User:PresidentEvil133/Stories/Long Haul
As the military cleanup falls apart and the last few convoys roll out of Malton, a band of survivors leaves their crumbling safehouse behind and scouts an abandoned warehouse...
Chapter 1: Breach and Clear
"Lanahan calling all team members; report in, over."
"Gray reporting"
"Boxer reporting"
"Diego reporting"
"Michaels reporting"
"Davis reporting, Sam and Marlowe are right here with me."
"Roger that team; let's move in and get this place secured. Get ready..."
Lanahan's order was acknowledged by 5 clicks; one from each of his men. He secured the radio at his hip, flicked the safety off on his shotgun, and clicked the radio twice to give the go signal.
Then, it was up and over the wall. He landed hard, regained his balance, took in his surroundings. The area was paved and painted with parking spaces. A twisted and bullet-pocked sign at his feet displayed the words "WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!", with the somewhat fainter "Loading bays & reserved management parking" visible beneath the graffiti. The aforementioned loading bays were barricaded from inside with a sloppy, hastily-assembled jumble of god-knows-what.
Gray and Boxer came over the wall to his left. Drawing their pistols, they pressed back-to-back to keep from being surprised by any hiding zombies.
About a dozen vehicles were strewn about the lot: Pair of luxury sedans, a forklift, a Japanese compact with blood and chunks of gore staining the windshield and upholstery.
More interesting was the complement of military vehicles. A cluster of Humvees sat in one corner, a two-and-a-half truck was overturned in a loading bay. All of these vehicles had been torn apart by zombies, ripped almost down to the chassis in an attempt to reach the humans inside. Twisted metal and engine parts littered the ground around them.
To the right, Michaels humped it up a telephone pole overlooking the yard, got cozy with his high powered hunting rifle.
In the center sat what most survivors considered a holy grail: Two Bradley personnel carriers, in good condition. One had a destroyed turret, but the other was just fine. If they could find some fuel...
On the far side, Davis clambered over a pile of debris that had buried the lot entrance, gave his area the once over, slid down. He was followed by the two new guys, Sam Hoskins and Johnny Marlowe. Sam was a biochemist for Necrotech; Johnny was a surgeon who had worked at St. Jude's in Ridleybank. In a fight they were useless. Survival-wise the two were so green they needed mowing. Nevertheless their skills had been invaluable ever since the group had come to their rescue a few days ago.
Bringing up the rear was Diego, hefting his axe as he made sure they hadn't been followed.
A quick sweep of the grounds revealed no zombies. After making sure the Bradley was empty, Lanahan gave a whistle. Quickly, his men formed up around the menacing armored beast.
When they had assembled, he spoke. "We need to get this APC up and running, but there's no fuel anywhere. Options?"
Diego pulled out a canteen, unscrewed the cap. "Bradley's got a diesel-burning engine. If the warehouse has *glug* cold storage, it'll have a backup generator room. They'll have diesel in there."
"Then that's our best bet." replied Boxer. "Grab as much gas as we can, clear that rubble blocking the exit road, and make a break for one of the evac zones."
Nodding, Lanahan gave some orders. "Gray, Michaels, get up on the wall and keep watch. Davis, move some of that debris in the road, but not too much; we can't leave ourselves wide open for the zeds. Everyone else, come with me."
Still cautiously they moved over to the barricades. At a signal from the boss, Boxer climbed up, found a small opening in the chaotic assembly while the others took up covering positions. "Is anyone in there!? We're friendlies, we need some fuel!"
After a few minutes without a response the warehouse was deemed abandoned. A crowbar was found in the trunk of a car, passed forward, and the dismantling began...
(Well that's chapter one! The next installment will be posted within a week, featuring some more character background. If you liked it, head to the talk page and leave me a comment!)
