Zombie Train

The mutated creatures charged toward the train station. Shao Ming couldn't understand why some mutants attracted others while others didn't. But clearly, this wasn't the time to dwell on such questions.

He crouched down, bracing the rifle butt firmly against his shoulder. Taking a deep breath, he steadied his aim on the lead mutated creature's head. A few shots rang out, and the heads of several mutants exploded, their bodies falling to the ground.

Behind him, Feng Yusheng wasn't standing idly by. Although she couldn't use a gun, she was ready, holding her knife, watching their backs.

Shao Ming couldn't help but wonder about the "railway engineer" beside him. Maybe he was just a train enthusiast living his dream of driving a real train in the apocalypse?

As the mutated creatures kept coming, Shao Ming couldn't hold back any longer. "Are you even capable of this?" he shouted.

The train powered up, and the lights flickered on.

Lambert, the so-called engineer, shouted with excitement, "It's working! It's working, we can go!"

"Get in!" Shao Ming called out to Feng Yusheng.

Both of them jumped into the carriage and slammed the door shut.

Lambert twisted a control lever, released the brakes, and pushed another lever forward. To Shao Ming's surprise, the train slowly started moving forward.

The mutated creatures reached the front of the train, but before they could steady themselves, they were crushed under the massive weight of the locomotive, turning into a messy heap of flesh.

The Class 43 train had a wedge-shaped nose, perfect for plowing through the mutants, sweeping them aside.

Lambert didn't rush to accelerate. Instead, he let the train crawl forward at a slow pace, ensuring the mutants were flattened without too much blood splattering onto the windshield.

Shao Ming turned to look at Feng Yusheng, who was sitting in the passenger seat, her expression unreadable.

"What's wrong?" he asked in Chinese.

"Nothing," Feng Yusheng replied with a smile, casting a quick glance at Lambert standing by the controls. "Just not much to say right now."

"Alright..." Shao Ming replied uncertainly.

As the number of mutants ahead started to dwindle, Lambert gradually increased the speed of the train.

"I have a question," Shao Ming said, breaking the silence. "Where does this railway go?"

Lambert paused for a moment and then answered, "Normally, this route goes from Manchester to Birmingham."

"Birmingham?" Shao Ming said, confused. "But we're trying to get to Liverpool."

"Why would you want to go to Liverpool?" Lambert asked, surprised. "From what I know, Liverpool fell even earlier than Manchester."

Feng Yusheng spoke up, "We're looking for a ship."

Lambert stared at them, eyes wide with disbelief. "You're not thinking about...?" he trailed off, looking back and forth between them. "Oh, my God, you're not planning to float back to China or Japan, are you?"

"We're from China," Shao Ming replied.

"Sorry, sorry," Lambert said quickly. "Do you two have any sailing experience?"

Both Shao Ming and Feng Yusheng shook their heads.

"My God," Lambert exclaimed. "You Chinese are really adventurous, huh? Do you even know how to navigate the sea? Do you know the routes? What if you run into a storm?"

Seeing their blank expressions, Lambert knew immediately that they had no clue what they were doing. They were completely clueless.

The train veered around a bend, and the houses outside the window began to disappear.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Shao Ming asked.

Lambert thought for a moment and then said, "If you really want to go back to China, I have one suggestion: the China-Europe Railway Express."

"The China-Europe Railway Express?" Shao Ming said, as if struck by a sudden realization. Why hadn't he thought of that? Trains were safer and faster than cars.

"But there are still a lot of, uh, problems," Lambert continued. "For example, you need to know where the tracks switch so you don't get lost. And Russia uses a different gauge than Europe, so the trains will need to be adjusted. Of course, you'll also need a train driver."

Shao Ming glanced back at Feng Yusheng. She didn't seem to have any objections.

He turned back to Lambert. "Would you be willing to come with us to China?"

To his surprise, Lambert answered without hesitation, "I don't have any family, so sure, I'd be happy to. Besides, driving a train all the way from Britain to China, across the entire Eurasian continent? That sounds pretty cool."

Shao Ming raised an eyebrow. "Can I ask about your family?"

"I'm an orphan," Lambert replied, his voice growing soft. "I grew up in an orphanage right next to a railway line. Ever since I was a kid, I've dreamed of having my own train."

As Lambert spoke, Shao Ming could see the light in his eyes. He never expected someone to fulfill their life's dream in the middle of the apocalypse. It was a strange kind of optimism in the midst of all this destruction.

The train sped past a small station.

"Alright," Shao Ming said. "How will we know where to change tracks?"

"I'm familiar with all the tracks around here," Lambert answered. "It's part of my job to maintain and patrol this section. But once we get further out, we'll need to find maps at the stations."

"Just like that?" Shao Ming asked.

"Yeah, well, right now there's no power, so we can't control the switches from the control console. We'll have to do it manually, but there aren't that many places where the tracks need to be changed."

"What do you think?" Shao Ming turned to Feng Yusheng.

"I don't mind," Feng Yusheng said. "Trains are faster, and there aren't as many obstacles on the tracks."

"Then it's settled."

The train passed through a stretch of green fields, and ahead, a cluster of buildings appeared. The mutants inside the buildings must have heard the approaching train, as they immediately rushed toward it.

But, unfortunately for them, their frail bodies were no match for the train's power.

Around ten minutes later, the train passed through two stations and continued its journey out into the suburbs.

Lambert kept his eyes fixed on the tracks ahead, while Shao Ming and Feng Yusheng sat nearby, counting their remaining supplies.

The eight-car intercity train sped toward Birmingham, carrying the three of them further into an uncertain future.