Realistic or Modern Patient Zero (A Zombie Survival RP)

[Maj]

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"Dun dun Dun!" Vanessa said in a low, dramatic tone before chuckling to herself lightly. She reached up and rubbed her left eye. The thought crossed her mind that she was running low on eyedrops. She would need more soon if she intended to continue wearing this frickin contact. She turned to Luca, her hands clasped behind her back as she leaned to the side to look at his face. "It looks like I was right…. Well… partly anyway. He's not dead. Could still die."

Luca’s eyes had been fixated on Vanessa’s face as she peered her way into his personal space. He did not provide her with a response, instead opting to look away and walking forward a few inches as Andy made her pennies worth of conversation in the time being. The Italian was not familiar with the person that the group had walked in on, but nonetheless, Luca and Andy’s knack for finding destitute individuals was nothing short of astonishing even in it’s umpteenth hour.

The doctor quickly judged that Andy could handle this… acquaintance of hers better than he could and instead turned to watch the girl's left flank. The heavy bags bumped against the wall with his pivot but it didn't impede his movement very much. "Ms. Jordan, make the reunion quick please." There were too many angles that they can be approached from and the large man was still feeling uneasy. The idea that they were being spectated still hung over his head like an anvil on a string.

Andy gave Hector a curt nod before turning her gaze back to the blonde man in front of her. Hopefully the doctor would be able to find what supplies he needed within the confines of the room. If she was being honest with herself, seeing Harriet saddled Andy with a fair amount of guilt. They had worked together on a weekly basis for all four years of her time at the university and yet when all this shit had hit the fan, the girl had barely given the man a second thought. She hadn’t worried about his safety or even wondered if he had made it out.

“What in the hell are you doing in here?” Andy asked shaking her head at him. Had he been surviving within the depths of the college since the outbreak? “You look like you belong in an episode of Breaking Bad.” If she hadn’t hesitated, he would be dead at her feet with an arrow in his neck. With all the soldiers around, it was pretty reckless to dress like one.

A low snort from the back of the room came from the closed lips of Luca, who had been ready to remind Andy that she hadn’t been one to talk. He did not have an interest in intruding in their conversation. At that same end, he did not wish to spend more time standing about in the university without getting anything properly done. Those light hues made their way over to the doctor briefly before he allowed the cigarette to fall from his lips and hit the tile underneath his feet. It wasn’t long until the tip of his boot had extinguished the cherry.

“Proper lab safety is never a bad idea” Harriet said, strapping the mask back on his head and pulling the yellow hood up.He gave Andy’s entourage a side glance through his goggles. His student’s company left him...concerned, to say the least. Looked like dark and brooding was her type by the judge of it. And was that man missing an eye? He probably shouldn’t ask. “And I came here for food. The everyday supermarket artificial garbage is expiring, so I raided the Cafeteria” Harriet said, bending over and picking up the Coca Cola bottle filled with the strange white substance that somehow swirled menacingly in the bottle. “What are you doing here though? Ah, stupid question, Cafeteria food too?” Harriet asked.

“Among other things,” Andy offered vaguely. She didn’t feel like going into detail about her blood, or the fact that there was a potential vaccine laying within her veins. She trusted him well enough. After years of working together, it would be silly to not, but her default was to be wary. Something that no doubt Harriet already knew about her.

“Well that sounds ominous” Harriet said as he picked up his Camper Bag filled to the brim with canned food. He knew his students, obviously, so he was accustomed to these sorts of responses. Well, common reasoning prevailed in times like these. Seeing as they came for food and “Other reasons”, he could assume that they came for either chemicals or equipment judging by how they came to the lab, who Andy must’ve known would’ve held no survival related gear.

“Lab equipment is in the back” Harriet said, jumping to conclusions. “Door’s unlocked, Harkley always forgets the key so he just never locks it” Harriet explained, jerking a thumb to a wooden door in the back of the lab as he shrugged on his Camper Pack.

Vanessa watched as they conversed. Up until this point, she assumed the redheaded woman to be generally mean to everyone, but she seemed a bit passive towards the person in the lab. She almost blurted her thoughts out loud, but then thought of the look the other woman might throw her way. It was then that a thought occurred to her. She leaned closer to Luca and asked in a low tone, "D'ya think.. maybe there are eye drops in there?" Asking this question made her nervous, and it was reflected in her voice. She didn't want these people to look at her face for what it really was. After many years of hiding the scar on her eye with makeup and a color contact, she was not comfortable letting it show. If she was going to continue her facade, she was going to need more eye drops. She had enough makeup in her bag to last at least another week though, so she was good on that for the moment. Her gaze lingered on Luca as she waited for his response.

The Italian’s brows furrowed for a moment. There was no way of Luca to properly know of whether or not the mook that was scavenging before them had acquired such an item during his seemingly limited travels. Instead of conversing with the woman beside him on the chances of which such a prophecy could possibly come to fruition, he parted his lips and blatantly interrupted any resemblance of a conversation the two were having.

“Do you have eye drops? The first straggler we picked up seemingly has a need for it.” Half-opened eyes were the only thing that had accompanied the man’s address to Harriet as he lifted his arms to cross over his chest.

Turning to look at the Italian, Harriet stopped for a moment to soak in the curtness. Yep, rude. “Not on me, no. Nurse’s office is downstairs, though. Turn right, take your first left, and go three doors down” Harriet said, his voice muffled by the gas mask.

Vanessa took a sharp inhalation through her teeth. She needed those eye drops, but she couldn't ask anyone here to risk their lives by coming with her to protect her. "So no, none in there then… I'm not goin' on a risky detour."

"Wise decision." Hector replied. "Chances are we'll head near it on our way out. If we do, I'll grab some along with any useful medications. But before that…" The doctor lowered his firearm and slid past the teacher/student pair towards the back of the room. The aforementioned door left a lot to be desired in terms of security and the suspicion that something may be lying in wait behind the door tickled the back of his mind.

He closed his fist and brought it down somewhat hard on the door's wooden frame. He listened carefully for the sounds of the dead and when he was met with silence, did he open the entrance. Once inside, he set to work like a man possessed, grabbing instruments and tools in a seemingly random way. The truth was that Hector knew exactly what he needed and it only took him a glance to identify what he wanted. The empty duffle bag Hector brought with him was practically filled with lab equipment in less than a minute.

“Hmm. Well, that’s that then?” Harriet asked as he watched Hector fill the duffle bag. Well, that was simple, and surprisingly anti-climactic. Here he was trapped in a classroom with nothing but chemicals to Macgyver his way out, and suddenly four armed gunman come in and save him. Talk about Deus Ex Machina. He’d even stirred up some Acetone Peroxide for an explosive climax. Really, the universe had a piss poor writing sense.

Andy wasn’t sure what type of supplies Hector was after, but while the group conversed she made herself useful grabbing anything of immediate value. Vanessa and Hector made a fair point about the nurses station. After the attack from the soldiers, she was sure that the medical supplies at the lodge were dwindling. A quick glance out the window told Andy that they weren’t going to make it back home before nightfall, and traveling at night was dangerous. When most of the enemies could hunt far better than you in the dark, it paid to stay hidden.

“What are we looking for here?” Andy addressed the doctor. If she could help gather things up maybe they could hit the nurses station before needing to hunker down in her dorm for the night. She wasn’t sure what sort of supplies he would need to test her blood, but hopefully they would find something of use here.

"Unless we can carry a fridge with us, this is about it." With a large grunt of effort, the doctor hoisted the extremely heavy bag up and onto his shoulder. One could by the tension in Hector's neck about how damn heavy the equipment was now that it was full.

More so, the whole university was putting Andy at unease. Harriet hadn’t been here long, he mentioned just coming back to raid the cafeteria and that left a lingering question on the back of Andy’s mind. It was as if a silent conversation passed between the seemingly only two sensible people in the damn group because Hector found himself nodding at Andy. He had already voiced the suspicions and the longer they lingered, the more the tension seemed to mount.

Who in the hell was keeping this place powered on?

Collab: Brax shadowz1995 TheMightyRedLemon Togy

 

[Hyped_Taco]

(The following is a collab between ya boy Hyped_Taco and Meredith the ex admin )

After the Hazmat attack on the lodge, the next few shitty days that followed and having his back burned due to his and Nile ́s stupidity, Cletus went inside the lodge to have some refreshing breakfast. Instead of being greeted by the view of… well, anything else, he just found Micheal’s fatass eating what seemed to be their entire food supply in the kitchen.

He considered shooting him and was so close to actually pulling the trigger until the man went outside to (at least presumably) continue with his supply destroying path; Cletus decided to leave anyone else deal with the bastard and angrily returned to his RV. After closing the door of the vehicle, he let some of his frustration out. ¨Just what I fucking needed!̈ ̈ The man screamed, kicking the shit out of a backpack he had laying around. At the very least.. this day couldn’t possibly get worse.

But it did get worse, 100 times worse than it was just 10 minutes ago. From afar the redneck could hear at how the nurse screamed at the Fatboy, which to him was completely justified since someone needed to put him in his place; but the sound that followed could only mean trouble. An almost ear-shattering noise was heard from outside his RV, and Cletus quickly opened up the curtains to see the reason for such a loud noise.

What followed was pure horror for the man, another attack on the lodge was about to unfold, but the enemy was not human anymore; and with a part of their defenses broken, the flesh-eating undead began to flood the area.

Cletus knew that he had to act quickly and do something - he couldn't just stay inside his vehicle. He thanked God that their foe at the very least was as slow as anyone could be and that at the very least he had a minute - maybe even two - to act. He grabbed an AR15, a Shotgun, and two handguns from his vehicle and ran towards the lodge as quickly as he could. While on his way someone with real shit aim almost got him in the leg.

“Watch your shots, asshole!̈ Cletus directed towards the lodge. Now he was finally in front of the door - but it just wouldn´t open, had they just fucking blocked the door on him?

Aderyn waved her hand at Cletus, but he didn't seem to see her. ‘Window’, the girl mouthed, smacking a zombie cooperatively with Owen. She tried saying his name quietly, shook her head, and finally climbed up, knees on the windowsill - “Hey, Cletus!”

Cletus desperately tried looking over anyway in which he could enter the lodge, time seemed to be running out with the large horde creeping ever so closer to him, but he quickly turned around at the sound of a voice he rapidly recognized

¨A-Addy?!¨ the Redneck asked surprised, she had been gone from the lodge for a few weeks by now, at which point had she returned?. But this was not the time to chit chat since Cletus was about to be completely fucked, quite figuratively and literally. ¨I brought some guns, open the door!¨ he said to the girl.

“Just come in the window, goddamn, it’s open you redneck-” the girl looked on in horror as Cletus seemed to panic, right in the middle of a field full of fucking zombies, and she took a deep breath. She gestured wildly for Cletus to come closer. There was no way she was uncovering that door or going outside for anyone. Two monsters in particular were closing in rapidly.

“Please, whatever you do, do not shoot them - it’ll only draw more-” The man did not heed her words.

Once Cletus had finally gotten near the window he realized that it was just too small for him to just jump right through it, and with the two undead fuckers getting way too close for comfort he was forced to fire at them.

“Sorry, Addy,” Cletus said as he threw almost all of the guns he had brought through the window; his action left him only with his AR15 and Caroline, his trusted revolver to protect himself. He quickly shot both monsters near himself down, only to see now that even more began to approach him due to the noise he had made; he was quickly running out of time.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”

Aderyn dropped her broomstick, instead reaching for her pistol, and taking a shot at one of the group now surrounding Cletus. It fell to the ground, and she let out a slow breath, steadying her aim. They were all but upon him now, and Cletus was shooting, hitting the closest with the butt of her rifle-

The girl took another shot. This time, she missed, and she knew she was drawing attention from the horde. She could only trust Owen to have her back and keep swinging above her in the window. “Fottuto cretino!”

¨Sorry kid,¨ Cletus said as he was getting surrounded, “I don't speak European.”

These things weren’t alive. No matter how much hell fired upon them they would not stop - hell, unless he got them in the head or knees they would not even flinch to getting shot. He already knew that from the first time he had fought them alongside Dixie - but the man grew increasingly desperate the closer they got to him, this way he could only delay the inevitable, he needed to get into the fucking lodge.

He stopped firing and turned around as quickly as he possibly could, the redneck yelled “Both of yall get out of the way!̈ and with his rifle, Cletus shattered the window. Glass rained down, and as a piece caught Aderyn’s arm, she jumped back into Owen - ripping the skin across her bicep. A few more colourful words and she finally managed to get out of the man’s way.

At this point, Cletus did not mind if he got cut from the remaining glass in the frame, the man just knew that if he got inside the lodge then his chances of making it through this alive would increase a lot. He pulled himself up to the window in what felt like a behemoth effort; finally, Cletus felt like he had finally made it, that he had cheated death once more, but it seemed that destiny had other plans for him today.

The redneck was halfway across the window frame when he felt a cold, yet strong hand that firmly grabbed his shoulder, stopping him from continuing forwards; he had almost no time to react before the hand began to drag him outside ¨n-No, NO NO NO!!¨ Cletus screamed while trying to grab something, anything that would stop him from being taken back outside, yet it was to no avail.

The undead monster that was now pulling the man, stopped, Cletus threw away his automatic rifle and attempted to grab his revolver, maybe if he was fast enough he could shoot the thing him and free himself, maybe-

Aderyn recoiled in disgust as the monster sank its teeth into Cletus’ neck. A sickening crunch, and she took up the handle once more, sinking the sharp end of it directly into the monster’s skull. She shoved it hard, and both broom handle and zombie tumbled to the ground.

Cletus, looking ready to hit the dirt along with the full horde of zombies behind him, stumbled back into the side of the lodge. Aderyn’s hand whipped out of the broken window, and she pulled him close to it by his shirt collar as the man began to fall. There was no surviving a bite like that. The girl swallowed hard, leveling her pistol in her injured hand, and pressing it against Cletus’ temple.

“Thank you for the soup,” she started quickly, eyes glued on the blood pouring from his wound, “And I’m sorry.”

The shot rang in her ears and stunned her for a few seconds. She dropped Cletus, allowing him to sag to the ground, and pushed past Owen into the living room. A fine spray of blood covered her from hair to waist. God, I’m sorry.

Mentioned: No one at all with the exception of Dixie, so here´s another ping for Hyped_Taco
Interacted: Maj Owen
In the area: Everyone with the exception of a few
Fun fact: Last Cletus post ever... F

 

[Rumble Fish]

Aaron jumped into the driver’s seat, slamming the door behind him. He fumbled in the door compartment, pulling a handful of tapes out that he started flipping through. “Too slow… too fast… too mellow…” With each negative, the offending tape was dropped back into the compartment until one was left. “Perfect,”

He slipped the tape into the deck with an audible click. He swiveled round in his seat towards the new passengers.

“Now the safety brief. Please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times, and make sure your belt is securely fastened. Please refrain from discharging firearms from inside the vehicle unless strictly necessary. And one final reminder, this is a no-smoking vehicle… any questions?”

“Uhm…” The blonde fidgeted in her seat, “Are… Are we really doing this? Won’t the truck get damaged? I-I mean… There has to be a better way to do this than,” She grimaced, “Running them over.”

Aubrey understood that this was probably the safest way of doing this, but the idea of plowing through all of those Things left her stomach knotted. She saw how many there were. What would they do if the tires got clogged with… parts and they got surrounded? If all of those Things could knock down a fence, there’s a possibility they could break glass, right?

"No need to worry your pretty little head. This is strengthened Aluminium and hardened glass, bullbars on the front will clear most of 'em out of the way. And as long as we don't go ploughin' into a herd of them in one go, we'll manage just fine,"

Or so he hoped anyway, not that he wants to voice such fears. In theory they would be alright if they stuck to running down individuals or pairs, if this herd was thick though they wouldn't make it far before they got bogged down in the mass of bodies.

“D-Do we at least need all four of us in the car to do this? I-I could run behind you guys and try to finish off the Things that may have not died or something?” She didn’t like this idea any better, but she didn’t know if she could handle being in a gore smeared truck at the moment.

"Right!" This lack of action was frustrating for the veteran deeply already. Choosing music for a fucking rescue mission? Idiot. And a ‘safety brief’ where were they, on a fucking plane? With a grumble, she took a good swig of liquid courage before listening to Aubrey who had piped up with concerns. With a heavy sigh, she turned around to look at the pair in the back.

“Aubrey has a point.” She spoke plainly, “Here, how ‘bout this? We’ll drive to the tree line; y’all both get out and hide until we’ve driven the Things far enough away. Tre needs his feet looked at, we dunno what that shit could do. If ya both stay hidden, stay quiet and don’t do nothin’ until it’s safe for the others to get out, ya should be okay. If anyone’s gonna get hurt, it’s me.” She turned back around to look at Aaron.

“We goin’ or what?”

Aubrey glanced at the boy next to her before giving a short nod. While she wanted to do something more to help, she knew she wasn’t in a proper place to be of any use. Staying with the boy and keeping quiet until there’s a moment to get into the lodge would be the best bet.

Aaron flexed his fingers against the steering wheel and raising his right hand, hit the play button the tape deck. After a second of whirring the speakers came to life, his fingers tapping against the wheel in time to the Richard’s opening guitar riff.



“Hold onto your hats kids,”

With a turn of the key, the 6.2L Diesel engine roared into life, the four wheel drive kicking up a shower of mud as the Humvee roared away from the abandoned truck.

