[A/N: Thank you all very much.
We're back to our usual viewing rate.
The number of hearts on my profile hasn't increased. So I'll change my request this time.
Could you please leave a rating for my novel?]
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In front of the industrial zone, west entrance.
I approached a barrier-free zone located on the western side of the secured area. From a distance, it was clear there was a guard post, which appeared to be manned by two people. I walked slowly, actively waving my arms, trying to show that it was a person and not a zombie.
"Stop!", they shouted from the post, pointing weapons at me. From a distance, they seemed to be high-caliber weapons. They were no longer just people with pistols, but people armed with machine guns. I didn't respond and just waved. "I must be crazy", I thought, scared.
"Go on!", they said when they noticed me waving at them.
I walked a few meters until I was about 10 meters away from them.
"Stop right there, we have a warning to give you", one of them told me.
"If you continue forward, you'll reach the territory we control. We welcome survivors, but only if they follow our rules. Also, if you decide to continue, we take the liberty of finishing you off if you're bitten, dictating your punishment if you don't follow the rules, and assigning you a task based on your abilities", the other said.
"Is that clear?!", they both asked in a serious tone.
"Clear as water", I replied confidently as I walked up to them.
"Your name?", one of them asked, without looking at me, taking out a notebook to write things down.
"Alex", I replied.
"Alex?", the man asked doubtfully as he raised his face to look at me.
"Is that you, Alex! How long has it been, no see?", the man said happily upon seeing me.
"It hasn't been that long, Mike. I came to visit you last week", I said in a cheerful tone, something I didn't often show. "That's quite a lot in these times. You know, if someone doesn't come back after one night, we usually leave them for dead", he said with a sudden change of attitude.
"And you know I'm a tough nut to crack, right?", I said in a playful tone, trying to lighten the mood.
"Hahaha… That's true", he said, a little more cheerfully. "On the other hand, I told you I don't like scaring people, right? So why are you making me repeat David's warning?", he said with mock annoyance as he playfully punched me in the chest.
"You should always do that when you find someone. You shouldn't neglect safety", I said in a serious tone.
"Ugh… You sound just like David. Although I'm not surprised, you're friends after all", Mike said, a little irritated.
"Just a friendly reminder. Speaking of him, is he here at the base?", I said. "Yes, he's here. I'll take you to him. It's a good thing you came today, since they're leaving for the new location tomorrow", he told me.
"Are you going too?", I said in a worried tone.
"Yes, but I'll go in a few weeks. For now, I'll stay here welcoming the new residents of this shelter. I just hope the military doesn't intervene", he said in a frustrated tone.
"You must be very careful. Both here with the new arrivals, as well as in the new location they'll be going to", I told Mike, looking him seriously in the eyes so he'd understand the seriousness of my warning.
"There's nothing to be afraid of. Besides, I'm just a simple guard and builder here, so you shouldn't be in danger", he said without much concern, trying to calm me down. We walked through the uninhabited area between the four corners of the shelter, heading toward the southeast corner. "Changing the subject. You know someone else was waiting for you to come, right?", he said playfully.
"Who are you talking about?", I asked.
"Come on, don't play innocent. I'm talking about Rosita", he said, winking at me.
"What about Rosita?", I asked again.
"I'll just say she got pretty angry the last time you left", he said with some trepidation. "We're here now. I can only escort you this far; I must get back to my post. Good luck with Rosita", he said when we reached the door to this inner secure area, before quickly leaving. He seemed to want to avoid the trouble ahead.
"Thanks for everything", I said as he left. "It seems this Rosita isn't an easy person to handle. Besides, what could my future self-have done to upset her?", I thought as I signaled to the guard at the entrance.
"What do you want? Are you looking for someone?", the guard asked me.
"I'm looking for David. I'm Alex, by the way", I replied, as he relayed the information via a portable shortwave radio.
"Come in", he said, pointing to a side staircase. It looked like I could only get in by going up those stairs, although there was a gate right at the entrance. "Maybe they only open the gate in emergencies", I thought.
I continued, passing through a few streets, a path I seemed to recognize. As I walked, I could see many people living in the houses protected by the walls of the safe zone. Some people were doing various jobs, such as organizing supplies, construction, removing waste or garbage, guards, and even a group of nurses. There were also quite a few children playing in the gardens, along with people looking after them. Even some teenagers were practicing spear movements, stances with unloaded weapons, and some were engaged in hand-to-hand combat with their instructors.
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[A/N: We know it's only been a few weeks since it all began. Do you think it's possible to find a community or group of survivors who can work in harmony through sheer willpower? Or is there a reason why this group is so well organized?]
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"How organized this is", I thought.
I slowly approached a house in the center of this corner. It seemed to be surrounded by several cars, and there were quite a few people coming and going. It was clear that it was a meeting area for the core members.
"Alex?", a sweet voice called to me from inside the house.
"Rosita", I answered in a soft voice.
