Chapter 5: The Survivalist Plans

John, who had been quietly listening, stepped forward and raised his voice just enough to catch everyone's attention.

"Wait before we head out," he said, glancing between the two groups, "I noticed some people left their bags behind when we moved to the offices earlier."

A few heads turned, following his gaze toward the corners of the study hall and under some of the desks, where a couple of unattended backpacks and tote bags still sat.

"We should check them," John continued. "If there's even a chance they've got food, water, chargers, anything we need to know."

The officer shot John with a look of disdain, his jaw tightening. "We won't be doing anything that unscrupulous," he said flatly, casting a glance around the room with measured disapproval. He added, "Now hurry up. We don't have time to waste."

Richson and the group moved toward the other side of the room, eyes scanning for any overlooked bags. Just as they reached a row of desks near the windows, a lanky, tall guy hesitated at the edge of the group.

It was someone John hadn't heard spoken yet, but had noticed earlier for his quiet, thoughtful demeanor. 

"Should we really do this?" Arthur asked, his voice calm but firm. "I mean… I get that we need supplies, but these bags aren't ours. People might come back. This feels like stealing."

The room slowed for a second. A few heads turned.

Arthur frowned. "Still doesn't feel right. Those are people's personal things. If it were my bag, I wouldn't want anyone going through it while I was gone."

Migs stepped in gently, his tone more diplomatic. "I get where you're coming from, Arthur. Really. But think about it if the owner doesn't make it back, and we don't check their stuff? We could be throwing away water, food… even tools we might need. "Let's set a five-minute time limit to check for and take the items we need."

Arthur looked at the bags again, conflicted.

He let out a quiet sigh. "…Alright," he said finally, his voice low. 

A while later, after quietly going through the remaining bags and logging everything they found, the two groups reconvened near the front of the study hall.

"Okay," Jianna said finally, looking up. "With what we've just added... I'd say we can stretch this for about two days now." 

As the group began to settle into the new reality of two days' worth of rations, a strange sound broke the stillness, the soft ping of a notification.

"Wait… guys," she said, holding up her phone. "My data's back. Just now. One bar, but it's working."

Heads turned instantly.

She swiped down and refreshed her apps, fingers flying across the screen. Her face lit up with disbelief.

"The Medrano group chat is exploding."

That got everyone's full attention.

"What's going on?" Richson asked, stepping closer.

Myreign scrolled quickly, her eyes scanning message after message.

"Ashley, Daryl, Kurt, Myreign, Jaden, Sid, Kendrick and Clarke, they're all in Yuchengco," she said. "They made it there earlier. Apparently, there's a group of students holed up in one of the larger classrooms. And it's being led by ROTC officers. 

"They're organizing," Myreign continued. "Doing headcounts, coordinating supplies. It's kind of a mess, but… they're safe."

"Wait… there's a video."

"What kind of video?" Katherine asked, immediately picking up on the change in her tone.

Myreign didn't answer right away. She tapped the message and opened the attached clip. The others gathered close, trying to look over her shoulder.

A student could be seen slowly approaching a lone figure ahead one of the ones that moved strangely. It walked slowly, posture slouched, with arms hanging down.

The student in the video called out, cautiously at first. No response. They stepped closer.

And the figure jerked. It turned to look at the student and it was a pale face with glassy eyes. 

It moved at the student once in close proximity and grabbed a part of his arm and bit. 

Then the video ended with the video taker running away into the Yuchengco stairs. 

Myreign exhaled slowly, locking her phone. "That happened outside the building," she clarified. "Right before they managed to get in and lock it down."

She looked up at the group.

Myreign nodded. "So far, yeah. No one reported any attacks inside the building. They're barricaded in. Someone even mentioned they've got lights and are trying to reach security through one of the landlines."

Migs let out a breath. "That's huge. If Yuchengco's holding, that means we're not as cut off as we thought."

Katherine, arms still crossed, glanced at Myreign. "Can you message them? Let them know we're here?"

"I already did," Myreign said, a little smile tugging at her lips. "Waiting for a reply."

After a few minutes Myreign refreshed her phone again. A little ping echoed through the room. Everyone turned toward her.

She blinked. "It's them."

"Read it," Migs said, stepping forward.

"Still holding strong here. SJ Walk is risky and best to avoid. One of those things passed near South Gate but didn't get close. If you're coming, try using the service elevator to the 4th floor. We're in LS 410. We've got a good amount of food for now. An org had a delivery for their event earlier, and we managed to secure it since they weren't there."