Featuring: Corgi (Aubrey) RayPurchase (Aaron)
Mentioned: Brax (Tre)

 

[FireMaiden]

This is a collab between @FireMaide and Maj
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Leliana didn't expect another answer, she walks talkie being placed in her jacket pocket, the woman sighed. Colt founded angry, which hadn't been Leliana’s attention, but she's so used to people not understanding what she means over-explanation was something she did often. But, she had faith in her plan, she now just needed to explain it to everyone else. Her eyes were still glued outside for a moment, silently trying to decide who.would go outside with her, when Bethany's voice broke her concentration. "I have an idea on how to get out of this mess, but it's going to take everybody. I'm worried someone is going to do something stupid and get us all killed, but, I have to be optimistic yeah?" She chuckled dryly, finally turning to the other blonde. "Okay, I need at least three people to go outside with me. Colt has the truck and will create a distraction that gets them away from the door so we can clear the yard out. But, we don't have enough ammo or silencers on our half, so Micheal is losing his gun. Secondly, that means we need more melee weapons. I have my by bat, and Owen has one someone can maybe borrow. Warren has something too. And I don't know how trusty that sword Micheal has is, but who knows, maybe he'll be useful."

Beth nodded thoughtfully as she listened to her friend go through her thoughts. If she knew anything at all about Leliana, it was that she was always the one with the plan. In her experience, the monsters were neither fast nor smart and anyone able to be quick on their feet would be able to stay ahead of the herd.

"If you are going out, I am too," the blonde confirmed. Neither Warren or Owen looked very fast and while Bethany wasn't overly strong, she knew that it would be easy for her to stay out of arms reach.

"There is a crowbar in the shed," Beth recalled. "I think Owen has his hands full already. I wouldn't want to take his bat away from him."

"Owen, Ralph, Milly, and Aderyn are going to stay inside and keep the undead in the back yard distracted. That way we won't get surrounded while we're taking care of the things out, " She continued, "They just need to make enough noise to keep them occupied, that way when Colt and her team meet up, either team can take a side of the house, and then clear out the back yard." Leliana looked down for a moment, brows furrowed before she looked back up and stepped past Beth, motioning for her to follow. "We might not be able to get in the shed, but there might be something here in the house."

Her eyes were already scanning the house, looking for usable items. She knew that if she got too close she would be overpowered by the outstretched arms of the undead. Whatever she found would need to be heavy enough that it could do considerable brain damage without a lot of force but long enough that Beth could keep her distance.

Her eyes finally settled on the heavy wrought iron curtain rod. Sure, Andy might be upset to find her house even more in ruins, but the curtains weren't doing much for decor when all that was left of the windows was makeshift boards and nails. She put up a finger to ask her friend to wait for a moment and then climbed up the back of the couch that Owen had pushed in front of the door. Her hands gripped the first one, lowering it off the hooks and feeling the weight in her hands. It should do nicely.

Beth removed the sheer curtains and passed the rod to Leliana before reaching sideways on her toes to grab one for herself.

"These should work yeah?"

"It should do perfectly," Leliana nodded, ignoring Warren's yell for the moment. "Alright, are you sure about going outside with us? You haven't exactly had much experience when it comes to fighting these things. And I know that we don't have a choice, but I'm worried about what happens if something goes wrong." She paused for a moment, her voice dropping to barely a whisper, "I've already lost everyone else, I don't want to lose you too."

"I'll be fine," Beth assured her, a warm and loving smile brightening her features. "I'm stronger than I look. Remember when I had to fend off Bert? Plus with you having my back, nothing will go wrong." She was climbing down off of the couch to stand beside her friend, pulling Leliana into a hug. "You aren't going to lose me and I'm not going to lose you either."

"Eww. Bert, gross." Just hearing the name crept Leliana out, but Beth made a good point. When Beth hugged her, Leliana smiled, hugging back. "Hope you're ready to kick some ass."

Beth wasn't so sure, but she knew that Leliana needed help to defend her home, so she would be sure to be right by her side. Beth wasn't overly fond of the lodge. Her ex-boyfriend was here, it was cramped and smelly and most of the people who inhabited it were rude and intentionally exclusive. However, she loved Milly and Leliana too. For the time being, this was the place they called home and even if the lodge members hadn't been the most inviting, at least they had done their best to keep her safe. Bethany supposed that she owed them the same respect.

"Rally the troops," the blonde said, bumping her friend on the shoulder affectionately. "It's time to go."

Before Leliana could reply, the sounds of panic filled her ears. Looking past Beth to the scene at the window, she had to hold back a yell as she saw Aderyn draw her gun. Whoever was stuck outside could make it in if they were careful enough, but it didn't matter. Playing out too quickly for the nurse to act, Leliana was close enough to hear the agonized voice of Cletus. Her heart sank. How long had he been outside? Why hadn't she thought about him at all in the last little bit? What was he doing? She felt sick, hearing a final shot, knowing that the numbers of the undead outside could have just tripled, her plan just got a lot more complicated, Cletus was gone, and everything was falling apart. Her breath quickened slightly, hands balled into fists, she turned away blue eyes glued to the ground.

She was muttering something as her fingernails dug into the soft palm of her flesh, a slight shake hidden in her entire body. Her breaths kept getting more and more erratic, but the muttering didn't stop. "B151544W, B151544W, B151544W, B1514..." Her voice was quiet, and anyone who could hear her may think it was just nonsense, but suddenly her attention snapped back to Beth. "We'll bury him later, are you still up for this?"

"It's going to be okay," Beth spoke softly, almost motherly. She reached for her friend's hand and gripped it tightly. Her eyes, however, were still wide from watching the child dispatch the man. They couldn't focus on that now. They would do whatever they needed to do. Furthermore, Beth would do whatever it took to protect Leli. She didn't care about Cletus, but the chanting and the fall of Leli's face made it clear that she did.

"I am with you."

Leliana took a deep breath, preparing herself. "Nile, get downstairs now please!" Her voice was loud enough not to cause problems with the horde outside but just loud enough for the man upstairs to hear. And this shout should let others know she had something to say. Waiting for Nile, the moment he was present, she began. "Everyone, pay attention, I have a plan to get us out of this mess, but it's going to take all of us and you're going to have to listen carefully. One wrong move and you'll be killed, or worse, get someone else killed." She seemed to stare directly at Micheal. "Warren, the yard is too full for all of us to get to the RV, and I mean all of us. If we had to abandon this place nobody would be left behind. So, I figured out how to silently clear the horde with three teams. Two of five, one of four. Colt will be here any minute, giving the team consisting of myself, Beth, Nile, Warren, and Micheal, a chance to get outside to the front yard after she and her team run down some of the horde and draw them away from the front door." She paused for a moment, the sounds of decayed hands slapping the front door increasing in volume, a shiver ran down her spine as the nurse continued. "The third team, Owen, Milly, Aderyn, Shinoa, and Ralph, you guys have the dangerous job of making enough noise to keep the infected in the back interested so the rest of us don't get surrounded while we clear out the front. The back door is barricaded, but I know that won't hold forever. I know they can break through the windows as well, but they're too high for them to climb through, and the infected lack the mental capability to do so. Be careful, but your part is crucial."

Her blue eyes briefly scanned everyone, hovering over the three kids of the group. "We won't take long upfront I promise, but if we get surrounded, we'll have to make a lot of noise to get out, which won't solve our problem. Which brings me to my last point. No gun. Unless absolutely your last option, nobody is allowed to use a firearm. Any infected within range to hear a truck engine is in this yard or at the tree line, but the guns will draw who knows how many from the depths of this forest." Once more she paused letting it sink in for everyone. They didn't have a lot of ammo to spare anyway, "We'll get out of this, just play your part. And find a suitable weapon." She gripped her bat tighter, giving everyone a sharp nod.

"I'll let you all know when Colt's here."

The Mad Queen (Ralph) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) Togy (Nile) Rumble Fish (Milly) Maj (Owen/Bethany) TheTreForce (Warren) @Meredith (Aderyn) BloodLightning27 (Shinoa)​

 

[Maj]

​

“Aderyn, no!”

But it was too late. The ring of her gun vibrated his ear drums and if he hadn’t been so focused on keeping the wall of arms and teeth off of him, he would have been forced to cover his ears. It wasn’t the first time Owen had wished that he knew how to use a gun. Despite Leliana’s commands not to use them, maybe if he had one, Cletus wouldn’t be dead. More so, at the very least Aderyn wouldn’t have had to be the one to put him down.

Owen wasn’t sure he would have been able to do it. The ease with which the child was able to fire a bullet into another’s skull was shocking, especially after having so many qualms about doing the same to the monsters. Maybe his pep talk had been a little too effective.

Another corpse lunged in toward them, doing its best to climb up over the ever growing pile of bodies in the windowsill. With Aderyn occupied, it fell on him to be the sole defense of the window. A growl escaped through Owen’s parted lips as he swung low, his bat falling with all the momentum of his weight into the back of the zombie’s skull. It splattered with a wet sound, splashing rotting brain matter and burgundy hues up and over his arms. It glazed his bat in clumps of carnage. The smell threatened to make him gag as it assaulted his nostrils, but adrenaline drew all of his focus to the fight in front of him.

The girl crossed the room, searching for improvised weapons, and her gaze fell upon the mounted deer above the fireplace. She pulled herself up by her uncut arm and grasped an antler with the other hand. Letting go of her grip on the mantle, she thumped to the ground, antler snapping from the taxidermied skull as her weight fell on it. Perfect.

She admired the bloody mess she’d made on the walls with glassy eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, she made her way back to Owen, brandishing the snapped end of the antler. She slipped between him and the window, bludgeoning one of the zombies, and trying to hand off the antler to him.

He looked to his side, eyeing this small gore-covered girl handing him something. The monsters were trying their best to get in through the window, Owen had his bat held sideways, trying to keep them at bay. Was that a fucking antler?

“What do you want me to do with this?” He tried to keep the frustration out of his tone, but it was proving difficult to focus on her and the flood of monsters that seemed to be never ending. With a grunt, he shoved the monsters off and back out through the window and freed his hands. Owen grabbed up the antler and attempted to snap it over his knee like he did before. A loud crack sounded, and for a moment the redhead wasn’t sure if came from the antler or his own knee. Pain shot up through his leg as the substance only barely budged.

“Fuck me,” Owen hissed. He used the antler to beat back the grabbing hands of the next monster in line before giving it another go. This time, it did snap but not without more curses from Owen’s lips.

“Why wouldn’t you just grab the fire poker like a normal person?” Owen asked, tossing the antler to his child companion. He picked up his bat once more.

The girl stared at him, open-mouthed, as she caught the antler. For a moment she didn’t answer - instead focusing on the window - shoving the end of the antler into another zombie’s neck. When she spoke, her voice was quiet, timid.

“I don’t know. That makes more sense.”

Of course she didn’t know. It would be far more weird if she did know. From finding out about the monsters to then being forced to watch her friend die and then end his suffering, Owen would be amazed if the small girl was able to put coherent thoughts together at all. At the first sight of a lull, the ginger reached down and put a firm hand on the girl’s shoulder.

“It’s okay.” It wasn’t, not really. But maybe the words would have even a thin amount of comfort for her. When this was done, he could tend to her properly. But her trauma would mean nothing if they didn’t make it out of this alive. It was becoming clear that if something didn’t change soon that their window would be over run. He and Aderyn weren’t enough to keep it clear.

“Warren!” Owen yelled over the chaos. “Get your bulky ass over here!”

Warren recoiled after another swing of his crowbar when he heard the redhead beckon him over. There was still a slow trickle of the pale enemies at the back door, but the large man had made sure to keep the door intact for the most part. He backed up enough to see Owen at a window with an obscene amount of the creatures, dead and undead. "Someone is gonna need to cover the backdoor!" It didn't matter who, as Warren wasn't directing his shout at anyone in particular, but he knew they would find their way in if the choke was left uncovered. The increasingly more pressing matter called Warren to the forefront as he hurried over to continue his onslaught at the storm on the window.

He hadn't even noticed that Cletus was put down like a dog, not that he knew the guy. Wrapped up in his own game of whack-a-mole, it was a surprise that he even reacted to Owen's cry. The man continued to unrelentlessly clobber the corpses. His expression never changing to anything other than the stern and sometimes smirking face that he wore, and his body showed no signs of tiring. This was visibly evident by the consistent pattern of caved in skulls that slumped to the ground, each with one, rarely two strikes to them. Blood that stank of rotting meat and a very strong odor of iron coated his weapon, hand, forearm, and sprinkled his shirt and face. With every crimson spray that erupted from another crack, more red was added to his body. The lodge would soon be more akin to a meat shop, and Warren looked like a butcher.

His companion wasn’t any better. It was becoming hard to see where the red of his hair started and gore splattering his fair freckled face ended. It was going far better than having Aderyn help him. Her sad eyes and round blood splattered face had been more of a distraction than anything. At least with Warren at his side he was able to focus on his fight. He was so focused he barely heard Leliana shouting orders over the chaos.

Owen wasn’t sure how the monster had made it inside, but he and Warren had somehow missed one. It slithered over the slumped corpses like a snake on its belly. Boney fingers wrapped around Owen’s ankle, dragging his attention downward.

He was holding one of the monsters back with his bat, holding it horizontally to keep the weight of the undead thing outside of the lodge. Curses on his lips, Owen raised his opposite leg and used all of his weight to strike downard on top of the gnawing jaws of the zombie. It made a sickening crunch. The twin could feel the skull crack and splinter under the force of his leather combat boot. He looked down, horrified as he noticed the deformed shape of the monster’s head. His boot had sunk a portion of it in, making it more oblong than round. However, it didn’t seem phased, it still came at him with teeth and claws desperately trying to get through his jeans and into his flesh. Owen lifted his foot again, putting as much strength as he could behind his heel, kicking it down into the floor. He didn’t stop until the brains squished around the sides of his shoe.

It was only then that he noticed that Aderyn wasn’t with him any longer.

Collab: Meredith TheTreForce
Mentions: FireMaiden Hyped_Taco

 

[Meredith]

Aderyn slipped out from between the men and the window, spinning on her heel to look at the room. Only one person seemed fully unoccupied. She stopped to hesitate, but only for a second, roaring over the sounds of slaughter.

“Milly! Fire poker, backdoor, now.”

The girl took up the back door herself, eyes wild, and smashed the antler down - two handed - through a zombie’s skull. A sickening crunch, and it fell to the ground, where she kicked it out of the doorway. Dark blood ran down her wrists and dripped to the floor. She shook small, coagulated clots from her hands.


The last few moments had flown in a delirious blur as everything span around Milly. The Lodge was in a frenzy, she had been separated from Beth and they had now been tasked with manning the back door? At the shout from Adryen, who she was still reeling over the unexpected return, Milly did as she was told. Grabbing the cold iron instrument, the girl grunted as she stood up. Still sick from her fever, she was not at her peak. Regardless, she managed. Her mind rushed with conflicting thoughts. Everything in her was screaming for her to run and hide; but she couldn’t. What if something happened?


Her thoughts were torn by the sound of gurgled screams, like the monster was drowning in its own blood as it shrieked. With a frightened yowl, hot tears streaming down her face, Milly reeled back and thrust the poker towards the monster as it tried to break through. Scrunching her eyes shut, she pushed forward with as much force as her lanky, sick body could muster.

Something cold, but thicker than water had splashed onto her face. As she opened her eyes, the youngster was greeted with the haunting sight of an agape mouth, white eyes and loose and greasy skin, the poker lodged into the upper jaw and, as far as Milly could understand, broke through the decaying bone and into what was left of the monster’s brain. The creature’s weight was only being held up by the poker, which Milly briskly pulled free, causing the corpse to fall to the ground.

Running a hand down her face, Milly felt the dark blood that had splashed onto her as she stared at the body. She should have been afraid. Everything was telling her to run, hide and not come out. But she did no such thing. At the back of her mind, something was stirring. Something she must have repressed for years. All she could remember was the knife, the screaming and then the pain. And the only clear image, her mother brandishing the knife. A blood soaked knife. Who did she stab? And from what Milly knew, nothing came of it. So it was okay to do this? The girl slowly turned to face the others, face blank but with a troubled glint in her eye. She had just murdered someone.

Aderyn looked over to Milly. The girl looked upset. She leveled her left hand - the injured arm - against Milly’s shoulder. She tried not to think about the bloody handprint it was going to leave.

“They’re already dead, Mil, but we’re not. Not yet.”


She risked a glance into the yard. They needed to man the back door, but for a moment, the coast seemed clear. Gently, she moved her hand to cup the side of the other girl’s face. The blood on her fingers was starting to harden, or at least, become more gel-like. Her eyes softened. “It’s good to see you.”

The older girl jumped at the hand on her shoulder and turned to look at Aderyn as she gave her some words of encouragement, and then saying she was glad to see her. But was Milly glad to see her? Aderyn had just left, no words or even a note. She remembered going around the Lodge, looking for her, asking people where she had gone. It had hurt. Despite her relationship with Leliana and Beth, she still had that craving for contact with people her own age. Kypher had scared her and then unfortunately passed and then Aderyn had left.

“Hm…” the girl hummed quietly, eyes averted from the younger girl, “It’s… g-good to see you too.” she responded, her voice soft but with a leveled tone. There was too much to think about to focus. With this assault on her mind, the girl shook her head and with an anxious whimper, covered her ear with a clean hand. It was too much.


Aderyn let go and turned towards the door. She looked up at the approaching monster’s waxy, drooping face. Considering it, she hefted the antler above her head with both hands, and drove it through the creature’s neck. She ducked her head as blood spurted from the wound. The creature’s skull, clearly detached from its spine, lolled as the thing fell to the ground - leaving only tearing, decaying skin to hold it together. It did not move.

She wiped blood from her lips with the collar of her shirt, spitting on the ground next to the now-actually-dead when she was done. Her eyes watered from the stench. One of her hands raised to touch her hair. "Fuck."

Aderyn had not been able to shower in the variety store, and her greasy hair was matted with blood, but her fingers came back no more red than they had been before. The girl scowled. She stood directly between Milly and the doorframe. That reunion could have gone better, she reasoned with herself, disappointed, but it also could’ve gone worse.

 

[The Mad Queen]

"We'll not let you down." He nodded at the nurse. He wasn't sure why she would bring Michael with her, but at least that way she could keep an eye on the man. With his orders given, his brown eyes noticed infected pushing through a barricade in one of the bedrooms and limped towards it as fast as his good leg could carry him.

