Chapter 522 - Sanctums End (IX) (1/2)
CHAPTER 522
SANCTUM'S END (IX)
The world was falling apart.
Eldon, Reli, and others jumped out of the spinning car, rolling down onto the quaking ground. All around them blaze consumed everything, the last remaining buildings, the last remnants of the civilization, toppling over, destroyed. However, none had the luxury to either admire or dread the spectacle.
Reli helped Elta up, dragging her despite the latter's protests as she scrapped her knee, while Eldon still held onto Alana tightly. Though both his arms had suffered greatly, blood pouring out, he didn't care. They were almost there.
The research facility was also in the ruins, debris scattered everywhere, shards of glass forming pools on the ground. But, it didn't matter; the hangar was underground, and they couldn't give up hope. Not after coming so far.
The two men besides Eldon, Artur, and Itor, helped Reli and Elta as the small group raced madly through the collapsing stone around them. The ground was uneven, slightly sloped, several dozen corpses lying about -- a ghastly sight that they couldn't afford to take in completely.
Eldon's heart started as he saw the nearby column of the slanted stone give in under gravity, collapsing. He roared and jumped forward, barely evading it. He landed strangely, however, and twisted his ankle. With the adrenaline still pumping strong, he ignored the pain as he regained the balance and resumed running. It was so close he could almost feel it.
As they reached the entrance, they quickly realized there was no way in; everything had collapsed. Chunks of stones lay on top of the building, with no doors or windows to be seen. Artur quickly called from the side, informing them there was another entrance.
Eldon followed, his body screaming at him. He hadn't exerted himself this much ever before -- but he had to maintain it. His arms ached, his twisted ankle wept, but he ignored them. He could still feel Alana shaking in his arms, the young girl remaining crumpled in his embrace. For her, he'd ignore everything. He'd skin himself alive if need be, just so she could live on.
The back-end entrance was lying wholly exposed, angled into the ground. There must have been a massive steel-frame guarding it, but it, too, had collapsed, alongside everything else around them.
One by one they trickled into the hole and descended down the lengthy step of stairs. The deeper they went, the less the earth shook and quaked, though they knew it was just temporary. Soon, even the planet's innards would begin collapsing.
From the stairs, they entered into a set of complex hallways as they began running blindly. Nobody knew where the hangar was exactly, so all they could do was explore every passage. The flickering fluorescent lights hanging on the hallways' ceilings gave little insurance, and it seemed it was only a matter of time before they stopped working.
”Damn it,” Artur cursed as they reached another dead end. ”Where the hell is this?”
”T-there,” Alana suddenly spoke out, pointing at a small gap with her shaky fingers. ”I-I can see a ship...”
Turning toward where she was pointing, the group saw a small tear in the wall. Beyond, just like the young girl said, they saw a set of sh.i.p.s scattered about the massive open space.
Without another word being said, Artur and Itor ran over to the gap and began pulling on two opposite ends. Though it seemed the gap was quite high up, they would cross that bridge once they reached it.
**