Itzel brought up her projection. An angered Dallas stared at her as he tried to keep his carrier upright. “Are you three done over there yet?” he shouted.
“We got Gurk back!” the exhausted fighter said with a smile. “Get us out of here!”
“What about Mag? Did he make it?”
“Nope,” Enidri said bluntly. “And we might not make it either!” The swordswoman turned her head and looked up at the still-crumbling ceiling. The ground shook again, making her stumble forward. “Can you make it to our location?”
“My carrier has taken a few hits, but I think I can navigate through the rubble. I’ve got an ETA of forty-five seconds. Try not to get crushed in that time.”
“We’ll do our best,” Itzel said before the hologram disappeared.
As Janus and Enidri sprinted through the crumbling Eco-Sphere, Itzel paused to look at Gurk behind her. The crocodile stared at the large chasm until the fighter grabbed him by the wrist.
“Come on, big guy! You’ve got to get over your guilt! Mag was more than willing to kill you. I know you hate seeing people get hurt, but you could do us all a favor and start moping once we’re on the other side of this glass prison!”
“Right. Sorry.” Gurk wagged his head and followed Itzel and the others. They sprinted towards a clearing in the trees with their eyes fixated on the area above the trees. An enforcer carrier wobbled as it zeroed in on the group.
Dallas straightened the landing, dropping the vehicle in front of Janus. He rolled down the side window and stared at Gurk. “You’re bigger than I expected.”
“I told you he was a Neo-Sapia!” Itzel said as she ran around to the passenger side.
“You know all four of you aren’t going to fit, right?”
“He can hang onto the back of the trailer!” the fighter replied.
Dallas looked over his shoulder towards the rear of his vehicle. “Are you insane? I can’t just let a civilian hang on the back of my carrier as I take them hundreds of feet in the air!”
The crocodile approached the window and gave it a tap with the back of his hand. Frustrated, the enforcer brought the window down. “Why not?” Gurk asked placidly.
The enforcer gave Gurk a perplexed glare before shooting his attention towards Itzel. She shrugged her shoulders. “He’s got a good point.”
“You’ve already broken enough rules as it is,” Enidri said as she opened up the rear door. “What’s one more going to do?”
Dallas buried his face into the palms of his hands and huffed. “Ugh. Just hurry up and get on the back, Gurk. Before I change my mind.”
“Thanks.” The crocodile gave the enforcer a thumbs up before scurrying towards the back of the carrier. He vanished from view and in the next moment the entire vehicle buckled down from Gurk’s weight.
“We heading out now?” Itzel asked as she stared out the window. More trees collapsed in the distance as the ground continued to crack and tear.
“Buckle up. This flight ain’t going to be easy.” Dallas clutched the flight stick with both hands. He gave it a powerful pull, and the carrier reacted by darting upwards. The vehicle’s trajectory was shaky, wobbling from side to side as it ascended slower than usual. A large red blip showed up on the monitor of Dallas’ dashboard. With a grunt, he tilted the vehicle left an avoided a large support beam. Itzel stared out her window with wide, open eyes as the metal piece of structure crashed into the dirt below.
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The entire carrier titled to the side from the abrupt movement, sending the passengers sliding to the left. “Be careful!” Itzel cried as she pressed her back against her seat. “Gurk’s doesn’t have the luxury of a seatbelt!”
The enforcer shot the woman a cold glare before focusing back on piloting the vehicle to safety. He peered through the front window and looked at the gap in the dome at the very top. “Hold on tight. I’m going to get us out of here as soon as possible.”
With some precise counter-steering, Dallas tilted the carrier at a sharp angle pointed straight at the open gap in the crumbling roof. He stole a glance at the rearview camera situated to his right. Once he saw Gurk dangling on the back of the vehicle, he shifted the velocity slider almost to its max. The engine roared. Metal rattled. The carrier darted forward, flying through a shower of glass and metal as it soared towards the exit.
