LOSS System: Last Store Standing

The next morning, Jack gathered everyone at the trading post. Once everyone was there, he told them about the approaching heat wave.

The news immediately caused an uproar.

“The heat wave will last for a month?”

“How is that possible?”

“What are we supposed to do?”

Jack waited until the voices began to die down.

“I know this is hard to believe, but I would never joke about something that could cost all of you your lives.”

The crowd gradually quieted.

“I can’t promise that everything will be all right. All I can promise is that I’ll do everything I can to prepare for this crisis. But I can’t do it alone. I’ll need everyone’s help.”

He looked across the crowd before continuing.

“If any of you believe you’ll be safer somewhere else, I won’t stop you from leaving. I’ll also give you some food and water as payment for the work you’ve done here.”

He gave them a moment to take that in.

“You don’t have to answer me now. Think it over and let me know once you’ve made your decision.”

Low voices rose through the crowd again.

Jack left them to discuss it and began organizing the people heading out that day.

Everyone who already knew how to drive a CUEV joined the convoy. As they had agreed the night before, Megan would remain behind and teach more people to drive. The others inspected the vehicles, loaded drinking water, and gathered the tools they might need.

Before long, the convoy left the trading post.

The remaining people returned to their camps to discuss whether they would stay or leave.

Nolan gathered his original companions between their tents. The ten of them sat in silence for a while before he spoke.

“Jack has left the decision to us. Whether you want to stay or leave, say what you really think.”

“I’m staying,” Eli said first. “Everyone is here, and we have water, electricity, and supplies. I can’t think of anywhere safer.”

“I trust Jack,” Aaron added. “I’m not leaving either.”

Toby also chose to stay. He was physically weaker than the others and had little confidence that he could survive more than ten days of travel through the wasteland.

“Think carefully before you decide,” Lyle warned them. “Once you leave, you’ll truly be on your own.”

Nolan held back his own answer for the moment.

“Does anyone want to go?”

The group fell silent again.

After a while, Marcus spoke.

“I do.”

Everyone looked toward him.

“It’s not that I don’t trust Jack,” Marcus said. “But the heat wave won’t reach here for another fourteen days. We know it’s coming from the southwest. If we start moving in the opposite direction now, we might still have a chance to get beyond its reach.”

“Do you know how large an area it will cover?” Simon asked.

“No,” Marcus replied. “But no one knows how far it will spread. I can’t stay here and wait for it to reach us.”

Simon accepted his answer and didn’t try to persuade him.

Grant considered it for a moment.

“I’ll go with you.”

“Count me in,” Dean said.

Nolan turned to him.

“You want to leave too?”

“Yes,” Dean replied. “The conditions here are good, and Jack has helped us. But we still have fourteen days. I want to use that time to get as far away as possible. Even if I turn out to be wrong, it’ll still be a choice I made for myself.”

Nolan didn’t try to change his mind.

Owen had been quiet throughout the discussion. After a long while, he finally spoke.

“I’ve decided to leave too.”

Eli hadn’t expected that.

“You too?”

“Yes,” Owen said. “Marcus has a point. We should put as much distance between ourselves and this place as we can before the heat wave arrives.”

Nolan addressed the four of them.

“Where are you planning to go?”

“Northeast,” Marcus replied. “We’ll start by heading away from where the heat wave is forming. Once Jack returns, we can ask him if there’s a better route.”

It was clear that all four had made up their minds, so Nolan didn’t try to change them.

“Then I won’t say anything more. I hope everything goes well for you. Once you’ve found somewhere to settle, you can always come back and find us.”

“All right,” Owen said. “Once we’re gone, follow the arrangements here. Don’t let everyone start doing whatever they want.”

“Be careful on the road,” Eli told them.

“We will,” Marcus said. “Hopefully, we’ll meet again someday.”

With the decision made, Owen, Marcus, Grant, and Dean returned to their tents to pack. They would tell Jack once he returned.

Nolan, Simon, Aaron, Eli, Toby, and Lyle went back to making brick blanks. Megan later called the six of them over and began teaching them how to drive the CUEVs.

Warren, Oscar, Henry, Walter, and the others all chose to stay.

Jack’s group barely rested that entire day.

They went to the agricultural supply center first and installed cargo beds on the CUEVs. After that, they made one trip after another between the electronics mall and the convenience store.

Portable Climate Control Units were their top priority, but they also brought back anything that looked like it might be useful for the electrical system.

As soon as the first load arrived, Walter and Colt began sorting the electrical components by purpose. Warren continued working on the shelter plans based on everything they had discussed the night before.

The others had their own tasks as well. Elias had Vane and Marlin bring wooden pallets out of the storage room, while Megan taught Nolan and the other five men how to drive.

Around noon, Jack’s group returned to refill their drinking water. Marcus and the other three came over to speak with him.

“We’ve made our decision,” Marcus said. “We want to head northeast before the heat wave arrives.”

Jack looked at Owen, Grant, and Dean behind him.

“Have all four of you thought this through?”

“We have,” Marcus answered.

The other three gave the same answer.

“Then I respect your decision.”

Jack asked Elias to bring over food and drinking water, then divided the supplies among the four men.

“Good luck. Take care of yourselves out there.”

Marcus accepted his share.

“Thank you. You take care too.”

Owen and the others thanked Jack as well.

The four didn’t linger. After saying goodbye to those who had chosen to stay, they gathered their supplies and left the trading post.

