☢ ↓┆ʟᴀsᴛ ᴏғ ᴏᴜʀ ʜᴏᴘᴇ [open/acc.]

[Prannke]

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xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx↳xxxTHE HACKERxxxx▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
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xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx↳xxxTHE HARCKExxxx▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒
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xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxIt xxxxxxxxxxxxxIt seems you're having some trouble In dealing with these changes Living with these changes (oh no) The world is a scary place Now that you've woken up the demon in me
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Jun was busy thinking about finding a decent battery for the satellight phone when he heard a thump coming from the kitchen area. "Great, who would be clumbsy enough to spill everything!" he thought, his gray eyes scaning the area. He wanted to chastize the person who made the noise and possibly wasted supplies but a familiar smell entered his nostrils. Once someone knew what rotting flesh smelled like, it never left, always recognizable. This was no body that had been sitting for days though, this was putrid, and coming closer.
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Click. Click. Click He could hear the sound of the dead clicking their teeth together, using echolocation to look for prey. For a moment he thought that everyone was there and they could make a run for it without spilling too much blood. As quietly as he could, he took one of the pistols from his bag and made sure it ws cocked and loaded. There was not much and he knew that these things could be fast, fast enough to disarm them if the gun jammed. He caught a sight of Avery amogst the bodies on the food court, the soles of his shoes making a light sucking noise as he stepped in the blood. When he saw them though his heart skipped a beat
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They had seemed to have mutated beyond the need for human feautures such as eyes or noses and atop their head looked like a blooming flower from hell made if flesh. Jun saw Avery and ducked down, staying close to the floor as he made his way to her with the pistol in front of him. The noise could attact more of them but he had to make sure that the resident bookworm was alright, after all, she could be the key to this whole thing. By the time he made it to her he felt like the smell from the bodies would make him sick but he mangaged to fight back bile. not even wanting to use his quietest voice, he looked over to her and pointed at the creatures and to old wound on her hand, wanting to see if she was alright.

[sadistic yandere]

Breaking from the group is usually one of the first things you never do, during post apocalyptic scenarios. Joanna was aware of this, even if it were deep down, but she also knew she could handle herself. Many of the others seemed to be under that impression as well, rightly so, she might add. Not saying many of them weren't capable of lone-wolfing, Anna just had the appropriate training! Plus no one else seemed to be in a hurry to gather the laggards.

As she strode towards another side of the mall, where she last saw Ellery headed, Anna found herself clutching a banjo she found three days ago. It was a little tattered and used; she found it in the dorm of a redneck kid she had seen around the campus a time or two. While she didn't know many she did know a few songs, and it was something to fight away the numbing silence.

Strumming the strings took a second to figure in the dark, but eventually her fingers danced on the strings and rolled out a quick paced tune from a popular foreign band that used the instrument in a number of their songs. It made them different or, something, but either way she rolled out doing that while softly attempting to sing some of the words. Her voice was shaky and soon it made her throat sore. Not enough practice with Elle, yet, the tomboy thought as she walked into one of the stores where she saw the moving light of a flashlight.

"We're moving on, Elle," Anna called as she moved into a slower part of the song. The younger girl had been collecting things, whatever it was she didn't really care (and / or couldn't see due to lack of light). Though before they finally moved out and headed towards the food court (where presumably the others were headed), the brunette peaked behind the front counter and looked in the back, just inside of the door. If a shop keeper was going to keep any weapons handy, it'd be in those places - she assumed. Unfortunately there was no gun, but there were four hunting knives (for whatever reason, but most certainly wouldn't judge now) and shot gun shells. If they ever stumbled upon one, at least they'd have a carton of amo. Two knives she handed to Ellery and told her to keep one in either pocket. If push came to shove, being two handed could be useful; and she did the same.

The girls made their way back and Joanna finally finished the song she had been playing. Silence again, though the two girls talked quietly among themselves. The banjo was nestled in the back netting on her backpack and the two girls had flashlights out. All would have been calm and cool if it hadn't been for a random scream to break the calm demeanor of the building. "s**t," the girl cursed under her breath and stopped suddenly. What did it mean? Did someone get hurt? Or did they encounter something horrible? Without saying much else Joanna started at a jog to make sure Ellery could keep up and then slowly quickened her pace. They passed by the base they'd established and briskly made their way to the food court - which was a right bloody mess.

Most people were scattered, because she didn't really see anyone for a minute, but a few animated bodies were dragging themselves closer to her - as the jogging had caused their feet to echo on the cold surfaces. "Wonder where everyone is... Elle get something ready, I'm going to draw some out," her voice was calm but in the dim light of the court a smile spread across pale lips. Joanna lifted the banjo up and over her head and reconfigured the strings and started playing the same song as earlier. Looking out at the moving dead, their heads turned towards the sound at an alarming rate. Her heart started pumping faster and harder, and a small giggle bubbled up her throat and escaped. More people were heard further inside the food court, more than Joanna cared to go in without killing the ones who came out towards the entrance.

The closest came shuffling towards them and then started to move faster. Inside Joanna was building up energy. This was the best roller coaster ride she could have ever been on - really. The others must have thought she was odd for this but, the only real alternative was to be so scared of the damned things. [******** that,"
she cried aloud as the zombie came within batting distance. Her fingers stopped strumming and clutched the shaft of the instrument, swinging with all of her might into the poor soul's semi-decayed cranium. Blood and brain splattered in an almost complete 360. Joanna had finally christened her banjo and it was also over her face. Blood dripped down before she could wipe some off. The next walker came close and took a blow to the neck (which was already nearly gone, bone and tendons were visible), decapitating the once beautiful lady. The body in response to having its head being severed resulted in a a slight spasm before growing still finally. The spasm had caused the tomboy to cackle and double over for a second, pointing at it. She couldn't see the look Ellery was probably giving her but Anna just shrugged and turned back at the last one coming their way, "If you can't have fun surviving, then what's the point in doing it anyway." Joanna liked to invision her brother and father also enjoying beating the bloody hell out of these monsters. It made the awkwardness seem a little more bearable.



ooc

so i wrote this assuming either everyone had already dived into that s**t or
there are two separate 'entrances' to the food court. usually there are. idk u vu if you want me
to fix something just let me know via ooc , thanks!

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[LyriumOverdose]

Ｄ ☆ Ｕ Ｇ Ｈ Ｔ Ｅ Ｒ Ｓ ❀F 『D｡A｡R｡K｡N｡E｡S｡S』
xxxxxxx▶ ▷ XXXXXXXXSISTERS I N S A N E↻
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX✖✖A LITTLE ☣《EVIL》☣
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXGOES Axxxxx Ｌ - Ｏ - Ｎ - Ｇ,xxxxx Ｌ - Ｏ - Ｎ - Ｇ WAY✖✖
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xxxxxxxxxxxx NO xxxWE'RE ☩NOT☩ AFRAID ↗ ↙
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxWE'LL LIVE FOREVER
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxＤ ☆ Ｕ Ｇ Ｈ Ｔ Ｅ Ｒ Ｓ ❀F 『D｡A｡R｡K｡N｡E｡S｡S』♔


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“What a load of absolute s**t,” the goth thought to herself whilst observing the misfit bunch of idiots that she had been forced to deal with during the apocalypse. It was far from the barren wasteland zombie fics that she had always dreamed would happen to her. There wasn’t a great team of survivors who got on and laughed their way as they blasted their way through an army of zombies- letting their flesh and bone spray wildly across the landscape. Instead she was stuck here with these idiots - of which one was bitten and was as squeamish as a little girl- who seemed as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Seriously, if Ivory had actually finished her degree four years ago instead of quitting to help out her twin sister maybe she would have actually been with her family rather than this bunch of children. MAybe she would have at least become a zombie if she hadn’t restarted- meaning she could actually kill these idiots. Regardless of her damned current situation, the goth had somehow survived thus far and was actually lucky in the fact that she hadn’t yet become zombie food.

