Page 82 of My Tiny Giant
“It’s porous. Millions of years ago, the shell was the skeleton of a giant mollusk. When the creature died, another life formed in it. That’s the theory about how fescods came to be. They’ve spawned off that one organism—their brain. They’re all just extensions of it, capable of navigating the surface and wreaking havoc in our land, under the command of their stationary Mind. It communicates with all of them by sending waves through the many openings of the shell. The openings had recently been confirmed too small for a regular person to fit through to reach the center.”
“Agan, no...please.” The more he spoke, the clearer the intentions of the governments had become to me, and the more my heart hurt.
I unfolded my fists to take his hand in mine—small, but rough and angular, it gripped my fingers with considerable strength.
“All I’ve ever done, Emma, nearly my entire life since I can remember, is fighting them.” He peered into my eyes, intently. “It’s been back and forth all these years—we’d win a battle, we’d lose some. For decades. No matter how many we’d kill, there’re always more. Have you ever witnessed fescods multiplying?”
I shook my head. Fescods didn’t breed, they divided like cells. I knew it, but I’d never seen it actually happen.
“It’s unsettling, to say the least,” he continued. “They convulse without warning. A pale line forms in the middle of their bodies. It then tightens, like a rubber band, making the two parts balloon out on each side of it. The next moment, the fescod that you’ve been fighting divides into two, both are immediately battle ready.”
“Sounds...”
Terrifying.
“Disheartening,” he finished for me. “The entire enemy force doubles in size right in front of your eyes. It makes your efforts seem useless. No matter what you do, no matter how hard you fight and how many you kill, there will always be more. Ruthless, unfeeling, and murderous. Ruled by the power securely hidden on the bottom of the inaccessible Abyss.” He tenderly stroked my hand. “You’re a soldier, too, Emma. War is our job, but peace is the ultimate goal of any war, isn’t it? Most Ravils no longer remember what peace is. Many have never experienced it at all.”
I inhaled deeply, feeling his frustration. I understood the desperation of his people and the desire to end the war that often seemed endless.
However, I wasn’t prepared to sacrifice Agan’s life for it. No matter how grand or noble that sacrifice would be.
“There’re reasons why fescods hide their central brain power in that place, Agan. The Abyss of Krokkan is unreachable.”
Deep under the orange-green waters of the Tragulian ocean, the Abyss of Krokkan wasn’t survivable for any surface creatures besides fescods . The massive pressure of the water at that depth would crush any known sentient being to death, long before they’d even reach the bottom.
“Before I landed in the lap of Professor Kidreks as his new lab subject,” Agan said, “another team of his had been working on a material capable of withstanding the pressure of the ocean in the Abyss. They’d even completed a full-size capsule and a diving suit, before more detailed 3D images confirmed that a full-grown person wouldn’t fit through the mesh of the shell. Apparently, they had the idea of sending me down there for a while. But since I’ve suddenly increased in size recently, the project is being fast-tracked. They’re making a suit for me as we speak. It will be ready tomorrow.”
Tomorrow.
So soon.
Of course, I understood that Agan’s size gave him the advantage over any other person out there. Smaller than even a child, he could fit through the tiniest openings of the shell to reach the body of the Mind inside it and destroy it.
“Your current size may help you get there, but it doesn’t make you invincible, Agan. You’re just as vulnerable as the rest of us, even more.”
“Well, thanks.” He made a face.
“That’s true. You can get hurt easily.”
Fescods were capable of adjusting their internal pressure to match the one outside of their bodies and had no problems surviving under water. Hundreds of fescods guarded the shell and the Mind inside it, ready to eliminate anyone or anything that would threaten the Mind.
“No offence, but no matter how strong and deadly you were before, Agan, a fescod would make a quick work of you, now.”
He cocked his head, a spark of challenge lighting up his brilliant green eyes.
“He’d have to catch me first.” He grinned.
I heaved a sigh. Fear gripped my heart with icy fingers that even the warmth of his smile couldn’t melt.
“I wish the drones could do this.” I shook my head.
“Sadly, they can’t.”
I knew that—this information was a part of our briefing before my unit had even arrived to Tragul. The Mind communicated by sending signals out to all fescods . It also sensed the energy waves around it, which made use of technology impossible. The Mind had easily detected all drones sent into the Abyss and ordered fescods to destroy them way before any of the devices could come near it.
I’d also heard that the Voranian government had halted their exploration efforts of the Abyss, fearing that if bothered, the Mind would command the fescods to relocate it. It had taken nearly two decades for the Voranians to locate it in the first place, and they didn’t want to risk having to start over again.
“Don’t be mad, Eleven,” Agan pleaded, probably concerned by my gloomy expression.