Everywhere, waters are rising--and that is just the beginning of the world's peril, unless the NUMA crew can beat the clock in this thrilling novel from the #1 New York Times -bestselling grand master of adventure. An alarming rise in the world's sea levels--much larger than could be accounted for by glacier melt--sends Kurt Austin, Joe Zavala, and the rest of the NUMA scientific team rocketing around the globe in search of answers. What they find at the bottom of the East China Sea, however, is even worse than they imagined: a diabolical plan to upset the Pacific balance of power--and in the process displace as many as a billion people. A rare alloy unlike anything else on earth, a pair of five-hundred-year-old Japanese talismans, an assassin so violent even the Yakuza has disowned him, an audacious technological breakthrough that will become a very personal nightmare for Kurt Austin--from the shark-filled waters of Asia to the high-tech streets of Tokyo to a forbidden secret island, the NUMA team must risk everything to head off the coming catastrophe. “Another entertaining and diverting read from a true legend in the adventure business. . . . invok[es] the classic feel of James Bond reimagined as an oceanographer.” - -Associated Press “An action-adventure for the age of climate change. . . Plenty of action and drama. Fans will not be disappointed.”-- Charleston Post and Courier “One of the best recent novels to bear the Cussler name… The writing here is spot-on… and the story is first-rate, with just enough of a ripped-from-the-headlines feel to it that we imagine it could actually happen. A fine entry in an always-popular series, and a sure bet for those who crave high-concept adventure.” -- Booklist Clive Cussler  is the author or coauthor of more than 50 previous books in five best-selling series, including Dirk Pitt, NUMA Files, Oregon Files, Isaac Bell, and Sam and Remi Fargo. His nonfiction works include  Built for Adventure :  The Classic Automobiles of Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt , plus  The Sea Hunters  and  The Sea Hunters II. They describe the true adventures of the real NUMA, which, led by Cussler, searches for lost ships of historic significance. With his crew of volunteers, Cussler has discovered more than 60 ships, including the long lost Confederate ship  Hunley . He lives in Arizona. Graham Brown grew up in Illinois, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania, moving often with his family. As far as he knows they weren't in the witness protection program or part of any top secret government agency, but then, would they really tell him? A former pilot and lawyer, and later part of a start up health care firm, Brown decided he hadn't had enough different careers yet and decided to become a writer. A huge fan of Clive Cussler, Michael Crichton, Stephen King, and television shows like The X-Files and Lost , Graham's first novel,  Black Rain,  debuted in January 2010. He now cowrites the NUMA Files series with Clive Cussler. Their second collaboration,  The Storm , debuted at #1 on the  New York Times  Bestseller List. Blood and Steel Central Japan Winter 1573 The thunder of charging horses gave way to the clang of swords as two armies met on a field in the highlands of Japan. From the saddle of his horse, Yoshiro Shimezu fought with a combination of power and grace. He whirled and slashed, maneuvering his steed with precision, all without  hakusha , or spurs. The samurai did not use them. Clad in brightly painted armor, Yoshiro sported wide shoulder boards, heavy gauntlets and a helmet adorned with stag horns. He wielded a gleaming  katana  that caught every bit of the light as it cut through the air. With a flick of the wrist, he disarmed his nearest adversary. A backhanded cut followed, snapping another opponent’s sword in two. As that soldier fled, a third foe lunged at Yoshiro with a pike. The tip struck his ribs, but his scaled armor that lay in pleats prevented mortal damage. Yoshiro wheeled around and killed the man with a downward hack. Free for a second, he turned his horse in a tight pirouette. The horse, dressed in armor to match Yoshiro’s, reared up, kicking with its front legs and then leaping forward. Its iron-clad hooves smashed a pair of attackers in the face, sending them bloodied and battered to the ground. It came down on a third man, crushing him, but enemy soldiers were now massing on all sides. Yoshiro turned one way and back again. He’d taken the field against the Shogun, who arrived with overwhelming numbers. The battle had gone predictably and Yoshiro was facing the end. Determined to take as many foes with him as possible, Yoshiro charged the closest group, but they pulled back in a defensive formation, raising shields and long pikes. He turned and galloped toward another formation of troops, but they, too, held their ground, cowering behind a forest of spears. Perhaps they meant to capture him. Perhaps the Shogun would demand he commit  seppuku  in front of the