Ryan nodded, glad they didn't shoot him right then and there for not revealing his knife earlier. He nodded to Carter as he said how he had expected it. He glanced to Clover holding her gun as Carter brought up his lack of a gun, "I had one, with a couple rounds, but it attracted a lot of attention, and whenever someone found out I had one, they instantly thought I was a bandit, so I decided on not keeping it with me. Ammo's not exactly easy to come by when everyone and their brother has a gun and wants ammo." He watched Carter walk towards the car to search it for any left-over supplies. He saw Clover begin to move, and remembering her throwing his other things at him, he held up his hand instinctively, catching the crowbar. "Thanks."

Ryan walked towards the wreck, looking for cars that hadn't already been looted. No broken window, closed door, dust... Those should show that they've not been looted... He glanced in a window, looking for anything he could find, but getting the same results as Carter was getting. "I'd be willing to stick with you guys for a bit, I don't exactly have anywhere in particular I want to go, but staying on the move is a good idea." He glanced to Carter, "You never answered my question... Are you her father, or are you two just sticking together?" He had given up on asking Clover any questions, as she obviously wasn't willing to talk to him yet. Response or not, the two searched through the wreckage, eventually continuing on their way. (Was asked to partially puppet Carter, tried to do so as little as possible)

Shawn

"Out of the question kid simple as that."

Shawn looked at the man with pleading eye's, he was just denied the chance at finding the bandits who murdered the only two people he cared about in his life. Shawn did not know what to think now, this man had stayed here an comforted him for the last ten minutes and yet he could so simply deny his request to kill those bandits who killed his dad and his uncle! Shawn could feel his anger growing at the man, it wasn't fair, none of this was fair! Shawn bent down and picked the Colt up off the ground and began to raise it but was shocked when Nero turned on him and grabbed his wrist hard enough it cracked painfully. With one simple move Shawns arm was twisted sideways, screaming in pain he dropped the gun as it fell back to the cold snowy ground, the man then kicked the gun away so Shawn could not try to obtain it again. Feeling the grip release Shawn quickly backed away and tripped over his own feet falling to the ground backwards. The man looked at him, his eye's were almost scary now as he glared at him, feeling the tears run down his face again Shawn screamed at the man:

"If your that strong then why won't you help me! Those men deserve to die not to live! Not after what they did!"

The man stared at Shawn with icy cool eye's, Shawn quickly looked away not wanting to look into those eye's anymore, this man had changed almost instantly into someone who was now frightening.

"Do you truly believe its that easy kid? Do you really think that you would be any kind of avenger for your Father and your uncle, you would die long before you ever achieved that dream. Do you even know what its like to point a gun at a man and shoot him? Do you know what its even like to watch a persons life slip away as their eye's turn into a milky glaze, as they take their last breath? I can see by just looking at you that you have no chance even with my help to kill these men who took their lives, and your anger will change nothing, weakness can not be hidden or can you make it goes away with a gun."[b]

Shawn felt hurt by the words, hurt that he knew it was the truth about him. He didn't know what it was like to kill anyone not even what they call Walkers. When they had come to the park it was with the intention that Shawn would not have to face what the world had become. He truly did not know how bad the world had become, he had never even truly seen a Walker up close, or did he know how to kill one if he had to. He was weak and that was something not even he could deny, closing his eye's he sniffled feeling the mixed emotions inside him. He wanted so bad for their deaths to mean something, but he would have rather died with them then run and lose them both out of his life. With tears streaming down his face Shawn spoke again:

[b]"Its not fair, its just not fair..."

"Nothing is fair kid, none of this hell is fair, and most of all its not fair that a kid should have to suffer so much in the world. But the thing is you have to understand that you will never find closure if you run off half cocked with anger, you will only die and their sacrifice would have been for nothing. This world is no longer the one in which you lived your life kid, now its nothing more then dangers both human and the dead alike, its bloody out there, outside of this park. Those men would think nothing of killing you, age doesn't matter anymore, its survival of the fittest, and that is the mentality you will have adjust to."

Nero

Nero did not like being as crucial as he was being, in fact he knew his words were stinging this kid and it was hurting him even more. But this kid had a tough road ahead of him now, he did not know what the world had become, for this whole year he stayed within the borders of these lands while his father and uncle did all the work. Nero knew the mentality, they wanted to keep him safe, but they never gave any thought to the fact that one day they might die, and then this kid would be all on his own. Nero was critical but this boy had to understand this wasn't a day at the beach with calm ocean and nice warm breeze, it was a cold an bitter ice box and if you weren't careful you would die just as easily as you would live. Nero turned his back on the kid, he was angry and he was weak but he would not try that stunt with the gun again, that he was certain at least in the long run.

"I wish none of this had happened, I wish that this all would just go away and things would go back to the way they were..."

