Realistic or Modern The Lost Days [OPEN]

[mikaluvkitties]

Welcome to Pleasantview​

Pleasantview was one of those small towns that highways always seem to run through, filled with quick places to stop and grab a bite. It's located neatly enough by a river, and often saw tourists during the Summer, if not that many.

Now, however, things have changed. The town is mostly deserted, save for the zombies, and most of the homes have been thoroughly raided by those fleeing the city an hour or two to the southwest.

It rains fairly often here, and the land is lush, surrounded by forests, and a bit higher up. Today, thankfully, it isn't raining, though it is fairly gloomy with clouds drowning out the sun.

~`*`~​

Felix didn't know how long he and Ryan had been walking. However long it was was too long, and if this were any other circumstance, Felix would have been complaining. However, this was the apocalypse- the zombie apocalypse. If he had to guess a way the world was gonna go, this wasn't it, and the extenuating circumstances made complaining feel weird. He was lucky to even be alive.

Constantly, he scanned the road the pair was travelling on for zombies, looking back to check Ryan was still with him and not dead like he by all means should have been- and not just because he was a loudmouth Felix was getting just a bit sick of. He ran a hand through his hair again, a mess he had long given up on fixing, as he again looked forward, thinking of things best forgotten, only to see a sign. He started walking faster, squinting at it.

Welcome to Pleasantview

Felix slowed as he read it, frowning at it for a moment before turning to Ryan, eyebrow quirked in silent question.

 

[Lord_Toast_Reborn]

Hunter rove in his 4x4. The goal was to be in the forest by noon. No doubt that was everybody else plan too. Occasionally some zombies would stop to try and follow. but they were too slow. The country view would be beautiful. Even more if zombies were uninvolved. But if zombies were involved. He wouldn't be here. Occasionally he would see other cars pass him. But he made sure not to be near them

He had no idea what he would do when he would run out of bullets hunting. But he decided to cross that bridge when it came to it.

However. He pulled up at the nearest shell as the gas was blinking yellow. And prayed no zombies were nearby. And the gas was still working.

 

[WillfulWren]

After the grocery store incident, Clarisse was a little sick of zombie-watching. She hadn't even gleaned any useful information from watching them interact with each other.

Still, she had dutifully scrawled a few notes in her purple notebook, before scrounging around the grocery store. One, singular zombie, easily taken out with a knife to the head - she hadn't even panicked this time! That was a first. The place had been cleared out almost completely, but a bit of digging had turned up a half empty bottle of vodka, clutched in the hand of a heavily decomposed corpse with his brains blown out. She checked the gun - empty - and slipped the bottle into her backpack. The corpse looked judgemental, and she frowned at him.

"We can't all take the easy way out, you know." She said, nonchalantly checking his pockets. Spare change and cigarettes. The cigarettes went in her pocket.

What would her science professor think of her now, standing in an empty grocery store splattered in blood that was not her own and talking to a corpse?
Well, her science professor had died - she had taken down his shambling corpse herself - so it didn't matter.


Now, she was heading out of town, back towards the woods - then she saw movement up ahead, by the sign - "Welcome to Pleasantview" it read, and she had scraped off the population number upon entering the town. Someone else had drawn the smiley face, the only proof she had of someone else hanging around the town.
Her hand went to the knife tucked into her waistband, then stilled as she noted the way the pair moved. Not slow and shambling. The first living people she had seen in over a week. Jogging forward and holding up a hand to show that she was human. "Hey!" She called, attempting to be friendly so she could find out what they had, and how they could be useful.
mikaluvkitties

 

[Dede]

Ryan could have gone around the traffic barriers like a normal person. Instead he climbed over them. He could have walked round the puddles. Instead he splashed his way through like it was a feature at a water park.

‘Hey, Felix. How do you throw a space party?’

The scrawny boy with the light-brown hair bent down and picked up a stick, and started poking at his friend's back.

‘You planet,’ he said.

