#p:trip to the docks

[rioreeve]

trip to the docks

//Ground floor retail access & the docks. Nov 21.

Zach put everything on his bed: a flashlight, two powerbanks, his phone, two knives, and a gun he had brought from the chopper. Two bottles of water and a few protein bars. A small first aid kit. He crossed his arms on his chest and studied the items before he decided he had everything they might need and put them all in his backpack. "You're not going with me," he told Doom when he jumped onto the now-empty bed, wagging his tail. He had prepared some food for the dog earlier, and this time, he also had to ask someone to puppysit Doom while he was gone. They would soon run out of dog food, so if he and Ash were lucky enough to get some on their way back, he would kill two birds with one stone. If that wasn't possible, however, he would have to sneak out and get some for Doom Slayer by himself. He wished he had ordered more last time... Now that everything was ready, Zach checked his watch; Ash should be waiting for him at the only available exit from the building, and he still had to drop off his dog at Ember's, so he picked up the backpack, collected Doom's stuff, and headed out of his condo, hoping they would be back before it got dark and the streets were an even more dangerous place. "Come on, we gotta hurry, buddy."

He knew neither of them would change their mind, but the closer to their meeting point he was, the more he thought about the whole undertaking. They had so many questions, and the answers to at least some of them would be on that ship. This trip and getting those answers wouldn't bring an end to anything, but he wondered what would change. Maybe, they would be closer to understanding something about this virus and how it all started. Well, they had to get there first.

Greeting Ash with a nod when he finally joined him, he asked, "Ready?" A part of him was excited to leave this building for several hours and see how the city looked now. Not that it had changed much since the last time, though.

@ashton-ryder // @byenycfm

[rioreeve]

All three zombies were dead for good, and both men made it through the ordeal without getting bitten. Excellent. Zach thanked Ashton for help, knowing their last trick could have gone much worse. As long as they were alive and their enemies weren't, everything was fine. "Yeah, same. Thanks." He smiled a bit, and for a moment, they stood there together, indulging their curiosity as they watched the zombie fight the waves until it disappeared under the surface. Zach nodded with a "now that's interesting" expression on his face, finding this discovery kind of useless yet fascinating. It created even more questions, too, but none of them regarded anything they needed to know to move forward, so he saved them for later. Smiling at Ashton's comment, Zach answered with an amused "Very educational," then nodded back at Ash to thank him for his appreciation and let him know he agreed - they certainly did a good job. Now was the time to do what they came here for.

Places like this were usually loud, but the outbreak turned the world upside down. The only sounds they could hear now were seagulls' noises and waves crashing against the ships and the shore, which created a slightly eerie atmosphere, but at least they would be able to hear if they weren't alone. At some point, Zach offered a comment about how this reminded him of the biggest title he had worked on, which wasn't necessarily something one would want to hear, knowing survival horror was the genre he was talking about. Now that everyone's lives turned into a damn survival horror, every day was good for inspiration. They checked every door, Zach following Ashton's lead, and everything looked promising in one way or another, given how many various goods they found here. Now, that was a Costco he and Birdie talked about the other day. She would probably love it.

Finally, they reached a room that differed from the rest, like it didn't belong there, and it seemed like that was the place they were looking for. If they would be coming back with any answers, that was where they'd find them. The last glance over his shoulder to make sure they weren't being followed, and they stepped inside. Zach searched for his own flashlight to take a better look at what they had there. If only they had some power, he would be checking those computers, but all they could do was take the most promising things with them to check at home or count on good old paper. "Yeah," he muttered, going through the items on the closest table. "The fuck was all that for..." Zach hummed thoughtfully as he picked up a test kit to examine it. It looked simple, nothing stood out, but what did they even need it for? The virus didn't need more than 30 minutes to turn its host into a violent beast, tests of any kind were pointless with something as fast as that. What was this kit for?

Most of the time, Zach and Ash stuck together since it was safer and increased their survival chances, especially in open spaces. Now that they'd reached the ship, however, Zach thought it wouldn't be such a bad idea to check the captain's cabin, just across from where they were now, while Ash went through the documents in this one. Labs were more of his forte, and most of the documents were in English, while Zach could start looking for something the crew might have wanted to hide. They split up, agreeing to meet in the same room later and, hopefully, share what they'd found out.

"I think I know how the virus joined the Blue Miracle's crew," he announced, chewing on a protein bar as he came back to the makeshift lab, the captain's journal in the other hand. He sat on one of the tables to finish reading, and when he swallowed the last bite, Zach continued, "Turns out they wanted to avoid a scenario that's our reality right now, so those of higher ranks needed a negative test result to embark. Negative, meaning immune to the virus." He looked at Ash and arched a brow. Was that what those test kits were for? Could they use them? Hopefully, Ash had found some answers to those questions. "One of the navigation officers lied about his result and made it onto the ship with a delayed infection. They found out when someone fucked up bad enough for them to have to test the crew again. They degraded him and even moved him to a different cabin, where he wasn't solely surrounded by immune crewmates anymore. That's where they learn about the delayed infection." Zach closed the journal with a sigh and stood up, then walked over to Ashton. How a single lie snowballed into Manhattan being quarantined was beyond him. "You've got something fun?"

The first one was a swift kill, the easily to deal with with the element of surprise. He was thankful for Zach coming into the take care of the second one, both in tandem taking two down at the same time. The last one however, Ashton could see from the corner of his vision, coming towards him while he was still down on the ground. No time to get back up and repeat the same strike, and so Ashton swept a leg under the final zombie, knocking it off its feet and falling onto the ground to give himself time to get back up. Zach had also in the meantime dealt his own, shoving the last one straight into the sea. Ashton had gotten up but lurched forward in an instinctive move to pull Zach back by the hem of his shirt. At that very moment, his heart stopped forward second thinking he was that close to falling in with their third zombie wading in the waters. Suddenly his promise to Ria seemed a lot harder to keep.

Ashton pulled Zach back as the motion got Ashton sitting down on the ground from a second, sighing with relief. "Yeah, I'm okay, you?" He got up on his feet as a thought came to mind, watching over the edge to see the zombie wading and struggling to stay afloat before sink into the depths as the tide swallowed it up. "Good to know they can't swim," it was always a question Ashton never had the answer to, not having been close to the waters since it all started, "nice work," he nodded to Zach as he cleaned the blade of his knife on the dead's shirts. Ashton gave a sweeping glance at their surroundings, making sure the scuffle didn't attract anything else to them before turning his attention to the ship itself. "Now or never," he readied his knife again, taking the lead to bring them inside from the platform up to the ship. Even from here the barricades did its best to well.. do nothing in the end.

The ship was awfully silent at this moment, whether it's a signal for its emptiness or a calm before the storm, Ashton couldn't let their guard down yet. Answers had to be inside the ship. And so they threaded their way in carefully, looking through door by door though it didn't take them long. It was a cargo ship that was mostly filled with goods, clothes, amazon packages, perhaps there might be good supplied to bring back if they still ended up empty handed. But as the men pushed through one particular door near the captains quarters, Ashton paused at the sight before them.

