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darling-heffron · 5 months ago

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A/N: Here it is- Chapter four!!!!

If anyone wants to be added to the taglist, please let us know!

Enjoy -Sol ☀️

taglist: @malarkgirlypop, @mellow-human, @next-autopsy

Chapter Four- A Shoulder to Cry On

Mars' POV:

Slowing to a stop, the truck spluttered, waking Marleen from her less than comfortable nap as she curled up on the passenger seat of Denver’s box truck. Her mind groggy, she sat up to look around, eyes squinting to figure out what was going on.

The first thing she noticed was a pile up of stationary cars, buses and trucks covering the entire road in front of them.

The next thing she noticed was Denver, his face held concern, his body tense. He had been doing all of the driving for the past three days, getting them out of the city safely.

Mars had offered to take a turn but Denver just waved her off, driving was literally his job, so he didn’t mind it so much. He would just tell her to get some rest and ignore any further attempts for her to get behind the wheel.

“Can we go around?” Mars offered up. They had come across a road block yesterday and the solution was to backtrack and find another way round, which worked surprisingly well.

Denver shook his head, sighing. Never a good sign.

“Fuel light came on a few miles back, I reckon we won’t make it round this.”

“So, what do we do?” She already knew the answer but Mars held out hope he had another solution. Denver only gave her a look, one that shared his thoughts. He didn't have to say anything, Mars knew. That didn't stop her from sighing audibly and rolling her eyes before she swung open the passenger door.

The man was already focusing on what they would need to take and what they could leave behind.

“Mars?” He called to her, his head in the back of the truck as he reorganised their backpacks. She hummed in reply, too tired to actually say anything as she made her way to the rear of the vehicle.

“Can you look in the glovebox? I think I have a map in there.” Marleen fought the urge to throw her head back and groan, instead turning round and walking back to the seat she came from to retrieve the map.

—------------------------

Heading north on foot was a thousand times harder than travelling by car. At least that's what Mars thought. Not only did she have to carry a backpack stuffed full of ‘essential items’ while keeping up with Denver's pace but they were also dodging the undead.

The blood soaked people were everywhere, lurking in the towns and cities once filled with life and turning them into dreary ghost towns. Avoiding them was a must, yet it required skills Mars simply did not have.

Most of the living had fled on day one, or tried to, leaving their homes and running west. There were rumours of safety out there, they had more time to prepare than the east coast did. Whatever disease or sickness that was slowly taking over the world, it started in the east. Marleen was one of the lucky ones, not many made it out of the big cities, only handfuls.

And of course she had Denver to thank for that.

Without her burly, blonde neighbour, Mars wouldn't have had a clue about the illness that was spreading while she slept in that morning. She would have walked outside without a care in the world and promptly been attacked.

He saved her.

She may not have got it at first, but now, seeing what she had seen, knowing what she knows, Mars understood.

There were still a lot of unanswered questions. How did this happen? Is the uncontrollable rage some sort of virus? Is anyone working on a way to fix this? Or is this the new world she will have no choice but to adapt to?

