After the Beginning

[sincere_and_silent]

| OOC |​

BOOM

The ground shook slightly, the forest rocking back and forth with the sway of the explosions. One of the farms were off to the east, right where the explosions were coming from. Normally they were quiet. Almost peaceful, despite what Anna Sophia knew happened inside of them. No sounds like this ever came from the Farms. What was going on?

Her curiosity got the better of her and she sneaked to the edge of the treeline, glancing down a hill to the small valley were the large fence and several connecting buildings stood. There she could see a few young women and girls running, a couple men in stark white lab coats - much too white for the dreary clothes of most people in the Wastelands - and fire. This Farm had caught fire, and the guards were not too happy about their cattle escaping. Three large, burly men with rifles were scoping the women and children who were running.

BANG

BANG BANG BANG

A woman with a baby bundled in her arms fell to the ground, blood saturating the grass around her. That was all it took for Anna Sophia. She slung her bow from her shoulders and checked to assure herself that her daggers rested around her belt. Taking aim, she took one guard. Then another. Her arms were still a bit too weak to handle a bow, so the shots often went wide. However, she managed to get one in the arm, and luckily one in the neck. Now she charged.

Placing the bow back behind her, she grabbed one dagger from its sheath around her waist and slid the other from her sleeve. These were her expertise. Charging in, she managed to knock one guard out before he noticed her. Suddenly her cheek caught fire and began to leak. Another guard had noticed her.

BOOM

The ground shook, harder this time as she was closer to the source. It nearly knocked her off her feet. Swinging her elbow back, she slammed it into a nurse who had just walked out through a door Anna hadn't noticed was there. She heard wailing and remembered she had seen a bundle in that dead woman's arms. It was alive. A few feet away, she grabbed the child and thrust it into the arms of another running woman before running through the door. There had only been a couple guards left, but they were hidden on top of the building. The others outside would have to deal.

Though she was unsure what she was doing, exactly, she ran through the halls calling out. Whatever was happening, these women and children were innocent bystanders. Anna would get them out. A few continued to run past her to the door. Mostly though, it seemed empty.

"Hello!"

BOOM

 

[PureKor]

If only it was an escape from this. More or less, at God's will, everything went from bad to worse. Faith for now was out of the question. Life would kick you again and again, until you have no breath left. Only if, of course decided to stand up again, not being afraid if the outcome.

In a distance, steady footsteps filled the air, her boots hitting the wet ground with each step taken. Her body moved across the empty street in a slow motion, scanning the area. Her eyes looking through The binocolour ready to fire at whatever she may encounter.

Fayda walked slowly across the street, hearing in distance some strange noises. Gripping tighter her crossbow, her leather gloves covering the length of the weapon.

After a while, a cat crossed her path making her to gasp in surprise. Almost killed a damn cat.

" It is to damn quiet.. I wonder what's going on. I better move and find a shelter for now.."

Her voice whispering, continued to go down the street, the wind rustling some leaves to the ground. Secure of herself, Fayda turned to a corner and saw an old building. Her target was there.
Her legs begun to quicken her peace trying to reach to the building, looking around for any enemy in sight.

Opening the door, steady and holding tight her weapon, Fayda moved inside breathing becoming heavier. She moved around fast, trying not to make way to much noise. Suddenly, a familiar noise ring inside her head; turning her body and putting all her weight on her legs, she aimed at this small child.

Her hands were rather shaking, yet couldn't lose control right now. Fayda look upon the child, converted in blood. Something was definitely wrong. She could feel it in the air.

Before she knew it the child clenched her teeth and ran onward Fayda, making strange noises. In a quick response yet hesitate at first, Fayda gripped her crossbow. The arrow went straight through the child's skull at high speed. Her tiny body fell to the ground.

Fayda took a moment to sigh, reaching to take out her arrow and with a sorrowful expression look upon the now dead girl.
" I am sorry.. But that was the only way to help you ." Whispering she moved deeper in the building, eyes focused around her. At a closed door, her left hand turned the knob letting her in. It seem so peaceful.

Fayda decided to stay there for a while, leaning to a nearby table. The blood from the arrow was cleaned onto her trousers. A small cloud formed into the air, the cigarette trying to calm her down.Everything was silent again.

