How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

The next day.

Amara came to the hotel where Aiden and his group were staying from morning onwards. 

As Arian had announced, it was because of the Union headquarters’ designated task.

“…Alright, we’ll take it.”

As soon as Amara finished her explanation, Aiden accepted her request. 

It was a decision that had already been made. There was no reason to hesitate.

However, Amara blinked as if surprised.

“Are you sure? The task can be quite dangerous.”

Her words were accurate. 

Aiden’s investigation would focus on how a forward base, which housed hundreds of people, had been wiped out overnight. In other words, it meant investigating a scene surrounded by hundreds of zombies. 

The danger was self-evident.

But Aiden, who had already made up his mind, just nodded and spoke.

“I know. More importantly, I want to hear detailed information.”

“Detailed information?”

“I haven’t heard where the incident happened yet.”

Amara intentionally concealed information about the incident. If Aiden had refused the task, there was a possibility that unnecessary information could leak. 

However, now that Aiden had decided to take on the task, she had no grounds to control the information.

Amara forced a bitter smile at this.

“That’s right. I’m sorry, I was a bit distracted. First… the forward base is in Texarkana. Do you know what city that is?”

Aiden nodded. 

Texarkana was a city about 100 km north of Shreveport, where the Union was located. It was an unusual city split between Texas and Arkansas, with half of the city in each state.

As Amara explained, the Union had been building a forward base in Texarkana for the past six months.

“It’s not just an ordinary base to be used and discarded. In simple terms… we were trying to establish a second stronghold there.”

The Union had high expectations for Texarkana. They even mobilized a considerable number of people and resources. 

Therefore, the incident in Texarkana was a significant loss for the Union.

A question arose in Aiden’s mind. Why was Texarkana chosen specifically?

“There’s a reason for choosing that location, right?”

“Of course. It was selected not by me, but by experts who thought about it in their own way.”

Amara explained the reasons that came to her mind. 

Texarkana was close to essential resources such as quarries, and the Red River from Shreveport reached there, making water supply convenient. Moreover, there was an abandoned power plant, enabling a stable supply of electricity.

Even though these challenges in Shreveport were successful, it meant that they could transfer the experience directly to Texarkana if successful.

“But the most important thing among them was… resources.”

“Resources?”

“According to the investigation of the search party, there is a considerable amount of resources left in that city. So, in the short term, to explore resources leisurely and, in the long term, to use it as a foothold for expanding north, we intended to establish a forward base in Texarkana.”

Despite the secrecy of the reconnaissance results of the search party, especially about the resources, Amara openly shared this information. It indicated how important the Union considered this incident.

Aiden acknowledged this with seriousness but continued with his questions.

“If there’s a report from the search team that investigated the area. How is the content?”

“I already have a copy of that report.”

Amara took out the report and handed it to Aiden. It wasn’t thick. 

Unlike in the past, it couldn’t contain photos, only a report written by someone about the situation.

“Hmm…”

Examining it, Aiden let out a sigh.

In fact, the content wasn’t much. 

The person who wrote the report didn’t even enter the collapsed walls of the forward base. They only inferred the grim situation by observing the broken walls, wide-open doors, and the zombies teeming inside the base.

“There’s not much information.”

The report had one clear implication.

The forward base collapsed not from external factors but from the inside.

It seemed that other factions within the Union might not trust the report of this search party, but Aiden’s thoughts were different.

It was too simplistic to manipulate the results due to factional conflicts.

The investigation was not properly conducted, and they didn’t even enter the base.

There was no clear evidence, and all they had were vague speculations based on shaky grounds.

“How many zombies are there in Texarkana? Is the area cleared?”

“The immediate vicinity of the base should have been somewhat cleared. However… we didn’t clear such a wide range.”

“…”

Aiden narrowed his eyes inside his helmet. 

That meant there was a high possibility that the noise from the base was noticed, and nearby zombies had gathered. 

The search party that had been there probably had the same thought. So, they hurriedly conducted a formal investigation and retreated, sensing danger.

Moreover, the fact that zombies from outside had entered indicated the possibility of mutants being there too.

Aiden didn’t know who the author of this report was, but he seemed like someone who knew how to take care of his life.

