"You're really decided to take them back, Captain?"
"Elga is familiar with every route and every island in this area. His wife can help us with cooking and laundry, which is valuable to us! Lastly, when we leave here and release them, without evidence, no one will believe that they saw German submarines in the Aegean Sea after the war ended. Otto, what do you think?"
"I'm not entirely sure, but my intuition tells me you're not wrong!"
"Thank you!"
"Thank you?"
"Yes, thank you!"
On Hersonissos Island, the crew continued to nibble on biscuits with cold water. How long would these days last? No one could say for sure, but one thing was certain: as long as their Captain Hainuo returned, everything would be alright.
Since Hainuo left, Hersonissos climbed to the top of the mountain every day to survey. He didn't doubt the courage and wisdom of this young man, but he felt that his life experience was not enough, far from enough!
However, in the past two days, there had been some changes in the normally calm sea nearby. The first unexpected visitor was a fishing boat powered by sails. It was not large and didn't seem to carry any weapons, but as it approached Hersonissos Island, the crew prepared to fire, ready to tear the poor wooden boat apart with the three deck guns on the submarines.
However, what happened next made everyone hold their breath. A British warship, more specifically a 2000-ton escort cruiser, appeared in the sea east of the island and swiftly approached. Experienced sailors knew that although the escort cruiser didn't have substantial armor, it had more cannons than a regular destroyer. For a submarine to confront such a ship, it would either have to sink it with torpedoes or submerge to evade; direct confrontation wouldn't yield any advantage!
Facing this unexpected turn of events, Hersonissos immediately ordered the submarines to submerge. Fortunately, the waters around this small bay were deep enough, and the two submarines disappeared completely before the British warship approached. Through the periscope, Hersonissos saw the British warship first intercept the Turkish fishing boat, probably sending a small team of sailors to inspect it, before turning away and leaving the barren volcanic island.
Though this incident startled Hersonissos and the crew, it also proved that their secret base was indeed safe.
"A small cargo ship!"
The voice from the lookout tower made everyone stop their activities. The crew's vigilance had increased significantly after the recent encounter. They quickly heard Hersonissos' command to "return to battle stations and prepare to dive," and promptly stowed away any items that might expose them, such as playing cards and books, and returned to their submarines.
Before long, the small gray-white cargo ship appeared in front of the crew's eyes, heading straight towards them but not displaying the prearranged signal lights.
As the ship drew closer, Hersonissos finally gave the order to dive.
"Fill the ballast tanks one-third!"
The crew inside the submarines could hear the sound of water filling the ballast tanks. During the diving process, the submarine would sway slightly, though the sensation wasn't very noticeable. The crew could only imagine the submarine gradually sinking into the water.
"One-third filled!"
At this point, most of the submarine had submerged, with only a small portion of the conning tower remaining above the water. Except for the periscope mast, which was quickly retracted, it appeared almost indistinguishable from an ordinary reef.
Hersonissos, still on the conning tower of U21, used binoculars to observe the approaching cargo ship. At almost the same height, acting as a counterpart, was Edwin, the acting captain left on U148.
"Half-fill the ballast tanks!"
While Hersonissos had just given this order and was preparing to enter the submarine through the watertight hatch, Edwin exclaimed from U148's tower, "Wait, I see someone waving a white flag on that ship!"
"Hold the ballast!" Hersonissos immediately canceled the previous order through the voice tube. He raised the binoculars and adjusted the magnification. Indeed, there was a small white dot waving at the bow of the ship.
After about two minutes, Edwin shouted again, "It's Hainuo, Captain Hainuo! He's standing at the bow!"
"Cease combat readiness!" Hersonissos sighed in relief, "Drain the ballast tanks, surface!"
At that moment, Hainuo was standing proudly on the bow of the Fast Courier. To his chagrin, the old ship had only kerosene lamps, which could barely serve as navigation lights at night but were practically useless during the day. Perhaps, he should personally check all the necessary items before the next voyage. On U148, these tasks were usually carried out by Otto and various officers responsible for the compartments.
