Zompocalypse IC

[Odin the Ignoble]

Just as Padre and his newly gathered flock leave the Champaign County Sheriff's Department, preparing to go their separate ways. A two men in a car pull into a parking place. The older of the two gets out of the vehicle. He is in his early sixties and is clothed in a janitors uniform.

"What's going on? Where are all the police?"

[Rutskarn]

A tall, wiry man dressed in prison clothes is standing by. He has a withered, vaguely Hispanic face, scarred and burned all along the left side. He is balding, with only a fringe of hair around the back of his head and the sideburns, but what matted grey-black hair he has falls past his shoulders. Over his left eye he wears an eyepatch, and two of the fingers on his left hand are crude metal prosthetics. His pockets look stuffed, and in his hands he has a shotgun.

The man shakes his head at the question. "Understand that this is a new time, friend. The age of order, where an officer of the law was an arbiter of peace, has fled as the dead have swarmed the streets. That order has no place in this world anymore.

"What is going on," he continues, "is that a new age is dawning. We must only survive to see it."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert steps out of the car, worry obvious on his face as he sees the unusual mob. The large, athletic looking college student slides his right hand into a pocket of his jeans, reassuring himself of the presence of his knife and phone. Upon hearing the grim pronouncement, he launches into a flurry of questions directed at the grim man who appears to be the leader of the crowd.
"What do you mean the dead have swarmed the streets? Shouldn't the army be here by now if the biters are around? And who are you anyways, some cultist?"

[Rutskarn]

Delbert steps out of the car, worry obvious on his face as he sees the unusual mob. The large, athletic looking college student slides his right hand into a pocket of his jeans, reassuring himself of the presence of his knife and phone. Upon hearing the grim pronouncement, he launches into a flurry of questions directed at the grim man who appears to be the leader of the crowd.
"What do you mean the dead have swarmed the streets? Shouldn't the army be here by now if the biters are around? And who are you anyways, some cultist?"

The figure shakes his head.

"You still don't understand. The ebb and flow of civilization, of protection and security, has been destroyed irreparably. Chaos has gripped the state with a rotted fist, shattering the nation and its organizations like so much glass. It cannot be repaired.

"As for who I am, I am a living human. I have been called Padre before. I need know little of you besides that you have the courage and will to join us in our task of survival."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert looks to the people following Padre critically, and then to Johnie. "You believe this guy?"
He then turns back to the odd figure. "So what's your plan? Making some whole new world?"

[Rutskarn]

Padre shrugs, shouldering his shotgun.

"Eventually, mankind will have to form a new order, or else resign themselves to the chaos of the apocalypse."

He raises his right hand suddenly, as if gripping some faroff vision.

"But to reforge the broken shards and scraps of mankind anew, we must first unite them, yes? And to do this, we must first survive."

Padre gestures to the mob of armed convicts behind him.

"Of these men, several will go to locate their families, while I will take another small group to the family of this man." He gestures towards a nearby prisoner. "We will turn their home into a stronghold, and await the arrival of the others with their families. Once we are united, we will then plan our next move. I seek not to meet the undead hordes as a scattered mob of individuals, but inf force. You are welcome to join us."

[Highwarlord]

"I'm not sure if your little crew here has the right idea, but I don't think I see any better one. I mean, I haven't even seen any biter infestation around here yet. It might skip over this town entirely."
Recalling his fear from just earlier that day, he pauses to give the older man some credence.
"Just to be safe . . . I'll call up my team and see if they want to help."

Pulling out his phone, he calls the members of his ultimate team who responded to his texts, asking them where they are and if they want to meet up. He avoids mentioning the 'biters' in his message, but tries to keep the tone fairly serious.

[Odin the Ignoble]

Most of the team mates that Delbert can get a hold of agree to to meet with Delbert. All told he gets a half dozen promises to meet him, and a few more maybes.

While Delbert is busy on the phone some of the men following Padre split off from the group and begin to head towards their respective homes to gather their families.

Siren's wail in the distance, and the former convicts begin expressing a desire to leave the area in case the police return.

[Rutskarn]

Padre motions to Delbert. "Tell them to meet you at our meeting spot. We're leaving. Now."

