Welcome to the End

Chapter 06: Overwhelmed

Kevin's quick pace accelerated until he was almost running. The people in the street were giving him curious looks, but they didn't stop him.

Because of her age, Isabella couldn't move as fast as Kevin and fell behind. George stayed a few paces ahead of her, trying to keep nearby while maintaining a line of sight on Kevin.

"Lower the ramp," Kevin ordered a crane operator. "We're leaving."

"No can do," the man denied. "Only the Governor authorizes who comes and goes. You need to speak with him."

Kevin turned away in frustration. Before heading back to the wall where he'd last seen Clark, he imparted hurried instructions to his companions. "Stay here. I should be back in no time."

George nodded, and Isabella leaned against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

Kevin didn't bother trying to remain inconspicuous, breaking into a full sprint. He unintentionally bumped into a few people along the way, offering a quick apology without slowing pace.

He knew he was wasting valuable minutes crossing back and forth through town when he should already be outside, putting as much distance as possible between himself and the incoming horde of zombies. Fortunately, he met the Governor when he was returning to his office in the middle of Walton.

"Governor!" Kevin shouted, not wanting to miss his opportunity to speak with the man.

Clark paused in front of the government building and turned in Kevin's direction. "Yes?"

"We need your authorization to leave Walton," Kevin explained between gasps for breath.

"I'm afraid I can't allow it at this time," Clark replied. "A rapid departure at this time could cause a panic."

"You don't seem to understand," Kevin argued. "When the undead reach the wall, they'll spread out, looking for a weak point."

"And, they won't find one," Clark stated firmly.

"My point is, they'll surround the city," Kevin continued. "Any chance to escape must be now!"

"You might not need to leave," Clark suggested. "Our guards seem to be handling the situation better than I could have expected."

Kevin felt his mouth go suddenly dry. "How are they handling it?"

"The bowmen are killing the enemy with great efficiency," Clark answered. "We have a substantial supply of arrows, and we're even making more."

"You need to get them to stop, right now!" Kevin insisted. "They mustn't kill any more of them."

"I don't see your objection," Clark said in puzzlement.

"Every time one is killed, it drops in place," Kevin clarified, impatient with having to take time to explain. He realized Clark had no experience fighting the undead, so the conclusion may not have been as obvious to him as it was to Kevin. "You're fighting an army of thousands, perhaps millions. How many will pile up against the wall before they become a bridge for those behind them to crawl over? The more your guards kill, the more certain the wall will be breached."

Clark became deathly pale and bolted toward the wall section where the undead were approaching. Kevin ran beside him. The Governor tried shouting to his men from the secondary wall, but because of the distance and the violent confrontation with the undead, they were unable to hear him. Stepping onto one of the mobile ramps, Clark had it swung over to the outer wall.

"Stop firing!" Clark screamed to his men. "Hold your fire!"

"We can't!" one of the soldiers protested, firing off an arrow at a zombie just below the upper edge of the wall. "They're getting too close!"