Deep Blue - The Descent

39: Let the Party Begin

The Doctor and Nick arrived in the central Moon Pool at a full on run and quickly made their way toward the main control console.

"Syndi, pull up the exterior cameras on the display.", the Doctor commanded before he even reached the console.

The large displays instantly flashed to life, excluding the monitor shattered by the first dive, and displayed an array of camera views which showed the exterior of the station and the dark void of the deep beyond.

The doctor dropped himself into his leather chair and rotated to its forward position.

"Where is it now?", he asked as he tapped several other buttons on the console bringing various interface elements to life.

"The object is 776 meters below and approaching at 40kn.", Syndi reported as her bust appeared on a nearby holoprojector.

Jordan entered the Moon Pool from the northwest corridor. She'd changed out of the M.A.N.T.A. suit and into a more comfortable t-shirt and shorts. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail.

"What's going on?", she asked, "Syndi said it was urgent."

"Something like that.", Nick replied. "We've got company."

"I thought we already had company."

"Yeah, well he invited friends.", Nick added. "Where's the M.A.N.T.A. suit?"

"Back in my quarters. Why?"

Nick turned and made a quick step toward Jordan's quarters before the doctor stopped him.

"What do you plan on doing Sheppard?", the doctor asked. "Jump into your little ship and fight them off?"

The doctor laughed, "They'll be here before you'd even be suited up."

"The object is at 500 meters and beginning to slow it's approach.", Syndi reported.

"Well, the good news is -- it's slowing down.", Jordan said optimistically.

"It's parking.", the doctor and Nick said in unison.

"Syndi, this one did show up at the outer range of your sonar, correct?", the doctor asked, recalling that the earlier drone somehow managed to appear well within the extremities of Syndi's range.

"Yes doctor. It appeared at 1,000 meters.", the A.I. confirmed.

"Interesting. Throw the sonar on display two.", the doctor ordered.

The large central display revealed a bright gigantic mass almost filling the screen. From above it appeared symmetrical with a teardrop shaped design.

"Is the sonar set to one to one magnification?", the doctor asked, trying to get a lock on the object's size.

"Yes doctor."

"My God.", the doctor muttered under his breath. "It's huge."

"The object is 100 meters out and slowing it's ascent. It will be visible above the ridge in 5 seconds.", Syndi reported, still as calm as ever.

The doctor leaned forward in his leather chair flanked on both sides by Jordan and Nick. All eyes were locked onto the exterior camera view that looked out over the ridge into what was normally the purest black imaginable.

In an instant the darkness of the deep exploded with blue and magenta light as a colossal ship emerged from below the cliff. As Syndi had reported, it was enormous, easily the size of Deep Blue, if not larger. The craft was surrounded by illuminated channels flowing beneath the pale outer translucent skin. The top of the ship bulged two or three stories tall with a rounded teardrop design that pulsated with light. The ship's hull was semitransparent and one could easily imagine "decks" or "floors" created by layers of internally illuminated levels that shown through the translucent skin.