Tiger’s shout shook Echo back to reality. She gritted her teeth, focused, and stabbed her ring-wearing finger down towards Ryan’s plane’s body.
Adolph’s plane arrived just in time to see the scene unfold-Echo dangled mid-air, swaying wildly in the wind between the two planes. Bill held her legs, half-hanging out of the back of their plane, forming a human ladder between the two aircraft.
The sight was jaw-dropping.
It was tough, but the ring pierced through. Echo breathed a sigh of relief. With her left hand gripping her right, she used all her strength to slice downwards. The piercing sound of metal scraping echoed loudly, making everyone grit their teeth, but the ring was slowly cutting through the steel body of the plane.
Bill was ecstatic. “Keep going! Hurry! We only have twenty seconds left. Move faster!”
Echo clenched her teeth and dragged the ring across the plane’s body with all her might. She knew time was running out, and she was giving it everything she had. But this was the body of a plane, not something that would slice through like butter. If it were that easy, no one would take flying in it seriously.
Tiger, trying to keep his cool despite the excitement, said to Ryan calmly, “Boss, go help Echo. I’ll keep up with your speed. The plane won’t crash in twenty seconds.”
Ryan heard the scraping sound and raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. But his shock only lasted a moment. He quickly turned and disappeared back into the thick smoke.
Echo didn’t notice what was happening, but Adolph, watching from the side, was horrified. He could see Ryan’s plane continuing to plummet, with Tiger’s following right behind at the same speed. Despite the planes descending, the human ladder remained steady between them.
Adolph knew the situation was dire, but he couldn’t help but admire Tiger’s incredible piloting skills.
Echo, using every ounce of strength she had, kept dragging the wire along the plane’s body, feeling more and more resistance. She knew it was because she wasn’t strong enough, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to keep going.
Ryan didn’t have time to wait, even if she did. The wind was howling in her ears, slashing her face and arms like sharp blades, making her whole body ache. Breathing was getting harder and harder, and the intense pressure felt like it was crushing her flat. She could barely keep her eyes open against the wind’s fierce force.
“Hold on, just hold on!” Bill, sensing the plane was in free fall, gripped Echo’s legs even tighter and shouted desperately into the wind, trying to encourage her.
Echo clenched her teeth, fighting against the wind and continuing to scrape the plane. Suddenly, she felt a force from below guiding her wire downward. Her spirits lifted immediately. Ryan was helping her from below. His strength was no joke, and with his help, their pace doubled.
“Hurry up, only ten seconds left! The more the Boss breathes in, the worse it gets for his body. Speed it up, Echo!” Bill urged, watching as a square section of the plane’s body was almost completely cut through. He was both excited and anxious.
At the same time, Adolph noticed a shimmer of blue water appearing below. It was the Pacific Ocean. Panicking, he shouted, “Tiger, what are you doing? If we keep falling, we’ll hit the ocean!”
Tiger’s face remained calm but stern as he replied, “We know.” His hands gripped the controls tightly, trying to keep up with Ryan’s rapidly descending plane.
Suddenly, there was a soft pop. Echo instantly realized they’d broken through.
Thick smoke poured out from the opening, blinding her completely. She couldn’t see anything, so she began to reach out blindly.
“Hurry up! We’re about to hit the water!” Adolph, leaning halfway out of his window, yelled frantically as the ocean got closer and closer.
“Did you grab him? Did you grab him?” Bill asked anxiously, his body tensing up as he saw the smoke pouring out. The others behind him gripped him even tighter, not letting go.
Echo was choking on the smoke, unable to see or breathe, her chest feeling like it was about to explode. Her hands frantically searched around the opening, and she shouted back, “No, I haven’t!”
Just as she finished speaking, a large hand suddenly grabbed hers. Echo immediately clutched onto it with both hands and yelled, “I’ve got him!”
The wind whipped around her, making it hard to hear anything Bill was saying. But he heard her loud and clear. The second he heard her shout “I’ve got him,” he screamed, “Pull the plane up!”
The person behind him relayed the message to Tiger: “They’ve got him! Pull the plane up now!”
“We’re less than a hundred meters from the ocean!” Adolph’s voice trembled as he looked down at the water, now crystal clear and impossibly close. He couldn’t see what was happening above, but he knew if they fell any further, there’d be no way to recover.
The second Tiger heard the words “They’ve got him,” he pulled the controls straight back. Just as the plane was about to crash into the ocean, it shot back up, roaring as it climbed into the sky.
Adolph’s plane followed close behind, also pulling up at breakneck speed. In an instant, both planes rocketed toward the heavens.
At the same time, the new fighter jet Ryan had been in crashed into the ocean with a loud boom. The explosion was intense, sending sparks and debris flying in every direction for miles.
With the smoke finally clearing, Echo could see what had happened below. Her face went pale with shock.
Ryan had his eyes slightly closed, but his grip on her hand was firm and unrelenting. Echo held onto him tightly, watching as the plane ascended higher, the ocean getting farther away, and the wind growing stronger. Her heart nearly stopped in fear, and she couldn’t help but scream.
“What are you scared of?” came a cold voice from below.
Ryan’s grip tightened even more, and Echo clung to him as she watched him spin through the air. She felt herself spinning with him, like the world was turning upside down. She was sure her life was about to end at that moment. She was too terrified to even look back at Bill; she just squeezed her eyes shut, clinging to Ryan, her scream echoing across the Pacific.
Adolph, flying behind Tiger, let out a long sigh of relief. If they hadn’t pulled up the plane at the last second, the explosion could’ve easily reached them, even from hundreds of meters up. Thankfully, they’d made it in time.
Taking another breath, Adolph looked ahead and saw the two figures spinning in the air, suspended by the wind. His heart skipped a beat again, not because he doubted Bill or Ryan’s grip, but because he feared Echo might lose her hold on Ryan. If she fell from that height, well… there wouldn’t be much left of her.
The plane rose slowly, with the two figures still swirling in the wind, their movements becoming even more nerve-wracking as the altitude increased.
Once they reached a safe height, Tiger leveled off, no longer climbing. Only then did the crew start pulling Bill up. During the earlier moments, they couldn’t have pulled anyone up-if they had slipped, all of them would’ve fallen. That was basic knowledge.
Bill was quickly hauled back into the plane, and Echo, still screaming, was pulled up right after him. Ryan came up last, opening his eyes just enough to see Echo clutching onto him, her face completely drained of color. She still had her eyes shut and was screaming uncontrollably.
In a deep voice, Ryan said, “Open your eyes.”
Hearing Ryan’s steady voice, Echo slowly opened her eyes. She realized she was back in the cabin, with Bill and Tiger standing in front of her, smiling. She wanted to stop screaming and let go of Ryan, but it was like her body wasn’t listening-she couldn’t stop.
Bill, looking professional, commented, “She’s really freaked out.”
“Quiet,” Ryan said with a frown.
With his free hand, Ryan suddenly pulled Echo closer, lowering his head and covering her screaming lips with his.
The screaming stopped immediately, replaced by silence.
Bill and Tiger exchanged surprised glances, eyebrows raised.
Blinking once, then twice, Echo stared at Ryan as he lifted his head, looking down at her. Finally, she calmed down, glaring at him for a second before mumbling, “Next time, you’ll have to kill me before I come with you again.” With that, she leaned her head against Ryan’s chest and passed out.