Moth to a Flame

Cinque| Do or Die

THIRD PERSON

It was getting hard to breathe, and she thought this would be her end, but God had mercy on her. Behind the man was Nat, holding a fire extinguisher. Walang pag-aalinlangan nitong hinampas sa ulo ng  lalaki ang hawak dahilan upang matumba ito. Sachal immediately faced the yoke and tried to recover it. 

Nat's eyes dropped on the unconscious man on the floor.  He's not dead, is he? Mabuti na lang ay paharap siyang pinosasan kaya kahit nahihirapan siya ay nakuha niya pa rin ang fire extinguisher sa tabi upang iligtas ang kasama niya. Mabilis siyang kumilos upang hanapin ang susi ng posas sa nakabulagtang lalaki. 

"Caution, Terrain! Caution, Terrain!" Awtomatikong napalingon si Greece at Nat nang marinig ang warning systems ng eroplano. The beeping was loud enough to make everyone inside the cockpit lose their minds. 

"Cazzo!" Greece cursed under his breath. Nagtungo na rin ito sa direksyon ni Nat upang tumulong sa paghanap ng susi. 

"Caution, Terrain! Caution, Terrain!" Isang mahabang hininga ang pinakawalan ng dilag. The flight controls glitched in color, warning her of the disaster if she did not take control of the plane. 

She can't see from the thick clouds, and her mind is panicking hearing the warning signs due to a resurfacing memory she'd been trying to forget. Muli ay naririnig niya na naman ang matinis na tunog na sumisiring sa tenga niya. She couldn't get her mind out of it. 

Meanwhile, Nat successfully unclasped the handcuffs on his wrist and helped Greece untie himself. Greece immediately closed the cockpit door. Hugot hininga itong napasandal sa pinto habang niluluwagan ang tie na suot upang pakalmahin ang sarili. He almost died! 

"Sasha!" Pumwesto si Nat sa kanang pilot seat habang nakatingin sa terrain display. He was unsure of their position, but the display showed they were approaching a high ground. 

They were about to leave the Mongolian airspace, and if he remembered it right, there was a nearby mountain. They're approaching Khüiten Peak! 

"We're 25,000 ft and decreasing! Sasha, snap out of it!" Natlan shakes her arms. Now, this brings back the memories of how they first met. Naalala niyang ilang beses siya nito pinagsasampal para lang matauhan. If it wasn't for her, he could have died together with his passengers. 

He had no idea what was keeping her head in the clouds and unresponsive, but he would try his best to bring her back no matter what it took. As much as he wants to control the plane to recover it, he can't because the control of the yoke is on her. 

[Note: Every pilot seat has a yoke, but it only moves in one direction depending on who's in control]

Flashes of memories surged in her mind. It was followed by a loud ringing in her ears that kept her distracted from thinking straight. Those memories. Dark. Sorrow. Regrets. 

She thought she had forgotten about it and moved on. It turns out it just took her to be in the same situation again to remember her traumatic past. 

A loud banging on the door alerted Natlan and Greece. It was a sound of repeated knocking and kicking as if someone from the outside wanted to blast the door open. "I'll hold the door. Have her control the plane, Natlan!" Greece retorted after glancing at the surveillance camera and seeing armed men at the cockpit's door. 

"Shit!" Kanya-kanyang kapit ang mga ito dahil sa pagiging unstable ng eroplano. When Natlan looked at the altitude indicator, they were already 20,000 ft above the ground. Ahead of them was a tall mountain measuring 14,000 ft, and the longer the plane was descending, the more their lives were in grave danger.