This didn't seem to be part of the cargo.

"Well, fuck me," Ashton muttered under his breath, securing the area and confirming it was clear before they focused their attention to the centre, it almost looked like a lab put together with papers and documents lying everywhere, computers and equipment that ran out of power, and boxes of some kind of test kit sat with them. "Just some regular cargo ship this was." Ashton turned on his tactical flashlight and started scanning through some of the documents, hoping to shed some light on the story behind the ship, the moments before chaos struck. What happened..?

[rioreeve]

He just couldn't help it - over the years, he had learned how to convey messages using as few words as possible. Of course, it wouldn't work for going through important details of their plan, but was great for catching the gist. It was funny how at the same time, the apocalypse required a bit more effort from people like Zach, they seemed to finally be leaving their caves and talking to neighbors. Was it because they were finally talking about something? The small talk he hated so much made little sense now, and people jumped straight to the point, just like he wished they always did. Ash and Zach managed to reach another street before he stopped thinking about how the outbreak influenced him and his relationships with others.

So, his thoughts moved on to another topic and then another, as he wondered if they weren't too late already, or maybe too soon, and the Korean ship's crew would still be there, hungry, waiting for a fresh delivery. And if they were still on board, then why hadn't they joined one of those groups that was on the move the whole time? Could different groups have different customs, act differently depending on certain factors? Finally, Zach thought they could check which version was true in the future and this way they would be able to predict the zombies' movements better or even pinpoint where other survivors might have been trapped.

What would this theory say about the building they were looking at right now, then? Anything optimistic, or should they assume only resources might be a reason to come back to this spot? Zach looked around again, giving Ash some time to make up his mind in silence and peace, without suggesting either answer. There was a smaller building to their left; a sign "Alive", just like theirs, fluttering in the wind, attached to a piece of metal on the wall, but numerous red smudges on the facade, beneath the windows, were telling him the sign might have been terribly outdated. That, and the front door standing wide open. It was a terrible sight and to make things worse, the neighboring building told a similar story, except there was no sign, only human remains on the fire escape, a window left ajar. For the first time, he was afraid they would die there and much as he wanted to be with Courtney again, he wasn't planning on dying anytime soon and, by no means, turning this into a suicide mission.

When Ash spoke again, he just nodded in agreement, respecting his decision. Maybe there would be time for side quests on their way back, but they couldn't forget that this wasn't over until they were home - something could still go wrong on their way back. Knowing how difficult it must have been for his companion to fight the urge to go inside, see if any of his friends still had a chance to make it, Zach offered a gentle pat on his shoulder. He was hoping it wouldn't be too late for anyone if they postponed this mission. The silence between them as they walked away felt different, it was almost palpable this time, and Zach chose to break it with the quietest confession, "My parents were in Busan when we last talked. They've mentioned rumors about a virus, but that's the problem with rumors. You never know if it's coming from delusional tinfoil hatters or not." This one clearly came from a more reliable source and now all he had was hope that his family was still alive, but his guts begged to differ. Either way, walking away from the NYU building must have hurt Ashton just like hearing the Korean broadcast back in the diner hurt Zach.

Somehow some way, with whatever Ashton says, Zach had a way of condensing it all down to a singular sentence when it boils down to it. He replied with a playful roll of his eyes and nodded, that was just it, don't get caught, don't draw attention, an incognito mission, covert operation. It was unlike the other time Zach and Tobias went out to the crash, that was a fresh site, survivors in tow. This ship has been the epicenter of it all with this island their one way in, with the three weeks that had passed, there probably isn't any survivors there and if there were they'd be long gone by now.

"Perhaps.." Animalistic Instincts always brought living (or in this case unliving) beings to food. They are also on their path for survival as the humans are, and they will do whatever it takes. A good reminder to have when tracking their moving from the roof. Perhaps there's more to it than just mindless movements. The first half of the journey was the easy part, easier to map out their route, closer with time with what they had seen from the roof, and now knowing that he could make it to campus, puts a glimmer of hope in his mind, that the journey to NYU was possible. Ashton was in his thoughts about what could possibly be inside, but Zach pulled him out of his thoughts when he asked a question. A temptation he didn't deny that clawed at a selfishness that he wanted.

Ashton gave Zach a conflicted look before he took a few quiet steps towards the side of the buildings, windows shut but he knew where one of the labs were, he saw the view of the streets out of it often enough. He took a quick silent peek into the windows, it was a chaotic mess but yet... not in complete shambles, there was hope. -...No. Ashton suppressed the urge with a harsh reminder to himself. They're on a mission right now, with a set plan and set goal. Any derailment to that goal causes complications to their plans, this was an unknown variable they cannot risk. Ashton let out the breath he held and shook his head definitively, "not right now. We can't take more risk than we already are." He wanted to, desperately wanting to see if friends were still alive in their dorms, labs, classrooms. But he silently apologized within himself to them, and he walked away from the ghostly building. They had to keep going, just through Lower Manhattan and then the Financial District and it's the docks. A pained look flash across his eyes before he looked back to Zach and nodded, they had a mission to accomplish, and this was not that mission.

[rioreeve]

It would be a long walk and days were getting colder, which wasn't the best combo, but they shouldn't be picky. Waiting for a better moment was pointless since there wouldn't be one until springtime, and in this case, someone else would get to the ship before them. If they were careful enough and stuck to their plan, they should be back in no time. They had spent a lot of time planning this trip, and even though they obviously couldn't prepare themselves for every possible scenario, they seemed to have enough plans b and c to feel confident they knew what they were doing. Humble as he was, Zach would never suggest doing something he doubted he'd be able to execute, and he definitely had a lot of faith in Ashton's skills. Things could go wrong but it wouldn't be anything that would stop them.

With another nod, Zach redid his bun and put a beanie on as he listened to Ash speak. He definitely didn't want to catch a cold now and keeping a hood on would limit his peripheral vision. "I could use more ammo for the handgun, but I'm okay with what I have for now." It was better if Ash did the shooting and Zach was there with his gun for emergencies, anyway. And, of course, best case scenario was no shooting at all... but that wasn't likely. "I'm good," he added for good measure.

"A Thanksgiving meal, damn. Charlie and Rosie keeping our esprit de corps intact..." He smiled at Ash and, even though he knew it really was their last chance to say fuck it, didn't even say anything to directly answer the question. Instead, they slowly made their way outside the building, cold air hitting their faces as they closed the door behind them. Zach thought of a joke, something about the chilly air being a better reason to stay inside than all the viruses combined, but he kept it to himself, putting on his fingerless gloves. The first few steps felt like regret but that's what November was about, an apocalypse or not. Yet another thing he kept to himself, to not sound grumpy. He glanced around; "Alright. Clear."