She couldn't think about it for too long or she would start to panic, she figured that out of the first night.

~~~~flashback~~~~~~

The engine of the car idled momentarily before shutting off completely. Both Denver and Marleen sat, unmoving and in silence. Neither knowing what to say, neither willing to break the small moment of peace granted to them.

Denver had spent the largest part of the day driving down every back road he knew of while he and his young neighbour escaped the city. Mars, on the other hand, had spent her day staring out the window. She watched as humans tore each other apart, flesh, blood, bones, nothing stopped the pure rage within these rabid people.

It was catching up to her, the images flashed through her mind constantly and she had frozen in shock, trying to process it. But she couldn't. Or she didn't want to, her mind wouldn't allow her. But now, the silence, she couldn't stop the endless questions. It was like a hive of horror playing in her brain.

Tears filled her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day, but instead of sniffing them away and pretending she wasn't affected by the things she was seeing, she let them flow.

And flow they did. Streams of warm liquid poured down her cheeks, Mars didn't hold back. She let out the sobs she had been stifling earlier. Her breath quickened as thoughts of her family stumbling around, ripping and biting at flesh filled her mind. Was this the new normal? Was this how life would be from now on? Marleen cried out at the idea.

She lifted her feet onto the edge of the passenger seat, curling her arms around her knees as she attempted to soothe herself. The weeping only seemed to grow stronger and louder, to a point where she couldn't control anything anymore.

Denver, perched in the driver's seat, wasn't sure what to do. He tried to give her a moment to collect herself but she seemed to be getting worse. Denver hesitantly reached out to her and the second he did, she sprung at him, unwrapping her arms from herself and attaching to his body. He leaned closer to comfort her, enveloping her in his arms and letting her bawl, rubbing his hands up and down her back as she let it all out.

They sat like that for hours, uncomfortably hovering over the gearbox of the cramped truck. The shoulder of Denver's shirt was soaked, not that he would ever bring it up. Marleen had worked her way through the panic attack and slowly began to calm, her rapid breathing evened itself out.

On one hand Denver wanted to ask how she was doing, if she needed anything or if he could help her in any way but on the other, he knew the answers. He knew she wasn't okay and she might never be okay again. He knew there wasn't much he could do, just more of what he was doing now; allowing her time and space, protecting her so she could fully process what was going on.

And that's what he vowed to do. Look after her, protect her, allow her to live in this messed up world as normally as possible- if it even was possible, he'd find a way to give that to her.

Normalcy.

~~~~end flashback~~~~~

“We’ll have a break when we get to Nassau, okay Mars?”

“Yeah sure!” Marleen spoke enthusiastically before clearing her throat and continuing, “I mean… if you need a break, I suppose we could-”

“That’s awful kind of you.” Denver called over his shoulder, hiding his grin from the young lady. Marleen wasn’t used to near constant walking for hours and hours everyday, the fact that she had gotten this far had exceeded Denver's expectations.

The pair were getting closer to the small town they had discussed stopping in for a rest and to loot any useful items they could find. They were running low on food and could do with a top up.

So, after a short pause to drink some water and catch their breaths, Denver told his neighbour they needed to keep moving. Mars didn't complain verbally, she just huffed and sighed, rolling her eyes as she stood and swung her backpack over her shoulders.

“Okay, I spy with my little eye… something beginning with…” Marleen let the words drag out while she hunted for something to trick Denver with, “T.”

“Mars, if you chose ‘tree’ again-”

“It’s not a tree!” Marleen declared, “Just guess.”

“Huh, okay, Is it aaaaaa,” Looking around, he spotted almost nothing it could be, “Are you sure it's not ‘tree’?” Mars groaned,

“Come on Denver, It's not ‘tree.’ Be serious.”

“Wait, shhhhh…” He stopped moving, suddenly alert to his surroundings. Mars, however, was not.

“Denver, you can’t just-” She began but was promptly cut off.

“Marleen, shhhh…” The blonde man pointed ahead of them. A small group of maybe five corpses stumbled around in the direction they were supposed to be heading in. That shut Mars up.

“We should go around.” He whispered to his young lady partner. She just nodded, understanding the situation; two verses five, except one of the two didn't really count.

It took them a little longer to get to the small town but they got there that afternoon, only an hour or so off Denver’s schedule. His plan was to search through some shops or houses for food and medical supplies, they didn’t need them yet but it was never a bad idea to start a collection.

Then they could set up a camp somewhere safe to stay the night and head off in the morning. He was taking them North until they hit a city called Albany then they would start going west.

The first few nights were easy, they slept in the locked truck and everything was fine. But after leaving it at the blockade they couldn’t get around, Denver had to get a little more creative. Over the course of a week, the pair found a routine that mostly worked for them; Shutting themselves into abandoned houses or buildings.

Four walls with one entry point felt safe enough for the pair of them to sleep at the same time, however, if no structures were nearby; they would have to take turns. Denver always took first watch, letting Marleen sleep for the larger portion of the night. He would wake her early in the morning and get 3-4 hours of sleep, while she usually had closer to 6 hours. He didn’t mind it as long as it wasn’t permanent and Mars hadn’t picked up on the uneven sleeping schedule; he knew she would complain about it if she knew.

Luckily, the town was full of empty houses, they had plenty to choose from but first; gathering supplies.

Typically, shops and stores held the most items and houses were a back up, but stores were more dangerous, more chance of running into the dead…. or the living.