The cane, once used to help him walk around was now the only thing standing between Fisher and the cold grip of the dead knocking at the door. He stepped forwards, dispatching a corpse as the makeshift spear pierced it's eye socket. As he stepped back, attempting to pull it out the cane wouldn't budge. His brown eyes shot open with panic as he tried to pull again, dragging the top half of the body in with him.
Using his good leg he stepped on it's skull and pulled the cane out. It was freed, but he felt a sharp pain shoot through his knee. Fisher yelled in pain as he toppled over, a corpse now using the gap in the window to reach down towards him. Grabbing the cane, he shoved it through the chest of the infected. His leg may have failed him, but the man was not without his upper body strength.

Thankfully, the brainless existence of the infected had bought Ralph time. It's rotting body was a barricade of flesh and bone. With the body held back, he managed to sit up but as much as he tried, he couldn't stand back up.
He glanced left and right, trying to see if there was anyone around that could help the man to his feet only to see the lifeless body of Cletus sitting outside.

He barely knew the man, but watching another human being go down was painful enough. Pushing himself even more, Ralph fought through the pain and managed to stand to his feet, gritting his teeth to hold back a yell. With a strong yank he pulled out the cane, and plunged it through the skull of the infected. Moving quickly, he limped backwards, grabbed the table he had been leaning against and shoved it against the window.

Pushing a chest of drawers using his back, the window was as well covered as it was going to get. Panting, he took a moment to steady himself with two hands locked around the cane and his back resting a against the chest.
"Come on..." He muttered to himself.

In area: BloodLightning27 (Shiona), Togy (Nile), Hyped_Taco (Michael),
FireMaiden (Leli)

 

[Hyped_Taco]

The Michael and Owen show, Episode 1: bamboozled
(This Collab was done between your boy Hyped_Taco and this RP Dm Maj )
​

¨...Aight that was a waste of bullets¨ Michael said after having tried to shot zombies through the second floor, having failed all his shots in a row with the exception of one zombie he had barely managed to hit in the knee, it did not matter anyway since the bastard completely ignored it and continued limping towards the building as if nothing had happened at all.

Michael then got the wasted magazine out of the gun and realized that he only had one left, just 7 more shots and it would be it; the neckbeard managed to reload the gun moments before Leliana burst through the door of the room to ordered him to go downstairs… and that she would use him as bait if he fired again, promptly shooting down his idea of doing the exact same ¨I-of Course M´la- I mean Mrs. Leliana!¨ Michael loudly said before grabbing his Katana and quickly heading downstairs

The neckbeard ran as fast as his legs would allow him to get downstairs, and once he finally got there he was greeted by a horrendous sight; he saw from afar how that Redneck looking guy from before was put down by a smallish girl whom he had never seen before ¨Holy shit!¨ Michael said before deciding to ignore that image for a second and continue with his mission.

He looked around the room to try and see where this Owen dude could be, but since he had never seen nor interacted with him before the best the neckbeard could do was guess who he was. ¨Alright, let’s see...¨ Michael said while beginning to check who was in the room at the moment. He saw Leliana, that Warren guy whom he had gone on a supply run with as well so that was definitely not him ¨Nope, nope nope¨ Michael said after seeing a druggie, another swole guy with red hair, Doctor Soyboy, and Bethany. It seemed that they were all the people in the room yet none of them seemed like an Owen to him. Michael quickly gave up and decided to start looking elsewhere for the man.

Beth rolled her eyes in exasperation. She had of course heard Leliana’s order and watching Michael look around the lodge for someone who literally lived here was beyond infuriating. How did he not know who Owen was? His picture was all over the walls.

“He’s the redhead,” Beth called over the chaos. “He’s like six feet tall, how could you miss him?” She gestured to the window where Owen was currently knee deep in zombie guts and corpses, fighting back against the swarm of undead that Aderyn and Cletus had lured near the lodge.

¨The what?¨ Michael asked after Bethany told him where this Owen guy was ¨Oh the Redhead?, thanks M´lady Beth¨ Michael said while tipping his fedora to the ex-prostitute. Michael jogged towards the beefy, muscular, buff redhead in front of him ¨Damn this guy is fucking massive¨ Michael said to himself while he approached him.

Once he was finally near him, Michael pulled his gun out and tapped the man in the Shoulder with it ¨Hey Arnold, Leliana told ordered me to give this to you¨ Michael said while he waited for Owen to grab the firearm.

Owen turned at the sound of Michael’s voice. He was currently busy, arms outstretched and holding the bat against the window like bars of a cage, trying to keep the monsters from entering the lodge. He blinked slightly at the sight of the gun. Why in the world would Leliana want Owen to have it? He couldn’t even fire it. On second thought, maybe that was the point.

“I kind of have my hands full here,” the man retorted. “Maybe grab that Katana of yours and help us out?”

¨Wha-¨ Michael was about to ask him before slightly turning his head to the right to see a zombie trying to climb through the window, which he had previously decided to ignore ¨Oh, yeah sure¨. The neckbeard unfolded his katana, and with a mighty swing tried to cut the zombie´s head off, yet the katana did not go deep enough, so Michael decided to use plan B. ¨Aight fuck this¨ The neckbeard said moments before he began wacking the zombie in the head several times with his Katana, and although the zombie did not seem to be taking much damage, it was at least slowing him down for a bit.

“Dude, use the blade,” Owen offered helpfully. He was a little confused about how this man had managed to survive as long as he had. The idea that this guy was once walking around the dangerous streets of Aurora smacking zombies with the cheaply made metal of his sword was astounding. And he didn’t even know to use the blade.

“You know, stick it with the pointy end?”

¨y-yeah of course, I was just uh… trying to slow him down first...Or something¨ Michael hastily lied before he stopped wacking the zombie and turned his sword on it´s supposed ¨sharp¨ end. He took his arm as far away as he could before his offensive against the undead re-started, except this time he was trying to stab him. The blade was dull due to having only cost about 20 bucks in the GameStop he currently worked at, yet the fact that it wasn’t piercing the skin did not slow his attack down.

Owen was too busy looking behind him to notice Micheal fail to dispatch the monster. For whatever reason Aderyn and Milly had taken it upon themselves to fight the zombies at the back door. He groaned.

“Can you hold this for a second?” The man asked, moving so Michael could take the bat. “I gotta handle something.” He turned back toward the girls with a heavy sigh.

“Aderyn! When I called for help I didn’t mean for you to start a child army!” With that, he was gone leaving Michael to help Warren hold down the fort.

¨s-Sure man, n- No problem at all¨ scared shitless Michael approached Owen and grabbed the man´s bat; he surely made it look easy since Michael had to put his whole strength just to keep this one zombie from coming in through the window. The zombie kept pushing harder and harder each time, and although the neckbeard was holding him off for now, if Owen did not get back there quickly the undead would eventually overpower him; While Owen began moving towards Aderyn, Michael said ¨Just bring a weapon or something!¨ The zombie then pushed again ¨Please?¨.

Interacted: FireMaiden as Leli Rumble Fish as Milly Meredith as That Loli Italian girl
Mentioned: The Mad Queen as Professor Soyboy TheTreForce as Warren, and a bunch of others I'm too lazy to ping

 

[Togy]

NILE CRAYMAN
​

Peering out the second floor window to count the horde, Nile heard a terrifyingly loud sound from downstairs.

Someone just shot a gun. Who the hell just shot a gun? Why the hell did someone just shoot a gun? That's, like, really fucking bad. Like, the horde could double bad. Ah Christ, there's another thing to stress about. Man, if he doesn't get heart problems from the stress after this than he'll be surprised.

But, and he didn't want to admit this, he was sorta glad he wasn't the one to screw up for once.

But the relief that he didn't screw up was replaced by the terror he felt when he saw another dozen and a half zombies crawl out of the woods towards the Lodge. Oh boy.

"Nile, get downstairs please!" what sounded like Lily called to him. Wait, they said please? Well this was surprising, given the fact that they called Nile a fucking idiot for asking a yes or no question a while back. Eh, well, at least they said please.

Rushing down the stairs, Nile stopped at the base of the stairs to listen to Lillith. Listening to their plan, Nile nodded along. Sounded alright enough, but he still hated the speaker of it. Than their plan mentioned him going along with the outside team. Oh please god no Nile said internally as he looked at the boarded windows to see the shadows of the living dead walk by. For very, very obvious reasons, Nile was hesitant to leave the Lodge.

Nile opened his mouth to speak, but stopped himself. Like hell they'd listen to him, they rarely do. Though, admittedly, for good reason. Like the Moe's incident, which also relates to Nile not wanting to go outside again because getting ganged up on by two zombies was about the most terrifying thing he's ever experienced.

In the area: All ya'll Lodgers. You have too many names and it's a chore writing them

 

[BloodLightning27]

Shinoa Bradford - Diversion

Once she regrouped with everyone, Lelianna was devising a plan to deal with the situation at hand. Stuck in another life or death situation, the young mother wished that they could go back to the time where she was living a normal and peaceful life that she had with her grandmother, which she now certainly felt like she had taken for granted. Since it was a large group, they had to be split into smaller groups. Shinoa then found herself being placed with Ralph, Milly, Aderyn and Owen. She also had to bare in mind that she only had about seven rounds in the firearm that Colt had lent to her for target practice, which may as well have been the reason that the infected had been attracted to their location. However, Lelianna said that no guns were to be used unless absolutely necessary. So pretty much, Shinoa had only seven lives, assuming that she could make headshots, which she didn't feel all that confident about because her marksmanship was still rusty due to nine months of not going to the gun range, granted it was justifiable since gunpowder and the volume of the gunshots would be harmful to Valerie. Not to mention that going to a gun range during pregnancy was a horrible idea. Once Lelianna was finished, Shinoa went ahead to give Valerie to Beth. "If anything happens to me, please take care of her for me..." She said before going to join her team in creating a diversion for the horde of undead.

Since she was going to have to get close to the zombies in order to take them down, Shinoa had to ensure that she was taking the necessary measures to not get bitten, or if she has to fight one up-close, the blood cannot get into her mouth or her eyes. Scratches were also dangerous, so she was weary of the nails digging into her skin. If there were more ammunition, she probably could take them down at a safe distance. As her team seemingly split, Shinoa checked the Wrist Blade one more time. Everyone else soon dispersed to play their role in repelling the undead.

Up next, she saw Ralph struggling, but didn't get to his aid in time. Before she could get to him, a window gave away and a zombie grabbed her, pulling her close in an attempt to bite her! Refusing to let that happen, she grabbed it by the throat. That way, it would be unable to bite her...unless she messed up somehow. She them pierced its eye with the wrist blade as blood began spilling out before she released her hold on it. Once that was over, she rushed over to Ralph. "Take it easy, let me help you." She said before stabilizing him with her unarmed hand as blood dripped from the blade.

Being ambidextrous certainly had its perks... "I didn't exactly have time to grab another weapon, so...any ideas? Aside from the Gun that Colt lent to me, all I got is this Wrist Blade that Brian left behind for me."

Interactions: Beth, Ralph
Mentions: Owen, Milly, Aderyn, Lelianna
Maj The Mad Queen Rumble Fish FireMaiden Meredith

 

[Brax]

(Featuring Aubrey)​

“Let us out.” Tre called to Aaron as they neared a portion of the woods that was a bit off from the lodge. As the truck came to a stop, the young man pulled the handle to climb out. He waited for Aubrey to follow before shutting the door and tapping on the truck twice. The dread-head watched as it rolled off before making his way to the edge of the woods. His feet had been covered by socks alone. There was a large possibility that they would get further injured upon walking through such questionable terrain. Hearing the tires upon the dirt growing farther and farther away, Aubrey felt her gut turn cold. She couldn’t help but wonder how those in the lodge were doing, if they were still holding on.

“You gotta be my eyes.” He murmured, drawing Aubrey out of her mind.

“Oh… Sure.” She replied, leading the charge as Tre followed. The boy kept his eyes on the ground before him. As he took each careful step he would look up briefly but those brown iris’ gravitated back down to the ground just as quickly. Occasionally he would let out a swear - when a branch or a rock somehow snuck its way amidst his path. It was undesirable that he wouldn’t be able to help much with the zombie attack but he definitely wouldn’t be of use without getting there first. Aubrey, on the other hand, was scanning the area in front of her. She couldn’t let her guard down. Not only did she have to worry about keeping herself alive, she was now in charge of this kid. Her grip tightened on the crowbar, knuckles whitening under the pressure. When push comes to shove, the only defense between the two and those Things was the crowbar.

“After dealin’ that disgusting fuckin’ creature… I ain’t excited to see more of ‘em.” Aubrey’s lips thinned at his comment. She couldn’t imagine a time where anyone would be thrilled to be face to face with one of those Things. With the amount that were surrounding the lodge, she certainly wasn’t delighted to see the outcome; however, she wasn’t about to be pessimistic with the boy. He was a teenager, she figured he already had enough pessimism in him.

“You’ll be fine.” She muttered, “You all handle yourselves nicely and have gone through worse.”

Tre didn’t respond to the statement. It was blanket, in his opinion, representative of someone who was giving him an answer that they assumed he wanted to hear. Hell, listening to that sentence was no different than having to speak to customer service working out of a retail store. The two made their way to the edge of the forest, with the Lodge’s right side coming into view as they continued walking. However, just before the two could expose themselves, Tre decided to kneel down with the coverage of a rather large tree and peak out from behind.

There were zombies all over the place. None of them were around either Aubrey or himself, nor did they see any on the way. Was it possible that the lodge was thinning the numbers? Warren was still inside. Was he all right? There hadn’t been any reports on the deceased, as far as Tre could understand. However, he was practically in his own world throughout the entire trip back to the lodge from the broken down truck and Catelyn’s deceased corpse.

“I’m not sure if we go in and help or wait.”

“You don’t have to hide, you know. They can’t see anything.” She explained, looking towards the lodge before glancing back at him curiously, “Do you know how to use a weapon?” Aubrey wasn’t going to put the kid in danger if she could help it, but if he could handle a weapon, they could easily take down a few strays.

“I guess you have somethin’ in common with them, then.” Tre said casually as his digits wrapped around the handles of the machetes sheathed on each hip. He ripped them from their respective casing as he waited for any sign of Colt and Aaron.



Interactions: Corgi
Mentions: Rumble Fish RayPurchase

 

[Rumble Fish]

“Leliana. We’re droppin’ Tre and Aubrey further away so they can run in and help when we drive the Things away. They know when to move.” Colt spoke into the radio before putting it away. The veteran could not shake off the anger she felt towards what the nurse had said rather than the nurse herself. Did she honestly think she was that stupid? After everything? With a sigh, while they trundled through the terrain, she stared out the window, watching the green blur of trees go by. She unscrewed the cap from her flask as her gaze remained outside.

“We’re no’ far.” She spoke to the driver, still with an averted look to the window. She could only hope the nurse was right in her plan. Her mind blocked out the blaring music and roar of the engine, all she could do was calculate exactly where to stop, where to go and how far they should drive them away. Colt took another drink from her flask, cursing herself at the same time. It was before ten in the morning and the flask was almost empty already. Already everything was beginning to float and spin.

Aaron found his hands slapping against the wheel in time to the radio, guiding the vehicle down the forest roads with a somewhat surprising lightness of touch given the size and weight of the car. He couldn’t help but frown however as Colt continued to sip from her flask. A little bit of dutch courage went a long way, but this was hurtling beyond that point now.

“You alright there Sarge? Maybe want to slow down on the hooch, don’t want you stumblin’ about out there,”

She clearly wasn’t in a great way, drinking, cursing and eyes flickering about like a deer in headlights.

“Hunky-dory.” Came the laconic reply as her eyes stars fixated on the blur of trees outside. It still felt bizarre to be referred to by her rank but she had worse on her mind than a name. The rocky motion of the vehicle thundering over the uneasy terrain gave her a swirl of sickness in the pit of her stomach, but she kept her gaze averted from the man.

“I'll be fine. No point gittin’ yella-bellied at this point. Bin through enough bullshit t’know otherwise. Unlike some folk.” Even the veteran was lost on who those “folk” were. Nobody in the truck and many in the lodge would qualify. Bitterness? Most likely. Having lost a good chunk of their defences from cowardice; pessimism was a less painful option than being disappointed again and again.

Aaron let out a dry laugh, it wasn’t exactly dripping with genuine humor.

“Hell, I almost believed you there. I take it you’re the one keepin’ your people out of trouble and runnin’ things round here. It sounds like a hell of a burden to try and shoulder. Like herdin’ cats,”

His sentence was interrupted as he had to violently adjust his steering to compensate for a fallen tree in the road. The rear wheels kicked out momentarily, but with a wrench of the wheel, it was back under control.

“Goddamn roads have already gone to shit,” He muttered to himself. “So what sort of numbers are we talkin’, a small army of you lot or somethin’ smaller. All I’ve met so far are stragglers, one or two survivors here or there, nothin’ more than that,”

“Sho. There's three of us runnin’ t’place but two of ‘em went galavantin’’ off t’the city so I'm in charge, unfortunately. So disaster can be postponed by… two seconds.” the woman puffed her cheeks in an attempt to push back the rush of sickness bubbling from that sudden movement of the truck. As the questions continued, Colt finished off the last of her flask before putting it in its pocket, her body slumped.

“If yer description of an army involves ’civilians, idiots and the occasional bright spark’n t’number of 'em who can shoot y’all can count on one hand; then yeah.” It was an effort for her to remember the exact number. Many had come and gone and with the vodka (or was it whiskey?) seeping in, it was harder.

“Fifteen. Give’r take.” As she spoke, the woman removed her Colt.45 and screwed the silencer onto its nozzle. She hoped she would not need to use it. But at this point, who knows.

Aaron let out a low whistle. “No wonder you’re hittin’ the bottle. You seem to have been doin’ a good job so far, 15 survivors in one group? That’s more than I’ve met individually out there. Don’t be so damn hard on yourself, made it this far, no sense you can’t keep goin’. The world may have gone to the dogs, but we’re still holdin’ on by our teeth. No sense in lettin’ go now,” He gave a definitive nod of his head, and rapped his knuckles against the steering wheel.

