Chapter 161 Woman shaped island

Chapter 161: Chapter 161 Woman shaped island

Reality changed.

It twisted right before their eyes as the aircraft passed through the strange portal, the world outside stretching and warping as though space itself had been folded in half. For a few seconds, Luna couldn’t make sense of what she was seeing.

Then everything suddenly snapped back into place.

They were no longer inside the strange black vortex. They were somewhere else. Another world.

And strangely enough, it wasn’t the disastrous kind of world they had escaped from.

Luna’s eyes immediately scanned their surroundings. They were still flying at a high altitude above the sea, but the water beneath them wasn’t the grim, unnatural black they had become accustomed to. It was blue. Almost normal. The sky was bright. The clouds looked peaceful.

There were no giant monsters attacking them. No flying abominations. No blackened ocean swallowing the land. For a moment, it almost felt like they had returned to the old world.

Almost.

Luna didn’t relax. If anything, the peaceful appearance made her more suspicious. She had learned the hard way that the most dangerous things didn’t always announce themselves.

"If not for the reason we’re here," Ethan said suddenly, looking through the window, "I would have suggested we go on vacation." He laughed. "I mean, seriously. Look at this place." He leaned back into his seat. "I could really use some cool air against my body." His eyes narrowed as he remembered the scorching sun from their own world. "Anything would be better than that damn sunlight that feels like it’s trying to roast us alive."

Luna glanced at him. "Well, that vacation is dead." She casually waved her hand. "So forget about it forever."

Ethan’s smile dropped. "That was unnecessarily cruel."

Luna ignored him and returned her attention to the controls.

The aircraft continued forward. Rowan, however, was watching her. He followed the direction she was flying and slowly frowned.

Ahead of them was an island. A massive one. But the longer he stared at it, the stranger it looked. Its shape was unusual. From above, the hills and vegetation almost formed the outline of a woman lying peacefully on her back. It looked like a sleeping woman.

Rowan’s eyes narrowed. "Shit."

Luna glanced at him. "What?"

"Are we going in there?" He pointed toward the island. His expression had become serious.

Luna looked at the system panel. The red marker was still blinking. She didn’t understand why Rowan was so worried.

"Look at that." She pointed at the display. "It says our destination is right ahead." She looked through the windshield. "Whatever we’re supposed to find is somewhere inside that island." Luna shrugged. "Looking at it isn’t going to accomplish anything. We find them and leave before something attacks us." She raised one eyebrow. "Simple."

Her perfectly shaped brows lifted slightly, framing her eyes in a way that made her look even more striking.

Rowan stared at her for a second too long. He swallowed. His throat suddenly felt dry. There was something about the way she spoke so confidently while sitting there, completely unfazed by the unknown world ahead of them.

Ethan noticed. A smirk appeared on his face. He deliberately coughed. Loudly.

"Maybe shift a little."

Luna looked at him.

Ethan scratched his head. "I think you’re getting a little too close to each other."

Luna blinked. "What?"

"If someone was looking at you from this direction, they’d probably assume you two were about to kiss." He raised both hands. "Which I know isn’t happening." Then he grinned. "But you’re definitely not beating the allegations."

Luna immediately realized how close she had moved toward Rowan while they were talking. She scrambled back into her seat. "I wasn’t—" She stopped.

Her eyes met Rowan’s.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. Their gazes locked. There was something heated in the silence.

Rowan’s expression shifted slightly. Luna’s eyes remained fixed on his.

Ethan watched them both. He could practically see the tension building.

Rowan’s mind, meanwhile, had already wandered somewhere Ethan didn’t even want to imagine.

He quickly cleared his throat. "That’s not what this is." He tried to recover. "We were just discussing the situation." He glanced toward Rowan. "Right?"

Rowan didn’t answer. He was still staring at Luna.

Ethan’s smile disappeared. He waved a hand. "Rowan?"

Nothing.

"Rowan."

Still nothing.

Ethan finally shouted. "ROWAN!"

Rowan blinked. His eyes focused again. He looked at both of them, completely lost. "Is there a problem?"

Luna and Ethan stared at him.

"Have you guys been talking to me this whole time?"

Ethan slowly facepalmed. Luna turned back toward the front. Neither of them wanted to deal with this.

Ethan sighed. "Well, Luna, I guess we should move forward." He looked toward the island. "If we’re going to stay, we’ll spend the entire day standing here." He shrugged. "And like you said, exploring an unexplored place without knowing what we’re dealing with isn’t exactly a good idea."

