Chapter 191
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 191
Chapter Title: Under the Black Water (9)
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00191 [-- #Under the Black Water --]
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#Under the Black Water (9)
There wasn't enough time to search for additional survivors who might not even exist. More precisely, no one knew how much time was left. How long could the deck withstand the tensile stress? Once it started to tear, the ship would rip apart in an instant. The sinking hull would suck in both water and people.
Winter shelved his lingering regrets.
'A novel-like ending is the one thing I must avoid.'
In *Moby-Dick*, only one person survived to the end.
"Follow quietly. I'll secure a boat first."
There were no objections. Winter took the lead after making the decision. *Click.* The sound of Joanna closing the door after emerging last. That alone was enough to keep the mutants inside contained.
As soon as they stepped out, visibility dropped sharply. In the limited field of view provided by the night-vision goggles, the fog illuminated by infrared lights resembled white noise on a screen. In some ways, it felt worse than seeing with the naked eye. Even so, Winter kept the goggles on. Using regular lights under the pretense of relying on naked-eye vision would brighten the fog and summon every mutant on the deck.
The uneven deck was slick with the misty night breeze. Its glistening surface was like a slide, so for everyone except Winter, it was safer to climb while gripping the railing. All the way to the rope ladder.
*Kee-eeek—*
It sounded like something tumbling noisily, and then a mutant slid straight down. "Aaah!" Agent Kelly screamed. Frenzied gunfire followed. The wildly sprayed bullets all missed.
The moment the monster tried to stand, Winter shot its knee instead of its head. *Bang!* A shot that shattered the patella and severed the ACL. The monster lost its balance and fell backward. *Kyak, kyaaaak!* It rolled down screeching. Winter extended his hand to halt the follow-up shots. This was a moment to stay silent.
Sure enough, the rolling mutant's screech drew others. Black silhouettes flashed by in the fog beyond. *Thud, boom!* Sounds of them charging at full speed and slamming into the bridge. Even those with poor night vision were no exception. The wall must have appeared out of nowhere in the fog.
Winter pulled the pin on a flashbang and tossed it low. Let it roll right under their feet.
*Flash.* The strobe and blast whipped through the fog. In the gap as the waterlogged darkness receded, furious blood-red howls overlapped endlessly. The agents, crouched and breathing raggedly, shuddered.
The rope ladder tied to the railing was precarious due to its slant. He had to retie the knots to maintain balance. Below, where the ladder ended, the pitch-black churning sea troubled Winter.
The issue was the limited 「Presence Concealment」...
Unless it was superhuman sensory correction, he couldn't detect underwater Melvillei from above the surface.
That said, signs of an attack were clear. White foam always bubbled up following their movements. In other words, when facing them, trust your own eyes and ears over sensory warnings. But the environment wasn't favorable. Too much debris floated in this dark sea.
Moreover, if one ambushed from a stationary position, even those traces faded.
No other options existed. Winter grabbed the ladder.
"I'll go down first and check. If it's safe, I'll signal with light."
"Be careful. We'll cover you."
As Talbot spoke, two muzzles aimed downward. But to Winter, it felt more dangerous. Their skills were insufficient against monsters surging several meters out of the water. The only reliable one was Joanna, but she had to protect the intel agents.
"No cover needed. Others, watch the deck. Agent Kelly, wait for my signal."
"...Understood."
They had the sense for it. Talbot and the other two quietly backed off.
Winter gripped both sides of the ladder and slid down. In 3 seconds, he stepped onto the makeshift pier formed by lining up small, empty boats. The surging sea on either side was suffocating ignorance.
*Bwoooooong—*
A massive ship horn made his eardrums throb. How big was it? How close? About ten seconds later, *splash*, the colliding waves shook beneath his feet. Back-calculating the ship's displacement from the wave height, it was at least ten thousand tons. Maybe over a hundred thousand.
That started it—different horns blared competitively from all directions. Warnings to get out of their paths immediately. But in this fog, how could anyone see each other?
Amid ongoing collision sounds big and small, Winter advanced through waves reeking of oil.
'At least, no ordinary mutants around.'
The boat-bridge forming the pier ended 50 meters from Pequod's side. The residential area ahead was smashed beyond recognition. Fragments of boats used as homes floated alongside countless corpses.
At least the boat they sought was intact. This was a small vessel used by Orca Black to patrol the sea city's waterways.
*Shrrr—*
A faint sound brushed his ear. Winter dropped flat. He peeked out with just his eyes over the gunwale. Where? Scanning the left waves in tension, the surface about 10 meters away bubbled white.
What about the other one?
Melvillei didn't act alone. They always moved in pairs or more, calling others or fleeing if one was left. Sure enough, another approaching trail appeared. Like torpedoes tracking at shallow depth. The pair of sea monsters circling slowly were fiends under the black water.
'Fight? Or wait for them to finish 「Search」 and leave?'
Winter hesitated. The problem was his gear. The rifle lacked firepower. Against their thick, tough bodies filled with water, even full-auto 5.56mm rounds barely penetrated.
If he had an anti-materiel rifle, one shot would do it.
Winter's gaze shifted to the boat. The heavy machine gun mounted on its deck could shred a surging Melvillei. From surfacing to aim-and-fire had to be under 2 seconds, but that was no issue.
In the end, though, Winter decided to wait for them to leave. No good if they bit into the boat with teeth that cut steel and crushing jaws. At least while the boat moved, that risk vanished. Then he could just shred any trying to surface.
