12/21/12 (M) IC

First Posts: In your first post your character is roaming through Pinwheel forest, how you arrived there is up to you. Your character will stumble upon a woman (my character Allison) gathering berries. Once everyone's characters meet up the story will progress from there.

Things you can do:

Spoiler:

1. Spot a Zombie.
2. find a blunt weapon (there will be guns but later on in the RP).
3. Find a food or water source.
4. Find Allison.

Things you Can't do:

Spoiler:

1. Fight a Zombie (Don't want anyone to die in the beginning)
2. Find a wild Pokemon that is not infected (Again will happen later)
3. Leave Pinwheel forest.

From here it's up to you, run into Allison in your first post. Once everyone has posted once she will give you a task. Just remember no confronting a zombie unless I tell you that you can, a majority of Zombie battles will have the dice roll. But there will be a few were it's guaranteed the zombie is defeated and no one is hurt or killed. I will let you know when those are.

Peter Nelson
Pinwheel Forest
Chapter 1 Part 1: So the Adventure Begins

I was wandering around the dark, mysterious forest. It was quiet. So ****ing quiet. I can't stand it. It reminds me of death: Silence. I couldn't release Duke. The Quagsire would make more noise than a rampaging Tauros. Me, myself, was crouched down in a small thicket of berries between four different trees. I was watching this small pack of zombies rove the forest clearing in front of me. The very thought of them noticing me was Arceus-awful. I placed his hand on the trunk of one of the trees, doing so as quietly as a man of my size could. I would have to climb if necessary. I, myself, am an excellent climber. "Damned zombies...Can't get a break..." I've seen these things a good dozen times. It starts to get old really, really fast.muttered under. I'm not exactly sure what these things are capable of; My other team members were bitten while I sent them to find food. I've always regretted it...They came back...They came back as the ****ING DEAD! AND IT WAS MY FAULT!

I can't panic...not now... I punched the tree as quietly as I could. The zombies had passed. It's about damn time. I stood up and rushed into the clearing. One of them had dropped a baseball bat that it had been clutching in its hands. The poor guy was probably trying to defend himself when the bastards got him. I scooped it up. I'll have to make a strap for it later. For now, I'll have to carry it. I began to walk towards a pool of water in the corner of the clearing....Water hasn't been the same for me in a while. That's were Gyarados...I cupped my hands and began to drink from the pool until I was full. As I stood up, I noticed a small bushel of berries nearby. I produced a leather pouch from my pocket and strode over to the bush and began to fill it with the berries, Oran berries from what I could tell. I love me some Oran berries.

Once I filled the pouch with berries, I began to walk towards the road. That's where most of the zombies would be, but what the hell? Maybe I could go out with a bang! I chuckled at the thought of bashing zombies' brains out. The dead bastards don't need them anymore. I laughed even harder at the thought, but I stopped laughing when I saw the lady picking berries on the side of the road. I approached her. "Exc-excuse me miss..." I studdered the words. "What are you doing here?" I towered over her, but I still thought she was terrifying.

A young woman sat lazily in the tree, humming quite merrily to herself, picking some berry pulp out of her teeth with a very ornate thirteen inch knife. She looked completely serene and content with the end of the world, as if she was right at home. Her name was Jen. She held, if such could be said for the one handed woman, a young, timid zorua in her lap. She had been given the name of Cassandra, and her short life had been fraught with terror and death, though thankfully not her own. Jen cradled the pup as if she was the most important thing in the world, and put her long hunting knife in it's scabbard, sitting up. For several days she had followed the young woman below without her noticing, never getting close, mainly out f her curiosity. After all, she had been fascinated to see the zombies eating, though would never consent herself or Cassie to this task. The more she knew about these freaks the easier it would be to survive. She had already lost one hand, and her best friend, she had no desire to lose anything else. Jen was not sure what she would do in all honesty, save the world, let it burn, or even make it burn faster. Regardless, things were bound to be interesting from here on out, and she was going to see the next step.

"Exc-excuse me miss... What are you doing here?"

At the sound of those words Jen opened her eyes and peered out of the treebranch to see a tall man standing over the woman. Oh look, another volunteer. Who was this fool? She decided to remain hidden, to observe unless she was spotted. Her tattered clothing and pale skin might look zombied, but her eyes would hold spirit, and vengeance.

Somewhere, in Pinwheel Forest...

