With my lungs and mouth full of air, my body automatically tried to keep floating. Should I have carried something heavy? After a moment's thought, I consoled myself, deciding to move based on my own judgment since I was already in the water. I then plunged my head down and started moving my legs.
I continued to descend vertically, using the strength of my legs and the curves of my body to push through. I pushed away or threw to the side anything that got in my way. I descended by grabbing onto the long metal handles installed on the walls, railings, and structures of the second floor, but I had no way of knowing how much time had passed.
I quickly passed the second floor and reached the first floor, where I could see the railing. I moved forward with both hands and kicked my legs frantically to keep descending. My lungs began to hurt, and I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I saw a few air bubbles escape from my mouth as I continued to kick.
Why am I trying so hard to survive? The Earth is a water planet, yet humans can't survive underwater for more than 10 minutes. Isn't it ironic that the very people who have already destroyed the oceans are now struggling so much to survive? All sorts of thoughts flooded my mind. ...Putting my head underwater seems to make me overly sensitive. Even when I just take a shower, I start pondering the meaning of existence, but as soon as I try to dry my hair, I become more lazy and stupid than anyone else. Once I get out of here, I won't have these thoughts. I need to focus on my goal right now.
Because I had descended vertically from the third-floor supply room, I found the first-floor supply room more easily than expected. This was due to the map I had studied and the simulations I had run in my head before descending. I hung from the long metal handles installed on the walls of the first-floor building, moving as close to the wall as possible.
According to the underwater base guidebook, these metal handles were left on the walls because the entire base was once submerged in water. They were initially installed to make it easier for construction workers and divers to move around, but later they were also used to assist disabled people using the facility, and now they were helping me. They were more useful than I thought. ...Kevin Wilson died by hitting his head on one of these metal handles.
The valve was located lower than I had anticipated. I felt around with my hands to confirm it was the right valve and tried to turn it counterclockwise. ...It was much stiffer than I expected, probably because it hadn't been used in a long time. I lowered my legs, which were floating upward, and grabbed the valve with both feet. Using my forearms and arms, I pressed my body against the valve and tried to turn it sideways. After struggling to turn the stiff handle half a turn, I finally managed to complete a full turn, but the valve wouldn't budge any further no matter how hard I tried.
Where is the drain? I turned my head this way and that, and in the distance, I saw countless tiny holes on the floor, each smaller than a fingernail. Despite feeling a bit disgusted, I had the sensation of looking at a place where a tooth had just fallen out, leaving only the gums. Hmm. This is a strange feeling. I spat out a few drops of water and released my grip on the valve. Then, I kicked the floor to start ascending.
As I ascended, I had to rely solely on the strength of my calves and thighs. Even though I tried hard not to lose the air in my mouth, I had unknowingly let out a bit of air while using my strength to turn the valve. My lungs, chest, throat, and head all hurt.
My legs started kicking the water with incredible speed to survive, but it felt like I wasn't making much progress. I kept kicking my calves and thighs without stopping, careful not to lose the remaining air in my mouth.
Just as I passed the first floor and approached the second floor, I saw Benjamin approaching me. I waved at him, but he ignored me and quickly ascended. He used the second-floor railing as a launchpad to jump to the surface. Soon, the surface came into view, and I swam frantically to reach it.
As soon as I reached the surface, I opened my mouth and gulped down as much air as I could. I accidentally swallowed a mouthful of water because I mistimed opening my mouth and breathing. Salty and bitter. I coughed and spat, eventually making my way to the third-floor corridor, which was already partially flooded. My long-sleeved T-shirt, which I had left on the floor, was floating in the water. I picked it up, wrung out the water, and used a towel to dry myself before draping the T-shirt over my neck. Then, I sat down on the corridor floor, water dripping from my face.
It felt so good to breathe freely again. I could feel my body rejoicing as it filled with oxygen. My calves and thighs felt like they were on fire. My legs, which I rarely exercised, seemed to be cursing me. I couldn't move at all. My body wouldn't respond. I took several deep breaths, filling and emptying my lungs, and then sat motionless on the floor, which was now submerged by 5-6 cm of water, counting the number of people. It took me two counts to realize there were nine people, including myself.
