ZRP-2: Chapter 4, Backtracking

Joe disassembled his AR-15 with ease and put the hatchet in a little ring on the back of his Rucksack. He nodded at the Guard as a way of saying thank you.

*Guard*
"Okay, we'll open the gate. Come in slowly, and we'll frisk you for anything else."
=Below, two guards opened the gate enough to let the man through, and they stepped back, drawing their guns just in case=

Joe looked around and held the straps of his ruck sack and began to move into the compound. Hopefully finding some useful things around here to trade.

=Once the stranger was inside, the guards closed the gate. Then one guard walked up to the stranger, his gun handed to his partner=

*Guard*
"Alright, I'll check you out, and my friends here will make sure this stays civil. You good with that?"

Joe was confused, he didn't know what the man meant by "checking out" so he scratched his head as if for him to explain what he meant. As the man did so, Joe pulled out some bottled water and drank it. Offering the guard some if he wanted it.

=The guard tensed at first, when the stranger reached for something, but relaxed when he saw it was just water. He shook his head when the man offered, and made a motion with his arms, holding them out=

*Guard*
"I need to frisk you for anything you may have hidden, like a weapon. If you have any knives on you, now is a good time to take them out."

The noise of loud footsteps pounded in the floor below Kilroy. The bandits obviously didn't much care for stealth. They must have guessed that anyone that was here would've attacked them by now. But Kilroy knew he could have some problems taking them on toe-to-toe, saying is the leader was wielding a Kalash and another had a hunting rifle. Even with his training, it was a bit of a risk.


Thankfully, they had decided to split up, rummaging through the houses.

This could be easier than I thought.

The footsteps stopped for a second, then started again, but louder. They were coming up the steps. Just one pair, it sounded like. Kilroy lightly stepped to the door's entrance, then holstered his pistol and drew his knife.

Joe thought for a moment and took out his tiny swiss army knife and showed it to the man. He then turned around and showed him the hatchet he couldn't reach on his back. He thought again and couldn't remember anything else, so he took a sip of his water through the straw hole in his mask.

=Satisfied with what the stranger revealed, the guard began to pat the man down, checking every possible place he could have hidden a weapon=

Joe held his arms out and waited, he felt like he was being felt up by this guard. If the zombies never happened his wife would've sued him for sexual harassment. Well... dead wife. Dead zombie wife. Anyways, he chuckled at the thought of her suing the man. But he didn't move while the Guard was doing the pat down.

=Satisfied there was nothing hidden, the guard stood back up=

*Guard*
"Okay, you're clean. Now, as for your weapons.....look, we have a holding zone for your weapons, unless you want to trade them?"

He thought about it and shook his head no. He remembered how much old world money his actual gun cost. Now it is only worth whatever he makes it worth which would never be the same amount it originally was. So he wanted to know where the holding zone was and he looked at the guard with a questioning manner.

Kilroy heard the door across the hall creak open as the bandit moved into it. Kilroy almost thought to jump out and attack the man from behind, but decided that was too much a risk and waited for the man to come to him.

And he soon did. The footsteps made their way over to the outside of the room Kilroy was standing in. The bandit slowly started to enter the room, machete in hand, not much expecting what was going to happen next.

*Guard*
"I'll take that as a yes. Come on, we have an old pawn shop we use for this. If you want, you can probably trade there as well."

Joe facepalmed and just followed the man. Maybe he could get something good for his swiss army knife or his Hatchet, maybe a better hatchet.

Kilroy rose his hand, then grasped the bandit's shoulder. The man turned, not ready to fight, but with a terrified look in his eyes. He obviously didn't expect a thing. Kilroy charged the man against the wall, pinning him to it. While one of his hands held a knife to the man's throat, the other came up from pinning the man against the wall, up to Jacobs' mouth, making a hush sign.

=The guard led the stranger to the pawn shop, and then stopped=

*Guard*
"Guy who runs it is behind a gate, and has his guns. So no funny business. Other than that, he'll be able to give you what you need, provided you have something good. Now I need to get back to my post."
=And then he left=

Joe watched the man leave. He sat there for a bit and went inside the shop and looked at the different things he could trade.

