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墨書 Inktalez
The sand whipped up by the helicopter's rotor blades struck against my goggles with a sharp sound, stinging my face as well. But that was secondary; the real issue was that the swirling sand was forcing its way into my nostrils. I pulled the collar of my coat up over my mouth and nose, leaning forward to look down.
I considered myself quite brave; some people with thinner skin would have wrapped their heads in their coats. Coughing, I reassured myself that it wasn't about being thick-skinned; someone had to keep an eye on the surroundings to avoid any unexpected situations.
I could already see a dark opening ahead, but even more impressive was the massive construction team surrounding it.
This opening was situated in a gigantic sand pit. The edges of the pit were bustling with countless construction and transport vehicles. Huge machines were sucking up sand and transferring it through long conveyor belts into trucks parked outside the pit, which then drove off to dump their loads in the distance.
At the center of the pit, near the opening, hard rock was already exposed. From my angle, the dark entrance resembled a giant beast's eye, black as hell.
Based on the busy scene below, I deduced that they intended to reinforce and secure this opening, possibly deploying more powerful military forces down there. This made me feel slightly relieved; at least I knew where my escape route lay.
As the helicopter descended lower, I could clearly see that opening—it was large. Not only could our landing craft easily enter, but even the armed helicopter above us could fit through.
However, with the descent of the helicopter, an oppressive feeling began to weigh on me. It wasn't due to nerves or fear; I believed I had mentally prepared for anything and couldn't afford to be scared at this moment.
It was the environment. The towering walls of the vast sand pit surrounded me, and as our landing craft continued to descend, I felt as if I were returning to a time when I had excavated test pits. It felt like I was inside a massive test pit.
This reminded me of my experience being buried underground, and involuntarily, my throat went dry. That memory left me with lingering effects.
When our landing craft appeared at the mouth of the opening, a bone-chilling cold washed over me, accompanied by a pull from what felt like hell itself; it seemed our landing craft suddenly sank downwards.
I turned to Cao Mingzhe and shouted, "Let the helicopter go down! If we drop the ropes here, we might capsize!"
"No way!" Cao Mingzhe firmly opposed. "The situation inside is complicated. There’s something at the ceiling; if it gets tangled in the rotor blades, not only will the aircraft be doomed, but we’ll all go down with it. The boat won’t capsize; there’s a drogue chute above that will at least ensure we land safely on pavement."
In just a few words, my mouth filled with sand. I knew this decision wasn’t mine to make; however, as long as they could guarantee that our landing craft wouldn’t flip over, I would be satisfied. Once we descended, we would likely face an attack from a giant octopus monster. I had to be ready for battle.
I quickly unzipped my backpack in front of me and pulled out my rifle—a familiar M16 assault rifle.
Sitting in the front row, directly in front of me was a soldier whose attention was immediately caught by my actions. Although he wore goggles too, I could sense his stern gaze directed at me—clearly surprised that I had brought a weapon.
"Get ready for combat!" The shout from Liu Squad Leader behind us diverted his attention away.
Liu Squad Leader knew what was below. He had already pulled back the bolt.
I attached the magazine and quickly chambered a round. Suddenly, a feeling of weightlessness nearly made me float away. The rope securing the Landing Craft had come loose.
As I watched the helicopter rapidly fly away, a 'bang' echoed above me as a parachute deployed. Although it wasn't very large, it was enough to separate us from the Ground, plunging my surroundings into darkness.
The Landing Craft lit up with several lights almost immediately, but these lights were clearly not high beams; they were meant for illuminating the craft itself. I could see what was happening on the boat, but I couldn't make out anything around us.
"The lights are too dim! Is there a spotlight?" I shouted.
In response, I heard the sound of another parachute deploying. Another Landing Craft appeared above us to the side, its width marked by lights.
"Hold on tight; we're about to hit the water. Gunner, prepare to fire."
Without the deafening roar of the helicopter, Liu Squad Leader's voice stood out sharply.
"Turn on the spotlight; without light, we're all blind."
My words clearly didn't carry as much weight as Liu Squad Leader's; no one responded to me or turned on the spotlight. Of course, it was impossible that there wasn't one; they knew the environment here and wouldn't neglect such preparations.
However, I didn't have time to argue with the soldiers. The height from the Ceiling to the Pavement was limited, and I certainly didn't want to be thrown into the icy lake water. I grabbed onto a handle nearby and silently counted in my head, estimating how long until we hit the water.
When I reached twenty in my counting, I felt my face tighten.
I was counting at a rate of about one number per second, and around ten seconds in, something felt off. Our descent speed wasn't slow; although there was a Drogue Chute, its canopy wasn't very large and wouldn't provide much deceleration. Its main purpose was to keep the Landing Craft balanced and prevent it from flipping into the water.
Both Cao Mingzhe and I were aware of this height from the Ceiling. If we weren't worried about capsizing during landing, we wouldn't even need the Drogue Chute.
Logically, we should have already plunged into the underground lake by now, yet we were still floating above.
I turned my head and shouted at Liu Squad Leader: "Damn it, turn on the spotlight! Something's not right."
The illumination from the Landing Craft allowed him to see my face, and likewise, I could see his. Liu Squad Leader looked grim; he clearly realized that something was amiss.
"Turn on all the lights! Hurry!" he yelled hoarsely.
Three blinding beams of white light shot out into the surroundings, piercing through the darkness like swords before vanishing.
I couldn't see anything. I knew the underground lake was vast, and if we were in its center, it was very likely that we wouldn't be able to see either shore. However, I felt something strange at that moment; I had a bad premonition.
In front of me was a Six-Barrel Gatling Gun, equipped with a light that moved in sync with the Muzzle. I stood up, grasped the handle of the Six-Barrel Gatling Gun, and lowered the Muzzle.
Perhaps my sudden movement startled the gunner, who exclaimed, "What are you doing!?"
I didn't have time to explain to him; I shouted roughly, "Get out of the way!"
Reluctantly, the soldier handed the machine gun over to me.
It wasn't just my shout that made him yield; it was also because that shout wasn't mine alone. At the same time I yelled "Get out of the way," Liu Squad Leader shouted those same two words even more sternly.
I shook the Muzzle downwards, and the blinding light from it angled downwards. The light could reach at least five hundred meters away, but beyond its reach lay nothing but darkness. (To Be Continued...)
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