Realistic or Modern The Beginning of the End

[DrTrollinski]

"Hey--.." He reached out and took hold of her arm before she could walk away. ".. I went out during the evenin', and one came at me - I shot the thing a few times. They can't cut through trees, alright?" He smiled weakly and then hugged her. ".. You ain't gonna' be left alone. I promise - I can't die, remember?" He kissed her forehead and then held her close for a moment, sighing. ".. So. Like I said, there's people stayin' just down into the forest. I've figured out that those creatures don't come out until night, so I'd be safe to go down there and scout it out to see if they're decent people or not. What do you say?" He asked. (@DryPunishment)

(@DryPunishment)


 

"Okay." He said. "We should be able to drag it back if we gut it, though. Won't be too hard." He said as he knelt down in front of it and began to slice it open. He wasn't planning to skin it yet, so they could gut it and drag it back. Once he'd eventually pulled all the guts out of it - as disgusting as it was, he looked up at Conner and then went over to a stream to wash the blood off of his hands. (@Beowulf)

(@Beowulf)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"Alright then. Grab the front legs and I'll get the back." he directed as he moved to grab the back legs. It was certainly lighter, without all thise guts in it. But they would drag it back to camp, not carry it.


(@DrTrollinski )

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. On it." He said as he walked to the front of the deer and stood facing away from it; he crouched down and then grabbed both of it's front legs, gripping them tight. ".. Okay, I'm good." He said, he waited for Conner to take the first step, and then began walking towards the camp once again. ".. Conner--.. I was awake pretty late the other night, and I heard gunshots in the distance. Back that way, I think." He said as he nodded his head backwards. "Do you think there's other people living out here?" He asked. (@Beowulf)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"Of course there would be other people out there. Idiots for wasting bullets, but they may still be dangerous. Maybe I'll take a look and say hello to out neighbors sometime. But I doubt they'd like to be disturbed to much." Connor replied. Grunting as he dragged the corpse over a rather stubborn bump trying to hang on, he continues back to their camp. "I'm guessing you haven't told anyone else about these?"


(@DrTrollinski )

 

[DrTrollinski]

"No... I didn't really say anything. I didn't want Kendrick and James going off and shooting anyone." He shrugged and smiled a little. ".. I mean--.. They've probably seen us as well - the smoke from our fire, and stuff. They haven't hurt us, so they might be people we could sorta' team up with, I suppose." He shrugged. ".. Maybe it's a big group that has kids with 'em... That'd be nice." He smiled in thought. He truly did miss playing with other kids now and again, but those thoughts had mostly left his head. (@Soul OMU)

Tom walked downstairs with sweatpants and a hoodie, and walked into the kitchen where scarlet was. He had on sweatpants himself, and a shirt that said, "Kiss me, Im Irish." Tom looked over at Scarlet and smiled, "Hey, here you go Sweetheart, I can get the popcorn if you wanna go change?" He looked her over quickly, then back up at her face.

(@Soul OMU)

 

[StarrySkyofLostSouls]

Jenna smiles a bit while looking into his eyes, laying on the ground beside him. "Yeah.. November 7th." she said softly while bringing her hand up to touch his face as well. (@DrTrollinski)


--


Scarlet raises a brow at the term of endearment and looks at his shirt before putting a hand on her hip. "Your not really irish are you?" she said while taking the sweatpants. (@DrCompton)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"Perhaps, perhaps." Connor replied. They had to be close to the camp by now. They didn't have to stay quiet, so he made as much of a bee line towards the camp as the terrain would allow. 'I'll talk to Kendrick about it right after I shove a boot up Dominic's ars.' he thought to himself.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"Well... I'm ready whenever you are." He laughed under his breath and snuggled up to her, his head against her. The floor felt comfy, for some reason. ".. That's seven months from now, but I don't mind... As long as I get to spend time with you, that's the main thing." He smiled warmly and then took a deep breath. (@Soul OMU)


--


Carl was busy preparing the pillows on the couch so that Scarlet and Tom would be comfy as well, then he spread the blanket out a bit and stared off at the TV while he waited for the two to join him. This night was going to be awesome. (@Soul OMU, @DrCompton


--


They soon arrived back at the camp. Daniel dropped the deer onto the floor and then smiled around at everyone. He looked at Dominic who was boiling some water on the campfire and gave a weak smile as he went up to him. Dominic had gotten really rough over the last month. He'd started to grow a slowly-graying beard, and his hair was messy.


"Dad--.. I killed a deer. I got it myself, but Conner helped me find it." He said, Dominic turned and looked at him - his eyes were empty and depressed, but he gave a half smile and held out one arm.


