The geological survey team was unable to set out on time again. Starting from that night, a massive blizzard blanketed the ice shelf for over forty hours. Outside the camp, it was all white, and nothing could be seen. Everyone could only hide in their sleeping bags, unable to work outside.
The temperature dropped to around minus thirty degrees. Even in the Antarctic, this was an extremely low temperature. Most importantly, the Antarctic blizzard could more easily strip away the heat. Exposed to such temperatures, within just forty seconds, the human body would enter a state of hypothermia. No one dared to take such a fatal risk outside, and all scientific work ceased.
The cats curled up in the pile of odds and ends, snuggling together for warmth. The people also began to gather together. The slightly tense atmosphere from before completely disappeared. Even the sailors no longer had the energy to trouble Dexter. Dexter, who was also curled up in the pile, understood that Professor Dale was right. In the face of extreme harsh environments, the human race is so small that even as a united whole, they remain precarious, always at risk of being completely buried.
Suddenly, the outer layer of the pile of odds and ends moved a bit. Dexter poked his head out to see, and Frank poked his head in and said:
"Things can't go on like this. William and I discussed sealing the base's entrance ahead of schedule."
Dexter knew that the cave they excavated didn't have a door. They planned to mix the excavated mountain and the ice cap's meltwater to cast a one side wall, leaving only a small door for the best insulation effect. This was a big project requiring a lot of preparation, so it was expected to take another two days to complete.
But now it seemed they had to seal the door ahead of schedule. Otherwise, the research team couldn't operate in such extreme weather. No one had anticipated the harsh weather coming so soon. It was an oversight.
"I'll go with you," Dexter said.
"I didn't come for you," Frank waved his hand and said, "You don't know how to operate the machines; you'd be of no help. I came for the cats."
Dexter turned to look inside the pile of odds and ends. The cats were sleeping in a heap. He opened his mouth to ask, could the cats really use machines? But then he thought maybe they actually could.
So, he reached out, touching the pile of cats. He didn't know which cat he touched exactly, just feeling a warm, fluffy group. This feeling was very healing, so Dexter couldn't help but touch a bit longer.
The most alert was Bat Cat, who looked outside and roughly guessed what was needed, then jumped out first. Shiller and Little Superman followed, while Constantine and Peter stayed behind to prevent any special situations from arising in the base.
Frank held one cat in each hand, and one jumped onto his backpack. They walked out into the wind and snow, with people already operating machines for mixing and casting. Yet everyone struggled so hard that they could hardly move their fingers from the cold.
"You get down!" Bat Cat shouted. Though the machine operators couldn't understand what he said, they understood his meaning and made way. Bat Cat started operating the machines, and feeling cold himself, secretly activated the Shield once people moved out of the way.
Frank seemed to notice something but said nothing. The other cats gradually activated their Shields, which became noticeable. Some students began asking Frank, frequently glancing at the cats, but Frank simply shook his head and led them to work.
The Shields provided by Bat Cat had life-supporting functions, though they couldn't maintain a constant temperature. They could slightly increase the temperature from minus thirty to around zero. The most important feature was wind resistance, slowing body heat loss significantly without the wind. The cats first operated the casting machines, then the level instruments, then even drove the material transport vehicle.
Driving couldn't be accomplished with just a cat's body; they relied on the equipped Mechanical Arm, not yet using tentacles. However, the students seemed to regard these mechanical devices as human inventions, believing they were advanced equipment from their engineering professor and found them merely novel.
As to why the equipment was provided for cats and not humans, humans have hands and feet without needing extra arms. Considering the human body type, the equipment wasn't easy to make, so it was better for cats. Especially since these cats are so clever, obedient, and hardworking, one cat could do the work of several people, much more reliable than a sailor.
Frank could devise a super drill capable of penetrating the Antarctic ice cap and mountains around 1930, akin to an Iron Man of the Cthulhu Mythos Universe. Creating a few Mechanical Arms wasn't a problem.
The Shield was considered an old curator's treasured item. Dr. Henry's name had some renown after he retreated from Dunwich's horror, and the students had heard of his reputation. The white cat was raised by Dr. Henry, and the old curator wasn't likely to send him to such a dangerous place without some protective items, making it barely plausible.
With the cats' help, they completed the casting of the door within a day. Once the door was installed, the terrifying wind and snow were finally kept out. The people inside the base breathed a sigh of relief, finally able to crawl out of their sleeping bags and move around.
