The military transport descended through the morning clouds, its engines sending powerful currents of air across the ruined courtyard of Outpost Three.
Loose dust swept between the damaged buildings. Torn sections of protective sheeting snapped against broken supports, and fragments of debris rolled across the landing area as the transport lowered itself toward the ground.
David stood near the command building with the rest of Gamma Squad.
They had spent the night securing the compound, establishing a temporary defensive position, and marking the locations of the fallen soldiers for recovery. None of them had slept particularly well.
The transport settled onto its landing struts.
Its engines began winding down.
Castiel stood beside David, his Shadow Blade secured at his side.
"About time."
David watched the transport.
"She came faster than I expected."
"After your report?" Castiel glanced toward the destroyed observation platform overlooking the courtyard. "I'm surprised she didn't fly the thing herself."
June adjusted the portable long-range transmitter resting beside his equipment.
"Maybe she did. Would explain the landing."
Mira looked toward him.
"It was a normal landing."
"That's what makes it suspicious."
Nyra smiled faintly, but her attention remained on the transport.
The rear ramp began lowering.
Commander Elara Vance appeared before it had fully reached the ground.
She wore her standard military combat uniform beneath a dark protective coat, her expression composed as she surveyed the devastation surrounding the landing area.
Behind her came a small security detachment, followed by military medical personnel carrying examination equipment and sealed recovery containers.
Additional soldiers began unloading portable scanners, stretchers, and body-recovery equipment.
This wasn't a reinforcement force preparing to occupy the outpost.
It was a recovery operation.
Vance descended the ramp.
David stepped forward and saluted.
"Commander."
Vance returned the salute.
"At ease, Wyn."
Her eyes moved across the courtyard.
The overturned transport.
The damaged barricades.
The shattered observation platform.
The bloodstained ground.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then she looked toward David.
"How many confirmed dead?"
"Seventeen identified so far, Commander. We marked their locations and left the bodies undisturbed except where necessary to confirm identification."
"Any survivors?"
"No, Commander."
"Hostile activity overnight?"
"None."
Vance looked toward the eastern side of the compound.
"And the tracks?"
"Still there. We haven't followed them."
"Good."
She turned toward the officer accompanying the recovery personnel.
"Lieutenant Mercer."
A broad-shouldered man stepped forward.
"Commander."
"Establish a recovery station in the central courtyard. I want every casualty examined before removal. Record identification, estimated time of death, and any unusual injuries."
"Understood."
"Keep the bodies separated until examinations are complete."
Mercer hesitated.
"Separate them by what criteria, Commander?"
Vance's expression remained unchanged.
"Combat level. Start with the highest-ranking personnel."
David noticed the instruction.
So did Castiel.
Mercer nodded.
"Yes, Commander."
The lieutenant turned and began issuing orders.
Recovery teams spread through the compound.
Vance watched them for a moment before looking back toward David.
"Take me to the casualties."
David nodded.
"This way."
He led her across the courtyard.
Gamma followed.
They passed the first barricade, where broken military equipment remained scattered across the road.
A pair of recovery personnel were already approaching the collapsed observation platform.
Vance stopped beside it.
David pointed toward the wreckage.
"Corporal Elias Renn. We found him beneath the platform."
Vance studied the twisted supports.
"Did you move him?"
"No, Commander. We confirmed his identity and marked the location."
"Good."
She signaled to the nearest recovery team.
"Begin here."
Two medics approached with a portable lifting frame.
As they carefully raised the damaged metal, David watched Vance.
She wasn't studying the destruction the way Gamma had.
She barely glanced at the shattered platform.
Her attention remained on the soldier beneath it.
The recovery team freed the body and placed it onto a stretcher.
One medic checked the identification plate.
"Corporal Elias Renn. Level Eleven."
Vance nodded.
"Document his injuries."
The medic activated a handheld scanner.
A pale blue light passed over the soldier's armor.
"Multiple fractures. Severe internal trauma. Probable death from crushing injuries."
"Anything else?"
The medic checked the readings.
"Nothing unusual, Commander."
Vance looked toward the next marked casualty.
"Continue."
David frowned slightly.
There had been something deliberate about that question.
Vance wasn't merely asking how the soldier had died.
She was looking for something else.
They moved farther into the compound.
Near the medical building, another recovery team was preparing to examine two soldiers found beside a destroyed barricade.
Vance approached.
"Identification?"
A medic checked the first soldier's plate.
"Private First Class Nolan Breck. Level Nine."
"And the other?"
"Sergeant Adrian Holt. Level Seventeen."
Vance's gaze settled on the sergeant.
"Examine him first."
The medic nodded.
David glanced toward Castiel.
