Squid? Octopus? Maybe Both.
The pillar stretched above and below Jackie like a steel-and-alloyed skyscraper, a monolith that kept the island hovering and steady. At 450 meters below the surface, she felt the tug of the ocean around her, the current pressing against every inch of her frame. Her cybernetic systems hummed, automatically pressurizing her artificial lung and skeletal structure to compensate for the immense force. Even the tiniest movement created resistance, but Jackie moved with fluid precision, almost as though the ocean was bending around her.
She trained her gun-arm on the crack along the pillar. Water diffused the light from her ocular implant, sending fragmented beams that flickered across the metal. Her plasma welder flared briefly as she touched it to the damaged seam, sending molten alloy into the fissure. The water instantly vaporized some of the sparks, creating tiny glowing bubbles that drifted up like microscopic lanterns.
"Structural deviation along the pillar detected," BDJ's calm voice announced. "Recommendation: weld and reinforce immediately."
Jackie's fingers adjusted the welder. Sparks flickered as she fused the alloy, her hand steady despite the vibrations of the ocean and the pillar itself. The fissure hissed and bubbled, accepting the molten metal into its jagged edges. Next to the crack, she noticed another area—a stabilizer conduit slightly misaligned. This component was crucial. If it failed, the pillar would deviate, and the island above might tilt dangerously.
"Lyra, how are you doing on your side, do you need me?" Jackie asked, not looking away from the crack.
Lyra muttered, "So far I'm good. I'll let you know if you're needed. Focus on the tough stuff for now." She tightened a conduit on her side, her fingers moving with nervous precision. Even through the darkness, the small panel's lights blinked in response to her adjustments.
Jackie's ocular implant shifted to peripheral sensors, but the world remained obscured. BDJ's voice cut in. "Spectral frequency adjustment recommended. Unknown predator approaching. Camouflage detected."
"What predator?" Jackie asked, eyes narrowing.
"Large cephalopod hybrid. Intelligent, capable of sensing vibrations. Tentacle span estimated at forty meters," Tally's voice added.
Lyra's breath came a bit harder and more ragged through the comms. "Is it dangerous?"
Tally's response came without hesitation or warmth. "Yes."
Jackie felt a ripple in the water, the subtle hum of something moving through the inky darkness. Then the first tentacle whipped out from the shadows, curling toward Lyra with alarming speed. Lyra's shriek echoed through the comms.
"Predator engaging," BDJ said. "Probability of disengagement after capturing Lyra: ninety-six percent. Likely intent: feeding lair retrieval."
Jackie's pulse quickened. Her ocular implant recalibrated automatically. The creature's camouflage was nearly perfect, blending with the blackness, but the micro-disturbances in water and vibration traces gave it away. She adjusted her spectral filter to high-frequency visual mapping. Its outline became visible, a massive, twisting silhouette.
"Lyra, hold on!" Jackie shouted, igniting her thrusters. Water pressure slammed against her body, but her cybernetic stabilization compensated, allowing rapid acceleration without straining her joints.
The cephalopod lurched horizontally, away from the pillar, tentacles coiling and reaching like living whips. Its intelligence was apparent—the way it targeted Lyra specifically, using its camouflage to try to disappear into the blackness, was tactical. Jackie fired bursts from her gun-arm, aiming for precision hits on the tentacles while avoiding direct contact with Lyra. Sparks and energy discharges rippled through the water, illuminating the massive predator in flashes.
BDJ provided real-time probability calculations: "Target tentacle immobilized, seventy-eight percent chance of disengagement reduced. Risk to Lyra: forty-two percent. Recommendation: direct intervention."
Jackie adjusted her thrusters, moving faster than the ocean could resist. She passed the welded crack, her thoughts on her new friend and her immediate danger. The creature lunged again, but her ocular implant revealed the slight distortions in the water, mapping its movement.
Lyra struggled as a tentacle wrapped around her arm. She cursed under her breath. "I don't want to be lunch!"
"Stay still!" Jackie ordered. "I've got you!"
Her thrusters activated in a sharp burst, cutting the distance between them in seconds. Plasma blasts seared through the water, deterring the creature just enough for Jackie to grab Lyra's arm. The cephalopod, realizing its prey was now defended, twisted in the blackness, attempting to vanish with its camouflage.
Jackie followed its movements, sensors tracking every micro-vibration. Her ocular implant mapped the outline, her gun-arm firing precision bursts to sever or disable the appendages that threatened Lyra.
"Probability of successful disengagement: increasing," BDJ noted. "Creature attempting evasion."
Jackie gritted her teeth and fired another precision volley. One tentacle whipped back, lashing at her, but her cybernetic reflexes moved her away in time. The creature's massive body twisted, coiling around itself, blending perfectly into the surrounding darkness. She had to rely entirely on her ocular implant's spectral mapping.
Finally, after a tense moment, the hybrid hesitated. Its calculated intelligence clashed with its survival instincts. The tentacle holding Lyra twitched, and the creature slowly began to retreat into the inky blackness, dragging small debris as it fled.
Jackie held Lyra close, checking her for injuries. "You okay?"
Lyra nodded, shaking. "Yeah… thanks… I almost didn't make it."
"Let's finish reinforcing the pillar before it comes back," Jackie said, her eyes already scanning for micro-cracks. Sparks from her plasma welder illuminated the darkness again, reflecting in fleeting glimmers off the corroded but strong alloy.
"Maybe we should stay on the same side of the pillar for now."
"Good Idea." Lyra moved closer to her as they restarted their work on earnest.
BDJ updated: "Structural integrity at ninety-two percent. Minor deviations repaired. Permanency of island stability increased. Threat assessment: cephalopod has retreated. Probability of return: unknown. Recommend continued vigilance."
Jackie adjusted her ocular implant, mapping the fissure and conduit again. Each adjustment, each precise weld, brought the pillar closer to perfect stability. She felt the immense pressure of the ocean around her, but her systems held, compensating and stabilizing. Her artificial lung expanded and contracted seamlessly with the compressed environment, while her joints micro-adjusted with each movement.
Lyra continued to assist, securing conduits and minor cracks. Sparks reflected off the metal, illuminating the massive pillar in the eerie greenish glow of bioluminescent particles drifting from deeper waters.
For a moment, Jackie allowed herself to reflect. Even in the chaos of a hybrid cephalopod attack, with the currents and darkness pressing in, her cybernetic systems performed flawlessly. Pressure stabilization, ocular recalibration, thruster precision—all functioning in tandem. She realized just how reliant she was on her enhancements, yet how much control she still retained.
The cephalopod's retreat left ripples in the water, but the pillars had survived another threat. Jackie gave Lyra a nod. "Let's keep moving. We've got more damage further down, and I want the rest of this pillar solid as soon as possible."
Lyra swallowed, nerves still frayed. "Yeah… let's keep moving."
As they moved down, the reinforced pillar beneath them creaked and shifted ever so slightly, the ocean pressing from all sides, reminding them of the delicate balance keeping the island afloat. Jackie's systems hummed in quiet assurance, holding her steady against the immense pressure. For now, the immediate danger had passed—but the ocean was deep, and the unknown still waited below.