The world ended on May 18, 2022.

Today was August 18, 2023 — a year and three months to the day. For the first three months disaster came without a break, and after that the climate grew steadily more normal. Apart from the threat of evolved beasts and the damage done by its own infighting, humanity had met no further crisis of any size.

The Eastern Theater Command was in decent shape. It had Shen Cong for a banner, holding down anyone who got restless. Zheng Shubian handed over power by degrees, and Liu Yiwu stayed behind the curtain threading the needle, keeping a firm hold on the Military Commission's decisions and steering the theater's course.

Over on the Provisional Government's side there was no strongman to hold anyone down, the strength of the evolved individuals was spread unevenly, and that made openings for a great many ambitious men. So the false emperor took a hundred thousand people off to chase his dream of a throne, and Shi Jingang took a hundred and thirty thousand off to dream of ascending to heaven.

That left about two hundred and eighty thousand still behind the Provisional Government.

But the Provisional Government was full of its own contradictions, and on political principle above all, great differences had begun to open up.

Most of the senior leadership held that as things stood the government had no need to risk forcing a road to the outside. Steady themselves first, rebuild their homes, and think about contact with the outside after. There were not many people left in the world, after all, and every death now was an enormous loss.

Strictly speaking, that was the right call.

The Eastern Theater Command had decided much the same — no rushing, steady progress. Only the Provisional Government was a shade too conservative. Even on steady progress it went through the motions, setting its whole mind on building and rebuilding in the North China region.

That was why a body of radicals with Li Sikai at their head had walked out, formed the China Rescue Team, and set themselves…