Realistic or Modern Patient Zero (A Zombie Survival RP)

[FireMaiden]

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Location: The Jordan Lodge
Interaction: The Mad Queen (Ralph)
Mentioned: Rumble Fish (Colt) Maj (Owen/Bethany) Togy (Nile) Brax (Tre) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) Corgi (Aubrey)
"Isn't that Colt's job? She's the trained military woman, you know. Kicking ass and taking names." Leliana threw a small karate chop threw the air as she said this, to emphasize her point. "She seems more qualified to judge us, no offense." He didn't seem to be listening though having already started explaining how to use the gun. Safety here, keep your hands there, yada yada yada. Leliana stood here with her arms light crossed, watching him. Who exactly was he explaining to anyway? Him, Leliana, Tre, and now Colt were the only ones out there. And she was fairly certain they all knew how to use a weapon. In any case, she neglected to point this out. Nile was inside, so was Aubrey, Beth, and Milly. And Leliana doubted Owen would make it down. And, she hadn't seen Micheal at all that morning, so...in any case, Ralph seemed to be having fun.

When he was done and handed it over, she cocked her eye slightly at his warning about the weight. It couldn't have been more than ten pounds. Then again, he had been injured and was still technically recovering. Anyway, Leliana stepped away from Ralph and whoever he was talking to, taking a stance out in front of the target in the tree. It had some bullet holes in it already, but they didn't have anything to replace it with, so Leliana was just going to have to take a mental note of the bullet holes already there. She raised the gun, the rifle butt pressed firmly against her shoulder, she lined up the shot and squeezed the trigger. Only to hear a click instead of a gunshot.

With a small scoff, Leliana lowered the rifle as she ejected the magazine. Like she expected it was empty, and so the nurse moved to the ammo bag. It must have been a nearly empty magazine before they started, but the fact nobody noticed a little weird. Anyway, she grabbed a new one, loaded the gun, and turned back to the target, resetting her position. Aiming once more, she took a deep breath and squeeze the trigger. Despite expecting the recoil, it messed with her aim slightly. Lowering the gun, her shots had landed in the upper left corner of the paper. But the grouping wasn't bad. "Dang it."

 

[Brax]

Did Colt not call for more people in the lodge to be out there shooting? Where was everyone? As far as he understood, only a handful of people were out on a run. Warren was not outside but that man was a pretty good shot in his own right. Besides, he didn’t listen to anybody, so it wasn’t exactly a surprise. Owen was injured, so those two were accounted for. Milly was too young, or anxious, either one was a pretty good excuse. There was no blonde, no fat man, no junkie, no other new girl whom he had seen maybe once… A lot of people were unaccounted for here.

Tre had been watching alongside both Colt and Ralph. As Leliana took a shot the boy raised his eyebrow. It hadn’t been a bad shot by any means, especially considering that this girl probably had been handling a gun at that size for the first time. There was a small bit of silence after Leliana voiced her disappointment. The young man placed a hand up to his mouth and cleared his throat before pointing at the target.

“Yeah, but I mean… One of them shots woulda hit, right?”

Of course, people weren’t as bulbous as the target was. Unless they were Michael-sized, in which case the likelihood of anyone not hitting a vital area would be slim-to-none. The good news was that the girl was not far off from consistently being able to hit the center of the paper. He allowed the girl to take her time handing it over before both hands took proper grip of the weapon. Subconsciously, he moved around his shoulders as to stretch his back before placing the butt of the gun into his shoulder. Tre closed an eye and took aim at the center of the target. The iron reticle slowly moved, paced even to his breathing. Once he thought he had it all lined up the young man took his shot.

The bullets pierced the paper right above the outer-line of the target, but a few inches away from Leliana’s own. In response, Tre sighed. The barrel of the gun was aimed down at the ground as he held it with one hand. His other was busy scratching at the top of his head as he analyzed the holes he had created. Tre had handled guns plenty of times in his life but he definitely did not practice shooting in his spare time. He preferred his machetes because he considered them far more accurate; he had learned how to manipulate them to the point where the blades moved as extensions of his own arms.

“Huh.” His hand moved to rub the back of his head before he took grasp of the rifle once more. The young man closed an eye, aimed down the reticle and held his breath. Then he shot again, resulting in the bullets piercing the outer ring of the target almost exactly in the same spot. He was almost positive that the reason he had missed his first shot was because he didn’t stop breathing. However, the results had been practically the same this time around. It was at this point that the teen grew agitated. Tre peered over to his smoking meat, before his eyes turned to look at Colt.

“Why the hell do we gotta do this anyway? I ain’t never gonna be a good shot like Luca or you. I’m just wastin’ my time doin’ this shit.” He handed the rifle back over to the woman who had over ten years his wisdom. Then he crossed his arms over his chest as he continued staring at the woman, waiting for her to answer him.

Interactions: FireMaiden Rumble Fish
In proximity: The Mad Queen

 

[Maj]

​

The walk up to her dorm room had been effortless. Her door was close to the exit which is how she preferred to be seated in most aspects of her life. Andy always found herself ensuring that she could make a quick get away if she wanted to. There was little she hated more than being trapped in a corner. On her journey up the staircase she had only encountered one of the dead things. It was a girl whose face she had recognized for living on her floor. The auburn hair that Andy remembered once being flawless and curled about her shoulders was matted with dark coagulated blood. Still oozing, the wound on her temple was likely from falling down the stairs. She had been abandoned here in the madness and now still dumbly stalked hall. Andy’s arrow echoed through the empty stairwell as she loosed it in the woman’s squishy skull. Lifeless, she slumped against the brick leaving a streak of burgundy as she slid down the wall.

Much like entering the building itself, the door to her room was locked until her ID badge was pressed against the sensor and it clicked open. When she enrolled, Andy had paid extra to avoid having a roommate, so there was no fear that there would be anyone else waiting for her inside. It was quickly apparent that this is where Andy spent most of her time. She had no reservations about making the space her own because no one else ever frequented the location. At the lodge, she had some trepidation about changing too much. While it belonged to her now, in spirit she felt the lodge would always belong to her Uncle.

The space was taken up by a loft bed above a computer desk. Her laptop was still open as she had left it weeks prior, text books strung about haphazardly across the desk’s smooth surface. Otherwise the room was relatively clean. A bookshelf was on the opposite wall filled with various books, comics and dvds. Some more decorative looking bottles were placed carefully across the top, all empty. Her clothes were all hung from the bar that was attached to her wall in neat fashion and her shoes lined up against the wall underneath. The walls that were covered with fading pastel blue paint were blocked mostly from view from sketches that were taped or pinned up. It always helped Andy to evaluate her work if she could view it from different angles.

You could learn a lot about Andy by looking around her room. The corners were filled with bows in need of repair and half crafted arrows. Looking at the sketches there were some familiar faces that stared back at her. Her mother’s soft smile, Owen’s mop of unruly red hair, classmates and barista’s that she knew. Andy often drew images that seemed to stick in her mind or that she got hung up on. It was a way to sort of cleanse herself of them. If she was able to put them on paper, she didn’t have to think about them any more. On the easel against the wall was a half finished painting, her brother’s worried face smeared with blood shone back, mostly painted in surrealistic water colors across the smooth stretched canvas. Andy had started it the night she had bumped into him in the alleyway, but the outbreak had happened before she had been able to finish it.

The girl found herself a little self conscious as she let Hector into the room, closing the door behind him. No one who mattered ever came here. Maybe the occasional one night stand but most of their encounters happened with the lights off. Andy chose to ignore the sensation, and instead busied herself with gathering up anything of use from her room. Arrowheads, ibuprofen, and a sketchpad with usable pages all were slipped into her bag. With a sigh, she slipped the bags off her shoulder and shrugged out of her ripped coat. It had gone through so much with her and no matter how much she tried to wash it, the lining was still stained with her blood. Andrea put the jacket in her bag and grabbed another leather jacket from one of the hangers and slipped it on.

Opening the minifridge, Andy grabbed what bottles of alcohol she had left. It wasn’t much, but between her and Colt it would stave off the withdrawals for a little while longer. A half empty bottle of iced crown royal, most of a bottle of tequila, and a few malt beverages were all that she had left, but she carefully placed them in her bag as well, hearing the clink of the glass as she did her best to put items between them to prevent them from breaking. Without pausing to get a lecture from Hector, Andy turned to her top dresser drawer and dug around through the garments that it contained until her hand found what it was looking for. She produced a plastic bag with obvious green vegetation inside.

Hector's gaze swept across the room and all in all, it was well within his expectations. His eye lingered a moment on the picture of Ms. Jordan (Mother) before the clink of glass on glass caught his attention.

The doctor indeed shook his head in disapproval but not in the way Andy was thinking. Ignoring the marijuana the woman pulled out, Hector set one of his own bags down and fished out several pages of blank paper, "Pass me the bottles. The clinking is going to get us killed." He commented, hand outstretched and waiting.

Andy obliged with a nod, taking a few of the bottles out of her bag and passing them to Hector. He was right, the swifter and more silent they could be the better their chances of survival were. Any huntress worth her salt knew the importance of stealth.

The large man proceeded to carefully wrap the glass and its alcoholic contents very carefully in several layers of paper. This prevented them from breaking and, more importantly, prevented them from making noise. He handed one of the finished bottles back to the red haired woman and absentmindedly looked up towards the works of art in her room. "I'm impressed. I never took you for an artist, Ms. Jordan. A skilled one at that. It seems you inherited your mother's talent for the arts." He said in a cool tone while he wrapped the second bottle.

“You must have known her well,” Andy said with a quizzical raise of her eyebrow. It made sense that he had met her mother since she and Hector worked at the same hospital. However, when Hector talked about her mother, it appeared to be with some sort of respect and admiration. Both things felt sort of out of place in Hector’s normally dry and condescending tone. Her mother’s skills as an artist were not well known. The blonde always assured people that she ‘just liked to doodle.’ If Hector knew about her mother’s talents that meant that he knew her better than just being meer coworkers.

"Mmm…" the man grunted. Neither of agreement nor disagreement. Dr. Salazar's body language changed somewhat into one of discomfort as he handed the second bottle to Andy and promptly lapsed into silence.

His actions told Andy all she needed to know. Between his faltering here and his desire to go back for her mother’s body, it was clear to Andy that Hector felt some sort of way about her Mother. The idea was foreign to her, but someone far less observant than Andy would have been able to conclude the same. The redhead let out a chuckle.

“Oh Hector,” she tutted condescendingly. “Did you have a crush on my mom? Gross.” Andy scrunched up her nose in feigned disgust, but it was clear by the smirk on her lips that she was teasing in her own way. Mary Jordan had been one of the most remarkable people Andy had ever known. She would have been more offended if he didn’t think kindly of her.

The doctor chuckled in response but shook his head, “I suppose I wouldn’t know.” Hector had neither felt such emotions knowingly nor ever been on the receiving end of such emotions. Even familial affection was a completely foreign concept to the man. Friendship, love, or any kind of emotional bonds was…. Alien.

Luckily, a chirp by Hector’s hip interrupted what would have undoubtedly turned into an awkward conversation for him. The static of the radio that Hector held caused her to turn toward him. At the sound of Luca’s voice, she let out a breath, not even realizing the tension she had been holding prior. Andy had faith that he would be able to handle the situation, but the confirmation that he was okay made her feel a lot better.

"Luca!" Andy grabbed the radio from Hector, and responded. She winced at the obvious excitement in her own voice and leveled her tone. "Where are you?" When he responded she nodded and gestured for Hector to wait for her here. Andy started for the door.

An eye opened as Luca heard the redhead’s voice come through the radio. He picked it up off of the table and held down the button to speak. “I’m in the student apartments across from the hospital with a survivor.”

