I Am Alive 04: Looking for a mirage

As soon as we enter the shopping mall, the noise from the storm is gone. I move my shoulder a bit, try to get some response from Mei. She's not responding, but there's breath fanning down my back, and it's warm. Not warm comfy warm, but 'something wrong' warm. She rouses a little and mentions that the 'good spot is on the fourth floor.' Mentions her mom again. That spurs me to move.

Pitons of various sizes

First to second floor is easy enough; just take the escalator. Then I find myself facing walls, literally, from all sides. In an outdoor sports shop I find a single piton.

What the heck is a piton? It's a very important tool in rock or mountain climbing. Clean climbers hate this because it spoils the rock surface. A piton is for resting in between climbs.

And after collecting the piton, I am faced with this wall of indoor wall climbing. At first I didn't notice this, causing me to walk to the LG floor, but I see nothing of interest yet, so I return to the sports shop again. Do I have to climb with a girl strapped onto my back?

Apparently, yes. Wish me luck - and stamina.

***

God, that little girl is not so little in weight! Nearly fell to our deaths twice!

But we got onto the fourth floor and now Henry contacts us, sounding worried. He should be: his little girl is coughing to no end. Medicine, Henry says, can be found in those packages the army sent falling days after the event. 

And someone's coughing up pretty awful below us. Good thing Mei's tired and also a bit feverish, because at least the fever keeps her silent, but that won't be good for both of us. We need the package. 

It could be anywhere, or maybe all gone. But Mei needs medicine, and I don't think there's anyone else here beside us. I can safely leave her up here and go look for the medicine. Leave with a candle burning so she won't be alarmed when she wakes up later on.

Off I go looking for things that might not be there.

***

I was pretty well off than these poor sods. Here at the lookout point (after another death-defying acts of amateur rock climbing and thanks to a piton) these people must've tried to set up some sort of treatment facility, or a triage, maybe. From the looks of messed up beds, soiled stained linens, bleached, brittle bones, and dried-up IV poles, things didn't work out well in the end.

The dust storm has passed for now. I have to remember that these storms whip up pretty nasty, and they are nasty to any living thing. Breathe in the dust, you'd choke. Breathe in long enough, and you'll end up dead. Sometimes the limpid sun shining through all that shady whiteness is a sight for sore eyes, like now.

Found painkiller behind a counter and a food can in the far end of the lookout point. There's a telescope still standing. I hope I don't need a coin to operate it because I have not a penny. The sky is clear enough to scan the skyline for places scavengers may not be able to reach.

And I got it. It's a tall building. Actually a semi-finished building, still in construction when the Event suddenly hit. Tall enough to probably deter scavengers, open on the topside so that the emergency crates may have fallen and still be inside. Let's hope for the best.

I won't climb down this time. There's a generator that moves the window washer, and I think I can get it moving down. Just hope nobody is curious about the sound it makes.

All right, here we go.

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