The World Ends In 27 Days

Jingwei watched daylight widen beneath the twisted edge of the outer gate.

A chain scraped across the concrete beyond it, drawing taut before another pull dragged the damaged metal outward.

He had inspected that gate himself. He remembered standing beside Shichen while the installation crew tested its movement, complaining about how slowly it opened.

Now he wished it had taken them another hour.

"The inner barrier is still secure," Jingwei reminded Zeyu, reaching for his rifle. "They’ve opened the vehicle approach. They haven’t reached the shelter."

On the screen, the first soldier stepped through the gap.

He paused beneath the ceiling lights, looking along the empty passage toward the reinforced barrier at its far end. Another soldier followed, carrying equipment.

Hanchuan moved before either man reached the middle of the passage.

"Shichen, stay with the cameras," Hanchuan instructed. "Tell us if anyone returns to the western entrance."

Jingwei followed him into the corridor. Behind them, Zeyu pulled a chair beside Shichen’s, its legs scraping against the floor.

Their footsteps sounded too loud beneath the steady hum of the ventilation.

Jingwei adjusted the rifle against his shoulder and looked at Hanchuan’s profile as they passed the medical room. His friend glanced through the open doorway but didn’t stop.

Qinghe stood beside Zhiyi’s bed with the tablet in his hand.

"They’re through the outer gate," Hanchuan informed him, slowing just enough to meet his eyes. "Keep the door closed."

Qinghe nodded. The latch clicked behind them before Jingwei could look inside.

At the main entrance, the corridor divided around a thick concrete wall. The shelter door occupied the center, with a small security room beside it. Jingwei entered first and switched on the wall monitor.

The approaching soldiers appeared close enough for him to see the dust stuck to their wet uniforms.

He had chosen the reinforced observation window and the covered firing openings beneath it.

During installation, he had argued over their placement until the contractor stopped offering alternatives.

Standing behind them with a rifle felt nothing like approving them on a drawing.

Hanchuan set his phone on the narrow counter beneath the monitor. Shichen’s voice emerged from the speaker, low and clear.

"Four inside the approach," Shichen reported. "Captain Du is coming through now."

Jingwei watched the captain step around the damaged gate. Captain Du wiped his face with his sleeve before looking toward the observation window.

"There you are," Du called, his voice muffled through the barrier. "We need to finish this."

Jingwei pressed the intercom button. Through the darkened glass, he could see Du searching for the person operating it.

"You can start by getting your men off our property," Jingwei replied.

Captain Du stopped several paces from the shelter door. Behind him, a soldier lowered a case onto the floor, and the hollow impact carried through the intercom.

"You’ve made your objection clear," Captain Du responded. "Our medical officer still needs access to Qiao Zhiyi."

Hanchuan stepped beside Jingwei and leaned toward the microphone.

"My wife is receiving treatment," Hanchuan informed him. "You will not interrupt it."

Captain Du’s gaze shifted toward his voice. For a moment, Jingwei thought the captain might finally understand that reaching another door hadn’t changed the answer.

Instead, Captain Du gestured toward the case.

The soldier knelt and opened it.

Jingwei felt his grip tighten.

The man was older than the soldier who had entered first, with gray beginning above his ears. He removed a tool, checked it, and glanced at the door with the weary concentration of someone facing another unpleasant assignment.

Jingwei wanted him to look frightened. Anger would have been easier, too.

The ordinary patience on his face made Jingwei’s stomach turn.

"Leave the equipment where it is," Hanchuan ordered through the intercom. "Step away from the door."

Captain Du raised one hand toward the soldier, pausing him.

"Mr. Pei, consider what you’re doing," Captain Du urged. "There are armed soldiers outside your residence."

"I’m aware," Hanchuan replied calmly. "I can see them."

Jingwei glanced at him. Hanchuan’s attention remained on the man beside the case, his expression unchanged.

The soldier looked toward Captain Du for permission to continue, but Jingwei pressed the button before the captain could answer.

"You’ve already damaged one entrance," Jingwei warned. "Touch this one, and we’ll defend it."

Captain Du looked directly at the observation window.

"Against the military?" he asked.

The question caught Jingwei harder than he wanted to admit.

He could hear what stood behind it: their families, their names, every consequence that would once have followed pointing a weapon at a uniform.

Hanchuan reached beneath the window and opened one of the firing covers.

The metal slid back with a sound Jingwei felt in his teeth. Outside, the nearest soldier stepped away, his rifle lifting before Captain Du sharply motioned it down.

"Keep your weapons lowered," the captain ordered his men, although his eyes stayed on the opening.

Hanchuan brought his rifle into position.

Jingwei turned toward him. From this close, he could see the slight crease between his friend’s eyebrows and the complete steadiness of his hands.

"Hanchuan," Jingwei murmured, unsure what he intended to ask.

"Watch the others," Hanchuan instructed without looking away.

On the counter, Shichen’s breathing came faintly through the phone. He and Zeyu could see the soldiers, but Jingwei wondered whether they understood what Hanchuan had just done.

Captain Du took a slow step backward.

"Proceed," he instructed the kneeling soldier.

For a moment, the man remained where he was. His eyes moved from the firing opening to his captain, and Jingwei waited for him to refuse.

Then the soldier stood with the tool in his hands.

Hanchuan followed the movement with his rifle.

"Put it down," Hanchuan ordered.

The soldier hesitated beside the door. Sweat ran from beneath his helmet, leaving a clean track through the dust on his cheek.

Captain Du’s mouth tightened. "You have your orders," he reminded him.

The soldier turned toward the reinforced frame and raised the tool.

Hanchuan fired.

The sound filled the small security room.

Jingwei recoiled despite himself as the soldier dropped against the door and collapsed, the tool clattering across the concrete.

Someone shouted outside. Through the ringing in his ears, Jingwei heard Zeyu demanding to know what had happened.

He couldn’t answer. He was staring at Hanchuan, who had already shifted his rifle toward the next soldier.

"Tell your men to step back," Hanchuan instructed the captain. "I won’t warn them again."