“You take that .45 and give those things what they deserve, take it out on those undead bastards, not on yourself,”

Lifting the empty flask, Colt sighed at the man’s response. “Bin hittin’ it long before this world went to shit. Seems livin’ through one apocalypse isn’t enough.” Her expression darkened as the man talked on. What he said was true. But it was harder to believe than she was willing to admit. Before she could answer him, she heard Tre pipe up, telling them to stop..

“Stop at that tree.” She spoke in a bark, pointing to a tall, moss-blanketed oak. Just beyond that was the Lodge. They had to be precise. Just as she said this, the veteran released an involuntery dry-retch to which she turned to Aaron in an attempt to ignore the growing taste of saliva, her body threatening her with the prospect of vomiting “And slow down, fur fuck sake! Mah intestines are up in mah tits from this confounded bouncin’!”

The devilish grin returned to Aaron's face as the trees cleared.

"Right you are Sarge, don't you go worryin' yourself though. You're in safe hands with me, haven't crashed yet,"

With a bit of soft pressure on the brakes he pulled up next to the tree and turned the stereo down.

"Right here we are, next stop, your place,"

“‘Kay.” She turned to the pair in the back, “Git out ‘ere. Stay low and wait. Don’t do anything until they got their backs turned. Once we’re gone, there’s no time fur caution. Go and ‘elp the others. We only got one chance at this.” She looked between the two as the two military personnel were now left in the truck. With a deep inhale, Colt cleared her head in preparation for what could be the dumbest thing she was ever going to say.

“Run ‘em down. As many as ya can.” She reached forward to grip the dashboard in anticipation, breath deep and shaky and palms sweating. “Awright. Let’s do this.”

Aaron gunned the engine, foot slamming down the accelerator and the Humvee kept away. As he did his right hand slotted another tape into the deck.



The Humvee roared through the clearing. Rapidly emerging in the vicinity of the lodge, and within moments Aaron and Colt were amongst the herd. The noise inside the vehicle was horrific, groaning and the sound of deceased bodies slamming against the front of the Humvee could be heard, even with the Stereo turned up to full. Aaron was silent, his face set in a grimace of sheer concentration. His knuckles white as they gripped the wheel, attempting to slalom the car into the herd side on to avoid any damage to the engine or wheels. His hands were a blur of movement, flipping from the wheel to the gear stick, his eyes flicking between the mirrors. To bog down was to be overwhelmed, and tight now the aim was to keep them moving, and running down as many of these fuckers as possible.

Colt lurched forward at the first impact, her arm breaking her fall. At this point it was out of her hands; it fell onto them now.

Featuring: RayPurchase (Aaron)
Interactions: Corgi (Aubrey) Brax (Tre) FireMaiden (Leliana)

 

[FireMaiden]

​

Location: The Jordan Lodge
Interaction: Rumble Fish (Colt) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) TheTreForce (Warren) Togy (Nile) Maj (Beth)
Mentioned: Brax (Tre) Corgi (Aubrey)
BloodLightning27 (Shinoa) Rumble Fish (Milly) Maj (Owen) The Mad Queen (Ralph)
Anxiety clawed away at her stomach, bile climbed up her throat, her attention split between the commotion at the back of the house and the front yard; Leliana thought she might collapse. If this didn't go perfectly, then more people would die and it would be all her fault. One person was already gone, that only was enough to threaten a spiral, but just the thought of losing more made her sick. Leliana didn't want that, they couldn't let that happen. Her attention left the front windows as Owen exited the room he had been defending, the nurse adjusting the grip on her bat as she moved to assist. Milly and Aderyn were kicking ass, and Owen was now occupied with them. Shinoa was attending to Ralph, who's knee apparently had given out again (he shouldn't be moving around as much as he is, it's only been about two weeks damnit) but at the moment they were safe, Leliana entered the master bedroom feeling safe about turning her attention to Michael.

Who wasn't doing much. "Move." Faced with an infected, he was doing nothing but pushing it away, and that would be a problem if he did his normal thing and made a bunch of noise. Bringing her bat back, she swung it harshly, the squelching sound of the metal bat hitting flesh and bone, followed instantly by a loud snap signaled that her hit had been a success. The zombie fell, and her attention turned to her fellow 19-year-old. "Change of plan, you're staying inside to help keep the undead out back distracted, understood?" She waited for a moment, her eyes briefly going to the window, before going back to Micheal. "Get a kitchen knife. It'll do until you can sharpen that." She gestured to the katana, before once again checking the now empty window, and exciting the room.

It was then Colt's voice once more came over the walkie, informing her that Tre and Aubrey were going to be coming in at a different angle. Not what she was planning on, but they would still be helpful. Leliana didn't feel a need to respond, simple to get the attention of everyone she needed. "Warren, Beth, Nile! Colt and her team will be here any minute, which means we have to be ready now!" Her voice was stern, commanding, but there was an obvious shake to it she was trying to hide. Checking to make sure her pistol was still at her side, Leliana approached the front door, sidestepping to the nearest front window, tensing as she waited for the truck. The sound of an engine outside sped her heartbeat up, it was now or never.

The humvee was a surprise, but there was no one else it could be. But the noise was working like she thought it would. Slowly the undead shambled in the direction of the new constant sound, her eyes quickly darting to the team in the back of the house, then those she was going outside with. She knew they would all be worried, scared, but they had no choice. There was no turning back now. Her eyes darted back to the scene outside, undead bodies were shuffling off the porch, their attention away from the door, she waited until they were at the bottom of the steps before moving back to the door. "Stay close, watch each other's backs." She told the group, the door swung open.

And thanks to Colt, and their unknown newbie, it was safe for Leliana and her team to begin their attack. The nurse exited the lodge, bat ready, stomach in a knot, and prepared to fight to clear out their home. She could only hope the others were prepared as well.

 

[The Mad Queen]

He gave the young mother a smile as she helped him on his feet, but on the inside his gut twisted. This was not how things were meant to go.
"Thanks." There was a weight behind his eyes, and he sighed heavily. He didn't want her in danger, but it wasn't like he had the strength to stop her from fighting back the infected.
One push and he'd be on the ground again, and he knew it. Shaking his head, he glanced down at the cane.

"You might as well take this. It would at least give you some range. Just...Be sure to give it back to me. I can't really go anywhere without it otherwise." He forced another smile through. He held the cane at chest level, and thrusted it forwards as a demonstration "Go for the temple, just make sure it doesn't get lodged in there."
His brown eyes turned as he noticed a humvee pull up outside. No.
Had the mercenaries returned? Ralph's stomach turned once more as panic set in. There was no way they could fight them off now, not with a great deal of the fighters either being away or injured.

However, the panic quickly passed as Leliana made her move. It had be to Colt behind the wheel, but where did she and Tre find a humvee? It didn't matter for now, and instead of panic his mind was racing with ideas. That kind of vehicle was something they could use, maybe even to escape the city.
"We're almost through this." He told Shiona with a nod "Just be sure to keep your distance, and you'll be fine."

Interaction : BloodLightning27 (Shiona)
Mentioned: FireMaiden (Leli), Brax (Tre), Rumble Fish (Colt)

 

[Brax]

​

Aaron and Colt arrived; once more, the cavalry was here. There were two major differences this time around - Tre was on the arriving end of assistance rather than the receiving. He watched as the two made quick work of the zombies but he couldn’t keep in the depths of the woods for long. Without saying anything to Aubrey the kid zipped past her with his incredible speed. He booked it toward the door, where the group had stepped out and began to combat the mob of zombies that were depleting in large part to Aaron’s driving and Colt’s shooting. However, utilizing the Humvee properly required a lot of turning. Both army veterans could only get so many. Left to protect the lodge were those whom were not ready to fight yet.

The zombies rushed up the stairs as Leliana swung the doors open. Behind her, the lodge’s populous had rallied - ready to fight for their home. At this point, Tre had been slashing through the varied zombies that had littered the grounds. He continued moving forward, regardless of which limb he dismembered or the damage he caused to the reanimated bodies that had been in his way. Tre approached the bottom of the staircase, effectively serving as a one-man flank to the group of zombies. One way or another, blood was going to be shed en masse.

Leliana cocked the bat back and swung. The aluminum connected with the side of the first zombie’s forehead, resulting in an audible crack of the deceased beast’s skull. It’s head was severely dented inward as its body dropped but it remained alive. This was the moment that the two groups began their clash. Tre penetrated the mob of zombies from the back, slashing at the zombie closest to him. It’s head rolled off its shoulders and onto the dirt far faster than the one next to it could comprehend. Seeing as it’s head had been lopped off and rolling in the same direction not even a half-second sooner.

Tre slashed off the hand of a zombie that had been reaching for his neck. He stabbed another to his side in the forehead, swiping outward only bludgeon another with the dull side of his blade. The zombie that they had faced near the abandoned truck had far more finesse, speed and drive to devour. In comparison, this hoard was slow to register any type of meaningful damage. It truly was a severe case of survival of the fittest; Darwinism down to its very definition.

With time the mob tapered off. The lodge’s residents continued fighting tirelessly. It became extremely apparent to Tre, as he continued fighting, that the strength of these hoards truly came in numbers. With enough of them the group could have been easily overrun. However, this time, the lodge’s residents were able to once more able to fight off predators of their land but at the severe cost of their energy.

Mangled, deceased corpses littered the patio. Arms, legs, heads and other body parts had been sprawled out across the grounds in front of the lodge. Smashed corpses that were severely misshapen due to the Humvee assault were not an easy sight among the rest. Yet, amidst the battlefield and in the wake of their victory, all Tre could do was drop to the ground in pure exhaustion. The sunset had begun minutes ago far behind the acreage belonging to the lodge.

Interactions: All?

 

[Maj]

​

Andy's Dorm
5:00 pm

Andy entered in through the door to her dorm, hand pressed against the cheap wood, holding it open for those following in behind her. Luca hadn’t stayed in her room for long earlier, but now Professor Hennigan and Vanessa were in her space as well. It felt downright uncomfortable, but without ID badges to the other dorm rooms, there was no other real place to lay low. She supposed a few hours of mild annoyance was better than leaving a bunch of people in the hall to fend for themselves, but not by much.

After the rather lengthy trip to the nurses station, it was more clear than ever that the group would not be making their way back to the lodge before night fall. It was safer to lay low for the night and then come back in the morning. The red head made her way to the loft bed and tossed her bag down at the base of it, near her desk. With a heavy sigh she flopped down in the cheap walmart brand desk chair and began to unlace her boots.

It had been a long fucking day.

Between Hector’s constantly condescending nature and Luca’s suffocating machismo, she knew it was going to be a drain to be around them. However, now she had Vanessa and Harriet with them as well. It felt like leaving Luca behind at the gas station was literal weeks ago, despite it only having been hours since the incident. She pulled off the first boot, flexing her toes and stretching the pink polka dot socks. The second boot followed close behind.

“Make yourself at home,” Andy offered but it was hard to miss the disdain in her voice.

Luca spent little time in taking the woman up on her offer. He had already made his way toward the back of the dorm room and had placed the bags he was holding down on the ground. From the depths of one knapsack came a bottle of booze, followed by a second and even a third. The man kept one for himself. Offered the second to Andy and the third to Hector. Luca found his focused on the latter of the two momentarily.

“I’ll stay awake. Halfway through the night, wake up and take over my shift.”

“Got it.” The redhead took the bottle from Luca and opened it eagerly. With the open mouth of the bottle to her lips, she gave Luca a sarcastic salute and drank from it. While it was likely that everyone in the room was exhausted, the man had no qualms about staying awake through the early morning hours. He pulled the chair up toward the bar with Andy’s hanging clothes. Then he split the rack, pushing them as far to each side as possible. The Italian unlocked the window behind it, only to be greeted by the sight of a brick wall.

It mattered very little. He hadn’t revealed it in hopes for a spectacular view. The man pushed the glass upward to open it with only the screen separating the group from the outside. As he felt the cool air splash on his skin he felt a bit of relief. It had been quite stuffy in the building - something Luca had noticed when he and Vanessa had made their way in. Alongside the fleeting thought, the Italian’s attention moved to the wall of comics that his romantic interest had been hoarding for what he presumed to be years. It was likely he had last read a comic around the time she had purchased her first.

Reaching for any form of entertainment, Luca removed a copy off of the shelf. Turning it over revealed a superhero that was known by members of the universe’s fandom that had been well-invested in the company’s lore. He had recognized it because it had been something he saw in Owen’s bedroom years prior. In fact, there may have been a time where the red-headed boy had even attempted to convince him to read it - to no avail.

The Italian flipped over the first page as he made his way back over to the chair near the window. He took a seat, absentmindedly removing the pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket and placing one between his lips. Eyes tracked the speech bubbles of the first page, lifting his leg up to place his ankle on the opposite thigh so he could rest the book on his calf. He struck the metal against the flint with a flick of his thumb before fire lit the end of his smoke.

Vanessa shifted around uncomfortably in the small space. With this many people packed into one room, it made her feel almost trapped. Moving quietly, Vanessa made her way to the corner of the room behind the door and sat as far away from everyone as possible, keeping her good leg pulled up to her chest and her left leg outstretched so as to hopefully help it heal. She cast a glance up at Andy for a moment. Definitely not nice. Better to avoid when possible, Vanessa thought. Her eyes moved to Hector as she continued her evaluations. Strong, logical, seems nice. Remain cautious and continue to observe. Harriet didn't seem all that bad, but he seemed to be the only one Andy was nice-ish to. She made a note to keep a very close eye on the teacher. His niceness unnerved Vanessa greatly.

Her eyes fell onto Luca next. He was brash, blunt, and came off as a bit rude, she thought. Regardless, he was the only reason she was alive right now. She simply couldn't understand why he would drag her, a potential liability, along when he could have simply left her to die. That would have been the most logical option for the Italian, yet he had chosen to spare his supplies and even slow himself down slightly so she could keep up. Vanessa rubbed her left eye lightly again as she thought on. The way she saw it, she owed a life debt to this man now. A nagging voice pulled at her mind yet again, taunting her mercilessly. "Mertvyye ne dolzhny govorit', Yuri."(The dead should not speak, Yuri.) She said in a low voice, a tinge of anger staining her tone.

Collab: Brax shadowz1995 TheMightyRedLemon Togy

 

[Rumble Fish]

The hoard dwindled with the time as wherever they turned, they were faced with a blunt weapon, firearm or bumper of the hummer which would swiftly send them back to the same ground they had risen from. Colt was content to leave the technicalities of driving to her new companion, who appeared to be dead-set on doing just as she had asked of him. His hardened gaze and tight grip on the rubber in front of him cast the aura of a soldier, he had not been bluffing when he spoke of his military background. It was not that Colt hadn’t believed him; belief and trust was simply a luxury out of her reach at this time, as it was for them all. But there was relief in the validity of the man’s claim. They had lost much of their defence, their encounter in the woods could very well be a blessing in disguise. Or, it could be a nightmare depending on whether or not he was showing his true self or had an ulterior motive. After what had happened with Brian, Colt was not about to allow herself to be duped again. At least she would not need to concern over him taking her position in the Lodge’s hierarchy, given her superior rank in a military sense, keeping him under her thumb should be relatively easy. Still, being called “Sarge” again after all this time was messing with her head.

When the hoard finally subsided and the bloodied and dented Hummer slid to a halt in front of the porch, Colt reached for the door handle, giving it a hard push down and almost falling from her seat, her balance completely compromised. Leaning on the cold metal of the truck’s hood, she turned to Aaron as he sat in the driver’s seat. As she staggered, she raised a waving finger.

“Make sure’y wash it some time. Don’ want them fuckers smellin’ the blood’n crawlin’ back ‘ere.” She said, her voice wavering but still trying to be strong, “C’min when yer done. They’ll need help cleanin’.” She finished before giving the hood a couple of pats, the hollow metal clanking as she did so. Before she stumbled inside, the woman paused. She turned her head to look to the man with her less-usable eye.

“Oh. And good job.” She added, “I’m sure they’ll be grateful too.” She wanted to find Tre and Aubrey and tell them the same, but before she could do that she wanted to do one last sweep of the outside of the Lodge. At this point, they could take no chances. The woman took her time to walk around the Lodge, looking at each fallen body, stroking the barrel of her gun, despite her drunken state, she was still observant. Any movement made her jump. But as she walked, something caught her eye. A fresh corpse slumped against the wall, a chunk missing from the shoulder and fresh blood running from the temple.

“Cletus,” the woman mumbled, her held breath invisible to the air. So much for her talk this morning. “Gawd damn…” she removed her army cap, brow furrowed. Despite it all, the man had been competent, in comparison to others. He had a good shot and he clearly went down fighting. With a heavy sigh, she placed her cap back on her head. Once everything was cleared, she had every intention to have him join Ray in their unfortunately growing graveyard.

“At least,” She hummed lightly, “Yer with Dixie again. I’m sure she missed ya badly. She’ll be mighty glad to have ya back.” The woman finished before stumbling through the back door. The place was a mess. Broken wood, scattered weapons and the occasional body of the downed damned, to which the smell almost made the inebriated woman retch. She had forgotten how vile it was; they had clearly been dead for some time. That or they continued to rot even after reanimation. Looking around, she looked at everyone. Her brows raised a little at the familiar face of Adryen. What was she doing here? Colt had noticed she was missing without a trace, just like the others. The woman growled a little under her breath. While it was good to see someone come back, the fact she had left at all still left a sour taste in her maw. As she looked around, she spotted Michael and her frown deepened. Even with the bullshit they had just endured, she had not forgotten about what Leliana had told her. That boy needed a severe lashing. Or made to run two hundred laps around the woods. Both perhaps? The woman could worry about that later. She had other matters on her mind. She saw Owen and quickly averted her eyes. She wanted to talk to him, ask him if he was okay and make sure he was not hurt. But she could not bring herself to. Not now. Turning to the nurse, the woman glared. Her general aura was angry in her glare as she then turned to Ralph. She had also left him in charge, albeit non-verbally but she had basically given him that role too. At the foot of the stairs, the woman cleared her throat loudly.

