Fantasy When Darkness Comes.

[Xibilation]

It was nighttime. The shrieking and howls of zombies echoed throughout the forest. A cool breeze drifted through the trees, making an eerie whistling sound. Kris blindly stumbled as she ran, blinking back tears. She crashed through the forest, arms flailing as she tried to get running momentum. She still felt the feeling of the slimy, wrinkled, zombie hand as it had closed around her arm. Her mother being bitten, paling, and turning into- into one of them- was imprinted beneath her eyelids and she struggled to navigate through the trees.


Kris struggled to get the image out of her head so she could concentrate. She knew that there was a town somewhere close. That had been her group's destination before the attack.


Her legs started to give out as they reached full exhaustion. She tripped over a branch, and her face made full contact with the hard, dirt ground. She had felt the skin in her hands tear when she caught herself. She struggled to pick herself up, her arms shaking. No matter how physically exerted she was, Kris knew that she had to keep going. To keep running. She had gotten a head-start, but the zombies were fast. Tears dripped down from the tip of her nose as she knelt with her knees on the ground, her arms holding up the rest of her weight.


Kris couldn't help but smirk- a shaky, tear-filled smirk- at the irony of her position. She had been into this position too many times to count. At a bar, a dirty street alley, a random guy's house. Hell, she even remembered this one time before the bombings that involved a soldier and a long, dirty-


The screeching of zombies snapped her back into reality. She quickly got back up, stumbling a little as her achy legs kept were forced to run again. Kris continued to sprint through the trees, towards the town she hoped would soon enter her vision.

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[Mason]

The man with the axe still hadn't responded and Trent had a problem he needed to deal with. Turning his back to the man he went down and inspected the armored SUV's. The lead vehicle was destroyed and not salvageable. The second vehicle's gas tank had been shot and Trent sighed as he watched the fuel drip onto the broken asphalt. The last vehicle hadn't been hit as hard as the first two and while its windshield was shattered it was drivable. Using his crowbar he broke the last of the windshield allowing him a clear view. Trent ignored the blood and pieces of brain matter as he put the car into drive. Taking the vehicle down an alleyway he turned onto a street populated with small restaurants, laundry mats, and dry cleaners. Trent pulled the SUV to a stop next to a laundry mat with a picture of a giant red smiling blanket on the front. Going inside he went to the far corner of the store and counted three free standing washers to the right. Grabbing the washing machine he walked it backwards until a decent sized hole had been reveled. Trent checked the holes contents quickly, satisfied they had not been tampered with he removed a military grade gas mask as well as two bottles of what looked like regular cleaning chemicals. He also removed four sizeable chains as well as six unlocked padlocks. Replacing the washing machine he smiled. He'd been thinking about taking out the fangs for months. The ruthless gang of vampires and werewolves and murdered and killed survivors ever since they had settled just outside of the city. However up until this point they hadn't been a threat and they also hadn't had anything worth killing them over. Now they had both. Loading the supplies into the passenger seat of the SUV Trent set out for the fangs base.

 

[meekxthree]

Illithia, rusted machete in hand, bolted through the trees, feeling the harsh cold wind push against her face. She could hear them closing up behind her, heart racing and fear rushing through her. Her hands started to tremble as she struggled to hold on to her weapon, she began to stumble as the moans and the yells felt closer and closer. She heard screams, many screams. As she was starting to lose hope a faint glow enveloped the end of her view. As she rushed closer towards the glow she could see it. The city she had been looking for. Looking behind her frantically at the dark and creepy forest behind her, she ran, further and further until her feet began to ache as the screams and moans became fainter.

 

[Yuiop705]

Alex slowly opened his eyes letting them get use to the sunlight. He yawned and looked at the sun from it's position he could tell that he had been asleep for quite a few hours. His muscles were stiff from sitting in the tree for so long but he was becoming used to having sore muscles. They would loosen up after he started moving again. Alex looked at the farm house trying to spot the two hordes from yesterday. He saw a few stragglers walking around the house but the two hordes were gone. Alex assumed they had moved on sometime during the night in search of more food something he had mixed emotions about. He was glad they were gone but now he didn't know where they were he just hoped they didn't go in his direction. It was just one of those unavoidable risks in life he had to take. Alex looked around the tree he was perched in making sure there wasn't any danger around him. He felt secure that there wasn't anything dangerous close to his tree. The closest zombie was a good distance away but being over cautious never hurt. Alex gathered all of his supplies and put it in his backpack then he double checked everything was secure to his self. He looked around on last time and not seeing anything he untied the rope holding himself to the tree. Alex started flexing and stretching his muscles to get them more useable in case he unexpectedly needed to use them. After most of the stiffness left his muscles he climbed down. Alex started walking through the woods towards the road he has sent the woman and child towards the day before.


