Adelaide is in her room, the Sun sets, illuminating the place with a golden light. Lying on her bed, she rereads her calculations about the latest aicraft prototype. If everything works as expected, the next aircraft will be able to fly at altitudes only reached by the sounding balloons.
She taps her pencil in rhythm on the page, blackened by numbers and various mathematical symbols.
"The stall should only happen around..." Her own voice is covered by a terrible whistle from the outside. The girl stands up, looks through the window and scans the sky, frowning.
"What the hell is this..." she murmurs.
Suddenly, she opens her eyes in surprise: meteorites are crossing the sky, huge blocks of scattered rocks leaving a trail of dust behind them.
She muffles a scream when one of the rocks rips the canvas of a balloon, knocking over the zeppelin's nacelle in its wake. Under the speed and violence of the impact, the ropes break, Adélaïde follows with her eyes the airship crashing into the clouds, faster and faster until they disappear through the steamy sea.
She moves back on her bed, in shock. Steps resound in the corridor, her door opens suddenly: it’s the astromancer, with his messy hair and a long coat on his shoulders.
"Adelaide!"
"Lloyd! What just happened?! What's going on?!" she shouts
"I don't have time to explain everything," says the breathless scientist, staying in the doorway, "Meteorites are coming down to earth, we don't know where they come from, we...listen, rejoin the emergency nacelles immediately. Don't take anything with you, it’s only a matter of time before the station begins to fall!"
Adelaide has no time to reply that Lloyd is already leaving, the sounds of his race getting lost in the corridor.
Breathing quickly, she gets up, grabs her jacket and zips it up to her neck. she knows she must hurry, her survival depends on it. Before leaving, she stops on the doorstep, she shouldn’t leave without taking anything.
Swinging her head from right to left, she hesitates, does she have to [[take her parachute|the parachute]], which could save her if she can't reach the nacelles, or [[her bag|the bag]], containing her tools and calculations?Adelaide joins the bridge. In the sunlight appears a scene of terror : running in all directions, passengers try to reach the emergency nacelles. Some of them are struggling to buckle their parachutes, a woman runs with her child in her arms, her jacket barely slipped on.
Hellish crackles are heard, she raises her head, some of the metal structures begin to break under the torsion and weight of the airships.
Adelaide sees Lloyd coordinating the departure of rescue pods.
"The research..."
"All the researches are in the office, he didn't have any time to take them, no one thought to get them! We can't lose them, I can't let months of calculations and experiences get lost. I have to get back to his office," she decides.
Throwing a last look at the balloon above her, she decides to run to the Astromancer's office.
Running on the starboard bridge, she heard screams in front of her:
"...and it's going to take the whole fleet with it!"
Slowing down, she reaches a group looking over the rail. She follows their gaze: one of the secondary zeppelins is losing air at an alarming rate, but its ropes are damaged, stucked and prevents the zeppelin from detaching.
Its weight could tip the whole fleet, she doesn't know how long it will hold on.
Her gaze flew from the damaged airship to the stern. Her conscience is bothering her, should she [[save the researches|the researches]], far from insignificant and predicting the next phenomena of the planet, as well as the unique measurement instruments or rather [[take care of the zeppelin|the zeppelin]] immediately to prevent any more deaths?
Adelaide joins the bridge. In the sunlight appears a scene of terror : running in all directions, passengers try to reach the emergency nacelles. Some of them are struggling to buckle their parachutes, a woman runs with her child in her arms, her jacket barely slipped on.
Hellish crackles are heard, she raises her head, some of the metal structures begin to break under the torsion and weight of the airships.
Adelaide sees Lloyd coordinating the departure of rescue pods.
"The research..."
"All the researches are in the office, he didn't have any time to take them, no one thought to get them! We can't lose them, I can't let months of calculations and experiences get lost. I have to get back to his office," she decides.
Throwing a last look at the balloon above her, she decides to run to the Astromancer's office.
Running on the starboard bridge, she heard screams in front of her:
"...and it's going to take the whole fleet with it!"
Slowing down, she reaches a group looking over the rail. She follows their gaze: one of the secondary zeppelins is losing air at an alarming rate, but its ropes are damaged, stucked and prevents the zeppelin from detaching.
Its weight could tip the whole fleet, she doesn't know how long it will hold on.
Her gaze flew from the damaged airship to the stern. Her conscience is bothering her, should she [[save the researches|bag researches]], far from insignificant and predicting the next phenomena of the planet, as well as the unique measurement instruments or rather [[take care of the zeppelin|bag zeppelin]] immediately to prevent any more deaths?
