Back at the compound—

Things had already fallen apart.

What was once controlled space—training grounds, walkways, reinforced structures—had turned into something else entirely.

The outer perimeter had been breached in multiple places, sections of fencing torn down or bent inward where bodies had forced their way through in sheer volume.

Now—

They were inside.

Infected flooded the grounds in scattered waves, not organized, not coordinated—but relentless. Some sprinted across open paths, feet slamming against concrete—

Others vaulted over barriers or crashed through doors that hadn’t been sealed in time—

Blood painted the space in streaks and pools, dragged across surfaces by movement, smeared underfoot as both the living and the infected crossed over it again and again.

And still—

People fought.

Near one of the inner walkways, a student slammed both hands forward, a compressed burst of air erupting outward from his palms—

WHUMP—!

The force hit a cluster of incoming infected, lifting them off their feet and sending them crashing back into others behind them. Bones snapped on impact, bodies folding unnaturally—

CRK—!

—but even as they fell, they moved.

Still crawling.

Still pushing.

"Keep them back—!" he shouted, voice cracking as he staggered from the strain, arms shaking from the output.

Beside him, a staff member raised one arm, skin along it glowing faintly before segments of hardened plating formed over it.

He stepped forward into the next incoming strike, blocking as an infected lunged at him—

THK—!

Its teeth sank into the plating instead of flesh, jaw grinding uselessly as he drove his reinforced arm forward, smashing its skull inward with a brutal counter—

KRRK—!

Another student moved behind them, hands trembling as strands of light formed between her fingers, weaving quickly before snapping outward toward an approaching infected.

The threads wrapped around its legs mid-stride, yanking them out from under it—

SLAM—!

—but it clawed forward anyway, dragging itself across the ground with ruined hands, mouth snapping.

She gasped, stumbling back.

"I—I can’t hold all of them—!"

"You don’t have to!" another voice shouted.

A taller student stepped in, his leg igniting with a burst of flame as he drove a kick forward into the crawling infected—

FSSSH—!

The impact sent it skidding back, its body catching fire as it rolled—

But behind it—

More came.

They broke through gaps.

Climbed over fallen bodies.

Forced their way forward through anything in their path.

One of them lunged too fast—

Too close.

Its arm—half torn, bone exposed—still found enough strength to swing.

It caught one of the staff across the side, claws digging in as it tore through flesh—

SKRRCH—!

He screamed, collapsing to one knee as blood poured from the wound, his hand clutching at his side.

Another infected slammed into him before he could recover, driving him fully to the ground.

"NO—!"

A student rushed forward, slamming both hands down as a localized shockwave burst outward—

BOOM—!

The infected was thrown off—

But the damage had already been done.

The staff member didn’t get back up.

"Move—! MOVE—!" someone shouted.

They were losing ground.

Step by step.

Back toward the building.

Toward the lounge.

Those still standing retreated in bursts, covering each other as best they could, dragging the injured when possible—leaving them when they couldn’t.

Fear broke through now.

Raw.

"I saw them—there were dozens—no, more—!"

"They don’t stop—! They don’t stop moving—!"

"My arm—my arm—!"

"Get inside—just get inside—!"

They reached the entrance in a rush, bodies slamming through the doors as others forced them shut behind—

BANG—! BANG—!

Infected hit the exterior glass almost immediately, palms and bodies crashing against it from the outside—

THUD—! THUD—!

Cracks didn’t form—

But the impact didn’t stop.

Inside—

Breathing broke.

Some collapsed where they stood, hands shaking, eyes wide and unfocused. Blood dripped from multiple injuries—cuts, bites, torn flesh—but nothing immediately fatal.

Not yet.

"We—we can’t hold them here..." one of the staff muttered, voice barely holding together as he wiped blood from his face with a trembling hand.

Another shook his head violently.

"No—we go down—lower levels—cells—those doors are reinforced—if we lock ourselves in—"

"That’s a trap—!" someone snapped back. "If they get in—!"

"They won’t if we seal it properly—!"

"They got through everything else—!"

The argument broke into overlapping voices, panic rising again—

Until—

"Enough!"

One of the older staff stepped forward, breathing uneven but voice forcing control back into place.

"We don’t have time to argue. Lower levels give us the best chance. We move. Now."

No one challenged him.

They couldn’t afford to.

They moved.

Fast.

The elevator doors slid open with a soft mechanical chime—

They rushed in.

Too many bodies in too small a space, pressing together as someone hit the control panel repeatedly—

"Close—close it—!"

Outside—

The pounding continued.

BANG—! BANG—!

The doors slid and then sealed.

The elevator dropped.

A collective breath released—

Not relief.

Just delay.

"Once we reach the lower level," the staff member began, trying to steady his voice, "we’ll head straight to a reinforced cell. Lock it down. Then we can—"

DING—~

The elevator stopped.

Doors slid open.

And every word died in their throats.

She stood there.

Right outside.

Redstar.

Tall.

Still.

Her presence filled the space before she even moved.

She wore fitted red and black gym shorts, the material tight against her frame, paired with a matching sports bra bearing a red star across the chest.

A white towel hung loosely around her neck, ends draped over her shoulders.

One hand held a phone to her ear.

The other rested against her hip.

Her posture was relaxed.

Too relaxed.

"...Da," her voice carried through the line, thick with accent. "I am aware of situation."

Faint distortions hovered around her, similar to Xiao—subtle waves that bent the air outward, isolating her conversation from the environment.

From the phone, a stern male voice responded, equally accented.

"General-Colonel Sokolov speaking, Anastasia."

Her eyes didn’t move from the group in the elevator.

"I’m sure you are already aware of the grave situation the city you’re in is witnessing. So to help our allies, the Federation has decided to permit you to assist in defending one of their most promising superhuman institutions... given you are in the area."

Her brow lowered slightly.

"Xiao is also here," she replied flatly. "Why me? A foreign military asset."

A pause followed.

Then—

"It is a matter of building alliance with the U.P.," Sokolov answered. "Are you unable to carry out the task, Captain?"

Her jaw shifted once.

A breath out.

"...It shall be done. In the name of Mother Russia."

A moment passed .

"Are there any additional orders for this task?"

"We have several," the voice replied.

Inside the elevator—

No one moved.

They couldn’t.

One of the staff tried.

Taking a step forward—

Her gaze shifted.

Just slightly.

But it was enough.

His body locked.

Mid-motion.

Muscles froze as if seized entirely, his breath catching in his throat as he stood there, unable to move even an inch.

The others felt it.

That pressure.

Heavy.

Unavoidable.

"Move," she said simply.

That was all.

They did.

Every single one of them.

They rushed past her, stumbling over each other as they cleared the elevator space in seconds.

One of them turned back, eyes wide, voice breaking.

"A-Are you going to help!? Why didn’t you act before—! You could’ve stopped all this—!"

Her gaze flicked toward him.

Cold.

Unchanged.

No answer.

The elevator doors slid shut between them—

SHNK—~

Cutting off whatever else he might have said.

At the same time—

Xiao still stood outside.

Phone to his ear.

Waves still rippling faintly around him.

The world continued to break.

BOOM—!

A distant structure gave way somewhere beyond—

A scream followed.

Longer this time.

Then cut off.

Xiao didn’t react.