After an hour or two of walking through the woods Alex finally reached the treeline and stomped behind a tree. He cautiously looked around the tree down both ways of the street and only saw a few abandoned cars here and there. He waited a few more minutes watching the road to just make sure that something wasn't hiding or such. Feeling safe that he was the only one around for now he started down from the treeline and walked onto the road. Judging from the sun it was getting close to noon and the asphalt was starting to heat up. Alex could feel the heat through the soles of his leather moccasins. It had taken quite a bit of time and research in libraries to find out how to make leather shoes but it was worth the effort. The shoes were quiet on most surfaces which made it easier to hide when things couldn't track him by the sounds he made from running. After sometime of walking the heat coming through the soles of his shoes started to become really uncomfortable. So Alex moved to the side of the road and knelt down in the grass to let his feet cool off. He wasn't kneeling for more than a few minutes before a truck came up the road from behind him. Alex instantly moved back further into the grass and crouched down even lower. His cloak would blend him into the grass so he knew he wouldn't be seen unless if he moved and caught their attention. They stopped down the road from Alex next to an abandoned car and started scavenging parts from the car. From what Alex could see they took the alternator, the battery and some other parts. Once they were done they moved on to the next car and started scavenging the same parts from it. They were much closer to Alex now so he could see a lot more details of their vehicle. The front of the truck was reinforced probably for ramming things, there was chain fence instead of windows probably to keep zombies out and in the bed of the truck was a mounted gun. There was 6 people in the truck 2 passengers that got out to scavenge, a driver, a gunner manning the gun mounted in the bed of the truck and a male that looked tied and blindfolded in the bed . Alex instantly knew that it was much better to just let them pass than get involved. Finally they finished scavenging parts from the vehicles and finally reached Alex. As they passed by Alex's attention was drawn to a crudely painted red circle with what appear was fangs inside of it. He assumed it was some type of symbol marking what gang or group they belonged to. He knew groups that had red symbols and markings were usually violent and dangerous so he kept extremely still and after sometime they passed him. He loved his cloak it had kept and saved him from trouble countless times as it had just done once again. The truck stopped at the next vehicle and scavenged parts from it. Alex waited as they continued the same scavenging routine until they were completely out of sight. He slowly got up stretched and looked around to make sure he was alone once again. When he was sure he was alone on the road he started walking once again. Alex knew that if the group's base was nearby that this could be a dangerous city to visit but he really didn't have any choice his supplies were nearly out. He just had to hope that luck was on his side.

 

[GrieveWriter]

Craven watched from the roof of a nearby building as the girl ran for her life towards the city, he wondered if she knew how ****ed up it was now. Probably not. He wasn't going to do anything, he didn't owe her a **** thing. But he wasn't about to risk her leading zombies straight toward him. He was about to go for his sniper rifle when the eye on his elbow recognized movement. Heading into the city was a truck full of Fangs. Craven watched them pass, probably a scavenging party. They'd amped up their scavenging efforts in response to the growing antagonizing from several of the smaller hostile gangs. These smaller ones had recently joined together in a rival gang known as the Shade Claws. The Fangs and Shade Claws had been antagonizing each other, and the more defenseless groups of people for the past week. Craven could only assume that they both were going to throw everything they have into destroying the other without any concern for the lives of the survivors around them. He'd say it was a lose-lose scenario for anyone in a reputable group. Smaller ones may just suffer the aftermath.


The truck of Fangs disappeared into the city, Craven was about to turn his attention back to the girl when something more shocking occurred. A massive man with white dreadlocks walked out of a nearby building wielding a sledgehammer/mace and a long iron pole.


Attached to the pole was a steel collar, which was wrapped around the throat of a zombie. Craven instantly recognized him.


Elroy, the insane madman working for the reclusive madman known as Cotton. Elroy seemed to be staring down the road the Fangs had come from, even as the zombie reached for him in a futile bid for food. Finally, Elroy turned and pushed the zombie in the direction the truck had come from. The he handled the trapped zombie drew a stark and disheartening similarity to a cop and a guard dog on a leash. Craven forgot about the girl completely, he knew that Cotton and Elroy were a dangerous pairing. Elroy was a full blown idiot half the time, but he was built like a tank, even by werewolf standards. Cotton wasn't as durable whatsoever- despite his taunting ability of dodging things like a snake-. But the man had a brain built a computer, therefore making him just as dangerous.


Craven wanted to know what those two were up to, so as quietly as he could, he followed Elroy.


Cotton always said that using the dead to your advantage was a sleight of hand the common survivor wouldn't think of. To those intelligent enough, the zombies provided a wonderful weapon. So Elroy had trapped one in this prod collar. And now he could use it for a plethora of things during his hunt for anything relating to the movements of the Fangs. Cotton always said that information was as much of a blessing as food or water, and must be treated as such.


You sound petty and ridiculous quoting that human.


"Boss is smart"


HE IS FOOD.


"Shut up."


Elroy shook his head as his wolf raged. The zombie struggling in its collar wasn't making things better. But he continued down the road, looking for anything relating to what the Fangs had been looking for.

 

[darkev]

Kevin steps out from the treeline, Saint Kevin, he reminds himself. The other saints were taking some of the other believers and seeing what the rest of the world was. How many sinners were left to open red mouths in? The will of Thanatos will be fulfilled. He had on a carpet coat, something one of the followers created. It was thick enough to stop some cuts and bites, but it wouldn't last long. The trench coat he wore also helped to stop cuts, but its purpose was to show others that he was Saint Kevin. The angel wings on it were a sign of his night church. He moves his shoulders, slightly shifting the sling on his back. The sling had a sickle in it, a curved sword, the purpose obvious. Walking through an alley, he sees a car drive by. He walks around the corner to see the car drive off. So there is sinners here. He starts to walk after the car, no hurry, his god will be pleased, the sinners will have red mouths opened in them and they will be sent to the darkness.

 

[Yuiop705]

Alex was slowly growing tired as he had been walking for hours towards the direction the truck had went. Being tired nowadays was just as dangerous as being hunger or thirsty. Tiredness dulled the mind and senses as a sharp mind was as dangerous and helpful as a sharp weapon if not better. His feet ached from the asphalts' heat his shoes were better in the wilderness which he preferred to be in. The only godsend was a nice breeze that was around today it kept Alex relatively cool in the heat which he was thankful for. The closer he had gotten to the city the more abandoned vehicles there was and most looked scavenged. He was hopeful that the city hadn't been bleed dry of supplies yet but he knew the odds were in his favor the city was a decent size. Alex started wondering if he should stop soon and find a perch to rest in. After a little bit he looked at the sun and figured that there was a few more hours of daylight left so he would keep moving and make it to the city before dusk. It was risky traveling tired but he wanted to be able to scout at night and watch the city to see what and how many nocturnal creatures were in it. Alex saw a road sigh that said the city was only 3 more miles ahead he was grateful to know it wasn't to much farther until he could rest. Alex started to make a mental list of what he needed to find and resupply on.


