Just as Nana's finger touched the start button, the control panel screen suddenly flickered. The next second, a piercing buzzing sound exploded—not the preset low-frequency earthquake hum, but the urgent, rapid-fire sound of a flood alarm.
Chen Hao looked up abruptly. The smoke machine hadn't moved, the fans weren't spinning, but the alarm had already sounded, and red lights were flashing wildly around the area.
"Stop!" He grabbed the walkie-talkie. "Everyone stay put! This is not the signal for the first phase!"
Susan was about to rush towards the platform when she heard the shout and stopped abruptly. She stood there panting, her hands still on her knees.
Carl scrambled to his feet, nearly falling into the ditch with a jolt. "What happened? We agreed to walk along the designated path first."
“The program malfunctioned.” Nana stared at the screen, her fingers quickly swiping to retrieve the logs. “A signal conflict occurred during the main control system loading, mistakenly triggering the second-stage alarm sequence.”
"So, does this count as the start?" Carl asked.
“That doesn’t count.” Chen Hao tucked the walkie-talkie back into his waistband. “Let’s start again. This time it only counts if I say ‘start’.”
Nana tapped the screen a few times to close the current command and manually switch to the backup trigger program. The devices reset one by one, the alarm stopped, and the red lights went out.
The open space fell silent, with only the whooshing sound of the wind blowing through the scaffolding.
"Let's do it again." Chen Hao looked around at the three of them. "Remember, in the first round, don't interfere, just follow the route. Act on my commands."
Nana confirmed that all parameters had been reset and raised her hand to indicate that she was ready.
The countdown restarts in ten seconds.
This time, the ticking sound came to an end.
"start!"
The earthquake warning sounded precisely on time, a deep hum growing louder as it approached. The seismic platform activated simultaneously, and a slight tremor was felt on the ground. Smoke machines slowly emitted grayish-white gas, gradually filling the lower atmosphere. Twelve fans turned on in sequence, the wind force gradually increasing.
The four immediately moved along the predetermined route.
Chen Hao led the way, constantly looking back to confirm his position as he ran. Susan followed closely behind, her steps steady. Carl lagged in the middle, his breathing a little erratic but still keeping up. Nana brought up the rear, observing the equipment's status while keeping an eye on the team members' movements.
Everything seems normal.
Until the third minute.
The smoke suddenly thickened, rolling like a gray cloud close to the ground. The release, which was supposed to last three minutes, was completed twice the normal dose ahead of schedule. Vision quickly blurred.
“Something’s not right.” Susan stopped in her tracks. “The visibility is too low.”
"Keep going!" Chen Hao waved. "Follow the original route, don't stop!"
Carl covered his mouth and nose and rushed forward, but after a few steps he veered off course. He should have turned right to bypass the sprinkler area, but instead he rushed straight into the unsealed drainage ditch.
"Karl! Left!" Chen Hao shouted.
Too late.
With a dull thud, the floor tile loosened, and Karl lost his footing, falling forward. His right leg got stuck in the gap at the edge of the ditch, and he couldn't move.
"I'm stuck!" He reached out and grabbed the edge of the ditch. "My legs can't get out!"
Chen Hao immediately turned and ran back. Susan also turned back, and the two of them squatted down on either side to check the situation.
"Don't move," Chen Hao said. "The more you struggle, the tighter it will become."
The trench was a temporary drainage channel dug yesterday, and it hasn't been sealed yet. The paving stones at the edges weren't securely fixed, and they shifted due to the vibration of the platform.
"Does it hurt?" Susan asked.
"It doesn't hurt, but I just can't pull it out." Carl tried to lift his leg, but it only sank deeper. "How come this place is so good at choosing its moment?"
"Don't talk, save your energy." Chen Hao stood up and looked at Nana. "Can you help me?"
Nana has already maneuvered the D7 robot close to the edge of the ditch. A small probe extends underneath to scan the structure's stability.
Five seconds later, a safety warning popped up on the screen: **The supporting structure is intact and there is no risk of collapse. It is recommended to use the three-point traction method for rescue.**
“You can pull,” Nana said, “but you must exert force on both sides to avoid secondary injury caused by force on one side.”
"Understood." Chen Hao and Susan each grabbed Carl's arm. "One, two, three—up!"
With the help of the three of them, Karl was finally pulled out. He sat on the ground rubbing his legs, his face pale but still smiling.
"For a second just now, I thought I was going to be the first living person to die in the exercise."
"You're still alive." Chen Hao handed her the water bottle. "That means the exercise was effective."
"Effective my foot." Karl took a swig of water. "Who has someone buried alive within the first three minutes of an exercise?"
