Chapter 94: Forced Landing
Zhang Jue pointed at the little girl and said in surprise, "Wait, You're Anna?"
The little girl was about to speak when a loud bang suddenly came from outside the cabin, followed by the plane shaking violently. Zhang Jue and Smollett had staged a reality-bending battle in the cabin, affecting the flight of the plane. Zhang Jue hurriedly looked out the plane's window, and in the darkness, he could only see that underneath the wing, an open fire had begun to emerge from a certain part of the plane.
Dammit, this is bad.
Zhang Jue's heart was cold. No matter how good he was, he had to be blinded when the plane went out of control. He hurried to run straight to the cockpit. The little girl followed him all the way. Inside the cockpit, the captain and co-pilot both covered their heads, curled up in their chairs, screaming in pain, not knowing what Smollett had done to them.
"Can you get them back to normal?" Zhang Jue asked. Seeing Zhang Jue's serious face, the young girl nodded.
She put the backpack with the stabilizing anchor on her back and placed both hands on top of the two pilots' heads. A few moments later, the two let out a violent cough, and their eyes had returned to normal.
"Both of you, although I know you're confused right now. The plane's left-wing engine is out. Please respond quickly." Zhang Jue kept his words brief and concise.
"Huh?" The co-pilot was still in a dazed state.
Zhang Jue took out his wallet and waved it in front of the captain, "International Counter-Terrorism Forces are on a mission, someone just hijacked the plane, and you were knocked out, now that the terrorists have been dealt with, please ensure that the plane flies smoothly."
International anti-terrorism force? Hearing this name, the captain froze. Even the young girl gave him a look.
Zhang Jue was familiar with this line. He had said so when he first met SCP-3844 and later simply had the Foundation forge a document directly. The captain was skeptical about the authenticity of the story, but his instincts told him that now was not the time to dwell on it. He immediately checked all the indicators on the plane.
The left engine was out of order. The fuselage was damaged in multiple places.
The captain's face suddenly turned serious, "We need to find a place to make a forced landing; if we continue to fly, the whole plane will disintegrate." The communication equipment on the plane had all been destroyed by Smollett, and the young girl hadn't fixed it, so Zhang Jue wondered if she had done it on purpose.
After calling the tower to no avail, the captain had also given up on that option and concentrated on finding a forced landing site.
"Our current position is over the northern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The plane won't last long. So we'll have to make a forced landing in the sea." Aircraft forced landing, of course, the best choice is the airport. Alternatively, a road could be used too.
Only when there is really no choice will choose to do a forced landing in the sea. But they had no other choice. Soon after, the right engine also died. The experienced captain piloted the plane to glide along the airflow and came above sea level.
"Attention, we're about to make a forced landing!" The captain said.
"Wait a minute!" The little girl shouted, then returned to the passenger cabin.
Zhang Jue turned around and saw that the little girl had used her reality-bending ability to move all the passengers and crew to their seats and fasten their seat belts. Most of them were still in a dazed state, unable to defend themselves at all. "Now it's good to go!" The young girl shouted.
"No, I'm not ready yet!" Zhang Jue hurried back to the passenger cabin and found an empty seat to sit.
Seeing that everyone had been properly arranged, the captain immediately decided and pushed the propellers forward. The plane swooped down towards the sea level at a specific angle. The moment the plane touched sea level, the whole body of the plane shook violently, and all the people in the cabin were shaken and twisted.
All kinds of things were scattered all over the place. The lights in the cabin were flickering and emitting a terrifying sound of electricity.
Zhang Jue kept looking around, ready to pull everyone into the Pocket Dimension. Although coming out was also on the sea, it was better than being blown up by a plane. The little girl's face was gradually turning white. The plane was badly damaged, and if she hadn't been using her reality distortion ability to protect it, it would have disintegrated the moment it touched the sea level.
Ten minutes later, the plane came to a stop at sea level. Inside the cockpit, the captain and co-pilot, both covered in a cold sweat, exhausted in their seats, hardly believing that they had made it. After the plane completely stopped, Zhang Jue immediately unbuckled his seat belt and went to check on the little girl's condition.
The little girl's face was pale, and sweating, the constant bending of reality had been very exhausting for her.
"It's okay." Zhang Jue helped her up.
The little girl was gasping for air and seemed to have shed her strength, but still braced herself and said, "Now... is not the time to rest... the plane will sink in just a minute... I got a lifeboat outside... hurry up.... take everyone outside…."
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I don't know how long it took, but the little girl slowly woke up. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and found herself lying on a flat reef, covered with someone's clothes. Her backpack was beside her, and she flipped through it, relieved to find that it showed that the stabilizing anchor was still there. The time was late afternoon, and the afterglow of the setting sun was spilling over the calm sea in a golden hue. In the distance, a few seagulls flew in formation, making a quacking sound.
Where is this? The little girl tried to remember, the plane landed on the sea, she saw a small island in the distance before she passed out, did we make it? She was about to stand up and look out when a male voice came from not far away.
"Hey you, tie the tent a little stronger, or the wind will lift it."
"You, gather some water. You can find it with buckets and give it to the women and children first."
"And you, I let you cook the fish. Don't make sure you cook and guard them. If I see anyone stealing food again, I will hang them to a tree and beat him!"
Zhang Jue directed those fallen passengers to do something, although his tone was rude, but arranged everything. The little girl saw the big man who had stolen the grilled fish stand up and argue with him. Then he was put down with three punches and two kicks, tied up, and hung on the branch of a tree. Zhang Jue took a cane and made a gesture to beat it. The big man then begged for mercy.
After this incident, everyone has no more complaints.
The young girl smiled and immediately saw Zhang Jue's trick. Deliberately sent the big man to roast fish, probably to make him steal food, and then beaten, so that the others will honestly listen to him.
"Awake yet?" Zhang Jue saw her wake up and crossed his feet onto the reef to her side. The little girl nodded and returned the clothes to him.
Zhang Jue put the clothes back on and gave her a look, "You don't look too good."
The little girl hmmed, "I used my ability too often. It will be fine after a few days of recovery."
Zhang Jue simply sat down side by side with her and gazed at the sunset. "Our current location should be some island in the Mediterranean Sea. The plane has blown up, and all communication devices are not working. Do you have any ideas?"
The little girl said, "I can visualize a satellite phone out, but... not now." Looking at the little girl's pale face, Zhang Jue nodded his head.
After the incident, the two sat side-by-side, and Zhang Jue took a branch dipped in water and sketched on the reef, seemingly calculating their location. The young girl felt a little embarrassed. She didn't know what to say when Zhang Jue didn't speak.
"Hey, can I have a look at your reality anchor?" The young girl asked.
"My name is Zhang Jue, thanks."
Zhang Jue didn't hesitate and handed his life-preserving artifact directly to the little girl. He had a hunch that this little girl must have something to do with this thing. The little girl took the reality anchor in her hand and looked it over from side to side, her eyes gradually reddening.
Zhang Jue noticed this detail. He looked at the little girl and said, "We're considered brothers who have shared the same fate. Now, can you tell me who you really are?"