It was jeans and t-shirt weather today, though the grey clouds threatened to rain down upon the living and the dead alike. There weren't many of either over by the mall, not at this early hour at least; a few corpses, a few abandoned cars, but nothing moving.

Although Lloyd Center Mall had been ransacked many times over, it was still well stocked. Inevitably, a few of... them were always wandering around. The dead seemed to have a memory sometimes: heading out for their weekly excursions to the mall, the grocery store, wherever. No one person could stop for more than a few things before they had to run if they wanted to survive.

If it had been different circumstances Brooklyn would have been snuggled in a plush robe, her darling child would be in her arms. A cheesy Lifetime movie would be playing in the background and the rain would be falling from the sky above, in a patterned downpour upon a roof. Instead, Brookyln's abandoned home had a view from the window of where she had beheaded and buried her dead baby girl; Harris.

Today her fists clenched around her weapon in her very light weight hoodie, as her grey eyes shot towards the local mall. Before the outbreak this was a place she had visited often out of comfort for shopping therapy. "Fuck." the word came out of her mouth before taking her chance moving in quietly and quickly. Brooklyn might not have been strong in strength but she was fast and she knew the insides and out of that place like no other. "Get in. Get out. Get in. Get out." she said to herself as she climbed through a window that had been completely shattered through.

The room had a muster smell to it. Like someone giving a slaughterhouse a new kind of paint to cover the killings. Morning was rising, starting a new day in captivity for Jessie Goldman.

She raised her left arm. Yes, the knots were definitely about to loosen. Sitting in a corner in her gym clothing: Mid Crossback, worn yoga pants, she fought against the ropes around he wrists and ankles and bit down on the cloth gagging her. It had been days like this. Being fed by men whose eyes lingered a bit too long on her torso and pelvis. Being carried from place to place like some plaything.
But that was the fate of the woman that ManHunter had not yet chosen to eat.
In one final, big effort Jess freed herself from the bonds that gnawed into her arms. Freedom was followed by immense soreness.

1 hour later...

“She must have reclaimed her sword when she killed David,” the man told his leader, ManHunter, and looked through the windows Jess had escaped through. “Taken his jacket and taken back her old shoes along with a few supplies. Nothing major and no guns. Should we go after her?”
The giant figure looked down on his follower and then back at the window. He rubbed his own bare, tattooed head and said only one thing: “Magnificent bravery.” ManHunter then gave the order and the party went out into the streets, guns raised.

So much had happened in such a short amount of time, one minute Leo was on stage and the next the world had descended into complete and utter madness. His friends and his brother had all either been eaten alive by the monsters or had disappeared during the chaos. He tried to tell himself that moving alone was safer and that at least now, the others could rest. Leo could ill afford too much rest, only two days prior he had fallen asleep after barricading himself upstairs in a house to awake to a large group of the monsters outside. He didn't think they had actively found him, he didn't think they had that level of intelligence. Just them being there however meant he had to sit tight for a day before they eventually moved on.

Now he was on the road once more, utilising the large range and quiet nature of a Prius. Previously he'd never had even considered driving one but given the circumstances, there were few vehicles as suitable. He slowed down as his next destination pulled into view, a fair sized town but what caught his attention was the vast shopping mall on its outskirts. Just far enough that he could possibly get lucky enough to avoid any of the monsters. The chances were it had already been cleared of all it's supplies but he had to risk it. Putting the car back into gear he continued on towards the shopping mall.

The drive was uneventful and from what he could tell nobody, alive or dead, had followed him. He bypassed the front entrance and made his way around to the loading dock at the back of the large complex.

Though Gryphon couldn't rightly consider himself the sentimental type, he kept the gun - the terrible 9mm that belonged one of the bodyguards from the start of the outbreak. It had kept everyone alive and remained quite the staple as the only weapon anyone knew how to use (except for Laura, bless her heart, the girl nearly broke her fingers firing it) without improvising, so it went without saying that he'd take it the night he left them. The thing would have gone to waste otherwise, if all that talk of "going out with dignity" was anything to go off of. Unfortunately, ammo was sparse these days, and now he was left with a measly seven.

He managed to survive the undead menace of Oregon by tagging along with groups of varying skill and potential of survival, and there were a few where he considered staying, really, but something always happened and Gryphon always left. But it wasn't like he could make it through the rest of the year keeping that up, unless he could find a functioning community for once. He'd seen the desecrated husks of more than five at this point. There were signs of forced entry in a few, signs of carelessness in a couple, and signs of nothing in one. That last one had to be infighting. Maybe a community wasn't a great idea.

A few hours earlier he tripped over a mall in Portland and with that vulture mentality in play, found his way in. Not the best place to be solo, but he was running out of food and wasn't confident he could live for another week on the stalest chips in the world. Gryphon prowled on towards the food court, eyes darting to every noise with that gun in one hand and a switchblade in the other. Only one of those things were going to be effecting, but hey. A little peace of mind was in demand.

A truck was found in the loading bay. A dock leveler connected the container to its bay, a gap left between the building and the vehicle. The other four docks had been closed off, as had the door up the stairs near the entrance to the bay. There were no signs of life, but it reeked- courtesy of the compactor hidden behind the truck,

Inside the mall was no less eerie. Every sound seemed too loud, too long. But at least it was the sound of glass crunching that Brooklyn heard echoing out into the food court, not the sound of the dead.

In fact, it seemed like there were none of them around at all. Not in the public walkways, at least. The only sound Gryphon could hear were his own footsteps- and those of someone else as he neared the food court.

It wasn't long before Jorel's supplies had run out and he was forced to go on several scavenging runs. Luckily for him, he knew his way around the kitchen, and nearby restaurants were the best place to find food, which he scavenged before they spoiled. He knew however, that the supplies would run out yet again, thus he decided he'd pack in all his supplies, ready some MREs, and potentially find another survivor - or survivors - which he could join up with and become a part of. However, kind and naive as he was, he was also logical, and that meant he needed to take precautions. This sense of security is what allowed him the capability of navigating through the backstreets of Portland, through which he made his way to the local mall, his revolver in hand.