He motions to the man whose family is close by.

"Lead on."

He turns back to Delbert.

"You should bring the car, however. Not all of our number can use it at once, but it may be necessary in case we lack ready access to food or water."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert slowly shakes his head at Padre's request. "It's not my car to give. Even if it were, I'd rather think this through a bit further before going along with your . . . thing. If things are as bad you say, we can meet up at your meeting place. Where is it, anyways?"

Delbert then turns to Johnie again "It's your car. If you want to join up with this guy, I'm not going to stop you."

[Odin the Ignoble]

A man devoid of a shirt steps forward. "It's three blocks that way." He gestures with the barrel of an AK-47. "It's the big brick one on the corner. It'll be the one with the Christmas lights still up."

Johnie shrugs, "He might be crazy, but the men following him have guns. I'd sleep safer with them around." Several of the gun men puff up with self importance. "Although, I think that getting cars shouldn't be to difficult. I'm sure some of these guys no how to hot wire." A pair of men do their best to look innocent and fail.

[Rutskarn]

Padre smiles, giving a gesture of peace with his right hand.

"Son, I promise that we seek survival, just as you do. Together, we will be not scattered drops of rain, evaporating in the flames of Hell. We will be like an ocean--mighty, eternal."

A sudden, steely look instantly overpowers the gentle serenity he had been projecting before. He pumps the shotgun.

"And we shall thunder down upon the damned as the tidal wave cleanses blighted land, with the fury of a godly hammer."

[Highwarlord]

Eventually, Delbert agrees with Johnie's advice. "If things really are this bad, I suppose it's better safe than sorry. Still . . . if the zombie threat is as bad as all that, wouldn't the police be able to help us too? I imagine that the sheriff's office would make as good of a base as a regular house."

[Odin the Ignoble]

Johnie shrugs. "Depends on the house, I guess. But I was under the impression that Padre was leading us somewhere else, an the house was just a stop of point." He looks as Padre, eye brow arched inquisitively.

The shirtless man speaks up again. "We can stay here, we told the other's we'd meet them at my place, and we don't have a way of getting a hold of them to tell them otherwise. My names Bill, by the way." He extends his hand to Delbert and Johnie.

[Rutskarn]

"To hole up here would suicide," Padre says somberly. "This is a storm born of chaos, one from which there is no safe port. We cannot let it swallow us. We must fight it with every living bone and sinew on the face of the earth."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert shakes Bill's hand warmly. "Nice to meet you, man."
Delbert scratches his head at Padre's dictum. "You think moving about would be any safer? All we'd be doing is losing people as we go from biter infested hellhole to biter infested hellhole. If we hole up here while it's still relatively safe, we can keep ourselves safe and let in other survivors as they come through."

[Rutskarn]

Padre shakes his head.

"I do not blame you. You seek a fortress. You seek a solace, a sanctuary, when none can or will present itself. For this is not the world we live in anymore.

"There are others, out there. Scattered. Panicking. Alone. We will find them, and then we will be stronger. We will not be individuals. We will be a group. Then will we be an army. And then...we will be a nation."

[Odin the Ignoble]

Outside the Champaign Sheriff's Office

Johnie looks at at Padre incomprehensibly. He leans close to Bill. "Did you understand any of that." he says in a whisper. "Sorta."

Johnie straightens up. "Come on. The back of the car can fit three, so three of you are going to have to walk."

He climbs back in the car and starts it waiting for more passengers.

Meanwhile...

Parkland Way. Outside Parkland.

Two cars, sit parked next to each other on the narrow path, pointing opposite directions.

Gordon bit back a chuckle at the maneater comment. If Betsy's first impression was at all indicative of her personality, he wouldn't be the least bit surprised to find that 'maneater' was a totally accurate description. Still, best not to show too much amusement at the comment.

"We probably ought to get as much supplies as we can, as quickly as we can," says Gordon thoughtfully, "If this is going to be long term--and that's what it's starting to look like--then we'll need all we can get. The looting is going to wipe out everything pretty quickly, we probably don't have much time to get to the supplies that haven't been stolen yet. Did you want to go get some proper clothes, though?"

Betsy shakes her head. "I'm fine." She turns to the others "This is Gordon by the way."

