Cyber Brody

Alex frowned as he watched the fish creatures, they were clearly distressed now, bobbing around, flapping their fins and blowing bubbles.
“Poor guys, we oughta do something quickly.”
“Watch it!” Seymour squeaked, nervously, as a fin slapped him on the rump.
Phil nodded.
Justin stroked a passing fish and tried to poke a finger between its gills, it turned and bared its teeth at him. He gasped in alarm and began coughing bubbles. The others laughed.
“Come on then.” Said Davie. “What're we waitin' for?”

“Which way, Efof?” Said Alex pleasantly, pretending that thoughts of cigarettes and Dark Sherbet weren't nibbling the edges of his mind.
“What are you asking him for? I'm the one that found the leak.” Justin pointed out.
“Right you are.”

Justin swam around for a while with the others behind him, but it was difficult to navigate the alien, underwater world. After half an hour Alex grunted in frustration. “Yeah, any time today, man. It's not like the fish will die if we don't save them.” One of the nearby goldfish looked at him nervously, making Alex jump. “Hey, you said they didn't understand English!”
Efof shrugged “I said they can't speak our language.
Alex patted the fish, guiltily. “But we will save you.”
“Yeah, you'll be fine.” Davie joined in the patting. The fish nuzzled them like an affectionate cat, Alex felt his mouth twitch into a half smile.

Efof was holding a hurried conversation with one of the less pleasant looking aquanauts.
“What's the matter?” Seymour demanded.
“Well, there's good news”
“Let's have it then.”
“The fish can feel the current of the draining water and they can lead us to the leak.”
Justin made a “humph” noise.
“Off we go then.” Seymour doggy paddled a little way.
Efof called him back. “Wait, there's more.”
“More good news?”
Alex yanked Seymour down by his artificial legs. “I don't think so, look.”

A shadow. A massive, dark, skin tinglingly terrifying shadow was looming towards them. Seymour was glad the others couldn't smell the small sewage plant which had just arrived in his enviro suit.
Alex swallowed hard. He was capable of handling himself in a number of situations, but never before had he come face to face with a shark. His Adam's Apple bobbed nervously as he recalled the nightmares. They'd haunted him for months as a kid after watching “Jaws 83: Cyber Brody”. The shark, ever smarter, had brought Brody back to life two films previously, just to torture him again, and again. In “Cyber Brody”, the poor man had his arms and legs torn off and replaced with artificial limbs in the scientist fish's lab, only for them to be cruelly torn off again. The limbs were a bit like Seymour's legs as a part of Alex's subconscious reminded him.

The shark drew nearer, it was larger even than the shadow had suggested.
“Captain Pugwash” croaked Davie, unnecessarily.
Nobody moved as it swam past - dark eyes seemingly unseeing - and for a moment, Alex thought it had missed them. It had not.
It wheeled round and actually roared, baring its teeth. Efof was right, it was far scarier than the shark in Jaws.

Alex felt the roar hit him in the chest in a watery shockwave. This boy was powerful. Slightly above him, Seymour was floundering, frightened, artificial legs flapping wildly. The gigantic shark-creature lunged for them. Alex's heart leapt and a vision of the poor mutilated Brody flashed across his vision. “NOT AGAIN!” Screamed Alex, unexpectedly, lunging wildly himself. His arm shot up, lightning fast and connected with what passed for the shark's chin. It bounced away fairly ineffectually but drew the shark's attention. It regarded him, a scornful look in its eye.
Alex narrowed his own eyes and time slowed down. His heart thudded in his chest, buh-buhm, buh-buhm, buh-buhm. Then he headbutted the shark with all the force he could muster, smashing his suit's helmet down onto its sensitive snout. Time sped back up.
“Yeoooww!” Cried Pugwash and writhed in agony.
“Ungghh!” Exclaimed Phil, who was hanging on to Pugwash like a bronco rider and biting the thrashing beast near its tail. One of Seymour's flailing legs caught the shark on its nose again and it flipped away, temporarily blinded by pain.

“Quick, this way!” Efof beckoned to a passageway, clearly too narrow for Pugwash to swim through.
“What... What's going on?” A shocked Seymour asked.
Before anyone could answer, the Aquanauts had guided the dazed crew into the passageway, nudging and ushering them as fast as they could.

After a short swim in semi-darkness they tumbled out of the passage. Alex inhaled sharply, shocking himself with the loudness of his own gasp.
“Holy smeg...”
Davie noticed too “Buggering bo-”
“Bloody hell!”
“Well, I never...”
"Ho, my!"

This space this side was far larger than the murky previous compartment and here the water was clear, so clear that they could see the sparkling city in the distance. The only contaminant was apparently a little rust in the water which gave the scene an orange glow.
Alex wiped his helmet's screen, in case he was hallucinating and looked again.
“Where on Io are we?”
Efof smiled “They call it Atlantis”
All heads turned towards him.
“It's kind of a joke name” he explained.
Alex looked again through the amber water towards the city. He could almost hear a sweeping musical score. He realised the others were looking at him and stopped humming. He coughed, embarrassed.
“What? Don't we have a leak to fix?”
“Yes.” Said Efof. “And according to the fish, it's on the far port side of the city.”
“Let's do this.”

The Aquanauts swept effortlessly between the crew's legs, picking them up...
“I say!”
“Faster this way.”
… and they set off towards the leak, riding the fish and in Seymour and Justin's case, holding on to the elegant dorsal fins, as one might ride a dolphin.

Captain Pugwash and his companion Staines peered down the passageway. It seemed to them that the Aquanauts and their new friends were flying high above the outer edges of the majestic city.
“It's quite beautiful, boss.” Snuffled Staines.
“Isn't it?” Growled Pugwash in his deep rumble.
“It's a shame we have to kill them.”
“Yes.”