Nicholas Smith - Hell Divers

“I have to dive again in a few hours—this time to Hades.”

Tin tilted his head ever so slightly. Studying, scrutinizing.

“I won’t lie to you. Hades is a very dangerous place. That’s why Captain Ash is sending in all three teams instead of just one: we’ll have better odds of success.”

“You don’t think you’re coming back, do you?”

X’s heart sank. “I’m not sure anyone will make it back, but as long as we send the crate up with the parts…”

Tears welled in Tin’s eyes.

X reached out and said, “I’ve already made arrangements with Captain Ash. You’ll be looked after. You’ll be fine.”

Tin stood up, pulling away from X’s fingertips. “Who else is going to look after me? Huh? Who?”

“I’m not sure,” X replied. “But Captain Ash reassured me—”

“I don’t want someone else to look after me!”

X rose to his feet. “Tin, I will do everything I can to come back. Everything. I promise.”

“That’s what my dad always said. But he didn’t come back, and you couldn’t save him.”

The words stung, but X didn’t blame the boy for saying them. “Tin, please. I’m doing this for you and everyone else on the ship. Just like your father did.”

Tin tightened the string of his hat around his chin. “Why do the people I love always have to be the ones to die? Why can’t someone else dive?” He wiped a tear away and sucked in a long breath.

“Because there aren’t many people left who can do what your father did or what I do,” X said. He kept his voice as calm as he could, hoping the boy would understand.

Tin shook his head. “There are plenty of people on this ship, but it’s always the ones I care about that die.”

X reached out, but Tin ducked and stormed away to the bedroom. He stopped outside the door and said, “I’ll be better off on my own. Better off looking after myself. Everyone I ever cared about has died anyway. And now you’re going to die, too.”

X slowly walked over to him, but Tin slammed the door between them. X pressed against the door with both hands and lowered his head. “Tin, please. Please don’t make me leave this way. I’m doing this for you. For the Hive !”

The only response was the faint sound of sobbing. X backed away, his mind racing. Only a few hours remained before the dive, and everything he had begun to rebuild with the boy was wrecked. He was tempted to go find a drink to take his mind off things, but instead he wrapped himself in a blanket and lay down on the couch, hoping Tin would someday forgive him for what he had to do.

X slept fitfully for the next hour. His thoughts were scattered and chaotic. He finally gave up trying to rest and relit the candle on the table. Then he padded over to the bedroom and gently pushed the door open. The glimmering golden light illuminated Tin’s still body through the open door.

X slipped inside and knelt beside the bed. The boy’s eyes flicked and quivered beneath the lids. He was in deep sleep. The events of the past few days had worn him out.

“I’ll save the Hive, Tin,” X whispered. “I’ll make sure you get to grow up. And someday, you’ll be an engineer, or maybe a farmer. You’ll do great things. I know it. You’ll build things and help people. And maybe someday you’ll understand why your dad and I had to keep diving until it killed us.”

He put his hand gently on Tin’s shoulder for a moment. For the past year, X had done his duty and dived without much thought beyond a hangover and a death wish. But feeling the boy’s back move up and down reminded him that there was something in this world still worth living for and protecting.

An hour later, X was suiting up in the HD facility. Tony and Cruise were already there, checking their gear and loading two plastic crates in the center of the room. Both team leads were freshly groomed, their shaved heads glistening under the bright LEDs. It was a ritual for them. Pretty silly in X’s opinion, but if it helped psych them up for the dive, it was fine with him.

“You guys ready?” X asked.

Cruise ran a finger back and forth over his jaw. “What do you think?”

X looked Cruise up and down. “I think you better down some electrolyte tablets. You look like you had a few too many last night.”

Tony let out a snicker. “I told you not to get so stupid, man.”

“I’m fine,” Cruise said. “You pick your poison, X; I’ll pick mine.”

“Last I checked, I’m not hungover for this dive.”

Cruise tilted his head at X as if trying to get a read, but X turned his back, bending over the boxes to examine the contents. They were filled with assault rifles, magazines, flares, medicine, food, water, climbing gear, and extra boosters.

Cruise hovered over him. “You think we really have a chance down there?”

“If we make it through the storms, yeah, maybe,” X said, double-checking the gear.

“At least we got some real firepower for this dive,” Cruise said. He crossed his forearms, which made his biceps bulge. “We run into any of your Sirens, I’ll blow ’em to itty bits.”

“A word of advice,” X said, glancing up. “If you make it to the surface and you see anything down there, run.”

Cruise clenched his jaw.

“You hear me, Cruise? No time to kill the local wildlife on this dive. Your priority is the mission objective. No cowboyin’.”

“I heard you the first time,” Cruise growled.

The other divers and team technicians drifted into the room. X scanned each of them. Murph and Magnolia were the last two inside.

“Atten- shun !” came a stern voice at the entrance. “Captain on deck!”

Captain Ash and Lieutenant Jordan strode inside with two soldiers on each flank.

“Briefing in fifteen,” Jordan said.

“You heard the lieutenant,” X yelled. “Suit up and meet in the briefing room in fifteen.”

The launch bay came alive with the sound and motion of predive rituals. Plates of armor were fastened and boosters clicked into place. Chutes were checked, double-checked, and checked again. Mirrored visors were polished with spit and rags.

Ty gnawed on his herb stick and waited with his tablet to run diagnostics on Team Raptor’s gear. X held up a finger—almost ready—then checked on Magnolia and Murph, who were helping each other with their armor.

“You guys get some rest?” he asked, kneeling to pull the laces tight on his boots. He grimaced as he stood up.

“I did,” Murph replied.

“Some,” Magnolia said.

“Good, because you’re going to need it.” He turned instinctively to look for Team Raptor’s fourth diver, then remembered. He still couldn’t believe Sam was gone. If only they had left a minute sooner. A goddamn minute could have saved his life.

X slammed his battery unit into the slot in his chest armor harder than he needed to. In less than an hour, he would see the cursed heart of Hades, and more Hell Divers would join the ranks of those who had perished there.

Captain Ash’s fingers gripped the ancient wooden lectern. Every man and woman sitting in front of her knew what was at stake. She would make this quick.

Ash nodded at Jordan. He flipped the lights, and a map of Hades emerged on the wall behind him. Stepping to one side, Ash said, “This, as you all know, is Hades. Industrial Tech Corporation had a campus on the eastern edge of the city. This is where they manufactured the parts of airships like the Hive. Chief Engineer Samson has studied and analyzed the maps Team Raptor retrieved.” She paused to nod at X and his team.

“We’ve authorized the use of heavy weapons and extra flares for this mission. You are to deploy the flares when you jump, to help guide you through the storms,” Jordan said. “Once you make it through, your DZ is on the outskirts of the industrial zone. To give you the best chance of survival, we’ve plotted three separate courses for the teams: here, here, and here.” He pointed to dots marked “Raptor,” “Angel,” and “Apollo.”