The sound of footsteps echoes softly through the woods as Jason runs down the path, all pretense of stealth gone in favor of speed. He breathes quickly, one hand held to his head to keep his hat from flying off, daring a glance back down the path from where he came. Seeing nothing there, he slows to a stop, struggling to quiet his breathing. "Nothing... I made it! Haha! Yes!" He leans against a tree, catching his breath and inspecting his hat. A large chunk is missing from the brim, shaped suspiciously like teeth...

Jason moves quietly along the small path, keeping off the main path for now. Sure, it was slower, but he ran less risk of being seen. Suddenly, he hears a sound from up ahead: a soft thump, followed by an exhale of breath. Moving quietly, he moves forward to investigate. On the main road, he can see a young woman lying in the ground, wheezing for breath.

He moves from the relative safety of the trees to rush to her side, kneeling beside her. "Miss? Miss are you alright? Keep calm, you're all out of breath." He places a hand on her shoulder, rolling her over to look at her face. Suddenly, he is hit from the side as something lands on him!

By the foul stench and gnashing of teeth, he can only assume it to be a zombie. He rolls with the attack, when the zombie is pulled off him. "Run!" The girl yells at him, clinging to the zombie's leg. Jason agrees, turning and sprinting for his life. He can hear a faint growl of frustration and a scream of pain, ducking his head as he runs...

Jason runs his fingers over the bite mark on his hat. "I got lucky. That could have been me missing a chunk back there, instead of my favorite hat..." Jason stops reminiscing as he hears a faint sound: running water. He quickly looks around, moving toward the sound, finding a small stream. "Ah, water! Excellent!" He stoops to drink his fill, fishing a small flask out of his coat pocket. It's not much, but it's water, so he fills his makeshift canteen. Following the river seems like as good an idea as any, so he sets off once more.

After a good 10-15 minutes, he can see movement up ahead, but can also hear a faint voice. He picks up the pace, almost tripping over an exposed tree root. He glances down, seeing that it's not a root at all, but an old axe embedded into the tree! Thanking his good luck, he tries to pull the weapon out, but the blade is stuck tight. Pulling harder, he feels the handle shift, and he tumbles backwards, accidentally pulling the handle out of the tree, leaving the head embedded in the wood. "Damn it! ... At least I have something I can hit things with now... And a cane, if I need it. Silver lining, there."

How long had it been since life had been livable? The passage of time was marked only by clean, shallow, vertical cuts in the sole of Kaden's boot. It had been a while since he'd bothered to count them, but it was clear by sight that there were many. Those same boots made faint depressions in the dirt with every cautious step Kaden took along the forest path. Though it would make sense to travel a less conspicuous route to avoid confrontation, the vegetation was too thick elsewhere for him to be sure he'd be able to make a quick exit. That was especially true for Ember. The Charizard lumbered along behind her companion, her tail held carefully above the ground, her single wing folded at her back, and her eyes darting back and forth suspiciously. Since the loss of her wing her balance had been compromised terribly and there were times where she couldn't move as quickly as she used to. Though that made her dead weight and perhaps bad for survival, Kaden would sooner die than abandon her. Ember would guard him until her own death, anyway. Their partnership went back too far for them to part now.

A rustling in the bushes caused the two of them to turn quickly, eyes and ears pricked for any sign of movement. The underbrush parted as the tattered remains of what could have been any Pokemon dragged itself toward the two of them. Wet gasping sounds emitted from what Kaden could only assume used to be its mouth.

Simultaneously Kaden and Ember took off running. Kaden had the body of a track runner so it was no trouble for him, but Ember was far more cumbersome and could not move as swiftly. Still, she was fast enough to outrun that mess of fur and broken bones, and in due time they appeared to be in the clear. Kaden leaned against her heavily, gasping for air. He would never get over seeing what used to be cute, lively creatures like that. It was nauseating.

They had better just do what they came for so that they could get back to their shelter. Their canteens were close to empty, and dehydration was fast approaching. The trouble was, finding a clean water source was nearly impossible. Most Water Pokemon had been infected by now, and their infection would seep into the water they inhabited. Luckily Ember could smell it, and would okay or condemn a water source for them. Thus far it had been nearly impossible to find clean water. There was one pond they'd been coming to every few days, and it had remained clean.

Once they were close they deviated off of the path and made a beeline for the pond, only after glancing around to make sure it was safe. The sweet, clear water beckoned to Kaden and there was nothing he wanted more than to submerge himself in the cool and refreshing pond, but he knew better. He paused and glanced at Ember for guidance.