Considering the researches more precious than anything else, she decides to resume her race towards the stern. When she arrives in front of the office, she discovers a locked door. Adelaide steps back, takes a deep breath and throws herself violently against the door. Under the impact, the wooden panel yields, revealing a room full of smoke.
Coughing and waving a hand in front of her face, Adelaide enters the room. She fumbles in the thick dark air, and discovers a leather bag.
Considering it for a moment, she grabs it before reaching the desk, not far from the window.
She contemplates the desk, before her are spread out spreadsheets, schemes and other diagrams. A magnifying glass is also shining, Adélaide turns her gaze to the display cabinet : inside shine instruments, unique objects with complex mechanisms that are essential to them.
She has to make a choice, her single bag cannot contain both [[the researches sheet|researches]]s and [[the instruments|instruments]].
"We can save time by unhooking this ship" she notes.
She must find a sharp object to break the strings. Desperate, she looks from all sides, before straightening up: she feels the parachute in her back.
"I could reach the nacelle just below, untie the ropes from there and jump with my parachute..." she thinks.
The idea is highly dangerous, should she [[look for an axe|search]] or [[jump down directly|jump]]?
With a sigh, she stays on her positions.
The calculations are too important, she doesn’t know how long it will take to redo such research and experiments.
She collects as many paper sheets as possible and carefully stuffs them into her bag. Tightening the copper buckles, she didn’t notice the smoke thickening.
Suddenly a sinister creaking is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again. In the cabin, everything reverses, the door slams violently behind her.
Adelaide rushes towards it, but the door is blocked for good, something behind it seems to be jamming it.
Trying not to panic, she turns around and sees one of the large windows ripped open. She straightens herself, feeling her parachute in her back.
"It'll be a good anecdote if it works," she whispers.
Approaching the bay window, she scatters the broken glass shards and opens the window. She looks down before pressing herself against the wall.
She takes deep breath before closing her eyes.
Calming her breath, she lifts her face up.
Adélaïde passes her legs over the edge of the window, her boots in the void and her hands firmly grasped at the edge.
"It'll be a good anecdote....3, 4, 5" she says between her teeth
Giving a great push on her arms, she throws herself into the void.
With a sigh, she walks towards the display cabinet.
"Whatever..." she says between her teeth
She grabs the delicate handle of the cabinet and violently yanks the door, making the instruments shake. With the greatest care, she puts the objects in her bag.
"First time I can touch the astrolabe and it's to save it from the flames," she notes ironically.
The smoke thickens. Suddenly a sinister squeak is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again. In the cabin, everything reverses, the door slams violently behind her.
Adelaide rushes towards it, but the door is blocked for good, something behind it seems to be jamming it.
Trying not to panic, she turns around and sees one of the large windows ripped open. She straightens herself, feeling her parachute in her back.
"It'll be a good anecdote if it works," she whispers.
Approaching the bay window, she scatters the broken glass shards and opens the window. She looks down before pressing herself against the wall.
She takes deep breath before closing her eyes.
Calming her breath, she lifts her face up.
Adélaïde passes her legs over the edge of the window, her boots in the void and her hands firmly grasped at the edge.
"It'll be a good anecdote....3, 4, 5" she says between her teeth
Giving a great push on her arms, she throws herself into the void.
"I'm not going to throw myself into the void like that!" she thinks.
A few meters away is the control room. She walks fast and with a blow of her shoulder, violently opens the door. Through the thick smoke, she finds the object of her interest : a shiny axe.
A new tremor shakes the ship, Adelaide loses her balance and clings to the helm. Rising as best as she could, she grabs the axe and pulls it off the wall before coming out, determined to unhook the ship.
Reaching the rail, she pushes aside the men who are still leaning towards the ground.
Grabbing her axe with both hands, she blows locks of hair out of her face and raises the sharp object high up. Inspiring, she violently knocks the axe down on the strings.
She damages the ropes, but they don't give in, so she repeats the manoeuvre, the axe falling more and more violently. Suddenly, the ropes let go, the edge of the blade meeting the metal rail.
The strings unfold in the blink of an eye, reaching the ship below, a click in the air can be heard in its wake.
Looking at her axe still in her hands, she hesitates, time is running out, she can still [[try to save the researches|save researches]] or [[go directly to the rescue bridge|bridge]].
"It'll be a good story to tell if I survive." she chuckles.
Leaning on the metal bars, she sits on the rail, feet in the void. Taking a deep breath, she jumps downstair.
Obviously, she did not calculate her landing and only manage to clings to the rail of the endangered vessel with one hand.
Screaming, she manages to grab the bar with her other hand. In another scream, she pulls on her arms and manages to raise her legs. She lets herself drop on the other side, directly on the wooden floor.
