Carter stood at the war table, his fingers pressing against the detailed map, tracing the new borders of the city.
His decision was already made.
Staying meant war—a war the Legion wasn't ready for, a war he was sure he could not win, not yet at least.
Leaving meant abandoning almost everything—but also gaining the opportunity to grow stronger elsewhere.
His Centurions, his advisors, even his own family were waiting for his command.
Finally, Carter spoke.
"We leave."
The words felt heavy in the air.
Not out of fear—but out of necessity.
A war now would be suicide.
But if they left, if they moved to a new city, if they grew stronger—
Then one day…
They would return.
And when they did—
The Interim Territorial Government wouldn't just lose.
They would be erased.
~
When word spread that Carter had made his decision, the reaction among the Legion and survivors was mixed.
The legion itself did not hesitate and began to prepare to evacuate.
Meanwhile among the survivors
Some were relieved.
Some were outraged.
Some saw it as cowardice.
Others saw it as wisdom.
But Carter didn't waver.
He gathered the all his people in the main square, standing before the thousands who now depended on him having seen the legion hasitly moving to retreat they were operating on mere rumor as they tried to guess what was going on.
His blackened Praetorian armour gleamed in the torchlight, his gladius resting at his side.
"We have fought for you, and alongside you for the chance to reclaim this city, our city,"
Carter called out, his voice carrying over the crowd.
"And Ceasar has led you through the darkest nights, against the hordes of the undead, against the monsters that it contains within it's ranks, and against the raiders who sought to break us bring use one step closer to death or enslaving us for their own purposes."
He paused, letting his words settle.
"We have built something great here. A safe zone, a city, a home. And yet…"
His gaze hardened.
"There is another force in this city—one equal in size to us, one stronger than us."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Our scouts reported back stating this might be the government military forces beginning to take back the city from the undead," Carter declared.
"However there is no way of knowing this for certain, and our attempts to appear diplomatically to them has been met with… hostility, and as such it is the belief of the Ceasar that we should evacuate, leave this city to it's fate under the control of this new force, and set out to find a new home, another place to reclaim as our own from the undead."
His voice turned to steel.
"We cannot guarantee these new forces will not be tyrannical in their rule, and we know not how they deal with survivors they've come across, so I give you all assembled here a choice now, to leave with the Ceasar and his legions, or to remain behind ready to either resist or accept this new force as the overall rulers of this previously fallen city."
The tension broke as many survivors cheered—not in defeat, but in celebration, the mere hope that they were not abandoned by the government had finally born possible fruit, as for those still dreaming of a return to the democractic days of old were also equally emboldened and ready to accept the force strong enough to push the opressor away.
In the end, of the eight thousand survivors living within the safe zone, less than a thousand decided to join the legion on it's march to a new city, most were the milita members and their families, men and women who'd fought alongside the legion, and had come to believe in their Ceasar as a proper and just ruler in these trying times.
Since they were still the dominant power, the supply wagons were loaded to the brim, while they could not take all the supplies the granaries and storehouses were picked clean of almost all the guns and ammunition, meanwhile the canned goods were likewise collected, but even still once the legion and the survivors left, the colony would have a few months supply of food remaining upon which times the farms should begin to yield harvetable results and the provisional government should have claimed them for there own and be capable of providing to the remaining survivors.
~
Preparations began immediately after the townhall meeting.
The city would not be left to rot, if anything it would be left in almost as good a state as it was in right now.
The only things being taken away aside from goods and supplies were system specific things such as additional bags of seed crops, or system produced provisions and alcohol.
While the provisional forces might question the presence of aquaducts, and roman concrete structures it was not that far outside the grasp of regular human ingenuity to believe the survivors were capable to recreate this ancient marvels to return some semblance of their modern lives.
Sam and the engineers worked tirelessly to prepare as many cars and vehicles as possible to ferry the evacuating forces and increasing the amount of supplies they could take with them.
Meanwhile, Carter began organizing the mass evacuation itself.
🔹 Caravans were assembled—using scavenged trucks, wagons, and vehicles to transport supplies and people.
🔹 Legion patrols were expanded—ensuring a safe passage out of the city heading in the opposite direction to the military base itself.
