Chapter 41: Oriana

As the two vehicles pulled up to the gates of Autumn's Territory, the gates made their usual announcement, announcing Emma's presence. As the vehicles drove in, the people in Mila's vehicle pointed outside the window in awe. Most of the residents were gathered near the parking area, waiting for Amy to finish parking.

With Jared in the lead, as Emma and Amy stepped out of the RV, the crowd erupted in cheers. Confetti guns blasted colorful confetti into the air, and Lily and the puppies scampered up, placing flower necklaces Lily had made herself around Emma and Amy's necks.

"Welcome home," Lily said, beaming as Emma picked her up in a hug. Emma squeezed her cheeks, marveling at how Lily had gained some weight and looked even taller and healthier than before. The puppies, feeling left out, barked and circled Emma and Amy, their tails wagging furiously.

Meanwhile, the newcomers started coming down from the bus, their eyes wide with wonder as they took in their new environment. They saw food growing on farmlands—lush fruits, vegetables, and grains. The people they saw looked healthy and clean, and in the distance, they could see farm animals and well-built houses that surpassed even those in the inner circles of Aries Base.

Mrs. Ye's eyes filled with tears as she took in the sight, and Mr. Ye held her hand firmly, both of them overwhelmed with relief. The fear they had felt during the ride—the anxiety of leading their people into an unknown fate—melted away. This place was a haven, far better than they had dared to hope.

Emma gently put Lily down and walked over to the newcomers, with the rest of the group following behind her. "Welcome to Autumn's Territory," she said warmly. "Jared will help you get adjusted, and if you don't want to stay, I'll take you back to Aries Base next week." She motioned for Jared to step forward. "They're all yours."

Jared put on a warm, welcoming smile and began leading the group on a tour of the base. The rest of the old civilian group dispersed to go about their activities, while Emma, Amy, and the puppies followed behind the newcomers.

Emma approached the old couple, Mr. and Mrs. Ye. "Mr. and Mrs. Ye," she began. The elderly couple turned to look at her, their eyes filled with happiness. "I know I promised you both a scientist job, but right now, I don't have all the equipment you might need. By tomorrow, I should have a place set up just for your science labs. You can, of course, let whoever you want in. If you need any more things, talk to Jared, and he will send a list to me."

Mrs. Ye picked up Emma's hand and held it in hers. "Thank you. You are a good kid. Thank you for everything you've done for us."

Emma smiled back at them. "Anytime." The Ye family had helped her in her past life without expecting anything in return.

A light tap on her shoulder interrupted her thoughts. She turned around to see Max standing awkwardly behind her. His face quickly turned a bright red as he mumbled, "Sorry," before scurrying off to rejoin the group. Emma raised her eyebrows in surprise, not expecting such a reaction.

Emma and Amy, followed by the puppies, made their way to the Kranks' house. As soon as they arrived, Emma gave Cedric and Katey deep hugs. The warmth and familiarity of their hug brought a comforting sense of home. After exchanging greetings, Emma walked inside and sank into a chair, following suit.

Mrs. Krank, or Katey, immediately pushed a bowl of food in front of both of them. "I'm not hungry," Amy protested in surprise.

"Pish-posh," Mrs. Krank waved her hand dismissively. "You two have gotten skinny on the mission."

Mr. Krank nodded in agreement. "Yes, you need to eat more so you can fight the zombies better."

A knock on the door drew Mr. Krank's attention. Moments later, he returned with Mila by his side. "Oh my gosh, we forgot about you," Amy exclaimed, pushing her bowl towards Mila. "Now, Mrs. Krank, you see, she is what you call thin."

Mrs. Krank quickly pushed Amy's bowl back to her and looked at Mila with concern. "Yes, yes, I have more food. You also need to sit down and eat before leaving."

Mila chuckled and took a seat at the table. "I guess I can't refuse a meal from Mrs. Krank."

The atmosphere in the room was cozy and welcoming. The smell of the food mixed with the sounds of laughter and conversation, and the base was a safe protection from the outside.

Mrs. Krank cooked more food in the kitchen, bringing more dishes to the table. "You kids have been through a lot. It's important to keep your strength up."

Emma took a bite of the food, taking in the home-cooked flavors. "This is delicious, Mrs. Krank. Thank you."

Katey smiled warmly. "You're welcome, dear. It's the least we can do."

Seeing Amy eating more slowly than her usual eating speed, Emma laughed. "Accept your fate and eat. You'll need the energy later to help me set things up."