When she arrives in front of the ropes, she pulls violently on some loose ends, forcing on the weak points of the knots. In a dry snap, the ropes unroll, almost dragging her hands with them.
She promptly steps back towards the rail, feeling the metal bars sink into her bag.
She turns around, looks into the void and inspires. Time is running out, the balloon is already losing altitude at an exponential rate.
Adélaïde passes her legs on the other side again, her feet in the void and her hands firmly attached to the rail.
She takes one last deep breath.
"It will be a good story to tell..." she repeats.
Giving a great push on her arms, she throws herself into the void.
A thumping sound is heard, Adelaide decides to go directly to the front of the ship.
"Everything's falling apart anyway," she thinks.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath :
"I had ... I had to untie one of the upper zeppelin..." she explains,
"Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! Plus, I saved us time! The zeppelin would have dragged us into his fall," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
Considering the researches as too much precious, she decides to resume her journey towards the stern, the axe still in her hand. When she arrives in front of the office, she discovers a locked door. Adelaide steps back, raises the sharp object high and violently knocks it down on the door. Under the impact, the wooden panel yields, revealing a room full of smoke.
Coughing and waving a hand in front of her face, Adelaide enters the room. She fumbles in the thick dark air, and discovers a leather bag.
Considering it for a moment, she grabs it before reaching the desk, not far from the window.
She contemplates the desk, before her are spread out spreadsheets, schemes and other diagrams. A magnifying glass is also shining, Adélaide turns her gaze to the display cabinet : inside shine instruments, unique objects with complex mechanisms that are essential to them.
She has to make a choice, her single bag cannot contain both [[the researches sheets|axe R]] and the [[instruments|axe I]].
With a sigh, she stays on her positions.
The calculations are too important, she doesn’t know how long it will take to redo such research and experiments.
She collects as many paper sheets as possible and carefully stuffs them into her bag. Tightening the copper buckles, she didn’t notice the smoke thickening.
Suddenly a sinister creaking is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again. In the cabin, everything reverses, the door slams violently behind her.
Soudain un grincement sinistre se fait entendre, le dirigeable penche brusquement avant de se stabiliser à nouveau.
Taking a last look around her, Adelaide decided to join the front of the ship.
"Everything's falling apart anyway," she thinks.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath
"I had ... I had to go get your researches," she explains, showing her bag.
"My researches? Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! So don't yell at me for saving our most precious possessions," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
With a sigh, she walks towards the display cabinet.
"Whatever..." she says between her teeth
She grabs the delicate handle of the cabinet and violently yanks the door, making the instruments shake. With the greatest =care, she puts the objects in her bag.
"First time I can touch the astrolabe and it's to save it from the flames," she notes ironically.
The smoke thickens. Suddenly a sinister squeak is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again.
Taking a last look around her, Adelaide decided to join the front of the ship.
"Everything's falling apart anyway," she thinks.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath
"I had... I had to get the measuring instruments..." she explains, showing her bag.
"The instruments? Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! So don't yell at me for saving our most precious possessions," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
Considering the researches more precious than anything else, she decides to resume her race towards the stern.
When she arrives in front of the office, she discovers a locked door. Opening her bag feverishly, she takes out a pair of pliers and frantically attacks the handle mechanism. The door opens in a squeaky sound, revealing a room full of smoke.
Coughing and waving a hand in front of her face, Adelaide enters the room. She fumbles in the thick dark air, and discovers a leather bag.
Considering it for a moment, she grabs it before reaching the desk, not far from the window.
She contemplates the desk, before her are spread out spreadsheets, schemes and other diagrams. She carefully stuffs the paper sheets into her bag.
Catching a page, she pushes a magnifying glass away and stops all movements, she turns her gaze to the display cabinet : inside shine instruments, unique objects with complex mechanisms that are essential to the researchers.
"Whatever..." she says between her teeth
She grabs the delicate handle of the cabinet and violently yanks the locked door, making the instruments shake. With the greatest care, she puts the objects in her bag.
"First time I can touch the astrolabe and it's to save it from the flames," she notes ironically.
The smoke thickens. Suddenly a sinister squeak is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again. In the cabin, everything reverses, the door slams violently behind her. She rushes towards it and hits the wooden panel but it doesn’t bend.
Trying to not give in to the panic, she looks around her: in an open cupboard, lies an axe next to a pair of boots.
She grabs the heavy object, lifts it high and knocks it down violently against the door, which quickly crack under her blows. Losing her balance in the speed, she lands against the corridor wall. Catching her breath, she inhales sharply.
