human
Simon had gotten the messages, of course. Morse code from a college radio station, with a weak broadcast range. It had started out proper, quick and obviously from someone who knew what they were doing, but within the day it became more awkward, slow and a little bit jolted, sometimes with incorrect letters, making the message a bit garbled. Like someone who didn't exactly know what they were doing was just repeating the same thing over and over, probably having been taught by whoever was better.
dr trapped in elrose un radio room help
dr traped in elrose uni radio room help
It was tapping directly on the microphone, an unpleasant sound but the quietest thing whoever it was could probably do.
pouer runnin out.
Simon had broadcast the information on all radio channels. With his voice, the garbled attempts at morse code were confusing and not exactly the most helpful to someone who didn't have time to sit there with a pencil and paper and figure it out.
Shannonfelt sick. It might have been the fact that she hadn't had proper food or water in a week, but it was way more likely it was the stench of death. Her fingers were a little cramped, which was stupid and annoying and somehow the worst thing ever at the moment. She didn't know all the letters, so she had to do what she had learned from the man currently laying dead in the corner of the radio room. Well, twice dead, really. It was hard to tell if this was working properly without the beeping of a telegraph, but she was pretty sure she was managing to get the message across. She just... didn't know if anyone would come. She was halfway through the message when the power went out, the generator finally out of even fumes to run on. She was plunged into darkness, there were no windows in the radio room. She had the darkness, a gun, half a bottle of water, and the body of a friend to accompany her into what she assumed was her inevitable death.
"Can't leave you here, Murphy. Get up, we're going." The grey minivan parked on the college campus had blood splattered across the front, and gunk on the wheels, though it wasn't really comparable to the dents and splatter across the front of the truck that was parked a few feet away. It was a miracle the small college was so empty of zombies, but they were around. They had to be. Enough for someone to lock themselves away in a room somewhere. But if there had been researchers here it meant it had been cleared out previously, at least a few buildings."We get in, we get the researcher, we get out."Citizen Z had given them a decent rundown of where everything was, so they knew where they were and where they needed to go. The hope was that the small group would be able to make it.
10k had already vanished off somewhere, thought they knew he'd be there when they needed him. "Let's go. This place makes me itch." Addy had her bat over her shoulder, and looked a little displeased. Perhaps this was bringing back some memories, or perhaps she just wasn't all that invested.
gpt
Soft groans, and gentle grumbles of protest could barely be noticed leaving the forty-two year old's slightly parted lips; only if one were to listen real close, and forcus on the inmate, would they notice the small pattern of nightmares that plagued Alvin Murphy every time he closed his eyes. Due to this, sleep was generally kept to a grouchy minimum, and reserved mostly for when the group was packed up in their van and traveling under the guidance of a stranger on a radio. It took all the man's strength to relax enough once seated in the vehicle, surrounded by people he couldn't care less about - and he knew it was more than likely a mutual feeling. Even so, his 'serenity' didn't last long, not with the group so eager to take on side missions from some kid who calls himself Citizen Z. In his opinion, if they made every pit stop on the way from there to California, he'd never arrive in time to "save the world."
"Can't leave you here, Murphy. Get up, we're going."
Instantly, Murphy's eyelids slammed opened, and abruptly shifted in the seat he was currently still in. Taking a moment to gather his surroundings, and peek out the window at the obvious Campus they were on, mankind's only known hope released the loudest, most non-complainant groan of his life. Naturally, the man knew for a fact he wasn't going to be able to whine his way out of his - no matter how tempted he was to try. Warren and Garnett were too "worried" about him running off, or getting himself killed.. although, if you asked Murphy, he had a much higher feeling of danger following the group into whatever death trap they insisted on tackling head on. What was so dangerous about waiting in the van? Unless a horde came out of no where.. then singling himself out wasn't his ideal situation. And Murphy didn't do guns.
Shrugging out of the van, the six foot three male adjusted the brown coat that clung to his torso, crossing his arms defensively over the material to show his disdain for their current situation. "Let's go. This place makes me itch." A scoff eased from the back of Murphy's throat, rolling his blue eyes at the redheaded young woman only a few feet away from him. "That's an understatement.." he grumbled in response, sneering slightly at their surroundings. "How do we even know they're still in there, and we're not just walking into a death trap?" Roberta was the first to scoff this time, eyeing Murphy with one of her hardened gazes; a look that generally caused him to scowl in response, but quiet down in his complaints. "Why don't I just wait in the van - keep it safe?" Doc was the first to respond this time, shaking his crowbar in Murphy's direction.
"Says the guy who wrecked our last set of wheels from 'keeping the car safe.'"
Another eye roll was made, but with less of a grumble in response. "Wreck one oil rig, and no one lets you forget it.."
Exhaling heavily, Murphy released his arms from their crossed stature, finally coming to his senses and mentally agreeing with the situation. He was going to be dragged through it either way - he could at least try and make the most out of it. Who knew, maybe he'd find some college favors lying around (if only he'd be that lucky).
Even so, that didn't mean he was going to be enthusiastic about it. The fact of the matter was still very fresh within Murphy's mind, and the idea of rescuing a doctor of any kind made is stomach flip with anxiety. Just the very idea of hearing someone wearing that title automatically made his eyes squint with displeasure, and idly, a hand sipped underneath the fabric of his black tee shirt, tracing one of the many scars lingering underneath.
"Come on, Murphy." Snapping from his thoughts, the forty two year old lifted his gaze to Warren, who was the last one waiting for him to enter the building, door propped open with one arm. Mumbling a 'yeah, yeah' under his breath, the man closed the distance between the van and the entrance, allowing Roberta to close the door behind them. "Still think we should let them rot."
human
They were alive ten hours ago.That was basically a week in zombie time, at least for someone trapped in a building on their own. If it had been one of them, shed say survival was at least half probable. For 10k, itd be almost certain. But a doctor of some sort? Well, they all had their doubts. But everybody knew better than to tell Murphy that, it would just make everything harder. Roberta had barely wanted to come in the first place, but if shed learned anything so far, it was that ignoring Citizen Z wasnt the best idea. He knew things. If he said this was important, it probably was. If it looked too bad, theyd get out.Everything these days is a death trap.She had a point. Nothing was ever safe, and it didnt matter what they did. At any point they could get ambushed, by humans or zombies.