They came across a junction. There was a rusty fence zoning off a small farmhouse on their left. He dragged the stick along the chain link. Then he got bored and threw the stick over the fence and watched it land in the overgrown grass on the other side.

‘What do you call a sheep with no legs?’

He kicked the fence for no reason and it rattled. A bird flew from the nearby tree. Then he chased after Felix, picked up another stick, and poked him again.

‘A cloud.’

Ryan pulled his backpack to his front and started looking inside. He pulled out a Mars bar and nibbled on it. He wasn't paying attention to the road and walked straight into Felix’s back, and the sticky chocolate went up his nose. ‘Ow! Why’d you stop?’

They were at a sign that said ‘Welcome to Pleasantview’. Ryan ran the stick along the bold letters, tracing each alphabet with good care and precision.

‘Maybe there’ll be food here. There ought to be right? I’m tired, Felix. Maybe we can bunk down for a night. . . What do you think?’

He went into his bag again and pulled out a sharpie from the front pocket. Then he drew a smiley face on the sign. Ryan had a good feeling about this place. But then again, Ryan had a good feeling about pretty much everything.

 

[Lord_Toast_Reborn]

The gas station was unfruitful but not disappointing. Hunter emptied the can into his car and siphoned the other cars around including the small remnants of the pumps to fill the can back up again. He supposed the car owners wouldn't mind.

He entered the kiosk in hope of searching for food. there. But he was not the only one.

He was pursued by the 2. He didn't make time to examine them but it was clear that they were a husband and wife. He turned left and ran until he came near the fire extinguishers. Never before has fire training felt so helpful to him.

He released a burst of foam into their eyes. And used blunt trauma to do the rest. They didn't remember how to rub their eyes. Good thing he couldn't see their faces this time.

He looted 8 candy bars 4 packs of chips a bottle of Lucozade and 2 cans of Coke. Before heading back to the car.

 

[Rock And Roll Boy]

"Out here in the open... better out here than back in the city" Stephanie muttered to herself, walking down close to the lush river. The sound of the water flowing made her relax, Stephanie now able to stop shaking. She was tempted to go back to her, now, broken down car but onwards would be better. Now only having her backpack, the lone teenager continued to stroll down the river. She couldn't really go much faster due to her heels. Only in times like these.

Seeing a sign on the horizon, it read:

Welcome to Pleasantview

Knowing that safety could be afoot, Stephanie sighed as her feet hurt due to her heels. Plus, she needed to catch her bearings.

Beside the river, Stephanie slid her heels off, setting them aside. Her backpack now beside her heels, Stephanie had a row of chocolate and a few sips of her water. Taking off her glasses, setting them by her backpack, she knelt in front of the river, splashing the water onto her face.

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Felix sighed, just occasionally watching Ryan and his shenanigans. If you asked Felix, the pair was only alive through sheer dumb luck. He could have left Ryan behind, and maybe that would’ve been smarter, but… Ryan was his friend, and before all this, he had enjoyed his company greatly- the way he filled the silence Felix usually let sit. Now, however, the silence was best let be, lest they draw anything of concern to their location.

Of course, that didn’t seem to stop Ryan from talking, and, more annoyingly, poking Felix with a stick. He was tempted to bat at it, but that might just encourage him. Of course, his lack of response hadn’t seemed to do anything either way yet. He drummed the fingers of his free hand against his leg.

Felix pointed at the sign, sighing again as Ryan traced the letters- out of exasperation or something else, it was anybody’s guess.

He shrugged when asked if there would be food- How could he know? It had been a couple of months already, and it was getting harder to come by food. He remembered the fruit trees that grew in his backyard, and wondered if maybe it would have been smarter to stay. Fruit wasn’t enough to live off of, but it would probably better than what the pair would have…

He watched Ryan draw the smiley face, and realized how exhausted he was, even unwilling to complain. He thought about how nice it would be to sleep in a bed again, and, finally, nodded, and was about to vocalize this opinion when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

He changed his grip on the bat, about to lift it when he saw the hand. There was a hand up. This was another human. Shit. For a second, he hesitated, unsure. Then, he looked at Ryan again. This wasn’t just about him. Shoulders hunched, Felix kept himself ready to move if things got nasty.