“Ugh,” Ivory sighed under her breath as Ethan- a musician of which she had never gotten along with from his d**k-head personality to the fact that his brain resided in the former- decided to pipe in on her deity worship conversation with Avery. “ Have you never read the studies of Dr Stephen Post and his theories on being a good person? Studies show that being a good person directly correlates with good luck and good things happening to you and just in case you didn’t know, being pious is nearly always related with being a good person,” she sneered. Ivory was almost tempted to bring out the Scream rules to how to survive a horror- seeing these as the closest rules to their situation behind the zombie rules from Zombieland- but was instead stopped in her tracks by Ethan responding to her previous tea party comment.

Just as miss Mayfair was just about to attempt to rip Ethan a new one - mainly by insinuating where he could stick his blasted guitar- when Rowan spoke up about how stupid the bickering filling the mall actually was. As much as the idea of actually trying to get along with the egotistical musician made Ivory’s skin crawl, Rowan was actually right in this blasted situation. Being childish by arguing was going to get the group nowhere and as tantalising as the idea of verbally throwing Ethan to the zombies was, if it actually happened, the situation would probably summit with Ethan literally biting her in the a**. Electing that to be an awful idea, Ivory simply raised her middle finger at the musician and paired it with a sarcastic smile.

It was then that yet another kid- seriously, was she the oldest here?- joined the group. The newest member of the groups seemed familiar for some unknown reason but Ivory decided to ignore this and instead moved on to actually listening to him. After mentioning that he’d found a satellite phone in the camping section, Ivory let out a smile and responded, “There’s another in the phone store just over there. Not that they’re going to be much use in here I guess.” It was then that the group finally decided to take the plunge to actually go to the food court rather than sit around twiddling their thumbs.

The vile smell of rotting flesh festered through Ivory’s nostrils as she stalked just moments behind Avery- her being armed with a pair of knitting needles that she had previously been using to knit a scarf. Ivory had smelt better things in her niece’s nappies and that was saying something. “This ******** stinks,” she muttered under her breath as the group drew closer to inside the kitchen.

It happened all at once. The doors swung open and Avery- the bookworm who seemed unable to hurt a fly- ended up with her shoe covered in brains and crushed skull with a nice garnish of pureed eyeballs. It was less than a beautiful sight but one that would actually give Ivory some confidence in the infected girl. Holding her left hand on Avery’s shoulder as she drew closer, she whispered, “ Good job - I’m actually a lit-”

Three zombies burst through the door; their bodies ripe with the infection coursing through their now torn and withered veins. All at once the smell ripped through Ivory’s nostrils- burning any hair that it could grab on its way into her system. After letting out a small cough, the goth let off a little smile as she drew back with the chopstick that resonated in her left hand. “Well, this is going to be a lot of fun,” she jeered before pulling back and launching the needle through the air. Initially, Ivory’s intention was to fling the needle so that it slammed straight through the zombie’s remaining eye- rendering its vision useless- but instead only succeeded in hitting the undead beast in its chest with the flat end.

“Balls”
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[kouhai pls]

The group was gathering more, they were still missing a few but she wasn't worried. They would show up and so far everything was going good. The mall seemed pretty quiet and dead-too soon for jokes. That didn't mean it was safe, there would always be no way to tell. As Joanna came she left just as quick announcing that she was going to go find Ellery, for a few seconds she thought about going with to look. Until she scanned the forming group that was already here, best she stayed here to watch the rest of the group members with each other. It wasn't like they had to or were going to listen to anything she said but she'd do her best to make it so they did if the time ever called for it. Besides looking towards Avery she seemed a little relieved and less on edge after she spoke up for her. When her gun question was finally asked, she felt no shame in the fact, hey some people had better opportunities them others and different experience. It wasn't her fault the only contact with a real gun was in her games. All you did there was push buttons and it worked, you didn't have all the complicated mechanism and the actual force behind loading and pulling the trigger. When Ethan started to get up she wasn't too surprised out of anyone in the group here besides Jun he was the one she'd been most familiar with having roomed with his sister. Pulling the gun from her hip and gently handing it over as her eyes remained fix on what he was doing. Only taking the safety off and handing it back to her, oh what a lovely teacher he was. She wasn't going to get annoyed at his mumbling, rolling her eyes. He just better maker sure he isn't in her way when she aimed. She was a great shot with her bow but a gun was a different story, they had a different feel sure with practice she'd get better but first times were always scary. Setting her gun back in it's holder at her hip and replacing her jacket to cover it up. She didn't plan on using it unless the situation called for it or there was a bigger mob. Sound attacked those things and you wanted less not more. She had her bat and her bow and plenty of arrows, that she wan't worried on.

When she masks were passed around the members of the group that were there she said her thank yous and quickly pulled it over her head, letting it hang around her neck for quick use. Seeing movement out of the corner of her eye as she was adjusting the mask, letting her eyes glance over slowly she noticed Avery taking a few steps towards her holding out one of the walkie-talkie. Holding out her hand and taking the second one, she returned the smile with a cheerful grin." Thanks," when the conversation turned to talk about computers and batteries, her ears instantly perked up as she tuned into the conversation at hand." I hope we can find a working one, who knows how many died with people leaving their cars on in a hurry. Even if it was just their lights it would drain the battery quick. If all else failed I'm sure there are some jumper cables for sale in at least one of these stores. Then try our lucks with more than one car." she rambled for a little while, but those things tended to happen. Specially when people weren't really listening to what you were saying, clearing her throat to try again, might as well get on a plan since nobody else took the action to. They needed to stop stalling and get going, it didn't help that she heard rain pounding down." We should get moving, since nobody has stepped up and formed a plan, I will. With the rain it's going to be tricky to hear, so keep alert and be on guard for any sound you maybe hear." crossing her arms over her chest and taking a quick look at the group who was there, at least they were paying attention and not fighting for power over her or something. " Be as quiet as possible, the goal is to not make sound. If those things show up do not use a gun or it could attract more. Save the gun and ammo for dire situation or unless you have no choice. I would say we shouldn't spread out. . ." counting the heads and looking into the dark of the food court,." This food court is huge so spreading out might help us get in and out faster, at least two in a group if you do split away. So we don't have to yell, make sure at least someone in a group has a flashlight, so we can signal or have some sort of quick whistle to get each other's attention. Sound good?" while she finished her mind was playing out a scene where they would put all their hands in and yell something as they split apart, but there was no way that would ever happen with this group. Instead they somehow all decided to just agree and finally the time to ended the food court arrived.


Her moved towards the darkened end of the mall and the food court seemed to be happening in slow motion once the group made their move. She was fighting everything in her brain telling her to get away and run. She couldn't do anything she had to stay here and move on. Rowan was nervous, she'd admit it too. If there was someone in this group who wasn't then they had to have nerves of steel and not fear death. Reaching into a side slot of her backpack, she took out her flashlight and clicked it on. Thinking ahead sh'ed brought at least two of them, one battery powered and the other one of those you could shake enough and it would come on. Looking down to her hand that was gripping her bat, she didn't think now was the time for it, stopping quick and switching her bat out for her bow, she wanted to find some kind of sword or something maybe but for now her bow would be good enough. She didn't have to get too far before the stench was reaching her nose. Holding her breath quickly and shoving the half mask onto her face. Having it cover her mouth and nose. Letting herself breath, she still had caught some of that decaying smell and threw up in her mouth just a little. Flashing her light on the area around her, her heart stopped things like this were so much harder to deal with in person then it was seeing them on tv or in game. It was so real, stepping slowly around the dead bodies hoping one wan't going to suddenly move and drag you down, Feeling the crushing of bodies under her feet as she slipped in puddles of blood. Under her mask she clenching her mouth shut, trying to control her breathing as best as she could. This was a massacre all of these people didn't even stand a chance." We need to leave, and leave now."


