#addy carver sister

[malia-lake-love]

From author @Topazy comes one of the best Z nation fanfics I have ever read. Inside, outside is a 10k x OC book, here is the masterlist my friends.

Make sure to support her on her profile!

Inside, outside

Pairing: Addy Carver sister!reader, 10k x reader, Z nation rewrite.

Inside, outside: When camp Blue Sky is destroyed, an unusual group of survivors band together to survive. With dangerous things happening around her at all times, Astra Carver, the younger sister of Addison, must learn how to adapt to life with zombies, betrayal, and love.

All chapters with smut will have* Warnings: blood, violence, sex, swearing

Inside, outside edits

Inside, outside playlist

Different POV’s

Season one

1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12

Season two

2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15

Season three

3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08

Season four

4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12

Season five

5.01 5.02 5.03

On the other side

[pinkpoppymoon]

Carver sisters missing each other

@topazy Inside, outside

Shout out to the Carver sister angst! It hurts like hell 😭🤣

[mspirations]

Addy Carver  

“Full Metal Zombie” -  1x04

“Home Sweet Zombie” -  1x05

“Resurrection Z“ -  1x06

“Welcome to the Fu-Bar“ -  1x07

“Die Zombie Die... Again“ -  1x09

“Sisters of Mercy“ -  1x11

[toogayforthistoday]

My F/O list

Finally getting around to making this thing, so here we go. I don’t have ship names for most of them (yet), so in the mean time, I’m using emoji’s that fit closest. I don’t have an issue with sharing, but if you do, feel free to block the appropriate tag! I’m doing my best to try and tag everything.

Names in Bold I am not comfortable sharing romantically

Main F/O’s:

My mains fluctuate all the time, but currently the Main ones are:

Porter Gage (Fallout)  🏴‍☠️🖤 #OTP: Underestimated to a Fault

Husk (Hazbin Hotel) 😼❤️ #OTP: Watch Your Cards

Loki (Marvel Cinematic Universe) 🐍💚 #OTP: Green is our Colour

Touya ‘Dabi’ Todoroki (My Hero Academia) #OTP: Lighters in the Dark #gdi Dabi #jfc Touya

Alfie Solomons (Peaky Blinders) #OTP: Bow to the Bakers

Allison / Texas (Red vs Blue) #OTP: Houston We Are the Problem

Hiei Jaganshi (Yu Yu Hakusho) 🐉💜 #OTP: Hiebe

My Kids:

“Child” Familial F/O’s, and Fankids. I love them very much

Angel (Borderlands) Step-Daughter #Angel [Calls me Gabe]

Nero (Devil May Cry) Step-Son #Nero [Calls me Gabe]

Hitoshi Shinso (My Hero Academia) Son  #Rocker Bee Kittens [Calls me 'Mom’] #HK-57 the Malfunctioning Protocol Assassin Droid [Because of course I brought my son into Star Wars]

Eri (My Hero Academia) Adopted Daughter #Everything in Flux [Calls me ‘Mom’]

Cailean Elijah Solomons (Peaky Blinders) Son #Cailean Elijah Solomons [Calls me ‘Mom’]

Romantic F/O’s: 

I still love them very much, but my current attention is on the mains <3

Wolf (10th Kingdom) 🐺🌕❤️

Shaun Hastings (Assassin’s Creed) 📚❤️

Handsome Jack (Borderlands)  💪💔  #OTP: Are We the Heroes

Dr. Nigel Townsend (Crossing Jordan) #OTP: Cryptid Crypts

Skulker (Danny Phantom) 👻💚 #OTP: Compatible Hardware

Vergil (Devil May Cry)  🔵💙 #OTP: The Power to Protect You

Alistair Theirin (Dragon Age) 🌹💙

The Iron Bull (Dragon Age) 🐂💝

Cullen Rutherford (Dragon Age) 💰❤️ #OTP: The Ones Who Remain

Fenris (Dragon Age) ⚡💙

Anders (Dragon Age) 🚑💙

John Hancock (Fallout) ☀️💖

Robert Joseph MacCready (Fallout) 💸💕

Charon (Fallout) 🔫🖤  

Vincent / Angel (nikkzships OC from Halo/RvB) No Tags Yet

Arackniss (Hazbin Hotel) 🕷️🖤

Poly!Husk + Arackniss #OT3: Running the Speakeasys

Sesshomaru (Inuyasha) 🐕💜 #OTP: The Dog The Witch and The Broken Well

Dean McCoppin  (The Iron Giant) #OTP: Scrapyard Shindigs

Garrus Vakarian (Mass Effect) 🌌💙

Vetra Nyx (Mass Effect) 🌌💁💜

Shouta ‘Eraserhead’ Aizawa (My Hero Academia) 💤🖤 #OTP: No Rest For The Wicked

Hizashi ‘Present Mic’ Yamada (My Hero Academia)   🎤💛 #OTP: Loud Blondes Club

Poly!Shouta + Hizashi 💤💜🎤 #OT3: How to Speedrun a Family

Kisame Hoshigaki (Naruto) 🦈���� #OTP: Fish Out of Water

Hanzo Shimada (Overwatch) 🐉💙🐉 #OTP: So Much for Stealth

Jesse McCree (Overwatch) 🐎❤️ 

Mako ‘Roadhog’ Rutledge (Overwatch) 🐷💗

Aleksandra ‘Zarya’ Zaryanova (Overwatch) 🏋️💗

  Carasynthia 'Cara' Dune (Star Wars: The Mandalorian) ⭐💚 #OTP: Looking in Alderaan Places

Dean Winchester (Supernatural)  🥃🖤 #OTP: The Other We Deserve

Diego Hargreeves (The Umbrella Academy) 🗡🖤 #OTP: Yyou’re Jusst Like Me

Eddie Brock + Venom (Venom) ☣️🖤

Lambert (Witcher) 🐺💚 #OTP: Prickly Pair

Gambit / Remy LeBeau (X-Men/Marvel) 🎴💜

Queer Platonic F/O’s:

Not quite Romantic™, but Platonic™ isn’t enough to describe it.

Gaige (Borderlands)  ⛧❤️

Nisha (Borderlands) No Tag Yet

V (Devil May Cry) #OTP: A Facade of Memories

Merril (Dragon Age)  🌼💚

Dorian Pavus (Dragon Age)  🐍🖤  

Butch DeLoria (Fallout)  🕳️🐍💙

Cait (Fallout) No Tag Yet

Atsuhiro ‘Mr. Compress’ Sako (My Hero Academia) #TheShowmen🎭  

Jamison ‘Junkrat’ Fawkes (Overwatch)  💥💖

Emiel Regis Rohellec Terzieff-Godefroy  (Witcher)  🐦🖤

Addison ‘Addy’ Carver (Z Nation) #OTP: Blended Bats

Platonic F/O’s:

I will probably be constantly adding to this list as I forget all the time. These guys don’t have tags, if you want me to tag them, let me know!

Maya (Borderlands)

Krieg (Borderlands)

Axton (Borderlands)

Mordecai (Borderlands)

Brick (Borderlands)

Timothy Lawrence (Borderlands)

Wilhelm (Borderlands)

Nicoli Technus (Danny Phantom) #TechDeck9000🤖

Dante (Devil May Cry)

Lady (Devil May Cry)

Niko (Devil May Cry)

Zevran Arainai (Dragon Age)

Leliana (Dragon Age)

Oghren (Dragon Age)

Sten/Arishock (Dragon Age)

Isabella (Dragon Age)

Aveline Vallen (Dragon Age)

Varric Tethras (Dragon Age)

Cole (Dragon Age)

Cremisius 'Krem’ Aclassi (Dragon Age)

Sera (Dragon Age)

Blackwall/Thom Rainier (Dragon Age)

Cassandra Pentaghast (Dragon Age)

Deacon (Fallout)

Piper (Fallout)

Curie (Fallout)

Preston Garvey (Fallout)

Dogmeat (Fallout)

Amata (Fallout)

Niffty (Hazbin Hotel)

Angel Dust (Hazbin Hotel)

Vaggie (Hazbin Hotel)

Charlie (Hazbin Hotel)

Wanda Maximoff (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

Liara T’Soni (Mass Effect)

Ashley Williams (Mass Effect)

Tali’Zorah Vas Normandy (Mass Effect)

Cora Harper (Mass Effect)

Jaal Ama Darav (Mass Effect)

Liam Kosta (Mass Effect)

Pelessaria ‘Peebee’ B’Sayle (Mass Effect)

Nemuri ‘Midnight’ Kayama (My Hero Academia)

Hidan (Naruto)

Itachi Uchiha (Naruto)

Din Djarin (Star Wars: The Mandalorian) #TheDadalorian🦏

Fennec Shand (Star Wars: The Mandalorian) #TheStoicShitstarters😈

Sam Winchester (Supernatural)

Castiel (Supernatural)

Eskel (Witcher)

Triss (Witcher)

Ciri (Witcher)

Keira Metz (Witcher)

Yennefer (Witcher)

Yusuke Urameshi (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Kazuma Kuwabara (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Shuichi Minamino/Kurama/Yoko Kurama (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Yukina (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Botan (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Keiko Yukimura (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Shizuru Kuwabara (Yu Yu Hakusho)

Familial F/O’s:

I keep getting adopted by people 👀👀👀

Kai Hiwatari (Beyblade) Twin

Dr. Zed (Borderlands) Weird Uncle

Moxxi (Borderlands) Motherly

Marcus (Borderlands) Fatherly

Tina (Borderlands) Twinsies

Jack Napier ‘Joker’ (Batman 1989) Father Figure

Vlad Masters 'Vlad Plasmius' (Danny Phantom) Father #Vlad Dadsters

Trish (Devil May Cry)  Sister

Wynne (Dragon Age) Grandmotherly

Leandra Amell (Dragon Age) Motherly

Vivienne de Fer (Dragon Age) Elder Sister

Nick Valentine (Fallout) Uncle

Alastor (Hazbin Hotel) Fatherly... Patron... Thing 🦌♡

Lilith (Hazbin Hotel) Motherly

Todd ‘Squee’ Castle (Johnny the Homicidal Maniac) Younger Brother

Frank Castle (Marvel Cinematic Universe) Older Brother Figure #CastleGuard

Dr. Karin Chakwas (Mass Effect) Motherly/Grandmotherly

Admiral David Anderson (Mass Effect) Fatherly

Nakmor Drack (Mass Effect) Grandfatherly

Just the Entirety of the LOV (My Hero Academia) Siblings, the whole lot of ‘em #Leaguenanigans

Jin ‘Twice’ Bubaigawara (My Hero Academia) #TwiceTheFun

Kurogiri/Oboro Shirakumo (My Hero Academia) #TheOtherParent

Shuichi ‘Spinner’ Iguchi (My Hero Academia) No Tag Yet

Himiko Toga (My Hero Academia) No Tag Yet

Magne (My Hero Academia) #Miss you Mags

Inko Midoriya (My Hero Academia) Sisterly/Motherly (Dabi Ship Only) #MamaMido #NewtonsFirstLaw🔄

Izuku ‘Deku’ Midoriya (My Hero Academia) Nephew (Dabi Ship Only) #Curveball

Shoto Todoroki (My Hero Academia) Younger Brother (Dabi Ship Only) #GlareOfTheLimelight

Natsuo Todoroki (My Hero Academia) Younger Brother (Dabi Ship Only) #BrothersForACause

Fuyumi Todoroki (My Hero Academia) Younger Sister (Dabi Ship Only) #TeachingGrace

Rei Todoroki (My Hero Academia) Mother-In-Law (Dabi Ship Only) #MamaRei

Tomura Shigaraki (My Hero Academia) It’s Complicated (Dabi Ship Only) #NotInKansas

All For One (My Hero Academia) Father Figure...ish? (Dabi Ship Only) #Dad For One

Kakuzu (Naruto) Fatherly

Ana Amari (Overwatch) Grandmotherly

Reinhardt Wilhelm (Overwatch) Grandfatherly

Aberama Gold (Peaky Blinders) Uncle, Mum’s Brother

Ahsoka Tano (Star Wars) Motherly Mentor

Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars) Father #Ben Dadnobi

Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars) The Fun Uncle Mentor

Mace Windu (Star Wars) The Bullshit Filter Mentor

Grogu (Star Wars: The Mandalorian) Nephew

Donna Hanscum (Supernatural) Motherly

Jody Mills (Supernatural) Motherly

Bobby Singer (Supernatural) Uncle

Vesemir (Witcher) Grandfatherly

Logan / James Howlett / Wolverine (X-Men/Marvel) Father #SupBub

Genkai (Yu Yu Hakusho) Grandmotherly

Tommy ‘10K’ (Z Nation) Brother

This got really long, really quickly. I have been doing this for a while, so that makes sense. Don’t really know how to end this, so... Don’t be afraid to self ship, no matter how old you are!!! Your F/O’s love you!