If this doctor was a real, medical doctor, and not just a scientist with a degree, that would make a huge difference for them. Even if they werent, maybe theyd know something. Not that she was judging Docs talents hed saved about everyone once it just might be nice to have someone who had a little bit more specialization.
We know what building theyre in, what floor the radio room is on.Which might not be where the scientist was anymore. But in the building was a safe bet.No guns unless theyre necessary, we dont need the attention.Hopefully whoever had kept the scientists alive and working had also cleaned up the campus to some degree, or things were gonna get real messy, real fast. It was too late to tell 10k that, but he figured most of that shit out on his own. The rather ragtag group looked ready for war, and in a way, they were. Roberta felt like she could call it that. Or could have called it that. Briefly, it had been. And then they had lost. She supposed she didnt have a word for it now. Theyd lost. Now everyone was just. Surviving. But they had a chance with them. Murphy, as awful as he was, he was their chance. This doctor, too. If they had her, maybe she could do something. Roberta didnt know. If Citizen Z said they should get the doctor, theyd get the doctor.
When the door was open, they moved in. The dirty windows provided enough light to see decently, and she made a few gestures. The group would split up to explore the floor, everyone needed to select a window or door to use as the get the hell out plan. There was blood on the floor and a body in the hall, and those two things were never good signs.
"Gotta start checking rooms." It didn't necessarily sound like a command, but it was. She'd never needed to use command words to tell people what to do, they just knew.
In the dark radio room, Shannon buried her face in her hands, just for a moment. She knew she wouldnt run out of oxygen, there was a crack under the door so logically she couldnt suffocate, but it sure felt like she was. Maybe anxiety made it hard to breathe. And of course she was anxious. How long had it been? The best way shed be able to tell time was by the smell, but the room already smelled so bad, how could she tell the difference? It probably got worse. Oh god, shed only know because it was worse than it was now. That was provided she didnt die in there. Shed have to come out eventually, she didnt want to starve to death. And she had some amount of bullets, she hadnt been able to count them in the gun in the dark, and hadnt thought to do it while the generator was still up. Now it was too late. Eventually shed have to go out, with that gun, and survive. Shed not really had to survive like that on her own. Shed been with soldiers, in a lab. It had been, well notsafe, but safer.
gpt
Ten hours ago. How optimistic.
At Roberta's jab back about everything being a death trap these days, it took all of Murphy's consciousness to restrain himself from repeating her in a mocking, relatively whiny voice. He wasn't going to win this argument, no matter how many tantrums he pulled out of his sleeve, and there wasn't really a point in making an already bad situation worse for himself. At least he still had free reign to move as he wished - for all he knew, with all his childish behavior, Garnett might even suggest to put a child-leash on him on their upcoming outings if he carried on like a four year old constantly.
The trick was to make it look like he was helping, like a portion of his being was actually planning on giving into their demands and joining their efforts. Of course, that didn't mean that the brunette had to force a smile on while doing so - his sluggish and unenthusiastic movements should've been expected, with or without his compliance.
Inside the corridor wasn't much of a sight to see - clutter littered the floor; windows building with dust; obvious signs of a life taken, whether from zees or other causes. A sight that made the forty-two year old's lips curve into a bit of a sneer, and he was quick to alter his route away from the decomposing body, dipping down another part of the hallway by himself. Cautious, careful footsteps carried him along the wall, using the dim lighting barely seeping in through the blotched glass to guide his way around, Roberta's words fading off in the distance about doing something or other..
Roughly calloused fingers reached out as he passed a coat rack, idly sliding a surprisingly kept lab coat off its mantle as the man passed it. Stripping his brown coat, the material was quickly replaced with the pristine (at least, in comparison to his own) lab coat. Nosily, Murphy's hands dug into the chest pockets of the coat, withdrawing multiple different scrunched up papers, and a pen - scribbled notes he let drop to the floor one by one as his lone 'search' continued, content with the idea that no one alive was actually still inside the building.
"Those rooms in there clear?" called Garnett, poking his head into the area Murphy had disappeared to. Momentarily, the Sargent drilled an eyebrow-arched look towards the inmate, but didn't respond to the man's new attire adjustment. It was obvious Murphy wasn't taking it seriously, but as long as he kept himself out of the way, Garnett was prepared to ignore the selfish tendencies that were starting to build up around their 'package'. Naturally, to the man's response, Murphy raised a hand and gave him a sloppy salute, steering his course from trying to inspect out the poorly visibility through the window, to actually doing what they had come there for.
Closing the distance to the first door, the handle was twisted abruptly and opened, Murphy's body coming to stand within the doorway. For a moment, his eyes swept the dimly lit room, before he let the door swing back closed. "Exactly what I expected - nothing." Garnett shook his head in response, shifting from the area in order to look somewhere else, leaving Murphy to investigate the remaining closed door within the corridor. Shuffling in front of the second door, a firm grip was taken hold of this door handle as well, giving it a secure twist to swing it on its hinges.
Like the first room, light blue eyes crept around what he knew to be the space before him, although beyond the light streaming in behind him, there wasn't a spark to illuminate anything. Keeping his stance, hand holding the handle of the door, eyes peering into the darkness, Murphy's lips pressed into a thin line. Something.. didn't feel like the last room. Didn't smell like the last room. After a moment of silence, his head tilted downwards, lowering his gaze to the stretching rays of light along the floor of the room. His orbs followed the trail until they came to rest on a motionless body, a sight that caused his grip on the handle to flinch momentarily before he regained his composure - albeit shakily. A composure he was about to lose altogether once he accomplished a step into the room, and was granted a glimpse of a woman.
Veering, Murphy attempted to take his step forward back, but he lost his balance. Instead of coming collect himself, the man found every sense of light vanishing as the door slammed to a close, leaving the man to cling to the door frame in an attempt to keep his feet planted firmly under him. Even after the display, he refused to say anything - barely even a peep escaped out of surprise from his stumble, unsure how to take the women he'd only gotten a quick glance at. For all he knew, she was just another corpse adding to the stench in the room - but the more Murphy toyed with the words 'woman' and 'doctor', the more his paranoid fired up around him in the darkness.
".. Merch."
For his sake, and possibly this woman's, Murphy desperately hoped someone had heard his falter.
human
Some of the rooms had zombies in them, in labcoats, two were in military gear. It seemed like theyd tried to quarantine. There were seven or eight in the hall around the corner, and they were handled with ease. It turned out that the reason that perhaps there werent more was that one of the doors on the other side of the building was open, and when the wind blew a chain clinked against a pole. That was a zombie attracting noise, and Garnett shut that door quietly and carefully, to make sure that nothing came in from the outside. Because there were. a lot more on the other side of that now closed door.