It should be almost on command at this point, the way he preps and packs for a trip outside, Ashton knew exactly what he brings out there, the essentials to survive and then some space to bring things back. But this trip.. had Ashton thinking and overthinking. Initially he was against going this far out to the south, it's where the worse concentration of them are, where it all started here. It would be at least a 2 hour trek out across the city if they don't stop, or get stopped. Hell, he hasn't even attempted a trip to NYU that's only half the journey south because it felt too dangerous. But he gave in to the idea, curiosity and the need to do something ultimately eating at him. He packed his usuals, combat knives, pistol, rifle, flashlight but also more things than usual to survive the trek; extra water, food, compass, map, emergency blankets, threw on a thicker jacket with the biting cold growing colder. Anything that could help them survive if this becomes more than a day's trip. He checked the diner's bulletin board in case any requested things outside before heading down to the one secure exit in the building.

Ashton went down a little bit earlier, making sure he had everything he needed, wrote their names down to track their movements of leaving the building. He leaned in a corner making sure to check and reload his rifle as Zach joined him soon enough. "Yeah," Ashton pushed himself off the wall and slung his rifle, "I checked our route from the roof again earlier this morning, still doable but the cold's catching in. And you? You good with everything you need?" The last few days had been simply preparing for this, planning their routes, tracking horde movements and the moment things cleared a path and an opportunity opened up, they took it.

"Last chance to back out, I hear from Charlie that they might do a Thanksgiving meal and who knows we might miss it," starting their journey at the crack of dawn today was hopefully the way to get back before sun fall. It was a playful joke but at the same time a serious question, a final check in on their resolve but they stepped outside.

[rioreeve]

Just like he thought, this trip would bring even more questions, but every answer, no matter how vague, was worth those two or three questions that followed. They knew more about the virus or what happened on the ship and how it all started; they even had some test kits they could use. More answers would probably come either with time or a different perspective, but for now, they already had something, so it was a success they should focus on. Eventually, they would find a way to contact someone who could help them distribute the test kits or let the CDC know about the documents they found. Now that they had their bags and backpacks filled with tests and moved on to everything they deemed useful or important, they just had to do their job and be patient.

Zach came up with a simple system - this or another test kit. If something wouldn't be chosen over another test kit, he didn't take it, which made packing much easier and faster. He continued until he could barely see any free space in his backpack and had to ask Ash for his opinion on what he just found when something interrupted them. A part of him was glad that they had managed to get this far before the zombies woke up; at the same time, he was disappointed they had to leave before they were 100% done. They both knew they had to leave, so they quietly turned off their flashlights, closed their bags, and got ready to abandon the ship before things got nasty since neither of them was curious about how big this welcome party was. Trusting Ashton's judgment and his own guts, Zach thought they seemed to be on the same page with this one – without hesitation, they quietly left the lab as the noises in the other room grew louder and louder.

Nothing a bunch of zombies can't ruin, though; not even the simplest plan was safe. Just when they thought they had safely made it out and the rest of their way out would be easy, the door that probably once kept the crew safe from the infected and their hunger couldn't stop them anymore and fell to the ground with a thud, letting them all out. Zach saw how one of the zombies went straight for Ash, trampling over a few others who tried to get up from the floor, and the next second another one was right in front of him, falling into his arms with little affection as it stumbled. Now that he had a zombie clutching onto his waist with one arm and shoulder with the other, fingers digging into the jacket as it fought to pull itself back up onto its feet, Zach couldn't believe how difficult it was to push this asshole away. He could almost feel it bite into his stomach already, despite the layers of polyester and cotton that would protect him even if the creature actually tried biting him. He pressed hard against its temples with his free hand, but it didn't help much and the zombie just knelt down under pressure. Pros? Now, he could move his other arm too, and use the knife he was holding the whole time. Cons? If the zombie was fast enough, it could bite into his leg, which would be much worse than it chewing on the jacket's down fill. Luckily, Ashton managed to shoot it before either of these scenarios happened. Zach pushed the creature to the floor and turned to Ash to assess the situation, but it was clear there were no other options on the table - they had to run.

On Ashton's command, he started running, his knife still at ready in case the gunshots attracted more of those dead guys and one came from the other direction. He heard Ash shoot at the horde they were running from and would glance over his shoulder every now and then, to make sure he was okay, until they finally reached the exit. Zach hurried to one side of the door to close them, waiting for his friend to join him. Now that they both safely made it outside, they shut the door behind them before any of the zombies managed to reach them, and the only thing they had to do was secure this entrance. Knowing how smart these creatures were, a zip tie should do the trick, but it was a large group and they just proved how determined they were to follow their lunch wherever it went. Zach looked around to see what could help them keep those bastards inside. "Jam the door, I'll find something heavy to block it," he said, seeing Ashton protect one of his arms from further injuries, and it didn't take long before his eyes landed on a few barrels standing not so far from them. This looked promising. Wondering what could be in them, for a split second Zach wished it was fuel so they could barbecue those guys - for science, of course - but this thought disappeared as quickly as it came to his mind. When the doors were more or less secured, it was safe for him to run over to the barrels and start moving one of them towards the entrance, but they were heavier than he thought. Much as he wanted to spare Ashton's arm and do it by himself, he had to ask for his help and together, they blocked the entrance with four barrels, two heavier and two lighter-but-not-light ones.

Zach leaned against one of them to catch a breath and let his muscles rest for a second, which must have looked ridiculous with all the trapped zombies still groaning behind the door. Glancing over his shoulder, he let out a loud sigh. "Maybe... We should leave a warning on the door or something..."

"Ask that again to the rest of Manhattan," Ashton chuckled humorlessly, raising an eyebrow. The test kit didn't work like previous pandemics where they tested on whether you've contracted the virus or not, this was on immunity, so it was probably an easy guess that he was not immune and was infected. The thought of a delayed reaction was an interesting one though.. Did he have stronger antibodies? Were they fighting the virus for as long as they could before they lost? Were they strong enough to the point that they might've been borderline seemingly immune? Ashton will never know because who knows where the poor sod is now, out on the streets eating someone else. Still probably a note to bring up in the report back to the doctors in the house.

The pessimistic side of Ashton said that it was probably neither of those options, but he kept that to himself. The way it devoured this city here, with them having knowledge of the outbreak, it had to be worse for Korea when the unknown deadly virus hit them ten folds. Ashton simply nodded in agreement and start packing as fast as he could. Starting with the documents as proof of what they found, slotting them and cracks and corners of the bag and then stuffing as many fresh boxes of test kits as possible from the crates around the the labs. Each smaller box had maybe 10 kits in them, and despite the number of residents, it was a mutual understanding for both them to take as many as they could, a few hundred or two, if not more. / If this was mentioned to be public distribution, they at least had an obligation for humanity to save what they could. Today the ship still stands, tomorrow who knows, maybe it'll be completely overrun and impossible to come back, maybe the ship will sink, maybe some idiot on congress with a trigger happy finger might think it's best to burn the source of infection with all of these on board.