~ Gabe

[carlosfreckles]

“Right then left”

“Sorry I haven’t done this in forever.”

[dingusandsmartypants]

“Addison Carver, I’ve heard a lot about you,” George said to the young woman with a smile, holding out her hand for Addy to shake, “I’m happy to finally meet you.”

Addy stared at George for a moment, barely comprehending what she was saying. She nodded and shook George’s hand, “Uh, Addy, you can call me Addy. It’s nice to meet you, too. I’ve heard rumors about how you started NewMerica — it’s really impressive.”

“Oh god,” Red whispered from where she was still standing with Sarge and 10K, “Tommy, go help your sister. She’s doing that same thing you do when you get overwhelmed.”

@glitteryssahotchner

Addy when she meets up with group probably:

“Let’s see what’s in my friend 10k’s car.”

“That banana looks good.”

“Part of a cookie.”

“…He has no seats, and a knife.”

[anywayhereskirkwall]

So considering how I take 3-500 business days to get anything done I figure I won’t be drawing my DA girls’ kids anytime soon but I could at least talk about them. For the most part if they’re able to have kids they do because I like designing characters by playing mix and match with parent traits and then I’m weak and get attached:

Alistair and Oralie: The pair that has “parent material” written all over them. Their first and only biological child is Adaia (Addy), obviously named after Lee’s mother because I’m unoriginal. She’s got her father’s eyes and her mother’s gold hair and is just covered in freckles. They then adopted orphans Celestine and Adrien from an alienage when Adaia was a little over a year and Celestine and Adrien were 4 and 3 respectively. They also get a couple more mabari. Lee makes a point of making sure they all know how to fight and protect themselves (along with any other kid in the neighborhood that wants to learn) but the girls are the ones to really take to it. Addy duel wields like Lee and Celestine has a sword and shield like Al. Adrien on the other hand grows up to become a baker. After the Blight they convince Anora to grant the Tabris family some land far enough from Denerim to be safer but near enough to easily visit the alienage and the kids stay there for the most part, but both parents come home as much as they possibly can. When Corypheus triggers the calling they realize that Adaia is hearing it too and it’s what leads to Lee going to search for a cure.

I haven’t decided if Ceres and Zev have kids yet. I think they’d both be happy without any but they’d also both be great parents, even if it’s a surprise to themselves. Also Ceres was a goddess of motherhood so I kind of feel like they maybe should? If they do it would probably just be one son with a name like Gaius because I’m fucking trash like that. 

Fenris and Hesper: Easily have my favorite next gen. kids. Carver, their first, is a tall lanky mage with shoulder length black hair, his mother’s nose, and grey eyes. He has a goofy sense of humor and the survival instincts of a golden retriever puppy that ate a whole pan of weed brownies. Bethany acts as his magic teacher. Diana is the younger one and has her mother’s red hair and her father’s eyes. She makes up for Carver’s dopey disposition by having a short temper and being CONSTANTLY READY TO THROW DOWN. Between Fenris, Isabella, and occasionally Merrill she knows how to tell someone to go fuck themselves in no less than five languages. One time when she was like 11 she broke a kid’s arm for calling her big brother a “filthy mage” and when questioned about it by the kid’s parents because we don’t care that you’re the Champion’s daughter you can’t do that she was just like “yeah and if you say anything like that again I know where you sleep Timmy you piece of shit.” Her parents just shrug and say “You’ve heard it here first. Better start sleeping with your eyes open, Tim.” Needless to say they end up in Aveline’s office a lot, usually with Eleanor Cadash, who they dragged along. Varric bails them out when he can.

 Lorain and Blackwall: Only have a daughter named Eleanor. Lorain takes up Varric’s offer of a place in Kirkwall and they raise her there. Tall for a dwarf but short for a human, she’s got her mother’s bright blue eyes and tons of black hair. I honestly didn’t plan to give them a kid but then I realized the comedy potential in Lorain using her Carta connections for weird parenting things like hard to find gifts, background checking dates, and threatening anyone who even so much as considered breaking her daughter’s heart that they might have an “accident.” Thom and Eleanor are both just there like “holy fuck chill, Mom.” Luckily for them she ends up dating and later marrying her childhood friend Diana Hawke. 

Aerin and Cullen: They have four and they all tend to follow a mostly unintentional 3:1 ratio: 3 brown 1 blonde, 3 brown eyes 1 green, 3 mages 1 not, 3 girls 1 boy. If I remember right all that was unintentional except I think there used to be another one with green eyes? I can’t remember but when I realized it I was like screw it let’s go for it. The oldest by about five minutes is Magnolia (Maggie), the only non-mage and warrior. She has brown hair she wears in micro-braids, brown eyes, tall and muscular. The second twin is Poppy. Curly brown hair, green eyes, plump, mage. Next is Victoria, who’s nickname is Sunflower because she’s the only one to get Cullen’s blonde hair. Brown eyes, kind of scrawny, and a mage. She’s also the only one to learn necromancy from her mother. The youngest and only son is William (Will). He’s also a mage (probably knight-enchanter?) but he’s over 6 foot and built like a linebacker. Despite this his sisters are all really protective of their “baby brother.” For the most part he actually loves it. 

Vega and Josephine: Probably adopt at least one but I haven’t really fleshed much out yet. Vega’s entire mercenary family loves them though and spoils them. Like there’s obviously her fathers but everyone else is also like a weird aunt/uncle/etc. 

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, usual violence towards Z’s

Chapter: 5.05

People. Zombies. Bombs. Chaos.

Altura still hadn’t recovered from the bombing, and survivors were still scrambling to try and find their loved ones. You felt a sense of guilt knowing that some had lost everyone and everything, while you still had 10k and Red. Red was more concerned than either of you that Doc, Warren, and Murphy were nowhere to be seen, but you had a gut feeling they were gone but not dead.

“I’d bet any money the three of them will turn up soon. Murphy, no doubt caught up in something dangerous, he’ll drag the rest of them into.”

10k suddenly jolts up in the cot; it takes him a moment to gather his bearings. Once he realizes his place in your shared rent, he leans his head back, using his hand to grip the bedsheets before feeling for you.

“Do you feel any better?”

“A little,” he confirms. His voice was raspy from being in a deep sleep less than a minute before. “I had a dream we were still living out on the road, still on the mission to get that dickhead to California, and we kept encountering the same issues as before except this time we had a baby... I was useless. I could hold my own child or even take out a z; everyone had to do it for me.”

You lean forward and kiss the crown of his head. “You will be able to use your gun again; it will just take time to adjust.”

“You don’t know that.”

Seeing the doubt in his eyes, he said, “Yes, I do. Because I know the second you sense danger, your fatherly instincts will kick in, and protecting this baby will be the most natural thing in the world.”

He closes his eyes. “I hope so.”

You stand and offer him your hand. “Come on, once we’ve had breakfast, I’m going to help you practice.”

—

Behind the main buildings in Altura is a wooded area in which Red has set up a shooting range for 10k to practice his aim. So far, he has missed the tin can with every shot he has taken. The part of the hospital that had prosthetic limbs was destroyed during the bombing, and Sun Mei said it would be a while before new ones were made. He was given a leather pouch to cover his stump with a hook on the end of it, which was causing him to struggle to keep grip on his weapon.

“Just take your time,” Red says, reassuring him.

When 10K misses the target again, he lets out a hiss of pain. You motion to his stump and say, “Let me take a look.”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine if you’re in pain.”

Knowing you wouldn’t let it go, 10k pulls down the leather pouch for you to inspect his stitches. The swelling was going down, but infection was weeping from the stitches. “You need to show Sun Mei and get more antibiotics.”

“Maybe you should take a break or use your left hand,” Red suggests.

“Just forget it.”

Red looks upset as 10k walks away. You place your hand on her shoulder and say, “Hey, thank you. It might not seem like it, but I know Tommy really appreciates everything you’re doing for him.”

She pulls you in for a hug. “I’m really scared; we are lucky we survived the first bombing. What if there’s another?”

“Then we do the same thing: keep each other safe.”

—

When you can’t find 10k in the medical bay, you go looking for him in the woods, but he spots you first. He puts his finger to his lips, signaling for you to remain silent, then waves you over. Crouching down beside him, you watch as two men shock a z with an electric baton, forcing it into one of the buildings, which looked empty aside from a few vans.

“What do we do?” You whisper.

“We gotta know where he’s taking it.”

You stay close to him as you make your way into the building. You jump back and grip onto his shoulder when Z's fingers peek through the crack underneath a large metal door, with metal chains covering the door as an extra precaution. 10k presses his ear against another securely locked door.

Quietly, you say, “It sounds like wild animals behind the doors.”

10k says nothing and leans back. Seconds later, a beeping sound fills the room, followed by the sound of a door opening and footsteps. 10k points to a large shipping truck, and you both crawl underneath it to avoid being seen.

From the spot you’re in, you notice Florida license plates on the back of the van in front. The man paces back and forth before eventually leaving the building.

You crawl out first, being careful so your stomach doesn’t rub against the concrete ground. You help 10K up and begin to dust yourself down, noting the fresh trail of mud tracks with traces of blood on the ground.

10k whispers, “We should go before—oh shit.”

A man’s voice comes from the opposite side of the truck. “Let’s get this shit over with.”

Not knowing where to go, you run to one of the other shipping trucks and climb into the back of it. When it starts to move slowly you ask, “Do we jump?”

Before you can make a decision, the back of the truck is facing the large metal doors, which are now unlocked, and a large ball made up of Z’s clutched together comes rolling towards you.

With no way of escaping, 10k points to the panels on the ceiling of the truck. “Whatever you do, don’t let go.”

—

You feel physically sick watching as 10k struggles to hold onto the wooden panel, which was the only thing keeping him from being devoured by the Z’s below. He was too far away for you to help him, and if you made any noise, the driver would hear it and most likely shoot the both of you.

When the truck comes to a sudden stop and the doors at the back open, allowing the Z’s to roll out of it, When the engine is turned back on, you both let go of the panels and jump down just as the truck starts to move off again, leaving the both of you deserted in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but trees. You sigh, noticing the pouch 10K had covering his wound was gone.

Even though you land on your feet, 10K is beside you with a worried look on his face. “Soon as we get to safety, we are done; no more adventures for either of us.”

You place your hand on your stomach and say, “As happy as I am that we have Doc and Warren back in our lives, I sometimes wish we never left the treehouse.”

—

“How far along do you think you are?”

Because of the bombing, you never got your scan. You tried to work it out, but since you didn’t track days, it was impossible to actually know. “Since I’m not showing, I’d say I’m still in my first trimester. Maybe in five or six weeks, what do you think?”

When you don’t get an answer, you look back and see 10k crouching down, looking at some footprints left in the dirt. “These are Doc and Warren's footsteps.”

Noticing a small hill, you run up it and see newly dug graves. Seeing a fairly clean bandana on the ground, you kneel down to get it. You wipe it off and give it to 10k; he ties it around his stump to keep it covered.

You study the graves and are thankful you don’t know any of the names carved onto the wooden crosses above each one. Hearing a faint, snarling noise, you turn to see a Z coming up behind you.

You stumble backwards, “Tommy!”

He grabs one of the wooden planks sticking out of the ground, snaps it, and then stabs the Z in the head.

“Eight thousand six hundred and nine.”

While getting to your feet, you notice a red mark on a wooden sign. “It looks like spray paint. Do we follow it?”

He nods.

While following the road, you notice a few more of the red marks left behind on trees. Luckily, it was only the odd Z you came across; 10K was trying to shoot and was swaying on its feet, walking in your direction. After several failed attempts, he uses the opposite hand and manages to shoot it in the head.

“Eight thousand six hundred and ten,” you smile.

—

Soon as you make it to a small town, you take cover behind a car with the same red markings on it. It was parked outside a building with distant music coming from it.

“Are you sure about this? What if it’s a trap?”

“I’ll go in first,” 10K says. “You keep a good distance behind me; if it’s safe, I’ll wave for you to follow.”

You plant a soft kiss on his lips and say, “Okay.”

A side door is open, so it’s easy for you to get inside.10k enters the building first, checking it was clear before waving you to follow. When you reach the room the staircase you’re walking down leads to, 10k goes in first. Sweat drips down your brow as you wait to hear his voice call out, and you let out a sigh of relief when you finally hear him again. “Oh my god,” he calls back to you. “Astra, it’s safe to come in; it’s Doc!”

