The DudeMan

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart Checkout Area

Panic had set in as the deadman's scalp continued to slide off his skull in Grant's hand and the rotten toothed maw drew closer and closer to Grant's face by the second. This was it, he was going to die in Walmart of all places. He turned his face away when the stench became unbearable and he looked to Bri who was downing another rotter unable to help him. As far as last things to see go, Bri certainly was one of the best things he could think of. He had accepted his fate.

He closed his eyes and waited for the end. Tink. He heard the bat ring out as it struck the deadman's head and hit with enough force to knock the corpse almost completely off of him. Shock. Relief. Confusion. Pain. He was experiencing so much all at once as he kicked the body the rest of the way off and began to crawl backward, looking around to see the guy that had just attacked him with his bat in hand over the corpse. He was in disbelief, why did this guy help him after attacking them?

Then he heard his attacker call out to Bri, something about another stinker and a shiver ran down his spine. Grant scooted back until his back was against a solid surface and as luck would have it his hand found his hatchet on the ground next to him. He looked away from the guy with the bat just for a moment as he grabbed his hatchet and then looked to the man with the bat and threw it. Grant had gotten pretty good with a hatchet while in college, there was this bar he used to go to that had axe throwing range. The hatchet spun through the air toward the batter and then sailed just past him and into the forehead of the last shambler, dropping it to the ground like a sack of potatoes. "Found it." He jested as best as he could, before he groaned in pain and held the back of his head.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

With Grant's hands and feet free he was able to roll to his back and nod to Bri that he understood. He could hear the rotters but he did see them, at least not yet, his vision was still pretty blurred but he knew they were close and that Bri and Captain Cheapshot were fighting them. He felt the gash on the back of his head, it was smaller than he initially thought but those head wounds always bleed like hell. He had just started to sit up when he heard the low growl of one of the risen just above him and before he knew it he was on the ground half out of it and unarmed fighting with it.

As the world around him blurred he had laser focus on the creature atop him. It was foul. Its grey, shriveled skin had decayed long enough that where lips once were there was only a toothy maw chomping at his face as he held it back by the forehead and chest. Its hair was stringy and dirty white, its body somewhat mushy to the touch. Grant struggled to push it away from him in his weakened state, not only was it heavy on top of him but he was afraid if he tried to push it too hard that his hand might go through it and he didn't know what would happen if that happened. He looked around him for anything he could use to hit this thing in the head but nothing was in reach, at least nothing he could see. He could feel himself losing this fight as it dragged on. The creature's hands clawed at Grant's chest unable to make it through his coat, for now.

And then he felt it, the skin on the dead man's head began to rip and slide under Grant's hand bringing the dirty, rotten teeth closer and closer to Grant's face with each passing moment. "Help!" He called out in his panic, he was going to die this time and he knew it.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

Grant did his best to look around to where Bri was. "What are you doing?" His voice was a bit raspy when he answered her, "You need to get out of here." He could feel that he was getting colder and he knew that he was injured enough that he might slow her down and that was the last thing that he wanted. He knew that if she tried to untie him that it would leave her even more vulnerable to an attack from this guy and he couldn't have that. Of course he said he just wanted them to leave but could he really be trusted? He did hit Grant in the back of the head and then hog tie him.

He could still feel the blood trickling down his head and dripping off the side, and he was sure at this point there was a sizable pool that had formed, those head wounds always bled so much. To Bri it must have looked awful. "Take my bag and go before he gets you too." He knew that she probably wouldn't listen but he also knew that she would know he was serious. Even in his worst moment his only priority was to protect her from danger, it was all that he could think about at the moment.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart

The room was spinning and he felt the cold on the open wound beginning to seep in as the blood began to drip all over the tiles around him. He blinked a few times as his eyes finally came somewhat into focus and he looked up to see his attacker crouched holding a gun and he could hear Bri approaching. He tried to free himself without gaining too much attention from the gunman but he was still kind of out of it and the more he struggled the more he felt himself losing consciousness. He had to help her, he had to do something but at the moment he was completely powerless to do anything. He could call out to her, he could warn her of the gun, but what would this guy do if he did that? He could try to tell her to run but would this guy shoot her in the back? He did hit Grant in the back so it's possible. He was getting desperate to step in, he struggled once more to no avail. His eyes began to well as the image of Bri being shot ran through his mind over and over again. He couldn't let that happen, he wouldn't. "Please--" his voice was weak but sincere, "Sir. Please. Don't hurt her." He pleaded. "Tell her to go. Do what you want to me, but please don't hurt her." He didn't know what else to do, he wasn't strong enough to break his bindings and he didn't want to risk her safety by calling to her or allowing her to do something heroic. So he pleaded and stared at the man as he laid in a growing pool of blood becoming dizzier and more light headed by the second. He felt tired, he felt weak, but he fought the urge to close his eyes and sleep until he knew that Bri would be safe. At least for now.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart

