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| Dead Men Walking | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 28 2014, 02:20 AM (70,945 Views) | |
| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 1 2015, 03:24 AM Post #1966 |
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Is that so?
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"We'll stay alert." Antonio assured him through the radio. He had not spent much time outside of Iowa City. Going down to Highland High School was actually the first time he had been outside the city limits. There was a difference between knowing it was the end of the world and seeing it with your own eyes. It filled Antonio with pain, but also determination. He wanted to make this right. This was what he had come with them to do. The hand of Satan was all over this work -- empty buildings, shattered families, the ruins of civilization as they knew it. All created by a single event. They had to make it right. |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 1 2015, 03:40 AM Post #1967 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“Here goes,” Eli muttered to himself as the taller buildings of the city came into view. Des Moines, of course, was paltry compared to Chicago – but not all of them had survived Chicago. Julie didn’t. Randall, either, if you considered Lemont close enough. And any city with a population that was at least 100,000-strong was worth being scared of. It meant there could be 100,000 rotters waiting for them. * * * After Antonio had answered, Annie looked up from her son – who was resting on her shoulder. She studied his expression. He seemed relatively confident. Annie had to wonder if he knew what he was getting into. “This might be a silly question, Father, but..." She paused. "Are you ready?” |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 1 2015, 04:09 AM Post #1968 |
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Is that so?
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Antonio smiled ruefully and glanced towards Annie, but always kept one eye on his surroundings. "I was not always a man of the cloth, doctor. Before my conversion I lived a... rougher lifestyle." He paused briefly and turned his eyes back to the road. "Things are different now than they were before though. The fallen could overwhelm you at any moment and the living could blow you away without a second thought. It is a world that is terrifying. It is a world nobody should be forced to live in. Yet I chose to live in a similar world once before. And it taught me a lot of things. Things that have kept me alive and helped me keep others alive." He tapped the index finger of his right hand several times against the shotgun he kept at his side. "I am not saying that I enjoy what I see. The way I see it, we are looking at nothing less than evil incarnate. It shocks me and it disgusts me. But it does not scare me." |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 1 2015, 04:15 AM Post #1969 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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Annie took a moment to absorb Antonio’s words, and then nodded. They were intense, curious at points, but fair enough – and even a little reassuring, when she thought about it. “I understand,” she said. “And it’s good you’re not scared. I don’t know that I could say the same.” Her eyes drifted ahead, as the city came more and more into view. In the distance, she could see a blurry mass of bodies. The awareness of what was coming made her breath slow. “From your story earlier, it just didn’t sound like you’ve left town since the outbreak,” she added. “You should know it’s different, seeing them in big cities. Rotters, I mean. They’re like an ocean. It’s… disturbing.” |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 1 2015, 01:21 PM Post #1970 |
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Is that so?
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Antonio tilted his head to the side as he studied the writhing mass of bodies in the distance before them. In the past, he had seen them congregate into masses. It was an odd pattern of behavior; the true purpose of which Antonio could never figure out. He was always careful around Kinnick Stadium -- inside there was an ocean of fallen not unlike the one staring him down from the distance. But there was nothing he could do apart from avoid it as if it were a bee hive. Part of the reason that the north part of the city was so overrun in places was because mobs that split away from the stadium often traveled northward. Together. It was only logical to assume they would do the same in cities. "Nobody deserves a fate like this." Antonio shook his head. "There are too many for us to help any of them." |
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| Strompy | Jul 1 2015, 05:06 PM Post #1971 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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The mass of bodies in the distance gave Brandon every reason to be worried. Just the day before last he'd seen his friends swallowed up by the road and then beset a similar tide of corpses. In a way they lost Julie because of a horde like that. The others made it out just fine though, and with a new and powerful tactic for dealing with these things. This horde presented no more danger to them now then a single rotter. It could be dealt with. "Not getting the better of us this time." he mumbled as he stared ahead with contempt. |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 1 2015, 08:08 PM Post #1972 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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Eli glanced at Brandon as he mumbled. He didn’t say anything in response. He just looked forward again and kept driving. * * * “Thank God,” Annie said as the convoy arrived at the other end of the city. She wasn’t really thanking God. It was just an expression. When she remembered who she was sitting next to, she felt a little embarrassed by it. She didn’t want to give Antonio the wrong idea. On either side of the interstate, the green of grass and trees had taken over from the gray of asphalt and concrete. The journey through Des Moines was just about complete. It had been uneventful, thankfully. Unlike Chicago – and New York City, from what Eli reported – the city hadn’t been bombed, and there was no quarantine wall to navigate. The only hiccup had occurred in the city centre, when they had to take an exit to stay on the I-80. They had found it blocked by a series of abandoned cars, some backed into each other, but none too damaged. Before that, traffic had been backed up for miles and had gotten increasingly difficult to navigate. When they got to the exit, it was apparent why. From the blood and the bodies, the story had become easy to infer. There had been a traffic jam. Someone had died during it and come back. Likely, it was more than one person. However many there were, they made it out of their cars and went after some other drivers. In the congestion, no one could get their cars out of there to escape. Most of them likely fled on foot. A few stayed and died. Judging by the corpses, at least one person – maybe more – fought back. They solved the problem, at least temporarily, by bludgeoning the rotters to a more permanent death. By then, however, the highway had become a wasteland of cars too dense to navigate or resolve. For Eli and Antonio, it meant turning back. It had been a delicate dance, getting both cars reversed and driving in the opposite direction. They had managed it, though, and had taken the first exit they could. Luck had been on their side, for once, and the horde of rotters didn’t happen to be nearby. An extremely tense half hour later, they found an on-ramp past the obstruction. Now they were through. Another big city – a relatively big city, at least – in their rear view mirror. “Next stop, Nebraska,” Annie said out loud. Iowa would soon be behind them. As a whole, Annie had to concede the state had treated them fairly well. Much better than Illinois, at least. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 1 2015, 11:38 PM Post #1973 |
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Is that so?
