How Zombies Survive in the Apocalypse

“Look over there.”

Even before Aiden’s group had fully emerged from the mountain range, Arian pointed ahead and spoke.

Aiden casually turned his gaze in that direction.

There stood a house surrounded by a shallow brown wall.

Lined along the wall were peculiar statues of horses.

Other than that, it was an unremarkable building.

However, upon seeing it, Logan’s eyes widened.

“Whew, finally…!”

He muttered in amazement, staring at the not-so-impressive horse statues.

It had been three days since their battle with the Beasts.

During that time, they had endlessly traversed the desolate mountains with only scattered cacti dotting the landscape.

Fortunately, they didn’t lack food supplies, but the ordeal could hardly be described as minor.

That’s why those horse statues didn’t appear as mere statues to Logan.

Though abandoned, they were undeniable remnants of civilization and proof that they had finally set foot in the metropolis of Phoenix.

Additionally, a shallow dirt path ran in front of the house.

That dirt path connected to a proper two-lane asphalt road.

“Hmm… looks like we found the right place.”

Observing that road, Aiden spoke.

For the past few days, they had been relying solely on maps and a compass to navigate through the pathless mountains and deserts.

While unfamiliar, it seemed they had at least arrived at the correct destination, much to Aiden’s relief.

“Let’s keep going, then.”

Aiden’s group began following the road.

Lining the narrow road was a small residential area.

Perhaps due to the desert’s proximity, most of the houses in this neighborhood had a bright tan color resembling sand.

Alongside the road grew mainly tumbleweed and cacti larger than a person.

Some had even sprouted inside the front gardens of certain houses, creating a unique scenery.

As they proceeded, they passed by a small ranch.

The stone-walled pen where cows had likely once been raised now stood empty.

“Quiet, isn’t it?”

Aiden muttered as they walked that path.

This area had never been densely populated to begin with, but not even a single zombie could be seen.

At this, Aiden turned to Logan.

“Do you know the location of this camp that’s supposed to be here?”

They had arrived in Phoenix, but their obvious destination was that camp.

However, blindly searching for the camp would be reckless.

Phoenix had been a metropolis inhabited by 1.5 million people, and including the surrounding metropolitan area, over 4 million had lived there.

The city was vast and complex.

“Of course I remember. They said it was near an area called Windsong.”

Fortunately, Logan answered affirmatively.

Aiden put away the map he had been referencing and took out a new one specifically of Phoenix.

While the map depicted the city’s layout to some extent, it was still quite intricate.

“…Here it is.”

After poring over the map for a while, Aiden finally located the area named Windsong.

It was in the northeastern part of Phoenix, quite far from the city center.

Moreover, from the residential area Aiden’s group was currently in, they would have to head considerably further south.

“Is it far?”

Logan, who was beside him, asked.

When Aiden replied that it would take a few more hours, Logan let out a brief sigh.

“But we should be able to arrive before nightfall.”

“We better. I’m sick of sleeping in that damned sand.”

Logan shuddered as he recalled their recent campsites.

The air had grown considerably colder as late autumn approached.

Even in the relatively warm southwestern United States, staying outdoors overnight was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

However, having never experienced it himself, Aiden simply nodded once in response.

* * *

A few hours later.

Having finally reached the vicinity of Windsong, where the camp was said to be located, Aiden was observing the signs erected beside the road.

“What’s all this?”

Arian asked, referring to them.

Lined along the road were several large metal signs.

And scrawled across them were dense lines of text.

It seemed someone had directly sprayed or written on the metal plates with their own hands.

Aiden approached to examine the contents.

The signs began with that introductory line, their contents concise.

“These are… rules.”

“Rules?”

“Rules for this camp that’s supposed to be here.”

Listed were a few rules set for wanderers wishing to enter the camp.

Simple things like not killing or stealing from each other.

The contents resembled something written in a textbook, prompting Arian to tilt her head skeptically.

“But even if they tell people not to do those things, who’s going to listen?”

Arian commented upon seeing them.

However, Aiden shook his head.

“These weren’t written solely to be followed. They’re likely meant to give an idea of what kind of place this camp is.”

The lack of enforceability was probably understood by the very people who made these signs.

Rather, the purpose was simply to hint at the camp’s general nature to those encountering it for the first time.

Especially towards the end, the signs even bore explicit phrases like ‘Let’s cooperate while following these rules and journey together to LA.’

“Just as I’ve heard.”

Logan spoke as he observed the signs.

Judging from the content of the rules, the camp’s orientation seemed to align with Logan’s description of a cooperative of wanderers.

Finding nothing out of the ordinary from his expectations, Aiden proceeded past those signs deeper into the area.

There, a wide intersection appeared before them.

Beyond it, a barricade came into view.

About 3 meters tall, constructed by layering wood and metal sheets, it was clearly meant to keep out zombies.

This barricade enclosed a vast area approximately 500 meters wide and 200 meters long.

Aiden unfolded his map to verify the location of that area.

It had originally been a large shopping district adjacent to an apartment complex.

The shopping district’s spacious buildings and open parking lots made it easy for wanderers to gather.

Meanwhile, the neighboring apartment zone offered plenty of individual living spaces that could serve as temporary lodgings.

Furthermore, the entire area was slightly separated from the city proper, with only the roads providing access, making zombie intrusions less likely from other directions.

Indeed, as an abandoned survivor base, the location seemed well-chosen.

After surveying the surroundings, Aiden looked towards Arian.

Sensing his gaze, Arian softly whispered.