By the time he had put the batteries in his bag Grant was fairly worry free about being in the store. He had been all around the place, no scent of rotten flesh, no groans, no moans, not even blood (dried or otherwise), and probably most importantly he hadn't seen any signs of people. The more he walked, the more comfortable he got, the more he started to think that this might be a good place to camp out for a while and maybe help Bri relax a little by giving her a safe place to sleep and be herself again. He hated seeing her so on edge all the time, constantly in a state of fear and uncertainty. She used to laugh a lot, and now she barely smiled.

As he passed by the last register he glanced over to the magazine rack and laughed to himself about the things that people used to think were important. 'Heidi and Brad: Will they? Won't they?' 'Dedra's 100M divorce check!' 'The President is from Outer Space?!' All of it pointless now, and even then really, especially that last one. The things people would keep up on to somehow try to add something missing to their boring lives. He wondered if any of the people in those magazines were even still alive or if they were walking among the dead like everyone else. Was there a society out there that hadn't been touched by Terminus? A paradise that still resembles their former lives? It was musing like that that made him keep going, it may not be out there but as long as there's hope he would keep looking.

He would have to come back for some of those magazines for burning, but not now, he was already late enough and Bri was probably wondering what happened. He was, however, tempted to check the candy and see if there was anything left but he doubted it. Something like that is currency now, those indulgences people used to take for granted and then beat themselves up about it later. If they could get their hands on things like that they would be good for trading if there were people out there still actually doing that sort of thing, it had been a few weeks since they'd seen anyone to trade with.

Grant's mind was wandering as he drew nearer to the pharmacy, he wondered if he had forgotten to grab anything and went over the list in his head of what he had picked up. So when the edger came down he had no idea what had hit him or that it was even coming. An audible 'tink' rang out as the metal hit his head and he fell forward trying to catch himself before he hit the ground until he ran into a shipper of tin Christmas bakeware and knocking it over with a loud crash as he hit the ground dazed and confused.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart

With a grin and a nod Grant watched Bri walk into the darkness, he didn't like splitting up but this place was huge and it would take forever for them to search it. It wasn't the first time they had split up like this but it was definitely the first time in a place this large. Once she was beyond his sight he made his way deeper into the store. It was clear that parts of the store had gone untouched, who really needs toys in the apocalypse right? Shelf after shelf with lined with merchandise no one would ever buy, no one would ever use, left here to rot away into nothing but dust, stocked up for the Black Friday sales that would never come.

His first stop was in the garden center which was completely decked out with Christmas decorations. The Christmas village display made him smile for a moment as he remembered the collection his mother had been building for years. The silly things made a small city rather than a village. He picked up one of the villagers and blew the dust from it. It was one that his mom already had, he remembered when she bought it, she said to him 'This one kind of looks like you with your books, carrying them from class to class. My little boy is all grown up and going to college so far from home. I'm so proud of you...I'm gonna get this for my village so no matter how far you are a little part of you is always with me.' He thoughtfully placed it back on the shelf with a knot in his throat and moved on to where the garden supplies were. It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for, he grabbed a couple of packets of each kind of seed he saw so they could hopefully build a home when they got where they were going. Somewhere they could grow food and be safe after all of this. Luckily seeds didn't weigh much or take up too much room.

As he left the garden center he gave one last long look to the figurine in the Christmas village, he had to have some hope that he would see his parents again and his brother and sister. But for now he needed to stay focused on Bri, she needed him and he needed her. He grabbed a basket as he re-entered the main store to continue his search for supplies, Bri had food covered so they were good there, she knew what she was doing on that part far better than he did.

