18 Floors Above the Apocalypse



The water chilled quickly, and before long, it had frozen solid. I kept splashing it until there was a solid 8 inches of ice, and only then did I stop. Back on solid ground, I turned my attention to icing up the other two sides of the shipping container. The entry door couldn't be iced, but it needed some special tweaking.

By the time I'd finished, it was too late to do anything else. The remaining tasks would have to wait until tomorrow. Stepping on the cold floor was like stepping on ice itself, utterly impossible to sleep on comfortably. Back at South Base, Stella had hoarded a mountain of coal using her points, and now it was the perfect time to use it. The coal didn't just burn hot, it lasted ages, and with a ventilation opening at the top, there was no fear of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Two coal stoves later, and the temperature inside the house was rising nicely. Stella had picked out some solid wooden furniture from Arcadia - tables, chairs, benches, sofas - and hauled out a couple of beds with thick mattresses, not forgetting to top them with electric blankets. Worried that Cooper might not handle the cold, I set up his dog bed on the sofa and plugged in the electric blanket.

Cooper snuggled onto it, his ears perked up in pure bliss, wagging his tail furiously in approval. With our thermal clothes and soft, warm blankets, this was the most comfortable night we'd had since entering the Arctic. Winter makes you drowsy, and we didn't wake up until almost 10 am. The cold was biting, but a hearty bowl of pork and beans had us sweating in no time.

After a satisfying meal, we got back to work. Rosie took Cooper out to scout around the snowdrifts, while Stella and Jasper measured the house and laid out wooden planks for the flooring from Arcadia. Cutting and fitting took half the day, but by afternoon, we were back at it, using insulated steel panels to divide the room from the living space, ensuring both warmth and privacy. There were endless little tasks, and it took four or five days to really make the place feel like home.

With the coal stove burning day and night, the indoor temperature always hovered above freezing. Arctic weather is dry as bone, so Stella set up a humidifier, adding everyone's favorite essential oils, and soon a refreshing mist scented the air, making the space feel tranquil and fresh. With no outsiders around, Stella even put up a makeshift bookshelf, a table lamp, and a vase.

She picked gardenias from Arcadia, their fragrance invigorating the soul. Cushions and plush toys adorned the sofa. Rosie and Cooper loved them, laughing and fighting over the toys, their joy carried away with the wind and snow. It was a small home, but it was cozy.

Stella took some photos and found an old printer from Arcadia to print out memories from over the years, hanging them in the living room with decorative string, giving it an artistic touch. Over the next few days, Cooper got used to the cold, often tempting Rosie into running laps with him. He was quick on his feet, while Rosie trudged through the deep snow, calling out, "Cooper, wait for me!"

Just as she was about to catch up, the sly dog buried himself in the snow. Worried he might suffocate, Rosie hurried over and started digging. In the midst of her digging, Cooper leapt out, tackling Rosie into the snow, and they tumbled around, laughing and playing. Stella felt a pang of envy; they were so lively and full of energy. She had grown more silent over the years, her spirit aging before her body.

Suddenly, Cooper dashed over, tugging at her pant leg, pulling her into the snowy outdoors with a bark. Amused yet helpless, Stella was dragged into the snowstorm and crouched down to build a snowman. Eventually, even Jasper joined in. They attempted to create a three-person-one-dog snow sculpture, but lacking artistic talent, it ended up as an indistinguishable mess.

Cooper, ever the mischief-maker, broke off the snow hand Stella had formed. Throwing caution to the wind, Stella decided to have some fun with boiling water, tossing it into the air to freeze in beautiful arcs. Jasper tried his hand at photographing the moment but failed miserably, his fingers stiff and uncoordinated.

Ah well, men seemed to be the same

everywhere. Rosie, on the other

hand, had a quick eye and captured the icy spectacle perfectly, like an artist. Everything was fresh andNôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

et

at first, we'd sleep in, play in the w

snow outside, huddle around the stove, occasionally roast some sweet potatoes or yams, or play cards. The landscape was blanketed in snowflakes, stretching out beyond the limits of our vision.

Our container home, encased in ice, was barely noticeable from a distance. Bored, Rosie started trying her hand at gardening. Stella

provided the seeds but firmly

refused to supply any eggs. Wo

couldn't have the place smelting like a barnyard. As Rosie was spreading the soil, Cooper suddenly stood up, his gaze intense and his fur bristling. In a flash, he bolted outside.

Stella was startled and followed immediately, "Cooper!" By the time she got outside, Cooper had vanished over the crest of a snowdrift. What was happening? If Cooper sensed danger, he would have alerted us beforehand, not just bolted. We raced up the snowdrift only to find a trail of paw prints leading off into the distance...

Stella pulled out her binoculars and searched for a while before spotting the direction in which Cooper had disappeared. He was running fast and hadn't looked back. Jasper scanned the surroundings but found nothing unusual. Could Cooper have suddenly had enough of the Arctic and gone on a wild run? But he had been in good spirits recently.

Jasper suggested, "Rosie, you stay here on watch. We'll go after Cooper." The snowstorm was fierce, and if Cooper didn't come back or ran into trouble, what would we do? Stella handed Rosie a weapon and then set off quickly in the direction Cooper had vanished. The snow had stopped, but the wind hadn't, flinging flecks of snow everywhere.

Cooper's tracks were quickly buried, and without any landmarks, it was easy to lose direction. Stella relied on memory, trudging through deep snow, struggling with every step. The biting wind, even through a mask, left us gasping for breath. We continued on, but our sense of direction seemed off. Scanning with the binoculars again, there were no signs of Cooper.

Stella was both angry and worried, thinking of all the years she had cared for him, and now she'd give him a good scolding once she found him. After more than an hour of exhausting search through the snowflakes, our legs barely lifting, Jasper suddenly called out, "Over there!" Something was moving in the distance.

Stella squinted, spotting a brown

shape shifting, and it was coming towards us. We didn't waste a moment, hastening our steps. The distance closed in, and it was clear that Cooper, the runaway mutt, had decided to make an appearance. That damn dog, it actually knows how to come back! Stella was fuming, yanking a switch from the nearby willow tree in Arcadia, ready to give Cooper a thrashing he wouldn't forget.

The snow was up to his belly, but that four-legged speed was something else; he was moving much quicker than any biped could. Well, look at that, wagging his tail like he's innocent. Not even the Almighty himself could save you now, dog. You're getting the beating of a lifetime today!

Stella raised the switch high, ready to strike, but then she noticed the blood at the corners of Cooper's mouth... It wasn't just his mouth; there were wounds on his legs, his back. Stella was taken aback, her anger giving way to concern. Who could have done this to him?