".. Good work." He whispered simply, Daniel went forward and hugged him for a moment, and Dominic hugged him with the one arm and patted his back a few times. Daniel then took off to dive into their tent to look through his bag for something to eat. (@Beowulf)

 

[Soviet Panda]

'Might as well get this over with.' he thought to himself as he moved next to Dominic and sat down beside him. "Dom, Daniel told me a coulle things while we were out hunting. I'm going to you the truth so it's easier for me to get an answer out of you. Daniel found a journal, he says it's yours. In it, it says that the virus was some sort of government weapon, or there about. It also said some things concerning how feel towards your son." His expression did not change, and neither did the tone of his voice. He would brook no nonsense here and now. He wanted answers, and on top of that, the truth.


(@DrTrollinski )

 

[DrTrollinski]

"He's changing." He said coldly as he took the bubbling water off of the fire. "He won't talk to me, won't hug me, won't even say goodnight anymore." He sighed and looked down at the ground. "The only time he'll say anything is when he's gone out and killed something, or shot at something." He added. "Yes, I'm concerned..." He said. (@Beowulf)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"Then talk to him. Sit him down, and have a talk." After a silence, with him pondering wether to go on or not, he decided to tell him about what Daniel heard. "Your boy told me something while we were coming back. He said he heard some gun shots last night, in the distance. They might know we are here, or they might not. But he told me he hoped there would be kids in that group. Interacting with other children may do him good. I'm going to talk to Kendric about it right after I'm done talking to you."


(@DrTrollinski @The J because you might hear something of what was said)

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. It doesn't matter, Conner. It doesn't matter if there's other people, because one way or another, we're all fucked." He stated softly. ".. You think it's all a coincidence that the country went to shit all at once? Every state, every town, every person? And those fuckin' dog things. You really think a virus can evolve that quickly?" He said. ".. It's a New World Order. I guran-fucking-tee it." He paused for a long while as he played about with some dirt on the ground. ".. And what makes you think that Daniel wants me to be his father? How do you know he still wants to call me 'dad'?" He asked. (@Soul OMU)


--


Carl was busy preparing the pillows on the couch so that Scarlet and Tom would be comfy as well, then he spread the blanket out a bit and stared off at the TV while he waited for the two to join him. This night was going to be awesome. (@Soul OMU, @DrCompton


(@Soul OMU)

 

[Soviet Panda]

Slapping him in the back of the head, not to hard but enough to get a point across, Connor says "As soon as you say that it's pointless to keep going, and you believe it, I want you to get the fuck out of this camp. We don't need you to mope about and ear our food. And as for Daniel wanting to be your son, he wouldn't have told me unless he wanted to be your son. Now stop being a lazy ass hole that preeches doom and death. It's getting on my nerves." After saying that, he gets up and searches about for Kendrick.


(@DrTrollinski )

 

[DrTrollinski]

That had the exact opposite effect. Dominic immediately saw himself as someone who wasn't wanted any more. He instantly got up and crawled into his tent once Daniel had exited it and went over to the camp fire. Daniel saw the look on his face - the face of regret, anger, sadness, desperation. He didn't say anything to him, but he did pat his arm as he walked by. Dominic crawled inside and began stuffing all of his stuff into his bag, while also grabbing his pistol and rifle and putting them in the appropriate places on his body. Daniel was watching from the fire - he wanted to say something, but he knew that Conner had said something to upset him. Dominic was moving slowly, but surely.


Kendrick was over by the stream collecting water to boil up. (@Beowulf)

 

[The J]

"Dominic."


James crouched outside of Dominic's tent as he slowly packed his possessions into his bag to leave.


"You know Connor doesn't mean that. He doesn't actually want you to leave. I heard what you guys were saying. He's just... Connor. Believe me, I've been on the receiving end of what he's said plenty, but I've learned most of what he says, he knows it's bull.


Besides, what're you going to do on your own? You telling me you'll survive, with no help, barely knowing where you're going? You won't. And you can't leave Daniel behind, either. You may think he's being more cold towards you, but he's still your son, and you're still a father to him. You've got to just talk with him, I can see he still loves you.


And that we're fucked? Well... yeah, we are. humanity probably won't ever be the same again. But we'll survive. Humans are evolved to cope with change, adversity, and in situations that seem impossible to get out of... well, we keep going. We do the unexpected, and live on.


I suppose I can't stop you going. Just... remember what you're leaving behind."


And with that, James went over to the deer carcass, and began preparing it for their next few meals.

 

[Soviet Panda]

Spotting Kendrick, he shouts for him to know he is coming up behind him. Once he got to a reasonable distance for a conversation, he says "Daniel says he heard gunshots last night. I say we go say hello to our neighbors, quietly, and see what they are up to. What say you?" he asked as he also began to collect water. He didn't like wasting anytime to do what had to be done, i.e. collecting water. Also, they had to do something with that meat before it went bad.


