LOSS System: Last Store Standing

By evening, the temperature outside had dropped slightly. Jack and Megan left the convenience store and drove a CUEV to the shelter.

Warren was sitting at a table, reviewing the plans he had drawn earlier. Walter and Colt had already finished making the lights. More than a dozen bulbs were spaced along a long electrical cord, with a plug attached at the end so the entire string could be connected to an energy-storage unit. The two of them were now checking the bulbs one by one to make sure they all worked.

Jack walked straight over and explained his idea.

Warren and Walter exchanged glances. The shelter gradually fell silent as everyone looked at one another, but no one spoke immediately.

After a long moment, Warren lowered his eyes to the plans on the table. He stared at them for a while, then suddenly raised a hand and slapped himself hard across the face.

The sharp sound echoed through the shelter.

Everyone froze.

Even Jack jumped.

“What are you doing?”

“How did I not think of that?” Warren held his cheek and glared at the plans in frustration. “Warren, you’re a professional architect! How could you miss something so obvious?”

Walter finally caught on and gave a helpless laugh.

“Don’t blame yourself. There are plenty of us here, and none of us thought of it either.”

Several resigned sighs rose around the shelter.

Warren quickly composed himself and put away the old plans.

“It’s a good idea. Where do you want to build the clinic?”

“Across from the shelter,” Jack said. “We don’t have to tear down the one we’ve already started. Once the heat wave passes, we can turn it into a warehouse.”

Warren nodded.

They had already confirmed that the soil around the convenience store consisted mainly of clay. When they had previously dug up soil to make bricks, they discovered that the clay layer was both thick and extremely hard when dry. Unlike loose sand, it wouldn’t continuously slide inward as they excavated.

That gave them a definite advantage when building underground.

“We can try it,” Warren said after thinking it over. “I’ll inspect the soil there tomorrow morning, before the temperature gets too high.”

Jack nodded and explained the requirements he and Megan had discussed. Warren picked up a pen and began writing them down.

“I’ll draw up a new plan.”

“Then I’ll leave the clinic to you.”

Warren nodded before asking, “Do you expect to expand it later?”

“You can expand an underground structure?” Jack asked.

“Of course, but only if we leave room for it from the beginning,” Warren explained. “We can’t dig in one direction today, then suddenly decide to add a room somewhere else tomorrow. Once the underground supports are in place, changing the layout becomes much more difficult.”

Jack and Megan exchanged a glance.

“Then let’s leave room for expansion,” Megan said.

“Can we use the pallets and bricks we already have?” Jack asked.

“Yes,” Warren replied. “The clay layer is already fairly hard, and there’s no groundwater here, so we shouldn’t have to worry about seepage.”

Walter added, “As long as we don’t excavate too large an area, a few necessary supports should be enough.”

Dale suddenly asked, “But how are we supposed to dig in this heat?”

“Leave that to me,” Jack said.

Everyone turned toward him in confusion.

Jack smiled.

“I’ll have the Dustchucks do the digging.”

Henry frowned.

“They’ll listen to you?”

“No,” Jack said.

The shelter fell silent again.

Warren looked puzzled.

“Then what do you mean?”

Jack’s smile remained unchanged.

“I have a way to get them to help. They dug the pit and the moat, remember?”

“How?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Jack spoke as though the matter were already settled. “I have my methods. Just mark out the area, and I guarantee they’ll dig it for you.”

Warren still wasn’t entirely convinced.

“Don’t do anything reckless. We need an open excavation. If they only dig a mess of winding tunnels, we’ll still have to redo everything afterward.”

“Relax,” Jack said. “You mark out the boundaries. I’ll handle the rest.”

Warren considered it for a moment before finally nodding.

“All right.”

With the underground clinic settled for the time being, Jack and Megan drove the CUEV back to the convenience store.

Jack prepared the potatoes the refugees would need that night, while Megan helped tie the sacks shut. Once everything was ready, they loaded several sacks onto the CUEV and took them to the fence entrance.

At the same time, two representatives from the refugees left the agricultural supply center in another CUEV to collect the supplies.

They were still inexperienced drivers and didn’t dare go too fast. It took them more than two hours to reach the entrance beyond the fence.

Jack and Megan were already waiting inside.

The two refugees parked the CUEV and walked over. Jack opened the cargo bed of his vehicle and pointed at the sacks of potatoes.

“Take these back for now. Come back when you’re close to running out.”

“All right.”

The refugees immediately began transferring the sacks into their own CUEV.

Walter and Colt came over from the shelter carrying a large coil of electrical cord. More than a dozen bulbs were attached at regular intervals, and a plug at the end allowed the entire string to connect to an energy-storage unit.

Walter placed the lights in the cargo bed.

“These are for you. Find somewhere to hang them when you get back, then plug them into an energy-storage unit.”

One of the refugees took the string of lights.

“Thank you.”

“No need,” Walter replied. “They weren’t difficult to make.”

Once the potatoes and lights had been secured, the two refugees climbed back into the CUEV. They started the vehicle and left the fence entrance, carrying the supplies toward the agricultural supply center.

Jack watched until the CUEV gradually disappeared into the distance, then returned to the convenience store with Megan.

