RTS System in the Apocalypse: New World

Sweeper Two reported that the returning convoy was less than ten minutes away when Hans selected one of the Wall segments near the rear passage.

The second Pillbox had already been deployed across Ramp Four an hour earlier. Its weapon moved behind the firing slit from time to time, covering the other half of the entrance as intended.

Hans had no reason to watch the same process twice.

The Gate was different.

He opened the Wall interface and selected the segment closest to the passage.

------

[ Gate Conversion ]

[ Select Gate width: 2–10 meters. ]

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"Three meters," Hans said.

The Engineer beside him checked the passage before looking back at the Wall.

"Enough for personnel, stretchers, supply carts, and smaller vehicles, Commander. Guardian APCs should continue through Ramp Four."

"That’s fine."

Hans adjusted the width to three meters.

------

[ Gate width selected: 3 meters. ]

[ Conversion Cost: 3,000 Gold. ]

[ Confirm conversion? ]

------

He looked at the Wall segment once more.

It already separated the rear passage from the open road. A Gate here would allow soldiers and rescued civilians to pass without opening Ramp Four every time somebody arrived on foot.

"Confirm."

------

[ Gold: 15,065 (-3,000) => 12,065 ]

[ Gate conversion commencing. ]

------

A vertical line appeared at the center of the Wall.

The steel and concrete separated along it. Several sections withdrew into the structure while new frames formed around the opening. The conversion finished almost as quickly as the Wall itself had appeared.

Three meters of open passage now stood between two reinforced sections.

A scanner rested against one side. Another mechanism had formed above the entrance, connected to the sliding Gate panels hidden inside the Wall.

------

[ Gate conversion complete. ]

[ Integrated scanner and access control active. ]

------

"Test it."

One Army Soldier approached from the other side.

The scanner followed him for a moment. A green light appeared above the entrance before the Gate opened.

He walked through without stopping and then, the Gate closed after him.

Hans nodded.

"Keep it under manual control while the survivors are here."

"Understood, Commander."

The soldiers dispersed while Hans returned near the deployed PCV.

From a larger perspective, Route One was now almost enclosed, yet the deployed PCV remained out in the open.

That would need fixing later.

A Wall could surround part of the lot without blocking the construction radius. Perhaps another Pillbox too, depending on how much Gold remained after the second sweep generated income for Hans.

He looked at the Radar map, then toward the road.

From the looks of things, the convoy would arrive soon, and it was carrying survivors.

He had no intention of meeting them personally.

Golden Eagle worked because most people only knew the name, the soldiers, and the army behind it. The moment someone recognized Hans Flemmens, that separation would begin to fall apart.

Grefort was a large city, but not large enough for him to assume nobody from his old life remained alive.

"Matilda, handle the survivors. I will not be meeting them under any circumstances."

"Understood, Commander."

Hans entered the PCV before the convoy reached Route One.

...

Engines reached them from farther down Route One.

Four Guardian APCs appeared one after another. Dust followed behind their wheels while the soldiers stationed around the parking structure moved aside.

The position they returned to no longer looked the same as it had that morning.

Exterior lights shone above the warehouse entrances. Several levels of the parking structure were lit from within, enough for soldiers and vehicles to move without relying on headlights. More light escaped through the windows of the receiving station near the Gate.

The first APC continued toward Ramp Four.

The last three APCs slowed near the new Gate. Their rear ramps lowered.

In one of them, Sweeper Two’s platoon leader stepped out first. Two soldiers followed before turning back toward the vehicle.

The man from the residential building appeared next.

He carried both backpacks over one shoulder and held the plastic bag in his other hand. His daughter remained close behind him.

The girl looked toward the warehouse lights before anything else.

Her father noticed them a moment later. His gaze moved from the lit windows to the Wall, then toward the two Pillboxes covering Ramp Four.

The woman came out last.

One soldier supported her beneath the arm while she avoided putting too much weight on her injured ankle.

Another pair of male Medics waited beyond the Gate.

"Three survivors," the platoon leader reported. "Cleared before transport. No infection markers. One injured ankle."

One Medic carried a bio-scanner tablet. The other had already unfolded a stretcher beside him.