Nero heard the young boy began to cry again but more quietly now, sighing Nero lost the critical look in his eye's as he turned and walked back over to the boy, kneeling down he put his hand on his chin and lifted his head to look him in the eye.

"So do all who live to see such times kid but that is not for them to decide. What is left for us to decide is what we do with the time we are given. Remember this well kid, they gave up their lives because you were more important to them then their own lives, you can die and make it for nothing, or you can take that gift and make their sacrifice worth it.

Nero slowly removed his hand from the kids chin and turned from him, simple words would not erase the pain he was feeling or make him understand the future he now had to come to terms with. There are some battles you just can't fight, battle that those individuals alone have to face if they are ever going to become strong enough to overcome adversity. However for Nero it was time to see if this truck worked, if it did he would take it as far as it could go and then deal with anything else afterwards, however he only took another couple steps when the kid spoke again.

"Teach me then..."

Nero turned as he peered at the kid questioningly returning to face him he spoke:

"Teach you what?"

"Teach me how to survive to get stronger, I can't face this alone and if I do then I will die, your words harsh as they are make me see that. You have been out there, i can see it because of the way you have not even a shred of fear. Teach me."

Nero had not expected that from this kid, guess he sort of over looked that fact that this might happen if he pressed harder then he should. Nero looked at the kid and didn't truly know if this was a good idea even in the least. He would not make it far as he was, and Nero had a tough road ahead traveling into the heart of Washington. An if it was like the other big cities it would be crawling with Walkers, and this kid would be nothing more then a liability to him. Then again if Nero could toughen him up, he could in fact turn out to be an ally as well as someone to travel with. Nero did not like the idea either way, one mistake in Washington and he could wind up dead with this kid. Nero sighed as he looked at the sky for a short time before drawing his attention back to the kid.

"Whats your name?"

"Shawn.. Shawn Brighton..."

"Well Shawn my name is Nero we need to move, iv spent to much time here as it is, let me see if I can get this truck started."

Nero still thought it was a bad idea, but no one deserved to be alone in this hell hole, and maybe just maybe he could do something good before he finally meant his end. He did not fool himself into believing he could live forever, but in some ways even death scared him.

Chris hesitated once more. This seemed too easy, how could someone be this open, and friendly. And why the hell did this guys name sound familiar...? He shrugged it off and looked at Claire, who was already standing up to go check and see if the guy was telling the truth. He started to twist the door but closed it again. There were four shots fired...If there was a deer then that would explain one of them...but the other three would've been wasted. Biters perhaps? Strong possibility, or could it have been people trying to steal the deer. Chris shook his head. He always thought things through, but at some point he always began to over think things, and he was probably getting to that point again.

Claire came back into the room and nodded and went to pick up her pack. Chris exhaled and slowly opened the door and slowly stepped out. He was sure that he would be shot but he couldn't just make it a stand off. His hand was still on the revolver but it was in the holster. Of course it was too late if the man was going to shoot him, but if that were the case before he died he hoped he could wound the man for Claire.

Claire just walked silently to the door holding her knife waiting to try and attack if she heard anything. She hated when these things happened. People couldn't meet without a stand off anymore. She smirked slightly as she remembered the start of her Freshman year...the year everything went wrong in the world, but right now she thought of the first day. She was so worried about making friends, but here she was with her brother holding her breath slightly hoping her brother wasn't shot, and this was the normal! She missed highschool, she would've been a softmore by now...or would she be a junior? She wasn't sure anymore. Travelling through different states with different weather patterns she didn't even know what month it was anymore.

It didn't matter though. She was alive and with her brother still. Just like Raymond had always taught them. Heck, they were even being invited to dinner! She'd only been on a few dates in highschool, and most guys had wanted to skip dinner, so this was an improvement!...

After around fifteen minutes of doing nothing but silently hiding in the bushes and observing the small camp James was reasonably sure that there was only three of the bandits. Unfortunately all three of them seemed to be armed and so taking them all on in the currant circumstances was little more than suicide for James. Both men in the camp were armed with what looked like AK-47's, but of which variant they both were was anyone’s guess. The woman was armed too, it was a simple handgun, but it could kill him just as easy as the rifles could.

Almost unbelievably James caught something in the corner of his eye. Or rather he caught someone. Off to the right off him about thirty feet away a man was crawling back up the slight hill he had probably crept down from. He had seemingly been doing the same thing James himself had been doing for the past while; scouting the bandit camp. If this was true than he probably wanted them gone as well, or at least wanted the supplies they were holding onto. James couldn't pass up the opportunity, he had to at least try get the guy to help him take out the bandits. He wouldn't forgive himself if he let the chance pass by. He would probably have to travel all the way back to town to resupply, and who's to say that the thieves would even still be there when he returned. More and more he believed that the man creeping away could be his only chance for pay back.