“We’re finally gonna make it!” Itzel said as she leaned forward in her seat. The sunlight shined straight down, almost blinding the occupants inside. Despite the carrier’s unsteady trajectory, Dallas eased the vehicle through the hole in the Eco-Dome. Everyone inside save the enforcer let out gasps of release once they exited the flurry of metal and glass.
“Don’t get to excited,” Dallas said sternly. “I’ve still got to land this thing!”
An air of silence returned as the pilot focused his energy on maneuvering the rapidly descending craft. It spiraled out of control, its trajectory forming a corkscrew as it careened towards the sandy ground below. Itzel lowered her window and stuck her head out to look towards the back. Gurk’s talons dug into the trunk as his legs flung wildly in the wind. “Just hold on tight, big guy!” she shouted over the sound of the dying engine.
“You three might want to brace yourselves!” Dallas shouted as he pressed a large red button on the floating panel next to the flight stick. “I’ve activated the emergency landing protocol! Hopefully, this trajectory will be enough to cushion Gurk from our inevitable crash!”
Janus and Enidri held onto the seat cushions. Itzel shut her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest while Dallas continued to fight with the vehicle’s controls. The pilot slowed the descent, but not enough to stop the impact altogether.
The entire vehicle shook once it collided with the desert. Everyone inside grunted and moaned once the carrier hit the ground. There was a pause of silence as the humming of the vehicle turned to silence. Dallas pressed a hand to his forehead and groaned.
“Everyone all right?”
“I think... so...” Janus said with a cough. He pressed his hands on his legs and winced. “Felt like I just got hit by a carrier!”
“Same.” Enidri said with a wheeze as she pushed open her door. “And that was with the emergency landing feature activated.”
“Gurk!” Itzel pushed her door open but it wouldn’t budge. After a swift kick, the bent door flung off its hinges and landed on the sand. She staggered out of dented carrier and looked towards its trunk. Gurk lay face down in the sand several feet away from the area of impact. “Gurk!” she shouted again as she ran to the fallen crocodile. Everyone else limped out of the vehicle, struggling to catch up with the fighter.
“Big guy! Speak to me!” she muttered as she knelt down next to Gurk. She placed both hands on his shoulder. He stayed motionless, his eyes shut tight as Itzel gave his body a gentle shake. “Not now! Not after all we’ve been through!”
“Is he...” Enidri said with one hand stretched out in front of her. Her hand trembled in front of her lips as she hesitated to approach further.
Janus ran to Gurk’s other side. He slid on his knees and placed a hand on the crocodile’s other shoulder. “Come on. You’ve been through a lot worse!” the physicist said with worry. “If you can hear me... just don’t give up!”
Gurk’s eyes slowly opened. He blinked a few times before shifting his head from Itzel then to Janus. “Hey.”
“I knew you’d make it!” Itzel said with a wide grin. With Janus’ help, they set him upright only for Itzel to send Gurk on his back lunging at him and taking him in a wide embrace. “I didn’t doubt you for a second!”
“Thanks!” Gurk gave Itzel a pat on the back. The fighter ended her hug, wiping a tear from her eye as she stood upright. Janus and Enidri each took the crocodile by hand and helped stand him up on his feet.
“Got any broken bones?” Enidri asked.
Gurk patted his chest and then his legs. “Nah.”
“Good. That means I won’t feel bad for doing this.” Enidri gave him a pat on the back the verged on being a punch. The crocodile grunted and rubbed his shoulder with his hand. “That’s for almost getting us killed back there!”
“Sorry,” Gurk moaned.
“Ah, I can’t stay mad at you,” Enidri said as she winked her eye. “I would have tried to help Mag, too. But to be fair, I was getting paid to do so. You had no reason to do that.”
“Felt bad.”
“I know, big guy,” Itzel said with a sigh. She took Gurk’s arm and slung it over the back of her shoulder. “I’m just glad that you’re safe and with us now.”