Chapter 180


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


    Ste 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, "Ste, thank you."


    Ste 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 amp from the Arcadia, and together they


    managed to lift him onto the bed.


    Noticing his seriously scraped thigh, Ste 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.


    Ste 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, Ste."


    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 te 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, Ste had never heard of this tsunami, and Jasper probably didn''t know about it


    either, otherwise, they wouldn''t havee here. If they hadn''t been prepared, they might''ve been


    done for.


    Ste 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 survivorsing up in the dark, Ste suggested they take turns


    keeping watch for the night. Cooper took the first watch, Jasper assisted, and Ste 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, Ste stepped out of the vi and stood on top of


    the hill.


    The waves were huge, continuously roaring. The tsunami had swallowed countless human beings,


    docks, and ports,pletely obliterating the remnants of industrial civilization.


    What was bustling just yesterday was turned into nothingness today.


    Ste 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


    ce was deserted, and Ste 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?"


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


    She tried several more times, but it wouldn''t budge. Ste was in a state of breakdown, her


    supplies, seafood, luxury cars, yacht…


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


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


    Right, calm down, don''t panic.


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


    of condoms.


    Ste 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 toote. Jasper, who had witnessed the whole thing, his usually stern and resolute face


    stiffened at an rming speed.


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


    exin.”


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


    Damn it, why did she have to grab these? Ste was so embarrassed she could dig a hole and


    hide, feeling like her exnations only made things worse.


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


    Ste felt extremely embarrassed and covered her face.


    He suggested, "Why not try again?"


    Yes, yes, try again.


    Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    But the car still didn''te out.


    Ste tried other things and sessfully 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. Ste was absolutely sure she had stored everything.


    But wait, when Jasper had raced the car back up the hill, she had rushed into the vi 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.


    Ste 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?"


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


    Ste touched her nose, exining 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 mighte in handyter.


    Ste 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."


    Ste 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 Ste 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 vis, scavenging for


    resources.


    The vis 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 find, 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, Ste 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 wee to try," she spat out.