Dede WillfulWren

 

[Dede]

Ryan would have rated his own drawing 10 out of 10 if he could. The smiley face had vastly improved the sign, and this town, which had been in no way ‘pleasant’ apart from the name. As for the so-called ‘view’ of Pleasantview, everything was damp and dark, and gloomy and grey. The air itself reeked of mud and manure, with the occasional hint of the undead. Every tree looked the same as the one before and the endless woods bored him to death.

He wondered how many people lived here before the world ended. Someone had scraped the population number off the sign, leaving only faint digits for him to guess from. He guessed: one thousand, five hundred and ninety three, give or take.

'I call dibs on the next master bedroom,' he said.

Ryan shouldered his backpack again, and for the first time since morning he paced ahead of his friend. Felix hadn’t spoken in a while and Ryan figured he was getting tired from the long walk. Ryan had been trying to enliven him with jokes, checking on him with the occasional poke, but it only seemed to make things worse.

He liked it better when Felix wasn’t so quiet. He wanted to go home, but Felix wouldn't let him. They had to keep moving, he said. It wasn't safe for them to go back.

A cold breeze brushed against his pale skin wherever it was exposed. His shoe laces had come loose from all the hopping and jogging he did, so he got down to pull his socks and tie the knot. While he was kneeling, Ryan bent and placed his ear against the cold tarmac and listened to the earth. No reason. He just did it.

There was a spirit that moved in the earth, where it slept, and breathed, and gave blossom to all the flowers and the trees. It said:

‘Hey!’

The boy got a good fright and plopped harshly on his backside.

When he got up again dusting his pants, he saw that Felix was alert, like he’d seen a ghost. By instinct, Ryan went and stood by older friend’s side for protection, standing close enough to him for them to be mistaken for conjoined twins. In front of them was a stranger with her hand raised. And for the first time since they started walking today, Ryan was silent.


mikaluvkitties WillfulWren

 

[BloodThunder27]

Victoria - Grocery Store (Manager's Office)
Upon waking up, Victoria stretched her arms as she continued to lay sprawled out on the couch in what used to be the Manager's Office in a deserted grocery store. Looking down at her belly, she frowned, wondering how her sisters were doing. She did know that they were in town, but where were they? When the outbreak first started, they were all separated. Running her fingers down her pink hair, she slowly stood up. "I really chose the worst time to get knocked up." She said before straightening out her bloodied dress. Slipping on her cardigan and grabbing her crowbar, she opened the door and slowly made her exit and into the eerily empty grocery store that was also completely looted. She heard some growling noises, so the young mother proceeded to investigate the isles, before finding a zombie munching on a severed...hand that seemed forcibly removed from its previous owner. It had its back to her and didn't seem to notice her. Quietly, she waddled up behind the creature, before swinging her crowbar to the back of its head as head she could. She cringed at the sickening crack as the skull caved it. She would strike it again and the zombie fell to the floor dead. She then walked right passed it and towards the front door. To her luck, the parking lot was empty. Clutching her crowbar close, Victoria proceeded to walk out towards the street where there were abandoned cars.

