Lisa POV

Caleb South is zip-tied to a metal folding chair. His wrists are bound behind him, his ankles fastened to the chair legs.

When I see him, my anger tries to harden into a suit of armor, but I'm so exhausted it's more like a worn-out sleep shirt. It keeps falling away, stretching into an amorphous mass of grief and shock.

 Caleb is still in his wetsuit. His mask and hood have been removed, revealing close-set browneyes and a wedge of blond hair tinged green from chlorine. His broken nose is swelling up nicely. Blood has crusted on his upper lip.

He's been positioned facing west, so he has to squint into the sun whenever he looks up at Dr. Hewett. Solar and Yuna, brandishing their new Leyden guns, stand to either side of the captive. Kiyastill looks grumpy from getting electrocuted. Behind Dr. Hewett stands Roseanne.

I'm relieved to see Rosie, for two reasons. It means Dr. Hewett is still following standard procedures. An Orca is supposed to be present at all important negotiations. Aside from being the school's medics, they're our recorders and witnesses, our school conscience. Having them around tends to keep everybody else on good behavior. I don't really think any of my classmates would do something like beat up a prisoner to get information, but, after what we've been through, nerves are frayed. Tempers are high. 

It also means I won't lash out any time soon. Rosie has a way of keeping me calm and not stupid. For a rare moment, Roseanne actually meets my eyes. She gives me a soft smile. That's the cue to clear my throat and focus on the problem at hand.

Considering Caleb's broken nose and the fact that he was recently body-slammed by a dolphin, he looks pretty good. The only torture he's endured is Harding-Pencroft's trademark form of humiliation. Around his biceps are children's inflatable water wings, bright yellow with pink duckies. A matching inner tube circles his waist. This is how seniors treat chum-year kids who prove inept at their assignments. They're forced to wear pink duckies for an entire day. Many kids never get over the shame. Why we had some inflatables on board, I'm not sure, but I'm also not surprised.

Caleb scowls when he sees me, but he offers no snide comments. The duckies must have broken his spirit.

Hewett leans towards the prisoner. 'Mr. South, tell the Dakkars what you told me.'

Caleb curls his lip. 'This boat is going to end up at the bottom of the sea.'

'Not that part,' Moonbyul rolls her eyes. 'The other part.'

'The Aronnax is coming.'

'Your submarine,' Jisoo says.  I don't know how she got that piece of information, but it didn't sound good. Just the name sent shivers down my spine.

Caleb lets out a broken laugh. 'The Aronnax is a submarine the way a Lamborghini is an economy car. But yes, genius, it's our ship. You've got maybe an hour if you're lucky. They sent us to take you alive ...' He spits a flake of dried blood from his lip. 'Since we failed and never reported in, they'll follow. They'll torpedo this hunk of junk and confirm the kill afterward.'

Confirm the kill. 

I feel a coldness in my chest that's as sharp as the edge of a fillet knife. I wonder if the Aronnax crew talked about Jisoo, Tae, and me this way before they destroyed our school, as if we were nothing more than impersonal targets.

I want to slap him. I hold back the urge. Rosie's presence is a calming reminder: That is not who we are. We don't stoop to their level. 

'Why the attack?' I ask Caleb. 'Why me? And why did they send a bunch of students who couldna do the job?'

He shakes his head in disgust. 'You just got lucky with that stupid dolphin. LI doesn't coddle their students the way HP does. Destroying HP ...' He gives me a bloodstained grin. 'That was our senior project, and I'd say we aced it.'

Mina steps forward, raising the butt of her Leyden gun, but Jihyo stops her with a stern look.

Caleb watches the exchange with obvious amusement. 'As for why you, Dakkar ... You really don't know anything, do you?' He glances at Dr. Hewett. 'I guess the professor hasn't told you two the truth about HP. Were you even trained in Leyden guns until today? Did you even know they exist?"

An uncomfortable ripple goes through our group.

'That's what I thought,' Caleb says. 'At LI, we aren't afraid to use our knowledge. How many world problems could you cowards have solved if you just shared?'

Behind me, Jisoo says, 'Shared what, exactly?'

'You had two years.' Caleb sounds bitter, even regretful. 'You could have cooperated with us. You could have negotiated.'

I can't tell if the ship is pitching or if it's my own lack of equilibrium. Two years since my parents' death. Two years Hewett has been fearing an attack. Two years in which Caleb says Harding-Pencroft could have negotiated. 

I fix my eyes on Dr. Hewett. 'What happened two years ago?'

 His gaze is sadder than Hank's when he begs for dog biscuits. 'We will have that conversation soon, my dear. I promise.'

Caleb snorts. 'You aren't really stupid enough to believe Hewett's promises, are you? He promised us a bunch of stuff, too, when he was at LI.'

Hewett's knuckles whiten as he clenches his fists. 'That's enough, Mr. South.'

 'Professor, how about you tell them what you were working on for LI back when I was a freshman?' Caleb suggests. 'Before you lost your nerve. Tell them who had the idea for the Aronnax.'

He might as well have thrown another flash-bang grenade. My skull rings like a struck bell.

Jisoo takes a sharp breath. 'Professor, what is he talking about?' 

Hewett looks more annoyed than ashamed. 'I did many things I wasn't proud of at LI, Prefect Kim, before I knew what they were capable of.' He returns his glare to our prisoner. 'And today, Mr. South, Land Institute proved why they can never be trusted with advanced technology. You destroyed a noble institution.'

'Noble institution? You were protecting the legacy of an outlaw.' Caleb squirms in his pink-ducky inner tube. 'If you're going to kill me, go ahead and do it. This thing is uncomfortable.'

Jisoo and Jennie stare coldly at Dr. Hewett. Even Roseanne looks shaken. Maybe, like me, they didn't know before today that Hewett once worked at Land Institute. But it's worse than that. Dr Hewett hadthe idea for the Aronnax. He helped create the weapon that destroyed our school and killed my brother.

'We don't execute prisoners,' Hewett announces. 'Moonbyul, Solar, throw him overboard.' 

Caleb's arrogant expression crumbles. 'Hold on –'

 'Sir,' Yuna protests.

'He'll be fine,' Hewett assures her. 'He has his buoyancy-control vest, his wetsuit, his water wings. Guards, proceed.'

Moonbyul and Solar look like they're tempted to dump the professor instead, but, after a glance at Hwasa, the Sharks follow orders. They untie Caleb from his chair, then drag him thrashing and cursing to the port side and chuck him into the sea. 

My last glimpse of my ex-abductor is his blond head bobbing up and down in our wake, spluttering and yelling unkind things about Harding-Pencroft. I imagine he'll be picked up by someone soon enough. He's loud. Also, his pink-ducky floaties make him easily the most colorful thing off the SanAlejandro coast.

'Miss Dahyun,' Hewett says, 'report to the bridge. Maintain our course due west at maximum speed.'

Dahyun stirs. 'Sir, we deserve –'

'You'll get your explanations,' Hewett promises. 'But first things first. Double-check the camouflage projectors and pulse-dispersion unit. Have the Orcas sweep the ship for any tracking devices. We must get away from the Aronnax.' He turns towards me. 'As for you two, you're coming with me. I think it's about time you two gave us a course heading.'