The room is filled with red lights, giving the impression that it was a seedy nightclub. Soon as you walk in, you see 10k and Doc hugging, and you rush over to join them. “I’m so glad you’re okay, Doc; we've got so much shit we need to tell you! Are Warren and Murphy with you?”

“I’m glad you kids are safe.”

10k steps back from the hug first and taps you on the shoulder. “Uh, it’s your sister.”

You open your eyes, and for the first time in years, you see Addy standing before you. Her hair was much darker and longer than you remember, and from the glaze in her eyes, you could tell she was drunk.

“Hey sis.”

You stare at her speechless; nobody has ever broken your heart like she did, and seeing her again, smiling as if nothing happened, opens up the old wound you tried so hard to heal.

Hearing more steps approaching, your hand goes to a glass bottle sitting on the table next to you.

“Oh my god,” Warren says when she notices you. “You two have no idea how worried we were after hearing about the bombing.”

Warren sees your struggle to hold back tears and pulls you in for a hug and whispers, “I’ve got you, baby girl; I’ve got you.”

—

You look at Murphy suspiciously as he pours out drinks from behind a bar. He was dressed in a red suit, which matched his red skin. When he offers you a cup, you push it back and say, "No thanks.”

He grunts, “Not good enough for you, princess.”

Rolling your eyes, you walk over to join the rest of your group, sitting around a circle table. It felt weird to be with 10K, Doc, Warren, Addy, and Murphy at the same time again. George was there as well, but it still felt like old times.

You sit beside 10K, who was explaining what you saw. “Those vans are being loaded up deliberately. Somebody’s shipping a truckload of zombie tourists.”

“So you think it’s Altura?” Warren asks.

“I don’t know.”

“It’s where we saw the vans, but it could be anybody.”

While the conversation continues, Addy tries to make eye contact with you, but given the amount of alcohol you witnessed her drink, you pretended not to notice.

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing

Chapter: 5.02

Doc follows behind George for a few miles as she leads you to Camp Altura. The camp was built around a college campus, which had minimal damage. As you stepped in closer, you were able to see different stalls selling blankets, hot food, hand-made soaps, and fresh fruit and vegetables.

“This place is pretty impressive.”

“Hey, guys!” George calls over from a fenced-off area. “You gotta go to quarantine first!”

She points you in the direction of a tent to revive a medical test that would determine if you were alive or dead. Then you could move onto the second stage and fill out forms to register as a citizen. The third part was being assigned a temporary job until they found a permanent one suited best to the information you’d given them.

Doc and Sarge passed with flying colors, but the doctor checking 10K seemed concerned. “I'm having a hard time finding a pulse,” she says, feeling his wrist. “Any near-death experiences? Going into the white light? Loss of appetite?”

“Sometimes everything’s in slow motion.”

The doctor gets 10k to remove his top half of clothing to scan his body with a UV light. You swallow hard, glancing over to the other side of the tent. You see Doc and Sarge watching with the same expression on their faces, no doubt fearing the same thing as you. What if 10K was still technically dead? The doctor pushes him forward to inspect his back and notices the mark on the back of his neck. “What is that? It looks like a healed-over bite.”

“Oh, that… that was me. I sometimes get a little carried away in the bedroom.”

10k looks mortified at first but then clicks onto your lie. Smiling, he looks up at her and shrugs. “I picked a biter.”

Unconvinced, the doctor begins to feel his neck and then his chest. She roughly pushes her thumb over where his heart should be, causing 10k to wince out in pain. “Any heart problems you’re aware of?”

“Not till you did that,” he says, trying to pull away from her, but the doctor only pushed her thumb in deeper.

After a tense few moments pass, the doctor finally smiles and says, “There we go; we got a pulse.”

When it’s your turn to sit in the chair, you hand the doctor the paper with your name on it. It felt so strange seeing your name in black and white on the medical form. 𝐘/𝐍 ‘𝐀𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚’ 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐤. You were unsure whether to even include your first name since nobody calls it anymore, but you chose to in case Addy ever came looking for you.

She looks between you and 10k, who was putting his top back on. “Another Beck, siblings?”

“Married.”

“But not siblings?”

Sarge scrunches up her nose and says, “that’s disgusting.”

You nod in agreement with Sarge while opening up your mouth for the doctor to inspect your teeth.

“Anything can happen in the new world,” she deadpans.

“Ew.”

“Any zombie bites? Mortal wounds? Organ failure?”

You shake your head.

The doctor feels around the inside of your mouth, giving you a disapproving look. Considering how hard it was to keep hygiene standards up while running from the undead and trying to save the world, your teeth were in pretty good condition. The doctor narrows her eyes at you, then turns to tell Doc and Sarge they should start queuing to register because the lines were long. She asks you question after question without giving you a chance to answer. Frowning, she starts to feel around your stomach before moving her hands further up your body.

You swat the doctor's hands away when she feels your breasts. “Eh, excuse me!”

“Hmm,” she starts to scribble down on the piece of paper, shaking her head. “I’ll organize a scan for you. It will probably be later today so they can do a safety evaluation to figure out the best place for you to work.”

10k steps forward, his eyes wide with worry. “Why does she need a scan? Is something wrong?”

“No, just to see how far along the baby is.”

"I’m pre—” Before you can complete the question, you hear a thud. You look over your shoulder to see 10k has passed out. “I’m not…I cannot be.”

She hands you a small yellow tube to pee in and says, “Let’s find out then.”

Oh shit.

—

“Okay, so now that you’ve registered for citizenship and are certified alive, you’ll need to wait outside in the line on the left for housing and a work permit,” the doctor explains. She smiles at you. “Well, not you, mommy; you’ll be off work for at least a couple of days.”

This wasn’t happening; there had to be some kind of mistake. You couldn’t be pregnant. You glance at 10k, who was toying with the bandana on his head; he hadn’t said anything since two pink lines appeared on the stick the doctor dipped into your urine sample.

“I know this is a shock, but I do have more people waiting to be processed.”

You stand first. “Uh, thank you.”

Stepping out of the medical tent into the camp, you first spot Doc and Sarge, who are waiting for you both. “Fuck, we can’t tell them.”

10k nods in agreement, “we cannot tell them or anyone.”

You go over to retrieve your bags and weapons, which you made to hand over upon arrival. Soon as Doc waved over to you, you knew it would be impossible to keep a secret like this from him. 10k thinks the same because he says, “I don’t know how long I can be around him before I break.”

“We can tell Doc, but nobody else. I don’t want anyone to know anything until... I don’t even know.”

“Until we are finally sure things are safe?”

“Yeah,” you sigh. “Our team is our family; this affects them, and I don’t want to freak everyone out until it’s absolutely necessary. How are you feeling about it? Your head took a pretty hard hit when you hit the ground.”

10k Let’s take a deep breath. “I’m not going to lie; I’m terrified. But we’ve made it this far.” Seeing tears build in your eyes, he pulls you in for a hug and kisses your forehead. “We’ve made it through much worse; we just need time to get our heads around it.”

Taking his hand, you walk towards Doc and Sarge in comfortable silence. Just as you reach them, George appears with a large smile on her face. “Hey guys, I’m glad to see you made it in. Did you get your work assignments?”

“Sure did.” Doc replies. “You’re looking at a future intake examiner. I guess they liked my bedside manner.”

“I’ve been assigned gate duty with the volunteer militia,” Sarge pouts.

“So have I,” 10k says.

Sarge seems a little happier that she and 10K have the same assignment, but she struggles to hide her disappointment. George picks up on it as well, “it’s only temporary. Once the referendum passes, you’ll be able to work anywhere in New America. I personally like Pacifia, my home, but there’s something for everybody.”

You liked the sound of that. Personally, you either wanted to live in an open area like a forest or a farmhouse. You knew it would be a long time before that day came, but having that goal reminded you how worthwhile all the shit you’ve been through was.

George’s dark eyes land on you. “What about you? What’s your work assignment?”

“I don’t have one yet,” you shrug.

George nods her head; she looks like she’s going to say something but notices the nervous glance between yourself and 10K and changes the subject. “Well, if there’s anything I can do—one moment.”

You watch as George orders men who are guarding the fences to be less rough on a woman who’s the new type of zombie. She calls for Dante to hand her one of those little black biscuits and feed it to the women, making her much calmer. Without those biscuits, camp would be screwed; it was the only thing that stopped people who had died from turning completely Z.

—

After a quick shower and a hot meal, you go with the rest of your group while they are on gate duty. You didn’t want your first day in the place to be alone, especially since you’d got an appointment for a scan later on that day. Even though the doctor confirmed you were with a child, you didn’t feel any different; the only difference you felt now was a massive weight pressing down on you for keeping it a secret. But knowing so many things could go wrong, it was best to keep it quiet for now. At least that’s what you told yourself.

“Warren! Murphy!”

“Oh my god! Roberta! You are indestructible! Look at your hair,” Doc says, pulling a brunette into a hug.

It takes you a few seconds to fully register. Warren was standing in front of you. She was alive. You jump to your feet and rush towards them. “I can’t believe Murphy actually found you. I was so sure both of you were gone.”

Warren hugs you tightly. “I’m glad to see you. I’m so glad you guys made it this far; I was worried I’d never get the chance to see any of you again.”

Whatever happened to Warren when she supposedly died changed her hair back to its natural color. You liked it; she looked more like herself again. Murphy’s skin still remained bright red. Although Altura was the longest zombie-free outpost in North America, you couldn’t shake the niggling feeling that it could all change now that Murphy had arrived. Seconds after the thought crosses your mind, Murphy causes a scene by refusing to go for his examination.

Seeing Dante step forward, you jump in between them and say, “Listen, he’s got a phobia of scientists.”

Doc starts to try and defuse the tension but stops talking when Warren and George smile at each other. They walk towards each other and hug. It turns out they were old friends who saved each other's lives at the start of the apocalypse.

—

The outpost was more impressive than you first realized; it even had its own bar—not that you could drink for a long time, but it was nice that others could. When you first entered the bar, you were pleasantly surprised to meet Simon Cruller, better known as Citizen Z. It was crazy to think how many times he’d saved your asses without ever actually meeting you.

“Oh my god, what is that?”

You try not to barf as a citizen places down a large glass of green tequila before sitting down beside 10k and saying, “Do not let me drink this; I have a wife and kid.”

10k tilts his head and looks at you with wide eyes; you could already see the sweat gathering at his hairline. You had agreed to sit down with Doc and gently break the news to him that night, then, in a few days, tell the others, but the unknown elephant in the room had caught the attention of Sarge, Simone, and Doc, who were all staring at the two of you, waiting for one of you to say something.

Doc suddenly lunges forward, “Reds alive! She’s here with some dude, and they have a kid!”

Before either of you can answer, glass shatters from the other side of the bar, and two drunk men begin to shove each other while arguing. Sarge and Simone go to intervene, while Doc stays behind. A baby? How long have you been apart from her? Keeping track of time in the apocalypse was never easy.

“Sorry kids, I thought you would be over the moon to—”

10K suddenly lunges forward, downing the green tequila he burns loudly before wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. He looks at Doc and blurts out, “Astra’s pregnant, with a baby!”

Doc leans back into his chair and says, “Oh my god, I mean congratulations. You guys must be—”

“Terrified.”

“Nauseated.”

“What’s going on, gang?” Warren asks, walking towards you.

“Nothing, nothing,” 10k scrambled to his feet. “I need some fresh air.”

“Yeah, I’ll go with you.”

—

“You guys should go talk to her,” Sarge says, motioning her head in the direction Red was going.

While walking around the stall area, Sarge caught up with you and 10K; if she sensed something was going on, she never let on.

“Yeah, it would be nice to catch up with her and find out how she vanished into thin air.”

You start to approach her first, watching as she smiles brightly and talks to someone, but when a man hands her a baby wrapped in blankets, you quickly turn and head in another direction. It was too much. Starting a new life, finding out you were growing a new life, Warren coming from the dead, and now seeing Red with a family—it was too much for you to process at once.

“Astra! Astra, wait!”

You run until you start to feel physically sick and sit down on a patch of grass. Pulling your chest up to your knees, you quietly sob. You lose track of how long you’re sitting for; you only lift your head when footsteps approach from behind. “I’m sorry, Tommy.”

“No need to be sorry.”

“Red?” You wipe away your fallen tears and stand, saying, “You’re really here.”