He crept after the man as quietly as he could, getting all the way down on his stomach when he stopped and began talking to another person. After a few seconds James made her out to be a woman and from what he heard of the conversation the man was planning on taking the bandits out. Now it was a certainty, James had to step up. Quietly as he could he got to his feet, holding his rifle with one hand by the front stock so he didn't appear quite as threatening.

“I can help you.” He spoke quietly, hoping that the man didn't spin around and put a bullet in his chest on instinct alone.

((Tried making this better than all other three))
The sky was dark and the city was filled with grey daemons from friggin' outer space. It was two hours since the incident at the supermarket. The jackass only scratched Karlis in the left cheek, so it was nothing to worry about.
The plan was to head into The Mountaineers Tree on Five Mile Drive, Tacoma. Get some rest where shouldn't worry about neither lurkers, neither bandits. He stopped on the road near the "more or less" frozen lake. He was getting sleepy, one of the things he knew was that being not thinking straight could end fatally. He decided to eat some dinner (canned tuna and the half empty water bottle) and then go to sleep.
He got up late at 10:45 a.m. and was greeted by a biter knocking on the driver's window. Karlis looked around if there were any other lurkers around. None, very good. He opened the window low enough to be able to stab the walker through the eye. Karlis took out one of the kitchen knives and stabbed the biter through the eye. As lurkers weight shifted onto it, it broke in half. Resulting in Karlis screaming:

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEISE SHITS MADE OF?!?!?!"

It was however justified, as these knives proved to be very inefficient. However he still heard the echo only six seconds later. Yup, the sound had alerted everything in 1KM radius (He was really loud).
He decided to head back into the city, but for some reason took the long way back (Probably to enjoy the view). As he drove however, he noticed an crashed HumVee.


Out of curiosity, he decided to check it for weapons or supplies. He gripped the PT92 in case if there would be biters inside. There was only the rotten driver, Army Ranger dead with a shot in the head, probably mercy shot. He had holstered a Beretta M9 and there was an FN SCAR-H near his feet. When he looted the body he only found a pack of cigarettes, 4x M9 magazines, 6x FN 5.68x52mm NATO 20rnd. magazines. As he looked in the back seats he noticed an M4 SOPMOD II, but did not find any STANAG magazines for it. He threw the rifles in the backseat of the mustang. He continued driving to Tacoma as walkers started walking out of the woods.
((Summary:
1 walker killed
Clothing: Worn brown biker jacket, navy military styled V-neck sweater, khaki 5.11 cargo pants, black Timberland hiking boots, 5.11 tactical sling pack (w.a. pistol pouch).
Equipment:
Leather jacket: A pack of Marlboro cigarettes.
Pants: Pocket multi-tool, compass, waterproof pocket LED flashlight, disposable lighter, laser pointer.
5.11 Sling pack gun pouch: FN Five-seveN USG, 20rnd. Five-seveN magazine (2x).
5.11 Sling pack outside: 500ml. water bottle (Full).
5.11 Sling pack front row: (empty).
5.11 Sling pack second row: 50rnd. box of FNH 5.7x28mm SR (2x), Duct tape, kitchen knives (x2), Canned Tuna (4x), Canned Beef (7x), Canned beans (3x).
5.11 Sling pack third row: 500ml. Water bottles (5x).
Weapons: FN Five-seveN USG (16 rnds.), Beretta M9.
2007 Ford Shelby Mustang SVT:
Back seat: FN SCAR-H, M4 SOPMOD Block II, Taurus PT92 (16 rnds.), 20rnd. FN 5.68x52mm NATO 20rnd. magazine (6x), M9 magazine (2x).))

The boy came outside, to Jack's relief, however he noted that he was still quite tense and had a hand at his side. For a moment Jack wasn't sure why, but then he looked down at his own hands and realized he was still holding his own Remington closely. Keeping his eyes on the buy and his demeanor as friendly as possible, he set the shotgun down on the small outdoor picnic table to his side. He then slowly pulled out his pistol and emptied the contents of the chamber, five bullets (three missing from his encounter with the walker), onto the table, before replacing his revolver in the holster.

From there, he turned his attentions back fully to the kid. He looked about the age Jack had guessed - eighteen, maybe nineteen - and seemed to be in fairly good health. After a year of the world they lived in, the congressman also assumed that he was fairly adept with his own gun, and Jack was putting himself at quite a risk disarming himself.
"Glad this didn't end in some kind of firefight. I'll get that fire going, just need to get my lighter," he gestured over to the small woodpile he had collected when he arrived. "Feel free to start putting some of that in the fire-pit if you're up to it." With that, he started inside to grab his things, which had been under the sink as he told the kid. However he was nearly to the door when he saw a figure just inside the cabin. Though it was dark inside, he could see that the other individual was female, a bit younger than the boy. They had a bit of a resemblance, from what Jack could tell. He made a ninety degree turn, to see and speak to both of them.
"You don't have to be on edge - I've seen enough people die in my lifetime. I don't want to add to that number unless I absolutely have to. What are your names?"