Jorel, a worker in hospitality, knew the ins and outs of these places. Immediately he found his way through the worker's only zones, navigating to the still-unlocked double doors that permitted staff to enter their respective businesses. He made his way through one such pair of doors, leading to the classic fast food chain. Ah, Maccas. Once in the side areas of the food court, he knew it was impossible to enter the staff door; but it wasn't impossible to simply hop over it. He carefully ducked his way over to the front counter, scanning the entire food court for signs of walkers or perhaps survivors.

---

The cool morning air blew through the open window of the truck which carried the Woulfe children. The day was quiet. Sure there was the occasional Lurker that turned their heads at the sound of a vehicle, but other than that it was peaceful. Alex could almost go back to the days before the world went to ruin. Unfortunately, he didn't have that luxury. The young adult was in the process of searching for a place to scavenge. Alex and his siblings had just arrived in Portland and they were running low on supplies. Hopefully, they'd come across something soon.

Just as Alex's twin rose from her slumber, a mall came into view. Alex motioned for Kiley to wake up the other two sleepy heads. It was time to go scavenging. Not seeing any good locations to park, Alex decided that the best of all the options, though still not good, was to park near the door. Alex turned to his siblings, "Remember, if anything goes wrong just go. I'll find you." Without waiting for input Alex entered the large building with a nearly empty army backpack, a Beretta Langdon M9, and his trusty katana.

@alexfangtalon

Jessie Goldman’s legs made it quite clear to her that they did not care for this much running. Not when she had been sitting on them for more than a week. Her muscles felt like jelly, and though blood had returned to her joints, they ached like the apocalypse. The army jacket she had stolen might not end up on the front cover of a fashion magazine, yet it did a rather good job keeping her warm.
She cursed herself for being this weak. Before this she had been training martial arts like crazy, making herself into a weapon that would launch her career into ultimate fighting.
Oh, right and you accidently paved the way for a psychotic warlord also. Might wanna feel bad about that also, she reminded herself. Images of ManHunter’s face flashed before her eyes. His tattooed forehead, the glasses he sometimes wore, the way he observed her both as a goddess and a juicy steak. Strange mix.
His minions were no doubt hunting her. Risking their lives so their master could get his meal, namely her. So that he could devour her, consume her soul and strengths and become mightier. That’s what he believed anyway.
Strengths, Jess quote inside her head and wanted to laugh. Right now, she was shaking. Not much of a warrior. Never had she imagined she would have to fight anywhere else than inside a cage. Surrounded and protected by rules.
Something that used to be a man growled at her and started to move. For a second Jess thought of drawing her Nodachi and creating a rotten kebab. Instead she turned the corner and a shopping mall revealed itself to her.

It was still early morning and the sun was setting over the seemingly abandoned place. The doors were open and by first glance, she was alone. Trying her best to imitate a ninja, she took a look around the nearby stores. Not a soul. Calmness had almost returned to her shivering body, as a car drove up to the entrance outside.
Shitty balls, and rotten luck!
Jess ran up against the wall right next to the door and covered herself with the a-bit-too-large-olive-army-jacket like a blanket. Quite a few piles of clothing were already lying there - a fairly good camouflage. Then she waited.

A male voice, not exactly deep, said something outside. Then his steps became louder and he entered, seemingly alone. She waited until he had taken a few more steps, then she jumped forward from her frog-crouch, sword first.
Her Japanese longsword stopped right at the area between Alex’s shoulder and neck, where it lingered.
“Easy there, tough guy. Not one single movement. Just wanna have a chat,” Jess whispered and tightened her grip on the weapon. Though tense, she had not forgotten her fencing lessons. “How about your opening statement for this little trial is whether or not you’re with ManHunter?”

---

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---

"Your such a geek Normie." Chris laughed lowly as he took a bite from the butter burger in his hands as he sat at the empty Geek Support counter. The entire place was dead that night, than again the entire town was sort of like this. For as long as either of them had lived here there was hardly anything in regards to crowds. It was expected really, a town with less than seven hundred people, it was understandable. Still, even the phones were dead tonight and that was unusual. "I am just saying that the new DLC that dropped was the bomb dude," Chris would shake his head as Norman stuffed his face full of fries and took a huge gulp from his Gut Buster soda. "I never under stood all these games you play, dad didn't either. That one summer, do you remember? When he got you a job at that farm up the road, said he wanted to make a man out of you?" Normans face soured at the mere mention of it, it had been a hundred and five degree's that summer, the humidity made it even worse. That first day Norman came home and his entire body was red, like a balloon, he walked through the door and feinted on the front carpet. Mom had damn near went into cardiac arrest.

"I nearly died that summer, I think the real low point was where I feinted in the manure pile. Mr. Roberts wasn't able to lift me by himself so he had to get the neighbors sons to help heave me into the house." Chris spit burger out of his mouth by accident as the sudden laugh couldn't be held back. He remembered that, Dad had gotten a call from old man Roberts, it was so vague though when he explained it. "Yeah, he said you ate some manure and it took three of them to roll you into the house afterwards." They both let out a laugh in damn near perfect unison to that memory. "The look on dads face was priceless, ya brother ate some manua, gotta go pick em up." Chris imitated his fathers voice when he relayed the phone call to him which started an even harder chorus of laughter as the two brothers laughed and chatted. "You gotta admit though a few weeks in you had that farmers tan going on, although those milky white moobs always made me cringe."

Chris was going to squeeze Norman's moobs but he quickly slapped Chris's hands away forcing him to laugh again as he took a drink from his own soda. `Beep` Chris looked up as the electronic beep went off signalling that someone had entered the store. Norman looked as well at the man standing in the entrance way, he looked really pale and sweaty at that too, neither one of them really recognized him so they figured he must be from the larger city up the road away. "Welcome to the Electronics Nest, if you need any assistance with your shopping today, please call." Norman spoke cheerfully as Chris watched the man slowly look in their direction, there were black rings under his eye's. He looked bloody sick and badly at that, the man would proceed to saunter over towards them slowly. As he got closer Chris would see the blood that soaked through his shirt, the entirety of his chest was covered in it.

