Status: Independent Highspire Community
Established: 2077
Location: Northeast @The Highspires
Population: ~150 Residents
The Skybridge Enclave is a self-sustaining community occupying the upper floors of three adjacent Highspire towers just beyond the Bastion walls. Founded approximately fifteen years ago, the enclave emerged when a small group of survivors chose vertical isolation over horizontal escape. Elevation offered reduced infected density, fewer access points, and clearer lines of sight across surrounding districts.
Over time, additional survivors joined — technicians, scavengers, families, and former professionals seeking stable routine rather than expansion. The enclave does not control the entire structures it inhabits. The lower thirty to forty floors of each tower remain unstable, partially collapsed, overgrown, or heavily infected.
The community lives above those levels — not in dominance of the towers, but in selective occupation.
It is not a fortress.
It is a controlled vertical neighborhood.
Before 2062, the three towers were high-end mixed-use Highspire structures. Lower floors housed corporate branch offices and private firms. Mid-levels contained luxury residential units. Upper levels featured executive suites, shared skybridge access corridors, and rooftop amenities.
The towers were interconnected by enclosed skybridges at multiple elevations, allowing elevated pedestrian flow between buildings without returning to street level. The structures were designed for prestige, density, and architectural continuity — not long-term isolation.
Those same skybridges later enabled survival.
During the Fall, the Highspires were gradually abandoned as resources were consolidated into the Bastion. Lower floors across the district became heavily infected. Infrastructure failed unevenly. Elevators ceased functioning. Power flickered and died in most buildings.
For over a decade, the towers remained partially intact but unclaimed. Scavengers moved through upper floors intermittently. Some attempted short-term habitation but lacked coordinated structure.
Around 2077, a small group of survivors — primarily climbers and maintenance workers familiar with vertical infrastructure — secured the upper levels of one tower. They cleared accessible stairwells above a defensible threshold and began reinforcing skybridge access points. When resources stabilized, they expanded into the adjacent towers through surviving elevated connectors.
By limiting their occupied floors and refusing to clear lower infected-heavy levels, they reduced exposure and conserved manpower.
Stability followed discipline.
In 2092, the Skybridge Enclave occupies the upper fifteen to twenty floors of three connected towers. Access is controlled through reinforced stairwells and skybridge choke points. Lower levels are sealed where possible, but not fully reclaimed.
The community has organized its space functionally across the towers.
@Bastion View Tower serves primarily as housing. Former luxury apartments have been merged or subdivided into family units and communal dormitory floors. Structural reinforcement is practical rather than militarized. Windows are patched with salvaged panels and insulated to manage wind exposure.
Rooftop rain-capture systems channel water into filtration tanks. Household storage is permitted, but water distribution is overseen collectively to prevent imbalance.
Hallways are reinforced for safety, not combat. Children move freely within controlled corridors. Laundry lines stretch across former living rooms. Cooking smells and generator heat circulate through stairwells.
The environment feels domestic — worn, functional, lived in.
@Watchspire Tower supports the enclave’s sustainability systems.
Collapsed atrium ceilings have been converted into vertical grow shafts. Fast-cycle greens, root vegetables, mushrooms, and medicinal plants are cultivated under improvised light systems. Soil is rotated carefully. Compost systems are maintained with precision.
Accessible mid-level floors contain:
Repair workshops
Metalworking benches
Salvage sorting areas
Tool storage rooms
Battery banks and charging stations
Nothing is discarded without evaluation. Broken electronics are harvested for components. Structural scrap reinforces weak floors. Fabric becomes insulation or binding material.
Production is modest but continuous.
@Arbor Tower functions as the community’s coordination hub.
One central floor houses the communal kitchen and food distribution system. Another level operates as a classroom and skill training space. A former executive conference room has been repurposed into a decision chamber for governance meetings.
The rooftop supports a reinforced radio mast for short-range communication with scavenger teams and neighboring towers. Broadcasts are limited and directional to avoid drawing infected.
Observation points are positioned at upper edges with clear lines of sight over streets and adjacent rooftops. These are not fortified sniper positions — they are early-warning stations.
The focus is visibility, not dominance.
The enclave operates on structured contribution. Every adult rotates through at least two functional roles.
Guards monitor stairwells, skybridges, and access points in rotating shifts. Their purpose is early detection and controlled withdrawal, not open engagement.
Engineers maintain wind turbines, water filtration systems, structural reinforcements, and battery arrays.
Growers oversee agricultural levels and soil health.
Scavengers conduct targeted retrieval operations in nearby towers and elevated routes, avoiding extended ground-level exposure.
Medics manage injuries and infection screening with limited pharmaceutical supply supplemented by cultivated medicinal plants.
Teachers train children and adults in climbing safety, maintenance skills, and survival protocols.
Labor is distributed evenly. Idleness is not sustainable.
The enclave exists in constant wind.
Upper levels sway subtly during storms. Structural creaks are common. Rain can breach improperly sealed floors if maintenance slips.
Below, infected presence is persistent. Movement can sometimes be heard echoing upward through elevator shafts or fractured stairwells. The enclave does not attempt to clear these lower levels.
Avoidance is safer than conquest.
The atmosphere above remains calm but alert. Evenings bring shared meals and planning discussions. Children practice controlled traversal drills across stabilized skybridge spans.
Life continues steadily — not expanding, not collapsing.
Rating: 30 / 100 (Localized Below)
The upper occupied floors maintain low infected presence due to elevation and limited access points.
Lower thirty to forty floors across all three towers remain infected-heavy and structurally compromised. Movement below is constant but dispersed.
Occasional incursions occur through neglected shafts or collapsed external access points. These are addressed quickly through containment and resealing.
The infected dominate the base.
The enclave survives above them.