Fantasy Apocalypse: Infected

[MistahJ]

After Kristian had grabbed a basket, Cate piled the tins she had picked up into the basket on top of what Kristian had picked from the shelf. She intended to keep the tins aside and take them with the group when they moved, but also wanted to buy other supplies that the group could eat now and over the next day or so. Kristian picked up a few bags of crisps and Cate threw into the basket a couple of bars of chocolate, more thinking of the teenager they were bringing along than herself. Along with the junk food, Cate found some fruit that looked rather edible and picked up some vegetables that wouldn't need to be cooked. It was impossible to eat healthily while they travelled but it seemed like a good idea to grab what they could when it was in front of them.


"Do we need much else?" Cate asked, turning to look at Kristian after she'd grabbed a pack of biscuits.


Kristian took a moment to consider the question, then he set off into another aisle and picked up a few bottles of water.

 

[Memster101]

Eventually Imogen and Nika made their way over to Cate and Kristian, bringing their carts beside each other. "Is this all good?" Nika asked, her voice soft and she motioned to the cart. In a different life, the girls had been raised on a vegetarian based diet and they were still trying to figure out what was good to eat on spectrum of meat-eaters. Not that there was a whole lot to grab aside from the dreaded canned meat, which always tasted faintly of metal and dull in flavor. Game was out of the question really, at least for the two of them, they had never killed an animal in their lives.


Imogen smiled some at seeing Nika's attempt to socialize, glad she was getting out of her shell. She glanced over at Cate, raising a brow as she waited for the answer.

 

[MistahJ]

Cate looked down into the shopping trolley and after a few moments to consider her answer, Cate nodded. "Yeah, it's all good." She responded, "We have a car, it should all fit in the back for the moment." The petrol in the car was starting to drain and Cate wasn't sure if it would get them far when they did decide to head onto the road again, but there were always cars around and for the most part Cate was sure they would find one that worked.


Kristian finished adding another item into their basket, then he turned to look at Cate. "We should be heading back now, if we have everything we need." He reminded her, as the group never liked staying out in the city much unless they were moving.


Cate nodded and glanced at the two newcomers, "Are you both ready to leave?"

 

[Memster101]

Imogen nodded in satisfaction and gave Nika a reassuring smile. The girl brightened visibly, pleased with herself, and turned her attention back to Cate as she spoke. "Sounds good to me. We don't have too much to bring with us in way of supplies, nothing we can't pack into a pair of backpacks," She informed the woman. At the question of their readiness, both girls nodded, and helped to push the carts to the car.


Nika wandered over to Kristian, looking up at him curiously as the walked. "Will the others be okay with us coming?" She asked the young man, her head cocking to the side some. There was little they could do if the other portion of the group refused to accept their presents other than leave... Something that Nika would rather not do.

 

[MistahJ]

Kristian looked down at Nika and smiled idly at the question, though he glanced up and looked around their surroundings as they exited the building before he was able to answer her question. "Callahan is the boss," He explained with a light shrug, "She calls the shots and everyone has to listen, so they don't have a choice in the matter. Plus our main concern is to find survivors like ourselves, if anyone couldn't understand that then even I wouldn't be too happy." He admitted, "How old are you, anyway?"


As they reached the car, Cate opened the trunk and set her basket inside before she stepped out to begin helping Imogen pack the items they had gathered inside. "Where have you two been hiding out?" She asked, the conversation starter seemingly like the most appropriate for their situation. "We found an old house and we're mainly keeping to the attic, but we move around as much as possible."

 

[Memster101]

Nika nodded some, smoothing a hand through her hair. But what would happen if they decided they were sick of Cate and all of her decisions? Imogen and her would be the first to go, aside from the chain of command. Her gaze traveled to her feet as they walked, hands shoved deep into her pockets. "I'm thirteen. If school was still around, I'd be a ninth grader." A smile slipped to her lips and she shrugged lightly. "At least there's no more school, no homework. That's stuff I don't miss."


