Mag-log in“Get inside the gate and throw the deadbolts!” Gabriel said, snapping his radio off his shoulder strap before I could even reply.I didn’t wait for him to repeat himself. I grabbed the iron handle, shoved the left panel shut, and slammed the top security bar into its steel sleeve with a loud metallic clack.“How many vehicles broke through?” I asked, looking at him through the bars as he tapped his wrist monitor.“Four trucks and a dozen civilian cars,” Gabriel said, scanning the road behind him. “They smashed the concrete barriers at the northern junction. My squad is trying to funnel them toward the main highway, but three vehicles cut south into the dirt access trails. They're coming straight down this corridor.”“They won't get past my outer fence,” I said, pulling a set of brass keys from my jacket pocket. “The lower gates are reinforced with solid steel plates.”Gabriel stepped closer to the bars, his attention fixed on me. “They aren't looking for a farm, Young. They're running
═❈Next Morning❈═“Put the wrench down, Young! I know you’re in there!”The screech of metal against metal echoed across the gravel driveway as Arthur slammed his fist against the iron gate. His voice was ragged, stripped of every ounce of aristocratic poise he usually pretended to have.I didn’t put the wrench down. I tightened the final bolt on the perimeter security latch, wiped the grease from my palms with a rag, and stepped into the shadow of the brick pillar.Through the thick iron bars, Arthur looked pathetic. His expensive designer suit jacket was gone, his dress shirt was soaked with sweat around the collar, and his sleek hair was plastered across his forehead. Beside him, Chloe clutched a designer handbag to her chest, her face red and blotchy from the oppressive heat rising off the road.“Young!” Arthur roared again, rattling the lock. “Open this damn gate right now!”I walked forward slowly, stopping three feet from the iron bars. I crossed my arms and looked at them throu
The mountain highway plunged into absolute darkness.The engine had died, and every indicator light on the dashboard vanished in a single, instantaneous blink. The headlights sputtered once, a weak thread of amber light glowing for a fraction of a second before going out completely.I pulled the manual handbrake, the notch clicking in the dead silence.Outside, the wind had ceased entirely. The air rising off the asphalt pressed against the hatchback’s windshield like an iron plate fresh from a forge. I checked the digital readout on my wrist—it was dead, the glass face cool while the temperature inside the cabin had climbed past a hundred and five degrees.A localized electromagnetic thermal surge.I remembered it now. In my past life, the atmospheric collapse didn’t begin with a gradual rise in seasonal temperature. It began with invisible, high-static atmospheric bursts—upper-altitude thermal storms that fried unshielded transformers, wiped civilian electronics, and left entire cou
A loud crash echoed down the dark hallway as my elbow caught the edge of a steel filing cabinet. Three thick binders hit the floor. The emergency backup lights flickered overhead, casting weak yellow shadows across the walls. The air inside the building was ninety-five degrees and thick enough to choke on.I crouched to gather the binders.“Need a hand with that?”A deep voice came from the shadows near the glass exit doors.I stood quickly, laptop bag pressed against my chest. “Who’s there?”A tall man stepped into the dim light. Dark utility uniform. Silver emblem of the National Bio-Defense Task Force on his chest. Broad shoulders, steady posture, dark eyes that narrowed the moment they landed on me.Recognition hit both of us at the same time.“Gabriel?” The name left my mouth before I could stop it.“Young.” His voice was quieter than I remembered. A small, genuine smile touched his mouth, but it didn’t last long. “It’s been forever since we last saw each other. What are you doin
By four o’clock the temperature had climbed to 102 degrees Fahrenheit—an unprecedented spike for mid-July.Emergency sirens wailed faintly in the distance as power substations struggled under the load of thousands of air conditioners running at full capacity. News alerts flashed across every phone screen:[WEATHER ALERT: UNUSUAL HEAT DOME CAUSES RECORD-BREAKING TEMPERATURES. CITIZENS ADVISED TO CONSERVE ELECTRICITY. SEVERAL NEIGHBORHOODS EXPERIENCING ROLLING BROWN-OUTS.]I took a taxi to the industrial district on the east side of the city. Even with the windows cracked, the air inside the cab felt thick and stale. The driver kept muttering under his breath about the weather and the traffic lights that had started flickering.Apex Medical & Wholesale Supplies occupied a large warehouse that supplied regional clinics and private emergency units. The parking lot was half-empty. Inside, the air-conditioning labored loudly, and the lights overhead flickered twice while I waited at the cou
By 11:45 a.m., the summer sun outside the university felt unnaturally heavy. The air rising from the pavement radiated a stagnant, suffocating dryness that made pedestrians pause and wipe their brows with confused frowns.“It’s only July,” a student muttered as he passed the library doors. “Why does it feel like standing in front of an open oven?”I stood near the entrance, a leather tote bag pressed against my side. I already knew why. The heat wave had not yet broken any official records, but the upper atmosphere was beginning to warp. In three months the heat would no longer cause mere discomfort. It would collapse power grids and turn rivers into cracked beds of mud.[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION] [DAILY QUEST ISSUED: FOUNDATION OF THE OASIS][TASK 1: SECURE 100% LEGAL OWNERSHIP OF A PERMANENT BASE LOCATION][TASK 2: STOCKPILE 5 TONS OF MEDICAL SUPPLIES & HIGH-PROTEIN PRESERVES][TIME LIMIT: 48 HOURS][COMPLETION REWARD: SPATIAL UPGRADE — LEVEL 2 + 500 LITRES OF SPIRITUAL SPRING WATER][F