"The locking mechanisms are still operational here. There is a door to the left of where I parked, meet me there and I'll let you in." Andy informed him.

“Two minutes.” The man responded, placing the handheld device back onto his belt with the use of its clip. He turned to face Vanessa and nodded, before zipping up his bags and grabbing his things.

Andy turned back to Hector and dropped her bags at his feet. "I"ll grab Luca and meet you back here. Grab anything else if value you see and we will head through the cafeteria to the lab." And with that she was gone, rounding the corner with only her bow and ID card.

Collab: shadowz1995 Brax
Mentions: TheMightyRedLemon

 

[The Mad Queen]

Ralph watched as the nurse ejected the empty magazine. By firing the last few shots he'd intended to show the group how to reload a rifle properly, but she seemed to know what she was doing with it anyway so he held his tongue. It wasn't like reloading was difficult, but with the likes of Michael and Nile at the lodge it was probably for the best that he gave a demonstration. Still, at least he had peace of mind that one of the lodgers could quickly and effectively reload an assault rifle. It meant that, should they get caught in a firefight or find themselves surrounded by the infected they could at least stay on their toes.

Tre was next up. Either he'd been around rifles before, a thought that Ralph wanted to dismiss given his younger age or he'd been paying attention to his instructions. He hoped it was a latter, as there was something deeply disturbing to him about children and teens with firearms experience, let alone with a military-grade assault rifle.

As he observed the group, he shook his head at Tre pushing the rifle to Colt and stepped forwards.
"You're not wasting your time, young man. This is important, and whether you like it or not you're going to have to learn to shoot because your own life, or the lives of the people around you will depend on it." His usual smile was gone, but even as he spoke to Tre the usual warmness behind his eyes was still there, albeit a bit lacking "Now, you're probably right. You may never be as good a shot as Colt, or Luca or maybe even me.." There were so many others at the lodge that were better shots than Ralph, but a lot of them were no longer there. Brian and Ivan were gone and he didn't want to bring their names up as a result.

"But we've all had training by professionals. Yes, even me. I worked in bioterrorism for a number of years so it was required. I never had to actually shoot anything outside of the firing range, but that's besides the point." He was aware that people maybe saw him as little more than a disease doctor with a busted knee, so the idea of him being able to land good hits on the dead, or even on a target might have been surprising. "That's no reason to throw the rifle away, and these things always take time."

Interactions: Brax (Tre), Rumble Fish (Colt)
In area: FireMaiden (Leli), Hyped_Taco (Cletus/Mike Wazowski),

 

[BloodThunder27]

Shinoa Bradford - Reinforced Love (?)

Not only was Brian gone, but Jenna too. After reading that letter, Shinoa certainly needed time to process that she was gone too. She then started wondering who was going to leave next. But of all people, why did Brian leave her with his Wristblade? And not someone more experienced like Colt? She then heard a few gunshots outside. But they weren't under attack. Earlier in the day, Colt had offered to teach some of the residents at the Lodge how to use firearms. While her Grandmother did use firearms, Shinoa's skill has probably deteriorated to a beginner's level as she has been away from it for too long and it seemed like it was still ongoing. She then also wondered about learning Knife Combat so she could use that Wrist Blade more effectively. All in all, she just wanted to be able to protect Valerie and not everyone current with her was going to always be there to hold her hand.

Since Valerie has been fed and was sleeping peacefully, Shinoa draped a blanket over the infant to ensure that she stayed warm, before quietly leaving the room. She left the door open in case Valerie would start crying. That way when she does, someone could come get Shinoa so that she could calm the baby down, especially if she was hungry or something. Putting a jacket on, Shinoa quietly went outside to the makeshift gun range that was set up. Upon arriving, she saw Doctor Fisher speaking with Tre. Shinoa then approached Colt. "Are you still giving out lessons?"

Interactions: Colt Rumble Fish
Mentions: Tre Brax , Ralph The Mad Queen , Brian , Jenna

 

[RayPurchase]

Aaron Jones

​

The Humvee trundled along the dirt roads and paths that crisscrossed the woods. The thawing snow had resulted in most of the roads becoming little more than waterlogged quagmires. Just just scant few months in and already without supervision and repair the cracks were beginning to show. Didn't take much for civilisation and all its comfortable trappings to fall apart. Thankfully the Humvee with its 4 wheel try and chunky tires plowed on regardless, it may not have been the smoothest of journeys, but so far she had been shown to have been made of hardy stuff, with a bit of TLC from Aaron, she was happy to keep on going despite the dings and scrapes with only the minimum of cajoling. Aaron drummed his fingers against the dashboard in time to the music coming out of the radio. It wasn't particularly loud, and he wasn't really listening to it, he just couldn't deal with silence very well, as such he was always one to be chatting to himself, whistling, or the first to stick the radio on.

Spoiler: Aaron's Mixtape No. 3 Side B

His mind was still stuck in that clearing. He'd lost count of how many of those things that he had put down. For about 3 weeks he'd managed to keep the tally going, tried to do the right thing, bury or burn the corpses before moving on. There was no point though, whatever humanity had existed within them was gone, they were empty husks, driven by hunger and rage, nothing more. And he hadn't seen anything to make him think they could be brought back from the brink. Once he'd made his peace that killing them was the greatest kindness that could be afforded to them was when he stopped counting. Or at least that's what he kept on telling himself to assuage his conscience. Once he managed to get out of here, there was going to be a reckoning, and not just for whoever was responsible for all this.

His eyes narrowed as he turned the corner. Given the melting snow and poor condition of the roads, the forest roads were clear of any signs of vehicles, and old tracks long washed away. He hadn't even encountered another driver yet, so the vehicle tracks he'd come across had been his own. These certainly weren't however. He hit the breaks and the Humvee came to a stop. He kept out, his battered combat boots quenching unpleasantly in the mud, still wet from overnight. Crouching down he peered at the tracks. He'd been around enough trucks to recognise them, deeper ridges and grooves, and the weight of the thing had created pretty deep tracks. He couldn't accurately guess how long they had been there for, however it couldn't have been that long, not for them to still be this well preserved. He stood up, his hands on his hips, and his unzipped combat jacket blowing behind him in the breeze. Could be a good lead, a truck that big could be carrying a load of supplies, more than enough to make it worth his time following it, going back to the city for another run could be delayed for weeks potentially. He didn't have much to trade aside from his services, engine service in exchange for a few days worth of food and water, sounded like a sweet deal for me. Or there was always the chance that whoever the driver was, had been torn apart by those things leaving a cache of supplies behind ripe for salvaging. The first was more preferable than picking through like some sort of carrion crow, but regardless it was worth checking out. Aaron had more of a spring in his step now, he had a task, a goal, something with a clear end, not just the endless slog of survival. Find the truck, find the owner, and hopefully find a chance to replenish his dwindling supplies. With a roar the Humvee accelerated, following the tracks and kicking up a shower of mud behind it.

 

[Brax]

The young man looked up at Ralph as he spoke. He was right, as much as Tre didn’t want to admit it. Whether he liked it or not, moving ahead it would be in his best interest to know how to shoot. Especially in the cases that he was out on a run and anything ever happened to the blades he used to defend himself. The real issue wasn’t the gun at all. It was the fact that he never devoted any time to properly training. That being on display for others who were more adept in the craft was embarrassing. Hell, it was bad enough having to shoot at a less-than-accurate pace with those who were in the same boat. Most of the instruction that the boy had been on the receiving end of had been in more intimate settings. One-on-one, without others watching, allowing Tre to truly give it his all as opposed to worrying about the thoughts of others.

“I won’t toss it, I know you right.” Tre scoffed, crossing his arms and looking away momentarily. He wasn’t completely helpless and he was well aware of the fact. The boy had trained around the clock working to make sure his body was a weapon in its own right. Luca had taught him a large majority of what he knew and when Tre had finally made his way into actual lessons, he put in the same amount of work learning how to use swords. These were skills that made him an invaluable asset not only before the apocalypse, but in the midst of it as well.

Hearing Ralph mention that he had not shot anyone before made Tre curious regarding the man. It was obvious that he was a pretty warm gentleman; people around the lodge depended on him being a voice of reason and sparsely conversing with the man was all it took to recognize that. The dread head might not have spent a lot of time talking to people but he did observe them quite closely. They were people whom he would be living with for the time being and potentially for the rest of his life, after all. Still, the question remained… If push came to shove, would Ralph be able to take another’s life? No amount of military training could possibly prepare one for the emotional toll that takes. There's always a price for the person on the other side of the weapon, even if it has nothing to do with their own life being taken. The boy couldn't speak from a place of experience as he had absolutely no military training. He had only been well-adapted to guerrilla warfare in the sense of everyday life. Ralph did not hold this same experience.

He knew his way around a rifle, was aware of protocol given his position. However, he said himself that he had not used his skills to ever take a life. Was he aware of the mentality shift that took place with the first? Or each one after that? The first time Tre took a life, he was physically sick at the thought. It didn’t matter the number, who they were or if the young man had even seen their face - he carried each body with the same amount of remorse. Loss of life was not something that people deserved unless they brought that danger upon themselves. This was usually the case when his enemies had tried to take his life in the past. Looking between both Ralph and Colt, Tre sighed and dropped his arms. Ralph was just trying to help as best as he could and while the words might have been phrased in a way that made sense, it hadn't exactly done the best job in motivating him.

“So… What can I fix?”

Interactions: Rumble Fish The Mad Queen

 

[FireMaiden]

​

Location: The Jordan Lodge
Interaction: The Mad Queen (Ralph) Brax (Tre) BloodThunder27 (Shinoa)
Mentioned: Rumble Fish (Colt) Brax (Luca)
She looked to Tre as he pointed out that she should have still hit her target, her eyes going back to the paper on the tree. "Yeah...I guess you're right." She raised the gun again, taking a few more shots, getting more accustomed to the recoil, each shot getting closer and closer to what would be center mass before she handed it off to Tre a few minutes later. As he took his position, Leliana went to stand next to Colt, her eyes on the younger teen. She hadn't interacted with him much, and honestly, Leliana wasn't sure how much he remembered from when Hector and herself had been taking care of all the wounded. Tre included. He fired, not doing much better than her the first time, though honestly, she wasn't too surprised. Luce trusted him with a gun, but he wasn't too old. She didn't doubt he knew how to use a gun, but he was probably in the same boat as she was, they knew how but were relatively unskilled. Tre questioned why they were even out here, and Ralph took it upon himself to give a speech.

A few bits of it seemed a little condescending though.

Once again, he seemed to be stepping on Colt's toes, and not that she would say it, she was much better at the motivational speeches. She looked up to the older woman, wondering why she was letting him do this when she was the one who was supposed to be leading this activity before she looked back to Ralph and Tre. "Neither one of us are incompetent, Ralph, we know why this is important. We know how to handle a gun. Hell, both my mother and my grandmother trained me on how to use and care for them. And I'm gonna say Tre was trained in some way too," Leliana said, her arms loosely crossed. "We don't have a choice but to get better, our lives depend on it like you said. Who knows, maybe we'll be better than you at some point. It's just frustrating." She knew he meant well, but still. There was something about him that held an air of superiority. Something that they honestly couldn't afford. Plus it was rude.

Suddenly, Shinoa's voice broke through and Leliana's attention turned to the third teen, her back now facing the boys. "Yeah, we kinda just started. You up for it?"