After the first survivor report came through, Matilda had called them forward from the main base. One of the cleared rooms inside the nearest warehouse had also been emptied and prepared as a receiving station.

It was not a hospital.

There were several cots, folding tables, running water, and enough light and space to keep the recovered survivors apart until the Medics finished processing them.

The advanced treatments would remain at the main base.

"Three survivors," the platoon leader reported. "Cleared before transport. No infection markers. One injured ankle."

"Bring them through," Matilda ordered. "Repeat the scan at intake."

The first Medic raised the scanner toward the man.

The indicators turned green again.

His daughter received the same result before the Medic moved toward the injured woman.

The second Medic remained beside her.

"Can you walk?"

"A little."

"Don’t force it."

He prepared the stretcher while his partner completed the scan.

Another Guardian APC lowered its ramp beside Sweeper Two’s vehicle.

Five survivors stepped out under the watch of several Army Soldiers. Two were elderly. The other three carried bags and several containers between them.

The third APC carried six more.

They came from separate buildings, judging from the distance they kept from one another. Most had little more than backpacks and whatever they had been holding when the soldiers found them.

Both groups had already been scanned before boarding their respective vehicles.

The fourth APC carried no civilians. Its compartment remained filled with returning soldiers, duffel bags, sealed cases, and containers gathered during the sweep.

Matilda looked toward the platoon leaders.

"Final count?"

"Fourteen survivors recovered," one answered. "Three minor injuries. No infection markers. One additional group declined evacuation."

"Send the injured to the receiving station first. Process the rest by group."

"Understood."

The male Medics lifted the injured woman onto the stretcher.

Her husband followed beside them while their daughter held onto the back of his shirt.

Behind them, the remaining survivors began passing through the Gate one group at a time.

The three APCs that carried them had left most of their salvage behind.

Once survivors had been found, the platoon leaders ordered the duffel bags and containers moved into secured rooms inside the cleared buildings. The doors were locked afterward, the locations recorded, and a few soldiers remained nearby until the vehicles could return.

The fourth APC carried the valuables that should not have been left behind.

Its rear compartment was full by the time it reached Route One.

Soldiers unloaded the first batch near the parking structure. Duffel bags came out first, followed by sealed cases, metal containers, and several smaller boxes gathered from offices, apartments, banks, and shops deeper inside Westgate.

Matilda watched the unloading while the survivor groups passed through the Gate.

"Keep the salvage separate from their belongings," she ordered.

"Understood."

The bags carried by the survivors remained with them. Everything collected by the sweep teams went toward the parking structure instead.

Once the last survivor entered the receiving station, the three empty APCs turned around.

They passed through Ramp Four and returned to Westgate for the remaining loads.

...

It was already evening when the recovery vehicles arrived at the main base.

Hans stood near the yard while the soldiers unloaded them.

The second sweep had brought more than the first.

Duffel bags were stacked in several rows before the APCs were even half empty. Sealed watch cases followed. Jewelry boxes, gold chains, rings, loose coins, and several containers filled with other convertible materials were placed wherever space remained.

There were also gold bars and silver bullions from two banks that the earlier sweep had not reached.

Hans waited until the platoon leaders confirmed that everything belonging to the survivors had been removed from the loads.

"That’s the final batch for this sweep?" he asked.

"Yes, Commander," Matilda answered. "All secured collection points have been emptied. The remaining buildings were marked for the next sweep."

Hans looked over the yard.

The operation had taken almost the entire day.

Four APCs, several platoons, countless rooms, and more doors than anyone would bother counting.

At least the result was worth it.

"Convert everything."

The piles dissolved.

Green light spread across the yard, consuming one row after another until nothing remained except the soldiers and empty concrete.

------

[ Industrial Storage Yards conversion bonus applied: +40% ]

[ Gold: 12,065 (+96,400) => 108,465 ]

------

Hans stared at the number.

One hundred eight thousand, four hundred and sixty-five Gold.

The previous morning, fifteen thousand had looked expensive.

Now, he could afford several PCVs if he wanted to.

Hans closed the panel before that thought became another unnecessary purchase.

The sweep reports still had to be consolidated.

And somewhere among them was the location where Trailblazer Two would finally be deployed.

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