The Charizard sniffed hard, nostrils flaring, and furrowed her brow. She took a few tentative steps toward the pond, then shook her head and snorted. Kaden's heart sank. By now, he knew what that meant. They'd better look for water elsewhere.

The duo turned and went back the way they came with quiet steps. They had enough water to last them perhaps a day or two, but not enough to survive long on. Especially with Ember's impressive size, she needed plenty of water. Not for the first time since the apocalypse, Kaden wished she'd been a dwarf.

They would have to venture off of the path to find another pond. Jumpy and nervous, they began their careful search for another water source. It was a treacherous trail, with thick underbrush in most places that could easily be hiding an infected creature. Their hearts thudded fast in time with one another, which was bad, they knew. The infected must be able to smell the blood rushing through their veins. But there wasn't much they could do to calm down when they knew the danger they were in.

A clearing ahead of them beckoned. With bated breath they crept toward it. Ember stopped him with her tail and insisted on going first, pushing past him. Although Kaden did not agree with her judgment he knew that she was much larger than him and in the end, she was going to get her way. Very slowly she poked her head through the trees to see the frame of a human girl, kneeling down. She snarled silently and made to back into the foliage, but then she took in a deep breath and realized the scent of infection was not on the air. So, acting mostly on instinct, Ember moved to slip into the clearing and announce their presence. She halted immediately and raised her head, hearing a body in motion before he did.

It had been so long since he'd heard a human voice, the sound made him jump. Kaden turned swiftly to face the man who had spoken, presumably to the woman as himself and Ember were fairly well hidden from his line of sight. Another male voice quickly followed, though this one belonged to a much noisier individual. He hurried toward the two individuals in the clearing, immediately marking himself as a man to dislike and avoid for Kaden and Ember. Was he trying to get them noticed by the infected? Did he not know that complete silence was the best strategy?

Gently Ember nudged his back with her nose, and he knew what she was trying to communicate. Their concerns about a lack of fresh water and a dwindling food supply may be over. Normally when they'd found people in the past, they were glad to share their supplies in exchange for human companionship. Kaden would do no such thing, but he was certainly willing to allow others to help him in his monumental task of keeping a one-winged Charizard fed, hydrated, hidden, and healthy. He leaned back against Ember for just a second, an affectionate gesture just in case. There was no way of telling how this was all going to end up. Then he took several quiet, long strides into the light, Ember following closely behind him with an expression resembling that of a bodyguard.

"We're clean," he said quickly in a hushed tone. For all he knew any of them may have a gun and a hair trigger. His voice cracked and rasped from ages of unuse. How long had it been, days? Weeks? Surely not months. Kaden cleared his throat in an effort to sound more like himself. "No bites or scratches on either of us. You can check if you need to."

He didn't say it yet, but he may later demand to check everyone else for bites if it so happened that they decided to stay together. The last time he'd been part of a group one of the girls had been bitten and told no one, wrapping it tightly to staunch the bleeding and covering it up. Her selfishness took the lives of three people as he'd watched as she turned. Kaden had not waited to see if anyone else surived; he and Ember took off before they had the chance to find out. He would not let that happen again. Perhaps he had never truly been social, but being around other people did at least help morale. It helped it feel less like the end of the world and more like a short natural disaster that the higher ups had yet to solve. And, of course, there were more resources.

Allison looked up from the berry bush as a man who looked to be about two years older than her stood over her, his shadow covering her small frame. But she wasn't worried or startled. She knew there were others in the woods that lived, she was just waiting for them to find her. "Exc-excuse me miss...What are you doing here?" he stuttered.

"I live here" Allison replied standing up though the man was still much taller than she was. "I'll explain everything soon" she added with a warm smile. Though she wouldn't show it yet she was well aware of the woman watching them from the trees but she would wait. Meanwhile she spotted another man also older than her run over to them.

"Hello! Don't be alarmed, I'm still alive!" the dark brown haired man called out to them happily.

"Well, that's good. Though obviously you are still alive" Allison smiled at the man before frowning. "Though do be a little quieter, it wouldn't do for the undead to find us now"

Before she could say anything else though a third man who looked to be about a year older than herself walked out onto the road followed by a one winged Charizard. "We're clean," he quickly said in a soft hushed tone though his voice cracked and rasped from obvious unuse. "No bites or scratches on either of us. You can check if you need to." he added after clearing his throat.