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After going through the disaster that was Chicago, Des Moines felt like a cake walk. There was a traffic jam, a horde of rotters that was relatively out of their way, and more death and destruction, but none of it really interfered with anything they were doing. Nowhere did the highway crumble and fall down. Nowhere did they get separated. Nowhere did any of them get bitten. It was... almost peaceful. Jen felt bad thinking about it like that, but it really did feel that way. Everyone was on guard for more highwaymen and bandits, but none came. By the time the city was in their rear view mirrors, everything felt good. Despite the safe passage, the atmosphere was still heavy. Everyone was probably thinking about Kelsey still. "Anyone got any embarrassing stories?" It was kind of a desperate attempt to lighten the mood, but she didn't have many other ideas. The silence was starting to get to her and this was all she had. "Nope." Willow was quick to throw in from the back seat she shared with her boyfriend. "Aw, come on!" Jen gave an exaggerated plea. "Okay, okay, I'll go first. This one is kind of blah, but you don't get the good ones yet. In elementary school we used to play a lot of kickball, right? Had a field right next to the school building. Was not very well thought out because home plate was facing the building. Kicking the balls into the walls, the windows, or the roof were all pretty normal. But one day, I gave it one hell of a kick. The ball smashed right through the window and hit my 5th grade teacher right in the face as she was eating her lunch. Unfortunately, her lunch was a hot soup and she spilled it all over her chest and legs. She had to go to the doctor for second degree burns on her boobs and to get stitches on her forehead from the glass." Jen laughed a little at the memory. "I was embarrassed when my name was cited as the reason that school was cancelled for the rest of the day. And I felt terrible about it for the rest of the school year. But on the bright side, I instantly became the coolest kid in the school." * * * * * Antonio smiled at Annie's new found burst of optimism. Getting out of the city had lifted her spirits a little bit. He figured this would be a good time to get to know his passengers a little bit. He did not know much about this group and he figured now was as good a time as any to learn. Now that they were out of Des Moines, they had the rest of Iowa and all of Nebraska ahead of them. It was going to be a long drive with a lot of farms. "I am sorry if this seems abrupt, but I am curious... what got you interested in being a doctor, Annie?" Antonio asked casually. |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 2 2015, 12:08 AM Post #1974 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“It’s a long story,” Annie said with a shrug. “Of course, it boils down to me wanting to help people. I’m guessing we have that in common.” She eyed Connor. He was awake now, and leaning against the door, not her. He was staring out the window, a neutral expression on his face. It was one up from the glum expression he’d been sporting for a while, at least. “Speaking of me being a doctor,” Annie said, turning her view back to the priest. “How’s the ear feeling?” |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 2 2015, 12:19 AM Post #1975 |
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Is that so?
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Antonio gently touched his left and against the bandage covering his left ear. It stung to the touch, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. "I am just glad the bullet only took my ear and nothing else." Antonio mused lightheartedly. "The girls will never look at me the same again, but given my profession, it works out pretty well for both parties." He leaned back in his seat and adopted a more contemplative look. "But truly, it doesn't feel as bad as you might expect. While I am more concerned about how much it will affect my ability to hear, that is outside of my power now. No use in me worrying about it. It will be what it will be and I will accept it all the same." |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 2 2015, 12:26 AM Post #1976 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“If I’m remembering my textbooks correctly, you should be okay,” Annie assured him. “The worst that’ll happen is things will sound quieter in that ear. Maybe you’ll have some minor difficulty telling where sounds are coming from. But you still have the other ear, so…” She trailed off and gave him a friendly smile. “I suppose if Willow can manage without some of her lung, you can manage without some of your ear,” she said. |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 2 2015, 12:33 AM Post #1977 |
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Is that so?
