Aeternum

After the Asteroid-Closed

@MissCapnCrunch Don't worry about it, take your time. I hope things work out for you.

After the Asteroid-Closed

It took a while. I'm surprised no one else posted in this time though.

After the Asteroid-Closed

Robert Moore

Interacting with @Wick

Robert was taken aback when another person approached him. He recognized her, but again, he didn't know her name. If he wasn't so shaken, he thought his face would have turned red from the embarrassment. Yet another person whose name he didn't know. However, her next words would have made the blood drain out of his face just as quickly. Her words brought to mind the man he'd first tried to help and his imagination helpfully supplied images of that man rotting out in the sun outside.

He felt like he was going to be sick. Instead, he simply nodded at her and continued on with trying to save those he could.

He reached yet another person on the ground when he saw the woman from before come in. He felt his muscles tense, especially when she called him over. A feeling of dread washed over him. What sort of words were going to come out this time?

He steeled his nerves and stiffly approached her. He glanced at the box in her hands. Another wave of unease rushed over him. He had a feeling he wasn't going to like what was coming next. When he reached her and scanned the contents of the box, he felt like he knew what it was she was going to say. There were a few answers as to where she'd gotten the items in the box, but there was one that rose to the forefront of his mind.

Her words confirmed it. His throat felt dry. He knew it was logical and rational, but the sheer callousness still stunned him. He knew that this would raise his chances of survival. He knew the dead probably wouldn't need this stuff anymore, but... He heard his muffled voice before he even realized he'd opened his mouth.

"What the hell!? You can't just-! You can't-! Kh-!"

His outburst stuttered to a stop as he made a growl of frustration through gritted teeth. He was breathing heavily. He struggled to understand what he wanted to say. He understood the woman's logic. It was rational. So what was it about this situation that made him so upset?

Was it the fact that this person had just asked a teenager to help her rob the dead? Was it that she so easily said the words to a person she didn't know very well? Was it that he hadn't even finished rescuing the living yet?

What was it that he wanted to say? You can't just ask that of me? You can't just steal from the dead? He didn't know what, but emotion was surging forth from somewhere deep within.

This was all too much for him. Too much stress, too much terror, and the prospect of having to go through the belongings of the dead right after rescuing the living only served to increase the strain. He was fifteen. He'd been fourteen when he'd been brought into the bunker. He was still a teen whose voice had finally stopped cracking a month back. He was still a kid who hadn't even seen people die! Until now.

His fists were clenched by his side as he shook with emotion. He dropped his eyes. He understood it, he understood what she was asking for and why. He just couldn't stand it. This was all too much for him right now. He dropped his head, sucked in a deep shuddering breath and turned away. He forced his hands to relax as he hurried away.

"Whatever. I'm going back to work." he muttered.

He hastily began dragging someone who was still alive back into the depths of the bunker with his head down. He felt like he was about to explode. It was only after he'd made it to the back of the bunker that he realized his jaw was hurting. He'd clenched his teeth too hard.

After the Asteroid-Closed

Uh... I wonder if she isn't underestimating Robert's taciturn nature. Oh well.

After the Asteroid-Closed

Hm... I do believe that JJ and Robert were doing their best to only bring in the ones that were still kicking. However, others might have died after being brought in.

After the Asteroid-Closed

@WickI see. That's good to know. I will definitely keep that in mind.

I think part of the reason Kyrisse was waiting was also to see if anyone wanted to join in on the rescue stuff and interact, perhaps. I could be wrong though.

@RumikoOharaI'm a little curious. Why is she so hungry? Food shouldn't have run out yet. Oh, wait, I get it. The bunker people must have started rationing the food more carefully due to the diminishing food supplies. Hm... damn. I should have used that in my posts.

After the Asteroid-Closed

Wow. Big big difference.
And, read your post. I'm tempted to make my next post but I guess I should wait for the others to make their posts.

@Kyrisse

Yup.

Hm... I suppose. I don't really know how this would work. When I last checked, most people were out and about. Some wouldn't... actually, no, seems some have returned to the bunker, with injured in tow. Hum, I see.

Yeah, I don't know whether you should post or not.

After the Asteroid-Closed

@KyrisseGMT-6

Yeah, that's quite a difference.