“And you’re alive!” She rushes over and embraces you in a hug that you desperately needed. “I spoke to 10K; just to be clear, I’m not married, but here you are. Congratulations.”

You pull back and chuckle. “I’d say I wish you were there, but it was kind of chaotic.”

“Isn’t it always? What kind of wedding was it?”

“It was a spur of the moment, word-dying type of wedding.” She laughs, thinking it’s a joke. “Red, I’m so sorry about everything that happened before you left. I’ve missed you so much; I should never have left you and taken off like I did.”

She offers you a kind smile. “What’s done is done. Now we can only look to the future, and for the record, I’m sorry too.”

You squeeze her hand, “friends.”

“Fri— what was that?”

You both look over to the building the voting was going on in to see smoke coming out from the side of it. “I think a bomb just went off.”

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of blood, character death

Chapter: 5.03

The smell of burning fills the air as people run back and forth screaming while trying to find their loved ones or get help. You and Red struggle to find anyone from your own group of survivors amongst the chaos of the aftermath of the explosion that had just gone off minutes prior. You and Red keep your hands tightly linked together so you don’t get separated.

Not again.

“There they are,” she says before dragging you in another direction. “10k! Sarge!”

“Thank God you guys are alright,” Sarge says as you rush over to them.

You only let go of Red’s hand long enough to hug 10k. He looked terrified when you first noticed them. After a moment, you pulled back and asked, “Either of you seen Doc, Warren, or Murphy?”

“No, I was hoping you guys would have.”

You and 10k hold each other's gaze as Red and Sarge awkwardly introduce themselves to each other; it’s almost telepathic the way you just know the question he’s dying to ask. Quietly, you say, “It’s fine.”

You felt harsh referring to your baby as ‘it’ but this definitely wasn’t the time to let Sarge and Red find out you were pregnant. On edge, 10k grits his teeth. “We should try and find—”

He’s cut off when a man who you when first arrived at Altura announces, “All citizens and militia were to return to their posts for headcount. Altura is in lockdown.”

“In case of emergency, I’m to report to Sun Mei’s lab,” Red says before quickly taking off.

A doctor you haven’t met before runs out of the medical tent near the entrance and shouts. “We need everyone with medical experience treating minor injuries to come help set up a triage!”

“I should go; I’ll be able to check and see if our friends are there.”

You go to leave, but 10k grabs ahold of your hand. Sarge frowns, watching how reluctant he is to let you go. “10k, she’ll be fine. Astra can look after herself, and we need to go to our posts.”

Reluctantly, he lets go of your hand. “I’ll find you later; be safe.”

“You guys be safe as well.”

—

“What’s going on?” One moment you were treating minor wounds, and the next you were being dragged from the medical tent by 10k. When you are far enough from the madness, he lets go of your hand. When he doesn’t answer, your mind goes to the worst place. “Oh my god, is it Doc? Are—”

“I haven’t seen them, but we need to find the others and get the hell out of here. Whatever rotten brain biscuits the dead are eating to keep them from turning is running out. There’s going to be an outbreak of Z’s.” He cups your face with both hands and says, “We need to go soon, before it happens.”

“We might not need to leave. This place—”

“I’m not risking it,” he says sternly, one of his hands gently caressing your non-existing bump. “I’m not risking losing any more people I care about, not when we have so much to live for.”

Your eyes swell up because it now feels extremely real. If 10k felt strongly about leaving, then you’d leave. “Okay, let’s go find the others.”

—

Just as you reconnect with some of your group, including Sun Mei, Red, and Sarge, you see a woman being chased by two Z’s. Shit. People were already starting to turn. 10k takes off after the women, and instinctively you follow. You run down a pathway that leads to a dead end. You take out a Z by stabbing it in the back of the head, and 10k takes out the other by smashing its head into a metal pile that’s sticking out of the wall.

The woman runs away, still screaming.

Concerned, 10K places his hand on your back as you sway slightly on your feet. “Are you okay?”

Not wanting to speak out of fear of vomiting, you give him a thumbs up. The smell coming from the dead was causing your stomach to churn. “I’m fine, just—what's that noise?”

You turn around to see a swarm of zombies heading your way, and with nowhere to go, you would have no idea but to fight your way out. Re-pull the blade from your belt and begin to take the dead out, one by one, but it wasn’t enough. You were quickly being surrounded and outnumbered; the odds of you both surviving this were getting smaller.

Over the snarling and gnashing, you hear 10k’s gruff voice shout, “Down here!”

When Sarge runs down and starts killing the Z’s, you're grabbed roughly by the wrist and practically shoved into her. “Astra, go!”

You jump back from Sarge and stab another Z in the head. “I’m not leaving!”

Your eyes widen in horror as you see 10K surrounded by three zombies. “10k!” You scream. “Fuck, we’ve got to help him!”

“Red’s just coming!” Sarge says, “The four of us can take them out.”

“Astra’s pregnant! Keep her back!”

“Pregnant, you’re going to have a baby.” Sarge says it in almost a whisper.

Red runs down to help fight the Z’s, and at the same time, you scream while watching as a Z bites 10k in the hand. No, no, no, no. You couldn’t lose him again; he couldn’t become one of them. You grab the machete from Red’s grip and cut 10k’s right hand off to save him. He falls to the ground, screaming in agony, but both you and Red manage to drag him towards you without being bitten again. He was in shock and struggling to form words.

When a Z tries to grab a hold of 10k’s ankle, Sarge lets out a loud scream of pent-up frustration and charges the Z’s, taking a few of them to the ground and giving the rest of you a chance to escape. She’s bitten in the collarbone. “Go! Go now!”

“Sarge!”

She manages to unhook a grande just before more Z’s bite her. She smiles, knowing that she’s saved her friends, just before her eyes turn white and she turns into a Z.

You manage to make it to the top of the zigzag shaped path and duck down behind a concrete wall just before the bomb goes off. 10k uses his body to try and shield you and Red from being hit by the blood and guts that were being scattered because of the explosion.

—

Tears roll down your cheek as you try to get 10k to look at you. He seemed to be in a trance. “Tommy, Tommy, look at me.”

“Sarge is dead.”

“I know,” you say, cupping his face and forcing him to look at you. “You need to come to the medical lab with me and let Sun Mei stop the bleeding.”

“She died so we could live.”

Even though for the past few months there has been a distance between you and Sarge, you will still miss her. “I know we can say goodbye properly to her tonight, but right now you need to come with me. Please, Tommy.”

Nodding, 10k struggles to get to his feet, but you and Red help him. As you start the short walk to medical, you look down and see the bloody stump where 10k’s hand should be, and you wonder how the hell you were going to live with yourself.

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Mentions of injury

Chapter: 5.04

During the funeral for all those who had died the day prior, 10k had disappeared, worrying you, Red, and Sun Mei, but after thinking about it, you quickly realized where he would have gone. You walk into the doctor's lab to see 10k people staring at his hand in a glass tank surrounded by blue fluid.

Sun Mei rubs his back. “How are you doing, 10k?”

“How soon can we get out of here?” He asks, deliberately avoiding her question.

“Once you’ve recovered, we can leave and go wherever you want,” you say softly. Since cutting off 10K's hand to save him, you’ve hardly looked him in the eye. You blame yourself for him being in so much physical and mental pain, and 10k blamed himself for Sarge’s death. It didn’t help that you were also keeping a massive secret between the two of you.

“You need to take time to recover,” Red adds. “You don’t want an infection.”

In an unusually snappy tone, he says, “The longer we stay here, the harder it’s going to be to get out.”

It killed you to see him so frustrated.

Sun Mei reaches over to him and takes his arm. “Let me take a look at your arm. See how that cauterization is doing.”

When 10K lies up on the hospital bed and takes your hand in his, you can tell he’s burning up by how sweaty his palm is. Suitably, you move your hands so they're leaning against your stomach. He gives you a small smile before wincing in pain.

“Just focus on me.”

10k nods and does his bed to keep looking at you, but his eyes occasionally drift towards his stump, which had turned black and was leaking. The smell coming from it indicates infection, but Sun Mei tries to not cause him any more upset and lies, “It’s healing beautifully.”

“It’s not.” He gets out of bed and points at his hand. “This is my hand, right?”

“Yeah, Red went back and found it."

“I want you to sew it back on.”

Sun Mei laughs, “It doesn’t work like that.”

You shoot her a look. 10K was being deadly serious; he would have done anything in that moment to have his hand back, but because of a decision you made, he would never have that again. You feel tears starting to pool in your eyes, so you excuse yourself from the room and run into the bathroom down the hallway.

As soon as you lock the bathroom door, you let the tears fall freely. None of it was fair; 10K didn’t deserve to lose a limb, but it was better than him dying.

You had already lost him once; you weren’t going to go through it again.

—

“There’s a film playing tonight that might take your mind off things,” Red says.

10k shrugs. When the brunette offers to make him his favorite meal, he declines it. Sun Mei had already mentioned how little 10K had been sleeping, drinking, and eating since he lost his hand, and if he continued going this way, his body would become weaker, making him more vulnerable to different infections as the wound heals.

You abruptly stop walking, and whatever look is on your face causes him to turn pale and Red to excuse herself. “Tommy, I know you’re hurting, but you need to stop this. It’s one thing to start isolating yourself, but refusing to eat…”

“You don’t need to apologize again,” he says before you have the chance to finish. “I know you only did what you did so you could save my life.”

“I’m not sorry.” You have to fight to keep the tears from falling, not wanting to break down again. “I had to choose between losing you or saving you."

10k wraps his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of your head, and says, “I know, I know.”

You look up at him, holding his gaze. “I love you, Tommy, no matter what, so whatever you’re going through, I want you to tell me. Even if it’s that you hate me, I want to know.”

He lets out a sigh and quietly says, “I can’t sleep because I’m worried about how I’m supposed to protect my family. I never missed a shot; I always got my target, but now... what if a Z gets close to the baby and I don’t make the shot?”

“I promise you, you’ll always make that shot. You’re the most selfless person I know; it’s just one of the many reasons I fell for you, including your badass zombie-killing skills. It just might take some time for you to get used to it.”

10k’s gaze is full of adoration as he leans down to press a soft kiss to your lips. “Thank you for saving me.”

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, minor violence

Chapter: 4.12

Your hair fell over your shoulders as you pulled clumps of blood out of 10K’s hair with your fingers. It would make cutting his dark locks, which had grown to just under his ears, that much easier without pieces of Z still in them. You were both drenched in blood and in need of bathing in the nearby river, but it was safer to wait until all the thick smoke from the explosion had cleared.

“It meant what I said.”

“I know; that’s why I agreed to marry you.”

10k tilts his head around, looking up from over his shoulder; his eyes almost have a pleading look in them. Just over half a year had passed since your group had all gone their separate ways, but it never became any easier to accept; out of everyone, 10k had taken it the hardest. Growing up, he only had his mother, so gaining a family he never had just to lose it was difficult to adjust to, especially with how it ended. 5K was dead, Murphy had gone AWOL, which was concerning considering he tried to build his own army last time, you and Addy weren’t on speaking terms, Warren was untraceable, and Doc decided he needed to do more and left to join a Z hunting party. He promised he’d be back, but I still hurt when he left. You were grateful that Red chose to stay with you and 10K, but all the new memories you were making didn’t ease the pain of the old ones.

All of this, combined with 10k’s body trying to function as normal after being bitten, had made him paranoid; he was scared anything that was too good would suddenly disappear.

“I love you, Tommy.” You kiss him on the only blood-free part of his face, which was his left cheek.

“I love you too,” he smiles. “When the time is right, we will get married, and hopefully our old gang will be there.”

“How will we know when the time is right?”

He shrugs and says, “I don’t know; I guess we just will.”

“You seem lost in thought; what are you thinking about?” 10k asks as you walk through a plot of land that was mainly rumbling from collapsed buildings and abandoned vehicles.

“One day in the future, when we have our own home again, I'll have the note you’d written me framed and hung up on a wall.”

10k raises his brows, smiling, and says, “That's a very hopeful thought to have, although I’m surprised that note has lasted so long.”

“You’re kidding, right? I treat it as if the paper were made from gold.”

“You know,” Murphy says loudly for Warren, who was charging in front, to hear. “If you just told us what you were looking for, it would be a lot easier to help you find it.”

Warren takes a moment to reply as her eyes scan the area, “I’ll know when I see it.”

Rolling your eyes, you sighed. You’d been relentlessly flogging Warren for days, and she had shared nothing useful about the location or any other information that would help you help her. It was growing increasingly frustrating, especially with Murphy dragging the zombified president behind him. After a while of walking, Warren zones out again, but then comes to and orders Murphy to stand in one spot while holding his hands in the air.

