Doomsday city

Maybe it was wrong from the beginning, Esther always thought dejectedly.

It has been nearly a month since she came to the church town, as the children call it, and Tracy usually leads the adult women to plow the farmland. They use hoes to dig loose the mud and carefully bury the precious seeds in the soil Here, timely irrigation and fertilization, day after day.

Apart from Gavin, the older men in the town also have a big boy named Kane, who seems to be seventeen or eighteen years old, full of energy and strength, responsible for setting up traps with Gavin to hunt animals nearby, and of course it can be effective Beware of intruding zombies.Although there are not many of them, they all keep their duties tacitly, and live a peaceful and harmonious life. The only thing that worries Esther is Frieda who hides at home.

She still remembered the nightmare she had when she first entered the town—Frida turned into a zombie and killed everyone.

"Esses, can you help me move the bucket into the warehouse?" Trish came to Esses and reminded: "It looks like it's going to rain, we'd better put away the things before the heavy rain comes."

Esther nodded to her, regained her composure, picked up two iron buckets in each of her left and right hands and walked back to the barn.

She makes it seem like she fits in with the extended family, but only Esther knows she's never been comfortable.

When the woman packed up the farming equipment and returned to the church, the sky gradually fell with heavy raindrops. The damp air was mixed with the smell of grass, and the breath brought by the breeze brought the illusion of spring.Pastor Carodo closed the door, and the children listened to stories around Mother Mlo, while Sister Manny talked with Bella about how to preserve fruit effectively.

"It's really bad. I hope the roots won't rot after several days of heavy rain." Tracy said worriedly.

Esther glanced at the gray sky silently. Since the end of the day, there was a heavy snowfall, and the four seasons ceased to exist. In summer, the wind blows, and in winter, the sun shines brightly. Occasionally, there will be sudden storms, and the sky will often be clear in the blink of an eye. Because of the chaotic rainy season, many plants have difficulty surviving, and some seeds cannot germinate at all.

"Damn the heavy rain!" Gavin and Kane hurried back to the church, soaked like soaked rats.

"You went out on patrol early in the morning, why did you come back now?" Trish took out two towels from the drawer, handed one to Kane, and threw the other on Gavin's face.

"Don't talk about it. The heavy rain broke the fence last night. Kane and I took a lot of effort to straighten it up. We have to rush to repair the damage tomorrow." Gavin took over Sister Manny's hand while wiping his dripping short hair. Hot tea was handed, "Maybe it's panic-inducing to say that, but I must say there are plenty of footprints nearby besides a few traps that were destroyed by the rain."

"Footprints?" Tracy folded her arms around her chest and pondered for a few seconds, "Do you mean human footprints, or..."

"I think it's a monster." Gavin said firmly.

Kane stepped forward and sat next to Gavin, twisting his bushy eyebrows, and added: "A lot of footprints stretched from the woods, and they seemed to linger near the fence for a long time. We couldn't guess where they left, because the mud was hit by the rain. It's too vague, but it's certain that a large group of uninvited guests has come nearby."

Mulo's mother, who was telling a story, gradually became quieter. She looked away from the fairy tale book from time to time, and looked worriedly at Gavin and Kane.Seeing this, Sister Manny quickly calmed down. Looking at the rain outside the window, her keen sixth sense urged her to settle the children first, "Honey, how about we go downstairs and enjoy juice and biscuits?"

The children danced and danced excitedly. It is not every day that there are sweet juices and crispy biscuits to eat. As soon as the nun finished speaking, the children were already waiting in line to go downstairs. Mother Mlo and Sister Manny had a tacit understanding They exchanged glances and led the children into the cellar in an orderly manner.

If something dangerous is about to happen, the cellar is the safest.

"We'd better stay in the church tonight," Pastor Carlodo said solemnly. He grabbed the cross and exclaimed, "Where's Madeline? Why didn't she come to the church to gather today? Has anyone seen Madeline today?" Lin?" His snow-white eyebrows furrowed instantly, and he asked anxiously.

"I brought her two apples in the morning," Tracy said while holding her forehead, "Medline said her legs were too swollen and she didn't want to go out, so I didn't bring her to church..." Listening to what happened outside the window With the sound of falling thunder, Tracy looked at Gavin with self-blame, "It's all my fault! Even though the weather is so unusual, I still leave her at home alone, if..."

"Hey! Tracy!" Gavin immediately stopped Tracy from thinking wildly, "Listen, it's just raining outside, so there's nothing to worry about, and Madeline's house is two blocks away, so it doesn't take a minute to run there. Don't scare yourself." He comforted the nervous Tracy with a joking tone, and the other party smiled slightly at him.

It's a pity that the situation is not as simple as Gavin said 'it was just a heavy rain'.

