It Stains the Sands Red

As the undead hordes ravaged Las Vegas, a desperate duo, Molly and Nick (together with their guns), navigated the desolate terrain in search of a glimmer of hope - a plane ride out of the country. Their route, however, was fraught with peril as they became mired in the sandy wasteland, leaving them vulnerable to the relentless onslaught of the reanimated dead. It was here that Molly and Nick's world began to unravel, trapped in their vehicle as a lone zombie closed in, its cold, calculating gaze fixed on its prey. Nick's futile attempts to dispatch the creature only served to prolong their torment, until they were forced to wait out the inevitable, praying for the undead beast to lose interest. But fate had other plans. The zombie vanished into the night, and Nick fell to his gruesome demise, leaving Molly alone to face the unforgiving desert landscape.

With nothing but her wits and a burning determination to reach safety, Molly set out on foot, pursued by the relentless Smalls - her moniker for the slow-moving yet persistent zombie. A chance encounter with an abandoned house offered fleeting respite from the horrors that lurked in every shadow, but it was only a temporary reprieve. The desert sun beat down upon her as she traversed the arid expanse, the undead pursuer doggedly maintaining its relentless pace.

Molly's resolute stride belied the turmoil brewing within - a web of deceit and betrayal that threatened to consume her. She had been using Nick all along, leveraging his trust to facilitate her escape from the ravaged city. But Smalls was always one step behind, its cold, calculating gaze fixed on its prey.

Just as it seemed that Molly's fortunes were about to take a turn for the better, a sandstorm of biblical proportions swept across the desert, reducing visibility to near zero and leaving her reeling. The world around her dissolved into chaos as she succumbed to the merciless forces of nature, only to awaken to find herself at the mercy of two strangers - Ted and Jason.

Their air-conditioned truck offered a fleeting respite from the unforgiving elements, but Molly's instincts screamed warning as she detected the telltale signs of deceit. The vehicle was not theirs, and the men were likely responsible for the gruesome fate that had befallen the previous owners. Yet, Ted's advances proved too alluring to resist, leaving her vulnerable to his depraved intentions.

Just as the darkness closed in around her, Smalls reappeared, its cold, calculating gaze fixed on its prey. In a stroke of cruel irony, it was Ted who met his maker at the hands of the relentless zombie, while Jason fled into the night, leaving Molly to pick up the shattered remnants of her life.

As Molly and Smalls press on, they establish a tentative truce, with the former stipulating certain boundaries - including no biting. The following evening, around a crackling campfire, Molly's past is revealed as she shares the heart-wrenching tale of her young son, Chase. In a poignant moment of connection, they craft makeshift telephones from tin cans, their voices carried away on whispers and promises. And though it seems like a lifetime ago, the last time Molly saw Chase, she clung to their connection by keeping her tin can phone close at hand - it remains nestled in her bag, a tangible link to the life she left behind.

The next morning brings a jarring interruption as they converge with a convoy of soldiers. In a desperate bid to protect Smalls, Molly feigns marital bliss, her ruse almost convincing until one soldier's errant shot bites her finger, sparking a harrowing sequence of events. As the infection spreads its dark tendrils, Molly seizes a large rock and performs an amputation with all the precision of a surgeon - a necessary evil to preserve her own life.

With Smalls' inflatable raft now carrying their supplies, Molly begins the arduous trek down the highway towards the airfield, her wounded finger bleeding profusely. When Smalls stumbles out of the raft, she's faced with an impossible choice: allow him to succumb to his injuries or put him out of his misery with a heavy rock. It's a decision that weighs heavily on her conscience as she takes his wallet and discovers the identity of this stranger who was once alive - a married man, just like her.

Molly's journey eventually leads her to Jimmy, Nick's friend, at the airfield. Initially, their encounter is marred by hostility, as Jimmy mistakes her for a threat and opens fire with his rifle. His paranoia stems from the chaos that has engulfed him: some of his companions have succumbed to the undead plague, now imprisoned in makeshift cages. But Molly's resolve remains unbroken, and she elects to remain behind rather than join Jimmy on his flight to Mexico.

With a heavy heart, she reaches out to her sister Ali, only to learn that Chase - the very reason for her quest - has been hiding in their home for days. The news sends Molly racing back to Las Vegas, determined to rescue her son from the clutches of the undead horde. Before setting off, however, she must first clear a path by dispatching a few zombies and liberating a convertible with the keys they've hidden on one of their victims - a grim necessity in the war for survival.

As Molly finally arrives in the desolate suburb where Chase resides, she's met with a haunting tableau of destruction and mayhem. The once-quaint streets now lie barren and still, punctuated only by the remnants of a chaotic struggle that has left its mark. The eerie silence is shattered as she approaches her destination, whereupon she discovers that Ali (character) and Blake have fallen victim to the relentless onslaught, their lifeless bodies a grim testament to the unforgiving nature of the new world.

Undeterred by the bleak surroundings, Molly's heart swells with determination as she ascends to the upper floors in search of her beloved Chase. Her relief is palpable when she finally finds him safe and unscathed, his eyes locked onto hers with a mix of gratitude and vulnerability. In a moment of tender intimacy, Molly vows to never again abandon Chase's side, promising to shield him from harm with every fiber of her being.

As they prepare to depart the ravaged homestead, their fragile tranquility is shattered by the sudden intrusion of several undead entities, their cold, calculating gazes fixed on the living. With an unyielding ferocity, Molly positions herself between Chase and the approaching horde, seizing a massive shovel as a makeshift weapon to clear a path through the mindless hordes. As the credits roll, the screen fades to black, the stark reality of their desperate struggle hanging in the balance.