Jack watched them disappear into the distance. Then he climbed back into the CUEV and set out for the electronics mall again.

By the time darkness began to fall, the convoy finally returned after spending the entire day hauling supplies.

They had brought back thirty Portable Climate Control Units and a large quantity of electrical components.

After a quick dinner, Jack gathered everyone at the trading post.

“Who learned how to drive a CUEV today?”

Nolan, Simon, Aaron, Eli, Toby, and Lyle all raised their hands.

Jack hadn’t expected all six of them to succeed in a single day.

“You all learned how to drive?”

“They can follow a convoy without any trouble,” Megan said. “They still need more practice, but they can handle the basics.”

“Good. Tomorrow, we’ll make another trip to the CUEV factory,” Jack said. “At the very least, everyone who knows how to drive should have a vehicle available.”

Elias reported that they had already brought out a large number of wooden pallets, while Walter had finished sorting the electrical components.

After everyone finished reporting their progress, Jack was about to send them back to rest when Marg spoke up.

“Jack, is there anything we can do?”

Marg stood with Ruth, Edith, and Lydia.

“We can’t help much with the heavy lifting or construction, but there must be something else we can take care of,” Marg said.

Jack thought for a moment, then turned to Megan.

“Could you teach them some basic first aid? Nothing too complicated, just whatever might be useful once the heat wave arrives.”

“I can,” Megan said after considering it. “I’ll teach them how to recognize dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke, along with some emergency cooling methods. They should also know what not to do if someone loses consciousness.”

She addressed the four women.

“If something happens, I won’t be able to look after everyone by myself. I’ll need your help.”

“No problem,” Marg said. “When do we start?”

“After the convoy leaves tomorrow morning. We’ll start with recognizing the symptoms.”

Ruth, Edith, and Lydia agreed.

“The plans are almost finished,” Warren said. “I should be able to complete them tomorrow.”

Jack addressed everyone again.

“There’s one more thing you need to know. We discussed this last night. Once the heat wave arrives, the tents won’t be safe enough to live in. We’re going to build a temporary shelter large enough for everyone, and we’ll all move inside until the heat wave passes.”

He indicated the unfinished plans in front of Warren.

“We’ll decide exactly how to build it once the plans are finished tomorrow. It’s going to take a lot of work, so everyone who’s able to help will need to take part. Those of us who are younger will have to do more.”

“No problem,” Nolan said. “Just tell us what needs to be done.”

The others agreed as well.

“Get some proper rest tonight,” Jack said. “Once the plans are ready, we officially begin construction.”

The gathering came to an end, and everyone began returning to their tents. Jack and Megan had only taken a few steps toward the convenience store when Warren caught up with them, carrying the plans.

“Wait. I’ve already finished the general layout.”

He called Elias, Walter, Hal, Mort, Marg, and several others back, then spread the plans across one of the tables in the trading post.

“Since everyone is still here, I might as well explain what I have so far. If you spot any problems, I can make the changes tonight.”

Everyone gathered around the table.

The shelter on the plans was a large rectangle divided into a sleeping area, a common area, and a basic washroom and toilet section. A central passageway ran from one end of the building to the other.

Warren pointed to the sleeping area.

“The original design was for twenty-eight people. But now that Marcus and the other three have left, I’ve changed it to twelve two-person compartments. They’ll be arranged in two facing rows, with the central passageway running between them.”

“Each compartment will have enough room for two beds and some space to move around. The walls won’t extend all the way to the ceiling, or the cool air won’t be able to circulate properly.”

His finger moved across the plans and stopped at the largest section.

“This is the common area,” Warren continued. “Everyone can eat and rest here. The washroom and toilet area will be in the corner, separated from the sleeping area. The main entrance will be on this side, with a second exit at the opposite end.”

Megan studied the plans.

“What about the kitchen?”

“I left some space beside the common area,” Warren said. “But Marg will have to tell us how much room she needs.”

Marg leaned over the plans.

“We don’t need a full kitchen. Right now, we mostly eat bread and canned beef, and the most we usually cook is boiled potatoes. Just leave enough room for a stove and a few pots.”

Warren marked out a small section beside the common area.

“The shelter will be seventeen meters long and ten meters wide, with a height of about two point four meters. Based on the current design, it should take seven or eight days to finish. Even after we install the wiring and equipment, it should still be ready before the heat wave arrives.”

Elias pointed to the small squares marked throughout the plans.

“Are these the climate control units?”

“Yes. I’m planning to install three in each two-person compartment, with additional units in the common area and central passageway,” Warren said. “Once the shelter is built, we’ll test how well they cool the interior and adjust the number if necessary.”

Megan asked about the position of the washroom and toilet area, while Elias checked the width of the exits and central passageway. Warren answered each of their questions, and no one found any major problems with the design.

Jack, however, kept studying the twelve compartments in the sleeping area.

“Would we finish faster if we removed these?”

Warren looked at him.

“Where would everyone sleep?”

“We can move the tents inside,” Jack said. “These compartments won’t even have doors, so they won’t provide much privacy anyway. Edith and the other women will be staying in there too.”

Warren studied the sleeping area again.

“If we use tents instead, we could finish at least one or two days earlier.”

“Then let’s do that.”

Warren picked up his pen and crossed out all twelve compartments.

“I’ll revise the plans tonight. If no one finds any other problems tomorrow, we can start construction.”

With the basic design settled, everyone headed back to their tents. Warren gathered up the plans and his writing materials so he could finish the revisions that night.