 

[BloodThunder27]

Dusting Off - A Collab between myself and Rumble Fish​

“OUTSIDE! NOW! I WONT ASK YA’LL AGAIN!” The veteran bellowed into the Lodge as she marched outside, relieved to see three of them had obeyed her. She had seen Ralph before but she was relieved to see that Leliana and Tre were also outside. All she could hope was that others would soon follow suit or she’d be even more ill-tempered than before. Hands behind her back, Colt strode back and forth behind the three as they fired. Looking to Leliana, she watched the woman shoot with her rifle. She had a good shot. Colt stood next to her and watched closely. She had overheard her and Ralph’s exchange and from what she heard, the nurse did not seem to appreciate it and kept going with her own shooting. Clearing her throat, she approached the nurse to observe. “Hm. Well, very good.” She spoke, her gaze moving from the fallen can to the nurse, “Keep yer arms up, ya tend t’dip just before firin’. Y’never know when y’gotta fire again. A raised gun could save yer life. Keep yer wits about ya, ma’am, not that I need t’tell ya that.” Giving the nurse a pat on the shoulder, Colt’s attention was snatched by the likes of Tre, who seemed frustrated with his skill. The woman approached, watching him closely. Closed eye, holding the breath, mostly rookie mistakes that could be ironed out with practice. With a couple of tuts of her tongue, Colt was about to approach the young man when a light voice caught her attention, causing her to turn and see the young mother had decided to venture out of the Lodge and questioning her about lessons, Colt did not turn around fully but looked at Shiona squarely. “If yer willin’ t'learn.”

"I'll take you up on your offer. I haven't gone shooting in a year or so. My Grandma liked to go hunting and when I was younger, she actually took me to the range a couple of times during the summer, believe it or not." She said with a frown, remembering that her Grandmother was still missing. "But I think its time to dust off a little and...get back in the game." Of course, Shinoa only wanted to be able to protect Valerie by any means necessary. Colt wasn't always gonna be there to hold her hand. She would also need to know how to survive on her own if she ever got separated from everyone. Plus she felt like she wasn't really pulling her own weight. She hid during the Hazmat Attack. The only things she really contributed to, even after having Valerie, was cooking and keeping the lodge clean. Other then that, she was mainly in her room caring for her newborn baby. "And I just wanna be able to protect my little princess. No one's gonna hold my hand forever."

Colt listened to the woman silently. She did not come across as someone who could handle a firearm, though that was mostly due to the fact that she had only ever seen the teenager with her infant and did not think anything else. With a shake of her head, she finally spoke up. “Alright.” She reached into the bag and pulled out a Glock, “What do ya know about guns?” she asked with a tilted head. Before she did anything else, she wanted to know this. It would be a waste of her breath and time to tell the woman things she already knew about firearms. Every now and again, she would glance back towards the others to see their progress.

"Well, there are three types of firearms that are common amongst the civilian population here in the States; Handguns, Shotguns and Rifles." She eyed the Glock, which seemed similar to the one that her Grandmother had, if not the same. "Most handguns today, like this one, are magazine fed, each mag can hold fifteen to seventeen rounds, sometimes more if you get the extended ones. In terms of brands, the ones I hear about the most, at least when it comes to Handguns, are Glock, Beretta, SIG, Springfield and...Kimber to name a few. Though in my Grandma's Safe, I know she didn't have too many semi-automatic handguns, but...she did have a lot of revolvers. She liked the older firearms, like the lever-action rifles made by Winchester or the Thompson Machine Gun. As far as Shotguns went, she favored the double barrel." She continued, not realizing that she went into gun trivia. "Sorry, I'm probably just droning on." Shinoa frowned, now feeling rather embarrassed.

Tired and green eyes widened at the extent of the woman’s answer. Colt had not expected it. While unnecessary to their current situation and what she would be teaching, it was good trivia to know and she had an idea of her preferred firearm, which would make the woman’s job easier in hindsight. Colt released a grunt as the woman finished, apologizing for going on. Not sure how to respond to that, the veteran coughed to regain her thoughts. “Hm. Good stuff. Y’seem to know yer guns,” She turned to their makeshift gun range, “I’m guessin’ y’know the three main rules about firearms but just in case; one, treat ‘em as if they’re loaded. Two; always point downrange or to the ground and three; if someone draws a gun on ya before ya can grab yers, ya lost. So y’gotta make sure yer never caught with yer pants down.” She strode around the woman in a circular fashion as she spoke before stopping next to her. “Show me yer stance.” She spoke, a subtly more commanding tone in her voice.

Shinoa took a deep breath. The last time she had gone to the range was roughly a year ago and she hadn't gone since getting pregnant. But with Valerie safe inside the home, now was her opportunity to get rid of the rust, or at least some of it. 'Just like Grandma taught me...' she thought. When asked to show her stance, she grabbed the handgun that was in Colt's hand before securing the firearm with a firm grip with both thumbs forward, placing her left foot forward as she kept her knees and elbows bent, keeping the gun pointed down range. As an extra safety measure, she kept her finger above the trigger to avoid any accidents since there were others in proximity.

“Mhm.” Colt grunted as she watched Shinoa aim the gun. Her stance was pretty good and accurate. “Relax. Yer shoulders are too stiff.” She spoke before looking again where she was aiming, “Go on, try and shoot one of them cans.”

Shinoa relaxed a little bit on her shoulders, but maintained the grip on the gun. She took aim at the can closest to the center. Slowly, she put her finger on the trigger. Once she was focused, she took a shot at the can. Unfortunately she was a little off and only caused the can to wiggle a little bit, but noticed that she had left a graze.

“Don’t grip it too tight. Let the gun do the work.” Colt stood close behind Shinoa, watching everything she was doing. “Raise yer arms up a little, look down the sight. The gun’ll do what you expect it to if ya prepare it properly.”

Shinoa relaxed herself and slightly loosened the grip on the poor firearm. Slowly she raised her arms up and took a sharper look down the iron sight that the gun provided. Taking another deep breath to relax a bit, she took a second shot at the can, this time hitting her intended target and sending it flying off of where it stood. It certainly felt good. Now she just needed to do this more often.

“Good. Very good.” The veteran spoke up finally, pleased to see her advice being taken aboard. “Keep practicing with that. I’m gonna see to some other matters. If ya need any help, ya ask Leliana or Ralph, y’got me?” she asked, she still wanted to approach Tre. With everyone busy, and the day seemed calm in terms of weather, she wanted to get the supplies from the truck sooner than later.

"Yes ma'am." Shinoa responded before continuing forward. There were a couple of more cans for her to shoot down. She took her shot at three more before stopping to catch her breath. This reminded her of the last few summers that she spent with her Grandmother, which put a bit of a smile on her face.

Mentions: Lelianna FireMaiden , Ralph The Mad Queen , Tre Brax

 

[The Mad Queen]

His insides turned a little bit when Shiona was asked for lessons as well. He understood why she wanted to learn, of course but there was a part of him that still saw her as a very young mother. A few weeks ago she'd been ready to burst for goodness sake. He worried about Valerie, but quickly dismissed it. He knew her, he knew there was no way Shiona would have let her daughter out of her sight without making sure she was safe first.

The turning in his stomach eventually faded. It was better for her to train with Colt anyway. However, for comfort he shot a friendly not in her direction.
"Fix?" Ralph asked Tre "Ah. Well you're holding it alright. The grip, the handling. That's fine." He'd obviously held a rifle before, Ralph didn't know where and quite frankly he wasn't sure he wanted to know. Best case scenario, some Uncle had taken him to a shooting range to teach him a thing or two about manhood but the worst case scenario was something Fisher quickly put out of his mind.
"I'd say you just need to be patient, and focus on the breathing. I know we're in a dire situation but these are just practice targets. There's no need to rush it. Not at the moment."

His attention was caught but the nurse, and Ralph's smile faded. Given her response he'd obviously said or done something to offend her and that just wouldn't do."Goodness no. I never said anyone was incompetent." Except for perhaps Michael, he thought. After all he'd just been trying to comfort Tre, who seemed prepared to throw the rifle down and give up for the day because Luca or one of the others was going to be better than him.

"It's good to know you've had some experience before today though." He nodded, but on the inside he sighed.
His leg made him a liability, his charm had failed to get Jenna to stay and his mind, his experience was seemingly devalued by the only other scientist at the lodge who apparently wanted to fly solo for studying the Aurora plague. And to top it off, when he did try to help with something simple like shooting lessons it seemed that all he was doing was stepping on toes and seemingly devaluing others at the lodge.

He cursed himself a few times. The doctor wanted to feel useful, and was just about prepared to head inside being done for the day when he overheard Colt mention his name. His smile returned, smaller but it was still there. In one way or another she trusted him with the lessons. However, any relief that was given by the veteran's words faded as a sharp pain shot through his leg.
"No. Not now." He groaned, muttering to himself "Please, not now."

Interactions: Brax (Tre), FireMaiden (Leli),
In area: Hyped_Taco (Cletus/Mike Wazowski), Rumble Fish (Colt), BloodThunder27 (Shiona),

 

[Rumble Fish]

Colt turned from Shiona, the veteran finally faced Tre, as Ralph finished his words. Colt stood at the pair for a moment as she waited for the doctor to finish. When the young man asked what he could improve on, Colt cleared her throat a little to get his attention. Arms behind her back, she turned away from the pair before flicking her head towards the woods, eyes still on the young man.

“Thanks for the advice.” The boy mentioned to Ralph as he placed a hand on his hip. At this point, Shinoa had made her way outside as well. With other people handling the gun, the young man figured it was a good time to check on the meat. He prepared to walk up to the rack and inspected it once more just to see how well it was cooking. However, just as he lifted his foot he heard yet another voice addressing him. This caused him to stop.

“Tre, walk with me.” She spoke bluntly before turning to Ralph, “I’ll handle this.” before beginning to walk away. She did not know Tre as well as others in the Lodge, but knew enough to know that this kind of talk would not work. He was not a complete beginner but still needed a push. What she had seen were basic mistakes; mistakes even herself were still prone to.

The teen blinked a few times as he looked over at Colt. Then he sighed, eventually dropping his head and turning toward the woman to walk with her. It hadn’t taken too long to catch up, but it was obvious that she was most likely going to chew him out for his behavior or for acting immature. It was all anyone ever scolded him for. What else is new?

“Yer posture’s good but yer holdin’ yer breath. Shoot on the exhale and keep both eyes open.” She added, looking to the young man, lighting her own cigarette. If she was going to avoid the temptation of the flask, she needed something. Her gaze panned upward for a moment. She doubted the young man would be interested in the lesson now given his frustration. If she had learned anything from Lt. Lorrie, it was if someone did not want to do what has been told, you give them harder labour. At least she could only hope this job would not be as difficult as she worried it would be.

“Thought’chu were ‘posed to hold yo’ breath while shootin’. I guess I was wrong though. Still, ain’t in the mood to be doin’ this in front of all these people...”

“Mhm. Now ya know.” The veteran spoke around the freshly lit cigarette and puffed out a ring before continuing, “If ya don’ wanna shoot, maybe there’s somethin’ else ya could do fur me.” She squatted to fill her own handgun with ammo before taking the rifle in hand, “I’m gonna need someone to come with me t’the truck and get the supplies. I'm havin’ Leliana watch the place and frankly I don’ trust any of them. Y’interested? Might be a break after doin’ the night shift.”

Tre was unsure of what truck Colt had been referring to. Was there one missing? He must have missed that meeting, probably as a result of being unconscious due to the hazmat attack. Truth was, there wasn’t much that the young man would turn down in order to get him out of the shooting range. Though it wasn’t just that. If he was being completely honest, letting Colt go anywhere alone without any backup would not end well. He assumed that Luca wouldn’t want him to turn his back on the woman, given her position. Finally, there needed to be some sort of competency left at the lodge and Tre was no leader.