"We're all clean too, I should probably introduce myself." Allison smiled kindly at the three men in front of her. "My name is Allison Davies. I have a secure camp here in Pinwheel forest. My previous group of companions abandoned me because I hid something from them" she paused with a sigh.

"I'm going to tell you upfront then you may decide if you wish to stay with me" she looked at them a serious look in her blue eyes, "Five years ago a team of scientists, myself included discovered a prediction made by an ancient civilization. It stated on December 12th, 2012 the world would fall to a plague of undead that would last for an undetermined amount of time before the dead died out again" she paused a sad look on her face. "N-None of us believed it...but I kept a copy for reasons I still do not know." she looked away from the men and at the ground.

"I will not blame you if you do not wish to help me...I'm studying the undead. To try to figure out how long this will last...however if you choose to stay there is an abandoned warehouse in the east side of the woods full of medical supplies. If you choose to help me. I ask if you could go and retrieve these items"

Alyssa glided on, or seemed to glide on. She was held in place by Kelly's Psychic, that Psychic attack that Kelly had had been very useful in getting Alyssa out of sticky situations unharmed. Alyssa and Kelly had, in the past few days trained Kelly's Psychic to an extent that Kelly could maintain her Psychic for almost a whole day. Deciding that it was safer to be in the air where zombies could not reach, Alyssa spent most of her day flying across lands, in search of more people that she could speak to to get her bearings and help keep her safe.

Alyssa swooped over the land, and in the distance, spotted a large forest. What forest it was, Alyssa did not know. All she knew was that she was weary and mentally exhausted from the whole trauma. All Alyssa wanted was to find Alex again before she decided on another plan of survival.

Alyssa nodded her head at Kelly and Kelly allowed both herself and Alyssa to move closer to the forest. Moving slowly, Kelly and Alyssa scanned the forest for signs of life. There were a few zombies at a clearing near the edge of the forest. Alyssa shuddered as she thought about that wave of zombies that had flooded the church on her wedding night. Alyssa was definitely blessed to have been alive. In fact, it was surprising that none of the zombies had turned towards Alyssa for a snack or to infect her with the zombie disease.

It was also a stroke of luck that the wave of zombies had managed to break Kelly's Pokeball, releasing her and enabling her to wisp Alyssa out of harm's way. That came at a cost though, because Alyssa now no longer had a Pokeball for Kelly.

Alyssa blinked. She had thought she saw a rustle of movement within the trees. Alyssa pointed at the trees and Kelly brought them ever closer into the forest. Yes! There was a congregation of sorts within the forest. Without much further thought, Alyssa signaled Kelly to lower both of them into the congregation.

When both Alyssa and Kelly landed though, Alyssa realized that she had no idea what to say, and all Alyssa could do was to stand on the forest and stare at the group of people.

Kaden and Ember held similar unreadable expressions as they listened to the girl speak. Though she gave her name Kaden would surely forget it. It wasn't as though he ever put much effort into remembering names, but especially now when partnerships tended to be short lived he did not put forth the effort. Still, in an attempt to show politeness, he gave a stiff nod of his head.

"I'm Kaden, and this girl is Ember."

She made a soft, rumbling sound of acknowledgement, all the while studying everyone around them. At the mere mention of Allison hiding something from her previous companions she raised her head and narrowed her eyes, ready to react. Was it a bite? That was the most common answer now. Kaden was similarly on edge and he tensed, ready to let Ember do her worst. But as she explained he frowned, not yet relaxing but not really expecting a fight.

"That's it? As long as you're honest that's fine."

He did not elaborate, but it was clear that he meant for her to fess up now if she'd sustained any injuries. Kaden himself had nothing to share, and Ember had been saved from the infection by amputating one of her most precious appendages. He expected the same courtesy from anyone else.

His interest was piqued at the mention of medical supplies. It had been bad enough, having to do a rough amputation with almost no medical knowledge and cauterizing the wound. It would have been better if he had actual medical supplies--most importantly, anesthetic. Ember's roars of agony would stay with him forever.

As much as he was interested, there had to be some give and take here. Kaden took a step back emotionally and questioned "Do you have a clean water supply? The one we've been going to is out of the question now. Infected Water Pokemon have ruined it. Their infection seeps into the water and makes it a vessel for the virus."