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Willow. The pink haired girl. He had noticed that there was a strange articulation to a lot of her movements. The way she would hold her body or move gave Antonio the impression of someone who had been injured. He had not brought it up though for fear of looking insensitive. "Half of her lung, you say?" Antonio inquired. "I get the feeling you were responsible for helping her out of that mess. May I ask what happened?" |
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| Strompy | Jul 2 2015, 01:41 AM Post #1978 |
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More posts, more Busey.
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"Not an embarassing story but it was the cause of some typical high school discomfort. We had this biology weekend camp thing. The area we were using occasionally saw a bear come through, usually a young male just recently leaving its mother being forced to look for its own territory by older males in the surrounding area. We were assured by our guide on our first forest walk that it was highly unlikely there was a bear in the area." Brandon began. It had been a long drive already and Des Moines had been uneventful but tense as hell. He at least could use a little conversation, this story was a small price to pay for maybe learning a little more about Jen or the others. "So I'm walking a little to the side of the group and I pipe up 'Hey there's a bear around here'. Guide asks how I know, I tell him it's because I just stood in bear shit. For some reason our biology teacher thinks this is a great opportunity for an impromptu lesson. He has me explain how I know it's bear droppings. So I take my shoe off and point out with a stick that there's fur in it as well as an undigested pine nut, and because of the size it couldn't be anything else. He finally lets me put my god damn shoe back on and get the shit off it as he starts talking about bears and the guide radios it in. So I'm an expert on bear shit, haha it's a funny story, move on right? Wrong. This guy, Trent, finds it hugely funny for some reason. He keeps that bear shit gag up so long that it catches on with all his friends. I love bear shit. I dream about bear shit. I'm obsessed with bear shit. It's a running joke in his circle. Almost every time he and his stoner groupies catch sight of me they start calling out hello to me by my new name, Bear-shit. I had no clue why that guy wouldn't leave it alone until after we graduated and I found out my brother used to pick on him so badly that he ended up being kept back a year because it was affecting his learning and they thought he had a learning disability." Brandon recounted. "Though he was a miserable asshole who ended up selling drugs, so go feeling too sorry for him."he quickly added. |
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| DoctorYerishi | Jul 2 2015, 03:05 AM Post #1979 |
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Dude, wake up! We've got a world to save.
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“I… went ice skating once,” Emmett contributed in his familiar low rumble. “I tripped and cracked a rib.” |
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| Make-7-Up-Yours | Jul 2 2015, 03:28 AM Post #1980 |
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Is that so?
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Willow smiled. It was nice to hear people talking about the time before all of this broke out. She always enjoyed hearing more about Brandon -- although she knew the majority of the Bear-Shit story already -- and even the others. Eli hadn't contributed, but that was asking a lot for him right now. But the mental image of Emmett ice skating was a pretty good one. She wondered what had convinced him to try. She bet it was a girl. "Oh ho?" Jen smirked from ear to ear as even Emmett contributed a curt, but nevertheless amusing, story. "This one isn't family friendly, but I lost my virginity during a field hockey game in middle school. A girl from the other team 'accidentally' mistook my crotch for the ball after I slipped past her on the field. The blood stained through my shorts and panicked all the onlookers and players; though I don't remember that part too well since I was too busy rolling on the ground and trying not to cry. The game was delayed for a good thirty minutes as my mom rushed me to the doctor. I was told that the girl got suspended for the rest of the game for the stunt and we went ahead to win anyway. Turns out bleeding all over a field and coming to class the next day makes you pretty popular though." Jen raised her arms in mock surprise. "I swear, I was always popular, but none of it made any sense. It was always because of random stuff like that. Hell, if my school ever had boys, finding a date woulda been easy!" That story made Willow cringe despite her amusement. It was kind of the universal constant of crotch shots; despite all the levity they bring, they always make you cringe. "Yeah, well my full name is Wilma Rutherford Lowe." Willow felt the need to contribute. "I think that one speaks for itself." She had always kept that one a secret, but these people were like family now. An embarrassing name was nothing. In fact, it didn't even seem that embarrassing anymore. Not with them. "Pffft!" Jen doubled over. "Seriously? Wilma? I bet you got Flintstones jokes all the time." "Oh, it was practically my childhood." Willow recalled. "That and Baby Ruth bar." "Oh shit, that's a good one! I didn't even think of that!" "Kids can be pretty creative." Willow added as she glanced in Brandon's direction. "At least some of them. Not all kids have the wit to come up with a clever name like Bear-Shit." |
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7:29 PM Jul 10