164 The Road Back to Cita Italia (1/2)

Day 6 – 10:11 AM – GSIS Road, Gardenia Valley Subdivision, Molino III, Bacoor City, Cavite

An asymmetrical convoy composing of different vehicles went travelling on this downward road. The arrangement of the vehicles was too unorganized that anyone a compulsive disorder would berate. Unfortunately, none of the people in the convoy wanted this either. When the acquisition of needed vehicles and supplies were finished, the leading military officers planned an arrangement that was symmetrical as possible to evenly distribute the firepower of the soldiers around the convoy. Another thing was to let the roving military vehicles have an easier way to respond to where their support was needed.

Unfortunately, the swarm of flies that came at a very crucial time destroyed everything. Many were killed and they lost a lot. Even the efforts and the sacrifice of the soldiers participated in the scouting and delay troops had gone in vain. They even had to abandon people behind and escape with their tails between their legs. Despite how lucky they were that the swarm of infected flies did not follow the escaped convoy and concentrated on the people left behind in the settlement, none of the people wanted to stop the vehicles until they reached the next destination.

Mark could hear the conversations in the radio and could not help but shake his head. The morale of the soldiers was too low. If it continued like this, they were even likely to die easily not to mention being able to protect the whole convoy. Losing a lot of their comrades in a swift and grotesque way gave them a blow that was hard to recover from. The only thing that was keeping everyone up was the hope that they would still reach the Bay City despite the setback they suffered.

After the convoy turned right behind the Wet and Dry Market, a constant metallic banging sound and the loud splash of water could be heard at the front. Looking at the creek filled with greenish water that ran at the right side of the road, they could see the broken fence and barriers along with vehicles and bodies that had just been thrown on the water. Apparently, the dump trucks at the front were pushing the vehicles and infected blocking the road unto the water.Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please clickfor visiting.

Constant gunshots could still be heard as there were infected everywhere. When the refugees looked at the creek, they could even see infected that were exposed too long to the dirty water that their skin started to show different disgusting appearances. There was even an infected with similar appearance to a Dozer but its bloated body looked sagged and was spewing murky water on its mouth instead of methane gas. These infected on the water tried to approach the vehicles but the creek was deep enough to deter them from doing so.

Leaving the small road behind the market, they finally reached the intersection of Molino Road and Molino Boulevard. It was the same road Mark and his group took before when they looked for Carlo. The fast food restaurant Carlo's family owned was on the north of the intersection just two blocks away.

With Mark said before that the intersection was blocked with a lot of vehicles, the two squad captains expected a large number of infected too. As they had seen a lot of congregation of infected due to the blocked roads, it was something for them to expect and considering that it was an intersection of two main roads, the number of infected should also be alarming. A thousand infected would still be within the expected range and as such, they readied all their highest caliber weapons.

Nevertheless, the soldiers that were prepared to battle a thousand infected and break through the blockades of vehicles were bewildered. What they only saw wandering around the blockade of vehicles were estimated at most, a hundred. What shocked them further was the number of skeletons and burned bodies that littered the middle of the road along with the scorched marks on the walls, windows and melted plastic residue on the structures on the road side. Even the vehicles at the northern part of the blockade had scorched marks on their bodies.

'Just what happened here?'

Everyone asked in their minds and even the refugees that witnessed the scene was not an exception.

The radio crackled with the sounds of confusion and doubt. The culprit of this scene however was disinclined to bother telling them and was busy in his vehicle teaching Mei how to operate a sniper rifle. After all, the road was already cleared with most of the infected, what did these people still want for asking those questions?

If it continued like this, they would get to Citta Italia without problems.

Unfortunately, an accident happened. Mark was also alarmed as he stared at the right side of the road with an incredulous expression.

The former farmland deprived of everything aside from the tall grass and shrubs was now a mushroom wonderland. The grass before had already wilted brown and the majority of the surface of the farmland was covered with Mycorrhiza. At the center of the farmland was a cluster of white agaricus mushrooms of unknown species about as tall as three meters. That was not the most horrifying thing however. Dangling under the wide caps of the mushrooms were finger thick webs. Trapped on the webs were bodies of different kinds of infected that had already started to rot.

Around the farm land, several infected was sluggishly roaming the area. These infected were the same as the ones the people of the city hall encountered before. The holes of their bodies sprouted white mushrooms especially their eyes, mouth, ears and nose while their skin was entwined with white web like roots.

One of these infected was by the roadside and rushed unto the closest van containing the refugees. The infected was immediately shot down by the soldiers and fell on the road. That van was lucky but not the passenger jeepney behind it. Shocked by the surreal sight beside the road, the driver did not manage to avoid the dead body that had fallen and ran over it. The body suddenly released a cloud of white spores that immediately surrounded the jeepney outside and inside due to jeepney being an open vehicle not sealed by tight windows.

The metal modifications done on the vehicle to secure the windows and doors might be able to stop the infected and the oversized flies but not the dust sized spores. The refugees at the back of the jeepney were not covered with the spores immediately and tried to open the door at the back but they were not able to in time. The vehicle that was supposed to keep them safe became their final prison.

Affected by the spores, the driver stepped on the gas without knowing and lost control of the jeepney. The vehicle crashed unto the power post at the roadside and due to the impact, the concrete power post cracked with the threat of crumbling and falling unto jeepney.

The white spores continued to spread out for a few seconds and the other vehicles avoided the white deadly spores. Luckily, the vehicles around the jeepney were sealed vans and the spores were not able to enter the tightly covered windows.

”Stop the vehicles. We'll check the jeepney that crashed.”

The Major's voice sounded from the radio issued to the drivers. The vehicles started to slow down but before they could stop, Mark who remained silent all the time finally spoke.

”There's no need for that. Continue driving unless you all wanted to die here.”

Mark's threat confused everyone.

”Alright, continue driving! You are… Mark right? What do you mean?”

The Major did not force his order anymore and asked for the reason.