"Probably meds, medical equipment, non-perishable foods," Ashton gave a bag a firm shook downwards, with some space left and then some. He did a sweep around the room first, Zach picking up most of the meds they needed and Ash focused on first aid supplies and equipment, bandages, surgical items, and an AED to top it off. He turned to Zach as he spoke again but at that moment they both froze, tensing up at the foreign sound they haven't heard before in the ship. He quickly and quietly closed his bag and slung it across a shoulder, clicking off his flashlight as he gave Zach a nod. That was their cue to leave.

So there were some of those bastards lurking around, perhaps waiting silently, or maybe locked up, the ship's crew's last ditch efforts to save themselves, carving through for the past month. Knife back on both their hands, Ashton headed out of the lab room first, observing in silence on where the noise came from, one of the locked rooms they never found access to, and now probably for the best. He contemplated whether to bolt right now, before the floodgates break sooner or later, or deal with it right now. But it was an unknown not worth their lives to find out, there could be twenty, thirty in there, who knows? Ashton gestured for them to make a break for it, the opportunity to leave was now.

But just as they left the lab room, the door beside creaked in a prolonged breaking point way and the door hinges gave way. Most of them fell over to the weight with the door but two had pounced forward to them, one slamming Ash into the lab's doorway in an awkward angle that sent a shocked pain across his shoulder that led out a choked gasp. He held that arm against the zombie snapping at him, going numb from the previous impact, but his eyes wandered to instantly access their situation. It was not good, there's too many to fight off, and both men were down and occupied and the rest of them getting back on their feet. It was a split second decision, life and death hanging on a thread, but Ashton immediately reached for his pistol and in a clean but loud shot eliminated the zombie on him, quickly firing a kill at the other on Zach. "Run," Ashton commanded as calmly as he could, steadying his aim to fire at a few more that got back onto their feet. Cover was blown, so they had to use all the firepower that the deadly sound provided.

[rioreeve]

Zach shrugged his shoulders with a sigh and added wryly, "He's not immune, but he can't be infected as well - things can't get that bad, right?" Accidentaly, they gave the virus a green light despite all the precautions they'd thought of. Listening to Ash as he spoke about his discoveries, Zach took the documents from him and skimmed the pages just to get the essence. They would have more time for that when they get back, but it looked like all they needed to find out who was immune was a sample - a drop of blood. He was curious if any special storage conditions for test kits and reagents were necessary, and quickly found out that, luckily, they should work just fine. A light at the end of the tunnel, and it wasn't a train? Brilliant.

"Judging by what they said about Korea, they're still working on the vaccine or forgot to save a copy," he said, pointing to the documents with his chin. "Hoping for the former... Anyway. Let's try to take at least twice as many as we need." They had to be a bit selfish, think about fellow residents and their safety first. If they tested everyone in the building and still had anything they could share, they could think about that, but it would be much safer to try to contact someone like the CDC, so they would go to the ship and collect all the goods themselves. Zach thought there was one more reason why taking all the useful documents with them was wise. Maybe it would be easier to strike a bargain with someone from the outside; avoid letting them take what they needed and ignore the Wexley residents.

He put the papers and the journal in his backpack, and before they started stuffing their backpacks with test kits, he looked around to check what else they could take. Data storage devices could also be valuable so he picked a few pen drives with labels, hoping for some video logs. Having rearranged everything in the compartments of his backpack, Zach was ready to fill it with test kits, and wondered how much longer their trip back would take with all the extra weight. He quickly reached the expected number or tests and turned to Ash to see how he was doing. "Not bad, maybe we really could check what other goods they have here," he offered, zipping up the main compartment.

If only they could take a car and collect as many supplies as they wanted! The ship looked promising, everything they had been carrying could be useful but Zach and Ashton had to choose what was 1) important, 2) important but could be found anywhere else, and 3) anything that simply had to be left behind. First, he thought of Doom; he closest pet store was located 10 minutes from the Wexley, so he could drop everything off and go back to get some dog food for him. This could wait. It would be smarter if they focused on things they wouldn't be able to find in nearest proximity, then. Both men started looking for what they thought were the most important items and ended up finding things such as flare guns, batteries, some painkillers, antihistamines, and other more popular drugs their residents might need.

Zach opened another box and peeked inside. "Okay, what about th-" But he shut up the second he heard something that wasn't a wave or an angry seagull. The knife was back in his hand and his eyes were on the door to the next room, where the sound came from. Clearly, it was time for them to leave.

Ashton didn't like the idea of splitting up but they wouldn't be too far from each other separated by a hallway and it would speed up their progress. He felt like they shouldn't stay here longer than they could help it. The silence and lack of enemies didn't exactly sit right in his gut. Ultimately he agreed as Zach walked over to the captain's cabin across this room. Ashton placed his flashlight in his mouth and quickly pored over the documents with both hands, sorting them out onto a table, of what was useful to bring back and what wasn't, what proved what they found here was real. Some of the printed documents were correspondence from the company the created the immunity test kits, some were recorded results with a list of names, assuming the crew on the cargo ship. There was in a little instruction manual found with the test kits, obviously this was developed to be for widespread distribution to the public. Perhaps to find the immuned, to create a vaccine from them and stop it before it reached other countries. Too bad it never actually made it to the public.

Zach came back pretty quickly with more insightful intel on how it even ended up here in the first place. Just a whole series of bad decisions that culminated into what they are going through today. "Well that's just dumb, they should've isolated him," Ashton pulled the flashlight out of his mouth the speak, easier said with hindsight 20 20 obviously, they only assumed he wasn't immune and not the fact that he was infected. Most of the documents had been sorted through, he used a large table to organize them well and placed all sealed and unused test kits on one side.

Zach came over with the journal and Ashton folded his arms gazing over the entire thing. "It's like you said, one of the research companies in Korea had been working on an immunity test kit, they figured out people could be immune pretty early on and started working on the vaccine," Ashton began to tell the lab's side of the story, handing Zach one of the correspondence and instructions of where this batch of test kits were supposed to go. He continued talking. rolling up the useful documents to bring back, "the test kits on this ship were meant for global distribution to the public, hoping to find a larger pool of the immune to work on the vaccine. I think we should bring these back, as many as we can." And perhaps help bring these to where they need it to go, at the same time maybe they should all get tested, it would help with knowing who's best to go outside or not.

Ashton placed his bag and the table and packed up the test kits and documents. "That journal is probably good to bring back too. Any other supplies to take if we still have space as well." A cargo ship had to have food, clothes, medicine too but perhaps that's being too greedy. They came for answers, and the answers had to be their priority. "Let's not stay here too long," Ashton nodded to Zach as he packed the table's worth into his bag. The longer they stayed here, the more his gut didn't sit right with him. It's been too quiet in this ship.

