The steam train sped through the city, pushing its way toward the evacuation zone.

  Magnus, along with Lix and Adriano, stayed outside the locomotive, cutting down hostiles that blocked the path.

  The rest of the group remained inside the wagon.

  Ander kept his focus, eyes fixed on the massive gate in the wall, now open.

  For many, it was the first time leaving the city of Zarco.

  Crossing that gate was overwhelming: just as the sun began to rise over the horizon, bathing everything in golden light.

  The dawn painted the sky in warm tones, as if nature itself wanted to remind them that beauty still existed in the world.

  "We couldn’t do anything…" Ander said, looking back at the city that had once been his home.

  Sadness and frustration consumed him. His eyes grew wet as he watched Zarco fade behind them, overrun by hostiles.

  "Zarco… the first of the seven cities to fall…" Julia, the librarian, whispered in shock.

  "We’re sorry, Father…" Mabel murmured, hugging Italia.

  Italia broke down in tears, seeing the city her father had sworn to protect now destroyed.

  She crumbled under the weight of losing her parents in such a short time, now forced to protect her younger sister.

  "They stole our city, but we’ll take it back," Ander declared firmly.

  "We’re outside now… all that’s left is to find our families," Josh said with hope.

  Ander and Josh exchanged a look of complicity.

  "How far are we from the outer base?" Ander asked.

  "About forty minutes," Andrew replied.

  "We’ll see Dad, Cody," Josh said, holding back emotion.

  Cody hugged his brother.

  "I know, little brother. Maybe the base already has information about what happened."

  Inside the locomotive, Néstor approached Noah, who drove nervously.

  "Noah, how are you? Everything okay?"

  "Uh… yeah. I just keep going straight. As long as it stays like this, I’ll be fine."

  "If you need anything, just tell us."

  "Of course, thanks," Noah replied, trying to stay calm.

  Luke, elsewhere in the locomotive, watched Dante, who rested while fighting the infection from his bite.

  "How are you, Dante?" Luke asked.

  "Weak," he answered faintly.

  Luke frowned with concern.

  "You need to eat and regain strength."

  "Luke, please. We both know I won’t make it past today."

  Luke’s gaze hardened.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  "Guardians are trained to fight until the end, and you don’t seem to be doing that."

  "I fought as much as I could. Now it’s your turn to keep fighting. I simply accept my fate."

  Luke knelt to meet Dante’s eyes.

  "Don’t give up, please. You saw what happened with the boy—he survived a bite."

  "I don’t have an explanation for that, but I don’t want false hope either."

  "Just don’t stop clinging to life. Rest now," Luke said, stepping away.

  Most of the group left the wagon to stand outside the locomotive, taking in the world few had ever seen.

  Ander gazed at the unfamiliar landscape stretching before them, feeling a mix of fear and excitement for what lay ahead.

  "The prairie’s clear of hostiles… everything’s so green, so full of life," Ander said in awe.

  "Probably most of the ones here were the ones that invaded us…" Alicia commented, watching closely.

  The contrast was overwhelming: behind them lay a destroyed city, and before them stretched a vast, unknown world.

  The train rolled across the prairie, leaving the golden dawn behind.

  In the distance, a herd of bison ran freely, while others drank from a crystal-clear lake.

  "It’s like the world is at peace," Ander said.

  "Out here the world feels endless," Josh added, amazed.

  Alicia gripped the railing with both hands.

  "It’s incredible," she whispered, smiling.

  "Just like I imagined in class. The professor was right," Gaspar affirmed.

  Ander reflected softly: “Secrets to uncover”… but what secrets?

  "Seems like you became one of those secrets," Josh joked.

  Andrew approached the four youths.

  "That’s right, kid. Ander still has much to uncover about himself."

  "I just hope I can help and not become a problem," Ander said, worried.

  "To avoid problems, I think we should all be careful mentioning your case," Andrew warned.

  Ander looked confused. "Careful how?"

  "Not everyone will understand what happened to you. They might think you’re still infected and, out of fear, do… anything."

  Ander nodded.

  "I understand. We should tell the others."

  "I already spoke with Luke, and he agrees," Andrew added.

  Italia’s voice interrupted, pointing excitedly. "Look, you can see the base ahead!"

  "So soon?" Ander asked, surprised.

  The train pressed toward its destination.

  The survivors began to make out the silhouettes of the base: watchtowers, fortified walls… and the entrance gate wide open.

  That wasn’t normal.

  "The gate’s open…" Noah murmured nervously.

  Luke analyzed the situation.

  "Slow down. Everyone get ready to disembark," he ordered.

  "But what? No one’s guarding the entrance…" Cody said, baffled.

  Inside the base, they found it destroyed.

  Walls bore claw marks, hallways were stained with blood, and silence was absolute.

  "They invaded here too…" Josh added, frustrated.

  Luke raised his right hand.

  "Spread out and investigate. Don’t go too far, stay in pairs," he ordered.

  Andrew approached Luke.

  "I don’t think the people who evacuated from the city are still here."

  Suddenly, Ander pointed to the side.

  "There’s another train parked there."

  "That train belongs to the reconnaissance team sent to this base," Luke explained.

  "They sent a team here? Then this happened before the city attack…" Andrew said, shocked.

  Luke raised his voice for all to hear.

  "A day before Zarco’s invasion. We hadn’t heard from this base in a long time, so a team was sent."

  "That’s why Dad didn’t come home for dinner that day…" Josh murmured sadly.

  "Come on, let’s check the base together. Maybe we’ll find something, a clue," Cody said, putting a hand on his brother’s shoulder.

  The survivors spread out, investigating the base.

  Ander reflected aloud as they moved.

  "Two attacks in such a short time… that’s never happened before."

  "In all these years, nothing like this. Hostiles don’t have the intelligence to coordinate attacks like this," Andrew replied seriously.

  "Those who learn to evolve, survive," my teacher said. "Maybe the hostiles started doing that…" Ander said, thoughtful.

  Andrew stopped.

  "Don’t scare us, kid. If they evolve, that means we will too," he answered confidently.

  Behind a wall, they found a soldier with his face devoured and half his body destroyed. They fell silent, showing respect, then moved on.

  Elsewhere in the base, Cody and Josh walked together, talking about their father.

  "I thought we’d find him here…" Josh said quietly. "I thought so too, little brother, but now’s not the time to give up," Cody replied, trying to keep hope alive.

  "You’re right. We have to find Mom," Josh added, sitting by some rubble.

  The base was completely destroyed.

  "The evacuation train passed through here. The base survivors must be with them," Cody explained.

  Josh looked at him seriously.

  "I want to ask you something, brother. Help me with my aim," he said, determined.

  Carlo called everyone to gather.

  When Ander and Andrew arrived, they saw the group assembled before a pile of soldiers’ corpses.

  "Ah, shit!" Adriano exclaimed, horrified.

  Martin covered his children’s eyes with both hands.

  "Natasha, Wallace, don’t look," he ordered, trying to protect them.

  "Not looking won’t bring them back," Wallace replied.

  Everyone stared at the corpses, horrified.

  Hope began to fade.

  The constant disappointments battered the group’s morale, reminding them how dire their situation was.

  The base, meant to be a refuge, had become a graveyard.

  Was there any safe place left?