370: Fault Module

The crack was now half a meter wide, and a blue light flickered on and off.

Chen Wang emerged from the interface chamber. As soon as his feet touched the ground, the floor shook, as if something was ramming it from beneath.

He didn't speak, just bent down to pick up his tool bag and headed toward the crack.

Lin Wei used the terminal to steady herself as she stood up; her helmet was leaking air, but she ignored it and hurried to follow.

Su Ling switched off the power, sheathed her knife, and pressed her right hand against her ribs, her breathing shallow.

The three of them passed through the crack and entered the maintenance tunnel.

The air smelled of something burning, along with an acrid stench.

Three meters ahead lay a hexagonal module. Its casing had been blown away, leaving only the frame; the wires were exposed, blackened and charred.

Several pipes were still connected to the interface in the ground, twitching rhythmically.

The module's surface emitted a faint, eerie glow, and metal parts within a two-meter radius floated in the air, hovering ten centimeters off the ground and spinning slowly.

"The main control chip is gone." Chen Wang squatted down and touched a disconnected terminal with his gloved hand, but immediately pulled back—it was too hot.

Lin Wei placed the terminal on a flat steel plate and opened the scan display.

The data jumped for a few seconds before stabilizing.

"Nodes A3, B7, and C4 are all burnt out, and the D-zone buffer is useless. We need to replace three new parts, but we didn't bring any."

Her voice was a bit hoarse, and blood flowed from her forehead, trickling down her damaged helmet.

Su Ling walked to the side of the module and looked at the connection slot at the bottom.

"It's still drawing power from below, and the current is unstable."

She took a small capacitor from her belt. "I have a seven-volt one here; it should hold for a while."

Chen Wang took the capacitor, tore off the outer casing, and exposed the wires inside.

"It's only a temporary fix."

He took the welding torch from his tool bag, clamped onto an exposed main wire, and slowly fed it toward the capacitor interface.

"Disconnect the ground wire first; don't let the current backflow."

Lin Wei stared at the screen. "Hurry. The energy is surging; it might explode in five minutes."

Chen Wang nodded. As soon as the pliers touched the interface, sparks exploded violently.

His hand shook, and he nearly dropped the pliers. A second arc surged up along the pipe, striking a floating iron plate with a sharp "zzzt" sound.

"The ground wire is broken!" Lin Wei shouted. "The current has nowhere to go!"

Chen Wang gritted his teeth and forcefully pressed the main wire into the capacitor interface.

Once connected, the module let out a hum, and all the metal in the air fell to the ground.

But just two seconds later, a third shock wave surged up from underground; the module shook violently, and the high-voltage electricity exploded outward like a ring.

The three of them were knocked over.

Chen Wang hit the wall; his left arm burned with pain, his clothes had a burnt hole in them, and his skin was blistered.

He tried to stand up, but his vision went black.

Su Ling had fallen near a slope; her right shoulder hit a steel bar, and she groaned softly before going still.

Lin Wei's helmet had struck the ground, her visor cracked, and her terminal had flown away, its screen shattered.

An alarm sounded from underground, and the vibrations became increasingly frequent.

Chen Wang shook his head to clear it.

He crawled over, dragged Lin Wei to the wall, and placed his own knee pad under her head.

Then he pulled out his communicator and pressed the call button.

"Su Wan, can you hear me?"

After five seconds of static, an intermittent voice came through: "...Received... status?"

"All three of us are injured. Lin Wei hit her head and isn't fully conscious; Su Ling landed on her right side and can't move; I have second-degree burns on my left arm. The module is unstable; it just had a kickback."

"...Check Su Ling's breathing... if it's less than ten times per minute... she might have broken ribs... use a chest strap to secure it... apply heating pads under her armpits and below her collarbone... to prevent her body temperature from dropping too fast..."

Chen Wang followed the instructions. He tore open the first aid kit, applied the heating pads to the right side of Su Ling's chest, and wrapped it tightly with a bandage.

Su Ling opened her eyes and nodded.

"What about Lin Wei?"

"Mild concussion, her helmet is broken. I put a neck brace on her."

"...Don't let her sleep... keep her awake... don't touch the module again... wait for the next command..."

Communication cut off again.

Chen Wang looked up at the module. It was still humming, but the sound was lower than before, like a countdown.

He wiped his face, stood up, walked to the console, and picked up the recorder Lin Wei had dropped.

The screen still worked; the last data entry showed: C4 node voltage 12.7V, with a fluctuation of 0.8V.

He turned to look at the two of them. Su Ling was sitting against the wall, her hand pressed against her ribs, her eyes fixed on the module.

Lin Wei was leaning against the knee pad, her lips moving as if reciting code.

Chen Wang walked over and shoved the recorder into her hand.

"Can you still work?"

Lin Wei blinked and slowly slid her finger across the screen.

"I can... as long as I don't have to walk."

Su Ling also spoke, her voice hoarse: "Stopping means death."

Chen Wang nodded and took the welding torch from his tool bag. As the flame ignited, it illuminated the shadow of the copper pocket watch on his wrist.

"Then let's continue."