Having somewhat anticipated the risks of this request, Aiden nodded.

“Understood. The explanation is sufficient.”

“Then… when will you start the mission?”

“Today. However…”

Aiden looked at Sadie.

This mission was not something Aiden could complete in just one day, considering the location was 100 km away in a straight line. Even without considering the round trip, just the journey would take an entire day. So, the minimum time for the mission would be around three days.

During that time, it would be fine for Sadie to accompany him in the mission, but Aiden hoped to use this time more productively. 

For example, by experiencing life in the Union’s residential areas directly.

Aiden explained his intentions to Amara, who promptly accepted his request.

“Of course. The Union will take responsibility for the safety of the child during that time.”

With Amara’s assurance, Aiden nodded.

The conversation ended there.

Now it was time to move.

* * *

That afternoon.

The vehicle carrying Aiden and Arian safely arrived in Texarkana.

To the east of Texarkana.

The Union’s forward base was located at the airport, which was just a little further north from their current location.

“They built the base in such a desolate place. Wouldn’t it be better to choose somewhere closer to the city?”

Hearing about the temporary base’s location, Arian tilted her head. 

Well, there were no resources or amenities at the airport. Also, it was far from a general living area, so it was difficult to obtain them as well.

For an ordinary wanderer, using an airport as a base was clearly disadvantageous.

But Aiden had a different perspective.

“They probably made a judgment that is reasonable for them. There’s a wide open space at the airport. With fewer people and zombies around, it’s a good place to openly build structures.”

The Union had been considering building their base with their own hands from the beginning, so they needed a location that suited their purposes.

While Arian seemed indifferent and just shrugged her shoulders.

“Anyway, it’s not bad for us. It’s easy to find. Shall we head there directly?”

Aiden shook his head.

A lot of time has already passed since they got here.

There were now only a few hours left until the sun set.

No matter how quickly they hurried, it was impossible to tour the entire base before then.

So Aiden decided to secure a hiding place first.

From the beginning, he didn’t intend to finish everything in one day, so he focused on security rather than time.

“First, we have to find the hiding place, and then we will begin the investigation. Just looking around is enough for today.”

Meanwhile, the place Aiden headed to was a small industrial zone south of the airport.

A few blocks of space filled with warehouses, vehicle repair shops, and several small factories.

It wasn’t far from the road Aiden and his group took, and the airport was right above, so it was the perfect location.

“I think it’s quite good.”

Aiden’s chosen hideout in that place was a tool store.

Perhaps due to its proximity to the industrial zone, the store was quite spacious and had thorough security features like reinforced windows.

Of course, someone might have looted it, as the entrance was wide open.

On the other hand, blocking the entrance meant that it would be challenging for anyone to enter, making it suitable as a hideout.

“How’s the area?”

“It’s quiet. Seems like it’s completely empty here.”

Aiden, after confirming with Arian, entered the tool store.

Inside, it was a mess with abandoned tools, fallen shelves, and other disarrayed items.

Aiden asked Arian to organize the interior while he safely parked the vehicle.

He then took out the necessary items – guns, grenades, and other weapons received as rewards from the Union for completing the previous missions.

Aiden, with a bulletproof helmet he had taken just in case and, lastly, the machete for Arian and an emergency blood in a bottle of water, soon came out of the vehicle.

Arian was already there when he looked to the side.

“It’s done.”

“Then let’s get going.”

Aiden handed the machete and blood to Arian and started walking.

Then, a long stretch of iron fence came into view.

Originally surrounding the runway, there was no need to jump over it.

There was a hole made as if something had crushed it nearby.

Aiden briefly inspected the fence, stepped on it, and crossed over.

Beyond that, a vast runway hidden by trees came into view.

There was no sign of the temporary Union base that was supposed to be here…

A building occupying more than half of the straight runway immediately caught Aiden’s eye.

Its appearance, with gray walls and iron doors, seemed like a miniaturized version of the Union’s stronghold.

The only difference was that one of the iron doors was twisted open.

And nearby-

“Kuhh.”

A considerable number of zombies were wandering.

There were dozens of corpses lined up on the flat runway.

The number wasn’t small, so it was understandable why the search party that discovered this place returned after only a cursory investigation.