“Quite a few. Dozens at least. For the whole camp… probably a few hundred.”

Upon hearing the specific numbers, Aiden’s eyes narrowed within his helmet.

That many people had managed to pass through those mountains and deserts.

Most had likely been fortunate enough to avoid danger, but to Aiden’s group, who had directly battled the Beast pack, it was an unexpectedly high number.

“…Not bad.”

However, a large population was not a misfortune for Aiden’s group.

After confirming there were no unexpected snipers or the like along the barricades, Aiden immediately approached the entrance area.

The four-lane road leading into the camp was blocked by the barricade, but a small side gate remained open in one corner.

“…”

Aiden checked the area around that gate.

But there didn’t seem to be any gatekeeper typically present at such an entrance.

Even so, Aiden didn’t let his guard down as he carefully crossed the barricade.

“Hoh…”

Following behind Aiden into the camp, Logan let out such a sound.

Along the road stretched a parking lot filled with makeshift tents, under which people could be seen.

The scene resembled people having gathered at a large park for leisure.

With no particular focal point, they were scattered haphazardly.

Among them were several wanderers who had set up small stalls beneath the tents.

“…”

As Aiden’s group entered the camp, the gazes of some wanderers briefly lingered on them.

A mix of wariness and curiosity.

However, their interest didn’t last long.

Seemingly judging there was nothing special about the new arrivals, the wanderers soon averted their eyes and resumed their conversations.

No particular threats could be sensed.

With that assessment, as Aiden tried to proceed further inward from the entrance area, at that moment:

“Hey, you guys.”

A man approached them.

Logan’s gaze turned tense.

Aiden calmly responded to the man.

“What is it?”

“You got any spare food?”

It was an offer to trade.

When Aiden shook his head, the man soon left to approach other wanderers instead.

Taking a closer look, the other wanderers seemed to be doing something similar as well.

They were making contact with each other, either for trading or cooperation purposes.

“So this is how it works here, huh.”

Observing these interactions, Logan seemed to understand the general operation of the camp.

Aiden shared the same impression.

Without a reception area like regular gangs where requests could be taken, it appeared requests and trades had to be individually negotiated between wanderers.

“So what will you all do now?”

Logan asked.

What Aiden had to do here was obvious.

While using this as a base, he needed to gather information and procure necessary resources as quickly as possible.

Upon explaining this, Logan gave a light nod.

“We’re planning to open a clinic here.”

The Millers didn’t intend to undertake combat missions like Aiden’s group.

With their age and limited physical capacity, they instead aimed to utilize their medical expertise.

Their plan was to provide treatment to the wanderers here in exchange for compensation.

“Will that be possible?”

“Don’t worry too much. We have plenty of experience treating wanderers.”

Logan brushed aside Aiden’s concerns, saying they had done this many times before.

Aiden nodded in acknowledgment.

“Then I suppose this is where we part ways.”

With their arrival at this camp, Logan’s proposal to travel together until Phoenix was now complete.

So from here, they would each go their separate ways.

“I suppose so.”

Logan’s gaze deepened as he said those words.

With a faint smile, he extended a hand towards Aiden.

“Take care, then. Thanks for everything. Let’s meet again in LA.”

Aiden shook his offered hand.

Logan then bid farewell to Arian and Sadie as well.

“Yeah, stay healthy until then.”

His wife, Madeline, also patted Sadie’s head as she spoke.

Aiden’s group wished for the Millers’ safety in turn.

Afterwards, the Millers mingled among the wanderers, saying they would look for a suitable spot.

Briefly watching their retreating figures, Arian turned back to Aiden.

“So what do we do first?”

“…We should start by gathering information.”

“That should be easy.”

Arian answered with a grin.

Following that, Aiden began approaching wanderers to collect information.

Things like which areas still had remaining supplies, or particularly dangerous locations.

The information he primarily gathered pertained to the surroundings of Phoenix.

No special compensation was needed for this basic information sharing.

However, since there was no particular benefit in divulging such details either, some wanderers refused to engage in conversation.

But there were those who provided simple answers.

Combined with what Arian could overhear, they soon gained a grasp of the general situation.

Aiden took a moment to mentally organize the information he had gathered in that brief time.

While not extremely detailed, it was enough to formulate an immediate plan of action.

Satisfied with this, Aiden looked up at the sky.

The sun was already setting.

“We should find a place to stay soon.”

Aiden’s group passed through the shopping district and headed towards the apartment zone.

Multiple apartment complexes were located west to south, adjacent to the shopping area.

The complex they entered had 3-story buildings with bright tan exteriors arranged in a circular layout.

Originally, it must have been a rather tidy apartment complex.

But after being abandoned for so long, many windows were now shattered, and sections were in disrepair.

The relatively intact units had already been occupied by other wanderers.

The remaining options either had entire doors torn off or ominous bullet holes revealing the neighboring units.

“…”

After a thorough inspection, Aiden finally found a suitable place to settle.

It was a building located at the end of the complex, and upon checking the interior, it was messy but without any major issues.

Having designated it as their temporary shelter, Aiden immediately set about preparing the place.

Soon, accommodations were readied for spending at least one night there.

“This should do for now.”

As soon as the preparations were complete, Aiden called his companions over.

It was to discuss their next course of action based on the information he had gathered earlier.

At this, Sadie and Arian, who had been preparing a meal, approached him.

“First, starting tomorrow, we’ll be conducting scouting activities.”

Aiden began by setting out their plan.