Checkpoint in Zone 4, southeastern flank of Hulmatu.
The sunset resembles a cooling furnace, pouring its last light and heat over this desolate hilly terrain.
The forward outpost originally flying the "Liberation Forces" flag has quietly changed hands. Heavy equipment boxes marked with Thunder Defense's black-and-yellow lightning symbol are scattered like invading beetles across the tread-imprinted ground within the walls.
Several mercenaries dressed in top-tier MultiCam desert combat uniforms are skillfully setting up portable satellite communication antennas and remote ground sensor systems, moving swiftly yet exhibiting a hint of new arrival unfamiliarity.
At the highest point of the walls, sentries from Thunder Defense, holding M4A1 carbines fitted with various expensive attachments, have replaced the once-present militia figures, vigilantly scanning the wilderness that is gradually being swallowed by dusk.