Then what she didn't want to happen what she wanted to avoid, a scream to attract attention. Her head whipping around quickly enough to caught whiplash, drawing her bow arrow in hand as she gripped onto the small flashlight at the same time. Looking around she saw the group was spreading apart, and luckily they were in groups. She hadn't gotten to far from the others herself, still close enough to at least one other member not sure who it was, maybe Ethan or Owen maybe it was Taylor she didn't look. Heart pounding as she took count, Avery screamed she thought she saw Jun running over to her, someone else maybe Ivory. Spinning and aiming her bow in another direction, not caring who or what she was stepping on now, the flash pointing in another direction as she heard banjo music playing. " What!? That is stupid but brilliant at the same time." not being able to decide if she was thankful or upset at the event. Looking at the creatures that were crawling out now in small groups. They no longer looked anything like humans, and the clicks could drive a person mad with fright." We need to either run or take them down, which are we doing guys?" the open question. There were not many, at least at the moment. Did they run and move on to the site or fight them off and take the change of looking around the food court more?

Quickly spinning she did her best to take in the situation, pulling her string on her bow back and letting the arrow she had go zipping through the air. pricing one of the things right where the brain aught to have been." They..seem almost intelligent? " her words in almost a question as she wanted to scream, even cry now, the ones making a clicking sound seemed like it was locking on to them and even a shot wasn't taking it down.

[omz_shalyce]

It had been two weeks since life had been considered normal for young Ellery Woods. Two weeks since she'd last sat in class and turned the pages of her books, since she sent her last text or laughed at a joke...really laughed at a joke. The only one who could make her smile now was Ethan, her brother, the only one who had stood by her when she left her parents behind. Granted, he had too, which was probably what made them closer than ever. She didn't even know if her parents were alive, which she thought she would be more upset about. Almost every other person she had talked to while she was in college were in contact with their parents and were most definitely worried about them. Ellery's parents on the other hand had not occurred to her until she had found safety. Ethan had been the first, obviously, but, she had gone down the list of people to find after that. One of her good friends, Joanna had been pretty high on the list along with her room mate, Rowan...though, Rowan had not been hard to track down, as she was one of the main reasons Ellery had even managed to escape.

Now the young woman with pink hair found herself rooting through whatever store she had come across first, shoving things into her backpack that she thought would be necessary, covering the handgun that no one but her brother knew she carried. She had only fifteen bullets and did not want to waste them on anything unnecessary. She worked her way through the store neatly, stepping over anything that looked suspiciously like blood. She had just come across a small fridge that didn't keep anything cold but held a few bottles of water when Joanna entered and informed her that they were moving on. Ellery zipped up her pack and slung it over her shoulders, joining Joanna at the front counter where she had found some hunting knives. Ellery took the two she had been offered and followed the tomboy from the store.

Joanna played her banjo as the girls walked, causing a slight grin to spread over her lips. Joanna had always been one of Ellery's favorite people to hang out with just because she didn't seem to care what others thought of her; she kind of reminded the singer of...well herself. Joanna finished her song and put the banjo in its place on her back, leaving them to walk in silence. For a few moments, the only sound was their footsteps cracking through the rubble before a loud, piercing scream echoed through the empty halls. After only a brief pause for them to confirm that they had heard the same thing, the girl took off toward the food court.

It was clear that something horrible had happened, but Ellery couldn't focus on that at the moment. She clutched the knives Joanna had handed her tightly as the other girl started playing. Several of the walkers had broken off from the group and were now headed in their direction. While Joanna was going the messier route, Ellery decided to do something that would probably end up getting her killed. She waited until one of the walkers got close enough and lunged forward, sticking one of the blades through its eye with a sickening squishing sound. Once the zombie stopped moving, she pulled the blade (and a string of disgusting brain matter and blood) away and turned to the next to repeat the process. Joanna made a comment about having fun while surviving the apocalypse and Ellery had to agree. Maybe Ethan was having fun without her, though that wouldn't stop her from getting to him.

[Shardious]

And, just like that, it seemed people were appearing from every which way. Had it not been moments ago that he'd asked if Avery and Taylor were alone? Avery's answer had been accurate at the time but now? It seemed almost everyone was gathered in this part of the mall, all asking their own questions as if to expect answers. Did they have a plan? Nadda. None. Food was next on the list but, no, they didn't have a plan for what to do next. They were meant to be getting to Harrisburg somehow. A three day trek perhaps? If they could find a car there was no guarantee it would work and that the route would be manageable. No doubt there were abandoned cars strewn everywhere on the streets, just like there were bodies strewn across the floor wherever you went.

For now, Owen decided to keep his words to himself. He'd never been a fan of big gatherings, and this crowd was getting a bit too much. So he took a step back and simply observed, watching as they all bickered amongst themselves. Positioned with Avery somewhat to his left, the closest individual, he'd watched as Ivory (that freaky goth girl) and Ethan (misted dickwad) ganged up on the poor girl. All because of some zombie bite? Sure, he understood what they were thinking but it'd been a bloody long time now since she'd suffered the supposedly fatal wound. If she was going to change... well, she probably would've changed within the first few days let alone two to three weeks down the line. But their simple minds didn't want to understand that, nor accept the fact that there might be immune individuals among them or that the virus itself could be 'defeated'. Owen had often wondered what would happen to him if he were bitten. Would he change or would he fight it off? Or was he immune too? Not that he wanted to find out. Just... if he were unlucky enough to get bitten himself. He'd find out soon enough, right? Regardless, the others didn't take kindly to Avery's injury, treating her badly because of it. Owen was one of the few that had given the girl a chance, despite his attitude towards the rest of the group. She was one of the 'nicer' people within this gathering of college students that he'd come across.

Lost within his thoughts however, just watching the others, Ethan had suddenly directed speech towards Owen causing his head to turn in the t**t's direction. In response, a single eyebrow had arched as he let out a slight laugh. Tinkerbell, huh? Damn this idiot had guts. And barf bags? How did he even-? Nevermind. Owen had shook his head left to right before smirking in his direction. "Such a shame. I'll just have ta puke every time I'm forced ta look at your ugly mug. Better yet, I'll just use you as a barf ba-" Avery had unfortunately interrupted, Owen's response cut short as he looked towards the book-lover. In all fairness she was right. They didn't need to spend time bickering like children. Surviving was more important than making a come-back. But didn't Ethan deserve it? It was obvious the relationship between them was pretty rocky, neither getting on with the other. The music man just reminded Owen of his poncey little brother. Except he'd suddenly gotten more arrogant, and even more of an a**. Forced to shrug it all off, Owen had started following Avery as she moved in the direction of the food court. Even so, he'd let slip a "[******** t**t," under his breath, a hand casually twisting the watch on his left wrist as he carried on his way. If only Ethan could be bitten. Owen would gladly put a bullet between his virus-infested eyes.

