Chapter 93: Moving Out
They waited for over an hour and it was already twelve o’clock, exactly noon. Even when the sun was beating down harshly on the fuselage, the interior of the Globemaster remained still.
No one moved.
No one spoke.
Even breathing felt controlled.
Outside, the noise had changed.
Earlier, it had been constant. Clawing. Growling. Bodies slamming against metal without pause. It was chaotic, relentless, like a storm that wouldn’t break.
Now it was quieter but not completely, more like reduced.
Adrian stood near the side, watching through a small reinforced window. From his angle, he could see part of the runway, the ground smeared with blood and debris from their landing.
Zombies still lingered.
Dozens of them.
But they weren’t acting the same way anymore.
"They’re slowing down," Ryan said quietly, stepping beside him.
Adrian nodded once.
Outside, a few of the infected were still near the aircraft, their hands dragging along the surface, nails scraping weakly against the metal. Some stood still, heads twitching slightly as if trying to pick up something that wasn’t there anymore.
Others had already started drifting away.
"They lost interest," one of the operators muttered from behind.
"Not interest," Adrian said calmly. "Stimulus."
Ryan glanced at him.
Adrian kept his eyes on the outside.
"They respond to sound, movement, heat," he said. "We gave them all of that during landing. Now we’re not."
Ryan watched as one of the zombies slowly turned away from the aircraft, dragging its foot as it moved back toward the open space near the hangars.
"So they disperse," Ryan said.
"Some of them," Adrian replied.
Another minute passed.
Then another.
More of them began to drift off. The cluster that had formed around the aircraft started thinning out, gaps forming between individuals as they lost whatever drew them in.
A few still stayed close, pacing around, occasionally bumping into the fuselage or the landing gear.
But the frenzy was gone.
"That’s our window," Ryan said.
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
He watched longer.
Studying the pattern.
Making sure.
"No sudden movements," Adrian said after a moment. "No noise until we’re ready."
Ryan nodded.
Behind them, the team remained in position, weapons ready but lowered, fingers off triggers.
Waiting.
"Give it a few more minutes," Adrian added.
Another thirty minutes later, the zombies lost interest.
What remained around the aircraft was no longer a threat in numbers, only in proximity. A handful still lingered near the landing gear, moving slowly, almost aimless now. The rest had drifted off into the wider expanse of the base, disappearing between hangars, vehicles, and broken structures.
The runway, which had been flooded earlier, was now mostly clear.
Ryan exhaled quietly.
"That’s the best we’re going to get," he said.
Adrian kept watching for a few more seconds.
Making sure nothing surged back.
Making sure no sudden movement triggered another wave.
There was none.
He nodded once.
"Alright," he said. "We move."
The shift inside the aircraft was immediate but controlled.
Operators tightened their grips on their rifles. Slings were adjusted. Helmets checked. Radios secured.
Ryan stepped forward slightly, turning to face the team.
"Okay, we are going to use the vehicle here to get to our primary location," Ryan continued, keeping his voice low but clear.
He turned slightly and pointed toward the rear of the cargo bay where the vehicles were secured.
"We roll out in the JLTV first," he said. "Fast, low profile compared to the rest. Stryker follows if needed, Cougar stays as fallback if things get heavy."
One of the operators nodded.
"Route?" he asked.
Ryan glanced at Adrian.
Adrian stepped in.
"Main road leading out of the runway, then cut through the internal service road," he said. "We avoid open areas as much as possible. No unnecessary exposure."
He pointed forward, visualizing it for them.
"Primary objective is Seoul National University Hospital. We don’t stop unless we have to. If the path is blocked, we reroute, not engage."
Another operator spoke.
"And if we get swarmed?"
"Push through," Ryan answered immediately. "We don’t get pinned here."
Ryan looked back toward the ramp.
"Alright. Move quiet until engines start," he said. "Once we commit, we commit fast."
Adrian turned to the crew chief.
"Open it."
The crew chief signaled again.
Hydraulics engaged.
The ramp lowered slowly, controlled, careful not to create unnecessary noise.
Light spilled in first.
Then heat.
The outside world came into full view again.
The ramp touched down.
Ryan stepped forward, rifle up, scanning.
The runway stretched out ahead, scattered with remains from the landing. The air shimmered from the heat rising off the concrete. In the distance, a few infected still moved.
"Clear," he said quietly.
The first two operators moved out, spreading slightly to secure the immediate area around the ramp.
Adrian followed, stepping onto the runway.
The heat hit him harder now.
But he ignored it.
His eyes stayed forward.
Ryan gestured toward the JLTV.
"Get it ready," he said.
Two operators moved quickly, breaking off toward the vehicle. They unfastened the restraints, working in sync, keeping movements controlled.
Chains came loose.
Locks released.
The JLTV shifted slightly as it was freed.
"Easy," one of them muttered.
They guided it carefully down the ramp.
The tires hit the concrete with a solid thud.
One of them climbed into the driver’s seat immediately, the other taking the passenger side, weapon resting but ready.
Ryan turned back to the rest.
"Mount up," he said.
The team moved without hesitation, filing into position.
Adrian took one last look at the Globemaster behind them, making sure that all personnel were accounted for, the operators and the crews of the aircraft. Once there was no one left inside, Adrian gave a final nod and went to the JLTV Oshkosh and boarded.
"Move out."
The JLTV rolled forward first, its engine growling low but controlled as it cleared the ramp. The tires crushed over dried blood and debris left from the landing, leaving dark tracks across the already scarred runway, followed by Cougar MRAP, and then the Stryker.