Fear The Walking Dead, Survival Rule Of The Week:What if things go bad?
By Liam O'Leary
It’s great to have a plan in a zombie apocalypse, but, if there’s one thing either Walking Dead show has taught, it’s that things can very easily go bad.
If you’re truly thinking of having a plan ready for a zombie apocalypse, then, we need to address the elephant in the room: Even if you have a great plan, it can always go sideways on you.
In fact, I’m dedicating this week (And maybe even next week) to all the myriad ways things can go sideways on you. The possibilities of how things can go bad in the myriad scenarios peoples’ plans may revolve around are practically endless.
Of course, when discussing how things can go wrong, it’s probably best if I start at the earliest stage things can go wrong: Your attitude.
I’ve seen a fair number of people go around with the belief that a zombie apocalypse will be easy, and they’ll be this super badass killing zombies like they’re some kind of ninja.
There’s three things wrong with those ideas:
1) Easy does not exist in a zombie apocalypse. “Easy” is just a word.
2) Even if you have combat and/or weapons training, zombies can kill you with one bite, and will outnumber you 100 to 1 (At least). That kind of arrogance against those odds is begging for death.
3) Are you an actual ninja? If not, don’t convince yourself you will be. Fake ninjas make for good zombies.
Another early problem you can run into: Your team. Make sure the people you recruit are people who you can rely on. If you end up recruiting that selfish ass from work, how well do you think they’ll get along with everyone else? Remember, you’re going to have to survive with these people, maybe for a very long time; You can’t afford to have someone who’ll tear your group apart.
Now, for some more immediate ways things can go south on you…
Last week, I talked about avoiding the highway in a zombie apocalypse, and, I’m about to explain why.
I imagine many of you live not too far from a major city. If your city is like any of the major cities I’ve been around, then, traffic on the highways around it is a Goddamned nightmare (And that is sugar-coating it).
Well, imagine for a moment, the traffic you expect on a typical rush hour, complete with any and all noise that might go with it. Now, add zombies to that.
How safe would you feel stuck in your typical traffic jam, if there existed the real possibility that a mob of dozens (Maybe hundreds) of undead cannibals could descend upon you? You can’t really go anywhere once you’re caught up in the traffic, can you? So…how would you escape?
Worse still, what if the source of your traffic jam isn’t typical? What if, instead of some jerk failing to signal, the backup was caused by a zombie (Or maybe several) strolling onto the highway? What if someone turned into a zombie while driving? If they withstood the crash (Which, being a zombie, would be possible) and they attack the first responders…that traffic might never move!
Oh, and all those of you in Europe or Asia who might be laughing at those of us in North America from your famously efficient public transit systems, don’t think you’d get off so easily!
I can’t imagine that buses, trolleys, and trains in Europe or Asia never have crowds on them, and, in a zombie apocalypse, crowds are a big problem.
If you’re on a packed bus or a train car and someone turns…what are you going to do? Depending on where you are, will you even know what direction the zombie is relative to you? Furthermore, if you’re on a train…what if there are zombies (Or a panicking mob) waiting for you at the next stop? You’d best get comfortable, because I don’t think you’d be getting off that train any time soon.
Rest assured, mass transit will not be a preferred mode of transportation in a zombie apocalypse.
Of course, I’d be remiss if I left out another thing I told you to avoid last week: Cities.
Don’t get me wrong, cities will have a great deal of resources you can use, but, as we learned in Season One of Fear The Walking Dead, the numbers will overwhelm you.
Simply put, cities have lots of people, and, once zombies get into that population, that population will have lots of zombies. Do I need to elaborate further on how that will become a problem? If your plan involves going to a city, your plan has a major flaw in it.
Speaking of which, I almost forgot what might be the biggest wrench in a zombie apocalypse plan!
Most people, I imagine, if they have a plan, center around a place they’re familiar with, if it isn’t their home outright. But…what if the apocalypse hits when you’re not home? What if it hits when you’re in a city or country you’re unfamiliar with? Or, when you’re in a country whose language you don’t even speak?
What do you do, then? How do you survive?
You see, as I said at the beginning, “easy” doesn’t exist in a zombie apocalypse. To survive, you need to realize that things will go wrong for you at some point or another. In fact, you should expect that, not only will things go bad, but, that bad things will get worse. Only by accepting that there will always be the chance of things going awry for us will we be ready for it when it does.
Things can go bad in a zombie apocalypse, but, if you’re smart, tough, and quick thinking, you can survive.
This is why you follow…The Rules.
Next: Fear The Walking Dead, Survival Rule Of The Week: It's time for action!
And that’s our survival rule of the week!! Hopefully, it’ll help you give you that mental edge that will prove so crucial once the dead start eating everyone.
If you like this and want to find out more rules to survive the zombie apocalypse, why not pick up a copy of my book, The Rules: A Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse! You can get it on Kindle here and on iTunes here!