18 Floors Above the Apocalypse



Stella grinned and asked, "Rosie, do you like the life you're living now?"

Without skipping a beat, Rosie replied, "I do."

Sure, there was some backstabbing among colleagues, but she had learned to handle it with ease, sometimes even finding joy in the challenge. The job was tough, but it allowed her to find her own worth.

"I think it's pretty great, sis," she said.

People always have their own agendas, but it was undeniable that everyone was striving toward a better future, believing that life would get better. Stella smiled, feeling ready for a new beginning herself.

Later that evening, when Jasper came home and saw Stella packing, he couldn't help but ask, "How was the hospital today?"

The understaffed and under-equipped hospital was as you'd expect. But with Collin's presence, there was a newfound sense of hope. Stella felt a pang of regret. "Dr. Garcia was pretty old when he joined the Kindle Society and fell ill soon after. Sadly, he didn't make it."NôvelDrama.Org holds © this.

Dr. Garcia had been a towering figure in traditional medicine, and his formula for combating the smog virus had saved countless lives during the disasters. His passing was a great loss. If he had still been around, the restoration of traditional medicine would have been much faster. Learning Stella had decided to work at the hospital, Jasper was thrilled. Nobody knew whether the disasters had truly ended, but life had to go on. Having a job could really ground a person.

"That's fantastic. We can commute together from now on."

Stella sighed, having always said she wouldn't work a day in her life, yet here she was, back at a job. Used to sleeping in, she found it hard to wake up early.

Limp as a ragdoll, Stella was coaxed out of bed by Jasper, who handed her a toothbrush slathered with toothpaste. "You can't be late on your first day."

Only then did she fully wake up, rushing around as if she were going into battle. They barely caught the ferry, Stella collapsing onto Jasper's shoulder and falling asleep during the ride.

Arriving at Area A with time to spare, Jasper dropped her off at the hospital entrance. "I'll pick you up after work."

There were two heads at the hospital, one in charge of administration and the other of academic affairs. Collin had worked late into the night, getting a handle on the hospital's situation and setting tasks for Stella.

He had dedicated his life to traditional medicine and knew little about Western medicine. Stella, having spent some time with Hugh, couldn't claim to shoulder everything, but she was capable of handling basic surgical emergencies. As the base was under construction, there were frequent cases of trauma that traditional medicine alone couldn't treat.

The best approach was to combine Western and traditional medicine to save as many patients as possible. Stella had reviewed the inventory of medical supplies the previous day. There wasn't an abundance of emergency surgical equipment or medications, but there was enough to last a year

or so.

Thus, the mentor and student divided the responsibilities: Collin would oversee traditional medicine, and Stella would be in charge of general surgery. Stella hadn't anticipated patients arriving so soon, but by late morning, an injured worker was rushed in with a deep gash in his leg, bleeding profusely. Already in poor health, his face was ashen. Without the facilities for a transfusion, they had to act quickly to stop the bleeding and suture the wound to prevent life-threatening blood loss.

The patient was wheeled into the operating room, and Stella and Collin hurried to his side. Collin used acupressure and acupuncture to reduce the bleeding. Stella cleaned and disinfected the wound, then performed local anesthesia, stopped the bleeding, and stitched the wound.

After thirty minutes, the surgery was successfully completed. For the subsequent treatment, they would seek solutions from traditional medicine as much as possible. Stella and Collin exchanged a glance, their expressions serious but tinged with hope. There was a shortage of everything, and everything had to be explored from scratch.

In the evening, Jasper came to pick Stella up from work. She was swamped with a lot to handle on her first day and didn't finish until eight. Worried about safety at night, Stella insisted Collin leave with her, only then finding out the hospital had dormitories.

The next ferry was a long wait, so they decided to row back in a dinghy. They got home after nine, and Rosie and Cooper hadn't returned yet. Cooper, left alone at home, clearly expressed his displeasure, and it took Stella a while to calm him.

Everything is difficult at the

beginning. With insufficient surgical

supplies and less than ideal treatment outcomes, Stella spent a lot of time discussing solutions with Collin, looking to expand the types of traditional medicines available and improve their quality. She arranged for a dormitory room at the hospital to make it easier to rest and have lunch. When Jasper wasn't busy, he'd come over to have lunch with her or wait for her to finish work. Despite the busyness, she felt fulfilled.

After a month of difficult conditions, things slowly began to find their rhythm. Through numerous collaborations between Stella and Collin, the integration of Western and traditional medicine became increasingly proficient. Just as they were catching their breath, a new task arrived-finding a way to treat the survivors in Area F.

Who were the people in Area F? They were a mix of mental and physical ailments. Those residing there, whether due to disasters or the force of circumstances, were a troubled lot. Stella dismissed the idea without a second thought, but to her surprise, Collin was considering taking it on.

"Dr. Collin," she warned, "there are daily incidents of people faking illness to cause trouble, and many caregivers have been injured. You're the hope of the base now. Any harm to you would be a great loss."

Collin had heard the rumors. "The management there has been improved, with each person isolated and living separately. If it's the prion virus, we're indeed powerless, but if it's other diseases, there might be a breakthrough."

Survivors had been forced to eat mutated seafood, leading to long-term physical changes, though these weren't necessarily untreatable acute conditions. If even the mutated yellow croaker fish could eventually be safe to eat, perhaps they could find a way to treat the sick inhabitants.

Collin was adamant, and Stella had no choice but to agree. Once a teacher, always a teacher. For Collin's safety, Stella decided to accompany him. She took a quick trip back to the submarine to retrieve two protective suits. "Stocked up from before, better safe than sorry."

Accompanied by a few medical

staff, they boarded the ferry to Area F. Area F was guarded by military personnel and currently housed over three hundred people, divided into four sections. These people all had severe me mental illnesses; some were irritable and prone to attacking others, some lurked in a gloomy state watching others, while others had infections resulting in physical abnormalities, among other issues...

In short, they not only lacked the ability to work but also suffered from various complex diseases. To prevent them from attacking others, the activity areas were reinforced with protective barriers. Collin wasn't a psychiatrist, but today he was focused on those whose physical alterations were caused by viral infections.

The medical room was separated by two layers of fences to protect the medical staff from patient attacks. When word got around that Collin and his team were visiting, the facility's manager cherry-picked over a dozen patients who epitomized the breadth of the outbreak. Soldiers on duty were tasked with escorting each one in turn.

The symptoms were a motley crew:

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joints swollen and contorted like gnarled oak trees, skin dotted with bumps and rashes like abstract art, organs failìng as if they'd given up the ghost. Illness has a way of bulldozing the spirit. Many of the afflicted were beyond tears, their voices raw with desperation. "Doc, can you fix me up? I swear I'd skip the fish 'n chips if I could, but when your belly's howlin'... it ain't easy."

"Please, I'm beggin' ya, save me. My little girl's out there alone; I gotta find her. I can't cash in my chips now..."

Each soul clung to a reason to keep on keepin' on. Some collapsed into sobs; others lunged at the fence, reaching through the bars with grasping hands. "I haven't touched fish, I swear it!"

Stella kept her head down, diligently organizing medical records, occasionally exchanging a few words with Collin. Truth be told, without fancy gizmos to run tests, they were fumbling in the dark, trying to cross a river by feeling for stones. And with resources stretched thinner than a dime, every step felt like wading through quicksand.

"Stella?"

The voice cut through the gloom, unexpected as a clap of thunder.