The pair were yet to encounter other groups, there were signs of people but never actual people. Not since the first few days anyway.

Regardless, Denver was weary about meeting new groups. You could never be too sure about their intentions; at least the rabids couldn’t lie. It was best if the living and the dead were avoided.

He had a system. Mars wasn’t too confident with the disposal of the rotting corpses yet so she stayed at the door as a look out or back up while Denver snuck in. He would silently scan the room and if unoccupied, let Marleen know it was safe to enter. They would go room by room until the entire building was clear, including any hidden back rooms and then lock or barricade all exits except one, just in case.

That’s how they cleared the corner store they were currently looting.

Canned goods and bottled water were always grabbed first then they could take some time to look around. Denver made sure to check for a first aid kit hidden in the employee room while Mars scoured shelves.

A lot of the stores they had been to were broken into, smashed up and mostly bare with things thrown about, but this one seemed untouched. Every surface was covered in a thin layer of dust, the floors were clear and none of the windows had been smashed.

It almost looked normal.

Marleen reminisced, picking up a magazine and flicking through.

FIFTY AND PROUD: HOW JEN’S KEPT HER BOD BANGING!

The headline made her giggle. Life used to have different priorities, something she missed dearly. She’d much rather worry about the latest fashion trends and which celebrity couple had broken up than the horrifying creatures that roamed around trying to rip her apart and eat her flesh.

“How I lost 20lbs in 20 days?” The southerners' deep voice broke her from her reading with a start. Marleen swatted at him with the flimsy paper in her hand, not aiming to hurt, just letting him know she was less than pleased.

“A little warning next time.” She told him flatly, Denver only smirked in response.

“It’ll be gettin’ dark soon, I saw a small place a few streets over. Looked safe.”

“Lead the way.”

Travelling ‘a few streets away’ sounded easy enough until you took into account the feral cannibals wandering about.

Denver took the lead, scurrying ahead while Mars stayed back; hidden. He would check the area and wave her over, much like their house checking system. Denver took his role of protector very seriously. He knew Mars didn’t have the experience or courage to scout ahead just yet but he would teach her.

He would teach her how to defend herself, how to find shelter and food, everything she needed to know just in case something happened to him and she was left on her own. He couldn’t be at peace knowing he left her unable to survive this new cruel world.

The road ahead of him was empty, no signs of the undead. Denver turned to signal Mars over but instead he froze.

Bodies filled the street between them. If he had to guess, Denver would’ve said around fifty undead biters stumbled their way past him.

His first thought was to search for the girl; he had to know if Mars was safe. The thought of crouching down and hiding to keep himself from being ripped apart never entered his mind. He just needed to catch a glimpse of her.

Denver's instincts screamed at him to run through the crowd and locate Marleen, luckily his brain made him rethink that idea and unluckily he stood in the open, worrying for the girl.

That’s when a smaller bunch noticed him frozen at the side of the road, thinking he was an easy target; they moved towards him. The sound of shuffled steps and snarled noises finally alerted Denver to his situation; broke him from his stupor. He had been so concerned with checking on Mars that he had forgotten to take cover and protect himself.

Marleen, on the other side of the street, noticed the dead before Denver had. However, it was still too late to yell out and warn him, the only thing that would do is bring attention to the both of them; that was not something they needed right now.

No, all she could do was duck behind the brick building and wait for them to pass, praying that Denver would do the same. Hopefully, neither of them would draw any attention, they could let the slow moving hoard wander past peacefully.

The majority of the group dispersed into the town, splitting up into smaller clusters and spreading out. The blonde waited a few minutes, partially because she was too frightened to move; her fear locking her into place.

When silence fell and the gurgled groans were muted, Marleen poked her head out from her hiding spot. Her eyes darted around, checking for any possible stragglers lagging behind but found none. Then her focus went to the otherside of the tar sealed road.

The last place she had seen Denver.

Keeping low, she rushed over. Her gut was telling her something had gone wrong. Surely Denver would have come to her immediately. What if he was hurt? Or worse?

Mars’ mind began filling with images of her neighbour, blood soaked and ready to attack her. She had to physically shake her head to release those thoughts and focus all her energy on holding her tears in, the last thing she needed was blurry vision.

