Chapter 72: Danger III
39th second
Boom!!!
A loud explosion sounded in the stratosphere.
Ren's face lit up with joy as he checked the radar and found that there was no red blinking dot in it anymore. The only ones that remained were the red dots that represented the meteors.
"Success!" He said jubilantly.
"What happened? Are we safe now?" Zen asked hopefully while holding his still trembling sister.
Ren replied, "For now, yes. The explosion we heard right now was from the missile which hit a meteorite." Then he looked at Sophie and said, "We can lower our altitude now."
Sophie checked the situation of the aircraft before glancing at Ren and saying wryly, "Well, the aircraft is practically on tatters now. We're also around 50,000 feet in the air, so we may have to brace ourselves for a not-so-peaceful landing…"
Just as she finished talking, everyone felt like the gravity was reversed as they floated, which was the sign of the aircraft's sudden drop in altitude.
"Shit..!"
"Oh lord..!"
"Fucking hell..!"
Colorful curses sounded as everyone held onto something to prevent them from crashing on the ceiling.
On the other hand, Sophie tried her best in stabilizing the descent of the aircraft while Ren assisted her.
"Sir Ren! Press the button on your left side to activate the plane's Airframe Parachute System!" Sophie ordered loudly.
"On it!" Ren replied as he reached for the button.
A compartment at the back of the aircraft opened with a clink before a massive parachute was deployed. It drastically slowed down the descent of the aircraft which made it easier for Sophie and Ren to stabilize it.
Everyone inside the aircraft also stopped floating as they crashed on the ground with the exception of Rina who was still able to land gracefully even at the sudden event
"Phew. We're safe for now." Sophie said as she heaved a sigh of relief.
Sheeeek!
Right at this moment, a tearing sound was heard by everyone in the aircraft, followed by its speed of descent becoming faster as well.
"Oh please tell me that it isn't the parachute which made that tearing sound…" Sophie whispered to herself desperately.
Because of the silence in the cockpit, her whisper was heard by everyone.
Alas, good times don't last.
Outside, it could be seen that a stray meteorite with a diameter of 2 meters tore a hole through the massive parachute which slows the aircraft's descent.
Sophie and Ren were back at giving it all their best to stabilize the aircraft's descent.
The aircraft's altitude lowered at a quick pace again.
40,000 feet
39,000 feet
38,000 feet
…
Fortunately, Sophie and Ren's efforts weren't fruitless as they prevented the aircraft from bursting into flames.
However, the pressure from the stratosphere took its toll on the aircraft's durability. As a result, as the aircraft descended at high-speed, some of its parts started crumbling.
33,000 feet
35,000 feet
Metal plates from the aircraft's body were flying wantonly in the air, some were tearing more holes on the parachute, further hastening their descent.
"God, please save us…" Sera, who had been panic-stricken since earlier, muttered subconsciously.
"Huh? I thought you were an atheist? Why are you asking for God's help?" Zen asked with a mocking voice.
Sera flared up and said, "Shut up! Besides, I'm agnostic, not atheistic! There's a difference, you know!"
"Whatever you say, whatever you say~" Zen said in a mocking voice again. However, it could be seen in his eyes that he was worried for his little sister.
The exchange between the siblings lightened the mood a bit in the cockpit.
30,000 feet
25,000 feet
20,000 feet
The aircraft was practically in tatters right now. Everyone in the aircraft held on for their lives.
Rina just looked at her husband. They had been together for many, many years and every time a crisis happened, it was always him who got them through it.
Ren and Sophie were frantically pulling the levers and pressing the buttons necessary to stabilize the aircraft by any means possible.
15,000 feet
14,000 feet
10,000 feet
It was at this moment that the clouds started to block their vision, further adding to the pressure they were going through.
The clouds that Zen praised earlier as what heaven would look like, now seemed like a gate to the afterlife.
7,000 feet
5,000 feet
3,000 feet
They had gotten through the sea of clouds, they could also see what was happening through the windshield of the aircraft too.
They saw a seemingly unending blue ocean beneath them. It sparkles slightly because of the sunlight, making the scene more magnificent.
"Yay! We can see the sea now!" Sera said happily.
Sophie, on the other hand, replied with a worried voice, "No… It should be; oh no, we can see the sea now…"
Zen added on, "My dumb little sister, our aircraft can't fly anymore. So seeing the sea doesn't necessarily mean something good."
Sera felt wronged, but she couldn't say anything so she just pouted in anger.
The exchange between the siblings lightened the mood once more, lessening the pressure everyone in the cockpit felt.
"No, we might have a chance for a safe landing." Ren said as he kept looking forward
Hearing this, Rina asked, "Hon, what do you have in mind?"
"I see an island on the horizon. I think its size is adequate enough for us to land there." Then he looked at Sophie and asked, "What do you think, Ms. Sophie?"
Sophie looked to where Ren was pointing and said, "It's a bit far, but it's doable."
This sentence made everyone heave a sigh of relief.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
CheekyForehead
CheekyForehead I hope you had a pleasant reading experience.
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