Frozen Sea

17. Emergency

The group's tension hadn't lifted yet. Albeit now a few people shorter, the remains of the team were still sitting together in silence, all brooding over their thoughts. Hongjoong was playing an idle game of kicking feet with San opposite of him, while Seungyoun was quietly sitting at Yohan's side and keeping him and Waddles company.

The minutes passed with no noise crossing them apart from the howling of the storm against the cliffs and Yohan or Waddles' little noises. Hongjoong was worried about their friends out there and was inwardly praying for their wellbeing as he nervously nibbled on his fingernails.

The air seemed thick enough to be cut with a knife. Nobody in the group knew whether talking or keeping their indestructible silence was the better way for them to go.

It was exhausting; doing nothing was exhausting. Hongjoong felt desperate to do something, but there was nothing for them to spend their time with. It was only waiting and worrying about their friends outside in the freezing cold.

Hongjoong tried not to think too hard about it. If he let his mind wander, it told him about how Jongho and Wooyoung would be dead before they even heard of an emergency, and how Seonghwa and Yeosang could get trapped somewhere with no way back out until somebody found them in the dangerous white arctic full of deep canyons.

Shivering, Hongjoong burrowed more into his hoodie. San had trailed off, too, and their feet laid still between the two of them.

San was the first one to break the silence, ripping himself out of his own worries just how Hongjoong constantly had to.

"I'm rechecking the comms. I can still receive messages from Seonghwa and Yeosang through our own systems, but the storm weakens them. It doesn't seem as if there is anything yet."

"Can you put them on speaker?" Hongjoong asked quietly and with his voice sounding fragile in the silent room.

San nodded wordlessly before tapping away at the computer on his wrist. Soon, the crackling and rushing of the storm could be heard.

"Seonghwa? Where are you now?"

"We have just arrived at Delta Island. I'm picking up confusing signals from the tower. It does not seem damaged, but it is not functioning either."

San exhaled before giving a slow nod. Tense, Hongjoong fiddled with his fingers. Seungyoun was staring at his feet.

"The satellite is all messed up. It keeps getting turning randomly, and I think it might have lost its connection to the one in outer space. The storm might confuse the signal." Jongho's voice was muffled and sounded from slightly farther away. A crackle made it hard to understand him.

"Do you think you can fix it?"

For a moment, nobody said anything, and it was just their harsh breaths and the storm.

"Maybe. The probability is high, but the storm might need to settle beforehand. We could also deploy a smaller group here to sit out the case and fix it then."

A short conversation between the few of them that was too clipped to understand well followed. Then, Seonghwa leaned towards his comm again.

"Yeosang, Jongho, and Mingi have offered themselves as tributes. We will do our best, and then I will return with Yunho and Wooyoung."

That was good news. Then, they had a goal; they would only have to wait.

Hongjoong let go of a breath. San threw him an empathetic smile. Seungyoun, too, allowed himself to show more hope on his face. He ruffled Yohan's fur, murmuring calming litanies to the three of them.