She stood up from her bed, the soles of her boots carrying her to where she recalled the quartermaster should be. As she left the barrack, she made her way along the path until she stood in front of the tent, where she heard voices inside—so she waited.
          Right on cue, a commissar exited the tent, prompting a crisp salute from her—surprised by his appearance. Upon noticing the guardsman, the regal-looking commissar gave her a nod before saying, "As you were," and continuing on his way.
          She kept her stance until the man was out of sight before finally dropping the salute. She looked to where he had gone before turning her attention to the noises inside the tent. With a slow, steady hand, she pulled the curtain of the tent open and carefully made her way inside.
          Upon entering, she saw two quartermasters cataloguing and managing the various tools and equipment salvaged from the battles. There was a variety of instruments and flasks scattered around, and it wasn't surprising—despite being a first—to see a naked and dismembered corpse laid on a desk, its blood being sucked from the fresh vessel.
          Noticing a stray that had wandered in, one of the quartermasters paused what he was cataloguing and approached the lone guardsman. They stared at each other before she looked away—searching for the items she needed—until she spoke first.
          "Are there spare parts for weapon maintenance?" she asked. Although these should be available through the supply convoy that arrives every month, she wondered if their supply line was at risk of being cut off.
          The quartermaster turned to look at the other, who was still managing and categorizing the abundance of tools and equipment. The other quartermaster looked up to meet her gaze and then his colleague's before nodding his head and turning his attention back on the list. Turning back to look at the stray, the first quartermaster asked, "What weapon?" he inquired.
          "Lasgun," she replied. The taller quartermaster gave her a nod and made his way to fetch the parts she requested. Following close behind, she looked around, noticing various intriguing items, before the man knelt and opened a chest.
          As he retrieved the models and parts for a lasgun, he stood back up and handed them to her along with a large duffel bag. With a simple nod, she offered her thanks before grabbing hold of the strap and making her way out.
          Making her way back to the barracks, she could tell there was more noise than before she left for her visit to the quartermaster. Though not voices, the sounds were certainly from the heavy movement and activity.
          On cue, a massive transport spacecraft descended from the atmosphere—presumably reinforcements—landing near the wide-open port by the barracks. 'The replacements must be arriving today,' she thought to herself. It must be why there are a lot of activities around.
          With a heavy duffel bag in one hand, she walked along the way, watching the spacecraft descend through the yellow, ash-filled skies.
          Turning a corner, she finally reached the barracks. The presence of guardsmen around the place again made it feel less like an eerie graveyard. But honestly, she couldn't care less.