As expected, the cats received praise from everyone, getting cuddled and petted by many, and received a large deboned steak. But after the initial excitement wore off, they had to face a harsh reality again: as long as the blizzard continued, they would make no progress.
It was baffling what was happening in the Antarctic; winter was almost over, yet the blizzard kept raging. By the third day, Professor Dale realized something was wrong, and Shiller had already crept into his tent, jumping onto his table.
"I'm not sure we're still in the Antarctic," Professor Dale declared startlingly, "From the climate, September's Antarctic shouldn't have such a big blizzard. Perhaps we are lost in a dreadful Otherworldly Space. The blizzard here won't stop and will only get colder. We must do something, or we might die here."
Shiller silently walked to the other side of the table, pressing down on the paper recording the radio telegram with his paw. Professor Dale understood what he meant and said:
"We've lost contact with the ship. I haven't announced this news to avoid causing panic. It's possible that in such harsh weather, the radio telegrams cannot be accurately transmitted; this does not count as evidence."
After speaking, he took out a map and laid it on the table. The map appeared somewhat wrinkled, with more wear marks than before, indicating that he had been troubled for the past few days. Professor Dale pointed to the map and then said:
"We must send out a small team, but I'm hesitant whether to search for the ship or advance towards the mountains."
Shiller calculated the time; the first agreed supply ship would take a few more days to arrive. Shiller was not worried about the supply ship getting lost because, whether they had already entered some kind of bewildering Otherworldly Space or not, Nya said it could be delivered, and nothing on Earth could trouble him.
In that case, it was indeed a good choice to go to the ship early and wait for the supply ship, because at least they could ensure they had ample supply provisions, which could greatly reassure everyone. However, this couldn't change their current situation.
Shiller's gaze fell on the mountains drawn on the map, which were originally a blank space, clearly only recently added by Professor Dale. Shiller finally pressed his paw on the mountains. Heading deep into the mountains in a blizzard might seem like a death sentence, but they had to go.
"It seems you think the same." Professor Dale said, "The abnormal climate must be related to the secrets hidden in the mountains. We have to go investigate."
"Knock, knock, knock!" A series of intense knocks on the door startled the man and the cat. Professor Dale slightly frowned, walked out of the tent, and then went outside to open the dormitory door, which had only been installed yesterday.
Shiller stood inside the tent, peering out through the gap. A strong sailor was standing at the door, and Professor Dale spoke with him, ultimately returning with a resigned expression.
"The sailors want to return to the ship," Professor Dale said.
Shiller sighed inwardly. The quality of the expedition members was indeed good. Their careful selection made the entire team stable and united, but the quality of the sailors was quite mixed.
They now demanded to return to the ship, which was actually to secure the supplies from the supply ship as soon as it arrived. In such a harsh environment, whoever controlled the resources was the Boss, which would at least ensure their survival.
"I can understand them." Professor Dale said, "Most of the expedition team members who came here are dreamers. We want to explore the unknown and accumulate more Arctic exploration experience for the Human race. But for the sailors, this is just a dangerous job, and they have no choice."
"No one is willing to work under such harsh conditions; it's just that life forces them to do so. We can't expect people struggling to make ends meet to selflessly contribute to the future of the Human race. I'm willing to give them what they want, but precisely because they lack knowledge and intellect, they don't understand where the real danger lies."
He spoke implicitly, but Shiller still understood. The sailors might feel that the blizzard won't stop anytime soon, and they have to seize the supplies. Although the current blizzard was big, the warming measures were still quite adequate, and there were vehicles; in groups, they could head towards the ship without much trouble.
But the real danger was not the blizzard. While at sea, the sailors also witnessed the krill swarm's anomaly firsthand, but they couldn't see anything. They hadn't realized that this land was possibly under the attack of mysterious phenomena, and there must be something inside the blizzard.
"Are you going to stop them?" Shiller asked. Although Professor Dale only heard a meow, he still guessed Shiller's meaning.
"If I stop them, they'll definitely think we also want to seize the supplies. I don't want to anger them."
Suddenly, the sound of commotion came from outside. The man and the cat both walked out of the tent, and after pushing open the door, they found that the sailors were actually confronting the students.
"Give us the cat!" said the lead sailor. "I saw it. They have warming stuff on them, the wind doesn't reach them."
"You're crazy. They're just cats." The students were incredulous, "Cats have fur, of course, they wouldn't be that cold, and they helped us work before."
"But now we need to transport supplies from the ship." Some sailors tried to explain, "Lend us the stuff on them, and we'll return it to you when we're back. Bringing the supplies back early benefits everyone, right?"