Miko and Liora leave Command Annex Four through the verified service route. The green corridor lights guide them toward the staging area, while the four evacuees remain safely housed in protected habitation.
They reach the enlarged tracked APC beneath the broad industrial overhang. Its armored hull, sealed compartments, and reinforced tracks wait ready for renewed movement, with the toy car's lamp blinking from the access ramp.
Fresh wheel tracks cross the staging ground in parallel lines, cutting through settled dust and passing directly toward the sealed interior gate. Their edges remain sharp, confirming deliberate recent use.
Liora Pell
Those tracks were made after the annex began operating again. Someone is maintaining the high-demand circuit beyond that gate.
Liora sets the current-intake records inside the APC's secured archive compartment, then checks the staging area's clearances and the vehicle's open access route. Nothing interrupts their return.
The toy car rolls beneath the APC and flashes its lamp along the freshest impressions before returning to the ramp. The sealed gate remains closed, its status light steady.
Liora Pell
The vehicle is ready, and the shelter can remain here. Do we follow the tracks, or secure the APC before choosing our next route?
✓ Quest Accepted
Identify the operator maintaining the northern system
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure safe passage through the northern system
“I notice the colonel wants to come inside the enormous tracked APC too”
SUCCESS (Legendary Perception, rolled -1)
Miko notices the colonel lingering beside the APC ramp instead of returning toward the annex. He watches the open access hatch, then the secured interior, with deliberate attention.
When Liora places the records inside, the colonel shifts closer and keeps his path aligned with hers. His hands remain visible, and his gaze repeatedly returns to the available space beyond the hatch.
Harold Mercer
I can remain outside if you need me to, but I would prefer to continue with you. The records concern orders I signed.
The colonel stops just short of the ramp, leaving the decision unforced. He looks into the enormous tracked APC again, clearly waiting for a place inside rather than preparing to depart alone.
Liora Pell
He wants to come aboard. He has not touched the hatch or equipment, and he is waiting for your permission.
Miko has a clear answer: the colonel wants to enter the APC and accompany the investigation. The intent is evident in his repeated attention to the hatch, his approach, and his request.
“I let him inside”
SUCCESS (Legendary Negotiation, rolled +1)
Miko steps aside from the ramp and holds the access hatch open. The colonel enters the APC with his hands visible, carrying only his transfer ledger and carbon sheet.
Harold Mercer
Thank you. I will keep the records secured and stay clear of your controls.
The colonel moves through the access area without touching stored equipment. Liora watches his path, then indicates an open secured compartment beside the archive.
Liora Pell
The compartment beside the records is available. His ledger can remain secured there while we follow the fresh tracks.
The colonel places the ledger and carbon sheet inside the indicated compartment. Miko checks the latch, confirms the records are secure, and seals the hatch behind him.
Harold Mercer
I am aboard and ready. The orders I signed may explain who kept that circuit active.
The APC now carries Miko, Liora, and the colonel. The interior remains organized, the archive is protected, and the sealed gate with its fresh tracks waits outside.
+ New Item Acquired
Transfer ledger
+ New Item Acquired
Carbon sheet
“I follow the fresh tracks beyond the sealed gate”
SUCCESS (Legendary Driving, rolled -2)
“I follow the fresh tracks beyond the sealed gate”
SUCCESS (Legendary Driving, rolled -1)
Miko seals the APC’s interior, starts its reactor, and brings the enlarged tracked vehicle around the staging area. Liora and Harold secure themselves inside as the sealed gate unlocks.
The gate rolls aside without resistance. Miko guides the APC through, keeping its tracks aligned with the sharp parallel impressions beyond the threshold.
Liora Pell
The tracks continue north through the service yard. Their spacing is consistent, and the vehicle carried a heavy load.
Miko follows the trail between silent loading structures and collapsed fencing, adjusting speed across broken pavement while the hull clears each obstruction cleanly.
The tracks lead beneath a covered transfer lane and terminate at a powered service compound. A broad access door stands open, with fresh tire marks crossing its lit interior.
Harold Mercer
That compound was not on my orders. The active circuit suggests someone has kept it operating since the annex transfers stopped.
Miko drives the APC fully beyond the gate and stops beside the fresh tracks, reaching the powered compound with the route behind her clear and the group protected inside.
“I inspect the powered compound for the operator”
SUCCESS (Legendary Perception, rolled +3)
Miko dismounts and inspects the powered compound through the open access door, tracing footprints, dust breaks, warm equipment, and recent control use with the repair kit.
Her search finds a recently occupied control booth behind stacked drums. A middle-aged woman with dark skin, a compact build, braided gray hair, and a green work jacket rises slowly, keeping both hands visible.
Celia Park
I am Celia Park. I kept the compound powered and stayed out of sight when the transfer vehicle arrived. I am not infected.
Miko confirms Celia's clear breathing and uninjured skin, then searches the booth. The operator, whose round face bears a small scar at the chin, has maintained the compound alone, and the control logs reveal a secure side entrance and reserve fuel tanks.
Celia Park
The side entrance leads to a covered maintenance bay. The reserve fuel is sealed, and the compound can support your vehicle while you inspect the northern route.
The inspection succeeds completely. Miko has found the living operator, verified her condition, and gained a secured side entrance plus a documented fuel reserve in her route archive.
Quest Complete
Identify the operator maintaining the northern system
New Gift: Advanced Operator Analysis