Turns out, it didn't matter if her vision was blurry, she wouldn't be able to see Denver anyway.

He wasn't there.

‘That could be a good thing though,’ she reasoned, trying hard to convince herself. No body meant he might not be dead, he might not be one of those things. He could have run away, to keep safe. He could be fine, waiting for her in that house they were planning to check.

So that's where she went. She knew how to clear out the place in theory. She had seen him do it many times. It wasn't very helpful that her only weapon was a close combat hunting knife. One she didn't really know how to use, she kept it on her person to keep her nerves at bay.

Arriving at the house, Marleen didn't see any obvious signs of the dead and neither did she see signals that Denver had made his way here. Her shoulders sagged significantly but she still had hope that he may be waiting inside.

The young woman tried to remember what Denver would do first; he usually left her at the front door as a look out while he went inside. She didn't know if that job was actually useful or he was just trying to keep her out of the way, but it felt like she was helping. And it made her even more nervous that she wouldn’t have back up for her first house scouting mission.

Shakily, Mars stepped into the building. Her senses dialled up, every creak of the floorboards under her feet startled her; but she managed. She managed to inspect each room one at a time and thankfully there was no need to use her knife. The place was completely empty. Something she should have been pleased about, although that did mean that Denver hadn't made it here.

Maybe she should go back to that street and look for him? Or would that just expose her to the number of rotting corpses walking around outside? Marleen didn't know what to do, stay here to wait for the blonde man or go out searching for him. What if she left and he arrived?

Denver would know what to do, and he wouldn’t get so flustered about making a simple decision. The guilt was starting to get to her, maybe if she had yelled out the second she saw the rabids, things would be different. Denver would have had more warning. Marleen’s blood ran cold when she realised her part in his death. It was her fault. Entirely.

She had time to warn him, to scream out and say something. But she didn't. Instead she got scared and froze, doing nothing to help her friend and that's probably what got him killed.

Marleen looked out the window, taking into account the setting sun and decided to stay here. She would have to lock all entry points, bar one, so nothing could get in. And once she finally had, the girl allowed herself to curl up into a ball and sob.

a/n: oooOOoo how do we feel about poor Mars being on her own now? I hope Denver is okay...

-Sol ☀️

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1waveshortofashipwreck · 1 year ago

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Should've Been Born Later, Nix - Chapter 5: The Rude Awakening

Easy Company x Fem!OCs

Chap. Synopsis: What will happen when Easy Company starts looking for answers?

Words: 3,647

Find the fic's navigation page here !!

Have a question/want to be on the taglist? Let me know !!

Author's Note: CHAPTER 5 LET'S GOOOOOO!!!! Be on the lookout for a POLL concerning Chapter 6!! Love each of you to the moon and back 💖💕

In Zay’s room, Roe and Luz were tucking themselves into the pull-out couch at the foot of Zay’s bed. Dick was still standing next to the bed, unable to believe that is where he’s about to sleep. Zay’s room was a little bit cluttered, but the men saw it as cozy. Photos of her loved ones, as well as posters of her favorite musicians and TV shows, adorned the walls around them - a string of lights lined the top of the walls, creating soft, warm light. “Captain Winters, Zay will be suspicious if you’re not in bed when she gets back,” George said to his CO, Roe nodding in agreement. Dick let out a quiet laugh and shook his head.

“I can’t believe this is happening, Luz,” Dick replied. Eugene and George smiled at their captain - it was not often that he was at a loss for what to do. Winters always had everything together - he is, has been, and always will be, the best leader Easy Company has ever seen. Seeing Winters in a state of nerves and disbelief only added to the unreality of the boys’ situation.

Hearing the doorknob turn jolted the boys out of their collective thoughts. Zay slipped through the door before shutting it behind her, smiling at the boys. “Can I get anyone anything?” she asked sweetly, looking at the soldiers in her care.

“We’re perfect, ma’am, thank you,” Eugene responded with a smile. His cajun accent was thick in his words, awakening the butterflies in Zay’s stomach. In an attempt to cover up her fluster, she turned to look at captain Winters, who still was not in bed. Her eyebrows rose as she looked at the captain.