“How long do I need to do this for?” He moans, “I haven’t showered in three weeks, and my arms are tired.”

“It’s definitely longer than three weeks,” you snort.

After making Murphy change his arm position and holding up a sign post, Warren spots something no one else can see and somehow finds a hatch that had been hidden beneath the dirt and rubble leading to your next location.

—

Your mouth twists in irritation as you struggle to lower the dead president, who was surprisingly heavy, into the room the hatch led to, which was part of an underground army base. 10K, Warren, Murphy, and Doc had already gone in first to make sure it was clear, leaving you and Sarge alone for the first time in days. Neither of you had attempted to utter a single word to one another before this, but now you were forced to.

“Easy, steady,” she says, looking down. “Take it slow, nice and slow.”

“Easy for you to say.” You grit your teeth as you feel the rope burning the palms of your hands. You feel yourself startling to lose your grip. “I’m going to drop him!”

Sarge quickly grabs the rope that’s slipping and says, “Holy shit, he’s heavy!”

Even with the two of you trying to keep him steady, the president's weight became too much when he began wriggling about in the makeshift harness, causing the rope to slip from both of your hands. Hearing the thud below, you share a shocked look before both moving to stare down the hatch. Luckily, he was still moving, which meant you hadn’t re-killed him.

You let out a soft chuckle while getting to your feet. Sarge looks at you nervously; she motions for you to climb down the ladder first, “after you.”

“Thanks.”

10k takes your hand as he helps you jump off the end of the ladder, giving you a knowing look that says, “My bad.” You clear your throat. “So where to next?”

“That way,” Warren says before exiting the room.

As you go down different hallways, you come across a handful of Z’s that have gone blind due to the lack of sunlight, which meant it was easy for you to show mercy to time. Not wanting to create any noise, you shot them in the head with arrows. Your group remains silent until you reach a staircase and try to figure out the best way to get the zombie down it quickly.

“Maybe we could make a stretcher?” Doc suggests.

“That’s a good—” you stop talking when you hear a loud thud, and you glance over your shoulder to see Murphy standing suspiciously alone. “Murphy, did you just push the zombified president down the stairs?”

“Ex-president,” he points out. “And it saved us time, and besides, he’s already dead.”

Warren shakes her head. “We better go get him before he wanders off.”

—

You finally find the president after going down thirty flights of stairs to find two Zs eating the organs from his stomach. “I got it,” 10k says before using a slingshot to fire a sharp blade that goes through the two Z’s heads. He clicks his tongue and says, “Eight thousand, four hundred fifty-two.”

While Doc and Murphy tried their best to fix the president up as best they could so the zombie could walk again, your eyes remained glued to Sarge, who was staring at 10k so lovingly. You felt as if something was finally clicking into place as an uneasy feeling set in your gut.

“Let’s go,” Warren says, interrupting your thoughts.

You go into a control room and look around until Warren spots a red sign with a black message saying fourth strike and declares that’s the way to go.

You manage to fight your way through a small herd of Z’s without anyone getting bitten or hurt. While you all catch your breath, another Z appears suddenly behind you. Quickly, you stab it in the head and ask, “Where did that come from?”

10k points to the floor above, “up there.”

“I don’t think God has anything to do with this,” Murphy says sarcastically.

“No, I mean someone is pushing bodies over the edge.”

You look up as more Zs are pushed over and spot an older man with glasses about to push another Z over. “Hey!” You are behind him, firing arrows at him while Warren begins firing shots; however, the man is able to duck behind the wall. “Son of a bitch! Who the hell is that?”

“Possibly the same zona bastard who hacked the northern lights, then he had the launch codes,” Warren says, sounding panicked. “We can’t let him get to the drone before us.”

“Looks like it’s a race to the finish, then.”

—

A few things became more obvious to you while looking for the drone, including that Warren had apparently picked up a number of skills she had no memory of, including speaking Latin and hacking computers; the missions were growing increasingly dangerous as the minutes passed as more Z’s appeared; and Sarge most definitely had feelings for 10k. Seeing her stare at him with puppy-dog eyes made anger swirl inside you, but you had no right to be angry when she hadn’t acted on her feelings or had any control over them.

“Anyone else seeing this countdown?” Doc asks as a beep fills the room.

Warren remains silent as she clicks away at the computer, which now shows multiple CCTV footage of a small aircraft as gunfire fills the room. You join 10k and Sarge as they try to hold off Z’s from entering the room.

“Warren, we need the door code to close it!”

She doesn’t answer and sits, talking to herself instead.

“The code! Now, before the Z’s kill us!”

When she doesn’t answer, Doc tries his best to push the door closed, but he only manages to push it so far.

Suddenly Warren snaps out of her trance and back to reality, “It was Teller.”

“Dr. Teller?”

She explains that she remembers that Dr. Teller from Mercy Labs was the one who woke her from her coma to tell her about the black rainbow and how to stop it. She passes on instructions to both Doc and Murphy before saying she needs to go alone for the next part of the mission.

“We go where you go, boss.”

“Doc’s right, we can’t split up now. It isn’t safe.”

“You guys need to stay here and turn the keys in the computer,” she says, glancing down at the ground. “Where I’m going, no one can follow.”

Your jaw drops as the feeling of sorrow spreads through the room; it felt as if Warren was saying goodbye.

Warren pulls 10K in for her hug. She holds onto him tightly and says, “When you get to Newsmerica and find Addy, Sun Mei, and Red, tell them I love you from me.”

This was wrong. It felt as if Warren had already accepted that she needed to die in order to save the world.

With tears in her eyes, Warren steps back from her hug with 10k, turning to Doc and hugging him before embracing you tightly. “You’ve done good, kid,” she whispers. “I want you to go on and have the best life possible, with lots of little babies and at least one named after me.”

You let out a broken chuckle as you held back from crying. Throughout the years, Warren had been a massive part of your lives and was the reason all of you had survived so long. Losing her was going to be devastating.

“I’ll see you soon,” you sniff.

10k rests his forehead against the back of your shoulder as she leaves. The only thing you could do now was watch the screen on the computer.

—

“What is she doing?”

“Changing a cylinder on the aircraft,” Doc answers. “Apparently one saves the world and the other destroys it.”

“Okay, but once she’s done that, she can leave, right?” Deep down, you knew the answer but desperately wanted someone to tell you you were wrong.

“Uh guys!” 10k says, “we aren’t alone!”

When a Z forces itself through the crack in the door you fight to kill it as the others turn the keys and press the alarms as Warren had instructed causing red lights to start flashing and another countdown.

When Murphy spots the man from before who’d thrown the Z’s down on the screen he rushes from the room, despite Doc trying to stop him.

Your eyes flicker between screens as you watch Warren climb back into the drone and try to watch for Murphy on the other. The countdown reaches the final ten seconds causing you to panic, “what do we do? The drone is going to take off with Warren inside.”

“We can’t stay here,” 10k says, opening the door.

The four of you race down to the landing strip just as the drone dissolves into little pieces in the air, leaving behind what looks like a black rainbow in the sky.

—

She’s gone. Warren was really gone.

“What the hell?” Doc asks from beside you.

You glance to the side to see Murphy, who looked quite sunburned. You look at him in disbelief before looking back to the sky and saying, “We’re all going to die, aren’t we?”

“Looks like it,” 10k answers.

You stare up at the black rainbow above, finding it hard to believe you’d just lost Warren, your leader, your friend. Behind you, Sarge, let’s out a small gasp, but you don’t pay attention to why. You only look away from the darkness above when you feel something brush against the back of your leg. You glance over your shoulder and see 10k looking as if he’s going to sit on the ground. “What are you—”

10k falls to one knee and pulls out a ring box, “Astra…”

You momentarily freeze, unable to think as you process the unanswered question his shaky voice wasn’t able to get out. 10k opens the ring box, revealing multiple rings, each of them looking a different size. The thought of him saving them all for you causes tears to swell up. You look over to Doc and say, “can you marry us?”

He laughs a little before lifting his head to address Sarge and Murphy, waving them to stand at the side. The sun was setting, the air smelled of smoke, and everyone was covered in sweat, dirt, and blood, but weirdly, it seemed fitting for the type of life you lived. Doc clears his throat: “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the love between these two crazy kids. Now in the world before wedding ceremonies were drawn out, but since there’s a chance the dead could gate crash, I'm going to keep it short and cut to the vows.”

You all laugh at his words as 10k, who’s now standing, takes your hand in his. “I have spent my entire life feeling like something was missing, and I didn’t know what it was until I spotted a group of strangers fighting off the undead. That’s when I first saw you and finally found what was missing.”

You wipe away the tears trickling down your cheek while you let out a shaky breath. This was a moment you’d been looking forward to for so long, but it felt surreal finally living it, and it also broke your heart thinking of everyone who should have been there. Addy, Mack, Cassandra, Garnett, Vazquez, Red, and Warren 10k squeezes your hand when he sees you become emotional and gives you a moment before he continues. You wipe at your nose and nod for him to go on, “Sorry.”

He smiles brightly. “I knew from the moment I saw you pull the blade from your belt and take out a bunch of Z’s so fearlessly that you’d be important to me.” He chokes up and takes a deep breath. “My biggest fear is losing you. When you were kidnapped, I realized how much I loved you and that there was nothing I wouldn’t do to find you. I love you and promise to always protect you and stand by your side.”

Your heart melts when you hear those sweet words fall from his mouth. “When the apocalypse began, I lost all faith that anything good could last, but from the day you saved me, I knew our fates were intertwined, but I had no idea how madly I’d fall for you. You’re my best friend, Tommy, and there’s not a line I wouldn’t cross to keep you safe.”

By the end of saying your improvised vows, you are both crying, along with everyone else, including Murphy, who is now holding the ring box. He looks between the rings and your hand before pulling one out and handing it to 10k, saying, “I think this one will fit.”

It was a plain silver band that surprisingly fit as 10K placed it on your finger. You notice Doc's eyes have now gone bloodshot from crying; he claps his hands together and cheers, “You now may kiss the bride!” Your lips collide, and you smile into the kiss as 10k wraps his arms around your waist. When you pull back, Doc announces, “I now pronounce you man and wife!”

You kiss 10k again and mumble into his lips, “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, violence

Chapter: 5.01

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this story! I'm feeling a little sad but looking forward to writing the final season of the chaotic love story between Astra and 10k💕

You swing the hammer in your hands fast, cracking the skull of the Z in front of you open, flinching as its blood splattered over you. Turning on your heels, you bury the claw into another Z’s eye socket before using the blade in your other hand to stab it in the side of the head.

“I give you mercy,” you say, wiping the blood off your face with the sleeve of your jumper before putting your hand flat against a tree. You lean against it and catch your breath.

Thinking the coast was clear, you’d split off from the rest of your group momentarily to go for a pee, but ended up being chased by the undead on your way back. As you walk up a hill in the direction the rest of your group is going, you spot Doc running with a brunette by his side towards them, then hear the familiar sound of gunshots as 10k and Sarge take out a handful of Z’s.

“What’s going on?”

“A Z just said ‘no’,” Murphy replies.

“What?”

He scoffs and rolls his eyes. “A Z just said ‘no’ right before 10K shot him.”

“Right,” you snort, before leaning up and kissing 10k on the cheek. Dropping your backpack to the ground, you open it and rummage inside it before pulling out a bottle of water that you hand to the brunette Doc rescued, saying, “hey, I’m Astra.”

“Hi… Thank you,” she shyly accepts.

Since being unable to stop the black rainbow, the survivors of your group decided to head to Newmerica, and along the way, you helped anyone you came across. It was hard given the lack of water, food, and ammunition, but humanity needed to look after one another again, even strangers. It was the only way life in the new world would work. Maybe it was hope of a better life, but the sky seemed clearer, the grass was healthy and un-stained by blood and zombie guts, and the air was much fresher.

Once everyone had something to eat and drink, Doc declared it was time to move on before any more deaths came.

While heading back to the vehicle parked at the bottom of the hill, Murphy leans into you and says, “I don’t know about Granny; she doesn’t look so good. I swear to God I saw her cough up a hairball.”

He was right; the elderly woman who claimed her name was actually Granny looked as if she'd been sick for a long time. 10k and Doc saved her and her adult children from a horde of Z’s days prior, and initially you thought their sickly appearance was due to exhaustion, but now you weren’t convinced it was the only reason. You were worried Granny wouldn’t even make it to Newmerica. You whisper, “I think we should be ready to show mercy at any time.”

