Chapter 29: The Breaking Point
Author: Stanterry
last update2026-01-06 23:04:38

Dawn came grey and cold.

Twenty-four hours remaining. Maybe less. The enemy had pulled back during the night. Not retreating. Regrouping. Preparing for final assault that would crush us completely.

I hadn't slept. Couldn't sleep. Spent the night walking defensive positions. Talking to defenders. Seeing exhaustion. Seeing acceptance. Seeing people who'd made peace with dying.

Mrs. Chen found me at sunrise. She looked older. Worn. Like the past three months had aged her decades.

"We recovered his body," she said. "During the night. Small team. They brought him back."

The child. She meant the child. They'd risked themselves to retrieve his corpse. To bring him home. To let him rest somewhere other than burned street.

"Where is he?"

"The garden. We buried him under the fruit trees. Where it's peaceful. Where things grow." She paused. "He would have liked that. Being part of the garden. Feeding the trees. Contributing even in death."

We walked to the garden together. The memorial had grown
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