LOSS System: Last Store Standing

Once the idea took shape, Jack immediately set down the hose and hurried back to the warehouse. He found several refugees who had already settled in and were still in relatively good condition, then asked them to come outside with him.

None of them knew what he was planning, but they followed him out anyway.

“Give me a hand. Move all these hoses into the warehouse and stack them together.”

The refugees didn’t ask questions. They immediately spread out, recoiling the loose hoses and securing them with their original straps before carrying them into the warehouse one by one.

After finishing with the refugee suffering from heat illness, Megan noticed Jack and several others repeatedly hauling things inside and walked over.

She looked at the growing pile of hoses.

“What are you planning to do with all these?”

“I was thinking we might be able to run water here from the convenience store.”

“What?”

Megan stared at him, then reached over and touched his forehead.

“You don’t have a fever. Why are you talking nonsense?”

Jack shot her an annoyed look.

“I’m serious.”

“Do you have any idea how far we are from the convenience store?” Megan looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “It takes a CUEV an hour to get here. That’s at least thirty kilometers. You really think the water will make it all the way?”

“I don’t know, but it’s worth trying. We have plenty of hose.”

Jack paused before adding, “Even if all we get at this end is a trickle, it’ll still be better than having them travel to the convenience store every day.”

Megan fell silent.

“It shouldn’t be that difficult either,” Jack continued. “We connect all the hoses first, then use a CUEV to lay them out along the way.”

In the end, Megan relented.

“Fine. Let’s try it.”

The refugees quickly removed the straps and began joining the coils end to end. As more and more hoses were carried inside, Megan gradually understood why Jack had come up with the idea.

“That really is a lot of hose.”

“Exactly,” Jack said. “It’s all sitting here unused anyway. What if this actually works?”

Just then, the sound of approaching CUEVs came from outside. The final group of refugees had arrived, along with Lydia, Grace, and Helen. Megan immediately assigned the three of them to help care for the refugees in poorer condition.

Dale noticed the growing pile of hoses and the people connecting them.

“What’s going on here?”

Jack explained the plan.

Dale considered it for a moment.

“It’s worth a try. In this heat, even driving a CUEV is miserable, let alone walking.”

“Less talking, more helping,” Jack said as he continued working.

Dale and the others soon joined in.

By late morning, every section of hose had finally been connected. Together, they moved the entire line closer to the warehouse entrance.

Jack thought for a moment.

“Load it into the cargo bed, but don’t head back yet.”

He found Megan again.

“Come on. We need to make another trip back.”

“What for?”

“To get protective gear,” Jack said. “Someone will need to stand in the cargo bed and manage the hose while it’s being laid. They can’t be exposed out there.”

The two soon set off for the convenience store in the Tesla.

More than an hour later, Jack and Megan returned to the agricultural supply center. Jack handed the protective gear to Dale and explained the plan in detail.

Once Dale had put it on, he climbed into the cargo bed filled with hose while someone else took the wheel. The CUEV started back toward the convenience store, and as it moved, the coiled hose gradually unspooled across the wasteland behind it.

Jack watched the CUEV recede into the distance from the warehouse entrance, then went back inside.

More than ten PCCUs continued running. The makeshift enclosure wasn’t exactly cool, but at least it no longer felt as stifling as before.

Jack stayed there for a while. Once he was certain no one else was showing signs of heat illness, he left the agricultural supply center with Megan.

On the way back, Jack saw that the hose was being laid without any obvious problems, so he didn’t ask Megan to stop.

The Tesla soon reached the convenience store.

After Megan parked outside, Jack got out and went looking for Walter. He asked Walter to replace the tap supplying the shelter with one that had two outlets.

Rather than leaving again, Jack and Megan stayed there to wait for Dale.

Some time later, a CUEV finally appeared in the distance.

The vehicle approached slowly. The cargo bed, which had been packed with coiled hose when it left, was now nearly empty. Dale stood inside with one hand braced against the vehicle and the final length of hose still held in the other.

Once the CUEV stopped, Dale jumped down and dragged the remaining hose over to the tap.

“We didn’t have any problems along the way,” Dale said as he removed his protective gear. “We had to go around a few cracks, but most of it runs in a straight line.”

Jack nodded and crouched to inspect the final connection. After confirming that nothing had come loose, he connected the hose to the new outlet Walter had installed and turned on the tap.

Water surged into the flattened hose, causing the section on the ground to swell. Starting near the convenience store, the change slowly traveled outward along the line and into the distance.

Jack followed the hose for a short while to check the first few connections for leaks. Once he was satisfied, he stopped.

All they could do now was wait.

Water couldn’t travel through thirty kilometers of hose instantly. Jack also had no idea whether there might be leaks, loose connections, or other problems somewhere along the route.

He returned to the tap and stared at the hose disappearing across the wasteland.

“Get someone else to follow the line and check it,” he told Dale. “If anything goes wrong, report back immediately.”

Dale hesitated.

Jack looked at him.

“What?”

“How are we supposed to report back?”

Jack froze, then gave a bitter laugh.

“Right. Never mind. Just start checking. We’ve already spent this long on it.”

Megan looked thoughtful.

“There is a way.”

Jack turned to her.

“What way?”

“Have you forgotten that the CUEVs have built-in communications?”

“What communicat—shit!”

The question had barely left Jack’s mouth when he suddenly remembered.

Dale looked between them, confused.

“What is it?”

Jack’s face lit up.

“The CUEVs have a communication system. The effective range is a thousand kilometers!”

