Raptor One touched down five minutes ahead of schedule.
Its wheels touched the runway. The aircraft continued along the strip before slowing near the western taxi lane.
Hans watched from the edge of the apron.
The fighter turned toward the nearest hangar, guided by the Ground Guidance Crew waiting along the marked lane. Its engines remained loud even after it stopped.
Several crew members moved around the aircraft.
One checked the landing gear. Another inspected the exterior while the rest prepared the service equipment.
The cockpit opened. The pilot climbed down the ladder and stepped onto the apron.
He removed his helmet and looked at Hans.
"Surprise, Commander."
"You’re earlier than I expected."
"Five minutes early, and I still completed the whole route."
The pilot handed the mission recorder to the approaching Flight Operations officer.
Hans looked toward the fighter.
"How was the flight?"
"Full of ups and downs." The pilot yawned. "Boring in places."
"Then some parts weren’t."
"Oh, definitely, Commander."
Hans ignored that.
"Report."
The Flight Operations officer connected the recorder to a portable terminal. The screen displayed Raptor One’s route across Grefort, followed by the locations marked throughout the flight.
The pilot stepped beside it.
"Nuclear plant is occupied. Automated security is active, including whatever they use to track aircraft."
Hans focused on the northern section.
"How many contacts?"
"Couldn’t get an exact count. One large neutral cluster near the center and a smaller one separated from it. Possible automated patrols around the perimeter."
The terminal moved to the northern industrial sector.
"Found another suspected Hive inside a northern freight complex. The central body remained concealed inside the main warehouse, but external growths connected several surrounding structures."
Two recordings appeared afterward.
The first showed an infected launching from a structure before spreading a membrane beneath its arms.
The second carried itself through the air with uneven wings.
The pilot pointed at them.
"One glides. The other actually flies."
Hans watched the second infected pursue the Raptor.
It failed to match the fighter’s altitude or speed, though that offered little comfort.
"Falcon One needs to know."
"Already marked it as a threat to helicopters and low-flying transports."
"Good."
The recording continued.
Central Grefort appeared beneath a pale haze. Radar outlines broke apart as contacts flickered, vanished, and reappeared in the wrong locations.
Hans narrowed his eyes.
"This happened when you approached the center?"
"Immediately after entering the haze. Radar became unreliable. Filters confirmed airborne particles."
"Could be the same spores." Hans frowned.
He remembered the first two Hive confrontations. Communications had weakened beneath the thickest sections, while several soldiers struggled to remain focused.
Hans watched the distorted recording for several seconds.
"A ground team might see more than I did," the pilot added. "They wouldn’t have to depend on Radar once they entered."
"They would still have to breathe beneath it."
The pilot fell silent.
"We’ll deal with that in the future," Hans continued.
The city’s core remained distant from his current positions. Leaving it alone for too long would only make the eventual operation harder.
The eastern residential belt appeared next.
Several survivor enclaves filled the display. Some occupied apartment compounds. Others held only one building or several connected structures.
"They’re scattered," the pilot explained. "A few cleared the nearby streets, but none of them have a safe route to another group."
Hans studied their positions.
"How far from our southern corridor?"
"Varies. The nearest ones are still separated by infected-held blocks and road obstructions."
"Keep the locations recorded. We will contact them when ground forces can reach them."
The recorded route continued through Pandora and the Southern Districts.
Most of Dmitri’s old road remained usable. Reinfected areas appeared along the side streets, while the main corridor stayed mostly clear.
The fishing port followed. Neither former Hive site showed visible activity. Then the Colony appeared.
Then the Colony appeared. FFour gray markers occupied its eastern and northern approaches.
Hans’s expression changed.
"Are they hostile?"
"Unconfirmed. Likely human. One carried a rifle and watched the Colony through binoculars. The others occupied positions overlooking the roads."
"Any attack?"
"None."
Hans turned toward the Flight Operations officer.
"Forward those coordinates to the Colony. Patrols should remain inside the defensive area. Send Scouts to observe the contacts and determine who they belong to."
"Yes, Commander."
"Do not engage unless they threaten the Colony or our units."
The officer recorded the order.
The remaining footage passed through Hans’s former apartment complex, the western bypass, Conservatory Park, and both military positions.
The suspected shard inside the Central Dome remained unconfirmed.
The highway post and northeast military base remained secure.
Hans watched the entire route finish before looking toward Raptor One.
The fighter had crossed Grefort, returned safely, and shown him how much of the city remained outside his control.
Falcon One could transport troops, while Raptor One could locate threats across the city. Neither was designed to remain above a ground formation throughout a prolonged operation.
Hans opened the Airfield production interface.
The remaining aircraft entries appeared.
His eyes stopped on one.
------
[ Apache Heavy Attack Helicopter ]
[ Cost: 15,000 Gold ]
------
"Flight Operations."
"Yes, Commander?"
"The Apache. Is it better suited for supporting infantry and vehicles?"
"It is designed for sustained close air support, Commander. It can remain with ground formations and engage targets that threaten their advance."
That was enough for now.
Hans selected the aircraft and confirmed the purchase.
------
[ Gold: 16,543 (-15,000) => 1,543 ]
------
[ Apache Heavy Attack Helicopter production started. ]
[ ETA: 2 hours and 30 minutes. ]
------
The queue began.
Hans looked toward the southern routes on the terminal.
The Apache would join the ground war, but not today.
Dusk was approaching.
The two southern platoons should already be on their way back.
Hans returned to Site Three before nightfall.
South One arrived first.
Its Guardian APCs entered through the marked lane, followed by Big Rhino and recovery vehicles carrying sealed containers from the cleared blocks.
South Two followed less than twenty minutes later.
No wounded were sent to the Field Hospital.
The Engineers began unloading while the platoon leaders prepared their maps inside the warehouse.
Hans waited inside the warehouse until the final container was marked.
The haul occupied several rows near the loading area.
Most came from commercial buildings along the two routes. Jewelry cases, watches, loose precious metals, electronics, and sealed valuables recovered from abandoned offices filled the smaller containers.
Hans stepped closer.
"Convert everything."
Green light spread beneath the rows.
The containers disappeared one after another.
------
[ Industrial Storage Yards conversion bonus applied: +40% ]
[ Gold: 1,543 (+61,551) => 63,094 ]
------
The Falcon, Raptor, and Apache had emptied most of his Gold only hours ago. The southern advance had already restored more of it.
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