( open ) since when have the feds started tracking zombie activity?

[ofletters]

Who: Sam Winchester and YOU
Where: Alexandria
When: July 14-17
Rating: R for zombies, violence, and some language.
Summary: It's as close a call as any in recent history, but 'saving people, hunting things' is still the credo.
The Story:

day 1

[ He wakes up in a bed that isn't the one he's gotten used to in his cramped, little space in the mansion. Sam startles, wondering for a wild moment if he'd been sent back 'home,' but one quick look out the window says otherwise. Then - a dream? But there's that feeling of being securely grounded, and he's had enough sort-of dreams that he can tell the difference... usually. As such, the Winchester sets his jaw and descends through a (frankly) very nice house and out the front door, gun raised in front of him.

There isn't much beyond the occasional chirp of birds. It's eerie, and one look around provides him with the currently-absent Dean's commentary: "Stepford much?" Sam scoffs faintly, lowering, but now stowing, his weapon. If this is a Wonderland-brand event, then something's bound to be off, at best. Very, very dangerous, at worst. ]

Hey - [ Someone passes his field of vision and he approaches slowly, offering a wave. ] You, uh... know what's going on?

[ It's someone from the mansion, he knows, from his years of monitoring the network. ]



day 2

[ Michonne had told them quickly enough: zombies. Zombies in a zombie world surrounding, at least a little, this town called Alexandria. So, this is his own country, at least in theory, though with the added 'bonus' of being a part of the apocalypse that took Michonne's family and her old life. Sam remembers too easily the zombies that had flooded the mansion in Wonderland a year or so earlier, and at least here, it feels... more open. Less claustrophobic.

How far will they be able to get, though, if they need to run? Will Alexandria be afflicted with the same borders that Wonderland is, trapping them and the zombies in a cage together?

Sam is quiet where he stands as a lookout, gun trained on some of the walkers below. The noise is a no-no, which is obvious to anyone who's ever seen zombie media, but he's more there in case of emergency. If these guys manage a major breakout, then they'll need guns, and ammo, to stay alive.

Without the functional, magic closets, though, that might get kind of difficult... ]



day 3 - closed to dean winchester

[ They're everywhere, as he should've known they'd be. The zombies took down the walls with the force of their mob and have flooded the town. People are dying, getting bitten, left and right, and the younger Winchester is doing everything he can, alongside his brother, to keep the residents safe. Easier said than done. ]

Dean! [ He shouts roughly, after blowing the head off a nearby walker. Another is approaching his brother from behind, and he wastes no time, after the shout, to take a shotgun to it, sending gore spraying backward from the blast. Sam pants, sweaty and wild-eyed, knowing that they are severely outnumbered. ]

What's the plan? [ Comes the breathless question, with the tiniest of hopes that Dean has some idea of how they can do this without both losing a life. ]

Comments

[mulletrock]

[In the last few months Dean's spent more time with Michonne than he'd ever admitted to Sam so he knows exactly how far up shit creek they are. It's all over his face, along with blood, and the sticky shine of sweat.

Alexandria wasn't exactly ripe with provisions. He's been using his knife and blade instead of the gun just to conserve ammo. He's got eyes on Sam and his six at all times but unless they get out of the throws of this hell there's no way they're going to see the other side of the horde or any familiar faces ever again.]

We need to get some space between us and them. Somewhere secure. I don't think the compound's lost but unless we get a head count and save some strength we're gonna be part of the damn body count.

[No screaming on his side, just quick purposeful discussion. Dean crushes the head of a walker he took down with the heel of his boot. His number one priority is getting Sam out of here in one piece. Any rescue attempts for civvie were gonna have to happen along the way.]

[ofletters]

We're not gonna get a head count in this mess.

[ Not with zombies everywhere and the residents among them. It makes his stomach twist painfully at the thought. ]

We can hole up in one of the houses, but -

[ But you'd be hard-pressed to get Sam to abandon the people around them who need help. Badly. ]

[mulletrock]

Right.