“I ain’t about to let you go on a run alone. Luca definitely wouldn’t want that.” He commented, moving a hand up to rub one of his eyes. “Before we go anywhere, just gimme a minute.” The boy snapped with a smile on his face, jogging back to the meat. It had been cooking quite nicely, but it needed to be flipped. He wasn’t going to touch it with his hands. Having burned fingers just because of a decent meal? No thanks. Instead, he took a moment to ponder what he should do. No, really. Tre took about three minutes just scanning his options to flip the meat before the genius was enlightened by his own thought process.

He turned and bolted back inside, grabbing his machetes off of the couch. Then Tre ran back outside, holding both at his sides. The boy fastened the sheaths around his waist before removing the blades. Then he stabbed downwards on both sides of the meat that had been held up by the wooden pires he had stuck into the ground next to both sides of the firepit. This allowed him to easily turn the heavy rack as he pushed it against the top of the wood. The side that had been exposed to the fire had charred nicely; the fatty meat would no doubt supply the lodge with plenty of energy after consuming it.

Eyes kept fixated on his blades as he removed them from the meat. They were drenched in blood. The boy hung his head back and let out a sigh before dropping one of his blades onto the ground. He kneeled and used his free hand to grab a bunch of snow and used it to wipe down one of the blades before following suit with the other.

“Good man.” The woman spoke as he went about his business before grabbing and cleaning his weapon. She had not seen anything about Tre in terms of combat but in all honesty, it didn't matter. If anything went south during this, she would handle it. While Tre was not confident in his own abilities with a gun; she was. They seemed to complement each other in terms of weapon choice; with him choosing melee. While she waited, she looked towards the trees. She knew roughly where the truck was. But who knows what was lurking in those woods. Many times she had glanced into the trees and could have sworn to see a flash of yellow through the trunks.

Once Tre had prepared his weapon, the woman gave him a nod before beginning to walk, looking to Leliana as she passed her. The woman coughed to get her attention before speaking.

“I'm goin’ with Tre to git the stuff from the truck. I'm leavin’ ya in charge till I'm back. If I don't see Michael out here by the time I'm back, he’ll be catchin’ my hand. I won't be long and promise I'll be back soon.” She spoke to the nurse before looking back to the younger man, “Shall we?”

“Ay, pops.” Tre called over to Ralph, pointing at the meat that was still cooking. “When it’s done, take it off. Should be ‘bout thirty minutes from now.” He smirked. It was a shame that he might miss eating the meat fresh, but chances were high that it wouldn’t taste its best until about thirty minutes after that point, anyway. He nodded at Colt, waiting for her to lead the way before following closely at her side.

“Where we goin’?” He asked, wondering if she knew specifically as to the location of the truck they were supposed to find. “What even happened? That shit ain’t grow legs ‘n walk off on its own.” To Colt, it was possible that there were empty questions that already had answers. However, Tre did not have the same amount of knowledge to know any better. Walking through the woods was probably much safer than traversing through the streets of the city, but he didn’t have much bearings as far as navigation went.

“It's no’ far from ‘ere. Not much snow has fallen so it shouldn't be hard to figure out where it is. Won't be far.” Colt did not turn around as she trudged through the snow, her eyes kept forward and both hands on her handgun. His questions ground on her frayed nerves but there was no energy left to waste on anger. As he questioned her on what had happened, the woman sighed quietly, her eyes still darting back and forth in worry that something could jump them from behind at any second.

“Had t’leave it when we came to help with the attack. Some bitch took off with it but according to Andy, it's abandoned. Hopefully it still is.” She explained, glancing towards the young man, tactfully leaving out the detail that she had been stupid enough to leave a stranger with their truck. But what choice did she have? If she hadn't stepped in, the death toll could have easily risen. As they walked, Colt noticed Tre striding along next to her. She hadn't seen him at all during the attack but he had been injured. Still, she was glad to have some company.

The trek was silent as Colt and Tre strode through the trees towards the truck's last known location. Colt looked to her feet, deep tread tracks embedded in the ground, indicating a sudden start. Following the tracks, Colt noticed a shimmer of a reflection from glass. The truck was about two-hundred yards away from them. Before they could continue, the veteran sighed deeply and took out her handgun. A sickness swirled in her stomach as the dreaded feeling of being in unknown company. They could not afford to not be careful. "Careful, son." She spoke quietly as she cocked the firearm, "I don' think we're alone."

Interactions: The Mad Queen (Ralph) FireMaiden (Leliana)
Mentions: BloodThunder27 (Shiona) Hyped_Taco (Michael) Maj (Andy) Brax (Luca)
Nearby: RayPurchase (Aaron)

 

[Togy]

NILE CRAYMAN
​

Nile felt like crap. Utter, total crap. He still didn't even know why he was feeling this way, what with Cammy (Wasn't that the dog's name? He later thought) storming off before she could tell him his illness. She looked like she knew what was up, but thinking back on it, he didn't really she'd have been much of help anyway. She wasn't a doctor after all. But her casual disregard for his state of being made him think that maybe he was just being melodramatic, that maybe he was just running a little fever. Who'd act that way to someone suffering with a bad illness anyway? He at least thinks the woman is a nice enough person to worry about people. Now that kind of made him feel like a whiny sack of crap.

Well, up and at em', I've got work to do Nile thought as he opened his eyes and sat up on the couch with a groan. Yep, muscles still ache like hell, but they always ached after exercising, so this was probably just same shit as always. Climbing off the couch with his head swirling and his legs aching, Nile began to take slow step after slow step towards the front door. He had to take an embarassingly long time to think before each step so he didn't get confused and trip over himself.

Just tired Nile thought, pushing away the rising concerns of his own health. All he had to do was get some work and limber up his muscles and he was sure he'd get back to normal. The sleep would wear off and the aches would subside after he beats it out of his system through hard work. Giving a little sleepy nod at that thought, Nile stepped outside.

Heading for the shed, he'd grabbed a Hatchet and stumbled through the snow to a nearby Pine tree. Raising the axe up, to swing, he couldn't help but notice thatit felt a lot heavier than usual. Ignoring that little cause for concern, Nile began hacking away.

Only eight swings later and he was wheezing, sucking in precious air. Each breath sent a little rocket of pain through his chest, making him clutch his chest as he bent over. Tossing the axe to the ground, Nile fell against the tree and sat there for a good while, trying to regain his breath. He just had to catch his breath was all, no biggie. Happens all the time during logcutting, too many swings in a row and you're out for the count. He probably shouldn't have come out here to work so soon after waking up, he realized. No energy in him really, he didn't even eat or really drink coffee. Yeah, he just had to get a proper morning going and he'd be peachy.

 

[Brax]

Vanessa glanced once more around the small apartment. It was run down and messy, but it had been her home and shelter for weeks. Always being on the road with the circus made her accustomed to picking up and leaving a place behind, however, so much had happened here in such a short time. This place hadn't been perfect, but this was the only place in which she found safety from the horrors of the harsh winter reality outside.

"D' ya want me to carry anything?" Vanessa asked as she cast her gaze over to Luca. The makeshift brace on her left leg was extremely uncomfortable but it at least helped her move around with a little less pain. It wasn't going to be easy to get anywhere fast though.

“Only what you can carry. You’re going to have to move quick on that busted ankle of yours, so best grab the essentials. If you can fit some stuff in my bag, go ahead. But everything else, if you can leave it, you probably should.” He cautioned, sticking the burning cherry of the cigarette into the table he was sitting at and extinguishing it. “Clothes and all that other stuff that’s replaceable, we’ll figure out along the way. No one is walking around dressed to the nines.”

He waited until the girl was finished gathering all the necessary items. Once it seemed like she had finished up, the Italian pushed himself up from his seat. The man walked a few steps into the woman’s bedroom and ripped the covers off of her bed. His rough digits took hold of the sheet underneath before removing it as well. By the time Luca stepped back out it had been all balled up underneath his arms. His bags were both fastened around his arms. He was ready.

“Any precautions we can take to avoid coming back here are worthwhile. We don’t know what the state of campus will be at a later time. Are you ready to go?” The man asked, light hues peering back at the woman as he waited for her response. “I don’t know the way up, you’ll have to lead.”

"W..well…" Vanessa hesitated, moving towards the door. Packing light was easy enough, as she didn't have any more food, and she only had a few small bottles of water left. "I'm figuring we can use the support rails to climb up to the roof. Hop to a less surrounded buildin, an we can climb down the side of that one all quiet like."

Within the next ten minutes, the two had made their way out of the balcony door. Vanessa led Luca to the support rails, before attempting to climb up herself. The man stopped her, opting instead to go first and make his way to the rooftop. Then he looked down at Vanessa to watch her progress as she made the climb. With a busted leg, it must have been hard. She didn’t look as though she was having the easiest time getting up. Once she was close enough the Italian hung over the ledge, extending a hand for her to grab. When she followed his actions he hoisted her up over the edge quickly and the two continued to move.

Vanessa looked over at the Italian beside her, then back across to the other rooftop. "Just don't think to hard about it, and roll when ya land." She said, trying to give him a weak, but reassuring smile. "I'll go first…"

She checked the brace on her left ankle to make sure it would hold under the stress of running, then took a few uneven steps back and dashed towards the edge, kicking off of the ledge of the roof with her good ankle as she kept across the space between the buildings. Her body stretched out and curled forward as she caught herself with her forearms on the other side, transitioning into a roll to absorb most of the shock.

Luca had never jumped from one rooftop to another before. The two apartment buildings might have been close to one another but still, he was hesitant upon reaching the edge. He watched as the injured female made it to the other side, acting on the advice she had offered him. After a moment of deliberation he jumped. One of his feet cleared the landing but the other one scrapped the edge and missed, resulting in both of Luca’s hands hitting the concrete relatively hard in order to gain his balance. With the use of his three other limbs he was able to correct his posture before moving his foot onto the top of the rooftop. This resulted in Luca taking a deep breath as he watched Vanessa continue forward.

The two made their way down the fire escape on the side of the building. At this time, Luca had been keeping an eye on the ground below - but there weren’t a wave of zombies to find, just a few stragglers. The man readjusted his automatic rifle, removing the strap from around his chest and holding the weapon as the two continued to descend. Once the two made it to the last staircase, Luca commanded her to keep moving forward toward the door where the car had been parked without stopping. However, when Vanessa made it to the ground, she would be greeted by the sounds of a zombie closely pursuing her from her right side.

​

It reached its hands out to grab her shoulders, but Luca had been waiting for it to make its move for far longer. Before it was able to get a hold of Vanessa, the man hopped over the side of the railing with the use of a free hand - before extending a foot out and kicking the reanimated beast in the side of the chest. As his heel made contact, it let out a groan before toppling over to the right and skidding a few inches down the concrete. The Italian landed on both feet and swiftly lifted his rifle up to shoot a single bullet through its skull, stopping it as it attempted to get back up to its feet. There was very little sound to accompany the shot, given the silencer’s point of existence in the first place. He quickly lifted his gun up to shoot another one that had been lingering about nearby. As the two continued running, he quickly and closely followed behind Vanessa, until the two neared the front door.

C: “Andrea! Five seconds!”

Interactions: TheMightyRedLemon Maj

 

[Rumble Fish]

The stillness of the woods was shattered by the throaty warble of the Humvee as it skidded around the track, even the chunky wheels and 4 wheel drive struggling with the icy and muddy conditions. From behind the wheel, Aaron's face creased into a grin as the truck loomed ahead of him.

"Fucking jackpot!"

He yelled to himself, skidding the vehicle to a halt next to it. His hand flicked to the 9mm pistol bolstered at his hip. He wasn't planning on using it, normally his uniform alone would be enough to intimidate especially in its rough state. But these weren't exactly normal times. Swinging the door open he swiftly exited the Humvee, leaving the motor running. With his pistol drawn he advanced upon the truck, his eyes flicking over both the vehicle and the wildline for signs of movement or the owner. So far it looked like he was the only one about. Whilst that did raise worrying questions about the whereabouts of the owner, Aaron was still glad to be the first to lay claim to whatever may be waiting onboard.

