Chapter 91: To the South - I

Morning light had only begun reaching the streets when the two columns of soldiers and armored vehicles left Site Three.

Five Pillboxes now covered the eastern and southeastern approaches. The sixth remained under construction.

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[ Gold: 47,065 (+400) => 47,465 ] (Daily gold income tick)

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[ Sixth Pillbox under construction. ]

[ Gold: 47,465 (-10,000) => 37,465 ]

[ Energy: 1,143 / 1600 ]

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The newly trained squads had already joined the squad stationed inside the FOB. All three remained behind the Walls as the reserve for Trailblazer Two and the permanent garrison.

The Scouts moved first.

Echo One advanced along the main road under Dmitri’s lead. Three Scouts moved with him, followed by Rex and the team’s second Attack Dog. They used the buildings and abandoned vehicles for cover while maintaining enough space between each member that one obstruction would not halt all of them.

Farther southwest, Echo Two moved along the commercial service route under Adrian. It followed the same formation with three Scouts and two Attack Dogs.

Their allied markers extended beyond the two armored columns on Hans’s Radar.

South One followed Echo One.

Anton Weiss commanded the platoon from Bastion One, the lead Guardian APC.

Mercer Squad rode with him, together with the Sniper Overwatch Team formed around Zolyah and Ethan. A Scout and an Army Soldier accompanied the two Snipers. Dobrev Squad occupied Bastion Two, while the third squad rode inside Bastion Three.

Big Rhino accompanied South One along the wider road.

All three squads were either recently trained or had yet to reach maximum promotion.

They possessed the same weapons, formation knowledge, and System-integrated discipline as the rest of Hans’s infantry, but most had yet to earn their first promotion.

That was one reason Hans had assigned them to the southern advance.

The commercial blocks offered enough infected to build combat progress without sending them beyond the protection of the Bastions, Big Rhino, and the specialists accompanying them.

South Two advanced along the service route under Sabine Krüger.

Novak Squad occupied Bastion Four, the platoon’s lead APC. Bastions Five and Six carried the other two squads, while War Elephant covered the rear of the column. The second Sniper Overwatch Team accompanied them through the service route.

Both platoons moved slowly enough for the Scouts to inspect the surrounding buildings without being forced farther ahead than they could safely withdraw.

Hans’s Armored SUV remained between Bastion One and Bastion Two.

Matilda sat beside him, monitoring both routes while leading the four-person DASF squad assigned to his protection. The remaining three DASF units rode inside the escort vehicle immediately behind the SUV.

Callum would normally have led Hans’s personal security. For now, he remained at the main base training Kimmy, Yunera, and the other three Cell 12 SAS agents.

"Echo One approaching the first intersection," Dmitri reported.

Hans expanded that section of the Radar.

Eleven hostile markers occupied the intersection ahead.

Five more remained inside the eastern office building, gathered around its lobby and the rooms nearest the entrance. Others were scattered across the upper floors, but none appeared to be moving toward the road.

Dmitri crouched behind an abandoned delivery van with Rex beside him.

"Echo One to South One. Eleven outside. Five inside the eastern lobby. Bus blocks one lane. Western side remains passable. No large infected."

Behind the last secured storefront, Bastion One stopped.

Zolyah and Ethan dismounted behind its hull. The Scout and Army Soldier assigned to their Overwatch Team followed them.

Ethan launched his microdrone.

The drone climbed above the road and moved toward Echo One’s position.

Its feed opened beside the Radar map.

The bus had stopped against the southern divider. Several abandoned cars occupied the lanes around it, leaving narrow gaps between the vehicles. Four infected wandered near the northern side of the intersection. The rest remained closer to the office entrance.

Ethan adjusted the camera and swept the upper windows before returning it to the road.

"No movement overlooking Echo One."

Zolyah checked the upper windows through the Barrett’s scope.

"Nothing interesting up there either."

Dmitri studied the intersection.

"Echo One, northern side. Eliminate quietly."

"Roger."

He lowered one hand.

Echo One spread across both sides of the road.

One Scout moved behind a parked car while another reached the western storefront. The third remained farther north with the second Attack Dog, covering the team’s withdrawal route.

Dmitri stayed near the center with his suppressed MP7 raised.

Rex remained close to his leg.

The nearest infected turned toward the Scout reaching the storefront.

Dmitri fired twice.

Both suppressed rounds struck its head before it could make a sound.

Another infected emerged from behind a parked car farther south. Echo One-Two dropped it with a short burst.

The third noticed the movement and started running toward the western side.

Dmitri shifted his weapon.