“The problem isn’t with you.” Nana pulled up the console data. “The smoke release exceeded the set value by 70 percent because the humidity sensor misjudged the environmental parameters, triggering the automatic compensation mechanism.”
"So it thought it was very dry outside, so it kept increasing the dosage?" Susan asked.
"yes."
"So, if Karl hadn't veered off course, he wouldn't have stepped on the loose brick?"
“The probability has decreased by 62 percent,” Nana replied.
“It sounds like it’s my fault,” Carl said with a wry smile. “But I just can’t see the road.”
“This isn’t about blaming,” Chen Hao interrupted. “It’s about analyzing the reasons. The question now is, can the exercise continue?”
He checked his watch. The original plan was three rounds of simulation, ten minutes each, for a total of half an hour. Thirteen minutes had already passed, including a five-minute interruption for the rescue operation.
“There’s not enough time to start over,” Susan said. “Besides, everyone’s condition is unstable.”
“Then let’s change it.” Chen Hao stood up. “Cancel the third round of full-element simulation and change it to random question and answer.”
"What do you mean?" Karl was still rubbing his knee.
“I will randomly announce the type of disaster, and you will demonstrate the response actions on the spot,” Chen Hao said. “For example, if I say ‘earthquake,’ you have to immediately lie down and find cover; if I say ‘strong wind,’ you have to crouch down with your back to the wind. There is no running route test, only reaction test.”
"What kind of drill is this?" Carl muttered.
“This is an emergency test.” Chen Hao looked at him. “When something really happens, no one will draw you a roadmap. You’re only useful if you can react in time.”
No one spoke anymore.
Nana nodded: "It's feasible. I will record each person's response time and the accuracy of their actions, and generate a preliminary assessment report."
"Let's begin." Chen Hao cleared his throat. "First question—An earthquake suddenly occurs, and you are indoors. What do you do?"
Susan immediately crouched down, covered the back of her head with her hands, and shrank into a corner.
"Pass." Chen Hao nodded.
"Flood warning: Someone was found to have fallen in a low-lying outdoor area during evacuation."
Nana took two steps forward, supporting the person with one hand and pointing upwards with the other, making a guiding gesture.
"Standard procedure," Chen Hao said. "Next—a sudden strong wind, how do we protect the supplies we're carrying?"
Carl hesitated for a moment, then bent down, hugged the imaginary package to his chest, and turned his body to the side of the wind.
"It was two seconds slow," Chen Hao said, "but the movement was correct."
After the round of questions and answers, all four of them were a little out of breath.
"The last question," Chen Hao said, "With smoke everywhere, poor visibility, and no communication, how do you determine the escape route?"
Nana raised her wrist and pointed to the marked line on the ground.
“Follow the signs,” she said.
“Yes.” Chen Hao nodded. “No matter how chaotic it is, the markings won’t lie.”
He put away the walkie-talkie and dusted off his pants.
"Today's drill is now over."
No one cheered, and no one complained.
Nana closed the terminal and disabled remote monitoring. Susan helped Carl slowly stand up. His right leg was still a little stiff, but he insisted on not being helped.
The four of them started walking towards the main building of the base.
The setting sun cast long shadows.
Chen Hao walked at the front, holding a data tablet in his hand, his brow furrowed.
"You noticed the problem?" Susan asked.
“It’s not just one,” he said. “Signal crosstalk, sensor misjudgment, personnel positioning deviations… these are not isolated incidents.”
"You think there's a connection?"
“Definitely.” Chen Hao looked down at the board in his hand. “The system relies too much on preset logic, and it’s prone to crashing once external conditions change.”
"What should we do then?" Karl followed behind, limping.
“Next time, we won’t follow the usual routine,” Chen Hao said. “I won’t tell you in advance what we’re going to test, and I won’t let Nana lock the program order. It will be triggered randomly, and we’ll get real reactions.”
"You're trying to kill us," Carl grinned.
"It's not about finishing," Chen Hao glanced back at him, "it's about practicing."
They walked through the iron gate to the open space on the east side and stepped onto the path leading to the main building.
The wind suddenly picked up, blowing up the scraps of paper on the ground.
Nana stopped and looked back at the training ground.
The smoke had not yet dissipated and was slowly drifting across the open space.
She raised her hand, her fingertips lightly tracing the timestamp of the last record on the console.
3:17:48.
The system log shows: **The exercise was terminated, and manual takeover was initiated. The original procedure was not completed.**
But she knew that the real test had only just begun.
Chen Hao stood at the door of the conference room, his hand on the doorknob.
The lights were on inside the door.
He pushed the door open and went in.
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