Vivian - Hospital (Room On Top Floor)
In the eerily quiet hospital, young mother-to-be Vivian Tran would wake up in a Hospital bed, flat on her back. As she sat up, she felt her stomach on her legs. Feeling kind of strange, she would then tear off the blanket to see her huge pregnant belly. "Wow, I'm huge." She said before swinging her legs off the hospital bed. The last thing Vivian remembered was passing out during a party. How long had she been asleep? How long had she been in the hospital? Taking the Hospital gown off, she proceeded to put on her pink dress that she had worn last before grabbing her messenger bag on the coffee table. Most of all, where was everyone? As she peaked out of her hospital room. She took note that one of the doors had been barricaded and that there were several rotting corpses all across the floors. What the hell happened while she was out cold. Reaching into her messenger bag, Vivian pulled out a long socket wrench. Clutching it close and straightening out her hair, Vivian opened the door, where she was startled by a collapsing light. "Whoa...that was close." As she proceeded down the hall, she saw a shadow of someone just walking around. She was then greeted by a...Zombie! In a panic, she swung her wrench at the Zombie's jaw, causing blood to splatter onto her dress. "What the fuck is going on...?" She asked, shaking a little. Slowly proceeding to the stairs, Vivian took it step by step. She then put her Socket Wrench away and held onto the railing to keep her balance. By the time she made it to the third flight of stairs, she felt exhausted and just sat down against the wall, holding her belly as she panted in exhaustion. "Okay, maybe I should have...taken the elevator..."

Valerie - Motel (4th Floor Room)
From inside her motel, heavily pregnant mother Valerie just relaxed in her bed. She had a bit of food left, and some water. With the current situation though, it was just too dangerous to be wandering around. So she had to seek refuge. However, her Rifle was out of ammo and she only had seven rounds left for her pistol. While resting in bed, Valerie just caressed her belly, but wondered where her two sisters were. She knew that Vivian was in the Hospital, but...Where was Victoria? With phones down and no way to contact anyone, Valerie was pretty much a sitting duck. While resting in bed, she began staring at the ceiling, worried about her sisters, who were also pregnant like she was. Not to mention they were all in the same stage and...coincidentally all had the same due date. If anything, Valerie blamed the simultaneous pregnancies on the fact that they were all at the same party...and partied really hard.

 

[Rock And Roll Boy]

Washing her face, the late teenager covered her mouth as she heard footsteps from nearby. Sneaking back to her equipment, Stephanie froze and squinted at where she thought the noise was coming from, risking reaching for her glasses and knife. Slipping them on, her knife in hand, she spotted a small cluster of zombies heading right for her. Sure, they couldn't walk that fast, but Stephanie's backpack would weigh her down a little. Hoisting it onto her shoulder, Stephanie skirted around the horde and towards Pleasantview.

 

[Doaheem]

Gary Paulson - 43 - Top Cut Butcher's Shop - North Side of Town

The world as louder now. The eerie quiet of the town that seemed to fill every alleyway when Gary first entered was routinely broken by scraping, chain link rattling, distant sounds that echoed through the town. By the time they reached the older man's ears, they were so distorted that he had no way of pinpointing its origin. There were other people here... maybe it was just his imagination but Gary thought for certain he heard an engine and car door but it was probably nothing. He had evaded the undead on the way into town but cursed his luck and subsequent loss of all supplies in the middle of the street. He had gotten into what looked like the Employee headquarters and it seemed quiet for the moment. The door was metallic and secure against the outside but without any windows, he couldn't see how many undead had followed him.

He also couldn't see what was inside with him as it was pitch black. He froze perfectly still, his eyes instinctively bulged and darted around trying to consume any form of visual stimuli to effect so he was forced to rely on his ears. A scrape, a groan, the shuffling of feet, even dripping would have been beneficial but all he could make out now was the muffled groans of the small horde that followed him fruitlessly and the ragged wheezing coming from his own throat. That was a good sign for him, well the first part was.

"Damn it all... damn nicotine, damn cigarettes... damn I could use a smoke..."

What wasn't a good sign was the smell of rotten flesh, not like the undead but like a decaying thing. At risk to drawing attention, he pulled out the large Maglite he carried and clicked it to life and pale light poured into the room illuminating a corpse that looked as though its head had exploded from impact... likely slammed in the metal door, definitely dead. It happened a while ago too judging by the dried crimson left behind.

