23 Days Since First Strike — Central Command, MOA Complex
The command center hummed with a quiet intensity. Gone were the frantic alarms and emergency dispatches that once defined Overwatch's heartbeat. Now, every blinking light on the main board represented forward movement—zones turning from red to yellow, then to green. Lucena was becoming a model. Clark had become a rail and logistics hub. Fort Renewal was expanding. And Thomas knew what came next.
Expansion.
But not just on land.
"Pull up aerial scans of Visayas and Mindanao," Thomas ordered.
The main screen flickered. Satellite overlays and drone feeds lit up with static points. Most major cities were still blacked out—no power, no communication. Davao, Cebu, Iloilo, and Tacloban remained dormant. But faint signals flickered near Tagbilaran and Dumaguete. A few heat signatures. Vehicle movement. Handheld radios broadcasting on old municipal bands.
Thomas leaned forward. "They're alive out there."