 

[York]

They say a human can only last so long alone before they begin longing for the company of another... Or at least that much was true for Isabella Luton, though she prefers to be called "Isa". It was just another day of scavenging in the wastelands, she's been doing this for about 2 years by now, and things are getting quite lonely. She hadn't seen another living human ever since her escape from that farm, the same farm that was still probably going far away from where she is now.

She trecked amongst the desolate landscape, searching through the wreckage of what looked like what was once a cargo plane she managed to recover a few canned foods from it, adding it to the slowly dwindling supply she had accumulated in her small backpack she still carried with her, worn with age but still able to carry what she needed. There was barely anything left here for her to scavenge now, she knew she needed to find a new place to scavenge now, since even the wild-life was scarce around here. She needed a better weapon than her crudely made bow and arrows too, the few prey she managed to find have become increasingly difficult to hit with what she had at the moment.

After looking around the wreckage for a few more minutes, she began to head back towards her small shelter she had set up. It wasn't the biggest or safest place to be, but it was cozy, and provided her a good amount of shelter, she had set it up from a few sturdy metal poles that weren't as rusty as the others she found, and a large canvas tarp, it looked like it had been torn off an army jeep at some point. She had stabbed the corners of the relatively rectangular piece of tarp into the ground with a few pieces of broken metal; their ends were sharp enough to provide a decent "stake" for the shelter she had set up, improvising from the shelter her wilderness survival guide had told her to make. The guide had been of great use for her during her first days out of that dreaded farm...

She climbed in through the "flaps" of her makeshift shelter, sitting down on the "floor" which was just another piece of canvas tarp she had found, probably coming from the same jeep as the previous one. With a sigh of boredom, she lay down and flipped through her survival guide again, for who knows what number of times in a row, sighing a little wishing it didn't stick to survival in the wilderness before all... This happened... The longing for human company came back again now that she wasn't so distracted by scavenging, 2 years without anyone else to talk to, something that she had forced herself to get accustomed to, she closed her eyes and decided to sleep through the feeling, hoping it would go away when she awoke...

 

[LyraWolf1991]

A slow exhale escaped from Randi's lips as she and Bandit went to go check the snares. The faint voices of the news casters were running though her head, "Unburied human corpses are coming back to life and feeding on human flesh. Do not leave your homes!" She shook her head and gripped the reins tight, even though it was years ago...and the thought of civilized life was a distant memory, it was still fresh in her mind. Closing her eyes tight, she forced the sounds out of her head. She opened them again slowly and pulled Bandit to stop. The gelding looked back at her and watched her dismount, his tail swaying back and forth. Randi smiled a bit and rubbed his neck. "Let's see what we caught, shall we?" The horse nickered softly and bobbed his head up and down.


Grabbing her hunting knife from the saddle bag, she turned away from Bandit and headed over to the snares. Her hopes fell seeing that two out of the 4 snares had been broken. "Damn coyotes..." She muttered with a bit of a growl. "I'm hungry too." Randi let out a short huff and pulled new rope from her pack. She was running low and would soon have to go out and scavenge for more. After fixing the broken snares she turned to the good ones and only half smiled. One was still set. A rabbit hung from the other. "Better than nothing I suppose." She walked over and loosed the noose around the rabbit's neck and reset the trap.


Bandit's ears flicked, his eyes darting around the dark forest. He lowered his head and gave a short snort, causing Randi to turn and look. The horse was lightly stomping his hoof, showing her he heard something. Quickly and quietly she mounted her horse and turned him back towards their camp. "Come on boy...let's get out of here." Without hesitation the two trotted back to their safe area.


The snares she had set were not to farm from camp so it only took a few minutes to get back. Randi glanced over her shoulder and looked all around before dismounting again. The coast was clear. Her feet hit the ground, and she draped the reins over the saddle horn. Walking over to the ropes she had strung from tree to tree, she pulled one back and motioned for Bandit to walk in. Once he was safe inside the roped off area, Randi retied the rope to the tree. A sigh of relief escaped her. Though her camp was not out of sight, she felt safe inside it. She had rigged it up with tin cans and whatever would make noise if an infected were to come in contact with it. That is...if they made it past the wall of spikes she carved out of tree branches.


