RTS System in the Apocalypse: New World

The first group reached the lobby less than a minute later.

They came through the central aisle in uneven numbers, some moving quickly while others slowed whenever the overturned kiosks and abandoned carts blocked their path.

Dobrev’s Machine Gunner fired.

The burst crossed the darker section of the lobby and struck the infected leading the group. Two collapsed between the kiosks. Another stumbled over them before rifle fire from both sides brought it down.

The Guardian GIs held the entrance to the wider aisle.

Nothing reached their shields.

”Lobby group eliminated,” Dobrev reported.

Anton gave the next order.

”Begin ground-floor clearance. Maintain contact between squads.”

The daily ammunition refresh had already occurred while the platoons were fighting outside.

At exactly twelve noon, the System restored the ammunition allotted to every unit. Empty magazines and machine-gun belts returned to their full load, while the ammunition carried by the Bastions, Vanguards, and Missile Infantry replenished at the same time.

Hans had barely acknowledged the notification before the battle continued.

By the time Dobrev Squad entered the commercial center, South One had begun the interior operation with its ammunition restored.

From there, the operation changed into something the soldiers already understood.

Dobrev Squad advanced through the central section of the commercial center. The Guardian GIs led whenever the aisle narrowed, while the Army Soldiers checked the storefronts and storage areas behind them.

Mercer Squad handled the western half.

They moved through the stores closest to the banks, checking counters, back rooms, employee corridors, and every partially opened shutter that could hide movement. The Machine Gunner remained near the wider intersections between shops, where his weapon could cover several entrances without following the squad into every room.

The third squad entered from the eastern side once the exterior had been secured.

They cleared the storefronts beneath the enclosed walkway before crossing into the smaller shopping building. Several infected remained trapped behind lowered shutters. Others had wandered into stockrooms and service passages, only reacting when the soldiers approached close enough for them to hear the movement outside their doors.

The pattern repeated.

Shield first.

Rifles behind.

One pair checked the nearest room while the rest covered the corridor.

Anything too narrow, unstable, or blocked by collapsed shelving was marked for the Engineers instead of forcing the squad through it immediately.

Some stores held nothing.

Others contained only one or two infected that died before reaching the entrance.

A restaurant near the western side had more.

The front shutter had lowered halfway before the electricity failed, leaving enough space beneath it for several infected to crawl through once Mercer Squad entered the dining area. The first two were killed while dragging themselves across the floor. The rest crowded behind the shutter until the soldiers fired through the opening and stopped the movement completely.

The upper floors took longer.

Dobrev secured the first escalator and stairwell leading upward. Mercer took the western staircase, while the third squad used the enclosed walkway to prevent anything from crossing between both buildings.

The escalators remained still beneath their boots.

Every landing had to be checked.

Every open store had to be treated as occupied until the soldiers proved otherwise.

A Runner attempted to cross the second-floor walkway above the central aisle. It reached the railing, jumped down toward the ground floor, and was struck by fire from two directions before landing.

Another group remained inside a clothing store until one soldier pushed aside the display blocking its entrance.

Seven infected came out.

None reached the corridor.

Minutes became an hour.

Then another.

The red markers above ground continued disappearing section by section, while the squads rotated whenever one formation needed to reorganize, rest, or make additional space to work.

By the time the second floor was mostly cleared, the commercial center no longer sounded like one continuous battle.

Gunfire came in short bursts now.

A few shots from the western side.

Another from above.

Then silence until the next room was opened.

The third floor took less time than the second.

Fewer stores remained open, and most of the infected had already moved toward the gunfire below. Those that stayed behind were scattered between offices, storage rooms, and the food court overlooking the central opening.

Dobrev and Mercer cleared from opposite sides.

Their squads met near the southern end of the floor, marked the stores that remained inaccessible, and left several soldiers covering the stairwells while the others checked the final rooms.

The smaller shopping building followed the same pattern.

The third squad crossed the enclosed walkway, cleared the remaining upper stores, and secured the eastern entrances. A section near the rear had partially collapsed, blocking one corridor beneath broken ceiling panels and concrete.

They marked it for the Engineers.

No one attempted to crawl through.

Behind the commercial center, South Two had continued its own work.

Novak Squad cleared the first loading bay and the service rooms connected to it. The other squads handled the second and third bays, moving through delivery offices, maintenance corridors, and storage areas filled with pallets and abandoned carts.

Bastions Four and Five remained near the loading-yard approaches.

Their coaxial machine guns covered the open bays whenever infected emerged from inside, while Bastion Six held the space between both underground ramps.

War Elephant continued watching the western descent.

Its main gun remained silent.

The ramp was too narrow, and firing into it without knowing what waited below would have sent the shell through concrete, vehicles, or whatever structural supports stood farther inside.

The commander did not sound pleased about it.

”War Elephant continues holding.”

Sabine answered without acknowledging the disappointment.

”Maintain the ramp.”

By then, the Engineer recovery teams had caught up from Site Three.

They followed the roads secured by both platoons and stopped outside the loading yard until South Two cleared the bays.

The eastern descent remained partly blocked by the delivery truck Adrian had reported earlier. Engineers inspected it after the loading yard was secured, but the vehicle could not be moved without opening the route beneath it.

They left it in place.

For now, it served as another obstruction between South Two and the infected below.

The remaining clearance continued.

Some infected moved toward the soldiers. Others remained inside locked rooms until the squads reached them.

Several sections required no fighting at all.

The soldiers entered, searched the rooms, and marked the entrances before continuing.

The first and second floors had already emptied.

The final markers on the third disappeared soon afterward.

”Main structure, upper levels secure,” Dobrev reported.

”Western section secure,” Mercer followed.

The third squad reported from the connected building.

”Eastern structure secure. Enclosed walkway held.”

South Two’s reports came through almost at the same time.

”Loading bays secure.”

”Service corridors secure.”

”Rear exterior secure.”

Anton and Sabine left their squads in place while the Scouts and Engineers checked the routes between them.

Hans expanded the Radar over the entire property.

The commercial center above ground had changed completely.

Only allied markers remained along the storefronts, upper walkways, loading bays, and surrounding roads. The red concentrations that once filled the surface parking lot and three floors of shops were gone.

The underground levels had barely changed.

Dense patches remained beneath the main structure. Others crowded near the western ramp, deeper parking lanes, and whatever passages connected the loading areas to the levels below.

Hundreds remained below. Possibly thousands.

South One held the northern entrance.

South Two held the rear ramps.

Between them sat the commercial center’s remaining infected, buried beneath concrete and abandoned vehicles.

Anton contacted Hans.

”Golden Eagle, above-ground structures secured. Preparing for underground entry.”

Hans kept his eyes on the red mass below.

”Hold positions. Both platoons reorganize first.”

”Understood.”

The commercial center above them had finally fallen silent.

Most of the infected were still beneath their feet.