Claire let out a sigh of relief quietly when Chris wasn't shot. That had been her main concern. Then the man appeared and Claire just looked at the man in the doorway. Mid thirties perhaps? Taller than her by about 8 inches, which slightly bothered her, but it wasn't abnormal. The knife was still in her hand but she slowly opened her back pack and pulled out her leg strap holsters for her knives and slid her knife back into it. The whole time though she never took her eyes off the man. He seemed genuine, but still. She couldn't be sure...not anymore. The man from Ashford...She didn't even get his name. If you're going to kill someone then you should have the decency to learn their name...She thought it was proper since that person would probably help you from what you scavenge off of them, but you couldn't learn everyone's name...This was the only one she really wished that she knew though.

Claire started to put her leg holsters back on while Chris put a hand behind him and opened up his small back pouch and pulled out one of his zippo lighters and held it out to the man. "My name is Chris, and that's my sister Claire...We ran into some trouble in Ashford yesterday...She um...Well we didn't stay very long and it left it's mark on her, so she's a little on edge right now." Chris relaxed his hand on his gun but left it in the holster. This man was going out on a limb disarming like that, and it did help, but Chris was just too cautious. For him it wasn't a matter of what if this man attacked them, it was more of what if someone else attacked them while they were getting to know each other? Or the biters. It was just too much of a risk.

Carter stopped beside a silver minivan that had been sandwiched between two cars. All the windows were still intact although the driver side door had been left open. It seemed it's previous owner had decided to ditch the van in favor of travelling on foot instead of being trapped in a never ending grid lock. He might have fared better than the rest.

"No." Carter leaned inside the van and looked around. It was empty as well. "That girl has always had a hard outer shell. The things she's been through, seen.. She doesn't let anyone inside her world... not anymore at least." As Carter spoke, he began to limp over to the next vehicle, a small white two door car. The windows were missing, giving him a clear view of the plethora of trash and debris that had been left inside. There were wrappers for potato chips, smashed soda cans, empty bags from fast food restaurants. Whoever had ownership of this vehicle before hadn't been one for cleanliness and it showed. However, Carter knew that one man's trash could be another man's treasure. People with similar disorganized lifestyles had a habit of stashing important objects wherever as long as it was hidden. It was a stretch but he figured that there may be something of value inside and this far in the apocalypse, Carter was willing to take more chances than he once was.

Reaching into the car, Carter pulled the door open and took a closer look inside. All the upholstery had been covered in a thick layer of dust and just breathing near it disturbed the otherwise clean air. Within a minute there was a cloud of dirt and debris crowding around his nose threatening to force out a sneeze. He fought through the urge, his eyes darting to and fro as he looked around for anything worth taking until they caught a peculiar glint under the driver's seat. Reaching for the object revealed a glass bong, and although it wasn't something he necessarily needed at the moment, what was inside intrigued him. There at the bottom of the glass was a single bullet.

"We've been together for almost a year now and I still don't know much about her." He tilted bong until the bullet slide into his hand and held it up against the sun.

...9 millimeter...

"She's... a lot like this." Carter tossed the bullet to Ryan. "Without something to point her in the right direction, she's just as lost as you and me."

"Or maybe he's not as lost as we thought he is..." Clover cut in, her gun pointed at Ryan for the second time that day. "I thought you said you were alone... so explain to me why there just happens to be another person walking down this road right after you showed up..." Clover finished her sentence with the sound of the hammer being pulled into place.

Carter looked down the road to see a figure moving toward them in the distance a few hundred yards away. Both Clover and himself had been surviving long enough to know the difference between the gait of the dead and that of another survivor. All three were looking at the later.

Jack took the lighter and nodded a silent thanks, beginning to work as he listened - going inside to retrieve some bits of old dried out paper that had been left in the cupboard, gathering the wood inside the dusty and long-vacant fire-pit, and striking the flame on the paper to catch it. After he was done he returned, setting the lighter down next to them as a small fire crackled to life.
"Ashford? Small town, some twenty miles southwest of here? I was on my way down there, stopped here for a couple nights and had planned on going through there at some point..." He trailed off, seeing that whatever happened there seemed to upset Chris a bit. Deciding not to ask what had occurred just yet, Jack instead busied himself among the dead deer, making a large cut along the torso.