🔹 Critical resources—weapons, food, fuel—were stockpiled for the journey and separated from the regular storage space.
🔹 Scout teams were dispatched ahead—to find the next city ripe for conquest, though slower overall thanks to travelling by horse a few survivors also set of in cars with a joining legionaire as a passenger so Carter could know if the area was hostile since he could tell when and if his summon perished.
This wasn't just a retreat.
It was the beginning of a migration.
The Legion would no longer be bound to one city.
They were going to become nomads of war.
And one day, they would return home to this place stronger than ever.
Ready to cast out those who allowed such events to transpire in the first place, those who sat in comfort with their guns, and power, and vehicles watching as the world beyond their borders fell into ruin and decay only to appear at the last minute as the conquering hero, like some white knight riding in on horse.
~
By dawn a few days later, the time had come.
Those who had elected to leave were gathered on the furthest end of the city, the legion vast had fully pulled back and now there was nothing stopping the remaining survivors from trying to head towards the provisional forces to offer this place up for the taking.
The legion itself was tightly packed into buses, while mobile forces rode alongside on horseback, their iron-clad ranks a wall of discipline and power against possible threats along the road.
The supply wagons followed behind, laden with rations, weapons, and medical supplies.
And at the very back, the rear guard kept watch for any signs of pursuit.
Carter rode at the head of the caravan, his equites cavalry flanking him.
He turned one last time, staring at the walls of the city he had almost conquered.
It had been his home, the city he had lived in for almost half his life.
But now?
It was just the first chapter of a much greater story.
He took a deep breath—
Then raised his fist, signaling the march forward, but even as they got onto the highway, the legion did not stay intact, as soon as they reached the first overpass the thousands of cars and wagons began to break off.
Each heading towards a different location, most being military only units, while the survivors followed the main host towards the nearest big city.
And just like that—
for those who remained behind.
The Legion was gone.
As was the Pharoh, or Ceasar.
~
For days, the Legion marched across the countryside.
They passed through burned-out suburbs, abandoned highways, and endless stretches of abandoned country.
Even as he drove along the city was happily pinging away informing him that his breakaway forces were still hard at work, with reports coming in about earned resources from having slain undead, for having saved survivors, or even still for reclaiming city blocks.
They had only covered a distance of around 300 Kilometers, and while the legion had begun to fan out to clear the undead from smaller towns and villages the total number of undead they had managed to slay was a pittance.
America was a vast stretch of land and around the descent into the apocalypse the population was around 400 million, given that the numbers shown in the scientific reports before the internet shut down stated around half turned immediately only to attack the living and convert more to join their ranks.
That mean that there was in excess of 200 million zombies for them to reap, and they had managed to kill perhaps 50,000 maybe more?
Looking at it logically, they hadn't even managed to claim even 1% of the total undead legions unlifes, not accounting for the resistance the human race and the government forces were still offering up against them.
These thoughts dwelt in his mind but without radio there wasn't much more to distract him as the road carried on.
But Carter wasn't leading them into random territory.
He had a target in mind.
A new city.
One that was still overrun—meaning it was ripe for the taking.
One that had fallen into total chaos—meaning it was a perfect hunting ground for his ever growing army.
One that was bigger, more dangerous, and more rewarding.
A city where the Legion could grow.
And that city was—
XXX
And best of all, this city had no nearby military bases so a government presence would not be something they needed to worry about for the short term.
~
Carter's plan was simple, once they reached this new city they had to quickly perform a couple of tasks.
🔺 Clear out the undead—slaughtering them en masse for more system experience, all the while establishing a new safe zone.
🔺 Expand the Legion—recruiting survivors into their militia ranks, all the while strengthening the ranks of the summon forces.
🔺 Find the city's resources—weapons, fuel, supplies and begin again the process of stripping the city to it's bones.
🔺 Uncover any hidden factions—ensuring that when the Legion took control, it would be undisputed, eliminating any hostile elements that would hinder it's growth.
Unlike their first city, Carter wasn't going to waste time playing the long game.
This time?
They were going straight for dominance.
The Legion wasn't just moving.
It was evolving.
And once they reached their peak…
They would return home.
And when they did—
The Interim Government would burn.