[As much as Dean might want to hole up and wait for the regroup to see where they're at, he knows his conscience and Sam's won't let them just leave these people to get ripped apart. Especially not after knowing what Michonne went through. It's one thing to understand it from a similar aspect in his own life, it's a totally different thing to experience her hell first hand.]

I got your six, brother.

[ofletters]

[ Of course Dean understands. It isn't as if he'd let their friends die, either. These are innocent people, and people that both Winchester care about. Their own safety isn't worth abandoning all that. ]

We're lucky we just gotta ram 'em through the skull. [ Sam breathes, thinking of their previous experiences with "undead." The girl who'd been raised who'd broken Sam's arm. Bobby's wife, making pies. ] Easy enough.

[ For now. ]

[mulletrock]

[It's wall to wall chaos here and Dean knows they're only gonna save a few of them if that. As much as he might want to turn tail and let the chips fall where they may he has to remind himself that this isn't purgatory and that's a comparison isn't too far from a lie when they're staring down the barrel like this.]

Yeah, okay, hot shot. Your lead.

[There are enough people walled in and undead scattered around while going after heart beats that it shouldn't be too damn hard to brain some of them and get the civs to safety. It's getting cornered or grabbed that's a potential problem. Not knowing who's bit and who isn't. There's a blood bath going on around him, and Dean's already seen two people take the dive and devour, it's a sight he's not looking to relive again anytime soon. Corpses create more corpses out here and things just keep piling up.]

[ofletters]

[ Sam nods in silence, then jams a machete through the head of one of the walkers. ]

C'mon. [ And he moves with precision through the horde, cutting down their foes when necessary, checking a little more than he probably should to make sure Dean's following. This is like home, but it isn't home. They're in their old routine, but not quite.

A short distance ahead, he spots some residents fighting off the zombies and moves toward them, cutting a path. It's clear that his intention is to aid them as best they can, to shepherd them toward one of the houses that's been safeguarded. ]

day 2

[geiger]

[ The line of walkers Sam has his weapon trained on stand between Nora and the safety of the town, having ventured beyond the safety of the gate to try to find something to eat besides the few scraps that the people of Alexandria had left behind. A couple of squirrels in one hand and an axe in the other, she peers round a tree to see how many walkers are in her way. Not too many, but more than she can take on by herself.

She figures there must be a lookout on duty, and she attempts to get their attention, which is difficult without making noise. She waves her arms in an exaggerated manner, hoping he'd get her meaning. ]

[ofletters]

[ Nora catches Sam's attention and he almost cracks a smile at her antics - almost. Rather, he nods curtly and aims a silenced pistol at a few of the walkers near her. Before long, they go down, clearing her a safe-enough path. In the meantime, he can keep an eye on her progress to make sure none of the others decide she's especially interesting. ]

[geiger]

[ Nora gives him a thumbs up when he clears the walkers nearby, glad that her pantomiming had got the point across. As quietly as she can manage she makes her way back toward the town, darting between trees and poking the rusty pipe she's using as a weapon through the back of one walker's skull when it gets too close, sighing in relief when she makes it back to the gate. ]

Open sesame.

[ofletters]

[ Those nearest to it open the gate and Sam glances down as Nora enters, giving her a nod. ]

Everything alright? [ He glances from the pipe to the squirrels and chuckles from up on his post. ] Seems like you had a worthwhile trip out there, huh?

[geiger]

[ She sighs in relief as the gate swings shut behind her. ]

I hope so, anyway. I'm not sure how tasty these will be, but it's better than nothing.

[ And definitely a hell of a lot better than some of the stuff she ate in the wasteland. ]

[ofletters]

Definitely better than nothing. Thanks for doing that.

[ She may be a stranger, but they're all one group in Alexandria... and in Wonderland. ]

Need any help with that stuff? [ Sam asks, and then realizes it's fairly ridiculous, since she obviously can carry what's already secured in her arms. So, he clears his throat, glancing away. ] I mean, uh... need help with - anything?

