Global Awakening: Apocalypse Ender's Chronicle Chapter 5: Thirst

Shane knitted his brows closely after receiving the cryptic message.

"Do not survive the Apocalypse... End it."

He repeated the words in a quiet tone, mulling over what could have possibly prompted his future self to record such a directive.

"I wonder what occurred... Did surviving in solitude lead to such regret?"

At the very least, I am quite proficient at this, considering I have already outlasted two Apocalypses, Shane reasoned, finding it difficult to truly sympathize with the version of himself from the future.

"But you could have at least shared how to terminate an Apocalypse..." he grumbled, his mind churning with a whirlwind of unresolved questions.

He desperately wanted to discover why he had met such a grim fate regarding the Fairy Realm Collision, and how he had managed to ally with an A.I. rather than face it as an enemy during the A.I. Rebellion Apocalypse.

Nevertheless, he acknowledged that dwelling on these mysteries was completely pointless.

With under three days remaining until he encountered the zombies—the sheer scale of which was still a complete unknown—he understood that his focus had to remain on the present.

His Memory Spheres held the key to unlocking these secrets; thus, his primary task was to level up and gain a deeper understanding of both his own identity and this current Apocalypse!

"Very well! Let us get started!"

At this moment, his immediate concern resided in uncovering a method to survive the encroaching Zombie Apocalypse. With this goal in mind, he turned his focus toward his Inventory and selected the Weapon Gift Pack.

The moment he made the selection, a gift-wrapped box materialized before him.

Without offering a choice to hold off, the red ribbon began to untie itself, and as the lid popped open, several pieces of equipment appeared.

Just as he had glimpsed in the item description, the package included a revolver, a holster, a hatchet, and a stash of six spare bullets.

Shane wasted no time equipping the gear. Armed with his Tier 1 Survivor Gear, he felt he possessed a measure of readiness to confront the coming threat.

As long as they are the standard walking variety, I believe I can handle them, Shane murmured.

At this point, he remembered Cloud. It was possible the A.I. possessed specific data regarding these zombies.

"Cloud! Do you have any insight into what type of zombies I will be facing?"

No. I require blood samples to ascertain the strain of the virus affecting them. Once I have the samples, I can construct theories regarding potential mutations that might manifest in human corpses.

"You require a blood sample, is that so... I suppose that is logical, given that you are an A.I. originating from a different Apocalypse Realm," Shane whispered, shifting focus to examine his Food Gift Pack.

Following the same display of special effects, he secured a haul consisting of 10 easy-open cans, 10 packs of instant noodles, five tea bags, five granola bars, and a small jar of mayonnaise.

Now... where can I source some water?

Shane let out a sigh and resolved to hunt for a water source, knowing that while he had nourishment, hydration was just as vital.

He meticulously scanned the estate, searching for any signs of liquid. Initially, he approached the dried-up riverbed, but only discovered shallow pockets of stagnant, murky water.

It was clearly unsuitable for drinking, and he realized consumption would only invite sickness. He risked perishing from illness even before his beginner protection wore off!

Even Cloud had issued a warning against drinking such water, recommending the use of a proper filtration system at a minimum.

"Perhaps my decision was flawed. Choosing the Water Gift Pack might have been superior to the Shelter Gift Pack..." Shane sighed, wandering along the perimeter of the estate. Finding a filtration system here seemed impossible. He had to locate an alternative.

As he wandered further, he noticed a point of bright illumination glowing just past the property line. It appeared to be a campfire.

"Cloud, what am I looking at?" he asked the A.I. The heavy fog rendered the image somewhat hazy, leaving him uncertain as to what he was witnessing.

That is a crash site. Based on the dimensions and wreckage visible, it is a small, single-engine, general aviation aircraft.

"What? A plane crash in my starting region?"

Shane arched an eyebrow in surprise.

He could not shake the feeling that this aircraft might have been the vessel responsible for introducing the virus to this isolated area.

Well, that would make for an interesting backstory if this were merely a game, Shane mused.

Regardless, this bolstered his suspicion that the world was not as authentically medieval as it had initially appeared. It was perhaps just a stroke of bad luck that he had landed in an underdeveloped region devoid of the modern infrastructure or machinery required to trigger his Otherworldly Mechanic Talent.

He had spent time searching for various scrap, but unfortunately, his mechanical aptitude remained dormant and impossible to activate.

I truly hope it rains soon, Shane thought, feeling certain he would find no water on his own. At the very least, he had gathered items that could assist in collection—a jar, a turtle shell, and a cracked cooking pot scavenged from the serf's shack.

He surmised that anyone who had passed through or resided here quite a while ago had already stripped the area of valuables, leaving him with nothing.

Just as Shane resigned himself to a day without, he remembered to ask Cloud if a method existed to purify the stagnant water!

Though he lacked the personal expertise, he realized his A.I. assistant might possess the necessary knowledge.

Right, I have an assistant. I really should rely on it more often, Shane thought with a small smile. He was never the type to depend on others, preferring to resolve his own hardships.

However, he was currently in the midst of an Apocalypse and needed to optimize every resource available!

Before long, Cloud transmitted clear instructions on how to purify the stagnant water.

The guidelines were precise, and he felt confident he could carry them out.

"A container, a clean cloth, a filter... It is essentially just a repetitive manual filtration process, though there is a recommendation to boil it as well. I think I will do that after completing the filtration," Shane muttered after finishing the detailed read.

I did not even know that... I wonder how I managed to survive those first two Apocalypses, Shane contemplated while he set to work to finally quench his thirst.