The Sahara Desert, known as the world’s largest and most inhospitable desert, is rarely visited by humans, and even resilient desert animals are seldom seen here.
However, while Lin Rui and Thor battled in the central Sahara Desert, not too far from them, behind a sand dune, a twelve-person desert expedition team from a university in Washington, USA, was setting up camp to rest.
Led by a professor specializing in environmental science, the desert expedition team had come to study the desert environment for their research project of the semester.
Consequently, the professor’s students had no choice but to accompany him. With a generous budget, the professor brought five of his students along and hired five experienced retired soldiers with desert survival skills, as well as a local guide familiar with the terrain.
Although this twelve-person team was well-prepared with top-notch equipment, their vehicle had broken down a day before. At first, this mishap did not significantly impact them, as they could simply abandon the vehicle since they had money to spare.
However, they soon encountered a sandstorm that lasted for hours, which plunged them into extreme difficulties.
After the sandstorm subsided, they realized that they had lost contact with the outside world, despite their experienced decision to stay in place and the global positioning system still working.
Worse yet, some of the students fell ill in such harsh conditions. Though they had enough medicine, it seemed ineffective in their current state.
Now, apart from resting in place and conserving their energy as much as possible, the team had to rely on luck for the rest. However, neither the cause of the sandstorm nor their location could be determined. Even the local guide was uncertain about the way back.
“Professor Astor, we still can’t get in touch with the desert rescue team.” After another failed attempt to establish a satellite communication link with the outside world, one of the five experienced mercenaries approached the professor, who was sitting weakly inside the vehicle.
Their situation was clear; they were trapped. At present, they had enough food and water to last a few days, as long as no unforeseen events occurred. However, in the desert, who could guarantee that nothing unexpected would happen in the next second?
If they failed to contact the desert rescue team in the coming days, the mercenary team, along with the guide, would have to leave before running out of supplies. Otherwise, remaining stationary in the desert would only lead to their demise.
“Still… no contact?” Hearing the mercenary’s words, Professor Astor, who was sweltering inside the vehicle, responded wearily with a tinge of helplessness.
“How are Alice and the others? Are they feeling better?”
“They’re still the same. If they don’t receive the treatment in time, their condition will worsen.”
“Ugh! Are the people from the desert rescue team fools? How long has it been since we last sent them a signal? Why haven’t they sent anyone to search for us?” Upon hearing the mercenary mention that some of his students were unwell, Professor Astor was angry, but he lacked the energy to vent his frustration.
Every expedition team entering the Sahara Desert would send a safety message to the local search team every few hours. If they exceeded the expected time without a response, the rescue team would know they encountered difficulties.
Once a specific period elapsed, the search would commence. Furthermore, since Professor Astor’s team came from an American university, they also had a backup team.
“It’s probably not that they don’t want to rescue us; they likely haven’t found us yet. Finding a team that has experienced a sandstorm in the desert is extremely difficult.” In response to Professor Astor’s complaints, the mercenary briefly explained.
“So, what do we do now? Are we just going to wait here?”
“That’s the best option for now. At least, with our current food and water supply, we can hold on for a few more days.”
Boom, Boom, Boom!
Just as the mercenary captain and Professor Astor were discussing their situation, a sudden rumbling sound emanated from the other side of a small sand dune in front of them, sounding like thunder.
“Uh? A thunderstorm?!” Upon hearing the commotion, Professor Astor’s spirits suddenly lifted, and his tone became more animated.
“Could it be that the rescue team sent fighter jets for the search?” Unlike Professor Astor’s assumption, the mercenary captain hoped that the rumbling sound was from fighter jet engines.
Boom, Boom, Boom!
Crack!
However, the mercenary captain’s hopes were dashed; the rumbling continued, but there was no sign of fighter jets. Instead, it was followed by the sound of continuous thunder and lightning produced by the thunderstorm. Astonishingly, just as Professor Astor had said but couldn’t believe, a thunderstorm was indeed occurring in the Sahara Desert!
“It’s real! A thunderstorm in the desert! I must record this!” The activity behind the sand dune never stopped, and Professor Astor no longer appeared weak and weary.
Shouting with excitement, Professor Astor leaped out of the vehicle and quickly retrieved his equipment, calling out to three students who had not fallen ill.
“Let’s go! Such a rare weather change must be documented!” Apparently, Professor Astor had forgotten about their current predicament as he enthusiastically urged his students to climb toward the sand dune.
Seeing Professor Astor’s excitement, his three students could only follow him with resignation, carrying some simple equipment. As for the mercenaries, three of them also joined the expedition, while the remaining two stayed behind to guard the camp.
Though the sand dune appeared short and not too far away, it took considerable effort for Professor Astor and his group to climb up. After their arduous climb, they reached the top just as the ongoing thunderstorm seemed to be coming to an end.
The dark clouds in the sky above the sand dune had started to dissipate under the blazing sun, and soon, they vanished.
“Ah! How did it disappear so quickly?!” Professor Astor, whose two old legs almost gave out during the climb, watched with disappointment as the dark clouds vanished from above the sand dune. This was an extremely rare weather phenomenon.
Pū Pū Pū!
As Professor Astor shouted in disappointment, the students who had climbed up after him dropped their equipment on the sandy ground and sat down; they were utterly exhausted. While they were helplessly looking at the now-disappeared dark clouds, a sudden burst of powerful energy emanated from the area beneath the former cloud cover.
“There… seems to be something there!” As soon as the energy fluctuations emerged from the desert, the mercenary captain, who had followed them, observed and promptly alerted the group.
Boom!
…
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