Chris instinctively placed his hand to his hip where the Beretta 92 was in its holster concealed at his side. The man continued in their direction, he raised his hands out towards them as his legs seemed to be like jelly. "Sir are you okay? Do you medical attention?" Chris asked the question doubting the answer would be anything he wanted to hear given the mans appearance. "Stay behind the counter Normie." Chris hopped off his seat and approached the man slowly, he was about to ask him if he needed help again but when he reached out his hand like he was going to grab at him Chris's throat so he spring into motion. He grabbed the mans arm and sidestepped to his back, bringing his foot forward he swept the mans legs and took him down to the ground placing a knee in his back.

The man yelped weakly as Chris kept him on the ground, he could feel the sweat, or at least he hoped it was sweat soaking through the mans shirt. His body felt like a hot iron even through his clothes, he must be delirious or something. "Normie call 911 I think is sick, possibly delirious." Norman quickly nodded as he grabbed at the phone but would put it down seconds later. "Says all lines are busy," Norman spoke a bit worried as he redialed the number getting the same results. Great, Chris thought this to himself as the man underneath him struggled weakly. Hospitals... full up... sickness." The man on the ground sputtered out some words suddenly, something hospital and sickness. "What are you talking about?" Chris asked the question as the man wheezed before going into violent jerks, oh shit he was going into a seizure!

"Try 911 again Norman, hurry!" Chris wrenched the man up onto his side so his head wasn't hitting the floor as he shook violently. "All lines are busy again!" There was panic in Norman's voice as the man continued to seize until he suddenly stopped, he snorted lowly before he took a final breath and his breathing just stopped. Chris quickly lay the man on his back and checked his pulse, there wasn't one. "Shit!" Chris sword loudly as he quickly climbed over the man, he leaned his head back clearing the air way and started to compress his chest, holding his nose closed he would administer mouth to mouth every seven compression's.

"Oh my god! Whats happening!? Is he going to be okay!?" Norman was asking questions a mile a second as he came around the corner in panic mode. "I don't know! He just stopped breathing" Chris would continue to compress the mans chest, trying to get his heart going again. But it dawned on him that it was useless, it wasn't working, something had clearly been wrong before he stumbled in here. Eventually Chris would stop and leave the body be as he climbed up slowly to stand by his brother. "Oh my god... is he... dead?" Norman sputtered out the words as a couple tears were starting to stream down his chubby cheeks. All Chris could do was nod his head at Norman, he would push his brother away from the body.

"Its okay Norman, don't freak, there was something wrong with him long before he came in here. Okay? Were gonna call the police and get this straightened out." This time Chris would walk behind the counter after he softly comforted Norman, picking up the phone he would dial in the number to the local Sheriff's office. Chris would hear the busy tone on the other end of the line, her sighed heavily as he hung up the phone and than went to dial again. It was sudden, when he heard a weird noise behind him, turning around the phone quite literally dropped from his fingers as his eyes ripped open in horror. Norman was on the ground now, his eyes were milky and drained of life staring at the ceiling, the man who had died moments before was over him now. Norman's stomach was ripped open and his intestines were spilled out all over the floor.

"Normie!!!!!" Chris screamed like a child in pure fear as he grabbed at his gun, pulling it up he pulled the trigger until the gun clicked empty as bullets tore into the dead man's body and head. The dead man would fall sideways and go limp as Chris jumped the counter with tears streaming down his cheeks as he came to Norman falling to his knee's. "Norman..." Chris was shaking as he said his brothers name weakly, his jaw was quivering, he could feel the scream catching in his throat, trying to exit his body as he could feel his breathing become ragged. "Chris.." Upon hearing Normans voice Chris would look down in time to see Norman's hands come up and grabbed him on side of his head just before he would lean up to bite him in the neck.

Chris flew forward yelling loudly as he fell out of the shitty bed and slapped the floor bare chested. "Fuck me.." Chris said the words miserably as he picked himself up off the floor slowly, he had smacked his jaw, right on the kisser. Just a damn nightmare... something of which was accented by his brother snoring loudly in a corner, unphased by what had just transpired. Chris shook his head as he sat on the edge of the unfamiliar bed, he wished like hell he could sleep that peacefully. As it was, he hardly slept anymore, something of which he was becoming accustomed to. It wasn't as much the random places he found himself in, he had been military, learning to sleep in new places was a basic requirement, it was everything else that kept him up. He wasn't sure anymore how long it had been since that night in the store, it was hard to keep track of time when everyday is just a fight to stay alive.

The incident in the store was unknowingly at the time just a prelude to the hell that was to come. Hospitals, filled up, sickness, in other words, the end of the god damn world. Unlike the dream though, that man didn't come back, at least not that Chris knew. It turned out that he had come from the city down the road, he was looking for a hospital, a clinic, anything really. But he was pretty sure the man had died of something else, not that it mattered with such small details. It didn't take much time after though, the world went to complete shit within weeks. Major cities going in smoke, riots, conga lines of cars trying to escape the epidemic in motion. Everyone was fleeing, their small town had lite up like a Christmas tree, people lined up and down the road for as far as the eye can see.

That was probably why their little town was destroyed in the first place, when the infection hit, it hit fast and hard. Before anyone knew it the military were in town trying to contain whatever the hell was happening. It failed though, it always failed, Chris and Norman got the hell out as soon as they could, bought all the non perishable shit they could carry, well and stole, and got out of town. After that they became like nomads, trying to escape the hell that was trailing on their heels. An it was NOT easy, not at all, Chris looked up at Norman who was still snoring away in the corner. Truth was, with Norman it was so much harder, he hated to say it but... Norman was far from being made for a world like the one it was becoming. Hell Chris didn't think he was long for this world either now, but Norman was not one that could easily adapt, hell he still couldn't even pull the trigger on them damn walkers.

He was glad to have Norman, he really was, he wasn't sure who he would be at this moment if his brother had died already. If he admitted it or not, Norman kept him honest, kept the worst of him from coming out. Thats why he worried so much, worried that a moment would come when he wouldn't make it in time, he wouldn't be able to save Norman. His worst fear was that he would die himself and leave Norman to a fate worse than death. Chris reached down beside himself and yanked the pack of crumpled smokes off the nightstand and plucked one from the pack lighting it and putting it between his lips. He blew out a puff of smoke as he picked up the pillow from the bed and threw it hitting Norman in the head. With a loud pig like snort he leaned up looking around wearily as the light from the window hit his eyes.

