DEAD in the Forest

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O

It was a quiet, dark night, the worst kind. It was the type of night that was so quiet you could hear your own heart beating in your chest. The chill reached about that deep, too. The air was crisp and crumpled noses upon inhalation like paper, and smelled like death. The stench of corpses meant that They could be near, or there were just bodies in general. There was footsteps, but it was a single set so far.

Yukimura wandered aimlessly amongst the trees and shrubbery of the forest. "Yeah, I get it." She seemed to be talking on her cellphone. "The signal's dying out and I need to change batteries soon. This won't last forever. Just tell me where it's at already." She demands impatiently as she takes to the main forest path, miraculously free of trees or bushes. "Yes. I get it."

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

Two set of eyes were following the person walking through the forest. Two black obsidian orbs watched the females every step, the pair of ears listening out for the sounds and the hands prepared to move into action. Who is she talking to? It’s dark so he can’t see – probably a walkie-talkie or a cellphone. She moves at a pace that is, despite the conditions of their surroundings, is quiet easy to follow. His clothing was dark, as if deliberate for the night and his face covered in cloth, his hair short and dark. A quick look over his shoulders and throughout the forest he begins to move. There had been a minor group of them sighted earlier, moving south east of their position and were outside immediate range for oral audio and movement, but gun fire? Maybe not. His movements were kept in the dark of the forest on the left side of the pathway, his eyes continuously watching. ‘Stop talking…’ he thought as she continues her conversation with the unknown person. His movement was halted as the sound of a branch or twig breaking echoed through the forest. ‘Company?’ he asked as he began to look around, trying to figure out the source of the sound, though careful movements were used in order to not alert the female of his presence.

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O

She hears a twig fracture, and then many more. Her brow knits in concern as she closes her phone up, turning it off. The screen of her cellphone would provide a little light for her to monitor her surroundings. She didn't say anything to the person on the phone before hanging up because hearing a large number of footsteps was never good. Periodic footsteps that were both slow, fast, and mid-paced. Yukimura bites her lip as she ducks behind a tree. Her hand elevates the cellphone so it would slash the darkness with a ray of artificial light. The first thing she sees up ahead is a fat looking one of 'Them' with a stomach so large that it looked like its torso could barely fit its mottled entrails. Shit. She curses to herself. Then she sees that behind this large undead there were many, many more. It was more than a militia from what she could see.

She slowly creeps backwards. Her feet are cautious to not step on any twigs or anything that would make noise. Then she increases her pace so she could get a good gap between her and 'Them'. There were obviously far too many of them up ahead for her to directly combat. Not to mention she seemed vastly frustrated that she couldn't get to her designation. Now she had to get out of here.

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

His eyes follow her movement from his little ‘fox hole’ his hand grasping the rifle as if ready to spring into action. ‘Don’t panic! Do not panic!’ he would think to himself as if he was looking at the girl. He did not know how she would react, though with the experience he had gained from earlier, first reaction was to run. His eyes narrowed as he saw the weak light emitting from her position, his first reaction was surprise, the second were more of a ‘time to get the hell out of here’ as he began to move down his side of the forest, trying to calculate the route she would take. Taking his chances, he would quickly shoot over the pathway, sliding into the soft moss on the other side. Stopping up for a second, he would wait to see if he had been spotted – thankfully he hadn’t. Staying in the crouched position atop the moss, he would wait; wait for the girl to eventually reveal herself by her movement. As she comes closer to where he was crouched, he would prepare himself to latch out and grab her so that his hand would cover her mouth to shield off a potential scream and the other to hold her closer so she wouldn’t run off. As she came within reach, his gloved hands would latch out at her, grabbing her first by the arm and hip before placing it above her mouth and one over her abdomen, holding her down. “Sssh” he would whisper as silently as possible next to her ear, hoping she would listen and not struggle.

