The stairs were uneven and the small lamp only shed some weak yellow light onto them. It was damp and slippery.
They walked very slowly and their footsteps echoed through the narrow passageway.
It wasn’t long before they exited into a small cave that would appear to be situated right beneath the mansion.

"This ... was here the whole time?" Smythe’s eyes widened at the realization.

"What ... is that?" asked Annabella.

In the water in front of them was a half-submerged vessel. Made of what looked like black metal, it had a shape of a boat but with the upper part as oval as the bottom one. Whatever was above water had some spikes along it and through the water were visible small fins on both of its sides and a yellow-glass hexagon-shaped window on the front. The surface was smooth and had a visible opening.

"Another gift ... ?" mumbled Smythe under his breath.

"What?" asked Annabella.

"Nothing. This thing might be our ticket off the island. Let us examine it closer."

They walked along a narrow path with their backs to the cave’s wall and reached a small extended bridge that lead directly to the vessel’s opening. One by one they slowly climbed atop, balancing and trying not to fall into the dark water that surrounded the unknown ship.

Smythe decided to enter first with the rest following him. Luckily, there were ladders that led inside. Upon climbing down, they had a look around. It wasn’t too large but it did have what looked like chambers with human-sized pods. The whole interior was black and ribbed, cold to the touch and almost wet under fingers.

There was only one closed door and the trio decided to open it. It seemed to be the vessel’s cabin with some large chairs in front of the hexagonal window now looking outside, half into the ocean. Upon reaching the chairs, Leah saw someone sitting in one of them.

"Pickman!" he exclaimed cheerfully but his face quickly turned into a frown.

The other two came around to see if it was truly him.

"Is he ... dead?" asked Annabella, who was too afraid to check.

Smythe shook him, but the man didn’t react. Then the doctor went to put his fingers on the man’s neck.

"Booooo!!!!!!" Pickman yelled and startled them.

"Ahahahaha!" he laughed, "You should have seen your faces!"

The trio didn’t find it funny at all, with Smythe just ignoring him and checking the vessel’s instruments, Leah crossing his arms and shaking his head, and Annabella just turning her back in disapproval.

"Haha ... oh boy. I heard you guys come in ...  Don’t be mad, I couldn’t resist," Pickman still laughed.

"You’re an idiot," said Leah but smiled, relieved that the man was alright.

"So, what were you doing here? Why didn’t you come and get us when you found this?" asked Smythe.

"The way I figured, if I can’t make this god-darned thing move, there was no point in risking my life on a useless trip back and your lives on a trip here. If I manage to turn it on, I go and get you at the lighthouse and if the icebreaker arrives, you guys would come for me," the archaeologist explained.

"You could have brought water and wood like we agreed and then we could have all come back together," Smythe protested.

"Why didn’t you go, since you’re so smart?" he pointed at the professor.

"You should have seen what attacked us on our way here ... " started Leah but Annabella interrupted him.

"We should check him first! To confirm if it’s really—"

"No, it’s him alright. No creature is such a jackass," said Smythe and then unlocked his cane. He drew his blade out.

"W-what’s that? What are you doing?" asked Pickman.

"The reason you couldn’t start it ... was because you didn’t have the key," Smythe said and inserted the blade into an opening on the dashboard after which he turned the handle.

1 ... 2 ... 3 ... *click*

Suddenly a deep hum could be heard slowly starting and getting louder, then stabilizing into a deep background hum.

"You ... how did you know? Is this your ... ?" Annabella was shocked.

"See the opening on the dashboard? I’ve seen that shape many times and would recognize it even in my dreams. I’ve had this cane for many years. As for why this is here and how to pilot it, your guess is as good as mine," Smythe told the rest.

"That doesn’t make sense. It’s right beneath the mansion you bought, and your cane is the key to it. Even if what you’re saying is true, I’m willing to bet there’s something else you’re not telling us," Pickman surmised.

