Chapter 93:Trouble brewing.
Chapter 93: 93:Trouble brewing.
The evening settled over Green Sector Checkpoint Eight with a quietness that only existed behind reinforced walls.
Beyond the perimeter fences, the Green Zone remained as unpredictable as ever. Somewhere in the forests, Tier One scavengers hunted one another.
Packs of hounds claimed abandoned buildings as their territory. Birds circled overhead, watching for movement beneath the dense canopy.
Inside the checkpoint, however, life had slowed. Floodlights gradually illuminated the compound, mechanics closed the larger repair bays and supply stores lowered their reinforced shutters.
The cafeteria emptied as contractors drifted back toward the temporary lodging quarters.
For one night, everyone could pretend the world outside didn’t exist.
Silver and Ravenna walked side by side through the checkpoint’s main street, neither of them hurried. Both had changed into clean clothes after receiving treatment.
Silver’s shoulder remained tightly bandaged beneath a dark shirt, his movements slightly restricted despite the regeneration pill beginning to take effect.
Ravenna’s shoulder was similarly wrapped beneath a light jacket. The stiffness remained but the pain had dulled considerably. The regeneration medicine was working.
Silver glanced toward her arm.
"How does it feel?"
She rotated it carefully.
"Better, still hurts but I can move it."
He nodded.
"Thats good."
She smiled faintly.
"And yours?"
"I can pretend it’s fine."
She rolled her eyes.
"That’s not what I asked."
"It aches less than before, the medicine helped."
"Good."
She seemed satisfied with the honest answer.
They eventually reached the checkpoint’s information hall. Unlike the smaller checkpoints, this one maintained a constantly updated digital map of the surrounding sectors.
Contractors gathered around it before every expedition; some planned routes while others studied recent beast sightings.
The large screen was mounted several feet above the reinforced table though reachable to all.
Silver stepped closer.
"Let’s plan tomorrow, we can’t depend on that one route we made, there might be a change we don’t know."
Ravenna nodded. She leaned beside him as the map expanded.
The surrounding Green and Yellow Zones spread across the display in remarkable detail; roads, collapsed highways, safe routes, known beast territories, and temporary camps.
Even abandoned cities carried warning markers depending on the last reported activity.
Silver admired the amount of information.
"The checkpoints update these every few hours. Our Sanctuary doesn’t have anything this detailed."
Ravenna noticed his expression.
"It makes sense. They have to coordinate everyone passing through."
Silver nodded thoughtfully.
"It also means someone is constantly collecting information."
She smiled.
"The military likes knowing where people are."
He couldn’t disagree. Silver zoomed the map outward.
"Our destination is still Alpha 3, which means we don’t want the shortest route."
Ravenna folded her arms.
"No. The shortest road is usually the busiest."
"And the easiest place to ambush someone."
She looked at him.
"Still thinking about the assassins?"
"I’d be stupid not to, our previous route might also be compromised. It doesn’t hurt to be cautious."
She quietly nodded.
"So..."
She pointed toward a route branching north.
"What about this?"
Silver examined it. A chain of Green Zone checkpoints connected toward a larger Yellow Zone outpost before eventually merging with the interstate leading directly to the Alpha Sanctuary.
"It adds almost a day to our planned schedule"
"It does."
"But there are more checkpoints and fewer isolated roads, we’ll be able to hunt better than our previous route."
Silver considered it carefully.
"I like this one."
Ravenna smiled.
"I thought you would."
He marked the route. Green Sector Eight then Green Sector Eleven. A short stretch through lightly populated wilderness with enough beasts to hunt and grow. Followed by...
He frowned.
"Hm?"
Ravenna looked over.
"What?"
Silver tapped the next checkpoint.
"Checkpoint Fourteen."
The system briefly displayed its details.
*Green Sector Checkpoint Fourteen
Estimated Travel Time: One Day.
Current Status...*
The display suddenly flickered. Then, without warning... the information disappeared. Instead, a bright yellow warning icon appeared across the checkpoint marker.
Silver frowned.
"...Maintenance?"
The terminal operator nearby noticed.
"Oh, they’re probably updating the network, it’ll probably return in a few minutes."
Silver nodded politely.