“Leliana. Ralph.” She barked harshly at the pair, trying to stay still but was swaying terribly on her feet, “My room. Now!” and with that she stumbled up the stairs and into said room. It would take a few moments for the pair to come, given Ralph’s knee. After closing the door, Colt turned to face the now single-occupied room. Jenna was gone. She's be alone at night, the worst kind of time. Looking around, she spotted a mostly-empty bottle of wine within kicking distance. Stooping down, she picked it up and swiftly finished what was left before looking outside her window. From this angle, the bodies were not visible, leaving her the tranquil view of the frost laden forest. Blinking slowly, her eyes rolled towards the ceiling. She could almost hear them as if they were still here with her…


“Yellowstone! That’s the place to go! Walking through all those forests, seeing Ol’ Faithful, that’s the dream right there.” The tall and dark Becca sighed as she seemed to have a perfect image in her mind. A voice piped up with a short laugh.

“The mountains? Nah, too cold! We’re thinking of getting some place in California, somewhere on the beach.”

“That’d explain the cheap wedding. We’re eating lil’ corndogs while you save for your love nest.” Becca, snorted at Lucy’s words, to which the latter scoffed with a chuckle.

“I can take you off the bridal party if you keep going like that. Besides, I like the idea of a small wedding. Quaint with just close family. Josh isn’t one for crowds anyway, it was his idea.” The fair and tall bride-to-be mused with a light sigh, thinking about her fiancé, waiting for her to be finished with this tour. Becca had been friends with the woman since childhood and had been flattered and excited to be the maid of honour. She turned to a platinum blonde, Molly who was busy arranging her bed, “How about you, Mols? What you gonna do once you’re done?”

“Gonna move with the boys to Fiji, Gavin’s dying to see them, God bless. I won’t need to work another day.” She added with a laugh, “Waking at one pm and going right to the pool, yes please!” The woman all laughed unanimously at that hope, that goal for the end of their military careers. More joined in as the discussion filled all corners of the sleeping quarters. All the while, their Sargent silently noted down their rations, not looking up from her book. Molly noticed the woman’s silence and stood up. Normally she would partake in their banter but had said nothing.

“Sargent Stanhope?”

“Jones?” Came the laconic reply from the wispy haired superior, not turning to acknowledge as she stood attention and alert behind her. She knew Molly well enough at this point to know she was doing so.

“We’re just talking about what we’re going to do once we’re home, Sargent. And I was wondering,” Her voice was unwavering. Despite her friendship with the aforementioned squad-leader, she was still wary of her superior, “If you had any.”

For a moment there was no answer until the Sargent put her notebook down, glancing behind her with one eye at her squad. Molly, Becca, Lucy and the other women under her wing now simply watching. With a worried dart, she answered with a harsh bark.

“What I do on my private time is none of yer business, Jones.” She turned more, eyebrows knitted together, “What are y’all gawkin’ at?! Get t’work!” And with that, there were mumbles of “Yes Sargent Stanhope!” before doing just that. All except for the redhead, sitting on her bed, blue eyes set onto her Sargent with a worried gaze. She only approached when the others had left. It was unlike her to snarl like that, not to mention towards her fellow servicewomen, even after being promoted. Something was wrong.

“Colt?” Green eyes turned towards her as she spoke, “What’s wrong? Yer no’ yerself.” The wiry-haired Sargent felt a soft hand grip gently on her shoulder, she still did not turn around and just stared towards the wall.

“I’m okay Sasha. Just stressed.” The moment those words slipped out, the world span as Colt felt herself being sharply turned to stare the red-head right into her blue pair. Judging by her expression, she could only deduct that she had noticed her bloodshot eyes from her previous tears she had furiously tried to push back. Before she could even open her mouth to reprimand her, Sasha interrupted.

“Pardon me for talkin’ outta line, Jane, but that’s a load of bull and ya know it. What is it?”

Hearing her full name spoken, Colt shuddered with her eyes to the ground. There was no escaping Sasha once she had her mind on something. She was like a bloodhound; once she got your depressive scent, she was set on finding out the cause. Not just to her, but to the other women in her quarters. With this knowledge, she sighed and turned fully.

“I called Marcus earlier.” She hesitated for a moment; head turned away as she gathered the strength to continue.

“Mhm?”

“…He left me. Some other woman.” The woman finished, her eyes still averted from Sasha. It was terrible. She had not heard anything from the man for so long, and when she had finally been able to phone him, excited to tell him about her promotion (she assumed he hadn’t known from not reading her letters; why else would he not respond?) He bluntly told her how it was; devoid of any sense of care towards herself and accusatory as if she had been solely responsible for his own state.

“Oh… Jane-” Hands clasped the red-head’s mouth as she reeled back.

“Said I wasn’t there. Said I didn’t try. I didn’t do enough to keep him; even though I wrote every week and never got one Gawd damn letter back! I was ‘rubbin’ his face in the fact I’m doin’ well while he got kicked out.’ It went on. And on. By the end of it, I couldn’t even say anything back. I just hung up.” A tear tracked down her clean left cheek, refusing to look the red-head in the eye, “…I just wanted t’wish ‘im happy birthday.”

The second she finished, Colt felt herself be ingulfed in Sasha’s comforting grip, her warm breath on the side of her neck as she pulled her close. She felt her soft, red curls in her grip as she held onto Sasha with a vice like grip, struggling to keep her tears back. Sasha said nothing, only the occasional shush and stroke of the back. Knowing she was watching the door, Colt knew she was safe to cry without the threat of Lt. Lorrie walking in. The Lieutenant had an un-spoken respect for the pair and would usually leave them be in times like this. After a few silent moments, Sasha finally spoke.

“Hey.” Colt stayed silent, “Y’don’t need that jackass. Fuck ‘im. If I remember right, he couldn’t even hold a gun or run half a mile. Complained all the time. And then… well, we all heard about what happened in the food storage. That bum don’t deserve ya or anyone yer worth.”

By her lack of an answer, Sasha seemed to sense that talking about her now ex-boyfriend was doing very little to lift her dear friend’s spirits. The woman released a slight hum-like growl as Colt could feel her mind working on how to achieve this. Going out there red eyed and depressed would surely cause the higher-ups to flip their lids. Not to mention, she hated seeing Colt depressed. It had been happening more and more lately; not that she would say so. After a few moments of thought, Sasha seemed to lighten in her grip as she thought of something.

“Hey. Listen t’me, how ‘bout this? Remember what I said about us getting’ a ranch? If this were t’happin’? We’ll still do it. Think about it Jane. Somewhere in the mountains, like where ya came from. A lovely big lodge with our bedroom window facing the west so we can watch the sunset. We’ll rear cattle, show horses, always have fresh eggs with our chickens…”

“And have two sheepdogs called Sonny and Cher.” Colt finished with a creeping smile. That indeed was a wonderful thought. She could already picture them being woken in the soft orange of dawn with two groomed, happy border collies jumping on their bed, demanding they got up and started another great day. If only they were already here. The hot desert air was nothing compared to the crisp and cool wind of an early morning in the mountains.

“Ahem. Shonny and Chur.” Colt giggled at the woman’s exaggerated drawl mimicking the singer.

“Yeah, yeah Shonny and Chur, how could I forget?” The two finally broke their hug and just stared into each other. After an almost unbroken minute, their lips connected in a light peck, Colt’s cheeks flushing a brilliant red as her stomach flipped like a gymnast while Sasha coughed with a slight giggle as she looked away sheepishly.

“Hey, we should get outside, Lorrie’s gonna want yer report on the rations.”

“Sho. Um… Hey. Think y’could, like, stay with me today? I just think I’ll wanna be with someone today. Unlike that good for nothing, fuckin’ bast-!” Sasha broke her off with a good-hearted clap on the back.

“Hey, ya don’ need t’worry ‘bout that bum no more. Lemme ask y’somethin’.”

“Yeah?”

“Could this Marcus guy ride a horse?”

“Hm. Can’t say he can.”

“Could he shoot somethin’ that had claws and could kill ‘im back?”

“Nope.”

“Aaaaand did he get promoted at all in the time he was here?”

“No!”

“Ha! I knew it. Ya don’ need someone like that, Jane. C’mon, maybe I’ll finally beat yer time at the obstacle course.”

“Not fuckin’ likely!” Sasha could only smile at the woman’s returning fire that she loved so much about her. After one more peck for good measure, the two left the barracks into the blinding sun to start another grueling day. But those days were now numbered. In a few months, they would go home and leave the war behind, never to look back...

With a rueful sigh, Colt sat heavily on her bed, violently kicking off the prosthetic. The painful tingling remained, like hundreds of pins were being driven into her flesh. Her brow twitches from the pain and for a second, she didn't want to move. The woman swayed as she sat, her head feeling heavy and dictating where she leant. Stopping down, she reached under the bed. As she emerged, she pulled out tall and heavy blue box. With a groan she pulled it onto her knee.

Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare. She had saved it from her apartment after the first supply run. The woman shuddered, even thinking of that day made her want to drink. She had bought it almost a year ago and had been saving it; for today. With a glance up at the ceiling, she opened the box.

“Y’thought I’d be toastin’ y’all with some backwater shit?” She slurred to the wooden beams, “Ain’t the most expensive but… It’s what I could get. Goin’ all out… goin’ all out fur mah girls.” She took one of the cups and gingerly poured the priceless liquid into it. Each drip spilled would have cost at least $20 and she wanted her money’s worth. As she waited for the pair to come, she took a long drink. She had missed the eleven o’clock time-frame. But there was still the rest of the day. If only they knew how badly she missed them. How much she wanted them here. Becca, Molly, Lucy, all of them. They had looked up to her, had her back and they were a unit. And she was the last of them. A broken woman in the Jordan Lodge; the last of Aurora’s Seekers.

Interactions: RayPurchase (Aaron) The Mad Queen (Ralph) FireMaiden (Leliana)
Mentions: Hyped_Taco (Michael and Cletus) Maj (Owen) Corgi (Aubrey) Brax (Tre) Meredith (Adryen)
Nearby: TheTreForce (Warren) Togy (Nile) BloodLightning27 (Shiona)

 

[Meredith]

​

“You call this a child army? I can do way better than this,” the girl noted at Owen's protest, blood splattering as she clobbered another stray zombie, “seeing as it’s an army of one at the moment.” Her head turned and she grinned at Owen.

The fight became considerably easier in the aftermath of the humvee's rampage. They had more competent fighters, too, which helped things along. It was a numbers game, not one of skill or tactics, against these hoards. As the clobbered her last opponent, the girl felt the hot sting of her own blood against her face, and reached up to touch her cheek. Somewhere along the line she must have caught herself with the back end of the antler.

Aderyn stopped to catch her breath, leaving the weapon on the front porch. She made her way inside through the back door and washed her hands and face in the kitchen. After rooting around in the cabinet under the sink, she wet and rang out a ratty tea towel, stuffing it into her pocket. A trip to the bathroom netted her a beach towel in a similar moth-eaten condition.

She wasted no time in arriving back outside. The sun was setting rapidly (which was no surprise, considering the season) but she used the dim light of her ipod's screen for some illumination. The lodge's grounds were littered with body parts - decapitated limbs and heads, smashed and twisted body parts, and worst of all the mutilated bodies that had been hit by the humvee. The ground was almost entirely covered in a layer of coagulated blood. Her stomach turned threateningly as the heel of her boot sank into what was left of a monster's skull with a wet, icy crunch. She kept her light focused on the ground in front of her after that.

The girl made her way over to the jumbled pile of limbs near the rear window that Warren and Owen had held, and laid the towel on the blood-soaked earth. Snapping on a pair of gloves she'd taken from the first aid kit, she began to toss body parts to the side, nose wrinkled in disgust. The bodies were beginning to freeze together.

Within five or ten minutes she managed to fully uncover Cletus' body from the pile. She yanked off an arm that had frozen to his coat with a crack.

She grabbed the man by the armpits, pulling him onto the towel with what seemed like a behemoth effort, and taking the corners of it into her cold hands. She pulled the man away from the rest of the carnage. Breathing hard, she set down her light, examining the body in the dark. Her brow furrowed and her mouth set into a grim frown. Cletus' face and neck were mangled and torn. His head looked to be caved in from her bullet, and he was all but covered in blood - his own and that from the zombie hoard. She kneeled down aside him and used the dishrag to wipe some of the mess from his face and hands. By the time she was done, the white rag had turned into a muddy, muted brown. She cast it to the side.

The girl pondered what to do with the brain matter hanging from the redneck's skull. It wouldn't be right to tear it off and bury him without it. She turned back to the pile, and grabbed what she assumed was his baseball cap, or at least was a baseball cap. She fit it on his head over the wound. Similarly, she tore a strip of fabric from the bottom of the beach towel, tying it around his neck like a scarf. The knot took multiple attempts with her numb fingers.

The body was looking considerably less mutilated. Aderyn stripped off her latex gloves and threw them on top of the tea towel. She laid a hand on the cross that sat on the chain around her neck.

"All-powerful and merciful God, I commend to you Cletus, my friend and your servant." Her eyes closed, and she swallowed, hard. "Give him eternal rest, and may your light shine on him forever."

In one fluid motion, the girl grabbed her ipod and stood, turning back to the lodge. Her muscles burned with exhaustion from the efforts of the day and the travel she had endured, but more than that, her head ached. She did not look back at the body as she headed inside to shower. The lodge seemed very quiet after the panic of the day.

It occurred to her, as she washed the blood out of her hair, that nobody had taken the time to give Dixie her last rites.

mentions: Maj , Hyped_Taco

 

[Brax]

​

Hector was standing by the entrance, his eye flicking back and forth between the sardine-packed individuals in the room and he quickly came to the decision that this was not somewhere he was going to be able to be. Chances are, he was going to slip out and sit down just outside the door. The doctor didn't do tight, cramped, and stuffy places. He was much too large for that. Even packed elevators was something that grated on his nerves.

With a sigh, Dr. Salazar leaned against the door frame and pulled down the hood of his thick jacket. He loosened the straps on the gas mask and pulled it up and over his head. The large man let out a small breath of relief before hunkering down and sitting on the floor. His hand reached up and touched the wet bandages on his face. That wasn't good. Wet bandages usually meant easier time for infections to set in.

Hector reached into one of the bags and fished out the same medkit Luca had used. It still had more than enough gauze and wrapping to do the job. "Ms. Jordan," he called out. "Would you mind assisting me with this once again?" Rare was the day that Hector asked for help but he seemed to be having a lot of those these days. Then again, infected zombie-like humans were a thing now. So, these were strange times to say the least.

Vanessa stared back at the behemoth of a doctor with curiosity as he pulled his gas mask up, revealing to her his face for the first time. She winced as she saw his bandaged face, her fingers absentmindedly moving to her own eye. Quickly realizing this, she brought her hand down to rest on her right knee as she continued to observe the scene before her.

Andy was most of the way up the metal ladder to her bed when she heard Hector call her name. With a sigh, she made her way back down, careful not to spill the beverage in her bottle. With her bare feet back on the carpet, she took another long drink from the bottle of Vodka that Luca had handed her. She could feel the warmth of the liquid travel down her insides as she looked at Hector’s pitiful state. He was just lucky that she hadn’t drank more.

“Yeah, Yeah,” Andy waved him off. “Whatever it takes to keep your eye socket from stinking up my room.” The girl kneeled down on the ground in front of him, sitting the bottle down carefully beside her. She knew that he was capable of taking off the bandages himself, but it wasn’t in her heart to watch an old man struggle through basic tasks. Without making eye contact, the girl reached behind his head and carefully detached the medical tape without sticking it to his lengthy hair.

She kept her face stony while unwrapping the gauze. It wasn’t that Andy really knew what she was doing, but she knew enough about human anatomy to know that the smell coming off of him wasn’t a good sign. Her nostrils flared as the scent invaded her nose, but despite her nature she didn’t make any more comments. He had lost his eye protecting her brother after all. With the bandages removed, she looked to the doctor for guidance.

“What do I need to do before we rewrap this?”

"Peroxide." The man replied, swiftly handing her the brown bottle of liquid bacterial death and pointing around the void the once held his eye "Around the socket and along the laceration. Stop at the ear." He was already getting the gauze pre-making the wrappings, having taken the proper measurements already. Andy would only need to slide it on over his head and fasten it tight.

Just as she opened the bottle, the doctor stopped her for a moment. He turned his head to the side and listened carefully for any movement outside. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't be concern but the constant cleaning of the wound was beginning to fray his resistance to the pain. He didn't trust himself to be able to keep absolutely quiet.

So the big man reached into the bag once more and pulled out a few rubber tourniquets. Disposable but versatile and plentiful. He folded them over and over until there was a decent wad of layers and then put it in his mouth and bit down.

He took a deep breath to steady himself and nodded for the young red-headed lass to continue. His hands were balled into fists in anticipation of the agony he was becoming accustomed to.

Andy waited with the bottle in her hand while the doctor prepared himself. At the nod she exhaled slowly and shrugged, lifting the brown bottle over his head she poured the liquid as instructed, doing her best to ignore the hissing both from the peroxide and Hector’s pain. Andrea did her best to only pour it where instructed and not to waste more medicine than necessary. When it seemed to run mostly clear, the girl reached down for the strips of wrappings and began her work of covering the eye back up.

The makeshift bit fell out of his mouth and the doc trying to breathe through the pain amounted to little beyond panting but he was able to compose himself very quickly. "Thank you….. Ms….. Jordan…." He uttered, breathless and tired, "You may…. Go back to…. your drinking now…." He said with an affirmative nod, letting the back of his head smack into the wall in exhaustion. "Maldita sea" he cursed under his breath.