Returning to the starboard deck, she sees the airship ripped open, still suspended in the shadow of the mother ship.
Looking at her axe still in her hand, she hesitates, time is running out, she can try to [[cut the ropes|save zep]] or [[go directly to the rescue bridge|go bridge]].
"We can save time by unhooking the ship" she notes.
Feverishly, she rummages through her bag, finding a pair of sharp pliers. Approaching the edge, she says :
"Let me pass, I can untie the ropes."
Tightening the clamps firmly, she attacks the ropes. Drops of sweat fall into her eyes, time is running out. A new cracking sound is heard when the last string finally broke under the assault of the sharp object.
The strings unfold in a flash, a click in the air can be heard in its wake. Under the mothership, the airship broke away, falling towards the clouds.
The girl straightens herself, catching her breath. She looks both ways, she doesn't know if she has time to [[save the search|bag save search]] or if she should [[go directly to the boat deck|bag go bridge]].Grabbing her axe with both hands, she blows locks of hair out of her face and raises the sharp object high up. Inspiring, she violently knocks the axe down on the strings.
She damages the ropes, but they don't give in, so she repeats the manoeuvre, the axe falling more and more violently. Suddenly, the ropes let go, the edge of the blade meeting the metal rail.
The strings unfold in the blink of an eye, reaching the ship below, a click in the air can be heard in its wake. Dropping her axe, Adélaïde resumes her run toward the front of the ship.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath
"I had... I had to go get your researches..." she explains, showing her bag.
"My... my researches? Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! Plus, I have the measuring instruments! So don't yell at me for saving our most precious possessions," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
A thumping sound is heard, Adelaide decides to go directly to the front of the ship.
"Everything's falling apart anyway," she thinks.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath
"I had... I had to go get your researches..." she explains, showing her bag.
"My... my researches? Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! Plus, I have the measuring instruments! So don't yell at me for saving our most precious possessions," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
Considering the research more precious than anything else, she decides to resume her race towards the stern.
When she arrives in front of the office, she discovers a locked door. Opening her bag feverishly, she takes out a pair of pliers and frantically attacks the handle mechanism. The door opens in a squeaky sound, revealing a room full of smoke.
Coughing and waving a hand in front of her face, Adelaide enters the room. She fumbles in the thick dark air, and discovers a leather bag.
Considering it for a moment, she grabs it before reaching the desk, not far from the window.
She contemplates the desk, before her are spread out spreadsheets, schemes and other diagrams. She carefully stuffs the paper sheets into her bag.
Catching a page, she pushes a magnifying glass and stops all movements, she turns her gaze to the display cabinet : inside shine instruments, unique objects with complex mechanisms that are essential to them.
"Whatever..." she says between her teeth
She grabs the delicate handle of the cabinet and violently yanks the locked door, making the instruments shake. With the greatest care, she puts the objects in her bag.
The smoke thickens. Suddenly a sinister squeak is heard, the airship leans abruptly before stabilizing again. In the cabin, everything reverses, the door slams violently behind her. She rushes towards it and hits the wooden panel but it doesn’t bend.
Trying to not give in to the panic, she looks around her: in an open cupboard, lies an axe next to a pair of boots.
She grabs the heavy object, lifts it high and knocks it down violently against the door, which quickly crack under her blows. Losing her balance in the speed, she lands against the corridor wall. Catching her breath, she inhales sharply.
Returning to the starboard deck, she sees no longer any trace of an airship.
"He already passed the sea of clouds," she whispers.
A thumping sound echoes above her, the steel beams are not going last.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttle. In the distance, Lloyd spots her
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath
"I had... I had to go get your researches..." she explains, showing her bag.
"My... my researches? Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! Plus, I have the measuring instruments! So don't yell at me for saving our most precious possessions," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."
A thumping sound was is heard, Adelaide decides to reach directly the front of the ship.
"Everything's falling apart anyway," she thinks.
When she arrives on the boat deck, she notices that the last passengers are boarding the shuttles. In the distance, Lloyd spots her.
"Adelaide! Why aren't you on a shuttle?! What are you still doing here?!" he shouts.
The girl catches her breath :
"I had ... I had to untie one of the upper zeppelin..." she explains,
"Oh, my God..." He pauses, "You could have killed yourself!"
"But I'm not! Plus, I saved us time! The zeppelin would have dragged us into his fall," she shouts.
The astromancer puts one hand on his face:
"We don't have time for this... get in the pod," he orders.
Without retaliation, Adelaide settles aboard the rescue ship. Lloyd joines her, starting the gas burner
"Hang on... the stall's gonna be tough."