"Where did you get the cane?" asked Annabella.

"I found it on a beach," Smythe shrugged.

"You’re lying! You said it was a gift. Who gave it to you?" she insisted.

"The sea. She gave it to me, just like this vessel."

"Bullshit!" said Pickman.

"That’s ridiculous," added Leah.

"Yes, and yes, it is indeed ridiculous and I’m not denying that. But it's just one more ridiculous thing on top of the pile. Don’t you think I’d already escaped this place if I knew of this vessel and had the key to start it?" Smythe asked the trio.

"Yeah ... I guess you would. You’d turn tail faster than a stray dog," Pickman made fun of the professor but in the end, agreed.

"So, let’s do what we can and try to operate this thing. We’ve no idea how much fuel it has, or ... what powers it, for that matter. We don’t know how to refuel it either. The best we can hope for is that it will take us to the land," Smythe tried making the best out of the situation.

"I dunno ... I’d rather continue the expedition. I’d hate to go back empty-handed after an ordeal like this. I lost my son and my sanity for this expedition, and sure, we found plenty that people have never seen or heard of, but we have neither the evidence nor any particular use for the gained knowledge," Pickman insisted.

"Are you mad?" asked the doctor.

"Axel ... " the professor said softly, "I will pay you whatever you want upon return—"

"NO!" the archaeologist put his fist down, "I don’t care for any of that. I want to continue. I want to find out what the heck is wrong with this place. I want to see what lies beyond. I can’t, as well, go back to my ordinary life after this. Can you?" he asked everyone else.

"Well, I would pay to forget all of this ever happened, if I’m completely honest," said Leah.

"Me too," Annabella agreed and Smythe looked at her with saddened eyes.

"You're outvoted Axel, but if it's any consolation, I might organize another expedition at a later time and you'll be the first person to invite. Deal?" Smythe offered his hand.

"When?" asked the man, not accepting the handshake.

"As soon as I regain my footing," answered the professor calmly, "The two of you can also—"

"Not a chance in hell! You two are insane!" said the doctor.

"Yeah ... I don't think so," Annabella agreed.

At that moment the hum disappeared and a metallic bang could be heard from where they came from. They looked at each other and then hurried to the hatch which was now closed.

"God ... darn it!" cursed Leah as he couldn't even budge the hatch.

"Now what?" Pickman asked and as if to answer him an increasingly loud sound started from somewhere in the back, first slow and deep then faster and higher until it reached stability at which point everyone felt a slight loss of balance. Smythe hurried to the cabin and said,

"We're moving! It's moving on its own!"

"Going where?" asked Annabella.

Smythe looked at the instruments and a look of bewilderment could be seen forming on his face.

"238 thousand miles … that can’t be right … " he whispered in shock, knocking on the instrument’s glass panel.

"What did you just say?!" Pickman wasn’t sure if he heard right.

"The destination … it’s 238 thousand miles from here!!!" Smythe shouted so that everyone can hear him.

Their faces went pale.

* * *

After some time, they found out that the tubes that protruded from the wall in each cabin would start spewing out water or some kind of organic matter if one was to suck on it.
Pickman figured it out, no one knows how, but it proved to provide them with the nourishment they were lacking. At first, everyone was skeptical about it based on recent events. Smythe pointed out, how it would make no sense for dangerous substances to be poured into the cabins, and while Leah protested, claiming that it could be old, rotten, or even a trap, Annabella said it smelled alright, while Pickman swore it doesn't taste too bad.
They had enough beds to sleep in, but the view from the front was too interesting, if not terrifying for them to be able to go to sleep even after hours of traveling.

They sat and stared into the dark abyss, wordless and lost in thought, without the slightest idea where they were heading, how far they got, or how deep the vessel was submerged. The instruments were showing illuminated sigils and glyphs like nothing they'd seen before and no amount of trying to figure them out brought results.

Then, a deeply disturbing sound shook the whole vessel. The crew stood up and looked around. It sounded elongated and vibrating.

