Chapter 109: Flight Predicament

What should I say?

When disaster strikes, those sharing the same boat with oneself are so unnaturally calm that it's a mess. This should be a good thing, yet Henry found this eerie calm utterly bizarre.

Well, not entirely. At least the female flight attendant sitting in her seat was hugging herself tightly, trembling with fear. She couldn't face the whole situation calmly like the others.

But she didn't scream hysterically like a little girl, raising her voice an octave to make everyone more nervous. That was also a good thing.

Henry looked at her. Perhaps noticing the outsider's gaze, the flight attendant forced down her fear and returned a very strained smile. It was heartbreaking to see.

Since the cockpit door wasn't closed, everyone could still hear the captain calmly reporting their status to air traffic control. The most reassuring thing was that the highest-level distress signal—Mayday—hadn't been heard yet.

Not long after, the scene of the colorful spray outside the window vanished, and immediately the vibration of the plane's engines noticeably decreased, though it didn't disappear completely.

Brian, who had walked out of the cockpit, took out a map and spread it on the aisle. His three companions followed behind, craning their necks to look.

Brian first spoke to Lady He Ben: "Good news. The moment the fuel leak was discovered, the captain closed the balance valves between the left and right wing fuel tanks. Although we can't adjust the fuel lines in mid-air, at least we have one engine left that can operate."

"Where there's good news, there's bad news, right?" Old Bernie interjected perfectly.

"Exactly," Brian said. "At the previous airport, the plane couldn't refuel. Combined with us losing more than half our fuel, this means we won't be able to fly very far before we must land."

"Flying straight back to the US in one go is definitely impossible. Even reaching Europe would be a stretch. Considering we'll be entering night flight conditions next, we must find an airport with night landing guidance equipment, preferably an ally's."

"Although the US military base in Djibouti has a runway for takeoffs and landings, it lacks night lighting. So our only remaining option is to fly north to the US military base within Saudi Arabia. The equipment there is far better than in Djibouti."

Sam said, "Hey, brother, sounds like we're saved. But why does your expression not match that?"

"The main problem is this country." Brian pointed to an area on the map, marked as the Republic of Yemen.

Mark said, "I remember, North and South Yemen only unified a month ago. Friendly towards Western regimes, so they must still be in their honeymoon period now. Will they trouble us?"

Brian continued with his deep, magnetic voice, delivering bad news. "In fact, the Republic of Yemen has been established for less than a month. Although friendly towards the West, it's only relatively friendlier compared to their previous actions."

"In fact, I suspect whether their government functions are operating completely normally. Although we've broadcast the emergency code 7700, air traffic control is also helping us contact the Yemeni side."

"But if they refuse to let us enter their airspace, we'll have to detour around the Gulf of Aden, pass through the Red Sea, and then enter Saudi Arabia. Detouring such a long distance is a major test for our remaining fuel."

"So what can we do?" Audrey He Ben asked.

To this question from the superstar, Brian could only helplessly reply, "Miss, we can only wait, wait for the final result. We can't do anything about the developments ahead."

Old Bernie, however, said hopefully, "Actually, there is something we can do, isn't there?"

"Old man, what is it?" Mark asked hurriedly.

"Pray, kid. Pray that air traffic control can get Yemen to agree, pray that we land at some airport before our fuel runs out."

Old Bernie's answer made the several veteran soldiers cross themselves on their chests, say "Amen," and finally add a "Motherfucker!" Their movements were so fluid it looked like they did this often.

Henry, who had no faith, didn't know who to pray to. In fact, with his ability as a flying Kryptonian, this was a small matter.

But the superstar sitting beside him didn't think so. Although Audrey He Ben knew Henry was bulletproof, she didn't know he could fly!

So at this moment, Lady He Ben, though her expression and voice remained so elegant and calm, tightly grasped Henry's hand and turned to look out the window where the sky was gradually darkening, clearly showing her mood wasn't completely untroubled.

Brian herded everyone back to their seats, not letting them run around. He was now silently rejoicing that he had fired all the bullets he brought on the plane earlier; otherwise, someone might have gone crazy and pulled a gun right now.

However, he did call one person up. Brian walked over to the female flight attendant and said, "Miss, I'd like to ask you to give everyone a glass of whiskey. I think you need it too."

"As for the captain, he needs to stay awake to fly the plane, so I think he doesn't need one. Don't you agree?"

"O-okay. I'll be right back." True to her training as a flight attendant on a chartered plane, she suppressed her emotions, put on a customer-service smile, unfastened her seatbelt, stood up, and said with a smile.

Back in his seat, Brian let out a long, soft sigh, his chest filled only with a sense of powerlessness. Even though he was a professionally trained soldier, some things were beyond his control. Sometimes he even wondered, after doing so much, who had he actually helped?

Seeing the atmosphere on the plane was very gloomy, even the female flight attendant's smile when serving the whiskey looked very forced. Henry tried to break this deadlock and asked, "Brian, do you have a family?"

Glancing at the person asking, Brian couldn't read anything, only judging that the other was just making conversation. Even Audrey He Ben seemed interested in such a question, her eyes lighting up.

But now he indeed needed to speak, to shift the mood. So he replied, "I have a wife, Lena, who is pregnant. In a short while, the child will be born."

Speaking, Brian took a photo out of his leather bag and handed it over.

Henry took the photo; it showed a couple in love, faces pressed together, displaying sun-bright, brilliant smiles. "Wow, truly a beautiful woman," he said, sharing it with the curious superstar beside him to look at together.

Audrey revealed a sweet smile that didn't lose to the one in the photo, almost changing the atmosphere inside the plane entirely. She said, "Yes, you can tell the two of you love each other."

Day 5, celebrating the premium release, one extra update at 9 PM tonight.

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(End of this chapter)