“Dick! Get in bed! You must be exhausted!” Zay instructed the officer, worried about him. Winters blushed, no one’s ever worried about him like this before. It was… nice? “If it makes you feel better, you take the bed and I can sleep on the flo-” Zay did not get to finish her statement.

“Out of the question,” Dick interrupted, using a stern tone but a sweet smile.

“Then get your butt in the bed,” Zay replied in a similar fashion - her tone said she was serious but her smile gave her away. Dick’s eyes widened, not expecting Zay to refer to his backside. Eugene and George could not help but laugh at the situation before them. Winters exchanged a glance with the two before hesitantly sitting on Zay’s bed. “Under the covers, captain,” Zay instructed - her apartment gets cold at night, and she knew he would be absolutely frozen otherwise.

Dick kept an indignant eye contact with Zay as he shifted his legs beneath the comforter - it was sky blue and decorated with a watercolor seascape. “Thank you,” Zay responded to his action, getting under the covers herself. She plugged her phone in on her bedside table, ensuring her alarm was set before looking back at the boys. “I set my alarm for 7 tomorrow morning, so you might hear my phone play some music,” She informed them, leaning back over to flip the switch off her string lights, bathing the room in a comforting darkness. The only light was the dim rays of the moon gently streaking in through the curtains on Zay’s windows. “Don’t be afraid to wake me up if y’all need anything ok?” she called out into the darkness.

“Alright, none of us are gonna do that though, Zay,” Luz replied, earning a laugh from Dick and Eugene. While Zay said nothing, everyone could feel her playfully roll her eyes at George’s response.

“Sleep well, y’all,” Zay spoke to the room, a chorus of “good night” and “you too” coming from the three boys. Luz and Roe seemed to pass out before they knew it, while Winters laid on his back, counting the glow-in-the-dark stars on Zay’s ceiling. “You doing okay?” Zay whispered when she saw Dick was still awake.

He turned his head to face her with a soft smile, “Yeah, I’m okay.” His words were reassuring, but Zay saw something else behind his eyes.

“Are you sure?” Dick did not want to put his worries on their hostess, but her question felt so honest, so genuine. She really wanted to help.

Dick took a beat before responding, “I’m worried about my men… I don’t know how to get them back to Bastogne, if we can get to Bastogne… and then there’s the men that are still there, three of their leaders are here - me, Nixon, and Speirs; it’s just… it’s so much at once.” Zay nodded in understanding, giving Dick the space to share how he felt. “I just don’t know where to even start.” Dick returned his gaze to the ceiling. He felt the same worry and overwhelm he did earlier, but it was somewhat… lighter.

“It sounds terrible… you’re a good leader though, Dick, and you’ve earned the trust of your soldiers. No matter what, I know you and your men will be okay,” Zay replied quietly. Dick’s heart swelled at her words, the encouragement meaning more than she knew. Dick turned his body to face the girl.

“Thank you for saying that,” he whispered, just barely able to make out her blue eyes. Before she could respond, Winters continued, “it seems like you know a lot about me, but I don’t know that much about you.”

“Oh, there’s not much to know, really,” Zay rambled a bit, caught off-guard by Winters.

“I know that’s not true,” he retorted - he wanted to know everything about her. Zay suppressed a nervous giggle, thanking the darkness for hiding her flustered state. No one’s been interested in Zay like this for a long time.

“Alright, what do you want to know?”

“Well, how did you come to work at the hospital?”

“Well, I always wanted to do something that helps people, and I wanted to do something with kids, too. So when I saw I could be a pediatric nurse, I just fell in love. I went to school down the road for nursing, and now I’m working in the children’s wing of the hospital. I’ve been in Raleigh since 2017, so about six years now, and I’ve been working at the hospital for about three years. The shifts are long, and it’s hard sometimes, but so incredibly rewarding.” Winters hung on her every word. To Dick, Zay could be reading a manual for how to program some intricate technology that is too complicated for him to understand, but he would listen to her read it cover to cover. The two continued talking, sharing life stories, and discussing the silliest topics well into the night.

