18 Floors Above the Apocalypse
Chapter 180

Jasper had saved many people in his time, but it never seemed to end well for him.

Stella handed Jasper some pills, "You get him hydrated and medicated, I'll go get Rosie and Cooper."

Jasper took the pills, and took a deep breath, "Stella, thank you."

Stella waved it off, "These are your hoarded meds. Don't thank me."

By the time she'd brought Rosie back, Jasper had already given him water and medicine, and was cleaning his wounds. They pulled out two cots and a lamp from the Arcadia, and together they managed to lift him onto the bed. Noticing his seriously scraped thigh, Stella administered anesthetic and began cleaning and stitching the wound with medical supplies. Judging from the wound, it seemed to have been caused by a sharp object.

Stella gave him a tetanus shot. That's one yacht gone for her.

After treating him, she also gave him a fever reducer.

Rosie woke up at some point, sitting on the bed, dazed and confused, and rubbing her eyes, "Japper, Stella."

Jasper stroked her head gently, "Rosie, everything is fine now."

Rosie clung to him and anxiously asked, "Why am I here?"

"There was a tsunami, and you got knocked out by the boom. But the waves have receded."

Rosie was still confused, her consciousness drifting.

Jasper handed her a plate of warm food, "Hungry? Eat something."

Rosie obediently started eating, sipping on some apple juice as well.

She noticed the stranger but asked no questions, continuing to eat and sneakily giving a piece of rib to the dog.

A tsunami would undoubtedly cause countless deaths and injuries, and the high temperature could easily trigger an epidemic. There was no more point in staying at the beach, as it was unknown when another tsunami might hit.

In her previous life, Stella had never heard of this tsunami, and Jasper probably didn't know about it either, otherwise, they wouldn't have come here. If they hadn't been prepared, they might've been done for.

Stella spoke up, "Shall we go back to Griffith?"

Jasper had no objections, "We don't know the situation down the mountain in the dark. We'll decide in the morning."

To protect against possible survivors coming up in the dark, Stella suggested they take turns keeping watch for the night. Cooper took the first watch, Jasper assisted, and Stella went to sleep with Rosie. Little did they know, they slept until the break of dawn. Jasper returned from patrolling with Cooper, "The waves have receded below the road, and there are scattered survivors evacuating."

The soldier was still unconscious, but his fever had subsided. To prevent infection, they continued to administer antibiotics.

After distributing breakfast to Cooper and Rosie, Stella stepped out of the villa and stood on top of the hill.

The waves were huge, continuously roaring. The tsunami had swallowed countless human beings, docks, and ports, completely obliterating the remnants of industrial civilization.

What was bustling just yesterday was turned into nothingness today.

Stella felt a heavy burden on her heart, yet there was nothing she could do but watch as the natural disaster became increasingly ferocious and unpredictable.

The coastal road was safe, so they decided to return to Griffith to avoid unnecessary trouble. The place was deserted, and Stella pulled out their car. Wait, where was it?

She tried again, but to no avail. Nothing came out!

Seeing her sudden change in expression, Jasper asked, "What's wrong?"

Stella was shocked, "My...my Arcadia isn't working."

She tried several more times, but it wouldn't budge. Stella was in a state of breakdown, her supplies, seafood, luxury cars, yacht...

Tens of billions worth of supplies, all swallowed by Arcadia.

Jasper tried to comfort her, "Don't worry. Try something else."

Right, calm down, don't panic.

Stella took a deep breath and fiercely grabbed something from Arcadia. This time, it was a handful of condoms.

Stella was taken aback. Why out of all things, did she grab them?

There were dozens of them. Scared, she threw them back into Arcadia.

But it was too late. Jasper, who had witnessed the whole thing, his usually stern and resolute face stiffened at an alarming speed.

Stella was flustered, and instinctively made a defensive gesture, "No, don't overthink it. Let me explain."

Explain why she had so many? These weren't bought, but collected.

Damn it, why did she have to grab these? Stella was so embarrassed she could dig a hole and hide, feeling like her explanations only made things worse.

Jasper, having seen a lot, quickly returned to normal, "Stella, I didn't overthink."

Stella felt extremely embarrassed and covered her face.

He suggested, "Why not try again?"

Yes, yes, try again.

But the car still didn't come out.

Stella tried other things and successfully pulled out a packet of bullets.

What, was the car diamond-encrusted, and swallowed by Arcadia?

Jasper pondered, "Maybe it didn't get stored, and was swept away by the tsunami?"

That couldn't be. Stella was absolutely sure she had stored everything.

But wait, when Jasper had raced the car back up the hill, she had rushed into the villa and onto the rooftop, while he went to collect the electrical grid. There was no time to bring the car into the yard, and it must've been swept away by the tsunami. After all that, it was a misunderstanding, and it had made her embarrass herself by grabbing a handful of condoms, all because of him.

Stella was furious, taking her anger out on Jasper. The situation was urgent at the time, and Jasper had forgotten, so he let her vent.

The fearless Jasper chose to bring up the subject again, "Isn't it because you're thinking about them that you can pull them out?"

Stella almost wanted to kick him into the sea to feed the fishes.

Stella touched her nose, explaining awkwardly, "I found them when I was collecting supplies, I thought they might be useful for bartering, so I didn't throw them away."

Never underestimat the condoms. They had already been exchanged for a cow and a sheep.

Jasper listened, "Hmm, keep them." They might come in handy later.

Stella felt like hitting him again.

With the car gone, they needed a mode of transportation, otherwise, it would be a major safety concern traveling with a child and a dog.

She pulled out the Hummer, "He's still unconscious. What should we do?"

Jasper thought for a moment, "Leaving him here is a death sentence for him. Let's take him back to Griffith and hand him over to the city officials. They'll arrange for him to rejoin his unit."

Stella was quite satisfied with his arrangement, "Sounds good."

The pair grabbed a quick bite, before Jasper called out to Cooper and Rosie, "Get in the truck."

While Stella went inside to gather their belongings, Jasper took it upon himself to hoist the unconscious soldier into the backseat of the truck, securing him snugly with the seat belt. Cooper and Rosie were tasked with keeping an eye on him.

As the truck began its slow descent down the mountain, they noticed that in the aftermath of the tsunami, a number of survivors were scavenging through the remains of the villas, scavenging for resources.

The villas had already been picked over several times, so they found no food to take.

Seeing the Hummer appear, the resentful survivors immediately armed themselves with whatever they could replace, charging towards the truck with the intent of not only taking the vehicle but also whatever resources they could get their hands on. "Who do these jerks think they are?" they thought bitterly, "Even in the face of an apocalypse, why should they have the luxury of a vehicle while we can't even fill our bellies?"

With a gun in hand, Stella remained calm. Facing the aggressively charging mob, she lowered the truck window, aimed her gun at them, her eyes filled with a lethal mix of cold indifference and murderous intent.

"If you're tired of living, you're welcome to try," she spat out.