Domingo told me that sunrise is coming and that this would be the best time to start heading out, just before the breeze shifts as the sun comes up. The undead will smell our scent and will follow the concentrated smell here in the gas station.
"No more resting until we get to the settlement, huh." I said
"Don't worry, after we get to the tunnel entrance we should be able to rest if we need. Until we get there though that means we have to continue non-stop." Domingo said.
Looks to me that another day of hearing Domingo speak is another day of hearing new information.
It's good to hear that the settlement has a way of mitigating attacks while entering and exiting. I'm relieved to hear the solution was as simple as a tunnel.
"Yeah, it's an abandoned railroad system. It makes good use of the metro that was inside New York" Domingo said.
"So, do all the settlements connect to this system?" I asked.
"Well, there are a few large settlements and a few smaller ones that we consider to be camps. The large settlements have enough people to expand their area to include this railroad system." Domingo said.
Domingo grabbed the sleeping bag I left in front me and stashed it a few feet away. I heard him step and cause something to creak, it then followed a slow creak and a small bang.
"Let's get moving out. It's time for the rope again, right?" I asked.
"Yeah, don't worry I'll make sure not to tug it as much as I did when we met. We were in a hurry and couldn't wait to get a good knot on before." Domingo said.
"Well, tie it up around my belt. It's easier to walk and it keeps my hands free. You know, just in case something happens and I need to break free." I said.
Domingo sounded glad to hear that. He let out a small chuckle and wrapped the rope around a belt loop. Domingo then walked through the creaking entrance, this was assumed because the atmosphere change was drastic.
The inside of the gas station was rancid with the aroma of alcohol and oil, the temperate was slightly cold with a few gusts of wind. The outside was cold and carried the wind in full force. The smell was much more light and carried numerous aromas that could not be distinguished unless we went towards a source.
"It's good to smell the fresh air. When you're ready to make a dash please tug on the rope a few times. If you stop just tug on it once. We can go from there." I said.
Domingo acknowledged this by tugging the rope. We are setting out for the entrance of the settlement.
As we started walking Domingo would often tug on the rope to ask that we pause for a moment. It sounded to me that he was looking out for the undead because he never made any sounds besides tugging the rope once again to keep walking.
We crossed places that were open, nothing that caused us to pause, crouch, or slide through. Many times the smell of burnt objects would stuff my nose and during these times it felt like granulated rain would fall from above.
We didn't have much time to talk, nor did we have any safe place to stop and chat. We are sneaking by any undead and still running away from the horde that was close to killing me.
It seemed to have been hours of non-stop walking and short pauses with various smells of burnt objects.
Domingo tugged the rope, this time it was hard. He nearly knocked me down as I was not expecting him to pull to hard.
"We have to stop. We're not far but there's a horde coming from the library nearby." He said.
"Is it on fire?" I asked.
"No, the nearby police station is. We need to figure a way around it." He said.
Domingo's short pause allowed for the smell of burning objects to spread towards my nose. After he finished speaking the smell of copper blood ran through my body. It was dense and felt as if my body was being submerged in swamp water.
"Domingo, this smell is horrible. Let's just burn it down!" I said.
"We can probably do that, it might be best. If we can spread the fire and let nature do it's work then we can probably go around while they're busy being burned." Domingo said
"Good thinking, Tuesday".
"But, will we be able to sneak around and spread the fire?" I asked.
"Yeah, we can do it slowly. I see an opening around the station. It looks like these guys don't like being set on fire haha- they might have a sense of pain still." Domingo said.
Domingo tugged the rope and asked that we crouch. We walked slowly for a few minutes. The smell of fire began swelling and soon overwhelmed the smell of blood.
"Tuesday, I have a few bottles of alcohol. I can use this fire to set a few molotov cocktails towards the front of the library. I want you to get ready to dash when I tug on the rope." Domingo said.
"Ready when you are." I said.
Domingo rummaged around as glass banged around and the sound of tearing cloth was heard. I imagine he made these molotovs and lit them soon after because the feeling of fire was inches from my face.
As that fire reached to where I can feel it, I heard Domingo grunt and cause a large explosion. The undead must have been piled up near this explosion because groans whisked in and out of hearing. They were being burned.
"Now, this is definitely what I would expect a cook to use to fight against the undead." I told Domingo.
Today marks the day Domingo the undead crockpot was born, a good story to boast about at another time.