Chapter 27 Chapter 27 Electric Wind

As Jimmy flew back, the northern part of Narama looked unimaginably far away, and even the huge three staircases could only be seen faintly, like a vague Y carved on the arched shell that closed the world.The Sea of ​​Columns was a hostile trap waiting for him, like to devour him once those fragile wings were damaged. But aside from being a little tired, he's fine for now.He has not moved for food and water, and he has not rested because of excitement.On the return trip he was able to fly with ease, and he was also happy to think that he could fly 20 kilometers less than when he returned.Because after crossing the sea, he can make an emergency landing at any time, even if he has to walk a long way.Although the "Flying Dragon" had to be sacrificed in this way, it still gave him a sense of security.

He is now climbing, flying toward the center cone.The tip of the big horn was still 1,000 meters ahead, and he couldn't help but feel that the tip of the needle was the axis of rotation of the whole world. When he had almost reached the tip of the horn, he began to have a strange sensation, which he could not describe, but which made him feel general physical and psychological discomfort.He suddenly remembered--and it didn't help him in any way--to glance over a line of poetry: "Someone is walking over his grave." At first, he put the feeling aside and continued to pedal.He certainly did not expect to report such a trivial matter to the hub post.But when things got worse, he was going to report.It couldn't be psychological, and his skin began to itch.

This made him very alert, and he stopped to consider the current situation in mid-air.What made things even stranger was that this heavy, oppressive feeling wasn't entirely foreign; he'd had it before, but couldn't remember where. He looked around.Nothing has changed.The big horn was a few hundred meters above his head, and above it the other half of Rama spread the wide sky.Below 8,000 meters is the complex-shaped area of ​​the Southern Continent, full of magic, which no one else has ever seen.He could find no reason for his discomfort on that alien, now accustomed horizon. Something was biting the back of his hand, and he thought it was an insect, so he tried to push it away without even looking.But the movement stopped halfway through, and he felt a little silly: of course, no one had ever seen an insect in Lamari...

He raised his hand and glanced at it, for the tingling was still there.It wasn't until this moment that he realized that every hair on his body was standing on end, including his entire forearm; when he touched his head with his hand, he found that his hair was also standing on end. Here's the problem: it turns out he's in a very strong electric field.That heavy feeling of oppression is the same as that sometimes encountered before thunderstorms on earth. The sudden understanding of his situation almost knocked him out.Never in his life had he been in real, personal danger.Like all astronauts, he had his frustrating moments when his equipment failed, and sometimes he mistakenly thought he was cornered due to mishandling or inexperience, but the panic lasted only a few minutes and was generally laughed off. .

This time it was not so easy.He was alone and naked in the suddenly hostile sky, surrounded by a huge force that would burst into full bloom at any moment. The "Dragon" was already slender enough, but now it was even more useless, and it would be smashed to pieces in an instant with one light blow from the precursor of the storm. "The hub post," he said urgently, "is building up a static charge all around me. I think there's going to be a lightning strike at any moment." Before he finished speaking, a flash of lightning flashed behind him, and when he counted to ten, thunder rang, and it was at the other end of the small corner.He looked back, and the six needles seemed to be on fire, emitting a beam of electric charge hundreds of meters long, just like some giant lightning rods.

The same thing will happen in a larger form on the tip of the pyramid.He had to get away from this dangerous thing as quickly as possible, and he pedaled hard while lowering his altitude to avoid it.The ominously horned black needle had no visible discharge yet, but there was undoubtedly a powerful build-up of potential energy there.The roar of thunder sounded from behind him from time to time, reverberating around the ring world.Jimmy suddenly wondered that there should be thunder in such a clear sky, and then he realized that this was not a meteorological phenomenon at all.In fact, this is just a small leak of energy hidden deep in the southern tip of Rama.But why now?More importantly, what's next?

He has flown over the tip of the horn, hoping to avoid the lightning discharge area as soon as possible.But he encountered a new problem: the air turned into a swirl, making it difficult for the Dragon to maneuver.A gust of wind came from nowhere, shaking the slender wing bones of the "Flying Dragon" and twisting it. There was something else that worried him: he heard a constant, growing hiss that seemed to come from the direction of the big horn, and it sounded like a leak from a high-pressure valve.He thought maybe that was what made the air turbulent.But what caused it?That was the deeper mystery that disturbed him even more.

Intermittently, breathlessly, and briefly, he reported these phenomena to the hub post.There was no one to give him advice or advice, and it made him feel better to hear the voices of his friends, although he was beginning to realize that he might never see them again. The turbulence of the air is getting stronger and stronger.He seemed to be in a vent stream.But inside the Rama, what is there to generate the jet stream? He asks himself the right question, and after analysis he knows the answer. The sound he heard was an electric wind that carried away the mass of ions that had accumulated around the horn.The charged air is ejected outward along the Rama's radial lines, prompting more air to flow to the low-pressure area behind.He looked back at the monstrous, massive needle, trying to discern the boundaries of the airflow.Perhaps it would be better to listen by ear, to avoid the ominous hiss as much as possible, as far away as possible.

But Rama didn't let him have a choice.A flame erupted behind him, illuminating the sky.He had just had time to see it split into six ribbons of fire that shot out from the tip of the large horn and curved back to the tip of each smaller horn.At this moment, he was hit! ----------------------------- Notes: