FicWad

Delilah was so bored on the long flight to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that she nearly jumped for joy when the oil rig came in to view. Julius put the helicopter down gently on the landing pad, and they hopped out.

"Not much, is it?" he commented, looking around.

"The sub should be below deck," Delilah said, walking down a stairwell.

Sure enough, when they reached the UNDERWATER EQUIPMENT ROOM on the last floor, there was the bright yellow submarine in the water chamber. The two spies climbed in. Julius took the controls while Delilah navigated.

"Once we get out, go east for about a mile. Then we should see the research station."

A few minutes later, the black, blurry outline of the TRS came in to view. Julius switched the sub into auto-drive while he slipped on his scuba-gear. He steered the sub to where the entrance was. Delilah was the first out.

When they reached the door, Delilah spun the round wheel to open it. It opened without a problem. That's odd, she thought. She and Julius surfaced in the water chamber, and removed their masks.

"I thought the door was supposed to be stuck?" Julius said.

"That's what Al said ..." Delilah murmured. "I smell a rat."

Julius didn't agree. "Hey, maybe the guy fixed the door. He still has no fuel. Let's find him so we can get out of here."

The spies wandered around the underwater research station, looking for the trapped worker. They found no evidence of anyone being there for a while. Julius was starting to worry.

"I don't like this ..." he said quietly. "I think it's a -"

"Trap?"

Delilah and Julius looked in the direction the voice had come from. It was Dr Dismay and his silent lackey, Nurse. He was smiling evilly, and holding a needle in his right hand.

"You're right, Gumdrop, it is a trap." Dismay cackled.

Without thinking, Julius lunged at the doctor. Dismay tripped him neatly and pounced. The needle hovered dangerously close to Julius' neck.

Thoughts raced through Delilah's mind. How many times had Julius taken a bullet for her this year? Twice, but still ...

"NO!" Julius shouted as Delilah cannoned into him.

He slid out of the way, and the needle plunged into Delilah's neck. She howled in pain and clutched the entry point. Dismay laughed manically and raced away, with Nurse hot on his heels. Julius ran to his partner's side.

"Delilah! Are you OK?" he asked anxiously.

She stood up and massaged her neck. "Yeah, I think so. I don't feel any different ... Where's Dr Dismay?"

Julius slapped his forehead. "I let him get away!"

The pair ran to the nearest porthole and gazed out it. Their sub was flooded, and Dismay was escaping in his. Julius' heart sank. "We're trapped! And it's my fault."

Delilah placed a hand on his shoulder. "No, it's not. It's no one's fault. Al didn't know this was a trap. It was supposed to be an easy mission for us."

Julius nodded sadly. "Let's see if we can find some ..." He stopped in mid-sentence. "Oh my God!"

"What?" Delilah asked. "What is it?"

In answer, Julius pointed to the water chamber they had come up through. Water was slowly seeping over the edges. It was unmistakable - the research station was flooding.

"Radio Al!" Delilah shouted.

Julius took out his watch and called Al. The Big Man answered instantly. "What's up, dude?"

"Al, the station's flooding, and me and Delilah are trapped. It was Dr Dismay and Nurse."

Al's eyes widened. "Aw man, that's bad. Me and Scarlett will be right there. Turn the watch off to save batteries."

Julius nodded and switched it off. He looked over to Delilah. Her face wore a pained expression, and she was clutching her neck.

"D! Are -" Julius didn't get time to finish. Delilah let out a faint moan and fell to the floor.