He smiled and shook his head.  “It’ll take some work to get this one running again.” He paused to take in the disappointed look on her face.  “But don’t worry.  We found a working bathroom up there.  There’s no light, so take a candle with you.  There’s a mop sink up there too…”

Meg had a candle in hand and was dashing up the stairs before he’d even finished talking.  Nancy and Chloe drifted up the stairs behind her.    Sean went to examine the pipes above the toilet.

It was approaching noon, and Allistor’s stomach reminded him he hadn’t eaten much since the day before.  He’d snacked on a jerky stick from the convenience store as they walked, but that was it.   He was reaching into his bag, an old backpack he’d grabbed out of habit as he evacuated his house the morning before, when he noticed the shelves had been stocked with food and drink.

Putting his bag back on his back, he helped himself to a candy bar, another stick of jerky, and a bottle of water.  There wasn’t much in the way of real food in a convenience store, especially if one didn’t have a microwave.

He took a seat at the table and tried to relax as he ate.  Amanda joined him, snacking on a bag of sour cream and onion chips and a soda.  When she saw what he was eating, she grinned.  “Not exactly the breakfast of champions.”

“Yeah.  Hopefully this afternoon we can find some real food.  Maybe a few intact refrigerators or basement freezers.  Though without power, nothing will last long.  We’re going to need to start hunting for food.  Or raising livestock.”

“Or maybe buy some on this ‘open market’ the system info mentions,” Amanda added.

Meg joined them, taking a break from cleaning.  “We need a way to cook.  Maybe a propane stove?  Or somebody’s grill?  There’s got to be at least a few intact propane tanks around.”

Allistor nodded.  “I’ll make that my next priority.  We’ve got enough bottled water for a few days, and running water upstairs, for now.  This junk food will last us a couple days too.  But we are going to need real food ASAP.  We had a grill behind my house.  It’s not far.  I’ll check there first.”

His meal complete, he hefted his spear and headed out.  Checking in with Sam on the way, he told him roughly where he’d be scavenging.  Sam nodded. “Be careful out there.  You’re the highest level among us right now, but those monsters are no joke.”

Allistor exited the cellar doors behind the sheriff’s office and turned west.  He moved as quietly as he could, using debris piles as cover.  His family home was only a short walk from City Hall.  Actually, everything in the town proper was a short walk.  The entire town was only about a dozen blocks long.  Most of the citizens lived out on farms or one of the three subdivisions that had sprouted up between the town and the interstate.