By the time Adrian and Chandrika finally left the waterfront, the sun had already disappeared beneath the horizon.
The city lights of Basa slowly replaced it.
Street lamps illuminated the roads one by one while windows glowed warmly across the residential district. The distant hum of generators mixed with laughter drifting from restaurants and food stalls near the market square. Somewhere farther away, music played softly from a radio sitting outside one of the mechanic shops.
For a place built during the end of the world, Basa had become surprisingly good at pretending the world still existed.
They walked without rushing.
Neither of them seemed particularly eager to end the evening.
The roads remained busy despite the hour. Off-duty soldiers occupied outdoor cafés while families wandered between shops carrying groceries and supplies. Several children chased one another across a small park near the housing district while exhausted parents watched from nearby benches.