His mind started to wander from his tiredness and somehow ended up on what the scavenging crew was taking earlier and what those parts could be used for. He finally came to the conclusion that those parts could be made into a generator of sorts which would be very useful nowadays as electricity was a rare commodity. He wondered what they needed so much power for he figured what ever it was couldn't be good. Unfortunately Alex was so deep in thought that he was being unobservant of his surroundings and walked around a car straight into a few zombies enjoying a meal on the ground. Alex instantly stopped and stood there cursing himself for not being cautious. He started to back away slowly praying that they would just continue eating their meal. But unfortunately he was denied him such luck as one of the zombies looked up and saw a moving bush. The zombie had enough instinct to know that moving things were usually edible so it got up and lunged towards Alex. Alex sidestepped the zombie and took off running back the way he came. He knew he wouldn't be able to run far as his legs were tired and sore from the days journey. He figured it was either be chased down while trying to hide or try to fight them while he had adrenaline coursing through his veins. If he hid he would eventually have to find a way around them but if he fought the three of them and won then he would be back on track. He decided would use his arsenal of items to fight them as he could resupply soon. So Alex looked back and saw the three making there way towards him with good speed. He stopped and brought out an alarm clock he wound it up and readied it for 4 minutes he tossed it in the grass beside him. He then slide his machete out from under his cloak along with some rope. Fighting zombies was always dangerous as so many things could go wrong he prayed that luck would at least be on his side for this fight. He knelt down and pick up a heavy rock and tied the end of the rope to it and set it down. He figured it might come in handy if he made it back to it. Alex stoop up and started to breath fast to get oxygen into his blood. When the zombies got about 30 feet away Alex dashed into the tree line and watched as the zombies kept making there way towards him. Alex took a deep breath and let it out slowly trying to calm his nerves "You got this Alex don't mess up we can do this"


The zombies finally made it to the side of the road in front of Alex and started making their way to the treeline. The alarm clock started ringing drawing the attention of one zombie Alex had hoped for at least two but things usually didn't go as planned. He knew he would have to improvise so he left his spot and ran up the treeline a little and watched as the two zombies entered the woods. He ran out of the treeline leaving them in the woods and ran towards the zombie looking for the source of the ringing. He readied his machete and ran up on the zombie before it noticed him. He swung as hard as he could and lodged the machete in its neck. He curse at the dull blade as the zombie was still moving it turned towards Alex snatching the machete from his hands. Alex swiftly front kicked the zombie in the chest knocking it to the ground and siezed the machete. He snatched the machete with all of his might pulling it from the rotten flesh. Alex then swung it again and again into the wound cutting deeper and deeper. After he finally decapitated the zombie Alex quickly stood up and looked around for the other zombies. One was about 20 feet away while the other had just exited the woods and was making its way towards Alex. He knew that this was far from over so he took off towards the rope and grabbed it. Alex started swinging the rock over his head going faster and faster waiting for the zombie to get close enough. The zombie finally got within range and Alex loosened his grip a little letting the rope slide out a little more widening his range more and speed up it rotation. He wait until the zombie was 10 feet away and Alex spun with all his might slamming the rock into the side of its head crushing it in. The zombie dropped to the ground and was out of the game for good. Alex was already exhausted "Almost done one more left". He ran up to the rock and pulled it free from the zombie's skull. He backed up and started spinning the rock again waiting for the last zombie to come up. The zombie got in range and Alex spun it harder sending the rock towards the zombies head. The zombie stumbled a bit causing the rock to miss the rope caught on the zombie's neck making the rock spin around it's neck. Alex was thankful that it hadn't completely missed he yanked as hard as he could making the zombie fall down. Alex grabbed his machete and ran up on the zombie as it was getting up he hacked and hacked at it fueled by his adrenaline. When the thing finally stopped moving Alex settled down and sat down on the side of the road trying to catch his breath. He was utterly exhausted usually he would just run, hide and wait until they passed. Alex smiled to himself "I did it Tommy I won" his eyes started to tear up at the thought of his brother. Alex took a deep breath and let it go he stood up wiping the tears from his eyes. He took a few steps and stumbled there was no way he could make it to the city as tired as he was. He decided it was just better to rest like he should have done in the first place. He looked at the mess in front of him the three dead zombies and his rope he was to tired to pick it up so he figure he would after he rested. He looked down both sides of the road to make sure he was alone and staggered towards the treeline making his way towards a tree with a good perch. He could barely climb up the tree but after he did he tied himself off got a drink of some water from his backpack then pulled his cloak tighter and passed out.

 

[Mason]

Despite the SUV's heavy amour it cruised alone the broken road at a respectable fifty five miles per hour. The road had been clear for the most part once and awhile he'd have to swerve to avoid a cluster of abandoned cars but for the most part it was smooth going. Upon further investigation of the ex convoy vehicle Trent had managed to find a fairly large empty duffel bag. Though it was covered with blood Trent had put it up in the passenger seat with his other supplies it'd come in handy. As he drove Trent thought he heard a ringing but that had stopped as soon as he'd really taken notice. This was not his first trip to the fangs lair in fact it was his sixth. Trent had spied on the gangs main compound for some months always calculating the best way to bring them to their knees should the need arise. Trent looked at the gas mask then back to the road. The fangs base was an ugly one story rectangular factory made of cement. The fangs had also fortified it much the same way as he had fortified his own safe house though theirs could probably withstand a full fledged military strike. Quarter inch metal sheeting weld on the inside and outside of the windows, sandwiched between the sheets were metal bars. All but two exits had been welded shut then reinforced so not even a pack of werewolves could break them down. Trent had ruled out the air vents as a point of infiltration due to the thick metal grates that had been welded over them. Seeing no need for a wall the fangs had settled for a single watchtower which was ten feet tall and always occupied by an armed sentry. All in all the place was basically impenetrable, Trent smiled and pressed the gas pedal closer to the floor. The SUV flew down the road nearing the fangs compound.

