Fort Valor and the Hidden Threat

March 14, 2042 – 36 Hours Until Awakening

The engine of my armored SUV rumbled softly as I drove along the abandoned forest road leading to Fort Valor, an old military training facility about twenty miles outside New Vale City.

The city was imploding behind me.

By now, the streets were filled with:

Looters smashing storefronts.Mutated animals attacking anyone in sight.Police abandoning posts to protect their own families.

It was happening faster than the novel described.

The mutation wave was supposed to be a secondary threat until Day 5 of the apocalypse.

But it had started two days early.

That meant the entire timeline was compromised.

I pulled up to the rusted front gate of Fort Valor. The facility had been shut down years ago after budget cuts and left to rot in isolation.

According to my memory of Endless Ruin, this location had:

Underground bunkers designed to withstand artillery strikes.Old supply caches with non-perishable food, water filtration systems, and munitions.A solar power grid—outdated, but repairable.

It was the perfect apocalypse base—if I could secure it before others found it.

I got out of the SUV and approached the gate.

The chain securing it was thick, but rusted through.

Two swings with my bolt cutter, and the gate creaked open.

I drove through the overgrown courtyard, scanning the watchtowers and barracks.

Something was off.

The grass was trampled, and fresh tire tracks were visible in the mud.

Someone's been here recently.

I parked the SUV behind a concrete supply shed, grabbed my Glock 19 and plasma rifle, and activated silent mode on my shock gauntlets.

I followed the tracks toward the main administrative building.

Near the entrance, I found fresh cigarette butts—still warm.

Humans.

I circled around to a side window and peered inside.

Four men sat around a makeshift table, talking softly.

They wore black tactical gear with silver wolf insignias on their shoulders.

Project Horizon.

One of them held a tablet, showing drone footage of New Vale City descending into chaos.

"...command says we need to secure the bunker by tomorrow," one said.

"Why the rush?" asked another.

"Because the event's coming early," the first answered. "And Command thinks this site has old-world tech that could give us an edge."

They were here for the military-grade defense systems hidden in the subterranean bunker.

I couldn't let them get it.

I retreated to my SUV and opened my equipment case.

I pulled out:

Two EMP mines – to disable their comms and drones

.Three homemade pipe bombs – for structural disruption.

Arc Baton – close-quarters lethality.

Plasma Rifle Mk II – recalibrated for rapid-fire mode.

I mapped the building layout in my head.

The main room had four men. Backup forces were likely deeper in the bunker.

I needed to hit hard, fast, and decisively.

I approached from the rear maintenance door, planted an EMP mine on the external comms junction, and armed the trigger.

Then I climbed the rusted fire escape to the second-floor window.

I had a clear shot of the men inside.

I flipped the detonator switch.

BZZZZZT!

The lights went out, their tablet screens died, and the room was plunged into darkness.

The soldiers reacted fast, drawing their sidearms and switching on flashlights.

But my night vision goggles gave me the advantage.

I fired the plasma rifle.

THOOM!

The first shot hit the nearest soldier, melting through his chest. His scream was cut short as his body collapsed in a smoking heap.

The second soldier turned toward the window.

BANG! BANG!

I fired my Glock, hitting his thigh and throat. Blood sprayed across the wall.

The third soldier dove behind an overturned metal desk.

I anticipated his move, threw a pipe bomb, and took cover.

BOOM!

The blast shredded the desk, sending shrapnel into his back.

He screamed as metal shards pierced his spine.

The fourth soldier ran for the door.

I jumped through the window, landed with a roll, and activated my Arc Baton.

He was almost to the exit.

I lunged, tackled him to the ground, and drove the electrified baton into his skull.

BZZZZT!

His body convulsed violently before going limp.

I searched the bodies for keycards and found a blue security badge marked SUB-LEVEL ACCESS.

I scanned the card at the bunker entrance, and the heavy metal doors slid open.

A cool blast of stale air hit me.

I descended the metal staircase, rifle raised, passing through a corridor lined with rusted pipes.

At the end, I found the central control room.

The room was filled with old terminals, sealed crates, and an inactive security turret system.

In the center was a reinforced server cabinet with a Project Horizon laptop hooked to it.

I powered the system and checked the files.

One folder was labeled:

"Operation Genesis – Activation Protocols"

I opened it.

The files detailed genetic manipulation experiments designed to accelerate the evolution of human abilities.

Project Horizon had been interfering with the natural awakening process.

They had:

Injected nanite dispersal agents into the atmosphere over major cities.Triggered early mutations in wildlife and some humans.Planned to seize critical infrastructure after the awakening to control survivor populations.

My stomach turned.

This wasn't the natural apocalypse from the novel.

Someone was pushing the world over the edge—deliberately.

And Fort Valor was supposed to be their command site.

Not anymore.

I disconnected the Horizon laptop and began reinforcing the base:

Solar Power Grid: Reactivated with salvaged batteries from the SUV.Automated Turrets: I repaired the old defense turrets and synced them to a motion-detection system.Armory Inventory: The bunker had:2 M249 SAWs – Squad automatic weapons.5 crates of 5.56mm ammunition.Explosives and EMP grenades.Perimeter Alarms: Installed motion sensors along the perimeter fence.

The base was becoming a fortress.

But Project Horizon wouldn't let this go.

I opened the laptop's communications log.

The last message read:

"Target is securing Fort Valor. Full strike team en route. ETA: 6 hours."

I exhaled slowly.

Six hours.

That was all the time I had to turn this base into a deathtrap.

I grabbed my toolkit, EMP mines, and automated turret components.

Time to get to work.