Cape Breton Island

[Winters]

A small island that branches off from the mainland, connecting only by a single causeway. Shortly after the outbreak incidents have been coming up over Canada, the causeway was destroyed by locals, making the entire Cape Breton Island a safe zone from the infection. For most of the population on the island, life hadn't changed. But day after day, food and supplies are getting lower and lower, with no access to the mainland for restocking. Small cases of rioting by locals are present, but everybody is calm my the most part. The mainland isn't even a half mile across the water, so boating over at your own risk is how people are staying alive, bringing back supplies for themselves.

[Winters]

The mustang sped down the narrow country road through the town, weaving in and our of parked cars. Jericho wasnt really sure if there has been anybody still around in the houses, whether or not they were locked inside or abandoned, but there still had been the odd infected every now and then. The whole scenario was different from the big cities, the virus spread like wildfire here, but the people eventually got the better of it. The entire island had 32,593 people on it to begin with, and since the survivors had demolished the causeway.

Thirty thousand people to work with was small compared to the city, and since they were all pretty much spread out, the remaining infected were easy to deal with. However, the odds were still against them, Ben had calculated that there couldnt be more then fifty survivors on the entire island of Cape Breton. Taking into consideration the last outbreak, the total population was cut down to about a thousand. Which meant that each and every infected that was killed now would make the island a complete safe zone. The only downside was that the majority of infected hadnt been mutilated by any explosions, nor was there enough time for any serious amount of decomposition to take place, so the walkers on the island were more like runners. They may be dead, but they could easily keep up with you.

The Mustang came to a halt outside of the local gas station, and by the time Jericho got out, three infected had came sprinting from around the building. But he knew exactly what he was doing, this was his hometown, and hes been in this situation plenty of times. Running toward them, he jumped at the last second, grabbing onto the awning above and pulled himself up. The three infected turned into five, but that would be it so long as he kept quiet. They tried to get up, but it was useless for him. On the roof of the gas station, there was about fifteen empty gas cans, all ready to be filled. That was when Jericho realized that he left his shotgun in the car. Looking down at the infected, he spit on the head of one, and then spoke to himself. "Ah f*** me..."

He knew that Joey and the others wouldnt see a signal flair, but if there had been anybody else in the town left alive, they would definitely see it. Pulling out the small pistol from his jacket, Jericho shot one into the air, and it brightly illuminated the darkening sky as night fall onto the small town. He was already late as it is, maybe they would come looking for him. But he hoped that somebody would find him first, or he would be spending the night up on the roof.

[NotAvailable]

Sitting in the back of a black Pick up truck, Mitch had one leg crossed over the other, his guitar in his lap as he'd strummbed the chords, keeping his eyes focused on the roads left behind him. Driving the vehicle, Inez had glanced into the rearview mirror, sighing. He'd been at it since they'd left the last city. Losing his childhood friend had been the cherry ontop of their cruel week in Canada.

The cold weather just wasn't cold enough to keep the undead at bay in the last city and as such, they'd been through hell escaping that nightmare. She'd felt bad for the celebrity. The melody he'd played over and over again had been sad and soft, probably reflecting his current mood.

She tried to find the right words to console the man but nothing came to mind. She was just as depressed, missing her father and the supply rig. He had to be around somewhere...she just wasn't sure where. He didn't go by their scheduled routes according to the last trader she spoke to back in the states.

Thinking of the possibilities, she'd noticed a bright flare fling high into the sky from somewhere down the roads. A survivor! It had to be!

Sticking her hand out of the window, she'd tapped the roof of the car as hard as she could, twice, catching Mitch's attention. He'd glanced back at the young woman before looking up to see the flickering flare disappear.

"Becareful, Inez. Could be a trap," he warned her.

Inez nodded, gripping the steering wheel tighter. "Or a zombie with their grasp on a flare gun again," she replied, proving she wasn't as naive as he took her for. With that, Mitch grinned a little.

"Alright, alright, don't have a b*tch fit, now."

[Winters]

The roof of the Ultramar Gas Station had been high enough to keep those infected far away from him, and luckily there had already been a single supply of food and water packed away for an occasion. No matter how used to the end of the world, everybody makes mistakes. His was getting too carried away, and not checking his surroundings first. The duffle bag sitting behind an industrial fan was already unzipped, which wasnt a very good sign. But inside had been all of the right supplies, all except a flashlight. Looters wouldve taken it all, so it was probably Joey. He was never much for hoarding supplies, so if a flashlight got him out of a tight jam, thats fine enough for him.