He managed to get it very slowly, though the noise attracted a few, which would definitely rile up the others. They had a time limit now.
When Murphy opened the door, Shannon immediately lifted a hand, shading her eyes and squinting.HelloThen the door closed again, plunging them into darkness that she was suddenly ill prepared for after a blast of brightness.
Her fingers scraped against the desk as she fumbled for the gun. When she found it, she had to run her hand over it to find the safety, which was undone with a click that seemed way too loud. He was alive, but hed just shut the door and left them both in the dark. She didnt like that at all. It wasnt exactly a promise of safety. There was no real reason to close the door. Unless outside was dangerous or he was dangerous. Neither of those was good, both of those were probably good reasons to have a weapon in her hands.
'Merch'?
My name is Shannon Hasting,she said cautiously, looking towards the little bit of light that she could see coming from underneath the door. As long as she could see feet blocking that, she knew about where the man was. I was sending out messages. For help.Was it him? He looked more like some kind of degenerate, but she supposed she couldnt really judge someone based on looks three years into the apocalypse unless they had something ridiculous like blood or war paint? War paint made of blood, that would be bad. Will you please open the door? She sounded hesitant, nervous even. Her grip tightened on the gun a little bit and she looked a little nervous, though her expression couldnt be seen in the dark.
Then the door opened, slowly, at first so that zombies couldnt rush it, and then more quickly.Murphy? Thought I saw you go in here.Robertas eyes immediately fixed on the frightened looking blonde woman.You the doctor?She got a slow nod in return, and swung the door the rest of the way open,Im Lieutenant Roberta Warren. The name tended to help a little. Most people at least casually still accepted the military as a good force, most units hadnt turned to causing active harm as far as she knew. Put the gun down. Shannon did, and then carefully stood up, wobbling a little bit. She hadnt completely realized how thirsty she was until that exact moment. Good find, Murphy.
Roberta wasnt about to question why the man had closed the door and put them both in darkness, she didnt always understand what was going on in his head. He was kind of a weirdo, Not survival smart, either.Come on out. We got water and a car. Murphy, give her a hand if she needs it.He was the one who wasnt gonna fight, so if the doctor was wobbly, he was in charge of her. Theres a bit of a party on the far side of the building, so were going back out the way we came."
I'll be alright,Shannon reassured.... whoever might care.I've just been cooped up for a while.She didn't even know how long. She picked the gun back up and clicked the safety back, offering it to Roberta, who shook her head. Alright, looked like she could keep that. Not that the thirty seven year old was sure she'd be any good with it.
gpt
Click.
After the name was uttered, memories filled Murphy's thoughts - he barely had the focus to spare to hear the woman distantly refer to herself as someone else. Even still,
the man remained motionless, eyes boring into the darkness where he'd last seen the still-breathing figure. The connection between woman and doctor were too persistent for the forty year old to rationally let it go, even with a name like 'Shannon Hastings' to go behind it. What if this was all a trick? Dark room, secluded area.. Murphy didn't have a weapon, and she clearly did. For all he knew, there were others in the room, waiting to ambush him; force him back into some lab to be their guinea pig again.
Moments passed, and Murphy remained silent, ignoring the woman's explanations and simple request to re-open the door that he'd accidentally released. If it'd been up to him, he wouldn't have ever opened it - left her to rot with whatever fate brought crawling to her doorstep. He should've tried a lot harder to make it appear he was helping, rather than actually doing said deed.
As the door hinges sounded, Murphy twisted, shifting enough so that his body was now facing the wall to the door's left, giving him a good eye-view of the ones entering, as well as giving him an angle to get a good look at this 'Shannon' - just in case. Stepping out of Roberta's way as the door opened fully, he gave a small pursed-lip shrug, biting the inside of his cheek for probably the first time since he'd started getting dragged around by these has-beens. The less this woman knew about him, the better for everyone; better if he mouth stayed as sealed as his charm would allow.
Good find, Murphy.
"Thanks, Mom." Well, so much for that 'sealed mouth' plan. Instantly, the comment came to bite him back in the ass as Roberta assigned him babysitting duty. For a moment, all he could do was gawk at the dark-haired woman, jaw slightly slack in just disbelief that she'd even think to leave him with such a task. It was as though she didn't notice it, or purposely ignored it, probably knowing if she didn't say anything to his reaction, he'd sluggishly fall into place like he usually did. Unexpectedly enough, it was almost as though the good Doctor had taken his expression into thought for her next reassurance, trying to tell the group that she'd be fine without the extra hand of support. That allowed the look to wipe off The Package's face, and he went to readjust the coat he'd grown so used to wrapping around himself - only to remember he'd replaced it with a lab coat.
The group started to head out, Addy and Mack leading the way from their position in the hallway with Garnett in the front, as Murphy shuffled quickly out of the new attire addition he was suddenly regretting. Tossing the material carelessly, Murphy turned to follow the group incidentally as the fabric landed snugly on the body of the fallen doctor, no doubt one of Shannon's former colleagues. Retrieving the brown jacket from the previous room, baby blue orbs glanced in Shannon's direction for the first time since he'd been placed with his 'assignment'. Even the reveal of her having absolutely no relation to Dr. Merch, maybe other than occupational interest, didn't make the churning within the bottom of his stomach settle. "Keep up," he finally spoke, shrugging into his familiar clothing piece, quick to do the zipper all the way up. Not another word rolled off the man's tongue as he turned on his heels, following the trail to catch back up the few steps they'd fallen back.
Zees were dispatched with ease, granting them easy entry back into the parking lot of the Campus. It was clear as the group emerged back into the daylight that 10k had been keeping himself well entertained while the group was submerged, fresh bodies littering the pavement; a sight that Murphy still wasn't quite accustomed to seeing up close and personal. "Kid's gonna get to ten thousand before he knows it." Scoffing, Doc's comment was ignored by Murphy, and he pushed past the group's pace to head back towards the van they'd driven in. They came, they saw, they unfortunately concurred. Now it was time to leave.
