Shadow One waited for the ropes to drop from the Chinook.

The aircraft held position above the rooftop, its twin rotors beating the air hard enough to push dust and loose debris across the concrete. The downwash pressed against them, forcing everyone to stay low. Straps tightened. Weapons were held close to the body. No one stood upright.

Ryan kept his eyes on the open ramp.

Inside the helicopter, silhouettes moved. The ropes dropped.

They hit the rooftop with a dull slap, swaying slightly from the rotor wash.

"Ropes down!" one of the crew chiefs shouted from above.

Ryan didn’t waste time.

"Move!" he ordered.

His team broke formation and shifted into action, each man moving to a rope without crossing paths. It was clean. Practiced. No hesitation.

"Shadow Two, go!"

One of the operators stepped forward, grabbed the rope, checked his gloves, then hooked in and went up. His ascent was quick, controlled, boots braced against the rope as he climbed.

"Three, move!"

Another followed.

Then another.

Each man spaced out just enough to avoid collision, climbing into the darkness above one by one.

Ryan stayed grounded for a moment, watching the perimeter. There were no zombies found in the area.

After all of them were accounted for.

"Shadow One climbing," he said.

"Copy," the crew chief replied from above.

He jumped and caught the rope, locking his legs around it in one smooth motion. His gloves bit into the fibers as he pulled himself up, body tight to the line to reduce sway.

The rotor wash pushed against him.

Strong.

Unforgiving.

The rope shifted slightly, but Ryan compensated, adjusting his balance without slowing down. Each pull was steady. No wasted movement. No rush, but no delay either.

Halfway up, the rooftop already looked smaller.

Further away.

Like it didn’t matter anymore.

Above him, one of the crew leaned out from the ramp, watching his ascent.

"Keep it coming!" the crew chief shouted.

Ryan didn’t respond.

He just kept climbing.

Another pull.

Then another.

His boots pressed against the rope, helping him drive upward with controlled force. The wind howled around him, carrying heat and smoke from the city below.

Then a hand reached down.

"Got you!"

Ryan grabbed it and was pulled the rest of the way in.

He stepped onto the metal floor of the Chinook and immediately moved aside, clearing the ramp for any delay behind him.

"Shadow One aboard," he said.

"Copy," the crew chief replied. "All Shadows accounted for."

The ropes were pulled back in quickly.

"Ropes up!"

The ramp began to close as the helicopter gained altitude, pulling away from the rooftop in a steady climb.

Ryan moved to the side and secured himself to one of the anchor points, his rifle still slung across his chest. His team did the same, settling into position along the interior.

No one relaxed completely.

One of the operators exhaled slowly.

"...That was smooth."

Another nodded.

"Yeah. Too smooth."

Ryan didn’t respond immediately.

He leaned slightly and looked out through the side opening before it fully sealed.

The city stretched below them.

Dark blocks.

Burning sections.

Scattered movement.

Forbes Park stood out the most as it was active.

"Threat hasn’t been neutralized yet," Ryan said. "There’s still zombies marching. We don’t know if their goal is to truly overrun Forbes Park."

"If not for the AC-130, they would have been overrun," one of the operators said.

"Well even with the gunships, it just lowered the numbers from hundreds of thousands to five digits. It’s not significant, they’ll eventually fall anyway. We just bought them time."

Inside Forbes Park, the streets were still loud.

Gunfire echoed in short bursts as defenders moved from block to block, clearing what remained of the infected. The earlier chaos had turned into something more controlled, but the tension was still there.

Every corner.

Every house.

Every shadow.

They checked everything.

"Clear!" one of the men shouted as he kicked open a gate and swept his rifle across the driveway.

Two bodies lay near the entrance.

One still moving.

A single shot ended it.

"Move up!" another voice called from further down the street.

Groups of armed men advanced cautiously, stepping over debris, broken walls, and the aftermath of the bombardment. Craters from the earlier strikes still smoked, the ground blackened where the shells had landed.

But the biggest change wasn’t the defenders.

It was the civilians.

At the center of the compound, near a wide open street, buses had been pulled out and lined up.

Engines running.

Doors open.

"Get in! Get in!" someone shouted.

Families rushed forward, carrying whatever they could.

Bags.

Children.

Some carried nothing at all.

They moved fast, heads down, glancing over their shoulders every few seconds.

A woman stumbled while trying to climb into one of the buses, dragging a child with her.

"Help her!" a man yelled.

Two guards rushed forward, lifting them both inside before turning back to cover the area.

"Keep it moving!" one of them shouted.

More civilians poured in from side streets, guided by guards who were shouting directions.

"This way! Central road! Move!"

"Don’t stop! Just go!"

The buses began to fill one by one.

Inside, people packed themselves tight, trying to make space for more.

Outside, guards formed a perimeter around the evacuation point, rifles up, eyes scanning.

From the far end of the eastern side, movement continued.

Not a swarm anymore.

But still enough.

Zombies pushed through gaps, moving slower now, disorganized, but still driven by the same instinct.

"Contact east side!" someone shouted.

Gunfire followed immediately.

A few infected dropped.

Then more appeared.

"Keep them off the buses!" a guard yelled.

Another group moved to intercept, forming a line between the approaching infected and the civilians.

"Hold here!" one of them said.

They fired in turns.

Back near the buses, a man in uniform shouted over the noise.

"First bus, move!"

The engine roared louder.

The driver slammed the door shut.

"Go! Go!"

The bus lurched forward, pushing through the street, past bodies and debris, heading deeper into the compound.

More buses followed.

However, during their evacuation, something happened.