As we got closer to the American Moon Base, I was woriedly looking around, trying to find anything suspicious. I was concerned not only about our safety, but also the safety of everbody else in the area. If the bomb goes offf, no one will be safe. I saw several vehicles moving around, people walking peacefully, not knowing about the sinister plot. I noticed a black and orange cylindrical object. It was a container for helium-3. Suddenly, something in my brain clicked.
- I think I know why they want to blow this place up - I started as the others gazed upon me.
- We already know why; they want to hurt our country - Sebastian replied in a dry tone.
- On the other hand, it is likely that their plot is much bigger, so tell us what you're thinking about - Claudius added.
- See that container over there? - I asked them.
- Yes, what's wrong with it? - Amber asked.
- It contains helium-3, an isotope abudant on the moon that is used in fusion reactors. Lots of it is imported to Earth so that humanity has a clean source of energy, which really matters these days, making the value and price of this isotope outrageously high. When the bomb goes off, not only our base is destroyed. The mines are reduced to rubble, halting any operations there. Russia will have a monopoly on helium-3 and will earn cosmic sums of money - I explained my suspicions.
- What about China? They're also extracting helium-3, as far as I know - Claudius raised his eyebrow.
- I didn't think about that, but it will still hurt the US, as we won't have anymore helium-3 to sell, while Russia will - I replied, caught off guard. I really didn't think about that.
- Still, it might have some merit, as long as the bomb is powerful enough to do so much damage - Amber said. After that, we left our rover. Suddenly, we heard Einstein's voice through Sebastian's walkie-talkie.
- Hello, children, can you hear me? - he asked an we all replied "Yes".
- We finished our operation and our naively loyal friend has caught one of the enemy agents... - Einstein started, but he was interrupted by a familiar, distant scream.
- I AM NOT "NAIVELY LOYAL"! - it was Jaxon.
- Anyway, we interrogated the agent and he told us that the bomb is hidden in the lava tube tunnels underneath the base. Unfortunately, our prisoner has fled as the others broke him out, so we need to recapture him before he reunites with his allies, which means that you'll need to explore the tunnels. Luckily, I left some equipment in your dorm that may come in handy in this situation - Einstein finsished his sentence.
- I see him, he's next to that crater! Let's chase him! - Jeff exclaimed, which we heard through the walkie-talkie.
- Okay, as you heard, we need to go. Take care! - Einstein hung up.
We took off our spacesuits and entered the base. Everyone was doing the things they always did, not suspecting a thing. LunAI tried to welcome us, but we rushed into our dorm before they could do that. Inside, a few items were on the floor. Amongst them were flashlights, ropes and a grappling hook, all of which can be useful when exploring treacherous places like the dark lunar tunnels. We grabbed those along with a backpack full of other things that we prepared earlier, including medical things, weapons and spare oxygen tanks. We we're about to leave when Amber stopped before the door.
- Should we evacuate this building before the bomb goes off? So that nobody dies if we fail? - she asked us.
- We would stil die if we fail, but at least some lives would be saved - I responded.
- But how do we do that? If we scream "THERE'S A BOMB IN HERE, GET OUT!", nobody will believe us - Sebastian was skeptical.
- I have an idea. Follow me - Claudius left the dorm and we followed him, curious about his plan. He took his toolbox, so I already had some suspicions as to his concept. We reached a wall with several pipes.
- Are you going to break those pipes and cause a leak? - Sebastian asked, outraged.
- Yes, but it will be a flood, not a leak. This will alert LunAI and force everyone to flee, and it will be much more believable then a bomb being here. After everyone's gone, we will explore the tunnels - Claudius explained. Before anyone could stop him, he jammed his wrench into the largest pipe, waited a few seconds and pulled it out. Water started spilling out, but due to lunar gravity, it seemed to flow in slow motion.
As Claudius had predicted, this triggered an evacuation protocol as red lights were glowing everywhere. The water started rising and we made it to the central dome, so has everyone else. Every member of the team was scrambling to get heir suit on and leave.
- Flood emergency dected, please leave the building immediataly... - LunAI kept repeating this phrase over and over, but its voice was glitching. Eventually, the main screen of LunAI went dark as its processors were now flooded by the water. As we got dress, we left the building and glanced upon it. The water was visible through the windows and it had already filled half of the central dome, forcing some of the last crew members to resort to swimming. As everyone left, the main airlock closed shut and the water continued filling the base.
- Wow, what a wreck... - Amber was shocked by the scale of the damge we've caused.
- Was it worth it, hm? - Sebastian turned to the culprit.
- I think so. The lives of those people our more important than the base - Claudius responded.
Some people we're calling others through their radios, some jumping into vehicles, others just standing and staring at the base. We decided to slowly back up and accidentally found the entrance to the lava tube tunnels.
- Oh, that's lucky. I guess we won't spend hours looking for an entrance - Amber smiled.
- Every minute matters right now, so let's go - Claudius entered the tunnels and we soon followed him into the darkness inside...
ns216.73.216.13da2
and then Add to home screen.