The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 821

Chapter 821

When Ardelon was destroyed in a matter of moments, many of its survivors drifted from one country to another or turned to piracy

They didn’t just rob people, they hunted survivors from other nations for food.

Of the dozens of Savadian survivors captured just ten days earlier, only a handful remained. The Ardelonian pirates forced them to pretend they were injured and call for help, drawing other survivors aboard so the pirates could kill and eat them.

Sawyer kept one detail to himself. Several bodies lay in the hold, all victims who had been lured aboard and murdered that day.

“Those monsters,” he spat. “How could anyone do this?”

Sawyer spent years at the military base, sheltered from much of the violence and cruelty beyond its walls. Nothing prepared him for a discovery like this.

Nicole shared his anger, but the pirates’ physical deformities concerned her more. Something caused those changes, and she needed to know what it was.

Zeph frowned. “Could eating mutated sea creatures have done this to them?”

It was possible, but even the marine life infected with the ancient virus didn’t look this grotesque. Something else had to be involved.

“Maybe they’ve been drinking water contaminated with radioactive waste,” Nicole said.

Everyone recoiled at the suggestion. The thought of contamination severe enough to cause those deformities frightened them even more than the pirates’ appearance.

They still had no idea what caused the changes, but none of them wanted to stay aboard long enough to find out whether anything on the boat was radioactive.

Until then, Sawyer wanted to search the boat for more answers. Now, he dropped the idea and hurried everyone off.

They took the inflatable rafts back to their submarines and set off immediately. Whatever they faced next, they wanted to put at least 100 nautical miles between themselves and that boat.

Back aboard their submarine, Nicole and Zeph discarded the clothes they wore on the boat. They each took an iodine tablet, though it did little to ease their unease.

They might have overreacted, but every encounter involving Ardelon seemed to bring more trouble,

They couldn’t help it. The encounter left them sick to their stomachs, and neither could shake the feeling.

Still, the day’s events gave Nicole a better sense of Sawyer. He was careful and compassionate, but he didn’t let his concern for others cloud his judgment.

The next morning, she was still half asleep when the submarine started rocking again.

Nicole slid back the cover over the viewing window and spotted their familiar visitor. Blue stayed with them

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for a full 100 nautical miles. It clearly had no intention of leaving.

She sipped her coffee by the window while Blue rubbed against the hull. It made for a surprisingly pleasant morning.

After they surfaced, Nicole picked up the megaphone. “How’s the man who got hurt yesterday? Any fever or vomiting?”

“Neither. He’s doing fine. Thanks for checking,” Sawyer called back.

“Good.” Nicole relaxed a little. “I have some medical training, so let me know right away if anything changes.”

With no urgent tasks to handle, Nicole and Zeph made the most of their time with the experienced Navy crew. They learned more about the submarine’s systems and how to operate them, along with how to recognize changes in the weather at sea and survive natural disasters.

Sawyer freely shared what he learned over his years of service, answering their questions without holding anything back.