Raptor One continued north.
The Airfield disappeared behind the aircraft within seconds. Warehouses and secured roads gave way to older industrial blocks, then to wider stretches of damaged utility land.
The fixed Radar boundary approached on the pilot’s display.
"Raptor One to Flight Operations. Reaching the edge of coverage."
"Flight Operations copies. Maintain the scheduled return window."
"I’ll try not to keep you waiting."
The response came after a short pause.
"Report when coverage returns."
"Don’t be surprised when I do."
The aircraft crossed the boundary.
The command link remained available for several more seconds before weakening into static. Friendly markers disappeared from the wider display afterward, leaving only Raptor One’s local Radar and the systems inside the cockpit.
The pilot activated the mission recorder.
"Raptor One reconnaissance log. Fixed Radar coverage lost. Continuing toward Northern Ashington Nuclear Power Station."
He reduced speed as the river entered view.
The water curved between industrial compounds and open utility land. Several transmission towers stood beside it, though many of the cables between them had collapsed. Others hung low enough to nearly touch the ground.
The cooling towers appeared through the haze farther ahead.
"Power station in sight. Great view from up here."
Raptor One continued at altitude.
The facility remained larger than the pilot expected. Concrete barriers surrounded the outer structures, while several utility roads connected the plant to the river and nearby substations.
No vapor rose from the cooling towers. No visible smoke came from the main buildings either.
Several sections of the transmission network had failed.
The facility itself remained standing.
"Structural condition appears stable from the north," the pilot recorded. "No visible reactor breach. No active cooling vapor. External transmission damage confirmed."
He adjusted the aircraft’s course and began a wide circuit outside the perimeter.
Raptor One’s local Radar swept across the plant.
Gray markers appeared inside the facility.
The pilot leaned closer to the display.
"Well. Someone forgot to tell the abandoned nuclear station that it was abandoned."
Most of the markers were concentrated inside one contained section near the center of the facility. They remained packed closely together, with only a few moving between the surrounding structures.
Another, smaller cluster occupied a separate area farther away. Most remained inside the same buildings, while a handful followed short routes between adjoining sections.
None of the contacts were red. The larger cluster could have been survivors, but the Radar gave him no way to confirm that from the air.
More gray markers appeared around the perimeter.
These moved differently from the two interior groups. Some traveled in pairs along the internal roads. Others followed repeated circuits around the walls and utility compounds. Several remained positioned at intersections, evenly spaced and facing outward.
The pilot watched one group stop at the same point, turn, and continue along its previous route.
"Automated patrols?" he muttered. "Would explain the repeated routes."
He marked the two interior clusters separately from the perimeter contacts.
He continued the wide circuit.
Several cameras along the perimeter turned with the aircraft.
One of the patrolling formations changed direction.
Three gray markers left their route and moved toward the northern side of the facility. Another group repositioned near one of the service roads.
The pilot watched their movement.
"Oh, they noticed me."
A sharp warning tone pulsed inside the cockpit. A threat indicator appeared on the display.
------
[ Tracking signal detected. ]
------
The pilot’s smile faded slightly.
"Definitely noticed me."
A transmission entered through an open emergency frequency.
"Unauthorized aircraft detected."
"Restricted nuclear airspace violation."
"Alter course immediately."
"Defensive targeting active."
The pilot glanced at the gray formations below. Several had stopped moving. Others continued toward positions closer to the perimeter.
"Right. We’ve got an active defense system around here. No way this is an abandoned plant."
He widened the turn without descending.
Raptor One remained outside the central structures, though the tracking signal continued following the aircraft. Several points along the perimeter shifted beneath protective housings.
The pilot did not attempt a closer pass.
"Raptor One reconnaissance log. Nuclear facility remains occupied. Multiple neutral clusters detected inside contained sectors. Automated patrol behavior likely. Active airspace monitoring and defensive targeting confirmed."
The warning repeated.
"Exit restricted airspace immediately."
"I’m leaving. You don’t have to sound so excited about it."
Raptor One increased its distance from the facility.
The tracking indicator disappeared several seconds later. The pilot checked the recorded imagery and the marks he had placed across the plant.
Two separate interior clusters remained inside the facility. Repeated patrol routes covered the perimeter, while cameras and other defensive systems had tracked the aircraft once it entered the restricted airspace.
"Power station observation complete," he recorded. "No engagement. Continuing toward the northern industrial sector."
Raptor One left the facility behind and continued toward the northern industrial sector.
Utility compounds gradually gave way to freight yards. Warehouses lined the river in long rows, their roofs dented by debris and weather. Loading cranes stood idle beside the docks, while rail lines disappeared beneath overturned containers and abandoned cargo.
The pilot reduced speed.
"Beginning northern industrial survey."
Raptor One’s local Radar swept across the sector.
Red markers appeared between the structures.
Most moved alone or in small groups. Some remained inside warehouses, while others wandered through loading areas and service roads. The concentrations were larger than those near the Nuclear Power Plant, though still scattered enough to avoid becoming a single horde.
The pilot marked the first cluster.
"Standard infected presence. Nothing worth writing home about."
Another sweep passed over the district.
More red markers appeared farther ahead.
These were packed inside one of the larger freight complexes near the river. Several warehouses surrounded a central loading building, their roofs connected by conveyor bridges and enclosed service passages.
The concentration did not move like the others.
Markers entered the complex from different directions.
Few came back out.
The pilot adjusted the optical feed.
Dark growth covered portions of the central warehouse.
It spread from broken loading doors and climbed the outer walls in thick, uneven layers. Several sections had reached the roof before disappearing beneath collapsed panels and old equipment.
Root-like extensions crossed the ground between neighboring buildings. Some disappeared into drainage channels. Others wrapped around abandoned trucks and loading machinery.
"Well, there’s our welcoming committee."
He kept his hand away from the weapon controls.
The main growth remained beneath the warehouse roof, protected from direct sunlight. Only the outer roots and surrounding infected were exposed.
"Hive suspected," he recorded. "Freight complex near the northern river corridor. Central body concealed inside the main warehouse. Multiple external growths connecting nearby structures."
Several red markers gathered around one of the loading bays.
They stood in loose groups near the entrance, while others moved between the surrounding buildings.
The pilot watched for several seconds.
"This one’s established. Not new either. Already made a home out of the complex."
He marked the location and continued.
Raptor One passed over another freight yard. Something moved across the top of a container stack.
The Radar caught it first.
A single red marker accelerated upward.
The pilot shifted the optical feed toward it.
"What’s this guy doing?"
The infected leapt from the containers.
Its body rose far higher than expected.
Long legs folded beneath it during the ascent. Its arms spread outward, exposing stretched membranes between the limbs and torso. The creature cleared the gap between two warehouses before descending toward the next roof.
"That thing’s gliding. That’s new."
The creature crouched. Its legs compressed beneath its body. Then it launched again.
This time, it cleared an elevated conveyor bridge and landed near the top of a loading crane.
"High-jump mutation with gliding membranes," he recorded. "Extremely mobile across elevated structures. No sustained flight observed."
The infected turned its head toward Raptor One.
The pilot glanced at his altitude.
"You can look all you want."
The creature jumped from the crane.
It rose sharply, then spread its limbs.
For several seconds, it glided beneath the aircraft’s flight path before losing altitude and returning toward the warehouses.
"Still too low."
The pilot marked it separately.
Another warning appeared on the Radar. A red contact moved above the surrounding rooftops.
Unlike the first mutation, this one did not lose altitude.
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