Helen Cullen

"*But watching over them here with the cameras - being their guardian angel. That - that's something that makes me feel like I have a purpose. I sit here and I worry for every single one of them when I watch these. And it pains me to see things go badly.*"
—Helen to Felix Quarterman[src]

Helen Cullen is a main character and a survivor of the outbreak in Route to Paradise.

## **Pre-Apocalypse**

Helen worked as one of the managers at Willamette Parkview Mall. She had worked alongside Felix Quarterman for at least 6 years prior to the outbreak, and most likely was working for even longer before that.

## **Post-Apocalypse**

### **Season 1**

#### **"Welcome to Paradise"**

In the security room of Willamette Mall, Helen drinks a coffee as she discusses the financial situation of the mall with Felix Quarterman. Felix has had enough of the board complaining about the revenue and no longer wants to discuss. He calls in his assistant and gets her to fetch him a beer. He then points at the one of the monitors and notices Skittles the Clown working in the Wonderland Plaza. Helen tries to tell Felix that there are more important things than a clown, but Felix ignores her and gets his assistant to bring the clown up to the security room. Helen has enough of him, and goes to sit down. When Skittles comes up to the office, Felix fires him on the spot without question. After the clown curses at him and leaves, Helen angrily tells Felix that he handled that in the worst way.

Later on, during the massacre in the Entrance Plaza, Helen yells from the second floor for everyone to get up to the security room. As the survivors scramble up the stairs, Helen points them in the direction of the security room, ushering everybody inside.

Back inside the security room, Felix sees what's going on and demands to know what Helen is doing. Helen tells Felix and everybody else to shut up as she tries to understand what's going on in the Entrance Plaza. As Helen and everybody are deciding what they should do next, another two survivors bang and the door and are let in by Clayton Freeman. Helen once again addresses all of the survivors and says that everybody needs to remain calm. She looks to Jacob Feldman for an explanation about how the zombies got into the building, and is told that a woman let them inside. Helen then looks around the room and briefly explains to everybody where all the waiting rooms are. She walks into the office, Felix following her.

There, Felix complains to Helen about letting all of the survivors inside. Helen tells him off for being nothing but a problem. Felix quips back by saying that letting those people into the security room is a problem. Both of their attention then turns to the television as an emergency broadcast announcement pops up before the signal abruptly cuts.

Helen goes back out into the main hallway where she meets with Jacob officially. She tells him that the mall is quickly becoming filled with zombies. She asks Jacob what it was like down in the Entrance Plaza. He tells her about the chaos - people being killed left and right. Helen apologizes for Felix being a nuisance, then explains to Jacob that there are still survivors out in the mall that need saving. Felix suddenly comes walking out, saying that he's going up to the roof to try and fix the signal. Jacob points to a vent and questions if they're able to get in and out of the security room through there. Felix explains that what's on the other side of the vent isn't safe. Jacob looks to Helen and asks more about the mall. Helen tells him that that Paradise Plaza is the plaza that they need to travel through to get anywhere - and that it's most likely the most crowded one, due to the fact Clyde Rollins was in the movie theatre this day. However, Helen warns them not to leave the security room unless they have a plan.

Helen waits in the main hall until Jacob and William Reynes return from scouting out the plaza. They want to assemble a team to go out into the mall, and Helen remarks that some of the survivors here will likely be willing to go with them. William goes to gather a team, but comes back by himself, saying that the others have already gotten drunk and are fighting. Helen sighs and says she'll deal with them. After Jacob leaves with William and Felix, Alex Weiss and Randy Wheeler stumble out into hallway brutally fighting each other. Helen rushes over and manages to separate them, but only for a minute. The two go back to fighting each other, and during the fight, Randy is stabbed in the gut by Alex. Helen jumps into action and attacks Alex, knocking him to the floor by hitting his head off the wall. She turns to Randy and helps him up, bringing him into the waiting room to be treated by Owen Gliefield.

#### **"The Lost Companion"**

In the waiting room, Owen treats Randy while Helen stands nearby, informing Owen about a first aid kit in the cupboard, before leaving the room.

Out in the main hall, William returns with Clyde Rollins. Helen immediately notices that he is without Jacob and Felix, and asks him about it. William informs her that Felix was taken by a clown. Instantly, Helen knows who the clown is, and she knows why he was taken. William then learns about what happened between Alex and Randy, and goes into the waiting room to check on Randy himself. Helen goes into her office, where she scans through all the cameras until she notices something.

She quickly enters the waiting room where everybody is and tells them that she saw Jacob and Clayton trapped in Al Fresca Plaza. William and Quentin Richards step up to go out and rescue them. Helen follows them out into the main hallway, where she explains to them that she got the radio system working. She hands William one of the radios and says that she'll be here if they need anything. Before the two men leave, Helen gives them the rundown of the path they'll take to get to where Jacob and Clayton are. Once they get them, Helen will open up the shutters to the Entrance Plaza to allow them to safely make it back to the security room.