On the way to the food court, the smell of the place gradually got worse and worse. A god awful stench, like s**t, sewage and moldy food combined. It was almost enough to make you gag. Even then, it still hadn't prepared you for the sight you were about to behold. Entering the food court itself had made Owen stop dead. There was.... blood. So much blood. Crimson seemed to stain everything and everyone, the bodies that littered the floor covered in the stuff. Owen's skin had turned ivory white as he struggled to keep his breathing under control. It was no secret that this here delinquent had a phobia for the red stuff, the sight of it enough to make him vomit (like earlier for example). Right now though, he was forcing himself to stay where he was and not bolt in the opposite direction. Not in front of everyone else that was present... But, oh god. It was disgusting. People had come here for food and had, apparently, become food themselves. A banquet for those monsters. Even from here he could see half-eaten faces and limbs. How the others could stomach it was beyond him. Or had they simply just become used to this sort of scene? Was it to be expected these days?

Letting out a shaky breath, Owen's eyes had been torn away from the disgusting scene as Avery started picking her way through the bodies carefully. Briefly he'd looked to the others before he too had followed her example, deciding it best to head towards the kitchens. Surely there'd be refridgerators and cupboards with food in them? It was just getting there that was the problem. A number of times, Owen had nearly slipped up on the bloody floor, the soles of his boots unable to find grip on the liquid-coated ground. Each time he'd had to take a moment to look away and swallow, hard. Not gonna lie, he was shaking up a storm, his fingers twitching as he slowly manouevered himself through the sea of corpses, nerves and anxiety building from within.

And then it happened.

Avery's scream had pierced the air, all heads and eyes turning in the direction of the kitchen she'd entered. Then came a loud 'smack'. Speeding up, being the closest to the kitchen, Owen had taken the liberty of making sure she was alright. But as she appeared coming out of the kitchen, he'd nearly hunched over and puked all over again. She was splattered with blood, and her bat was nearly dripping with the stuff. What had she done? Mauled a few people? Forcing himself to carry on he'd moved closer so he was within speaking distance. "Are you alright?" No reply was given, the girl staring into the distance, eyes wide as though she'd seen a ghost. Following her gaze, Owen had soon seen them as well. Click, click, click. "s**t..." The curse escaped him as his body seemed to jump up a gear. The blood and gore around him had been forgotten in an instant as he quickly closed the gap between him and Avery as quickly as possible. "Ya need ta move." He'd whispered as he grabbed her. Gently, he began urging her to move back towards the kitchen, a hand over her mouth in case she decided to scream and protest. Whatever she'd hit was probably still in there but it wouldn't be as dangerous as one of those Infected, would it? They were something else. Clickers. Crouching behind a nearby counter, Owen had pulled Avery down with him hoping she'd snapped out of her phased state by now. Releasing her, he'd looked directly at her only to put a finger to his lips. He could only hope the others would know to shut up upon seeing these monstrosities or else they'd get killed. These were zombies Owen had seen before however, so he knew how they worked. Turning his attention back to the shattered doors, he'd drawn his gun without hesitation checking it's loaded before assessing the situation. This was bad... Very bad.

[fake news]

⊰⋮ TAKE USBACK ▪▪ OH◞ TAKE US BACK↑ ⋮⊱
xxxxxxxxxxx❖ALLTHAT WE HAVE KNOWN↗ ★WILL » BE AN ECHOxx
██████████████████████████████████████
SKIPPING STONES, BRAIDING HAIRxxxxxxMEET ME WHERE THE SNOWMELTS FLOWSxxxxxxSKIPPING STONES, BRAIDING HAIR
SKIPPING STONES, BRAIDING HAIRxxxxxxMEET ME WHERE THE SNOWMELTS FLOWSxxxxxxSKIPPING STONES, BRAIDING HAIR
xxx《 ↻H▪▪TAKE US⋮BACK TAKE◞ US BACK 》

There was more blathering, yet no one seemed bothered to answer anything she wanted to know. Someone had asked about how to work a gun -- the gamer girl -- but before Alana could respond, Ethan had done so for her, giving a typical a*****e response. Sometimes she wondered if anyone even liked the guy. It did remind her of a very important point -- weapons training; if they were going to survive, everyone was going to have to learn how to protect themselves. It was painfully easy to hurt, or even kill someone unintentionally with a gun. Alana, while she couldn't claim she was an expert in anything, had received some degree in various weapons growing up. Gun training had been one of them. Her mother insisted that she know how to protect herself, that every woman should carry a gun. She'd made extra sure that Alana had a gun on her when hell broke lose, but she'd kept that part to herself for the most part. "I'll teach you when there's time, don't worry." She added, though there was a good chance her promise fell upon deaf ears -- most of the members in the group seemed more concerned with trying to play leader while simultaneously ignoring the instructions the others had to give.

Alana thought she was better suited to play the role of leader, but her voice wasn't as loud as Ethan's, nor was she as blatantly rude, and her hearing was as selective as Rowan's. She figured they would listen eventually.

The group, however, was moving on -- chasing after the idea of food. They seemed to think they would find some in the cafeteria. Alana imagined they wouldn't find much aside from rotted meat and vegetables. If they were lucky, there would be canned food left in some of the kitchen, maybe some packages, but that was only if people hadn't come and taken things already. She'd seen the way parts of the mall had been ransacked. People had already been through the mall, taken a lot of the things that were useful. There was no point in staying behind, however.

Breathing a sigh, she set the bag of things she'd already gathered down and crouched to pull a second, smaller one from inside one of the pouches and stood. It was better, she thought, to gather too much and cut down then to have too little. They could always divide things better later. None too keen on conversing with her fellow survivors, Alana fell behind, keeping her eyes open for any potential threats. So far the mall had been safe, but there was no true way of telling when that might change.

The stench in the cafeteria was wretched. She wanted to vomit, but forced what little was in her stomach down. Whatever had gone down in the cafeteria, it had been a massacre, sudden and unexpected. The poor people there hadn't stood a chance, yet she got the sense she didn't feel as badly for them as she should have. It only made her more cautious, more aware that something like that could happen to her and those she cared about at any given moment. Already she'd lost so much -- her beloved parents, her sibling and her boyfriend, two of which were dead and the other two missing. The people who had died in the cafeteria, she thought, would never have to face those realities. They were dead.

Their crew had only been in the cafeteria for a few minutes when there was a scream. Everyone seemed to be panicking, and there was so much of it that she couldn't quite pick out who was who. She did, however, recognize her best friend when she called for her. Alana shoved through whoever she needed to, to get to her, grasping her arms and speaking before she could swat her away. "Shh, shh, I'm here, it's okay. I'm fine, don't worry." She assured her gently.

Whatever trouble had been stirred only brought more. Before she knew it, the dead were stumbling into the cafeteria. Alana placed herself between her friend and the corpses, grasping her forearm with her hand as she stood facing the dead. Her free hand hovered over the holster of her gun, ready to shoot if need be. "Stay behind me, Mona. Don't panic." She spoke slowly, pausing between each word to be sure it registered. The last thing she needed was for her best friend to panic. "Do you understand? If you have something to protect yourself, take it out now, but don't use it unless you have to. We don't need everyone going in at once, or someone will just get hurt."

[Alexa the White Rose]

A disgusted look appeared on his face as he sat there listening to Rowan stick up for Avery, just like she had done before back at the college campus. Whatever, he wasn't going to argue the issue, they'd all come crying and realize he was right whenever the bookworm turned and attacked them. His sapphire eyes glanced over to Owen, who made a remark about having toe puke every time he saw Ethan's "ugly mug" and was about to say something else before Avery cut him off, telling them that they were heading to the food court. The blond shot the dark haired male a dirty look as he heard him mutter the words "******** t**t" under his breath. Ethan stuffed his hands into his pocket and walked close enough to Owen to mutter a [******** b***h" in a low voice that only Owen could hear before he walked ahead to catch up with the rest of the group. When he saw everyone stop upon reaching the food court, he looked to see what they were all looking at. His face had probably lost a little color as he looked at the puddles of blood and the bodies laying everywhere. s**t, it was the department store all over again - and here he thought his nose finally got the smell of rotten flesh out. He shook his head and looked back from where they came, wondering if his sister was alright. Joanna had told him that she was going to go get her, which he was grateful for. Joanna was probably one of the few people he trusted, even if she did side with the others to let the bookworm live. Looking around, he saw the others make their way towards the food stands, looking to raid the kitchens to see if they could find any food. Ethan stood there, using his flashlight to look around at the dead bodies. Maybe one of these bodies had a set of keys on them to a car they could use. He jumped however when there was a sudden scream that pierced the silence of the mall, looking to see Owen running over to the kitchen that he had seen Avery go into. Figures she would be the one to cause trouble for the group...again.