 

[GrieveWriter]

An alarm clock, Elroy would know that ringing anywhere. And, apparently, the zombie at the end of the pole knew too. Instantly hoping for an easier meal, the creature lunged in the direction of the ringing, prompting Elroy to follow. He'd looked through some of the scavenged cars. And he found that Cotton's theory was sounding more and more plausible as time went on. He found a pile of corpses, not the regular type, these were fresh kills. There was also an odd length of rope. Elroy studied the scene for a while, struggling to come up with a scenario that would fit the evidence. It was probably the work of the Fangs, he shook it off as the fact really didn't matter anymore. Now that his investigation was over, he had to follow through with the rest of the plan. He quickly turned and brought his mace down onto the head of the collared zombie. It went limp, Elroy began checking nearby abandoned vehicles. The one with the most fuel in it was an old Volkswagen. Its door was open with a blood trail leading to the treeline. Elroy got in and slowly hot-wired the vehicle. He left it running before dragging the body of the collared zombie and propping it in front of the wheel. He positioned it to where its chest Angeles forward the wheel, then he disconnected the collar. The body slumped forward and landed on the wheel. The Volkswagen's horn cut through the silence loudly. Elroy then adjusted the seat so it pinned the corpse to the wheel. He broke off the adjuster and held a hand to his ear, he could hear the moans begin seeping through the woods. He mentally patted himself on back before turning and heading back to the city

 

[Yuiop705]

BEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! Alex woke up with a start adrenaline flushing through his veins. He quickly started looking around for the sound and spotted the source of the sound. It was a Volkswagen a little bit down the road and messing in the driver door was a massive man with white dreadlocks. Alex curse and curse at the events unfolding before him he knew what was gonna happen. Almost instantly after he thought that he began hearing the moans from the forest signaling that the undead were on there way. Alex kept still until the man was some ways down the road he then untied himself. He gritted through his teeth he hadn't been asleep for more than an hour and his muscles were beyond sore. Alex left his backpack in the tree and only got down wearing his cloak and some of his survival items. He could hear the moans getting closer so he pushed his muscles harder running straight for the car. Upon nearing it he realized that it was running so he slowed down encase if who or what ever in there was alive. He cautiously ran behind the back of the car and carefully came up to the driver side. Alex was a little surprised to see that a zombie was pinned against the wheel. Instantly he went to adjust the seat but found that the adjuster had been ripped off. He cursed again that damn man did this on purpose Alex smiled at his sudden thought. He knew he had to hurry if he wanted to pull this off. He ran over to the rope and untied it from the rock. He ran back to the car with both items in his hands he could hear the moans getting closer time was running out. He got to the driver side and put the items in the floorboard. With a little difficulty Alex put the car into drive and push it into the middle of the road. He then put it in neutral and looked down the road the man was a fair distance away but it was a near straight shot. Alex didn't expect the car to hit him he just hoped it would crash near him and bring the zombies with it. Alex straighten the wheel aiming it straight and began quickly tying the wheel in place with the rope. He tried to turn the wheel and it wouldn't budge satisfied with it he placed the rock on the accelerator. The car started reeving Alex nodded to himself and reached over and put the car into drive. He swiftly withdrew his arm as the car took off down the road with its horn blaring. He waved the car good bye hopefully it would reach near the man. Alex turned toward the woods and took off running back towards his tree he didn't want to be anywhere near this road. The moans were near the treeline he knew that the zombies could come out any moment. As soon as he reached the tall grass Alex saw the first zombie walk out of the woods. He instantly crouched hiding hoping that the zombie didn't spot him. The zombie turned its head towards the sound of the car and started off towards it then another came and another pretty soon a dozen or so had walked out of the woods and onto the road. They formed a small horde and were quickly making their way towards the car. Alex waited until they were about a hundred feet down the and dashed towards his tree. He swiftly reached his tree and climbed it as fast as he could. He put his backpack back on and tied himself securely back to the tree. He hoped that the zombies would continue to follow the car and that the problem would work itself out. He calmed himself down letting the adrenaline work itself out of his system and after a little bit of calmly breathing Alex fell back asleep.

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

"Oh shit. Oh shit oh shit oh shit." Carter had pulled out his double-barrel almost immediately, but immediately wasn't fast enough. One of the werewolves pinned him on the ground, knocking away his weapons. He began to study where his weapons had gone, and it appeared as if the knife was the closest. Here goes. Carter struggled against the werewolf, but it kept a firm grasp on his arms. He kept struggling, but it was to no avail. The werewolf stuck it's head up, and began licking it's chops. It looked like it was smiling. The werewolf dove it's jaws at Carter's head, but he reacted quick, and headbutted the thing. The werewolf didn't look hurt, but it did look surprised. It let go of Carter's arm just for enough time for him to grab the knife. The werewolf gained it's senses back, then leapt for Carter's arms again. But he was prepared this time, and dove the knife through it's hand. The werewolf yelped out in pain, then leaped up and stood back. Carter ran at the werewolf with the knife readied up, and stuck it through the werewolf's head. It fell to the ground dead, but the knife was broken. The handle had broke off, the rest of the knife stuck inside the werewolf's brain. Suddenly, one grabbed Carter from behind and bit into his shoulder. His armor tightened up, and Carter cried out. He managed to escape the werewolf, but it happened to swipe him from under his legs. When Carter hit the ground, the monster grabbed his head and began to pull. Carter grabbed at the werewolf's arms to try and stop it, but it would not work. Suddenly, he took his thumb and dove it into one of the werewolf's eyes. It screeched out and grabbed it's broken eye, and blood began gushing everywhere. Carter began to stand up, when the other werewolf smacked him down again, and stepped on his legs. He was pretty sure he heard a crack.