Dale stared at him.

“A... a thousand?”

“That’s right. Hurry up and figure out how to set it up.”

Once Dale recovered from his surprise, he climbed into the CUEV and began examining the controls. Before long, two CUEVs had successfully established a connection.

After testing the link and confirming that it worked, Dale called Noah over and explained what he needed to watch for.

Noah quickly put on protective gear and climbed into one of the CUEVs. He followed the newly laid hose toward the agricultural supply center, checking each section for leaks, loose connections, or places where the hose had been trapped beneath rocks.

After Noah left, Jack and Megan remained beside the other CUEV, waiting for updates.

Some time later, the communication system finally crackled to life. Noah’s voice came through with a little static, but it was still clear.

“Jack, can you hear me?”

Jack immediately walked over.

“I hear you. How’s the hose?”

“No leaks so far. It was pinned under rocks in two places, but I’ve already cleared them.”

“What about the connections?”

“They’re all holding.”

Jack relaxed slightly.

“Keep moving. Let me know if you find anything.”

The transmission ended.

Noah continued following the hose toward the agricultural supply center, checking in several more times along the way. Aside from a few sections pinned beneath loose rocks or fallen into cracks in the ground, there were no obvious problems.

Jack stayed beside the CUEV the entire time. Whenever the communication system activated, he immediately went over to check on the situation.

After an unknown amount of time, the system crackled again.

“I’ve reached the agricultural supply center.”

“Any water at the end?”

“Not yet.”

Jack wasn’t surprised. They had only just turned the water on, and filling a line this long was bound to take time.

“Wait there. Let me know as soon as the water comes through.”

“Understood.”

The communication system fell silent again.

Jack returned to the tap and looked at the hose stretching toward the distant horizon. Megan stood nearby, waiting with him.

Time slowly passed without any sign of trouble along the line. Jack occasionally checked in, but the answer was always the same.

No water yet.

At the agricultural supply center, Noah parked the CUEV near the end of the hose.

Several refugees were already waiting beside it, surrounded by empty bottles, cooking pots, and every other container they could find.

After an unknown amount of time, the end of the hose suddenly twitched.

Noah immediately stood up.

The refugees nearby gathered closer.

The flattened hose swelled slightly, then collapsed again. It repeated the motion several times before an uneven rush of air finally hissed through the line.

Everyone fell silent, their eyes fixed on the opening.

A moment later, water mixed with trapped air burst from the hose and splashed onto the dry ground. The flow came in fits and starts at first, spitting out bubbles between each surge.

As the remaining air was gradually forced out, the stream became steady.

Noah stood frozen for a moment before snapping out of it. He rushed back to the CUEV and activated the communication system.

“Jack, the water’s here!”

Jack had been standing beside the tap. The moment he heard Noah’s voice, he hurried over to the CUEV.

“How much?”

Noah looked back.

Water was still pouring steadily from the hose, and the refugees were already moving bottles and containers closer.

“Plenty. The flow’s strong and steady.”

The tension Jack had been carrying finally eased.

He turned toward the hose that crossed thirty kilometers of wasteland before vanishing beyond the horizon, and a smile gradually spread across his face.

He couldn’t resist patting the fully swollen hose beside him.

“I can’t believe that actually worked.”

Back at the agricultural supply center, the refugees remained gathered around the end of the line. For several moments, none of them stepped forward.

The steady stream soaked into the ground, quickly darkening the dry sand beneath it. The refugees stared as if they still couldn’t quite understand what they were seeing.

Finally, one of the refugees near the front slowly crouched down.

He placed his hands under the stream and let the clean water run through his fingers before lowering his head to drink.

Then he burst out laughing.

“Water! We really have water!”

Those few words finally snapped everyone out of their daze.

Laughter and cheers erupted from the crowd.

“We’re not going to die!”

“We have water! We’re going to live!”

The refugees celebrated wildly. Some threw their arms around the people beside them, while others raised both hands and cheered at the water still pouring from the hose.

Amid the commotion, one refugee hurried over to Noah and pulled him into a tight embrace.

“Thank you! Thank you!”

Noah stood there awkwardly.

“This has nothing to do with me! You’re thanking the wrong person!”

The refugee paid no attention to his explanation. As soon as the first person let go, someone else slapped Noah firmly on the shoulder.

With gratitude coming from every direction, Noah had no idea how to respond.

Eventually, he gave up trying to explain. The credit might not belong to him, but being surrounded by people thanking him didn’t feel entirely unpleasant.

Those inside the warehouse heard the celebration and gradually came outside. When they saw clean water pouring steadily from the hose, more laughter and cheers quickly joined the rest.

Someone suddenly shouted toward the distant convenience store.

“Jack! Thank you!”

Others soon joined in.

The voices were scattered at first, but gradually came together. Some lowered their heads. Others bowed deeply, repeating their thanks toward the convenience store even though there was no possible way their voices could carry across thirty kilometers of wasteland.

Noah, Lydia, Grace, and Helen stood to one side and watched in silence.

Once the initial excitement began to settle, the refugees collected the empty bottles and cookware they had prepared and formed a line beside the hose.

Clean water continued to flow.

Filled bottles and containers were gradually carried back into the warehouse, and much of the anxiety that had been weighing on the refugees finally began to fade with it.

One refugee spoke quietly.

“We all owe Jack our lives.”

The people nearby fell silent.

No one answered because everyone understood what those words meant.

The refugee at the front looked down at the water in his hands. After a moment, he said:

“We’ll repay him someday.”