"Time to get going." Norman yawned as he begrudgingly nodded his head pushing himself up and out of the small bed. Chris grabbed the combat knife that was sticking out of the bed post and walked to the door pushing away the large dresser he had placed in front of it and slowly opened it an inch to look out. The hallway was empty and he couldn't hear anything below. Walking back to the bed he had slept on he grabbed the olive shirt and threw it over his head before pulling on his old military jacket. Taking his black pack he flipped it over his shoulder. "Lets get going." Chris put the cigarette back in his mouth as he opened the door and proceeded to secure their departure.

Norman was silent as they drove along in their old beat up black ford truck. It was cloudy today and looked like rain, he could feel some slight pain in his joints that said that much. He sighed to himself as he plugged his laptop into the charger in the cigarette lighter and flicked it on. A picture would pop up after he logged himself in of him, Chris, and their mom and dad together when they were kids. He smiled at it, but it didn't last all that long. He didn't smile all the much anymore, mostly there wasn't much to be happy about, it seemed like within no time at all life had taken a dramatic plunge into hell. The many passing days had been hard, on both of them, harder on Chris though he had to admit. He wasn't stupid, he knew all too well that his inability to fight those... things was a weakness not only to him but to both of them.

Chris had protected him this far, he would have been dead the first couple days had it not been for him and he knew that well. He felt bad, real bad that he was nothing but dead weight but at the same time, he just couldn't bring himself to shoot a human being. In his head he knew they were gone, what else could they be? But in his heart he felt like it was murder, it was stupid but he couldn't just change who he was just like that. He was just a fat slob who ate all their food and literally gave nothing back in return, he hung his head low as he sighed to himself. When the music hit he was a bit unprepared, he looked up slowly as Rupert Holmes Pina Colada came over the speakers. "Come on bro. I was tired of my lady, we'd been together too long, like a worn out recording of a favorite song."

Norman just shook his head as he tried to say he didn't feel like it, Chris however pushed him with his hand as he continued to sing horribly and off key. "I am the love that you have looked for, write to me to escape." Chris put his hand out for Norman to take over, he found a small smile as he waited for the next verse and started to sing with it. "I didn't think about my lady I know that sounds kind of mean, but me and my old lady had fallen into the same dull old routine, so I wrote to the paper and took out a personal ad and even though I'm no poet it wasn't half bad." Chris took over after that as he sung the next set of lyrics, Norman began to sway to the beat as Chris put his hand out again. Norman laughed as he sang the lyrics and than they both sung the last part together.

"YES I like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain, I am not much into health food I am into champagne. Iv got to meet you by tomorrow noon and cut through all this red tape!" As the song ended Norman felt a lot better than he did as the track switched to one of his brothers more preferred songs, Aint no grave can hold my body down played as Chris knocked his head to it.

Time passed slowly as the two drove along, before long Chris was standing on a small hill with a pair of Binoculars to his eyes in the distance he could see a mall. He the binoculars in different directions as he surveyed the landscape before lowering them. "Seems pretty empty, I think we could get in and out so long as we don't run into any Walkers or other survivors. You think you can pull up a map on that computer of yours. Lloyd Center Mall" Chris asked the question but he already knew the answer, he wasn't sure how the hell Norman did it but he was still able to connect to the internet. Chris was not a computer man and didn't understand half the shit Norman had connected to that laptop but what he did know, it was very useful. Before too long Norman had a floor plan for the mall itself, Chris climbed off the hood off the truck jumping to the ground as Norman put the computer on the hood.

Hmm, three levels, so it was a rather large mall on the inside. Chris looked for entrances and exits specifically as he viewed the floor plans. Six entrances, three from the parking garages, the other three from parking lots. They would definitely stick to the first floor, he did not want to be caught by some surprise group of walkers and be trapped above ground level if he could help it. The parking garages would give them cover but that brought its own misery depending on what was in them. Parking lot entrance was their best bet. "All right I say we start here, 913 area, there is a restaurant there, probably looted but worth a look, than we can make our way into the mall interior from there. Lets try and stick to the west of the mall, I don't want to go to far and find any surprises. We get in, we get out, whatever we get, thats it. Got it?"

Norman would nod, some sweat dripping down his brow, Norman would take his computer and place it back in the bag zipping it up. They both climbed into the truck and made their way down the incline. They would part a little ways away so they didn't draw too much unnecessary attention and walk the rest of the way. Chris just hoped Norman was up to it, either way they need supplies and he wasn't going to leave Norman by himself so this was the best they had.

---

Alex let out a sigh. Welp, if he made it out of this predicament it would teach him to get some sleep. He must be tired if he forgot to check around the corner. Whoever had come up behind him was obviously a female. He couldn't tell much though since he couldn't get a good sight on her. Darting forward to get away would be a bad move in case she also had a gun so Alex decided to play along for now. He couldn't tell much about her but the blade on his neck felt steady. In a risky attempt to cause the ambusher to lose focus, Alex started with a sarcastic remark. "Manhunter? I didn't know the Martians were on earth. Huh, now all the Lurkers make sense. They must have caused this disease. Look, lady. I don't know who you are or whoever this 'Manhunter' is. I don't care. I'm just a traveler passing through. I'd appreciate it if you'd remove your weapon from my neck. I ain't-a threat to you. Look, I'll even put my gun on safety if that'll ease your mind."

Having only experienced the worst of humanity since the outbreak, Jess realized she might not be the best person to judge someone. In fact, the guy's reference to comics almost made her chuckle. It had been a while since there was anything to laugh about. Whoever he was, he was definitely not with the giant that ate people. And very much like her, he seemed to use humor to keep his spirit up, or maybe she had just caught him on his best day. The one killing, Jess had done a few hours ago, had been out of desperation: a necessary evil in order to escape. Everything was going so fast. And she wasn’t even sure she could execute this guy… well, kid really… even if he drew his gun on her.

In a display of exhaustion, she took a step back, allowing him to get a look at her tired figure, and then placed the sword on the floor. Didn’t even put it back in its sheath. Without her jacket, and sitting in her workout attire, she did expose a fair amount of skin, but hardly noticed it. All she could muster was to stumble backwards and end up sitting on the floor like a child. “Yeah, you seem like a pretty different kind of breed than what I’ve seen recently.”

