ZRP-2 Chapter 7: Mutation

Dealing with walkers was fine, they just moved slowly and you had to stay out of reach. But runners were new, and dealing with them was going to be tricky. They were faster, and attracted more of the dead. So they would have to be the first targets. Those thoughts raced through James' mind as he brought his gun to bear on one of them, easy to pick out because it was moving.....more fluidly. It was tough to describe, but the walkers were just stiff, like they were walking with leg braces. The runners though, even when they walker seemed more alive. Which probably made them more dangerous when it came to ambushes.

Anyway.....James squeezed off a shot, taking the first runner right in the head and bringing them down. That alerted the rest that oh yes, there was a fresh meal in their midst. The walkers lumbered towards him, and the runners simply ran for him, shoving aside their fellow walkers to get to him. And then he ran. "Eve, Jen! Run!"

"WE ALREADY ARE MISTER MARTIN!"
"WHAT DO YOU THINK I'M DOING DADDY?" were the only replies.

"RUN FASTER!" he yelled back at them, twisting his head around to check and see if the runners were getting any closer. Thankfully, they had to get through the crowd of walkers, which slowed them down considerably, enough that James was able to catch up to Jen and Eve. "Where's Tyler?"

"I don't know!" Jen said.
"No clue." Eve said, looking back. "I hope he's ok."

"He should be fine, but we have to keep moving; those runners will be here soon and we need to be gone."

Eve and Jen nodded. "Where too?"

Well, where to start? I had made it down the fire escape relatively unharmed. It concerned me when nothing came to investigate when the ladder hit the ground. Cautiously making my way down the small alley to see where the others went. I had heard the shrill screams of the runners so I was able to make a guess they were running. So the question I ask myself now is what should I do? Do they have it under control or did they get caught out? And it's not like I can follow them. They already have their own paparazzi going. There's only a few things I could think of. One would be A) Get the skin eaters to follow me B) Find a way around and then meet up with them or C) Leave them.
I'll just go with B for various reasons. Anyway, enough with all the boring stuff. As silently as I can I walk/run down the sidewalk to my right. Once I was at the corner I turn left and run across the street. After passing a few buildings I run back into one of the alleys. Depending on which way they're going, I have a 25/75 percent chance of finding them.

He gave a quick look around, before settling on a perfect store: Sports Authority. "There, we head there. Odds are they've got a bow for you Eve."

Eve hurried over, Jen cose. "Let's go then." She said.

Nodding, James went first, running across the street towards the sports store, right for the doors. There was no time to check for occupants, he just opened the door and ushered Eve and Jen inside.

Eve and Jen entered, guns raised.
"Clear." Jen reported.

Glad that it was clear, he closed the door and followed them inside. It was dark, which came as no surprise what with two years of no power. But there was no telling what was inside; there could have been dozens of the walkers in there. "Stay close, and get your flashlights out. Keep weapons ready."

The pair nodded and did as told.
"Bows would be at the back." Jen whispered.

"Then we start there. But if it gets too hot.....we run. Sorry Eve."

"I know." Was all Eve said.

Glad that she understood, James took point as he led them to the back of the store. On the way, they passed a lot of aisles that had camping gear, sporting goods, and shoes. "Maybe I should see if they have any good shoes in my size. These boots are starting to get worn out."

"Go ahead. Jen can watch me." Eve said. She was glancing around, and grabbed whatever might be useful, which amounted to some shoelaces and a swiss army knife.
"Not much left here..."

"Yeah, but never know. We can check the store rooms in the back, see if there's anything the scavengers didn't find." It sounded odd calling other people scavengers when scavenging was the same thing they were doing. James continued on his own, reaching the hunting section. The guns were gone, there was nothing left, but apparently people found guns more popular than bows, because there were plenty of them. Basic bows, compound bows, all kinds of arrows. Looked like no one felt that a quiet bow was reliable.

Eve came up behind James. Stepping past him, she started to browse, scrutinizing each bow with a trained eye. She started to grab a few and test them out before putting them back.

Jen kept watch on the entrance, rifle raised.

"See any you like?" James asked, while he himself tested out a few of the bows. He still had his own....but it never hurt to swap a worn model for a new one, right?

Red spheres fell from to the floor, creating perfectly round dots. The drops formed an invasive crimson mark.

The red art on a concrete canvas shone dully in the sunlight. The well from which the crimson river flowed sat nearby, a single horizontal hole marked the spout.


[placeholder wip]

After cutting through several alleyways I find them, well not them, the horde that was following them. Not really having much of a choice, I turn and find another way around. Soon, very soon after I find a sporting goods store. And since we were looking for one in the first place it only made sense to see if they were in there. As stealthily as I can I slip inside. But I wasn't going to throw caution out the door so I had my knife ready. Gun was out and I had no more clips.
While quietly making my way down the aisles I gave them a quick glance. Checking for signs of life whether it died before or not.
It wasn't long before I heard hushed whispers and light noises of things being moved. "Guys?" I ask out loud, begging I didn't catch them off guard. Wouldn't want to get shot and everything.

James nearly jumped out of his skin, spinning fast enough with his gun raised, without really thinking about it, that the barrel knocked over a stack of small boxes arranged in a tower. The same boxes then tumbled onto one of the walls of the aisle, knocking stuff around and making a lot of noise. And then, some of the little metal rods sticking out of the aisle wall, that held up tiny boxes of different arrowheads, actually popped out. It took maybe three seconds of loud noise, and James stood there, wincing in response to his blunder. "Yeah......we're here alright."

Eve looked over, gripping a very modern competition bow. She tested it again, then grabbed a box of arrows and drew an arrow.
Hearing Tyler, she started to gather arrows and put them in a quiver before setting it over her shoulder.
"I'm good daddy."

