The apartment complex stayed quiet through the night.
Sentries rotated at the entrances while the Sniper Team and two Missile Infantry shared overwatch. On the seventh floor, Callum kept watch outside Hans's room, relaxed enough to rest against the wall but alert to movement in the corridor.
Hans slept better than he expected in his old bed, although the room felt smaller after weeks in the Colony.
Sleep itself was different now.
Even with his eyes closed, pieces of the building remained at the edge of his perception: the stairwell, nearby rooms, and the faint movement of his soldiers below.
It did not feel like normal sight. He simply knew enough to notice when something nearby changed.
Somewhere outside, a bird screeched.
When Callum's attention shifted toward the window, Hans caught the change a moment before the DASF moved his head.
A faint vibration followed through the floor, too weak to shake anything loose but clear enough to wake him.