Gary quickly checked the body but it was already looted of anything valuable and he moved quietly through the doorway to figure out what store he'd run into as he couldn't tell from the front. There was no one here but there definitely had been and there was nothing of value left. The teacher moved towards a wooden door that was faintly cracked open and the stench that struck him was horrific and he immediately doubled over and retched on the ground. What little food he'd carried was now splattered on his boots. It was rotten meat but it smelled like a mass grave. He couldn't risk going through there the smell would be too much.

The older man retreated back to the employee lounge and took a long drink on his canteen to wash out the taste of bile and to try to replace some of what he'd just vomited. There had to be another door out.

 

[Lord_Toast_Reborn]

Welcome to Pleasantview

A good sign Hunter was going in the right direction. The GPS machine broke

However he was running low on gas again. He emptied the jerrycan into the tank.

Whilst outside, he noted a smiley face drew in sharpie on it.

"Never saw that before, Though afterwards it might be hazy, Wonder what kind of person would draw that in this time."

He didn't want to but he had to. He had to enter a city in an apocalypse. "Who knows what kind of assholes will be in there" He thought. "Living and dead." He saw the dot on the horizon drawing nearer. Till he could make out the shape the cell tower had stopped flashing. Maybe a similar thing happened with the GPS which is why it wouldn't be working. "I can't lose faith in humanity that quickly, Not everyone is a self centered prick. He noted the lack of zombies however. And decided the city can wait. He had a meal fit for a king of cold beans and peaches with a bottle of water. And drove the car under a tree. He read his book until he became tired. He soon grew exhausted. Put it down. And fell to sleep.

 

[Hoax]

Lauren Holmes - 17 - Field just outside town, north side
​

God, Lauren was tired.

She did not feel like a dancing queen, young and sweet and only seventeen. She felt like a sleep deprived PTA mom cursed to forever search for her lost kids in a mall. She was late for soccer practice. The bake sale cookies were burnt. Susan would never let her live it down.

Frickin’ Susan. And her stupid, overly aggressive jock kid Chadrickson. Chadrickson, really? How white can you get?

A rock leapt from the ground and into Lauren’s shoe, as if to force her spiraling to stop. She ignored it. It stabbed through her sock. She huffed and stopped walking, yanking her boot off and giving it shake vigorous enough to knock her over. Out tumbled the rock, as well as a week’s worth of dust and boot-lint. Lauren made a face and pulled the now empty item back on, retying the laces with as much skill as her cold hands could muster.

Mood softened somewhat, she gave herself a moment to breathe. The field she sat in was almost peaceful-- deep green grass, a smattering of wildflowers, some stray trees that clearly didn’t get the ‘empty field’ memo. Beautiful. Would’ve been even nicer without the threat of infected around every shrub and pine, but beggars can’t be choosers.

Unfortunately it was also damp, being spring and all, and now Lauren’s butt was wet and her legs were wet and the hem of her shirt was wet. She groaned, barreling ever closer to what she knew would be a stupid, reckless future decision. Think about the flowers, think about the flowers…

Heaving back up to standing, the teenager wiped herself off halfheartedly before resuming her trek. If she didn’t find a place to hole up for the night before dark it would be another sleepless night, and as young as she was her body couldn’t take much more of them.

 

[cosowarrior]

Sam Hewitt - 20 - Pleasantview

Over the past few months, Sam had experienced his fair share of close encounters. But nothing quite as peculiar as this.
He had arrived at Pleasantview some hours before, wary at first, but desperate enough to take the risks that came with traveling through an unfamiliar town. He was in search of supplies. He found nothing among the unguarded houses that hadn't already been raided, but there was still plenty to discover. The remnants of death lingered throughout the streets. He came across several bodies, slumped over an nearly headless, as he wandered deeper into the heart of town. Nothing moving, though, and certainly nothing alive.