When a couple you rescued let out a deep, chesty cough behind you, Murphy looked back and waved to them. “How y’all doing back there?”

“We’re good,” the man replies. “She’s actually feeling better, and my stomach cramps have stopped.”

Murphy laughs cheerfully before turning to look straight ahead again. “If they weren’t talking, I’d swear they were Zs. What are they still living for, huh? I’d say just die already.”

“I say the same thing about you all the time.”

He glares at you, “brat.”

You laugh as Murphy walks faster to catch up with Doc, no doubt to argue about whether Warren is still alive again. The subject of their arguments caused knots to form in your stomach. You knew what it was like to have nobody believe you that someone you loved was still alive, but then again, you only experienced that with 10k because Murphy put you through it.

You step to the side to wait for 10k, who is at the back of the group making sure the dead don’t creep up, but as the others walk by, you do your best not to gag. Not only did the people you rescued look dead, but they also smelled like death.

—

Your eyes flicker between the road and the figure disappearing into the distance. Murphy had just split off from the rest of the group on his own to go search for Warren while the rest of you headed to New Mexico. Although you had a history with Murphy, you didn’t like that the group was getting smaller, plus you doubted he would survive long on his own.

“A few hundred more miles and we’ll be in Newmerica,” Doc says, railing everyone together. He stopped driving half an hour ago so everyone could stretch their legs.

Sarge stands beside you, mumbling to herself while looking between the different people. Suddenly she turns to you and says, “Oh shit, we’re a person down.”

You do a mental check of everyone that’s there and realize Granny is missing. “Hey Doc! We’ve lost one; Granny’s gone!”

Everyone splits off into pairs to try and find the elder women. Granny couldn’t have gotten far, but in her confused state, she could have been a danger to herself.

Luckily, it doesn’t take long for 10k to find her. She was hunched over, eating brains from a rotting corpse. “That’s disgusting.”

When Granny’s son pulls her back, she claims to have no idea why she ate it. It scared you to see how zombie-like she was becoming. Doc quickly orders everyone to go back to the truck. You go to leave, but 10k grabs your hand and pulls you back slightly. “Do you think Granny is a cannibal?”

“Possibly, I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t like it. They all seem so sick.”

“Do you think the black rain caused it?”

“God, I hope not; what if everyone in Newmerica is like that?”

He lets out a deep sigh and says, “We’ll figure it out.” 10k eyes soften as a smile plays on his lips. “Just think, once we are there, we can finally start to spend time together, just us, with no interruptions.”

“I can’t wait.” You press your lips against his, but pull away when you hear the sound of an engine being turned. “We better hurry before Doc sends a search party.”

Still holding your hand. 10k leads the way. Most married couples got to spend their first few weeks of marriage doing nothing but have sex, and it was growing increasingly frustrating how difficult it was for you to not even be able to spend ten minutes alone with 10k without being interrupted by the undead or someone in your group.

“Front or back?”

You squeeze his hand before letting go. “I’ll go in the back.”

You jump into the back of the truck beside Sarge; the tension between you is gradually getting less awkward. You sit with her facing the others while 10k gets in the front beside Doc.

“Alright, let’s go, kids!”

—

It made you nervous seeing how sickly everyone in the back looked aside from Sarge. The two of you kept glancing at each other, sharing a knowing look. The people you’d rescued all looked as if they were dying from some type of flu. You feared things would turn bad at any moment, and seeing the way Granny’s face began to twitch, you gripped your blade just in case she turned.

As Doc starts to pull over, you look around confused. He was pulling towards what looked like two men selling stuff at the side of the road from a camper van. Not exactly what you envisioned the new world would look like.

Feeling that something wasn’t right, you hang back by the truck as 10k, Doc, and Sarge go over to speak to them. Something didn’t seem right. You jump out of the truck and take a few steps forward, but turn back after hearing a grunting sound. You see Granny struggling to get out and offer her your hand to help her down, but she slaps your hand out of the way, jumps down, and runs towards Sarge.

“Brains!”

You get whiplash from looking back and forth between three different people who your group had taken in because they had turned nearly completely Z-like; they didn’t appear to be fully dead or alive.

When one of the men who was sitting by the stop point aims his gun at Granny, a young woman with short, slicked-back black hair appears and gently gets him to lower the gun. Her clothes were clean and fresh-looking; it was obvious she hadn’t been roughing it like the rest of you. She walks towards Granny, who was being restrained by 10K and Doc. She clicks her fingers to get the older woman’s attention and pops a black biscuit into Granny’s mouth, which turns her back to normal. Granny gives the woman a cuddle, then steps back to cuddle her son.

The woman looks at Doc and says, “How long has she been dead?”

“Dead? We just thought she was sick. She’s talking.”

“No, she’s dead. So are those two,” she says, pointing to the couple your group rescued. “They’re talkers.”

“How is that possible?”

“Since the black rain, people don’t just turn like before. Their bodies are dead, but their souls remain conscious. The dead don’t just walk—now they talk.”

Oh shit.

The mysterious woman hands more of the biscuits out to the half-dead people and explains that there are supposedly traces of brains and something else that prevents them from fully turning. You notice the similarities between the women and the figure of someone on the posters hanging up on the camper van.

“I’m George,” she says. “And this is my friend, Lieutenant Dante.”

Lieutenant Dante was most definitely already dead. Your group really messed up with the black rain; now the world has talking zombies.

“I’m Astra; this is 10k, Sarge, and Doc.”

“Sweet names. So what are you guys doing all the way down here? No offense, but you look as if you’ve been through hell.”

“We are looking for Newmerica.”

George tells you that Newmerica is just an idea that will hopefully become its own nation, and everyone, dead or alive, is welcome to vote. Dead or alive.

Doc shrugs and says, “Sign us up.”

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver x sister reader

Warnings: Smut, swearing, mentions of vomit

Chapter: 4.09

The moment the cellar doors slam shut, you rip the damp bandana from your mouth, letting clean air into your lungs. Your pit stop to look for supplies took a turn when a toxic gas that turned into foam appeared out of nowhere, forcing everyone to take cover. Warren and Sarge split off while the rest of you headed towards a shop that appeared to be open, but when a couple of Z’s appeared, you and 10k managed to lure them away and mercy them before taking shelter elsewhere.

“I think we are below a bar,” 10k says, his eyes observing the barrels of booze. He turns and looks at you in surprise as you start to pull your clothes off. His jaw tightened as you shimmered out of your soaking wet jeans. “What are you doing?”

“Stripping.” You laugh at the blush on his face. “I have clean clothes in my bag.”

You open your backpack and pull out a plastic bag, throwing the clothes you’d just been wearing inside. The dampness from the fog didn’t bother you, but being covered in zombie guts did. When you turn back around, you find 10k standing with his face inches from yours and his body bare aside from his boxers. He has a mischievous look on his face as he tucks strands of hair behind your ear.

“Tommy…”

He smiles and says, “We could be down here for some time.”

“Or not…So we better be quick,” you giggle.

He crashes his lips against yours, hooking his hands behind your thighs and lifting you up. Your legs wrap around his waist as you deepen the kiss. 10k pulls back; his eyes move around the darkened room until they land on a sleeping bag in the corner of the room. He walks over to it and places you back on your feet.

Clumsily, he pulls off his boxers before kneeling to the ground and kissing your stomach, his finger tracing the scar on your thigh. Both of your bodies were covered in scars, but the only one that you cared about was 10k’s bite mark. It was a constant reminder that he died.

“Hey!” Feeling a nip on your thigh you look down to see 10k grinning up at you, “Did you just—”

You stop talking when he places a kiss over your most sensitive area before hooking his fingers into the side of your pants. When your underwear hits your ankles, you kick it to one side before gently pushing 10k onto his back. You unclasp your bra while straddling him and say, “I’ve missed this.”

He locks eyes with you briefly before sucking at the skin along your collarbone and chest, leaving bruise-like marks. You didn’t necessarily just miss being able to have sex with your fiancé; you missed being able to spend any time alone with him more than anything. You regretted taking the days you lived in the treehouse in the forest for granted.

10k lets out a moan of pleasure as you sink onto him, his lips finding yours quick. Finding a rhythm was easy in that position; his hand comes forward and slips between your legs, causing you to let out your own moan of pleasure. It’s not long until you’re both chasing release, letting out a groan as you reach your high.

You collapse forward, your hands landing on either side of 10k’s head, both of you panting and sweating. He kisses you on the forehead and says, “I missed it too.”

—

You jolt up when you hear a banging noise close by. “Shit,” you hiss while scrambling for your clothes. “Z’s or other survivors?”

10k gives you a worried look while pulling his boxers back on. When the banging grows louder, he picks up his gun and aims it at the cellar door.

“Warren?”

Recognizing the voice, you quickly climb up the ladder. “Sarge, it’s Astra, don’t shoot!” You yell before unlocking it, and you hold it open for her to come in. It worries you that she’s alone, “what happened?”

“The foam became so thick it was hard to see, and I lost sight of Warren.”

“Warren’s tough; I’m sure she’ll be okay,” 10k says, lowering his gun.

Sarge looks between the two of you and scrunches up her nose when she takes in the sight of you both in nothing but underwear. “Seriously?”

You try your best to hold back a laugh. “How-oh-shit,” you point at the foam starting to leak through the door. “It looks like we need to move fast.”

—

You, 10k, and Sarge manage to make it to a barber shop, where Doc and Murphy are currently taking shelter with four other men, including Sketchy and Skeezy. It amazed you that they had survived so long. Unfortunately, the two other men were in the middle of robbing the barbers when you arrived, but the three of you didn’t notice until it was too late. The foam was becoming thicker and more toxic; 10k had inhaled some of it, which was causing him to vomit. You quickly pass him a bucket and look the other way; you only turn back around when you hear the cock of a gun.

“This is still a robbery!” A short, bald man says, pointing the gun in Doc’s direction, but Sarge charges him, causing a fight to break out. During the commotion, you stand with your back to the wall beside Murphy in the back room to try and avoid the bullets being fired. The fighting only stops when a naked, deformed-looking Z runs into the room and knocks Sketchy and Skeezy to the ground. A very tall, bulky man named Tiny stamped on Z's head, crushing its skull.

“Oh shit man!” Skeezy says he's panicked and pulls the back of his collar down. “She bit me! She bit me!”

—

Tiny and his bald companion, whose name kept changing between Sal and Tony, pulled their guns out, and you and 10k slowly started to back away before another fight broke out. Doc was trying his best to calm the situation while Sarge chimed occasionally, supporting the bald man’s plan of cutting off Skeezy and Sketchy’s arms and legs.

If it wasn’t for 10k protectively pushing you behind him, you would have suspected the whole thing was a hallucination.

“Stop! We're going to do this the old-fashioned way,” Murphy says, stepping into the middle of the room. “It sucks, but fate has chosen to screw you. We play by one rule. Survival of the fittest We toss him out in his ass, and let Darwin do the rest.”

Sketchy looks at him appalled, and let’s put in a loud gasp. “Murphy, how could you? We're talking about Skeezy here.”

Murphy turns to look at you and says, “Astra, out of the two of them, which one did we almost kill?”

You didn’t need any time to think before answering; you still got chills thinking about that day. “I headbutted Skeezy, then you hit him on the head with a brick.”

Sarge gives you a shocked look and asks, “Why?”

“He was being a creep.”

After some debating, it was decided that it would come to a vote on whether Skeezy could stay inside or be forced out into the toxic foam. Before the final vote could be cast, two men entered the bar, both of them projectile vomiting. They seemed odd; both of them were talking in fake English accents and were wearing sombreros.

When they stopped throwing up, the two men came in and immediately grabbed Skeezy and started to push him out of the door. It was obvious you’d missed a lot before arriving. “Wait! Wait!” Sketchy smiles at Skeezy and then gives him a very passionate kiss. “I just had to, before you go.”

Skeezy smiles at him and says, “I love you.”

“I know.”

You raise your brow at them for quoting Star Wars. You were starting to wonder if you’d be better off taking your chances with the Zs at this rate. The men toss Skeezy out, and he screams violently as he dies... of something.

When the screams stop, one of the new robbers pulls out his gun and demands everyone strip. Sarge eyes you suspiciously, noticing the fresh hickies on your body and lets out a snort, “Twice in one day? Lucky me.”

Murphy shakes his head and tuts, “You two are like feral rabbits.”

You roll your eyes at his tone of disgust and return your attention to the two men holding you hostage. Neither of them seemed to have planned this far ahead and were trying to figure out a plan.