Randi unsaddled Bandit and chuckled watching the gelding shake out his coat. She placed the saddle aside and grabbed the rabbit form the saddle bag. Bandit walked off to the bale of hay Randi had found for him, lowered his head and started to eat. Randi smiled a bit and walked over to the dying fire. She sat down on the ground and stoked it, bringing it back to life before she pulled out her knife again and started to clean up the rabbit to eat.

 

[Scout]

Birdie let out a three note whistle.

Silence. Then the flutter of wings.

A robin entered through a crack in the boarded-up window of the room she was in and landed on her shoulder, tweeting the tune back to the woman in delight. Birdie ripped off crumbs from the corner of the bread used for her sandwich. This was the last day the bread would be edible for it was almost too stale to eat. A thing such as bread became a delicacy the moment she left the safety of the town several months ago. She wasn't looking forward to wasting the bread, but the robin seemed more than happy to have the food. Birdie smirked. "I'm sure you enjoy the extra portions, huh?" The bird tweeted happily in reply.

After a week of living in the wastelands alone, Birdie came across a lone robin. Some unknown force drew her to the bird, and once she got it to trust her she began to feel a special bond with it, almost as if the robin was a symbol for the brother she would never get to have. She felt as if the bird watched over her, like her father. It even acted as mischievous and childish as her father, which often brought a smile to her face.

She'd feed the bird every day when she sat down to have her food, but she doesn't keep it in a cage. Instead it roams free, returning to her often or when she calls it with her three note tune; it had taken just over a week for the bird to learn what the whistle meant, and once it warmed up to her it never strayed too far away, nor did it bring any friends when it returned—which was rather odd, but Birdie didn't pay any mind to it. It would be useless to think about something that didn't achieve what she needed.

Birdie was currently staying in an abandoned gas station. All of the windows and the back door to the place were blocked up, leaving only one entrance in and one exit out. She was in a big city, one whose name slipped from her mind years ago, and went out exploring every day in search of anyone who wasn't infected and food and water to keep her alive. Infected were killed on a daily bases; lurking in the shadows and pouncing when their prey least expected it. In order to conserve her bullets, Birdie resorted to using a makeshift bow and arrow as well as the large hunting knife she took with her when she escaped the raid. Days of practice allowed her to grow very adept at throwing the knife and paired with her sharp eyesight she had become lethal with that technique. It never made her feel as safe as the gun, but at least she knew she could fend for herself without it.

After finishing her sandwich, Birdie got to her feet and left her makeshift home, whistling for the bird to follow. The small beast flitted above her head, keeping a sharp eye out for anything and letting out a low warning whistle of any upcoming dangers.

 

[PureKor]

At that point, even the silent treatment become creepier. Sometimes being in silence, could drive a person insane. Not that this world was Sane anyhow.

Fayda inhale deeply the toxic nicotine into her lungs, resting on the floor for a brief moment. It has been a long time since she managed to get some sleep, when at all times you'd have to keep an eye open. Just in case of unpleasant surprises or unwanted company.

Throwing the last bit of cigarette, she stomped it with her foot. Looking around in the empty room, it seemed rather not so safe there.

She lifted the barnette Crossbow, supporting it on her right shoulder and headed outside. Slowly, she manage to crawl through the what it seemed a broken window, steadily walking. Fayda moved around the walls, keeping her eyes at the horizon for any movement.

" I never thought I'll end up alone like this.. Unbelievable, and pathetic. I just wish I could meet another person just to talk to.." Whispering along her way, passing by some crashed cars which most of them, covered in blood were once used by the people to go work and pick up the kids from the school.

Those days were long gone. The remains of the town, gave you indeed the impression this was The End of the World. Or more likely, a new area of the walking dead.


Deserted streets, tumble down stores,shatters hanging by once clean windows. It was as if a human never existed.

Fayda continued to move down the street, now breathing heavier as she tried desperately to keep her tired eyes open. She saw at the distance of what it resemble a hill full with trees. Her feet had to take her to that destination, in the hope maybe she'll find a house there somewhere to rest for a few hours.

Fayda's gut in the same time warn her that something was about to happen pretty soon. Then it happened.
" Shit!" Only a mumbled word came out of her mouth, looking at the imagine before her eyes.