When he reached sporting goods the first thing he did was look to see if this Walmart sold ammo but unfortunately they didn't, or it was all gone. But they did have knives and that was something they could never really run short of, so he started filling his basket. He also found some nice gloves for them that could be mittens or gloves, a box of Hothands which was surprisingly untouched, waterproof matches, and a can opener before he moved on to the next department.

On his way to get socks for Bri Grant made a quick pit stop by electronics, knew that he shouldn't, he knew that he was probably wasting his time but he had been looking for something very particular for a while now. He eyed copy of his latest video game on a feature endcap as he walked by, so much work put into something that would never be played. He would never know if his game would have been one of the greats that people remember and stand in line for. If it would be a game that people demand a sequel or downloadable content so they can make their experience that much longer, but he knew that wondering what might have been served no real purpose so he moved on to the reason he was really here. It took him a bit of searching but to his amazement he found exactly what he had been looking for and hit brought a huge smile to his face, "Perfect." He shoved the item in his bag and then looked grabbed a few other things on his way out of the department and did the same. He knew that it wasn't something essential, but not everything had to be life and death, not everything had to be so grim, there had to be some joy left in the world otherwise what's the point in surviving?

Moving through the clothing racks made him more nervous than anything, his brother and sister used to hide in the clothes and jump out at him when he was little, it scared him every time. He was just waiting on one of the stinkers to do the same, except this time he'd be in real danger. Cautiously he navigated through the racks with his hatchet in hand and wide eyes scanning each of the fixtures as he approached them with his basket gripped tightly in his left hand. Finally he relaxed once he made it to the socks, he grabbed a couple of packages of the insulated ones and a package of boxer briefs, then moved on to find some for Bri. Finding this stuff for Bri was slightly harder because he didn't really know what to look for so he just grabbed her some insulated socks as well and two packages of panties because he had no idea if she needed them or not.

He picked up the pace on his way to the front of the store, he knew that he had taken longer than he should have with is pit stop in electronics, there was just one more thing he needed to grab in they were always at the front of the store by the registers, batteries. Most of them were gone but he knew some retail stocking tricks, and since this place closed down just before Black Friday he knew there had to be an abundance of batteries around here somewhere. The first thing he did was moved the battery fixture which luckily was on wheels and there were the double A's he needed. Then he searched under the surrounding shelves and sure enough there were the C's and D's. No one ever thinks to look under the shelves unless they've worked retail before.

That was all he needed, at least he was pretty sure that was everything, so he headed toward the pharmacy. It wasn't far away but he knew that Bri had to be done before him, she always was.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart

The first thing Grant always did when they entered a new place was sniff the air and that's exactly what he did here before he made sure the door was securely latched behind them. It was something he had gotten into the habit of doing since they had one of the dead followed them into a gas station just outside of Boston. It was a tough lesson, one that he didn't want to repeat. There was no lock on the door but at least they would have to figure out how to open the door if they wanted to follow them in this time. Satisfied he turned and approached Bri who was scanning the area as usual. "It's ok, I think we're clear. I didn't smell any stinkers when we came in." He looked around to get a good sense of where they were in the store and began to think about how to most efficiently go through and get supplies they needed. The benefit to Walmart is in the mid-2000s they started this green initiative where they put skylights all across their roofs, which with the light color walls and floors pretty well lit the entire store. All they needed to do was wait until sunrise if they wanted to take advantage of that.

"We can stay for a few hours and get some rest if you're worried about the dark. I can find us a good place to rest." She was nervous in the dark and he knew it, but this place did look relatively untouched, which he found to be suspicious but he didn't want to alarm her any more than she already was. "Or we can grab a cart, fill it up with some water, supplies, stuff from your list, stuff from my list, and then I can try to get one of those cars outside started." He watched her still scanning the room nervously as he was talking and it made him feel so sad. The Bri he knew before was so different, she was so laid-back and happy.

There was no sense in telling her to relax, not anymore, escaping Boston had taken a toll on her that he wasn't sure she would ever bounce back from but he was still hopeful. It's all that kept him so optimistic, the thought that she might be able to shake this paranoia and not be so on edge all the time. He tried his best to make her feel safe but it never helped. Pulled his hatchet from its sheath and started to walk forward into the dark store, unfortunately they were in cosmetics and he didn't know a damn thing they could do with make up but at least that was close to the pharmacy and those supplies were always scarce, maybe, just maybe they could get lucky this time.