The man's eyes stayed wide, looking right at Kilroy, who now pulled the bandit off the wall and into the hall. Kilroy held the back of the man's shirt, and pulled his pistol out after sheathing his knife. He pushed the man out the door, though keeping him in front. The what looked like the leader, turned towards Kilroy and the other bandit. His face flared, he obviously wasn't too happy to see of of his group was captured.

Kilroy scanned the area for the guy with the hunting rifle but couldn't see him. For now though, his attention was on the leader.

"Don't shoot! I got one of your friends with me!"

(Leader)
"What the fuck, Lenny?!"

(Lenny/captive bandit)
"I'm sorry man! he jumped me from the side!"

(Kilroy)
"Hey, don't worry, guys. We can work this out. Just, nobody do anything stupid, alright?"

The leader looked off to the side, then back at Kilroy with a big grin.

(Leader)
"You already did, fucker."

*CRACK*
A bullet shot, but not from Kilroy's pistol, or the Leader's Kalash. Sand jumped up right nest to Kilroy. He looked down at where the shot landed then up to where it came from. A man was struggling with a bolt rifle atop a roof. Kilroy shot a look at the leader. There was a pause, just for a split-second, then Kilroy kicked Lenny's leg, causing him to drop to the ground. Both the leader and Kilroy fired at each other while moving to some form of cover.

(Allie)

I wash off my arms and find some shade to relax in. I pull out my knife and start sharping it against a whet stone to keep it sharp. I look around while doing this, spotting a guard and a man with a face mask, along with the daily rush of things.

Then Eve gasped.
"Berightback!"
Letting go of Sam, she sprinted out to Hibiki, unclipping the small purse she had wanted to wear with her dress. It carried the essentials; a water bottle, a few candy bars, her Glock 9mm with a brand new extended clip, and on thr very top, in a small, small tupperware container, sat four flowers; three roses and a lily. She had found them growing in opposite sides of the garden, barely living off the water.
Eve held the small, baely trimmed but thonless roses to Hibiki. "You needed a bouqet...and..." she held out the lily. "For your hair."

Hibiki smiled and crouched so Eve could slip the flower into her hair, then took the roses. "Thank you sweetie."
With a shy smile, Eve hurried back inside to again take Sam's hand.

Then Hibiki looked entered.

As Joe traded his hatchet for a better one. He walked out of the shop and began to look around for some place he could pray. He used to be a simple man, going to church, working, have the typical Suburban American life. Unfortunately he wasn't in the Suburbs anymore, and he couldn't work anymore. The last thing he could do is talk to god in a church. So he kept walking, trying to find something as some people looked at him strangely.

--Outside the North End of the Elite Compound--

=A small gathering of vehicles was assembled, hidden behind the safety of the buildings. Four in number, only three were actually loaded with people, the other was rigged to blow. They had their sights set on gilded compound, knowing full well that inside was a treasure trove of weapons, and food. This was no gathering of Shepherds though. In their absence, the bandits had filled the void as the local menace, now free to venture further beyond their home=

(James)
=Everyone was inside, and the only thing that held my attention was Hibiki. God, she looked beautiful=
Nothing can ruin today.

Hibiki smiled as she walked up beside James, the lily contrasting with her black hair. She shifted the trio of roses in her hand.
"Eve got these for my bouqet."

=I just stood there, feeling like I was at senior prom again, feeling slightly nervous. I looked to Mira, who looked positively radiant. I put on a nervous smile=

Good God she looks great...Nothing can ruin this moment right now...

=I keep silent, not wanting to spoil the moment=

--Hospital, St. Louis--

(Sarah)

=I lay there in the bed, still trying to recover from the bandit raid on my campsite=

Well...there always tends to be safety in numbers...

