Chapter 442: Julia Hughes
Chapter 442: Chapter 442: Julia Hughes
On the dust-blown road, Zoraida pressed her face against the car window, her expression full of curiosity as she gazed outside.
It had been a very, very long time since she had last ridden in a car.
Ever since Isabella Ramsey had brought her and her sister to Lornwood Base, she hadn’t once stepped outside its walls.
And now, she was finally going to be reunited with her sister, Naomi Summers...
"Reginald, thank you so much for your help back there," a man with a bandaged hand said to Reginald Sutton, who was at the wheel.
Their group had left the moment Lornwood Base lifted its lockdown this morning.
Their destination was Tomorrow Base.
However, with no gasoline, they had been forced to travel on foot.
They had encountered zombies constantly along the way. Just as they were being chased by a horde, a vehicle had sped up from behind, plowed right through the zombies, and taken them in.
"Don’t mention it. We’ll all be at the same base soon. It’s only right that we help each other."
Reginald Sutton was driving a minibus, which already carried a few Superpower Users. It was a tight squeeze, but there was enough room for everyone.
"Actually, if you’d gone just a little farther, you probably would have found a pickup vehicle. But there have been a lot more zombies out here lately."
Cordelia sat next to Zoraida.
Nina Jacobs had received a new mission from General Hughes and would be leaving the base for a few days.
Before she left, she’d had the two of them escort Zoraida and Lexy back to Tomorrow Base.
This was also for their own safety. After all, Lornwood Base was likely about to descend into total chaos.
"A pickup vehicle? From Tomorrow Base?"
Melody Morgan recognized Cordelia. As fellow Space Element Superpower Users, they had previously taken on side jobs together at the base, helping people transport supplies.
She hadn’t seen Cordelia in a long time. Now that Cordelia had returned, Melody felt that something about her seemed different.
"That’s right. They just can’t get too close to Lornwood Base, so it’s normal that most people don’t know about it," Cordelia replied.
Felix Finch had arranged for vehicles and drivers on all the roads leading to Tomorrow Base, for the sole purpose of helping survivors reach the base safely.
Just then, the minibus screeched to a halt. Several Mutated Zombies had appeared out of nowhere and were lunging at the vehicle!
"Mutated Zombies! Everyone, be careful!"
Chaos erupted inside the vehicle for a moment, but several Superpower Users reacted quickly, scrambling out and onto the roof.
Cordelia also took out her sniper rifle, opened one of the vehicle’s built-in firing ports, and started shooting.
Lately, she had spent all her time either with Nina Jacobs or practicing her aim. Her marksmanship had become impeccable.
Reginald Sutton leaped from the bus as well, directing several Flowing Light Daggers to cut down the zombies.
The daggers were a gift from Nina Jacobs before they departed. The nine skilled Superpower Users they’d just picked up were part of her arrangements, too.
Nina had used supplies to hire them from Lornwood Base.
The crisis was resolved quickly, but just as they thought they were clear, another horde of zombies appeared up ahead and to their left.
Cordelia was about to pull out the rocket launcher Nina Jacobs had given her, but she relaxed when she spotted another vehicle approaching in the distance.
"Who are those people?" someone asked in surprise.
A number of uniformed people were getting out of the vehicle and had already started killing the newly appeared zombie horde.
"They’re the escort team."
Reginald Sutton started the minibus again and drove toward them.
A flash of lightning blazed up ahead, followed by a sudden explosion.
A cluster of zombies was instantly blown away.
When a Wind Zombie leaped into the air, Silas Crowley tossed out another small cluster of Thunder Balls. They exploded in an instant, and the Wind Zombie fell to the ground with a low growl...
Reginald Sutton and a few other Superpower Users got out to help, and within twenty minutes, the entire horde was wiped out.
"So there really is an escort team? I thought the new base was just getting started and wouldn’t have anything like this," someone on the bus said in amazement.
As soon as they finished off the zombies, the team came over to check on them. They had Healers, first-aid kits, and water.
The feeling was surreal. It was something they had never experienced back at Lornwood Base.
It felt like they were being treated like human beings.
"I had a feeling it would be you guys."
Outside the bus, Silas Crowley grinned and bumped fists with Reginald Sutton.
"A lot of people should be coming out today. You could wait for them at Plaxen Crossroads," Reginald Sutton told Silas Crowley.
Lornwood Base had been a bloodbath for the past few days. The water distribution center was shut down, and even Superpower Users couldn’t get so much as a mouthful of water.
As a result, many people had begun to form groups in secret and set out for Tomorrow Base.
Silas Crowley had brought a team and two vehicles; it was obvious he was on a rescue mission.
"Got it. The road ahead should be mostly clear for you, but still be careful. It’s getting more and more dangerous out here."
Silas Crowley bid them farewell.
Meanwhile, Nina Jacobs was on another road, fighting off zombies.
In a nearby car, Arcadia White held her daughter close, trying to shield the girl from the sight of the zombies outside.
Julia Hughes, however, was clearly curious. She peeked through a crack in the window before looking up and asking:
"Mom, when I grow up, can I really become a Superpower User?"
She then pointed at Nina Jacobs outside the window.
"That lady is amazing. I wish I could be as powerful as her someday."
Arcadia White glanced out the window, silent for a moment before she spoke.
"Zombies are filthy and they stink. Julia won’t have to kill zombies. Do you like that powerful lady?"
"I do. There was another lady who used to play in the water with me, but Mom killed her. I think this new lady is pretty good, too," Julia Hughes replied.
"If Julia likes her, then Mom will find a way to make her stay with you forever. How does that sound?"
A sinister glint appeared in Arcadia White’s eyes.
’If only Nina Jacobs had called for reinforcements back then, Ambrose White wouldn’t have died. So, she decided, Nina Jacobs was also responsible for Ambrose’s death.’
"Really? I want her to stay with me, then I can go wherever I want."
Listening to the bright sound of her daughter’s voice, Arcadia White’s mood finally lifted a little.
She hugged her daughter and murmured:
"Julia, you’re all I have left in this world. You have to be okay."
Outside the car, Anselm Hughes had already ordered his men to start digging out Crystal Cores.
Their group of over seventy people had been constantly blocked by zombies on their journey. It was clear to everyone that the number of zombies in the Lornwood area was on the rise.
ROAR!
One of the group members, who had been scratched by a zombie, began to convulse violently in front of everyone, rapidly starting to turn.
Julia, who had just stepped out of the car, watched the scene with wide eyes.
His flesh began to tear and peel away from his body before a Gold Element Superpower User standing nearby put an end to it by piercing straight through his head.
"Julia, didn’t I tell you to stay in the car?"
Arcadia White hurried over in a panic, followed by Nina Jacobs and Wayne Warner.
"Mom, the way he was turning was so interesting."
Julia Hughes, however, just pointed at the corpse on the ground and giggled.
Seeing her daughter wasn’t frightened, Arcadia White said no more.
She turned to Nina Jacobs.
"Julia gets so bored in the car by herself, and she specifically asked for you to keep her company. For the rest of the journey, you and Wayne Warner can ride with us."
’She wants *me* to keep her company?’
Though Nina Jacobs was suspicious, she agreed.
General Hughes and Arcadia White were apparently in the middle of a cold war, so the car only contained a driver and the mother-daughter pair.
It wasn’t crowded, even with Nina Jacobs and Wayne Warner getting in.
"Miss, can you use your Superpower to make little animals? There was a lady named Naomi Summers who used to make water dolphins for me."
In the car, Julia Hughes looked up at Nina Jacobs, who was now sitting beside her.