The finish line

I have a hold of Van Helsing

"I'm back at the entry point, and I've reattached the wires the way they were. So... How am I supposed to get back over to you? I have a bad feeling about this." I say.

"Why, we do it all in reverse, of course! Doreen, one more time, if you please!" Nemo says.

"Here we go again." Doreen says.

Van Helsing shouts. "Whoooooooooa!"

Not even ten seconds later, we literally fly back through the air, pulled by the wires.

The obvious happens. We slam against the wall with **** ****.

Well, I slam against the wall, protecting Van Helsing from the impact. "Van Helsing! Are you alright...?!"

"Ugh... Dammit... M-My vision's all blurry...!" Van Helsing holds her head for a little while, then slowly climbs up to her feet. "Nemo... Be ready for some much-deserved pain later!"

"Eek, scary! But it couldn't be helped, right?! This plan only worked because of your guns!" Nemo says.

"Ahah, it only worked because of Caleb's abnormal sturdiness." Doreen says.

Just when we think our victory is ours...

"Heeeeeey! I'm not done yeeeeeet!" Robur's voice cuts through the air, even should she should have fallen already.

We rush to look outside, and see the Albatross, still chasing us among the clouds.

"Wow... She's so persistent! She still wants to fight?!" Victoria asks.

"That's impossible. She's got no crew, and her ship's a wreck. There's no way she can control it in that state." Just as Nemo says, the Albatross rises above the clouds for a moment, then begins to sink down below.

"Ahahha! Hahahaha! Hahahahaaaaaaa!" West says. "Ahahahaah! Remember this! Unknown!"

"Unknown?" I ask.

"For some reason Hisbert believes I am someone called Unknown. Don't know why." Victoria says.

"It's obvious!" West says.

"That's about as much context as I can get outta her." Victoria says.

"I may have lost this round, but my soul still burns with the passion for science! I'll be challenging you again! You'll see!" West says.

"I'd rather you didn't." Victoria says.

"You haven't seen the last of meeeeee!" Robur says.

"Just crash already!" Once again, Lupin says what we're all thinking. Finally the Albatross sinks out of sight. We all take a breath in relief. "My job here is done. We just need to make it back to the finish line now, right?"

"Oh! Well, you see, uh... The thing is..." Nemo begins sounding very evasive once Lupin asks that question.

"What else is there, Nemo? There aren't any other ships in the air." Van Helsing says.

We look at each other with puzzled looks.

Nemo clears her throat with a strangely calm demeanour. "Ah... Ahem. Cough! Yes, cough. Uh... Engineer Victoria will fill you in."

A report from Victoria?

About what?

"N-Nemo! The engine's going up in flames! There's nothing an amateur like me can do about it!"

...Oh.

"Uh... I hate to tell you this...but the engine's completely burned out. Which means we're going down. Ha hah ahah..." As if proving Victoria right, we hear a roar and the ship begins to shudder.

"What's this?! The Nautilus seems to be unable to recover from their battle damage! Can they reach the finish line before they crash?! They're racing neck-and-neck with ****! The battle isn't over yet!" The excitement of the announcer's voice only increases our anxiety.

"Nemo..." I say.

"Don't look at me like that! You're our god of victory, right on board! Just leave the rest to me!" Nemo says.

The airship is losing speed and lift, and has been falling towards the ground at a rapid pace.

We pass through the clouds, and the ground begins to get closer and closer.

"I see it! I see the goal, Nemo!" I say.

"Right! Let's get this dramatic, dynamic, fantastic emergency landing started!" Nemo says.

"Oh, man... I guess all we can do now is trust in you, Nemo." Lupin says.

"Hmph. I don't have much faith in you, but there's nothing I can do." Van Helsing says.

"Ahah. This is thrilling. Ah, what I would give for a nice cup of tea right now." Doreen says.

"Doreen, you're completely unflappable." Victoria says.

"I-It looks like the Nautilus is going to try for an emergency landing on the finish line!" the commentator says. "No... What's this? Th-This isn't an emergency landing! It's a crash landing! Ladies and gentlemen near the goal, I urge you to run! Ruuuun!"

The ground is right in front of us.

"Nemo, I believe in you!" I say.

"Those words give me all the strength I need! C'mon, baby! Gooooooooo!" Nemo messes with the steering column to control the airship.