After a brief respite, the group had set off again. The other students we had rescued had left, some emboldened to help Tim with the barricade, others simply seeking shelter.
Alex looked at us, his gaze steady and unwavering. "We'll keep going. We're going to clear the second floor. We'll go up the stairs, and then, room by room, just like we did down here."
The idea, like everything Alex came up with, sounded brilliant and brutally effective. We would use the staircase as a bottleneck to eliminate the zombies. It was a plan that made sense, almost like a military strategy. I wondered, once again, where he got his knowledge of these things.
His experience wasn't that of a soldier; it was more instinctive, rawer, as if he had grown up on the streets of a dangerous city, dealing with these things his entire life. His versatility amazed me and filled me with doubt.
As we went up the stairs, the echo of our footsteps resonated in the emptiness. My heart was pounding, a drumming in my ears. I felt a mix of fear and anxiety, but my determination held firm. I was no longer the same Emily who had stood frozen. There was zombie blood on my clothes, on my hands, and that made me feel stronger. It was a new Emily, one who adapted quickly to the brutality of this world.
We reached the second floor.
The air was heavy, smelling of dust and decay. A whisper of fear escaped from the mouth of one of the companions following me. There were two hallways, one to the right and one to the left. Both were filled with zombies. They weren't moving, just standing still, their heads bobbing in a spasmodic dance. In one hallway, there were five, and in the other, there were eight.
Alex, without hesitation, looked at me and a guy from another class named Jacob.
"Emily, and you," Alex said, pointing at Jacob. "You two go down the right hallway. The rest of you stay downstairs. Take care of most of them, and guide the rest down the stairs. I'll handle the ones in the other hallway."
Jacob's fear was palpable. His face turned pale and his hands trembled as he saw the zombies in the hallway, but he nodded. He knew this was the test. We stepped into the hallway. We approached the zombies.
The first one to fall was a guy I knew from the swim team. I stabbed him. Jacob wanted to help, but we weren't coordinated. We weren't a team. He moved too fast; I was too slow. Our movements were jerky, and instead of killing, we looked like a couple of kids playing. We managed to get rid of the first three, but not without a struggle.
The lack of coordination frustrated me. Even though I wanted to eliminate them all to show Alex that we could handle them, I realized we had to stick to the plan. We had to guide the two remaining zombies. I gestured and turned back, and he did the same.
The zombies followed us, and we led them down the stairs. When we got to the bottom, the professor, Minnie, and the rest of the support group took care of them. I felt relieved, but also frustrated for not having been more efficient.
Returning to the second floor, I looked up. Alex had already killed three zombies in the other hallway. His movements were clean, precise, without hesitation. His knife moved with a deadly grace. The rest of the zombies, moving slowly, were following him. He looked at us, gestured, and Jacob and I approached him to help.
Together, we pushed the zombies down the stairs, and the ones below took care of them. In that moment, a whirlwind of emotions swept through me: relief for having survived, frustration at my lack of skill, and admiration for Alex's prowess.
A few hours later.
The auditorium in the second building we cleared had become our meeting point; it felt suffocating despite its size. The air, thick with the smell of dust and sweat, was filled with the palpable tension of dozens of survivors.
We were all there: my group, Tim's, the cleanup crew, and all the people we had rescued. Everyone was looking at us, waiting. Tim and Alex were by my side; their presences were anchors that kept me standing.
"Alright," I said, my voice cracking a little at first, but I recovered. "Thank you all for coming. We've been through a lot, and I think it's important that we sit down and talk about what happened so we can move forward."
I began to speak, my voice growing stronger as I narrated the events. I started with the waiting, the previous afternoon, waiting for a rescue. It had been a wait full of hope, of the blind faith that the outside world was safe. But that faith vanished, shattered into pieces.
I told them about the police officer we found in the infirmary. He died, he turned, but his body was still there. In that moment, my mind transported me back to the scene. The smell of rot, the disfigured face. My throat tightened.
"We approached the officer; he was dead in the infirmary, around six in the afternoon," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "We didn't know what was happening. We told the military. They didn't care, or rather, they wanted to cover it up."
As I reached this point, my voice felt more secure, more confident. My mind, which had been filled with fear and panic, felt clearer.
"That's when I realized we had to do something. I, Sonny… and a group of friends went to the communications office to make an announcement."
I stopped, my voice cracking at the mention of my friend's name, and closed my eyes. When I opened them, my gaze focused on Alex. He looked at me with a look full of understanding.