(@DrTrollinski)

 

[DrTrollinski]

".. Yeah, we'll do that. Sure." He put the canteen down on the ground and sealed it up and then walked over to Conner, sighing. ".. Yeah. Let's go check it out." He said. "I ain't seen anything so far, but... It's worth a shot." He said. (@Beowulf)


--


Dominic slung his bag over his shoulder and then walked over to James, tears still running down his face. ".. The day I met Conner he'd given up on everything as well. He was a psycho, and I was the one that sat him there and told him things would get better. And that son of a bitch can't even return the favor." He sniffled and wiped his eyes. ".. If he didn't want me gone, he would have said so. He would have said 'just give things time, they'll be fine', or 'things could be a lot worse, and you can get over this.' But no. He says that. He wants me gone, just like everyone else." (@The J)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"I'd say it's worth a shot. But let's finish things up here, then in the morning, we'll be off." he said as he stooped to pick up the filled canteens. "Well, am I going to have to carry all of these?" he continued, acting the old man that he was, compared to his companions anyway.


(@DrTrollinski)

 

[DrTrollinski]

Daniel looked at Dominic for a moment and then stood up and pulled him down onto the ground. Dominic was near enough sobbing, but Daniel was more disappointed. He felt so betrayed. He told Conner not to upset him, because even though Daniel had been a bit colder with his father, he noticed his change more than anyone. He slowly rose up after getting Dominic to sit down and then ran off towards the stream to find Conner and Kendrick; as soon as he saw Conner he ran up and gently shoved his arm.


"Why did you upset him? I told you not to upset him!" He squeaked. He looked pretty upset. Kendrick went from picking up the canteens to looking up at Daniel with a look of confusion. (@Beowulf, @The J)

 

[DrCompton]

"Well, you gotta kiss me first before I tell you that, Red." Tom smiled and watched her for a moment, "Otherwise it ruins the surprise!" He laughed lightly and watched her for a moment, "Thanks for... for everything." He smiled more, "Helping me with Carl, staying over and watching the movie with us, I really appreciate it, and I know Carl does too."

 

[The J]

"Damnit, Dom, no! You should know by now, Connor's a dumb-arse. He's stubborn as hell, and a dick to boot. He doesn't mean those things he said to you, just... he's angry. Angry at everything, at this world, at the zombies, and I'll bet he's lost someone too. Hell knows I get that feeling. You can't listen to what he says to you - it isn't true!"

 

[DrTrollinski]

Dominic watched Daniel run off and then wiped his eyes. ".. He has--.. He's lost his son, but losing someone you love is no excuse to treat everyone else like dirt." He whimpered and quickly covered his face. ".. When all this started, Daniel saw me shoot my wife. I had to shoot a woman that was trying to kill me, right in front of him... I was a mess - he didn't talk to me for a whole week. Didn't go near me, didn't eat any food I made for him... He hated me - You can't blame him, though. I'm just a book of fuck-ups. Conner wants me gone, Daniel would be better off if I left, and Kendrick could take a grip of this thing far better than I have." He said quietly, his voice shaking. (@The J)

 

[Soviet Panda]

"And I tried my best to not make him upset, even though he sure as hell was getting on my nerves. What with all his moping about." Refusing to do anything, he eventually gave in. He wasn't feeling guilty, no not at all. He just didn't want a father and son to be separated like he was with his. "Alright, I'll talk to him and set him straight." he assured Daniel. "Kendrick, sorry but you'll have to take these up on your own. Daniel, come with me and help explain things to your father. Talk to him." By then he was already walking back to the camp, legs growing a bit sore from all the walking.


(@DrTrollinski)

 

[The J]

"You're wrong. Dead wrong. Daniel would be worse off for losing you, way worse. I doubt he'd know what to do to cope, but I know it wouldn't be good. He might run off, go looking for you, hurt himself. You can. Not. Leave him. Just... just do this for him. Him and me. Do it for the both of us, just stay.


Please."

 

[DrTrollinski]

"No!" Daniel yelled back to him, not moving. "You told him to leave! Why did you tell him to leave?! N-Now he thinks nobody likes him and doesn't want him to stay! Why--.. Why did you tell him to go...? You didn't try to be nice, either! You hit him and--.. and you swore at him!" He said defensively. He had tears building up in his eyes. Kendrick was sitting there taking it all in. He looked down at Daniel and then up at Conner.


"Conner, man... The fuck...?" He muttered with a sigh. ".. Ain't you seen what he's been like? That was probably the last thing he needed to hear... Shit, man..." He set the canteens down on the ground and crouched beside Daniel, who eventually just bowed his head and started crying. Kendrick hugged him and took a deep breath. ".. Go see the Doc... I'll make sure Daniel gets back alright." He sighed and rubbed Daniel's back. (@Beowulf)


--


Dominic didn't say a word. He didn't want to. He bowed his head and just started crying - quietly, but still, he was crying. He was so torn between leaving for everyone else's sake, or staying for Daniel. All of these people were his friends, or so he thought, and he didn't want to leave them behind either, but he didn't know what he was going to do. (@The J)