[rioreeve]

He appreciated that Ash made this decision and didn't need as much time as Zach thought he would, so the least he could do was agree to do that on their way back or join him on a separate trip if he asked for his help. Zach felt he owed him that for whatever reason; probably because there was no voting this time. Just an agreement between the two men. They had to focus on their mission first, then could move on to anything they deemed feasible.

Sometimes, it felt good to open up a bit without anyone's encouragement, and he thought that it was because he wasn't doing it to make himself feel better, but because he was hoping it would let Ash know he could relate, as the two walked away in silence, leaving the campus behind. If he was doing it for himself, well, that didn't change anything about his feelings. The uncertainty was horrible, no matter how many times he spoke about it. When Ash said he was sorry, however, Zach offered a bitter but appreciative smile – maybe sharing that thought with someone did make him feel a bit better. It felt stupid to say "that's okay" or anything along those lines, so he didn't. Nothing was okay, after all, they all kept losing people instead of getting any good news about anything or anyone. Hopefully, today something will change in this department. "I was kinda prepared even before you fixed the radio," he replied, finally letting that realization sink in, then added, "There will be more doomsday preppers after this one." His smile widened a bit. He wouldn't be surprised if he heard that's what people all over the world are doing right now – hoarding canned tuna and toilet paper, making solar panels, and turning potatoes into batteries. "Yeah, we will," he agreed with more confidence this time.

Chompers kept their minds occupied for the rest of their way to the docks. How to avoid them, which route would be best to avoid shooting any of the infected. And if they had no other choice, at least they'd managed to take them down quietly, appreciating those introverted creatures for not bringing along more friends with them.

Finally, the docks. This place was a mess, and neither of them seemed surprised. That's where it all started. People had been doing their best to stop the outbreak from turning into a massacre, trying whatever they could before every attempt turned out fruitless, and they had to abandon their hopes. "Let's hope for good and be prepared for bad, hm?" Zach quirked a brow as he looked around and followed his companion without more hesitation, a gun in his hand already. Reaching for a knife was easier, he was much better with those, but - like it or not - shooting in real life differed much from his games, so he needed an extra second if he wanted to aim properly and shoot an enemy to kill them. If he paid more attention to their choices, he'd find it amusing how they complemented each other. "Ash?" He tried to follow the makeshift barricades and blood stains, not to mention the bodies zombies deemed inedible, or whatever other reasons they left them there could be. "Let's try this way," he suggested, a tilt of his head showing which way he meant. They took a few turns in a container maze, choosing either the most promising or the safest routes, until they finally saw the ship they were looking for.

"Shit..." Zach motioned his head toward the ship, three lost zombies waiting for someone dead or alive to appear and help them make up their minds – where did they want to go? He kneeled down to pick up a rock, then looked at Ash, asking if he should throw it in the opposite direction to distract them, or did they need a better plan since they'd be going on the ship now, with only one safe way in and out.

Ashton appreciated the pat to his shoulder, a lopsided smile in return with a light shrug. He's been teased to be indecisive with the most mundane decisions in life but decisions like these where their lives hang on a balance? He knew where the right one was. He'll be back, he'll clear the path from here to the Wexley, perhaps make it easier for rescue if anyone did survive and he'll come over again, he made a silent promise to himself for that. Keep moving forward, Ashton kept his gaze in front of him because he doesn't know if his legs might stop again if he turned around.

He didn't expect Zach to open up once it was quiet again, whispers where the undead can't hear them. He knew the additional context to the feeling of hearing the information they knew now about Korea, Ashton felt a little bad for voicing it out back then on the possibility if Korea's gone dark, who knows who's left. The miniscule disaster that happened in Manhattan might've just been the taster to what a whole country has experiences, and maybe an eerie prediction should their whole country fall too. "I'm sorry.." Ashton managed a murmured reply back, he wasn't sure whether it was better to lose hope for their families, or still hold hope for them all to be okay. "And suddenly all those doomsday preppers were right," he made a despondent joke at all but whether it's worth dedicating their lives for this moment instead of actually living life, that's for Ashton's own opinion to be kept. "We'll try again," he said vaguely for the both of them, try to tap into the radio again, try to come back to NYU again, just keep trying until something sticks. Ashton shut up thereafter, noticing a chomper across the street turn its head to them, gesturing for them to keep moving. When they get back in one piece.. they'll try again.

The next half of their journey was a little more precarious, movements had shifted since they last could take note from the Wexley's roof, but nothing a little distraction couldn't handle. The financial district had been the one place that was densely packed with people, perhaps the catalyst for this to have gotten completely out of control. But Ashton focused on each step forward, one more street, one more step, one more enemy avoided or killed.

And there they were, by the docks and the scene was a mess. Attempts of barricades, makeshift quarantines or clinics, the haphazard efforts of crisis aversion without knowing exactly what the crisis was. Ashton exhaled a silent sigh, almost as if not believing the sight before them, it looked worse than he had imagined at the very least. He turned to look to Zach, making sure they were ready to step forward and find a way in. "Quiet, could be good or bad," Ashton muttered, making sure his gun is accessible and he held his combat knife now offensively. The trek here was long and tricky but this was always the more dangerous part of the mission, going into ground zero of this city. He nodded to Zach, ready to go when he was.

[rioreeve]

People say hope dies last but sometimes clinging onto it does more harm, so Zach chose to remain as neutral as possible. Open for whatever would come. He found comfort in doing something, taking action instead of just watching what would happen next. They all had sad memories that taught them bitter but useful lessons so they could remember them and use them wisely instead of thinking about what would hit next, and how hard that punch would be. There was little time for thinking about that right now anyway, it wasn't the right time or place for that.

Everything around them looked the same, only containers and barricades that once protected people from the infected, so when Zach noticed Ashton use chalk to leave some markings, he appreciated the thoughtfulness behind it even more. The more they minimized the risks, the better. The ship was where it had been towed exactly three weeks before, and it didn't escape his attention that the vessel's name turned out quite ironic. Blue Miracle was written on the starboard in Hangul, the English version repeated just below, and he couldn't help but think that, so far, it had little in common with miracles.

Both men took cover to avoid being spotted by the creatures and he wasn't surprised to learn that Ash chose to eliminate them before moving forward. It made more sense to do that first and when his companion's non-verbal message was conveyed successfully, Zach offered a single yet confident nod to confirm that he understood what the plan was. In this case, he switched weapons, picking a knife instead, and once armed properly, threw the rock, aiming at one of the containers so it made more noise. Curiously peeking in that direction, wondering what meal could be hiding there, the trio started walking in the direction the sound came from, and that was a good moment for Zach and Ash to attack. On Ashton's sign, they picked their targets and moved swiftly towards them, letting the third chomper wait for its turn while they took care of the other two.