Naturally, the impatience flowing within his veins wasn't precipitated, and everyone else's main concern was on getting Shannon re-hydrated before they set off to do anything. "It's not like she can't drink up all our water supply while we're on the move.." complained a semi-reclined Murphy, who was currently taking up most of the back seats in the van with his stretched out position. Addy tossed an empty bottle in his direction in an effort to silence anything else that could be mustering to slip off his tongue, and then found another to give to Shannon with a smile. "Don't pay attention to him - none of us do. Drink as much as you need, we've got enough." From the backseat, a scowl had briefly pulled across the rugged man's mouth at witnessing the kindness that every other person they came across seemed to get in light of how they treated him.
What the fuck was he to these people? Just some parcel? Some piece of junk mail that was going to get ditched in the recycling box after two seconds of obtaining it? Murphy had the cure to everyone's salvation, literally running through his veins. He didn't ask for this - hell, going to prison for something as simple as fraud didn't even warrant a punishment like this. But here he was, witnessing time after time again when their new arrivals were rewarded with comfort, support.. even pampering. What had this Shannon Hastings ever done to deserve to be saved? Was she going to right the wrongs of this plague? Was she even going to be staying with them? Just one more doctor he had to look forward to poking and prodding him.
Feeling claustrophobic with his own thoughts, Murphy suddenly pushed up from his position, and squeezed past the middle seat of the minivan, uncaring if he'd bumped anyone on his abrupt way out. Inhaling deeply as his feet hit the pavement, Murphy's boots instantly carried him to the front of the van, where Roberta and Garnett were mapping out the route they were going to take from here, where to stop off to look for supplies, and where might be a good place to hold up for the night. "What're we still doing here? We have the broad, what's left - more orders from Citizen Nutjob?" Unlike normal, these questions weren't asked as aggressively and sarcastically as they usually would've been. Instead, an underlining of nervousness rang within his words, mixing well with the anxious composure of Murphy's slight fidgeting. Something Roberta took notice of instantly, and momentarily, a look of concern flashed within her eyes, before her lips pressed thinly together.
"We're almost done, Murphy. We can't just take off without having a good sense of where we're going. And," the Coast Guard made a gesture to the sun's position in the sky. "It'll be dark sooner than later. I don't wanna get caught in the dark with my pants down." Taking a step towards the man, she gave him what was supposed to be a reassuring pat on the shoulder, and nodded her head back towards the open minivan's door. "Why don't you get some rest. 10k should be back from scavenging car parts for his slingshot soon. By that time we should be ready to roll out." Knowing he was defeated in the sense that Roberta wasn't starting that engine until they were satisfied with their mapping, Murphy turned to retreat back into the van, ignoring the stern 'be nice' their co-leader muttered in his general direction.
human
It might have been a little silly to trust the strangers, but they seemed okay. Well, the woman seemed okay. The man Murphy was concerning. Made her a little uncomfortable, honestly. But they were capable, that became clear as they stepped out of the hall and into the sun, which made the light blonde haired doctor shield her eyes from the second dose of bright light shed had to deal with today.
The bodies scattered across the courtyard made her wince. The worst part was the man in a military uniform that she recognized, just sprawled out on the pavement. All of this was not what she had hoped for. There had never really been an end game here, they had been pretty sure they didnt have the equipment to make a cure at the college but everyone had been trying anyway because it was what they could do. She followed carefully, walking around the bodies instead of just stepping over arms and legs like the others.
When she was offered a bottle, Shannon took it immediately, unscrewing the lid and lifting it to her lips. She didnt believe for an instant that they had enough. Nobody ever had enough water, unless they lived by a river. Maybe a lake, but it only took a few zombies to contaminate a still body of water. So Shannon drank enough that she felt like she was going to be okay. Dehydration was the new norm, she wasnt going to waste their water when it could be better used drawn out over a longer period of time or for more people to use.
Theres farmland off that way a few miles,she pointed past the buildings that had once been full of students and professors eager for knowledge,Im not sure how many miles, but its not more than an hour or two, we had people whod go out that way to scavenge and look for equipment.Farms could be a decent place to hole up for a night, four walls and a door were good, right? I didnt. get out, she apologized a little awkwardly a moment later, some did but I wasnt supposed to. The people who were considered irreplaceable didnt get to leave. They had guards on them all the time.
Which hadnt really done much good in the end, except to make her entirely unprepared to be out on her own.
A zombie lurched into view in the distance, slow and wobbling, and Shannons eyes went towards it immediately. The others took a look and brushed it off, something that slow wasnt going to get the jump on them and as long as an eye was kept on one, it wasnt dangerous. But it was also pretty obvious that she wasnt used to any of it, and the mere knowledge that a zombie was in her sight made her a little bit stressed out. Roberta frowned slightly, realizing that she was now with two people who werent going to be much use in a fight. Hopefully Shannons other skills would make up for it. They could teach her to be a survivor, if she had medical skills shed be a huge asset.You can wait in the car if youd prefer. In the back.Where Murphy had been. Keep the two together, might make it easier to protect them both.
Shannon nodded, looking a little relieved, and slid into the car, all the way to the opposite side so that she could lean against the window. There was safety in this, at least. A moment later she was scooting back until she could see the people again.She said your name was Murphy, right? Thank you.For being part of the rescue. He seemed to be the least happy she was there, which meant she was the one that she should talk to.Is there anyone who needs medical attention of any sort? That was what Shannon could bring to the table, and it was a pretty important skill.
gpt
"What do you think?" Garnett asked Roberta, casting a quick glance over his shoulder towards Addy as the redhead made her way up towards the straggler. "Farm land's bound to have something - anything - we can use. Plus it'll be big enough for everyone. Might get a decent nights sleep for once." The coast guard gave the woman a cheeky smile, arching his brows a little playfully in her direction before the brunette gave him a soft shove, causing him to wipe the look off his face. "Yeah, sounds good. Lets just hope Murphy learns how to make friends.." responded the woman, starting to finger out the route in direction Shannon had mentioned. Garnett shrugged his shoulders stiffly, eyes peering towards the van as Shannon retreated back into the vehicle, almost feeling sorry for the close proximity she had to carry out with Murphy. "It'll be a long drive. He'll get over himself."