Yugum and Kim Gayoung saw me and smiled, waving. I gave them a thumbs-up. I wondered who hadn't come and then saw Lee Jihyeon, the last one, emerge from the water, exhausted, with a loud splash. Logan and Sam, who were nearby, pulled Lee Jihyeon out of the water. Lee Jihyeon, unable to move her fingers, was lying on the corridor floor, coughing. Yugum patted Lee Jihyeon's back.
I thought about bringing a towel to Lee Jihyeon but then remembered the water and my wet feet. ...The cat! The cat in the backpack on the floor! The snake! Panicked, I ran quickly to the small office where I had left the backpack, but I slipped in the water and flailed my arms before cautiously walking down the corridor. My brother had given me a waterproof backpack as a gift! It shouldn't have gotten wet, right? Can both of them swim? Does the cat swim well? What about the snake? They'll be okay! They have to be okay! ...What do I do?
I rushed into the office where I had left the backpack and saw that everything on the floor was floating, submerged by about 10 cm of water. I searched the room frantically for my backpack, which was floating in the water. ...It was nowhere to be found. I wondered if the waterproof backpack had floated out of the office and into the corridor. I searched the nearby corridor but then heard a low thud. I looked over and saw that the sound was coming from the director's office across the hall. Could the cat have caused such a noise? ...How would I know?
I quickly opened the door to the director's office, which was located at the opposite end of the corridor, and was speechless at the sight before me. The dead bodies I had laid in the room were now floating and bumping into each other, and they were now colliding with the door I had just opened. Several bodies were floating and piling up against the wall in the distance.
After a few seconds of shock, I felt an overwhelming urge to scream and a wave of fear. I stood frozen, staring at the bodies, and then shakily closed the door to the director's office. ...I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything. It feels like a nightmare. Ah, damn.
I slowly moved away from the door, and my breathing finally steadied. I took a deep breath and started wandering the corridor again. Kim Gayoung, who had been watching me run around, asked:
"Muhyeon! What are you doing?"
"My backpack!"
"Follow me."
Kim Gayoung entered the small office and retrieved the backpack from the highest drawer of a cabinet that was bolted to the floor. I had noticed that all sorts of papers were floating on the floor. With tears welling up, I hugged the backpack she handed me and asked:
"I left it on the floor."
"I moved it here because I didn't know how quickly the water would rise. The pad, shoes, and socks are all here too."
"Thank you for taking care of it."
Tears didn't just well up in my eyes but seemed to rise from my chest. I suppressed the overwhelming sense of relief and opened the backpack to check if the cat and the snake were safe. The cat, which had been sleeping in the dark, squinted and blinked as light entered the bag. The snake was coiled up as usual. They both seemed annoyed by my frantic checking. Phew. Oh my God. Oh my. ...I'm sorry. I'm really terrible at taking care of animals. I'm sorry. I'll do better next time. I should have been more careful.
Kim Gayoung was distributing the pads to everyone. I felt all the strength drain from my body. I took the last dry towel from the bag, careful not to disturb the cat, which was now lying on a whale plushie on the floor.
I placed the wet towel on my head and wrung out my long-sleeved T-shirt twice before putting it on. Then, I slung the backpack over my shoulder. The familiar weight on my back gave me a newfound sense of security.
After taking a deep sigh, I walked out into the corridor in a daze. People were talking about how impressively they had opened the drainage valve and swum out of the water. I heard voices comparing themselves to dolphins, sharks, whales, and rays.
Sam was teasing Canoe and Jason, saying they must be king prawns and king crabs, while Canoe was laughing and calling Sam a sea monkey. I shook my head and tried to clear the water from my ears.
Lee Jihyeon, drenched in water, grabbed a chair that was rolling down the corridor and sat on it like a throne, holding the pad Kim Gayoung had given her. She looked like an Olympic swimmer who had just won a gold medal. She drank water from a bottle that Yugum handed her and was navigating to the engineering system on the pad.
When I handed a dry towel to Lee Jihyeon, she roughly wiped her face, which was stained with deep fatigue, and her trembling fingers before passing the towel to Yugum, who was also wet. As Lee Jihyeon activated the automatic drainage system from the engineering system, she warned everyone:
"Entering the water now is dangerous. Once the drainage system starts, the water will drain through the open drains. The water pressure and flow rate in the drains are very high, so you shouldn't enter the water."