"What is that?" asked Smythe, looking at Annabella for a possible explanation.

"I ... I don't know. It sounds almost like a whale, but ... something's not right."

The sound repeated but this time it was louder and ended with a high pitch that almost formed words. It was deeper but frighteningly human sounding. The words were too long and sounded backward or worse.

They couldn't stand it. No matter how much they wanted to just get out of there, they were at the mercy of a descending vessel and the sound only started sounding closer, louder, and more menacing every time it repeated. It made their skin crawl and their hair stand up.

"Look!" shouted Annabella suddenly and pointed at a spot left from the vessel that could be seen only from her seat.

A giant man-like thing was near them, or maybe it was further away but unimaginably large. Even though the yellow lights of the vessel were incredibly strong and the sea clear, with almost nothing to compare it within the dark waters it was impossible to properly judge the creature’s size. It was grey and had tentacles growing from where its face should be.
Smythe recognized the creature from Carter's description but was smart enough to bite his tongue, knowing very well it's best not to have to explain when and where he heard it.

"Brace yourselves!" yelled Pickman, seeing a giant tentacle approach them.

To everyone's surprise, a jolt of lightning surged from the vessel at the mere approach of the foreign being. The creature let out a long deep sound before retreating to the darkness.

"We ... we're alive," Leah was relieved.

"It saved us," Smythe commented, "It has automated defenses and navigation. This thing is worth the hassle on its own!"

But the creature reappeared, faster than before, and smashed the vessel with its enormous hand, sending it spinning. The crew held for dear lives and could do nothing but scream and wait, hoping that the vessel will correct itself. It took quite a while, but it rotated back to normal and regained its heading.

"Everyone alright?" asked Smythe.

"I'm okay," replied Annabella.

"Fine," said Pickman.

"M-my ... my leg ... " Leah cried out in pain.

The doctor’s leg was broken by the sheer force of impact, now twisting hideously out of place. He was losing a lot of blood.

"Aaaahhhh ... " he cried in pain, trying to get something out of his medicinal bag.

Annabella hurried and found a bandage and a splint, applying them to the man as best she could while Pickman held his leg. Smythe kept looking out the window in order to warn them if the creature appears again, but thankfully it seemed to have launched them far away.

"Like a human would smack a mosquito ... " he commented.

* * *

Hours have passed or perhaps a full day and the scenery remained the same only darker when suddenly, Annabella saw something through the front glass.

"Are these … ? "

"What? Let me see," Smythe came to the cabin to have a better look.

"This … can’t be …" he took his glasses down and put them back up, but the imagery in front of him remained unchanging.

"Stars?" the young woman looked at the professor, waiting for his confirmation, as the sight before her eyes was not something she could accept so easily.

"We can’t be sure. There’s too much water in the way. These could be some … corals, minerals, or … luminous animals. I don’t know! You tell me, you’re the expert," he tried to find an explanation. Any explanation would suffice, just to be able to justify what he was seeing.

"Well … we’ve been in new territory for a long time now. I’ve encountered many things I didn’t know existed, so … all my knowledge in biology can do for us now is to confirm that what I’m seeing is not an already discovered species. And as for this? These look like stars to me," she explained.

The man looked at her for some time and then back through the yellowish window. He just couldn’t accept it. Stars had no business being underwater, is what he thought.

"We can’t solve this now. Once again, we are powerless. I'm going to bed," said Smythe, "And I'd recommend you do the same.

The rest of them looked at him, then each other, and decided it might not be such a crazy idea after all. There was nothing they could do anyway. They had no control over the vessel and lacked proper sleep for quite some time now. They helped the doctor to get to the cabin and each went to their own bed. The beds were almost organic but, if one managed to overlook the repulsive design, almost soft and warm to the touch. It was only after Smythe lay into it that it shaped perfectly to its body for maximum comfort.

"This feels kind of ... nice," he whispered.