Before the outbreak he would have near passed out at the sight of what he was doing. Now, after killing men and monster alike and doing damn near anything to put food on the table at night, he had since discarded his squeamishness for a neutral, detached look of indifference toward the carcass. Cutting three generous slices out of the meat and setting them aside, he made a mental note to continue the job as soon as he finished dinner, and to salt the remaining meat for it to keep. There wasn't all too much left after those pieces, which he understood considering the size and condition of the deer. He figured he'd have to go hunting again before he left the campground to have enough food to get him back to civilization. Placing the venison steaks on a clean, flat rock on the inner rim of the fire, he returned to the two teenagers while the food cooked.
"I should probably warn you, I was attacked by a walker not too long after I shot that deer. The thing didn't get too near me, and it was pretty frail which probably means he was one of the only one around these parts. Still.. I'd keep my guard up if I were you," he suggested, before looking back at his weapons on the picnic table. "In fact, if you don't mind.." He went back over and placed the five stray bullets back into his revolver, before quickly tucking it back in his holster to show that he was of no danger to them.

Ryan noticed Carter seemed to find a car worth searching. He continued to search through the car he had been searching, nodding along with Carter's explanation. He glanced over as Carter tossed him the bullet, and caught it, looking at it. "Well, if she needs guidance... She should open up a bit so those guiding her don't have to fight to do so..." He was still looking at the bullet when Clover pointed the gun at him once again. He frowned slightly putting his hands up. "I don't know... Maybe they were following me? I've not talked to another human being for at least a month now, probably longer..." He looked past the cars to see the shape of the person walking through the road. He shook his head as he looked, "I don't think I know them at least..." He glanced to Clover "Aim your gun at them, if you need something deadly aimed at me, I'll hand Carter my knife, but right now, they're someone I'm not sure of either... If they were following me... They might be trying to kill me for some reason."

Claire had stayed silent, still not saying a word. She sat close to her brother just watching the man cautiously. Chris on the other hand was...slightly more relaxed. At the mention of Ashford though, Claire just looked at the fire. She knew that she hadn't done the wrong thing...so why did she feel so bad? Was it the possibility that that man could have been doing that for family. She would do anything in a heart beat to help Chris. And if that was the case what happened to that mans family? Would they just sit around and wait? Or finally realize he wasn't coming back? Claire shook her head a little as the man got up and watched him go towards the table with his guns on it. Her body tensed slightly a hand moving down slowly to one of her knives as she held her breath. When the man holstered the weapon though she relaxed and exhaled silently. Was she really on edge that badly? The true question though...Would this man stay with them and help them? It would be nice to have a new face around. Someone to help them, someone who seemed to handle himself well, but that would mean she would have to trust him...Chris and her had stolen from other groups so why should this man trust them though? Her mind just started to race rapidly as she began freaking out in her head then suddenly Chris spoke up.

"So Mr. Marino." Chris had always been formal. Even though there probably was no need for it in this world anymore, he still tried to be polite and despite everything, keep his morals. "How long have you been out here by yourself? I mean...Just surviving on your own can't be easy. I know I wouldn't have made it his far without Claire, of course we're still young...Are you ex-military?" Chris wanted to learn about this man. Who he was, what motivated him. And hopefully whether or not he was just a predator waiting to strike when it was easiest, instead of when he was at risk as well...

Niko sat there and chuckled, as he watched the priest scramble around hopelessly. Wheres your god now Niko thought. Niko wasn't much of a God man. He felt science proved more believable, science also made it easier to understand this whole delima.

The sight of zombies didnt really phase him anymore, he'd much rather be alone. He never longed for human reaction since this thing started. The thought of all the people he knew and cared about being dead kinda made him happy. The fuckers deserved it, he thought. Now they see who is the strongest. Im the only survivor. Guess being on long hunting trips made it easier to cope with loneliness.

Nico finished the can of pea's and threw the spoon in his back pack. Nico rolled down the window and threw the can at the preist. He watched as the thing tripped and scrambled towards the can. He threw the dodge truck into drive and proceeded down the road.

He put a metallica CD into the radio that he scavenged out of a music store. Niko softly sung along with the various tracks. Just cause he was in the apocalypse, doesnt mean he cant listen too his favorite band.

As he went further into the state he came upon two men and a girl (Carter, Ryan, and Clover). He parked his truck and noticed Ryan, who was closest to him.

Niko saw them staring into the distance at some people coming this way, he grabbed his .22 rifle and flicked the safety off. He rolled down the window.

"Hop in the bed, you're safer not confronting him." He said in a firm voice.

"And who the fuck are you?!" Clover said turning her gun on Niko for a moment before pointing it back at Ryan. "Who the fuck is this Ryan? You two seem awfully friendly."

Although Carter hadn't said anything he didn't like the situation either. From their point of view and from nearly a year of experience, the situation they'd found themselves in were similar to ploys used by raiders to earn the trust of those they were hunting. Split their group into two, one acts as a threat while the other rides in as heroes. However, looking at Ryan's face told him different. He was confused just as much as they were.

"Clover..."