Kaden hoped that Allison or any of the others knew where they could find water, because if they didn't all of this could be for nothing. He especially would not go on any mission without full canteens.

Another question arose. "Why is it you haven't tried to do it yourself?"

He crossed his arms and waited for an answer. If it was because it was crawling with zombies he'd sooner decline than risk his and Ember's lives just for this.

Still tense, at the sound of a body hitting the ground Kaden and Ember turned sharply, ready to fight or flee. But at the sight of another human girl Kaden let out a deep breath and leaned against the Charizard. This was getting exhausting.

WHAT THE HELL? This lady knew?! She could've stopped everything? I took a step back and clenched the baseball bat in my hand. It groaned under the pressure, but it stayed strong. That's bull-friggin' crap! I groaned a little and looked down. She lied to that other group, so what's to stop her from lying to us? On one hand, she's a lyer, and possibly the cause of this plague. The options were weak either way. On the other, she knows where to get legitimate medicince, and she could even know what caused all of this crap. I probably wouldn't of said yes if the guy with the Charizard hadn't. It would be useful to have a Charizard around, no matter how many wings it had. "I'm in, but you can't lie to me." I swung the baseball bat onto my shoulder.

Duke popped out of his pokeball with a loud, "Quag!"

"Shut up!" I clamped my massive hands over his mouth and blushed. "So-Sorry."

Jason frowns in thought as the group grows larger. He was happy to find some live people again, but this particular lot seemed rather run down already, and just a bit touchy. He'd have to calm himself, or bad things could happen.

The girl, Allison, was apparently a researcher. A fact that didn't seem to go over too well with the others, but they mostly kept their distrust or anger in check. The soft-spoken man, Kaden, had questions, primarily about water. "I can help with the water, actually." He didn't exactly whisper, but he kept his tone low and conversational. "There's a small stream a bit back there, and it was still good. You can have your dragon give it a whiff to be sure." He casually retrives his water, taking a step forward to offer it slowly to Kaden.

In the process, he steps in fron of the big man hefting the bat. Keeping a loose, non-threatening grip on his own bludgeon, he glances at the man. "At ease, soldier. She hasn't lied to us yet, and with all of us here, we have a good chance of getting to that warehouse."

Keeping his attention on the man he's blocking and the man he's offering a metaphorical olive branch, he barely has time to notice the new arrival, but does offer her a welcoming nod of his head.

Allison watched the group of men in front of her nervously as she finished her tale. Honestly she wouldn't blame any of them if they just up and left. Finally though one of them spoke.

"I'm Kaden, and this girl is Ember." the man with the one winged Charizard said, and Ember made a small ruble of acknowledgment. "That's it? As long as you're honest that's fine." Kaden continued and right away Allison got what he was getting at.

"No injuries don't worry" she said softly before he asked another question.

"Do you have a clean water supply? The one we've been going to is out of the question now. Infected Water Pokemon have ruined it. Their infection seeps into the water and makes it a vessel for the virus." he crossed his arms "Why is it you haven't tried to do it yourself?"

"I'll answer that in a minute." she said looking around as the first one of the group to find her spoke.

"I'm in, but you can't lie to me." he said and Allison nodded.

The last man mentioned water in response to Kaden's question and stepped in front of the man with the bat. "At ease, soldier. She hasn't lied to us yet, and with all of us here, we have a good chance of getting to that warehouse."

"No need to worry about water. I have plenty of clean water stored enough to last for the next ten years if needed." she said looking at them. "as for why I haven't tried to do this myself. I've been busy, as I said I'm studying the undead. Trying to figure out how long until they eventually fade from existence. My work takes up most of my time." she said. "If your in, I'll show you to my camp and give you a map of the forest" she added, "also for those that didn't introduce yourselves what are your names?"

Jason turns to face Allison, turning his back to Peter. He hopes the situation is resolved and that the big man isn't as smack-happy as he looks. He realizes he hasn't introduced himself yet, and that Allison is referring to him. "Can I just say how fascinating I think your research is? Just because the zimbies unrepentently murder anyone and everyone they come across doesn't mean we shouldn't learn more about them!" He smiles, tipping his hat to her as he taps a pocket of his jacket, opening the Pokeball stored there. His Mismagius pops out, immediately draping herself over his shoulders like a cape.

"Jason Haakon, at your service, and this is my best friend and companion, Mialee. We'll gladly accompany you on your little venture." "Mag." Mialee nods, softly murmering her assent.