That shout could have been heard back at the Lodge for all Colt knew. The woman jumped slightly and instantly lowered herself to the ground, only able to see through a gap in the terrain as a man made himself known, and was making a bee-line for the truck; with a gun on his belt. With a low exhale through pursed lips, she swiftly grabbed her colt.45 and jumped out of the bush as she cocked the handgun, hoping Tre would either back her up or stay put. She knew he would be smart enough to make the right choice.

“Git yer skinny mitts off mah truck!” Her bark sent a flurry of frightened birds caw and take to the skies. Having drawn first, Colt stepped over the log and towards the man, “I got a bead on ya, mister so git yer hands up and turn ‘round real slow!” she snapped, her tone sharp and devoid of tolerance. That truck was their lifeline and she would be damned if she was going to let some other miscreant take off with it.

In the very same bush that Colt had snuck out of, Tre remained. He kept a hand wrapped around the sheath of one of his machetes, waiting to see how the man would react. The element of surprise was a great ally to have, but typically hard to combat against. In this case, this man might get the idea that it was better for him to try fighting. Even if he somehow got past Colt, Tre knew that the man wouldn’t get far without tasting one of his blades. Colt was a grown woman, more than capable of taking care of business. Tre had faith in this; he was also following instructions as none had been given to him.

Aaron let out a sigh, his eyes closing as the voice called out. He'd cocked up, let his guard down over the prospect of his find. There was always a chance that the person yelling out was bluffing, make him disarm and then she's standing there with nothing more than a baseball bat. On the other hand she sounded close enough that any attempt to dive for cover or attempt to turn his own firearm on her would be fatal if she was packing. Wasn't worth the risk at this point, especially if she was the owner of the truck. He relaxed his grip on his pistol, holding the bottom of the grip between his thumb and forefinger.

"Just lowering my gun first. Don't go gettin' all jumpy on me alright, just takin' it slow and smooth,"

Easing into a squat he dropped the pistol, landing in the mud with a soft thump, before heading himself up, his hands raised and resting against the back of his head.

"So it's your truck? Pretty careless leavin' like that, what with the collapse of civilised society and all that, probably want to look after it a bit better, feel me?"

He turned fully now to face the woman, and the barrel of a Colt .45. Yep, she hadn't been bluffing.

"Also probably not the wisest or nicest thing to pull a sidearm on a servin' member of the United States Military, but I guess we'll chalk that down to that collapse of civilisation we were just talkin' about,"

Despite facing the gun squarely levelled at him, his face creased into a broad grin.

There was a slight twitch in Colt’s scarred eye as he ran his mouth, seemingly awful confident for a man with a gun drawn on him. First there was that stupid kid (respect of the dead or not, she still wouldn't forgive him) perpetually insulting her intelligence over something as trivial as her accent, and now this random redneck acting as though she'd be brainless enough to deliberately leave a truck in the forest? With a furious shake of her shoulders, she took a few hard strides towards him, her metal leg clinking on a small root sticking up from the ground.

“Hey! I’m askin’ the questions ‘ere and I’m no’ on the other end of a fuckin’ barrel, ya sack-a used tampons so I’d watch my fuckin’ tongue if I were ya.” Her gaze was hard and her tone had escalated from a quiet threat to sharp and brash, akin to that of the sargeant she used to be “Y’think I’d be dumb enough to drive a fuckin’ truck into a ditch on purpose, ya’ll should be more afraid of what I might do under the ‘collapse of civilization’ ya seem so keen on fuckin’ reminding me of like I don’t already know! Now back off from the truck and tell me yer name!”

Despite the furious tirade and the rapidly advancing armed (and pissed off) woman, his lopsided grin remained fixed in place. As directed he took a couple of steps away from the truck.

“Corporal Aaron Jones, 3rd Texan Mechanised Division, on my way from Arlington Virginia to California on assignment but for now stuck in this lovely part of the world. Mighty glad to see a friendly face,”

His eyes flicked to the rank slide on her jacket, not to mention the artificial leg. Ex-service he reckoned, he was under no doubt she was the real thing and not just playing dress up, that drill sergeant bark took him back to the parade ground all those years ago. Yep she was the real deal.

“Didn’t mean no offense or nothin’ Sarge, just sayin’ what I saw, which was the truck with no one in it. I mean it may not be the greatest parkin’ but I’ve seen a whole lot worse.”

He lowered one of his hands slightly, scratching at the back of his head before before raising it once more. “Mind if I put my hands down, mighty uncomfortable position to be in for too long. Won’t make no sudden movement or anythin’ like that. You got my gun as well. I would like that back though, property of the government and all that,”

Colt stayed silent as the man spoke up once again. So he was not lying when he said he was military. She had never heard of his unit but from his accent, it was no surprise. He seemed to mellow out a little as he realised she herself outranked him. As he calmed down, requesting to put his arms down. The woman ran a hand down her viciously scarred face and sighs.

“At ease.” She growled, “But no funny business! I didn’t come out ‘ere lookin’ for trouble.” she added, her gun still raised. She was not going to let her guard down, not now. After their attack, and her previous experience with a stranger which had inadvertently endangered Aubrey, she was taking no chances. As he mentioned the government, there was an angry grumble in her throat.

“The government? You fuckin’ kiddin’, right?” Tre growled as he slowly came out of the bush, ripping the machete from its sheath. He didn’t give a fuck if this man was someone who serviced the military. In fact, it meant absolutely nothing to him. This man was still under the influence that the government was somehow at play, as if Colorado had not collapsed under the watch of superiors in the first place. He slowly neared the man, lifting a thumb and pointing to the vehicle he had approached the abandoned vehicle with.

“I don’t give two fucks about the government. That truck’s ours, it got stolen and I’m gettin’ it back. I know what’s in it.” She spoke, the strong vibe staying true, despite the sigh she then released afterward “Don’t take that as me hatin’ our country. But we’ve bin through a lot.” Throughout all of this, the gun stayed raised but there was an element of calmness in her posture, despite her suspicions.

Her gaze glanced around occasionally, not paying much attention to what Tre had said. It was not as though the young man was in danger. One wrong move from this guy and he would have an unwelcomed intrusion on his organs. She thought she had caught what had set off her alarms. But there was still an ill feeling in the back of her head. Paranoia?

“We’ll take your truck also.” Tre mentioned as he provided the man with a deadpan stare. “Finders keepers.”

Featuring: RayPurchase (Aaron) and Brax (Tre)

 

[Corgi]

A one part mini opera​

Aubrey stared at the door as Colt left, feeling… weird. The mention of guns had set her in a weird place, not to mention Colt yelling at Nile... But even so, her stomach wasn’t settling. It felt like it was doing acrobatics in her guts. Her face showed a bit of concern, but shoved the feeling away, “No time to figure it out…” She thought, taking a deep breath, “You can figure it out after you find Charlotte.” Charlotte.

Her stomach felt like it had been punched when she thought about her sister. A frown took her visage, “I don’t like this.” She thought, hoping if she told herself to stop, it would go away. Why was she getting so weird all of a sudden? Aubrey knows her sister’s alive. She has to be… Right? Her hand that wasn’t gripping the hat is now drumming along her stomach, unconsciously attempting to drum away the feeling.

“Yeah… She’s alive.” The girl thought, closing her eyes and shutting down the badness she was feeling. She can’t do this right now… Maybe she can tell Owen about it at some point. “Yeah, Owen. That sounds nice.” The strange feeling in her guts dissipated little by little as she thought of the conversations Owen and she have had.

After waiting a few more moments to relish the emotion she was feeling, she took a deep breath and lifted her head, turning around on her heels to look towards Nile on the cou- He wasn’t on the couch. Her brows met as she stared at the couch where the man just was, “What…?” She asked, looking around the tavern for a moment, “Was I thinking for that long?”

Quickly, she went towards the door and flung it open, taking in her surroundings only to see Nile not too far off from the lodge, “Pay closer attention, Aubrey. You have one job.” Shaking her head, she jogged over to him, the concern still displayed on her face, “Are, uh… Are you alright?” She asks, focusing on his labored breathing.

Looking around the area, she sees the axe as well as the tree’s dents and her eyes widen, “Was he… Was he using the axe like this?!” Aubrey put her free hand on her cheek as she tried to think of what to do, “Hey… I don’t think you should be… Uhm… Using the axe. You’re a little bad right now.” She said, internally screaming at herself for speaking so oddly, “Let’s getcha back to the house.” The girl offers her hand to pull him up.

Interactions: Togy (Nile)
Mentions: Rumble Fish (Colt), Maj (Owen)

 

[Maj]

​

Owen had grown accustomed to being stranded upstairs. He had not however, become accustomed to the feeling of being alone. The last several weeks had many people in and out of his room. Hector and Leliana took turns checking on him, Andy and Aubrey came to pay him many visits, and the stray other lodge members as well. Now that Hector and Andy were gone, and everyone else was busy with who knows what, it left Owen by himself up in his room.

Andy had forgotten to bring him something else to read before she left. He had read through the books on his night stands a few times over. He didn’t have any cigarettes, his window was boarded up still, and now Owen didn’t even have any meaningless conversation to distract him. There was always the possibility of trying to go down stairs. Owen was getting stronger by the day, and now Hector wasn’t here to fireman carry him back to his bedroom.

All in all though, he tried his best to be a good patient. He had listened to ninety percent of the doctors orders. After all, Leliana and Hector had worked hard to keep him alive. Failing at walking down the stairs meant undoing a lot of all of their hard work to get him back up and on his feet. Still, what else was he supposed to do? Stare at a blank wall all day? Ask someone to keep him company like he’s some child? No.

Slowly, Owen made his way to his feet, careful to test his body weight. He had been walking back and forth to the bathroom by himself for several days now. With the railing, surely he could make it down the stairs. His steps were uneasy, but he couldn’t decide if that was from weakness from his injury or stiffness from the lack of movement. However, he was glad to see that he could keep his momentum without the help of leaning on the walls.

When he made it to the top of the stairs, he paused. Maybe this wasn’t the most well thought out plan after all. Suddenly they seemed so steep, and his head felt light from the walk from his bedroom to the stairwell. It would be demeaning to slide down the stairs on his ass, but it was potentially safer even with the jarring from each bump.

"I wouldn't try those stairs if you can't even walk straight without almost falling." Warren stood at the foot of the staircase, looking up at the red-headed man that was contemplating his next move. This was the one that got into that brawl with Luca. His size and strength was impressive, but was outmatched by the experience that the Italian held.

Warren had not even talked to him yet, but knew that Owen had been through a lot since then, with the bullets he took during the raid. Along with Tre, he had almost died if it hadn't been for the elite team of doctors in the lodge. The large man was still trying to wrap his head around how fortunate this group was to have so many highly trained people in medicine and firearms. It probably shouldn't be too surprising that they had lasted this long, despite the few oddballs that slowed everyone else down.

These thoughts gave pause to Warren at times, a strange internal conflict; the juxtaposition of his damning thoughts about joining this "worthless" group versus the capable warriors that had survived an attack by hordes of men armed with military-grade weapons. He couldn't deny the strength that lay within the beating hearts of the ones that held the party together.. The lone wolf inside of him still kept his wits and held to the choices of his gut though, to look after himself and Tre.

Here before him though, was the man that most impressed the larger of the two. Out of everyone in the lodge, Warren couldn't help but notice the determination and grit of this guy. He wasn't about to let Owen go and try to kill himself again though, "Wait just a fuckin' second". Warren made his way up the stairs, offering the red-head his shoulder to lean on, "Here, you're already pretty useless as it is, no one needs you in a broken heap on the floor."

