"From what we've heard from other travelers, and what we've spotted using predator drones, alot of it seems to match up with things in our popular culture. Gary Gygax, George Romero, Bruce Campbell and all that. We really should open a cinema, actually. While we've never faced the living dead or other monsters in battle, alot of thought has gone into how it could and would be done, and I'm confident of our success."

Drexler props his elbows on his desk and steeples his fingers, grinning evilly.

"As for technology, I'll leave the bulk of the explanations to Corporal Hagan, but I will say this: Corporal, We Have Nukes. We have 'em, and we'll use 'em if we have to, along with anything else we have, or can make, or can convince the university to make."

"'State of the badass art' Sir."

Ray's grin is worrisome, even to people who routinely deal with reanimated corpses.

"I hope you are right," Sam replies, then after thinking it over for a moment. "What is a cinema?"

"A cinema, if I'm not wrong, is a place where cats do gladiatorial battle. You really must make more assumptions, Max."

Ray ignores the gomers. He salutes the General smartly, being under arms, and turns on his heel to leave.

Outside he gets on his radio and calls the checkpoint.

"Sarge, I've been given gomer-herding duty. I don't kn-"

"I was just informed, Ray. Have fun with it, you can tell us all about it later."

Ray proceeds out of the command building, with gomers in tow.

When the group returns, they will discover Lenore having a staring contest with the horse. The horse is trying desperately to lose, but Lenore's grip on its reins prevent it from doing so.

Ray stomps over, puts his fingers in his mouth, and whistles sharply.

"Leave the glue factory alone!"

He then turns to the private, sizes him up, and waves a hand.

"Good job, Kowalski. Get the hell out of here."

"I think one of them's gonna wanna brush their teeth after this," Sam laughs, seeing the zed has chewed her way up the reins to the horse's face. Spotting the very nervous Private, "At least she didn't chew on anything that might spoil her appetite."

Sam retrieves what remains of the reins from the zombie, and casts a quick spell to repair them before hopping up into the saddle.

Ray's radio crackles to life.

"Corporal Hagan, get the locals to the airfield. Eye in the sky says the bad guys are handing the friendlies their asses on a platter. We need to get the gomers back to the front pronto. There's a Huey waiting for you."

At almost the same moment, Sam, Kajin, Tom, Lenore, and Sara hear a whisper, carried on the wind by magic.

"They're breaking through."

It's a twelve hour ride by horse back to the front, or a five minute flight by 'chopper.

"'Chopper' it is, then." says Tom to the Narrator.

"Copy that."

Ray turns to the gomers.

"This way. Leave the horse; take the zombie."

The blades on the Huey are already spooling up by the time the party arrives. They are met on the tarmac by a sergeant in a flight suit, who ushers them onboard, and hands out headsets.

"The mikes are voice activated, so just speak normally. Ray, you have the starboard door gun."

Sam takes a headset, and attempts to put it on his head the way the others seem to be wearing them. He'll take a seat nearest the door, waiting patiently.

Ray whoops and snaps himself into the door gunner's harness.

The helicopter lifts off and begins to beat it's way towards the pass. About three minutes in, however, everyone's headset crackles to life as the pilot speaks.

"We have what looks like a fortified farmhouse under attack below us. You want me to circle around?"