Alex turned around when the sword was removed from his neck. He saw the woman who looked extremely exhausted. ”Well, I have a reason to keep my humanity. But in actuality, I’m not that much different than most. It all depends on what you’re fighting for really.”

At this point, Alex just wanted to walk away. Sure, somewhere deep inside he wanted to help but they just didn’t have the supplies to be helping her. He couldn’t leave though mainly because if she walked out that door the others would see her and would want to help. As Alex pondered what to do, the door right near the two opened up. Alex quickly raised his pistol only to lower it upon sight of Sadie. She slowly walked in, bow in hand, looking from Alex to this new girl. Alex was about to tell Sadie to go back outside when the teen spoke slightly panicking, ”Alex, who is she? Is she hurt? Did you hurt her.” Alex groaned at the rapid outburst and Sadie glared at him then looked back to the woman. ”It’s cold. We should get you some better clothes. You look about the same size as Kiley. She has extra clothes.”

So, Alex is his name… The girl’s words and the firm way she held her bow contradicted her fragile looks. An innocence, even more, glaring than Alex’s, glowed like a halo from her, Jess thought.

“Clothing would be good,” Jess admitted in one exhale. She picked up her jacket and wrapped herself in it before the cold could do harm. Experience told her to watch her back and don’t fully trust these people quite yet. The naïve glance from the teenage girl told her something different.

Sheathed sword in hand, Jess went up to Alex’s side. “Clothing would be fine, right?” she said out loud, back to her humorous performance. Then with her back to the girl, she whispered: “Look these streets are going to get a visit from some really revolting folks. I’m talking bottom of the barrel nasty. Maybe in a minute. Maybe in an hour. I would suggest you get your people inside and do it fast.”

”Sadie, go tell Kiley what’s going on. If she has clothes to spare then might as well.” The entire time he spoke Alex looked Jess right in the eyes. He was trying to tell if she was lying or not or worse. Threatening them. At this moment, Alex doubted she was threatening anyone, and judging by the looks of her she probably wasn’t lying.

Once Sadie walked out the door Alex spoke to the woman before him. ”I’m assuming this Manhunter guy has something to do with what you're talking about. Same with why you look so exhausted?” He started walking towards the exit motioning for the woman to follow. Alex did keep a close eye on her though.

“ManHunter - or whatever his real name is – has everything to do with what I’m talking about. And with my recent makeover.” Jess answered without blinking. “You won’t know persistence until you’ve been hunted by him.”

”Alright, then I’ll offer you a deal. We are extremely low on supplies so we can’t leave here just yet. If you help then we will give you a ride out of here or help find a place to hole up. We don’t have many options. Do we have a deal?”

"I believe we do." Jess extended her hand. Alex reaches out to shake Jess’ hand. Opening the door, Kiley has a few articles of clothing picked out and Alex tells them that they are all going inside to scavenge together. He purposely leaves out the part about a looming threat.

It was always amusing, how a person could wax poetic about her being a low life, and in their next breath use their precious laws to destroy a man just as terribly as Sam’s ever done. When your spouse cheats on you, takes half your assets in a messy divorce with an uncaring bank taking the other, well, it’s no wonder some people took the comfort of a few lines of coke. It was certainly no wonder when people lashed out like scared, dumb animals; when they reverted to baser instincts as soon as they found out who would know?

”Heh. Edgey.” The blonde’s laugh was light and careless, though pitched low and almost under her breath. Any grain of truth to that aside, Sam could care less – and honestly, she was griping. Collapse of the world should’ve meant there was plenty of cash and shiny, forgotten trinkets in this shitty abandoned mall to fill her duffle bag twice over! Yet here she was, stuck here over twenty-four hours, with only a bronze ring and a couple crumpled bills added to her collection – not that she had much time to look before ending up in this predicament.

She couldn’t even wear the ring, she was allergic to bronze. Where’s the justice in that? Fucking looters.

A low groan filled the air, interrupting Sam’s hypocrisy. She let out a heaving sigh, throwing a hunter-green sleeved arm over her face.

”Are you still pouting?” A choking, wet snarl was her answer. ”Typical. You always were the type to make me carry every conversation.” Finally Sam sat up, one khaki clad leg dangling over the sides of the tall, wide, and most importantly sturdy shelves she had scaled hours ago to the sound of rending flesh. She took her time, rolling her shoulders and stretching high her eight fingers high with popping joints. It was only when she was good and ready did she turn, scooting to the edge of the expansive – and looted - gun case to peer downwards.

”Come on, you can’t still be mad?” Despite the purposefully low volume of her voice it only served to agitate the ... man ... below Sam. Considering the gloss to his eyes, she doubted it was any sort of recognition to her words. Just whatever these corpsewalkers’ natural reaction was to living, breathing people.

Oh, and Michael was definitely one of them, considering most of his uneaten entrails were in a bloody path behind him, along with one leg. He had such nice legs, too; the half-chewed up look was most certainly a downgrade.

Not that Sam thought she was faring much better. Sleeping up there wasn’t really sleep at all. She had no doubt there were bags under her eyes at the very least. Still, with a small pack of corpsewalkers blocking the only exit out of the sporting good ‘Champ’s’ store to engage in their little feast, she had little choice but to bunker down in the back of it and be quiet as possible. They were gone now though, aside from their latest addition to the ‘pack’, and all was quiet in Lloyd Center once more. Maybe now Sam could fucking finish picking through the leftovers and get back to her car.

And then it wasn’t so quiet.

In a place as large as Lloyd Center, with nothing to occupy it, sounds carried. Long, loud, like a haunting bell if Sam was feeling particularly poetic. There were little things in the air, a landing too hard, a bump too careless. The corpses, perhaps. Perhaps not. Either way, it was a signal that wouldn't be ignored.

”Well Michael, I have to say I’ll miss you. Gonna be pretty lonely on the road by myself – maybe I’ll pick up a hitchhiker!” Sam laughed that same quiet, whispering laugh again, already gathering up her supplies. Pistol tucked into her waistband, switchblade – clean of her partner’s blood - put away, rifle strap over her shoulder and duffle bag thrown to the ground. It clinked mildly from the cans of food she had stored away, but most of the sound was muffled by the thousands of dollars of bills. The blonde climbed down after it carefully, hopping the last bit of the way.

