18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 432

Jasper and Stella were blissfully unaware of the chaos unfolding in Iran. They quickly found their balance and worked together to stabilize their submarine. "They've got five of those things..."

Before Stella could finish her sentence, several dark shapes emerged from beyond the 2688, swiftly forming ranks.

One, two, three, four, five, six...

A total of six submersible crafts-not submarines. These were hexagonal underwater vehicles, smaller but faster than the 2688.

And they were riveting together underwater. Two became one, growing larger and heavier.

"Holy smokes, these aren't just subs. They're modular underwater fortresses," Jasper muttered in amazement.

You had to hand it to them-their geographical constraints had pushed them to incredible ingenuity. With rising sea levels and no new land to claim, they turned their focus to the vast ocean. Even without military sovereignty, nothing stopped them from dreaming of underwater cities.

Stella always thought it was just a fantasy, but here it was, staring them in the face.

These polyhedral crafts were more like submersible aircraft, capable of disassembling and reassembling in multiple configurations, like something out of Transformers.

Despite being less than half the size of the 2688 when alone, their combined strength was formidable.

If there were enough, they could form a base.

Normally, they could operate as a whole to withstand the unpredictable weather at sea. When a storm hit, they could quickly break apart and evade danger with their speed and knowledge of the area. The engineers were skilled at turning small advantages into big wins, often with surprise attacks or invasions.

Their confidence was sky-high; otherwise, they wouldn't have charged in blindly.

But they could also correct course instantly upon realizing their mistakes.

And now, they were transforming!

The six crafts combined in the depths, their mass and offensive capabilities skyrocketing.

and Stella weren't about to risk a head-on

crafts merged, they didn't hesitate to go

raced ahead, with Iran's craft hot on

it was that their size made them sluggish-less

the waves, an exhilarating chase was

pursuing from day into night

forebears had endured a 14-year war, triumphing even with just millet and rifles. She had no

the newly launched 2688. It hadn't been through the cataclysmic tsunamis caused by

had been toiling away at sea for years. Even with the best of luck, they would have weathered

continued from night back

brow furrowing. "Something's not right with

Jasper noticed it too.

at the ocean's bottom grew dimmer, and

of maritime

Iran's relentless pursuit, they had to be dealt with or they'd remain a constant

powered on, navigating increasingly treacherous currents,

night, fatigue began to show, and their resolve started

ram the 2688's stern, only to be skillfully dodged by Jasper

their

detected abnormal currents,

"Bad news, there's a vortex

An oceanic whirlpool?

and monsoon winds under the influence of the Earth's rotation.

ones were less than a meter across, and large ones could stretch hundreds of meters, acting like black

the perilous Bermuda Triangle, where

sea had

they ventured deeper, the currents

waves, while currents clashed

"If

frantically from behind,