18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 601

Jake was taken aback. “Stella, you know her?”

Stella, unable to contain her excitement, urged, “She’s one of us, let her go.”

Jake released his grip, and Angela began to cough violently.

Stella was in disbelief; never in her wildest dreams did she imagine she would encounter Angela in the New World.

Words failed her as she had so much to say, yet nothing came out.

She handed over a canteen.

After gulping down a few sips of water to ease her cough, Angela wiped the camouflage paint from her face.

Staring into the familiar features of Angela, it took a moment for her to regain her composure before she wrapped Stella in an embrace. “Stella.”

She had always believed that Stella was alive and well.

But she had never expected to reunite under such circumstances.

The others, including Jake, felt a wave of awkwardness wash over them, realizing they had almost turned their own people into mincemeat.

Indeed, this group was all Australian, and several were part of the Seed Project, along with the other survivors they had encountered.

Taking a deep breath, Stella asked with a hint of tension, “What about Lukas and Cody?”

Angela’s response was heavy, “They... they’ve been badly hurt in a fight with China a few days ago. I’m afraid...”

Stella's heart skipped a beat. “What happened to them?”

“Why would you confront China?” Stella inquired, her brow furrowing.

It was a long story, but with the misunderstanding cleared up, Angela didn't want to waste any more time. They needed to get back to their camp.

Stella could never have guessed that Angela and her team had been setting traps and ambushes to capture Chinese forces and that she had stumbled upon them by mistake.

The traps were so flawlessly executed in the harsh environment that the special unit had failed to detect them.

Fortunately, they had realized something was amiss just in time to avoid a bloodbath, especially since they would have been killing their own kin, including fellow Seed Project members from the South Base.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and secretly praised Angela and her team for their excellent stealth and trap-making skills despite their lack of high-tech equipment.

It was like the old Western saying, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

For Stella, the greatest joy of stepping into the New World was the chance reunion with Angela.

She hoped Cody and Lukas were alright; there was still time to make things right.

The camp was a good few hours' walk away, but there was no time to dwell on that. Stella offered Angela a ride back. “I’ve got some meds in the truck.”

So, two armored vehicles, with Angela aboard, raced through the desert.

Fearing another misunderstanding that might lead to a shootout, they brought along a few survivors. With no room inside, they had to perch on the roof of the vehicles.

Inside the vehicle, Angela briefly recounted their ordeal.

After the land had sunk, their submarine had drifted aimlessly at sea, facing countless dangers.

Eventually, they found comrades and kept picking up more along the way.

Their group grew to a fleet of seven submarines.

Even scraping by, their food supplies ran out, and they had to fish. Fearing ancient viruses, they would only eat the clean flesh of the fish, cooked for hours before eating.

Later, they had skirmishes with survivors from other nations over resources.

They lived desperately, cruelly, until the continent rose again.

Once ashore, they encountered more survivors, banding together with those who hadn’t lost their humanity to fend off foreign threats.

Years passed this way, and their numbers swelled to over a thousand.

Then they discovered an open-pit oil field and settled nearby for the fire source. But a few months ago, China took notice.

Unbeknownst to them, China’s national base was also on this continent, seeking resources.

Not only did China covet their oil field, but they also wanted to enslave them to work it.

Angela’s group resisted, and naturally, conflict ensued.

China’s base was far away, and they didn’t send many troops, looking down on Angela’s group, but they had superior weapons and equipment.

With few weapons, Angela’s group resorted to their ancestors’ guerrilla tactics, fighting a war of attrition.

Not a trace of vitality remained.

Cody was unrecognizable as well, aged and weathered as if he had aged a decade or more.

In that moment, Stella felt her heart constrict.

She couldn’t imagine the hardships and suffering they had endured over the years.

Echoes of their past laughter and warmth at the orphanage filled her ears, a stark contrast to their current reality.

With a heavy heart, she stepped forward, placing a hand on Cody’s fevered brow.

After years of submarine living, Stella’s skin was as white as dough compared to his.

His forehead was burning hot, his breathing erratic.

The two of them had suffered gunshot wounds, thankfully none of them fatal.

But with scarce medical supplies, the only option had been to use a red-hot knife to pry the bullet out—a grim gamble of life or death. If they pulled through, they’d have beaten the odds.

Survival these past six months had been brutal. Engaged in a constant guerrilla warfare with the enemy, there had been no chance to cultivate or sustain any form of livelihood. Everyone was weakened, and those who took bullets were in even worse shape.

As expected, the wounded had all developed infections.

Jasper came in carrying a medical kit, silently handing it over to Stella.

Stella administered anti-inflammatory and fever-reducing injections to the two patients, then had Angela feed them half a bowl of glucose solution followed by antibiotics.

She then proceeded to clean their wounds again, removing the necrotic tissue, disinfecting the area, and re-stitching and bandaging the injuries.

It wasn’t just the two of them who were hurt; Stella took care of a few others as well.

The sight of the medicine made many eyes light up with hope.

Unable to contain their curiosity, one of them quivered his lips and asked, “Comrade, where did you come from?”

They were not only wearing the enemy’s uniforms, but they also seemed well-nourished.

In contrast, he felt like a ghost among the living.