A glance back at Nika assured Imogen that she was doing alright in Kristian's company, allowing her to focus at the task at hand. She could remember trying to shove a large cart of goods into her own car- a real life game of tetras- but never this much. "We've been held up at a farm house a few miles north of here," She replied, smiling faintly. "Been there since this all went down really. Figured it's far enough out of the way and such to avoid drawing much attention from them."

 

[MistahJ]

Kristian grinned at her, "Yeah, I wish all of this had happened when I was still at school. I could have done without the homework and math classes." He'd learned since the outbreak of the virus that it helped to joke about it, though that wasn't always a possibility. Cate wasn't able to do that yet, to joke and make the best of their situation, just like a few other people he'd encountered but he hoped that someday they would all be able to make the best of it until they restored order to their world. "Have you and your sister been travelling since it all happened?"


"Yeah, staying out of the main parts of the city have helped us get around." Cate agreed, stepping back to close the trunk of the car once all of the ingredients had been packed away. "We originally tried to take main roads but the streets were jammed... you and your sister have the right idea." She mused quietly. "If you give me directions I'll drive there first, we can wait in the car while you two get your things."

 

[Memster101]

Nika grinned sheepishly and gave a vigorous nod. Sometimes her and Imogen bantered about things they wouldn't miss- school, bills, taxes, mostly adult stuff Nika didn't quite understand yet. Mostly the avoided topics like their mom or friends...but occasionally they'd talk about it. Imogen assumed better not to dwell on the past, try to make for the future; it left little talk for such things. "Uhm, not a whole lot. After she came and got me we basically made a bee-line for the country. It took a few tries to find a place but eventually we found it. What about you and your friends?"


Imogen let another smile brush to her lips at Cate's soft muse, waiting for the others to reach the car before they all climbed in. "Yeah, that should be easy enough. It's pretty much a straight shot from here to the house, nothing too fancy. How far is your base from here, again?" She asked, her head cocking to the side.

 

[MistahJ]

Kristian opted for sitting in the back of the car beside Nika. It appeared that Cate was playing nice with Imogen so he saw no need to interrupt their conversation, not just yet anyhow. "Uh, we aren't exactly travelling in the same way as other survivors." He admitted.


Since Imogen had mentioned that the house was north of the supermarket, Cate started the car and set off in that direction. "Few miles the other way - we'll probably pass by here on our way back." She informed the young woman, then she heard what Kristian and Nika were discussing and decided to interject. "We're here because it's our job to find survivors and take them somewhere safe. Our employer has numerous safe houses and trusts us to get people there."

 

[Memster101]

Neither girls bothered to buckle up- it wasn't like there was much on the road to look out for anymore aside from the roamers, and leaned back in the seats. At the mention of 'employer' Imogen frowned and looked at Cate. "Employer? Who do you work for?" She asked, the frown deepening some. The only people who were still probably running around worrying about employment were government officials or the army.... And the two didn't look of the army. A glance at Nika showed the comment had gone undetected by her, not really aware enough to notice the oddity of it.


Nika was too busy looking out the window now as they drove, spying the roamers or anything else that seemed of interest to her. As soon as the adult talk began, she had zoned out.

 

[MistahJ]

"We work for Area 19." Cate informed her honestly, as she felt it was important that she tell Imogen the truth if Imogen was ever going to trust the group. She knew most survivors didn't trust a word the company said and while Cate agreed with them, she still thought it was important that they put personal issues aside and continue to help fellow survivors. "Believe me, I'm not saying that I like being associated with them... but they do have safe houses and we can take you to safety, that's the main thing." She explained.

 

[Memster101]

Area 19... Imogen's breath caught in her throat and she turned fully around in the seat to better face the young woman. Again the initial suspicion she had come into the situation with flared- almost uncontrollably, and she fought against the urge to command them to pull over and let her and her sister out. It said something in itself that she had told the truth...but that didn't mean Imogen liked it. At the name, the younger sister perked up and looked between the adults in confusion. "Aren't those the people that started this all...?" She asked in a small voice. Imogen nodded with a semi-clenched jaw. "Then why are we going with them?" The younger girl had now switched to their native language, a frown on her lips.