Andy gave the man a sympathetic grimace but came to her feet with the bottle grasped firmly in her hand. The woman resumed her earlier goal of climbing up into her bed and got up the ladder with ease. She propped herself up on the stack of floral printed pillows and reached down to where she kept one of her various sketch pads. With the thing in her lap and the bottle between her legs, she made herself comfortable for the night.

Vanessa watched quietly as the others settled in. She had a burning question, but she didn't exactly wish to ask it before everyone in the room. Her gaze fell back onto Luca. She wasn't sure if he would understand, but by his looks, and his accent, he had to be Italian. It was worth a shot, she figured. Hesitantly, she addressed Luca. "Perché mi hai salvato?" She asked, her words slightly mispronounced. "Semplicemente non capisco."

The Italian’s eyes kept fixated on the comic book for a few seconds after the woman had asked. He bit down lightly on the filter of his cigarette while he looked up to look at Vanessa’s face. For a moment he attempted to gauge her expression but this was followed quickly with a response to her question. It hadn’t been important to discuss, nor did he feel as though she literally had to speak his language, but she must have been able to dissect his heritage with a little help of his accent.

“You didn’t seem like you were capable of taking care of yourself.” Luca spoke casually to the girl, before looking back down at the comic book and flipping the page. He reached over to ash his cigarette on the windowsill but it quickly found his way back into his mouth. “You had something to offer me in the way of a body. Nothing more.” This woman didn’t know of his background; in the past, innocent civilians were absolutely worthless to him. His pursuit of money and true power knew no bounds, guided by lust and greed on their lonesome. There was no conscious to his actions, nor empathy for the weak. Times had drastically changed. With that understanding, Luca was forced to adapt.

“Your Italian is shit by the way.” He mumbled as his index and middle fingers once more found their way around his cigarette. The man licked his lips as he pulled it away, his comment complimented by a mere smirk as he continued reading.

That drew a chuckle from the panting doc in the corner. Spanish being a very similar language to Italian, he found himself understanding bits and pieces of their conversation. Leaned up against the wall with their head cocked towards Luca and the apparently named Vanessa, Harriet was left with way more questions than answers after his attempted eavesdropping. Harriet obviously didn’t trust tall dark and broody, which is why he kind of wanted to know what the deal was there. Okay, he doesn’t like judging books by their cover, but with this Luca dude it kind of comes naturally.

Back to the topic, Harriet was left confused and concerned after hearing Luca’s last sentences. “You had something to offer me in the way of a body”? Jesus, that sounds disturbing. He hoped he was wrong there, but what was he supposed to think after hearing something like that completely out of context? He’d only heard the last bits, so he supposed he shouldn’t jump the gun and try to figure things out before doing anything rash. But, admittedly, he may be biased from now on.

Vanessa chuckled softly. "I understand." She said, her gaze still fixated on Luca. Her life had been forfeit until he had come upon her, and he had taken her life for his own. "You saved my life, so now it belongs to you aye?" This made sense to her. It was what Yuri had done, after all. The only difference was that Luca was up front about it, unlike Yuri.

Upon hearing her speak, Luca slammed the comic book down on the ground. He leaned over to pick up his bottle of whiskey before standing up. The man then turned to face the woman, the expression on his face apoplectic in nature. It wasn’t inherently her fault; rather, the prodding question, which followed a chuckle in response to his former statement all coupled with the understanding that she had been trying to pinpoint his motives were a toxic combination for Luca to fathom.

“What the fuck did you just say to me?” He asked angrily as he extinguished the burning cherry of his cigarette using the windowsill. The following words had flown in a pattern of speech that was much faster than his English.

“Mi insulti con un'affermazione così spregevole. La tua vita è la tua come è sempre stata pensata. In questo mondo se non trovi un modo di sopravvivere per te stesso, sei inutile per gli altri. Se rimani con me, farai ciò che dico senza dubbio. Troverai un modo per renderti utile e seguire ciò significa per il tuo scopo. Insinuare che non hai voce in capitolo nel tuo destino è un disonore per la mio nome. Capisci?”

Confusion, worry, and unease played across Vanessa's face rapidly. She was speechless for a moment, too stunned by his sudden anger to respond immediately. When she finally did respond, her voice was unsteady and had an almost pleading tone. "S...si, capisco…" she stammered. "Per favore, perdonami per averti offeso. Non era mia intenzione."

After the woman’s response, Luca exhaled hard through his nostrils. He brought the lip of the bottle to his mouth and drank heartily. After wiping up any excess that had escaped with the use of his sleeve he stared at the woman for a moment longer. There wasn’t anything else worth saying. He had been well aware that she had not intended to insult him in any way. In reality, he knew very little of the woman’s life past what he had been told. Obviously, her statement was extremely indicative of how she was treated in the past. He took a seat on his chair and picked the comic book up off the floor.

A soft snort could be heard from the peanut gallery in the bunk bed. Andy had been silent through their conversation. The only signs that she was even still awake was the soft sound of pencil scraping against the paper belonging to her sketch pad. She didn’t have to know Italian to understand what Luca had told the woman.

Vanessa's eyes flicked up to Andy momentarily before moving swiftly back to the angry Italian. Though she had understood his words, she had a hard time grasping what he meant. Since a young age she had been forced to simply obey and endure. Even after joining the circus, she had no real say in anything. What clothes she would wear day to day, what act she would perform, when and where she ate, as well as slept were all decided for her.

That was just how life was. Now Luca was telling her that her life was her own, and had always been? She hadn't felt in control of her destiny for as long as she could remember. To her, his words seemed a cruel joke. It almost made her laugh aloud, but Vanessa managed to hold it back, fearing the possibility of angering her savior further.

"Tiene razon, Niña. Tu vida es tuya para dominar. Tu eres el que decidé como las cosas van." The one eyed man offered through a tired gaze. His eye flicked to Luca, "You're a touch more volatile today than usual." He stated plainly.

The Italian took a moment to peer over to Hector from his book, but then looked back down without comment.

"Claro, y los cerdos pueden volar, ¿verdad?" The acrobat replied in a low, sour, but almost melancholy tone as she averted her gaze to the wall. She had begun to wish she wasn't multilingual. Their words were contradicting an entire lifetime of what she had learned, and it was beginning to bother her. "And my name Ain't Girl, its Vanessa. Mudak…" She said, trailing off at the end as though she were lost in thought.

Hector scoffed, a slight exhalation through his nose. Not a native speaker, it seemed. Mudak… that was a curse of some sort in Polish… or Russian. Some type of insult if Hector recalled properly. Regardless, the doctor raised an eyebrow but ultimately decided to leave it be. He was in a lot of pain and the girl wasn't worth the breath he would waste. Only fools and children believed that their lives weren't their own to live. Which one this young girl was remained to be seen.

 

[FireMaiden]

This is a collab between Rumble Fish The Mad Queen and FireMaiden
​

After getting the cane back from Shiona, Ralph took great care to remove it's makeshift weaponry. If the lodge was no longer under attack, he wasn't going to need it. With a sigh, he forced a smile and made his way upstairs. As the days went on, it was taking him less and less time to make the ascent.

But it still wasn't enough.
He braced himself, and knocked on the door.
"Colt, it's Ralph. You wanted to see me?"

The nurse was in a daze almost. Her hands were covered in blood, she could feel it through her jacket, caked into some of her hair. Leliana had lost count of the bodies that littered the yard outside, and now that they were no longer under the threat of the undead, the nurse felt compelled to tell Colt she needed to make sure that everyone was okay. But as she followed the older woman and Ralph upstairs, last of the three to do so, she couldn't find her voice. It was gone, her mind wandering as she almost roboticly followed. The nurse was expecting to be yelled at. To be called an idiot and berated for the way she had accidentally pissed Colt off, Leliana wasn't looking forward to it. So she wasn't surprised when they entered Colt's room and the veteran kicked off her prosthetic.

Anger. It wasn't a new look on Colt, but knowing it could be directed at her, made Leliana's heart sink. To distract herself, she raised her hand to scratch her face but stopped when she once again saw the dark red coating them. She needed a shower. Looking up when Colt slurred something, Leliana's anxiety turned to concern. The vet was drunk, and whether or not she was angry at the nurse or not, she knew that Colt wasn't in the best condition. How she managed to get up the stairs was a mystery in of itself. "Colt, what is this about? Are you okay?"

"C'min." Colt had taken a sip from the whisky when the door knocked. She watched the pair walk in and, hearing Leliana's concern, she breathed hard through her nose. She wanted to stand up but, well she had kicked off her only means of balance. Instead, she turned to look out the window, swirling the liquor in its cup as she thought. She could finish her conversation with the ceiling later.

"Two things." She turned back to them, cheeks flushed and eyes red and glazed, "First; I wanna... commend ya'll fur gettin' us through that. I'm glad I made the right choice t'put ya both in charge. I got the feelin'd we'v'ad come back to a dead zone otherwise... I'm no' good with words. But, I'm proud of ya both. So thank ya." There was a deep inhale as she finished off her mug with a strained gasp at the taste.

"'Nd second," there was another pause and a sigh, "...I'm sorry."

Thanking him? But Ralph hadn't done anything, outside of nearly falling on his ass during the attack. He was about to correct Colt, but he noticed her gaze. Something was bothering the woman, and he wouldn't rest until he got to the bottom of it. His pity could wait. "Sorry?" He raised an eyebrow "For what?"

Concern was causing her to overlook Colt's praise, especially as Colt mentioned she was sorry. That confused the nurse. What could she be sorry for? Colt had done exactly what they needed her to in order to save their lives, honestly, they should be thanking her. "Colt...what do you mean?" Leliana asked quietly, stepping further into the room.

"I mean," shaky hands refilled the cup, "...I had ya'll shootin' out there. Without silencers. I'm no' expert but I reckon it's safe to assume that's what spooked 'em Things. And then, I go fuck off int'the woods, and leave ya'll t'deal with that?! If I had gone fur that fuckin' truck first and brought back the silencers, this might've no' happened." The woman paused, not daring to look at them both, opting to stare back out of the window.

"So. I'm sorry. Fur puttin' ya'll through that. And I'm sorry fur yelling' at ya Leliana. I just..." she didn't want to continue. The swirl of gloom in her core overtook her voice. Instead, she opted for another sip. Afterwards, she glanced back at the bottle she had put back in its box.

"Take a sip if ya want." She hadn't intended to share it, given it's meaning. But it was bad enough she had failed them in that regard, she didn't want to be seen as selfish too.

"You couldn't have known they would've shown up." Ralph shrugged "That's not on you. And besides, you needed to find those supplies. We're low on food as is, and Michael isn't helping with that."

He raised a hand at her "No thank you. I'm sober."

Leliana didn't know what to say. Colt had a point, it was the noise that had drawn them. They couldn't know how many of those infected people we're roaming the forest, and so target practice wasn't a good idea. But she couldn't say that out loud. Leliana allowed Ralph to speak instead. "Ralph is right, getting that truck, or the supplies at least, was a priority. You made the right call." Leliana sounded tired but genuine. She meant what she said. And then, Colt apologized. Leliana chuckled dryly, shifting her weight between her feet. "It's okay Colt. It was a tense situation, I promise I didn't take it personally." After she spoke, Colt offered a sip of whatever booze she had been drinking. Leliana wasn't a huge fan of booze if she drank it was normally something fruity and something that masked the burn, since she disliked the taste and the discomfort of it. But it was just...it had been a long day. Leliana moved forward, grabbing the bottle from the box and popping it open. Raising it to her lips, she was happy the blood on her hands had dried enough not to transfer. She only had a small drink, before putting the top back on and the bottle back in the box. "Thanks."

The bed creaked as Colt leant back into her pillow, propping her up as she watched Liliana take up her offer. Despite her acceptance of her apology, she couldn't shake off that guilt. For both offences. She looked to her watch, lifting it close to her face to bypass the blurriness of her vision. It was well into the afternoon. She had missed it. She had already assumed as such but still, there was a hope there. Defeated, her head tilted back as she looked at the means holding up the mattress above her.

"Still. Shouldn'tve taken it out on ya." Her tone grew quieter, "...And t'think I left this mornin', feelin' fine, like everythin'd be fine, sayin' all that shit about... Memorial Day. All the bodies would be from our guns, makin' folks shoot without silencers... and look what FUCKIN' happened!" Her voice didn't grow any louder than a furious mutter, the last thing she needed was for everyone to hear it.

"...Sorry. Y'don' wanna hear this shit." For a moment she had forgotten she had company. Taking another drink from her mug, she kicked at the covers slightly to cover her foot, still cold from her time outside.

"We all have our moments." He tried to give the woman a reassuring smile, but it fell through and the man just sighed, the look of defeat plastered across his face. "But you're wrong. I'd rather like to hear it." He moved towards the bed and sat down on the other side. He couldn't stand for much longer anyway.

"I'm in charge, doc. I can't have those moments. I can't make mistakes!" there was another swig, a longer and more violent one, "When I make mistakes, folks die. All of 'em. All that fuckin' talk of staying strong and together and I find..." The woman realised how far she was about to go and stopped. She did not want to mention Cletus. So much for keeping them together.

"What the fuck am I supposed to say to- ugh fuck me!" A hard palm hit the woman's forehead. Luca and Andy! They were going to kill her!

"And you don't think that Andy and Luca haven't made mistakes? Leadership is hard, you have to make the hard choices right?" Leliana said, "All you have to do is make those choices and hope for the best!" Leliana knew that Colt was maybe a little to far gone for her to get through, but the nurse had to try. "You are only human. Human, Colt. You're allowed to have moments, to make mistakes, because you can't be in control of everything!"

"In terms of leading this lot? No." The woman sighed as Leliana assured her that it was okay to make mistakes. She understood what the nurse meant. But there was still a terrible weight of guilt. For back then and now. Taking the blue bottle from its box, she stared into the liquid as her mind drifted back and forth between her wish to be left alone to grieve but not wanting to be left by the only other person she actually trusted.

"It's hard. I just..." her eyes squeezed shut, she did not want to say what she said next, but if she didn't, they would probably just assume she was being stubborn. "...twelve families. At least a hundred people. They've suffered I don't never wanna imagine 'cause of me. I just don't want it to happen to any of y'all too." She unscrewed the bottle to pout more into her cup. Despite her limited contact with Cletus, her animosity towards Kypher and lack of relationship with Ray, every death hurt; opening already deep scars back open and digging harder into them.

"In a situation like this, every choice means the difference between life or death." Ralph shook his head "And sometimes there are no choices where you can save everyone. More often than not the only choices you have are hard calls, but you still have to choose because the alternative is..."

He sighed heavily, turning away from both of them. "Surrendering to the disease. And that, Colt is never a viable option."

He stared out the window "Sometimes you don't get a choice at all. You fail in trying to save a friend." He muttered. He thought of his team, of Ray and of Jenna who was probably dead by now too. He still had some hope that Brian had made it though. "All you can do after that..." He paused, blinking a few times to ward off a tear "Is keep going, because it's as I said. The alternative is surrender."

He wiped his eye, trying to make sure that neither of the women saw him cry.
"You did your best, the both of you. Not like I was much help." He chuckled lightly "Not like I can do much around here."

He'd failed in watching meat for goodness sake, unable to keep it out of Michael's grubby hands. What was he even good for anymore?

"I know about choices." Colt grumbled, her words tangled with the slurring. "I know everythin' about choices. I've 'ad to make choices that still haunt me. That keep me awake at night. That fuckin' whisper at the back of my head every time I gotta make another. With a voice that says "ya fucked up before yer gonna fuck up again." And won't go away. Even this stuff don' 'elp. Let's me forget about other things. But not them." She finished, finishing her... third cup? She slumped against the pillow. She turned her glazed eyes to Ralph as she processed what else he had said.

"Yer right 'bout one thing, doc." The veteran clumsily took out a cigarette and lit it, "I don' like givin' up. As much as I wanna. If I do; so will they. And then what? We all fuckin' die! And I can't do it. Not again..." her voice faltered at the end. She didn't want to keep going, but as Ralph spoke up again, she sighed.

"Y'did yer best. That's all I could've asked for." She stopped. Part of her wanted her to shoo them away but she knew she couldn't.

"Forgetting won't help you know." Leliana spike quietly. "You can't forget, no matter how hard you try, or how hard you want to. You can wash those memories away with a bottle for a short while, the only way to heal is to actually deal with them." For once, she was speaking from experience. More experience than someone her age should have. Looking down at her hands, she clenched her fists for a moment, keeping her eyes down. "Blaming yourself for actions out of your control will only worsen your mental state. And eventually, you won't even be able to make the hard choices you need to." After a brief pause, she looked up, observing the woman with a sigh. "I'll go get you some water." Turning around, Leliana left, her footfall's quickly fading as walked away and then downstairs, only to return with two glasses of water and a knee brace a few minutes later. She put the glasses on the table next to Colt, and handed the knee brace to Ralph. "Sorry, I didn't have time to find it earlier. And you missy," she looked at the older woman, "Drink. The. Water."

Colt glanced up at Leliana as she put in her own thoughts on the matter. This was not going how the veteran had wanted. All she wanted was to apologise and give them her gratitude; not this. But before she could answer, the woman disappeared and then re-appear with water. After she gave the leg brace to the doctor, she glared at the woman as she called her 'missy'. She wasn't going to say it, but she was thankful for the water. Her throats was drier than the Sahara desert.

"Call me 'missy' again and I'll have ya'll run laps 'round the woods." Her tone lifted for that brief moment, indicating a joke before again becoming rueful and taking a sip of the water. It brought some much welcomed relief as her headache ceased from the hydration. "Thanks... Yer both good 'uns. Y'know that right?" The whisky was loosening her tongue more than she expected, however the quiet, almost shaky tone had a genuine air. She had only thought these words, but with an expansion of her lexicon beyond orders and dry snark, they slipped before she knew it.