"No!" She clenched her teeth, her grip tightening around her pistol. "I'm having a bad case of déjà vu. Remember what happened last time we let a bunch of random strangers join us?" She turned to glare at Carter but whatever anger was building up inside her began to dissipate. It was always hard for her to stare at him the way she did to others. His calm demeanor was disarming and it was as if he knew her next move before she did.

"...You really going to shoot him?..."

She could almost hear him asking with his eyes. Although she hated to admit it, it was all he needed to do to get her to think straight. Still, she continue to hold the pistol pointed at Ryan although she was now visibly more relaxed.

"Look... I don't know who you are, but driving right up to us like that wasn't the smartest idea." As Carter spoke, his eyes kept darting back toward the road where'd they'd seen the other figure. From where he was standing he couldn't make it out anymore. Perhaps because whatever it was saw them thanks in part to the truck driving up and stopping right next to them.

...Fucking idiot...

He tried his best to keep his irritation from surfacing. He and Clover spent much of their time avoiding people, not because they didn't want company but because that company usually brought it's own set of problems. Raiders were simple. They had no problem lying, stealing and killing. Then there were people who meant no harm but would do so unintentionally. Maybe they had some underlying sickness they were reluctant to share only to end up burdening everyone else. And then there were idiots. It was always a surprise to him that despite the world being dead for a year, people like that still seemed to pop up... like annoying weeds he couldn't rid himself of. People who were oblivious to their surroundings, made more noise than necessary, still thought that life was a game. Looking at Niko again, he took in the features of a man who had more luck than he deserved and hoped he wasn't just another weed.

"You really expected us to just jump in your truck didn't you."

Clover was still trying to grasp their situation. She didn't understand why people just seemed to flock to them when they weren't looking for anyone.

Niko sighed, as he saw the figure in the distance disappear. The man was right, the approach was rather....idiotic. But Niko had to make sure his eyes were not deceiving him. Maybe it would be best if he just drove off.

"Well, not really no. I didnt even thing you guys were real. I was trying to look out for someone for once in my life, but I see where it gets me."

"But, I can tell you guys are somewhat hungry. Ive got food to spare. If you don't want it ill leave."

Ryan looked to the truck that randomly came down the road. Jeez... How many people are on this road? I thought people avoided these now, otherwise I wouldn't have come out here... He heard Clover ask him who he was before suddenly directing the question to Ryan, asking who the man was, and pointing out that the man seemed friendly towards him. "What is with you and assuming I'm the bad guy..." He glanced to Niko, who seemed to be blaring Metallica in his truck. This guy's just as bad as a bandit unless he helps us out of here... That truck and the music is going to attract a lot... Especially if he's been moving for a while...

Ryan's focus returned as Carter tried to calm Clover down. He listened to her outburst, thinking about her trust issues as she had an obvious internal struggle. As she relaxed a bit, he put his arms down, looking to Niko, "If you're really trying to help, think about how much danger you just put us all in..." He glanced to Clover before returning his eyes to the man "Especially me." He looked to Carter, holding his crowbar towards him as an offer to take his weapons. He was sure that the two would want his weapons again, and decided handing them over willingly would be much better proof that he had no idea what was going on.

Niko shut the radio off and took the keys out. He eyed Ryan who seemed to be their prisoner. Niko began to think. Why is it that everyone I try to help lashes out at me. Grant it, the approach wasnt the best but still.

"Im giving you guys two options, you come with me, rest your legs from walking, and better our chances of survival. Or I put this baby in drive and go on my own."

Niko eyed the girl, bot sure what her role was in the group, but he hopped it wasnt a bad one. He knew there were sick people in this world. Maybe its best if he just drove off.

It had been a long three days of walking, Not that Katrina actually had any idea of the day or time as such a thing seemed to the last thing on ones mind but ever since she got split up from the last group she had been constantly on the move avoiding big cities and sticking to smaller roads. This meant the supplies were limited but she did get lucky from time to time, She had gone through a couple of cars as Syphoning fuel from abandoned vehicles has always left a evil after taste in her mouth she hated and the fact that some one already beat her to it.

The most recent car she drove was a 91' Ford Escort, A decent little runner but as luck would have it the dam thing ran out of fuel and Katrina simply had no fuel left or anything to syphon fuel with. To this she grabbed her things or whatever she had left and just walked down the side of the road and that was pretty much all she had been doing for days lost in her own little world, She didn't really eat because she didn't want to use the last few cans left up to soon but did have a swig of flavoured water from time to time and resisting the urge to drink it all because she was thirsty, God would she kill for a McDonald's and a large fizzy drink.

Katrina felt and probably look like crap after being in this hell for a year but hey no one was perfect but a hot bath would be nice to! It certainly was an enticing thought to say the least but being in her little lost world it was quite amazing how she was found and attacked by some one or walkers, So at least it was good to pick a quiet road but if she had to admit anything at all to herself it was the fact she was actually lost with no road map. But fate playing new game for Katrina today for unknown to her she was actually wondering to a bunch of crashed vehicles which had a group of people there but she was none the wiser coming in from a distance.