[ Better?? ]

[geiger]

Only if you know a good recipe. [ She turns one of the squirrels over in her hands. ] I've roasted them on a stick over the fire, back in my own world, but that won't feed the five thousand. Maybe a stew?

[ofletters]

Not for squirrels. [ He nearly laughs, only because he can barely cook the kind of food he and Dean usually eat, let alone... squirrels. ] Sorry to disappoint.

[ Sam does crack a smile, though, nodding vaguely. ]

You'd... probably have to get the fur off, though, first. Or it'd be a little - chunky.

Day 2

[morethan084]

[Yeah he's definitely good at being quiet because Daisy is quick to draw her weapon when she walks past and sees someone with their back turned, hovering. Two seconds later she realizes it's someone alive and holding a gun, clearly focused on someone below. A zombie she assumes, or you know, hopes.

Stepping into the room the floor gives a creak and she hoped that doesn't make him jump too much. He was clearly being quiet for a reason, but Daisy speaks up anyway.]

How many are out there?

[ofletters]

[ Sam stiffens at the voice, but doesn't startle. The younger Winchester clears his throat a little, glancing slowly from the zombies to Daisy. ]

More than an hour ago, but not so many that we can't handle it. [ Luckily, they've got people on this side of the fence able to stab the walkers in the head from this safe distance. ] We're managing.

[ For now. ]

[morethan084]

[Even if he didn't jump, Daisy did notice the way he tensed and gave him a slightly apologetic expression as she stepped further into the room.]

I used to think zombies were just a thing in the movies. Never thought I'd actually be fighting them multiple times since I got here.

[Trying to get a peek out the window, Daisy let out a sigh before looking up at him.]

At least we can see these.

[ofletters]

I know what you mean. [ Sort of. They may not face these kinds of zombies, but their whole lives are based around the supernatural. ] How've you been? Handling things okay?

[ "At least we can see these." He scoffs faintly, silently in agreement. ]

Day 1~

[thecourier]

[Dan had woken up in the same kind of daze. It was almost like being in those pre-war dreams again, but no matter how hard he tried, there was no waking up out of it.

It's... nice. It's nice inside the house, and outside, but the niceness has an eerie quiet to it and he doesn't disarm before he ventures out onto the street. Will anyone know where they are? Will they know who they are? If Dan has learned anything it's that even expecting the unexpected isn't always enough.]

Sam. [He answers the wave with a small, hesitant one of his own.] Uh... no idea, yet. This is.. fuckin' weird.

[ofletters]

Yeah. [ Dan's right about that. Sam frowns, brows furrowed, as he peers around the streets. ] Thought it might be a weird dream, but...

[ But Dan is here, and he doesn't think it's a dream anymore. It doesn't feel like one, either. ]

Seen anybody else? [ He asks, gun still drawn. And then: ] This might be somebody's home world.

[thecourier]

No one yet, but I ain't got very far.

[He's... wary. Places like this - calm, quiet - never mean anything good. If he wasn't so sure it wasn't anything to do with him he would be expecting feral ghouls to rise up off the lawns.

His hand is on his own gun, but he hasn't drawn it yet.]

We should look around. Get the lay 'a the place.

[ofletters]

Good idea. [ Sam hadn't explored much yet himself, either. ] Seems a little... sterile.

[ And too quiet. He doubts it'll stay that way for long. ]

Stay sharp. [ He mutters, glancing around furtively before they start their patrol. ]

[thecourier]

Don't need t' tell me twice.

[He keeps one hand on his weapon as they go. The streets and houses are quiet in a way that he can't even call eerie. It's peaceful, but there is an undeniable tension in the air that makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

It's like every deserted town he's ever walked into.]

How much ammo you got?

[ofletters]

Only what was on my person. [ So, "not much." ] You?

[ Unfortunately, this doesn't seem like the kind of place to have an ammo cache just lying around... and he doubts its closets are magical. ]

[thecourier]

Same. Lucky fer me I ain't ever got outta the paranoid habit a' keeping m'self armed.

[Less weapons, these days, but he always has at least one gun with him with the ammo to match.]

Don't look like we'll have much luck here.