The return.

Chapter 4: The calm before the storm.

The gates of Oasis began to creak open as we approached, the heavy metal panels grinding against their rails. A few walkers still lingered near the entrance, drawn by the noise of the truck, but the guards posted along the top of the wall quickly dealt with them. Spears thrust downward, blades flashed, and the bodies were shoved aside to clear the path.

For a moment, the truck idled just outside the settlement, engine rumbling like a tired beast finally returning home from battle.

Then the gates opened wide enough for us to pass.
As we rolled inside, people were already gathering.
Word travelled fast in a place like Oasis.

Children stood near doorways, clutching the sleeves of their parents. A few survivors paused in the middle of their work, watching silently as the truck rolled past. Some of them looked relieved.
Others looked worried.

Supply runs didn’t always come back intact.
The truck finally stopped near the centre of the compound, and the engine died with a low mechanical sigh. For a brief second, nobody moved.
Then reality resumed.

We began unloading the supplies while the small crowd kept their distance, whispering among themselves. Diego and Timothy immediately got to work, hauling crates down from the truck bed with practiced efficiency.

That was when Priya rushed toward me.
She wrapped her arms tightly around my chest before I could even react.

“Hey—” I started, caught slightly off guard.

“Idiot,” she muttered into my shirt.

Garrett snorted beside me. “Hey sis, miss us?” he said with his usual crooked grin.

“Shut up, idiot,” she replied, her voice muffled as she held onto me for another second. Then she pulled back slightly, looking between the two of us. “I’m glad you’re both okay.”

“Likewise,” I said, returning the smile. “What about you? Wingston’s people to your liking?”

She shrugged, though her eyes drifted briefly across the settlement.

“Strange,” she admitted. “It’s weird being in a place with so many people after Day Zero.”

I nodded slowly.

The three of us still carried the echoes of that day, the moment the world cracked open and never quite stitched itself back together.

“Yeah,” I said quietly. “I get you.”

Around us, the unloading continued. Crates thumped against the ground. Someone called out inventory numbers. A few guards moved closer to help organize the supplies.

But the murmurs started changing.

People had noticed something.

Or rather…someone.

Two survivors carefully climbed onto the back of the truck. The chatter around the unloading began to fade as they lifted the body.

Mitchell.

The boy looked smaller now somehow, wrapped in his stained jacket, his arm hanging limply for a moment before someone gently tucked it back in.

A quiet curse slipped from someone in the crowd.
Another survivor quickly stepped forward and laid a blanket over him.

The whispers stopped entirely; Even Diego paused.
Sandy stood a short distance away, arms crossed, watching in silence. Her expression didn’t change, but her jaw tightened just slightly.

Barker leaned closer to her, speaking in a low voice about paperwork, reports, and the protocols they’d have to go through when they spoke to Gavin later.

“Someone’s got to tell the family of the kid, you know that right?”

Sandy let out a tired sigh “I know. I will deal with it.”

Barker nodded. “I will deal with the burial and the rites.” He delivered it unceremoniously but genuine. It took Sandy by surprise, Barker’s kindness and respect, but she made no comment about it. Maybe her view of him was much more distorted by his hardened and strict way of speaking and acting.

The weight of the moment settled over the courtyard like fog.

Another run.

Another loss.

Priya noticed the shift too. Her eyes followed the movement toward the truck, and the humour drained from her face. “…Oh,” she said softly.

For a moment, none of us spoke.

Life inside Oasis slowly resumed again after that, but quieter now, more subdued.

Garrett exhaled through his nose and rubbed the back of his neck before forcing a bit of his usual attitude back into place.

Priya looked between us again, studying our faces more carefully now.

“But besides that,” she said after a moment, trying to steady the mood, returning to the question. “They look like good folk.”

She gestured around the settlement.

“I like Mirabelle. She seems genuine.”

Garrett’s expression shifted slightly, the humour fading as he glanced toward the walls and the people moving through the compound. “Can we trust her?” he asked.

Priya tilted her head, thinking.

“Too early to tell,” she admitted. “But I think she genuinely wants to make the best out of this situation we’re all stuck in.”

Her eyes moved up and down between Garrett and me, taking in the dried blood, the dust, and the exhaustion written all over us.

“That’s already saying a lot,” she added dryly, pointing at us, “considering how you two look.” She smirked faintly. “Like you crawled out of hell’s laundry pile.”

Garrett looked down at himself, scoffed, and wiped a smear of dried blood off his sleeve.

“Hey,” he said defensively. “This is tactical grime.”

The courtyard around the unloading truck slowly returned to motion, though the mood had shifted after the body had been taken away.

“Careful with that one,” Timothy muttered. “If those jars break, someone’s going to start a riot.”

Diego snorted. “Relax, ‘mano. I’m not the one who stacked them like a drunk architect.”

I leaned against the side of the truck for a moment, letting my arms rest. The adrenaline from the run had faded, leaving behind that familiar, hollow fatigue.

That was when I noticed Sandy nearby.

She stood a short distance away from the unloading yard, speaking briefly with one of the guards. Her posture was relaxed, but there was always something sharp about the way she carried herself, like she was ready for trouble even when things were calm.

Her eyes drifted across the courtyard.

They landed on us. Just for a moment.

She gave the faintest nod, Not friendly but not cold either.

Then she walked over.

“Try not to start a war while I’m gone,” she said dryly.

Garrett gave her a lazy salute. “No promises.”
Her attention shifted to me.

“You alive, Nathan?”

“Last I checked.” I said with a smirk, to which she returned.

“Good.” She glanced toward Diego and Timothy working behind us. “Because Gavin’s about to want his meeting. Hey! Careful with those!” She said gesturing at the boxes of bottles of drinks. Diego made a thumbs up gestured, which caused her to roll her eyes.

That got Garrett’s attention. “Oh good,” he muttered. “Authority figures. My favourite.”

Sandy smirked faintly. “Don’t worry,” she said. “He only bites when Barker’s watching.”

As if summoned by the mention of his name, movement stirred near the edge of the courtyard. People began stepping aside.

Mayor Gavin approached with the measured pace of someone used to being noticed.

He wore old military fatigues that were clean but worn with time, the posture of a soldier still presents in the way his hands rested behind his back. His expression was calm, observant ...Calculating.

He stopped several yards away from the truck and studied the scene first. Only then did he step closer.

“You wouldn’t be the first,” I said with a faint smirk, picking up the thread of an earlier joke Garrett had made about surviving the outside world.

“And hopefully not the last,” Gavin replied easily, but his eyes were still evaluating us.

Barker joined him a moment later.

“Sir,” Barker said sharply, snapping into a salute.

“Gavin,” Sandy greeted, far less formally.

“At ease, Barker.” He ordered.

Gavin looked past him toward the unloading truck.

“Congratulations,” he said to Sandy. “Your mission was successful.”

His tone was genuine, but there was still that quiet authority behind it.

“Though I want a full report of everything collected. After unloading, report to Joe at storage.”

Sandy clearly didn’t love being ordered around. The irritation flashed across her face for a split second. But she nodded.

“Fine.”

Before leaving, she glanced at me.

“See you three later,” she said, a small grin forming. “Hopefully you’ll still be around.”

Garrett chuckled. I couldn’t help returning the grin.

Then she walked off across the courtyard, already calling instructions to someone nearby.

Gavin watched her go before turning back to us.

“Walk with me.”