The wet scraping of Mike pulling himself forward despite his missing appendage and missing intelligence was not lost on Sam. She just ignored it to pick her bag up over her shoulder, shifting the rifle to her hands. With her things secured the young woman turned to her ex once more, giving a jaunty two fingered salute.

”Thank you for your sacrifice, Mike. You were so brave, and I’ll never forget you.” A surprisingly gentle smile curled Sam’s lips, words soft and coated in sincerity with practised ease. ”I even forgive you for all those things you yelled at me.” Blowing one last kiss, Samantha Law turned on her heel to trek a wide arc around Oregon’s latest corpsewalker, slipping out the door of Champs’ with cautious steps. Something was stirring, and this time there was no back up plan.

With the engine off Leo left his car, making sure to take the keys with him. Opening the back of the car he pulled out his HK416, the rest of his weapons already attached to his body through various holsters. He locked the car and then started to scope out the surrounding area. One benefit of the loading dock was that it was located in the basement of the shopping centre, meaning that he was out of sight and out of mind. However it did mean that any passed horde could be inadvertantly funnelled down to him.

Let's see if there is a way in...

Scanning the long row of loading bays provided and initial frustration, with each bays shutter appearing to be shut firmly. Either someone was already holed up inside or the former employees had done whatever they could to protect themselves. Decomposing corpses and limbs were scattered around the area with blood caked ontop of the concrete floor. Aside from his own vehicle, there were only two other cars and a fork lift in sight. While it meant less chance for useful supplies, it meant he had a clear view of the majority of the area. While the monsters weren't the fastest over distance they could lunge quite quickly making lots of obstacles dangerous. Such an open space provided a temporary sense of safety.

Making his way down past each bay Leo reached up to try each shutter but as he'd guessed they were all locked. Fortunately for him a staff entrance was next to the loading bay and was a much easier prospect. He spotted a card reader next to the door but tried chancing the handle anyway. With a gentle nudge of his hand, the handle quickly resisted his attempts to move it.

Locked then...

He decided to check on some of the corpses scattered around in the hope of finding a security card.

A loud clanging noise echos through the mall.

@IAmKnight @Blazion
The glass door closed quietly behind Sam. There was a flash of movement off to her left, in the food court. Not dead- that was a real, live person over at the McDonald's. No sign of the dead here, not yet.

@The Abyss @KatKook
The walk to the mall is uneventful. There are a couple of corpses, a collection of bullet holes to be seen in their heads. Fortunately no sign of movement- wait. There. Underneath a derelict SEARS sign, Norm and Chris see someone slipping inside.

Inside the store, it is dark. Taeyeon can hear one of the dead groaning. Not too close, but definitely in the area.

@CaptainSully
It was Leo's lucky day. Tucked into the pocket of a pair of legs (no torso to be seen) was a keycard. When he enters, there is no movement in the small loading area, nor down the long concrete hallway, but he can definitely hear something- or someone- moving around up ahead.

The teen had been right: Jess and Kiley were the exact same size, at least the jeans-part. Kiley’s black top did feel a bit too tight around the chest and arms. Overall though, Jess would not be one to complain. She quickly caught up with the others inside the mall. Entered through what was suppose to be the exit of a grocery store.

The first thing Jess noticed was the smell. The SEARS store pretty much seemed as pillaged as Jess would have imagined. At least the grocery-part of it. Empty shelves and bottles. Shattered jars of what she hoped was marmalade. Then there were things like stockings and soap which seemed completely untouched by the apocalypse.
Someone has been here. Of course, someone has already been here and cleaned it out. Damn…
Jess sighed and scratched her wrists. They had been itching for some time now. Then she saw a slightly trembling figure of a person. Bronze hair, about her size. “Kiley, right?” Jess said, walking up to her.
“Huh? Eh, yeah, yeah,” the girl answered. Seemingly occupied by staring strait ahead in the dimmed lighting.
“Thanks, for the clothing. It was a real lifesaver in this weather.”
“Sure. It… wau, it actually looks better on you.”
Jess laughed as friendly as she could. “So, what are we looking at here?”
Kiley answered her question by nodding straight ahead.
It took a moment for Jess to notice the dark shape on the floor. Quite a few rows down, next to the place all the rotten fruit and vegetables were on display. A broad Afro-American man lying perfectly still. Trying to focus on something that far away made her head hurt, as her glasses were the first victims of the apocalypse.
“Is he …” Kiley asked and didn’t breathe, until Jess had answered.
“Don’t know. Has he moved since you saw him?”
The girl shook her head in a way that would have amused Jess under different circumstances. Like a person in a hurry, who meanwhile got seasick by moving her head so fast. “Could you check? You’re good with that thing, right?”
She must have referred to the huge, Japanese sword on Jess’ back. “Actually, my teacher claimed my defense was far too unbalanced,” Jess joked. “I… eh, I’ll take a look.”
Her hesitation was real, as she approached the unknown figure. Sure, Jess was in peak condition and wanted to hide it, as it meant everybody (including enemies) would underestimate her. But the fight, she had been training so long for, hadn’t been to the death. When she punched for hours until her knuckles turned blue, she hadn’t had killing in mind. Therefor a very real fear gripped her heart in the final seconds, before she stood there, sword raised, and looked down at the guy.
Ah, the smell! I wish the bad apples would disguise his sent more! Jess thought.
“Hello. Wake up” Jess mumbled and kicked the man, who had his face in the floor. She poked him with the tip of her Nodachi.
Nothing happened.
She drew a deep breath and then leaned down, grabbed his shoulder and turned him around, only to fight in order to hold down her puke.
“Is he dead?... I mean, like, really dead?” Kiley asked from a distance.
“He’s dead alright, and then some.” But just to make really sure, Jess lined up her weapon and pressed it through the corpses head. It penetrated with a wet sound, not at all like the movies.