Within the back of the van, Alvin Murphy's stance was rather lacking - his eyes were nearly glazed over as he glanced up at the ceiling of the vehicle, and the look of sheer and utter boredom that lingered over his features was more than obvious, even at a quick glance. A small part of him had thought about pulling out Doc's deck of cards, something to amuse him, but a blur passed the corner of his eye, breaking his thoughts. Snapping back to reality, Murphy's blue orbs hesitated for a moment on the newcomer, trying to find any spec on her person that would prove just how vial his gut was insisting on being true. Almost like her name tag would specifically read, 'Shannon Hastings, nominated for most evil scientist award.' The woman sat down, and for a moment, Murphy was able to pry his eyes from her, not wanting to get caught looking at her. Instead, he positioned his eyes directly ahead, fingers smoothing out to grip the collar of his jacket, folding it further up a bit uncomfortably.
She said your name was Murphy, right? Thank you.
Murphy damn near flinched as soon as Shannon's voice broke the silence within the vehicle, his head snapping quickly in her direction, body slightly shifting to put more space between them; almost like the sudden voice was a physical weapon, capable of being wielded and stabbed into him. It didn't help that she was saying things he definitely wasn't used to hearing - a thank you? The man actually let a scoff escape in response at first, taking her mannerisms as something too good to be true - there was no way this stranger was extending kindness to him. No one did that. Ever. Is there anyone who needs medical attention of any sort? Pausing, Murphy's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked to Shannon, trying to get a better feel for the angle she was trying to play. They had just crawled across the city to get to the Campus she had been stuck inside, all because a cracked out lean-bean told them it was crucial over a radio. And now, the woman they rescued was asking him if there was someone she could help tend to? Maybe the dehydration was getting to her.. Murphy refused to believe she was interested in doing good for the sake of it.
"Unless you've got a psychiatric degree to go with that lab coat.." the man trailed off, hinting more so towards the fact that he thought everyone in the group was more injured in the brain, than physically. "What were you doing in there, anyway?" he asked abruptly afterwards, eyes flashing back towards her own, eyebrows following together as he looked at her. "All of you, I mean." Murphy made a wide, exaggerated flail towards the open door of the van, making it obvious he was talking about the group she'd been with, and as to why they'd been at the Campus. They wouldn't have been here from the start.. that many zees,
Murphy honestly doubted a lot of people survived on the College Campus when the outbreak first happened. So that meant that they had probably migrated here after some time - for the labs, probably. But who had been in charge? Scientists didn't just come together to form an anti-zee society in this day and age..
"Hey, the kid's back!" exclaimed Doc as he pushed off the side of the vehicle, raising his arm to wave towards 10k. The sharpshooter gave a nod in return, smiling softly at the warm greeting from the older man. Tossing the gears he'd looted into the back of Roberta's truck, he was quick to follow suit, kicking up off the pavement to take a seat in the truck's bed. With the last portion of their group back and ready to go, Roberta and Garnett gathered the few supplies they had had to use (like the map, canisters, etc.), and started to get settled into their transportation. Allowing Garnett to take the lead with the van, Roberta was quick to follow close behind, the direction of their travels carrying them in the direction of the farmland Shannon had suggested they check out.
From the moment the vehicle had started, Murphy did his best to maintain most of his weight against his side of the van's window, leaning a little more into it than he generally would've. Cautiously, whenever he felt like Shannon or anyone else in the vehicle was indifferent about what he was doing, his light blue orbs would slowly shift to glance at the mysterious woman from the corner of his eye; although, if one were to catch him in the act, they'd see a very conspicuous-looking Murphy, peering over the popped collar of his jacket in Shannon's direction.
human
He looked at her like she had looked at the zombies who were brought into the lab, and Shannon had no idea why. The others had come to get her, perhaps it hadnt been a unanimous decision. Probably not, she realized, not a lot of people would risk themselves for a scientist and stranger. Sure she had doctoring abilities, but she was still a stranger whos mental state should definitely be in question after three years. She was a little suspicious of all of them, but didnt have a whole lot of options at this point. And it wasn't like someone would risk their lives to rescue someone just to kill them, so she had a better promise of safety with them than they did with her. It was really just all logic. Still, it made her a tiny bit uncomfortable.
Shaking her head, she pushed a few strands of hair out of her face and tucking them behind her ear. Oh, no. Ive ready a few old Psychology Todays, but the mind was never my strong suit. Or the brain in general. We had a guy like that, but he, uhshe gestured out into the grass. A few feet from the door to the building where shed been stuck was a zombie in a bloody lab coat lying face down in the grass, bullet in his head,hes not much help anymore. Depressing. Shannon did okay with people, honestly, but she wasn't sure how much she was going to reveal everything about herself right now, it wasn't smart. She needed these people to like her so that she could survive, that meant that she should keep her best face out. And her best face was the one of the awkward scientist who had been jerked around by situation and circumstance. It wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the entire truth. She hadn't been in charge, she hadn't really been able to do anything without checking in with the military.
What were they doing? That was an easy answer, but she didn't have the answer she'd hoped to be able to someday provide. Desperately trying not to admit we didnt know what we were doing. Clinging to things wed been best at before the apocalypse.She smiled slightly, expression tired,trying to find some kind of vaccine. We had a steady supply of zombies and rats, we were doing what we could with those.Rats didnt even turn if they got infected, they just died. Like their tiny brains couldnt handle it. But if they could keep a rat from getting infected and dying from a tiny dose, they could keep something bigger from turning. Problem was, theyd only gotten past rat once.
And it hadnt worked on anything bigger.
Kid? She had to lean out to see the last member of the team, not quite believing the use of the word kid. She hadnt assumed it was an actual kid, but something about the dark haired teen - man? - did kinda just scream kid to her. This group was interesting. It seemed like the kind of group that happened when people just found each other in the apocalypse, not like coworkers forced to be together by military presence and desire to find an answer. These people might have been more family than business, it looked a little like it when Roberta and the man who seemed to be a leader were standing together and talking to each other.
Shannon kept to her side of the back seats, mirroring his position, partially because she wanted to make sure that Murphy didnt feel like she was all up in his space and partially because she was exhausted. Her eyes fell closed, though the one time they did open because they went over a bump, and her bright green eyes drifting over towards Murphy. He was the only one whos face she could see, which mean that should look to him to see if things were bad. She caught him looking at her and offered another tired smile.Are you headed somewhere in particular? It wasnt a question necessarily for Murphy, just anyone in the van. People just roamed, she figured. Shed never really run around outside of the enclosed space, except for the move from the CDC to the university, and there had been military guard with her at all times. She hadnt been outside without a guard since the apocalypse started.
