[LTC - P15 - Kalarba - PK] The Path Of Water LTC: Water Ration

COMPNOR administrators arrive at the water tower under heavy security.

Camp Shoreside's location on the coast gives it an endless horizon, but very little usable fresh water. Water towers are set up across the camp in order to sustain the population and make water distribution easier. Refugees gather around the distribution point as COMPNOR administrators prepare to begin the ration.

Rumors have already spread through the camp that the previous distribution was smaller than expected. Some families claim their allotted water was reduced. Others insist that supplies intended for the refugees were diverted elsewhere. No one seems certain of the truth, but after days of uncertainty, people are unwilling to simply wait quietly for answers.

Rheiker arrives as the crowd begins to swell. His soldiers establish a perimeter around the distribution area while COMPNOR officials prepare the rationing system. Once again, Rheiker finds himself caught between two responsibilities: his men are expected to maintain order, but the people controlling the distribution are not under his command. If something goes wrong, his soldiers will be the ones standing between an increasingly desperate crowd and the officials responsible for the ration.

The distribution quickly becomes hostile. A family is told that its allotted water has already been collected. The father insists that it has not. Another refugee joins the argument, claiming that his family's ration was short as well. Within moments, accusations spread through the crowd. People begin shouting that the camp is withholding supplies.

A COMPNOR officer demands that the Protectorate soldiers clear the area. Rheiker refuses to immediately escalate, ordering his troops to hold their positions rather than push the refugees back. Then someone shoves through the line. A soldier grabs the man before he can reach the distribution station, and suddenly the entire crowd surges forward. Weapons come up. Children are pulled away by their parents. The peaceful atmosphere of Camp Shoreside begins collapsing in seconds.

Rheiker steps directly between his soldiers and the refugees and orders his men to stand down. He demands to know exactly how much water was delivered, how much has been distributed, and where the remainder is being stored. The COMPNOR officials insist that everything is being handled according to procedure, but Rheiker is no longer satisfied with procedure. If thousands of refugees are being told there is not enough water while the records say otherwise, then someone needs to explain the discrepancy.

From the lighthouse overlooking Camp Shoreside, ships continue passing along the horizon. People enter. People leave. The Protectorate insists that the camps are temporary and that a future beyond them is being built, but for the people standing in that crowd, the future feels very far away. And for Captain Rheiker, the water shortage may be the first indication that the greatest threat to Camp Shoreside isn't outside its perimeter at all.