Danger II

Inside the cockpit…

Ding! Ding! Ding!

A red light was blinking rapidly, dying the entire room with red.

Sophie was currently sweating while still in full concentration. She was multitasking with flying and making the airplane stable while glancing at the stars above for directions.

She was also paying attention to the radar. Due to the changes in the climate, all aircrafts were required to be installed with radars to help them see if there are any possible dangers such as stray meteors and the like.

Now, the said radar showed a red blinking dot that was approaching the aircraft at high-speed.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit!"

Sophie spat out curses in frustration.

She didn't know what exactly the red blinking dot meant, but she was sure that it meant danger.

Originally, piloting the aircraft and navigating through the stars were already taking its toll on her. Now that another source of danger came, she was already at her limit.

'I still haven't enjoyed life! This couldn't be the end!' Sophie thought in indignation.

At this time, the door to the cockpit opened.

Ren was the first one to enter, seeing Sophie's state, he immediately asked what happened.

The family listened while Sophie informed them of the current situation.

"As you can see, the red dot on the radar represents danger. And it's fast approaching us."

Ren observed the red dot on the radar and said, "Its speed is at least above twenty thousand miles per hour, meaning that it will reach us in less than a minute. Considering the speed at which we're going, we still have a minute or so. We can buy a bit of time by increasing our altitude."

Sophie asked, "How high are we talking about…?"

"The higher, the better."

Hearing Ren, she nodded and replied, "Copy that. I'll steer the aircraft upwards."

Zen and Sera felt the movement of the aircraft.

The aircraft sped upwards while maintaining an inclined position.

Rina, who was still holding on to a table to balance herself, asked, "Hon, something this fast…"

Ren nodded solemnly, "Yes, there's a high chance that it's a missile…"

Zen, Sera, and even Sophie, all widened their eyes. Trepidation filled their hearts at the possible outcome if ever the missile reached them.

The only one with a different reaction was Rina who looked at her husband, as if putting all her faith in him.

Ren knew that their situation was dire, but this didn't stop him from trying to calmly think about the possible courses of action that they could take to ensure their safety.

The family watched in fear as the red dot got closer as time passed by.

"Shit…" Ren cursed under his breath, he was at a dead end.

"Ah fuck it!" Unable to take the pressure anymore, Sophie suddenly shouted.

Shake! Shake!

The aircraft shook intensely which caught the family off guard and made them lose their balance in the process. The aircraft which was at an inclined position earlier now lay almost vertically as its speed increased.

Zen reached out to Sera while Rina easily balanced herself and held onto something to keep her from stumbling.

Ren, who was trying to maintain his balance, asked loudly amidst the shaking of the aircraft, "Ms. Sophie, what are you doing?"

Sophie kept looking forward as she replied, "I'm doing the best I can to survive! Let me focus!"

Under the pressure of a threat to their lives, they didn't care about courtesies anymore.

Sera was already panicking a little, the sight of her brother and parents were the only things keeping her sane. Then, while still being held by Zen, she asked nervously, "Dad, what's happening?"

Ren kept silent as he observed Sophie's actions, trying to figure out what she was doing. His eyes wandered over the radar

The radar has a range of a few miles. Unlike earlier, it was now showing a few scattered red dots and more were slowly appearing. Some were moving, some seemed stationary.

After a while, he replied, "I got it! Sophie is using the aircraft to directly fly in the stratosphere!"

Ren knew that since the war, the climate of the planet changed drastically, which made it possible for meteors to be present around the stratosphere.

The scattered red dots shown on the radar must've been meteors!

Zen and Sera weren't really sure what it meant. On the other hand, Rina was shocked, "What?! Will the aircraft be able to hold on!?"

There was one thing she didn't mention, which was the skill needed to do this stunt. The qualifications needed to pilot an aircraft suitable to fly through the stratosphere were steeper than a cliff.

In addition, the aircraft they were riding right now wasn't meant for the stratosphere in the first place. This meant that what Sophie was doing right now requires more skill than flying an aircraft meant for the stratosphere in the stratosphere.

Commercial aircrafts, although tanky, can only withstand the turbulence and pressure in the troposphere. Any more than that will damage it.

As such, one could only wonder how Sophie, despite her age, was able to pull something this risky.

Ren answered, "It can, but only for a little while. And this little while is all we need right now. As for the success rate of this… We'll be in your hands Ms. Sophie." He knew that saying anything more would dampen the mood. For now, he couldn't doubt Sophie's skills, no matter how young she looked.

Knowing the severity of the situation, Sophie nodded solemnly.

As such, it could be said that Sophie was threading on a thin line between life and death together with everyone in the plane.

In the next moment, Sophie called out, "Sir Ren, I need a hand!"

"What do I need to do?"

"Sit next to me. Hold the two levers on the left and standby. Pay attention to my instructions, it will be better if there would be no delay at all!"

Ren answered thoroughly, "Understood."

Outside, it could be seen that a stray meteor was blocking the path of the aircraft.

When they were less than half a mile from it, Sophie ordered, "Left!"

Ren quickly steered the lever towards the left.

The aircraft tilted and missed the meteor blocking its path by a few meters.

This lasted for a few seconds before a new meteor blocked the path.

Sophie ordered while Ren took action.

Sophie glanced at Ren, surprised, 'As expected of Sir Ren! His reaction is fast, and is getting faster as he gets used to it!'

On the other hand, Ren was focused on following Sophie's instructions.

The red dot on the radar was getting closer as they shuttled through the layer of the stratosphere.

Zen, who was still holding his sister, watched Ren and Sophie with clenched teeth.

'If only I could help.' Although he had power, Zen still felt powerless.

Cough! Cough!

The sound of coughing sounded. Zen hurriedly looked at his sister, only to find her gasping for air.

He looked towards his mother too and saw that she was slightly breathing heavier.

Then, he checked Ren and Sophie's situation too and noticed that it was the same for them. The only difference was the fact that they were giving their all in piloting the aircraft, making them unable to notice that they couldn't breathe properly.

Clearly, aside from him, all of them were lacking oxygen.

'Oh, no. We're at the stratosphere so it made sense that while the oxygen in the cockpit would be enough in normal circumstances, right now, the amount of oxygen won't suffice!' Thought Zen as he rummaged through the compartments to find oxygen masks. He slapped himself awake, 'I don't have the time to wallow in self pity! I just need to do the best I can to help!'

He soon found some and hurriedly helped his mother and sister equip them. Zen also didn't forget to find some for Ren and Sophie.

After bringing oxygen masks to Ren and Sophie, he went back and supported his mother and sister to prevent them from injuring themselves.

After about 30 seconds, they heard an explosion.

Sophie checked and said, "Not good, the right wing of the aircraft was damaged due to the pressure in the stratosphere."

31st second

One of the 4 thrusters located on the right side of the aircraft bursted due to pressure.

32nd second

The body of the aircraft started caving in.

33rd second

The horizontal stabilizers were damaged due to the pressure of the stratosphere.

Ren checked the radar and the situation outside before saying, "We need to last as long as possible!"

Although Sophie didn't know what Ren's plan was, she still gritted her teeth and said, "I'll do my best!"

At this point, neither Sophie, Ren, Rina, Zen, nor Sera knew if they would be able to live to see another day.