The conversation between Johann and Mrs Aya had been a brief one. She had asked for assistance with finding a way to bury her husband and Johann assured her they were working towards a solution not only for Mr Kando, but for all the people who had passed away today. I didn't feel like it was my place to get involved in the conversation, so I just stood to the side and gave them space. After the brief exchange, Johann left Mrs Aya as she remained seated beside Mr Kando's remains. She had covered his face with a silk cloth, probably something she carried in her bag.

"Do you want to help, Leo? There is plenty to be done. I could use your help. We all could." Johann said as he stood beside me. He motioned to the buzzing people a few rows away from us.

"Also, I think Aya could use some time for herself. I understand you have good intentions, but unless you can bring Kando back, there is nothing you can do for her right now." Johann's words rang true inside me. He was right, I would probably do her more good by helping the group than standing here and brooding.

"It will be better if I can make myself useful. Gotta keep moving forward, right?" I said halfheartedly. The dark mood still lingered in me.

"That's the spirit, Leo. C'mon, we got plenty to figure out. Seems like the surreal has become the norm and we need to adapt." Johann's words carried a somberness that felt refreshing. Instead of dwelling on what was and wasn't supposed to happen, he dealt with the situation as it was.

Johann approached the center of the group with me in tow. After speaking with a few people that I didn't recognize he clapped his hands loudly in a call for attention.

"Everyone, If I may have your attention, please." People stopped what they were doing and turned to Johann. Some even stood from their chairs and moved closer. In a few moments he was surrounded in a loose circle.

"I know it's hard to accept what just happened, but we must do so. I already spoke with most of you in private, but now I need to address the group. We need to throw away our preconceived notions about what is and what isn't real. If we keep trying to compare what is happening here to our previous life experiences, it will only lead to more unnecessary deaths. I know it's a big ask, but our lives are literally on the line. We lost eleven people today. Eleven people." Johann let the realization sink in. His eyes moved from one person to another, making sure that everyone understood the severity of it.

"We were fifty four this morning, and now we are forty three. We also have wounded, some gravely wounded. We might have gotten lucky and found some medical supplies, but they aren't much. And we also don't if there is more in this place. We can't count on the unknown. That will only lead to more deaths. What this new reality demands from us is that we adapt. We adapt or we die. It's as straightforward as that." Some of the people in the group were visibly shaken by Johann's words. They probably had already known everything he had said, but hearing it out loud, and from someone in a position of authority, had a whole different weight.

"Now, let's not fall in despair. Some of us here are better equipped emotionally and physically to adapt, and they will help others who are a bit slower in the process. We will not abandon our fellow humans. I promise you that." Johann did his best to sound reassuring, but he was throwing a bucket of water in a house fire. I guess as a fireman he understood that better than I did.

He closed his speech by calling the people who were responsible for fighting, exploring and gathering. It became clear they had already established and divided roles among the group. Johann organizational skills were really good. He motioned me to follow him as the less physically capable stayed behind helping with the wounded, but mostly just keeping to themselves. Everyone else started moving to a somewhat distant spot I hadn't paid attention to before. It seems they had brought a small table from the outside and large sheets of paper with drawings were strewn across it.

Was that a map? Goddamn. That was a fucking map. It had the auditorium drawn in great detail, including what I assumed must be the exact location of each side door. As I had imagined, the hallway went all the way around the auditorium but there was nothing behind the stage.

They also seemed to have the buildings immediately surrounding the auditorium figured out. Their floor plans were included in the sheets. A large area spanning outwards with the auditorium building as a center was also included. It only outlined the streets and building as rectangular forms. This was seriously impressive. Whoever designed this was a tremendously competent architect. I doubt this one was made by a colleague of mine, the level of detail and attention made it unlikely. I was itching to ask Johann who had made this, but as people flocked around I felt it wasn't the right moment.

"Where is John, Johann?" A tall light skinned man asked. He had dark eyes and brown hair. He was well built, but not overly muscular. In fact, he was more likely naturally strong than the product of training and proper nutrition. His accent was familiar. Maybe Italian?

"John left earlier. He didn't tell me where he was going, but feel free to interrogate him when he gets back." Johann spoke dismissively. The man seemed to deflate at the answer.

"Alright, now that we have calmed our nerves we need to figure out how to deal with what is happening here. A few things we need to discuss. First, how are we going to handle the deceased? We need to find a way to properly give them a respectable funeral. Even if a very brief one. I assumed none of you have found a soft earth spot since the last meeting, right?" No one came forward. Johann kept going.

"John told me he tried to pry the pavement or the flooring loose in some places, but they seemed to be too hard even for him. Although we can't be sure everywhere is like this, we must assume it is until found otherwise. Anyone has any experience with cremation?" Again, no one came forward.

"Alright, I will ask the rest of the group later." Johann paused for a few moments, as if organizing how he was going to approach the next topic.

"We need to figure out how to better defend ourselves. The sky clock is still ticking. We need to assume the next time will be the same, or even worse. Clearly what happened today was a mess. We fucked up, but we were also never going to be prepared for something like this before seeing it first. I can say that I wouldn't have believed it if someone had told me what was going to happen earlier this morning. Let's not deal in the past, but look to be better for what is to come. We are still stuck while that wall surrounds us." Johann paused in his speech to let it sink, but Igor decided it was a good time to interject.