His friend had noticed it too.
Vance had specifically requested that the higher-level soldier be examined first.
Neither spoke.
The medic activated his scanner.
A series of readings appeared across the small display.
He moved the instrument slowly over the sergeant's chest, then across his abdomen.
His expression changed.
He checked the scanner.
Then ran it over the body again.
Vance noticed immediately.
"What is it?"
The medic hesitated.
"Commander, I'm getting an unusual reading."
"Explain."
"Extremely low residual blood volume."
Vance stepped closer.
"How low?"
The medic adjusted the scanner.
"Almost nonexistent."
David looked toward the body.
The sergeant's armor had been damaged across the chest, and a deep wound marked his side.
There was blood on the ground beneath him.
But not nearly as much as David would have expected from such injuries.
The medic continued examining him.
"His primary cause of death appears to be massive internal trauma. Several ribs were broken, and there's significant damage to the lungs."
Vance looked at the scanner.
"And the blood loss?"
"That's the problem."
The medic carefully examined the soldier's neck.
He moved the damaged collar of the armor aside.
Then stopped.
"Commander."
Vance leaned closer.
The medic indicated a narrow incision along the side of the soldier's neck.
"This wasn't caused by the injuries that killed him."
David stepped closer.
The cut was clean.
Deliberate.
Nothing like the violent damage covering the rest of the armor.
The medic examined the surrounding tissue.
"There's very little bleeding around the incision."
Vance's eyes narrowed.
"Postmortem?"
"Most likely."
He checked the scanner again.
"The soldier was already dead when this was made."
Nyra looked toward the sergeant.
"Then why would someone cut his neck afterward?"
The medic didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he examined the soldier's wrist.
The armor had been pulled back.
Another clean incision marked the exposed skin.
He looked toward Vance.
"Commander, I believe the blood was deliberately removed."
Silence settled over the small group.
June's expression changed.
"Removed?"
The medic nodded.
"The wounds appear to have been made after death. The remaining blood volume is far too low to be explained by the fatal injuries alone."
Castiel looked toward the sergeant.
"Someone drained him?"
"That's what the evidence suggests."
Vance remained still.
David watched her face.
She didn't look surprised.
Her expression had become harder, but there was no confusion in it.
Only recognition.
Vance turned toward the second soldier.
"Examine the private."
The medic moved to the Level Nine soldier.
He scanned the body.
Checked the injuries.
Then examined the neck and wrists.
"Multiple fatal wounds sustained during combat," he reported. "Blood volume consistent with the injuries. No additional incisions."
Vance looked toward the Level Seventeen sergeant.
Then back toward the private.
"Document both examinations separately."
"Yes, Commander."
She activated her comm.
"Mercer."
The lieutenant answered immediately.
"Commander?"
"Change the recovery procedure. Every casualty is to receive a full blood-volume examination. Check the neck and wrists for deliberate incisions."
A brief pause followed.
"Understood."
"Record each soldier's level beside the findings."
"Yes, Commander."
Vance lowered her comm.
David studied her.
"Commander."
She looked toward him.
"Yes?"
"Did you expect to find that?"
Vance held his gaze.
For a moment, he thought she might answer.
Instead, she looked toward the medical building.
"Let's continue."
David didn't press her.
Not yet.
But the question remained.
They entered the medical building.
The recovery personnel had already begun examining the soldiers found inside.
The room was brighter now, illuminated by portable examination lamps positioned beside the treatment beds.
The bodies had been covered respectfully, their identification plates placed beside the examination equipment.
Vance approached the senior medic.
"Report."
The woman straightened.
"Captain Mara Ellison, medical recovery division."
"Your findings?"
"Three confirmed casualties in this building, Commander. Two combat personnel and one medical officer."
"Levels?"
"Eight, Twelve, and Nineteen."
Vance looked toward the covered body nearest the rear wall.
"The Level Nineteen?"
Ellison nodded.
"Lieutenant Darius Venn. Medical officer."
"Examine him."
Ellison approached the body and activated her scanner.
David watched from beside the doorway.
The medical officer had died near the rear of the treatment room.
His uniform was damaged, and a deep wound crossed his abdomen.
Ellison studied the readings.
Then frowned.
She moved the scanner across his chest again.
"That's unusual."
Vance stepped forward.
"Blood volume?"
"Almost completely depleted."
Ellison examined the man's neck.
Then his wrists.
She carefully lifted one hand.
A clean incision crossed the inside of the wrist.
Another marked the opposite arm.
Ellison looked toward Vance.
"These were made after death."
Vance nodded once.
"Document them."
Ellison studied her.
"Commander, do you know what caused this?"
"Continue the examination, Captain."
