18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 411

Stella's head was spinning, and she was grateful for the seat belts that cradled her; without them, she would've been tossed around like a salad at a summer picnic. The centrifuge-like gravity mechanism finally clicked into place just as she felt her stomach threaten revolt.

Darkness enveloped them, and their only window to the outside world was through the porthole. The hatch opened upwards, and Stella craned her neck to peer out. The chasm was deep, so deep that only a sliver of light from far above made its way down to them. It had to be at least two or three hundred meters to the top.

"Well, shoot, we'd need wings to get out of this one," Stella commented with a wry chuckle, turning to Jasper. "Looks like we might just retire in this crack in the earth, Jasper."

Jasper, ever the unfazed one, replied calmly, "I'll be right here with you."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than another quake hit, sending a cascade of mud and stones raining down upon them. The impact from such a height was unimaginable. Their escape pod took a hit, and they seemed to plummet a few meters further down. Thankfully, aerospace-grade materials had gone into its construction, preventing it from being flattened by the hail of debris. The deluge of earth continued until, several minutes later, it began to subside. Then, the already dim light snuffed out completely...

Instinctively looking up, Stella saw the sky being obscured by something. At first, it was transparent, but it thickened with time, dimming the light until... When she realized what it was, Stella's eyes widened in disbelief, and she threw up her arms to shield her head, ducking to the side.

Tidal waves! They came rolling in, swallowing the vast plateau, descending with the ferocity of a waterfall plummeting straight down into the earth's fissures. The vertical onslaught of water battered the escape pod relentlessly. Although they were safe within, the visual impact felt like repeated punches to the heart. The pod shook violently amidst the torrent. Stella's eyes were glued to the glass, half-expecting it to shatter at any moment. But the pod stood firm, unyielding despite the chaos, a testament to the resilience of its construction.

As the water continued to pour in and the earth beneath them sank, the water level rose rapidly... The escape pod bobbed upward as if riding a hundred-meter wave. Turns out, Stella wasn't fated to grow old trapped in a crevasse. Her choice was vindicated; taking refuge in the escape pod had been the right call. Tectonic shifts had loosened the soil of the highlands, creating countless fissures that allowed an underwater reservoir to surge upwards. Even if the pod had fallen into the crevasse, the fracturing and sinking of the plate would trigger a tsunami, whose massive impact would churn the soil, allowing the pod to escape on buoyancy alone. Jasper must have suspected as much; otherwise, with a sister to look after, he wouldn't have entertained the notion of growing old with her in the depths of the earth. Men and their sweet nothings!

In just two minutes, the pod surfaced, bobbing and spinning in the waves... Floating, drifting aimlessly like a leaf on the water, unable to control their destiny. The light flickered, and Rosie, dizzy from the motion, groaned, "Brother, I feel sick."

Stella unfastened the double safety belts and pulled the curtain over the hatch, plunging the pod into darkness. The curtain was her own modification, insisted upon and manually installed by Jasper. Next, they blinked into Arcadia for refuge. Stella handed Rosie a sour plum candy, "Suck on this, close your eyes, and rest. You'll feel better soon."

The sour plum candies were a remedy for nausea, one for each of them. Dizzy and disoriented, unsure if it was their bodies or their souls swaying, the tart sweetness jolted their senses back to clarity, and Rosie started to feel a lot better. Stella flicked on the light, "Everyone okay?"

"What do you think will happen next?"

Jasper didn't have the answers, but he clung to the belief that the disaster would eventually pass. Without that belief, the moment their spirits broke, they'd be unable to continue. No answers, just enduring.

Stella counted the days; the disaster had lasted nine years. Arcadia generated two hours of safety each day, but after the years of use, only 86 days remained. That was less than three months. And with no end to the catastrophe in sight, and no way to predict what disasters lay ahead, what would they do if time ran out and the disaster was still raging? What if they were just a few seconds or minutes short of survival? Time was of the essence, and they had to use it wisely.

The two of them set their alarm clocks, agreeing to catch just a four-hour snooze in Arcadia. Seasickness, they figured, was something you could get used to over time. But what really scared them was the thought that one day, they might long for the feeling and not have the chance to experience it again. Sleep was crucial, so Stella also lit some calming lavender incense. When the time came, Jasper wanted to let her sleep a bit longer. He gently lifted his sister into the escape pod, then returned to help Stella into her clothes. With the same tenderness, he carried her to the pod and secured her with the safety straps.

Groggily, Stella opened her eyes, waved goodbye to the Arcadia, and...