Moments later, one broke its circle. As if tethered invisibly, the remaining one's path curved, converging in the same direction. Their receding speed far outpaced a human sprint on land. Because they didn't swim—they propelled through water.
*Kwang! Kkigigigi—*
Another ship-to-ship crash. The ensuing shattering sounds suggested a huge size difference. Winter quickly signaled up to the deck. One hand cupping the lantern like a cylinder to direct the light, the other opening and closing it.
Agent Kelly descended the ladder first, hurriedly.
"No mutants ahead! Hurry to the boat! Run!"
Before they returned. Urged by Winter, she dashed. But the pier rocked from rampages in the fog beyond, soon creating a precarious sight. As she crossed between gunwales, she wobbled. Winter grabbed her arm, but one leg slipped in. Pulling it out, oil glistened on her wet pants.
Her discarded weapon barely hooked on the gunwale. Shame flushed the agent's face.
"It's fine. Keep going. Be careful not to fall."
Winter immediately grabbed the next: Agent Tucker. They tripped so easily in turn. Even after telling them to run, trying to sprint like on flat ground.
After Talbot passed, Joanna came down last. But she didn't move right away, hesitating as if she had something to say.
"What is it?"
At Winter's question, after brief deliberation, she said,
"The situation room is sending a rescue signal."
"Rescue signal?"
"Yes. Shooting a laser out the window. The one used in briefings."
"Could it not be human?"
"Morse code. SOS."
Her hesitation was clear. Was rescue feasible now? The situation room was atop the bridge; round trip would take at least twenty minutes. Who knew what could happen? Joanna agonized over that.
"Sorry. Shouldn't have said anything."
"No. I'll go. Head to the boat first."
"Yes?"
Winter's immediate reply startled her. She objected.
"Too dangerous. Can't send you alone. I'll go too."
"Really, it's fine. It'll be quick. No need to climb stairs."
"What do you...?"
"The ship's tilted. I'll run up the bridge front."
The acute angle between Pequod's hull and sea level was now about 35 degrees. Meaning the once-vertical bridge lay at 55 degrees. Seven stories was under 20 meters. The smooth, wet surface was no match for Movement rank 15.
"So hurry. Lock the door and wait quietly. Saw things moving underwater—no lights. If they don't see you, it'll be fine."
I'll be right back. Joanna bit her lip at Winter's promise. But her hesitation was brief.
"Understood. Take this. You'll need it."
She handed over plastic explosive, same as before. Must have been a door-breaching kit recovered from a body. She turned and ran, keeping balance even on the shaking boat-bridge.
Winter swiftly climbed the ladder. The deck sloped downward. Mutant groans and screeches still echoed somewhere. Winter sprinted toward the invisible bridge—precisely, the beam's direction. A thin, vivid red line cut through the dense fog. Blink, blink. Long and short pulses: a desperate plea for rescue.
Whoever it was, smart move. Indoors, relatively dry, mutants couldn't see the beam. Only outdoor air's moisture scattered it visible.
From the bend uphill to the situation room's glass: just over 20 seconds.
*Kyaaaak!*
Monsters inside spotted the boy. They pounded the bulletproof glass. Countless fists blocked internal view. Winter attached explosive to the glass and backed off. Then pressed the detonator hard.
*Boom!*
Thick glass shattered, glittering shards sweeping monster faces. Blood-soaked visages wept bloody tears from burst eyes. Winter burst in, killing the intact ones first.
*Crack! Thud! Crack-crack!*
Blind mutants charging blindly got boot-kicked in the gut. That sent them tumbling far down the slope. Buying time to reload. *Click.* Before the dropped mag hit, resumed fire killed nine. No more threats.
From first blast to last kill: under 30 seconds.
*Kee-ee-ee—*
Heard the commotion? Horde ascending from below. Plan to escape before they arrived. But Winter confirmed the familiar beam from the comms room, separate from situation room. The emerging figure was familiar too.
"Agent Kowalski?"
Spotting Winter, joy lit her face—then wavered. Despair? Why? Winter realized a reason.
"No one else?"
Kowalski shook her head at the question.
"Just me. The rest..."
She glanced sadly at fallen mutants. All unmoving men and women: CIA agents. Regrettably, no Chadwick.
*Clang-clang.* Mutants clambering up stairs noisily.
Winter aimed at Kowalski.
"Lieutenant? What...?"
"You know why."
No proof. But her earlier despair was suspicious.
Not just that. For Chadwick to contact comrades, he'd need the comms security officer's help. Agent Kelly said she inspected all traffic.
With San Francisco infrastructure down, all comms routed via satellite. Securing unofficial nets wasn't easy.
'That past incident proves she's who Chadwick trusts.'
A bluff to test.
*Kraaak—! Kyak! Grrr!*
Timely echoes from the plague horde shook her more.
"Did Team Leader Chadwick babble?"
"..."
"Sigh, really. That weird personality causing trouble even in death. Locked in, waiting to die, then miracle arrives. But ends up dying anyway."
From despair to hope, hope to despair. Her sharp swings ended in hollow laughter and tears.
Chadwick dead? Or assumes so?
Could claim no direct involvement in trapping Winter and Joanna, but doesn't. No neutrality on a runaway train?
Winter, watching, lowered his aim.
"Remember I didn't kill you now."
"...You're sparing me?"
"Yes. But no second betrayal."
Kowalski's eyes shook.
Winter gestured to the broken window.
"Plea deal or whatever, we'll talk after safe escape. Come on out."
A witness would help uncover the 'true patriots' group's reality. Balance of heart and calculation. To more surely eliminate a world instability factor.
============================ Author's Note ============================
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