Sketchy starts to beg them not to take him to the basement, making them take you down towards it. You notice the nervous look on Doc’s face as he asks, “What’s in the basement?”

He mouths ‘Z's.’ Oh shit. The doors to the basement open seconds later, and Zs pour from them. You retreat back up the staircase as the dead devour the new set of robbers. Tiny and Tony/Sal shoot the Z's, then return to holding you all hostage.

When the door to the shop begins to rattle, Sketchy motions for you to step back from it. Seconds later, a sharp pole lands in the chests of the men holding you hostage, killing them, and Skeezy walks back into the barbershop.

You look between Sketchy and Skeezy and say, “Was this whole thing planned?”

The two slightly unhinged men explained the whole thing was a set up so they could take over the barbershop. You stare at them dumbfounded and say, “We need to find Warren.”

—

When morning comes, you find Warren standing on a bridge, looking slightly confused. She doesn’t say much, but you follow in the direction of Route sixty six.

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver × sister reader

Warnings: Swearing, minor violence

Chapter: 4.11

“You look like a kid on Christmas morning,” Sarge states. She watches confused as you kiss him on the cheek, thanking him for what he just gave you. “Can someone explain what’s so special about a bow?”

Doc pats her on the back, chuckling, “A bow was Astra’s choice of weapon at the start of the apocalypse.”

“I can’t remember the last time I used one of these,” you line the arrow up with no intention of firing it. You roll your eyes when Murphy dramatically drops to the ground, acting as if you were going to shoot him.

“It’s sentimental,” Warren says teasingly.

Looking at the weapon in your hands as Sarge continues to argue that guns are the better weapon choice, you smile. She sounded just like Mack did.

The group continues to have random conversations as you approach abandoned cars outside Mount Weather, which was your intended location full of Z’s, including the president's husband. 10k, Sarge, and Warren make quick work of taking all the Z’s out within minutes. Warren tried to use the president's husband's ID, but it didn’t work.

“What’s wrong, chief?” Doc asks.

“There’s also a retina scanner,” she sighs. “He needs to look at it while swiping the card.”

You scrunch your nose up and say, “Thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Yep,” Doc replies. He pulls out a spinner from his pocket and goes inside the car to scoop the man’s eyeball out.

“That’s disgusting,” Murphy snorts.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

Doc successfully retrieves the eye and uses it to unlock the door along with the keycard. When the doors open, you step inside, making sure to bring the ID with you in case you need it again. Being so close to the Oval Office was a surreal feeling; it felt like you’d stepped into a TV show or film set.

You search every room you come across for any sign of life but fail to find any. At the end of the hallway, you find a roomful of the undead. Former congressmen and women who appear to have turned at some point early on during the apocalypse When the Z’s start to growl and grab for you, your group swings into action and shows them mercy one by one. The building had a stale smell to it, and the hallways were full of what you assumed was once confident paperwork.

“Well, I think we just killed the last of the US government,” Murphy says while flicking zombie guts off of his jacket and onto the floor.

As Warren tries to come up with a plan, Sarge points behind her and says, “More Z’s coming from behind.”

All of this seemed like a lot of effort to just get a thumbprint. Sighing, you raise your arms and get ready to shoot, but lower your bow when you notice the way the Z’s are walking and say, “That’s not the dead.”

The men get closer and point their guns in your direction. “Freeze! Secret service.”

After a brief back and forth with the secret service and Murphy giving them sarcastic answers about shooting instead of voting, Warren steps in and introduces herself. “I’m Lieutenant Robert Warren, national guard. We’re on a special mission to save humanity. It is imperative that we see the president.”

One of the men lowers his gun and introduces himself, “I’m agent Johnson.” He lets out a deep sigh and looks at the man beside him. “And that’s agent Johnson.”

“Before you ask, no, we’re not related. And yes, it’s weird that we are both named Johnson.”

“Do you always have to say that?” The first agent Johnson asks. “It undermines our authority.”

Both agents let out dark laughs as they asked Warren what he said about saving humanity. It was clear that neither of these men had interacted with other people for a long time, if they were so easily amused.

Warren rolls her eyes and says, “Look, we have reason to believe someone intends to launch some kind of biological attack on all surviving humans and zombies in order to cleanse the world and repopulate it with their genetically modified offspring.”

The first agent looks confused at her, while the second keeps his gun aimed at her. “And you’ve got a problem with this?” He asks before laughing again.

“Can I just speak to the president?” Warren finally snaps.

“We can’t just let everybody who thinks they have an emergency speak to the president. She’s never gotten anything done.”

“Yeah, I’m sure she’s pretty backed up these days.” You shake your head while pulling the president's husband's ID from your back pocket. “Does she know her husband is dead?”

“Yes,” a woman says, walking up behind the agents while carrying a cardboard box in her arms. “I know he’s dead.” She places the box down, then brushes the agents aside to stand directly in front of Warren and ask, “What’s going on?”

“Intruders. It’s under control, ma’am.”

Warren takes the ID from you and hands it to the president. “I’m sorry, but we really need your help.”

“Agent Johnson, put your weapon down.” She steps back and addresses all of you. “Jane Carlson, 234th president of the United States We’re a little short of help here.”

“How many survivors are there?”

“You’re looking at them.”

In disbelief, you ask, “There are only three of you left alive in office.”

“There were four of us. Most of what was left of the government evacuated to NewMerica a few weeks ago. We were supposed to follow them, but we’ve run into a few obstacles.”

“Yeah, well, we just killed a few obstacles for you back there,” Murphy says in a matter-of-fact tone, resulting in you muttering for him to shut up before lightly nudging him in the back of the leg.

“And thank you for that,” she says, amused. “The last of Congress. Not much of a loss; they were dead a week before anybody realized.”

“Madam President, time is of the essence,” Warren says more softly than normal. “We are on a mission to find a secret government weapon, and we need your help to access it.”

“What can I do?”

“We’re going to need your thumbprint.”

The moment the words slip from Warren’s mouth, both agents aim their guns at her head. Raising your hands, you take a step back, unsure of why her words triggered such a reaction.

“My thumbprint?”

“Yeah, I know it sounds crazy.”

The president removes her red leather gloves, showing that she had no thumbs; they had been removed. She urges you to follow her to her office while explaining that a man arrived a few days prior and drugged her, then removed her thumb prints. It turned out Dr. Teller had left a creepy cartoon video about Project Rainbow for Warren to find when she arrived at Mount Weather. It also turned out you needed to travel 25 levels down to find the zombified corpse of the man who was the last president before the world turned to shite.

—

“I don’t trust her,” you whisper.

10k stares at the agent’s suspicious expression, while Doc leans in to ask you both, “Why? She seems nice enough and is helping us.”

“She knew about the black rainbow and intended to do nothing, plus she wants us to call her Jane. It’s weird; it’s like she’s trying to lure us into a false sense of security.” There was a falseness in the sudden offer to help your group in their search that you couldn’t trust.

“Good point, anyone called Jane is crazy,” Doc winks at you before stepping into the elevator to join everyone else.

You share a concerned look with 10k as you are the last two to enter the lift before it starts to lower to the ground. You all remain silent until the elevator doors open up as a horde of Z’s attempt to barge their way in. Chaos quickly follows, and your group is separated among the herd of zombies. When you notice Warren is still standing in the elevator, you turn back, not wanting to leave her behind. She quickly hits the button, taking you two to a different floor.

“Now what?”

“We find another way back to our people.”

—

“Well, hello, Mr. President,” Warren says while opening a door to a small office. Confused, you follow her into it and see the former president duck-taped to a chair.

Sighing, you walk behind the chair and say, “I’ll push if you clear a path.”

She nods. You were grateful that it hadn’t taken you long to stumble upon him; I meant you could get out of the Oval Office a lot quicker. Nervously, you go back the way you came, but to your surprise, the hallway that was flooded with Z’s before is now empty.

“Where did they all go?”

You shrug and say, “Either the Z’s were all shown mercy or led somewhere else.”

“Hmm, keep alert just in case.”

You followed behind while struggling to push the chair forward; one of the wheels was broken and constantly spun as you walked. “For god's sake, do you hear that? It sounds like Murphy.”

You turn the chair around and go down a different corridor, which smells of rotten flesh. Just as you reached a door at the end of it, Doc swung it open and said, “Warren!” He says surprised as he looks past her and smiles, “Hey kid.”

“Astra!” 10k practically runs by them, not paying any mind to Warren or the Z, wrapping his arms around you. He breathes into your neck, “Don’t ever go off like that again. I thought—I thought I’d lost you.”

“You didn’t; I’m right here.”

—

Things quickly turn sour when you reach the top floor again. Your initial gut instinct was right; the president wasn’t to be trusted. When she realized Warren was serious about stopping Black Rainbow, Jane ordered the agents to take you all prisoner. The president was smart and knew how to get another person on her side by playing on Sarge’s emotions by pulling the ranking officer card.

“Don’t listen to her,” Warren orders.

Noticing the hesitation on Sarge's face, you stare her down and say, “Don’t do it. Don’t listen to her.”

Teary-eyed, she slowly turns, her gun now facing the direction of your group. At first, you hoped it was some kind of trick, but it wasn’t. “Actually, I do; I’m sorry. I took an oath. I’m a Marine; she’s my commander in chief.”

You felt as if you'd been stabbed in the heart; even Murphy looked taken aback by the sudden betrayal. Is this what real betrayal looks like? In the form of someone you thought of as a friend?

Smugly, the present says, “Why don’t we all go back to my office?”

Reluctantly, you all begin to follow, biting your tongue until you notice Sarge pointing her gun at 10k’s back. You see red. Not thinking of the consequences, you point your own gun at the back of her head. Sensing movement behind him. 10k looks back and freezes upon seeing what you're doing; his mouth is slightly agape until he notices the gun still pointing at his own body. A look of deep hurt crosses his features.

“Sarge!” Her name is like venom dripping from your tongue. “Unless you want to die right now, drop the gun before something really fucking bad happens.”

Your words catch the attention of everyone else, who is now staring back. “Astra, don’t do it,” Doc says, stepping forward. “I know you're mad, but if you shoot her, they shoot all of us.”

Memories of everyone you’d lost during the different missions flash before your eyes. Sure, you’d made plenty of mistakes, some worse than others, but you’d never deliberately put any one of them in danger for the sake of pride. You shake your head. “We treated you like family.”

Sarge’s voice breaks when she says, “I know, I’m sorry.”

“Astra, lower your weapon,” Warren says sternly.

Even Murphy tried to talk you into lowering the gun, but you refused, saying, “Not until she lowers hers first.”

“Do you really think I’d shoot 10k?”

You scoff at her words, fighting to hold back your own tears of anger. “With you? Who knows. I never thought you’d turn on us, but here we are.”

Sarge looks to the president for permission before dropping her arms to her sides. You lower your weapon while staring Sarge down. How could she betray you after everything you had been through?

“Astra,” 10k says softly, “you need to give them to me.”

Without explicitly explaining what he meant, you handed him all of your weapons. Once you had done so, the president allowed your group to continue the walk back to her office.

—

“I’m not apologizing to her.”

“I’m not asking you too.” 10k rests his chin on your shoulder. “But that wasn’t just about Sarge, was it?”

When the president revealed her plan to go to Zona while the rest of the world died, Sarge decided to switch sides again and shot both agents and the president, giving you all the chance to escape. Still, the way she turned on you so quickly hurt.

“I don’t know…” you lie, not wanting to admit the betrayal of a friend made you think of Cassandra. It reminded you of what you did to her and how the guilt of it still weighed heavily on you. “We should probably head back to the rest of the group before they send out a search party.”

As you start to walk away from the tree line and towards the main road, 10k calls after you, “I know your gun was empty; you were never going to hurt her.”

Thinking back on your actions, you do feel ashamed that you acted so harshly, but at that moment, you weren’t sure if Sarge would shoot him or not. Without looking back, you say, “Tommy, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” 10k says, wrapping his arm around your shoulders as a single tear falls from your cheek. “I would have done the exact same thing.”

Hearing him say that made you feel a little better, although you still dreaded the days to come. The sooner this mission was over, the better.

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairings: 10k x reader, Addy Carver x sister reader

Warnings: Blood, violence and swearing

Chapter: 4.05

“Why does the apocalypse always have to be so hot?” Murphy groans.

Usually you’d roll your eyes at his moaning, but he was right. You could all feel the sun burning your backs or your scalps and necks, and you didn’t have much water left. “Probably the global warming thing everyone used to talk about pre-apocalypse.”

“Don’t sass me,” he huffs. “If this were pre-apocalyptic days, you’d be paying for my therapy.”