That is, until he reached the town's shopping district. Sam had only let his guard down for a moment when, suddenly, as he walked between a couple of shuttered-up buildings and turned a corner, he found himself face to face with the undead. Not just one. A whole herd of them. He instantly recoiled against the wall, presumably out of sight, and held his breath. He heard the zombies growl, heard their feet drag across the ground in that eerie stagger of theirs. But, to his surprise, as he strained to listen above the pounding of his own heart, he heard their steps recede, not approach. He listened more carefully, and when he was sure he heard correctly, Sam peered back around the corner. Indeed, the zombies were all moving as a pack in the other direction, not the least bit interested in him. They were tracking something else, it seemed.

Sam released his breath in a quiet sigh of relief. But the feeling was short-lived. As glad as he was that the zombies weren't after him, he couldn't help but worry. The only time he'd ever seen this kind of behavior was when they were tracking prey. Which meant, perhaps, he wasn't the only living person here. And whoever they were tracking... If there was another person, he couldn't leave them to be eaten. At the very least, he could try to get a closer look at the situation.

So, Sam followed the hoard at a distance. He was far enough away that, should the zombies notice him, he was beyond their reach, and they would have no hope in catching up with him if he turned and ran. But he was close enough to tell where they were heading. They seemed focused on one of the shops ahead, one that hadn't been boarded up. The ideal place for a traveler looking to stock up on supplies.

 

[BloodThunder27]

Victoria - Streets
As she finally made it outside, Victoria saw no signs of imminent danger. She then slipped the crowbar into her rucksack, but ensured that she could reach it at a moment's notice. Walking into the streets, she started navigating through the path of abandoned cars, which went on for miles and miles. She then saw a man as she turned onto another block which was leading her into the heart of town. Looking down the block, she saw a what looked like another living human. Seeing a few of the Zombies inside the stores nearby, she pulled her Crowbar out again. "Hello?" She called out, clutching her Crowbar close.
cosowarrior

Vivian - Outside (Hospital Front Door)
After catching her breath, Vivian got back up to her feet. Still having her Socket Wrench out, she clutched it close. She could hear footsteps while inside the stairwell, she steered clear of the doors and continue descending until she reached the ground floor and by then she was really out of breath. Placing one hand on her back, she took a few deep breaths as she looked down at her belly. "God I'm out of shape." She sighed before exiting the stairwell into the lobby. There was blood everywhere and she could only assume there was a scene of great carnage here. Quietly, she exited the hospital. Now out on the street, she wondered where to go next.

 

[WillfulWren]

Eyes the colour of amethysts widened as the college student realised how old the boy holding up that baseball bat was. He couldn't have been older than sixteen, probably less, and she couldn't stop the soft curse that slipped out. "You're... Shit, you're little kids!" Clarisse slipped the knife that had been clutched in her hand into the waistband of her black joggers, before pushing silvery blonde hair aout of her eyes and holding out her hand to the boy on the ground.

"I'm sorry if I startled you, I was just surprised to see other people wandering around - I thought everyone around here had been wiped out by the..." She wrinkled her nose, disliking the term she was about to utter - too steeped in myth for her liking. "Zombies."

She really needed to give them a better name.
mikaluvkitties Dede

 

[mikaluvkitties]

Felix moved in front of Ryan protectively, mouth a flat line that just barely twitched down as this newcomer called him a little kid, as if he hadn't seen more than his fair share of violence. Who did she think she was, coming over to them with no invitation, chatting them up as if they were safe? He wanted to glance away, to see if they were perhaps being slowly encircled by zombies, or perhaps other people, but he couldn't, eyes instead glued to the woman in front of him.

He fought the urge to say he was fifteen, not a little kid, and instead asked, curt, "W...w-ho are you?"

Dede WillfulWren

 

[WillfulWren]

"Who am I? Do things like names really matter in these hectic times?" Clarisse purred, then shook her head.

"I'm joking, obviously. My name's Clarisse Laxei." Said by stressing the La and saying the Xei so it rhymed with day or say.