Well that was until she heard some sort of commotion going on over there which made her stop in her tracks and remain quiet as possible, Was she spotted or made out by anyone? If so where they bandits? Or friendlies? These ran through her head like it was the Indy 500 as she had to quickly think on her feet. But then things really got buggered when some jackass turned up in a truck playing metal music, Seriously where has the guy been this past year? On a luxury cruise! Either way it didn't matter it was no longer safe at all and Katrina took the distraction as a opportunity to move out of sight but instead of leaving her curiosity got the better of her and actually sneaked up behind a vehicle to quietly listen to the group talk and get some sort of visual.

3 men an a kid, with a gun! 'This day just gets better and better' She thought to herself. It appear the situation was tense and clearly was not a group that had been hanging around together, was it a trap? which group was setting up who? It was giving Katrina a headache and just wished that she just left but it had been so long since she had seen a living person. Unknown to all however the noise would no doubt be drawing attention or maybe they all knew and that was why the situation was tense in the first place, Suddenly Katrina felt something touch her foot which made her tense up before looking down. Not believing it there was an actual walker under the dam car, trapped by the way it was not really moving much further with only an arm and head reaching out in a vein attempt to get the young woman. For one it explained how this pile up probably happened and secondly it was so quiet it made sense ho no one noticed unless they came close enough for it to attempt a grab.

But it was enough to make Katrina jump out of her skin and practically falling out from her cover "Oh shit" she screamed falling on her ass, Her voice had a Latin tone to it from her Puerto Rican heritage. On instinct she grabbed the first weapon she could from it's sheath which was her hatchet knife and quickly shuffled over on her knees driving the weapon into the back of the skull of the trapped walker which made a rather disgusting sound on impact and followed up with another blow for good measure before removing the weapon.

It wasn't until this point when she stood back up from behind her car picking up her bag and placing it over her shoulder that she remember that there was an audience and a tense one at that. She immediately took a step back firmly gripping her hatchet she had drawn not that it would do any good against some one who is fully mobile with a gun or a bunch of them for that fact. putting herself into a bit of a defensive stance, Katrina was on edge and frightened, After all there was three fully grown men and if that was not enough a kid with a gun... As if that wasn't dangerous. "Stay back" was all she could come up with ass he shuffled a further a back by a few steps, she felt she was good as dead now after surviving for such a long time and just from a series of mistakes to.

Jack smirked at the thought of him potentially being ex-military. The past year his appearance had undergone quite a change - his hair had grown a bit longer, unkempt; his once clean-cut face now sported the stubble of a man usually too busy to cut it. His more formal black blazer and the other remnants of his old life were inside with his things. He found that a simple black t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans suited him fine. It almost seemed impossible that likely, two years ago exactly, he would have been in his office in Washington picking at a lukewarm Chipotle burrito, poring over some bill he was sponsoring. Now, as he flipped the venison over, revealing the browned underside, he wondered over how lucky he must have been to have survived all this time, while others, soldiers, survivalists, didn't.

"No, no, not military," he replied, still by the fire. "I've just had a year-long trial by fire when it comes to surviving. Before all this, well.. I used to serve as state Representative for Washington's 5th Congressional district. I spent a lot of my time in D.C., then a few up here; but by some stroke of fate, I was in Southern California visiting friends when all this.. happened. I lived with them for months, and as a group we survived together a few miles out of L.A.. But.. I came up north on my own to see if my parents in Spokane made it through all this." He let a pause hang in the air, unsure whether or not to go on. He finally decided not to.
"And then I headed out here," he went inside briefly to find three old, plain red plates in the cupboard, and dusted them off (they looked clean, just unused. He also checked for silverware but unusually, there was none at all), before returning outside to take the now medium-cooked steaks off the cooking stone, and placing two beside Chris and Claire. He sat down with his own opposite the two, removing his knife to cut the meat and use it as both a knife and a makeshift fork.
"Have you two been alone this entire time? Or did you used to be in some kind of group around here?"

Chris and Claire listened intently to every word of the man. Chris smirked finally realizing why the name was familiar. This was one of the guys that his government teacher kept calling either an odd ball or an idiot...oh what a fun class that was. Claire smiled a little and pulled out two of her knives and handed one to Chris to use as well. As she started to cut though she stopped mid way and looked at Chris when Jack had asked about how they'd gotten this far. Chris looked back at her, a silent conversation went between the two for a few seconds before Chris looked back at Jack.

"We've been in a few groups...but never stayed with any of them...We um." He paused for a second trying to think of a good way t say things. "We decided it was best to split from the groups each time though, and um yeah." He looked at the fire. He didn't want to lie to the man. Especially when there was an actual chance of sticking together, but if he told him how they stole from other groups and leaving them to fend for themselves what sort of message would that send...?

