The battlefield was plunged into a tense silence. Glaz laughed brazenly, emboldened by his apparent control over life and death. Blood still oozed from his leg wound, trailing down across the floor—ultimately dripping into the central sea inlet that led straight to the ocean. Yet he didn't care.
"Go on then, shoot! CTU? CIA? I don't give a damn! We all die toge—AHHHH—"
Before he could finish his bravado, a colossal shape surged up from the inlet—a great white shark. With a single snap, the predator clamped its massive jaws around Glaz. The man looked as helpless as a blade of grass, his body riddled with wounds that spilled blood into the water.
With Glaz in its jaws, the shark dropped back into the water… only to reemerge a moment later. Glaz wasn't dead yet. Eyes wide in disbelief, his mouth opened to scream "help"—but no sound came out.
The moment was so sudden, so violent, that everyone's temples throbbed from the shock. But they didn't even have time to process what they'd seen.
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—
A series of violent explosions shook the entire underwater base like an earthquake. People stumbled and clutched onto anything solid as debris rained from the ceiling. Equipment crashed to the floor. The shockwaves had been caused by the explosives planted in the fuel depot—triggered, no doubt, by Glaz's convulsions when the shark bit into him, setting off the detonator.
On the surface, chaos reigned.
Two massive fuel tanks had gone up in flames, creating a spectacular fireball over ten meters tall. Part of the main structure had been obliterated. Seawater poured in through the breach. The control tower was a smoldering ruin, equipment buried beneath rubble… and beneath that, Susan's lifeless body.
Underwater, everyone's hearts sank. The integrity of the base was compromised. And as if that weren't bad enough, Dr. Susie let out a scream of despair. Everyone turned toward her—only to see that the previously pristine glass wall now bore a web-like fracture, spreading at an alarming rate.
"Fuck!"
The curse echoed in everyone's mind. Glaz had screwed them all over. Not only did he set off the bombs, but one of his stray bullets had hit the glass wall.
Despite the crossfire earlier, everyone had instinctively avoided the windows. That was an unspoken rule—nobody wanted to breach the glass. But Glaz, holding both a gun and a detonator at the moment of his death, had spasmed from the shark attack and given them all two horrifying gifts.
The cracks widened.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the glass, brains locked up.
CLANG!
A piece of glass the size of a soccer ball finally gave out under pressure and popped free, landing near Owen's foot. Then a second. A third…
"RUN!"
Someone screamed, and the room exploded into motion. Everyone scattered. A second later, the glass wall buckled completely. With a thunderous roar, a wall of seawater crashed into the lab.
Those who hadn't made it far were instantly swept off their feet. Owen thrashed, grasped wildly—and his hand found something solid: a railing. He clung to it with all his strength and spotted Eddie being dragged past. Reaching out, he grabbed him.
Eddie gasped, wiping his face as he clung to the railing.
"Second floor!" Owen shouted, pointing to the stairwell that the railing led to. There were other passageways above.
Eddie pulled himself together and scrambled up the stairs. Owen followed—but slipped and fell. As he got up, he spotted Dr. Susie, stranded in a rapidly flooding dead end. She hadn't been swept away, but she would be in seconds.
From the shattered window, the massive second-generation shark entered the lab with the surging water. This was its second time inside. The first time it had been tranquilized and captured. The second time… it came for revenge.
Dr. Susie clung to a railing, trembling as she watched the shark tear apart a man who had once worked for her. Blood turned the water red.
After finishing its prey, the shark circled and vanished. Susie couldn't see its dorsal fin anymore—and that terrified her. In the murky water, death could come from any direction.
Suddenly, a fin appeared in the distance—pointed directly at her. It began accelerating. Her heart leapt to her throat. This was it. She was going to die.
Then—strong hands yanked her away.
Someone was pulling her aside. Life flooded back into Susie's body. She looked—it was that same mysterious man who had saved her earlier. With his help, she scrambled and paddled, feet finally finding the stair steps. Together, she and Owen clawed their way upward.
They had barely cleared the area when the shark lunged.
Its jaws snapped on empty water. It circled again, black eyes emotionless, dorsal fin slicing through the water like a blade. It was hunting them.
Water kept pouring in. Owen pulled Susie toward a sealed bulkhead door on the second floor. The lab below was completely submerged.
"No, no—fuck—" Owen cursed. Because standing just beyond the bulkhead… was Eddie.
And he was locking the door.
That son of a bitch. After Owen had saved him mere moments ago, Eddie now left him and Susie to die.
Owen's rage boiled over. He wanted to kill Eddie then and there. The sense of betrayal was crushing.
He turned—and saw that the water had reached their waists. The dorsal fin was getting closer.
"There!" Owen shouted.
Another bulkhead, not far away. Still open.
He and Susie bolted.
They got inside and began forcing the door closed. The water's pressure fought back, but they shoved with everything they had. Inch by inch, it gave way.
Behind them, the shark surged forward again—like a torpedo, slicing through the water.
Owen twisted the valve, spinning the metal wheel with all his might. Just as the seal locked into place—
BOOM!
A thunderous impact slammed into the door. It sounded like a freight train had hit it. Then another impact. And a third…
But the bulkhead held.
Finally, the pounding ceased.
The shark had given up.
Owen and Susie collapsed to the floor, exhausted, soaking wet, hearts still racing from the narrowest escape of their lives.
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
For every 50 Power Stones, one extra chapter will be released on Saturday.