Is there a way to contact the outside world!?
I suddenly got up and quickly walked to Gulinina's side, looking at her with eager eyes. The others also came over. Gulinina sat in the middle of us, adjusting the machine on the ground.
First, the machine emitted crackling static and faint voices. As Gulinina continued to adjust it, the voices inside became clearer.
"rгoвopюaбcoлюthocepbeзho……"
What is this?
The voice coming from inside was not my familiar Chinese, but an extremely strange language.
Judging by the pronunciation, it seemed to be Russian?
The area where the woman on the radio was located seemed very empty. Her every word echoed, and it was intermittent, as if she were experiencing some interference.
Even though I couldn't understand a word of what the woman inside was saying, I could still feel her nervous and serious tone.
This sudden unexpected situation left us all looking at each other in confusion.
Gulinina was the first to react. She leaned closer to the machine and said in English, "Are you from the rescue team? Come and save us!"
The woman on the other end did not respond but kept repeating the Russian phrase from before.
It seemed as if the other side wasn't really there.
I frowned. Could it be that we had encountered ghost signals!
During the wars of the last century, armies would often receive radio signals from nearby, but strangely, when they confirmed with the other side, they found that the unit numbers reported by the other side did not exist or had already been deactivated.
Over time, ghost signals became a major mystery in world military history.
As I was thinking, the sound from the other side changed again.
The woman's voice gradually shifted from tense to fearful, and her tone became increasingly urgent.
It was as if something was threatening her, approaching her step by step. With a loud bang, there was no sound for a long time.
Suddenly, a thought struck me: wasn't Zhuoya's mother a former Soviet military officer?
Then Zhuoya should be able to understand Russian!
As soon as I realized this, I turned to look at Zhuoya, wanting to ask her if she had gained any insight.
However, when I saw Zhuoya's current state, my heart sank.
Zhuoya was still holding a branch, and her bright, lively eyes were filled with shock and confusion.
She was in a daze, standing there frozen.
"Zhuoya, did you understand what that woman said?"
I asked urgently.
Zhuoya finally came back to her senses. She forced a smile and shook her head, saying, "I haven't heard my mother's language for a long time, and I suddenly miss her."
A child like Zhuoya, who grew up in the forest, was incapable of lying.
It was obvious to anyone that Zhuoya's reaction earlier must have meant she understood the information on the radio!
However, for some reason, she hadn't told me the truth.
I quickly scanned the other women. There were many eyes and ears here, and I couldn't fully trust these survivors I had brought back. So, I decided to find Zhuoya alone at night to question her.
Just then, the radio crackled to life again. Although it was still the woman's voice, her tone was now deep and hoarse, and her demeanor had become very strange.
She first sang a Russian song with a very peculiar melody that made one feel chest tightness and discomfort.
Accompanying the static, a bizarre atmosphere enveloped us.
I keenly caught a word that recurred in this folk song. Listening closely, it sounded like Mari.
Although I don't understand Russian, I passed the advanced English exam back in the day. The pronunciation of "Mary" in English is similar to "Mari" in Russian, which made me feel increasingly strange.
What on earth had happened to the woman on the radio?
How could she be speaking so seriously one moment and then start singing a folk song the next?
And it was a song about Mary!
The most widely known story about Mary is the infamous Bloody Mary.
This story has been circulating for over 500 years, with many different versions, but the common thread is that Mary was a cruel and bloodthirsty noblewoman in life, who became an evil spirit after death.
There are even specific rituals in the West to summon Bloody Mary.
After singing the folk song, the woman on the radio became even more frenzied. It seemed as if she had split into two, one voice being serious and gentle like at the beginning, and the other being deep and hoarse.
The two voices intertwined, seemingly engaged in some conversation, until finally, with a shrill scream, the radio fell silent.
This bizarre situation made me feel a chill run down my spine, even though I was standing under the hot sun...