Two thousand meters away, hovering at the same depth, was a small orange submersible about the size of a semi-trailer. It carried the insignia of Gunderson Corporation. Its every light was ablaze, its two mechanical arms extended as if offering an embrace. Fluorescent cables dangled from its open belly, extending all the way down to the ocean floor some three hundred meters below the craft. The ends of the rope were tied off to illuminate mooring assemblies anchored in the rock-hard sand of the seabed. Waddling away from the lines were tiny yellow dots bobbing along in comical slow motion, like bad animation or astronauts walking on the moon.