The library immediately erupted in excitement.
"How much longer until they come to rescue us?" some people on the perimeter shouted, and others joined in.
The police officers maintaining order couldn't even hear the radio clearly.
"Stop! Stop! Stop!"
The gorilla officer stood up, shouting even louder.
Seeing his Sea-Calming Divine Needle figure, the crowd immediately quieted down.
The officer seized the opportunity to speak, "The broadcast already said that the rescue team has only reached Staten Island, and we're currently in Manhattan..."
The rescue team started from Washington, D. C., and New York is just northeast of Washington.
Of the five boroughs of New York — the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island — Staten Island is located in the southwest, separated from the other four boroughs by the river.
Under normal circumstances, Washington. would naturally have roads leading directly to Manhattan Borough, but the current situation... heavy snow blocking the roads is an understatement; the reality is that there are simply no roads at all.
In addition, the rescue team was completely unfamiliar with the road conditions in this time and space, so Wang Lei did not follow the roads at all when they traveled from Washington to New York. They relied on the chassis of the special vehicles and simply went as fast as possible, or rather, they went in a straight line.
This journey naturally led them to Staten Island, in New York.
Sam felt a pang of disappointment when he heard that the rescue team was still on Staten Island.
This is too far from their Manhattan Borough...
Between Staten Island and Manhattan lies New York Harbor, where the famous Statue of Liberty Statue stands.
Normally you can take a taxi there, but where can you get one now?
"What should we do?" Laura asked him softly from the side. JD and Brian were also squatting down next to them, their hands in their pockets, their bodies hunched over.
"Should we go find them? If we go out now, the only way is on foot..."
Sam considered it for a moment and said, "That's too dangerous, and the broadcast said we shouldn't go there on our own initiative."
JD said, "But if we don't take the initiative, I'm afraid we won't be able to hold out for much longer."
It's obvious that the library has limited supplies, and with over three hundred people, although they are all of relatively high "quality," it's hard to say how long this stability can last.
Sam understood what JD meant; the four of them had exchanged ideas long ago.
But he insisted on staying indoors.
"Don't forget, the weather forecast said that New York may be hit head-on by a storm, and the temperature will be even lower then."
"Besides, there might be some crazy people wandering around outside who randomly fire shots..."
"If we stay here, we can last at least five more days, but if we leave, we might lose our lives in a single night."
In his view, the situation outside was uncertain, and leaving the library was tantamount to gambling with his life.
Laura and the other two pondered for a while longer before finally suppressing their urge to go out and seek help.
For these high school students, gambling with their lives on potentially worsening weather is too much of a thrill.
It's best to play it safe.
However, the fact that the four of them decided to play it safe doesn't mean that the others can do the same.
Several young men in their early twenties suddenly stood up.
"The ice outside has frozen over. We're heading to Staten Island. Who wants to come along?"
One of the people speaking was a police officer.
Although everyone spent very little time in the library, many people couldn't resist the urge to escape.
There's no sense of security here. The frozen corpses outside seem to be telling them—if you stay here any longer, you'll only become corpses like them...
As soon as the young people finished speaking, many people stood up from various parts of the library.
As Sam squatted down, he felt surrounded by legs on all sides.
Seeing so many people, Laura couldn't help but waver a little, but Sam quietly took her hand and shook his head slightly to dissuade her.
It wasn't that no one stood up to stop these people.
The gorilla-like officer stood up and urged his colleagues and other members of the public to calm down.
Unfortunately, in this situation, very few people can remain calm.
When someone is truly determined to court disaster, no one can stop them.
Sam and Officer Gorilla watched helplessly as a large group of dozens of people carried their supplies downstairs, and shortly afterward, the sound of breaking glass rang out.
One by one, people went outside into the icy, snowy landscape.
Just then, Sam also saw many people coming out of other tall buildings around them.
He and Laura exchanged a glance; clearly, those people were all heading to Staten Island.
Although the radio broadcast specifically reminded the public not to go out, those few words were simply not enough to persuade everyone...
Officer Gorilla sighed, watching the group's retreating figures. "Now all we can do is pray for them."
Wang Lei glanced at the rescue reports from each team and realized that the number had already exceeded the convoy's full capacity. He picked up the microphone and spoke over the radio, "All teams, cease rescue operations and converge on me as soon as possible."
"The convoy is now at full capacity. Our next step is to transport the rescued survivors back to Washington, and for the rest, we'll build a safe camp to house them..."
Upon hearing Wang Lei's call, the other teams that were on the move quickly returned, but Jack and his two companions hesitated for a moment before continuing to drive northeast towards Manhattan Borough.
Wang Lei immediately detected their anomaly in the location tracking. " Jack, vehicle 203, you have seriously deviated from the safe route. Turn back immediately, turn back immediately!"
Jack, panting, switched on his radio. "No, Captain, I'm sorry to disobey your orders, but I have reasons to continue deeper."
Wang Lei frowned. "I know about your situation, and nobody knows how your son is doing right now, but your reckless intrusion will only put you in danger!"
Despite the logic in what he said, Jack only apologized repeatedly on the radio, showing no intention of returning the favor.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade her at all, Wang Lei sighed and gave up.
Without Wang Lei nagging by the roadside, Jack and his two companions sped up even more, twisting the throttle of their sleds and heading straight for Manhattan Borough in the northeast.
Soon, the three left Staten Island and sailed onto the frozen New York Harbor, where several cargo ships could be seen frozen in place from time to time on the flat ice.
Frank looked at the city receding into the distance behind him and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. It would be much safer once they reached the open ice surface.
He shouted to Jack in front of him, "If I had known there were so many crazy shooters here, I wouldn't have come with you!"
