The Island and the Ship

"What do we do now?" Emma jumped down from Alex’s back, looked at the calm sea in the distance, then turned to him. "Are we really going to build a ship?" Emma had no faith at all in Alex’s plan to build a ship and cross the ocean.

Alex shook his head and gazed into the distance as if searching for something. "There’s no rush to build a ship. Let’s look for outsiders first. Maybe they have a ship."

"You really know how to dream!" Emma rolled her eyes again. Sometimes Alex was rational, but other times he seemed especially childish. She could not quite see through the man before her. Sometimes, she wanted nothing more than to crack open Alex’s head and see exactly what was inside!

Alex shrugged and smiled indifferently without answering. In such a despairing situation, a person had to have some hope. What if it came true?

Alex and Emma paid a joint visit to a nearby orc tribe. It was a tribe of orcs resembling giant bats. In broad daylight, these Bat People were all curled up in their cave-built settlement, snoring away. They did not even notice Alex and Emma’s arrival, which left the two of them somewhat unaccustomed to it.

Alex was responsible for capturing people, while Emma used telepathy to gather information. The two worked together seamlessly, and within moments, they had compiled the information of more than a dozen people.

"These Bat People have all seen outsiders before, but they apparently weren’t on the shore. They were on an island out at sea." After piecing together all the information, Emma looked at Alex in confusion. "But there aren’t any islands nearby at all!" The sea stretched endlessly before them, with nothing obstructing the view, much less an island of considerable size.

"Is there any information about that island?" Alex turned toward the sea, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes. "Could it be one of those phantom islands that appear and disappear?"

Emma shook her head, speaking with certainty. "It can’t be a phantom island. These Bat People can see it every day."

"Could our eyes be playing tricks on us?" Alex felt that things were getting strange. He rubbed his eyes hard, then stared intently at the sea. "Why can’t the two of us see it?"

Emma’s expression shifted. Pointing at the Bat People’s eyes, she said suspiciously, "Could their eyes be different from ours? Maybe they can see things we can’t?"

"That’s very possible!" Alex pinched his chin, looked at the Bat People’s unusual eyes, and nodded in agreement. "Search their memories and find the island’s location. We’ll feel our way over there!" Even if they could not see it, they could feel for it. Like blind people, they would find it eventually.

Emma moved swiftly and quickly found the island’s location. It was only five thousand meters from the shore. At a fast pace, they could get there in ten minutes; even swimming slowly, they could reach it in around twenty.

Once they had confirmed the location, Alex and Emma did not hesitate. They immediately jumped into the sea. The water was unexpectedly warm, and the sunlight and seawater were so pleasant that they were almost intoxicating.

But Alex and Emma both had matters on their minds and did not lose themselves in it. They swam rapidly toward the island.

About ten minutes later, the two had nearly reached the island’s location. Yet they neither saw nor touched any obstacle and simply swam straight past where the island should have been.

"What is going on?" Floating in the seawater where the island was supposed to be, Alex grew agitated, and his voice rose unconsciously.

Emma shook her head, equally bewildered. "The Bat People can see it every day, but we can neither see nor find anything. Could it be because of the island itself?"

Alex suddenly jolted and turned to look toward the distant shore. Everything there was silent, without the slightest sound. "No, we got it wrong!"

"What?" Emma looked at Alex in confusion, not understanding why he had suddenly become excited.

"Bats sleep during the day and come out at night. These Bat People are the same—they sleep during the day!" The more Alex spoke, the more excited he became. He even jumped joyfully in the water. "The Bat People see it every day, which means they see it every night."

"So that island must also sleep during the day and emerge at night. That’s why the Bat People can see it every day while we can’t see anything!"

Emma suddenly understood. She looked at Alex with eyes full of admiration. "Then what do we do now? Wait until night?"

"No need to wait. Let’s check the seabed first." Alex glanced down into the depths, speaking doubtfully. "My guess is that the island is on the seabed during the day and rises back up at night."

As he spoke, Alex did not wait for Emma’s response. He plunged beneath the surface first and swam toward the seabed like a fish.

In only a short while, Alex reached the bottom. Sure enough, he saw an enormous rise on the seabed. There were mountains and trees on the elevated ground, as well as a vast flower field filled with purple-red, long-stemmed flowers. They resembled tulips, swaying gently in the water with an unusual beauty.

"Is that the island?" Emma had also swum down. Looking at the sight before her, she could hardly believe it. The moment she opened her mouth, seawater with a faint fishy stench poured into it, choking her so badly that she nearly suffocated.

Alex’s expression changed. He hurriedly swam to Emma’s side, giving her air while gently stroking her to comfort her. Once Emma recovered, Alex pointed sternly at his own nose, reminding her to pay attention to her breathing.

Then Alex turned and sank toward the island. He circled the small island once, his face filled with delight.

Emma was curious and was just about to speak when she remembered her earlier lesson. She immediately did not dare say another word, merely staring fixedly at Alex.

Alex chuckled and pulled Emma toward the eastern side of the island. A large ship docked by the island’s shore came into view first. Two-thirds of its massive hull had fallen onto the island, crushing a large swath of trees. Most surprisingly, there was German writing on the ship, along with a particularly conspicuous swastika symbol on its hull!

At the sight of the ship, Emma forgot her earlier lesson and opened her mouth to shout, "This…"

The instant the first word left her mouth, foul seawater flooded in. Emma choked a few times before quickly reacting. With tears streaming down her face, she pointed at the ship and turned to Alex, her face full of shock, as if asking, "How could this ship be here?"

Noticing that Emma’s eyes had reddened, likely from choking on seawater, Alex quickly pulled her back to the surface.

After taking deep breaths of fresh air, Emma finally asked, "How could a Nazi ship be here?" The moment she asked her first question, a second one followed. "Could this be a Nazi secret experimental base?"

Alex shook his head and spoke with some doubt. "As far as I know, the Nazis couldn’t possibly have had such a massive secret experimental base. Ever since Hydra was destroyed, Little Mustache had no worthwhile experimental bases at all."

"Then what’s going on with that ship?"

Emma’s question stumped Alex. After a long silence, he slowly said, "Once the island rises, we’ll go up and take a good look. Then we’ll know."

P.S.: After staying up this late, Scorpion finally managed to make up a chapter. More tomorrow!