Chapter 69: Chapter 13: Command Center Exploration The adrenaline crash hit Scarlett. Her muscles, enhanced or not, screamed from the sudden combat after a century of stillness. The gnawing emptiness in her stomach had evolved into actual pain—her body demanding resources after burning through whatever reserves the cryo-sleep had left.
"I’m starving," Scarlett announced, leaning against the corridor wall for support. "Like, seriously, I think my stomach is trying to eat itself right now. We need to find food ASAP."
Jin, who had been quietly checking the corridor ahead, turned back with concern etched on his face. "You should have said something earlier, Scarlett. We passed the supply rooms on our way here. Let’s get everyone fed first."
Shūmei stood nearby, still cleaning her blade with those slow, loving strokes that made Scarlett’s instincts prickle. The smaller girl’s crimson eyes never left Jin, tracking him with the focus of a hunting cat.
"I agree with Jin-sama," Shūmei said softly. "And perhaps... we could see our quarters afterward? I haven’t had a proper place to rest since awakening, and I’d prefer somewhere secure to sleep."
Sera looked up from checking her pulse rifle’s charge pack, exhaustion carved into every line of her face. "Right. You two literally just woke up from a century-long nap." She shouldered the weapon with practice ease. "Come on. Command Wing first—that’s where we’ve been operating from. Food stores are there too."
Jin fell into step beside Sera, his movements still showing some stiffness from their earlier encounter with the crawlers. "The Command Wing is impressive, but I still think we should check those ventilation shafts Rosa found yesterday. They could be entry points for more crawlers."
"We’ll get to that tomorrow, Jin," Sera said with a tired smile. "Today, we will eat and rest. Even you need to recover sometimes."
They moved through corridors that felt both ancient and new—century-old construction that had never truly been used. The walls were reinforced steel composite, and Jin ran his hand along the surface as they walked, his touch gentle but curious.
"This place is massive," Scarlett said, noting the corridor stretched beyond the lighting’s reach. "How big are we talking? Football field? City block?"
"W-We’re not entirely sure," Clara admitted, her tablet glowing as she pulled up schematics. "The Command Wing alone is about the size of a sports stadium. Umm.. but there are sealed sections we haven’t accessed yet—whole areas that the system won’t let us into without proper authorization."
Jin’s brow furrowed in thought. "The system seems protective. Maybe it’s trying to keep us safe from something dangerous in those areas?"
"That’s what I think too," Clara nodded. "But it makes exploring difficult."
They reached a massive blast door marked **COMMAND WING - AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY**. Sera input a code, and the door groaned open with the sound of century-old hydraulics.
The space beyond made Scarlett stop in her tracks.
"Holy crap," she breathed, taking in the sight before her.
Jin smiled softly at her reaction. "It’s amazing, isn’t it? The first time I saw it, I just stood here for almost ten minutes, trying to take it all in."
The main chamber stretched up three stories, with catwalks and observation platforms creating a vertical maze of metal and glass. Banks of darkened monitors covered one wall, while another held what looked like a massive tactical display, currently showing only static. The ceiling was a dome painted with constellations—somehow both beautiful and unsettling underground.
"Yeah, that was pretty much my reaction too," Rosa said with a wry smile. "Wait until you see the command center."
"This is just the entrance hall," Sera said, noting their expressions. "The actual command center is through there. Trust me, it gets even more impressive."
She led them deeper, through spaces that spoke of ambition and paranoia in equal measure. Conference rooms with tables for fifty, each chair perfectly aligned as if expecting occupants any moment. Communication centers with equipment Scarlett didn’t recognize—quantum communication arrays, Clara called them. And everywhere, that sense of waiting—as if the vault expected its thousands of inhabitants to arrive at any moment.
Jin paused at one of the conference tables, running his fingers along the polished surface. "It’s strange to think about all the people who were supposed to be here. They had plans, families... and now it’s just us."
The actual command center was smaller, more practical. A circular room with a holographic projector at its center, surrounded by workstations. Only a few screens were active, showing basic life support data and security feeds.
"We’ve been using this as our base," Sera explained, gesturing around the room. "It’s defensible, has its own backup power, and connects to most of the vault’s systems. Best strategic position we’ve found so far."
Scarlett filed that away for later investigation. "So, about that food? I think my stomach is about to stage a rebellion."
"This way," Sera said with a small smile.
The supply room was a cavern of preserved goods. Shelves stretched from floor to ceiling, packed with silver pouches, canned goods, and things in preservation containers Scarlett didn’t recognize. The smell of it—sterile, processed, but undeniably food—made her stomach clench painfully.
"It’s not gourmet," Sera said, pulling down several pouches. "But it’s safe. Hundred-year shelf life, apparently.."
Jin began distributing the food packets to everyone, making sure Shūmei and Scarlett got theirs first. "Here, try this one. It’s supposed to be chicken-flavored. It’s not great, but it’s filling."
They sat at a metal table that could have seated twenty, the five of them clustered at one end like survivors in a lifeboat. Which, Scarlett supposed, they were.