After the Asteroid-Closed

Robert Moore

Interacting with @Kyrisse

Robert quickly grabbed another person, a woman this time. He wrapped his arms underneath her armpit and began to haul her away, letting her legs drag behind him as he pulled the woman. She was struggling, flailing. Not unlike a drowning person, he suspected. He didn't like the color of of her face. Maybe he'd chosen the wrong person this time. She was having trouble breathing, but now that he'd grabbed her, he wasn't about to drop her until it was clear that she was a goner.

He didn't bother to lift people up and carry them out. There were a lot of people and lifting them up would take more energy and time than he was willing to exert at the moment. The more energy and time he had, the faster he could get from one place to another, the faster people could be saved. Yes, it was a little rough, but the bunker floors were smooth concrete for the most part.

The trips inside unfortunately didn't require the same effort from his mind as it did his physical body. There was nothing to distract his eyes. His mind was filled with worries about what was going on with the air, worries about how dangerous the world outside was, and how many people would die today and from what causes. Apparently the air outside was already dangerous enough.

It was at that time that he noticed he didn't have nearly the same fitness as before. He was already straining hard, breathing hard, and beads of sweat kept rolling off his body. Certainly this wasn't easy work, but surely it shouldn't be quite this exhausting?

He didn't pause as he mulled over his thoughts. Could it be that he'd lost muscle mass? Yeah, actually. That would make sense. The food in the bunker wasn't the best, the air wasn't the freshest, the water had an odd quality about it that he wasn't so fond of, and exercise? He'd done some, but probably nothing like what good long hikes on a mountain would give him. Another possibility was, of course, the air.

His eyes darted around as he continued. He watched the bodies at the entrance, marking which ones seemed like they were doing the best. The person who he was dragging, it seemed her breathing had gotten a little easier? Or perhaps, it was just weaker. He tried to pick up his pace a little. He didn't particularly like the thought of having someone die in his arms like this. He ruthlessly drove distracting thoughts from his mind and concentrated on getting further in as fast as he could.

The woman still breathed by the time he'd pulled her towards the back of the bunker. Hopefully his movements weren't pushing the outside air to the back... Actually, he was pretty sure that was what he was doing. Dammit. Maybe he could ask the guards to post someone on the outside to communicate with the inside, and reseal the bunker once the living were dragged in to try to preserve as much clean air as possible.

He had the minor decency to pull the women to a spot further to the side to separate the women from the men, but for the most part, he left them on the ground. Not so nice, probably not as beneficial as it would be if he'd dragged them up to bed or chairs to those he was "rescuing", but more efficient.

He rushed back to the front, opting for long deep breaths rather than the panting he was beginning to do. His eyes were scanning the fallen and he marked one of the ones who had looked strong before and was closer to him. Shorter trips to the depths of the bunker would be better.

As he began to drag yet another person away, his eyes fell on someone else doing the same thing. He recognized the man. The person was older than him, asian, and well, he'd seen him around a few times. His name however, had been forgotten.

"Hey. Robert right? Maybe if we work together, we can get people in faster,"

It was more than a little awkward for him when the man saw him and called out his name. Alright, maybe he should have paid more attention. Were they supposed to be close enough to know each other's names? He was going to seem so rude if he made an attempt. He'd just try to keep it hidden and hope someone would drop the man's name so he could pretend he'd known it.

"Uh..." Robert thought it over for a moment without stopping his movements, and nodded shortly.

He paused once he thought of something. The wet cloths in his bag, maybe this guy could use one, or a few. Of course, wet cloths would probably make it seem harder to breathe for the people he was dragging back, but hopefully it would protect them from the air. So long as the air wasn't reactive with water, at least. His biology teacher had once mentioned Chloric acid was a gas and when it interacted with water, it became hydrochloric acid, and that it was nasty. Unfortunately though, he didn't remember how you were supposed to deal with acids. Bases maybe? So oil? Unfortunately, he didn't have oil to try to use.

Before he could offer one, or even ask what the man meant by working together, the man had finished helping the person he brought in to a chair and rushed back out.

Okay... I guess I'll find out.

After the Asteroid-Closed

@KyrisseAh, I see. Our timezones are quite different then, it seems.