She pulls her car forward, does a three point turn and gets behind the other car.

The student with the wolfman like hair leaning out the window of the other car waves to Betsy and yells. "We're going to the Kraft plant."

The two cars exit Parkland's grounds and head south. They reach the Kraft plant without incident. The gate to the loading docks holding all of the semi-trucks and trailers is closed. Even without getting out of the car a large padlock and chain are clearly visible. Wolfman says "Did we bring bolt cutters?" The kid with the Mohawk answers. "No." a malevolent twinkle enters his eyes. "We can always just ram it."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert sighs at Padre's response, but decides that continuing the argument would be pointless for the time being. He texts the address of the meeting, followed by the following message - Serious s*** is going down. Bring survival gear, cars, and whatever else you need forever.

[Rutskarn]

Padre remains outside the car.

[Odin the Ignoble]

Outside the Police HQ

Bill and a couple of the others jump into the back seat of Johnie's car. Johnie pulls out and idles the car forwards, staying behind the walkers. At one point the group turned a corner to discover a biter, but one of the former inmates walking outside the car, dropped to one knee and shot it three times, the final shot taking it in the head.

The group continues, albeit more warily, scanning nearby buildings for threats. Johnie swerves into the other lane to avoid driving over the dead body. A short while later they arrive at Bill's house. A big two story brick place with a four car garage and a fenced in backyard.

Bill practicably jumps out of the car, and flies up the stairs. He hammers on the front door and yells, "I'm back, and I brought some friends! Let me in." The opens a crack and then is thrown open the rest of the way. A woman, presumably Bill's wife and two kids embrace. The oldest kid look's like he could be in college, the younger just entering high school. The eldest has a bloody bandage wrapped around his head.

Bill start handing out orders to his family. "Were meeting up with some more people, but we aren't going to stay here. Go pull the cars out of the garage and open the back hatch on the van. Pull out the grill, we're gonna cook up everything that won't keep in the back of the van. Honey start packing."

He turns around and addresses the rest of the group. "Come on in, or head around back I'll bring out food and drinks in a minute." He disappears into the house as the rest of his family disperses.

[Rutskarn]

Padre approaches, silently.

He says nothing, motioning for Billy to stand aside.

First, he places his shotgun down, leaning it against the wall.

Secondly, he turns to the eldest.

"Son," he says, quietly. "Tell your father how you were wounded."

[Odin the Ignoble]

The eldest son looks at Padre inquisitively. "I hit my head against a wall, when the police blasted me with a fire hose during the rioting. Why?"

[Rutskarn]

After a moment, he smiles.

"Pardon my searching questions. I hope we can all appreciate that the time for recklessness and abandon has fled, hand in hand with the security of civilization.

"There are some that call me Padre. We are here to ensure all of our survival. The end of the New Empires of men has ended, and in its wake chaos has reigned. Only in numbers can we combat said chaos. More are coming. Your husband and father will explain."

[Highwarlord]

Delbert paces anxiously at the entrance to Bill's house waiting for the arrival of his teammates and familiar faces, the rapidity of his immersion in this group of strangers finally sinking in. He refuses any offers of food and drink until they arrive. His uncertainty about his new surroundings combined with his frustration at his relative uselessness makes him very edgy, and he keeps to himself as much as possible while waiting for the others to arrive.

[Odin the Ignoble]

Bill's place

The eldest son gives Padre and his father strange looks, before backing slowly out of the room and heading towards the garage.

It's not long before the smell of cooking steaks begins eroding at Delbert's will. Sound of laughter can be heard from the back yard as the former inmates begin gorging themselves.

Delbert's will doesn't have to withstand to long. Soon the members of his team begin showing up. The first one apparently walked, being only a few blocks away.

The other inmates begin showing up as well. Most of them return with their families. A few don't return at all. A few poor souls return with haunted looks and more blood on their shirts than when they left.

Bill gets on his phone and begins calling his friends and neighbors, telling them to come over. Soon the back yard is filled to bursting with people and half a dozen grills, cooking anything that they can find.

The word begins to spread faster and faster. Soon almost two hundred people have gathered and it begins to look more like a massive block party than a group of people preparing to fight for survival.