By the time 7am rolled around, the pair had only gotten maybe three or four hours of sleep, certainly much less than they had intended. Zay’s phone began to play its music, rousing the four to consciousness. Luz was the first to wake up - he sat up and stretched his arms above his head as he blinked the sleep from his eyes. Roe stirred when he felt the movement next to him, immediately shooting awake when he noticed Zay and Dick. The two were still sleeping - Winters had his arm around Zay, who was fast asleep on the captain’s chest.

“You think they meant to do that, doc?” George asked the medic beside him, snickering at the sight of Zay and Winters.

“Can’t say I do, Luz,” the cajun whispered back, processing the sight before him. While both soldiers had smiles on their faces, each of them felt a pinch of jealousy, wishing that he was the one Zay was laying on. The more Zay’s phone played the music, the more the two sleeping stirred. Finally, the captain and the nurse opened their eyes, blinking the sleep away as they realized how they were laying. The two immediately jumped back from each other in surprise before Zay scrambled up to turn off her alarm.

“Morning everyone,” Zay greeted the boys quietly, cheeks beet red and eyes glued on her phone. A chorus of “morning”s replied to the nurse as she went to her dresser to pick out clothes for the day. “I’m… um… I’m gonna go shower, then I’ll grab clothes for y’all,” Zay sputtered out as she quickly shuffled past the soldiers and out her bedroom door. The door shut behind Zay, leaving the men in an atmosphere of awkwardness and discomfort. George, filled with either bravery or stupidity, was the first to speak.

“How’d you sleep captain?”

Winters, standing next to the bed, kept his eyes fixated on the sheets in front of him, arms crossed in front of his chest. He gave a small nod before responding quietly, “I slept fine, Luz, thank you.” Luz nodded his head silently as he sat on the pullout couch next to Roe. The three simply existed in that space until Zay returned, clothes for the men in tow. She was wearing a black t-shirt with another unfamiliar logo for something called “AC/DC.” The nurse paired the shirt with a pair of black denim shorts, the hem of which was barely visible under the shirt.

“I picked out some clothes for y’all, they should fit but if they don’t I have others,” Zay mused as she put three sets of t-shirts and jeans on her bed. “The shower is immediately on your left coming out of my room, I’m gonna make coffee for everyone.” She quickly turned on her feet and made her way to the kitchen without making eye contact with any of the soliders. The rest of the morning continued like this until almost all of the men were showered, dressed, and ready to go. All of the soldiers were wearing a form of jeans and t-shirts, opting to use their army-issued boots for footwear.

“That is the best shower I’ve ever had,” Guarnere mentioned as he walked into the living room, still drying his hair with his towel. He was greeted by Zay with a fresh cup of coffee, muttering a thank you before taking a large swig. Winters walked in front of the group and faced his men, doing a silent headcount before letting out a small chuckle.

“We’re still missing Lew, and your sister I think,” Dick reported to Zay, smiling down at her. Zay simply returned his smile and rolled her eyes.

“That sounds like Chrys, she's a night owl. Why don’t we go see if we can wake them up?” Zay asked, turning her body to face the hallway while keeping her eyes on Dick. The captain’s smile grew wider as he followed their hostess to the other bedroom. Zay slowly cracked open Chrys’ bedroom door, curiously peeking her head in. Winters copied her action, the two looking as if they were in a Scooby Doo episode, snooping around a haunted house. When the pair looked into the bedroom, there was quite the sight. Chrys and Lewis were in her bed, sheets mangled every which way, both kids spread out like starfish across the bed. Chrys’ head was at the foot of the bed, with her foot pressing into Nixon’s cheek as he snored the morning away. Both Zay and Dick struggled to suppress their laughs at the sight, the girl snapping a quick picture before tiptoeing into the room.

Dick went over to Nixon’s side of the bed, shaking his best friend’s shoulder. “Lew, it's time to get up, we gotta get going.”

“Go away,” Nixon muttered into Chrys’ foot, barely even conscious.

“Nix, c'mon, time to get up,” Dick replied, a bit firmer and louder, giving Nixon a hearty smack on his side. Nixon merely rolled over to his stomach and resumed his snoring. Meanwhile, Zay had been trying to do the same with her twin.

