Chapter 28: A Deal With the General

Raviah held Rhyder’s gaze, the air inside the underground command center heavy with tension. The question had finally been asked directly, suspending the truth between them. There was no longer any point in pretending he had not noticed the obvious setup surrounding the estate.

He had seen the massive fortified walls and the sprawling agricultural fields. He had inspected the livestock, the underground facilities, the independent energy systems, and the biological research laboratory.

He had also witnessed the black rain falling in thick sheets and the sudden collapse of regional power stations. Rhyder was a seasoned military commander who understood patterns. Raviah knew that eventually, he would connect every single piece.

She gestured toward the interior access doors of the main farmhouse. "Come inside."

Rhyder followed her into the main living room, his heavy boots sounding firmly against the floorboards.

She closed the reinforced door behind them and immediately activated the privacy system. The monitoring screens along the walls flickered, switching instantly to encrypted internal channels.

"No recording?" Rhyder asked, his sharp eyes scanning the room.

"No external access," Raviah corrected, stepping toward the central table.

He studied her for a long moment before taking a seat. Raviah remained standing, resting her hands against the edge of the wood.

"I can’t tell you everything," she said softly.

"I expected that," he replied, his voice low and even.

"But I can give you actionable information," she offered, looking directly into his gray eyes.

Rhyder leaned back slightly, crossing his arms over his chest. "In exchange for what?"

"Protection," Raviah answered without hesitation.

His stern expression remained entirely unchanged. "For you?"

"For this property," she specified. "My workers, my research, my livestock, and my crops."

"And your people?" Rhyder pressed.

Raviah paused, her pulse hammering steadily. "Anyone under my direct protection."

Rhyder’s eyes sharpened into cold steel. "You’re asking the Eastern Defense Division to protect a private agricultural complex."

"I’m asking for strategic cooperation," she countered.

She pulled out a sleek tablet and placed it on the table between them.

"I can provide clear data on atmospheric changes, supply chain disruptions, biological abnormalities, and infrastructure failures," she explained. "In return, I need access to military-grade logistical resources that civilians cannot obtain easily."

Rhyder looked down at the glowing screen but did not touch it. "What resources?"

"Industrial fuel reserves," Raviah listed off smoothly. "Emergency communications equipment, specialized medical supplies, protective bio-gear, high-capacity water purification components, and heavy agricultural machinery spare parts."

"You’ve already purchased most of those things," Rhyder noted, his tone probing.

"Not enough," Raviah stated flatly.

Rhyder’s eyes narrowed as he leaned forward. "Why?"

"Because the situation is deteriorating significantly faster than expected," she revealed, meeting his stare.

A heavy silence settled between them in the quiet room. Raviah tapped the screen, opening several verified data files.

She brought up atmospheric pressure records, power grid failure logs, agricultural yield anomalies, and livestock mortality reports.

She carefully avoided revealing everything she knew. She did not mention her rebirth, the exact timeline of the apocalypse, the existence of her spatial domain, or the final fate of civilization.

Instead, she presented documented, verifiable abnormalities.

"This environmental shift began earlier than the authorities calculated," Raviah said, tracing a graph on the screen. "The black rain is not an isolated weather event. The electrical disturbances are directly connected to the atmospheric changes, and biological systems are reacting to the instability."

Rhyder reached out, picking up the tablet to examine the information carefully.

"You’re suggesting these events are fully interconnected," Rhyder observed.

"Yes," she confirmed.

"How certain are you?" he asked, looking up from the glass screen.

"Certain enough to prepare this entire valley," Raviah answered.

He set the tablet down slowly. "That still doesn’t explain why you’re preparing for years of complete isolation."

Raviah met his searching eyes. "Because once critical infrastructure begins failing, restoring it becomes exponentially harder."

Rhyder remained silent, absorbing her words. As a military commander, he understood that reality completely. Standard disaster planning was built around containing failures step by step.

Prevent the first collapse, contain the second, and stop the third. Yet Raviah was building a fortress as though all three collapses would strike simultaneously.

"What exactly are you expecting?" Rhyder finally asked.

"Total systemic disruption," Raviah replied.

"That is exceptionally broad," he remarked.

"Because I don’t know how far the atmospheric and biological changes will spread," she said.

It was the closest version of the truth she could safely offer without sounding insane. Rhyder studied her face for several long seconds, analyzing every subtle shift in her expression.

"You’re withholding information," he stated bluntly.

"Yes," Raviah admitted without flinching.

"At least you’re honest about it," Rhyder murmured.

"I don’t have concrete evidence for everything I know," she explained.

His hardened expression grew stern. "Then why should I trust the parts you are willing to tell me?"

"Don’t trust me," Raviah said, pushing the tablet closer to his hands. "Verify everything yourself."

The direct response caught him slightly off guard. Rhyder picked up the tablet once more, swiping through the encrypted files for the next several minutes.

As he read, his expression gradually became intensely serious.

"These regional power failures aren’t random," Rhyder muttered, his eyes scanning the telemetry.

"No, they aren’t," Raviah agreed.

"And these coastal agricultural reports..." Rhyder paused, his brow furrowing. "They began before the current atmospheric event."

Rhyder looked up sharply, his gaze pinning her. "How long?"

"Long enough to concern me," she replied.

He continued reading down the screen until he reached the biological research section. His thumb froze over the display.

"This cellular structure..." Rhyder said, his voice dropping into a dangerous register.

"Is from a plant specimen discovered beneath my eastern fields," Raviah filled in.

Rhyder stared at her in total disbelief. "You have an active biological research facility on this farm."

"Yes," she confirmed.

"And you’re actively studying the mutations," he added.

"Yes," Raviah repeated steadily.

He slowly lowered the tablet onto his lap. "You believe this ecological collapse is only beginning."

Raviah offered no verbal answer. She didn’t need to.

Rhyder understood the horrifying reality staring back at him from the screen. He closed his eyes briefly, weighing the risks, before looking at her once more.

"I’ll cooperate," Rhyder announced firmly.

Raviah’s calm expression remained composed, but a heavy tension inside her chest finally loosened. "Under what conditions?"

"Information must be shared immediately when it directly affects regional defense," Rhyder stated, standing up.

"I agree," Raviah accepted.

"You don’t interfere with active military operations," he added, adjusting his uniform coat.

"I won’t," she agreed.

"And if I determine that your property contains something dangerous to the surrounding civilian population, I reserve the military right to intervene," Rhyder warned.

Raviah’s dark eyes cooled slightly. "You’ll have access only when strictly necessary."

A faint, fleeting smile touched the corner of Rhyder’s lips. "You negotiate like a seasoned military commander."

"I learned from watching the best," she replied softly.

The faint amusement vanished from his face, replaced by absolute gravity. He turned toward the door to depart. Then he stopped in his tracks, turning his head back toward her. His expression suddenly became exceptionally grave.

"There is something you should know, Doctor Solomon," Rhyder said, his voice dropping low.

Raviah turned her full attention to him. "What is it?"

"The military intelligence divisions have already noticed these exact same abnormalities," Rhyder revealed, watching her face.

Raviah’s heart stopped for half a second, her breath catching in her throat.

Rhyder looked directly into her eyes, delivering the final blow. "And we’ve been quietly tracking them for months."