Weapon System in Zombie Apocalypse
Chapter 253 - 253: Fort Calinog

44 Days Since First Strike — Perimeter of Fort Calinog, Camarines Sur

The wind swept over the burned clearing where the tiltrotor had landed, sending dust into the air and rustling the treetops beyond. Thomas Estaris stepped down from the aircraft, boots crunching against hardened soil. Behind him came Phillip, a medic named Reyes, and two armed scouts in Overwatch colors. Each carried a sidearm, but they kept their hands well away from their holsters.

Facing them were five individuals. Uniforms mismatched but clean, weapons holstered, and movements disciplined. At their center stood Commander Lira Morales—tall, lean, and composed. She carried herself like a woman who had survived hell and made hell regret it.

"You're Overwatch," Lira repeated, voice sharp but level.

Thomas nodded. "Thomas Estaris, acting commander. This is Phillip Cortez, my second."

She glanced at each man carefully. "We received your approach notice. That's rare—someone who knocks first."

"We've learned it goes a long way," Thomas replied. "Most days."

Lira gestured toward a worn path leading into the trees. "Walk with me. You'll want to see the perimeter before we talk politics."

They walked through the southern gate—steel salvaged from highway guardrails—and into Fort Calinog proper.

It wasn't just a settlement. It was a fortress.

Reinforced watchtowers stood at each corner of the compound, and between them ran a high wall of corrugated iron and concrete slabs. Inside, the community thrived with surprising order. Rows of hydroponic beds lined the main courtyard. Battery stacks hummed quietly near a converted bunker. A radio tower blinked above a command building at the far end.

"We've been here since before the Fall," Lira said, leading the group toward the main plaza. "We were a disaster-prep team. Ex-military, engineers, and some corporate types with doomsday fantasies. Turns out they were right."

Phillip scanned the area. "You have solar, comms, power distribution—this is one of the most advanced enclaves we've seen."

"We planned for decades. When Manila burned, we sealed off access and started cutting trees for visibility. Burn scars make the infected think twice."

"And that flag?" Thomas asked.

Lira glanced at him. "You mean the fist inside the broken ring?"

He nodded.

"It's ours. It doesn't mean war. It means survival at all costs. You have your colors. We have ours."

They arrived at a shaded bench under a camouflaged awning. She motioned for them to sit.

"I'm not going to ask how you're organized or how many you've got. I already know," Lira said. "You've taken Lucena. You've established Site Echo. You've got drones and tiltrotors. You're building something."

Thomas didn't deny it. "We are. Not a country. Not a government. Just something that works."

Lira folded her arms. "Then here's the question. Why come to us? What do you want?"

"We want to link enclaves," Thomas said. "Your people are safe here, but they're isolated. We have medical networks, trade routes, supply chains forming. You don't have to join, just open lines. Let your sick come to us. Let our data come to you."

"And in return?" she asked.

"We offer what we can. Diesel. Medicine. High-caliber ammunition if you need it. Agricultural engineers. Solar tech. And protection if needed."

Lira's gaze sharpened. "So this is an alliance?"

"It's a lifeline," Phillip said. "For both sides."

She didn't respond immediately. Instead, she stood and led them toward a narrow catwalk that overlooked the village farms. Below, dozens of people worked in silence—planting, inspecting, tending goats and rabbits.

"I lost forty people in the first month," Lira said quietly. "They called it the Bloom. I call it betrayal. No warning. No help. We buried children in trenches while we watched the rest of the country burn on satellite feeds."

"I understand," Thomas replied. "We lost thousands in the capital."

"I'm not eager to trust," she said.

"I wouldn't expect you to."

They returned to the command building—a reinforced structure with concrete walls, armored windows, and solar-fed lighting. Inside, a large screen displayed maps of the surrounding terrain. Static buzzed from a secure radio link.

A bearded man in his forties stood up as they entered. "Commander. The broadcasts from the Bicol corridor are still repeating. Shortwave, encrypted, on a loop."

Lira waved him off. "Keep monitoring."

She turned to Thomas. "We picked those signals up about three weeks ago. Haven't broken them yet. But it sounds like military code."

"Could be one of ours," Phillip said.

"Could be someone else entirely," she countered.

Lira led them to a map board with red pins scattered across southern Luzon.

"We've scouted twelve zones," she said. "Seven are infected. Three are irradiated. One's dead-flat desert now from firebombing. And one—east of Iriga—is silent. No movement. No life. No corpses. Just… absence."

Thomas exchanged a look with Phillip. "Could be the epicenter of another Bloom."

"Or worse," Lira said.

Back outside, dusk was falling. Lights flickered on across Fort Calinog. Children played near the southern wall, while armed scouts patrolled in slow, deliberate rotations. A water pump hissed in the distance, drawing from a deep-well system built into the old hilltop bunker beneath them.

"I'll need time to discuss your offer with my council," Lira said.

"Take it," Thomas replied. "But know this—something is moving in the south. We've seen spores in Quezon Province. We evacuated an entire village two days ago. This isn't just about survival anymore. We need to outpace the next wave."

"I believe you," she said.

Thomas and his team boarded the tiltrotor again an hour later. As the engines spun to life, Lira watched them lift off—expression unreadable.

Back at MOA Complex — That Night

Thomas stood before the planning council again. He reported what he'd seen—Fort Calinog's structure, their strength, their leader. Sato processed the data while Keplar compiled it into Overwatch's growing enclave registry.

"No agreement yet," Thomas said. "But they're listening."

"Do you think they'll join?" Dr. Sato asked.

Thomas didn't answer right away.

"I think they will—if they see us survive the next battle."

Keplar zoomed in on the region east of Iriga. "We've got nothing here. No heat. No comms. No wind drift either. It's like the land just… stopped breathing."

Phillip frowned. "Could be underground. Could be dormant infection."

Thomas pointed to the grid.

"Then we find out. And we bring Fort Calinog into the fold before they find themselves cut off."

Outside the command center, storm clouds gathered again over the mountains. The jungle whispered of things moving in the dark.

But Overwatch moved faster.

And they weren't done yet.