“I bet,” she replied walking toward him. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes. I wish I could explain but-“
“That’s okay,” she said. “I understand.” Alison motioned to Chris and Lee. “We all appreciate you bringing Dirk and Sally back quickly.”
Clay smiled. “Well it was the least we could do after all the trouble you went to bringing them out to help us.”
He didn’t know the half of it, thought Alison.
Clay looked curiously at Sally who seemed to be staring at all of them. Dirk was swimming small circles around the near end of the tank.
“So are you here on pleasure or business?” Alison asked. “I hope you don’t expect a free pass to the aquarium.” His hair seemed thicker and more wavy than she remembered.
“Both,” Clay replied. “I was also hoping to talk to your dolphins. We never had a chance to ask them about our submersible.”
“Sure,” she waved him over to the tank by Lee’s desk. She called into the microphone for Dirk. He swam back and stopped near Sally who was still moving gently to keep herself in place. “Did you find the metal bubble?” she asked them.
Yes, Dirk answered.
“Do you remember where it is?”
Yes. Dirk paused as if thinking or trying to articulate. South. East. After a moment IMIS combined the words to Southeast.
“How far?” asked Alison with a glance at Clay.
After a longer pause Dirk replied. Very far. Many clicks.
She frowned. “What is a click?”
Click is go.
Alison shook her head. She was going to have to approach this from a different angle. “How far is a click Dirk?”
Dirk turned to look at the other end of the tank. He darted off, swimming to the far end and then back to the glass in front of Alison and Clay. Click.
“That was a click?”
Yes.
“How many clicks to the metal bubble Dirk?”
Dirk was silent for long moment. Finally he replied. Hundred. Eight. Again IMIS changed the words. Dirk’s reply became Eight hundred.
Alison and Clay looked over at the sound of Chris dropping his cup. He was staring at Dirk. Clay looked down at the spilt coffee at Chris’ feet and then back at Alison. “What happened?”
Alison looked like she had seen a ghost. “They can count.”
Clay raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Wow.”
“They can count,” Alison said again to herself. “I’ve got to sit down.” She backed up and lowered herself onto the edge of a nearby table.
“This is big,” said Chris. “I mean really, really big.”
“I know,” nodded Alison. The ability to count had far reaching implications. It indicated a depth of understanding far removed from simple hellos and questions about feeding time. Just the indication that they understood the difference between words and numbers were staggering. In fact, just their understanding of words would have been incredible. Alison was beginning to feel completely unprepared for the kind of information that Dirk and Sally were revealing to them.
Clay smiled. “It seems I’m amazed every time I come here.”
Alison was not listening.
Clay leaned toward her. “Not to spoil the mood but can we ask them how deep our sub was?”
Twenty, replied Dirk.
Clay was startled. “They can understand me too?”
Alison smirked. “Evidently.”
Clay turned back to Dirk. “Twenty clicks deep Dirk?”
Yes.
“Thank you,” Clay nodded. He looked at Dirk and Sally for a long time before turning around to the team. “Well I’d better-”
Near them city.
Clay suddenly stopped. He turned back. “What?”
Near them city.
Alison quickly stood up again. “Did you say a city?”
Yes.
Alison looked at Clay nervously. She wasn’t sure she wanted the next answer. “Who’s city?”
Them. Others.
Clay stepped closer to the glass. “Have you been to the city Dirk?”
Yes.
“What does it look like?”
Beautiful.
Alison, Chris, and Lee looked thoroughly confused. They had no idea what the dolphins were talking about. Clay did. “How many live in the beautiful city?” he asked.
No know.
Clay thought for a moment and then pulled the silver brick out of his pocket. He took another step closer. “Dirk, Sally, do you know what this is?” He held it up high.
No.
No.
Clay took a deep breath. “Do you know why the other people are here?”
Dirk’s answer was unmistakable. Water.
Clay put the brick down on the table and reached for his cell phone. It had no signal. He looked at Alison. “I need to use your phone.”
24
Palin sat alone in the middle of a large, white room in a small metal chair, his hands cuffed behind his back. The only exit was a single door on the far wall. Two security cameras were perched at the ceiling in either corner. Next to the door was a large, one-way mirror which served as an observation room. He looked around the room curiously and looked up when the door opened and broke the deafening silence.
In walked a lean man with glasses and short red hair. He eased the door closed and then turned to Palin. Walking across the room the man sat down in the chair opposite, facing him. After a moment he spoke in a calm voice.
“Hello Palin. My name is Albert Keister.”
Palin did not answer.
Keister nodded unsurprised. “I work for the Navy and I’m here to ask you some questions.” When Palin remained silent he continued. “I know you speak English. I’ve read the report on what happened aboard our ship. Something out of the ordinary to say the least.” Still nothing. “We obviously would like to know who you are and how you did that.”
Palin still had not moved but looked at him unblinking. Keister studied Palin for a long time. This, he thought, was going to be difficult.
As soon as the Humvee stopped, Clay jumped out of the passenger’s seat and ran to the nondescript building where the door was being held open for him. This time he was quickly escorted through the security checkpoint and down the elevator to the conference room where they had their group video call less than twelve hours before. As Clay walked in, he was surprised to see Defense Secretary Miller and Security Advisor Stevas in person. They were seated with Langford and Foster and instinctively stood up when he entered.
Clay stopped and saluted.
Miller quickly returned the gesture and motioned to a chair at the end of the long table. “Have a seat Clay.”
Clay quickly sat down.
“Clay I’d like you to tell me again exactly what you said to this Palin person and what he said to you.” Miller said.
Clay repeated the exchange while the Secretary listened intently. When he was done, Miller gave a short nod and put his hands together thinking. Finally he looked at Clay. “I am aware of your security clearance but nevertheless I want to stress that nothing leaves this room.”
Clay nodded. “Of course.”
“To begin with,” he started, “our friend does not appear to be very talkative. Albert Keister is one of our very best interrogators and he couldn’t get a word out of him.” Miller shrugged. “Now we obviously need to be careful here, so we are not about to get aggressive with him. But judging from Keister’s visit, we had better do something or we could be waiting here a very long time.”