The werewolf stared at him, eyes hungry. Carter then realized that the handle of the knife was right beside of him, and he grabbed it and threw it. The werewolf wasn't expecting the object coming towards him, and the broken end stabbed the werewolf in the gut. It shrugged it off and turned back to Carter. Who was gone. The werewolf wondered how the human got away, then turned to find Carter over his friends body. Carter tore out the end of the knife out of the werewolf's head, then when his aggressor lunged for him, he stuck it in it's stomach. The werewolf fell to the floor, and began gurgling blood from his mouth. Carter turned around to meet his revolver, and quickly grabbed it. The werewolf with the eye missing was looking at him, anger welling up in him. Carter grabbed the pistol and shot it into the werewolf's chest 4 times. It fell to the ground hopelessly wounded. Carter held up a middle finger, then laid out on the ground. He'd get up in just a second.

 

[GrieveWriter]

Elroy stopped, the blaring horn was getting closer. He turned to see the Volkswagen bearing down towards him. Then its windshield promptly exploded. Elroy turned to look back, seeing a glint come from behind an overturned van.


Craven cursed his momentary lap in aim, then quickly slotted another round into the chamber of his sniper rifle. The minute he got situated he was going to put in an order for a multi-round one. He loved his sniper rifle but the thing took so unbelievably long to reload.


Elroy turned and ran towards the Volkswagen, he leaped onto the hood and turned back towards the Sniper's position. He slid his mace into a holder on his back and whipped a pump-action shotgun out from the holder next to it. He began firing at the car wildly as the Volkswagen sped on, with the moans of the approaching zombies adding towards the symphony.


Craven ducked down as round after round slammed into the van. He stuffed the sniper rifle into the duffel bag on his back before whipping out his Skorpion machine-gun and his hunting knife. The van began smoking, Craven waited till the barrage stopped and darted out while firing rounds towards the approaching Volk.


Elroy felt small rounds dig into his shoulder and stomach, he thanked the endurance of muscle and wolf for keeping them away from any vital organs. Before Craven could get to far away, the Volk sped past him. Elroy reached down and grabbed Craven by the throat mid-run before hauling him onto the Volkswagen and throwing him onto the roof of the vehicle. Craven slid along the top a bit before he was able to look up. He watched Elroy switch his shotgun with his mace.


"Eye-man" Elroy grinned "Ready for round two I see."


Craven just spat at him before tossing his machinegun into the duffel bag and readying his large hunting knife.


The two stared each other down as the Volkswagen sped down the semi-cleared street blaring its banshee horn to any zombie within a mile radius.


Finally the first zombies arrived, obviously they were the faster runner types. They instantly began chasing down the Volkswagen, of course they still had a bit of trouble keeping up with a speeding vehicle.


Finally Craven lunged, diving his blade toward Elroy. The large man shifted his weight to the left of the Volk, effectively leaning it precariously and making Craven completely miss the lunge. Craven kept with the momentum and swiped his knife in Elroy's direction, it clanged against his mace right before he head-butted Craven.


Craven backed up a bit, Elroy shifted his weight back to the center of the Volk. One of the zombies was able to get ahold of the Volk and pulled himself up using the broken back window. It lunged for Craven, who used its speed to impale it onto his hunting knife. It wasn't dead, obviously, so he kicked it back Elroy's way. The massive man demolished its skull with his mace and grabbed hold of it before launching the corpse at Craven, who slid out of its way as it crashed into several of the following zombies. The Volkswagen glanced the side of a random abandoned car, the two men had to struggle to rebalance themselves. Craven regained his orientation first, and whipped out a small metal ball from his vest. He pulled the pin off the ball before tossing it at Elroy. Craven had usually been able to survive grenade blasts depending on how big they were due to his carapace. These weren't the MOST deadly grenades one could have. But any kind of close range explosion is known for causing damage. The moment Elroy saw the metal ball he hefted his mace, once it went flying toward him he swung and hit the grenade. It sailed through the window of a car partially toppled off the road. The Volkswagen sped away as the entire vehicle detonated behind it, a large cloud of smoke and ash wafting into the air. Elroy continued and brought his mace down towards Craven, who backed up again and let the mace bury itself into the roof of the vehicle. Craven put one foot on the mace to brace himself before swinging the knife again. The edge dug into Elroy's cheek and slid into his mouth for a brief second before tearing out of his jaw. Elroy didn't care, the chanting of his wolf as the battle dragged on blinded him from pain. Elroy tore the mace out, leaving a hole in the roof. Craven stumbled back as the mace was torn out from under him. He fell partway off the back of the Volk, the fingers of the nearest zombie grazing across the side of hiss face. Craven quickly dug his knife into the roof of the Volk to keep himself from falling all the way off. Elroy was about to take advantage of his opponent's downed status, but then the Volkswagen hit something and brought his attention back to the front of the vehicle. They were much closer to the city now, and several zombies seemed to have wandered back onto the road. One of them had been hit and had slid onto the hood. It got to its feet and lurched towards Elroy, who quickly incapacitated it with his mace before grabbing it. Craven pulled himself up onto the roof of the Volkswagen before pulling his knife out of the car and lunging at Elroy while his back was turned, Elroy swung around holding the corpse. The knife sank deep into the body, Elroy pushed it into Craven. Craven backed up before ripping out his knife and pushing the corpse off, it crashed into another group of zombies. The eye on the back of his other hand picked up movement, a large group of zombies pushing a bus down a hill onto the road. Craven dodged one of Elroy's swings as he cursed mentally. The smarter ones were always a problem. They led the stupider ones in coordinated attacks, and with their numbers it was most likely that they'd show up at the worst possible times. Craven dodged another swing of the mace before leaping off the Volk. Elroy cocked an eyebrow before turning and just catching a glimpse of the bus before the Volk slammed into it. Elroy went sailing over the bus and smacked into the ground on the other side.


Craven quickly got to his feet and ran around the wreck site. Elroy was gone, in his place only torn clothes. Before Craven could curse himself for letting that psychotic wolf survive, he reminded himself that the other zombies following the Volk would arrive soon. And there's no way that the ones who pushed the bus in the way weren't already bearing down the hill towards them. Craven sighed and took off, apparently their mad joy ride had brought them right back to the outskirts of the city. He darted into an alley and began making his way back to the safe house, mentally demeaning himself all the way.