"Shush now. Let's see what's in store for us back at their safe house...The minute things go awry we can leave," She informed the younger, settling back in her seat some.

 

[MistahJ]

The fact the two girls switched back to their native language meant that clearly they were both uncomfortable, but Kristian was more than used to this kind of reaction. Cate normally shrugged it off but it bothered him far more, perhaps because he was helping out of guilt rather than the desire to find someone. Cate would stop the second she found the person she wanted to see, but he would have to keep going until their world was restored. "We aren't directly associated with the company in that way..." He defended quietly, "We worked security for them, nothing else... and now we want to people to be as safe as possible, we want to help."

 

[Memster101]

Imogen and Nika turned to look at Kristian since Cate seemed not to have any comment to their situation, and eyed him warily. "You two might have the purest intentions in the world, but that doesn't mean your employers do," Imogen replied, casting a worried glance at Nika. The younger redhead had shrunk away some from Kristian, leaning against the door some as if she could melt into it. Who was to say that the employers didn't have some wicked intentions about using the people they saved to test cures or something horrific like that? The thought made Imogen's blood run cold.


"I don't like it, but you can't help whom you work for..." She sighed eventually, leaning back into the seat. "Don't worry, Nika, I'll keep you safe." This later comment was said in Russian and she gave her sister what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

 

[MistahJ]

Despite the reaction, Kristian was glad that they now held no secrets from the girls. Imogen had raised a good point, he thought, about his intentions differing from those of Area 19. He'd often wondered that himself but his worries hadn't been enough to keep him from wanting to find survivors. Perhaps it brought comfort to him, too, knowing there were other people around to interact with.


"Are we close?" Cate asked sharply as they turned onto a dirt track, no doubt leading them away from the centre of town.

 

[Memster101]

Imogen rose a slight brow at Cate's tone of voice, resisted the urge to give the girl attitude. "Yes. It's just half a mile or so along this road," She stated, crossing her arms over her chest. Turning her gaze out the window, she started to scan for any roamers, her lips slightly pursed. Nika was doing much the same, without the annoyed expression.


After a few minutes had passed, Imogen sat up some. "Here. Take that road on the left, it'll lead us into the yard."

 

[MistahJ]

Cate nodded silently and turned the wheel to lead them onto another path, a path that after a few minutes opened up into a large gravel yard outside an old house. "We'll wait out here." She put on the brakes after pulling up outside the house and after turning off the engine climbed out. The property seemed safe enough and would better fit a bigger group of people, but she didn't want to run the risk of transporting the rest of the group just yet.


Kristian opened his door and jumped out, then raised his gun and set off around the property to check for any unwelcome occupants, just in case.

 

[Memster101]

Imogen and Nika hurried out of the car, wondering why the others stepped out as well for a moment before brushing it off. Imogen led the way into the old house, not too worried about any roamers, but always kept her hand on the butt of her gun just in case. Once she was sure it was clear, Imogen turned to Nika. "Alright, hurry up and go get some of your things. A few clothes, anything special you want to take with you, things like that. I'll worry about the weapons." The younger sister nodded before disappearing off into the house.


Imogen made off towards the room they had been sleeping in, going through the clothes where they hid the few weapons they did have. The hunting knives, a small pistol if Nika ever decided to start using a gun, ammunition. She shoved all of these into a large duffel bag along with a few changes of clothes. When she had made sure she and Nika had gotten all they needed, they headed back out to the car.

 

[MistahJ]

A group of the undead had begun gathering in the yard at the back of the house, though it appeared they hadn't realised that any humans had been staying there. The group was obviously new but it meant that there must be more around the property too, whether they were close or not. Close always meant too close and Kristian never felt comfortable with it.


He raised his gun from his position by the wall of the house that led around to the yard but Cate shook her head, "They aren't doing any harm, it's likely they won't ever know they were here. Come on." She rested her hand on his arm and pulled him back slightly, then set off back to the car when she was sure that he was following.