The alert that shattered the pre-dawn quiet was unfamiliar to Reuben. It was not the constant, pulsating red of a forthcoming attack, but a frenzied, strobing white—a Priority One: Active Outbreak warning. The System's map pinned itself on the "Hope Resurgent" refugee camp on the arid plains outside Silverport. The [PATHOGEN] field simply read: Vibrio cholerae.
**OUTBREAK STATUS: CONFIRMED.**
**WHERE: Hope Resurgent Camp (Population: ~42,000).**
**ESTIMATED CASES: 847.**
**PROJECTED CASUALTIES IN 72H: 1,200-1,800.**
**INTERVENTION WINDOW: CRITICAL.**
Reuben's breath caught. Cholera was a merciless and efficient killer. It did not just make people sick; it drained the life from them in a flood of watery diarrhea and vomiting, leaving desiccated, dehydrated husks behind. In the packed,