Two rounds struck its chest. The third entered beneath its eye. It collapsed between the vehicles.

The last infected on the northern side stumbled around the delivery van.

Rex moved first.

The dog crossed the road, struck it from the side, and dragged it down behind the vehicle.

Dmitri followed and fired once into its head.

"North side clear."

The remaining infected had begun turning toward the northern end of the intersection, but none had located Echo One yet.

Anton’s voice entered the platoon channel.

"South One, Bastion One forward. Mercer Squad takes the western building. Snipers establish overwatch."

Bastion One advanced from its position ahead of Hans’s SUV.

It stopped behind the final storefront before the intersection, leaving only its autocannon and forward armor exposed toward the road.

The rear ramp lowered.

Gavin Mercer dismounted first.

His squad followed in two groups. One crossed toward the western entrance while the other secured the space between the building and the APC.

The Sniper Overwatch Team moved behind the first group.

Dmitri kept Echo One ahead of them, watching the eastern office while Mercer’s soldiers cleared the storefront and stairwell.

"Western building secure," Mercer reported.

The four-person Overwatch Team continued upward.

Several seconds passed.

"Overwatch set," Zolyah reported. "Intersection is ours. Eastern entrance too."

Ethan shifted the microdrone around the bus.

Three infected stood behind it, hidden from Echo One’s first angle. Four more remained near the office entrance.

"Three behind the bus. Four near the eastern entrance."

Dmitri saw the positions on the shared feed.

"Echo One withdrawing from the intersection."

He signaled his team back.

The Scouts and both Attack Dogs crossed the northern side in intervals while Mercer moved half his squad into the storefront windows. The others took positions behind Bastion One and the abandoned vehicles nearest the western side.

Dmitri reached the storefront with Rex beside him.

"Echo One in."

Mercer waited until the last Scout cleared the road.

"Engage."

Rifle fire crossed the intersection from two directions.

The first infected behind the bus dropped against the divider. The second stumbled into the open before another burst struck its chest and head.

The third tried to move around the rear of the bus.

Two soldiers shifted their fire and brought it down between the abandoned cars.

The four infected near the office entrance turned toward the western building.

They ran across the open section of road.

Mercer’s soldiers maintained their positions.

The first two fell before reaching the bus. The third continued several more steps despite the rounds striking its torso, then collapsed when another burst entered its head.

The last infected reached the northern lane.

Mercer fired with the soldiers beside him.

It folded near the delivery van.

"Exterior clear."

Movement passed behind the eastern building’s glass doors.

Another hostile marker descended from the second floor and entered the lobby.

Its arms and legs were narrow, but the swollen folds around its throat made the identification immediate.

"Screamer on the stairwell," Zolyah reported. "Looks like it wants to sing."

The infected turned toward the rifle fire outside.

Its throat expanded.

Zolyah fired.

The round crossed the intersection before the Barrett’s report rolled across the street.

Glass burst inward across the office entrance.

The bullet tore through the Screamer’s upper chest and throat, throwing what remained of it against the stairwell doors.

It never released the scream.

"Not today."

The Barrett’s shot carried across the surrounding blocks. Loose glass fell from nearby windows.

Several hostile markers inside the office turned toward the lobby at once. Others began moving inside buildings farther along the intersection.

Mercer shifted his squad’s attention toward the eastern entrance.

"Watch the lobby."

Five infected entered the ground floor.

More followed from the upper levels, crowding near the stairwell without immediately crossing the shattered entrance.

"Bastion Two, forward. Dobrev Squad takes the ground floor. Bastion One covers the entrance. Mercer holds the intersection."

Bastion Two stopped behind Bastion One.

Its rear ramp opened.

Milan Dobrev dismounted first.

His squad formed behind the APC before moving toward the eastern office building. Two soldiers watched the upper windows while the rest kept their rifles on the lobby.

Ethan maintained the microdrone above the shattered entrance.

The feed passed over the dead Screamer and the infected gathering beyond the doors.

One marker remained behind the reception area.

"Eastern rear. Behind the desk," Ethan reported.

He lowered the drone slightly.

The infected leaned beside the overturned reception counter. Its cheeks and throat were swollen, and green fluid gathered between its teeth.

"Spitter behind the desk," Zolyah said. "Clever little thing."

Dobrev raised one hand.

His squad stopped before entering the Spitter’s firing line.

Bastion One lowered its autocannon toward the broken doors.

Zolyah shifted the Barrett onto the section of the lobby visible through the shattered windows.

"Come on. Show me your head."

The Spitter remained behind the desk, waiting for someone to enter.