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SEA OF SHADOWS 145
“Sir, my rudder is right full,” the helmsman said. “My dive bubble is
down ten degrees.”
“Torpedoes two and three have acquired,” the Sonar Operator said.
Gröeler frowned. “What about torpedo one?”
“It’s gone astray, Kapitan. Sounds like it’s a bad fish.”
“Ten seconds to impact,” the Fire Control Officer said.
The Sonar Operator’s voice came over the speaker again. “They’ve
detected our weapons, sir. Target is altering course to starboard.”
“Too late,” Gröeler said. “Much too late.”
“Target is launching acoustic decoys,” the Sonar Operator said.
“Too late,” Gröeler said again—a whisper this time.
“Impact in five seconds,” the Fire Control Officer said. “Four … three
… two … one … Weapons on top!”
USS Kitty Hawk:
Ortiz grabbed the edge of a radar console with both hands. “Brace for
shock!”
His words were drowned out by the first explosion. The deck of the
huge ship lurched violently as the shock wave surged down the length of
the keel. The point of impact was on the starboard side, several hundred
feet forward of Flag Plot, and at least nine decks down, but the intensity of
the concussion was still unbelievably fierce.
A pipe ruptured in the overhead, spewing water in every direction. A
third class Operations Specialist screamed as the shower of water shorted
out the electronics in his console, making his body the path of lowest
electrical resistance. For an instant, his muscles went rigid as four hundred
forty volts of alternating current surged through his flesh and internal
organs, finding its path to ground through the soles of his feet. Then, a
circuit breaker tripped, cutting the power to the console, and he sank
lifelessly back into his chair, the air around him permeated with the smells
of ozone and singed meat.
The ship rolled heavily to port. Something hit Commander Ortiz from
behind, throwing him against his console and then knocking him to the
deck. The lights flickered, and it took him a second to realize that the
hurtling object that had laid him out was another person—someone who
hadn’t been properly braced for the explosion. The lights flickered again
and then came back on. The ship had begun settling back toward starboard
when the second torpedo found its mark and exploded.