With the official formation of the Fallen Star Squad, Ethan decided to splurge a little.

He broke out his long-hoarded stash—cured ham, beef jerky, smoked sausage, Spam, and even a few cans of vegetables he'd been saving for a "real emergency." Tonight, that emergency was celebration.

They cooked up a feast, the kind of meal that felt almost illegal in the apocalypse. The savory scent of meat filled the house, and for a few hours, it was easy to forget the world outside was rotting.

And with Garrick now on the team, the Fallen Star Squad finally had something they'd been sorely lacking: a true combat-type Awakened.

Up until now, they'd had three Awakeneds—Ethan, Chris, and Henry—but all of them were support types. Chris's invisibility was useful, sure, but not exactly a game-changer in a brawl. When it came to fighting, they were basically just well-organized regular people.

Their only real edge had been Ethan's True Sight, which let them pinpoint the exact zombies they needed to hunt. That ability had kept them ahead of the curve—but barely.

The recent fight with the Tier 5 zombie had been a wake-up call. Ethan had felt the pressure, the kind that made your bones ache and your instincts scream. They needed more firepower. Real firepower.

And after going toe-to-toe with Garrick, Ethan knew exactly what that looked like.

Garrick had just stepped into Tier 4, and already he could hurl a boulder with over 4,000 pounds of force. That was Tier 5 territory. Once he hit the peak of Tier 4, he'd be able to go toe-to-toe with monsters most people would run from screaming.

That's why Ethan had pulled him in. If there were a way to transfer abilities, Ethan would've taken it—no hesitation. He didn't trust Garrick yet, not really. But abilities weren't something you could just extract and plug into someone else. The whole "slice him up and study him" thing had been more of a joke than a plan. Powers didn't live in muscle tissue.

Still, having Garrick on the team was the next best thing. Now they had a real weapon.

The only question left was whether Garrick could be trusted.

That would take time to figure out. Ethan would keep an eye on him. If he turned out to be a problem, well… Ethan wouldn't hesitate to cut him loose. Permanently.

After dinner, the group lounged around for a bit, joking and relaxing in a way that felt almost surreal. Then, one by one, they drifted off to bed.

Garrick, meanwhile, was completely thrown off.

He'd spent the last few weeks living minute to minute, always on edge, always one bad decision away from death. Now he was in a luxury home, full of food, hot water, and people who weren't trying to stab him in his sleep.

It felt… wrong. Like he'd stepped into a dream. Or maybe a simulation.

He actually considered stepping outside just to make sure the world hadn't magically gone back to normal.

"Garrick," Big Mike said, clapping a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Get some sleep. I'm taking you up to the roof tonight to look at the stars."

"…Stars?"

Garrick blinked. "Uh, Big Mike, I—I'm straight. Maybe pick someone else?"

"Suit yourself," Big Mike grunted, already walking off toward his room.

Garrick stood there, baffled, until Ethan came up behind him and gave his shoulder a light pat.

"Get some rest," Ethan said. "We're going up to the roof later. Gonna show you something."

That got Garrick's attention.

If Ethan was saying it too, then it probably wasn't some weird flirtation. Maybe it was a code, or a ritual, or some kind of team initiation. He didn't get it, but he nodded anyway.

"Got it."

He found an empty room and stepped inside.

The place was absurd—clean sheets, soft mattress, even a working lamp. In the middle of the apocalypse, this wasn't survival. This was a damn vacation.

He sat on the bed, still half-expecting someone to burst in and tell him it was all a mistake.

But no one came.

And for the first time in a long time, Garrick let himself relax.

The Safe Zone…

With the combined efforts of the National Guard, FEMA, the Army Corps of Engineers, and waves of civilian volunteers, the Safe Zone had begun to take shape at a staggering pace. Thousands of workers labored around the clock, and now, the once-barren compound had the bones of a functioning stronghold.

More survivors were arriving by the day. The population had swelled past forty thousand.