=I stare at the ceiling, wondering what Andrew was up to at this point=

=The bandits began the first part of their attack. Advancing around the vehicles and towards the main gate of the Elite compound, they sent the truck loaded with explosives on a kamikaze run for the wall. Guards manning the gate saw the vehicle coming at high speed, and fired their weapons at it, trying to kill the driver. There was no driver though, the controls rigged to have it drive in a straight line. Ramming into the gate, the truck exploded in a massive ball of fire, the shockwave breaking some of the glass in the surrounding buildings, but most of all blowing a hole right into the wall=

(James)
=I was about to respond, when I heard a very loud booming sound=
"What was that?"
Oh man.....come on!

Joe was walking around when the explosion happened. He took cover and looked over head to see what all the explosions and yelling was about.
He then took out his AR-15 and assembled it, looked down the scope, and began to scan where the gate used to be.

=I hear the boom as well=

Well...shit...

Explosion...and a decent sized one at that.

Hibiki spun aound, already flicking tye safety off her Sig Sauer.
"What the fuck." She growled.

Eve had her gun out too. "This wasn't suppose to be Parasite Eve..." she complained softly.

=When they saw the hole, the bandits charged, the vehicles accelerating down the street as they aimed right for the breach. Some of them fired shots into the sky, others hooted and screamed in joy=

(James)
"Why the hell are you guys carrying?"
=Yes, I wasn't armed which given the situation of the world, was stupid. But I didn't think I'd need a weapon for this=

(Book)
"Maybe you should save some time and just skip to the "I do's?"

=I then reach for my holster, cocking the handle back on the .45 and flipping off the safety=

Wow...I remember actually playing that game...shit, I feel old...

=I nod to Book, agreeing that speed was of the essence here=

As the bandits began to pour in. Joe went into a building, trying to hide from the bandits.

He saw the shadows coming from the window, hearing their loud scream. He finally began to move deeper into the building. He was hoping no one was inside of it and shoot him.

Hibiki raised her eyebrows. "I'm a cop. I do. A million times I do."

Eve shrugged. "I'm the daughter of a cop."

=Pouring through the breach, the bandits began firing at whatever moved. Guards took cover, as bullets peppered their cover. However, the bandits did not really have the ammo for a firefight, and the shots were merely a distraction: the members of the raiders that had melee weapons, charged the guards in cover. Taking them by surprise, the first guard was killed by a 2x4, nails sticking out of the end. Blood coated the sidewalk=

(James)
"I do I do I do need a break....."
=With that, I kissed Hibiki, and then ran like hell. I needed to get my weapons=

(Sam)
"Uh, wow. Guess we really can't have a wedding then. Let's move Eve, we need to get our shit."
=I moved to turn, but stopped=

"Hibiki......you may want to change out of that dress. Unless you want to fight....whatever the hell is out there in a dress."

Hibiki looked down. Sigh.
"Yeah. Stick with Eve. Mira, stick with Andrew u til you get your weapons." Hibiki kicked off the nife shoes and ran for her room.

Eve did the same. "Let's go!"

=I followed James, needing to get my weaponry as well=

Just one moment of peace...but no...fate had other fucking ideas...

=I head to my room as fast as I could, wanting to get my rifle and my bow=

Fine time for a field test...but it's now or never at this point

Joe crouched towards a room and moved into it. He sat there and waited for something else to happen. Whatever that something was, he waited for it.

(Book)
"I guess I'll just....stand here then."
=Of course I wasn't going to. I followed James, hoping to grab a weapon=

(James)
=Reaching my room, got inside and grabbed the essentials: my bullet proof vest, my P90, and my bow and arrow. I figured I could use a mix of both. However, there was a sound of the door opening, and I thought it was Hibiki=
"Grab a weapon Hibiki, we don't have much time."

=Imagine my surprise though, when I heard Book make a coughing sound=

(Book)
"Hand me a pistol James."

(James)
=I gave him a skeptical look=
"What happened to 'Thou shall not kill?"

(Book)
=Seeing a pistol and a clip, I grabbed it, loading the magazine with a click=
"The Bible says not to kill, but it is a bit fuzzy on the subject of knee-caps."

=I head into the room, putting on the bandoliers of ammo and then throwing on my bow and quiver, after that=

Let's do this...