“What do we do about this?”

“For now, stay here. I’ll assess the situation and come back.”

At the moment, there were only ordinary zombies visible.

There was no need to provoke them unnecessarily with Arian.

Arian nodded and stepped back.

“…”

Aiden walked past the wandering zombies and approached the forward base.

Until reaching the gate leading to the inside of the barricade, there was no obstacle.

The twisted iron gate was half-open, as if welcoming Aiden.

However, before entering, Aiden observed the gate and the barricade.

To verify whether the information in the report was true.

And the result came quickly.

“…It was true.”

As the report had said, there were almost no signs of combat on the outside wall and beyond the iron gate.

Even the twisted iron gate seemed to be bent from the inside, not the outside.

After confirming this, Aiden cautiously set foot inside the base.

Inside the barricade, there were rows of low buildings.

Some were already completed, while others were still under construction.

According to Amara, there were about thirty buildings inside the base, which roughly matched the visible structures.

However, numerous zombies could be seen between those buildings.

The number and density were incomparable to an ordinary city.

Such a number of zombies in such a small space.

It seemed like a considerable investment would be needed to bring Arian here.

“Tsk…”

Aiden went through the crowd of zombies.

If it was just reconnaissance, it would be enough to end it at this line.

However, since he was here, he wanted to investigate the details of the mission, that is, why this incident occurred.

As he walked further inside, a sight caught Aiden’s attention.

“What is that…”

One side of the base looked as if it had been hit by a bomb, with several buildings around completely collapsed, creating small craters on the ground. 

Although it was now completely extinguished, the charred traces indicated that a fire had broken out here.

“…It seems like the ammunition depot exploded.”

Aiden concluded after observing the fire scene.

Remaining ammo boxes and dangerous unexploded ordnance stuck in the ashes left no doubt.

So… could the explosion of this ammunition depot be the cause of the massacre?

No, it was difficult to conclude like that.

Even if the ammunition depot exploded, there were no signs of fire spreading to other buildings. The damage caused by this explosion and fire was limited to only a part of the base. 

It was far from sufficient to result in total annihilation.

Moreover, the more critical point was the numerous bullet traces left at the fire scene. 

This indicated that some kind of combat had taken place here. 

In other words, the explosion of the ammunition depot didn’t cause the battle, but rather, there was a confrontation before that, and as a result, the ammunition depot exploded.

Beyond the ammunition depot, Aiden moved further inside. 

Whether it was a suspicious place or just a cursory search.

Before he knew it, he had reached the innermost part of the forward base, opposite the entrance, with several warehouses and a large C-shaped building at its center.

He had heard something about that C-shaped building; it was undoubtedly the command center of this forward base, playing a different role from other structures. Hence, its size was noticeably different, and it stood two stories high.

However, the atmosphere around the command center and its surroundings was slightly different from elsewhere.

The zombies that were casually wandering around were nowhere to be seen. The surroundings remained silent, and the silent buildings seemed even more tranquil.

But Aiden frowned.

He knew that this ominous silence was probably the presence of mutants. 

Perhaps the reason zombies didn’t approach here was that a mutant was hiding from the sunlight somewhere in this building.

“…Guess I have to stop here.”

Aiden decided to retreat for today. 

If by any chance provoking a mutant led to a battle, even Aiden couldn’t guarantee survival within the swarming base of hundreds of zombies.

Therefore, Aiden immediately headed back to the entrance.

But then.

“…?”

An insignificant noise reached his ears.

The faint sound of thin metal bending, splitting, and the resulting friction.

It was a sound he was extremely familiar with, the noise of opening a can.

Curious, Aiden cautiously approached the direction of the building where the noise came from.

It was coming from a small warehouse right next to him.

Unlike the command center visible from the front, it was at best a building that could be used as a small warehouse.

One peculiar aspect was that all the windows were completely sealed, and the door wasn’t even open.

Looking at the perfectly sealed space, Aiden had a hunch.

It seemed that the survivors of this base had not been completely wiped out.

“Hey, is anyone there?”

Aiden asked in a low voice towards the sealed window.

Then, something inside made a sound, resembling the noise of a can falling.

It unmistakably sounded like the dropping of a can.