"Shit, I'm having a bad feeling about this," Marcus said. "Can we go a bit higher? I think we are getting interference from the forest."
The pilot didn't hesitate.
"Copy."
His hand moved on the controls, smooth and practiced. The engine note shifted, low at first, then rising into a deeper hum that filled the cabin. The helicopter responded immediately, the nose lifting just a few degrees as the rotors bit harder into the air.
Marcus felt it through the frame.
A steady climb.
The dense canopy below began to pull away, slowly shrinking as they gained altitude. From above, the forest didn't open up. It didn't thin out. If anything, it looked worse the higher they went.
Like a single mass.
"Passing eighty meters," the co-pilot said, eyes locked on the instruments.
Marcus leaned forward slightly, one hand resting against the back of the pilot's seat as he watched the panel.
Everything looked normal.
For now.
"Take it to one-twenty," Marcus said.
"Roger."