=I then grab my HK 416 and slap in a magazine, yanking the charging handle back hard=

Fuck with my day will you...

=I then flip off the rifle's safety and head out towards the fight=

=Outside, the battle in the streets was going badly. Taken by surprise due to the bandits berserker tactics, a few of the guards died, the others falling back to secure the hotel and stadium. As for the townspeople from the lockdown town, they had grabbed their own weapons, and joined the fight against the intruders=

(Sam)
=Eve and I were back in our room. I didn't bother with modesty, at all. I just stripped out of my clothes, and into a set I didn't mind putting through battle, and then got my weapons=

(James)
=We chuckled, though I wondered where Hibiki was. She should have been here by now=

Hibiki had ignored modesty and was pulling on shorts, already in a black shirt.
"I'm currently getting ready while our good preacher sells his coat for a sword."

Eve respectfully did not look as she redressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Buckling her holster, she put the gun in it and grabbed her shiny new competition bow.
"And ou had looked so pretty..."
She drew an arrow. "Ready Sam?"

=The battle began to turn into a stalemate, once the townspeople joined the fray. They were able to keep the bandits contained by the hole, while the guards ran to get the tank and bus out of the stadium garage=

(Sam)
=I turned, holding my shotgun and pistol holstered on my hip=
"More than ready."

(James)
"Hibiki! I didn't hear you come in."
=But I smiled nonetheless, glad that she was here=

(Book)
"Ah, good to see I'm not the only one who knows scripture. Now, shall we go?"
=James nodded, and he moved for the door=

Hibiki loaded a mag to her rifle.
"Let's go."

Eve paused, then ewent to Sam and kissed her cheek. "Please be careful. For me. You're my best friend..."

(Sam)
=The kiss sent tingles across my cheek, and I couldn't help but return it=
"Same to you Eve. I'd hate to lose my roommate so soon after meeting her."

=Then we ran, out to face the battle=

(James)
=Leading the way, we ran down the hall and out of the lobby. Outside, it was chaos, with gunshots echoing through the streets, people screaming in fear or pain, and cries of bloodlust coming down from the source of the gunshots. So that was where we ran=

=I had, of course, changed into something a little more appropriate for the battle before I put my gear on, not wanting to ruin the clothes I had=

Plus it's just kind of embarrassing to wear your Sunday best to a battle...

=I then ran out and followed James out towards where there were gunshots being fired=

Eve smiled hapoily, running after her.

Seeing the melee, hibiki threw her rifle to Mira, then drew her katana. She kept her Sig Sauer and H&K USP holstered as she ran into the fray.

(James)
"Don't be reckless Hibiki!"
=That didn't stop me though from running right beside her, SMG burping out rounds. I caught one of the raiders, for that was who I realized them to be, right in the chest. He was lightly armored, and he dropped, his weapon above his head as he was about to swing it downward=

(Book)
=I fired the pistol, choosing my shots carefully. One shot took a man in his shoulder, causing him to drop his weapon, clutching the wound in pain. The second and third shot missed though, and I had to punch one of the raiders as they charged me=

(Sam)
=Since the Raiders were using melee weapons, I let them charge me, It made it easier to use my shotgun, and they went down in a spray of blood=

=I raise my rifle and fire on the raiders, dropping one with a well placed headshot=

Well...I still got it...

=I continue to pour fire into them, ready to use my bow when I ran out of ammunition for the 416=

Eve covered Sam with her bow, every shot hitting their mark - right between the eyes.

Hibiki ducked u der the two-by-four and stabbed him in the chest, then yanked it out and spun, slashing the raider down Skyrim-style. A man with a pipe swung, but she caught it with the hilt and threw the man's arms up, kicking him back before drawing her Sig Sauer and shooting him.
She holstered her gun and jumped over a barricade, driving her sword into another raider's neck.

(Allie)

*a few minutes earlier*


The exposion happens and I dive to the ground. I look up at the smoking hole then back to where my venison was cooking.

"All I wanted was a steak!"

I grab my rifle and hop up