National Guard units had pushed the perimeter outward, while the Corps of Engineers extended the defensive barriers, giving the Safe Zone room to breathe—and grow.

At the heart of the base, in a reinforced conference room, the mood was anything but celebratory.

"All 1,000 soldiers sent to the armory are dead," Colonel Reyes said grimly, his voice heavy with the weight of the news.

Mayor Marks's face twisted in disbelief. "What? Those troops were well-trained, well-armed. How the hell did they all die?"

The armory had been a critical objective. With that stockpile of weapons and ammo, they could've launched full-scale sweeps to clear out the surrounding undead. Not only would it have secured the Safe Zone, but it would've brought in a massive haul of crystal cores.

Marks had been counting on that victory. Instead, he got a massacre.

"The armory's seven miles from the city center," Reyes explained. "They fought their way through most of it, but halfway there, they were ambushed by a pack of mutant beasts. Not a single survivor."

"Mutant beasts?" someone echoed, alarmed.

Reyes nodded. "Yeah. Animals that mutated after the outbreak. They already had physical advantages—now those are amplified. Our men didn't stand a chance."

The room fell into a tense silence. Zombies were bad enough. But mutant beasts? That was a whole new nightmare.

"How did so many of them end up in the city?" someone asked.

"There's a large zoo near the route they took," a middle-aged man said quietly.

"…"

"Tigers, lions… apex predators. Already deadly before the mutation. Now? It's no wonder the entire unit was wiped out."

Marks slammed a hand on the table. "We still need that damn armory. Ammo's running dangerously low. If we don't restock soon, we're all dead."

He didn't waste time mourning the soldiers. His focus was on logistics, survival. The Safe Zone's population was growing fast, and with it, the number of zombies being drawn in by fleeing survivors. Just holding the line was burning through their ammunition reserves. Rescue missions were out of the question.

"This is now a top priority," Marks said. "We can't afford another failure."

Reyes frowned but nodded. "I'll send another team."

"Why not go yourself?" Marks pressed. "Take more men. We can't afford another screw-up."

"…Alright."

Marks leaned back, then shifted topics. "I also sent Officer Carter with Lieutenant Park to deliver supplies. Park came back. Carter didn't."

Reyes's eyes narrowed. "Carter is Chief Carter's only child. We owe her protection. Are you saying Park abandoned her?"

"That's what it looks like."

"That doesn't sound like him."

"Then ask him yourself. I don't want internal issues on top of everything else."

"Understood," Reyes said, though doubt lingered in his eyes. He knew his men. Park wasn't the type to leave someone behind.

Back at the command center, Reyes had Lieutenant Park brought in for debriefing.

Park didn't hesitate. He laid it all out.

"So Carter antagonized them first?" Reyes asked, brows furrowed. "And when they broke through the zombie horde, they refused to take her with them?"

"Yes, sir."

"If it had come to a fight… how bad would it have been?"

Park gave a bitter laugh. "Before I saw them in action, I thought maybe we could take them if we lost a few men. But after fighting alongside them? If I'd made a move, none of us would've made it out alive."

Reyes was silent for a long moment.

"Didn't expect civilians to have a team that strong," he muttered. "Six Tier 4s in one squad… that's serious firepower."

"They're not just strong," Park said. "They're smart. Disciplined. They'd make excellent recruits. Should we try to bring them in?"

Reyes shook his head, a trace of regret in his voice. "The government isn't what it used to be. Anyone who joins us gets dragged into politics."

Park frowned. "Sir?"

Reyes didn't answer. Instead, he changed the subject.

"About Carter. Your report makes it clear—you left her behind. I understand why. But it's still on record. That's not a small thing."

Park swallowed. "Yes, sir."

"You're going back for her," Reyes said. "Take a squad. Bring her home."

"Yes, sir," Park said, snapping to attention.

He turned and left, already planning the route in his head.

Outside, the Safe Zone buzzed with life and tension. Inside, the clock was ticking—and the world wasn't getting any safer.

...

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