However, that was not realistic as there was only a limited amount of fuel canisters and preserved food in the sub's storage. Even if he were to toss Deia over to the fishes, he would only be able to survive on his own for 5 days at most, assuming he would ration it.
Given the fact that he was being chased, he absolutely had to stock up on necessary supplies to supplement what he had. Luckily, Tauberan, which was the full name of the island - as Napari was only its capital - was suitable.
It had an area spanning less than 50 square kilometers and was shaped like a slightly square-like ring. The land itself was like a thin band, with a small canal near the western end called West Point which allowed water into Napari's bay.
Darius had originally wanted to pass through West Point and beach near the south-eastern part of the island, where some forests and villas lay, before he had realized how incredibly stupid it would have been.
Putting aside the fact that the mercs could likely trace them into West Point, the bay only had one entrance which was also its exit. They wouldn't even need to capture the sub. Just locking down West Point canal would be enough to hunt them down.
Right now, Darius was analyzing the map of Fanning Island, which was the English name for Tauberan. This island was practically 50% forest and 50% civilization, and the civilization was quite scarce.
Apart from the villas owned by rich foreigners who either wanted to escape society or were there to 'enjoy' illicit goods, there were a few native tribes. The island didn't have a resort nor an actual shipping bay.
It had two aerodromes, both near Napari. One was a large tarmac used to receive important supplies from the PacifiAid organization that imported needed goods like rice, grains, and some other foodstuffs.
The natives here were quite tribal and indigenous, so they were quite poor. They had spent years relying on fishing, and such activities had thinned out the animals within a large area around the island, creating a vacuum where sharks had taken up residence.
Without the aid from these foreign groups, the residents here would have long since expired. Their population didn't pass 3,000, with the total amount declining to 2,100 from their previous peak of 2,900 in 2082.
Napari and the indigenous tribes were located towards the northwest, on the left of the West Point canal. That was where the two aerodromes were located as well, leaving Darius speechless.
On the right of West Point, which was also the southwest of the island, was where the exotic villas were lined up. They had formed their own little city towards that side, and should be far better off than the natives to the north.
Darius was sure that the mercs would first split up to search Napari and the area with the villas, since he had come to the southeastern side of the island.
The sad part was that… the entire eastern, side, from north to south, consisted of endless undeveloped forests and jungles! Darius rubbed his temples, as he lamented his choice, though it was the one that would buy them great time.
He had zero skills in outdoor survival given his urban upbringing, so he turned to Deia who was silently gazing at the map as well.
"Do you perhaps have any skills related to hunting, gathering, or the like?"
Deia looked at him strangely. "No. I've spent my entire life in the cities. What use would I have for such things?"
Darius nodded with a wry smile. "So same as me. Well, that is unfortunate. We're going to have to surface to refill our oxygen. I give it about 5 days until they think to come around this side, so we will have to make do with what we have in here."
Deia frowned. "You don't want to beach near the civilized areas? Or even beach here so that we walk the remaining distance?"
Darius shook his head. "I would love to beach here. It would be very easy to hide the sub in the forests here using leaves for when we return, however we lack a mode of transport on land."
"Running back and forth from the villas and the sub isn't really an option. If we're seen even once we could be chased down and we wouldn't make it back fast enough to move the sub back into water."
"Leaving it in the water slightly offshore isn't wise either, since we would have to swim to enter it. I don't know about you, but I'm not fast enough a swimmer to beat a bullet, which they could use to disable or to kill us."
Darius shrugged. "So our only option is to wait here until we can't and move away when we can."
As he said this, the sub finally reached the shoreline and breached the surface of the water. Darius brought it as close to the beach as he could, glad that there was enough space.
By his calculations, the mini-sub was about 100 meters from the shore, which was the best he could get. Darius then stabilized its movement and switched off the engine.
"Err, you turned off the engine?" Deia asked with confusion.
"Of course. The fuel would constantly burn away otherwise. This sub is the most important aspect of our survival on sea. Without their own sub, they can only try to pinpoint our location." Darius answered as he opened the storage.
"So we stay in here?" Deia inquired further.
"No. We're going to shore and will stay near the outskirts of the trees. That way, we should be largely safe from any predators as the sea is nearby, while we're also safe from any search parties on the sea as the jungle is nearby."
Darius responded as he pulled out all the foodstuff and clean water available, loading them into two backpacks. He split them evenly between the two, and threw one over to Deia who caught it ungracefully.
"Now get a move on. We have to survive these next few days and maneuver around our enemies."