Mila smiled warmly at Mrs. Krank as she accepted the bowl of noodles. "Thank you." She took a bite and closed her eyes, feeling the flavor. "I wish I could stay at this base forever, Emma."

"You can just stay as a civilian," Emma replied.

Mila shook her head. As much as she loved Emma's base, she still had teammates at the Aries base. She couldn't let them fight without her. She sighed, "Why can't you just combine with our base? That would be so nice."

Emma raised her eyebrows. The idea was quite appealing, but she knew she didn't have enough resources yet to support so many people. "Maybe one day."

Mila nodded thoughtfully. "I hope so. It would make things so much easier."

The room fell into a comfortable silence as they finished their meal. After sending Mila off on the trip back to Aries Base with a bunch of food and supplies she had brought from the supermarket, Emma dropped off the cards of the new civilians in Jared's office. She then headed over to a building she and Amy had picked out for the science lab.

Finding an excuse, Emma went into the bathroom and opened the reward system's store. She scrolled through it until she found the machine she wanted—the one that could extract the virus from the zombie crystals. After purchasing it, she watched her points go down, and then the machine appeared in her storage. Emma quickly went through the store, searching for science lab equipment, until she was left with only a few hundred points.

Exiting the bathroom, she placed the heavy equipment in different spots, pulling each item out of her storage. She handed the lighter equipment to Amy to place on the tables. Neither of them were scientists, so they didn't know how things should be arranged. For the lighter equipment, they just placed it all together on tables, leaving it for the scientists to organize when they arrived tomorrow.

As they worked, the room filled with the clinking and clattering of equipment being set up. Emma wiped the sweat from her brow and looked around the nearly complete lab. "This is going to be great for them," she said, a sense of satisfaction in her voice.

After a few hours of setting up, Emma and Amy walked out of the building, tired but satisfied with their progress. As they stepped outside, they saw Lily running around and playing with a group of children and the puppies. The children were part of the newcomers' families who had just arrived. Lily waved to them happily as she ran off with the group.

"Be careful! Don't fall!" Amy yelled after her, smiling at the sight.

Returning to Mrs. Krank's house, they enjoyed another hearty meal prepared by Mrs. Krank. After eating, they took a shower and fell into bed, exhausted and quickly falling into a deep sleep.

The next day, after a quick breakfast, Emma and Amy hurried to the building to meet up with Jared and the Ye couple. Jared, with a full schedule due to the new arrivals, left Emma and Amy to assist the Ye couple. Emma opened the door and led them inside.

"Oh, it's beautiful," Mr. Ye said as he stepped inside, taking in the sight of the lab.

"If you need any help arranging the heavier equipment, Amy and I can help," Emma offered.

"Thank you for all of this, Emma," Mrs. Ye said, tears uncontrollably streaming down her face.

"Aww, don't cry, Mrs. Ye," Amy said, giving her a comforting hug.

"Thank you," Mrs. Ye replied, wiping her tears.

After a tour around the lab and helping the Ye couple rearrange everything, Emma treated them to lunch. As they ate, Emma went over a few rules.

"You can pick whoever you want to help you in the labs, and I will give you both a salary since you count as my employees. The same goes for any new scientists you admit. But you need to promise a few things: You must eat on time. I know you science people tend to lose track of time when you're working, but at my base, that is a requirement. Also, there will be things I want you to investigate or invent, and I want regular updates on these projects. If I ask you to keep something secret, you must keep it confidential unless I approve the disclosure to other scientists."

The two nodded in understanding. "We're fine with that."

Emma smiled. "Good. We're all set then." She handed them two new cards. "These are your salary cards."

Mr. and Mrs. Ye looked at the cards with gratitude and excitement in their eyes. "Thank you, Emma. We won't let you down."

Emma nodded. "I know you won't. Welcome to Autumn's Territory."

After heading back into the lab, Emma pulled out some of the information she had taken from the science lab in the desert and placed it in front of Mr. and Mrs. Ye. They looked at her with confusion.

"This is some information we obtained from a lab during a mission. We think it has something to do with the zombie apocalypse happening," Emma explained.

Mr. and Mrs. Ye both took a stack of papers and started flipping through them, while Amy and Emma watched their faces closely for any signs of recognition. As they read through a few pages, anger and disbelief began to show on their faces.

Mr. Ye spoke up suddenly. "Do you think this is where Oriana went?"

"Who is Oriana?" Emma asked immediately.