"Landslide! Speed up! Get through it!" Calista's heart clenched as she shouted.
Carver slammed the gas pedal down, and the Humvee roared as it surged forward.
Mike, Shane, and Jenson accelerated desperately too.
But it was already too late.
"RUMBLE!"
It was as if the whole mountainside had come alive. Sheets of soaked earth, massive boulders, and trees ripped up by the roots came crashing down from above like a broken dam, carrying enough force to crush everything in their path.
"BOOM! CRASH!"
The impact of boulders, the rush of mud, and the snapping of trees merged into one deafening roar.
In an instant, the convoy's vision was swallowed by a churning, earth-yellow wave.
Calista felt the Humvee lurch violently forward, shoved by a tremendous force. Then mud and shattered stone came hammering down over them. The windshield was instantly plastered over, turning everything outside into a smear.
The whole world shook and roared.
A few seconds later, perhaps even less, the terrifying noise gradually died down, leaving only the scattered clatter of falling stones and the faint hiss of sliding mud.
Calista shook her head, then shoved hard against the door.
The door was blocked by packed earth. She could only force it open a crack, and a thick, muddy stench poured in.
She peered out through the gap, and her heart sank.
Their Humvee had made it through. The rear of Mike's second vehicle was almost half buried, barely stopping just ahead of the landslide zone.
Calista squeezed out through the narrow gap with difficulty, and cold mud immediately flooded into her boots.
She looked back.
Shane's sedan and the heavy truck had been completely cut off on the other side of the landslide, separated from them by a hopeless wall of rubble.
A heap several meters high, made of mud, rocks, and shattered tree trunks, had sealed off the sedan and the heavy truck's path.
Shane, Merle, Daryl, Jenson, Danny, Ethan. They had all been cut off.
"Fuck! Fuck it!"
Merle's roar came faintly from the other side of the rubble, filled with disbelief, rage, and a trace of panic.
"Calista! How are things over there? Answer me!" Ethan's voice followed, carrying clearly through the not-too-thick pile of debris, sharp with anxiety.
Harsh static crackled through the in-vehicle radio. The signal was badly disrupted, cutting in and out.
"We're fine! Mike and the others are with us!" Calista shouted back. She had to make sure the other side heard her.
"What about you? Is anyone hurt?" she called while quickly studying the rubble in front of her.
The mud was still slowly shifting. Smaller stones kept rolling down from the top. The whole pile was far from stable.
Carver and Leah also struggled out of the vehicle.
Carver wiped muddy water off his face and cursed, "Shit! We were almost there, and now this happens!"
He immediately checked the Humvee. Fortunately, it was only coated in mud and had no serious damage.
Leah raised her gun at once, watching the mountainside above and both flanks in case of another slide, or anything else drawn by the noise.
Michonne stood silently beside the vehicle, her katana already half drawn, her eyes sweeping the uneasy surroundings with the same vigilance.
By the second vehicle, Mike, Bossie, Turner, and Wells got out one after another.
Lorenzo was brought down as well. The wound on his face still had not healed, and the swelling made his expression impossible to read.
"We're fine! Vehicle's fine too!" Jenson's voice came from the other side. "But this pile of crap has blocked the road completely! The sedan and the heavy truck can't get through!"
"Clear it! We need a path open as fast as possible!" Calista shouted firmly, her voice trembling slightly from the cold.
They did not have much time.
The landslide's thunderous noise in this dead silent valley was no different from ringing a dinner bell. A greater danger could arrive at any moment.
"No time to hesitate!" Calista's voice instantly drowned out the first stirrings of panic. "Start clearing the road!"
Everyone, whether Shane and the others trapped on the far side of the mudslide or the team members beside Calista, held their breath and fixed their eyes on her.
Calista pointed at the despairing wall of rubble. "Mike, Wells, Turner, you three, plus Bossie!
"Clear a passage for the sedan and the heavy truck as fast as you can! Get tools from the vehicles! Jenson, you clear from your side too. Work from both ends!"
She spoke fast, but every word was perfectly clear. "Leah, keep an eye on Lorenzo. Everyone else, watch the mountains. If there's nothing unusual, help clear the blockage!"
Mike gave a heavy nod and hoisted his massive fire axe. It might work better than a shovel for breaking rocks.
Wells said nothing. He immediately turned and dragged an entrenching shovel and a crowbar from the back of the Humvee.
Turner cursed under his breath, but he moved quickly too, joining Bossie in looking for a good place to start.
They had only just begun clearing when the dust stirred up by the landslide still had not fully settled. From the forest came a chorus of snarls, growing clearer and louder.
"Damn it! They're here!" Merle was the first to swear. He spat out a mouthful of muddy saliva, and the irritation in his eyes was replaced by something far more vicious.
Calista's heart sank. The thing she feared most had happened.
Her gaze swept over the situation.
The road ahead was narrow. Only one vehicle could pass through at a crawl.
Behind them and on both sides, vague, rotting figures were emerging from the forest shadows and the bends in the valley, closing in on this cramped stretch of road.
The convoy was split, the space was restricted, and the terrain was a natural slaughterhouse.
Calista looked over the people left on her side. "Leah, keep watching Lorenzo. I'll take the left flank and build a defensive line against the mountain wall! Carver, you take the right and hold the cliff side. Don't let them push us over! Michonne,"
she called the katana-wielding woman by name, "wherever the walkers are thickest, you hold that spot!"
Michonne did not speak. She only adjusted her grip on the katana slightly in response.
"Shane, Merle, Daryl," Calista raised her voice to make sure they could hear her across the rubble, "you three set up a defensive line on your side and hold off the walkers over there! Protect Jenson, Danny, and Ethan!"
The assignment stunned everyone for a moment.
Especially Daryl and Shane.
It meant Calista was entrusting the crucial flank and rear defense to them, the "newcomers."
It was complete trust, and also an extremely dangerous gamble.
Shane looked hard at Calista across the rubble, then nodded firmly. "Got it! Leave it to us!"
The three of them immediately started looking for cover.
Merle bared his teeth in an excited grin. "Hey! Finally, a real job! This arm of mine is enough to cut down these walkers!"
Daryl had already climbed silently onto the roof of the sedan. He raised his crossbow and kept watch, fully focused.
...
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