Ellison hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Yes, Commander."
David watched Vance leave the room.
He followed her into the courtyard.
The others came behind him.
Castiel moved closer.
"D."
David glanced toward him.
"She's looking for something specific."
"I noticed."
"And she already knows what it means."
David looked toward Vance.
"I think so."
June approached them.
"Okay, I'm going to say something."
Mira looked toward him.
"That's usually how conversations work."
June ignored her.
"Someone attacked three military outposts, destroyed their communications, and apparently started collecting blood from dead soldiers."
His expression darkened.
"That's not normal."
Lucian looked toward the recovery teams.
"No."
June lowered his voice.
"And Vance isn't acting like she's hearing any of this for the first time."
David watched the commander speaking quietly with Lieutenant Mercer.
"She had a reason for coming here herself."
Nyra looked toward the medical building.
"Maybe she wanted to confirm something."
David nodded.
"That's what I'm thinking."
Before anyone could continue, a voice called across the courtyard.
"Commander Vance!"
One of the recovery medics hurried toward her.
Vance turned.
"What is it?"
"We've completed the preliminary examinations on the casualties recovered from the western defensive positions."
"Report."
The medic glanced toward David and the others.
Then returned his attention to Vance.
"Commander, we've found the same postmortem incisions on several additional soldiers."
Vance's expression didn't change.
"Levels?"
"Sixteen, Eighteen, and Twenty-One."
"And the lower-level casualties?"
"None of the soldiers below Level Fifteen showed the same treatment."
Vance nodded slowly.
"Continue."
The medic hesitated.
"Commander, there's something else."
"Go on."
"The incisions are remarkably consistent. Whoever made them knew exactly where to cut."
David felt Nyra shift beside him.
The medic continued.
"There's no evidence of random mutilation. These were controlled procedures."
"Blood collection?" Vance asked.
"Almost certainly."
The words settled heavily over the courtyard.
David looked toward the damaged buildings.
The dead soldiers had already suffered fatal injuries.
They had fallen defending the outpost.
And afterward, someone had returned to their bodies.
Not to recover them.
Not to identify them.
To take their blood.
June stared toward the recovery station.
"That's..."
He stopped.
For once, he couldn't find a joke.
Mira looked at him.
June shook his head.
"Nothing."
Vance turned toward Mercer.
"Complete the examinations. I want the results organized by level, injury type, and estimated time of death."
"Yes, Commander."
"And maintain security around the recovery station."
Mercer nodded.
Vance looked toward David.
"Walk with me."
David followed.
The rest of Gamma moved with them.
They crossed the courtyard toward the eastern gate.
The recovery teams continued working behind them.
As they passed the damaged command building, David noticed two soldiers carefully lifting a covered body onto a stretcher.
A third soldier stood beside them, holding the identification plate.
No one spoke.
The silence surrounding the recovery operation felt heavier than the silence that had greeted Gamma when they first entered the outpost.
Yesterday, they hadn't known what had happened.
Now they were beginning to understand that the truth might be worse than anything they had imagined.
Vance stopped near the eastern gate.
The twelve-foot wall rose on either side, its reinforced surface scarred by the battle.
Beyond the opening, the enormous trail stretched into the jungle.
Hundreds of overlapping footprints covered the ground.
David stood beside her.
"That's where they went."
Vance studied the trail.
"How far did you follow it?"
"Only a short distance beyond the gate. We stopped when you ordered us to remain here."
"Good."
She looked toward the ground.
"Did you find bodies along the trail?"
"No."
"Any evidence that the group separated?"
"Not where we examined it."
"Abandoned equipment?"
"Some inside the compound. Nothing significant beyond the gate."
Vance nodded.
She moved several steps forward.
David followed.
The others remained close.
Vance crouched beside the trail.
Her eyes moved across the overlapping footprints.
She examined the width of the disturbed ground, the deep impressions near the center, and the tightly packed tracks continuing toward the trees.
David watched her.
She didn't spend long studying them.
Only enough to confirm what she needed.
Then she stood.
"How many soldiers do you estimate passed through here?"
David looked toward the trail.
"Hundreds. We couldn't get an accurate count because the tracks overlap."
Vance looked toward the jungle.
"And you found no indication they were heading toward another military position?"
"None on our maps."
She nodded.
David waited.
Vance remained silent.
Behind them, the recovery operation continued.
A distant engine started.
Someone called for another stretcher.
The ordinary sounds of military personnel doing their work seemed strangely out of place beside the enormous trail.
Then Vance's comm activated.
"Commander."
She raised it.
"Go ahead, Mercer."
"We've completed the initial examinations."
Vance's posture straightened.
"Report."