"Dammit, I knew we should have killed her, she's giving us nothing but troub-" Ethan began to say before he paused upon hearing a strange noise. Click, click, click. Turning slowly, Ethan saw the three deformed figures come walking in through the broken doors, quickly ducking behind one of the knocked over tables where a corpse was laying beside it. Slowly he looked out from behind the table to see that a*****e Owen and the nerd Jun trying to reach Avery, before running off to hide somewhere. His eyes then caught sight of Rowan with her bow as she pulled back on the string and sent an arrow zipping through the air to hit one of those things right in the head. Surprisingly though, it still stood. s**t these things were tougher than the other infected he had seen before. What were they supposed to do? What if they couldn't kill these things? Ethan began to panic as he thought about Ellery. If she and Joanna were heading this way, they had no idea what they were in for. He found himself frozen behind the table, wondering if he should stay and help the others with these things or to make a dash for it and find his sister. In the end, he decided to stay, cursing under his breath as he looked to see what options there were to either kill these things or at least avoid them. Avoiding them seemed like the smarter option, especially since it seemed like fighting them was going to take a lot of effort on their part. He had to think fast, especially since the figures began to wander and walk around the food court. It was only a matter of time until they stumbled upon one of the others. Dear god...he was regretting this but it was the only thing he could think of to get them away from the group so they could get out of here. Removing his crowbar, he stumbled to his feet, looking at the deformed figures before taking a deep breath. "Hey! Fugly faces! Over here!" he yelled, banging the crowbar on the ground.

Instantly the figures looked towards Ethan, their clicking having grown louder before they screeched and ran at him. "Oh shi-!" Ethan muttered, quickly turning and running - keeping his eyes ahead of him to avoid tripping over anything that could cost him his life. Quickly he ran away from the group, ducking into the small toy store. Panting heavily, he hid on the corner of the aisle, looking around the corner to see the three figures slow their pace and walk into the store like a deadly predator stalking their prey. Over and over in his head he was cursing, reminding himself how stupid and how bad this idea was. It was then he saw a couple of those singing Elmo toys on the shelf; those damn annoying things he'd like to put into a wood chipper because it made him want to pull his own hair out. Right now though, they were his best friend and only chance of getting out of here. Quickly he started pressing as many as he could, setting them off to sing their stupid song. The sound of clicking and screeching reached his ears, which meant it was time to bail. As quietly as he could he moved around to the other side of the aisle, hearing the three Clickers approach the spot where the Elmos were. With all of his strength, he pushed against the shelves until it tilted over and went crashing down on the Clickers which continued to screech in anger. However, with the shelves collapsed on top of them, they appeared to be stuck which made Ethan smile confidently that his bad planned turned out to work after all. Without another minute to waste, he started running back to the group. "Heh...that wasn't so bad." he said, acting like he was the hero.

"Alright, are we done here. Let's get the ******** out of here." he said, heading outside the broken glass doors and out into the parking lot where the rain began pelting down on him. "Alright, any one of you know how to break into a car?" he asked, looking at them to see Owen step up. Figures this ******** was the one to know how to do that. Looking around the parking lot, he looked at all the cars until he saw a white van parked among a couple of beat-up cars. That looked big enough to hold them all, it was better than the small service bus that was parked near the entrance of the mall. Buses were never safe...that he knew from watching a couple of horror movies. "Alright Tinkerbell get us in this s**t." he said to Owen, watching him move to the van and unlock the door. He enjoyed calling him Tinkerbell, only because it seemed funny calling a tough-looking guy like him the name of a fairy little girls enjoy watching and dressing up as. Now all they needed was to get the van up and running. Sure enough, Owen knew how to do that too; Ethan rolling his eyes in annoyance over how much of a showoff this a*****e was trying to be. It was then he heard the van's engine stir as it tried to roar to life. "Hurry the ******** up already." Ethan snapped, looking around to keep an eye out for anything that was running towards them. It was then he looked from the corner of his eye, looking to see Joanna and Ellery come running with a pack of zombies chasing after them. "Oh s**t! Everyone in the van now!" he yelled, taking his crowbar out as he went running towards the two girls, tacking a swing at one of the infected that had nearly grabbed Joanna. "Go! Hurry!" he said, staying behind the two as they raced to the van just as Owen managed to get it started. Ethan watched as Joanna got in first, followed by Ellery who nearly slipped from the wet concrete but Ethan was able to grab her and help her into the van before hopping in himself, the van doors being pulled shut behind him just before the infected could grab him.

He sighed in relief and leaned against the inside wall of the van beside Ellery. God he just wanted to call it a ******** day already, but at least they were out of that mall and heading to Harrisburg finally. He found himself drift off to sleep, his crowbar still tightly held in his hand just in case.

[Alexa the White Rose]

☢┆▎》TIME : 6:30pm

☢┆▎》WEATHER : Still raining

☢┆▎》LOCATION : Harrisburg, Pennsylvania


After having escaped the mall, the survivors drove their way to Harrsiburg where the quarantine zone for refugees is located. What usually is a three hour drive from New York, turned into a nearly six hour drive due to traffic and other obstacles in the city, as well as running low on gas halfway getting there. The group raided a gas station mart for some food and drinks and managed to get some gas from the pump. Luckily it was just enough gas to get the group finally to Harrisburg, where they are just a couple of more miles away from reaching their destination.

[Alexa the White Rose]

The drive to Harrisburg was a long one, longer than she hoped it would be.

During the drive, it wasn't easy to say the least; with all the abandoned cars scattered on the streets it made maneuvering through the city much harder, but not impossible to make it through. Once they were out of the city and onto the highways, it was a little clearer. Avery couldn't help but look in the rear view mirror and gaze at the city she had grown up in, the place where all her memories took place. Now she was headed to Harrisburg with the others where hopefully they could all reunite with their families. She was awake for most of the ride, that is until the van's gas meter showed it was low - an unfortunate turn of events after narrowly escaping the mall with their lives. Avery still couldn't believe how stupid Ethan was to go and have those...things...chase after him like that. Was he trying to get himself killed or did he just want to play the hero? Well, from the way he was acting it seemed like the latter of the two. Of course Ethan yelled at Owen a couple of times for being stupid to not see the van was low on gas, but Avery just did her best to stay out of their fight. Thankfully some higher being had mercy on them when they spotted a gas station. Of course by now the entire group knew it wasn't wise separating from each other, so as Owen stayed with the van while the rest went inside the gas station's mini mart, things were quiet for the time being. That something they all needed after having gone what they just went through. While the others raided the food and drinks and started the pump for gas, Avery took a moment to head into the bathroom to do a quick change. Her clothes had been splattered and stained with blood from that infected she had killed, her shirt was beginning to stink of the blood. Quickly she removed her shirt and shorts, reaching into her backpack to pull out the pair of jeans and plaid tunic shirt she managed to grab while nobody was watching her. She then removed her shoes and washed the blood off the one that slipped off when she was grabbed. Yeah, after Ethan pulled his little stunt she had some spare time to run back and get her shoe, since she obviously couldn't go and get another new pair at the time. The brunette stood there and began washing her face of any blood and dirt that had caked itself onto her skin, looking at the reflection that stared back at her. Was Ethan right? Was she going to eventually turn? Her emerald eyes stared intently at her reflection, just imagining what she'd look like with decaying skin and her hair falling out. The thought literally scared her enough to pull down the sleeve of her tunic to cover the bandages where the bite mark was hidden underneath, leaving her other sleeve rolled up to her elbow. By the time she got back to the van, it seemed the group had little luck with the gas and only got a couple of gallons into the van - sadly not enough for a full fill up.

