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 quite

folks from back home. What's there to hide from your

salvage them, leaving them at the bottom of the sea was a

they got a few

half a day of fellowship, it was time to part

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

in his notebook. "Commander Xu, do you think they wanted

it's Willowbrook or Griffith, we're all

Choices were personal,

chosen Griffith or they had chosen Willowbrook,

...

the sub in a hover state.

was eager to return, but now there was no

"Stella, we've found a sunken sub, including

aback. To actually come

thing to hear about it, feeling sympathy, but quite another to face it in

The mood became somber.

300 meters deep, beyond the reach of

decided to repeat an old trick: hook the sub first, then

a tragic state, torn apart at the seams. The sub

level of tsunami

depth made salvage difficult. After several shifts of hard work, they managed to retrieve both the sub

for the Kindle Chest, so Stella only retrieved the

materials, it bore the scars of the

was ruptured, some

effort to pry open the hatch. Inside were 15 skeletons clad in military uniforms, decayed down to the bone. The cramped room held only empty food sacks and a waterlogged

red-eyed and turning away, pleaded, "Stella, let's

to their new home in Australia, so the brave

itched

body bags, and with Amelia and the others' help, they carefully

a time of heaviness,

remained silent, his expression

fire-seed planners were not

also his beloved protégés.

somber for the next

into view that the joy of returning

dilute the grief.

had taken nearly two

Bran, wrapped in a heavy military

shivering.

the morning, the sun blazed over the sea, but by evening, Griffith was

to the erratic climate. Thankfully, they

quickly donned their winter

aside, "Sis, you were injured