“Thanks,” Owen said genuinely. He offered Warren a sheepish grin before using the hulking man as a brace and carefully making his way down the stairs. The twin basically didn’t know Warren at all. They had never needed to speak and he had seemed like the type that preferred to keep to himself and when a grumpy alcoholic dude the size of Warren wanted to be left alone, it was in your best interest to oblige.

However, he was thankful that Warren had happened along, Warren was the only guy here that was larger than he was. Walking down the stairs with Colt or Ralph who were both still limping about wasn’t feasible and he was pretty sure he would crush Leli or Beth if he happened to collapse on them. At least Warren would be mostly unfazed if his legs gave out, but with his help the transition was going as smoothly as one could expect.

“How is your boy?” Owen asked as the pair made the slow descent down the wooden staircase. He had heard that Tre had been injured during the fight and just as badly as he had been. However, due to his immobility he hadn’t had the chance to see for himself. It was obvious from the first time he met Warren and Tre, on the drive back from the hospital, that he cared a great deal for the teen.

"The dread head? He's doing a lot better than you are." Warren descended the steps, careful not to go too fast for the man that used him as a crutch. The two beefy men could barely fit on the stair together while standing adjacent. "That kid heals fast. I suppose they all do at that age, but that little bastard is stubborn.. He thinks he's invincible though."

"Well I'm a few years older and still haven't learned that lesson yet." Owen said with a fair amount of self deprecation. He had gotten into more than his fair share of scrapes at sixteen, most because of Luca in some form or fashion, but never anything as serious as what Tre had and he had just gone through. The boy was tough, but with guys like Luca and Warren looking after him, it would be foolish to expect any less out of him.

Warren’s foot found the floor beneath the last step and paused briefly as Owen's feet stepped down seconds later. "Now, I don't wanna be walking you everywhere.. Where are you going?" Warren gave the twin an inquisitive stare and slid to the side a little bit to make room between them. Only Owen's hand rested on the taller man's shoulder now.

“Just toss me on the couch, I’m not going anywhere specific,” The boy mused. “I just couldn’t stand staring at my bedroom wall any longer.” Using Warren to brace himself, he found it surprisingly easy to make his way over to the couch, collapsing into the cool fabric of the furniture.

Collab: TheTreForce
Mentions: Brax FireMaiden Corgi shadowz1995

 

[FireMaiden]

​

Location: The Jordan Lodge
Interaction: The Mad Queen (Ralph) Rumble Fish (Colt)
Mentioned: Brax (Tre)
Hmmm, maybe she was feeling a bit irritable today. She hoped that she didn't sound too rude, but at the same time, she did want her point to be heard. If had meant something different than what he had said, his phrasing could have been different. In any case, she dropped it when his demeanor suddenly switched. "Ralph you need to sit down, you're still recovering. Hell, you shouldn't even be moving around as much as you are." The nurse moved closer to the older man, offering her shoulder for support. Luckily there were plenty of things for him to sit on out there. "I was home alone a lot as a kid, and I lived downtown, " She said softly, "Some bad stuff had happened recently, my mom would have driven herself crazy if I didn't learn something. Know a little bit of karate too, but we couldn't afford the lessons. Basically just enough not to hurt myself while punching someone. Basic stance, don't but your thumb in your fist, that sort of thing." Leliana chuckled for a split second, but there was a sadness behind her eyes. Still fresh, the kind of sadness that still hurt.

And if Ralph was going to ask about it, Colt and Tre reappeared; the vet announcing that Leliana was going to be left in charge. The teen was a little shocked. "W-wait really?" Why was she gonna be in charge? Nobody listened to her! She tells someone to not walk on an injured leg and they ignore her. Cut down on the drinking, eat more food, drink more water. Her concerns go unheeded. In any case, Colt trusting her like this made her happy, but she was a little nervous. There was a lot that could happen while Colt and Tre were gone, but honestly, they probably wouldn't be gone for too long; Colt even assured her as much. So, Leliana should be in the clear. She totally had this covered.

There still wasn't a lot to do, so Leliana took up the firing position away from the tree, her pistol in hand this time. Raising it, she fired off the remaining six shots in the clip, everyone landing what would be center mass. "There we go," The nurse breathed, a small grin on her lips. The blonde then took a seat on the ground next to the ammo bag, unloading the clip and grabbing the ammo box she had surrendered a while ago. Grabbing a handful of bullets, she began to refill the empty clip with ease, nimble fingers working carefully. She's done this before, and not just after the world ended.

 

[The Mad Queen]

At least Tre had listened to his lessons.
"No problem." He nodded back, but the teenager was quickly snatched away by Colt. Training wasn't everything, and even if he had plenty of it she had the experience to enhance it. Still, it was like a miniature punch to the gut when she took off with him as any project or chance of improving somebody else's aim was taken and the good doctor was left with nothing more than...Watching food?
What had the world come to? He was a professional with a decent eye for medicine, a good aim and he was left to make sure that meat didn't burn. A job even Michael could manage, for goodness sake. Still, he smiled through it and watched as the two took off.

If this was how his injury made him feel, he wondered what Owen must've been going through. At least Fisher had the ability to walk around. He cursed himself for not considering it, that there was somebody much worse for wear than him. The one thing he hadn't considered about recovering was the boredom, how being able to do much could eat away at you and seemingly drive you mad.

Making his way over towards the meat, given it at least give him something to do he was stopped by Leli.
"Alright." He sighed "Well I don't fancy my chances of taking up karate any time soon. Though I suppose if the worst comes to it I could clobber somebody with this cane." He chuckled, his smile returning a little. Still, there was a sadness behind his eyes too, and anger. Not at the nurse, of course but at the man who had left him in this state and of course at himself.
"Only time I was in a fistfight it was against the man who took my knee. I didn't last long." He shook his head

It seemed Colt and Tre were leaving on a mission. He trusted her judgement enough, but this seemed to leave the lodge a little undefended to say the least. Ivan, Jenna and Brian had all left for good while three of people he knew could put up a good fight had headed off on a supply run. Did that just leave himself, Leliana, Nile, Cletus and Warren to defend the place if the worst happened? Owen was bedridden, Shiona lacked experience and Michael was well...Michael.

He sat down on the porch, pain shooting through his knee once more.

Interactions: Brax (Tre), FireMaiden (Leli),

 

[Hyped_Taco]

​

And there he stood, right in the middle of the kitchen with the veteran awkwardly due to the… conflict? both of them had had with her fake leg the day before, but this was no time to cringe about his actions the day before, no, he had gone to the kitchen for a fine good reason, and that was to have breakfast. Seeing that neither Leliana nor Jenna was around to stop him from eating a proper breakfast, he launched himself into action once Colt exited the kitchen for some reason. He needed to act quickly, for if someone saw him he knew it would be a game over. He quickly opened the fridge and saw a big chunk of meat; although it looked appetizing he just had neither the time nor the knowledge to cook it, so he left it behind.

Michael then put his hands to work; he quickly opened the fridge and grabbed exactly what he needed: 4 eggs, some bacon, ham, 3 sausages, a bit of potato and 2 pieces of bread. But then what he feared the most happened, he heard Colt shout for everyone to get into the Dinning room, and finally, he had a time limit… 2-3 minutes. The neckbeard quickly made the math in his head, and if he were to succeed then he would nearly have 20 seconds to cook each item he had brought out, but instead of surrendering and maybe eating all of this food another day, he decided to turn the stove higher so that maybe the food would be done faster.

The neckbeard saw how the dining room began to be flooded by people, but his full attention was on his cooking. He stirred the eggs as fast as he could to finish his scrambled eggs as quick as humanly possible, while on each other consumable item he left them as little time as he could in the pan. And while Colt´s speech seemed to be reaching its conclusion, Michael came out of the kitchen victorious, for he had just made what usually took him 10 minutes in 2. But before he could begin to eat, he saw as to how Colt looked at him.... angrily? ¨Oh fuck¨ he said to himself ¨Did she notice me cooking?¨

He sat down in the dining table to finally flavor his comestibles, he heard how Colt began screaming at… Nile was he?, well she began to scream at the Junkie looking guy for unspecified reasons. This rather scared Michael so he picked up his plate and decided to go outside.

¨At last, peace and tranquility¨ the neckbeard said while with his spork he began to pick several items up and approached them to his mouth. The moment they finally entered his paladar Michael could only describe it with a few words ¨... It tastes like shit¨ the eggs were rather undercooked and the several portions of meat he had brought with him were either kinda raw or severely cooked on some sides. But, food was food. so he ate it anyway.

The neckbeard usually enjoyed the time he spent eating food, hell, he cherished it in fact. But this.... this wasn´t like any other time. After what seemed like an eternity, he ate the last of all of it, and after doing so he went into the kitchen and left his plate in with the rest of the dirty dishes.

Michael then returned back outside and noticed that Colt was now teaching people how to shoot?!. Man, that kinda sucked.... they could have at least invited him to join them or something. The neckbeard sat down at the porch to rest for a while, after eating so much (bad) food he was tired. Or well, that was until he saw a fire in the distance and if he was seeing right, then that tiny fire was at the very least 100 feet away from where he stood. Although it was far he could see without problem what was happening there. He saw Tre cooking the meat he had gazed his eyes upon earlier.

Although he was stuffed, he had a bit of space left in his stomach for what appeared to be, some actually good meat. But, it appeared as if he would have to wait. Since Tre was in the shooting field, still near enough to see him clear as day, and if he were caught then he was 99% sure he would get his ass kicked. But It appeared as if there was still a god out there, for Tre went out with Colt to do god knows what now.

Finally, it was his chance; he re-entered the lodge briefly to grab 4 exact pieces of bread so he could make some sandwiches with the meat. And quickly began… jogging? as fast as he could towards the oh so far-away fire. After a minute of jogging, he saw it from close. The meat had a very dark brown exterior, and in a part where it looked like a machete was put in to rotate the meat he could see the insides of it, it appeared to be completely grey, with no traces of pink nor red, from what Michael could conclude… it was well done.

With the machete that was lying on the ground, Michael cut down some pieces of the meat so he prepared himself his so awaited sandwich. He ate them as if there were no tomorrow. But that was not enough, maybe, and just maybe he thought, that he could slash a piece with the machete to eat ¨hoho, delightfully devilish Michael¨ the Fatman said to himself. He grabbed the machete, and slowly prepared himself; it was time, with his mighty swing he miscalculated his landing and cut down the meat into two ¨Oh shit¨ he said while the meat began to cook even harder on the ground. He quickly put some ice on top of it so the fire would go away. Knowing he had fucked up, he quickly got away from the place.

He entered the shooting field as calmed as he possibly could. Leliana was already there so he said ¨I-uhhh sup¨

Mentioned: Brax As a tree Rumble Fish As an incapacitated veteran
Interacted: FireMaiden as the blondie nurse

 

[BloodThunder27]

Shinoa Bradford - Distant Memories

After Colt walked away from her, Shinoa looked at the gun in her hand, before giving the cans another look. It wasn't long until she slipped into a series of flashbacks.

First Flashback - July 1st, 2015
Like every summer, Shinoa was excited to go see her Grandmother in Colorado. Baking cookies, going to the gun range, barbecues and just spending time with her Grandmother. Having just completed middle school, Shinoa was having pre-high school jitters, but some time away from home may be able to help with that. Better yet, she was going to be staying with her Grandmother for a month. A full month! So she was looking forward to what was planned for the rest of July. As Shinoa boarded the plane, she waved goodbye to her Mom at the passenger drop-off. She made it to Colorado without incident. Upon arriving out at pick-up, Grandma Bradford was waiting in her van, happy to see her granddaughter once again. With her suitcase, she walked over to the van, a smile on her face.