When the flare finally left the sky, the only light had been coming from the headlights on the car, and that meant that even if he got down from here a few hours later, the battery would be more than likely dead. The situation was just bad, not dire, bad. Jericho was ****ed off more than anything, at how he could be so stupid sometimes. But it was that moment when the infected had all stopped and turned to look further down the main street. They didnt bolt, just stare, it was still to dangerous to go down, but at least he was assured that there was somebody else alive.

[NotAvailable]

As Inez drove further down the streets, she'd slowed to a stop ways away from the overrun gas station. Her eyes widened and the color in her face was flushed away when Mitch realized they weren't moving anymore. Glancing back at her, he was ready to question her when he, himself, noticed the rather large number of undead. He'd quickly zipped up his guitar into it's case and pushed it aside, grabbing ahold of his sidearm.

"Can we drive around them?" he asked the young woman. Inez frowned and scanned the crowd of undead before glancing up at the roof, she could barely makeout the faint sihlouette of someone waving their arms.

"Maybe... look! There's someone on the roof of the gas station! They're waving us down. she told him.

Mitch was more interested in the fact that some of the zombies had actually broke away from their group and began shuffling toward them. He growled. "Dammit, Inez, cut the lights!You're attracting them!" he snapped, ducking behind the carriage of the truck.

Inez breathed out slowly before narrowing her eyes and shutting the lights off. She'd pushed her foot down on the pedal and began picking up speed down the road, her intent was to run them down. Mitch felt his footing slip a bit with the speed. Deciding it was best to hold onto the damn truck sides, he'd shaken his head. Inez was too damn protective for her own damn good.

The woman slammed the front of the clunky trunk into a line of the bastards, sending them flying in different directions and some crushed under the tired. She was determined to help out whoever it was on the roof. Mitch was too, but he was just wary of whom it could possibly be on the roof. For all he knew, it was some raider or something.

[Winters]

When the truck had finally cane toward the gas station, Jericho knew that they would rid of the infected long enough for him to get down safely. In a matter of seconds, nearly the entire group of them were smashed to bits, unable to even get up from the broken bones and severed limbs. With that, Jericho grabbed the two half filled cans of gasoline, and then tossed them into the ground. Once about six cans were down, he leaped down off the gas station roof onto the top of his car, and grabbed his shotgun. Without stopping to talk to the people in the truck, he aimed it at the remaining infected, who had not began to sprint in his direction. Normally, taking shots off this deep into the town was a bad idea, but these were runners, and he didnt have anything to take them out silently. Once the shells rang off, the infected had been slain, and he knew that more were on their way.

Finally, the infected were all cleared out, for now at least. Moving up to the side of the truck, the windows were rolled down, and he engaged in conversation. Anybody willing to help him was deserving of a good thanks. "You seen the flare, huh? Didnt know if anybody was gonna come for me, wouldve had to spend the night up there..." It was at this time that Jericho was placed into a very, very bad situation. The woman driving the truck was nice enough to help him, and the man seemed decent enough too, but it wasnt like he could just take them back to the group. The reason they had survived long enough was because they kept a low profile, taking back more people would only put another dent in their food supply. With this, Jericho was forced to make a call.

If I take them back to the camp, the others might not take too kindly to it. This would go against everything ive stood for, staying alive on my own, or with people I know and trust wont let me down. Still, their truck can carry all the gasoline, so it would be better in the long run. That way we would have enough for six days of driving, if we did have to go anywhere during the winter for a long period of time. So, its settled, ill take them back. If Joey has any problems, we can deal with it, ill deal with them myself if I have to to keep us safe, if they do turn out to be trouble...

"Named Jericho, me and a few others have a camp about ten minutes outside of town. You can take a can of gasoline if you help me transport it. That truck would be perfect, too. Just help me load it up, and we can get out of here!" He might have been taking a huge risk, but it wasnt like they made much of a choice. Gasoline was very rare commodity these days, so whether the survivors wanted to or not, it would be in their favor to help out in the long run.

[NotAvailable]

Once they'd gotten rid of some of the ghouls, Mitch stood up in the back of the old truck and began picking off some of the shambling dead while Inez got out to help the man. He'd seemed nice enough and when the gunshots from Mitch died down, he was kind enough to introduce himself.