"Thank you."
Still... something about it bothered him.
.
.
.
Several hundred kilometers away, far beyond the Green Zones, at Yellow Sector Border Checkpoint Three... The atmosphere couldn’t have been more different.
Emergency sirens echoed across the fortified compound, contractors sprinted between command buildings carrying reports and communication officers shouted coordinates.
The central operations room had become a hive of controlled chaos. A massive tactical map filled the front wall.
One officer rushed through the doors.
"Report!"
Another answered immediately.
"Red Border Patrol Thirty-Seven has confirmed visual contact."
"What happened?"
The room fell silent. The officer swallowed.
"...Two Tier Five Underground Worms engaged in territorial combat."
Several commanders immediately looked up.
"Territorial?"
Another shook his head.
"No, worse mating season."
Understanding dawned instantly. Underground Worms rarely tolerated others of their species except their offspring since they were basically spare food.
But during breeding season, their aggression increased dramatically. Entire tunnel systems became battlefields.
One commander spoke quietly.
"The loser?"
The officer nodded.
"It fled."
"Direction?"
"...Toward the Yellow Zones."
Heavy and uncomfortable silence filled the room. Another officer hurried forward carrying fresh reports.
"It sustained major injuries. Estimated forty percent body damage."
One commander relaxed slightly.
"Then it’ll probably die."
"No, sir." The officer hesitated. "It has entered a feeding frenzy."
The room immediately became tense again. Every contractor present understood exactly what those words meant.
An injured apex predator, was often more dangerous than a healthy one. It would consume everything in its path to recover; beasts, humans, and anything that it finds in its frenzy.
Another communication terminal activated. A frightened voice echoed throughout the room.
"This is Yellow Patrol Twenty-One! We’ve found the aftermath!"
The commander grabbed the microphone.
"Report clearly."
Static crackled, then...
"...Checkpoint Seven... has been destroyed."
The entire room froze, the commander’s expression hardened.
"Destroyed?"
"Confirmed."
"...There is..."The operator’s voice shook. "...nothing left. No survivors detected...The worm attacked directly from underground."
A technician immediately marked the tactical map. One red icon disappeared.
Yellow Sector Checkpoint Seven... Offline.
The commander closed his eyes briefly then opened them again. His voice became cold.
"Issue an immediate Level Two Regional Alert. Notify every Green Zone checkpoint bordering the Yellow sectors. Advise contractors to avoid unnecessary travel and deploy Preventive Subjugation Squad Four."
"If it reaches civilian sectors..."
He didn’t finish the sentence cause he didn’t need to.
Across the communications network, the warning spread. Checkpoint after checkpoint acknowledged the transmission.
Within minutes, Green Sector Eight, the very checkpoint where Silver and Ravenna were staying, received the encrypted emergency bulletin.
The communications officer frowned as he read the report, then immediately stood.
"...Get the commander. This isn’t routine."
.
.
.
Meanwhile, completely unaware, Silver and Ravenna had finished planning their route. Silver stretched his sore shoulder carefully.
"We’ll leave after sunrise."
Ravenna nodded.
"No hunting tomorrow, just travel."
He smiled.
"Agreed."
They rolled the map closed, neither noticing the checkpoint staff suddenly moving with unusual urgency. Several patrol vehicles quietly left the compound, extra guards took positions along the walls, and communication traffic doubled.
The peaceful atmosphere from earlier slowly disappeared. Silver noticed it first.
"...Something changed."
Ravenna followed his gaze; the guards, vehicles and the command staff were walking faster than before.
"...You’re right."
Before either of them could ask, a loudspeaker echoed across the checkpoint.
*Attention all contractors.
This is a precautionary announcement.
Remain within the checkpoint until further notice while military personnel conduct operational preparations.*
The announcement ended. Silence followed as everyone around then looked towards the speakers.
Ravenna slowly looked toward Silver.
"...That doesn’t sound like a routine inspection."
Silver’s instincts stirred immediately.
"No..." His eyes narrowed toward the command building. "...It sounds like something happened."
Neither of them knew, that several hundred kilometers away, an injured apex predator had already begun moving. And every kilometer it traveled, brought it closer to them.