“Chrys, it's time to get up!” She said sweetly, gently shaking her shoulder like Dick did to Nixon. Zay received a similar reply, Chrys simply adjusting her arms before resuming her sleep. The pair stared at their sleeping counterparts for a moment, brainstorming how to get them out of bed. After a moment, Zay looked up at Dick, a mischievous smirk on her face. “I have an idea.”

After some preparation, Zay was standing at the foot of Chrys’ bed, holding the showerhead from the bathroom attached to Chrys' room. Dick and Zay had managed to extend the shower head so that Zay could hold it and aim it at the sleeping pair. “Are you sure about this?” Winters called out hesitantly from the bathroom, prepared to turn on the shower.

“Absolutely! It works every time!” Zay replied cheerfully. She held her arms out in front of her as if she was a sniper aiming at her target before calling out to Winters, “Fire when ready!” Dick took a deep breath before turning on the faucet, hearing the water flow through the extended hose before spraying all over Chrys and Nixon. Zay had turned the shower head to a higher pressure setting, water shooting out like liquid ammunition. The two sleepyheads leapt out of bed quicker than lightening, the cold water shocking their systems awake. Chrys jumped from her bed and onto the floor, shaking her wet hair off of her face. Nixon was standing on the opposite side of the bed, still trying to process what just happened. Zay was sure she heard the man mutter under his breath, “not again…” Dick quickly turned the water off and ran out to see what was going on, holding back a laugh at Nixon’s bamboozled state.

“Azaela,” Chrys started, voice low and groggy with sleep, “you know I hate it when you do that.” Chrys shot her sister a look that could have obliterated a thousand people to dust. Zay simply shot her sister a soft smile.

“Got you out of bed though,” Zay replied. She set down the shower head and walked over to her sister, outstretching her hand. Chrys begrudgingly accepted the help up and got to her feet. Nixon followed Winters and Zay out of Chrys’ room and soon everyone was dressed and ready to go.

“Alright, what’s the plan for the day?” Nixon asked as he stepped into the living room.

“Captain Winters mentioned going back to where we first… dropped in,” Speirs struggled to find his words, “or maybe even watching the program Zay mentioned we are in.” Ron rubbed his forehead with his fingers, still trying to wrap his brain around the situation he and the rest of his men are in.

“If y’all want, while you do that, some of us could be here doing research, maybe we can find something online that would help,” Chrys offered.

“Online?” Guarnere questioned, his jaw accentuating the confusion on his face.

“Internet,” Zay replied with a smile. Still confused, Guarnere simply shrugged off her answer with a grimace and kept listening to the officers.

“Alright, so some of us will stay here to gather information, and the rest of us will try and do the same at where we first showed up,” Nixon explained before turning to Captain Winters.

“Anyone feel strongly about what they want to do?” the redhead asked his men.

“I can take you guys to where you first dropped in,” Zay spoke up, “only a few of you, though, since Chrys will be here researching.”

“I can go with Zay!” Liebgott volunteered all too quickly, earning eyerolls from several soldiers and a blush from the nurse.

“Alright, that leaves three spots in my car,” Zay replied, looking around at the men. After more bickering about who is going where, it was decided that Guarnere and Speirs will go with Zay, and Nixon decided to stay behind.

“As an intelligence officer it might be good for me to learn how to use your internet,” Nix mentioned with a chuckle, earning him a smile from Chrys. When all was said and done it was decided that Roe, Liebgott, Guarnere, and Speirs would go with Zay to the affectionately named “Drop Zone” while Winters, Nixon, Bull, Luz, Toye, and Malarkey would stay with Chrys and try to find information online. Within a few minutes the five had gone out the door and left the rest of the group to their own devices. When the door shut, Chrys walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out three different books before coming back to the boys.

“Alright. Toye, Luz, Malarkey, your jobs are going to be to look through these books and see if you can find anything useful.” Chrys instructed as she passed the books out to the boys. Two of the books were books about Raleigh, NC that had everything a tourist would need in them - street maps, places to eat, attractions, and more. The book Luz received was An Abridged History of the Paratroopers - Luz almost dropped the book from its weight. Bull chuckled and walked over beside Luz.

“You need some help with that George?”

“Oh you couldn't've asked that before I nearly drop this and break my foot?” Laughter rang out among the group before Chrys turned to the officers in the room.

