Raging Torrent (II)

This was not Mount Mishil. There were no such sturdy defenses or tunnels here. They were effectively fighting a positional battle against the Orks, facing their fury with an exhausted force.

Guk's banner had not yet appeared, but Jackson believed it would not be long before the Pale Tyrant came to slaughter these prey that were about to escape, bringing his finest Butchers with him—perhaps along with those massive machines.

"If you want to open the floodgates safely, it will take that long. You must hold off the Orks until I open them."

"We'll do our best."

Jackson gritted his teeth and answered resolutely, struggling to conceal the despair that was about to crush him.

"Are you sure there's nothing that can speed things up?"

"I'm quite sure there isn't."

The witch replied, pointing at a device on the long console. It was covered in flickering gauges used to record information, though Jackson knew nothing about any of it.

"If I'm not mistaken, this place has been unattended for several weeks. Every system is highly unstable, and one careless mistake could bring catastrophic consequences."

"Catastrophic consequences are still better than certain death."

Jackson said, a still-unformed idea suddenly taking shape in his mind.

"What exactly do you mean by catastrophic consequences?"

"Are you sure you can understand what I'm saying?"

Elena's voice became noticeably harsher. Jackson's brazen interference had clearly angered her. She then pointed at a row of indicator lights, all glowing with a hellish, murky red light.

"The electricity keeping this place running is generated by the turbine units at the bottom of the dam. When it isn't routed out, it is stored in capacitors. Since the Ork invasion, none of that power has been discharged. This means the capacitors are already operating beyond capacity and have become