They were much more comfortable behind the wheel on the return trip and gradually picked up speed. A little over an hour later, the CUEV reached the agricultural supply center.

The refugees inside the warehouse heard the vehicle approaching and gathered near the entrance. The moment the two representatives parked, everyone crowded around to help unload the cargo bed.

The sacks of potatoes were carried inside first. Some people brought over the cooking pots, while others collected water and began washing the potatoes. Before long, the portable stoves had been set up and dinner was underway.

Several others lifted the bundled electrical cord and searched for a suitable place to hang it.

They eventually settled on the existing supports above the makeshift enclosure. A few people brought over wooden boxes to stand on, then hung the cord section by section. They carefully adjusted the position of each bulb, trying to spread the light across the area where everyone lived and rested.

Once every bulb was secured, one of them took the plug at the end and connected it to the newly replaced energy-storage unit.

More than a dozen bulbs lit up almost simultaneously.

The dim warehouse immediately grew much brighter. The makeshift enclosure, the PCCUs, the supplies stacked nearby, and everyone standing around them came clearly into view.

They all raised their heads at once.

Someone walked around the enclosure and inspected the corners that had previously been the darkest.

“We can finally see at night.”

“I don’t even remember the last time I saw lights after dark.”

The refugees gathered beneath the newly installed lights for a while. Only when the water in the cooking pots began to boil did they return to the stoves.

The potatoes were finally ready a little later.

Everyone gathered inside the makeshift enclosure, and each person received several potatoes. They were still too hot to hold comfortably, so the refugees blew on them while slowly peeling away the skins.

After working the entire day, they could finally sit down and eat something hot. The tension in the warehouse gradually eased.

One person was so hungry that he took a bite too quickly and immediately began sucking in air through his teeth.

Someone sitting nearby laughed.

“No one’s going to steal it from you. Why are you eating so fast?”

“I’m hungry. Is that a problem?”

“No problem. Take your time burning your mouth.”

Several people nearby laughed as well.

By the time everyone had eaten, it was completely dark outside.

No one went back out to spray the warehouse walls. Without direct sunlight, the exterior was no longer heating up as quickly as it had during the day. They had also spent the entire day working, and almost no one had any strength left.

Several refugees cleaned the cooking pots and put the remaining potatoes aside. The others gradually returned to their places. Some lay down on the folding beds, while others simply sat against the shelves to rest.

The warehouse slowly grew quiet.

After a while, a refugee sitting beside one of the shelves suddenly asked, “What is everyone planning to do after the heat wave?”

No one answered.

Once the heat wave passed, they obviously couldn’t continue living in the warehouse like this. Under the terms they had agreed on with Jack, they would have to start searching the ruins for supplies as soon as the temperature outside returned to normal, repaying the food, water, and everything else they owed him.

But what came after that?

Would they accept Jack’s offer of work and stay to help with the construction, or return to the wasteland in search of somewhere else to settle?

No one knew which path to choose.

After a while, one refugee finally said quietly, “Let’s pay Jack back first. We can worry about the rest afterward.”

“And once we’ve paid him back?” someone beside him asked.

The refugee opened his mouth but had no answer.

Another person leaned against a shelf and looked up at the lights that had only recently come on.

“If Jack really is willing to hire us, I’d rather stay.”

“But does he need this many people?”

“I don’t know.”

The warehouse fell silent again.

Justin, who had been sitting nearby, finally spoke.

“I’m staying. I’m done wandering. You all saw how many people died on the way here. Do you really think there’s anywhere out there better than Jack’s place?”

No one could argue with that.

The refugee who had spoken first remained silent for a while before finally nodding.

“Then I’ll stay too.”

“Me too.”

“I don’t want to keep moving either.”

“If Jack’s willing to have me, I’ll work for him.”

The others gradually made their decisions as well. Before long, the uncertainty that had filled the warehouse gave way to a shared plan.

Once everyone had quieted down, Justin spoke again.

“But even if I stay, I’m not moving over to Jack’s place.”

“Then where are you going to live?”

Justin looked around the warehouse.

“Here.”

The others stared at him.

“You want to stay at the agricultural supply center by yourself?”

“Yeah.”

They looked around the warehouse, even more confused now.

“It’s not that far from Jack’s place,” Justin explained. “If he’s willing to leave me a CUEV, I can travel back and forth whenever I need to. And if anything happens, I can contact the rest of you through the shared channel.”

“But why do you have to stay here?”

Justin looked toward the depths of the warehouse.

The lights only illuminated the area where they were living. Farther away, countless shelves and pieces of equipment still lay hidden in the darkness.

“There’s too much equipment here to leave unguarded,” Justin said. “Jack might need some of it someday.”

The others gradually began to understand what he was planning.

Justin looked back at them, his voice calm.

“Jack saved my life. I can never repay him for that, so I’ll protect this place for him.”

“He might not need you to do that,” someone said.

“Whether he needs it is up to him.” Justin leaned back against the shelf. “Whether I do it is up to me. Think of it as interest on what I owe him. At least it’ll help me sleep a little easier.”

Silence settled over the warehouse once more.

The refugees looked at Justin, but no one had anything more to say.