"... Let's go back to the base."
Casper said after a few moments of silence. I was surprised at Alisha's words too... I wasn't expecting a hive mind to appear so soon.
However... This was a valuable opportunity for me to know about the infection and the virus. If I was going to go to the infected zone eventually, then knowing how these hive minds worked would be extremely beneficial. So, I asked Alisha about it.
"Is it a mutant core?"
"No, it's a mutant nest."
I wasn't familiar with the term, so Casper explained.
"It's a level higher than your regular mutant cores. Instead of there being a single core, several cores attach to a foundation and create a nest. The nests give a significant boost to the intelligence, strength and numbers of each zombie type in their vicinity. Though..."
He turned to Alisha and questioned,
"Are you sure it was a nest?"