Chương 28: DDR Camp - Reaching home

We ate happily in the early morning and the morale was unexpectedly high. There was still some nervousness or fear in their expressions but most of them were looking determined and surprisingly, even excited. I gave them one more run-through of the plan and everyone listened intently.

After a few minutes of resting, we gathered everyone in front of the door at the back.

"We'll head out for the trucks first. Wait for them completely back up against the door before hauling the bags. It's just like what we talked about, yeah?"

Everyone just nodded silently as they looked at each other.

I came out first and I was with Juan, Jenny, Allan, Chris, and a few more people as we went out the door with our weapons drawn.

Two figures moving erratically dashed towards me but I flicked my wrist to deliver two slashes almost instantly. My first strike went horizontally, entering the side of where its eyes were located, exiting in the opposite direction while the second one went straight for the other one's eyes socket as I thrust with full force.

Their bodies fell limp then I immediately led Juan and Jenny towards the trucks. The others were with Chris and Allan and they tried to kill the ones coming from the other side.

On the way, I killed three more bloody figures wearing this store's uniforms and I ducked down to check under the trucks for any surprises the moment we arrived. I then gave the go signal and the two managed to start the engines with the keys they had on hand. They started backing them right by the door while I helped the rest clear the way.

I continued to put down bodies while the rest that had their first time killing the undead decided to just drag the bodies to the side so the trucks wouldn't accidentally drive over them.

Like clockwork, the people by the door came outside to fill the truck with bags upon bags of supplies we prepared yesterday. As we discussed, the first truck would belong to me while the second one would belong to the people that decided to take shelter in the DDR Camp. As soon as they finished hauling the items, those people rode the back of the truck as we closed it tight.

'So far, so good.'

We then made our way to the curve while I led the rest of the group that was supposed to take their own chances. The pushcarts rattled as the people behind me hurried to advance. I moved ahead and thanked the fact that some of these biters were moving slower compared to when they just started to turn. Even a simple push would give enough time to run away if the person being attacked wasn't able to crush their head.

'They really are moving much slower after a time… Freshly turned ones are much more agile than the ones here… Well, we still need to keep our guard up since we're not really sure if that could be the case for the long run because the same couldn't be said for the one I saw yesterday...'

One by one, the ones behind me started to break off into their own vehicles as we waited for them to throw their items inside. They were hurriedly shoving each item inside while the ones still far from their vehicles were getting a little impatient. Despite that, no one dared to break the formation because none of them were confident to go on their own.

It didn't take long before several engines started to turn on, attracting a few in the distance. Despite that, I made sure that no one got scratched or bitten as long as they were right behind me. Three cars and a few motorcycles started to drive away after the people driving them gave me a firm handshake or an upwards nod.

The dead on the highway started to notice us one by one the moment they drove off but those people helped a bit by mowing down the ones that crossed their path. The dead actually divided their attention but there was still a lot left that were making their way towards us.

"Dude, they're coming!" Allan exclaimed.

"I know! Move fast!" I shouted back as I raised my AR-15.

I picked off the ones in the immediate vicinity but I then aimed at the ones by the armored van. I shortly exhaled before I pulled the trigger one after the other and their bloodied corpses just fell a bit later than my spent casings. As soon as I took care of all of them, I threw the set of keys toward Allan.

"Here!"

"Huh— Fuck!"

"Allan! Hurry the fuck up!" Juan and Jenny frustratedly exclaimed.

Allan actually dropped the keys on the ground and he started to scramble just to pick them up. I almost smacked him in the head but he eventually managed to start the armored van. The engine started to purr so I led the rest to their own vehicles. I unloaded shot after shot towards the cluster coming towards us and only stopped for a quick reload.

The noise of my rifle, even suppressed, started to attract more and more of the deadheads on the highway so the ones that were left were forced to abandon being quiet as they hobbled or scrambled just to get to their vehicles.

"Fuck!"

"Move! Move! Move!"

"Sorry, excuse me!"

"Thanks!"

"Hurry!"

"Faster!"

"Drive straight ahead and ram everything obstructing you because that thing could take it! I'll make a quick run for my bike and follow the rest of you. Turn at the gas station when you see the one with the 'Total' sign!" I shouted.

"You sure you're gonna get your bike fine?!" Allan exclaimed.

"Yeah, I'm sure! The trucks are waiting, go now!"

We gave each other a nod and I sprinted towards the corner where I had left my bike. I let round after round from my AR-15 and I made sure to hit precisely to not waste any shots. Luckily, the path was mostly clear and I only fired less than a dozen rounds before I got to my bike.

"79…" I muttered before I placed the keys in the ignition.

My Hayabusa started immediately then I raised the stand as I quickly caught up to the group. I readied my pistol just in case we encountered the mob from before and I was scanning everything that we passed through. Besides the two trucks that followed the van, another car was following them along with two other motorcycles.

I looked at my speedometer and the numbers were in the hundreds. I could hear loud thuds and deafening crashes as the armored van started to mow down everything, but I saw it slow down when got near the depot.

'I fucking told him to ram everything!'

I pulled my radio and shouted at the top of my lungs.

*bzzt*

"RAM THE CARS! IT COULD TAKE IT!!!"

*bzzt*

The sounds of metal bending violently and glass getting shattered erupted as the armored van rammed the cars topped over one another. We were at a fair distance away as we saw the upturned vehicles flying a few feet away as the armored van staggered after the crash. Despite losing speed, the armored van continued to drive straight as it eventually gained speed once more.

*bzzt*

[DUDE!!! DID YOU FUCKING SEE THAT?! FUCK YEAH!!! THIS VAN IS TOO FUCKING AWESOME!!! I'LL CALL IT TINY!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!]

*bzzt*

"Hah! Just keep on driving, dude. We're getting close."