As she sat there in the passenger seat of the van, she glanced over to Owen who was driving. She had agreed to take turns with him to drive the van, since the others all looked exhausted. Granted, Avery herself was tired but she was a light sleeper, so an hour of sleep was enough to keep her going for at least four hours. The brunette though could not stop looking at Owen, who she pretty much had to thank for saving her life. Well, not only him but Jun as well. Both of them had gone through the trouble of trying to reach her to get her to move when the three special infected had shown up, but it was Owen who had managed to get to her first and make sure she was quiet while they were hiding. She remembered he was also the first to have reached her when she had screamed from when she was attacked in the kitchen. For a guy who seemed to not care about people, he sure did seemed concerned about her - maybe he's not such a complete tough guy on the inside. Of course, realizing this made Avery a bit mad at herself, that she had been saved by someone twice now. Was she really that pathetic that she couldn't even defend herself? Well, obviously not since she was able to kill one infected, but she needed work on her combat skills - she's a bookworm, combat isn't in her blood...even though it should be thanks to her father.

Somewhere along the time she had been lost in thought, she had drifted off to sleep. The sounds of the engine's stuttering was enough to wake her, making her look to see that the van had stopped completely.

"Good job Tinkerbell, the thing is empty now." Ethan's voice snapped.

Avery looked at Owen, then the others, and then out the van's window where her eyes grew wide. "Guys look, we made it. We're in Harrisburg." she said, pointing to the sign that read: "Welcome to Harrisburg". It was hard to see it though due to the fact it was growing dark outside; the rain hadn't let up and the rainclouds made it seem like it was much later than what the time said on the van's clock. Just like New York, Harrisburg also seemed desolate and quiet. Was it that bad here too? She only hoped that the quarantine zone here was still safe. "How are we supposed to find the quarantine zone? There's no signs pointing in its direction." she asked, looking around hoping to find something explaining where to go.

"Tch, and you're supposed to be the smart one. It's on the corner of Forster Street and North 7th Street." Ethan said, folding his arms over his chest.

"How the hell did you know that?" Avery asked, clearly wanting to know where he got his information was.

Ethan merely looked at her with another cold glare before shaking his head. "I overheard one of those government pricks mention the address during the evacuation. I wrote it down for Elle, in case I didn't make it...at least she would know where to go to be safe." he said, almost in a heart-felt manner that made him seem less of an a*****e.

Avery sat there before reaching into her bag, pulling out a book from her bag - an atlas to be more specific. It was yet another object other than the clothes she had managed to grab while nobody was around. With her flashlight, she flipped through the pages until she found the map she was looking for. "According to this...it's only about four blocks away. I don't know about you guys, but we've come this far. We can walk the rest of the way." she explained. At this point, she was rested enough to walk for a little while longer if it meant reaching their destination.

[Im the Girl one]

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃
xx w e xx h i t xx t h e xx s k yxx t h e r e xx g o e sxx t h exx l i g h ts

x x x x x x x x x ☾ ━━ No more sun, why's it always night ━━
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x When you can't sleepxxx Well, you can't dream
xxx
➥ ♛ xx W H E NxY O UxC A N ' TxS L E E P ━
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X ↘ (WELL, YOU CAN'T DREAM ) ░░░░░░░ ♞
XxxXX▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ XXX▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄XXX▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄
x x x x x x x x x x x xWhen you can't dream,well, whats life mean? We feel a little pity, but don't empathize.
xxxx
xxxSo if I survive, then I'll see you tomorrow, yeah I'll see you tomorrow.

Lana touch, her voice, even her smell surrounded the red-headed swimmer and Mona was able to calmed herself down. Focusing in on Lana natural leadership, she followed order and stay behind. Holding her short-sword. It wasn't a gun, but it was better than fighting with her bare hands that was for sure. "I understand, just ... s**t, what are those things?" Mona question with a spike of fear in her voice.

Mona took her eyes off the disgusting effected to see them chased after Ethan. She couldn't chase after them as they were gone in a flash. No, that was a lied. Mona was pretty sure she was faster than Ethan and could outrun on a bad day. She could had easily caught up with him, but instead she was too afraid. Leaving Lana behind to play 'hero'? Instead she grind the bottom of her palm against her forehead, hating herself for how weak and afraid she was in the face of danger.

Waiting. Mona wasn't sure what she was waiting for. Cries for help maybe? Screamed of anguish as the effected rip him to pieces. Mona didn't relax until she heard him, but it wasn't the screams of help she heard. The idiot made it back alive and was giving out orders like he didn't just risk his life. The redhead wanted to pelt him a dozen hundred times. Maybe she'll feel a little less angry at home. "That stupid blonde inconsiderate jackass!" Mona huffed. Hiding that she was relieve he didn't get his stupid a** killed.

Mona followed the group outside and instantly the rain hit her full force. Staying close as she followed the group to a large white van. It seemed a bit on the smaller side, but as long as she wasn't press against some pervert then she'll be fine. Owen tall, dark and creepy was able to break in and get the car started. "Thanks." She whispered as she climbed in. They all pile in the car as a pack of fast-moving infected chased after Joanna and Ellery. By the time she had her seat-belt on, the car was speeding away from the mall.

Fatigue finally caught up with Mona and started to sleep for the first three hours. Only waking up to hear Owen and Ethan bickering like old maids. The two need to have kiss and have sex already. Fortune shine down on them as they near a gas station. Mona went inside and found some energy bars, sanitizer wipe and a couple of bottle of hand sanitizer. Nothing else to look for, she returned to the Van. The rest of the drive was spent quietly watching the road. No one was in the mood to speak, which was fine with her. For once, she wasn't in the mood to talk either.

Hours upon hours later, they finally reached their destination. Seeing the sign spur happiness inside her as this was the closest quarantine to New York wasn't it? The possibility of her parents here made her nervous and a bit happy. Telling them about Gwen death was not something she looked forward to, but seeing her parents was still enough of a motivation to get her moving.

"Not like we have a choice. We're out of gas aren't we?" Mona huffed. She didn't want to leave the van, but with no gas. They have no choice, but to walk the rest of the way. Mona grabbed her bag and slid open the van door. Being on solid ground was weird after the tense six-hour car ride. The redhead stretch her body, limbering up if they need to make a quick get away or a mad dash to the Quarantine zone.

Deciding on a late lunch, Mona grabbed one of the energy bar from earlier and restore a bit of her hunger. She was thirsty as well, but decided to saved her water for later. Mona was in higher spirits now that they were so close to their goal.






