When night finally fell and the shelter grew quiet, a small group slipped out from the 66th floor. It was Caroline and her team. They carried only what they needed, each one with a small backpack. Before leaving, they paused to look back at the electrified gate on the 64th floor, giving a silent goodbye. Caroline's chest tightened. That was where she'd made it through the deep freeze, where she'd met Tyler, Denton, and Nelson, and where she'd taken in Raven and Jet. So many memories were tied to this place. It had been her safe zone when the world was falling apart. Goodbye, 66th floor. She turned to the others. "Let's move. Handsy and Medusa are already in the truck." Francis had told her that tonight, the army would send out a convoy carrying supplies to other shelters around Hornvale. It was both a trade route and a great excuse for her team to leave without raising suspicion. She loaded Handsy and Medusa into the vehicle. If they were pretending to be an army transport, they might as well go all in. Why carry random junk when they could haul Medusa and Handsy instead? Plus, it'd be Medusa's first proper ride. Caroline raised her hand, motioning the group forward. Denton and Nelson murmured to each other while Tyler followed close behind her, steady and quiet. In the dark, they stepped into the elevator, heading to their next stop. Caroline thought back to her previous life—how every move to a new place had always made her nervous and uneasy. Now, surrounded by her people and her pets, she only felt eager for what was coming next. She didn't expect what was waiting when the doors opened. Two rows of soldiers were standing quietly in the shadows. Even in the heat, every one of them wore a full dress uniform and cap. From the looks of it, they'd been standing there for quite a while. As Caroline's group walked out, a sharp command broke the silence. "Salute!" The sound of boots snapped together in perfect rhythm. Caroline froze for a second, but then she recognized the voice—it was Francis. Under the faint light, Francis stood leading the men on both sides of the road. Their faces were serious, their salutes crisp. The guy who was always joking around now looked dead serious. He stood at the front, eyes catching the weak light. His voice was low and careful, like he didn't want to disturb anyone asleep in the shelter. Curfew was already in effect. Everyone else was supposed to stay in their rooms. Francis took a few steady steps forward, carrying a wooden box. He looked each of them in the eye and said, "Caroline, Nelson, Tyler, Denton—more than once you've saved this shelter and helped Hornvale survive. On behalf of Hornvale and the army, I thank you. We offer this gift. Wherever you go, you'll always be friends of the army. We hope to keep working together." He handed the box to Caroline and gave her another crisp salute. The moment hit her harder than she thought it would. Sure, she'd only been trying to survive. Her early trades with the army were purely for her own needs. But after teaming up with Tyler and Nelson, things shifted. Tyler had found the machine tools and factory. Nelson had saved the shelter several times, created medicine for the plague and the mutant bugs, and even saved Nathaniel. Caroline herself had just handed over a few supply points. Honestly, she'd done everything for her own convenience. Those supply points were too far to bother with. She wasn't risking her people on those trips. The machines and the factory were too much to handle anyway.Dealing with plagues and mutants, making antidotes—those were all side missions in her eyes. As for saving Nathaniel? She just didn't want Hornvale to spiral out of control and drag them down with it. But to the army, all of that meant something completely different. A thought crossed her mind. If she'd never teamed up with them, if she'd stayed on her own, what would her connection to the army be like now? Would Hornvale have turned out differently? Maybe she would've stayed more guarded, kept to herself, and handled any trade with the army with a lot more caution.