After a moment, a dozen lights embedded around the outer circumference of the sphere's glass top blazed into the water. The liquid glowed eerily white, like over-aerated water. The bottom of the ice shelf hung above them, smoothed into swirling rises and falls, like an upside down Zen garden.

Robert was on his feet, staring at the watery haze. "Sure is cloudy."

Connelly joined him by the glass and furrowed her brow. "Could they be microbes? Europian phytoplankton maybe?"

"There would have to be bazillions of them," Robert said.

Connelly smirked. "Bazillions?"

Robert pointed to the com systems microphone. "Don't make me tell Willard about the video," he whispered.

Connelly's smirk disappeared. "See anything yet?"

Robert shook his head, no. There was nothing out there.

Nothing at all.

*   *   *   *   *

Five minutes of silent staring was all Robert could take. His disappointment grew with every passing second and the swaying created by sub ice currents began to turn his stomach. "This is hopeless."

Connelly shook her head, conceding, "I thought there would be more. I don't know. I guess we were expecting too much."

Something began to tickle at Robert's memory, something he had forgotten. Robert ignored Connelly and focused on recalling the faded memory…of what?

"This is like trying to explore the United States by looking through a straw," Connelly said. "We need to get a better view somehow; find out what's going on out there beyond the few feet we can see."

"That's it!" Robert shouted, startling Connelly back into one of the seats.

"God, Robert, what's it?"

A smile was stretching on Robert's face. "I just remembered the tech that landed me this gig."

Connelly's eyes widened, remembering Robert's ultra sensitive microphone system. "BUD."

"Ethan, you still listening?" Robert asked.

"Voyeuristic as ever."

"Do me a favor," Robert said, "Run power to the onboard BUD systems and switch control over to the sphere."

"You got it."

"Once BUD is online, we'll lose topside com," Robert said.

"Copy that," Willard said, "Just check back in fifteen. Here come your ears."

Willard's voice cut off and the speakers went silent for a moment. A light static hiss filled the cabin of the sphere as the speakers began receiving data from the onboard BUD system, which was listening to the entire Europian ocean.

Connelly leaned towards the nearest speaker, face to face with Robert. "I don't hear anything."

Robert bent down to the control panel and played with some knobs. "We're taking in too much. It can't process that much in real time. I'm going to reduce the range. How's a one mile radius sound?"

"Let's hear it."

Robert made the adjustments. As he hit the final key, initiating the changes, the cabin filled with a swirl of sounds that hurt their ears. Robert clamped his hands over his ears and could only see Connelly's lips moving, but he knew she was shouting. He quickly removed a hand from his head and flipped the BUD system off.