The morning was packed with entertainment between actor performances, attractions, shuttle rides and rollercoasters everywhere. After eating some sandwiches we planned our afternoon to see the remaining park areas and revisit our favourite rides. You know how it is with these places - you've got to make the most of your ticket!
Since there was a concert at 9:00pm, by 8:30pm we went to secure spots. The performance was truly brilliant and I thoroughly enjoyed it, but... afterwards when we tried to revisit some attractions, we began noticing people acting strangely: some seemed vacant, others jumped out at you unexpectedly... when we tried to leave, the park gates were locked. There was no way out.
Searching for an open exit we reached the suppliers' area near a van with some disturbing-looking individuals. But I didn't pay them much attention. After a full day I was exhausted and just wanted to get home.
Then rumours started spreading: there was a zombie infection. At first I thought it was a joke, but when I saw groups of people running I had to take it seriously.
We fled from the approaching crowd until we encountered someone in a hazmat suit straight out of a sci-fi film, giving instructions: we needed to collect 5 items for a survival kit to escape alive. The worst part? These items were scattered across the park, with zombies guarding some locations. What could we do?
Apparently the van guys had released a mutant biological agent and were threatening to unleash it in the city centre unless the government paid a hefty ransom within 24 hours.
Gradually we moved through areas that just hours earlier had been full of laughter... now replaced by panicked screams, people running, and beings (if you could call them that) with one sole purpose: to infect us all and finish us off.
By 2:00am we were disoriented - everything was dark and torches barely illuminated some areas. But we had to stay calm. We'd collected 3 kit items with 2 remaining if we wanted to leave as humans rather than hungry zombies.
Suddenly screams erupted. The palpable chaos and uncertainty made our hearts race, signalling impending doom. A massive crowd came fleeing toward us - pursued by a zombie horde.
We bolted like bats out of hell - running without looking back. I spotted an alley to the right, signaled my friends to follow, but when I felt safe I realised I was completely alone. Peering out, I saw my group had been overtaken by the undead. There was no saving them now.
By 4:00am I was exhausted. Only one item remained and I had to negotiate with an infected who thankfully hadn't fully transformed. I couldn't stop staring: his blood-soaked clothes, face skin barely attached, vacant red-eyed stare... he couldn't have been over 23, now about to become human wreckage - a flesh-craving zombie.
I convinced him to hand it over and ran so fast my legs might detach - someone was chasing me. A terrifying voice gibbered incomprehensibly just metres behind. I just wanted this nightmare to end.
Panting and breathless, I reached the park organisers' survivor camp. At 5:00am, I'd emerged unscathed from that horror.