Jason nodded in agreement; the situation here was far worse than they had imagined.
Even in the coldest weather, they have protective suits from the Wandering Spacetime; as long as there's electricity, they won't freeze to death. But these things can't stop bullets...
Unfortunately, New York right now seems to have plenty of one thing but the most psychopathic gunmen. They've already experienced no fewer than ten explosions just on their way through Staten Island.
Each time meant that a psychopathic gunman had been taken care of.
"If we make it back safely, we want to be your son's godfathers!"
Jack gripped the hood with both hands and laughed heartily, "No problem! Sam will be thrilled!"
Frank laughed too, "I think he'll be very happy then."
As the three grown men chatted and laughed, the sled quickly approached the frozen Statue of Liberty Statue; Manhattan Borough was practically in sight.
Jack's smile faded, and he twisted the accelerator again, accelerating forward.
boom!
The sled accelerates.
The wind and snow were blowing in their faces from all sides. If they hadn't been wearing helmets, the three of them probably wouldn't have been able to open their eyes.
"Look ahead! There are a lot of people there!"
Frank pointed into the distance at the streets of Manhattan, where his binoculars showed many people moving about.
Jason picked up his binoculars too. "The worst isn't over yet. It seems there are still quite a few survivors in Manhattan."
Jack felt a glimmer of hope; his son was intelligent, and so many people had survived, so Sam must be doing well too.
"They must be trying to evacuate south, and the migration seems to be going smoothly...?" Frank suddenly stammered.
Jason suddenly trembled and stammered, "The gun... the gun is firing!"
"Someone is killing people with a gun on a high-rise building!"
The survivors have scattered throughout the streets!
Listening to their explanations, Jack suddenly lost confidence again...
On the opposite bank from where the three of them are facing.
The survivors, who had just gathered, were screaming and scattering in all directions.
Many previously believed that the tsunami and the drop in temperature had killed most of the gunmen, but now it seems that it was they who...
That's wishful thinking.
The erratic shooter was simply waiting for his prey to emerge from their den.
Isn't that right?
They've barely begun to emerge when they've already suffered a fatal blow.
Officer Lund smashed the window and led the others who had left the library into a building.
"We'll have to hide here for now!" Officer Lund pulled out his pistol, inspected the house, and then gestured to the dozens of men following him that they could rest for a while.
Everyone had been walking for several hours, and walking in this icy and snowy weather was especially tiring. Several people fell asleep immediately.
Officer Lund then conducted a quick search of the upper floors of the building to confirm that no one was hiding there.
He then returned to the floor he had just been on.
Walking to the window and glancing up at the sky, Officer Lund immediately noticed that the sky was much darker than before; it must be getting dark.
"This is as far as we can go today. Beyond that is the harbor, and there's no shelter up there; we'll freeze to death tonight."
Lund announced to everyone.
Those who were still awake had no objection to the decision. Many silently took out something to eat, swallowed it, and then found a place to sleep with their arms crossed.
They had only been away from the library for less than half a day, and they were already feeling the strain.
Staying in the library is not easy, but going out to ask for help seems even more difficult.
Lund sighed, arranged for a few relatively energetic young men to take turns keeping watch, and then went to sleep himself.
Washington, D. C.
The evacuation of residents officially began during the day.
Although Becker and his team were a bit underwhelming, once they faced reality and realized they were facing a life-or-death crisis, their abilities proved to be quite sufficient.
Thanks to close cooperation among various departments and the public's willingness to flee, the evacuation of Washington proceeded quite smoothly.
Although the scene appeared to be in complete chaos, in reality, many people successfully drove away from the city, fleeing further south for their lives.
However, no matter when, there will always be people who are left behind.
Lucy was pacing anxiously in the hospital, with a Black nurse beside her looking conflicted.
After saying goodbye to her husband Jack, she returned to the hospital.
Because there was a young patient she was always thinking about here— Peter.
A Little Boy suffering from a tumor.
While she was hiding in the hospital from the FBI, her main job was taking care of this Little Boy.
" Lucy, the evacuating police are already waiting outside..." The nurse looked at the ward at the end of the corridor and tried to keep her voice down.
"Everyone has run away; this might be the last chance to evacuate."
" Peter, he..."
Lucy's expression showed great struggle.
The entire hospital, including both patients and doctors, has now been evacuated. She and the nurse in front of her are the last two staff members, while Peter in the ward behind them is the last patient.
"You know Peter's condition necessitates an ambulance transfer."
Now she either abandons Peter, leaving the Little Boy to die alone and in despair in the hospital room, or she takes Peter away, but without an ambulance, the Little Boy certainly won't make it.
Lucy clutched her head, her mind in turmoil.
The nurse said, "I left a message with the county ambulance center, but haven't received a reply yet. I also left a message with the Mutual Aid Society's rescue channel; they said they'd come check on us if the situation allows."
"However, they also said that their main force is currently in New York and may not be able to come..."
After struggling internally for a long time, Lucy decided to wait. "You go first, Peter and I will continue to wait."
The two embraced and said goodbye.
Lucy watched the sled outside the window disappear into the heavy snow, its lights growing farther and farther away until it vanished from sight.
In the vast space, only she and Peter remained.
Their only companions were the snowflakes.
And perhaps, there is death.
Navigator Space Station.
Liu Peiqiang stood by the window, gazing at the Earth below.
Even in the night hemisphere, he can see storm clouds floating in the atmosphere with the naked eye, especially in areas where lightning is frequent, where a flash of light can often extend for tens of kilometers.
Even though he came from Wandering Spacetime and was used to bizarre weather, he still found it hard to imagine just how bad the weather was on the surface of this timeline...