Chapter 151: Buried
The loader’s cooling system reached maximum output before Zeyu completed the northern approach.
Heat had managed to distort everything beyond the windshield, making everything that much harder to do.
Xiling’s exterior walls appeared to bend beneath the sunlight, while the collapsed western entrance resembled a dark scab in the surrounding ground. The cabin of the mobile unit remained cooler than the air outside, but warmth already pressed through the controls beneath Zeyu’s gloves.
Hanchuan, Zhiyi and Jingwei followed behind the loader. Their suits protected them from direct exposure, although the medical readings on Zeyu’s display showed their temperatures rising with every minute outside.
The command vehicle came into view as Zeyu rounded the northern side of the shelter.
Its front section protruded from the collapse at an angle, with soil covering most of the windshield and broken concrete surrounding the wheels. A fractured support remained suspended above the rear compartment, although the debris beneath it appeared to carry most of its weight.
Zeyu stopped before the damaged ground. "Stay behind the bucket until I clear the loose material. Anything thrown by the wheels should move away from you."
Jingwei guided Zhiyi behind the loader while Hanchuan positioned himself between her and the collapsed entrance. Neither man prevented her from lifting the shovel she had carried from Xiling.
Zeyu lowered the bucket and pushed it beneath the soil surrounding the front wheels.
The first load lifted cleanly, the second exposed part of the reinforced bumper and the third uncovered the upper edge of the passenger-side tire.
"Reduce the load," Qinghe warned from the northern airlock. "The hydraulic system is approaching its limit."
"Smaller loads will keep us outside longer," reminded Zeyu, really not impressed with Qinghe’s advice.
"A failed loader will keep you outside permanently," countered the other man.
Unable to do anything else, Zeyu adjusted the bucket and took less.
Once he withdrew it, Zhiyi and Jingwei stepped forward to clear the remaining soil by hand. Hanchuan worked beside Zhiyi, removing anything too heavy for her shovel before she could attempt to lift it.
Shichen remained near the northern barrier until the loader cleared enough debris for him to approach without crossing the unstable ground. He stopped beside the collapse and checked the structural readings on his tablet.
A piece of concrete shifted above the vehicle’s rear compartment.
"Stop the loader," Shichen ordered.
Zeyu froze the bucket. Loose dirt slipped across the armored roof, but the concrete settled without striking the vehicle.
Shichen approached the edge of the collapse while Zhiyi crouched beside him to examine the space exposed beneath the fractured support.
"The beam isn’t resting against the vehicle," she observed.
"No, but part of it remains attached to the tunnel ceiling." Shichen enlarged the structural image on his tablet. "If the command unit moves directly forward, the rear compartment may catch it and pull everything down."
Zeyu checked the remaining exposure time. Zhiyi had 23 minutes before reaching the limit Qinghe had assigned her, which wasn’t enough to brace the beam or cut it safely.
"Could we pull the vehicle sideways before bringing it forward?" Jingwei asked.
"Not with the wheels buried at that angle," Zeyu replied.
Zhiyi stepped left and studied the visible tire. "The wheels are already turned."
Zeyu opened the steering data.
The collapse had occurred while the front wheels were angled 11 degrees to the right. If they attached the recovery cable to the left side and activated the drive system while pulling, the command unit would rotate before moving forward. Its rear compartment should shift away from the fractured beam.
"The soil beneath the driver’s side has to release first," Shichen warned after examining the proposed path.
Zhiyi pointed toward the area Zeyu had loosened with the loader. "It will."
Her confidence didn’t remove the risk, but it gave them a measurable one.
Zeyu repositioned the loader while Jingwei attached the recovery cable to the exposed recovery point. Hanchuan moved Zhiyi beyond the cable’s reach, then remained beside her.
When everyone was clear, Zeyu transmitted the command to release preservation mode. The vehicle’s steering and drive systems returned, leaving enough extraction reserve for one attempt before it would require external power.
"Apply minimum power when I tell you," Zeyu instructed after transferring the controls to Zhiyi’s tablet. "Release it immediately if the rear moves toward the beam."
Zhiyi watched the steering position as Zeyu reversed the loader and drew the cable taut.
"Now," she called.
The exposed wheel turned without gaining traction. Zeyu increased the loader’s power until the hydraulic warning returned, but the command vehicle remained trapped.
Then the soil beneath the driver’s side gave way.
The front rotated left, shifting the rear away from the fractured support. The broken beam scraped across the armored roof without catching.
"It’s clear," Shichen confirmed. "Bring it forward."
Zeyu continued reversing. The command unit climbed through the loosened soil, dragging part of the collapse with it until its rear wheels cleared the broken edge of the tunnel and rolled onto reinforced ground.
Relief loosened the muscles across Zeyu’s shoulders. He stopped the loader and shut down the struggling hydraulic system before it could damage itself.
Jingwei disconnected the recovery cable while Shichen inspected the command unit’s roof and rear compartment. Hanchuan took the shovel from Zhiyi after Qinghe announced that only three minutes remained on her exposure limit.
The operation was finished, their command vehicle was free.
Zeyu climbed down from the loader as Jingwei entered the command vehicle to bring it into Xiling. Zhiyi waited near the protected side of the northern approach, her suit covered in dust and drawing power from its emergency reserve.
"It can move without the loader," she told Zeyu after reviewing its diagnostics.
"You were right about the angle."
Zhiyi nodded. "Yes."
The simplicity of her answer made him laugh.
An alarm sounded inside her helmet, bringing Hanchuan toward her immediately.
"You’re returning to the airlock."
Zhiyi didn’t argue. She turned toward Xiling while Jingwei eased the command vehicle across the damaged ground behind them.
Its rear wheel reached the soil loosened during the extraction and dropped suddenly. The command unit lurched sideways as its suspension compressed, dislodging the soil, gravel and broken stone still piled across its roof.
Zeyu heard Shichen shout a warning as Hanchuan reached for Zhiyi.
The debris fell before either man could touch her.
It struck Zhiyi from behind and swept her legs out from beneath her. She disappeared into the shallow drainage trench as the soil, gravel and shattered concrete poured over her.
Dust swallowed the northern approach, and Zeyu lost sight of her completely.
For one disorienting moment, the only sound reaching him was the medical alarm inside his helmet. Hanchuan stood where the falling debris had stopped him, one hand still extended toward the place his wife had occupied.
None of them moved as the dust thinned, revealing the uneven mound filling the drainage trench. Nothing disturbed its surface.
Then Zeyu saw the upper edge of a pale helmet protruding from the debris.
Zhiyi’s face remained visible behind the dust-covered visor, but her eyes were closed. Soil surrounded her helmet and concealed everything below her chin.
The status reading for her cooling suit disappeared from their displays.
Hanchuan stared at his wife from less than a meter away. His hand remained suspended between them, but he seemed incapable of crossing the remaining distance.
Zhiyi did not move.