For a while all Jess did was walk amongst shelves and got disappointed over and over again, until she came across some misplaced mustard in a plastic bottle. There, between some toys, it stood. In the old days she didn’t even like mustard, but now: Jess grabbed the bottle. In one clean cut from her sword the lip came off and she put the content to her lips and started pouring it down. Her eyes watered, her nostrils closed. However, it provided the energy she had needed. Amazing what a little food can do, she reminded herself.
Only then did she notice the door. A big and retractable one. In itself there was nothing special about it, but one thing separated it from all other doors: This one was locked. And a locked door meant one thing: No one had managed to get inside; no one had had a chance to pillage it. For all Jess knew, there could be enough food to last for months, maybe more.
Her smile was interrupted, when she thought, she heard something. Over by the entrance. For a second, she could have sworn, she saw a shadow slip inside. Now it was gone.
Then came the growl…
“H-Hello?” Jess called out.

---

---

---

---

"A stair master wouldn't hurt you know, that or Jenny Craig's." Chris was shaking his head at the sweat that was literally pouring off of Norman as he trailed behind Chris, the larger man was out of breath, quite literally from the trek from the vehicle to the mall. "Hell if we can find Richard Simmons he would get a reward for you." Norman would shoot Chris a nasty glare as he put his hands up as if to surrender as he looked around the parking lot they were treking through. As he seen the entire place was fairly empty and quiet, he really did not expect to find anything here, although he kept that to himself instead of revealing this to the ailing Norman. Chris would be hit with a rather gut wrenching odor, he was pretty sure what it was coming from, wouldn't be the first time he smelled a decomposing body, the only question he was asking himself was if that body was still moving or not. From his vantage point earlier there was just a couple dead walkers, those of which they were crossing now. The bullet markings in their heads was a clear enough indication they were dead. Even so he had no intention of letting his guard down just yet, Chris was weary, but more from other survivors than he was the flesh eaters. The long time military brat was more than aware of what happened when things went to shit, true colors start to emerge when the world around you breaks down.

People in life seem normal most of the time but more often than not they hide dark secret lives, sick minds hidden behind everyday eye's. Chris had been to war torn countries, where there was no law, no rules, no decency, it is these so called normal people that thrive in such chaos. He could not deny when it came to a live or die mentality these people were best prepared. Now it seemed like the entire world might be living that same mentality though, than again he "hoped" this shit wasn't happening around the entire world. He did hold out a little for the fact that maybe, just maybe there were other countries that had not been affected by this, if they could get out of here, get somewhere that isn't plagued by this hell. That just felt like a shitty pipe dream though, even if a place like that existed, getting to it would be the real challenge. With this kind of outbreak, any place deemed unaffected would be closed off, all ports of entry restricted, and those ports would be defended with lethal precision. Although his shittiest pipe dream, the thing that conflicted him daily was if this was going to end or not. It had not been that long since this started, but the devastation it caused in that short amount of time was maximum, in his heart he was telling himself that if they held out just long enough this could be beaten. That they could return to the same boring reality they had before, but his brain told him that this was not something you can come back from. Come on, bodies coming back to life and eating other people, it was every damn terrible zombie movie brought to reality.

An in this movies, the world ended, every time, a hopeless dark void filled with only the strongest and the nastiest of humanities survivors. When Chris heard the gagging he would turn to see Norman on his knee's puking all over the ground in front of him. Chris would sigh as he walked back to Norman, normally he would be worried but, he was fairly sure between not eating well, the smell of dead bodies, and the walk had all combined to make him rather sick. Chris would throw a hand on Norman's sweaty back and give him a couple whacks to try and help him get it out, wasn't the first time and probably not the last. "Let it out big boy, you'll feel betta." Chris imitated his father with that last word, that man was genuine south and both of them had always found his dialect funny. It was when Norman pointed his finger up from the ground that Chris cocked his head and turned silently to look in the direction he was pointing.

He saw an old beat up SEAR's sigh, he was about to ask Norman what he pointing at when he noticed the movement by the sign, Chris would see someone slip into the mall. Chris immediately got Norman up to his feet regardless of if he was done puking or not. He pulled the Beretta from its holster and gave it a quick once over to ensure it would not fail him in a desperate moment. The pure tension pouring off Chris was thick as he looked around for other traces of movement, he didn't like survivors, and that was definitely a living person the way they moved. "We need to get out of here, I am calling this off. We will try somewhere else." Chris was very direct as Norman went to say something but dry heaved violently as he bent over his breathing out of whack. "I feel weak, I need food Chris." Chris could hear Norman's exhaustion come through his words.

Neither of them had eaten much the past couple days, and while Chris could take it, Norman could not handle the lack of food. He had feinted a couple times because of it before, and the walk here most definitely drained him, Chris took a moment but he was coming to the conclusion that there was really no choice in the matter. They needed food, if Norman went down from hunger, he didn't even want to think about it. They had to do this, survivors or not. Chris would reach into his pack and pull out a small bottle and give it to Norman, it was a five hour energy. They were not the healthiest things in the world but when you didn't have much to eat and you needed a pick me up they did the trick. "Go on, drink it up." It was like putting a band aide on a lost arm, the energy wouldn't last but it would last long enough to get this done. "I feel a bit better, I think I can go on now."

"Good. Here's the plan, you stay behind me and provide back up only if I need it. Take this and don't argue." Chris removed a beat up metal baseball bat that was attached top his pack and handed it to Norman who took it begrudgingly. "I know you don't want to, and I am going to try and make sure you don't have to, but if things get rough, use that bat Normie, aim for the head, you got it?"
The look on Norman's face was one of fear, even now the man could not even think about harming other people even if they were trying to harm him. His pure soul was both a light in this dark hell and a huge liability at the same time, but there wasn't much to be done about it right now but be patient and hope he lived long enough to adapt. Chris motioned for Norman to fall in behind him as he crept forward the gun raised in front of him defensively. The barrel rested against his wrist as he kept his eye's on those corners just in case as they both bypassed the ruined SEAR's sigh and entered the darkened interior of the once popular retail store.

Chris was heavily aware that Norman's breathing was loud as hell, and in an empty mall shit like that tended to echo so it put him even more on edge as he surveyed his surroundings. He didn't see anyone, however that did not mean there wasn't someone here. Chris quickly raised his free hand and put two fingers up he motioned Norman forward while telling him to keep his eye's open as they continued deeper into the store. The place had definitely seen better days, it was huge too which meant plenty of place to spring out from. Chris would keep close to the wall as to keep away from these hidden locations. They would stalk through the cash registers in the front of the store, Norman's footfalls echoed lowly around the store.