[Rutskarn]

Padre finds spare sheets of looseleaf and a pencil, and begins scrawling furiously by himself.

[Odin the Ignoble]

Bill's House

As Padre scribbles, more and more people join the growing group. Many of the men are armed, but there are woefully few who have actual guns.

The festival atmosphere is contagious. Several radio's play. An announcement shatters the crowds genial mood.

"This is the Don here at Parkland, bringing you all the news about the news about the scourge as it unfolds. Well I've got good news and bad news. The bad news is that Washington D.C. is gone, the good news is D.C. is gone, and with it censorship, so I can say whatever the f*ck I want. Most of congress seems to have escaped to various military bases. No news yet as to President Obama's whereabouts.

On a more local note, the Champaign Police Department has been disbanded. They along with a group of volunteers and most of the guards from the Muddy River Correctional Facility tried to stop the infection spreading outwards from Carle Hospital. If you look towards the center of town you can see smoke, that's Carle and some of the nearby apartment buildings. Unless you are feeling suicidal, avoid the area, it seems to be the largest source of the ungrateful dead.

And now a side order of music to help wash down the mayhem." Black Sabbath's War Pigs begins to play.

The crowd goes quiet. The news brings them back to the reality of their situation. Bill climbs on top of his porch, beer can raised in his hand. "A toast to the the men in Washington, and to the death of taxes!"

With a cheer the partying resumes, now with an almost feverish aspect.

All the noise, sights and smells of people attracts unwanted notice. The first of the dead begin walking down the street towards the crowd. One of the men on the edge of the crowd points and yells "Biter!"

The party atmosphere chatters once more, the crowd of almost three hundred scatters in a dozen different directions. Bill's nearby neighbors run toward their own homes. The majority run towards the saftey of Bill's house, and fenced backyard.

Women, children and a few men scream. Radios and grills are tipped over in the rush for safety. People pack into Bill's house like sardines.

Some of the more courageous men, many of them Frisbee team players, begin forming into groups to fight the dead. Men with guns pull lawn furniture, coolers, folding chairs and anything else they can stand on up against the tall wooden fence, and take aim.

One man, a familiar face from the jail, one of the men who returned with a haunted visage but no family, runs screaming towards the dead. Carving knife raised, he tackles the first biter he sees and begins stabbing it relentlessly. All semblance of sanity has left his eyes, replaced with inhuman rage.

[BizzaroStormy]

The Kraft Plant

Ram it? Go for it. Mike says casually, obviously not wanting to risk his own wheels. He also looks around, keeping an eye out.

[Rutskarn]

Padre stares at the chaos before him, expression grim.

After a moment, however, his gaze falls upon the nearby radio.

He stares for a moment, eyes growing wide and fiery. After an instant, he turns to the amassed, armed crowd.

"All of you! I see the way!"

He climbs onto a chair overlooking the crowd, arms held wide like the Cristo de la Concordia. His eyes blaze with passion, and his breath seems to come in long, powerful gusts of fury.

"Society has fallen. Our former capital's descent into destruction is but a late confirmation of this fact, a fact clear to all who have seen the bloody plague that chokes our streets and our former civilization. There is no President. There is no police force. There is no government, or rescue, or last resort."

He lifts his head. Voice booming, passionate, he states,

"THERE IS ONLY US!

"People. Scattered. Fearful. Quick to run, quick to die, unwilling to accept the reality that has come upon them.

"Is this to be the fate of mankind? Is our final days to be that of frightened prey, fleeing without will or design until our breath and energy run out? Is the last man to die alone, clawed apart in the dark?

"Our government has fallen, as all obsolete creatures pass into nothing. This was not a civilization built for the horrors of today. If we are to live, we must forge a new civilization. We must take ash, and blood, and sweat, and use these remnants to create a new order.

"I have seen what must be done. The radio. We are to find a radio station, and use this as the focusing point for all the people of the earth that walk with a will of their own. Together, we will form an alliance built for these pitch-dark days. Civilization...will be reborn."

Padre lifts his shotgun over his head with his right hand, left gesturing powerfully as he speaks.

"I will go there. Not all will be fit for the journey. Who will travel at my side?"