t
about twenty feet was illuminated, but the illumination was visible only
through the special glasses he and Zircon wore.

Rick held the button until they reached bottom, then suddenly realized
he would use all his film before they had even found the frogmen. He
groaned silently. Why hadn't he used his head? The light as well as the
camera motor were operated by the same button. If he had only thought,
it would have been a few seconds' work to change the circuit so the
light would be on continuously. Or he might even be able to rig a
waterproof switch that would operate just the light.

Well, it was too late now. He jerked on the rope for Zircon to stop,
then took his belt slate and wrote, "Cam on whn lite is. Wll use nw &
thn." He held it in the beam of infrared light for Zircon to read. The
scientist scribbled "OK" under the message, then gave him a gentle push
as a signal to go ahead.

Rick held his wrist in the beam and read ninety-two feet on his depth
gauge. He calculated quickly. They would have enough air for about
twenty-five minutes at this depth.

He held the camera switch long enough to see that there was only smooth
bottom ahead, then released it. Almost total blackness flooded in. For
all practical purposes it was completely dark, no glimmer of light to
mark their way.

For an instant Rick felt panic, but reason reasserted itself. It was
instinctive to feel fear under such circumstances, he thought. Not only
was he out of his own medium, air, but in a high-pressure realm
inhabited by potentially dangerous creatures. He grinned inwardly at the
thought. The most dangerous creatures in this vicinity were human.

A twinkle of light stopped him, but Zircon continued on and the
connecting line tightened. Rick identified the twinkle as
phosphorescence from some marine creature on the reef. There were many
such in the ocean. He flashed the infrared light, saw that they were
still heading properly, and cut it off again.

The rope at his belt tugged four times for danger! He stopped instantly,
letting go of the camera with one hand while he reached for his belt
knife. Then he saw what Zircon had seen, a glow in the water ahead and
above them. Rick estimated quickly the distance they had traveled. There
was no doubt of it. The frogmen were at the octopus cave!

He followed Zircon's lead, cutting the light off and on as necessary, as
the big scientist moved ahead. The glow grew in intensity, but they were
s