Feeling somewhat uncomfortable with how the older of the two boys was looking at her, she averted her gaze to the one on the ground.
"So... What are your names? Now that I've told you mine, it's only fair."
Dede mikaluvkitties

 

[Dede]

Ryan studied the stranger cautiously. She had a knife in her hand, which she then slipped into her waistband. Felix had bravely moved ahead of him, closing the distance between them and the blond-haired stranger.

But Felix was stammering. He was no good at talking. That was Ryan’s job most of the time. So Ryan stepped up and the boys were side by side again. He put on the punkiest look of which he was capable, and said:

‘Look, we ain’t gotta tell you nuffin’. How do we know you’re not lying? Laxei isn’t even a proper name. It’s pretty stupid if you asked me.’

He held out his twig as though it were a viable weapon.

‘And we’re no little kids. Felix is fifteen, and I’m thirteen.’

He announced their ages with a lot of pride; he accidentally gave up Felix’s name too. What he said wasn't entirely true. Ryan was still technically twelve, and he wouldn't be thirteen for another two weeks. Of course, the stranger didn’t need to know that.

‘Well you better leave us alone, cos we ain’t givin’ you no trouble. We found this place fair and square, and what we do is none of your business!’

Both boys could surely remember what happened when they last trusted a stranger. They were gullible then but they weren't planning on making the same mistake twice. Ryan made sure he sounded like he meant business. This stranger had better start listening to him if she didn’t want to be prodded to death -- with a stick.

mikaluvkitties WillfulWren

 

[cosowarrior]

Sam Hewitt - Pleasantview Shopping District (Streets)

The sudden sound of a voice from behind nearly made Sam jump out of his skin. He swung around, amber eyes wide with surprise and fear. He did not expect to find a woman standing there, starting back, looking just as on edge as he was.

But the sight came as no relief. Sam shot a look back over his shoulder and realized that by calling out to him, the woman had attracted the attention of some of the zombies he was following. Those at the back of the hoard turned. Their lifeless eyes fell on the two humans. It was far too late to urge her to be quiet.

Sam let it something between a sigh and an irritated groan. Luckily, they were far enough away to make an easy escape. At least, that's what Sam thought. But as he jogged toward the woman, his jaw nearly dropped at the sight of her. She was pregnant. VERY pregnant. That complicated things.

"Where did you come from?" He asked quickly and quietly. He didn't want to attract even more of them if he could help it. "Is there somewhere safe nearby that we could go?"

BloodThunder27

 

[Hoax]

Lauren Holmes - Alleyway, north side​

It didn’t take long to make it the rest of the way to town. A few dead off in the distance were Lauren’s only real obstacle, and it only took slowing down and shuffling a bit to evade their notice. Felix had never been good at that. Always thought it was too embarrassing…

Town itself would prove a much bigger danger, however. Lauren knew it was stupid to go in alone-- high concentration of people meant high concentration of infected. The risk of getting cornered by a horde was… Large. But if there was anyone alive, anyone at all, there was a chance one of them had seen her brother. Lauren couldn’t pass up the chance.

Right, ‘cause that had worked out so well for her this far…

Freeing her rifle from her pack, the teenager climbed over a road barrier and slipped into an alleyway. Within seconds an awful smell hit her nose and she froze-- it wasn’t just alley trash, it was bad. Really bad. Bad enough to make her stop dead, legs locking up for a moment. She exhaled, bringing an arm up to cover her mouth and nose before trying to breathe again. Better, but still bad. Workable. She let herself have one good shudder before pressing on, not about to be beaten by an open window to Satan's personal rotting flesh collection.

 

[Doaheem]

Gary Paulson - 43 - Street adjacent to Top Cut Butcher Shop - Horde just west of shop - North Side of Town

The smell seemed to grow worse, it felt as if wrapped about Gary like a diseased blanket, smothering him with its revolting odor. He felt as though he could taste it, feel it crawling along his skin. He felt an undeniable compulsion to leave that he couldn't resist. He couldn't risk going back out the way he came, that route was still filled with the infected, it seemed his only route was to brave the stench and exit the front. With a deep breath, the teacher pushed forward, through the putrid portal.

