved to dance.”

  “I’m not sure anyone else was grooving to the music, so to speak.”

  “Well, she didn’t much care what people thought either.” Lucas laughed.

  Maura turned to Minato.

  “So, how do you two know each other?”

  Minato gave Lucas a quick smile, “We worked on the Box Jellyfish antivenom together. Lucas and I were both postdocs at the University of Melbourne.”

  “Yes, unfortunately, I bear responsibility for dragging him into this.”

  “I owe you my thanks. Without this I may not have been able to continue my research.”

  “What is it you’re researching?”

  Minato’s eyes gleamed.

  “Turritopsis dohrnii.”

  Maura nodded, “The Immortal Jellyfish?”

  Minato bowed.

  Two researchers who worked on the antivenom for the box jelly and one deep-sea vent expert. Maura was beginning to connect the dots as to why they’d all been recruited.

  “Jellyfish. Goddamn nuisance if you ask me. Got stung once. Almost ruined my vacation.”

  It was the ruddy-faced man behind them.

  “Did you have to go to the hospital?” Maura asked.

  “Nah. Just poured some vinegar on it and went back in.”

  “Well, I hope you knew what you were stung by, because some jellyfish stings don’t take so well to vinegar,” Lucas cautioned.

  “Could’ve fooled me. Been swimming in these waters my whole life. Everybody knows you use vinegar for a sting.”

  “For a Box Jelly, sure. Portuguese Man of War, you’re more likely to release more venom.”

  The red-faced man scoffed.

  “Well, who am I to disagree with the experts? Name’s Liam.”

  They briefly introduced themselves before he continued,

  “So, what brings you all out to the middle of the ocean? You’re not grunts, that’s for sure.”

  Maura and Minato shared a glance, unsure what to say.

  “We’re here on research,” Maura thought it best to stay vague, “What about you? What brings you out here?”

  “What’s it look like?”

  Lucas ventured a guess, “Drilling?”

  “Figured that’s what you’d say. No, I’m kind of like you lot, except I probably get my hands a bit dirtier. You could say I’m a prospector. Specifically, I look for polymetallic nodules.”

  “So you tear up the seabed looking for diamonds?”

  It was Amy. She was now staring directly at Liam. Maura had briefly forgotten about her, but now she was laser focused across the aisle.

  “I don’t work for De Beers, honey. Cobalt, magnesium, limestone, titanium... Where do you think your electric car batteries come from? It’s all gotta come from somewhere.”

  Maura could tell Amy had her knives out. An unabashed environmentalist, she lived to take down guys like Liam.

  “There are more valuable things at the bottom of the ocean than minerals.”

  “Could’ve fooled me. Nobody’s offered to pay me for a dolphin yet.”

  “Dolphins can’t swim that deep. They have lungs.”

  Maura decided to interject before things devolved any further.

  “So I take it this isn’t your first trip out here?”

  He held up his fingers.

  “Sixth.”

  Everyone sat back, impressed.

  “Since this is probably everybody’s first time, a few words of advice. Number one, make sure you use the loos in the tower. You get stuck somewhere below deck and have to use one of those, trust me, you’re going to regret it. Number two, if you think the men back there give a flying fig about anything other than how much green they’re making, then you best bugger off and bugger off fast. People like you create the rules that hurt people like them. So, don’t expect them to be too friendly. Although, if I’m being honest, we don’t get too many women out here, so I could be wrong.”

  He winked and eased back in his seat.

  Amy finally made eye contact with Maura. It was brief, but at least it was something. Even if they were at odds, they could find solidarity in being possibly the only two women aboard.

  One of the roustabouts whistled and clapped. It seemed like the men were excited about something. The helicopter banked and she heard Minato let out a gasp.

  Maura slid over to her window and stared out at the waves.

  The helicopter evened out and the captain came over the intercom.

  “Please fasten your seatbelts as we make our final descent.”

  Maura slipped the harness over her shoulders and craned her neck. Something large stretched across the sea, bisecting a bright patch of dazzling water. It was as if a skyscraper had fallen in the middle of the ocean and lay there, basking in the sun. The waves were tiny, barely differentiated. As they grew closer the whole thing no longer fit in her window. Maura realized with growing astonishment that this was the largest ship she’d ever seen.

  “She’s a sight, ain’t she?” Liam waxed, “Longer than six aircraft carriers. The largest mineral extraction operation in the world.”

  Maura couldn’t take her eyes off it. The massive hull sported five enormous turrets. Housed inside them would be drills the size of redwoods, all boring deep into the abysmal plain. Hydraulic pumps would suck the minerals up into the ship to be processed, while adjoining vents returned the filtered material back in a gray ooze coating every inch of the seabed and everything living there. With an operation this size they could harvest the entire trench.

  “Looks like clear skies and calm winds. Everyone, welcome aboard the Overture,” the pilot straightened out her flight path and they glided downward.

  “A sight to behold,” Liam mused.

  But Maura wasn’t in awe. She was horrified.