I Have a Modern Weapon Gacha System in the Zombie Apocalypse-Chapter 45: Forgotten Purpose

The hauling of goods took about an hour to load as there were many of them. And Adrian who just considered doing Ryan’s suggestion was starting to lean on it.

"Okay, now that we have loaded those trucks, we’ll return back to base," Adrian said, looking at the soldiers. There are twenty of them. "You guys hold this place while we go back. If something came up and your weapons weren’t doing any shit, you know who to call. Is that understood?"

"Understood, sir," one of the squad leaders answered, stepping forward slightly. His eyes moved once across the loading bay, already measuring positions, angles, entry points.

Adrian gave a short nod, then pointed toward the front of the building.

"Don’t just sit inside. Set a perimeter. Two men at the main entrance, two at the loading dock, the rest rotate between interior and rooftop. I want eyes outside at all times."

"Copy." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Ryan stepped in beside him. "We’ll leave you one MRAP. Gun stays manned. Engine off, but ready to start on contact."

The squad leader nodded again. "That’ll help."

"It will," Ryan said. "Use it as your anchor. If anything pushes in, you fall back to it and hold."

Behind them, the last crate was pushed into the FMTV. One of the men on the truck bed slammed it into place with his boot, tightening the stack before giving a thumbs-up.

"Load secure!"

Adrian turned his head slightly. "Driver."

"Ready, sir."

"Good."

He looked back at the team being left behind.

"This place is priority now. Food, water, everything we need is here. You don’t abandon it unless you absolutely have to. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

Adrian held their gaze for a second longer, then gave a small nod.

"Alright. Set your positions."

The team moved immediately.

Two broke off toward the front entrance, stepping over shattered glass as they took up positions behind the remains of the storefront. Another pair moved toward the loading dock, checking the angles outside before settling in. The rest split between the interior and a stairwell leading up, preparing to secure higher ground.

Ryan turned toward the convoy. "Mount up!"

The original squad moved back toward the MRAP, boots hitting concrete in quick, steady steps. Adrian climbed in last again, pulling the door shut behind him.

"Convoy, this is Lead," Ryan’s voice came through over comms. "We’re rolling back to base. Maintain spacing. Same route."

"Copy."

The engines rumbled to life.

The MRAP pulled out first, turning away from the loading bay and back toward the road they came from. The FMTV followed close behind, heavier now, suspension dipping slightly under the weight of the cargo.

Adrian leaned slightly toward the small armored window as the vehicle rolled forward.

The supermarket shrank behind them.

Ryan sat across from him, checking his weapon again out of habit.

"We’re coming back for the rest," he said.

Adrian nodded once.

"Yeah. But I won’t be coming. I just remembered something."

"What is it sir?"

"About my family," Adrian said. "I kind of forgot about them when I took this position as a supreme commander, or the Chief-of-Staff, or whatever you prefer. I was supposed to go there via land route but it all changed when I encountered Marco and his family."

Hearing that, Ryan leaned forward and spoke. "Well sir, maybe it’s just fate that you encountered Marco and saved his family. And by saving them you have earned a lot of points that allowed you to summon hardware and personnel to man a military base. With our current arsenal, I’m pretty sure checking the island is within our capability."

"You are right," Adrian nodded once, then leaned back slightly against the armored seat as the vehicle rolled over uneven asphalt.

"It is," he said. "Which means we stop delaying it."

Ryan watched him for a second, then gave a small nod. "Where are they?"

"They were at Boracay for vacation when the world had gone to shit. And I was told that they were safe there and didn’t do anything reckless to come over. Well, who had just lost his little sister, they were the only family I have left and went anyway until, as I said earlier, Marco’s situation."

"Good thing they are safe on the island," Ryan noted. "Still, it’s best to check out. We have a Predator that can fly there to check the area first," Ryan continued, already thinking ahead. "We can get eyes on the island before committing anything heavy. If you are thinking of rescuing them or extracting them."

"Don’t make it sound like the island is compromised," Adrian laughed. "Though, it would be very awkward if we show up there and get my parents. Like I believe there are police forces defending that area and military hardware showing up, thinking we are in the Philippine army."

Ryan gave a small shrug. "Better awkward than walking in blind."

The convoy reached the outer perimeter of Basa Air Base a few minutes later. The gates were already opening by the time the lead MRAP slowed down, guards stepping aside as the vehicles rolled through without stopping.

The MRAP came to a stop near the logistics area, followed closely by the FMTV. The engine noise settled into a steady idle before cutting off one by one.

Adrian pushed the door open and stepped down onto the concrete. His boots hit solid ground, and for a brief second, he just stood there, eyes scanning the area out of habit.

"Unload here," he said, gesturing toward the designated storage zone near the hangar. "Move everything inside. I don’t want supplies sitting out in the open."

"Copy," Ryan answered, already turning to relay it. "Logistics, unload and stack inside storage. Move."

The rear of the FMTV dropped open. Two men climbed up onto the bed while others formed a line below. The first crate came down, then another, then another. The same rhythm from the supermarket carried over, but faster now.

Adrian stepped closer, watching for a moment before speaking again.

"Don’t just stack it," he said. "Catalogue everything."

That slowed a few of them just enough to look up.

Ryan caught it and clarified immediately. "You heard him. We inventory as we unload. One man calls it out, one writes it down. Category, quantity, condition."

A soldier grabbed a clipboard from a nearby table and flipped it open. "Ready."

"Canned goods first batch," one of the men on the truck called out, lifting a box. "Sealed. No damage."

"Log it," Ryan said.

The process adjusted quickly. Every crate that came down was checked, called out, then passed along into the storage area where it was stacked in organized rows instead of random piles.

Adrian walked along the line, watching how they worked. Boxes of frozen meat were moved into a powered storage section first, then bottled water stacked separately. Rice sacks were placed along the back wall, heavier items kept low.

"Separate perishables from dry goods," Adrian added. "I want priority items accessible."

"Copy."

Noah stepped into the storage area and started organizing the layout himself, shifting a few stacks to create clear lanes. "Don’t block movement. We need space to work when the next batch comes in."

"Good call," Ryan said.

Adrian stopped near the entrance of the storage room and looked at the growing stockpile. It wasn’t everything from the supermarket, not even close, but it was enough to matter for their survival.

"Once this is done, return and repeat."