The food was exactly as bland as expected—proteins that might have been chicken, vegetables that had forgotten what color meant, a drink that claimed to be juice but tasted like someone’s memory of fruit. But after a century of nothing, Scarlett’s body didn’t care about taste.
She ate with efficiency, noting how the others consumed their meals. Sera ate, alert even while chewing, her eyes constantly scanning the room. Clara picked at her food nervously, stealing glances at Jin between bites, a faint blush coloring her cheeks whenever he caught her looking. Rosa ate a surprising delicacy for someone who fought like a berserker, her movements graceful despite the violence she’d displayed earlier. Jin ate with quiet appreciation, savoring each bite as if it were a delicacy, his eyes occasionally closing in momentary contentment.
And Shūmei... Shūmei ate with precise, elegant movements that belonged in a formal dinner. Every motion is calculated, controlled. Even her chewing seemed choreographed, her eyes never straying far from Jin.
"Living quarters," Scarlett said between bites, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen over them. "I need to know the layout. Where’s everyone sleeping?"
"There’s a residential section connected to the Command Wing," Sera explained. "Probably for essential personnel. That’s where we’ve been staying. It’s pretty nice, actually—much better than I expected from a doomsday bunker."
"Can you show me after this?" Scarlett asked. "I want to get a feel for the entire layout. Defensive positions, escape routes, that sort of thing."
"Of course," Sera nodded. "We can do a full tour after we eat."
After they finished eating—or rather, after they forced down enough calories to stop their bodies from eating themselves—Sera led them through more corridors. These were different, warmer somehow. Carpeted floors instead of metal grating. Painted walls showing faded murals of pre-war Japan—cherry blossoms, Mount Fuji, bustling cityscapes.
"Each unit is basically a small apartment," Clara explained as they walked. "Bedroom, bathroom, kitchenette. Though without main power, most amenities don’t work. But the water recycling system is still functional, at least."
They passed several doors, each marked with nameplates that had never been filled in. Ghost apartments for ghost families. Rosa paused at one, running her fingers over the blank nameplate.
"Someone was supposed to live here," she said softly. "A whole family, maybe. They had a home all picked out, but never made it."
Jin placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "We’ll make sure their sacrifice wasn’t in vain, Rosa. We’ll build something good here."
His quiet determination seemed to comfort her, and she managed a small smile.
"I’ll take that one," Shūmei said suddenly, pointing to a door directly across from one marked with a hastily scrawled ’JIN’ in marker.
"That’s—" Sera started, her voice tight.
"Perfect for when there’s an emergency," Shūmei finished sweetly, her smile never reaching her eyes. "Don’t you think, Sera-san? If anything happened during the night, I could respond immediately to protect Jin-sama."
The temperature seemed to drop several degrees. Scarlett watched the interplay with interest—Shūmei’s innocent facade, Sera’s barely contained irritation, Jin’s complete obliviousness to the tension.
"I’ll take something with elevation," Scarlett said, defusing the moment. "Higher floor if possible. Better vantage point for defense."
"There’s a stairwell at the end," Rosa offered. "The upper level has bigger units. Officer quarters, maybe? They have better locks and reinforced doors."
Jin led the way up the stairs, his movements still showing some stiffness but his posture straight and determined. "The upper level is nice. You’ll have a good view of the main entrance from there."
Scarlett found what she was looking for—a corner unit with windows on two sides (reinforced, she noted with approval) and multiple exit routes. The door was heavier than the others, with better locks.
The inside was dusty but intact. A bed with actual sheets, a desk with drawers still full of blank paper, a closet with hangers waiting for clothes that would never arrive. The bathroom had a shower that, miraculously, produced a trickle of lukewarm water when she tested it.
"Water recycling still works," Clara called from the doorway. "It’s one of the automated systems that survived. The vault was designed to be completely self-sufficient for centuries."
"What about hot water?" Scarlett asked, already knowing she’d kill for a real bath. "A hot shower would be amazing right about now."
"The communal bathing facility has hot water," Clara said, then blushed. "It’s, um, Japanese style. Communal."
"Communal?" Scarlett raised an eyebrow.
"There are private stalls for washing, then a large soaking tub. It’s... it’s actually really nice. The engineers who designed this place didn’t want people to forget the comforts of home, even during the apocalypse."
Jin nodded enthusiastically. "The baths are wonderful! They really help with sore muscles after fighting crawlers. You’ll feel much better after a soak."
They reconvened in the main command center, where Sera pulled up a partial schematic on one of the functioning screens.
"This is what we’ve mapped so far," she said, pointing to different sections of the map. "Command Wing here, residential section here, supply storage here. The hydroponics bay is one level down. The medical bay is functional but limited. Manufacturing is mostly offline, though Elena’s been working on getting some of it operational."
"What about these sections?" Scarlett pointed to grayed-out areas on the map. "They look significant."
