NIGHTMARES OF THE WALKING DEAD

Seth lunges, but Gareth sidesteps with a jagged blade, slicing through the air inches from Seth's throat. The shed door is splintered open, revealing the dark, cramped interior where young Blake is bound. Seth roars, shifting his weight to drive his steel prosthetic into Gareth’s ribs.

Gareth stumbles backward, slamming into the rusted side of the shed. Miller emerges from the shadows, rifle leveled at the remaining raiders, but the ground suddenly tremors. A massive, forgotten support pillar at the edge of the quarry fractures under the weight of the rain-saturated earth. The hillside begins to slide, a wall of mud and shale threatening to bury the entire quarry floor.

Seth tackles Gareth away from the path of the slide, both men tumbling into the rising sludge. The quarry walls groan as the earth swallows the lower basin. Seth drags himself toward the higher ground, his steel hand clawing into the rain-slicked rock as the camp is erased by the landslide. They are forced to retreat toward the abandoned railyard bordering the north side, leaving the quarry to the shifting earth.

The mud churns beneath their boots, thick and suffocating. Seth lunges, but his footing betrays him in the slick mire. Gareth pivots, his shoulder driving hard into Seth's chest, knocking the breath from his lungs. The force sends them both sprawling into the dark slurry.

Gareth recovers faster, scrambling up to drive a boot into Seth’s ribs before the larger man can regain his balance. Seth parries the next strike, but his momentum is gone. He hits the ground hard, head snapping back against a buried rock. The world tilts, and the heavy thud of shifting earth echoes like thunder around them. Gareth looms over him, teeth bared, ready to end it, while Miller hesitates, clutching the shivering teenager near the edge of the collapsing ridge.

Seth channels his momentum, pivoting his hips to drive a fist into Gareth’s gut. The impact sounds like a wet thud against leather. Before Gareth can recover, Seth follows with a brutal hook to the jaw, snapping the man’s head back and sending him stumbling into the slurry.

Gareth spits blood into the mud, his eyes wild with rage. He lunges, but Seth is faster. He grabs Gareth by the collar, slamming him face-first into the churned earth, pinning him with his weight. Nearby, Miller hoists the dazed teenager, stumbling away from the crumbling ridge toward the rusted rail cars.