LOCATION♣Pennsylvania: Blocks away from Harrisburg Quarantine Zone
COMPANY♣Main Group
HUNGER♣75%
THIRST♣60%

[Shardious]

Of course, Ethan had to be the hero with his suicidal distraction stunt, the guy managing to pull the three infected away from everyone else in order to allow them to escape. A brave move, or perhaps you'd call it stupid? Whatever it was, Avery and Owen had somehow managed to get outside along with all the others - minus the food they'd gone searching for - their next mission in plain sight: they needed a working vehicle. In no time at all they'd come across a van just about big enough to fit the group par a slight squish. With the group in tow, Owen had run towards it, reaching the driver's side swiftly before smashing his elbow into the window without hesitation. It was enough to allow him entrance to the vehicle, the door yanked open as soon as it was unlocked only for Owen to jump in not a moment too soon. Once inside, he'd unlocked the rest of the doors before he'd set to hot wiring the thing. Believe me, he's done it a number of times, but this van was just a stubborn piece of junk. The building pressure didn't help him either, his eyes darting to the wing mirror every few seconds. Those things were approaching, along with a bunch of the running kind. Thankfully the engine roared to life on the third try, Owen swiftly putting it into gear as the rest of the gang clambered in the back. They'd scarcely had time to close the rear doors before the wheels had screeched and the van itself had lurched forward. With pedal to the metal, they were soon on their way towards Harrisburg...

The drive itself was challenging with all the debris and abandoned cars on the road. It wouldn't have surprised Owen too much if the paintwork got a bit scratched on the way. Nevertheless, after what felt like endless roads filled with empty cars and undead they reached the highway which was thankfully, a lot clearer than anywhere else. From there on it was a quiet drive in the front, Owen in the driver's seat and Avery having called shotgun. The odd murmur could be heard from behind in the back, but it seemed most people were trying to catch up on some much needed sleep. Owen couldn't even think about sleep. His eyes were glued to the road, the windscreen wipers swishing to and fro every second in order to clear the falling rain. His eyes didn't waver, not even when he felt Avery's eyes upon him. He kept to himself keeping his mouth shut. Although sadly, the Princess eventually piped up. Apparently 'Tinkerbell' hadn't been keeping an eye on the fuel gauge, the light having come on indicating they were low on gas. Cursing to himself, he'd swatted Ethan's face away, grumbling as he weighed up their options. He very much doubted a gas station would have any fuel available to them. Even so, as one came into view, it was their only hope. It was a much needed pit stop, everyone climbing out of the vehicle in order to stretch their legs and search the depot's premises. Owen had decided to stay with the van, lighting up a cigarette as the others disappeared inside, back leant against the now scratched and dirtied side of the car. Once he'd finished he'd tried the fuel from all the terminals only managing to come up with a few gallons. He hoped it'd tide them over until they reached Harrisburg. Though he wouldn't be driving the whole way it seemed for Avery had piped up on her return. It was her turn to drive. Disagreeing with her had only made her raise her voice, Owen surrendering with his hands up as he slipped into the passenger seat. Though he'd been meaning to get some shut-eye he hadn't managed to sleep a wink, thus he'd forced Avery to switch with him about half way...

About six hours must've passed since they'd left the mall as they came trundling up the road towards Harrisburg. On the bare minimum of fuel, the van's engine had stuttered and stuttered before finally it had died completely. Naturally it was Ethan who'd made the snide remark, Owen's teeth clenching together as he retaliated. "Oh really? Since you're so smart, why don't you get out and push?" Having cast him an annoyed glare, Avery's words had quickly made his head turn. What? They'd made it? Squinting at the sign before them, he'd felt relief wash over him, a short grunt escaping him as he shifted in his seat. Avery and Ethan had started talking about the quarantine zone as Owen gathered his things, his bag pulled forward before he left the vehicle altogether. The location was all he needed to hear, after all.... he knew Harrisburg. He hadn't wanted to think about it, but how could he not? As his feet touched the road and the van door slammed shut, the raindrops spattering across his face, memories had rushed to mind. His childhood was spent here after all... before they'd been forced to move when his mother couldn't afford the house anymore. Times he'd rather forget... Sighing heavily, he'd pulled his jacket closer around him and had shouldered his bag before setting off on his own. After all that driving and tension, he needed some space. They'd catch up soon enough. Where he was headed was on the way...

In the encroaching darkness he walked, unaffected by the falling rain as he moved further down the street. He was sure the others would follow him regardless... Not that he wanted them to follow him. As tired and weary as he was, he knew he needed to reach the safe zone whether they came as well or not. For now he cared only for himself: his fatigued mind capable of that much. First though, he wanted to see his old house. It wasn't far. Two blocks away perhaps? It had been years since he'd set foot anywhere near it, about thirteen years now. Such a long time ago. He doubted he'd even remember it, but while he was here he might as well give it a go. He probably wouldn't see it ever again. Not unless he somehow made it out of this mess still breathing. Doubtful again. "Tch. Like we'll ever get out of this alive..." Wiping the back of his hand across his mouth he'd peered around, expecting some zombie to jump out at him from nowhere. Alas, it seemed this city was near enough deserted. All that remained were empty cars and darkened buildings. Strangely enough there were no corpses to be seen. Could it be that everyone got away safely? Or had they been reanimated into mindless monsters? Whatever the case, Owen was on his guards, fingers curled around the grip of his pistol as he led the way through Harrisburg. He could only hope this quarantine zone had enough supplies for all of them if not more so they could remain for a while. If they had to leave in a hurry all over again... he doubted he'd get very far in this state.

[omz_shalyce]

It was obvious, even to the panicked singer that they could not stay where they were. It was too easy for them to get overwhelmed, not to mention the chance that more walkers could emerge from the mall behind them. Pulling her blade from the eye of the current zombie in front of her, Ellery turned to the tomboy, "Anna, we have to move," she said. With one last kill, the pair ran across the food court, dodging corpses and overturned furniture as they did. The others seemed to have had the same idea as they had scattered out the door as well. Someone had gotten a van started, which she counted as a good thing as it was raining too hard to attempt a trip on foot. Ellery's lungs were burning but she knew stopping now would be suicide. Ethan, like the greatest big brother he was, took out one of the infected that was getting too close for comfort. She wanted to thank him, but, instead found herself slipping, knowing she was going to fall. Ethan caught her, saving her life for the second time in so many minutes and ushered her into the waiting van. Finally safe, Ellery leaned her head back against the wall of the van and worked on catching her breath.

The entirety of the ride was filled with mostly silence from her. She cleaned the blood off her her blades and hands and passed around one of the bottles of water she'd come across. Eventually her heart stopped trying to pound its way out of her rib cage and she was able to catch her breath. She rested her head on Ethan's shoulder, taking comfort in the fact that he was there and safe. Some of the others she knew did not like her brother, which she could understand. He could be a d**k sometimes, there was no denying that, but, they didn't see the good. He was everything to her and she would not lose him.

Before she knew it, they had stopped in Harrisburg...or more ran out of gas just as they got into Harrisburg. Though they had stopped and gathered a couple gallons of gas, it just wasn't enough to get them all the way to safety. Ellery climbed out of the van with the others, stretching her stiff muscles and slipping her bag onto her back. She held one of the hunting knives by her side and placed the other in a makeshift holster at her waist. She had pulled her gun from her bag and strapped it to her waist as well, taking comfort in the weight it added. The decision to walk the rest of the way was made quickly, though Ellery wasn't so sure she liked the idea. She tried her hardest to swallow back her doubt as the group began walking. Even though the streets were empty, a cold shudder went down Ellery's spine, making her clutch the knife in her hand so tightly her knuckles turned white. "I don't like this," she muttered to her brother.