"Sealed or unpowered," Sera admitted. "We haven’t had the manpower to explore everything. The system says some areas were designed for long-term habitation—schools, recreation areas, even theaters."
"Theaters?" Rosa raised an eyebrow. "In a doomsday vault?"
"Defense systems?" Scarlett asked, her tactical mind already shifting into planning mode.
"Manual only. The automated systems are offline. The system says they were designed to handle external threats, not internal ones like the crawlers we fought today."
Jin’s brow furrowed in concern. "We should set up watches at night. Just in case more crawlers find a way in. I can take my first watch tonight."
"Absolutely not," Sera said firmly. "You just woke up from cryo-sleep and fought a battle. You need rest more than any of us."
"But I—" Jin started to argue.
"No buts," Sera interrupted, her tone leaving no room for argument. "We’ll take shifts. You rest tonight, and tomorrow you can help us figure out a better defense system."
Jin looked like he wanted to protest further, but finally nodded reluctantly. "Okay. But wake me if you need anything."
"Always," Rosa said with a warm smile.
"For now," Rosa said, stretching with a groan that made her joints pop, "I vote for baths. Hot, steamy, crawler-blood-removing baths. I feel like I’ve been wearing grime since the last century."
"Seconded," Sera said quickly. "A hot bath sounds like heaven right now."
They made their way to the bathing facility, and Scarlett had to admit Clara had undersold it. It was luxurious by any standard. Traditional Japanese design with modern amenities, wood paneling that had somehow survived the century, tiles depicting seasonal scenes—cherry blossoms in spring, maple leaves in autumn.
"The Japanese really knew how to build things to last," Rosa said appreciatively. "And they understood the importance of comfort in hard times. This place must have cost a fortune to build."
There were separate changing areas, washing stations with actual soap (how had that survived?), and then the main bath—a pool-sized tub of steaming water that made everyone stop and stare.
"Oh my god," Scarlett breathed. "That’s not a bath, that’s a small lake."
"I’m going in," Rosa declared, already peeling off her grimy clothes without a hint of self-consciousness. "Anyone who wants to join is welcome. Anyone who wants to be prudish can wait outside."
As Rosa stripped without ceremony, Jin suddenly found the ceiling intensely fascinating. His face flushed crimson when Rosa caught his eye and winked.
"I’ll, uh, wait," he said, backing toward the door. "You all go ahead. I’ll just... guard the door or something."
"Jin-sama," Shūmei said softly, placing a delicate hand on his arm. "Perhaps you should bathe as well? Your injuries need cleaning, and the hot water will help with muscle soreness. It would be a shame to let such a wonderful facility go to waste."
It was a reasonable suggestion delivered in an unreasonable tone—something predatory beneath the concern.
"I’m fine!" Jin said quickly, and practically fled the room.
Scarlett watched him go, then turned to see Shūmei’s mask slip for just a moment—frustration flickering across her features before the serene expression returned. *Interesting,* Scarlett thought. *Very interesting indeed.*
The bath was everything Rosa had promised. Hot water that seemed to leach the tension from muscles, steam that cleared sinuses still clogged with cryo-fluid, and for a few minutes, the illusion that the world hadn’t ended.
As they soaked, Scarlett usual defensive posture softened. Without her armor and weapons, she looked younger, more vulnerable. "This place... it’s incredible," she said quietly, leaning back against the tub’s edge. "Whoever built it, they really cared about preserving humanity."
"They preserved the best parts," Rosa agreed, swirling the water with her fingers. "Art, comfort, community... They wanted us to remember what we were fighting for."
"We’re going to make this work," Sera said, a note of determination in her voice. "With everyone here, the new arrivals, if we work together..."
"Together is complicated," Scarlett observed, thinking of Shūmei’s hungry eyes following Jin. "Everyone has their own agenda, their own secrets."
"Everything’s complicated now," Sera said, surfacing from where she’d been floating. "But complicated is better than dead. And this..." She gestured around the bath. "This reminds us what we’re fighting for. Not just to survive, but to live. To have moments like this."
They fell silent, the sound of water the only noise in the room. For the first time since awakening, Scarlett felt a sense of peace settle over her. The weight of leadership, the responsibility for their survival—it all seemed a little lighter in the steam.
"Tomorrow," she said finally, "I’ll turn this vault into a fortress. We’ll secure every entrance, fortify every weak point. We’ll make it so nothing can get in without going through us first."
"A-And then?" Clara asked softly.
"And then," Scarlett said, a rare smile touching her lips, "we start rebuilding. One day at a time."
As they soaked, Scarlett mentally cataloged what she’d learned. The vault was massive, mostly empty, built for thousands but housing barely a dozen. It had resources, defenses, knowledge—everything needed to rebuild civilization.
If they could hold it.
If they could work together.
If the secrets everyone was carrying didn’t tear them apart first.
She closed her eyes, letting the hot water work its magic, and for just a moment, allowed herself to believe they might actually survive this.
Tomorrow, she’d turn this vault into a fortress.
Tonight, she’d just be clean. And hopeful.