Chapter 22

Carl and Donut encounter a large encampment of elderly residents from a Wenatchee eldercare facility, along with four younger workers—Brandon, Chris, Yolanda, and Imani—who have been stranded in the dungeon. The group is trapped by a borough boss guarding the entrance to a spiral maze, with many of their companions already dead. Carl proposes a plan to level up and return to fight the boss together.

Carl and Donut discover an encampment of approximately 38 people at a drawbridge entrance to a round maze. Nearly all are elderly residents from an eldercare facility in Wenatchee, along with four staff workers: Brandon An and his brother Chris (both level 6), Yolanda Martinez (level 5), and Imani C (level 10 with multiple skull marks indicating kills). An older homeless woman named Agatha (level 2) also resides with them. Brandon explains that a fire at their facility forced an evacuation into the cold. When a dungeon entrance appeared in the street, Agatha's shopping cart transformed the stairs into a ramp, and she led residents downward. Brandon and Chris were trapped by the dungeon's forces and forced to descend with additional residents. Most of the cops and firefighters who entered the maze disappeared, presumed dead. The four workers have been managing the elderly residents, moving some to a safe room (a Waffle House from Alabama) about a mile away, but most residents remain immobile due to age and frailty despite the dungeon's healing properties. Yolanda reports that the small doors leading into the maze are impenetrable—arrows bounce off them and they're protected by some force. The only way through is the large gate, which triggers a lockdown. Many residents and the remaining law enforcement have been killed by something hunting in the maze over the past hours. Carl realizes the timing coincides with when Frank and Maggie were last seen, raising the possibility they or another group of crawlers may be responsible. Carl offers a plan: he and Donut will spend the day grinding and leveling up skills in nearby safe areas while the four workers do the same. After watching the next episode and resting, they will return together to fight the borough boss and secure passage down the stairs for the residents. Imani, speaking for the first time, questions how they will accomplish this, prompting Carl to indicate he has an idea but does not yet reveal it.