18 Floors Above the Apocalypse



Jasper and Stella were blissfully unaware of the chaos unfolding in Iran. They quickly found their balance and worked together to stabilize their submarine.

"They've got five of those things..."

Before Stella could finish her sentence, several dark shapes emerged from beyond the 2688, swiftly forming ranks.

One, two, three, four, five, six...

A total of six submersible crafts-not submarines. These were hexagonal underwater vehicles, smaller but faster than the 2688.

And they were riveting together underwater. Two became one, growing larger and heavier.

"Holy smokes, these aren't just subs. They're modular underwater fortresses," Jasper muttered in amazement.

You had to hand it to them-their geographical constraints had pushed them to incredible ingenuity. With rising sea levels and no new land to claim, they turned their focus to the vast ocean.

Even without military sovereignty, nothing stopped them from dreaming of underwater cities.

Stella always thought it was just a fantasy, but here it was, staring them in the face.

These polyhedral crafts were more like submersible aircraft, capable of disassembling and reassembling in multiple configurations, like something out of Transformers.

Despite being less than half the size of the 2688 when alone, their combined strength was formidable.

If there were enough, they could form a base.

Normally, they could operate as a whole to withstand the unpredictable weather at sea. When a storm hit, they could quickly break apart and evade danger with their speed and knowledge of the area.

The engineers were skilled at turning small advantages into big wins, often with surprise attacks or invasions.

Their confidence was sky-high; otherwise, they wouldn't have charged in blindly.

But they could also correct course instantly upon realizing their mistakes.

And now, they were transforming!

The six crafts combined in the depths, their mass and offensive capabilities skyrocketing.

Having once faced death, Jasper and Stella weren't about to risk a head-on collision without knowing the enemy's strength.

As the crafts merged, they didn't hesitate to go full throttle and flee.

The 2688 raced ahead, with Iran's craft hot on their tail.

If there was a flaw in their craft, it was that their size made them sluggish-less nimble than before.

Deep beneath the waves, an exhilarating chase was unfolding.

Iran was relentless, pursuing from day into night without relenting.

Stella knew their forebears had endured a 14-year war, triumphing even with just millet and rifles. She had no reason to cower.

She had great faith in the newly launched 2688. It hadn't been through the cataclysmic tsunamis caused by tectonic collisions and had ample nuclear fuel and optimal component performance.

Iran's crafts were different. They had been toiling away at sea for years. Even with the best of luck, they would have weathered countless storms and were now worn and weary.

They would wear them down!

And so, the pursuit continued from night back into day.

Stella glanced at her watch, her brow furrowing. "Something's not right with the weather."

Jasper noticed it too.

It was ten in the morning, yet the light at the ocean's bottom grew dimmer, and the current's speed and direction shifted rapidly. Drawing on Hans' decades of maritime experience, a new storm seemed imminent.

Stella wanted to avoid disaster, but with Iran's relentless pursuit, they had to be dealt with or they'd remain a constant threat.

The 2688 powered on, navigating increasingly treacherous currents, with Iran's craft stubbornly on their tail.

After a day and night, fatigue began to show, and their resolve started to crumble.

Several times Iran's craft nearly caught up, aiming to ram the 2688's stern, only to be skillfully dodged by Jasper and Stella.

And now, their desperation mounted.

The submarine's sensors detected abnormal currents, and alarms began to blare...

Jasper's face turned pale. "Bad news, there's a vortex ahead."

An oceanic whirlpool?

Stella recalled Hans mentioning that these were formed by the collision of multiple ocean currents and monsoon winds under the influence of the Earth's rotation.

Vortexes varied in size and destructive power.

Small ones were less than a meter across, and large ones could stretch hundreds of meters, acting like black holes in the ocean.

Encountering such a disaster was unfathomable, akin to the perilous Bermuda Triangle, where countless planes and ships had mysteriously vanished.

After the tectonic collisions, the sea had become even more perilous.

As they ventured deeper, the currents and weather grew more complex.

Storms thundered above the waves, while currents clashed below, expanding the vortex into a frenzy...

With alarms screeching, Jasper said gravely, "If we don't evade, we'll be sucked in.”

Rosie called out frantically from behind, “Brother, sister-in-law, they're speeding up again!"

Driven by urgency, the engineers from the lands they called home were desperate.

Stella was equally fierce, gritting her teeth. "Charge ahead!"

United in glory, united in loss.

Trusting in Stella, Jasper resolutely headed toward the vortex!

The pull of the oceanic whirlpool was strong, and the 2688 began to lose control, the warning alarms going wild...

Just as they were mere meters from the vortex, Iran's submersible craft charged up in a frenzy, and the submarine vanished!

The Iranian pilots, already exhausted, pushed their craft to maximum speed, launching into a crazed collision course.

For the glory of their empire, they would face the storm head-on, even if it meant their destruction, all to capture these individuals for research.

If they could unlock the secret, the empire could regain hope.

Just as they were about to slam into the 2688's rear, the sub suddenly vanished, and the vast oceanic vortex loomed before them like a demonic apparition, gaping open its maw...

"Damn it!"

Curses and screams intermingled as they scrambled to brake, trying to veer away from the whirlpool.

All six controllers engaged at once, the craft jerking to a halt, throwing those red-eyed with pursuit out of their seats.

Thirty meters from the vortex, the craft managed to stop, but the pull was too strong, and it kept inching closer to the abyss.All content is © N0velDrama.Org.

Ignoring their injuries, they scrambled up, attempting to turn away...

Disaster struck as the craft's overspeed collision locked the controls, and unlocking them would take precious time.

Faced with the encroaching black hole of the ocean floor, they frantically worked to regain control.

However, out of nowhere, a colossal beast charged from behind, slamming into the conjoined aircraft with ferocious might.

The aircraft spun out of control, hurtling towards the ocean's maelstrom at breakneck speed.

Along with Iran's piercing screams, the black, diamond-shaped aircraft was viciously sucked into the abyss...