18 Floors Above the Apocalypse
Chapter 371

Seeing the surprise on Stella's face, the duty soldier clarified, "You all have some pretty decent skills, fitting the criteria for the special passage. No need to waste time here."

Only a fool would pass up such an opportunity, especially when the military brass is opening a door for you. It'd be nuts not to take it.

Jasper drove their SUV, sticking close to the military vehicle as they passed through the main gate and veered towards Gate 2.

The soldier got out, exchanged a few hushed words with the personnel inside, then came back and said, "You're all set. Just follow the procedure." Jasper thanked him.

The military vehicle didn't stick around and soon vanished into the night.

Stella and her two companions got out and lined up at the service window.

The clerk took Jasper's ID, checked the system, then looked up and asked, "SWAT retiree?" Jasper nodded.

"Reason?"

"Injury."

"Where?"

The questions were so detailed it felt like they were ticking off some secret checklist.

It was like a full-on interrogation, lasting a good fifteen minutes, then it was Rosie's turn.

Jasper had all the paperwork ready-birth certificate, ID, everything-making it a breeze.

When it was Stella's turn, she felt like the questions about her background were way too detailed. They asked about the exact date she entered the orphanage, her school history, hobbies, talents, and even her high school exam scores. It felt like they were stripping her down to her core.

After a grueling half-hour, Stella's palms were sweating. She was relieved all her darker deeds were post-apocalypse; otherwise, she might have worried about being executed on the spot.

When Cooper's turn came, the clerk gave him a quick glance and waved him through.

But Cooper, caught up in the moment, clung to the window and let out a "Woof."

It was like he was protesting, "Why aren't you asking me any questions? Is this discrimination?"

The clerk stamped the paperwork. "Move on to the next step."

The next step was a physical and skills assessment, nothing specific, just asking about one's expertise.

Men and women were separated, and Cooper faced a specialized examiner, clearly a K-9 trainer.

Cooper sniffed the air, curious about the stern-looking soldier who somehow reminded him of his own trainer. Without warning, the trainer barked, "Attention!"

Years of ingrained muscle memory had Cooper immediately snap to attention.

Woof, darn it! These blasted legs.

Seeing Cooper's muscle tone and excitement, the trainer got fired up and started a rigorous assessment.

To Stella's surprise, Cooper passed before she even began her own assessment.

The base trainer even suggested, "Ms. Ginger, we have a K-9 unit here. If you like, he's passed the assessment and could join, with full military benefits."

Impressive, my dog!

But Stella politely declined, "Thanks, but no thanks."

She had just unearthed a potential King of Dogs and wasn't about to let Cooper be tempted, even when the trainer tried to entice her with the promise of a high-pedigree female military dog.

Ah, well... Cooper probably doesn't have those needs, right?

With the constant threat of seismic activity, Stella wasn't about to give Cooper a chance to sow his wild oats, "Thanks, but we're good."

Just then, Rosie burst out of the assessment hall, thrilled, "Sis, I made it!"

Stella handed Cooper over to her and went in for her evaluation.

The assessment was twofold: hand-to-hand combat and shooting.

Having sparred with Jasper for years, Stella's skills were not in question, but she didn't show off, drawing out what could've been a quick takedown of the female examiner to over fifty moves to achieve a draw. Even so, the examiner was impressed, "Did you serve?"

"No, but I've trained as if I did."

Shooting offered the choice between crossbow and firearm, and Stella, after a moment's thought, opted for the crossbow, easily passing the test.

By the time she finished, Jasper had also completed his assessment.

With two rounds cleared, the trio and the dog were deemed qualified, but they still had to decide whether to become formal soldiers, ordinary survivors, or scavengers.

Without hesitation, both chose to be scavengers.

The clerk seemed slightly surprised but didn't comment, simply entering their information into the system and then issuing grain receipt forms.

Each person was to contribute fifty pounds of grain, with Cooper's special status exempting him.

One hundred and fifty pounds of grain-there went a big burlap sack.

Next, they had to rent a place in the central hall, because expenses seemed to lurk around every corner.

The central hall was massive, with options like standard apartments costing ten pounds of grain a month for a two-bedroom unit, or private cottages at fifty pounds a month. There were also daily rentals at one pound of grain, or one could deduct points from the Kindle Society.

The pair wasn't in a rush to rent, instead taking their time to explore the central hall.

There were various public departments, shops, eateries, and stalls, reminiscent of a pre-apocalyptic mega-mall.

Stella arrived at the trading hall and looked up at the scrolling electronic board, taking in the trade offers.

Private trades involved parties posting their goods or needs, with the government taking a fee but prohibiting weapon trades.

The official trades were public goods from the base-staples like firewood, rice, oil, soy sauce, vinegar, tea, clothing, and various household necessities.

Patiently observing, Stella's eyes widened when she saw bicycles, cars, defensive weapons, and even submarines!

Yes, actual submarines, not toy models.

Could they really be selling these?

She gasped at the sight of the eight zeroes following the price and had to believe it was real.

Feeling like she was dreaming, she poked Jasper's arm, "Do you think a submarine could actually function underwater?"

Jasper, half-amused, half-exasperated, replied, "It's probably a small or medium-sized one. If the military's selling it, it's got to be the real deal." Stella pondered, "Would it work during seismic activity?"

That was a question for the base's experts, who had already clocked out for the day. They'd have to wait until tomorrow for an answer. Excitement barely contained, Stella watched the board for a long while before finally moving on to the scavenger trade section.

Almost everything was in demand, especially metals like iron, copper, steel, gold, and silver, even ores-with rare metals fetching the highest points. After all these years of disaster, she figured the nearby area must have been picked clean by scavengers, so metal prices were bound to rise. Jasper was right-the price of rare metals was skyrocketing!

Stella could hear her heartbeat. If she brought out a barrel of Arcadia's rare metals, the three of them and their dog could live a life of leisure for years to come. MSG prices are through the roof these days.

Regardless of how fancy the Kindle Society's setup is or how well-stocked their shelves are, Stella was smitten, "I think I'll stick around for a bit and have a look."