The Solarian Deep
Author: David Deane Haskell
Publisher: David Deane Haskell / independently published
Release Date: February 19, 2026
Series: The Technoquatics Series, Book 1
Genre: Oceanpunk dystopian science fiction / post-apocalyptic science fiction
Excerpt:
From Chapter 3, “Currents and Crossroads”
Adult technos could move freely, but for youngsters, check-in with the sentries was mandatory. Each pair had to prove they were traveling with a buddy, and provide parental permission.
This proved a hassle for Calistya and Khrystal, being orphans. They had to show their school IDs, and the school would have to be notified. However, there was one sentry, Marla, who’d grown fond of her frequent adventurers. After checking in with the school a number of times, always with an all clear, she’d taken to registering them without the formalities.
Marla being on duty, they got through to the open sea hassle-free. Past the city limits, there were no more conservation warnings, no more detours. Nothing to stop them from having a good time.
As they swam out, the city’s din gave way to the calming rippling of water—waves rolling above, the faint crackle of distant breakers, and the blubs and bloops of a basin full of sea-stuff, as if the whole of it were breathing in and out.
Although Khrystal had been reluctant, she was as pleased as Calistya to be out in the open, enjoying the currents and overwaves, and seeing all the sealife. They headed out a ways, since they had the whole day, and dared to deep dive perilously close to the dark.
‘The Dark’ marked the boundary between sunlight and the abyss of eternal night—a foreboding, uncharted expanse. Even the strongest swimmers were advised against venturing down there, and for the children, it was strictly forbidden. ‘No plunging into the dark, and no surfacing.’ Those two extremes were disallowed, and for good reason. The girls knew the rules, but skirted the boundaries all the same, reveling in the thrill of defiance.
The sunlight above dimmed as they dove deeper, the edge of The Dark looming like a heavy curtain. Calistya’s pulse intensified, but she indicated nothing, unwilling to break the fragile spell.
They spent hours trading swim-off techniques, practicing underwater calisthenics, and sampling the sparse plants sprouting just below the contamination zone. Most were rubbery and bitter—far from the delicacies they’d imagined. They also spent time relaxing, floating and watching sea creatures, allowing their cares to dissolve into the expanse all around.
Exhausted but satisfied, they began their slow journey back, the rhythmic flick of their fins echoing into the endless ripples. By the time the sentry gate came into view, the dusky hues of twilight had electrified the water in shimmering sparkles. Calistya paused, suspended in the open sea, weightless and free. The constraints of life back home loomed again, the rules, the sentry gates, the endless noise. Out here, it was just easier. She wasn’t ready to go back.
But Khrystal gave her arm a tug, uneasy about being caught out once nightfall came, another of the myriad restrictions they had to live with. It was funny, sometimes she was the one worried about the rules, sometimes her friend. They’d be in trouble if they both decided they didn’t care at the same time.
Following her friend’s lead, she headed back, noticing that Marla’s smiling face was no longer at the checkpoint. Instead, a surly guard with sharp eyes watched their approach. The last flickers of sundown saved them from a reprimand—this time. Calistya glanced at Khrystal, who rolled her eyes. Back to the grind, Cali thought, her mind’s eye lingering on the inky curtain that spoke to her that day.
About the Book:
The ocean didn’t just swallow the world—it forced us to evolve.
In the submerged mega-city of The Shallows, humanity hangs on by a thread of rusted steel and bio-engineering. For Calistya, a “groundwalker” orphan living in the dripping dregs of the sector, there is only one escape: The Full-Gill Enhancement. It’s a brutal, irreversible surgery that trades legs for a fin and offers the ultimate freedom—a life in the open ocean, untethered from the decaying domes of her youth.
But freedom has a price Calistya can’t afford.
Until she sees him.
While skirting the forbidden edge of The Dark—the abyssal drop-off where the city’s lights fail—Calistya spots a boy gliding through the crushing black water. He has no oxy-tanks. No surgical scars. No mechanical implants. Just skin, scales, and eyes that glow with an ancient, bioluminescent intelligence.
He is a Solarian—a myth the city’s ruling class has tried to erase.
When her best friend Khrystal vanishes into the abyss in pursuit of the truth, Calistya is forced to choose: stay safe in her cage, or dive deeper than her gear was ever meant to go. Down in the crushing dark, she will discover that The Shallows isn’t a sanctuary… and the key to saving her friend lies with a boy who shouldn’t exist.
Dive into a breathtaking new oceanpunk dystopia where Bioshock meets The Neptune Project. The Solarian Deep is a pulse-pounding tale of genetic evolution, deep-sea mystery, and the terrifying beauty of the unknown.
Purchase links:
https://mybook.to/solariandeep
About the Author:
David Haskell writes suspenseful, visionary fiction novels about consciousness, peril, technology, and survival under pressure.
His books explore the fault lines between human beings and the systems they build, from surveillance and corporate power, to collapse, transformation, and the search for meaning under pressure.
Author contact links:
WEBSITE: https://daviddeanehaskell.com