Their experience differed much, obviously; one of them was trained for combat, every move planned before his opponent could think what theirs would be, which resulted in swift, calculated actions, the other counted on his good body awareness and something as silly as hours of fighting pixel enemies in a virtual world. Somehow, this combo worked well for them. Zach took a run-up to gain momentum and threw himself onto the creature's back, pushing it onto the ground. He aimed at the nape of its neck, and the blade went straight into the flesh before the zombie could turn around and see why its lunch was being so aggressive. Just for good measure and perhaps to take out his anger on the poor chomper, Zach took its head and slammed it against the concrete as the creature let out a loud, fading groan, then pushed the knife even further into its neck before pulling it out. This kill felt personal.

He turned around to see if Ash was okay and where their number three went; it couldn't make up its mind on who to go after, it seemed, then chose the one who killed his zombie first. Luckily, Ashton managed to kick the dead guy's legs and knock him down before he attacked, but Zach noticed that the two were now way too close to the ledge, and falling into the cold water would be a horrible scenario... Which gave him an idea. He jumped back onto his feet and rushed back to his friend to help him. Without much thinking, he took the zombie by its shoulders and pushed it off the ledge, straight into the ocean, stopping on his knees and grabbing onto the edge tight at the last second before losing his balance. He needed a moment to catch his breath and regain composure when he realized how close he just was to sharing that guy's fate, then stood up and turned to Ash.

"Everything okay?"

Ashton knows a simple sorry didn't fix anything. More often than not even, it harms more than it helps. The finality of the apology signals giving up hope, leaving no room for denial. He remembered apologizing to every team member's family, every one of them reacting differently. But it felt like he needed to. Zach however had more or less come to terms already with this, perhaps pre mourning for the loss. Ashton didn't have that much strength yet to reach there for his own family, though circumstances are very different. But a simple promise to wake up and keep trying was enough to return a woeful smile. Realism setting in for them both, yet an optimism sat simmering underneath, depending on what they might encounter today.

Zach had the right idea with the sentiment at least, Ashton nodded back, always prepare for the worst, and whatever hop they had can slot in somewhere in their feelings. At this point his senses were heightened, on extremely high alert, and his head sharply turned at the notice of his name being called, nodding and following Zach's direction. The directions were a little more complicated than he thought it would be to reach the ship even though they could see it from a distance, the barricades and shipment containers made it harder to waltz into it. As they navigated their way in, Ashton left markings to note their route, white chalk marked on the floors or containers to retrace their steps if they ever needed to run without thinking. He had to keep their plan B and Cs in mind, prepare for the worst right?

He could hear the groans before Ash even saw them when Zach pointed them out. On the open streets the easiest way was to distract and move on, but in a restricted area like this with only one way forward, and one way out. Ashton followed suit to find cover as he observed their options. This was going to be their only way in and out, it was best to migrate any risk right now while they had the upper hand. Ashton pressed a finger to his lips, as if the start of a silent communication, agreeing with Zach's direction of distraction as two finger waved towards the opposite metal container for Zach's target. And then continued with a swift gesture of a thumb across his neck. Eliminate them while they still can. They needed this route to be safe to leave and he rather they do it now while they still have control of the situation than later when things might've gotten ugly. Neither do they want these three following them into the ship, and potentially barricading themselves into an unknown space.

Ashton waited behind cover for Zach to throw the rock across, hitting the metal with a light clack. The three stooges immediately snapped his heads towards the sound and shuffled their way through. The moment they moved across and struggled with distanced between each other, Ash gave Zach a definitive nod, one each and then just one more, before he rushed in silently, knocking one off its feet before grappling it into a locked hold and immediately jamming his knife through its eye, straight for the targeted kill. It was swift but taking out the other two before they notice was paramount right now. Ashton took a second to make sure Zach was okay as he pulled his knife, ready for the last target now turning its attention onto the men.

[rioreeve]

Zach nodded to confirm that was the gun he was talking about, and when Ash offered him a little gift, he smiled. "Thanks. Now I'm good," he said, putting it in his jacket's pocket, for quick and easy access. He was aware they should avoid shooting at all costs; stay as quiet as possible unless making more noise was absolutely necessary. Relying on a weapon as quiet as his knife was something Zach preferred in this scenario, despite the close distance it required. The best option, however, was not letting the infected spot them at all – there would be many many more waiting for them out in the streets than what they had faced a few days earlier. "Sure. Let's not get caught," he summed it up with a wink, but all the things they had discussed were like a mantra in his head, playing on a loop to make sure he remembered their plan. One stupid mistake could cost a life out there.

Oh, if only the streets remained so empty. What a wonderful gift it would be! Unfortunately, such wishful thinking could get them killed and Zach got rid of it before the thought even set in his mind. "They know where survivors are, and they probably manage to get inside buildings from time to time, and camp there," he replied. Not all survivors were lucky enough to properly board up the entrances to their hiding spots, and the infected people's heightened senses made it easier for them to take advantage of those mistakes. Horrible as it sounded, if a bigger hideout had been discovered and broken into by the horde, they would stay there until they ran out of food again. Staying as quiet as possible was important now and this topic definitely made it easier for Zach and Ash to do so – neither of them seemed eager to discuss why the zombies were headed in a different direction, for they both knew what possibilities were on the table.

The men walked in silence, successfully avoiding smaller and larger groups of the infected, clutching their weapons when they spotted something but praying they wouldn't have to use it. When they reached NYU and Ashton's campus, and he slowed down, Zach automatically followed suit. He could see the hesitation, a flicker of hope, especially when he told him it was his campus. The last thing they needed now was to get sentimental and let the emotions take the lead, but he thought it wouldn't be such a senseless side quest. First of all, there could be survivors trapped inside, scientists and people smarter than an average person, worth saving for this reason alone if someone didn't feel empathetic enough to find a different one. There could also be some useful resources inside, things worth taking with them. Finally, Zach thought that stopping there could, at the very least, boost morale; maybe it would make Ash feel better if they peeked inside, especially since a separate/second trip would be far more dangerous. "Anything worth checking?" He asked quietly, studying their surroundings. It was quiet, the question was – was it a good sign, or a bad one?

"9mm pistol?" Ashton asked for confirmation, seeing the gun Zach had on hand. He reached for the side pocket from his bag, pulling out the box and handed Zach at least a clip's worth with a small smile, "better to be prepared, just in case." Pretty sure they could scavenge and find more next time, for now what matters is that they both feel 100% ready. "Just remember though," a grave reminder for them both, Ashton noted in a murmur, "..if we fire, that's it, they will come for us. Aiming for their legs slows them down, can't chase you without them." In a high enemy volume situation, evasion was their only option, no point trying to land a head shot if there's twenty of them coming at you. They already discussed this in length but like before a mission it felt important to lay it all out again, "if shit hits the fan, we retreat, there'll always be tomorrow." As long as they made sure they were still here tomorrow. Ashton took a second to inhale deeply and exhale a long breath before he looked back to Zach, "I'm good too."