"Seventeen confirmed casualties. Fourteen have been fully examined, and the remaining three have preliminary results."
David listened carefully.
Mercer continued.
"Eight of the casualties were below Level Fifteen. None showed evidence of deliberate blood extraction."
Vance said nothing.
"Nine were Level Fifteen or above."
A pause.
"All nine show postmortem incisions along the neck or wrists, with severe depletion of blood volume."
Nyra's expression tightened.
Lucian looked toward David.
Mercer's voice continued.
"The wounds responsible for their deaths are separate from the extraction incisions. The higher-level personnel were killed during combat, then drained afterward."
Vance closed her eyes briefly.
Only for a moment.
When she opened them, her expression was composed again.
"Any exceptions?"
"None, Commander."
"You're certain of the level classifications?"
"We verified them against identification records and personnel data recovered from the command system."
Vance looked toward the trail.
"Understood."
Mercer hesitated.
"Commander, this was deliberate. Whoever performed the extractions selected the higher-level casualties and left the others untouched."
Vance's jaw tightened.
"I understand, Lieutenant."
"Do you want us to continue searching for additional casualties?"
"Yes. Recover every soldier you can find. Preserve all evidence and prepare the bodies for transport."
"Understood."
The transmission ended.
For several seconds, Vance stood motionless.
David watched her.
He had seen Commander Vance angry before.
He had seen her disappointed.
He had watched her remain calm during emergencies that left other officers struggling to think clearly.
But this was different.
There was something in her expression he hadn't seen before.
Not surprise.
Not uncertainty.
It looked almost like an old memory she wished had remained buried.
David glanced toward the others.
Castiel stood quietly beside him.
Nyra's gaze remained fixed on Vance.
Lucian watched the trail.
Mira had moved closer to June, whose expression was unusually serious.
They were all waiting.
David finally spoke.
"Commander."
Vance looked toward him.
"You knew what the medics were going to find."
It wasn't a question.
Vance studied him for a moment.
Then looked back toward the jungle.
"I suspected."
David stepped closer.
"Before you arrived?"
"Yes."
"Because of the outposts?"
Vance nodded.
"The communications failure. The withdrawal from one position to another. The destruction here."
She glanced toward the compound.
"And the missing personnel."
David frowned.
"Then why didn't you tell us?"
"Because suspicion isn't confirmation, Wyn."
Her voice was firm, but not harsh.
"I wasn't going to tell six cadets that a particular enemy had attacked three military positions without evidence."
Castiel looked toward the recovery station.
"And now you have it."
Vance didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
June glanced toward the enormous trail.
"Commander, why would anyone take blood from soldiers who were already dead?"
Vance looked at him.
June continued.
"And why only the stronger ones? Level Fifteen and above?"
David watched her carefully.
Vance knew something.
He was certain of it now.
But she still hadn't said what.
Nyra looked toward the damaged compound.
"Those soldiers fought their way through three outposts."
Her voice was quiet.
"Some of them survived all the way to this gate."
She turned toward Vance.
"What happened to them?"
Vance looked down the trail.
The jungle beyond remained still.
David followed her gaze.
The hundreds of footprints no longer looked like the remnants of an ordinary military retreat.
They looked different now.
The soldiers had been pushed from Outpost One.
They had fought at Outpost Two.
They had gathered here, behind twelve-foot walls and reinforced defenses, and made their final stand.
Some had died.
The stronger dead had been drained of blood.
And hundreds more had disappeared into the jungle.
David thought about the destroyed communications tower.
The jammer June had recovered.
The deliberate isolation of the outposts.
None of it had been random.
Someone had planned this.
Someone had known exactly what they wanted.
David looked toward Vance.
"Commander."
She turned.
"Those soldiers didn't just retreat, did they?"
Vance's expression darkened.
"No."
David felt the answer settle over him.
He looked toward the trail.
"They were taken."
Vance nodded.
"That's what I believe."
Lucian looked toward the trees.
"Then whoever attacked the outposts took hundreds of prisoners."
"Yes."
Castiel's grip tightened around the hilt of his Shadow Blade.
"And drained the stronger soldiers who died."
Vance remained silent.
David studied her face.
There was no longer any uncertainty in her expression.
Whatever she had feared finding at Outpost Three, the recovery team had confirmed it.
She knew who had done this.
David stepped forward.
"Commander, what attacked these outposts?"
Vance looked at him.
Then at the other five members of Gamma Squad.
For a moment, she said nothing.
Her eyes moved toward the ruined compound, where military personnel were carefully recovering the dead.
Then toward the eastern gate.
Toward the hundreds of footprints disappearing into the jungle.
When she finally spoke, her voice was quiet.
"The Fallen."