“Pirates? How many? What weapons do they have?” Huo Shaoheng voice was calm and steady.
Zhao Liangze surveyed the multiple speed boats coming from all directions. His gaze was heavy as he used his night vision goggles to take a photo of the surroundings and sent it to the base via an encoded channel on the Nandou system.
“There were the 16 pirates that boarded the ship earlier and said that someone paid 10 million US dollars to kill us off. Nianzhi and I got rid of all of them, but now there are more powerful ones, a total of eight speed boats are coming this way. If I’m seeing this right, they have… shoulder-launching rockets!”
Huo Shaoheng grimaced as he instantly understood the pirates’ intentions. He walked along the beach and looked off to the distance at the heavy clouds circling above. The wind howled and the rolling waves crested like mountain peaks before crashing against the shore.
“Go back now! Hurry up! The hurricane is coming! You have to seek shelter! No one can stay by the shore!” English-speaking Cuban coast guards rushed over to urge Huo Shaoheng and Yin Shixiong to evacuate.
“You guys be careful and find a place to hide first. Hang on for 15 minutes and I’ll be there soon.” Huo Shaoheng made up his mind and turned to the nuclear submarine docked at the military port.
Yin Shixiong looked at the weather with unease. “Mr. Huo, I’m worried as well, but look over there; it’s a hurricane! What are we supposed to do?”
Huo Shaoheng ignored him and strode to the command cabin of the nuclear submarine. He gave orders to the communications personnel. “Connect me the to highest authority of the Imperial Army, General Ji. Also, I need a channel to connect to the 6th Military Region.” The soldier quickly gave him a position. Huo Shaoheng took a seat and connected to the personnel at the 6th Military Region base to watch the footage Zhao Liangze had sent earlier. The black ocean surface was choppy and the eight white speed boats m stood out. They cut through the waves and the men on the boats carried shoulder-launched rockets aimed right at the camera.
“F*ck!” Huo Shaoheng slammed his fist on on the console, his jaw rigid as he grabbed the communications personnel’s headset to speak to General Ji. “General Ji, I request the military to authorize me to borrow the new MiG-35 fighter from the Cuban military.”
“You actually know the model of the Cuban military’s best fighter jet!” General Ji was amused. “But, don’t give me the crap about how ‘a general in the field is not bound by the orders from his sovereign!’ You better give me an acceptable reason!”
Although Huo Shaoheng was anxious, he kept his composure and spoke carefully. “Our people are trapped in the Caribbean waters, and I have to go rescue them. There’s a hurricane in Cuba, so there’s no way to go by boat and I need the best fighter jet to cross the eye of the hurricane.”
“Are you insane?!” General Ji was outraged at his reasoning when he saw the intelligence and weather report for the Caribbean from his secretary. He put his hand on his hip as he berated Huo Shaoheng. “How can you fly during a hurricane?! Don’t you know that the US Air Force’s Hurricane Hunters had set the record for flying a fighter jet through a hurricane?! And it was only a level 3 hurricane at the highest wind velocity! The hurricane in the Caribbean is already at level 4, and it might become a level 5! Do you want to die?!”
“General Ji, the American records are meant for me to break, not admire.” Huo Shaoheng said dryly, his fingers lightly tapping on the console. “If General Ji grants me the authority this time, not only can we obtain valuable flight data through crossing the eye of the hurricane, but we can also test the feasibility of entirely using the Nandou system to navigate with zero pilot visibility.”
General Ji was not particularly concerned about the rescue mission. Although Gu Nianzhi’s origin was unknown, she wasn’t that important. Compared to his favored successor, Huo Shaoheng, Gu Nianzhi and Zhao Liangze’s lives were on a completely lower level of priority. Therefore, General Ji could never agree to allow Huo Shaoheng risk his life to fly through a hurricane to rescue them.
However, Huo Shaoheng has purposely said that this mission could test the navigation capabilities of the Nandou system and also provide data of the fighter jet flying through a hurricane from all angles and no restriction. He found himself unable to refuse the offer.
“General Ji, time is running out. Please make a decision now.” Huo Shaoheng felt the seconds slip by. The pirates actually had shoulder-launched rockets, and if he delayed any further…Suddenly, Huo Shaoheng was afraid to think of the outcome.
“Fine.” General Ji finally made the decision and Huo Shaoheng curtly ended the call. He connected directly to the highest commanding officer in the Cuban military to borrow the aircraft; he didn’t hear General Ji’s last words to him: “You are too rash. After this is over, I’ll put you in isolation for two months!”
With the support of the highest authority in the Huaxia military and also the facilitation by the Consul General of the Huaxia Empire in Cuba, the fighter jet was successfully obtained. Ten minutes later, Huo Shaoheng and Yin Shixiong boarded the MiG-35—the best fighter Cuba had just imported from Russia. The Cuban Air Force Generals and soldiers stood at the airport and saluted the two men departing. They watched them as though they were martyrs being sent to their deaths, their eyes full of respect as the fighter ascended and flew into the low clouds of the violent storm. No one expected them to return alive. Even the best American fighter jets and the best American pilots hadn’t been able to challenge the eye of a level 4 hurricane, so what could an unknown pilot from the Huaxia Empire hope to accomplish? Although they risked losing the MiG fighter, the Huaxia Empire would compensate them handsomely and it would not be a loss.
Above the Cuban waters, Huo Shaoheng gripped the control stick as he raised the altitude of the aircraft. The howling wind and heavy rain pelted its body incessantly. The field of vision grew blurrier as the fighter jet ascended into the storm clouds, as though their heads were plunged into the ocean: all they could see were dark grey clouds and water pouring down the windows. Their visibility was reduced to zero and the compass on the console spun wildly as the fuselage was tossed in the wind; Yin Shixiong felt his stomach come dangerously close to losing his lunch.
Huo Shaoheng connected to the Nandou system and sent all the data to the Nandou command center in the Huaxia Empire. At this point, he could only rely on the Nandou system to navigate the jet because he couldn’t see a thing.
…
Gu Nianzhi watched Zhao Liangze hang up the phone and asked nervously, “Will they come rescue us?” Because Wen Shouyi was beside them, Gu Nianzhi and Zhao Liangze didn’t say Huo Shaoheng’s name. Gu Nianzhi didn’t even say “Uncle Huo,” because they both knew who they were referring to.
“Yes, but we have to hang on for 15 minutes.” Zhao Liangze anxiously looked at the increasingly large waves and the incoming speed boats. “Hurry up and go hide. They have shoulder-launched rockets!” As soon as he finished speaking, a great boom sounded from the water surface and a rocket whistled through the rain and collided with the mechanical room on the lowest level of the ship. The seawater gushed in as the cruise ship began to tilt and sink.
Gu Nianzhi clutched Zhao Liangze’s arm, her voice cracking. “No! They want to sink the ship!” It turned out that the pirates had no intention of crossing fire with them on the ship, but had instead chose to sink the ship instead.
“Go!” Zhao Liangze carried the unconscious Wen Shouyi on his back and left the fourth level to dash towards third level.
Suddenly, more rockets hit the Princess cruise ship and water flooded the ship. Soon after, the second floor was flooded and the seawater slowly rose up the third floor.