The Controle Module door bangs open. Hippy jumps. Bud strides in. Not calm. He slams his fist down on Hippy's music box to shut it off and activates a com line microphone. He orders all divers to drop what they're doing and out of the pool. A siren, blasting through the water from a big hydrophone loudspeaker.
They react to Bud's recall, looking toward him up in the control module. One Night makes a grab for Sonny's butt with the manipulator claw, which he narrowly avoids. She bursts out laughing.
Flatbed moves underneath the rig's Sub-Bay, a few feet above the seafloor, with Sonny riding on its top deck. It passes under a lit opening and rises toward the surface of the water in the chamber above. Little Geek follows like an obedient dog.
The opening, or sub-bay, is called the moonpool, and Deepcore's submersibles are launched through it. From inside the sub-bay it looks just like a swimming pool. Flatbed surfaces, nearly filling it. The chamber also contains Cab One, a similar submersible. Jammer, Perry, and some of the other drill-room boys are helping the divers out of the water.
The water at this depth is only about six degrees above freezing, and these folks are cold and prune- fingered. Bud continues his announcement over the com line for everyone to assemble. Finler pulls off his demand-helmet, revealing a round, boyish face, he wants to know what the hell is going on.
One Night jumps 'ashore' from Flatbed's broad deck and joins them. Catfish is unzipping his bulky dry-suit. Bud enters, approaching the group and informs them they've just been told to shut down the hole and prepare to move the rig. They've received an invitation to cooperate in a matter of national security and there will be a briefing in ten minutes.
Inside the Command Module, the whole rig crew is somehow jammed into the room for the video briefing. DeMarco is on the main monitor, with his aides and Kirkhill visible. DeMarco explains to the crew that at 09:22 local time, an American nuclear submarine, the USS Montana, with 156 men aboard, went down about 22 miles from their rig. There has been no contact with the sub since then. The cause of the incident is not known.
The reactions of the various drill crew members are of shocked, hushed, curious. DeMarco continues that the Benthic company has authorized the Navy's use of the facility for a rescue operation. The code name is Operation Salvor. They know where it is. But submarine is in 2000 feet of water and they can't reach her. They need divers to enter the sub and search for survivors, if any.
Bud's scowl has been deepening since DeMarco started to talk. Bud asks why they don't use their own military resources. DeMarco explains that by the time they get their rescue submersible there, the storm's going to be right on them. But Deepcore crew can get their rig in under the storm and be on-site in fifteen hours, and that makes them the best option right now.
Hippy, born suspicious and recently graduated to paranoid, leans forward and questions why should they risk their butts for something like this. Kirkhill moves into the video camera and announces he has been authorized to offer them all special bonuses equivalent to three times normal dive pay. The crew are elated. Catfish grabs Hippy's rat and mocks eating the rodent in joking fashion to imply he would do anything for triple pay.
However, Bud interrupts the celebration, telling DeMarco that his people are not qualified for this... they're oil workers. Bud's team are shouting simultaneously in protest, he snaps back at them to shut up. On the video, DeMarco points to Coffey behind him.
DeMarco explains that Lieutenant Coffey will transfer down to them with a SEAL team and supervise the operation. Bud warns him if things get dicey, he's pulling the plug. Kirkhill intervenes with a corporate 'we're all on the same wavelength,' and instructs Bud to get the wellhead uncoupled. Bud turns his back to the video and addresses his team to get ready to move.
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