[kouhai pls]

Thee things were not going down without a fight, quite literally. Blinking she knew this was not the time to be wasting ammo on anything, at least not until they had a chance to figure out how strong these things were. Quickly fumbling with her bow and arrow as she put them away the best she could, her hands were already shaking alone with her whole body. It was a nice mix of being terrified and all the adrenaline running through her veins. Her bow would be useless right now, sure she was a good shot and she was fast at reloading, but she could be faster and better. Curing herself slightly, she should have looked for a cross bow or something to give her a bit more power. Taking out the gun from her him and making sure the safety was once again off, she held it out ready to try and shoot anything if she had too. She didn't want to have too, it would attract sound and with his much her hands her shaking it would just be her wasting ammo. This was all still just too new for her right now." Calm down, calm down, calm down." whispering to herself as she attempted to slow down her breathing and tried to calm her shaking body, it wasn't helping, but at least she could still walk, moving closer towards the group again. There was no use searching for anymore supplies now and with at least two people making sure Avery was fine she didn't need to rush in that direction either. Soon Ethan's voice caught her attention, whipping her head in his direction,she wanted to yell him. Ask him what stupid thing he was doing, now was not the time t get a hero complex but she couldn't. It was obvious he was doing the only thing he could think of, at least he was doing something. Seeing her chance, they needed to get out. Those things were clicking louder more terrifying then ever all running after him. " Everyone move, outside-now!" keeping her eyes on every person she could and quickly following suit herself.

" You got lucky." catching up with her own breathing, the rain pouring own on them now, flipping her hood up over her head and taking the mask off her face. It had come in handy in there. Soon enough the talk of finding a car and getting it started came about, Rowan saw it as luck that one of them at least knew how to get a car started, she at least knew they wouldn't be able to turn it off after-or so she thought. She wasn't the car expert here. She didn't think twice about the fact Owen was, really she didn't care as long as they had something to take them and they didn't have to walk." We are missing Ellery and Joanna. . ." turning around in the group making sure they in fact had everybody. Speak of the devils as she spotted the two girls running towards them being followed by a mob of their own. " GO-go go go go." swinging open the doors and jumping in herself, scooting as was away from the doors as possible. She could only let out a held in breath once the doors were shut and they were speeding away. " I'm so over this already." the good things about all of this as that they were now on their way to their destination, and she was one step closer to finding her little sister and her father.

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She was silent for most the of ride, she tried to strike up a conversation once or twice but not many wanted to talk, she didn't mind. In the end it let her eventually catch up on some much needed sleep. .Feeling safe in the enclosed and the best part moving van down the road. The trip felt like it took forever with all the run down cars and blockades along the way. The highway was clear which was a surprise to her, many things were right now still. In her shows everything was usually so dead and you couldn't find anything, it had to be luck this early on in the game. Rowan had offered to help drive a few times by Owen wouldn't budge and in the end she gave up trying, taking advantage of being able to relax. She'd even struck luck digging through her back to find that one of her games still had power in it. Half a battery but it was enough to give her and hour to two of entertainment before it dies completely and it was back to a silent van and a trip that could either make or break the group. Not wanting to be the one always asking if they were their yet or how much longer, she made sure to keep her eyes glues to the dashboard checking the time. It seemed like every five minutes she was looking hoping an hour had passed or that they would make it there. The sleeping and game play did make the trip go a little faster. She didn't even realize how long they'd been driving until Ethan and Owen became bickering about the empty gas tank.

It had to be all over then, they'd have to walk since there was no way the gas station would have anything left. All of them would or at least should have been try. Thanks to the new cars even stealing gas from them was impossible. It was once again another surprise when the van was able to drink up a few more gallons, hopefully enough to make it all the way there. Stretching felt nice, and a much needed bathroom break was even better. She hated the fact that being on guard twenty four seven was a must. Taking a few minutes to look around the dying convenience store for anything that was left behind. Grabbing a few hot chocolate packets and some tea bags by the drink area also a left over travel mug. Sticking those things into her bag. It was always nice to have something special tucked away for when things got bad and you needed a pick me up. She couldn't find much of anything else, looking around the counter for anything left behind, kicking a lighter across the floor her curiosity got the better of her. Bending down to pick it up, after a few click the small flame finally appeared and into her pocket the lighter went. Along with a small pouch or mixed nuts that were still hanging on the shelf. While she was making her way back to the van, she took a few bites before putting it away for later also.

She ended up sleeping the rest of the way, only to wake up as soon as Avery had said that they'd arrived in Harrisburg. The words alone, made her whole body feel awake and put a smile on her lips, looking at the clock once again and then at the passing welcome sign. Her happiness went down a few level while looking outside, the sky was still dark and the rain had not let up, hopefully it was close by so they could make it there." It looks just as dead as back home." a slight concerned feeling falling over her. Was there really going to be a safe place to stay or would they have to keep moving Would the group even be staying together once they arrived to find everything out? Her major concern was her family, were they going to be here or not? Just as she was about to ask about gas in the van, the vehicle jumped and jerked to a slow stopped. Her heart sank even a little more." Well at least one of us overheard something useful." not wanting to fuel any fired or arguments that moment. It was luckily at least Ethan had known or else this trip was about to get way more complicated." Well is that far from where we are? It's getting dark and I don't know about you but I feel less safe out in the open with those things during the dark. Not to mention this rain isn't going to help us." It was an open question, she didn't know if anyone had been here before or if someone had a map or not. If it was too far, she'd suggest sleeping here till the morning then moving on. They were so close but the danger was real out there and even more foreign then back home.

" At least it's only four block." mumbling and following suit out of the van. A quick stretch before flipping her hood back up and pulling out one of her flashlights, while her bat was in the other hand. She'd repack and get herself ready all over again once they reach the safe area, that was if worse came to worse.

[sadistic yandere]

The last few days were a blurr. The mall - God, the mall. She had things under control but as they went for their mad dash... More of them collected and about grabbed at her. Adrenaline was the only thing keeping her alive now, she felt like the rest of her body would shut down if she slept. Almost the entirety of the van ride, even when she tried to sleep she stayed alert. Ellery didn't leave her side much, the girl was a crutch in the van. Every bump in the road, each pulse of her heart that sent blood through her veins, Joanna seemed to have felt it all. It was a pain, but it truly wasn't the zombie scare that had put this on her, she didn't think anyway. It was just, her adrenaline didn't seem to want to go back to a normal level. Being constantly amped up was not a fun feeling, especially when locked away into a tight space (such as a van) with several other people.

Soon the vehicle came to a rolling stop and the doors opened. Joanna felt herself gasping for air, as it felt like the air in the van had become stagnant and gross. The air was made slightly cooler due to the rain; it was fresh air though and the brunette welcomed the coolness. It was almost too much, as the girl soon become dizzy and slightly disoriented. Though she wouldn't claim it aloud, she felt she was one of the stronger fighters in the group, so, having one unable to fight... what use was she?

Thankfully Jackson, aka Batman, was there and grabbed ahold of her before she met the pavement. He must have noticed also, "I'm good," she whispered, clutching her banjo and strumming a few strings to try and sort herself up. He was only worried, she got that, but if she didn't at least keep up appearances one of the bolder members might vote her off the island - or rather the quarentine zone. As the group marched on Joanna kept close to Jackson, Ellery and Ethan. Jackson and Ellery she'd been mates with before the whole ordeal, Ethan came after - but they were all strong and she relied on them. If a s**t storm came up, there was little doubt that each of them wouldn't do their best to make sure she didn't die. Though as they neared their destination, a sick feeling over took Joanna. "Hey I'll be back, going to run perimeter right quick," it was a practical thing, it needed to before they waltzed right into the place - she probably just wasn't the best for the job. However she wanted to keep face, so slowly she put her banjo up in the bag on her back and clipped a knife to her belt on her skirt and sported a handgun in her pocket - a flashlight in her hand. "I'll call if anything is up," the tomboy waved one of the radios she'd picked up at the mall so they could see before she stalked off towards the outer gates of the quarentine zone.



ooc

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