The hoard of zombies, Was just at a few feet distance, but they were coming closer and closer. Gripping hard her weapon, she was ready to kill them at any minute.

Their smell was indescribable, they had dismembered bodies, and limbs sticking out at odd angles. Their bloodshot eyes scanning the land for food.

Fayda either had to keep quiet, stay put or kill all five of them. Most definitely had to stay quiet, since she had only four bolts left.

Soon she'd had to reach somehow to a place where maybe she could find some more amo.Or at least a secondary weapon. It was a necessity.
In the end, she waited patiently for them to move away further, as she hid behind a car and in a calm movement then she made a run for it towards the outside of this deserted city.

 

[York]

Sooner or later Isabella woke up, the longing for human company was still there unfortunately.. With a sigh, she got up putting the survival guide back in her backpack and stretched, she looked around at the small shelter she had been calling home for a while now a little sadly, but she knew she needed to move on, the area was empty of any more usefull supplies. She put her backpack on her back, grabbed her bow and arrows, and stepped out of the shelter, thinking about where to go for a moment, she remembered the wreck of the cargo plane looked like it had been heading towards a city somewhere, she began to treck back to it, wondering if she would find anymore information on where it's destination was...

Arriving at the site of the wreckage again, she found an seemingly ancient tag, looking closely, she could just make out the words on it reading "From: Fieldbrook To: Porter" with the rest unreadable from what looked like burn marks on it. Porter... She wondered if that was where the plane was headed, figuring wherever the plane was headed is where she would head. She looke at the plane's "nose" on the cockpit which pointed roughly towards the distance somewhere... Figuring it was worth a try, she headed towards the general direction of where the city of Porter supposedly was located, wondering if it was even in the direction.

After a long while, she came to a small river, which was too deep for her to cross, so she began walking alongside it deciding to keep walking in the direction where the plain pointed after the river stopped obstructing her... That was the least of her worries though, she heard stories of the monsters that had caused the world to be this way. The children at her farm were told stories of the "walking corpses", that had ravaged the world many years ago leaving everything in utter chaos for the time being. Something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye, a rusted wheel, with the tire completely gone was laying in the grass, looking past the wheel she saw more pieces of wreckage strewn all over the place, in a seemingly random manner. She walked towards the area, soon enough seeing the cause of all this destruction; a large sized crater, not too far away from the area could be seen in the distance "It must have been one of the bombs the old man at our farm was talking about..." she thought to herself, realizing these things weren't just "crazy stories" as the guard that was watching them said...

Digging through the wreckage for a few more minutes, and still not finding anything usefull Isabella gave up with a sigh. She continued to walk along the river again, wondering just how long it would take before it turned enough for her to get back on course to where that plane should be headed... About an hour passing before she finally reached a point where the river made a sharp turn, she started walking diagonally towards her left to make up for the distance that the river had made her travel off course. She wanted to get to porter before the day ended, sleeping out in the open was scary...

 

[Requiem]

"Hello!" Malachi heard called out in the distance. He blinked. Who in hell's name would be shouting that in the middle of the raid? He sighed, realising that he didn't have much choice in the matter. He was going to have to investigate. The armoury would have to wait a few minutes longer.

Quickly he shifted from his position, keeping low to the ground. Most of the soldiers were already gone, but there were no guarantees. As he rounded a corner, he levelled the rifle he'd picked up earlier on his target. "Don't move!" He ordered sharply. "Who are you, and what the hell are you doing here?"

 

[MadHex]

Silence. The sound of life was all but gone from within the small room, but the evidence of it being once being present was spilt across the floor. Blood...the deep roar of its crimson color stained its existence where the Solider had been tied, no longer there. No, now he was down below, being fed to the creatures of death like slop to a drove of pigs. Garretts knuckles were cut and bruised, his hands sticky from the blood he had yet to cleanse himself of. Rolling his fingers in the center of his palms the dried life liquid balled up in gooey balls of red, mixed with dirt and dead skin. The feeling of it made Garretts mouth dry, as if a cotton ball forcefully scrubbed the inside of his mouth without care. It was a feeling not favored and this urged him to do his rounds, supplies were fair but Garrett was never one to allow them to get low. Several buckets were placed in areas he found were good spots for collecting rain water. He'd go gather those before searching for food, the risk of the water potentially getting contaminated was a possibility and because of this the water was Garretts top priority. As he walked away there was no look of remorse, no glance over his shoulder to gaze upon the one he had sent to their death, nothing but a strong stride onto the next task, as if the very event that had come to past never took place.