When the door opened it was still oppressively dark and his Maglite was his only weapon against it but in the distance, the faint glow of sunlight crept in showing him the way. He tried not to look about him for fear of seeing the decaying meat, covered in things he didn't want to consider. A thunderous buzzing surrounded him as black dots filled the room and what seemed like thousands of flies took to the air, disturbed by his presence. The buzzing was disorienting and he forced himself to just keep walking as the outside light grew near. At once he saw the door and without really considering the consequences he hurled himself at it, desperate for fresh air.

The door violently swung open and he collapsing onto one knee on the sidewalk and Gary's chest heaved as he gulped down air with a wheeze and several coughs, it still stank awfully but it wasn't nearly as miserable as it was in that building. After a moment, the older teacher struggled to his feet and looked around, rifle up. He seemed to be safe but down the road, there was a single figure and in instinct he turned to face it, rifle ready but not aiming. His vision was blurry from coughing but after it focused he realized...

"A goddamn kid!"

He was so floored to see what looked like a child to him, not only alive but alone and holding a rifle... that was definitely pointed at him... shit.

As he spoke he took his left hand off the rifle stock and put it up into the air. She had him dead to rights. He whispered loudly "Hey-ey-hey! Not a threat! Not a threat just.... awful in there. Please... just getting by."

*Edited for location*

 

[Rock And Roll Boy]

Stephanie skirted round the town and back through some alleyways, knife still in hand. Barely any signs of undead here, thank goodness. Continuing through the alleyways, tying up her hair into a ponytail, sounds of familiarity hit her.

I was doing so well.

Slipping into one of the empty houses, through a hole in the wall; the walls showing signs of deterioration, Stephanie hid in the closest thing she could. A closet. Leaving her backpack beside the door, unable to fit with it on, Stephanie held her breath as she heard the zombies try and climb in through the hole. Opening the doors a crack, Stephanie shifted one of the clothes in the closet; a feather boa, the item pressing against her nostrils. The zombies were right beside the closet; Stephanie couldn't afford to make any sudden moves or noise.

Stephanie's nostrils quivered and tickled as the boa pressed into her nose, the soft feather tips tickling every spot.

Shit, shit, shit. I'm gonna sneeze.

 

[BloodThunder27]

Victoria - Shopping District (Streets)
The young mother continued to clutch her Crowbar close as the other person, thankfully a living human being. As he got close enough, she became a little more relaxed, but couldn't help but notice him staring at her swollen belly. "I came out of that Grocery Store a couple of Blocks from here...why?"

As soon as she looked over his shoulder, she saw a mob of undead hobbling towards them. Luckily for them both, the Zombies were stupid and slow. When asked if there was a place for them to hide, she nodded. "Yeah there's a furniture gallery a few blocks from here." cosowarrior

 

[Hoax]

Lauren Holmes | North side, butcher's shop

Doaheem


Lauren persevered through to the street, taking a relieved breath as soon as she was free from the alley. The area was surprisingly clear, but she had a feeling too much noise would draw every infected in a mile radius out of their nooks and crannies. She’d need to be quiet.

As if on cue, a door burst open to her right. Lauren whirled around, rifle raised out of habit, as a large figure spilled out into the light. At first glance she thought it was one of them, heaving and spluttering on the ground, but as it got to it’s feet she realized it was armed. Dead don’t carry guns.

“I- who are you?” Lauren called quietly back, hoping the stranger couldn’t see her hands shaking from where he stood. If it came down to it she was prepared to shoot, but... She'd gotten this far without having to, and the man seemed truthful as far as she could tell. Please don't be lying please don't be lying-

She let the gun in her hands lower.