Chapter 54: The Town (5)

"Stop!" Someone else shouted. "Don't kill him!" Then, a large group of people revealed themselves. They came out of the shadows, from behind the rocks and the walls. They were more than a hundred. They looked dirty and ragged, but also relieved and hopeful. "Are you people trapped here?" I asked them.

"Yes, we've been trapped here for months now. We can't contact the outside world. We even established a garden for us to survive and rely on the underground water," he said. He was an old man, but his body was well-built. He seemed to be the leader of the group.

"How did you get stuck?" I asked, curious.

"While doing our daily routine in the quarry, we suddenly found a cave, and we decided to explore it, thinking that this would make us rich. But our greed blinded us, and even endangered us. The entrance collapsed and we had no choice but to live here, until the rescue team arrive" he said, with a tone of regret.

"Wait, does that mean they never experienced it?" Someone from my men murmured.

"Eh? Then they never know?" They then started giggling.

They were talking about the apocalypse, of course. The day when the world turned to hell, and the zombies took over. The day when we had to fight for our lives, and our survival. The day when everything changed.

These people had no idea. They had been living in this mine, unaware of the horrors outside. They had been living in ignorance, while we had been living in reality.

I wondered what they would think, if they saw the town we had burned, or the zombies we had killed. I wondered if they would be grateful, or terrified. I wondered if they would join us, or oppose us.

I smiled, "Looks like you have no idea— about the outside, huh?" I said, looking at him with pity. He was the leader of the group that had been trapped in the mine for months. They had no clue about what had happened to the world. "Alright, I'll show you outside, and we'll make you decide if you'll join us or not. Pack your belongings, Roger, help them pack their belongings," I said.

"Aye aye, kid," Roger said and walked towards them with his men. While the others and I waited outside for them, half an hour later they got out.

"Finally! We're out!" They started celebrating. But we could only look at them with pity, not knowing what had happened to the world. We decided to let them rest first before anything. "Hey, do you guys have phones? I want to contact my family," one of them said.

"Oh yeah! Can I also borrow?" They all gathered and smiled happily, thinking that they could now see their family.

"Can you all calm down first?" Roger shouted.

"What the fuck is his problem?"

"We're just borrowing a phone."

They all murmured, their leader then shouted. "Shut up for a moment!" Then all of them got silent. "It seems like there's been something going on, with your attire, how big your group is, and almost all of you are holding a gun. Did the world war 3 start when we got stuck?" He asked.

"World war 3?"

"Is the captain serious?"

His men were laughing, while their leader was serious. "World war 3, huh... well, something serious, something much worse," I said.

"You all know about the zombie apocalypse, right? Those in the movies? It happened. In real life," I said.

They all laughed. "HAHAHAHA! Kid! Don't prank us like that!"

"What a funny thing to say!" They were all laughing, while me and my group could only look at them with pity.

"It's better to show you directly, right?" I said. "Follow us." We hopped in our vehicles and went to the temporary base.

As we led the group of cave dwellers towards our temporary base, upon reaching our camp, the atmosphere shifted. The once jubilant group now observed the fortified surroundings and armed individuals with a mix of disbelief and apprehension. The gravity of their situation began to sink in.

Their laughter gradually faded, replaced by a growing sense of unease. The reality of the outside world, shaped by the relentless onslaught of the zombie apocalypse, awaited them.

They saw the corpses that we had killed, pilling them like a mountain.

I gestured toward the vehicles stacked with supplies and the guarded entrance. "This is our reality. The world outside is not what it used to be," I explained, my tone somber. "Zombies roam the streets, and survival is a constant struggle."

The old man, their leader, surveyed the camp, his expression turning serious. "This can't be real... zombies? It's some kind of sick joke."

I nodded. "I wish it were, but it's the harsh truth. We've been living like this for almosy a year now."

The realization dawned on them, and a heavy silence settled over the group. They exchanged glances, their once carefree demeanor replaced by a newfound understanding of the world they now found themselves in.

"If you want to survive, you'll need to adapt quickly," I advised, breaking the silence. "We can help each other. Join our group, and together, we stand a better chance."

The cave dwellers, their faces reflecting a mix of disbelief and uncertainty, hesitated. The world they left behind in their isolated sanctuary clashed with the grim reality we presented.

As the weight of their decision hung in the air, I awaited their response, knowing that the journey ahead would test not only their resilience but also the bonds forged in the crucible of survival.

They were all uncertain, most of them wanted to travel and find their families. While some of them wanted to join us. "I have no one left anyway. I can only join you," their leader said. He was the old man who had been in charge of the mine workers.

"If the captain is joining, then I'll join too," some of his men said. They seemed to trust him and follow his decision. While the others, "I want to see my families as soon as possible... I'm worried about them," they said. They looked anxious and hopeful, thinking that their families might still be alive.

"Are you even hearing yourselves? You can't even kill one of those things! How the hell can you survive out there?" one of my men said. He was pointing at the zombie corpse that we had brought with us. It was a gruesome sight, with blood and guts spilling out. We had killed it on our way to the base, and we had decided to show it to them as proof.

"I have no choice, do I? I still have a wife and children!" one of the mine workers said. He looked desperate and determined, ready to risk his life for his family.

They all started arguing, trying to persuade each other to stay or go. Some of them were afraid of the zombies, and some of them were curious about the outside world. Some of them were loyal to their leader, and some of them were independent. Some of them were grateful to us, and some of them were suspicious of us.

It was a chaotic scene, and I had to intervene. I had to make them understand the situation, and make them choose. I had to make them realize that the world had changed, and that they had to adapt.

"Enough!" I shouted. "Listen to me, all of you. The world is not the same as you remember it. It's a dangerous and cruel place, where zombies and bandits roam. You can't just go out there and expect to find your families. You have to be prepared and armed, and you have to stick together. That's why I'm offering you a chance to join us. We are a strong and resourceful group, and we have a safe and comfortable base. We have food, water, weapons, and vehicles. We have everything you need to survive and thrive. But we also have rules and responsibilities, and we expect you to follow them. If you join us, you will be part of our family."

I looked at them, waiting for their answer. I hoped that they would be smart and join us.