A murmur of surprise spread among the rescued. Their faces showed a new comprehension. Now they remembered the announcement they had heard, and somehow, they felt guilty for having dismissed it. I felt a little bad for them, but at the same time, I felt relieved. They knew I was telling the truth, that this wasn't a game, that this was real.
My narrative continued, my voice growing stronger.
"Around eight in the evening, we saw a soldier shoot a student in the gym," I continued. "The gunshots attracted the zombies. The chaos was uncontrollable."
"I was there too at that time," a student in the back of the auditorium said.
"Me too."
"I thought they were going to shoot me too."
"Now I understand why the soldier shot him… he was one of those things."
Voices began to erupt from every corner.
"I ran as fast as I could," the same student who spoke before continued. "We tried to escape through the main entrance after running from the gym, but the soldiers aimed their guns at us and told us to stay. Some managed to get out, but I don't know if they survived outside… The news about what's happening in the city and the whole world doesn't look encouraging."
The room filled with a tense silence. The air felt heavy, and the oppression in my chest was unbearable. Then, the murmurs began. Broken voices, whispers that spoke of friends who had turned, of help that never came, of the desperation that pushed them into hiding.
The meeting was spiraling out of control; panic was taking over the people. I felt as if I were on a sinking ship, not knowing what to do. My heart pounded, my hands trembled, and anxiety overwhelmed me. I felt powerless.
Just as chaos was about to erupt, a powerful, firm voice rose.
"SILENCE!" Alex shouted, his voice a thunderclap.
Everyone in the room fell silent. The silence was total. We all looked at him, our hearts in our throats. Alex's voice, full of authority, had stopped us all in our tracks. I, more than anyone, felt grateful.
He, without saying another word, turned and gave me a nod. It was my turn. My heart was still pounding, but the panic had been replaced by a new feeling: gratitude. Alex had thrown me a lifeline, a chance to regain control.
I stood up, my body feeling bigger, more confident. I walked to the center of the stage and spoke to them, my voice feeling secure, strong, and calm.
"I know we're all scared. We've all been through things we never imagined. But I promise you one thing: if we stick together, if we work together, we can get through this. We can survive. But for that, we have to learn to fight, to defend ourselves, and to protect ourselves from the chaos."
I gestured to Alex, who was standing beside me. "This is Alex. He's a friend of my family. He knows a lot about these creatures, and he's going to help us understand them."
A murmur of acceptance swept through the room. The people Alex had rescued looked at me with respect. They had seen what he was capable of. They knew that, unlike the soldiers who had stood by and done nothing, he had acted, moved, and saved us.
Alex, with a calmness that amazed me, approached the center of the stage.
"These creatures aren't as difficult as they seem. They're slow, their bodies are dead, and they move sluggishly… They don't feel pain; they don't get tired. Their hearing is their sharpest sense, more than their sight; they are very sensitive to noise. That's why we have to be as silent as possible."
"They're slow, but their endurance is infinite," Alex repeated with a firm tone that seemed to want to hammer this into our minds.
The questions began to pour in. A pale-faced teacher asked, "How do you know all this?" Alex gave her a cold look, and the question hung in the air, unanswered.
"Are they aware of smells?" someone else asked.
"Yes," Alex replied, "they seem to have a perception of smell. But it's limited; it doesn't guide them with the same precision as sound."
"Is it spread through bites?" a student who seemed to understand zombies asked.
"Yes. Only with a bite," Alex replied, though his face seemed conflicted by this answer. "A bite is enough to turn you into one of them… There's no cure, no turning back. You must stay away from their mouths and their hands."
"Are they really dead?" a classmate asked.
"Yes, unfortunately, they are dead. They no longer feel, or think, or have feelings. They are no longer human. Have no compassion for them," Alex replied.
The atmosphere grew tenser, and whispers of fear could be heard. People's faces were pale, and their eyes widened in shock. In that moment, I intervened.
"With this knowledge," I said, my voice feeling stronger, "we have learned to protect ourselves and to face them. We use weapons, like metal bars or makeshift spears, or whatever we can use as a weapon."
"We can also protect our bodies with thick clothes," I continued in a firm tone, noticing that everyone was listening attentively. "One of the things we've learned is that, even if it doesn't seem like it, they have weak points. One is the brain; once we destroy their brain, they won't move again, but be careful, the head is hard, and you must take advantage of the weaker areas of the skull to kill them for good."