“You two are going to learn how to use a laptop.” She said confidently, sitting down in the middle of the couch. The next few hours entailed the boys learning more than they could have ever imagined about technology and the internet, as well as conspiracy theories and their formation. While scrolling through what the men learned to be Google search results, Nixon put his hand on Chrys’ to pause her movement before pointing at the screen. It took Chrys a moment to recover internally from the gentleman’s hand being placed on her’s unexpectedly.

“What the fuck?” Chrys muttered under her breath. As she stared at the place where Nixon was pointing, she started to furiously type away on her laptop.

“Everything okay?” Toye asked, looking up from his “Where to Go in Raleigh” book. He could not tell if the girl was confused, upset, or something different altogether. Chrys just continued typing away as if she did not hear the soldier, leaning closer to her screen with intense focus. “Chrys,” Joe tried again to get her attention.

“I think Nixon found something,” She muttered, tracing her finger down her screen. “Here… anonymous source confirms time travel experiment at Fort Liberty gone awry.”

“The fuck is Fort Liberty?” Toye asked, one eyebrow pointing east, one eyebrow pointing straight up.

“Isn’t that the new name for Fort Bragg?” Malarkey asked from his place on the floor.

“How do you know that?” Chrys asked, her focus finally being broken to shoot Malarkey a confused glance.

“I overheard someone talking about it in the hospital,” the redhead replied. Chrys nodded in understanding and turned back to her laptop.

“Chrys, what does the rest of the article say?” Luz asked, sitting on the loveseat next to Toye. Chrys continued to scan the article before responding.

“Sources confirmed that Colonel Donald ‘Donnie’ Gomez of the 101st Airborne-”

“Hey that’s us!” Malarkey interrupted, earning him a smack on the head from Toye before Chrys continued.

“Anonymous sources have confirmed that Colonel Donald Gomez of the 101st Airborne has been leading time travel experiments in secret while he has been stationed at Fort Liberty in Fayetteville, NC. As of now, the experiments have yielded some compelling results. A participant in the experiment was able to travel back up to a year ago.” The boys leaned closer, intrigued at the article.

“During another experiment, Colonel Gomez sent a subject back to January 1945 through a wormhole. However, reports emerged the next day that eviscerated human remains appeared in the Bois Jaques Forest in Bastogne, Belgium without apparent cause. The corporal was never recovered and the cause of the gruesome remains was never determined. Belgian authorities have not confirmed if the DNA samples of the human remains match those on file with the US Army.

“Some theorized that the corporal had been disintegrated by the wormhole and that the remains found in Belgium belonged to her. Others believed the corporal had become the victim of an alien abduction - even others theorized that the Army gave the corporal to aliens willingly.

“Colonel Gomez, Fort Liberty, and the United States Army have all denied allegations of using enlisted soldiers as test subjects in time travel experiments, as well as continuously declining to give comments to journalists.” A stunned silence fell over Chrys and the soldiers around her.

“Is there any way to confirm that’s what happened?” Malarkey asked after a beat.

“Not unless you know Colonel Gomez,” Winters replied dejectedly.

“I mean… we could always go check ourselves,” Nixon looked up at the boys to gauge their reactions before meeting Chrys’ eyes. Nixon’s stomach did a somersault… Chrys’ eyes were a resounding shade of green. It was just as vibrant as an emerald, but somehow… more piercing? They were on the lighter side and Lewis felt as though her eyes were staring into his soul.

“How would we do that sir?” Toye prodded, sounding more irritated than he actually was. Chrys and Nixon sat lost in each other’s eyes for a moment - though they would deny it if anyone said anything - before Luz brought them back to reality.

“Do you think they’d let us in if we show up in our uniforms?”

“Uniform or not you need a military ID to get on base,” Chrys replied, quickly looking away from the captain. She leaned back on the couch and crossed her arms in thought. “I wish we could just sneak in.”

“ … what’s stopping us?” the question fell quietly from Toye’s lips with uncertainty. Sneaking into a military base is complicated, risky, and everything in between, but it is not impossible. The group exchanged glances all saying the same thing… are we really going to try this?

~~~~~

Chapter 4 | Chapter 6

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Thank you again for reading!! Be on the lookout for the Chapter 6 Poll coming this week!! 🥰✨

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