Elroy always felt stronger in his wolf form, it was probably the same for all wolves. His werewolf form was at least a foot and a half larger than his already imposing human form, his fur was a bright white that appeared platinum in the sunlight. The dreadlocks grew down as well and tangled with his mane. The thing about him and his wolf was that they pretty much already thought alike due to their love of hunting, despite their different opinions on the matter of Cotton.


Mmmmmmmm.


His wolf relished in the newfound freedom. Once he dropped off his human's demeaning weapons back at his shelter, he'd have to paint himself in blood a few times before Elroy could take back control.


Elroy thought they should inform Cotton of their findings, but the man pretty much already had his theory already, so he guessed they could hunt a bit before they changed back. And besides the alarm was still going, so they could at least check that off the to-do list.


The white wolf had taken control once Elroy impacted into the asphalt, it had grabbed hold of the weapon holders before climbing up a nearby building with it's claws. It didn't care where the multi-eyed mutant had gone off to. It had hunting to do. With a deep breath it let out a massive bellow of a howl before taking off along the rooftops towards the office building.

 

[Mason]

A seventy pound bow like Trent's was used to drop big game in a single shot. So when he got to the fangs base he put four into the sentry's chest just to be safe. He'd scouted the base for awhile before dispatching the sentry and so far the sentry seemed to be the only one outside the factory building .Probably inside drinking to their big score and inspecting the merchandise Trent thought to himself. Passing the watchtower at a run his eyes focused on the exits. Both were six by six sets of seven inch thick metal plated doors that swung outwards. He dropped the duffel bag he'd been carrying and wrapped two of the thick metal chains securely around the metal handles of the door. Then secured the chains in place with three of the padlocks. He did the same to the other exit making sure to be as silent as possible. Nodding at his handy work he looked around for a way to the roof, he clambered up a ladder he'd spotted and pulled himself onto the roof duffel bag tossed across his back. Reaching the air vent he set the duffel bag down and removed the gas mask and two containers of chemicals. Trent strapped the gas mask on making sure it was tight to his face. Then he took the chemicals in his hand. Bleach and ammonia he thought to himself everyday house hold cleaners turned deadly. Taking a mug he'd found in the SUV he poured the two chemicals in and shook it leaving a tiny opening in the top before tossing it down the vent. He did much the same to the other two vents but using water bottles. He then covered the vents with matting and large pieces of martial he had cut out of the SUV and used some rocks and cement blocks that were scattered on top of the roof. Trent imagined the yellow gas filling the factory, creeping into the lungs of the gang members and killing them slowly. Grimacing he readied three more homemade gas grenades.


The chains had held fast though there were a few sizeable dents in the metal doors. A few had tried to get out the air vents but Trent had put an arrow in them the second they appeared through the metal grill. Trent knew it hadn't been long an hour maybe but it felt like a life time. Taking a deep breath through the gas mask Trent climbed down the ladder and unlatched the three padlocks of the front entrance. Almost immediately the doors flung open spilling dozens of piled up bodies onto the ground in front of him. God he thought to himself there was a reason the Geneva Convention had outlawed chemical warfare after the first world war. Blood was everywhere covering bodies ,the walls, the doors, everything. Trent had known what would happen but that made him not less repulsed. A thin yellow haze hung over the piles of bodies, Trent knew that the gas for the most part had dissipated still if he hadn't been wearing the mask he would have died. Ignoring the gore he moved to a fang truck parked a few feet from the door. Hoping out he backed the truck up to the opening of the doors. Hoping out he began to pick his way through the bodies.


The fangs base was a plum of fire and shattered concrete. Trent looked at the passenger seat he'd taken several dozen hand guns, five assault rifles, three heavy machine gun, rifles, shotguns, a sniper rifle, two crates of hand grenades, and a variety of other explosives ranging from C-4 to TNT. Along with the weapons he had grabbed about twenty crates of ammo most of it four the rifles, handguns, and shotguns but at least a half crate of each military grade weapons ammo. Not to mention the three back packs of food. Trent guessed the fifty cal on the roof of the fangs truck should be counted to. The truck was another thing, using a can of paint he'd found he'd blotted out the fangs symbol and put the Skelton keys trading post symbol. He decided to take a different way home that way if he'd been followed he wouldn't be driving into an ambush. He pushed the gas pedal closer to the floor. He'd had a great hall today and was probably set for at least a year or two still Trent couldn't help but feel a hollowness in his chest.

 

[GrieveWriter]

Cotton enjoyed the small massacre from the safety of a nearby rooftop. He'd watched the whole thing with an air of silent criticism as the man, who Elroy had insisted upon calling a Huntsman, gathered his spoils and left. Once the place had been picked clean, he made his way downstairs and trekked over to the corpse-filled factory. He didn't have too much time before the excess amount of meat attracted the dead. He entered the factory, it was pretty much what he expected. The Huntsman had gotten a **** fine haul of armaments, but if Cotton's theory ended up being true... well, that was something he'd risk coming out here for.


He studied the interior for a bit. Examined where the Fangs arms used to be kept. A bunch of liquor bottles and so on. He found what he was looking for in a cluttered garage. A bunch of dismantled generators and such, all seeming to have been salvaged from certain cars. There were other mechanisms there too, each of them seemed to have been taken from a power source of some sort.


Cotton was nearly giddy with excitement, his theory was making more sense by the second. He heard a commotion near the main entryway, seems like the zombies finally sniffed out their new feast.


Cotton made mental notes on the mechanisms before slipping out the garage through a small window. He made his way back across the street as the approaching individual zombies set their sights on the banquet in the factory.


Cotton climbed back up a fire escape and began making his way back to the office building.