The clock hanging on the door frame pointed to ten o'clock in the evening, and a thunderstorm lit up the whole church.Pastor Carlodo and a few men stayed in the church hall, Gavin stared calmly at the gradually rising water outside the window, Kane leaned back in his chair and took a nap, the women stayed in the cellar with their children, and just finished a few scenes After the simple game, Mother Mlo coaxed all the children to sleep, and Sister Manny pressed the blankets for the children.

"I'm worried about Madeline..." Tracy sat on the carpet and said softly, "She doesn't look very well today, although she always said that her legs are swollen and painful, but today she looks... probably not only Then, oh my god, I should have insisted on taking Bella to see her."

Esther was also restless, especially when Gavin and Kane mentioned many footprints, she couldn't stay for a moment.

In the face of those crazy monsters, she is much more experienced than these people.

"I have to go out," Tracy said as she stood up, "Anyway, Madeline's house is nearby, just run over."

"I'll go too." At this time, the elderly Bella came, she was very worried about Madeline's safety, especially her child who was about to be born, "and bring some food and towels, maybe they will come in handy. How long will it last?" She mumbled as she put the dry food into her backpack, and instructed Tracy to bring some dry towels and blankets.

Esther took the backpack from Bella's hand silently, and she also decided to participate.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Looking at the women coming up from the cellar one after another, Gavin reached out to stop Trish from advancing, "Didn't you see the water outside? You want to go swimming in the middle of the night? Wow, That's not a good idea, okay? Tracy, take Bella and Essex back downstairs."

"No, we decided to visit Madeline," Trish pushed Gavin's arm away, and strode towards the door, "I can't let Madeline stay at home alone, and Bella is also worried about her health. , if you want to stop us, you'd better get rid of the idea, now, you can open the door for us like a gentleman, thank you!"

Kane and Reverend Carlodo looked at each other, for the siblings were notoriously stubborn in the town.

"Don't make me lose my temper, Trish." Gavin wrinkled his whole face.

Seeing this, Bella stepped forward and patted Gavin's arm, and said, "Relax, young man, it's only two blocks away, my old bones are not too rotten to walk, besides me, who else can walk?" Taking care of the baby in Madeline's belly? Now I just want to see that poor pregnant woman, and hope her legs won't be swollen like two white radishes."

"but……"

"I think Trish knows what she's doing," Pastor Carlodo stepped forward and said slowly, "Let Kane walk with you, and leave the heavy loads to the young people, and you should pay more attention to the road conditions and heavy rain. What needs help, just ask Kane to report back. What do you say? Kane."

"Of course," Kane nodded quickly, "Happy to help."

Trish stared at Gavin with wide eyes, and finally gave in reluctantly under the persuasion of the pastor and Bella.But before they left, Gavin repeatedly asked Kane to run back to the church immediately if there was any problem, and he and Pastor Carodo would dutifully keep watch all night.

"What a long-winded guy." Tracy babbled about Gavin's worries along the road, while supporting Bella to move.

The rain was too torrential, as if it was pouring down from a bucket, and it was almost impossible to see the direction in the dense rain, especially when the sky was dark and one could only act by impression and intuition.As soon as Esther stepped out of the church, she was drenched in the rain. The umbrella in her hand was just an ornament, and it didn't work at all.

It took the four of them twice as long as usual to find the gate of Madeline's house. The light brown door panel was somewhat peeled off, and it was slippery and shiny from the rain.Tracy raised her fist and knocked twice, the call was almost drowned in the heavy rain, and no one responded after waiting for half a minute.

"Madeline! It's me, Tracy! I brought everyone to see you!" She shook her wet short hair and roared loudly.

Kane squinted and looked in the window, but there was no light.

"Let me come." He turned the door lock twice without any movement, and simply stuck the Swiss knife he carried with him into the crack of the door, and pried the lock open in twos and twos to enter the house.

"Medline! Are you at home? I'm Tracy! I'm bringing everyone to see you!" Tracy walked into the living room in the dark. She was more familiar with Madeline's furniture than anyone else, and quickly found the candle lamp. The position of the station, "Madeline! If you are here, please respond! Madeline!"

"Did you go out?" Kane murmured suspiciously, and he was startled when he took out the flashlight from his backpack to light it up. "It's blood! Tracy! Bella! There's blood on the ground!" The light flicked back and forth to find trails of blood trailing down the stairs to the living room and kitchen.

"Medline!" Tracy snatched the flashlight in panic when she saw this, and hurriedly searched the house.

Esther felt chills all over her body, and the dazzling bright red burned her vision. She heard Tracy's anxious calls, and suddenly fear and anxiety filled the room. Kane also looked around nervously, and Bella was even more anxious. Out of breath, just as everyone was in shock, a flash of lightning flashed across the floor-to-ceiling windows, accompanied by Tracy's cry of collapse.

"Here she is! Madeline is here!"