Colonel Reyes led the National Guard back toward the Safe Zone, his boots crunching over broken asphalt as his thoughts churned.
"Colonel," one of his aides murmured behind him, "you thinking about how to explain this to Mayor Marks?"
Reyes let out a long breath. "Yeah. Elliot's death is going to be a problem."
"If you ask me," the aide said, voice low, "we should just break off and go independent. Why keep playing along with them?"
"Exactly," another chimed in. "Mayor Marks… he's got his own agenda. Always has."
Reyes didn't answer right away. Then he said, "That's a conversation for another time. Right now, our job is to keep rescuing civilians. His job is to get the infrastructure back online and keep the city from falling apart. As long as no one crosses a line, we need to avoid infighting."
"Understood," the aide said, though not without a sigh.