People nodded, their faces now filled with a new determination. The fear was still there, but now it was mixed with a little bit of hope.
Just as I was about to continue speaking, a student raised his hand.
"What about food?" he asked.
The silence grew tense again. There were dozens of zombies in the cafeteria, and a knot formed in my throat. I looked at Alex. His eyes were fixed on the student, and his face remained serious. I couldn't answer that. Fear returned to me. We hadn't eaten much. I knew people were hungry, that they needed to eat, but I didn't know how we were going to face so many zombies.
"We'll take care of them," Alex said, his voice sounding confident. It was a promise. Everyone calmed down, but in my mind, a new question formed: how?How were we going to defeat the zombies in the cafeteria?
"We'll take care of the cafeteria soon, but for that, everyone has to contribute," he told us, his voice strong and clear.
The silence, thick with everyone's anxiety, was broken when Alex gave the order to rest, to look for food in the rooms we had already cleared. I walked away from the group, my thoughts a whirlwind.
I wasn't scared, just a feeling of deep worry. A feeling that had accompanied me from the very beginning. I didn't know how we were going to face so many zombies.
What could we do against a horde of them? How could we defeat them all and get out of this unharmed?
Just as I was about to sit down, Alex approached me. His face was serious, his eyes penetrating. "Emily, I have a plan."
I looked at him, my heart pounding in my chest. "What are you planning?" I asked, my voice tense.
"We'll go into the cafeteria, and a small group, the strongest ones, will lure most of the zombies out. And then, we'll take shelter behind the doors, and we'll get rid of them one by one."
I stood in silence, processing his words. It was a risky plan, but it made sense. We would use the doorway bottleneck to eliminate them, but at the same time, we had to go into the lion's den to make it work.
"Isn't that a bit risky?" I asked, my voice trembling a little.
"It's the only way," he replied in a voice that left no room for doubt. "The only way we can get food for everyone."
Alex thought for a moment when he saw I still wasn't convinced and told me about a new plan. The new plan was to use the barricades to help us fight against them, and that way, we wouldn't need to go into the cafeteria, or at least not all of us would have to.
Alex and a group would go in to kill the closest zombies, then they would let the zombies pass in small groups; those, outside would help eliminate them, and the rest would take care of the ones still in the cafeteria.
My heart calmed down a bit. It was a safer plan. I nodded, convinced.
Twenty minutes later.
We met in the courtyard. Alex, with the same calmness and determination, explained the plan to everyone and asked for volunteers. My heart swelled with pride when I saw the volunteers. Not only the ones who had been in the first and second groups, but also some of the ones we had rescued offered to help. These were people who had gone through hell, and now, instead of hiding, they wanted to fight.
Just as I was about to grab a protection for my arm, Alex stopped me. "You're not going," he said, his voice dry, leaving no room for doubt. "You'll stay here."
My heart stopped. My mind went blank. Anger surged through me. "Of course, I'm going!" I shot back. "I'm part of this group. I've helped clear buildings. I've killed zombies. Why wouldn't I go?"
He took my arm, led me away from the others, and looked me in the eyes, his gaze penetrating. "I'm doing all this for you, Emily. For you, and for your father. I promised him I'd get you back to his shelter. And for that, you need to be in one piece."
I stood in silence, processing his words. My mind was a whirlwind of emotions. Anger, frustration, but also, a deep feeling of worry. I had gotten used to him taking care of me, to him protecting me, but now, I felt like a dead weight, as if he were risking his life so I didn't have to.
I pulled away from his grip and walked away from him. I stopped a few feet away and looked at him over my shoulder. Alex's back looked so strong, so determined, but I also felt the weight of his responsibility. A fear swept over me, a fear that something would happen to Alex.
And in that moment, I realized something. He wanted to protect me from the horrors I was about to face.
.
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[A/N: CHAPTER COMPLETED
Hello everyone.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. This one is actually two chapters, but I shortened it so it wouldn't bore you.
First, I want to say that Emily doesn't participate in this operation because Alex isn't sure he can save her. Emily had always been close to Alex when she faced the zombies.
On the other hand, those reading the other novel will know more or less what will happen, but believe me, reading it from this perspective will be much better and more complete, but above all, much more tense.
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Read my other novels
#The Walking Dead: Vision of the Future (Chapter 75)
#Vinland Kingdom: Race Against Time (Chapter 80)
#The Walking Dead: Patient 0 - Lyra File (Chapter 8)
You can find them on my profile.]