"We've bin through so much shit, and y'bin behind us and pushin' with us the whole way. Can't say I... get along with most of 'em. But I mean it. And doc," she tilted her head in an inadvertently lop-sided manner towards Ralph, "It ain't all physical. It's cause of ya that we even know what we do about them bastards. I... wish... I'd 'ave met ya'll before all this shit. Might be in a better place."

Leliana shrugged. "Running laps and that bad. Micheal needs to run some though." She chuckled to herself, brushing a few strands of stray hair out of her face. "You don't have to thank us Colt, really." The nurse turned to look at the veteran, a slight smile on her face. "We're in this together, and we aren't getting out of this unless it's together. And if making sure you don't dry yourself out is part of the job, we don't mind doing that either." She chuckled again, a light-hearted tone making sure Colt knew that while she meant it, it wasn't a statement meant to offend. The nurse fell silent again as Colt spoke up once more, her smile falling slightly as she glanced to Ralph, then back at Colt. "There's no reason you can't still get better. It'll be ten times harder now, but you could do it. You have people to rely on one, we aren't going to just abandon you." She paused for a moment, "You do a good job, Colt. There's nobody else I'd rather fight with." She chuckled again, looked at Ralph, "And you did more than you think you did. You both did. Even if you may not be able to see it or keep overlooking and focusing on...on the bad."

Ralph continued to stare out of the window as the two women talked. They'd obviously both been through the wringer, and while Colt was obvious in what had left her in such a state he was unsure about Leliana.

He wasn't sure he wanted to know, but he could at least piece together some kind of trauma prep-outbreak based on what she was saying.

His attention was grabbed by the leg brace, and he nodded "Thank you." He forced through a smile. There was no point in trying to attach the thing now, as he didn't want to show how much pain he was in in front of anyone.

When Colt complimented him he turned away once more. What on earth did she see in him? He hadn't helped at all!

When the nurse tried to do the same, that was when it was too much for Ralph.
"I didn't do anything." He sternly shook his head "I haven't been able to do anything ever since I lost my goddamn knee, and I wasn't much help before it."

He turned around to face the two "I spent the better part of the raid bleeding half to death, I couldn't convince Jenna not to get herself killed, I sure as shit did nothing during that last attack!" He pounced his cane on the floor "For God's sake, the young mom had help me stand when she could've been watching her baby."

"And it's not even big stuff like that. I couldn't even stop that fat fuck Michael from devouring half our supplies." His eyes grew heavy as tears built up. "So don't either of you tell me I helped or did a good job because I am already aware of how useless I am."

He cleared this throat and wiped his eyes.
"Sorry. That was unworthy of me. You're just trying to make me feel better, after all."

Leliana turned and looked at him, brows furrowed. "If Jenna wanted to stay, she would have. She would have put the needs of everyone else above whatever sent her off, and she decided that it was time to move on. You couldn't have changed her mind about that, and anything that happens to her outside of these walls isn't your concern. You can't help everyone. And Shinoa. She could have left you sitting on the floor, but she decided to help because she is a kind young girl who wanted to make sure you were safe before she did anything else. And it's a good thing too, you're valuable Ralph. You could be the only member of the CDC left on the godforsaken planet, it's a miracle you can still walk, let alone that you or any of us are still alive." She paused, glancing at Colt as means to say if the vet wanted to stay out of this, she could. "Nothing but death or kicking him out is going to stop Micheal, that much is apparent, so we're just going to make sure somebody has eyes in him at all times. We may even need to start locking the food up. This whole situation sucks. You may not be able to see that you did some work, and that's okay, but we can't sit around and feel sorry for ourselves. Andy, Luca, and Hector shouldn't have to come back to a huge mess like this. And, don't worry, I can handle telling them what happened." Once again she paused, turning to the window. "The fence was broken, Nile is going to have to fix it, but first we need to deal with the mess. Colt, you can stay up here and sober up for a while. Take a nap or something if you want to. Ralph, could you take a walkie and help coordinate with clean up inside? We need to get some more boards up, clean up the glass. You know, put the furniture back so Andy doesn't kill us."

"What happens to everyone is my concern. It was my job, no my duty when I worked for the CDC." He shook his head "Millions of Americans depended on me to protect them from outbreaks, bioterrorism and their own stupidity." He explained clearly, his tone a lot more relaxed.

"And as for our mutual friend, she left to try and expose the CIA with information Brian provided. Incredibly misguided, and possibly suicidal but by no means selfish or cowardly." He sighed heavily, defeat behind his eyes "Poor girl believed she could do more for us by doing that than sticking around. Brian and Ivan could survive out there but she's just a civilian. A very angry one but a civilian nonetheless. If she's not dead by now, she will be soon."
He turned away, resting his head in his hands for a moment to compose himself.

"I'm probably not the only CDC agent left, but I am the only one in a position to study these things without the CIA getting in the way. However, my team's dead and I am without a lab or equipment..."

He turned towards the door, but stopped as his hand rested on the handle "Cleanup first, but after that I am going to need people with medical expertise to form a new team. Given the nature of this outbreak, we won't find a cure but perhaps we can find a better way to kill these things."

“RIGHT-!” Colt had snarled, jumping up onto her one leg, arm waving and balance non-existing as the man then pushed away her and Leli’s words, ready to lay into him for his insubordination. That was all she could see rather than the bigger picture, which, if she hadn’t just drank a half-bottle of straight 40% whisky, but was stopped in her tracks as the nurse wisely stepped in and spoke instead; handling it expertly. Thank God. Colt slumped back onto the bed, listening to their exchange. She was thankful for Leliana stepping up. The veteran lacked the emotional capacity to react accordingly. She became quiet, allowing them to talk, until Leliana spoke to her, telling her to stay upstairs while they dealt with the aftermath.

“Wait-no-! I gotta-!” She tried to stand up but the sudden movement sent a rush to her head, “I gotta-just get my- Where’s my-?” she could barely keep a sentence together, causing her to flop back onto the bed, seeing her leg was too far away for her to grab anyway. It was unlikely for her to sober up, especially today but the nurse had a point.

She was still angry. Jenna should be here still, not chasing something that could turn Aurora into a smoldering wasteland. The government would want to cover up and try to contain the virus the only way that wouldn't risk military lives and that meant some heavy firepower. Anyone left in Aurora would be killed the moment Jenna exposed what was going on. If there was still a government anyway. Airborne viruses traveled so quickly, and nobody was expecting this to happen, she may not even get the chance to kill them. Then, at the mention of Brian and Ivan, her jaw clenched and she balled her fist. Brian was a coward, and she was more convinced than ever that it was him that had betrayed them. And Ivan...she could only still hope that he would come back. "Hector is building a lab to study the infected and the disease, I think at least. I still want to talk to him, but things keep happening so quickly..." Leliana trailed off, looking to Colt. The nurse sighed. "No, Colt. You're a mess, you're drunk, you need some rest. It's okay, we can handle things. And someone will come and get you when the other get back, alright? And I'll make sure you get more water, just please listen to me."

Colt groaned and ran a hand (inadvertinatly slapping herself in the process) down her face. She was right. But the mention of the trio coming back caused a jolt in her body.

“N-No not like this! Th-they dunno this ‘appened-!” she hiccupped, “They can’t come back t’this and see I’m drunk- they’ll kill me!” The woman stopped, holding each sides of her head before releasing a long sigh through her teeth. “Ugh…no. I gotta deal with this. I’ll… drink the water n’nap and just… hope it’s enough.” She lifted the blue bottle once again, staring at the label.

“I jus’… didn’ wanna like, toast to ‘em with some… backwater shit. Gotta go all out fur them, especially t’day.” She spoke quieter now, still slurring but clear enough to be understandable. After a moment, she cleared her throat, “Um… y’ both head on down. I’ll join ya later.”

His eyes widened, and the doctor stepped away from Colt when she jumped up.
The nurse managed to talk her down though, but Ralph was left with a defeated look on his face once more when a lab was mentioned. Owen had brought it up in passing but now he knew for sure what Hector's intentions were.

And it seemed more evident now that he was going to do it alone.

"He's building a lab to study it, and he never mentioned it?" He was more tired than anything else at this point. The two women could say a thousand times how he was valuable, or that he was helpful but he just couldn't see it.

"I'd listen to her. You pulled our fat out of the fire once again, you've earned a rest." He forced through a smile at Colt and stepped outside.

He was speaking the truth of course but just couldn't find the energy to wear his usual smile. The warmth behind his eyes was gone now, and the only way to get it back was if the man found his own usefulness.

"Colt, it's going to be okay. I'll make sure they know what happened, and that you fought like hell despite this. Now, just rest, please." Leliana spoke gently, ignoring Ralph's obvious disappointment for the moment. "Well take care of everything, don't worry." With that, Leliana followed Ralph outside, shutting the door easily before she looked to him. It was time they had a talk too.

"D-don' work too hard though! Ya deserve a rest more than I do." Was all Colt could get out before the door was closed and she was now left alone in the room. She propped herself up with the pillows and took back the whisky bottle. Leliana was right. But the veteran could not shake off the grief. With a inhale, she unscrewed the lid.

"Well... here's to Memorial Day, girls." She lifted it slightly as she spoke quietly to herself, "Just wish we all could've made it home..." with that, Colt took one final glug from the bottle before closing it and putting it in its box. She wasn't going to finish it; as much as her conscious was telling her to. Her gut knew better. Maybe next year. Reaching for the water Leliana had left, she rolled onto her side, staring out the window. A draft blew in from the crack in the pane. Pulling her knees up, Colt sipped the water and pulled her jacket tighter. Her back was to the door, but she doubted anyone would come looking for a while.

Maj (Andy) Brax (Luca) Hyped_Taco (Micheal) ​

 

[Corgi]

​

The stench of sweat and copper radiated off Aubrey as she stood upon the field of bodies. Her crowbar was drenched in the same dark blood the rest of her was bathed in. As quick on the uptake as Tre was, she quickly realized that he was skilled and didn’t need much protecting, so she turned her attention to keeping the weapon between her and those Things.

It wasn’t until all of those monsters were down and accounted for that she stopped moving and noticed the familiar buzz of electricity surging through her body. Her typically steady hands shook against the metal clasped in her palms. Her eyes refocused on the ground beneath her. While her face showed no emotion, her stomach tied in knots as she met eyes with a man. Milky irises stared back at her, forlorn. The skull was beat in, oozing a dark ichor as a dribble of saliva and mucus dripped out of it’s bloodied maw. Bile rose in her throat and she doubled over.

The knots in her stomach only got tighter and tighter as she stood up, her skin much more pale than she remembered. Her innate response to fight disappeared as she turned and ran. She didn’t know where she was going. She didn’t even know what she was doing. All of her energy felt like it vanished but she kept going.

Normally when she was experiencing turmoil, she’d sit by the lake. She’d close her eyes for hours on end and listen to the water slosh against the docks, feeling the world wash away. Once her mind cleared and she felt better, her eyes would open and see the world in the ignorant way she always did. No pain, no strife. Living her life in oblivious innocence. It was better to stuff the bad away, because what good did feeling awful do?

But she didn’t have a lake here. She didn’t have something to take her mind off the cold grip of death that seemed to swallow her every time she woke up. Her thoughts and memories played in her head on repeat as a constant reminder of her mortality. Aubrey had tried to bottle up the bad feelings she had, to toss them to the back of her mind and only worry about how others were doing.Though as the bottles stacked higher and higher over the past month, they would crack and seep into her unconscious mind, becoming harder to ignore.

Her legs eventually stopped pumping, her heart thumping loudly in her ears, trying to block out her thoughts. Thinking didn’t help anyone, but everything was becoming too much for her. Aubrey killed someone today. As much as she tried to convince herself that Claire wasn’t a person, she had memories of her. Aubrey couldn’t help but think about all of the other Things she had killed. She didn’t know if those Things had memories like she did. If they did, there was no way for Aubrey to know for sure. At the same time, they were dangerous.

The ‘what if’s rattled within her mind as she felt her chest seize, only allowing her to take tiny breaths. Her once blank expression twisted in panic as her thoughts engulfed her. Aubrey tried to breathe sense into herself, but it didn’t help. The more she relaxed, the more difficult it became to breathe. Her whole body felt like it was locking up, unable to move, yet she was violently shaking.

Her attempts to take deep breaths only made things worse as she felt the tears prick the corners of her eyes. Everything around her seemed to swirl as she panicked more. What if there’s a cure somewhere and she had killed all those people. All those families without their loved ones because of her. Because she was scared. What if Charlotte turned and someone killed her? She never got to apologize and say her goodbyes.

The clattering of her crowbar hitting the ground didn’t take her out of her thoughts. Her legs gave way as she fell, heaving a sob. Everything felt white. The tingling, her sight, the area around her. It was all static. Her mind was white and all she could do was bawl. The tears raced down her dirty cheeks as her hands tried to find purchase on the ground, scraping the grass and pebbles below to stabilize herself.

After what felt like hours, her sobs quieted and her tears came to a stop. The silence around her began to fade as the sound of branches swaying in the chilled breeze caught her attention. As she grounded herself, it seemed that her hearing was the first to return. The rustling hues of orange and gold stood out as the birds and squirrels seemed to mesh their chatter together into a song to calm the girl.

Slowly maneuvering herself to sit on the ground, she continued to sniffle and wipe away the excess water on her cheeks. Sitting there, watching and listening to the life flow around her was comforting. All of the emotions she had pent up for the last month had come out and were no longer her burden to carry. The woods had taken care of that for her.

As she stayed there, it took a few moments for her to realize a warm figure pressed itself against her legs. Hazel eyes fell upon a black cat. They had grown quite close over the last few days and his presence caused a weak smile to lift her heavy face. A trembling hand brushed across the kitty’s spine as she cooed at the purring feline. She wasn’t sure how long it had been since she ran, nor how long she sat there, but Aubrey realized she felt okay. A lot better than she had felt since she entered Aurora.

“Thank you for cheering me up, Tuna.” She murmured.

Pulling herself to her feet, Aubrey felt how tired she was. Specks of dried blood still caked her face, the adrenaline she released had exhausted her aching body further than she had ever felt. She wanted nothing more than to sleep away the fatigue, but she still had a full day ahead of her. At least the warm, empty feeling in her chest kept her company.

One hand picked up her crowbar as the other took hold of her cap, grinding the cardboard between her fingertips as she plodded back towards the lodge.

 

[Maj]

​

When the carnage was over Owen stood beside Aderyn, breathing heavily with his bat held limply at his side. Somehow, they had done it. He wasn’t sure how many bodies had tried to make it inside the lodge, but it appeared the lodge dwellers had succeeded in keeping them at bay. By the time he was able to chain two thoughts together to check on Aderyn and Milly, the pair had scuttled off somewhere. It was just as well, Owen wasn’t sure what to tell them anyway. He was sure that he didn’t look exactly warm and cuddly with his wild eyes and fair skin marred by rotting blood. His bat fell to the floor with a loud clatter and with little thought, he walked his way into Andy’s bedroom. It had the other working shower, and Owen didn’t think anyone else was brave enough to enter her and Luca’s space without their permission.

He was sure there was plenty of clean up that needed to be done. Bodies that needed to be burned, rednecks that needed to be buried. However with his lungs only just patched up and his ribs still sore, he doubted anyone would let him help anyway. There was no harm in washing the grime from his skin. In fact, it might save him a rather threatening lecture from Hector if he came back.

When the hot water sputtered to life, it took only seconds for the water to flow rust colored around the drain. As his hair grew damp it lost it’s messy volume and fell down around his collarbone, the water streaked red down his chest as the blood came loose from his hairline. Without the adrenaline to distract him, the heaviness of his limbs slowly came more apparent until each muscle throbbed from over extension.

Owen stood in the water till it ran clear, and then exited the shower, ignoring the steam that had filled the small bathroom. His clothes were in a disgusting heap on the tile, leaving damp splotches of blood on the blue and white floor. With no other clothes to change into, the male left his sister’s room with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist.

“There you are!” Beth’s melodic voice sounded before he had even closed the door behind him. He raised an eyebrow at the girl but didn’t respond. The blonde hadn’t even spoken to him since he had regained consciousness. Her worry seemed hardly necessary now.

“Where are the girls?” His confusion didn’t leave his face, his eyebrow still cocked in curiosity. What girl was he speaking about? Leliana? Colt? He hadn’t seen Aubrey since they groups had returned. Even she, herself was a girl. The question was vague at best.

“The children,” she explained with an exasperated eye roll.

“I don’t know.” He admitted. “Last time I checked I wasn’t their babysitter.” He wasn’t sure where her hostility was coming from, but he didn’t really care for it. They had all had a shitty day. She hadn’t been alone in the zombie fighting front, and therefore it was a pisspoor excuse for bad manners.

“Last time I checked you had no problems letting them fight monsters with you,” the woman criticized. What the fuck was that even supposed to mean? What was she pissed about? Owen’s freckled face contorted into a sarcastic grin. The absolute ridiculousness of her statement taking him by surprise.

“You know, you got me there. I think they should know how to defend themselves. Who knows the next time this shit is going to happen. I’m not sure they will always be lucky enough to have a 5’4 blonde with a curtain rod to protect them.” His tone had bite, but he kept his tomber low and smooth. The lodge had seen enough excitement for one day. Owen didn’t feel the need to make a scene as an encore for a shit day.

“That must have been so terrible for them Owen! They are childre-”

“Maybe take the time to look out a window before you decide to gripe at me.” He cut the woman off with a nod of his head out the kitchen window where both Aderyn and Milly’s forms could be seen. If she had taken a second to look around before jumping down his throat, she would have seen them for herself. Owen rolled his eyes and walked past the girl, towel still clenched tight in his fist.

“I’m not don-” She started after him, round face red from anger. He stopped at the stairs, turning back to look at her. The same sarcastic smile plastered on his face.

“Listen, as much as I’d like to argue with you in the nude for old times sake, I think I’m going to go upstairs and put on pants. Unless you have a time machine I can’t fix this for you.” He shrugged and began his shaky climb of the staircase. With a huff, Beth let him go.