The thought of thanksgiving was a mixed feeling for Ashton, it was a nice gesture, perhaps for morale as Rosie would sometimes say. But also it weighed heavily that most residents would've probably been halfway home to family at this point, including himself. "They have that talent to do that for people," hopefully they make it back in time, hopefully they make it back, period. Ash stepped outside, closing the door shut, no turning back now. He kept his guns aside for now, one hand holding into a combat knife, and another free for emergencies. "Should be clear for awhile if we go fast, I thought it was strange that they were heading North.. maybe ran out of things to eat." A dark thought, that the South of Manhattan could be completely empty for the zombies to devour anything else anymore. Ashton gestured with his head, nodding towards the direction they should head, silence was their best friend for the rest of the day.

They kept at it, trekking through the streets, taking detours when the main street were overran, distracting with sounds before they moved forward, taking it street, by street, avenue by avenue. An hour in, they made it through halfway south to the harbor, it was easily recognizable in his mental map by the familiar campuses of NYU came into view. It was quiet on the streets, but who knows... what may be going on inside. Ashton for the first time since they left slowed down his pace, gaze flashed with concern when he scanned the windows of the familiar campus building. What was he even looking for? Signs of life, signs of hope, maybe. "..that's my campus," almost just a soft, inaudible whisper.

[rioreeve]

Zach appreciated the joke, it was nice to hear one despite what he'd already learned about them. Could there be anything worse than an introvert trying to be a bridge between two people, just so they didn't get killed? No, they were smarter than that. The virus taught most people what humble meant, so there was no reason why he shouldn't trust them. Besides, he remembered what Ria told him before he and Ash left, how she told him to be careful despite the pain, and how it made him think of a damn video game reference, where the main character's friend called him Loco. But maybe that was just Zach being Zach, finding a geeky bit in everything. Damn, this man holding onto his faith and lack thereof at the same time.

It hurt to hear about the incident and the bodies when he pushed one right into the incinerator himself, but he didn't let it show. "We can't let such a thing happen again," he said, and much as he meant that, he didn't care all at the same time. There was nothing worse than losing someone you loved before you actually had one. He would do everything to keep the rest of the residents safe, but he couldn't ignore that selfish part of him that screamed that it didn't matter anymore. It wasn't a death wish, it was a hopeless, heartbroken part of him, and it cracked and sizzled when Ash mentioned the bodies, and Sada said she was surprised someone survived. "It's under control now," he said with confidence.

"Good. We need everyone who's not scared and willing to go outside or help others get their shit together." Zach looked around, making sure no zombies were waiting for them, but maybe they just hated snow. Even better. "Nothing you wouldn't know about a fucking flu or anything else. It's unpredictable, and even when you look all good and healthy, you can be infected, and that's how the virus made it here. Someone on the ship lied they felt good. We're hoping there's more info, but we can't be sure," he replied, summing it up and keeping it vague at once. Sada was coming back, and she didn't mind the drama, so he'd want to talk to her when they finally came back. Learn more about how she survived.

He looked at Ash to check on him, knowing he was counting for a miracle and wanted Sada to say she wouldn't be coming back. Unlikely, but the thought amused him. The snow was so annoying when Zach still had a side quest planned. "Am I missing something?"

@ashton-ryder

Sada raised her gun at them, or more likely in between them, Ashton didn't flinch at the movement, more than used to having a gun pointed in his direction, knowing at the very least she wouldn't be here to kill them; she'd get bored if they were dead. And in that case that could only mean one thing. Ashton paused, unwillingly cooperating with Sada in this particular scenario because any sudden moves and the bullet could easily stray into them. Ashton gripped his knife, trying to listen out for their footsteps or groans or any signs of them nearing. But surprisingly it was way too quiet. The moment the shot was fired Ashton swiveled around with his knife, ready to continue the assault if that single bullet didn't do the trick. But of course it did.

"Huh. Interesting," he commented putting down his knife, to stare at the fallen undead. "It was quieter than the rest," it was a mutter to himself, a reminder to look into that and see what's up. Most of the time they make a noise when moving, but this one was quiet. Further examinations required. "Thanks." Though Ashton wasn't particularly fond of Sada, he still had his manners. But he narrowed his gaze at her for her snarky words. It didn't warrant a reply as he wiped his shoulder, wincing at the touch almost forgetting the blunt force injury it sustained. To count on Zach to try and lighten the mood just a little bit at least, he exhaled a chuckle at his comment, "you don't know, could be a little bit of cerebellum."

They made their way out without another word, Ashton didn't really care if Sada had intended to follow them or not. Zach brings up the situation at Wexley the moment they were back out on the main road, much safer, quieter, more places to escape through. Ash simply shrugged, letting Zach continue his explanation and catch up of what had happened the last month. "The infected had been eliminated, bodies cremated. It's still safe right now but, can't ever be too careful," Ashton begrudgingly added. Honestly he thought that them bringing back Vince could be the worse of the new survivors they bring in but perhaps he stood corrected. Ashton didn't add anything more from Zach, still debating if telling Sada anything about what they found was a good idea. Who's to say she wouldn't take it all from them, leave and make money off of it? Ashton didn't like to be this wary but he had to, at least at this point before he could be sure. So instead, he simply ended with a simply easy sentence, picking up their pace, "basically the Wexley is still safe right now, whether you wanna come back, that's up to you."

@sadavang

[rioreeve]

Hearing his laughter, Zach looked over at Ashton and grinned, knowing exactly what he was thinking and where this was coming from. They were alive and not coming back empty-handed. Sure, this one was close but they still made it out without any new injuries. "Yeah, Don't Dead, Open Inside," he replied with a light chuckle, referring to a joke about the two-wing door with a famous warning on it, and pushed himself off the barrel he was leaning against, so Ash could write on it. Both men were back in a better mood, it seemed, but only for a moment; Zach turned on his heel at the hiss and raised a brow. Was Ash okay, especially now, that the adrenaline had worn off? "Oh. Alright," he said, accepting Ashton's explanation with a nod; even though he didn't add anything and left that statement simple like that, his smile and slightly concerned look made it clear that Zach was treating the whole old injury thing seriously, and Ash could count on him.

Their bags were heavier, and they didn't have as much energy as they had on their way here, but they started getting ready to head back to The Wexley without hesitation. It felt like they had overstayed their welcome already, so there was no need to push their luck any further. Having made sure everything was okay and their weapons were accessible, Zach only needed a sip of water before they left. No sign of the infected – maybe they'd make it out of the docks without any surprises.

They picked the same route they used before, hoping that now that they had taken care of the three zombies, it would be quiet this time. And, at first, nothing unusual was happening; they simply had to follow the chalk markings... But then happened something neither of them expected.

A living person! A Wexley resident!