 

[darkev]

The man was certainly skilled in killing people, Kevin thought. He stood Barack, watching as zombies were coming for a feast. He watched as the man opened the door, looted, ad left. Then the scavenger came, and also left. Kevin grabs tightly to his sickle. Although the infected were blessed by Thanatos, praise be to the darkness, to fulfill his needs, they were still something that needed to be feared. A scuffling noise is heard behind him and he turns to see what it is. The first infected has seen him, and is quickly dispatched. I need to find the man, thought Kevin, the one that sent so many into the darkness. He starts to walk away, not taking the cars, and walking back the way he saw the car first come from. He observe the bodies of those sent to the darkness, he leaned close to a dead body, missing its head, and takes an arm. "He won't need it", and slinging it over his shoulder, he starts to walk down the street, sickle in hand.

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

Carter pulled himself up from the bloody ground, and began to admire his work. A busted shotgun, 2 dead werewolves, another hopelessly wounded, and the other two torn to shreds by James. "Good job." The one werewolf still alive, lay on the ground solemnly howling. Carter took out his revolver and fired it into it's skull. Brain and drops of blood fired out, as he began reloading the gun, then turned to the door. "Come on James, we're going. We're going to find this freak." Carter shrugged the pain of his shattered leg off, and continued walking. Crack! Crack! Crack! The horrid noise that came from his leg every time Carter stood on it, eventually became background noise and background pain as he pushed open the chapel door. Rays of sunlight poured in, and in front of the church was a sign. It had another recording taped to it.


"Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!!"


Written on the sign was smeared blood, and staked to the top was a head. A child's head, was staked to a sign.


The sign said:


"Wish to know where I lay? Come to the city, where I stay..."


"F***. F*** f*** f***!!!" Carter expressed his anger out in vulgarity, and on the sign. He kicked it furiously with his good leg, then turned around. "Let's go. I thought I could use some exercise, but we need a car." Carter stepped inside the nearest one, a large white van with tinted windows and sliding doors in the back. He began to check if there were keys anywhere, but he couldn't find any. Hotwiring time.


Hotwiring the car did seem to work, as the van's engine fired itself up.

 

[Fintan]

The roar of the engine instantly shook Mal from his meditation, the swirling images that were beginning to come together to form his memories of his past, scattering into obscurity once again. The moment his eyes opened, he remembered the large white van in which he had taken shelter. But something had changed, other then the sound of the engine obviously. There it was in the air, the thick, pungent smell of wolf blood. It was... foul...





Without losing his composure, Malik slowly sat up with his legs crossed, turning to eye the human in the rear view mirror. It didn't take long for Mal to realize the severity of the situation, what with the man soaked in blood, and obviously distraught. There was so much blood, it must have been multiple wolves.


Taking note not to underestimate this human, Mal still came to the same conclusion. Still concealed in the shadows in the back of the van, conveniently created by the tinted windows, Mal wets his lips, then speaks, his voice stern, but warm, like that of a concerned father figure.


"You need my help."


The sound of his own voice always surprised him. Considering the fact that every other vampire he had encountered, had cold, almost spine chilling voice, or at best, a completely apathetic one.


"You wish to avenge the child. I know this, because you smell of fear, and anger. Had you created that monstrosity, you would smell of pride. You can't avenge anything with your leg in that condition, at least, not as a human."

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

"What the? Where the hell did you come from?" Carter lurched back in fright as the man in the back talked. "Nevermind. I'm sorry. And my leg works perfectly fine, ok?" Carter then attempted to hit the gas pedal, but his leg twisted and cracked. "Shit." He looked back at the man. "Looks like your right about two things today, eh? I'm not running around killing children, and I'm not running around with a broken leg. But, I'm not sure I trust you just yet. Don't take it personally. It's just... You know. James, you wanna drive?" Carter stepped out of the van, and began to head to the back. He slid the door open, and met the man back there. "You're a vampire, right? Your teeth." Suddenly, Carter registered the last thing the vampire said. "Wait a minute, what do you mean by at least not as a human?! Are you going to turn me?!"

 

[Fintan]

Smirking, Mal assists the man getting into the van, uncrossing his legs and leaning his back against the vans cold metal walls. "In regards to your first question, I could ask you the same. I was merely seeking a moment of peace when you arrived, stinking up my hide away."


Sliding his slender, surgically split tongue over his sharp canines, Mal nods, chuckling a little to himself. "And I am in fact a vampire. Do not worry though, I have no intention of changing you against your will...."


Looking at up the human, observing his armor and taking note of his ability to accept radical situational changes relatively quickly. Such as his own appearance within the van. "You were a authority figure before. Interesting. But despite your raw strength, even you cannot force the limb to heal faster. You will be slow, making yourself, and those around you vulnerable. Especially considering the fact that you've made enemies with a psychopath." His voice becoming serious, Mal stares into the mans eyes. "Any true survivalist would leave you behind. Good thing I'm a fool. Now your options here are to allow me to change you, which I think would be the most efficient, considering your physical....stubbornness, you'd probably survive, and the wound would heal more quickly. Or you remain human, and I will join you on your journey until you heal, but in exchange, you must allow me to feed." Not giving the man a moment to hesitate, Mal continues, "In this state, you will not be able to directly take on the one who sicked the wolves on you. If he is able to contain multiple wolves and make them do his bidding, he must be strong, therefore I cannot take him on alone. If you wish to remain human, the wisest move would be allowing me to feed so that I may function as a scout, gathering as much data about him, and his motives as possible while you heal."


Pulling out a cigarette he had found during his last scouting, he moved his hands so quickly, to human eyes they would appear to not even move, lighting it, and taking a deep drag, Mals green eyes glowed in the tiny ember as he stared at the man. "Then, when you're ready, we will attack. Your choice."

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

Ok then. He was a vampire. He seemed friendly enough. "Ok. You've been pretty right about everything so far. One question. If you come with me, but don't bite me, you'll feed on the killer right? I mean, it's either become a vampire or let the vampire eat your enemy. Easy choice, right?" Carter felt a couple bumps while driving down the road, and he bounced just enough to feel his leg hurt.