Garrett made his way to the far window on the west side of the room and loomed over the edge, stepping out onto the overhang that settled right beneath it. The shingles were still in good shape and only a few were sketchy, which he was always mindful of avoiding. This perch gave him a good vantage point to look out from and he scanned the ground blow for any of his 'outdoor pets'. Those not within his little pit of despair were still very aggressive and he was no master to them. However he did have a trick or two to keep them from his location, something that proved there was still some learning capabilities present in their decaying minds. Whether it was just repetition or something other than that he had them somewhat 'trained'. Though it wasn't as helpful or impressive as it sounded, they didn't always respond, which was to be expected. Today seemed as though they had moved from his hideout, something else must have gotten their attention. This made Garretts senses go on high alert, if someone entered the city that meant they too were most likely looking for supplies, HIS to be exact. Being armed to the teeth only gave minimal security. If one wasn't fast enough to counter an attack or get the jump on an opponent it mattered not how much gear was held, death enabled all from carrying out another action. Soon Garretts form crouched down low to drop from the overhang and with a nearly soundless landing he stood up fully, his broad shoulders rolling to work out a few kinks. Three more hours before sundown...that should be enough.

(Sorry guys, I would have typed much more but my friends want me to swing by tonight to hang out with them. So for now, this is all for my first post.)

 

[PureKor]

Fayda kept on moving, running to where the legs took her. Her breath heavier and stronger, making a turn at a house, hiding behind the wall. Her body felt weaker and more tired than minutes ago. Sleeping now wasn't a option, especially in an open area.

" fuck this..! I need to rest a bit.."
Mumbling to herself, Fayda gripped her crossbow with her hand as the groaning sounds of the Undead came closer to her location. Oh how she wished she had a bat as an extra weapon.

She begun to feel the pressure of the situation, adrenaline pumping inside her causing the heart to beat at a very quick speed. Fayda closed her eyes for a moment, took a deep breath and made a run behind the building on the other side, her crossbow ready to shot any time.

Fayda moved forward down the alley, passing an house and a huge garden. Her senses were alert, hyper sensitive at any form of sound. Deep down she wished no encounter with the Infected. As if that would be possible.
Her pulse kept rising with each second passing, her footsteps rather careful when at a distance more grounding files the air.

However, Fayda decided to sacrifice herself, the hoard of Walker at a distance feeding on a body. She had to make it through this no matter what. A good shape house was spotted in the distance, slowly tried to make her way down there, walking behind the tree and a abandoned car. She steadily lower her body, fixing the 150crossbow in position, ready to kill the two zombies at the distance.

And then, a swishing sound filled the air as the bolts flew right through the infected's skull and then another one causing for the bodies to fall to the ground.
The worst thing came afterwards. Fayda had to go further to collect her bolts, Not Knowing that another Human was close by her Location.

Moving as fast as she could, not making much sound, her tired eyes gazing at the surroundings, before pulling out the bolts from the dead bodies. Fayda wiped them from the blood and arrange them in place at the crossbow.

" I think I might go that way.. Fuck me! This is insane.. I need to sleep.."

And with that, her body turn to the other way when some footsteps in the distance caught her attention. Another walker? She had enough Fun for a day. It was like an never ending horror scene.
Fayda took her position jumping over a motorcycle, staying down and poiting the crossbow to the direction where the Sound came from.

Just great.

 

[York]

Isabella ran into a rivereventually after another hour of walking, and again, she followed it for a while, but this time it came to an abrupt stop. She figured she'd just continue walking diagonally to her left again, though she was starting to feel a little tired, her legs were wobbling a bit, and her stomach was growling in protest having not eaten anything since she started her journey. With a small sigh, she sits down next to the river, calmed by the sound of flowing water, and dug through her backpack, pulling out a ration pack, the last one she had. Most of her other foods were canned, and she needed a can opener, or at least a sharp object to open those; she wasn't feeling up to looking for one at the moment.