Helen makes her first contact through the radio to William after some time, asking them what's going on. William replies to her that they found another survivor named Edward. Helen tells them to bring him back when they can. She then tells William not to go through Leisure Park, as she's seen a jeep speeding around killing innocent people. Helen then opens up the shutters to the Entrance Plaza as an alternative path and tells them to hurry.

Back in the office, Helen is scanning through the cameras in the security room when she notices Alex is missing. Panicked, she sprints into the waiting room, where she finds Alex standing next to a wounded Randy. She orders that Alex go back to the other room, but Alex refuses to do so, instead grabbing Randy and placing a knife to his throat. During all the yelling back and forth, Alex finally has enough, and stabs Randy with the knife. Helen rushes forward and tackles Alex. Alex fights back, and manages to escape the room. Helen runs after him and finds him climbing up the vent. She attempts to pull Alex back down, going as far as to stab him in the leg, but she's kicked back into the wall. As she gets up, Alex is already gone.

Helen reenters the waiting room to discover the grisly sight of Randy's corpse. Owen, frightened, stutters as he explains to Helen that Randy came back as a zombie and attacked him. Helen, not knowing what to say, goes back to her office to continue helping those out in the mall.

She radios William to tell him about Randy's demise, and says that they should get back to the security room as quickly as they can.

When William returns with everyone, she explains in more detail what happened with Randy and Alex. She then asks them if they made any progress with finding out where Felix is. Helen's told that they think Felix was taken to the Wonderland Arcade, but they weren't able to get to him because of a man who shot at them, hitting Clayton in the shoulder. Helen acknowledges all of this, and says that they should rest up in the waiting room. She then walks back into her office, a frown on her face.

Jacob enters the office later on, asking Helen if she can look around cameras for a woman that Jacob and Clayton were with. As Helen looks through them, Jacob suddenly stops her and points at one of the cameras. They both look in shock as they see Skittles the Clown carrying somebody over his shoulders in the Wonderland Arcade.

#### **"The Scary Thing About Clowns"**

Helen strolls into the waiting room, taking note of how relaxed Clyde is. She then turns to the others with a serious look and asks if any of them are willing to go down into Wonderland Plaza to see what's going on. Jacob and William are in. Helen thanks them for going out there and tells them to bring back Felix if they find him.

Later on, William radios Helen checking to see if she can open the Wonderland shutters. Helen is able to do so. She warns them all to be careful before cutting off.

Some time later, William radios Helen again, asking for a way out of the Wonderland Plaza. Helen looks around on the cameras and says that they need to either fight through the horde of zombies or retreat into the North Plaza. Suddenly, Helen hears Felix's voice coming over the radio asking to send more people to rescue them. Helen doesn't agree to it, knowing that it'd put more lives in danger. She suggests that they fall back to the North Plaza where there's a trader in the supermarket.

#### **"An Unusual Team"**

Helen enters the waiting room, informing the survivors sitting around that they may be needed for a mission soon. She leaves and comes back soon after with some information about a trapped group of survivors, Jacob among them. Quentin looks up and tells her about a man that he wants to save - Edward. Helen says that one of the men trapped has a cane, and could be Edward, who had previously had his leg injured badly. Quentin thinks it may be him, and agrees to go out and try to rescue them. Clayton agrees to tag along, now feeling better from his gunshot wound. Helen briefly goes through the plan, and says that they need to be careful.

#### **"Buddy"**

Helen rushes into the waiting room, where she looks on at William bleeding out on the couch being treated by Owen. Randall Forster, while catching his breath, mutters out that William was shot and Quentin was killed by a group of snipers. After hearing this, Helen urgently goes around the room gathering the medical supplies that Owen requests for. Afterwards, Helen sees Felix entering the room. She kneels down next to William, who can hardly speak, thanking him for bringing back Felix. She then asks about Jacob, and is told by William that he went off with another girl. Helen stands up, thanking William once more before sitting back and letting Owen continue his work.

Later on, while Helen is in the waiting room with the others, Clyde enters and proposes an idea of how they can defeat the snipers. Clyde shows them all a key he has that opens up a locker with guns and ammunition. Helen, now interested in his idea, questions him about where the locker is. Clyde elaborates further and eventually agrees to go with Helen to get the guns. As Felix enters the room and figures out about Helen heading out, she puts him in charge of the security room while she's gone. Felix states that he won't let her down.

Helen and Clyde exit into the main hallway where they're stopped by Albert Hanson, who wants to tag along with them to retrieve the guns. Helen is happy to have another person with them. The three of them then climb through the vents onto the roof, where they quickly make their way over to the elevator and down into the storage room. As they're walking through, Helen and the others run into Robert Morgan, a man with a nasty cough, but says that it's just the flu. Helen introduces herself and the other two, and tells him about the snipers in the Entrance Plaza. Robert already knows about the snipers, explaining that they killed his sister and his two friends. After hearing this, Helen can't help but ask Robert if he wants to join them and assist in taking them down. Robert is all for it. The group of four head into Paradise Plaza.