Claire on the other hand, while she hated killing for the wrong reasons, had nothing against telling a tale to help their situation. "One of the groups tried to do things with me...So we left, Chris doesn't like to talk about it because he barely stopped it, but then if I felt uncomfortable about a group we would talk about it and leave." She didn't look Jack in the eye, she just closed up slightly with her body as she spoke while gazing thoughtfully at the fire. Tehnically it wasn't a complete lie though...The first group they'd joined this guy that was only a year older kept trying to flirt with her, but she kept rejecting him, he tried to take it too far one night so she stabbed his cheek with her knife which had cut his tounge off, and while he wsa choking on his own tongue Chris had found Claire and pulled her away and they stole a car to get away.

Chris looked at his sister. She'd spun the tale, and now it would only look bad if he denied it, so he looked at Jack for a second and gave him a pained smile. So yeah...And we've been on our own for the most part since. I found that motorcycle in a garage in Oregon actually. It's a really nice bike, and hasn't let us down yet. The only problem is we don't have any siphoning equipment so we had to refuel whenever we found any in a vehicle. Or our last stop in Ashford..." He paused for a moment realizing he was bringing it up again. "Well we found an easier source there..." While he had finished the man off, he and his sister both knew that it was Claire who had truly killed the man. If he could take the blame he would...but right now he just had to support his sister and pray for her as much as he could.

It was only a short time after Niko had cut off his music that something else caught everyone's attention. This time, it wasn't the dull muted noise of a walker's head caving in as Ryan crushed it with his crowbar. Instead, it was clean... almost clean. Skin and bone were being cut in two while undead blood and brains were spewing out of a fresh gash. Someone else had just joined the party and it seemed they had a penchant for bladed weapons.

Clover immediately turned to see a young woman staring at the group of four backing up slowly with a hatchet clutched tightly in her hands. She seemed more scared than anything else, holding the thing in the air as if she were determined to cut them all in half despite her being clearly outgunned. However the fear in her eyes was clear enough and Clover marked her off as less of a threat than the other two men. However, It didn't excuse her horrible timing and it was what she said next that really set Clover off.

"Stay back?" The look on Clover's face did little to convey the bewilderment she tried to contain. "Who the fu- You stay back! And you!" She turned back to Niko. "Either you get the fuck out of here or I put a bullet in that empty fucking head of yours! That bitch almost chopped me up because of your stupid fucking music!"

"Clover!"

"Fuck! What?!"

"Put the gun down. We're not killing anyone." Carter knew that most of her threats were just steam. If she was serious she wouldn't have given any of them a warning before killing them. It had gotten to the point where she took no chances anymore and if she perceived someone as a threat, she meant to eliminate them. However, the events of today had caught them all off guard. The chances of running into three different people within the same hour in the middle of a deserted road between two cities miles apart. It was either good luck... or bad luck. People didn't just wander up to other people anymore. There was always a reason. Clover had every right to distrust everyone one of them. But this time... this time it was different. Carter had always been a better judge of character than Clover. She hadn't fully developed that ability to read other people and so at times she acted off of instinct instead of truth and it was up to Carter to correct her. The two men and the lone woman in front of them, they were brought together at this very spot for a reason. They weren't threats and even if some of them didn't pass as bright, he was sure they'd have their moments to shine. He just had to make sure their lights weren't snuffed out before they got the chance and he had to make sure Clover understood. There were still things for her left to learn.

"We're not killing... anyone." He repeated to be sure the words sank in.

"The hell I'm not." She said between clenched teeth as she stared at Niko.

"Clover..."

Clover tried her best to ignore him but she knew he was right. She'd figured a while ago that these people weren't threats as far as bandits were concerned. She only feared the inevitability of them sticking around. Someone was going to die, they always did and she'd have to carry their deaths on her shoulder just as she did everyone else that walked through her life. She didn't need that, she didn't want it. All she wanted was for them to go away.

After a few moments of silence, Clover finally dropped the gun although the anger was still clear as day in her expression. Frustrated, she walked up to Niko's truck and kicked the tire accomplishing nothing before planting herself firmly on the hood of an abandoned car and crossing her arms.

"Alright... everyone, I think we got off on the wrong foot. Before we start killing each other... why don't we start over... You..." Carter turned toward the woman. "You can leave if you want, or join us. I assure you we won't kill you without a reason, at least I wont. And you in the truck." Now addressing Niko, he stared at the man through the open window still not entirely sure what to make of him. "Why don't you step out here so we can all have a little chat... and of course don't try anything stupid... or I will kill you." He finished adding some emphasis on the "i". While at the moment Clover was emotionally unstable, Carter's head was clear and he didn't have a problem dropping all three new faces. "Now... why don't we start with our names... and a little about ourselves."