Ash drifted softly over the city ruins as morning broke through the cracked sky. The Phoenix Rig stood quietly between concrete husks, engine off, armor scarred but intact. Inside, Lu Zhen stirred awake. His body still ached from yesterday's battle, but his expression was focused.
Yue Fei was already outside, moving through a routine of stretches and strikes. Her stance was sharper. Even without a system, her body was adapting—faster reaction, better balance.
"You've changed," Lu said.
Yue nodded while wiping sweat off her forehead. "I don't know what's happening, but it feels like my body's catching up with the world."
Lu turned and opened his HUD. He scanned the materials inside the Vault. There was just enough to complete one more project before they moved.
[Crafting Initiated – Custom Edge Blade v0.1]→ Lightweight curved blade→ Crafted for speed and precision→ Estimated Time: 3 minutes
After focusing intensely, he handed the completed blade to Yue. She gave it a few swings, smiling faintly.
"It's balanced. Like you made it just for me."
"I did," Lu replied. "And I think it's time I upgraded mine too."
He looked at the worn wrench blade lying next to his gear. Dented, scratched, and barely sharp. It had served him long enough.
"This won't cut it anymore," he muttered.
[Crafting Initiated – Forgemind Utility Blade v1]→ Compact tactical combat knife→ Lightweight, reinforced, designed for engineer-style combat→ Time: 2 minutes
Lu built it from reinforced steel, polymer grip, and leftover fiber mesh. When complete, he gave the blade a few test swings. It was clean, efficient, and finally felt like an extension of himself.
[Crafting EXP +20][Weapon Equipped: Forge Knife v1][Decomposition +5 (Old Wrench)]
With both weapons ready, he opened the Phoenix Rig's interface.
[Upgrade Blueprint: Phoenix Rig Outer Shell Reinforcement v1]→ Front, rear, left, and right body panel→ Durability +23%→ Time: 24 minutes
Piece by piece, he replaced damaged panels with new layers. Melted resin bonded fresh plates. Yue helped lock the pieces in place.
[Crafting EXP +40]
By the time they finished, the Phoenix Rig looked ready for war.
Yue brushed her hands off. "It's really starting to look like a fortress."
Lu nodded. "Exactly the point."
Suddenly, the comms unit beeped.
[Emergency Signal Detected – Origin: Hospital, East Sector]→ Distance: 1.8 km→ Signal Strength: Stable
Lu and Yue exchanged looks.
"A hospital," she said. "Could be trouble."
"Could be supplies. Or survivors."
They loaded up and headed out.
—
The hospital loomed like a wounded beast—windows shattered, paint peeled, emergency lights dead. The red cross on the side of the building was cracked down the middle.
Inside, it was deathly silent. Bloodstains painted the floor like trails. The air reeked of disinfectant, metal, and decay.
Yue drew her blade immediately. Lu followed, Forge Knife in hand.
They moved carefully through the lobby. Every corner felt like a trap. Shadows moved slightly, always just beyond reach.
Clink.
A can rolled from somewhere behind a reception desk.
Suddenly, groaning filled the hallway.
Three infected stumbled from the dark, limbs twitching, eyes dead.
"They're coming," Yue warned.
She darted forward and swept her blade into the first one's ribs, pivoted, and slashed the second across the neck.
Lu stepped beside her and drove his knife into the chest of the last one. It wheezed, staggered, and fell.
They waited. Nothing more came.
Then, two corridors down, they heard more movement.
"Four this time," Lu muttered.
Another group approached. The pattern repeated. Groups of three to four. Never overwhelming—but enough to keep them tense.
They began to move in rhythm. Yue took point. Lu flanked. She dodged; he countered. They moved as one.
Between fights, they took slow breaths, wiping sweat and blood from their faces.
"I think we're learning," Yue said, smiling grimly.
"Not by choice," Lu replied.
On the second floor, they found the pharmacy. The door had been barricaded with overturned chairs, but Yue kicked it open.
Inside: dim shelves, broken containers, blood trails.
Lu knelt behind the main counter. "Still intact."
He opened a sealed supply crate—inside, gauze rolls, antiseptic spray, injectable glucose, and some older antibiotics.
Yue pulled down a pack of trauma wraps from the wall. "This'll help if one of us gets bitten."
They stuffed as much as they could into Yue's backpack. Lu grabbed two glucose packs and slipped them into his belt pouch.
"No system interface," Yue said quietly. "Nothing pinged."
"Not everything is data," Lu replied. "Some things are just… human."
—
They continued up to the third floor, where the signal had originated.
A reinforced door blocked their path. They knocked.
No answer.
Yue gently pushed it open.
Inside was a girl—early twenties, pale, dressed in torn medical scrubs. She held a scalpel in trembling hands.
"Stay back!" she cried. "I'll fight if I have to!"
Lu raised both hands. "It's okay. We followed your emergency signal."
She blinked. Tears welled in her eyes. "You heard it...? You actually came...?"
Yue stepped forward. "You're safe now."
The scalpel dropped. She collapsed to her knees.
"My name is Lin Xia… I thought I was the only one left…"
Lu crouched beside her, offering a water bottle. "You're not. Not anymore."
Outside, the ash continued to fall.
But inside the broken shell of that hospital, something fragile stirred.
Trust.
Hope.
And a heartbeat that wouldn't fade alone.
—