The four of them stood in silent amazement as they beheld the wondrous sight before them. Suddenly, Ian's stomach loudly grumbled, reminding them that their first priority should be to find food. All four of them moved towards the nearby fruit trees, where Ian grabbed one of the luscious fruits and devoured it with wild abandon. "This is the best I've ever tasted!" he exclaimed with juices dripping down his face, offering Elanor one of the fruits with an outstretched arm.
"No, thank you," Elanor declined, grabbing one of the fruits for herself instead. At the same time, Madison took the one offered to her by Ian, taking a large bite before releasing her rapturous sigh of pleasure.
"I want one," Katie lamented in a pout, futilely making an effort to reach the delicious fruits. Ian began to chuckle, stretching up to pluck a piece of fruit for her before taking another for himself. Then the three of them settled beneath the fruit tree while Elanor opted to sit by herself.
"So now that we're away from the confines of the bunker, what do we do next?" Ian asked the two women. "I'm still trying to figure out how to start over in an unfamiliar world with nothing to help us." He completed his question with a deep sigh.
"Well," Madison began thoughtfully, "our books will show us the way. I know that Katie here expressed interest in doing some reading. If it's alright with you, I think starting with the books is our best bet, and if you see anything that tells us how to obtain other food, please let us know. Finding something other than fruit to eat should be our primary goal right now." Katie quickly nodded her agreement as Ian gave her a reassuring smile.
"We also need clean drinking water," Madison said. "The lake will have to be our source until we can find a way to bring water back to the bunker." She added upon seeing Ian's thoughtful face.
"We can use the metal boxes our clothes were in as a bucket, but it won't be fun to carry it back and forth," Ian said with a sigh. "Well, no time to waste. Let's get working on whatever we can. I'll get one of the boxes and head to the lake," he declared, tossing the finished fruit to the side before standing.
"Since there are four of us, we should always stay in pairs to be safe. I'll go with you, Ian, while Katie and Elanor stay at the bunker," Madison said, getting up and dusting off her clothes. She glanced at Elanor, "Is that okay with you?" Elanor gave a small grunt in response.
When the first meal ended, the four returned to the bunker, discarding their used fruit skins and each preparing for their assigned tasks. Elanor and Katie sat at the one available table and opened the books they each chose. While Madison talked to the girls some more, Ian returned to the pod room to get a box for the coming journey. After he collected it, he waited near the bunker door for his partner.
Soon Madison and Ian set off for the lake, the metal box in Ian's hand. "Ready to go?" he asked her as they stepped out of the bunker.
"Yeah," Madison replied, closing the bunker door behind them. "I was talking to Katie after she started reading, and apparently, whoever left us here did what they could to keep the water clean,"
"So what does that mean for us?" Ian asked
"Well, the book said that they did tests on the water to ensure there were no toxins or other bad stuff, but since it was 18 years ago, we should also be careful and boil the water once we can," Madison answered.
"That's good to know, at least," Ian said, a hint of relief in his voice. "Let's hope the lake is still safe to drink!"