Jen breathed a sigh of relief. "You're ok Tyler!"

James didn't respond, listening carefully for any snarls or sounds of the dead. So far, he heard nothing save the breathing of his compatriots, and that made him breathe easier. He found a compound bow himself, not of the same quality as the one Eve grabbed, but certainly better than his old one. Slinging it over his shoulder, and grabbing some arrows for himself, he nodded. "Okay, regroup and let's move. Before we go, anyone want to look for anything in here?"

Jen shook her head. "Not really. Doubt there's anything I need."
Eve shook her head. "I got what I came for." But she eyed some rope with eyes that were not innocent.
Not at all.

"Well.....I could certainly do with some new shoes. These boots are getting worn out, and since we're in a sporting store with an outdoor section...." He didn't really feel the need to explain.

Eve nodded. "Ok daddy. We'll keep the area clear."
Hefting her new bow, she and Jen broke off and started checking down aisle, Jen letting Eve do the leading due to her more silent weapon.

James let them walk on as he headed for the shoe aisle. Most of the boxes were gone, others just knocked down and their contents laid out on the floor. But after a minute of looking at the labels, he found a few pairs of shoes, some running, others hiking. He even found a pair of those, "skele-toes" shoes. But there was one pair, that really worked: a pair of trail running shoes, decent for both running and traversing rough terrain. As he put them on, trading them out for his old shoes, he wondered if he should find a similar pair for women, as a gift for Hibiki. She could have done with a new pair of shoes in good condition.

Browsing around, holding the empty box in hand for the label as a reference, he found the same pair, but in women's. They were even close to her size, if he was remembering correctly. Granted he was honestly basing this off of how large they looked to him when he......it didn't matter, what mattered was that they were close enough. Stashing them in his bag, he walked back to Jen and Eve, gesturing for Tyler whom he spotted down the aisle to follow.

"That was probably a very stupid thing. But I still made it." I said to Jen as I give her a quick hug. "Well... I might as well grab a bow while we're here. Gotta start somewhere am I right?" I said when they all started to go their own way. I was a tad bit confused, I only knew of two types of bows and there were alot more here. Anyway. I grabbed what looked like a recurve bow and threw it over my shoulder. Then grab a quiver and stash arrows in it. And like I did with the bow I threw it over my shoulder. But I wasn't even going to try to use it today. Too dangerous.

I start my way back when I see James in another aisle, then quickly follow. Knife readied incase, but I'd prefer my gun. "Anyone got spare 9 millimeter bullets?"

James shook his head. "I only brought two clips with me, and one's already in the gun." They reached the entrance (or in this instance, exit) and he waited by the door, peeking through the glass at the street. In their absence, the dead had spread out. Enough to make a break for the drugstore, he couldn't say. "Think we should check the drugstore?"

Eve nodded. "especially if we cause a distraction. Anyone got a flare?" she asked.

"I've got one left......but was hoping to save it if things went south. Anyone else? Jen? Tyler?"

"Uh I think I have a flare gun from back in St. Louis." I realize what I said as I said it. Pretty sure nobody wanted to be reminded of it. I quickly search around and find it in one of my pant pockets. It was a little bitty thing. "Who wants to do it?"

"We'll use the flare gun. Tyler, fire it at the other end of the street, away from us. Wait for my signal though, so we can get ready to run."

Eve drew her boy, and an old fire lit up her eyes. She winced but kept it drawn.
It was quite obvious she was pretty happy about her new bow, despite wanting her old one back.
"Ready."

Jen checked her rifle. "Ready."

"Ready whenever y'all are." I bring the little golden gun up and look down the sights, seeing where it'd go.

"Okay....fire!" James whispered.

I pull the trigger and watch as the bright red light flew to the other end of the street. It wasn't a perfect shot but it got their attention.

"Okay, run now while they're distracted. Head to the drug store." And then James ran, leading the group to the drugstore.

Eve and Jen ran behind him closely, Eve clutching her bow close to herself.

The flare did the trick, distracting the dead long enough for the group to make it to the pharmacy without drawing attention. Running inside, James held the door open for Eve, Jen and Tyler, before shutting it closed. "Same as before, keep your eyes peeled for any walkers."

Eve raised her bow and began to clear aisles.
"Clear so far."
Jen did the same. "Clear."

James checked his own aisles, soon finding himself in.....women's hygiene. It was funny, actually; people raided the place for medicine, food, critical items for survival. But boxes of tampons still lined the shelves, among other things. The next aisle had hair products; brushes and combs, hair dye, and even a few accessories. He checked some of them, pocketing one in particular before moving on.

Eve and Jen met at the pharmacy counter.
"Clear!" She called. Jen checked behind the counter. "Eh. Nothing really..." she sighed. "Find anything, James?"

"Uh, plenty of feminine hygiene products down here.....if you two need them at all," James said, before moving down the rest of the aisles.

Jen ran off, leaving Eve to just blink.
"Okay I guess?"

As James kept moving, he looked for anything useful, or even possible luxury items. Sadly, there weren't that many around, or even still good. But he was able to find a few boxes of cold and allergy medication, not that it would really be much good, unless he or his family suddenly got a nasty cold. It actually gave him an image of Hibiki, bedridden as her nose was red and a large pile of used tissues was heaped up by the bed. It was almost kinda cute, if it wasn't for all the snot.

Eve finally stood near James, watching. She wasn't looking for much, as the store really didn't have anything she was looking for.

"Hey, I found you something," James said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the item he had grabbed moments ago: a ribbon, colored a light blue. "For your hair, if you want to wear it."