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O

Yukimura continued to make her hasty way down the dirt-bound path. She couldn't be too quick or else They would detect her movement and then pursue her. There was essentially just a wall of them at the area that she had made her way from. Her pace was decelerated for some reason and she looked to be quickly fatigued. Like a lot of people, her stomach had been empty for days and that reflected on her visually and physically. After cursorily making her way down the path she suddenly found herself forced to a stop. She found her mouth sealed by hand, which prevented her from screaming. Her voice is muffled as she tried to both speak and scream but talking into a gloved hand was impossible. Then she found herself momentarily struggling against strong, overwhelming strength before simply giving up. Her eyes, clearly her most notable feature due to their distinct, black outline, were wide with shock as she looked ahead of them. She couldn't see his face but she could at least derive that it was a male from the body's feel when against her. Her heart continues to race as she hears some footsteps. A single one of 'Them' would walk in front of them, slowly. It didn't seem to see them and continued on its way. After all, this type of Them only operated on sound; they were sound based predators and that seemed to be the only sense in their arsenal. As it passes by she holds her breath and makes not a peep. Yukimura decides not to struggle against the hold because it would only stimulate noise, which would mean the end of them. Yuki slowly turns her head to try and see him, to at least have her eyes grasp a look at who he was.

Horde Count: 72. 1 just walked by, others ahead.

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

As one of the dead walk past, all his muscles tenses, ready to spring forth and attack should it be necessary. Thank fully he walked away and continued on its zombiefied march, though with the horde still having to pass, he just kept still, slowly releasing his hold of the girls mouth, hoping she would get the hint. Placing one finger over her lips in an ‘sssh’ motion, he would slowly roll her over so that she would be able to see him. The shock he saw in her eyes didn’t really come as a surprise – who wouldn’t be shocked by being grabbed and held in the pitch blackness of the forest with zombies around? Slowly he would remove the cloth that would cover his face, revealing a tired, but strong masculine face with beard that seemed to have grown for a couple of days. Feeling how she began to relax somewhat he would also let go of her waist, allowing her to move should she feel like it.

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O
Getting a good look, she couldn't particularly tell his age, but it looked older than her. Then there was this strange sound. She could hear it crystal clear - it was one of them and it was nearby. She heard it burp, which was uncharacteristic to the common infected. She seen it up ahead; she could see it spewing up black bile like lava from a volcano. Judging from the skin on its torso it looked like it could be popped like a balloon, but she is fairly hesitant seeing as the thing seemed to be literally about to burst it had that much vomit, excrement, and bile inside of it. She covers her nose and mouth to block the smell; she personally couldn't stand it. As if he hadn't seen it, she would gesture towards the creature, and the small mob of undead to its rear. The horde had thinned a little but that only meant they had spread like a mottled butter - there would be much more obstacles. "We should run. The fat one will blow up if we hit it." She says as quietly as possible. She didn't volunteer to actually lead. From visuals alone she could assume that he'd better qualify for taking the lead than her. She, after all, only looked to be a girl, a highschool student at most.

Horde Count: 72.

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

Shifting a little to the side, he would give the bloated dead a disgusted look before looking in other directions. Looking around their position, he saw two possible routes, one leading down the path to neighborhood and the other towards the main road of the area. Both of them being heavily infected by the dead meant that no matter which road they went, they would have to fight. The stench of the bloated started to bother him, and the fact that it seemed to be about to explode didn’t help much either. Giving a nod to her gesture that they should move, he would grab her hand and push her up in front before getting onto his feet. “Run to the path and then take to the right, I’ll be right behind you” he whispered before pushing her forwards. Having given her a start, he would quickly grab something from his chest pocket and place on the moss by his feet. After having done that, he would grab another object from his pocket and throw it towards the large pack of the dead before he would turn and run after the girl, quickly catching up to her. “Hurry!” he would said in a hissing voice as he grabbed her arm and ran alongside her, making sure she wouldn’t fall or fall behind. (placed a claymore on the ground w. tripwire and threw a normal HE grenade)

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O
She nods in response but shoots and stilettos him with a glare at the abrupt push. Nevertheless the acquired momentum proved to be useful and allowed her to speed off very quickly. Yukimura was above average in terms of physical prowess over her classmates but her current choice of footwear prevented her from going as fast as she would like. Running in high heels would only make her trip over something very quickly but she didn't exactly have the luxury of switching to her gym clothes in the world's apocalyptic state. Her hand grips the hilt on her side; there seemed to be a lengthy blade holstered within the sheath. She could only withdraw it with one hand since her other one had been gripped at the moment by her newfound male ally. Yuki jumps over a short rock and lands with general elegance, but her pace doesn't let up. She continues her sprint and contradicts safety by running with a katana in hand. "I am!" She snaps aggressively in response, not bothering to keep her voice down after having witnessed likely explosive items tossed nonchalantly to his rear. A thin part of the horde was up ahead, about ten of them. The grenade's thunderous explosion would tear up the land and obliterate fifteen, leaving an extra ten maimed and inactive for a while due to the merciless shockwave that the zombies incurred. "Hey, sup?" She yells to him. "COMPANY." She points the katana in front of her to gesture towards the group of ten about fifteen feet ahead of them.

