Chapter 121 - 120: Exile
Raindrops mixed with blood snaked down the dented observation window of the wheeled armored vehicle.
The camouflage paint on the hull was charred and stained black with blood. The crevices of its eight massive tires were caked with gore and mud.
The barrel of the 30mm autocannon on the vehicle’s roof, once like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, was bent and twisted to one side by some external force.
Several antennas of varying lengths protruded from the front of the vehicle. Most were broken, hanging limply over the roof.
Despite being covered in scars, the armored vehicle still exuded the reassuring and powerful presence of modern civilization.
Inside, only a few emergency lights cast an eerie blue glow. The air was thick with the acrid, mixed smell of engine oil and diesel.
Several capable-looking men in military uniforms were pointing the muzzles of their standard-issue rifles through the firing ports, their eyes scanning the outside through the observation slits above.
In the deepest part of the passenger compartment, a woman in an unusual military uniform sat bolt upright, holding a PDA in one hand while forcefully rubbing her temple with the other.
Her uniform didn’t look like standard combat fatigues; it was more like a field uniform for some military research institution. An armband embroidered with "Institute of Biotechnology, Academy of Agricultural Sciences" was on her sleeve, partially obscured by the tactical vest she wore over it.
In the seat beside her, a young girl who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen, dressed in an ill-fitting standard military uniform, was leaning against the woman’s shoulder, fast asleep with a weary expression.
On closer inspection, the two of them bore a slight resemblance to each other.
WHIRRR—
A heavy mechanical sound rang out as the thick, hydraulic hatch slowly opened. The damp, rainy air from outside, mingled with the smell of gunpowder, blew into the vehicle, causing the sleeping girl to shrink her neck and furrow her brow.
The woman, who had been staring intently at the PDA in her hand, turned her head toward the hatch.
"Colonel Ye, we’re through the horde territory. Colonel Zhou has requested your presence at a meeting."
A fully-armed soldier holding a standard-issue rifle stood outside the vehicle, saluting. He relayed the message to the woman inside with meticulous formality, then turned his head and said to the other soldiers in a more relaxed tone,
"Stand down. We’re safe for now. Come on out and stretch your legs."
The soldiers inside relaxed instantly. After exchanging a few glances, they pulled their weapons back, closed the firing ports, clapped each other on the shoulder, and began filing out of the vehicle.
"Cyan Bird, wake up..." Seeing everyone disembark, the woman known as Colonel Ye reached out and gently patted the girl’s face, speaking softly.
But the girl merely twitched her eyelids, turned her head, and leaned against the felt-lined wall of the compartment on her other side, showing no intention of opening her eyes.
Seeing this, the woman could only gently cover her with a nearby blanket, put on her military cap, and step out of the vehicle alone. She turned back and silently looked at the armored vehicle she had been riding in.
’When we first set out, it was as if it had just rolled off the factory line. Every antenna, every pane of glass gleamed. And now... it looks like this.’
Even that once-imposing autocannon was now twisted and bent beyond repair.
The rain wasn’t heavy, but since dawn had just broken, the air was still chilly. The woman tightened the collar of her uniform, trying hard not to think about the fate of the young gunner who had greeted her just yesterday. Her boots made constant squelching sounds on the muddy ground.
In the distance, the bus carrying civilians had windows covered in cracks. A few were completely shattered, now haphazardly covered with a tarp that made a constant flapping sound in the wind.
Through the cracked glass, she could see it was packed with pale, numb faces.
"Everyone out, get out of the bus..."
A young soldier opened the bus door and shouted inside,
"There’s a supermarket over there. We’ll send a few men with you to gather supplies. The convoy’s resources are limited. No work, no reward..."
Several other soldiers brought a bundle of spiked steel pipes down from a nearby military truck and handed them out to the civilians getting off the bus. Led by a few other soldiers equipped with suppressors, the group headed toward a commercial street in the distance.
The firearms were just for insurance. Even with suppressors, they would still attract nearby zombies. They were only to be used as a last resort. The rest of the time, they had to rely on those spears, as if time had regressed five thousand years.
"Colonel Ye."
A passing soldier who recognized her was pushing a tire. He greeted her before hurrying toward a truck with a flat.
But for the most part, everyone in the convoy was using this rare moment of leisure to tend to their duties.
Several bodies had been laid out in a field nearby. Some wore military uniforms, others civilian clothes. Their hands and feet were bound with rope, and each had a bloody hole in their head—a spear wound, the last dignity afforded to the injured.
The woman’s gaze fell on one of the bodies in a military uniform. She recognized him. He was one of the first people who had set out with her, with the surname Liu. Yesterday... or was it the day before? He had smiled and told her his wife worked at Linjiang University, and that he would definitely see her once they reached the quarantine zone.
She stopped and stood silently for a moment, her face expressionless, save for a fleeting, bottomless exhaustion in her eyes.
She walked past several off-road assault vehicles to the center of the convoy, where a command tent had been pitched next to the only armored vehicle that was still relatively intact, which was serving as a temporary command post.
"We’ve lost 12 combat personnel. We can recruit more from the civilians..."
"Civilians... lost a whole busload..."
"We still have weapons, but we’re almost out of bullets. We only managed to restock some light arms ammunition when we passed that armory. The autocannon shells and explosives are dwindling with every shot..."
"The autocannon on APC Two is wrecked. We have over a hundred shells left that can be transferred to APC One..."
"We lost the fuel tanker, so we’re low on fuel..."
Listening to the voices from within, the woman took a deep breath, lifted the tent flap, and walked inside.
The tent was filled with a mixture of thick smoke and the bitter smell of cheap coffee.
A map, crisscrossed with red lines, was spread out on a command table fashioned from several ammunition crates.
"The only good news is that we still have a good amount of medical supplies on the truck... but honestly, aside from cold medicine, we haven’t used much since we set out... Colonel Ye..."
A young man beside the table, dressed in civilian clothes but wearing a tactical vest, was speaking with a somewhat joking tone. But as soon as he saw the woman enter, his smile vanished. He lowered his head and silently took a half-step back.
"Qingzhou, you’re just in time. How is Cyan Bird?"
The tall, sharp-eyed officer with a buzz cut standing at the head of the table was fiddling with a broken pencil, bending it back and forth in his hands. He greeted the woman, Ye Qingzhou, as she entered.