Chapter 82: God Grants Life
After a long wait, the frozen time began to flow again, and the thunderous roar gradually diminished, along with the diminishing tremors in the floor.
All of this resembled a storm in nature.
The crackling explosions eventually faded, leaving only those distant echoes in the sky.
Opening his eyes, Lynn found himself embracing the dusty figure of the woman and little Karis. They were covered in a layer of ash, but thankfully, there seemed to be no other harm done.
Turning his head, Lynn saw that the White Goatbeard had turned into the "Gray Goatbeard," covered in ash on his head and face. Lynn hastily asked, "Hey, Mr. Rorson! Are you alright?"
Just as he finished speaking, the man coughed violently before "coming to life": "Cough... those Russians! Cough..."
Although night had fallen, the bombings were likely to ignite buildings easily, and there was indeed a dim yellow glow outside the balcony. Lynn didn't know why the Soviets chose to launch such a massive air raid at this time, but surviving such intense bombardment, apart from "God's blessing," he couldn't think of better words.
Taking a breath, Lynn was about to comfort little Karis when a sudden realization struck him: with such a fierce Soviet airstrike, the soldiers responsible for vigilance must have taken cover separately. Wouldn't the road to the harbor be clear?
With this in mind, Lynn shouted, "Quick, everyone grab your things and follow me, hurry!"
At first, the woman and the White Goatbeard seemed confused about his intentions, but as Lynn grabbed a suitcase and rushed out while holding Karis, they snapped out of it.
The corridors of the inn were still filled with faint smoke, and there were many debris scattered on the dirty old carpets, indicating the damage caused by the consecutive bombings on this old building. Lynn carefully guided the woman and the White Goatbeard down the wooden spiral staircase, reminding them to watch out for the newly added cracks in the steps. As they passed the second floor, Lynn heard someone screaming in pain, but at this moment, he had no time to spare.
Reaching the ground floor of the inn, Lynn looked back and saw the woman and the White Goatbeard following. He walked out of the door with relief. The streets were in chaos, littered with large and small rocks, wood chips, and unidentifiable debris. There was not a soul in sight as far as the eye could see.
At this moment, time was of the essence. Lynn turned and shouted, "Follow me," then hugged little Karis and headed towards the harbor.
Along the way, although they didn't encounter the bloody scenes of broken bodies, the damaged houses and collapsed buildings from the explosions made the previously smooth road rugged and difficult to traverse. Lynn almost twisted his ankle stepping on a rock and reminded the other two to be careful. In no time, they reached the cordon separating the harbor from the city. The civilians who had crowded here during the day were all gone, and there wasn't a single sentinel in sight on the other side.
Suppressing his excitement, Lynn put down little Karis, and with one hand, he moved the wooden frame with wire mesh blocking the way, then turned back, anxiously watching as the White Goatbeard and the woman, still lagging behind, approached the line.
"Hurry up, hurry up!" Little Karis cheered on from the side.
When the two finally made it to the cordon after struggling, a rough voice suddenly sounded in the darkness, "What are you doing?"
Lynn was startled and looked towards the source of the voice. A soldier with a large ear along the helmet stepped out of the nearby building's porch. It seemed that he had just taken cover there during the bombing.
Thinking quickly, Lynn replied, "222, we have number 222, it's our turn to go in!"
The soldier, holding a Mauser rifle in one hand, didn't seem too wary since Lynn was also dressed as a soldier. He said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Show me your number plate!"
Lynn led the White Goatbeard and the woman through the cordon, saying, "Here," as he put down little Karis, then pretended to reach for the number plate.
Just like dealing with Russian soldiers in the trenches, Lynn suddenly pulled out his shotgun from his waist belt, cocking the hammer with his thumb with a light, crisp sound echoing in the silent night.
Although he didn't want to shoot, Lynn still aimed the gun at the soldier's head.
"Don't move! I don't want to hurt anyone, I just want them to board as soon as possible. Alice, take Karis and go, quickly!"
Seeing the situation, although terrified, the woman didn't hesitate. She quickly took Karis's hand and dragged her towards the pier. However, at this moment, the little girl, fearing for her father's safety, burst into tears.
Feeling anxious, but unsure whether the soldier would relent or rigidly adhere to his
duty, Lynn kept the gun pointed at him while slowly backing towards the pier, reassuring Karis, "Karis, don't cry, I'm right here, I won't leave you!"
"Hey, buddy, don't be rash!" the soldier finally spoke, and slowly bent down to place his rifle on the ground.
Surrendering to an enemy might be lamentable, but surrendering to a compatriot for the sake of protecting loved ones was a testament to humanity.
At this moment, Lynn finally relaxed slightly, and to prevent accidental discharge, he reset the shotgun's hammer, took a few steps back while still keeping an eye on the soldier. Finally, when he was about to leave the soldier's sight, Lynn shouted from a distance, "Thanks, friend!"
After crossing two blocks, the sound of waves hitting the pier was finally within reach. Lynn breathed a sigh of relief, but suddenly heard a scream from the woman walking in front, "Oh!"
Thinking they had encountered another sentry, Lynn instinctively raised his right hand holding the gun, but found no soldier ahead. When he looked to where the woman pointed, he realized why she had screamed.
It was as if they had just experienced a massacre; bodies were strewn across the pier in disarray. Even soldiers returning from the battlefield would find it horrifying.
During the day, Lynn could see the situation on the pier from the fifth-floor balcony. He knew this must be because of the recent bombing—the buildings and basements in the pier area could be used for temporary shelter, but civilians and wounded soldiers eager to board the ships would crowd into the pier area, disregarding the order of arrival. So whenever a ship docked, civilians and wounded soldiers in the pier area would crowd into the nearest area to the ship. If the Soviets launched an air raid at this time, those who failed to evacuate in time would face the threat of enemy bombs directly.
Squinting as he searched the area, Lynn soon spotted a blurry silhouette on the water not far from the pier. From his memory, that location didn't have any sunken ships or fixed anti-aircraft ships; it must be the ship that entered the harbor at dusk. Given the situation at the time, the ship probably hadn't been filled with evacuating civilians yet, but Lynn didn't know whether it would return to the pier after the end of the Soviet air raid or leave the harbor directly.
Hoo...
The long whistle sounded like a horn from the battlefield, roaring defiantly at the vicious and brutal enemy. Lynn put away his shotgun, holding Karis with one hand and leading the woman with the other.
After spending days together, breaking even the most intimate boundaries, he had never held this tender, smooth, yet cold hand before.
"Karis, be good, close your eyes! Alice, be brave, follow me!"
As a makeshift father and nameless husband, Lynn encouraged the mother and daughter with a gentle yet firm tone to cross this final obstacle, passing by the terrifying corpses, to reach the pier, where they could escape from this place of death.
Hoo...
The whistle sounded again, and the blurry silhouette on the water suddenly lit up with a bright light. At this moment, Lynn realized how close it was. The intense beam of light shone on the pier, and Lynn suddenly felt as if he were bathed in divine light, his heavy soul finding liberation in this moment.