"This isn't for my personal revenge. This is about doing what's right. And some people need to be dead. And I don't care who kills them, as long as they turn up dead. Anyways, once we find the next clue, I'm going to try and find something to stand up with. Like a crutch, or a cane. Something like that." Carter looked at the front window, and noticed the city coming into view. Holy shit. He hadn't been here much, but he sure as hell expected a shitload of zombies. But there were barely any. Sure, a couple would run down the street, but other then that, none would come.


Until they turned around the corner. Thousand a of them, just waiting for them. "Shit!! Drive James!!" James floored it, and they began driving. Oddly, only a few zombies followed them out of the bend. The others were simply disinterested. Strange. Suddenly, his ears perked up as he heard another song. "London Bridge is falling down! Falling down! Falling down!" Carter pointed towards the thrift store where the music was coming from, and James began driving that way. Carter stepped out slowly, and used the van to hold himself up. Once to the thrift store, he grabbed into a tree, then picked up an old rotted cane from the ground. Perfect. It worked well, but Carter could feel it slowly breaking. It would have to do.


Carter walked in and immediately smelled rotting flesh. It was coming from the back. He began hobbling over, and pulled open his helmet so he could vomit. A Neko, hung from a rope, with it's guts poured out all over the floor. On top of the guts, a note said:


"Look inside, you'll love what you find!"


Sicko. Carter reached his hand down into it, and pulled out another piece of paper.


"5, 6, bundle up sticks. S."


So, NURS. Carter could see where this was going.

 

[The J]

James had calmed down now. He had met this other vampire. He seemed weaker, more like a second generation. He'd have to ask him, as he'd like to know how powerful he was. It might have been a lack of blood recently for him, though.


He saw the dead bodies, and leapt in, sucking all the blood he could. Animal blood helped, sure, but human blood just felt better to drink, as if they were meant to.

 

[Fintan]

Snarling, disgusted with the display of flesh, torn and mangled before him, and the almost carnal way in which the humans ally gorged himself on the dead, Mal noticed that the flesh was still warm as he methodically untied the rope that held the poor Neko up, wrapping it into a tight coil and storing it in his small backpack. Laying the killers victim down on her back, closing her still open eyes, Mal closed his eyes, muttering a prayer beneath his breath. Then, swiftly reaching up through her diaphragm, underneath her ribs, Mal removed her heart, squeezing every last drops that remained within it into a small glass, which he proceeded to drink in a series of deep gulps.


Wiping the last drops of the blood from his lips, Mal turned to the human, voice so cold it seemed to chill the air, containing two voices, his own, and one deeper, more visceral.


"Tell me everything you know about this killer. He's been here recently and obviously has an affinity for children's songs and nursery rhymes. His blood is mine."

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

"The killer. Yeah. We didn't find him ourself. We had just come out of a sewer, when we heard that ****ing song. Ring around the rosies! Y'now, that one. A baby carriage came rolling down the street playing a distorted version of that song. There was a dead zombie in the carriage. Slashed into it's stomach were the letters 'NU.' It was strange. We didn't find him on our own. It was almost like he...targeted us, if you can believe that."


"Anyways, on the body was a note. 1, 2, I'm buckling my shoe. Me and James there..." Carter was cut off as he stared at the boy feasting on the guts of the Neko. Carter swallowed, then turned back to the vampire. "Me and James started traveling down the road, until we came across the church. Inside it was playing that old church hymn. This little light of mine. We walked inside, and noticed that there was a person hanging from the cross. I guess he was supposed to be Jesus Christ. Slashed into his body was 'R' and his note read: 3, 4 I'm opening my door. I think. I started yelling about how he was a joke, then started heading back for the door. He had another note there. It was replying to me. He had been there. He was there. The sign with the child's head hadn't been there when we walked inside the church."


"Then we found this place. Here's the note. The new letter is S. NURS." Carter handed the bloody note to the vampire, then started rambling again. "I would of said he was you, but you would be too obvious. This guy doesn't want to be caught until he wants to be caught. He wants to f*** with us. He's probably been doing it to other people! The goddamn Neko right there was probably just like us! It found out this damn killer, and now look at it! I mean..."


"Would you think I'm stupid if I said that I still want to go after the psycho, even after I've considered the possibilities?"

 

[Fintan]

Nods, listening to the various clues and trying to piece them together with a specific motive. It was obvious that this man was the target, however, the killers intentions were still unclear. And in a time such as this, such elaborate murders were rare, considering the fact that most were mere squabbles over resources while this seemed to be a waste of them. Inhaling deeply through his nose, Mal's suspicions were confirmed. The strong scent of death and rot covered any scent the killer may have left.


Having regained his composure, Mal's voice returned to its normal, almost human tone. "Do you have any enemies? Can you think of someone you've wronged in the past that may have just snapped? Or do the letters NURS mean something to you?"

 

[SuperChocoMilk]

Carter looked at the floor in worry, then looked back up at the vampire. "Enemies, none that I know of. And NURS. From what I was guessing, it was going to spell out a word. Then we have the rhyme. The one, two buckle my shoe thing. It's been everywhere. So, we need to list the things we know."


"We know he has an obvious obsession with nursery rhymes. So, from the letters NURS we can pretty much guess that the answer to this puzzle is NURSERY." Suddenly, Carter heard the distinct sound of a door locking. He ran for the pawn shop doors and quickly pulled on them. They were locked. He couldn't break the window due to it being caged in. "Shit. Shit! We're trapped like ****ing animals in here!" He ran back to the back room, and began looking around for any way out. Anything.


Carter noticed a note on the window, outside of course, and began reading out loud.


"Being late has it's disadvantages, but so does being early."


Mother****er. They had broke his little game by figuring out his magic code too early, and now he was going to kill him. But how? Carter's questions were answered by the alarm on the pawn shop going off, and all the cars around it were set off too. "Sonuvabitch."