Mist still clung to the lower roads.
sun barely up
light barely gold.
but the mood was steadier — sleep makes people civil again.
Alva drove this morning — Kai in passenger seat, boots on the dash again, crowbar across his lap like a pet.
Nox sat behind them, map in hand.
they stopped at a half–collapsed fuel station — pump island still intact — the tanks underground probably untouched since day one.
everyone spread out automatically — inspection, siphon setup, lookouts.
Alva stepped out of the SUV and stretched — the cold bit at her skin — but it didn't sting as much as yesterday.
Kai was half–asleep standing upright — head tilted like he could nap while vertical.
Jace came over with two siphon hoses.
"we'll run splits — Arden handles diesel — I'll handle petrol side," he said.
Alva nodded and turned toward the pumps but—
her power twitched.
not flaring
not wild
just… alert.
she froze.
Kai straightened instantly — awake — reading her silence like a language.
"what do you feel?"
Alva's eyes lowered — scanning space, not visually — but with the static in her blood.
"…echo."
Nox stepped out of the SUV.
"like someone else resonant was here?"
Alva nods once — slow.
"not long ago."
Kai's fingers wrapped lightly around the crowbar.
"how recent is not long?"
Alva kneels — palm hovering a few inches above concrete.
the sensation was colder than yesterday.
more defined.
"hours," she said softly. "maybe four or five."
Jace went still.
Arden stopped pumping fuel — hand resting on his handgun holster.
"resonant?" Arden asked.
Alva looked up at them:
"multiple."
Nox swallowed.
"How many?"
Alva's eyes narrowed — head tilting like she was listening to something inside stone.
"…three. maybe four."
Kai swore under his breath.
"same faction?"
Alva looked him dead in the eye:
"they weren't scavengers."
that single sentence carried weight.
Nox stepped a little closer — voice small:
"Arden… that means we're not the only group trying to reach that base."
Arden's jaw locked — strategies already reshaping behind his eyes.
Alva stood — steady — hands relaxed by her sides.
"We keep moving," she said.
Kai nodded once.
Jace nodded too.
Arden exhaled slowly — then:
"we reach the base before they do."
Alva turned to the convoy — voice strong — not shouting — just controlled:
"finish fueling. no wasting daylight. we're not alone on this road anymore."
and the way people moved after she said that…
proved they understood:
they didn't just have a destination now.
they had competition.