The Iron Hallway

Chapter 19

"Master." Sila said mechanically, drawing a raised eyebrow from me. 

Aaron grinned at his robot. "Yeah, of course you're coming with me, Sila! I need some positive company!" 

"Speakin' of positive company," Hannah began with a smile, "Why dont'cha count me in?" 

"Sounds good to me, if you guys wouldn't miss her too much." Aaron replied, glancing over Keira, Khemera, and I. 

"No, that's perfectly fine." I remarked. 

"Alright then." Aaron said, stepping toward the door of the cockpit. "The controls are pretty simple and self-explanatory. The person in the front on the left side controls movement and other navigation, while the person on the right controls any auxiliary function, like weapons, sonar, and radar scans." 

I made a thumbs-up. "Sounds good. You'll lead the way, I assume?" 

Aaron nodded. "That's probably best, yes. Let's get moving." 

Sila stepped over to one of the control panels and flipped a switch, causing the Sand Dollar to slowly descend until it was hovering just above the water, according to a view screen on the wall. Then we followed Aaron out the door. 

We traversed several of the familiar hallways, until we came to a foreign ladder, which we all descended in turn. Anticipation was rising in my chest, along with my accelerating heartbeat, but I was feeling confident. 

We came to a two-way fork in the path, where we split into our previously-determined groups. Our footsteps echoed loudly in the metallic corridor, but somehow, the sound was oddly therapeutic. Finally, we reached the end of the hall, where a pair of switches were mounted over a circular hatch in the floor. 

Keira flipped the first switch, which opened the hatch, revealing a three-foot cylindrical tube that ended in yet another hatch. When she flipped the second switch, that hatch opened as well. She nodded at Khemera and I, cueing us to hop down one at a time. 

Keira stumbled upon her landing and used me for support before letting go and flipping a matching pair of switches on the pod's wall. The two hatches closed above us, and the interior of the vessel darkened. 

"I'll take the wheel." I declared, though I was entirely unsure why I'd taken that initiative, given my lack of knowledge of the operation of Aaron's technology. 

Keira nodded nonetheless. "Okay! I'll be your copilot, then." 

"Sounds like a plan." 

Khemera chuckled. "You two are wise to keep this old man out of the high-tech stuff." 

I laughed as well, while I threaded my way around the back seats and into the pilot's chair. "What can I say? Your wisdom is contagious, Khemera." I remarked humorously. Ever since our stop in Kemaria, I'd begun to have much warmer feelings toward my companions, which was quite enjoyable. 

Keira smirked, her eyes darting between Khemera and myself before she slipped into the copilot's seat. 

I sighed as I dropped down into the pilot's chair. "So...I'm assuming since this switch is in the same spot as a car's ignition key...it does the same thing?" 

Keira nodded. "Yeah! Like Aaron said, this thing's pretty intuitive. Press the blue button beside the switch first, though. That'll unlatch us from the Sand Dollar. It's best if you flip the switch once we're fully submerged." 

I nodded. "That would make sense." 

I inhaled and pressed the button she had indicated. I heard some clicks behind us, and then we lurched downward, splashing into the water seconds later. I flipped the switch, and the engine roared to life, in sync with the headlights. I glanced to my right and pleasantly realized that Aaron's pod had just entered the water as well and had undergone the same motions.