Chapter 29: Ark Broadcast
The cafeteria buzzed with energy, even as most patrons had finished their meals. The atmosphere was a stark contrast to the cold silence of the previous day when everyone had first entered the Ark, trembling with fear and uncertainty. While some apprehension lingered, people were gradually beginning to relax.
Lively conversations filled the vast space as survivors moved about, trays in hand, while holographic screens floated above their Ark Bracelets, showcasing various functions of the system.
Some checked their room assignments again; others scrolled through work schedules and announcements, while a few simply explored menus out of sheer fascination with the technology.
In the upscale section of the cafeteria, Selene, Rose, Professor Albert, and James sat around a table. Their breakfast plates were nearly empty; Rose still nursed half a drink beside her as she lounged back in her chair with one leg crossed over the other. Unlike her companions, her full attention was captivated by the holographic interface projected from her bracelet.
The soft blue glow illuminated her face as she navigated through menus with increasing intrigue. The more she discovered about the device, the more enthralled she became.
"This thing is incredible..." she murmured under her breath while scrolling through another menu. "It’s not just an ID device; it’s like having a personal terminal on your wrist."
James smiled slightly as he cut into his food. "You’re only realizing that now?" he asked calmly. "The processing speed alone surpasses anything we had before everything fell apart. Look at how quickly it responds, no lag or overheating despite constant holographic projection."
Rose nodded absently, still engrossed in her screen. "And it adapts too," she added thoughtfully. "Every menu rearranges based on what you use most often, it’s almost like it anticipates what you want before you finish navigating."
Selene listened quietly while exploring her own bracelet. In contrast to Rose’s hasty exploration, Selene approached each option methodically and read carefully in silence. Her calm demeanor remained intact, but curiosity sparkled in her eyes as they uncovered more about this advanced technology that felt so alien compared to their previous lives.
Professor Albert adjusted his glasses and sighed softly. "I can’t wrap my head around how something like this exists without anyone outside knowing," he confessed earnestly. "Even before everything changed, nations would have fought for technology at this level."
James nodded thoughtfully in agreement as he glanced around the cafeteria briefly.
"That’s what troubles me," he replied cautiously. "This place didn’t just materialize overnight, the scale of the Ark itself... its engineering and automation systems... none of this could have been built secretly without extensive preparation."
Maybe governments knew," Rose said casually without looking up. "Wouldn’t be the first time powerful people hid things from the public."
Albert frowned slightly at that notion. "Even then, something this monumental would leave traces, research funding and supply chains don’t just vanish without a trace."
Selene finally broke her silence, speaking calmly. "Unless the people behind it aren’t bound by normal systems."
Her words hung in the air, and for a moment, the table fell silent.
Rose clicked her tongue lightly. "You always say creepy things so casually."
Selene ignored her and continued scrolling through her interface.
A few seconds later, Rose suddenly froze. Her fingers stilled, and her playful demeanor vanished. Her eyes widened as she stared at the floating holographic screen in front of her, as if she had just witnessed something impossible.
James noticed first. "What’s wrong?" he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.
Rose didn’t respond immediately; her gaze remained fixed on the screen. Even Selene looked up now, a faint frown appearing on her usually calm face. Professor Albert stopped eating entirely when he noticed Rose’s reaction.
They all knew her well, Rose was hot-headed, loud, confident, and emotionally resilient. To see her so stunned was enough to capture their attention.
"Rose?" Albert called again. "What happened?"
Finally shaking off her shock, Rose slowly looked up at them, disbelief etched across her face. Without saying anything else at first, she raised her wrist and pointed shakily at the holographic display hovering above her bracelet.
"It’s..." she said slowly, her voice trembling now. "The internet... it’s still working."
"What?" The three of them reacted almost in unison.
Professor Albert quickly activated his own bracelet while James leaned forward with surprise flickering across his face for the first time since entering the Ark. Even Selene’s cold expression shifted slightly.
Rose expanded the display on her bracelet to reveal a stream of news feeds, uploaded videos, emergency broadcasts, and online reports that materialized before them. The signal was weak in some areas and many broadcasts were unstable but still active.
News stations from various countries continued to transmit emergency updates while civilian uploads flooded networks with footage of zombie attacks, military evacuations, burning cities, and desperate survivors hiding indoors. Some feeds abruptly cut off mid-recording while others showed terrified individuals pleading for help without end.
Professor Albert’s eyes widened behind his glasses as he murmured in disbelief.
"Impossible... I thought global communications would collapse almost immediately."
Selene scrutinized one of the feeds showing soldiers battling a massive zombie horde overseas. "Apparently not," she replied quietly.
James narrowed his eyes thoughtfully before speaking again. "Actually... it makes sense."
The others turned to him expectantly.
James leaned back slightly and folded his arms as he organized his thoughts.
"The internet isn’t controlled by a single central system," he explained calmly. "It’s decentralized, most communication infrastructure is automated; data centers have backup generators; satellite systems function independently; network traffic reroutes itself through surviving servers when parts fail."
Rose blinked several times while still staring at the screen in disbelief. "So right now it’s basically running on autopilot?"
"More or less," James replied. "But it won’t last forever. Without maintenance, power supply, cooling systems, and personnel, most networks will start to fail sooner or later. The current stability is only temporary, the collapse happened too quickly for the systems to shut down completely."
Albert nodded slowly as understanding dawned on him. "So eventually, the internet will die too."
James sighed faintly. "Most likely within days in heavily affected areas. Some regions might hold out longer, depending on their infrastructure."
Around them, more survivors in the cafeteria began to notice something unusual. One by one, holographic screens flickered to life above bracelets as people realized they could still access fragments of the outside world. Shocked voices rippled through the room.
"The news is still online!"
"There are military broadcasts!"
"Oh my god... look at this..."
"Are these live feeds?"
The cafeteria buzzed with confusion and disbelief as survivors watched horrifying scenes unfold outside the Ark. Some stared at the broadcasts in silence while others visibly trembled upon recognizing familiar locations or hearing reports from cities they once called home.
A woman suddenly broke down in quiet tears after seeing footage of her hometown completely overrun. Nearby, another man gripped his tray tightly as he watched soldiers abandon a collapsing checkpoint.
The atmosphere shifted dramatically. The fragile sense of safety that had begun to settle moments ago was quickly eroded by the stark reality displayed before them.
Then suddenly... A loud voice rang out from a table near the center of the cafeteria.
"Wait!" someone shouted. "Look at this! The Ark has an official page!"
The cafeteria quieted slightly as everyone turned their attention toward him.
The man continued speaking, disbelief etched across his face as he stared at his bracelet. "They released something... some kind of announcement!"
Almost instantly, everyone around him activated their screens fully.
Selene and her friends did the same.
A new notification appeared simultaneously on every bracelet in the cafeteria: first a black screen, then slowly...
A silver symbol began to form at its center, the symbol of the Ark. As soon as it appeared, silence enveloped the entire cafeteria.