Mitch immeditely waved at him. "Sounds good to me. Never can have enough gas for the truck, eh, Inez?" he asked of her. Inez smiled widely and nodded as she'd helped load the truck with both men.

"Nope. Anywho, we can take you to your camp, sure. Name's Inez Rios and this is Mitch Gile, the famous Rock Star who, despite what most people might think, is definitely not a douche bag," she explained, chuckling.

Mitch grinned as well as he continued to load the truck and hopped on beside the cans. He tapped the side of the truck afterward, calling out to Inez to get the show on the road.

"Alright, Jericho, you can ride shotgun. Need you point out the direction to camp," she said, getting back into the driver's seat.

[Winters]

The last sentence had been nearly blocked out by the sound of Jerichos shotgun blasting off two more shells as he ran back for his car. The drivers side window was rolled down, so with a little skill, he jumped and slid into the car like a professional, tossing the shotgun in before himself. The moment he was sitting in the seat, Jericho started the Mustang, and then yelled out to the lady in the truck. "Follow me, its only fifteen minutes north down the main highway!" The car ripped out of the parking lot, and soon after, the truck plowed through a few of the undead, following close behind.

After about two minutes, they were on the highway, and the tall trees started to close in on the narrow road. Didnt take long for the small town enviornment to change into the middle of nowhere, and where they were going was even further then the middle of nowhere. The trees owned the land, not the survivors, and especially when ten years of not taking care of the trails and roads, its no wonder there had only been a population of ten people out here. Ten people in total before the outbreak, now there was just their group, and the odd walker here and there. The animals still lived peacefully, and since the hunting had decreased in the last four years, there was quite a bit of them around. Which made gathering food for the winter time acceptable, albeit challenging.

The mustang had been drifting on each turn, while the truck could do the same, not knowing the roads was increasing the distance between them. Soon after, he was out of their sight, and Jericho forced himself to slow down. Coming up onto a dirt road, he slid to a stop, and waited an extra minute for the truck to finally take the last corner before stopping itself. The man got out holding his shotgun, and looked down the dirt road. There was one last stop they needed to make, John Grant, the old man living in the road no far down the road. At first thought, it would be easier to take the truck, but there had been a big ditch in the middle of the road now since he dropped the TNT charge by mistake. "I gotta take a quick run down this was, should be about a ten minute walk. Stay in the truck if you want, but if you wanna come, make sure you have a gun cause im not watching your ass."

[NotAvailable]

Mitch raised a brow and glanced back at the gas cans. Was it alright to just leave the truck and the gas there? Plus he didn't like the idea of of trekking through East Jesus Nowhere with this some hic they just met.

"Sure, I'll go!" Inez exclaimed, excitedly as she'd slung a rifle over her shoulder and took the keys out of the ignition. She'd popped open a small panel in beneath the dashboard, Mitch couldn't see what she was doing at that point.

"Inez, what the hell are you thinking? It's f*ckin' dangerous out there. You can't go with that guy alone," he told her, glaring.

Inez laughed a bit, tying her hoodie around her waist once she hopped out of the truck and followed after Jericho.

"Then come with me if you're so worried," she told him. Mitch groaned and climbed out of the back of the truck, grabbing a few essential items and hooking it after the two.

Moving on down the ol' beaten path, Inez jogged up to Jericho's side, still smiling.

"So Jericho, where are we going, exactly? Is there food? I'm willing to trade some stuff in my bag for something, anything, edible."

[Winters]

As he wandered down the dirt road, Jericho held onto his shotgun with one hand, resting it on his shoulder. He didnt bother lugging a case of shells with him, because he wasnt anticipating on seeing too many infected, if any at all. Plus, where they were going would have lots of supplies, twelve gauge shells was his main priority. He was never very good at math, but if you ratio the shotgun shells with the number of potential kills, it was one for one. An extra hundred slugs meant another hundred zeds down, and another twenty five if he found birdshots. Joey was the better shot, even with a shotgun, he made his shells last two for one.

By the time the other two survivors get caught up, the lady asked him if they were going to be getter any food, that she had some to trade with. Out here, trading wasnt as well known, mainly because finding living survivors wasnt very well known. Everybody band together, sharing what they had, and the only people they came across were willing to kill for what they wanted rather then humbly swapping supplies. Needless to say, Jericho wasnt any better, he was the more darker soul out of his group. Joey was against raiding, he was much more noble when it came to looting supplies. If he had to steal from others so he could survive, it wasnt truely surviving. Sacrifice wasnt his forte, he would rather recruit and work together, rather then take from the weak.

