One day earlier – Military base south of Washington D.C.
Inside a secluded building within the military base, around ninety-five soldiers and about sixty civilians remained in complete silence. Everything had been under control until recently, when an internal outbreak occurred. Amid the chaos, the base was overrun by walkers, and the few who managed to survive took refuge in this building.
They had supplies, but the food was slowly running out, even with strict rationing. Depression and anxiety were etched on every face.
Colonel Ben Miller held out with his n and managed to establish contact with another military base. However, the news was far from encouraging. According to the soldiers they reached, there wasn't enough fuel available to launch a rescue operation.
Many suggested leaving the base and using one of the armored vehicles outside, or trying to reach a helicopter. There were even C-5 planes ready to take off with no issues.
But all those suggestions were firmly rejected by Colonel Ben Miller. So everyone, little by little, ran out of ideas and just waited—hoping for a miracle. Then, at the suggestion of one of the n, they began broadcasting distress signals, hoping that soone, even a civilian, might co to their aid.
"Zz… This is Colonel Ben Miller! To any nearby military base receiving this transmission, we need urgent assistance."
"Zz… We've suffered an internal outbreak. The base was overrun by walkers, and we failed to contain the breach. My attempts to contact the bases that responded earlier might be in vain, but I beg you—please help us!"
"Zz… We are approximately one hundred and fifty people, half of us soldiers, and we're out of ammunition. We're trapped in a warehouse. The base is infested with walkers, and we can't do anything, even if we wanted to."
"Zz…"
After speaking over the radio, Ben Miller repeated the ssage over and over, several hours a day. A soldier next to him, nad Jeremy Piven, scratched his head and said:
"This isn't going to work, and we all know it. We have to leave. There's no other way... and we know how to do it."
"Jeremy, we also know how badly that could end. If you want to face hundreds of walkers with just a few mags, you won't even make it ten ters."
Jeremy grabbed his head with both hands and yelled:
"Yeah, I know, goddamn it!"
"We can't abandon all these civilians. We still have so food—we can hold out a bit longer… maybe soone will respond."
"You really think soone's coming to rescue us, Eric?"
Eric Bana looked at Jeremy and stayed silent. He wasn't convinced, so he said nothing. The situation was too grim, and most likely, they would die of starvation.
Everyone argued about what to do. All they could do was go over their few options again and again.
A man nad Todd Bloom sat on the floor with a pistol in his hand. As he turned his head, he saw all the people sitting in silence. Their hopeless expressions stirred sothing deep and hard to describe inside him.
How had they ended up like this?
It was unbelievable that a virus had wiped out nearly all life in the country. An infection that couldn't be contained, no matter how hard they tried. The few who survived were either holed up in military bases or barely scraping by outside, surrounded by walkers and the constant threat of being bitten.
"It doesn't matter… The answer's been in our hands this whole ti…"
When everyone heard Todd Bloom, they turned to look at him. He had the pistol in his hand, and they all knew what would co next: blood and brain matter flying everywhere.
Eric, who was closest, walked slowly toward him and said:
"Hey, put the gun down, Todd… You don't want to do this. You're just confused, that's all…"
"You don't get it, Eric. We can die now, quickly, or later, at the hands of those monsters… And I think I've made my decision."
Todd had no intention of stopping. He had already made up his mind.
"If you shoot, you'll attract the infected. If you really want to die, find so other damn way…" Jeremy said loudly, holding back as best he could.
"I'm sorry…"
Just as Ben Miller was about to intervene, the sound of the radio broke the tension. A sharp beep followed by a clear voice echoed through the room, growing louder.
"Zz… This is Corporal Raúl Méndez. Repeat your situation."
The crowd, now on their feet, fell completely silent as they heard the voice on the radio. Everyone rushed toward Ben, who didn't hesitate to grab the device just as the previous transmission ended. He quickly responded:
"Zz… Corporal Méndez, this is Ben Miller. We're trapped at a military base near Port Royal, Virginia, 22535. Are you coming by air or by land?"
Ben sounded anxious; he preferred to believe the voice they had heard ca from the air.
Since there was no imdiate reply, he spoke again:
"Zz… We have pilots—there are helicopters and planes ready for takeoff. We just need help to get out and be evacuated."
"Zz… I'm currently on a mission. I'll inform my commander, and we'll co to rescue you. Don't worry—we won't take longer than 48 hours."
"Zz… We're grateful, Corporal. You have our eternal thanks," said Ben, a relieved smile spreading across his face. At last, they had real hope, and everyone cald down.
"Do you think it's real?" Jeremy asked, ignoring Todd, who was still holding the gun.
"All we can do now is trust. They'll co in two days, so we need to prepare and keep doing what we've been doing… waiting."
…
At that mont, Airon had eyes on the base and was focusing on the breach through which the walkers would likely need to be lured out.
Three CH-47 Chinook helicopters descended slowly from the sky toward the central base. They were low enough to attract walkers with the noise and their massive presence.
Neither of the two lead helicopters moved. They were waiting for the third to get close enough to fully draw the attention of all the walkers.
In no ti at all, not just hundreds—but thousands of walkers began to close in on the helicopters, which still remained motionless. To civilians, this might have seed odd, but to Airon's people, it was a necessary strategy to gather them all.
"Zz… Squadron AA-1 in position."
"Zz… Proceed slowly toward the collapsed zone. You have three minutes to locate vehicles and seal the breach. We can't allow any more walkers to enter the base."
"Zz… Copy that, Commander. We'll be there once the survivors are secured."
"Now!"
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