In the truck, discussion was happening about whether or not to tell the new doctor about who Murphy was. They couldnt even be sure they were going to keep her. Not like they could just dump the woman on the side of the road, but thered be a community eventually. A doctor would be great, but another person without survival skills? Murphy already took up enough supplies and was abrasive enough for two people.
gpt
There was almost a sense of dryness about the way the new member of their group explained her knowledge about how the brain worked; her gesture to the clearly ceased corpse and the follow-up he's not much help anymore almost had Murphy's lips cracking in a lopsided, weak grin. That is, if his general mood hadn't been overall swayed by the fact that he'd knew he'd spend the next hour or so in the back of a van, sharing a seat he would've preferred to be kept to himself. It wasn't all that reassuring to learn that her medical expertise didn't rely within the mental aspect, either; this meant she did something else, something that wasn't psychological. Shannon did something physical.. much like Merch. The quiet speculation made his eyes slightly narrow, but otherwise remained unphased in his expression. It didn't make her guilty of anything, after all - there were a lot of people in the science and medical field that had been seeking to do good, especially around the time the shit hit the fan. Murphy just wasn't ready to trust someone in a lab coat on a whim, no matter how alluring to his eye.
As the woman beside him began her explanation of what they'd been trying to accomplish, his expression grew slightly tired. She drawled on a first, making it a point to supply him with information that he couldn't care less about - it was quite obvious that they hadn't know what they were doing. Everyone was now dead, or walking among the corpses properly given mercy. Those weren't distinct signs of success. But he remained silent, surprisingly, and was rewarded with an actual response to his leering question. A slightly unsettled breath released when she finished, but it was almost clear by the way he shifted that the male had almost been expecting to hear something more.. forward, and horrifying. But who would admit that so openly, especially when they were outnumbered? Pressing the question would only make things unnecessarily amplified, and since forty year old had already seemed distrusting enough, Murphy let it drop in silence.
Never had the male assumed that the stranger beside him would shift from her resting position after the engine of the van had roared to life; she looked nearly asleep, finally able to shut her eyes with the safety net of their numbers. If anything went wrong here, it wasn't just Shannon with her back against a wall in a black-struct room. So when the van dipped into the pothole, and the woman's eyes fluttered open, he was frozen. Her gaze shifted to meet his own over the collar of his jacket, and his lips pressed thinly together behind it, faltering on what to do. The doctor only offered him a smile, and erupted a question in the silence that had fell among the bodies within the vehicle, finally forcing his head to pivot, and his eyes immediately thrust to his window, arms crossing in an almost sheepish way.
When no one immediately answered back, Murphy sighed, and cast a quick glance in Shannon's direction. "Cali," an indifferent tone replied, eyes coming to focus back on the passing treeline. "Gotta work on my tan." From the front of the van, Roberta's eyes came to peer into the backseat with the help of the rearview mirror, gauging the duo. "We were told about your SOS from a friend of ours; calls himself Citizen Z." the co-leader of the group informed, figuring it was probably appropriate to at least fill her in on their sudden rescue. Murphy couldn't hold back the slight scoff that left the back of his lips from hearing that ridiculous nickname once more, rolling his eyes despite the fact that the likelihood of someone seeing it was slim. "Was there somewhere you needed to be, anyone you need to contact?" Given how long it'd been into the apocalypse, Warren wasn't crossing her fingers on the latter being the case, but the question was still offered. So long as it wasn't out of their way to California, it was the least they could do - after they dropped Murphy off, there wasn't much left to do beyond survive. A settlement between here and there was bound to come into play, as well.
It wasn't likely that this stranger would take too well if she found out about Murphy's condition - and their overall goal. His small release of California had been enough to make the woman shift in the driver's seat a little nervously, thus the reason she'd taken control of the conversation. One she was happy to continue to dictate until they reached their destination if need be.
Crawling up the elongated driveway to the farmhouse, Roberta pulled the van in beside their truck, cutting the engine. Either vehicle remained motionless as the headlights severed, scoping the area for any signs of movement due to their arrival. The sun had begun to disappear over the horizon, granting that if anything had seen the light of their cars, it would've been drawn closer. "Alright; Mack, Addy, you two with us. We'll split up to cover more ground." Shifting to glance between the driver and passenger seat, Warren's eyes set upon Murphy and Shannon, offering a gentle smile. "This shouldn't take long. 10k'll cover anything incoming; just stay inside." Flicking the snap-button on her machete's holster, Roberta stepped out the van and withdrew the melee weapon, Addy and Mack following close behind her to join up with Garnett.
The group was sectioned into three duos; Mack and Addy scouted the surrounding yard space; Cassandra and Doc were sent to the barn; and Roberta and Garnett at point towards the farmhouse. Ten Thousand remained on the back of the truck, his rifle at arms reach in cause anything was beyond his sling-shot's radius.
Murphy's blue orbs were glued to the window the van, flickering towards every lick of shadow that moved or tree brush that caught his attention. The thought of something slinking up the side of the van was intent on remaining in Murphy's frontal lobe, causing his breathing to slightly quicken with fear. Generally, waiting in the dark alone would've been nearly alright for him; it was a safe space, quiet, with no immediate danger in sight. But after his adventure at the Oil Rig, and Doc's inconsistent yammering to "just be cool, man" had left an uncontrollable urge to flee in his bones. How was this situation going to be any different, despite the number of zees in the area being relatively low in comparison?
Swallowing thickly, it wasn't until Murphy had finished shifting the lump in his throat that he realized he'd started to hold his breath. Slumping back in his seat, hands coming to pull over his face for a moment in an attempt to calm himself down, it was more than obvious that he was rather disturbed to be left to whatever means could possibly happen; the very thought of how Shannon could be perceiving his nervousness didn't even occur to the felon.
The sudden noise the van's back door being pulled open instantly had Murphy flinching, eyes whipping open from their semi-closed state to focus on Doc's face as he poked his head into the opening. "We're clear." A bewildered gasp erupted from the forty year old as he failed to sputter a coherent curse, head falling back against the headrest. Needing a moment to compose himself, Murphy waited until Shannon was long gone from the seat beside him to climb out and join the rest of the group. As they shuffled their bags and necessary items needed onto their backs and within their hands, Murphy couldn't keep his eyes from glancing over his shoulder, scoping the area with an consistent look of disdain. It wasn't until Roberta called out to him that his feet had remembered how to carry themselves in front of the other, and the forty year old followed the group into the farmhouse's foyer.
