"How’s everyone else doing in the compound, power-wise?" Ethan asked, turning to Miles.

"Right now, the second echelon—and the captains from the hundred-plus Fallen Star Guard who already climbed the Celestial Stairway—are all at Tier 13," Miles said.

"Fallen Star Guard has one Guard Commander, ten Captains, and a hundred Squad Leaders."

He didn’t bother hiding his pride. "They’ve been with us since the beginning. They’re my most trusted people, the ones who actually get things done, so I let them climb the Celestial Stairway first."

Ethan nodded, motioning for him to continue.

"Besides them, Fallen Star Guard has more than a thousand Tier 12 Awakened. Everyone else is at Tier 11 peak."

"As for everyone outside the Guard, I’ve let them develop freely. So their strength is all over the place."

"Most are stuck at Tier 8 or Tier 9. A small portion are Tier 10."

"But Fallen Star City has plenty of crystal cores for them to trade for. As long as they’re willing to work inside the compound—or they’ve got the nerve to go out and kill zombies—they won’t stay weak."

Miles’s voice tightened, like he was laying down policy. "My thinking’s basically the same as yours, Captain. We raise Fallen Star Guard first. That way, when the next disaster hits, they’ll be the ones holding the line—so it doesn’t end up being just the few of us carrying everything."

Ethan frowned. "I do have a few hundred thousand high-Tier crystal cores on me. But they’re mostly Tier 15, Tier 16 and above. There’s a dead gap from Tier 12 to Tier 14."

His impatience bled through.

"At this rate, it’ll be a long time before we can even use them."

Right now, he felt pressed for time—like the world was about to speed up again and they wouldn’t be ready.

He wanted the Fallen Star Guard to grow fast. Not "eventually."

"Captain," Miles said, "then let all of Fallen Star Guard climb the Celestial Stairway."

He said it like it was the obvious solution. "We trained them from the very start. They’re all trustworthy."

Ethan nodded. "Trust isn’t the hard part. Skinny Pete can screen them. I’m worried the stones on the Celestial Stairway’s runic disk won’t have enough energy."

"That’s fine," Miles said. "Those special stones can be recharged. You just place crystal cores on them, and they automatically absorb the energy inside."

"And I already calculated it," he added. "The energy stored in those stones should be enough to handle an infusion for twenty thousand people, since their current Tiers aren’t that high. For those stones, the consumption really isn’t that big."

Ethan’s eyes narrowed, thinking it through. Then he nodded. "Alright. Do it."

He looked at Miles. "Go gather the entire Fallen Star Guard."

Then he turned to Pete. "Pete—use your ability and test every single one of them. Fallen Star Guard can’t have anyone with hidden agendas."

"Got it," Pete said.

...

In the largest plaza of the training complex, twenty thousand people stood in perfect formation, backs straight, like they were waiting to be inspected.

It instantly drew a crowd.

"So this is Fallen Star Guard? That presence is insane!"

"Yeah. First time I’ve ever seen them all together. Just looking at them makes me feel like I can’t breathe."

"Well, obviously. Fallen Star Guard is Fallen Star City’s strongest unit. I heard there are over a thousand at Stage C and above."

"The strongest unit in Fallen Star City?" someone snapped back. "More like the strongest unit in the entire Atlas Federation—except for our Fallen Star Squad."

"You’re wrong," another person said, getting worked up. "It’s the strongest in the world. I’d bet there isn’t a group overseas that can compare to Fallen Star Guard."

"Oh—yeah, yeah. The world!"

"I really want to be one of them..."

"Don’t even dream about it. Fallen Star Guard doesn’t recruit. Just being part of Fallen Star City is already a huge honor."

"...True."

The twenty thousand Guards heard the whispers around them, but none of them looked even a little proud.

They knew exactly why they’d made it this far.

Everything they had today was built by Ethan and Miles, one step at a time, with their own hands.

Before they ever met them, they’d just been a forgettable bunch of Enhanced from Redwood County—scraping by to survive, half-dead with exhaustion, never knowing if tomorrow they’d end up as zombie food.

Ethan’s people had cleared the zombies out of Redwood County. They’d taken them in, built Fallen Star City with them, and gave them—and their families—a place they could finally live without fear.

After that came the resources. The guidance. The steady push upward.

They’d been led, step by step, into building the number one city in the Atlas Federation—until their name rang across the entire Federation.

Now, who in the Atlas Federation didn’t know Fallen Star Guard?

It was the kind of glory they never would’ve dared imagine back then.

And now?

All they wanted was to keep following Ethan’s path—keep climbing, keep surviving, and in this apocalypse...

make their lives count.

Before long, Ethan and the others stepped into the plaza.

Every eye snapped to them—some people openly thrilled, some buzzing with excitement, others staring like they were looking at living legends.

But the hottest, most fevered looks came from the Fallen Star Guard. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Every last one of them was a die-hard Fallen Star Squad fanboy. Nobody could say a single bad word about the Squad in front of them and walk away smiling.

Seeing the crowd, Ethan rubbed at his temple, then flicked his hand, signaling everyone else to clear out.

They got the message. The Commander had something to say to his Guard. One by one, then in waves, the onlookers filed out of the training complex until only the Guard remained.

Ethan looked down at those burning, eager faces and smiled.

"I told you I’d make you the elite. The ones everyone looks up to. Did I keep my word?"

"We did it!!" The roar that answered him nearly shook the air itself.

They were beyond excited—because this wasn’t just "keeping his word."

It was a thousand times better than anything they’d ever dared imagine.

The strongest city in the Atlas Federation.

The most feared force within it.

Either one of those would’ve sounded like a joke back when they were starving in Redwood County.

And now it was real.

Because of the people standing in front of them.

Ethan’s smile faded into something harder. "Good. But listen—this is only what’s right in front of us."

"The apocalypse isn’t over. Nobody knows what’s coming next."

He let that hang for half a beat, then his voice sharpened.

"You... are you willing to keep following us into this war? Even if it costs you your life?"

"WILLING!!!" Another thunderous shout erupted. Every face was rock-solid, eyes bright with conviction.

Ethan glanced at Skinny Pete.

Pete had his ability pushed to the limit, his gaze sweeping across the ranks—one steadfast face after another.

It took a while.

Then Pete looked back at Ethan and nodded.

No hesitation.

Miles had built this unit well. There were no hidden knives in the crowd.

"Good," Ethan said.

"Then as a reward for everything you’ve done for Fallen Star City..."

His voice rose, clean and commanding.

"Next, you’ll climb the Celestial Stairway—ten at a time."

"CELESTIAL STAIRWAY!!" The Guard lit up like someone had poured gasoline on a fire.

Most outsiders didn’t know what the Stairway really did.

But Fallen Star Guard? They knew.

Their captains had shot up in strength because of it.

The only problem was, climbing it required Miles’s personal approval—so all they’d been able to do was envy the ones who got picked.

And now it was finally their turn.

"For the Commander!"

The chant exploded, raw and ecstatic.

Then they moved—orderly, fast, like a machine that had been waiting for the start signal.

A long line formed as squads filed into the walled area around the Celestial Stairway.

One team after another stepped onto the stairs.

Every single person grit their teeth and fought the pressure with everything they had, desperate to force out just one more step.

One after another, bodies collapsed on the higher steps—then were carried or pushed down to receive the energy infusion.

And one after another, the Fallen Star Guard’s strength surged.

It wasn’t hard to imagine what came next.

Before long, Fallen Star Guard was going to shock everyone all over again.