Meanwhile elsewhere ...

A silence filled the crowd of armed people, as one of them came to deliver the news. The guy approached and looked up at his leader.
“None of us managed to find her, sir.”
“Of course not. She’s a magnificent woman. Better than any of you, even in her scared moments, that’s for sure,” ManHunter answered. There was a certain calmness to his growly voice. As if discussing politics on a quiet day, not on the open streets with guts and ‘Walkers’ lying around.
“I… We fear she might be gone,” the much smaller man said.
“No one is ever really gone. People like you just stop looking for them.”
“Right… we, ehhh… will find her.”
“Oh, you will? That is excellent to hear. You had we worried there for a second, but now you’ve convinced me.” The sinister smile on ManHunter’s tattooed face almost made it look like he was being sincere. He shook his finger like a teacher. “Then you know how to find her, don’t you? Yes… exploit her one weakness. Jess is so afraid of being alone. Like a puppy she seeks coziness, she seeks company. The woman can’t help herself. Find others, find the action, and you will find her curled up in their comfort. Bring me that strong spine of hers, attached to her living, breathing body, so that I may feast tonight. Kill all the weak sheep she surrounds herself with.”

---

Jorel immediately froze still once hearing the clanging sound that echoed throughout the food court. Looking across, he noticed a woman step out of the glass doors of a retail store. Jorel instinctively raised his revolver up, pointing it at the woman who was at quite a distance that he was incapable of determining facial features. He would have assumed they were a walker, yet they did open and close a door and, to him that screams sentience. He slowly inched himself towards the woman, scanning his surroundings in all directions, anticipating an ambush or any form of deception. He figured at this point, he was spotted already. "Hands up, nice and slow. Drop ye weapons, lemme see your hands. Let's have a nice chat, yeah?" Jorel kept his revolver nice and steady, and though he vowed not to shoot, he certainly didn't hesitate to threaten with intent.

For her part, Sam merely tilted her head as the man approached. The clang had distracted her as well, and now here she was with a gun pointed at her. Again. Despite his words however the blonde's grip on the assault rifle didn't loosen at all, though she seemed content to keep it pointed away as she studied him. When it came to people, it all came down to what front to put up.

Aim at this distance for a regular person wouldn't be very good; confident or putting up a front? Desperate or stupid? Still, she wasn't in the business of being shot over thinking her chances. Even if he wa a poor shot, all it took was one lucky bullet. Besides, she was running out of ammo.

It was only when the man - lovely accent, really - edged that bit closer that Sam took in his facial features. Soft, young looking. Appearances weren't everything, oh she could attest to that, but he was also alone. People were pack animals, and pack animals always hated being alone - even Sam! It made her vulnerable in cases of emergency.

So charm, not violence.

"No," Sam stated, adding just the slightest quiver to her voice. A lopsided smile quickly followed. Friendly, cautious. "I mean, to the dropping my weapons. Chats are fine. Chats are good, actually! I uh, I'm not really fond of the idea of disarming myself around strange men though - stranger danger, y'know?"

Jorel raised his eyebrow at the woman's demeanour. He had a feeling she wasn't just some pretty blonde holding something she wouldn't have a clue how to use, yet he felt somewhat at ease at her attitude; He got the feeling she prioritised her survival, and that meant she would be easier to talk to. He lowered his gun slightly and gave her a sly smirk. "C'mon, me, a strangah? Just ya friendly neighbourhood Aussie, mate," Jorel said in the most Croc Dundee accent he could muster. Though he didn't think she was, there was no harm in asking it - "You with anyone?" He kept his revolver pointing at her legs, knowing the recoil from the .357 would simply aid him in lifting the handgun, doing half the work for him. He silently hoped it wouldn't come to that. Once again he flicked his eyes left and right, keeping his body aligned to the woman.

"Not anymore." For a moment Sam's lips tugged down from that grin, her grip tightened on her gun, and for just a split moment her eyes flicked downward similarly. "I ... lost all my friends since this started. My - my boyfriend was the last to get jumped, to make sure I got away." She let the silence hang for a moment, then purposefully took in a deep breath and plastered that grin back on her face, slightly strained.

"Sorry, bit more info than you asked for. No, I'm ... I'm alone."

Jorel softened upon hearing the woman. A cloud of naivety began to form in front of his rationale, and he lowered his gun completely. "Jorel. Uh, my name. I'm... sorry to hear about that. I haven't seen my family for a year, and my friends, well, they weren't much friends for long, y'know? To be honest, I've been looking for more survivors. Strength in numbers, y'know?"

Score.

"Sam." When the man lowered his gun, the blonde finally raised her own three-fingered hand off the trigger of her rifle to offer a handshake. "I hope your family is alright. Yeah, I ... wouldn't mind some company. I have a car hidden away outside, a few supplies but not much. I was looking for more here - well, that and admittedly looking for some earrings." Another laugh, sheepish as she brought her hand back. He was so trusting!

"Completely silly, I know. I'm a tattoo artist though, I loved picking up fancy new earrings whenever we ordered them at my shop."

Jorel looked down at Sam's three fingered hand, hesitating slightly, only because of the three fingers over the fact that he had no idea who this random lady with an assault rifle and three fingers was. He reached out and shook her hand. "Pleasure to be your acquaintance, Sam. I say we stick together then. How about we prowl around here for some supplies? I've got a whole apartment chock-a-block, but I probs need more sustenance, ya know?"

"I have no idea what that means," Was the bright response, but without waiting for a response Sam lifted the gun and nodded into the food court. "Prowling though? Sounds good, there has to be something left in here. Let's get this bread."

Jorel nodded, taking "bread" a little literally. "It's only been a week or so, and if we're lucky the back freezers of the restaurants should be untouched, or at least skimmed through. Most restaurants have boxes and boxes of crap lying around in their freezers, which are much too heavy to be carrying all out at once, so we're bound to find some box in a freezer somewhere. On a note of the lack of power, the rooms should be cold enough that the food should be fine, and hell most products would last a few weeks unless they were meats, so we should find some bread." With that said, Jorel turned around and paced towards the McDonald's, still keeping a slight eye on Sam. "This would've been hit first, but we've got time, and it's worth a shot considering the longevity of their crap. Let's go."