Pov: Vik
Saying this, I even help the system while manually controlling the sub.
I didn't hesitate for a second. My hands flew over the main console, hitting the manual override controls and turning off the automated navigation.
"Rudder hard to port! Divert all auxiliary coolant to the main drive!" I yelled as I grabbed the dual flight-marine control yokes. "I've read enough old texts and watched enough bad survival horror movies to know what happens next. If you see a beautiful, remote volcanic island in an uncharted danger zone sending out an automated SOS, you won't find a damsel in distress. You'll find a flesh-eating parasite, an ancient evil god, or a cursed lab that turns people into mush!"
Pushpa shifted on my shoulder, letting out a small, approving purr as she rested her chin on my collarbone, fully supporting our quick escape.
"Host! Wait! Please think about the story! An encrypted military signal from a forgotten island? That's a classic side quest! There could be ancient blueprints! Magical artifacts! Or a stranded princess with political power in the Northern Continent!"
"Let the Northern Continent save their own princess," I shot back, pushing the twin thruster levers past their safe limit. "If she's trapped on an island with S-rank monsters, she can build a raft and work on her character development. Great White, emergency 180-degree withdrawal! Crank the reactor to 120%!"
The submarine shook violently as the massive hydro-stabilizers fought against the raging ocean currents. The Great White leaned sharply to the side at a forty-five-degree angle, while the twin marine turbines roared like angry dragons. Huge waves of foam crashed against the glass viewport as the ship carved a massive arc away from the lush volcanic island.
"Host is the most cowardly Nascent Soul cultivator in multiverse history!"
"It's called risk management, you useless digital paperweight," I retorted, watching as the speedometer climbed past Mach 15, Mach 18, and all the way to Mach 22. "Heroes die in mysterious caves exploring strange noises. Scholars live long, comfortable lives with their cats in warm homes."
The ocean wind howled against our kinetic shields as the Great White skimmed across the blue water, leaving a vapor trail hundreds of kilometers long. The island shrank quickly on our rear-facing radar, turning into a tiny green dot on the vast Endless Sea.
I let out a long sigh of relief, leaning back in the plush leather captain's chair while scratching Pushpa behind her ears. "See? Problem solved. Five minutes of full burn and we'll be out of the island's signal range. Then we can set a course for the Western Continent and pretend this detour never happened."
"Host... you should check the forward radar."
I froze. My fingers stopped scratching Pushpa's fur.
"System," I said slowly, narrowing my yellow eyes. "If you tell me what I think you're going to tell me, I'll find a way to format your hard drive."
"Host... the island isn't behind us anymore."
PING! PING! PING!
The main console chimed frantically. The holographic display flickered, updating our navigation coordinates.
Right in front of us, barely twenty nautical miles away and emerging from a sudden, strange wall of violet sea mist, was the exact same lush green island. The towering volcanic mountain stood in the center, gently puffing thin plumes of white smoke into the sky as if mocking our escape.
"A spatial loop..." I muttered, my jaw tightening as I stared through the viewport. "Or a localized dimensional boundary."
"Scans confirm spatial distortion, Host! The moment we crossed fifty kilometers away from the island, the space folded in on itself! Every path leading away from the island loops right back to its shore!"
"Of course it does," I said dryly, pulling back on the throttles to bring the Great White to a smooth stop atop the rolling waves. "Because the universe hates peace."
BZZZZT!
Before I could use my Void Body abilities to unravel the spatial fold, the ship's communications terminal crackled to life on its own.
The automated SOS signal cut off. In its place was a burst of static, followed by the faint, distorted sound of a young woman speaking in rapid, panicked breaths.
"—Static... is anyone... [Kzzzt]... Mayday, Mayday! This is Expedition Unit 7 of the Northern Sky Alchemical Institute... [Static]... If any vessel or Void-realm cultivator hears this, DO NOT approach the volcano! The containment failed! The specimen has breached Sector 3—"
The voice was young, female, and filled with terror. In the background, I could hear loud metallic creaking, shattering glass, and a chilling, guttural roar.
"—It's consuming the island's life force! The spatial fold opened when it woke up! We're trapped in the research bunker under the central crater... It's hunting us! Please... if anyone is out there... send help—"
CRASH!
A loud explosion interrupted her. A high-pitched screech—like nails on steel—screamed through the comms before the frequency faded into crackling static.
Silence fell over the bridge.
Pushpa sat up on my shoulder, her golden eyes fixed on the volcano in the distance. For the first time, her ears flattened, sensing the strange distortion of life force coming from the island's interior.
"Host... the distress signal wasn't a recording. That was a live broadcast from beneath the volcano."
"Expedition Unit 7 of the Northern Sky Alchemical Institute," I repeated quietly, tapping my fingers against the console. "An alchemical research outpost hidden on an uncharted island in a restricted zone... and whatever they were messing with just broke free and locked down the island's spatial perimeter."
"Host! This entity's domain is trapping us! Unless the core inside the volcano is deactivated or the creature is neutralized, the Great White can't escape the spatial loop without using a lot of energy that might destabilize the ocean floor!"
I leaned forward, resting my chin on my fingers while looking at the island's emerald jungles.
The air around the island had begun to change. The vibrant green canopy was losing its color, the leaves wilting as ghostly tendrils of grey mist rose from the trees toward the central volcano.
'It's consuming life force,' I thought, feeling the Prana energy across the island being drawn to the mountain. 'An entity that feeds on vitality to grow... just like the Devouring System that tried to bond with me in the void.'
A cold smirk crept across my face as my yellow eyes shone with a sharp, golden-green light.
"System," I said, standing from the captain's chair and adjusting my clean white robes. "Open the tactical armory and lower the boarding ramp."
"Host?! You're really going to investigate?! What happened to the horror movie survival rules?!"
"The horror movie rules still apply," I replied calmly, gently lifting Pushpa and placing her around my neck like a warm scarf. "In a horror movie, the characters go in unprepared, split up, and get picked off one by one. But when someone like me enters the haunted house..."
I reached into my spatial ring and pulled out a pair of sleek white gloves, slipping them on.
"...the victim is the one trapped with me."