"It's great to see you again. Did you miss me?", she said excitedly as she approached me. "What are you looking at?", she said in a brusque tone to a person who came out carrying some documents, who was watching our encounter with a strange look. The person just apologized and left immediately.
"He doesn't seem to usually act this way with others", I thought, laughing inwardly. "Same here Rosita. How have you been?", I asked.
"Hm", she snorted, a little annoyed that I avoided her question. "Things are great around here. We found a place with an over-8 rating", she told me excitedly.
"I heard about it. Congratulations", I said, a little more excited than usual.
"Are you coming with us?", she asked me in a hopeful tone.
"I can't go with you this time. In fact, that's why I came to talk to David", I replied without hesitation.
"Too bad", she said, embarrassed. "Right! David is waiting for you… Follow me", she said, alarmed, as she took my hand and pulled me into the house.
We walked through the first floor of the house, bumping into guards, people carrying papers, and others who seemed to have just come from a zombie encounter. There was even a room with fixed multi-frequency radios and several operators receiving signals from different people. We went up to the second floor and made our way to an area that appeared to be a study, where a man in his 30s was intently looking at a map.
"David, Alex is here", Teresita said to David in a serious tone, as he raised his head to look at me.
"Welcome, Alex", he said with a smile.
"It's good to see you're well, David", I said.
"Let me guess. You're not coming with us, are you?", he asked with a knowing smile. "He seems to know me quite well", I thought.
"Yes… I won't go with you. I came to see if you needed help", I said without hesitation.
"I assumed it would be like that", she said in a resigned tone. "Your help will be very welcome", she said, returning to her cheerful tone.
"I'll try my best", I told her.
"First, I need to talk to you alone", she said in a serious tone. "Rosita, could you let us know downstairs that we're not to be disturbed for a while?", she said to Rosita.
"Sure, no problem", she replied seriously. "See you later, Alex", Teresita told me as she left.
"See you", I said to Teresita.
"I don't know how you do it", she said in a resigned tone.
"I don't know what you mean", I said.
"Don't you already have those two fanatics of yours with Leon in his garden? Not to mention the rest of the fanatics you have in those houses of yours", she said in the same tone.
"I still don't understand. They're just people I've helped at some point", I said without hesitation.
"Well, if you say so", he sighed. "Let's get down to business. Did Leon tell you anything about the new place?", he asked me in a serious tone.
"He tried", I said with a small chuckle.
"Then I'll explain it to you from the beginning", he said, pointing to a map on his desk.
Half an hour later.
"It looks like a nice place", I said to David. "Are you leaving tomorrow?", I asked, somewhat hesitantly.
"I know you're worried, but I didn't find this place yesterday. We've been clearing the area and moving resources for a while now. We even have a communications station, so we won't be isolated", he said, trying to calm my doubts.
"I see, but it seems that's not all your plans, is it?", I asked.
"You seem to know me very well. Yes, we've already prepared a way station, a medium-sized base with a large group of people", he said in a mysterious tone. "It's in this town, near the new base, and we've also been clearing it and rescuing people, who will be staying at this base", he said, pointing to a town near the new base, which was a mandatory route to reach our city.
"But this medium-sized base isn't completely secured. You should delay the movement of people if everything isn't ready", I said, a little worried.
"No need to worry. We'll go through the town first, stop at the base, secure it, and then move to the New Ark", he told me, pointing to different spots on the map and moving some pieces that seemed to represent groups of people.
"I see, it seems like a sound plan", I said, taking everything in. "However, what's this Ark thing about?", I asked, somewhat amused.
"A provisional name, which I think is quite convenient, since the new base will be a place of refuge", he told me, completely convinced that the name sounded great.
"The original ark was an animal shelter", I said mockingly.
"Small details", he said without hesitation.
"If you say so", I said in a resigned tone. "On the other hand, do you plan to return to the city after establishing this new base?", I asked. "Until I think everything can continue without my help, I'll stay at the new base. However, you know we'll keep looking for new places to establish bases; after all, there are still many people who need to be saved", he told me with conviction.
"If you need help with anything, just let me know", I said, supporting his plan.
"Thanks… By the way, what are you going to do here in the city? Will you continue to be confined, or will you go back to helping people?", David asked, staring at me.
"I don't know", I replied, somewhat embarrassed. "It seems like something bad had happened", I thought, analyzing the situation.
"You know they didn't die because of you, right? Those people who died because they didn't believe in you and made their own decisions", he said, trying to comfort me.
"I know that", I said sadly. "I thought leaving them in a safe place would be enough", I murmured.
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[A/N: CHAPTER COMPLETED
In this chapter, we have the most organization a group of survivors can show in a short amount of time.
Some may wonder: how was this achieved?
Well, there are a few more chapters to find out.
Plus, we have our first character from the TWD series. Now we can finally call this novel a fanfic, hahaha.
By the way, the new novel I'm uploading to my profile is now available. It hasn't received much support, but I assure you it's very well written and will be a very good story.
Read my other novel called Vinland Kingdom: Race Against Time.
You can find it on my profile.]