Opening up the ration pack, she ate it quickly; it tasted a little stale, but it satiated the hunger gnawing at her stomach for now. She pulled out her quite worn water bottle, and washed down the food with a small portion of the water that she had left in it. Then she stood up again, despit eher legs being a little sore, she was a little better than she was before, and continued walking diagonally to her left, wondering if this was even the right way again. It seemed so though, more wreckage was found after another hour, alot more of it than she was used to, it looked like an entire convoy had been wrecked here. Most of the vehicles were overturned while a few still stood upright, there was even what looked like a tank, if the descriptions she had been given were correct of course, though it was too rusted to tell for sure.

She started off by looking through the closest wreck; it seemed like it was once some sort of truck, perhaps used to transport supplies of some sort? Wondering if there was anything left in there, she dug through it eventually finding a very rusty combat knife, letters were engraved in it's handle; L.D. She wasn't sure what the letters stood for, but maybe they were the owner's initials? At any rate, she was glad she found it, it could make a decent weapon despite the fact that it had dulled over the years of wear and tear, plus; if she cleaned this thing off thoroughly and scraped off all that rust; it might make a good can opener. She dug around some more, not finding many usefull things; though she did find alot of bullet casings, the guards had often given her and ther children these things, but they were empty, just like these ones; except they seemed older, and considerably smoother than the ones the guards had given them...

Moving on to search the other vehicles, which were mostly composed of more trucks, that supposed tank she saw earlier, and a few jeeps, some of which had platforms near the back with holes in them, Isabella wondered if someone had taken whatever had been mounted there. Isabella found a few more cans of food that were salvageable, and some stale but still seemingly edible ration packs which she put in her backpack, she was a little annoyed that there wasn't much else around this area, with the exception of a few larger bullet casings laying around on the ground. "I guess I wasn't the first one to see this..." She thought to herself, moving on through the wreckage the same direction she had been heading before, and after a couple of hours past, she could see a few ruined, but still tall buildings in the distance. It reminded her of the farm she was in, except there seemed to be no sign of any civilization there anymore...

 

[LyraWolf1991]

With a sigh Randi sat back and packed away the rest of the cooked rabbit. She wished she could finish it all now but knew she had to save it for later. She glanced up at the sky through the trees looking at the sun position. She knew the sun would be setting soon. She stood up and walked over to Bandit, placing her hand on his side petting him with a gentle hand. The gelding lifted his head and turned to look at her as he chewed on a mouth full of hay. Randi smiled and stroked his head, "Maybe we will find other survives soon boy." His tail swished back and forth before he lowered his head again to eat. Randi shook her head and walked over to his saddle, placing it back on his back. Bandit snorted and lifted his head in protest.

"Oh stop it, you know the routine." Again the horse snorted and stepped back from his food letting Randi cinch up the girth. Rubbing his neck she smiled and walked over to the fire, kicking dirt over it. With a hiss the fire died, smoke lifting into the air. Randi knelt down and rolled out a sleeping bag lying upon it. She placed her hands behind her head, staring up at the slowly darkening sky. She shut her eyes tight, the image of her younger sister flashing in her mind. "Billi…" She whispered, memories of before the infection filling her head. Thoughts of teaching her how to ride a horse and rope cattle caused a smile to form upon Randi's face. For a short moment…the bad faded away and she was in sure bliss.

Randi was suddenly snapped from her fantasy at the sound of a stick snapping the woods…followed by another. Her eyes snapped open as she quickly rolled to her feet, her hand gripped tight around her hunting knife. Bandit snorted, chopping at the bit slightly, knowing something was out there. "Easy boy," She whispered slowly walking over to him. Randi quickly mounted the horse, the sounds of moaning filling the area. "Shit!" She turned Bandit quickly causing him to rear up as she watched a large hoard of infected shuffle out of the tree line.

Kicking Bandit in the side he leapt over the make shift fence, landing with ease on the other side. "Go Bandit, go!" She yelled pushing him into a gallop, heading for the river. Looking back over her shoulder she watched as her "safe haven" was overrun. With a huff she looked back forwards, knowing she needed to find a new place before dark.