You and Warren share a curious look. You shrug, “I’ll bite, what the hell are you talking about, Murphy?”

“You two,” he points accusingly at you and 10K. “I overheard the two of you last night... fornicating and when you thought everyone else was asleep.”

“That’s impossible; we were nowhere even near camp last,” 10k argues.

Your cheeks blush as you avoid making eye contact with anyone.

“Yeah, well, that may be true, but I went for a walk so I could pee in privacy and got traumatized instead.”

Warren shakes her head and tells him to shut up just as Sarge stops in front of you and motions to a large truck that’s parked in the middle of the road. “What do you think? I say we check it out.”

“I dunno, it seems easy. Nobody just leaves vehicles like that behind.”

“You’re right, so let’s move in easy,” Warren says. “Sarge and I will check it out, Murphy watch Lucy. 10k and Doc, you guys cover us, and Astra, you watch over Murphy and Lucy.”

Murphy scrunches his face up at her comment. Warren and Sarge checked the front of the truck and cleared it so Lucy could check it for Z’s.

“If anyone’s in there, they aren’t dead,” she says, walking around the truck.

A vague feeling of deja vu comes over you as you think back to all the traps you’ve fallen into before. “I don’t like this, I think we should keep walking.”

Before anyone could reply, the truck's engine turned on, apparently by itself. Somehow someone was controlling it remotely. You, 10k, Sarge, and Doc all aim their guns towards the front screen of the truck.

“Lower your weapons,” Warren says. “Let’s keep going by foot.”

You all start to walk silently, remaining on the road, until Lucy spins around and points at the truck that is following you, “Look!”

Every time your group walked up the road, a vehicle followed. Someone was stalking you.

“I think we should run towards the tree line over to our left,” you say, pointing to a forest area that was only a five-minute walk away as the truck's engine revs louder. “The houses would block it from following us, so we would have enough time to hide from whoever this is.”

Warren shakes her head, “no, I’m going in.” She marches towards the truck, saying, “Doc, Astra, and 10k cover the cab. Sarge, if anything bad happens, shoot the tyres first, then the engine. Murphy, stay with Lucy! Nobody shoots until I say.”

Reluctantly, you raise your gun and follow her orders, even though your gut tells you to run.

Warren slowly opens the side of the door, and a loud screeching sound fills the air, causing everyone to clasp their hands over their ears before falling to the ground.

—

Frantically, you start to search every inch of the morgue for your friends, who were hiding from an oncoming horde of Z’s.

“They aren’t here,” a soft voice says from behind you.

You look over your shoulder and let out a little gasp at the sight of Cassandra, who is smiling at you. You feel tears rise to your eyes as she walks towards you, looking like she did before she was bitten. before the virus spread across the world. She looked healthy.

She sits down at a table and makes motions for you to do the same thing. You plop down in the chair across from her and immediately hear laughter.

“What are you remembering?” She asks.

“We took shelter here to hide from a horde of Z’s,” you feel your warm tears run down your cheeks. “We sat around this table laughing and eating all the food Murphy found.”

She smiles fondly at the memory. “Meeting you guys was the best thing that happened to me in the apocalypse. I know what it means now to be truly a part of something good.”

“You died.”

“I know.”

“I hit you over the head with a rock.”

“I know.”

“I killed you.”

Cassandra’s shiny, dark hair moved softly as she shook her head. She reaches her hand out for yours and says, “No, you didn't. I was already dead.”

“I’m sorry,” you tighten the grip on her hand. “I’m so sorry, I never meant to hurt you. Please forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive,” she said tearfully. “I was glad it was you in the end who showed me mercy. Tommy would never have been able to do it. I would have killed one of my friends without meaning it, which would have been much worse because he’s still human.”

You scoff lightly and wipe at his eyes, saying, “Mostly anyway, Murphy bit him, then he died and came back. It's a long story.”

“I know,” her brown eyes welled up. “I’ve been with you every step of the way, I never truly left you guys.”

You completely let your emotions go and sobbed into the back of your hand, “I wish this was real.”

“Who says it’s not?”

You awaken with a start and feel a tightness when you struggle to move. You were trapped inside a wooden box that was positioned upright, so you were tightened.

You try to force the wooden panel open but it doesn’t work, “oh shit, shit, shit.”

“Don’t force it or they’ll start setting off the alarm.”

“Murphy?”

“Yeah, it’s me,” he sighs. “We’re the only ones here.”

A horrifying realization hits you, everyone else could be much worse off, “we need to get out and find our people.”

“What the hell do you think I’ve been doing? I've got a daughter who hates me to save!”

You chuckle, “Caring about others suits you.”

He pauses.

You think you’ve hit a nerve until he starts talking in his normal sarcastic tone, “I know what you're thinking.”

“What’s that?”

“None of this would have happened if Warren had listened to you and we’d gone into the damn woods.”

You roll your eyes before pounding on the wood again. “The thought never even crossed my mind.”

“Sure, sure, play that card.”

You stop pondering and sigh, “Murphy, Lucy doesn’t hate you. Despite being able to talk to dead people, she’s still just a teenage girl.”

He makes a grunting noise in response. Seconds later, the sound of something metal hitting the floor and the room filling with smoke.

—

You sit up confused, despite your last memory of being trapped inside a wooden box breathing in toxic gas, you were now in an open field, surrounded by long grass. You get up and walk until you reach the edge of the hill you're standing on and look down at the Sisters of Mercy camp.

Didn’t it get destroyed? You frown, remembering how twisted the people who run the place were.

“I still hate them too.”

You spin around to see Mack standing behind you; you go up to him and hug him tightly. You suddenly realized whatever was in the gas was making you hallucinate, but you were grateful because you’d now got to see two people whose grief at losing you hadn’t fully come to terms with yet.

“Your sister is not with you?” He asks, stepping back.

“Mack,” you knew by the tone of his voice that he was in an argumentative mood. “Don’t start, I’ve no idea when I’ll wake up.”

“Where is she?”

“I don’t know. She keeps leaving,” you shrug. “You know what Addy’s like more than anyone, she does whatever she wants.”

“Do you miss her?” He asks seriously.

You nod, “all the time. I miss you too.”

“Next time you see her, don’t let her go, you need each other.” Mack pulls you into him again and kisses the top of your head. “I’m so proud of you, Astra; you’ve come so far.”

You rest your head against his chest and try to find the words to thank him for all the times he has saved you, but nothing comes out.

“Also, tell 10K to always treat you right. If not, I have no problem going Freddie Kruger on his ass and strangling him in his sleep.”

You laugh at Mack’s comment before slowly feeling him disappear.

You woke to the sound of coughing nearby, followed by thumping. “Doc? Doc is that you?” Murphy calls out, “Doc, are you alright?”

“Doc’s fine. Just some nerve gas or something,” 10k replies. “I’m fine too, thanks for asking.”

Murphy ignores his comment and yells, “Is Astra with you?! She was with me, but they threw the gas in, and I haven’t heard from her since.”

“No, I've not seen her since we got here,” you could hear the panic in his voice. “How was she? Was she hurt?”

“I never physically saw her, but she sounded drugged out of her mind when I first heard her; she kept rambling the same things.”

“What was she saying?” Doc asks, his voice sounding huskier than normal.

“Something about a rock and forgiveness, the girl wasn’t making much sense then she suddenly snapped out of it.” Astra wanted to escape and find you guys, but we got gassed. “Maybe she got out.”

10k goes silent for a moment before saying, “Doc, help me kick this down.”

Unable to talk from the dryness in your throat from the gas, you find the strength to weakly bang on the side of the wood to let them know you were there.

“Astra? Astra, is that you?” 10k asks, his voice laced with fear.

You manage to croak out a yes. From the distance, you’d guess you were in a separate room from the rest of them.

“I’m glad you're okay,” Warren says. Her voice surprised you since she’d been silent the whole time. “We go to find a way out here or they’re going to kill us one by one.”

“Who’s running this show? What's their problem?” Doc asks, frustrated.

The same screeching sound from the truck fills the room. Warren tells everyone to fight falling asleep, but it’s impossible as you're completely black.

—

You watch as the waves crash into the rocks below and smile as your nostrils are filled with sea air. You feel a presence behind you but don’t need to turn around to know who it is, “things would have been so different if you’d come with us.”

“It is what it is.”

“That’s such a thing you thing to say,” you turn around to face Vasquez.

His face is stern like it was when you first met him. “I was wrong. Love doesn’t make you weak. It gives you strength, something to fight for.”

Before you can react, you feel a sharp pain in your stomach and fall to the ground. Vasquez kneels down beside you with a concerned look on his face. “How is the pain real when none of this is?”

“I don’t know.”

You gulp down as your body starts to tremble with pain, and through gritted teeth you ask, “Did you find your family?”

He finally smiles and says, “I did, and you're about to find yours.”

You let out a loud scream as the piercing pain continued to sweep across your stomach. You open your eyes and see a man with a disfigured face leaning over you, slicing the flesh on your stomach with his knife.

He notices that you're awake and giggles like a child. You lean forward to headbutt him, but he moves fast, and you end up cracking your nose off his skull. He trips you up, and you land on the ground with a thud. The man kicks you in the face, causing your vision to blur. He goes to kick you again, but you extend your foot, kicking him in the balls. The knife falls from his grip, you catch it and stab him in the neck. You gag as his blood sprays across your body.

A hell escapes your lips as his limp body falls on top of you. You manage to pull your arm out from underneath him to move it far enough to stab the knife into his head. The weight of the man, who is much larger than you, begins to crush you, making it hard for you to breathe.

The door to the room swings open, and you mentally prepare yourself to try and fight, even though you’ll most likely die.

“Oh, my lord,” Warren starts to shove the man’s body off you. “She’s in here! Sarge, help me get her up.”

Sarge joins her in pushing the man off you, and you feel oxygen filling your lungs as normal again.

Here, Sarge extends her hand to help you up as footsteps approach faster down the hallway outside. “10k, we’re in here.”

10k runs into the room and freezes. His eyes trace all the blood that covers your body. Not having time to ask any questions, he picks you up in bridal style and starts to run towards a staircase where the others are waiting.

“What happened to her?” Murphy asks while leading the way up the stairs.

“We’ll get to that later,” Warren says sternly before shoving the door open at the top of the stairs leading outside.

10k’s grip on you tightens, “that’s not good.”

With your good eye, you follow his trail of vision and notice seven wooden coffins. The screeching noise pierces the air, and again, 10k falls to the ground with you in his arms.

—

You're only awake for a few moments before the wooden box you're trapped in is opened and you're caught as you fall forward. 10k picks you up again, and Doc shoves a cloth over your stomach to try and stop the bleeding. “Try and hold this kid; we’ll get a proper look at you once we’re out of here and fix you right up.”

“How? We don’t have any supplies.”

“We do now,” Lucy says cheerfully, “not only did Carson save us but he showed me where to find a first aid kit.”

You grip onto 10k’s jacket, “Do you see the Z walking beside us?”

“That’s Carson.”

His answer didn’t make you any less confused. You zone in and out as men try to block the hallway leading to the way out, but Carson attacks them, turning them all into Zs. You weren’t sure if it was a hallucination or not, but you could have sworn you saw Murphy get bitten on the arm by a Z when he pulled his daughter away from them.

—

You and your group make it outside just as the screeching starts again, but everyone runs away and it seems to stop. “Okay, Tommy, you need to put me down before you collapse.”

Reluctantly kneel down so he can fully catch his breath, at the same time, Murphy falls to the ground and starts shaking. “I think he bit me.”

Doc rolls up Murphy's sleeve to reveal a bite mark, “But he’s immune, right?”

“Not anymore, not since he was cured,” Warren confirms.

—

Lucy and Doc help Murphy walk, while 10k helps you. You still needed a probing look over, but from Doc’s quick assessment, he said you’d need the cut on your stomach stitched up and cleaned. You had a possible broken nose and a lump on the side of your head from being kicked from behind.

You let out a sound of disgust as you could see so far down the road and saw the truck again, the only difference was that there was another vehicle and more belongings scattered across the road. “They are still taking people.”

“Those sons of a bitch,” Warren opens the car door for Murphy to get into the back seat, then opens the boot, “it will be easier for Doc to look at the wound if you're laying down.”

You groan as you lean back in the boot. While the others, minus yourself and Murphy, gather the belongings that have been left behind, Warren approaches you and squeezes your shoulder, saying, “For what it’s worth, I should have listened to you. We should have run.”

A smile finds its way onto your lips, “It is what it is.”