Arching a brow at their short exchange, Zach could sense how these two adored each other, and he already knew that the trip back would probably be wonderful. Well, as long as that wasn't something that stopped them from choosing common sense over personal animosities, he didn't care. They shouldn't stay in one place for too long, but there was no immediate danger for now, so Zach just glanced around, then focused on a narrow passage between the containers on his left. "Choosing between being loud and getting a bloody blowjob from a zombie, I'll choose the former. We had no choice. Better us than someone you'd have to babysit if they found you, don't you think," he replied flatly and looked at Sada, then back at Ash, trying to remind them that meeting each other wasn't the end of the world. Despite the tone of his voice, he was happy to see a survivor, even someone they barely knew or wished they didn't know at all, depending on who you asked.

@ashton-ryder

Adrenaline was rushing through as Ashton tried to keep the horde as far away from the men as he could, following Zach's lead out of the ship while shooting down any that got too close. He turned and bolted the moment Zach was outside, slamming the door once he himself slipped through. Ash pushed his weight against the door, awaiting the impact of the group rushing against it, but he looked to Zach, both of them know they had to barricade this one way or another. Bringing this out into the open was going to get even more dicey for them. "Got it," he nodded as he slid his rifle through the handle for now, a temporary solution as Zach came over with the first barrel pushed closer to them.

Once it seemed feasible enough to leave the door and quickly help Zach, Ashton ran over to push the barrels one by one, pulling his rifle out of the handles once the weight of the barrels seem to hold back the bangings on the door. And then as quickly as it happened, it was over. Despite still hearing them behind the door groaning and clawing desperately, the door was holding, and both the men were safe, and unbitten. Ashton leaned an arm against the barrel barricade as he caught his breath for a second of two before looking up to Zach, letting out a laugh of disbelief. They made it through, but also they should've been more careful, perhaps the lab had distracted them too much, having found some kind of answers. What mattered now was they both made it out alive with the goods safely in tow.

"Ha, think we should go all Walking Dead or something here?" Ashton joked, fishing out the chalk he had to try and signal something on the barrel. What was that famous saying again from that? Do Not Open, Dead Inside. The pain and numbness that had been initially overridden by the adrenaline to survive, but now that that was wearing off he could feel it in his shoulder again. Ashton tried to roll it out but he knew the old injury pain was back as he hissed at the feeling, "fuck." Whatever, he still had one good hand to work with for now until he gets it fixed, and he can make it work. Plus, seeing Tobias was the one to fix it in the first place four years ago, seemed apt for a follow up. "I'll be fine, old injury, just got hit in the worst places," he reassured Zach as he composed himself and started reloading his pistol, taking a look around their surroundings making sure no more were attracted by their scuffle. Good thing they took out the three earlier or this could've ended really badly getting flanked form both sides.

He sighed softly, squeezing the palm of his left hand at least to get some feeling back, probably hitting a nerve earlier, "we should go, get out as fast as we can, make sure we're in the clear from hordes before we enter the Wexley." Back to business, their mission was not over until they made it back with everything they had. Ashton had begun following their chalked markings to find their way back out, but a sudden movement and sound had him raising his pistol swiftly towards the source, ready to force himself back into combat mode. It took a second or two before he lowered his gun, a face of confusion (and discontentment maybe?) at the familiar face that greeted them. "..Sada?"

@sadavang

[rioreeve]

His eyes moved from Sada to Ash and back until he was sure there wouldn't be more drama between these two. The tension they could work with, and these two would be more than welcome to avoid each other once they were back in The Wexley. He had to admit that Sada's expression reminded him of what he saw on Skyler's face - one feeling so bored with the apocalyptic Groundhog Day they were almost happy to break the routine, even if with something (or someone) they weren't particularly fond or.

Zach was ready to say "Good" and get the hell out of there when Sada's voice stopped him. He froze and the grip on his knife tightened as he watched her draw her gun and aim at something behind him and Ash. Everything couldn't have lasted more than a few seconds, but it felt like a long wait. A single shot and a thud later it was over. His muscles relaxed again and Zach straightened up as he inhaled, only now realizing that he had been holding his breath to be extra still and quiet.

When Sada passed them, he looked at Ash and nodded in appreciation as if he wanted to say 'nice shot', just to tease his friend a bit. An apologetic smile followed immediately to let Ash know he wasn't enjoying his suffering that much, and he reached out to help him get rid of the piece of a zombie on his shoulder before they started walking again. Pretending he knew exactly what the mushy substance was, he said, "Ah, a bit of hippocampus, indeed," as he flicked it away.

With all the chalk markings, the maze of containers and barricades wasn't that bad, and they soon left the dock behind, forgetting about the locked-up zombies and whatever else they'd left back on the ship. As always, Zach didn't mind the silence when there wasn't anything worth saying to be shared with the others, especially now when they didn't want to attract the infected. The less commentary, the better. However, Sada wasn't familiar with the situation in the building, so once it was safe to talk again, he turned to the other two and spoke to Sada, "Should we indulge you about the situation in the Wexley, so you can make a conscious decision whether you wanna go back or not?" A wink. "We'll have to quarantine when we're back; the virus made it into the building, so it's a sensitive topic. And they started rationing the meals. On a brighter note, our little walk to the ship wasn't fruitless." Pun not intended.

@ashton-ryder

Ashton was surprised Zach didn't question more but perhaps there was just a level of trust between them, enough to know that if either of them really was not okay, they trusted each other enough to say it like it is. They savored that moment of victory for a second, and then it was off again, hoping the journey back would be as smooth as journey here. But of course, nothing was ever that simple.

The addition of a familiar yet not exactly welcomed face put a wrench in those plans and did put a slightly sour look on Ashton. Not that he wasn't happy to see another survivor still alive, just that specifically Sada's makes him feel like his days were gonna be a little worse if she follows them back to the Wexley. He kept his silence as they spoke, letting her words bounce off him while Zach replied about their loudness, because in all honesty the sentiment was the same. He observed her current state, still wary of her presence; gun to her side, fairly well kept even after a month of this shit storm, she had to be doing pretty well herself. When Sada wasn't part of the residence left in the building, it was just a forgotten thought from there on. He kept his gun aside, knowing the first thing when he got back was to push for the silencers from Mauve. Obviously he could try to find his own outside but perhaps the easiest thing was to play Mauve's game for those silencers.

Ashton met Zach's gaze, kind of getting what he's implying with that look. He inaudibly sighed, fine, pulling out his knife to hold onto his right hand, with the one good arm to work with, "we're heading back to the Wexley." That was all he said, it wasn't an invitation or suggestion or whatever, just stating the matter of fact, whatever she plans to do with that fact is up to her and held little care to himself. Ashton nodded to Zach, pretty much wanting to keep moving despite the minor hold up here, the less time they spent here the better to avoid any hordes finding their way to the source of the earlier commotion.

@sadavang