"Is this the place?" Grace asked as she parked the car outside a building located at the outskirts of the city. It was nearly an hour drive from the condo and they had witnessed a lot on their way to this place.
"It is." Dr. Kian answered while unbuckling his seat belt. As he climbed out of the car, Grace followed suit and stepped out, finally taking in the full view of the twelve-storey building standing right in front of her.
There were a few more buildings nearby, but every single one of them seemed abandoned. There was also no other person present there except for the two of them. An overwhelming darkness was surrounding the place, the only light coming from the headlights of the car.
"Let’s go inside." Dr. Kian said as he spared her a quick look and then started walking toward the entrance of the building without waiting for her response.
Grace stared at the man for a second before shifting her glance at the building. She let out a sigh and finally started walking, following after him. The front door was locked with a digital lock and it seemed like there was no electricity, hence they entered the building through the back entrance after breaking the lock.
"It’s too dark in here. I’m not sure our phone’s flashlights will be enough or not. We should have brought a flashlight-" Dr. Kian didn’t get to finish his sentence as the place suddenly got engulfed with brightness.
His shocked gaze shifted at Grace and he found her holding a flashlight which she offered to him. "Of course you got one." He muttered with a small shake of his head as he took the flashlight from her.
Ever since he stepped into her apartment at eight o’clock, he had seen things that he couldn’t make himself believe to be true, and yet, he couldn’t deny that they all had been very much real. A portal brought them from Sunspire City to Capital City within seconds, then he watched a car suddenly appearing in front of his eyes our of nowhere, and now a flashlight.
His brain was buzzing with questions and he desperately wanted their answers, but he held himself back, focusing on the important task at hand.
Because of the lack of electricity, the elevators weren’t working either. So they had to take the stairs as they made their way to upper floors. The lower three floors of the building were heavily damaged by the flood water that got seeped inside during the rain disaster.
They just reached the seventh floor when Dr. Kian signaled Grace to stop. The former was inhaling deeply to catch his breath while the latter looked as if she hadn’t moved an inch let alone climbing seven storeys.
"I thought seven would be a safe enough number. Seems like I was right." Dr. Kian said as he pushed away from the wall and headed toward one of only two doors that was located on the seventh floor.
He took out a key from his pocket and opened the door before stepping inside. Grace followed after him and stepped inside, finding herself standing at the entrance of a huge room which was filled with hundreds of cartons.
Confused by what she saw, she turned her gaze toward Dr. Kian. Though she didn’t ask the question out loud, her expression was enough for him to realize what she wanted to know.
"Come and take a look." He offered and started walking toward the one of the boxes sitting closest to him. Grace followed after him, eager to find out what was in those cartons that were filling the entire room. And it was no small room, but almost the same size as Grace’s entire apartment in building K12.
She took the flashlight from Dr. Kian so he could open the carton that was sealed carefully. Her eyes were pinned on the box as it was pulled open and she finally got to look at what was inside.
The moment her eyes and brain registered what she saw, a small gasp of pure surprise escaped her lips. Her eye eyes stared at the content of the box before shifting at Dr. Kian who was actually looking worried.
"Will these help?" He asked, studying her face closely as if his life depended on her answer.
"Medicines?" Grace asked as if she was unable to trust her own eyes and needed him to confirm. And he did, nodding his head in a positive response.
[Let me do a quick survey.] 2025 spoke through the shared mindlink.
In the meantime, Grace allowed herself to scan the room with her eyes. From floor to ceiling, every inch of the place was filled with cartons except for a small space near the entrance where the two of them were currently standing.
[We got here medicines, kits, and medical equipments.] 2025 began informing her moments later once it finished surveying the cartons sitting in that room.
[In medicines we have - IV fluids, blood products, painkillers, anesthetics, hemostatic agents, epinephrine, antibiotics, antiviral medications, antifungal medications, antiseptics, disinfectants, respiratory medications, cardiovascular drugs, diabetes supplies, local anesthetics, sterile dressings, sutures, burn treatments, oxytocin, misoprostol, magnesium sulfate, prenatal vitamins, psychiatric medications, seizure control, antiemetics, antidiarrheal medications, proton pump inhibitors, multivitamins, electrolytes, pediatric doses, vaccines, steroids, antivenoms, activated charcoal, anti-hypertensives, IV kits, glucose test kits]
[In equipment we got here - defibrillators, ventilators, oxygen concentrators, oxygen cylinders, portable suction machines, first aid kits, spinal boards, splints, tourniquet, hemostatic, portable ultrasound machines, thermometers, pulse oximeters, glucometers, ECG machines, point-of-care testing kits, autoclaves, surgical kits, hand drills, cauterization devices, IV stands, infusion pumps, manual resuscitation bags, syringes, needles, wound care supplies, patient mentoring systems, portable stretchers, wheelchairs, fetal dopplers, incubators, pediatric resuscitation equipment, portable medical kits, PPE, air purifiers, isolation tents...]
Grace could do nothing but stand there in silence while staring at the boxes sitting in front of her. When 2025 finally finished listing everything, she asked - [All these things are in this room?]