Chapter 38 Lost of Power

On the fourth day of the apocalypse, Richard spent his time on the sixth floor, observing the volunteers as they diligently practiced their shooting skills. He recognized the indirect benefits of these training sessions, as the zombies they gathered from the streets served as practice targets. The process not only improved the recruits’ abilities but also converted the zombies into valuable resources, yielding gold and experience points. Yet, despite these gains, he found himself still short of leveling up to the next rank.

As he contemplated his progress, Richard couldn’t help but ponder the leveling system’s intricacies. The higher his level, the more experience points it took to advance further. He wondered if there was a definitive ceiling to his potential, perhaps capped at level 100, or if the system allowed for limitless growth. His curiosity deepened as he considered the military hardware that might be unlocked at higher levels. Would it be advanced prototypes, possibly even technology not yet conceived in the real world? A glance at his shop tab revealed an enticing selection of sophisticated military equipment already available for purchase.

The anticipation of someday acquiring futuristic firearms and vehicles filled him with both curiosity and excitement. If they do exist, he would acquire them with no hesitation, especially after witnessing a potential threat. Humans with supernatural abilities.

It was five o’clock in the afternoon and the sixth-floor garage and the air was filled with rotten stench as the volunteers helped the soldiers remove the zombie corpses.

He stood there, lost in thought, his eyes scanning the training ground until he was brought back to reality by a familiar voice calling his name.

“Brother!”

He turned to see his little sister, Lisa, approaching him. Her face was flushed from the training, but there was a determined glint in her eyes. She held a pistol, the same M9 Beretta she had used earlier in the day.

“Lisa,” Richard greeted her with a warm smile. “How was the first day of the training?”

“How should I put this…it was exhilarating! At first, I was nervous about firing a gun, but after two or three hours, I grew confident. My aim improved steadily, while my knowledge about the technical aspects of the gun was expanding. Tomorrow, we will focus on how to do maintenance on a gun. Though we briefly touched that topic earlier, there’s so much to learn.”

“I’m glad that you are enjoying it,” Richard ruffled Lisa’s hair affectionately. “Your classmates are also doing fine. Take it a month or two and you’ll be able to defend yourself.”

Lisa beamed at her brother’s encouragement. “I’ll keep working hard, brother. I want to make you proud.”

Richard’s smile was filled with pride. “You already have, Lisa.”

As Lisa and Richard continued their conversation, the lights on the ceiling were suddenly extinguished. Darkness enveloped the area, and an eerie silence descended upon the volunteers and soldiers.

Richard instinctively reached for Lisa’s arm, pulling her closer to him.”

“What happened to the lights?” Lisa whispered, her voice barely audible over the hushed murmurs of confusion around them.

“Blackwatch, this is Eagle Actual, lights went dark on the sixth-floor garage, how copy?” Richard radioed. In his mind, he believed that there was a blackout.

“Eagle Actual, same circumstances in the command center, everything went dark,” Mark said, who left the sixth floor three hours ago to help Graves with the planning of the operation for tomorrow. “Electricity seemed to have gone down all over the condominium.”

The response from Mark confirmed Richard’s suspicions. Electricity was now gone. The power plant that is supplying electricity to Makati City must have been left unattended when the outbreak began.

Well, not that he is not expecting it, he was expecting it to happen that electricity would go out in one or two weeks. But four days, that is something they hadn’t anticipated.

“Lisa, I want you to return to your room, bring your classmates as well,” Richard instructed.

“What happened, brother?” Lis asked.

“Electricity has gone out,” Richard revealed. “Don’t worry, we’ll get it back up using a generator.”

“But brother…our unit is on the twenty-fifth floor, we are on the sixth floor. It’s a long climb up those stairs,” Lisa said, concern etching her face.

Lisa was right, with the electricity gone, elevators were no longer an option, and the thought of climbing up to the twenty-fifth floor was daunting. But what can they do about it?

“Well, it’s not like you have a choice here, Lisa. It’s also good for you to climb up those stairs. After all, zombies are fast runners and to outrun them you must have high endurance,” Richard replied with a reassuring smile. “You can build it up there.”

“Yeah…” Lisa chuckled, realizing her error. “My bad. Okay brother, I’ll go now.”

With that, Lisa regrouped with her classmates who were among the survivors, and headed straight to the emergency stairwell. The emergency stairwell was narrow, and the concrete steps seemed to stretch endlessly upward. Lisa and her classmates, armed with flashlights, began their ascent.

Meanwhile, Richard and the others who remained on the sixth floor assessed the situation.

“Blackwatch, this is Eagle Actual. There is a generator on the second floor, we are going to try to restore power. Hold tight up there,” Richard radioed to Mark.

“Copy that sir.”

Ending the transmission, Richard beckoned his soldier closer and led the way to the second floor. They used a different stairwell located on the opposite side of the building.

Reaching the second floor, they cautiously explored the area to find the generator room.

Richard knew exactly where it was located as he had been there plenty of times thanks to his friend in the engineering department.

Arriving at the generator room, Richard and his team cautiously entered. They scanned the room with flashlights. Standing at the center of the generator room is the generator itself. Richard and his team examined the massive piece of machinery. .𝘤𝑜𝑚

“Okay, how do we start this thing?” Richard said as his eyes scanned the control panels and the various switches that surrounded the generator.

Despite his familiarity with the room, the process of starting the generator was something he had never needed to learn before. In normal times, there would be trained technicians to handle such tasks.

One of the soldiers stepped forward, a look of determination on his face. “Sir, I think I can figure this out.”

Richard glanced at the soldier who stepped up, his head tilting to the side.

“Alright, do your best. We need to get the power back on as soon as possible.”

The soldier carefully examined the control panels, tracing wires and checking the fuel supply. After a tense few minutes, he finally said, “I think I’ve got it. Stand back, sir.”

With a confident flick of a switch, the soldier initiated the startup sequence. The massive generator roared to life, vibrations shaking the room as it began to hum with power. Lights on the control panel lit up one by one, indicating that the generator was functioning correctly.

“Is the generator supposed to be that loud?” Richard asked, his voice barely audible over the deafening noise of the generator.

The soldier who had started the generator yelled back, “Yes, sir! It’s normal for it to be this loud during startup. Once it stabilizes, it should quiet down.”

Richard nodded, trusting the soldier’s knowledge.

As they waited for the generator to stabilize, the soldier explained, “Once it’s running smoothly, it’ll provide power to most of the building, but it won’t last forever. We’ll need to ration its use and try to find more fuel if we can.”

Fuel is something he shouldn’t worry about as he could purchase a barrel of it from his system.

“How long does that generator last?”

The soldier checked the fuel gauge and replied, “With the amount of fuel we have in here, it should last us for at least a few hours. Five at most. From then, we’ll have to feed with diesel.”

“Okay,” Richard nodded. “Since you are the one who figured this out, I will assign you to this post.”

“Understood sir!”

***

The electricity returned to the condominium ten minutes after it went out.

Richard arrived at the command center where Mark greeted him.

“From this day on, our electricity is supplied by the generator on the second floor. We’ll have to decrease its load, meaning we’ll have to save electricity. I want you to write a memorandum for the survivors detailing the new power situation and the need for conservation. Make sure they understand that we can’t afford to waste energy.”

Mark nodded in agreement. “I’ll get that message out to everyone right away.”