"Well, im picking up my own supplies here, but whatever else you wanna carry back is fine by me..." Jericho wasnt too specific about where they were actually looting, because if he told them up front what he was down here to do they wouldve stayed in the truck. To be completely honest, the only reason hes taking the two survivors back with him is because they helped him get off the rooftop of the gas station, and its what Joey wouldve wanted. This run of his own was just that, completely his own goal, for his own benifiet.

When they got closer to the house that lay at the bottom of the dirt road about a quarter mile down, there had been a light on inside, which meant this was going down the hard way. The sun was falling, they had to get back as soon as possible, he hated the dark and wouldnt be much use guiding them back at night. "Stay here in the driveway, ill make sure the place is clear." Jericho jogged up to the patio, and then climbed the small wooden steps leading to the front door. Opening it up and holding the shotgun forward, he scanned around, looking for Jacob King. Never cared much for the old bat, shouldve came with them when he had the chance, then he wouldnt be on the short end of the stick. But Jericho wasnt here to ask again, he was here to rob him of any supplies he selfishly kept for himself.

But once he got to the kitchen, Jericho seem that it was too late. The blood leading down to the basement was a sure sign that the infected got to him first. Readying the shotgun to the steps, he peeked down, and then got to the bottom. The man lay on the floor, six infected feasting on him. While they were still occupied with him, Jericho looked around for a moment, but didnt see anything too important. Grabbing the pistol, he ran back upstairs, and then locked the basement door. The infected wouldnt even notice them so long as they were in and out without much horsing around. Stepping out onto the patio, he spoke out to the others, feeling relieved and disappointed at the same time. "Six walkers in the basement, in and out, quick as you can." He wanted to kill the man himself, but they had all the supplies in the front room, which was all that mattered. It was a house, there was tons and tons to loot, but they could make a second trip tomorrow if they needed to.

[NotAvailable]

Later, when the trio arrives at what seemed to be Jericho's campsite, Inez had been sitting in the back of the truck, taking in the scenery while Mitch had taken over driving. He had his elbow propped out of the window, a cigarette hung in his mouth as he'd glanced at the young woman in the back through their rear view mirror. She was digging in her bag, pulling out her digita camera, shuffling through it now. Probably to take some pictures or maybe to look at the old pics of her old man and mother.

There'd been ackward silence for most of the part when he'd looked back at the trail they'd been strolling along.

"So who's home were we looting back there, anyway?" he finally asked, his voice stern.

[Winters]

The drive was a little longer than anticipated, and nightfall was closing in one them quickly. The the highbeams on the truck were fairly low, but thats to be expected since it probably wasnt maintained in that department on a yearly basis. Still it ran fine, and got them to where they needed to go. Lime Hill was past them, and they were entering Marble Mountain now, the small community village about fortyfive minutes out of town. Population in 1998 was only a dozen people, so there wasnt a single infected out here. Jericho knew the howling was a sure sign the coyotes were onto the, but they down come down off the hill. For one reason or another, they were smarter than the walkers, animal blood was probably the difference.

When the man spoke, Jericho didnt know exactly how to respond. Whatever he told Mitch, lie or not, he would believe mainly because he wasnt in the right place to make judgement. Nobody was anymore, everything was taken with a grain of salt. "A friend of mine, lost contact with him few days ago. Seemed it didnt end well. Glad we stopped, grabbed a lot of useful supplies, thats for sure... Oh. Turn here." The struck slowed down a bit, and then swerved down onto a dirt road. It lead down the mountain side and toward the shoreline of the Bra'Dor Lakes. A large body of water you would confuse with the ocean if you had no prior knowledge, or hadnt seen an aerial view of the province.

On the lake there had been several smaller island out on the water, each spanning no further than a half mile apart. They each had solar powered homes on them, mostly summer getaways, and docks for landing boats. The largest one you could see when you reached the marina was the island they were boating out to. "Park the truck as close to the end of the docks as you can, I have a boat ready for us. See the small flickering light off in the distance? Thats our camp, on the island." Jericho still thought to himself whether or not is was a good idea to bring back survivors, but it was a little late now. The pair most likely wouldnt back down from a chance like this, not to worry about the infection for as long as they stay on the island. That was their goal in the long run. To have the whole Cape Breton Island infection free.

