Chapter 163: Back to the Colony - II

The structures outside continued thinning. Smaller stores gave way to fenced compounds, damaged houses, and open sections of land surrounding the fringe. Several abandoned vehicles had already been pushed away from the road, their frames carrying old marks left by the Colony’s earlier patrols.

Barricades appeared beyond the final bend. Concrete blocks covered both sides of the northern entrance, reinforced by trucks and sections of metal fencing. Raised positions overlooked the road from nearby buildings, while armed personnel remained behind the inner barrier. Some were Army Soldiers stationed at the Colony; others were local guards carrying equipment supplied through the civilian council.

"South One Actual, this is Echo One. Colony northern entrance confirmed. No hostile contact."

"Hold the junction and prepare the lane."

"Echo One copies."

The lead Guardian APC slowed. Vehicles behind it adjusted their spacing while the Vanguards moved toward the sides of the road, leaving the central lane open.

Kimmy felt the crowd react before their voices reached Bastion One. The groups behind the barricade moved closer together, while more people approached from nearby streets as word of the returning company spread through the Colony.

"Did these soldiers come from north just now?"

"They came from the city!"

"Is the road clear?"

"Did they find anyone?"

"Move back from the lane!"

The last voice belonged to one of the guards.

The crowd remained behind the inner markings, though their questions continued as the northern barriers moved aside. Echo One entered first, followed by the Vanguards and the Guardian APCs carrying South One’s infantry.

Civilians gathered along both sides of the military lane, some waving while others tried to look through the armored windows.

Bastion One passed through the entrance. Kimmy followed the presences around the vehicle while the guards held their positions and several civilians moved along the marked boundary, trying to keep pace with the column.

Familiar signals appeared deeper inside.

She could not identify every person beneath the larger population, though she recognized several presences from her earlier time in the Colony.

Their presences had not changed much. She had only become better at finding them.

The Guardian APC entered the staging area, where supply trucks, repaired civilian vehicles, and temporary structures occupied most of the open ground. Soldiers directed South One toward the western side, leaving enough space for South Two and the remaining platoons.

Bastion One passed through the entrance. Kimmy followed the presences around the vehicle while the guards held their positions and several civilians moved along the marked boundary, trying to keep pace with the column.

Familiar signals appeared deeper inside.

ructures occupied most of the open ground. Soldiers directed South One toward the western side, leaving enough space for South Two and the remaining platoons.

The questions followed the vehicles inside.

"How far does the road go?"

"Can we travel into the city now?"

"My family lived near Highcross! Did you find them?"

"Did you search the apartments?"

Kimmy could separate the voices around her now, but that did not mean she, or any of the company’s soldiers, could answer them easily.

The Guardian APC continued toward the western side of the staging area. Two Army Soldiers walked beside it, keeping the lane clear while the rest of South One entered behind them.

The voices weakened as Bastion One moved away from the northern entrance.

Something else remained.

Kimmy had noticed it beneath the questions around the gate, faint enough that she initially mistook it for another part of the crowd.

Faint impressions of relief, worry, and curiosity brushed against her awareness from several directions. Most disappeared before she could understand more than the feeling behind them.

A few carried something different.

The newly opened road. Vehicles passing through the barricade. Supplies inside the company’s transports. Guards whose attention remained fixed on the arriving armor.

Then came the impression of waiting.

Kimmy tried to separate it from the rest.

The crowd shifted around the entrance. Several people moved toward the military lane while others returned deeper into the Colony. The faint thought disappeared between them before she could trace where it had begun.

Her fingers tightened around the edge of the seat.

Yunera turned toward her.

"What is it?"

Kimmy did not answer immediately. She listened again, allowing the voices and presences outside to pass through her awareness without chasing any single one.

Another impression surfaced: an intention to follow them later. It felt patient and opportunistic, then vanished almost as soon as she recognized it.

"There is something strange among the crowd," Kimmy said quietly.

"Where?"

"I don’t know."

Yunera’s expression hardened.

"What did you sense?"

"Thoughts, I think." Kimmy lowered her voice further. "Nothing clear. Someone is interested in the road and the vehicles, but I cannot tell whether it came from one person or several."

The soldier assigned to record her reports looked toward her.

"Can you pinpoint the direction of the source, Oracle?"

Kimmy shook her head.

"Not with so many people moving."

The soldier activated the secure channel.

"Bastion One to South One Actual. Oracle reports several unclear impressions from the civilian gathering. Possible interest in the military road and company vehicles. Source cannot be isolated."

Anton answered after a brief pause.

"Received. Keep Oracle inside and proceed to the western staging structure. Do not announce the report."

"Bastion One copies."

The Guardian APC changed direction at the next marked lane. Another pair of soldiers moved ahead and checked the warehouse entrance before guiding the vehicle inside.

Kimmy followed the crowd as far as she could.

The suspicious impressions did not return, though their absence provided little comfort. She had no way of knowing whether whoever produced the impressions had moved beyond her clearer range or merely stopped thinking about whatever they intended to do.

Bastion One entered the warehouse.

The rear doors remained closed.

Outside, Anton stepped down from the lead Guardian APC after the western half of the staging area had been secured. South One continued entering through the northern checkpoint, while the first elements of South Two reported their approach from the east.

An Army Soldier stationed at the Colony met him near the vehicle lane.

"Platoon leader, the civilians are asking whether the road is open for travel."

"It is open to military and recovery traffic."

"They want to know when that will change."

"The Commander has not authorized civilian movement through the route."

The soldier glanced toward the northern entrance. The crowd had remained behind the barrier, though more people continued arriving from the surrounding streets.

"Should we disperse them?"

"No. Keep them outside the military lane and search anyone attempting to enter the staging area."

Anton looked toward the western warehouse where Bastion One had disappeared.

"Double the watch around the parked vehicles. Quietly."

"Yes, platoon leader."

"Send the arrival report to Alexei. Tell him to notify Selene that the council needs to address the crowd before nightfall."

"What should we tell them about the road?"

"The military position does not change. Nobody leaves through the northern checkpoint without authorization."

The soldier nodded.

Anton returned his attention to the entering column.

Managing the questions belonged to the council. Protecting the road and the soldiers who had opened it belonged to Anton.