A small Turkish cargo ship not only brought the fuel, fresh water, and food urgently needed by the crew but also brought hope and morale.
"You have no regrets now!"
Hainuo looked at the astonished Elga and Alsaran and said. Perhaps these two Turkish civilians had never seen submarines up close like this before! Let alone such formidable behemoths as U148!
Needless to say, these Turkish civilians paid little attention to politics. The armistice treaty required Germany to surrender its main combat ships and all submarines, but these two submarines slipped through the net!
"I'm sorry, Mr. Elga, but until our operation is over, your wife and children must stay on the island. However, I guarantee with my integrity that they will not be harmed in any way! And you, young Alsaran, I hope you will keep your promise to keep this secret for us!"
For a long while, the young Turkish guide nodded in a daze; he was obviously stunned by so many German naval soldiers.
Perhaps out of mutual respect for heroes, after hearing Elga's story, Hersonissos readily agreed to Hainuo's suggestion to leave them behind. Thus, a mutually beneficial agreement was quickly reached: Elga and his family would not reveal anything they saw here as long as they lived, and Hainuo would pay them a generous sum, hiring Elga to captain the Fast Courier between Antalya Port and Hersonissos Island. If Elga contributed to salvaging shipwrecks, he would also receive a share of the profits.
For Elga's struggling family, this agreement was like a godsend. And Hainuo and his crew quickly reaped the rewards of their kindness. Elga told them he also knew a secret related to treasure.
"The underwater treasure of Crete?"
Hainuo was more than familiar with this term! Crete was the largest island in Greece, famous for the Minoan civilization, and the main lure for divers was the underwater treasure! Little did he expect that instead of finding treasure, he would be sent to this war-torn era!
"It is said to be a sunken ship from over 400 years ago. I heard it from my grandfather. Not far southeast of Crete Island, there was a fleet transporting spoils of war from Cairo to Istanbul. Some of the ships, laden with gold and jewels, sank in a storm. But due to the strong currents there, no one has been able to search for them!"
Hainuo and Hersonissos looked at each other. As long as it was within 50 meters, their diving equipment could handle it. As for the historical period mentioned by Elga, they knew a little: the powerful Ottoman Empire invaded Egypt at the beginning of the 16th century and defeated the Egyptian army, capturing Cairo the following year, leading to the downfall of the Mamluk Sultanate! In terms of the timeline of this history, it matched what Elga mentioned. With the fall of a dynasty, a large amount of wealth would inevitably be plundered by the victors.
To travel from Cairo to Istanbul overland, one had to pass through Palestine and Syria, a long and newly conquered route with the risk of transporting large amounts of treasure. In contrast, the mighty Ottoman Empire navy controlled the Mediterranean Sea, and sailing directly from Cairo to Istanbul by sea cut the distance by more than half. Unfortunately, occasional storms also occurred in the seemingly calm Mediterranean Sea. Perhaps the rulers of the Ottoman Empire hadn't anticipated this.
"Do you know the exact location?" Hainuo asked.
Elga shook his head. "The legend has been passed down for hundreds of years. Some say there's half of Egypt's wealth there, while others say it's just some offerings from the Egyptians. The exact location of the sinking is unclear!"
"Do you think it's worth a try?" Hainuo turned to Hersonissos.
Hersonissos stared at the nautical chart for a while before saying, "Let's see how our next batch of target points turns out!"
When the Fast Courier arrived at Hersonissos Island for the third time, U21 and U148 finally had enough fuel for two submarines to operate simultaneously—one for searching and salvaging near a sunken ship, the other for surveillance nearby. However, they returned empty-handed from the fourth and fifth target points. At the sixth target point, their luck improved slightly. They found an ancient wreck near the sunken cargo ship, where they discovered 68 ancient gold coins. Although not a large quantity, as antiques, they were valued far beyond the gold itself. However, Hainuo and his crew couldn't assess their exact value all at once.