Horde Count: 57 (10 maimed).

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

The explosions rippled through the forest, lighting it up for a few seconds before settling, though flames did spread through the branches, giving a sort of faded light at their backs. When the girls shouts out about the danger ahead, he slows down, taking his time to check for alternatives and sadly there were none. Grabbing the gun from the holster he would continue their slow pace towards the living dead blockade. “If they get to close, wack’em with your stick” he would say as he blew the head of the first dead that approached them from the ten, alerting the rest to begin their assault. Two more shots were fired at two other ones, sending one flying backwards with its head opened like a melon and the third with a large chunk of its neck and shoulder missing. Still holding her arm, he would move forwards, shooting only at the zombie that was closest to them and in front, clearing the path as they slowly advanced.

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O
"What 'stick'?" She hisses in response like a snake as she notes the crude reference to her blade. She'd been observantly watching the progress of the combat scenario at this point. Her dark eyes elongate as she does so with the prudence of a cautious owl. One of these things had been charging towards her, trying to ram into her like a truck. She waits for it to come to her and with notable skill she performs an evisceration quickly. Her blade moves through the decayed flesh of its throat like a knife through butter and splashes the blood across her clothing. After she had exsanguinated the creature it would fall to the ground. She used its momentum against, something vital when she couldn't muster all of her strength because of her stance and how her other arm was bound. The next one that came up to her she would drive the needle-like end of her blade through its eye and into the hollow interior of its skull. With little resistance from its rotting body she flicks her wrist and partially takes off the top of its head. That made five of the things taken out but the ones behind them were catching up at a steady pace, some having recuperated after the shockwave from the explosion. It having deterred the undead no longer, she would speak up. "Maybe we should move through. The 'blockage' is thinned a little."

Horde Count: 52 (10 maimed).

[Echo]

F.A.R.I.D

Firing of another few shots into the wall of rotting flesh, he would turn to the girl with an annoyed face. “Ladies first” he would say with a chuckle as he hit one of the zombies dead center between the eyes with a shot, sending it and the one behind it backwards, both with their heads opened. “This is the last one, so I advise you to run like your life depends on it.” He would say before taking the last grenade from its pocket on the west and pulling the pin in the process. Dropping the grenade on the ground, he would rush after the girl, which had hopefully already sped off up the path. Firing a few more shots at the moving dead in order to halt them long enough for the explosion to engulf them before he would run off as well. “Here goes nothing” he would say as the grenade exploded, engulfing the narrow path and the forest around in a massive ball of fire and a shockwave strong enough to life him of the ground, sending him flying backwards.

[Devil]

Y U K I M U R A | M I K A D O
At this point the seemingly forgotten claymore had went off from the maimed infected having agitated the tripwire meant to set it off. An explosion tears through the forest and instantly reduces everything in the outburst's path to ash, or at least decimated body parts. When told to, she nodded and sped off up ahead, knowing well enough that another explosive was going to go off. On her way up she would encounter a few 'problems' that she would quickly take care of. With access to her other hand, she easily demonstrates the katana's pseudonym, the Three Body Blade. With one fell swoop she was able to slice through the arm joint and halfway through the body with very little resistance. She spins to therefore make two technical slashes, carving through flesh and bone until the point where she could get the katana out. Then she feels the general effect of the next explosion. It causes her to be blown foreward; she transcends her falling motion to execute a somersault of sorts with her blade ahead of her. The remaining undead that stood in her way, because of this, would have its legs split from its body. Yukimura is slow to recover due to the shockwave but makes useful of her recuperate ability to messily push herself up. Her black hair masks her eyes, making her have to push a lot of it out of her face. "I wish I could say, 'thanks for the warning'," Her voice is mocking, but then she kindly adds, "but you did warn me, and you saved my life. Thanks. Who are you?" Standing up and looking back towards the inferno far to their rear, she reveals, "Yukimura."

[Horde: ??]

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