Second Flashback - July 10th, 2016

On Sunday Afternoon, Shinoa was ready for another day filled with fun! Today, she was going to go to an Outdoor Gun Range with her Grandma, where she was going to get to go shooting like she has been since she was thirteen, though Grandma started her out with BB Guns in Middle School and of course, supervised her from beginning to end, though they spent more time going horseback riding and baking cookies with the occasional barbecue with the neighbors. But it was, as Grandma would call it, Sunday Gunday! For this day, she was going to get to try some of Grandma's personal favorite firearms; shooting some old pots and pans. The only gun she wasn't allowed to touch, was Grandma's most prized; a custom Colt Army 1860 that had belonged to her late Grandfather, but she kept it per Grandpa's will. Shinoa didn't necessarily get to hold it either, but its been very well taken care of over the years from what the young woman could tell. Most of the weapons presented before her were similar to the ones that she saw in some of the Western Style films that Grandma had on her movie shelf and there weren't a lot of the newer, more modern weapons used today. "One day, this fine weapon will be yours. That much I promise you." Her Grandmother said with a smile before holstering the beautiful revolver before handing the fifteen-year-old a Colt M1911. "Hit that pot right there." She said, pointing to the pot that was furthest away.

Shinoa took a deep breath, took aim as her Grandmother stood behind her and pulled the trigger.

Third Flashback - July 4th, 2017

For the fourth of July, Shinoa and her Grandmother were going to a neighborhood barbecue hosted by one of their neighbors. It was going to be much more of a potluck. The Bradfords were bringing some homemade chocolate-chip cookies. After packing the treats up, Shinoa helped her Grandmother load up the van, making sure they had everything. Upon arriving, their neighbors were already organizing the food and refreshments in addition to socializing with one another. While her Grandmother spoke with the other elderly, Shinoa helped herself to a cheeseburger and fruit punch. As she sat down at a nearby bench, a dog walked up to her and started staring at the cheeseburger, sitting down and giving her the puppy eyes. "Hungry puppy, give food now." She started giggling as the dog started whining. "So what's your name?" She then asked, smiling at the dog and reaching out to pet him. "I don't think your Mom or Dad would be too happy if I gave you any of my food. And I don't want you getting sick."

Shinoa pouted as she scratched behind his ears, prompting the dog to smile as he started wagging his tail and stuck his tongue out.

Fourth Flashback - July 3rd, 2018 to September 25th, 2018

Unlike the previous summers, this next one saw Shinoa moving in with her Grandmother. Sometime during her Junior year of High School, Shinoa had gone to a party and things with her boyfriend got out of hand. As a result, Shinoa ended up getting pregnant. This started a domino effect. Her mother was fuming when she saw that positive pregnancy test in the trashcan, even more so because the young woman hadn't said anything. The breaking point there was when Shinoa made the choice to keep the baby. On July 3rd, her Mother made the decision to kick her out of the home. Unable to go move in with her Father, who had just moved to Washington State for his work, the young woman decided to go stay with her Grandmother and hopefully have a more peaceful pregnancy, because ever since her Mom found that positive pregnancy test, she hadn't been very supportive or helpful. The two barely saw eye to eye and Shinoa attended her doctor's appointments alone. Not to mention they were arguing more.

When she moved in, everything was different. Her grandmother was taking care of her as she had done every summer. Not only was the elderly woman looking forward to being a great-grandmother, but she looked forward to helping Shinoa take care of the newborn and being a live-in nanny. To help Shinoa feel more comfortable, instead of sending to public school, she signed Shinoa up for Online Classes so that she could study and work on her academics from the comfort of home. Then on weekends, take her to Doctor's appointments. At thirty-six weeks, Shinoa settled on a name for her darling baby girl; Valerie. Using a magnet, she put up a photo of the ultrasound that she had that morning and placed it on the refrigerator. "Can't wait to meet you, Valerie. You're gonna be so worth it..." She then felt a dull pain. "But Mommy doesn't wanna feel like this anymore..." As she held her back, Shinoa looked out the window, wondering when her Grandma would return from her hiking trip.

Present Day
As soon as she returned to the present, Shinoa frowned as she looked at the gun again, before turning to see Lelianna refilling a magazine. As she unloaded the gun that Colt had lent to her, she took note of the magazine being empty. Quietly she approached Lelianna so that she could sit down and refill her own magazine. After ejecting the mag though, she examined the gun to see what caliber it took, not wanting to use the wrong one and in turn screwing up the firearm, at which point Colt would get mad at her, which she did not want. 'C'mon Shinoa, remember what Grandma taught you.' she thought as she reached into the ammo bag to grab the appropriate ammo box and slowly began loading up the magazine, but only put in half the maximum capacity, as ammo was scarce and not necessarily plentiful at the current moment. "Hey." She greeted the nurse, feeling rather shameful as she had blown the older woman off earlier when Colt had pulled her aside to help her get started on the Marksmanship Training...or in her case, retraining.

Interactions: Lelianna FireMaiden
Mentions: Colt Rumble Fish

 

[FireMaiden]

​

Location: The Jordan Lodge
Interaction: The Mad Queen (Ralph) Rumble Fish (Colt) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) BloodThunder27 (Shinoa
Mentioned: Brax (Tre) Maj (Owen)
At the mention of his failed first fight, Leliana had to chuckle. "Well," She started, pausing as she reloaded her pistol, "We all have off days." Leliana stood, holstering her pistol before dusting her butt off, she heard someone come outside. Looking up to see it was Micheal didn't make her feel happy, but at least know she could keep an- oh holy hell what was he doing? "Michael, stop!" He either didn't hear her or just didn't care, and continued on with his fuckery, making himself a sandwich from the meat. "Micheal, I swear to fucking god, get yo-" Too late. She watched as he cut the meat in half, panicked, and then dumped a bunch of ice on it. Leliana was dumbfounded, honestly, how could one person cause so many problems in the span of a few short minutes. And then, as if she and Ralph didn't just watch him destroy the meal Tre had started for the entire lodge, he approached her with the audacity to try and act casual.

She didn't respond for a minute, letting it process, before she turned to him. "Micheal, did you not realize we could see you?" She asked softly, staring into his eyes, her brows furrowed as her tone held such fury, you may wonder what Colt was teaching her in private. "You're lucky that should be salvageable, or I would have shot you immediately. Now why, pray tell, did you think that was a good fucking idea huh?" She stepped a little closer, hand on her pistol grip. "Our food supplies are dangerously low, have you somehow alluded yourself into thinking that we can still go to the grocery store no problem? We're starving Micheal! There's a reason we're limiting the way we are, I'm so sorry you can't seem to handle it!" Another step closer, her anger getting louder. "I'm going to inside and count some of the shit you would have gotten into. If even one piece is missing, I might put Owen on the front porch with a rifle to watch you run laps. You stop, he shoots you." She shoved past him, not immediately going inside, but heading for what used to be the fire.

The ice he dumped on it had melted mostly, Leliana still had to move some of it off, but the damage had been done. There was enough for everyone, not including Micheal, to have some. But not as much as originally intended. Grabbing whatever utensil Tre had been using to tend to the meat in the place, she turned it over. There were no embers, just wet ash clinging to the bottom. If a skin hadn't formed already, Micheal really would have ruined it. Getting up, her glare still glued to her face, Leliana now made her way inside, passing Ralph as she did. "If he tries to run, shoot him in the legs. You probably know where to aim. I'm gonna radio Colt."

The first thing she noticed coming inside, was that Owen was now downstairs. Good, she might need him. The nurse gave him a smile and small Good morning wave, grabbing a walkie talkie from nearby and, a little aggressively, entered the kitchen. "Hey Colt," Leliana started, pushing the talk button as she found what was left of Micheal's rampage, she began looking into what she figured he might have eaten, and sure as hell, they were missing shit. "Micheal not only raided the fridge but almost ruined the meat Tre put on. Doesn't fucking listen when someone tries to get him to stop. Anyway, we're missing a good little bit, so I hope that truck pans out. I might shoot him. Over." She placed the radio on her belt, she grabbed a large glass plate and a rag and headed back outside. Once more, what used to be a fire her goal, he transferred what was left on to the plate, sitting it nearby before she drew her gun and aimed at Michael's fat head.

"I should kill you. I really should, I would be in my right, and nobody here would mad about it. You don't contribute, you don't do anything but eat more than your share and complain about hard work, maybe it was a mistake to let you stay. Do you even realize the gravity of the situation we're in? We don't have the means to support such a large group, the town will run out of food, and here you go wasting it." She paused for a moment, hopefully letting it sink in. "There is a reason the rest of us have to act like adults, why the rest of us have to do the things we do. It's survival, and if survival means killing you so we won't starve, believe me, it's not an option some of us are above." She holstered her pistol, but she had made her point clear. With that, Leliana got to work cleaning the ash off the meat so that at least a few of them could enjoy it. When she heard Shinoa's voice, Leliana looked up, almost forgetting she was there. "Yeah? If you want help, I can do that in a minute, alright? Working with a small window here."

 

[The Mad Queen]

"You'd have thought someone like me would've gotten into a few fights with bullies at school, but um..." His smile grew, and Fisher let out a slight chuckle "Whenever they tried to pick on me or anyone I saw I just offered to help them with their homework. Problem solved. After they came back with a few straight Cs, and a B or two they left me and my friends alone." His smile was fully back now, the anger behind his eyes gone "I could've given them As, but that would've been too suspicious for people that stupid."
It would only be gone briefly, for Michael was up to his old tricks and Fisher was much too slow to stop him. It wasn't like he he'd been track runner in school but he managed to keep himself fit at least, still even if both his knees were intact he probably wouldn't have been able to stop another Michael-related catastrophe. Seeing the meat hit the ground, his brown eyes grew heavy with disappointment.

He let Leli say her piece, she was much better at putting idiots in their place than Ralph was and if things got too much for Michael should Fisher try to give him a verbal beating the overweight man could just push him over.
"Yes ma'am." He nodded at the totem pole of rage, his brown eyes piercing into Michael while his hand moved to his hip. He didn't want to shoot Michael, let alone in the knee as Ralph could attest as to just how painful that was, but just showing the fat, useless man that Ralph was packing heat was probably enough.

"See that tree over there?" He pointed to where he'd displayed his skills earlier "See the bullseye? That was me. And you're a much larger target than that. Don't test me, boy!" Something pulled at him from his stomach. Threatening Michael, or anyone for that matter was alien to him but he had to show he meant business. When the nurse returned and tried to sample what was left of the meat, Ralph couldn't help but listen in.

He hadn't just taken the meat, he'd raided their entire supplies. He couldn't be sure of how much, but he'd threatened the group with possible starvation nonetheless. That crossed the line with him. The meat Tre had left was one thing, but Michael's habits didn't just make him a liability anymore, they made him a threat.

He didn't care that he should be resting, Ralph pulled himself to his feet with a painful grunt and limped over towards Michael, anger in his brown eyes.
"Listen to me, boy and listen good." He towered above him "We have three children, one of whom is an infant and a man still recovering from life threatening injuries he sustained trying to defend this place. They need to keep their strength up, they need to eat. More so than myself, and especially you." He poked Michael's fat with his cane, hard and it was like poking a bouncy castle "You, could actually do with a few days of not eating at all. The average human can survive without food for three weeks before they die. Painfully. That will happen to everyone here if you keep this nonsense up."

He sighed heavily and reached into his coat pocket. Two letters left. "Before she left, Jenna wrote you a letter and tasked me with handing it to you." He presened it to Michael, then pulled it away at the last second "But you haven't earned it yet. I saw the way you looked at her, so I am going to assume that these words might mean something to you." He rolled his eyes, brown marbles turning inside his head "You are a liability and when Colt gets back she may well throw you out. That's preferable to what Luca will do to you when he finds out about what you've done."