"This whole province went downhill. Back in 1998, people were too busy going on with their lives to prepare for what happened. We all just assumed it wouldve been contained before it spread. Obviously we were wrong, and paid the price. Im not even sure how it happened again, but I can tell you that if we had a little more support from the military, this whole island would be safe. Im almost certain that were the only people alive on the rock, but I can see it was easy for you two getting across the causeway. Wouldve blown it out with dynamite, make sure the body count only drops. But maybe thats not such a good idea. Would be great to get some Military support, checkpoint the mainland entrance, completely quarentine this place. The only hope to make this infected free now is me and my group."

[Charet]

Molly's first day on the Island proved eye opening. A haven from the undead it wasn't. You could see them out there from time to time. Her first act was to check the nearest house. Creeping slowly up to the door she pressed her ear against it, listening carefully for any noise.

A few moments of silence and a try of the door knob proves that the house is either abandoned or the owners aren't worried about security. Deciding on her entry that getting shot was more likely then getting bitten, she'd whistle softly before entering each room. Clearing the building room by room until the second floor appeared completely clear.

She slipped out of her wet lower half and spent the day lightly resting. Her information on this place doesn't appear to be as spot on as she'd hoped. She'd have to be careful in her travels.

The travels came the next day, and the day after. She was careful to take her time. Conserving her food supply that was augmented by some canned goods her first night. On the second day she noticed the smoke from a nearby island on a lake, or pond, or whatever these people call it. Live people made fire, the dead didn't much care for it. Figuring it was better then wondering alone she searched the beach for a way across. Her second boating experience was better then her first and she came on to rest on the opposite sure.

Tired already from rowing her way across another body of water her sense of security seemed to slack. On landing she shouted. "I swear if you lot are nothing but those knaffed dead then I'm going to scream.". Dragging herself out of the boat without a thought to even beach it securely she started walking inland. Alert to any signs of survivors.

[Winters]

"I dont think hes coming back, Ben. It only takes a half an hour to get into town. Hes been out there for more than a day now..." Madison spoke out in a worried tone. She really didnt care about too much in this life, only the people that were still alive, the people that keep her alive. If Jericho didnt come back, that would mean they would have to go looking for him, and it wouldnt turn out good at all. Theres no way you can find somebody now, its not like he would be drinking at the bar, or in his shop working on his truck. He could be anywhere, just dead is the last place anybody wants to see him. "Hes going to come back, I know him. Theres nothing going to stop him from doing that. Ive seen that guy take gunshots, get hit by cars. A slow, demented crazy person person isnt going to get in his way." Ben knew Jericho well enough to know he wouldnt just abandon them. Even if he was bitten, some closure would be nice. Hes saved their lives when they were in the city, and would undoubtfully do it again.

"If hes not back by morning, ill run my boat into the city, send a message to him when im closer. But for now, lets just try to keep a level head, okay? Regardless of whether he comes back or not, he need to ration up this food, and make sure the supplies are stored away for an emergency. The crops are all dead now, so whatever food we have now is the food we have until spring. I can make a trip down the coast, only be come a few weeks, come back with whatever we need if were low, but id rather do that before the lake starts to freeze over. So lets make sure we have what we need, and then go from there, alright?" But before anybody could get another word out, their was a voice, a female, coming from the shoreline not too far away. Madison stayed at the camp, while Ben grabbed his .45 and moved at a moderate pace in the direction of the voice. Freddy peered through the scope of his rifle, ready to take a shot had the newcomer been coming in hot with a gun.

[Charet]

Stopping a moment to try to catch her bearings Molly surveys the surroundings. Trying to jump the mental hoops of figuring out her direction. "So the smoke was on that end of the island." The woman pivots on her heel and points her revolver in a southern direction. "But that doesn't right either. Could have sworn there was a rocked slope over it." She taps her hand on her midsection a few times, contemplating the situation.

A shiver goes down her shine, the cold biting deep even through her leather jacket. "Why the hell did I come to a frozen piece of dirt like this again?" With the sun moving down across the sky she digs into a pack secured to the small of her back. Pulling out one of the cans she scavenged. "A fiver its dog food." She mutters, digging her knife from her pocket and forcing a corner of the can open. She lost her bet, it was creamed corn that she was just settling in to enjoy, hopefully before dark settles in.