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Francis Slattery, captain of the U.S.

Scorpion, a nuclear-powered submarine, looks across the busy control center.

Captain Slattery is 36 years old and a rising star in the United States Navy.

He's trained for years to lead submarines like this into battle, but he's not taking the

Scorpion to war today.

He's taking his ship home.

The Scorpion glides through the waters a few hundred feet below the surface,

heading west toward America at a speed of 18 knots. A submarine hums with quiet and efficient

activity that pleases slattery.

He's been captain of the submarine for less than a year,

but knows every inch of his command.

He can picture the ship's cooks busy in the galley,

the engineers who are hard at work in the engine room and he knows that three decks below the control center a routine battery charge is underway.

Captain Slattery decides it's time to come up to periscope depth.

He gives the order, the submarine pitches upwards,

and the words set condition Baker throughout the ship

echo along the scorpion's compartments.

In response to Captain Slattery's order, the crewmen seal the scorpion's watertight

...