"So, are we camping or making a quick run and heading out? He spoke quietly as he looked around the corner of the aisle into main walkway. Nothing he could see, but it was dark and he didn't want to alert something by shining his light too far. Just because he was pretty sure there weren't any risen here didn't mean they were completely in the clear.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

November 11, 2017, that's when it all started as close as I can figure based on how long it takes people to die once their sick. The people I've seen get sick, it's so...quick. First it was homeless people who didn't show up to their usual corners, there wasn't big fuss about that though. Why would there be? Unless you were like Bri no one cared what happened to those people. There was this one guy who used to do magic tricks in the park for kids, they loved it, he always had his cart full of props and after he was done with this show he'd make balloon animals for the kids. I always loved magic and I caught a few of his shows while I was on lunch, he was good. Then he just wasn't there one day, or the next day, or the next day. And he wasn't the only one. Bri told me that there were less and less people coming to the shelter every day. Which was odd because there were several of my employees that had called in for a couple of days and then just stopped calling. There were some CDC PSA's talking about a virus going around and to stay indoors to limit exposure. Of course I went to Bri's apartment instead of home.

The first news reports hit about a week later talking about disappearances all around the world, in the beginning the police assumed it was some sort of global cult slaughtering entire families for human sacrifices, but they had no idea what happened to the bodies. Men. Women. Children. All slaughtered in their beds, pieces left behind but no bodies. At least in the first reports. A few days later is when the stories got really weird, or at least they seemed weird at the time, in hospitals people coming in with those high fevers from the virus were dying and seemed to come back to life, people were attacking other people in airports trying to bite them, and there were stories of police shooting suspects with dozens of rounds and they just kept coming.

The reports came in quickly and steadily all across the globe for a solid week maybe two and then slowly but surely there was nothing but static. That was about a day before the lights went out, we made a night of eating the rest of the ice cream in her fridge. But winter in Boston is cold and with no power and that was when it really hit me for the first time that life was never going to be the same.

We spent the rest of our time in Boston gathering supplies, fighting the dead, fighting wild animals, even Mrs. Kinney's dog Buster attacked us one day, he almost got me pretty good but Bri stopped him before he got a bite. I don't think I'd ever been so scared in my life up to that point.

Four months of hell, four months of gathering, four month of survival and we're finally on our way to Michigan. I've only got one job in this mess and she's all I care about. She's all I've ever cared about, I mean really cared about.

March 15, 2018 - Framingham, Massachusetts - Walmart Parking Lot

With his Ruger in his hand Grant cautiously made his way toward the Walmart entrance listening for any sort of movement from within. He was anxious to get out of the cold, it was freezing outside and there was just enough snow on the ground to make a crunch under your shoes as you stepped. When his nose started to run he didn't want to sniffle so he quickly ran his gloved hand under his nose and then his glove on his pants. He shifted his eyes slightly behind him to see if Bri had seen but he couldn't really tell, not that it mattered he supposed. He was tired of being cold and he knew she had to be cold. This would be a good place to stock up on basically everything assuming it hadn't been picked clean yet, or the rats hadn't gotten to all the food. But it wasn't a big town and he couldn't imagine that many people had survived or passed through here yet.

He stopped suddenly and held his hand up for Bri to stop. With wide but focused eyes he surveyed the area. There was a noise that came from near the building but it turned out just to be a fat raccoon jump into the dumpster.

Nothing.

He turned to Bri, "I think we're good." His breath visible in the cold air as he spoke. He looked back toward the store to and took a few more steps until the doors came into view, they were in tact. "Well look at that," he relaxed and looked at her with a smile, "looks like it's our lucky day." He holstered his gun and approached the doors as quietly as possible.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

Rules of the Verse

The World

The real world but like the Walking Dead the Zombie craze never happened and the word zombie isn't a thing that people say.

Our Location

Our story takes place on the road between Boston, Massachusetts and Flint, Michigan.

The Virus

I'm thinking a bio-weapon (not to get political) that caused a plague of sorts and ended up killing a significant portion of the world's population, some people were immune, some people survived the sickness, most people who died came back, some didn't.

