Showcase #28

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE PRIZE FLIPPERS Dane's father, Jon, offers his son the flippers he earned from his war campaign, for Dane's great deeds beneath the ocean. But Dane says that because he's part of a team now, each of the Sea Devils should get a chance to earn the flippers. So they set up a contest to see who can perform the greatest feat while diving. Teenaged Nicky is especially excited for the opportunity to win the great flippers.   The first dive is Biff's, and he soon spots an underwater photographer who is oblivious to an approaching swordfish. Biff springs into action, swimming past the photographer and grabbing hold of the swordfish's long bill, wrestling it away. When he returns to the boat, however, one glance at Nicky's hopeful expression causes Biff to lie and say nothing happened on his dive.   Judy is next to go, and she passes by an old sunken ship, where she sees one diver attempting to kill another. Judy swims up behind the would-be murderer and pulls out his air hose, distracting him long enough for her to check on the other diver. The man writes a message that said he was from the treasury department, and the other man was a wanted diamond smuggler. Thanking Judy for her help, the agent swims off with the smuggler in tow. Back onboard the Sea Witch, Judy looks at her brother Nicky, and also reports that nothing happened.   Dane goes next, during his dive he comes across a glass-bottom boat floating above an old sunken Nazi sub. Suddenly, a strong underwater tide passes through, knocking a torpedo out of the submarine's tube and straight toward the boat and the sight-seers aboard! Dane has one chance. He rides the torpedo in an attempt to change it's course. Fortunately he succeeds, and the boat above is saved! But back up top, Dane does just as his teammates did, and says nothing happened. At this point, Nicky was a shoe-in for the flippers, but to everyone's surprise, he refuses to dive. Nicky feels that everyone's treating him like a kid when they lie about their feats, and he doesn't want to win the flippers that way.   The boat is rocked violently! The Sea Devils look on as a giant whale attacks their vessel, knocking them overboard in the process! Nicky, the only one who managed to stay aboard, grabs the wheel and steers the boat into the side of the fearsome whale. He rams into it again and again as his teammates look on, until finally the whale gives up and swims off. When all is calm again, Nicky's friends all agree that he has earned the flippers for his bravery. This time, Nicky happily accepts. UNDERSEA PRISON During a training exercise, the Sea Devils spot a woman being held by a large snapping turtle. Corky and Judy stand by as Biff delivers a blow to the the turtle's head while Dane carries the girl to safety. On the dock, the girl identifies herself as Mona Moray. She had been searching the sea for traces of her father, the creator of a rocket that was supposed to be able to send data from space back to Earth but the rocket malfunctioned and fell into the ocean. When Professor Moray went out after it, both he and the rocket disappeared. But ever since, Mona tells them that she has been receiving faint messages from her father via her mind. She believes he is still alive and in trouble, so she's been searching the seabed for him. Dane offers to help, and Mona thanks him with a hug, with Judy watching jealously.   The Sea Devils accompany Mona to the site where the rocket should have landed. There's nothing there now to even indicate a wreck, but Mona swims down closer to the seabed and begins digging with her hands. A cage comes up from the ground and captures all five of them inside! They watch as humanoid, green-skinned beings carrying tridents swarmed around them. Then the cage and it's prisoners started lowering into the ground. To the team's surprise, the cage moves through a tube beneath the ocean bed, where an underwater land with more of the strange creatures presented itself! The beings grabbed the descending cage and set it down on an ancient stage where the rocket, along with a captured Professor Moray, waited. Mona and her father had a bittersweet reunion in their cage as the leader of the creatures stepped forward. Using telepathy, he told them how he planned for their arrival. As he "spoke", the group realized they could hear each other's thoughts as well. It was an effect by the creatures, to help them gain the knowledge from the Professor's mind on how the rocket works. It also meant that the sea beings overheard every thought, making an escape plan near-impossible. The leader announced that they had re-engineered the rocket to become a huge atomic bomb, that they will use to destroy all of earth's dry land.   The beings drag the Sea Devils, Mona, and her father into the rocket and lock them inside, so they'll be riding it to their destruction. There's no water inside, so Dane and the others are able to speak freely. Professor Moray points out a miniature recon rocket that was just big enough for Corky to fit in. With the young sea devil steering from inside, the rest of the team grabs hold of the tail end of the miniature drone as it flies out of the in-flight rocket. Corky steers it upwards, into the tube they came down in, with the deadly rocket following behind. The exit hatch above began to close to stop their escape, but Corky speeds ahead, with the hatch sealing shut just after they all make it through. The rocket destroys the closed hatch and all of the underwater city and the creatures.