Luna settled back into her seat. She reached toward the ignition. The controls immediately shifted into place. The aircraft hummed. The engines came alive. Then it began moving forward again.

The island grew larger. The closer they got, the more unsettling it became. The vegetation was enormous. Trees covered almost every visible part of the land. The island was even larger than the territory surrounding their base.

Yet the strangest part remained its shape. From above, it still looked like a sleeping woman.

Luna couldn’t shake the feeling that landing on it would somehow awaken whatever the island represented. She didn’t like that thought.

"Everyone, keep your eyes open." Her voice became serious. "If you see anything unusual, tell me immediately." She looked at Rowan. "And Rowan..."

He turned toward her.

"We’re here already." Luna’s expression softened slightly. "I’d appreciate it if you could put everything you’re thinking about aside and focus on Kai and Adrian." Her voice carried something almost pleading. "They’re important to me." She paused. "I want them back with us."

Rowan’s expression immediately changed. The distraction disappeared. "Understood."

Ethan glanced at him. He had noticed it again. That look Rowan always had whenever Luna gave him attention. But Ethan decided not to comment. It was the same old Rowan. Always trying to get Luna’s attention.

Still, Ethan wasn’t going to fight him over it. He wasn’t some animal fighting over food. Besides, Luna had started talking to him more naturally lately. She shared things with him that she normally kept to herself. Maybe, eventually, she might even give him her heart. But Ethan wasn’t going to become delusional over it.

Not yet.

His attention shifted back to the island. He began studying everything around them. Rowan did the same.

For several minutes, neither man spoke.

Then Rowan frowned. "Is it just me..."

Luna looked toward him.

"...or is this island strange?" He pointed toward the forest. "It’s supposed to be full of living things, right?"

Luna nodded.

"But I haven’t heard anything." Rowan looked around. "No birds." He paused. "No insects." "No animals." "Nothing."

Luna slowly stopped the aircraft. It remained suspended in the air directly above the edge of the island.

Ethan leaned closer to the window.

Rowan continued. "For something that looks like it should be full of life, it’s completely silent."

Ethan studied the trees. "He’s right." He narrowed his eyes. "And those trees don’t look natural either."

Luna looked at him.

Ethan pointed toward the nearest tree. "I’ve never seen bark shaped like that."

The surface looked almost twisted. Its leaves were even stranger. One of them had the shape of a bone. Another resembled something closer to a claw than a leaf. The roots were massive. They spread across the island like veins, twisting through the soil and wrapping around other trees.

Ethan’s expression became uncomfortable. "Those roots look like they’re covering the entire island."

Rowan looked farther ahead. Then he noticed something else. "There’s something over there."

Luna followed his gaze. Because they were still above the island, they had a clear view. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

A broken plane lay deep within the vegetation. Part of its body had disappeared beneath the trees. Another section was sticking out of the forest.

Ethan stared at it. "That’s definitely a plane."

Luna’s expression became serious. Someone had crashed here. Which meant they weren’t necessarily the first people to arrive.

Rowan continued analyzing the surroundings. "Based on everything we’ve seen, I don’t think anything is coming out of that island." He paused. "But that doesn’t mean it’s safe." His eyes narrowed. "The possibility of surviving inside there isn’t guaranteed." He looked toward Luna. "We could enter and never come back out."

Luna watched him through the rearview mirror. Then she shrugged. "If I didn’t leave a supermarket that didn’t have my men inside, I’m not leaving this place now." Her voice was calm. "Kai and Adrian are in there." She turned toward the windshield. "Of course I know it’s dangerous." Her fingers wrapped around the controls. "But we’re going."

Rowan sighed. He knew there was no changing her mind.

Luna slid the seat belt across her body and secured it. Then she accelerated. The aircraft moved over the trees.

The vegetation below became denser. The farther they went, the more difficult it became to see the ground. Branches reached upward. Huge leaves covered entire sections of forest. The strange roots twisted between the trees.

Then—Rowan’s eyes suddenly widened. He leaned forward. His hands moved toward the window.

"Stop!"

Luna immediately looked at him. "What?"

Rowan pointed downward. "I’ve seen them." He slapped his hands together in excitement. "Kai and Adrian!"

The aircraft immediately began slowing.

Luna’s heart jumped. After everything they had endured to find them, they might finally be only seconds away from being reunited.