The morning sun pierced through the dense canopy, casting dappled shadows over the clearing. The air was crisp, the forest alive with the distant calls of birds and the rustling of leaves. Megan stood tall, her uniform still crisp despite the chaos, her voice cutting through the murmurs of the crowd.
"Alright, listen up!" she called out, her hands on her hips, her tone leaving no room for argument. "We all know the situation. We're low on food, and we can't just sit here waiting for something to happen."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over the group, lingering on the faces of those who looked the most desperate. "So here's what we're going to do. We split into groups of five. Each group will take a different direction—north, south, east, west—and search for anything edible."
A man in the front, his face gaunt with hunger, raised his hand. "Officer, what if we don't find anything?"