Once inside the safety of walls, Murphy's demeanor was quick to change; inwardly forcing himself to shrug off the horrifying memories and put forth his front. "I call dibs." Addy instantly gave the older man a face, her and Mack already working on carrying their things up the stairs to seek out a room. "Good luck with that." Naturally, fighting those two for a room would be a losing battle. He just didn't want to be anywhere near the duo after they had retired to their privacy.
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Dry humor was all that she had. What else did Shannon have to protect herself emotionally? It certainly wasnt experience with loss, ninety percent of the people who died that she cared about, she hadnt seen or been around for. All the deaths shed seen had been scientists and military. While she liked those people, they werent necessarily her friends or anything. They had always maintained some strange relationship that involved a safe emotional distance. Shed been attached for sure, in the same way anyone would be because theyd spent three years together.
California was a long way away, and she had no idea what anyone would want with it. Then again, she hadnt exactly been up on the survivor gossip.One of the few labs still running when the one I was at went down was in California,she offered up, not seeing a connection but thinking it might be an interesting fact, but that was a year ago or so, I dont know if its still functional. And for a while there was talk of establishing an island safe zone on San Clemente.She rubbed the bridge of her nose with one finger, a gesture that almost seemed like one that would be made by someone who was used to pushing up their glasses. When asked if there was anyone she needed to contact, Shannon shook her head.No, and no. We lost contact with all the labs and without that, I dontshe hesitated, and then seemed to push something back,I have a lot of room to decide what I want to do with my life now.With whatever options were left. Not a lot, honestly.And Ive heard of Citizen Z. We had some contact with him in year one, and then pretty scattered messages in year three. I think he was keeping tabs on all the functioning labs, we got a message when the CDC fell. If its possible to contact him and find out whats still functioning Id like to try and join up with another lab, but I dont know how plausible that is.Very unlikely. So she would just travel with them until they didnt want her anymore, and then figure things out from there, she supposed.
Had things gotten tense with the question? Kinda felt like it. The blonde scientist just let it go, and rest her head back on the window, eyes closing again.
Once the car doors closed she had the gun out, resting it in her lap. She counted the bullets quickly (three), and then made sure it was loaded before moving a little bit away from the car window. After a few moments she glanced over at Murphy, who seemed obviously uncomfortable. Are you armed?It took a bit of consideration, and then she offered him the gun, grip facing him because she was a polite woman. Here. He seemed not to like the situation or her, and the best way to offer some confidence was probably to offer the weapon. After the lab fell, we spent a lot of time just sitting in cars while the military escort cleared wherever we were going to be staying. They used to tell us to stay away from the windows, hold still, and dont use the gun until the window is already broken.She found a spot that was comfortable enough to just relax, and wait. She opened her mouth to offer up something else, but ended up not doing so. The man didnt seem all that interested in hearing what she had to say so shed keep it to herself.
When the car door opened her shoulders tensed a little bit, and then she relaxed again. She was out the door quickly, following along after Doc with a prompt sort of obedience. She took and carried what was handed to her without protest, and then headed towards the farmhouse.
Ill find a spot on the floor,Shannon piped up, once people started splitting off to find places that seemed appropriate for sleep. I dont need much. Though she was used to better, she could take less and be fine. She wasnt sure shed be sleeping much anyway tonight. Not after everything that had happened, even though she was pretty exhausted. Plus she probably owed them at least a night of guard duty. That seemed like an offer to only make once there was trust, even if the trust was just she wont kill us or leave. I would like to request the chance to look through the clothes tomorrow. I dont think Im dressed for my current situation.A lab coat, and mostly clean light blue blouse, and black pants that looked more professional than comfortable werent great in the outdoors. She wanted jeans and a shirt that was black or dark brown. Something she could wear for a really long time, because that was probably what was going to have to happen. At least she had sensible shoes already.You can do it now,Addy offered. It was best to get that sort of thing out of the way early, since there was no way of knowing whether theyd have the chance to get the supplies later on.
Shannon followed after Addy and spent a little while looking through closets and drawers. There were two bedrooms, and while she did manage to find a black t-shirt that was a little bit too large but fit well enough, she couldnt find a pair of pants that didnt feel concerningly loose. Didnt want to be struggling with pants while on the run. A little too small was better than too big. There were a lot of skirts, which was a little bit weird becausefarmers, so she changed into the shirt, swapped her lab coat for a dark blue cardigan, and then took three of the skirts with her downstairs to see if she could find a pair of scissors and a plastic bag or zip lock bags. If so, she could create and store bandaging that would be as close to sterile as was possible in the apocalypse. Im going on a bag hunt,she offered up to the people who hadnt immediately claimed rooms, if anyone is feeling bored and wants to help out.
If she was going to be with these people, she should do the best she could to provide them with medical supplies and advice. It was the talent she had that was rarer and more valuable, and that probably meant it was worth something. Maybe not payment for her life, but it might be a good start.
gpt
"Are you armed?" Immediately after the question broke the silence between the two, it forced a startled scoff to escape his lips. "Only with my wit.." he grumbled back in response, unable to keep the slightly sarcastic response from flowing from his mouth. Compared to him, Shannon seemed relatively collected; she'd done this before, obviously, and knew how to keep herself from gaining any unwanted attention. If only the anxiety clawing at Murphy's insides would take a hint. And then she was extending the gun towards him, handle pointed his direction. Instantly, it caused the man's brows to furrow with confusion, and as he looked at the offered weapon, he listened to Shannon's explanation carefully. Swallowing thickly afterwards, Murphy slowly gave his head a soft nod, reaching forward to accept the gun sullenly. It was a surprising display; one that Murphy definitely hadn't been expecting to come by, especially so soon. But if they had really wanted her dead, they didn't have to save her - wasting so much energy just to kill her now wouldn't be logical.
By the time Doc had come to relieve them, Murphy's opinion of the woman who'd been sitting beside him slightly fumbled. There was still a skepticism that he held strongly in regard towards the Scientist, but she was well on her way to melting the block of ice from around his heart. It wasn't every day etiquette that someone handed you their only gun, and trusted you not to shoot them with it. It counted for something, even if Murphy still didn't trust her as far as he could chuck her.