Infection

People who were immune to the airborne disease are still susceptible to bites and blood born infection. If infected blood gets into your system you become a carrier of the virus, it won't kill you but you can spread it to others. Bites will kill you because of the septic infection they cause but you may or may not come back (though it is more than likely that you will). People who survived the sickness are carriers and can spread it to other people.

The Dead

The "zombies" come in a wide variety. The newer the zombie the faster they can move, the harder they are to kill because of the lack of decay. The older, the slower and easier to kill. The weather does affect them in predictable ways, i.e. hotter it is outside the more they stink, the colder the slower they move, strong winds will destabilize them, and so on. They are not the "smart kind," they can't talk or formulate plans but they can see, smell, and hear you and these things attract them. They can make noise, but the older they get and more they decay their vocal cords will deteriorate and the noise they make will be mostly their own bumbling and stumbling.

Killing the dead

Completely destroying the brain is the only way to put them down permanently. You can disable the dead in a number of ways, like severing the spinal cord which would shut down the body or shooting out kneecaps causing the dead to be unable to walk.

Zombies? No

In this universe Zombie culture never happened, the word zombie just doesn't exist. So what do we call the dead? Whatever we can think of to describe them.

Posting

Each post takes place in real-time, conversations and events begin the day and time of the first post and remain one time regardless of how long it takes to finish, example a post on Monday at 7am that begins an event where posting lasts until Thursday at 11pm that entire time is considered to be Monday morning around 7am, however an unrelated post immediately after would pick up in real time i.e. Thursday at 11pm.

The Risen: Fear the Fallen

Name: Grant Remy Hunter
Age: 29
Birthday: May 16
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 185lbs (Pre-Outbreak)
Gender: Male
Orientation: Heterosexual
Occupation: Owner of video game development company
Hometown: Indianapolis, Indiana
Current City: Boston, Massachusetts



Biography:
Grant was born and raised near Indianapolis, Indiana as the youngest of three. He grew up in what can only be described as 'Geek Culture' hence his middle name, Remy, named after Remy LeBeau or Gambit of the X-men. His parents were good people who never had a lot of money but always found a way to provide for their kids. For all intents and purposes Grant grew up in a happy, if average home.

His parents sacrificed a lot for their kids to have the lives they wanted and Grant intended to pay them back tenfold. As he went through school he made sure he had good grades, made sure he did the sports, and the clubs, and a whole slew of extracurriculars so that he could get himself a full ride to a good college. Which is exactly what he did, MIT to be specific. Which is when he moved to Boston for school.

And then came his college job, a video game tester in Cambridge and he decided then and there that he wanted to work in that field for the rest of his life so he switched his major from Biological Engineering to Writing with a double minor in Art, Culture and Technology and Entrepreneurship & Innovation. It took him 5 years but when he graduated he had a full time job waiting for him leading a project at the company he started as a tester.

His successes earned him substantial gains and he was able to do exactly what he had intended to do, he bought his parents an upscale house in one of the nicest parts of Indianapolis where even his freeloading brother could stay.

But his successes came with a cost, since he had moved to Boston he had really hadn't made many friends, Briana was his only real friend and they met years ago when she lived in Chicago and he lived in Indianapolis. She's the best friend he's ever had and he even loved her family.

After a few years leading projects Grant set out to start his own company that he could build from the ground up. Though his independent game flopped due to its limited release he was able to come back with back to back hits, Champion City and Epics:Vendetta. Two games that made him a name in the world of RPGs.

When the outbreak happened he was in the middle of working on the ironically titled Apocalypse Warrior, and when the dead started to rise there was only one place Grant could think to go, Briana's.

There's only one thing on his mind now, his one job in all of this and he can't, no he won't fail. And so for 124 days and counting he's made good on that goal...

Weapons:
Remington R-15 with Scope
Ruger SR1911'
Machete
Schrade Survival Hatchet
Timber Wolf Extreme Tactical Bowie Knife

Backpack: Cabela's Elias 40-Liter Backpack
Filled mostly with medical supplies, what food they can find, and water bottles. Other items include a deck of cards, a couple of ponchos, batteries, and a flashlight.

Apparel:
A ball cap, dark gray button down shirt with rolled up sleeves, black cargo pants, waterproof black boots. A black canvas jacket from time to time.