The HQ- Mission Room
The cold concrete walls of the HQ buzzed with tension. Red lights blinked on the holographic map in front of Fakhrul. He stood still, arms crossed, the weight of command heavy on his shoulders.
From the control room, Nafisa's voice came sharp and urgent.
"We've lost connection with a research team at the eastern radio tower. Civilians might be there too. We don't have time.
Zara adjusted the satellite scan. "That area's contaminated. Radiation levels are rising. We might be facing mutated strains."
Siddik stepped forward, hand gloved and calm, eyes cold.
"That zone was declared unstable last month. If something's growing there, it's deliberate. And dangerous."
Rasel cracked his knuckles. "Ain't that lovely."
Hridoy ever focused, loaded his sniper rifle. "I can breach their signal brokers. But we'll have to get close."
Kawser, smirking, twirled a modified blade on his finger. "So, do we knock or blow the door down?"
Fakhrul finally spoke, voice low but firm. "We do what we must. Gear up. We move in ten."
Ground Zero – Radio Tower Perimeter
Their armored vehicle arrived in silence. The eastern zone was a wasteland- - building collapsed, streets cracked, and blood staining the walls like old graffiti. Wind carried the stench of decay.
"Eyes up. Stay sharp," Rasel warned, scanning rooftops.
Suddenly, motion. Fast. Not just normal zombies.
They came crawling from vents, crawling on walls, skittering like insects.
Radioactive variants.
Tayeb roared and charged ahead. His fists crushed skulls like melons, but his rage was wild – hard to control. Hridoy shouted coordinates, trying to keep overwatch. Kawser threw a hacked drone into a horde, it exploded mid-air, flames lighting up the streets.
Then everything changed.
From the shadows, emerged a different kind. Thin, humanoid-but faster. Intelligent. Bulletproof skin.
Zara screamed as one leapt over a wall. Rasel fired at its leg, but it kept moving.
"EMP pulse, now!" Siddik ordered.
Hridoy activated a hidden frequency. A shockwave pulsed through the area. The creatures stumbled, just enough to allow the team to break through.
But they'd walked into a trap.
The tower had been bait. A nest.
Hundreds of these evolved zombies lay dormant in the lower floors. Zara found the remains of the research team-too late. Only a single survivor: a child, barely breathing, showing signs of mutation.
Zara sedated him, ignoring the risk.
Kawser silently executed a twitching zombie nearby. His eyes were dark. Too calm.
They retreated, barely alive. Tayeb had taken a bad hit. Rasel limped from a deep gash on his leg. Their armor was dented, bloodied.
Back at HQ – Tension Rising
Zara helped Rasel to a chair in the corner, while Tayeb leaned against a wall, his usual confidence replaced by grim determination. Hridoy, ever silent, worked quickly to clean and reload his sniper rifle. Kawser, who had tried to lighten the mood during the mission, was now sulking in the corner, his frustration evident in his posture.
Nafisa was already at the central control station, eyes glued to the screen as she worked on gathering any instable intel. She didn't need to say anything. Everyone knew this mission wasn't just a failure in their eyes. It was a blow to their morale, to their belief that they could survive this war.
Fakhrul, his hands still shaking from the tension of the mission, stood at the window of the HQ. The storm outside mirrored the storm inside him. He felt the weight of responsibility pressing down on his shoulders. He was the leader, and they had failed him.
Voices echoed through the halls.
"This wasn't a mission," Rasel growled. "It was suicide."
"We lost people out there!" Zara snapped.
Tayeb punched a wall. "We're not a team. We're just mess of egos!"
"This isn't how I imagined it!" Kawser silently said.
"No one cares what you imagined!" Hridoy yells at him.
Suddenly Siddik walked out from outside silently towards control room. Fakhrul followed him.
"I need a copy of our mission footage and comms data. Make it fast, and keep it in my room." Siddik said to Nafisa.
Siddik turned and walked away. Fakhrul again followed him down the corridor, past the med bay and armory. They stopped in the briefing room, empty and dim.
Fakhrul asked, "You okay?"
Siddik didn't look back. "Not yet. We lost more people today."
There was silence.
And then Fakhrul asked, "What are you not telling me?"
Siddik paused, fists clenched… but didn't answer. Not yet.
Fakhrul: "Talk to me."
Siddik stood still. His gloves were stained. His voice was low. "One of us is hiding something."
Fakhrul blinked, "What?"
Siddik: "I can't prove it yet. But during the mission… someone wasn't acting right. They were avoiding scans. Deliberate misfires. They knew we were walking into a trap."
Fakhrul's face hardened. "Who?"
Siddik (quietly): "I don't know yet. But when I find out, I won't hesitate. But don't act before we have something in hand."
Fakhrul looked away, the weight of command digging into his chest. "How do we lead a team we can't trust?"
Siddik walked passed him, one hand gripping the railing. "Sometimes, the enemy's already inside. We just don't see them yet."
Control Room – Night
Nafisa's voice broke the silence.
"I found something… on the survivor's device. You're going to want to see this.
The screen lit up.
A new encryption. A new signal. A new threat. And a phrase left behind in the research logs:
"They're learning."