Using her knife, Helen takes down a couple walkers as the group push towards Colby's Movieland. Once they make it there, Clyde begins searching for the locker - however once he finds it, he realizes the key is lost. Helen curses in anger at Clyde. Luckily, Robert, an electrician has an idea of how to break into the locker. Helen and the others cover him as he crafts a device that begins melting the lock off. Eventually, the lock falls off and the group are able to retrieve the pistols. Helen sincerely thanks Robert before they begin making way back to the security room.

Helen and the others make it all the way up to the roof, where Helen catches a dizzy Robert from falling off. She tells him to take it easy as they climb back down the vents. In the security room, Felix is angered to see Helen back with another person: Robert. Helen is able to calm him down a bit by showing him the guns they collected. She enters the waiting room, where she hands out pistols to Albert and Randall. They were the only three able to go out and fight the snipers. When the three of them are ready, they exit into the Entrance Plaza.

The three of them quickly dash for cover in the plaza. As they sit there waiting for the moment to shoot, Helen is suddenly shot in the arm by one of the snipers. She yells as she falls further back into cover, holding her wound but assuring the others that she was alright. As they wait in cover, they suddenly hear Edward yelling from across the plaza, then see Jacob and a few others rushing into the plaza, fighting off the snipers. Randall is able to make his way over to Helen during the chaos and escorts her back into the security room.

In the security room, Helen has her arm patched up by Owen while Felix stands nearby, worried about Helen. Felix tells her that he's grateful that she wanted Felix back safely. All Helen wants is for Felix to incorporate himself into the group, and tells him that he's a good person on the inside, he just needs to put it on display more.

#### **"Guardian Angel"**

The following morning, Helen enters the waiting room and says to everybody that they need to return the guns that were stolen from the North Plaza. Not everybody is onboard with that, but Helen insists that the right thing to do is to return the weapons. Looking for help, Helen turns to Dean Howards, who was present when the guns were stolen from the North Plaza. Dean, drunk and fumbling with his words, says that they should return the guns. Helen then stands up and asks William if the survivors in the North Plaza are good, to which William says they are. "Then it's settled." Helen says, stating that they'll return the guns. She tells the group to elect a leader that'll be in charge of holding the radio while they're out there. Helen is upset to see that Clyde was selected as the leader, but hands him the radio anyway.

After some time, Helen radios Clyde to check if everything was going alright. Clyde gives her the good news that everything has gone perfect and the guns were returned. Happy that all went well, she then suggests that the group see if they can do anything for the North Plaza survivors to earn some guns.

Later, Helen radios back, asking Clyde if they traded anything for some guns yet. Dean is reluctant to hand over his liquor for some guns, but eventually Clyde and the others convince him.

Back in the office, Helen is watching over the cameras. Felix, sitting in a chair nearby, asks Helen if she enjoys being the mother of the group, explaining to her that the group would fall apart if it weren't for her. Helen shrugs it off as her just doing her job. Felix doesn't believe that, telling her that this isn't her job, she doesn't need to take care of anybody. Helen says that she feels it's her duty to watch over everybody, and that she wouldn't feel right if she did nothing. Felix stands up, saying that he's going to get some rest and that he'll take over the cameras in a couple hours.

Some time later, Helen radios back to Clyde, telling him to hurry up and get back. Clyde is happy to inform her that they're on their way back now. Helen is happy to hear this and is about to tell them something else before banging is heard over the radio. The radio then cuts off. In the office, Helen grabs her knife and approaches the office door where the banging is coming from. As she opens it, she's relieved but also frightened to see nobody there. Suddenly, Skittles the Clown appears and kicks Helen to the ground, rushing in with a chainsaw. Helen desperately fights him off, punching and kicking him. Skittles is able to overpower her though, slicing her shoulder and her leg slightly with the chainsaw. In a last ditch effort, she stabs Skittles in the hand with her knife and shoves him into the wall, causing him to drop his chainsaw. Furious, Skittles grabs Helen and pushes her down, beginning to gouge her eyes out with his bare hands. Helen screams in pain, sitting on the floor helplessly. Skittles then picks up his chainsaw and cuts Helen's head off, killing her.

Later, Helen's gruesome corpse is found by William, Jacob, and Clayton.

#### **"The Last Laugh"**

On the roof of the mall, Helen is put to rest, her body being covered by a sheet and eventually burned.

## **Death**

Killed by
* Skittles the Clown

A bitter Skittles the Clown, furious at Felix for firing him before the outbreak, breaks into the security room where he attacks Helen with his chainsaw. Helen fights back, but ultimately is no match for Skittles, and has her eyes gouged out before her head is cut off with a chainsaw.

## **Appearances**

Any episode with a checkmark over it signifies Helen Cullen appearing in any way.