18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 572

Stella stayed quiet, her mind racing with thoughts.

Sure, everything seemed fine on the surface. Willowbrook's leadership still sending out search parties for survivors showed their commitment hadn't wavered, but how do you put it?

The bigwigs are often too wrapped up in their own affairs, overlooking the needs of those at the bottom. It's not intentional neglect, but for kids without a powerful patron, it's tough to avoid getting the short end of the stick.

The military personnel from South Base had been scattered across various teams. These 'orphaned' kids were naturally sensitive, and, well, let's just say not all maternal instincts are created equal.

Especially among the lower ranks, these behaviors became more pronounced, and over time, conflicts inevitably arose.

When there's not enough to go around, you can't compete if you don't have the clout.

Coming from the same base, there was a natural camaraderie, so they asked Jake and the others, "How's it been for you guys?"

"It was rough at the start. We only had transport ships, destroyers, and submarines. If the land hadn't risen when it did, who knows if we'd have made it.

There's only about ten thousand of us, but the land Griffith has secured is massive. We've already found several Kindle Chests, and we've been united in scavenging for supplies. We can make paper, bricks, and lime, and we've even discovered coal mines..."

Jake laid out their vision before asking, "How many fire-seed subs made it to Willowbrook?"

"Quite a few, a couple of hundred, but only some brought Kindle Chests with them. Many supplies were salvageable."

A couple of hundred subs?

Amelia and the others gasped in shock.

Blood was thicker than water, sure, but envy is a natural reaction.

Stella's heart skipped a beat, "With so many fire-seed subs arriving, do any of you know Cody Lukas, Angela, or Kitty?"

The others thought for a moment before shaking their heads. "We were all dispersed across different platforms. It's not easy to meet up; a lot of us are strangers. We haven't heard the names you mentioned."

Stella's spirits dampened. Less than a fifth of the 3000 subs had been found. Where had the rest gone?

The news was equally hard on the others. "Willowbrook has had a number of subs out and about. We've discovered... dozens of wrecks."

The group went quiet, not having anticipated the disaster's ferocity.

Even the specially designed subs...

These were the cream of the crop from the South Base fire-seed program, the best of the best in both body and mind.

But the harsh reality was bloody and brutal. The disaster spared no one.

After regaining their composure, Jake asked, “What about your subs? Did they all carry Kindle Chests?"

"No, most got disconnected."

He followed up, "Where did they end up?"

were

like meeting folks from back home. What's

leaving them at

got a

of fellowship, it was time to part

to say more but ultimately staying silent. Instead, they stood atop their sub, watching the nuclear

notebook. "Commander Xu, do you think they wanted to come

"Whether it's Willowbrook or Griffith,

understood. Choices were personal, not about

they had chosen Willowbrook, being at peace was all that

...

to find the sub in a hover state. "What's

but now there was

we've found a

taken aback. To actually come across

hear about it, feeling sympathy, but quite

The mood became somber.

water was over 300 meters deep,

repeat an old trick: hook the

in a tragic state, torn apart at the seams. The sub and the Kindle Chest were tens

calm now, but what level of tsunami could

work, they managed to retrieve

transport for the Kindle Chest, so Stella only retrieved the

materials, it bore the scars of the

ruptured, some

skeletons clad in military uniforms, decayed down

away, pleaded, "Stella, let's take

them to their new home in Australia, so the brave souls could return

throat itched uncomfortably,

and with Amelia and the others' help, they carefully placed the

was a time of heaviness,

remained silent, his expression deeply

mistaken, these fire-seed planners were not just

also his beloved protégés.

for the next few

until Griffith Bay came into view that the

dilute the grief.

journey home had taken

greet them was still Bran, wrapped in a heavy

shivering.

the sun blazed over the sea, but by evening,

to

gear and quickly donned their

you were injured