I nodded, sliding my arms and head into the upper half of the dive suit as True lifted it over me. With a twist, the waistline clicked down upon the lower torso. True snapped the hinges shut along both sides of the waist.

Sweat poured down my face, my faceplate fogging with steam. Retracting my hand from its sleeve, I wiped my forehead clean, while True opened the tank valves on my back.

A cool stream of air blew into the helmet, lifting the fog.

I raised my arms, amazed at how flexible the appendages were. True fixed the utility belt around my waist, then lowered the bulky pack supporting the underwater lights and air tanks onto my back. I would have toppled over the side had my suit not been attached by cable to its support frame.

"Easy, Zack. Ye'll feel steadier once ye're underwater."

True activated the winch, raising me off of the deck. Looking down, I watched as my boots passed over the rail, and then I was slowly lowered into the water up to my chest.

For a long moment I hung there, my feet in the water, my upper body still tethered to the winch. The thought of what awaited me below sent shivers down my spine.

I focused upon the noise from my own shallow breaths until static crackled in my right ear. "Zack, can ye hear me?"

"Loud and clear."

"Let's go through yer checklist. Activate yer thrusters by pressin' doon on the ball o' yer right foot. Use it like the accelerator o' a car."

I pressed down, too hard, as the powerful twin thrusters' shot me clear out of the water, smashing my head piece against the winch.

"Easy!"

"Sorry." I eased back, the Newt Suit bobbing like a cork. "That was cool."

"It's no' a carnival ride. The propeller's the pedal in yer left boot, designed tae move ye horizontally. Dinnae use it until ye're close tae the bottom."

"Understood."

"Feel for the toggle switch in yer left glove. That's the master switch tae yer underwater lights."

I flicked the switch, my forward-mounted beam glancing off the dark surface. "Works fine."

"Usin' yer pincers, reach for one o' the G-SHOKs at yer waist. Make sure ye can grip baith the cartridge an' fuse… but dinnae put them together!"

It took a few tries until I could get a feel for the pincer mechanisms in each mitten. "No sweat. I think I'm ready."

"An' I think ye're aff yer heid," True muttered, as he climbed over the rail. He gave me a quick "thumbs-up,' then disconnected my support cable, and down I went.

It was a frightening sensation, falling like an anchor into the darkness, and I panicked, forgetting everything I'd just learned.

"Thrusters, Zack! Right boot!"

I pressed down with my foot, breathing easier as the thrusters slowed my descent.