Five nodded in assent and started jogging down the hill, keeping a close eye on the approaching horde. It was far enough away that she didn't have to worry yet.

When she reached the tree, she pulled on the flapping tab and the object fell to the ground. Upon grabbing the item, Five recognized a newspaper article. With a quick glance at the still-far-off zombies, she jogged back up the hill and met with Seven, whose calm eyes were watching the group with no indication of worry.

"It's a government drop," Five said as they headed inside Abel Township. "Look."

She handed him the newspaper. The top said Vermanen Times in bold letters, and, though it was dated from weeks before, the two runners read hungrily.

Three men were injured at some technological research building to the east in an odd fire. Three other mysterious fires happened at different biotechnology facilities in the area during the past year and a half or so. No arrests were made, though some groups were targeted as suspicious.

"What do you think this means?" Five asked, troubled. "Do you think the fires happened on purpose?"

"I don't know," Seven replied seriously. "I'll have to turn this in for everyone else to see. I haven't taken you up to the communications tower yet, though. You can visit it on your own if you want."

"Oh, all right," she responded. "As long as someone's up there…?"

Seven looked up at the sky. "Sam's still there about this time of day. I'm sure he'll be happy to give you a tour."

The two runners parted ways and Five approached the comms, entering the main tower carefully and climbing up the stairs. As she reached the door marked "Communications Operator," she knocked lightly. Sam opened the door, a bright smile spreading on his face.

"Runner Five!" he said. "What are you doing here?"

"I just was looking around Abel," she replied a little hesitantly. "Seven said you could show me the comms."

"Come on in," he replied, opening the door widely. Five stepped into his "office," a spacious, cube-like room lined with large, thick windows. Sam could see far beyond Abel from here; she spotted the zombie horde and human bases Seven had pointed out before.

Inside the tower room, two rolling chairs were vacant. "Take a seat," Sam suggested, gesturing to one of them.

Five sat thankfully; she had not had the opportunity to do so all day, and her legs ached all over.

"Do you work up here alone?" she asked, looking out over his control board. Numerous dials, buttons, and charts were spread across a complicated-looking dashboard, perfect for tracking radio signals and heat signatures.

Sam shrugged. "Sometimes," he said. "I'm the one who's up here the most. Sometimes some of the others come and help or watch, though." Sam plopped down into the seat beside Five, removing his headset and running his hands through his hair. "So, Five, how'd you end up in that helicopter crash?" he asked, his light tone betrayed by the tint of curiosity. "Pretty nasty business, that was."

Five sighed and crossed her legs in the chair. "Well, I was on a mission. We had a bunch of supplies we were flying overhead, and then we were just hit out of nowhere by that rocket launcher. I'm just glad Abel wasn't too far from the crash site."

"The Mullins guys didn't tell you much about us, did they?" Sam replied. "Nah, you don't have to answer. I know how Mullins works. They send teams out without informing them at all. I'm glad that's not the way it is around here."

Five cocked her head. "So how does it work around here?"

"Tell me, how long were you at Mullins?"

"Since the outbreak."

"And how many people could you trust there?"

Five paused. "None."

"Exactly! They're all built up on tension and rubbish like that. Here, we get along. We actually, you know, have friends."

"I'm starting to like it here," Five mused, looking through the glass all around Abel. "I don't really want to go back."

"You don't have to," Sam replied quietly. "We need good people here. Do you have a bo—people to go back to? Friends or family?"

Five shook her head. "They were turned in the first wave of the outbreak. I only escaped because of how close I was to Mullins."

Sam sighed, gazing at her with sympathy. "It's hard... we've all lost people."

Five glanced up at him, guilt suddenly weighing down on her chest. "I'm sorry, you know. About Alice."

Sam's jaw clenched slightly. "Like Seven always says, things like that happen these days. Getting attached always has its risks."

They were quiet for a moment, watching the somewhat-nearby horde with detached interest.

"Why did you do it?" Five asked suddenly.

"Why'd I do what?"

"Why call me Runner Five if it would remind you of her?"

Sam shrugged. "It's the name that was available. And... I think you can live up to it." He flashed a half smile. "As long as you don't decide you want to kill me and eat my brains too."

Five chuckled. "I'll let you know if I have a change of heart."