As the women made their way up the stairs in search for spare clothes, Murphy's mind was coming to grasp with the terms that he'd probably be spending another night in the living room - given the fact that the group had two couples, he was automatically shoved off from the two major rooms with proper beds. Ten thousand wasn't much of a complainer, but a bit of Murphy assumed that the kid would most likely find a post in the overhang of the barn to call his for the night - and Cassandra? Keeping tabs on her was impossible. That left the living room as one of the only rooms that remained open for grabs, despite his 'dibs' call as soon as they entered the farmhouse. The leftover blankets draped over the back of the couch had seen better days, but Murphy started to shake out the dust anyways, knowing that a blanket was a blanket, no matter the state it was in.
By the time he'd stretched the material back out over the couch in an attempt to start a makeshift bed, Shannon had returned from the upper level adorning new attire. The lack of lab coat was definitely appreciative to not see anymore, but Murphy's minds eye still envisioned the white material still clutched around her torso.
The announcement that she was going to go on a search for bags was a little confusing, and Murphy let the words die off in the stale air of the living room for a few moments before actually contemplating them. Who knew what was left in this farmhouse - alcohol, medication, spare tools, it didn't matter exactly what the use was, it was the fact that this property had a lot to offer. If Murphy didn't take a look around, he'd never find an old farmer's stash of aged liquor, right? Pushing up from the couch, Murphy brushed his hands over the jacket still clinging to his torso, giving a bit of a nod in Shannon's direction. "Alright. But I'm not doing this for bags. That's all you." When he felt that his point was made clear, he most definitely wasn't lifting a finger to help her, Murphy moved from around the coffee table and fell into step slightly beside, but a tad behind, Shannon's movements.
Naturally, the kitchen was their first stop, being the closest room to the living room. For the state of what most kitchens had been left in, it was surprising not to be met with the same rotten smells that Murphy had grown accustomed to breathing in upon exploring abandoned properties. The musk was still there, in the air, but it wasn't conjoined with nearly as many foul smells as normal - a good sign, perhaps. If they came under any luck, there'd be some preservatives still good to consume. With that in mind, Murphy's attention shifted to the pantry, swinging open either door to get a good look inside. Most was packaging that would've expired years ago, or been exposed to contamination through bugs or other means. "What kind of bags are you looking for?" he questioned, closing the doors to the pantry. Shifting his attention back towards Shannon, the forty year old paused in his movements to get a better look at her in her new clothes. Blue was much better than white..
Forcing the thoughts from his mind, Murphy crossed the distance to start looking in the cupboards over the counter, going back to his original mission; anything to help him relax, narcotic-wise. He'd be damned if there wasn't at least bottle of scotch stored somewhere.
human
While useful for survival, wit is probably not great for self-defense.He accepted the gun and she offered a tiny smile. Murphy didnt immediately shoot her or look like he was going to, so that was a good sign. It had been the proper choice. Her gesture of trust had been accepted, and in return she got one of nonviolence. Not necessarily acceptance, but she hadnt received aggressive mistrust in return. Plus knowing that with a weapon and alone he wasnt trying to turn things on her let her know that as displeased as Murphy might be. He wasnt actively dangerous. Didn't make the air between them feel any less strained, but Shannon at least felt comfortable in her belief that she'd be safe with them. At least, safe from them, nobody was really safe.
She made sure to get her weapon back when Doc reappeared, tucking it into her belt. It was a weird to have it like that, but having a gun at all felt abnormal. The last few years had really pressed in that weaponry was for the guards. Maybe if that hadnt been the case, things would have worked out better. On the other hand, maybe they all would have freaked out and shot each other. They probably hadnt needed ways to kill each other. Death had happened anyway, on several occasions. Violence was part of the world now. Even for a bunch of skinny, scared scientists who stayed hidden in buildings with guards.
While they walked, she made note to talk to Doc later about his actual qualifications. Most introductions had gotten done on the road, but she hadn't really dug into what exactly he was a doctorof.
The door closing behind them was a little bit of a relief, and Shannon helped to move a bookshelf in front of the window to provide a little bit more protection. They seemed not to want to block the door, which was probably logical. For a moment she'd considered suggesting it, and then realized that the more doors were blocked, the less doors they had to go out of. It was a little bit of a catch there, but she figured that they favored running over trying to bunker in and wait things out. It hadnt really occurred to her to think about where she was going to sleep. Wherever nobody else was, Shannon had figured. On a couch, in a living room chair, on the floor with a blanket if that was what was left. She had no pull, no claim to anything, so shed just go where it seemed like she should go and do what it seemed like she should do. Murphy had the couch when she came downstairs, which made the floor seem likely. That was fine. Well it wasnt great, but she wasnt going to complain. Shed had quite a bit more time sleeping in beds than any of them, she figured.
Her expectation had been that if anyone was going to agree to join her it would be Doc since he was one of the ones who'd been the most openly friendly and wasn't currently upstairs with a potential significant other, so when Murphy spoke up and said that hed join her though not quite as enthusiastically as that she looked a little bit surprised. That wasnt who shed expected, but she wasnt going to protest the company. The drawers were a good guess, she figured. That was where theyd been kept in her house. Maybe cupboards, but that would come second. So Shannon started pulling open drawers, sifting through everything in each one for anything that could be useful. Scissors, rubber bands, things like that.
At the question, she looked up and paused in her hunt.Zip-lock is preferable, followed by clean bread bags,some people stored them,maybe grocery bags. Trash bags would work, but theyre the least preferable. A lot of the clothes upstairs are still pretty clean,for the apocalypse, anyway,I can cut them into strips and seal them in the bags and the group will have decent bandaging in case someone gets hurt. Dusty but unused is better than a lot of the other options. I dont have a wide variety of skills out here, but I can prepare as much as possible for people in case of an emergency.Her small focus was rare and valuable, at least. She could learn to be good at killing zombies, and teach medical preparedness that they might not have picked up on. Maybe some kind of surgery kit could be put together, though Shannons skills for that were pretty minimal. Shed dug a few bullets out non-lethal places for soldiers and stitched up a few cuts, and that was it. This wasnt exactly what shed gone to school for.Its probably the best way I can pull my weight.Prepare them for when and if she wasnt there. And if she was there too, she supposed. It would make her job easier. also obviously those rare pain killers, leftover antibiotics, disinfectants, pills in general. For pain, sickness, and blood pressure, mostly.What about you?He had made it pretty clear he wasnt here for the same thing she was looking for, which meant he was just coexisting in the same space and looking for something else.