*bzzt*

I shook my head in amusement and we continued driving forward. We passed by another block and I caught a glimpse of one of the graffitis on the walls. It said 'Chosen Ones' written on the top of a drawn fist and I was sure that I didn't see it yesterday.

'What the fuck?'

My expression solemnized as I made a mental note of what I saw. When we reached the entrance of the DDR Camp that was by the highway, I radioed everyone involved to stop while the others moved ahead. I just caught one final glimpse from Carl as he drove forward with his family, giving me a respectful nod.

"Hold!" one of the soldiers guarding the place stopped us.

I stood in front as I removed my helmet. Their eyes started scanning towards me then their eyes started to wander to the trucks we brought with us.

I stood upright then I gave them a proper salute, "Greetings, soldier. We have a few people needing sanctuary and they brought food, water, and medicine. I request you process them immediately so the rest of my group can go our own way."

The soldier I was talking to returned my salute and he said, "Valdez, let them in."

It only took a few moments but they soon opened the back of the truck. The people at the back came out one after the other and they started to unload everything they had. They gave me thankful looks but Juan, who was driving that truck, was having a short dilemma on whether he would stay here or go about his original plan. However, he still drove outside the moment the truck was ready.

"Thanks again, see you later," Juan gave us a proper handshake before leaving.

"Good luck, man!" Allan exclaimed.

"Hmm, you too."

We were about to leave as well but the soldier I was talking to jumped down from his platform and wanted to have a little talk. I was looking at the tag on his uniform before he asked me a question.

"Are you military?"

'Ferdinand? Must be an officer.'

I said with a straight face, "Special Unit, US-Philippine-Japan Collaboration. Sorry, can't discuss more. It's classified."

Ferdinand was just staring right at me first for a few moments but he took a deep breath before he nodded solemnly, "Understood. We thank you for the supplies you brought but do you need anything else?"

'Holy Fuck! That worked! I just lied to the Philippine Army!'

I had a thought in my head before I said, "Is there a civilian here named Ivan Maning?"

"Ivan Maning?"

"Yeah, I'm looking for him. It's something important."

"Let me check," He looked at me for a brief second before he called another soldier.

When the soldier arrived, they conversed for a moment before the soldier went back to retrieve a huge notebook. After that, the soldier started rifling through the list—tracing each name with his finger—until he stopped and retraced a few columns.

"Found something?"

"Sir, we have a match and it says here that he's staying on the 2nd floor on the west side of the hospital. Do you need us to retrieve him or perhaps just talk?"

"I don't need to talk to him, I just wanted to see his file."

"His file?"

"Yeah. You did make one for each resident, right?"

"O-Of course, sir. We—"

Ferdinand interjected, "Just fetch us the file, I'm curious too."

"Understood, sir."

A few minutes later, the soldier came back with a folder and he handed it to Ferdinand.

To my surprise, Ferdinand handed me the file without looking through it and it just told me he was more curious as to why am I looking for such a person.

With that said, I didn't put it to mind as much as I skimmed through it. I read words like Date of Arrival, Past Occupation, Type B, Male, Normal, etc. But what made me frown was the marital status. It clearly said 'single'. I appreciated the degree of organization that they have though I have a few things I would change personally.

'Did he just abandon them? Well, they could just be living together and never got married, but this is too cruel.'

"Anything wrong?" Ferdinand asked as he saw my expression.

"Yeah, better put 'widowed' on his marital status here. We found his wife and baby yesterday. Watch out for that guy, he..." I relayed the story from yesterday.

Ferdinand tried to keep a stoic face but his face twitched and twisted a few times hearing the whole story. He just nodded eventually after he took the file and wrote something on it, but I waved him over when he was about to walk back to his post.

"Do you guys have a Satellite Phone? Call me for anything, let's keep the communications open. My number is 0063 316 619 2316."

"Sure. Our number is 0063 223 124 9987."

After exchanging numbers, we said goodbye as we continued on the road. It would only take a few minutes before we would reach my place but we kept our guard up. The armored van slowly pushed any stray vehicles along the way and we finally made the turn towards the elementary school.

I eventually saw my workers and my family working hard on the fence but they all turned around as they heard my Hayabusa from a distance. They immediately stopped working and waved at me, calling a few people over to open the fenced gate for us.

"Hey! He's here! Open the main gate too!" Unc Zeidrick called out.

After a few moments, more people came out to check on us but as I glanced around, I saw dozens of charred bodies in the area where we used to burn them. With that said, the gates were finally opened for us and we drove inside, surprising everyone with the small convoy I came with.

"HOLY SHIT! IS THAT AN ARMORED VAN?!" Russel rushed toward us to pat it all over.

"It's Tiny," Allan said as he stepped out of the armored van.

"Huh? It's huge, right?" Russel turned to Allan, confused.

"No, it's 'Tiny', get it?"

"Ah… Uh-huh…" Russel nodded as a courtesy but he still looked confused.

With that said, Jenny, Chris, Charlotte, James, and Susan also came out of the truck, looking around in surprise.

"Woah~!" James, Susan's grandchild, gasped when he saw the place.

"WAIT A SEC, THIS PLACE IS HUGE!!!" Allan exclaimed a little too late.

"YOU NOTICED JUST NOW?! A-Anyway, who are you guys? Who's the Allan fellow?"

I walked to the group as I removed my helmet, "Guys this is everyone, everyone this is... guys... hah... I'm so fucking tired... I need to sleep… I—"

I eventually felt the tiredness in my body but before I could finish my sentence, I was surrounded by a mob of what I thought were my friends and family. All I could see were devilish looks while all I could hear was the cracking of knuckles and evil laughter before someone shouted from behind.

"HERE HE IS! GET HIM!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!!!"