He took one step back "Step up, prove that you should be allowed to stay here or you will die out there." He glanced down at his own belt, seeing the gun "I was going to teach you how to shoot today, but I fear you would just eat the bullets the second I hand this to you." He turned away from him "No food for two whole days. If I catch you eating, I will put a bullet in one of your knees. And trust me..." He gestured to his own kneecap or rather, what was left of it. "It will be incredibly painful." That feeling in his gut pulled at him again, but now at the very least Ralph had found his usefulness despite his injury:

Making sure that Michael didn't gorge himself on the rest of their supplies. But, the man needed an incentive. Threatening to take one of his knees might not have been enough.
"However, if you manage the two days I will give this letter as it will prove to me that you have some actual damn restraint." He crossed his arms, staring back at Michael as his brown marbles transformed into daggers.

Interactions: Hyped_Taco (Michael) FireMaiden (Leli),

 

[Brax]

Aaron lowered his arms from behind his head, keeping his palms open and on show. Getting shot by an ex-service woman or hacked at by a young hothead weren’t exactly at the top of his list of priorities.

“Well if it was stolen that’s a whole different story then ain’t it? Hell I’ll even help you get her back, maybe in exchange for a few days worth of food and the chance to top up my water supplies, hell I’ll even throw in a free service, make sure she’s runnin’ at her best,”

He glanced at his trusty Humvee, before looking back at Tre. He let out a bark of laughter.

“You’ve got balls bucko I’ll give you that much. Afraid that’s a no can do in regards to that. Once all this mess is over and done with I’m drivin’ that pretty lady to her intended destination. But if you ask nicely I’ll bring you along for the road trip,”

Tre raised an eyebrow at the comment. Typically people were impervious to his demands, given his age and size. Chances were the man standing before him wasn’t trying to fight both himself and Colt at the same time. However, it didn’t appear to the young man that he was in a position to barter or bargain any amount.

Colt was momentarily distracted from the conversation at hand as her radio crackled. The veteran grunted something unintelligible before turning away to put the radio to her ear as she heard Leliana’s voice come through. It seemed as though the second she left the Lodge, Michael had once again reared his ugly head and severely reduced their food supply. Now the pressure on her to get the truck back was even greater. If this failed, they would surely starve in a few weeks. With a sigh, she spoke up.

“HE DID WHAT?” Tre yelled, fury contorting his face as he turned his head to the sound of the radio.

“Keep him in one place. I’ll take care of ‘im when I’m back. In the meantime, use yer best judgement.” Once the radio was off, Colt paused. This day was starting to take the turn she had been dreading. Reaching into her pocket, she took out her flask and took the longest swig physically possible before finally turning back to the two men. The harshness of the strength hurt her sinuses and sent a stream of fire down her throat.

“I’LL FUCKIN’ KILL HIM, I’LL KILL HIM, I’LL HANG HIM FROM THE FUCKIN’ RAFTERS JUST LIKE I DID THAT FUCKIN’ PIG, I’LL SLOW ROAST THAT FAT CHUNK OF SHIT UNTIL HE’S NOTHING MORE THAN A BURNT CRISP, HE’LL BE MORE THAN ENOUGH TO SUPPLY THE ENTIRE LODGE WITH MEAT FOR WEEKS, THAT FAT FUCK, I BET HIS MOTHER IS FAT, HIS FATHER WAS DEFINITELY FAT - …”

“Okay,” she coughed with a slight splutter, “We’re runnin’ low on food, but… if ya can help me, we could work out somethin’ in terms of payment.” The gun was still drawn, but not pointed directly at him now he was un-armed. Chances could still not be taken.

While Colt was conversing with Aaron, Tre had been completely turned around and still shouting obscenities into the air.

“Whatever you can spare’ll be appreciated Sarge, got yourself a deal,”

Spitting into his palm he took a step forward extending it in her direction. As he did his eyes flicked towards his pistol still lying in the mud where he had left it.

“I’m guessin’ we’re not quite at the stage where I can have that back. Mind lookin’ after it for me, could do without it gettin’ rusty and whatnot, mud makes merry hell of the mechanisms,” He glanced towards Tre. “Hell you can even look after it kiddo. Nice little 20th century upgrade for your machete,”

After hearing what Aaron had to say, Tre fully stopped and slowly turned around. He smirked, then provided the man with a chuckle. Not a second later, he was sprinting full-force at the man, ready to chop him up into little tiny pieces.

The sound of spit ejecting from the depths of dearly-departed lips forced Tre’s forward advance to stop completely. His right foot was stuck to the concrete as he tripped forward, extending his arms to break his fall. One of his machetes hit the ground and was thrown from his grasp, sliding alongside the gutter and toward Aaron’s feet. At his trajectory, Tre’s head had just barely missed banging onto the floor. Still seething, the boy did his best to get back up but found that he couldn’t move his foot. Then, confusion struck. He did his best to readjust but found it moot. The boy peered back at his foot to see that a white substance had hardened over the toes of his feet, glueing him in place.

Interactions: RayPurchase Rumble Fish

 

[Rumble Fish]

A day and a half in bed seemed to have reduced Milly’s sense of balance and coordination to that of a day old foal. Her vision span from being upright as the fever was doing its dirty work. But a few moments of humming ‘Row Row Your Boat’ under her breath and calming herself helped. She looked back to Beth after every few steps, just in case.

As she hopped down the stairs, the booms of gunshots caused a surge in her small body and Milly froze on the second to last step, face pale and her hands gripping onto the banister. The youngster breathed harshly through her blocked nose as she stared out of the front door, seeing the figures of both Tre and Colt leaving into the woods. After a moment, the gunshots stopped. Milly stood up fully, alert like a deer.

“Um...sorry,” she mumbled, clearing her throat as she did as she tried to take Beth by the hand. What happened? Her mind had drawn a blank.

“You’re fine little love,” Beth cooed, taking the child’s outstretched hand and using her free hand to gently pet Milly’s hair. It sounded like the lodge had become a makeshift shooting range. That was likely for the best, many of the lodge members didn’t know how to shoot, and with the severity of the hazmat fight just barely over the horizon, it made sense that they would make that a priority.

“They are practicing is all. The stronger we are the better we can defend our home.” Beth spoke to Milly in a soft, melodic tone. There was no sense lying to her. To keep Milly from the harsh realities of the world not only kept her ignorant to how to survive but did her a disservice. Survivability was everything now, and there won't always be people to protect her. If Owen hadn’t been willing to take multiple bullet wounds for them, she wasn’t sure that she or Milly would be standing here today.

“When you are feeling a little better, we should ask Colt for a lesson. You should probably learn how to handle a gun too.” Beth smiled down at Milly, and made her way into the kitchen to begin hunting up breakfast. She noticed Owen and Warren deep in conversation on the couch and chose not to bother him, instead offering the male a soft smile in the way of a greeting and ushering Milly into the kitchen as not to disturb them.

Milly breathed out a smooth sigh of relief as Beth explained what had been going on. They weren’t under attack; good. The youngster followed Beth like a shadow, looking to Owen and Warren as they passed and gave the two men a gentle wave before being ushered into the kitchen. Once there, Milly hopped onto one of the stools, putting Snowy on the stool next to her. She swiveled in it a little when Beth then spoke up, mentioning asking Colt for lessons. The youngster gulped slightly.

“She’s still a bit scary. But, I don’t want to be captured again,” she drummed her fingers against the counter as she thought back, “That was horrible.” it still did not feel real. One moment they were watching rabbits play in the snow on a crisp, cold morning and just like that, everything had fallen. She glanced outside, everything seemed so calm. The same calm as that day. What was there to say that would not happen again?

“If you do too?” she asked, taking Snowy and putting her on the counter. As she did, her stomach rumbled, making the youngster squeak and wrap her arms around it, “S-sorry, um, so, what would you like for breakfast?” she asked, hopping down from the stool, pulling the oversized hoodie she was wearing closer around her. She had found it in the drawer in their room, and while it almost came to her knees and the sleeves made her look as though someone had cast the Brackium Emendo spell on her arms, it was too cozy for the youngster to pass up. As she waited for Beth’s response, she flapped her arms around like a clumsy bird, entertained by the sleeves.

“Don’t worry Mill, I won’t let you go alone.” Beth turned her attention to the cabinets. Food was becoming limited. Hopefully, Luca and Andy were able to round up some items on their supply run. The blonde found some instant pancake mix, it would be easy enough to make as it only took water to mix in. Running water was one of the items that made the lodge so invaluable as a home. In all the craziness that was left in town, most places were void of power and water and the lodge had both.

Seeing Beth struggling, the youngster was distracted by a commotion outside. She had seen the evidence of Michael’s breakfast, which seemed to explain why it was so hard to find food. It seemed that the other adults had caught on and were angry about it. Her stomach grumbling again, she turned back to Beth, “They seem rather upset.”

Michael was a moron. Beth had known him longer than she cared to admit and it was a character trait he had always possessed. The blonde let out a long exhale through her nose, exasperated. However, she was able to quickly cover it with a smile. She petted Milly’s hair and chose to distract her with the mixing bowl full of pancake mix.

“Nothing to fret about dear. Could you do me a huge favor?” She handed the child the bowl. “Can you mix this for me. I am just going to poke my head out and check on Leli.” With a smile and a last head pat the woman walked toward the door.

“Sure!” Milly chirped, seemingly forgetting completely about their previous discussion and hopping over to stir the mix as Beth had instructed her. It was therapeutic, watching the spoon whirl through the batter. She intended to make sure this was the best mixed pancake batter ever. The least she could do to repay Beth was to make perfect pancakes. If only they had blueberries. That would truly make them perfect. But this would be nice too. Nice and sweet.... Like Beth!

Interactions: Maj (Beth)
Mentions: Hyped_Taco (Michael) FireMaiden (Leliana)

 

[FireMaiden]

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Branches and what remained of the snow sheltered by trees crunched under their feet as they wandered the forest. Cold, hungry, lost, they didn't know where they were going. But the sounds of gunshots in the distance forced stiff necks and curious eyes in on direction. They painfully dragged their feet on, decaying fingers hitting trees as more and more groans joined the choir, maybe training wasn't such a good idea. While the shots had been spread out enough to keep their attention off for a while, the undead never stayed away for long. As the herd drew closer to the lodge, it wasn't the gunshots that kept their attention, but the shouting of a certain blonde in response to their lunch being ruined, the first few bodies hit the fence. They would go unnoticed.

As more and more of them piled up against the makeshift fence, the wood creaking loudly, splintering as it tried to withstand the weight of a number of writhing bodies. But as the number kept growing, the fence finally gave, a loud crack sending a chill down the spines of those who realized what that sound meant. The groans of the undead filled the air, the sickly sweet scent of blood mixed with the disgusting air of decay washed over the yard, the herd progressed onward. A few bodies were stuck on the broken fish, clawing at the ground to try and regain their feet, it was nearly impossible as the other members of their herd simply walked over them, the humans would very soon find themselves overwhelmed.

First it was one, freezing the first person who saw it in place. Then two, three, four, the number of undead advancing into the backyard, rounding either did if the house increasing steadily, causing a panic. Leliana abandoned the plate, the meat toppling to the ground as it was forgotten, her hands pushing Micheal towards the backdoor, commanding him to help Ralph inside. She grabbed Shinoa, pulling her towards the backdoor, her next goal the ammo bag but it was too late. The undead was already to close, and the nurse was forced inside, slamming the door shut behind her. The lodge was once again under attack.

The Mad Queen (Ralph) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) Togy (Nile) Rumble Fish (Milly) Maj (Owen/Bethany) Corgi (Aubrey) TheTreForce (Warren)​