Of course Owen felt terrible that the girls had gone through what they had today, but he couldn’t change that now. It didn’t matter what Beth wanted for them, they would kill more and more of the monsters before it was all said and done. They would have to learn to fight if they wanted to keep up, they were not guaranteed protection. It hadn’t exactly been the best timing, but they would have to learn to do what it took to survive. A kid with blood on her hands was far better than having to dig a child sized grave.

Mentions: Brax shadowz1995 FireMaiden Rumble Fish Corgi Meredith

 

[RayPurchase]

Aaron Jones
The Lodge
​

Aaron released his vice like grip on the wheel and flopped back in the seat, his hands still like claws, and still feeling the vibrations going up his wrists and along his arms. He waved a hand in the direction of Colt's voice.

"You got it Sarge spick and span, will be like new by the time I'm done,"

He waited in silence for a few minutes as she left. Allowing his heartbeat and breathing to slow back to a natural rhythm. he stepped out of the Humvee and surveyed the devastation. Caved in skulls, assorted body parts and general flesh and gore littered the site, it was like something out of a horror film, one that you couldn't escape by simply closing your eyes. He pulled his combat jacket atighter around him, warding off the chill that went down his spine. Well he'd done it, played the hero, rescued the civilians no doubt cowering inside. Admittedly there was no victorious welcoming party for him, but then again he supposed he could give them a day or two for that. He turned the face the Humvee and frowned.

Kneeling in front of it he pulled a wedged foot from the bullbar, his lip curling I disgust at the dented and bloodied vehicle, in places the green camo nearly completely obscured by blood and god knows what else. He climbed atop the vehicle and sat himself down on the roof, pretty much the only part that was free of debris. There he sat with his legs hanging off, his back to the lodge and surveying the field. Was this hell? Had he crashed on his way down here, and all of this since was just some sort of divinely conjured up punishment. Would make sense, he wouldn't call himself a good man, he'd killed, he'd robbed, stole and smoked. And he had lost. He reached up to his neck, pulling down the neck of his faded green t shirt. There nestled against his chest were a pair of dog tags. One set had his own name embossed upon them, he brushed these aside though and gripped the other in his hand. Memorial day, time seemed to be accelerating, seemed like only a few days ago that he had arrived in this forsaken place. His hand gripped the dogtag tightly, his foot juddering against the Humvee roof. He didn’t say anything outloud, but he didn’t need to. He tucked the chains back inside his shirt, and cleared his throat loudly, gave his face a couple of gently slaps and affixed his grin back in place. Time to do the old meet and greet, and for that he had to slip back into the character everyone knew.

He pushed himself off the Humvee, landing with a soft thump on the grass. Walking briskly up to the Lodge, placing his hand against the front door and giving it a push. Standing in the doorway, his camo jacket swept back, and his baseball cap on.

“So what’s a man got to do to get a cup of coffee? Aside from all that,”

He jerked a thumb in the direction of the scene of devastation outside.

(Interaction: Anyone standing nearby/who has access to said Coffee)

 

[Corgi]

​

Freshly showered and in clean clothes, Owen once more began the long trek down the stairs. He didn’t want to think about the lecture that would be coming his way once Hector and Leliana realized the extent of the moving about he had done today. Between all the trips to and from his room and swinging his bat at the oncoming hoard, he was sure that he had done more than either of them were comfortable with. He couldn’t help it. What was he supposed to do? Just sit on the couch while a lodge full of people he cared about fought off monsters.

There wasn’t a chance in hell.

Sitting on the sidelines had never been his style, and while he was more likely to need rescued now than to do any rescuing, he couldn’t bring himself to just sit on his hands while the rest fought back. He watched as the rest of the lodge started to trickle in through the front door, blood splattered and weary. Owen couldn’t imagine losing any of them because he had decided to sit the fight out.

Worry consumed him when he realized one face was not among them. Aubrey hadn’t made it back inside. She hadn’t been at the lodge as long as the others, but she had always gone out of her way to come and check on him during his bed rest. They had grown close in a strange sort of way. Aubrey never offered anything in the way of super serious conversation, and his jokes flew over her head with lighting speed but he found her sort of endearing. Owen had no idea what the girl’s abilities were out on the field and didn’t like the idea of her being out on her own.

When he had asked the passing lodger, they had assured him that she had come back in one piece and was likely just out in the barracks that she called home. But the redhead was unconvinced. Anxiety always ate him up in this way. It was the same feeling when Andy was out late without responding to his text messages or when Beth had ghosted him after a fight. Owen had to know with his own two eyes that she was alright.

Groaning as he stood off the couch, the man put a hand on his chest. It was getting easier day by day, but it still hurt to walk around. Honestly, he wasn’t sure if it was from the stiffness of his laziness the two weeks prior or his injuries. All he knew was that he was done sitting on the sidelines. Owen didn’t make it far before the creaking sound of the front door was heard. The old oak thing swung forward on its hinges, revealing a worn out blonde figure in the doorway. Hazel eyes fell upon the tall man, and her empty expression shifted to a soft smile.


“Oh, hey.” She said, closing the door behind her and walking up to the man, confusion knitting her brows together, “Wait… Are you okay to be down stairs? Wait- Are you okay?” The girl asked, worry creeping into her typically soft spoken words.

“I’m not grounded to my room,” He replied, raising an eyebrow. Relief washed over him as his facial expressions softened. “I’m far better off than you are.” He looked at her face, speckled with the rust colored blood that had dried to her fair features. Owen reached up and rubbed his thumb across her forehead, removing some of the flakes of gore. Her hand shot to her face, cheeks already pink from the winds and deepening in color at his touch.

“Was… Uh, is it that bad?” She asked, her other hand now wiping away at her cheeks. In the moment, the poor girl hadn’t noticed that the brown ichor had splayed across her visage. While her intention was to rub away the splotches, a part of her didn’t want the redhead to see her embarrassment. Owen smirked, a cocky expression taking over his freckled face.

“It’s fine now,” he assured her. His eyes softened as he looked down at her, looking for any visible injuries. If she was hurt, it wasn’t obvious. Owen sat back down on the couch with a light grunt as his body jarred. He gestured for her to join him, patting the cushion next to him.

“Something on your mind, blondie?”

“That obvious?” She questioned, taking a seat. He could tell by the tear-streaked cheeks and crestfallen look on her face that she was being consumed by something. It was possible that she had chosen to stay outside because she wanted some time alone. All the fighting that came with the new state of the world came with a price, and often those most full of light suffered the worst. Owen only shrugged at her.

“Well I figured it couldn’t be my ugly mug causing you so much distress.” He lightly bumped into her shoulder, a playful gesture. The girl let out a weak laugh at his action, shaking her head lightly. Aubrey wanted to joke back with the man, but couldn’t find the energy to muster up a spirited response.

“I just miss my home is all. The lake was really pretty this time of year.” She vaguely explained, the downtrodden look swallowing the little smile she had. Aubrey loved her home. It was the only place she truly felt like herself. The realization that she may never see her home again snuffed out any lighthearted spirits she may have felt.

“You like the water?” Owen asked. He was genuinely interested. Aubrey didn’t open up much. Other than their conversation about her sister, they had spent most of their time with Aubrey doting on him and asking if he was okay.

Her eyes studied the floor, seemingly lost in thought before glancing his way, “Uh… Yeah. I lived on a little boat for most of the year. Bought her myself.” She explained, a sad smile lifting the corners of her mouth, “I wasn’t as social as I am now. I typically spent most of my time with fish.” The girl exhaled through her nose, entertaining herself with her joke that wasn’t really a joke.

“That explains a lot.” The idea of Aubrey on a boat was amusing to Owen. She seemed so scattered most of the time it was hard to picture her at the helm of anything. But he knew a person who needed cheering up when he saw one. Owen stood, doing his best to smirk through the grimace that contorted his face as the muscles stretched uncomfortably. He seemed to be testing his balance, moving his weight from one leg to the other.

“How strong are you? Do you think you could catch me if I fell down?” He asked changing the subject suddenly. The woman thought about his question for a moment before giving a short nod.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Perfect, come with me.”

Interactions: Maj (Owen)

 

[Maj]

​

“Where are we going?” Aubrey’s weary eyes looked over the limping man, her hands outstretched in case his heart suddenly gave out... or something. The girl didn’t know much about what his injury actually was. When she would visit him, they’d talk about anything but the fact he was confined to his bed. They had mostly been traveling in silence for the last half hour, nothing but the crunch of shoes on frosted leaves filled the air as Owen gave the girl time to collect her thoughts. Her concern was cute. She had no way of knowing that he had just been smashing skulls only moments before. Hopefully he could manage the last few minutes of their trip or he would have a reason to be embarrassed.

“You know, you really shouldn’t make a habit of letting dudes just walk you off miles into the woods without knowing where you are going,” he teased.

“Well… You’re not just a dude. I have faith that you would have hurt me already if that was your intention.” She said in complete seriousness before pausing and breathing a sigh, “...That was a joke, wasn’t it?” Owen let out a hearty laugh, clutching his chest as it expanded from the motion. She was learning at least.

“Not all nefarious intentions would cause you harm,” he said with a cocky smirk. “But yes. I was kidding. It’s a surprise, it shouldn’t be much further.” Aubrey agreed in silence, not exactly sure what he meant but not bothering to question it further.

As they neared their destination, Owen found himself wishing that Andy was with them. While he too had been pulled along on hunting trips, she knew these woods like the back of her hand. Owen couldn’t help but wonder if he had accidentally taken the blonde on a really long detour. Thankfully, he soon recognized the large rock that had been the landmark he used as kid to find the spot.

“Close your eyes,” he commanded. Aubrey’s brows furrowed momentarily.

“Is this a part of the nefarious intentions?” She asked before obliging. Owen chuckled, reaching around to cover her eyes himself to ensure she wasn’t peaking.

“All my intentions are nefarious.”

He led her further into the treeline, making sure to keep her from accidentally bumping into the trunks. Curiosity piqued her interest as Aubrey tried to hone in on the sounds around her. The rustling branches, leaves crunching beneath her uncertain footfall, and very deep breathing from the male. If she was less tired she may have been able to guess what he was doing or at least have a vague idea, but alas, she was exhausted. Deciding her failed attempt at a guessing-game would only confuse her further, she put her trust in his hands.

Owen felt the excitement swell in his throat that only came from a really good present. The sort of anticipation that came just before the wrapping paper came off. When he had her positioned where he wanted, He removed his hands and stepped out of the way and waited for her to open her hazel eyes.

In front of her was a small waterfront, more pond than lake. The water was mostly algae ridden with muddy moss covered banks. It was far from the kind of water you would want to go swimming in. You were just as likely to get leeches as you were to find anything else living under the surface. Owen had sat on the damp ground as a child, waiting for Andy and his uncle to finish their business in the woods. Much to Eric’s disappointment, Owen had never picked up the love for the hunt. His hulking form was more likely to scare away prey than anything. As a kid he cried when they shot the deer and his uncle said he didn’t have the stomach for it. So he had come here, it was peaceful even if it was sort of a muddy mess.

Aubrey was silent for a long time, her eyes slowly taking in her surroundings. A warmth filled her hollow chest as she searched for words she could not find. Jaw as wide as her eyes, she let out a short laugh before getting closer to the water. It wasn’t home, nothing could replace home, but it was just what she needed. A fire seemed to light within her as she turned back to Owen, a happily overwhelmed smile igniting her visage.

“Do you like it?” He asked softly.

“Do I- Yes, Owen.” She said, the cheer in her voice nothing like what he had heard before, “I love it. Thank you.” He gave her a toothy grin before slowly lowering himself down to the damp ground.

“Who knew a lake was hiding out here, huh?” He asked. “I found it when I was a kid.”

“It’s more like a pond.” She stated, sitting down next to him and staring at the slimy green waters. Despite their unpleasant appearance, it felt right. The waters may not be blue, but they were water all the same, “Have you not seen a lake before?” There were many differences between the two, mostly in the temperature of the body of water, but also in its distinct shape and size.

“To be fair, I remembered it being bigger.” He shrugged. It made sense. All things looked bigger to kids. He was more than a foot taller than he had been the last time he was here. Owen looked to the girl at his side and gave her a small smirk. "Or maybe I was just smaller."

Aubrey seemed to be in a trance as she stared at the water, the heaviness in her limbs had lifted, feeling refreshed. Her expression was glued into a smile as she recalled the many days she’d wake up to crisp morning air and low tides. How the light would dance across her face like soft kisses from the sun, how beach chair cradled her body during the hours she spent soaking up the cloudless skies.

Her eyes traced the lackluster pond as the memories faded. The warm feeling in her chest consumed by the hollow darkness once again. Silence lingered between the two as her head dropped to her lap, reality hitting her head on as she stared at the dark splotches that covered her hands.

“Owen…” She mumbled, barely above a whisper, “What happened today is going to happen again. I… I don’t mean to be negative but those people, those Things are going to keep coming and there’s going to be a time we won’t be able to fight them off. One little mistake could lead to my death, or yours, or any one else’s at the lodge.” The tremor in her voice would have been worse if she hadn’t already cried any emotion she had out. Her typically methodical tone faded into genuine worry, “I haven’t gone through the situations everyone else here has, and I trust that whatever is thrown at you all, but…” The words seemed to get caught in her throat so she shook her head, “I can’t see a future without terrible things happening. I mean, I know we’ll be fine and we’ll get through it, it’s just..”

Aubrey allowed her head to raise and meet his gaze. She held it for a moment before admitting, “I’m scared.” She had never talked about her emotions before. She had no reason to. Up until she came back to Aurora, she was perfectly fine with the life she was living, but now that all this chaos took place, she had no idea how to handle what she was feeling. Saying it out loud left her gut in shambles, twisting and knotting more than she thought it could, “I’m really scared.”

He didn't interrupt her as she spoke, instead he kept silent as she walked him through each of the thoughts that had been plaguing her. As he listened to her, his palm found the cold and smooth surface of a rock in the ground. As he picked it up, he let his fingers mindlessly wander across it, cupping it in his hand.

"You'd be stupid not to be scared," he admitted. "This shit is otherworldly. I don't think there is a single one of us that was prepared to deal with armies of mindless cannibalistic corpses." Owen wrapped his pointed finger around the rounded flat side of the rock and tossed it, spinning it with his wrist. He watched as the thing skipped across the surface of the water. It splashed slightly, disrupting the hazy, green film across the pond and causing a family of frogs to croak back in annoyance. Aubrey watched the ripples spread across the surface, the slick rock sinking farther into the murky waters

"You are right. no day is guaranteed to us. Anything could happen to any one of us, but it has been like that long before now. We have to just do what we can to better our odds, to watch our backs and those of the people we care about." He exhaled sharply as he looked for the words that might help make her feel better. Were there any? All he had done so far is agree with her concerns. However, sometimes empathy was more powerful than positivity.

"It's easy to forget sometimes, but they aren't human." Owen thought of his mother, the grief he experienced when he held her lifeless corpse in his arms. Anything left of his mother had faded away with the color of her eyes. He had killed nothing but a husk. Aubrey’s lips thinned at his words. A part of her wanted to hold onto the idea that there was some sort of life in those monsters, but looking back at his vacant expression, she realized he knew by experience.

"My mom was the best person I knew." Owen reached into the back pocket of his Jean's and produced a weathered leather, trifold wallet. His calloused hands fumbled with it until he held an aged picture between his thumb and forefinger. He passed it to Aubrey. Her hesitant hands carefully gripped the corner as she drew it closer, studying the face. The lamination had long been rubbed away, but the shining smiling faces of a much younger Owen and Andy stood staring back at them. Behind them was a pretty blonde woman with a round, warm face and bright blue eyes with her arms around them both.

"She was a nurse. But even before she finished her degree she was always doing everything she could to help others. We had more than our fair share of wayward souls that called our house home. Stray cats, kids, whatever. Helping people is what she did best." It was hard to keep his voice level, his hands instinctively reaching up to the gold locket that hung from his neck.

"When I found her, she was one of those Things ," he explained, using her term for the monsters. "There was nothing left inside her. She was dead Aubrey, the injuries she had suffered were proof enough of that. No one would have survived what she had gone through. She wanted to hurt me so badly that she pulled her half eaten body across the floor to get to me." He paused, hearing the crack in his voice. Owen grimaced, coughed to regain his composure and then continued.

"My mother wouldn't have hurt anyone. By the time I got to her, she had been gone a long time." Aubrey’s mouth opened to apologize, but closed soon after. There was nothing for her to be sorry about, she wasn’t the one that started this terrible situation, nor did she ask him to share the story. He wanted to, though the grim look on his face said otherwise. It didn’t make Aubrey happy to see Owen like this. He always had a lighthearted smile, a witty comment ready to go in case someone was feeling blue.

The woman slid herself closer to the man, placing the picture in his palm before sitting up and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Unlike her situation with Colt, it was obvious this was less of a panicked and unsure decision. She said nothing, hoping if she squeezed hard enough, maybe Owen would be put back together.

Owen used one arm to support their weight, leaning into his palm. The other snaked around the girl's shoulders, his hand resting on the back of her head. He let out a deep breath. Owen hadn't meant to make the girl feel bad, just hopefully help her to not feel so alone. They all went through this transition. The redhead pulled out of the hug, a smirk on his face. Playfully, he pushed the girls chin.

"Chin up, Buttercup. I'm alright." He moved his attention back down to his wallet, pushing the picture back into the clear plastic sleeve. "I wasn't trying to bring you out here for an Owen pity party. Things are going to be scary and dangerous." He admitted. "So, we will just have to do what we can to keep everyone safe." A weak smile decorated Aubrey’s worn-out expression as she sat back on her heels.

“Thank you for everything.” She said, casting her eyes back to the water.

"Don't thank me yet," he teased. "You are the one who has to lift my fat ass off the ground." He raised his hand up to her, so she could help assist him back to standing.

A feeble laugh escaped her lips as she clasped his hand, “I suppose it’s the least I can do. Let’s go home.”