20

Straight out of the barn you run, digging your feet into the earth and running away like there's no tomorrow (because there might not be). From behind, you hear a stampede of dead legs kicking the ground. You hit the tall reeds of the corn stalk, cutting them like a dagger. The zombies' wail constantly propels you forward, but the field's resistance strains your body.

Nothing will slow you down and your great speed and agility are enough to keep you ahead of the pack. The field tear can be heard around like an animated dead blow in the tall plants. Your heart is pounding and your legs are throbbing with stress, but the field seems to open up as you walk across it. At any moment, you expect hands to touch your back. In every case, you think of the pain Emma will endure when she learns how you died - in a field, attacked by a dozen ravenous zombies.

You broke through the end of the field and hit the paved road. Quickly, you turn back and see the great swarm moving as it unfolds huge patches of corn stalks, like a shock wave traveling in slow motion. The howl cuts through his chest, as if the sound carries a great weight. The zombies are far from the barn, so you run down the paved road a short distance away and hide behind a bunch of uprooted dead trees.

The zombies race out onto the field, some toppling over with the raw momentum of the pack's movement, and the rest continuing in a direct direction. They scatter around the area, looking for you, arms flailing wildly. The package runs away from you. For several minutes you watch as they continue in vain behind you, leaving the field and barn in the distance.

You circle back down a dirt road, checking every now and then in all directions for any sign of the undead. After a five-minute run, you finally make it back to your teammates.

You head to the barn and see Dave outside, standing guard.