Raccoon City Public Mall

[darkrising025]

Over the last couple of hours things had gone from bad to s***. Luiz had got himself nto a grade A ****storm. El Toro had almost gotten himself eaten to two occasions. Luiz was the last one to reach the car. He turned around and blindly fired several rounds. He jumped in the car and slammed the door. "Uhm, I think we should hit the gas." Luiz said.

[Sinn]

Siris gripped tightly on the APC as he watched zombie crunch under the treads. The streets were covered with infected; as were the shops along the streets. He spun around and dropped into the cabin, a wide array of weapons and ammunition were scattered across the insides of the APC, Siris spoke as he walked to the hatch, looking for any infected on the inside, "That was too close for comfort. But there was that man in the car...The one fighting the Tyrant by himself. More importantly; there is still a Tyrant," he looked out the small slit of bullet-proof glass as he climbed into the left-side gunner chair.

He looked to Will as he chuckled; "Talk about a meat grinder." He stood up and walked to Will, taking a seat in the commanders chair. His mind thought of the training and uses against the undead; idle conversation could prevent chaos in ones subconscious; "So MacGyvers, what do you do for a living? I know what you are thinking, but conversation prevents PTSD from setting in."

[Big Boss, Lord of Light]

MacGyvers was breathing heavily, as he holstered his side arm. He leaned his head back as he sat in the seat of the APC. He felt his heart beat slowing down, the adrenaline that had been coursing through his body was faltering and his body was starting to crash. He shook his head as the APC rolled down the street.

"So,MacGyvers," Sirirs asked from the commander's chair, "what do you do for a living? I know what you are thinking, but conversation prevents PTSD from setting in."

The Scotsman chuckled, as he fought off the thousands aches and pains that his body was putting upon him. He looked at the new man with his eyes and shook his head.

"That is a tough question." MacGyvers replied. "I have been a soldier for a long time...so long that I do not care to remember why I started fighting. When the wars started to dry up, I became a mercenary.....when the money dried up, I drifted.

"From continent to continent, from flag to flag. One day I was government, the next, rebel. I fought for the highest price and the cause that I felt was most right.

"When I began to see that the life was going to kill me sooner than later, I settled upon becoming a strictly company man....I heard Umbrella was hiring soldiers for security purposes...I figured company job, no stress, guard some rich guy, get paid, retire. Boy was I ever wrong.

"It was just another battlefield, another war to fight....."

MacGyvers laughed again, as he leaned forward in the chair.

"I was dropped into the meat grinder of Raccoon City....I saw the monsters first hand, I had a change of heart...and again put my soul up for grabs. My contract went to this charismatic group of rebels that were fighting for what I thought was a good cause. Stave the infection, kill off the undead, rebuild....sounds good right? But, these guys had an agenda. They were highly organized and ruthless....the Union of Patriots.

"See my face?" MacGyvers said, taking his hand and motioning to the whirlpool scar that circled it. "They did this to me when I found out what they were up to. They carved me up, left me to die.....but I refused to stay down.

"I no longer hold myself to any country, flag, or politics, laddie....I am free of my burden to others." MacGyvers took his canteen from his side and took a long drink. "My boys and I were doing this last favor to square the board. We are free now....they are free now.

"Brezhnev death along with the other Union scum brings my job to a close as far as government officials go. My showdown with the monster was a short one, but it was there....and I do not hate myself for saying that I enjoyed it." MacGyvers closed his eyes remembering Brezhnev's death. The look of anger and terror in the eyes of the madman as the bullets ripped his body to shreds. When he opened his eyes, he looked a Siris coldly.

"But now, we have a new player, and a new game. He seems to be even more organized and hateful than the General. Blowing people up from god knows where, sending out tyrants dressed like soldiers and armed with assault rifles.....it is a whole new ball game....and if someone doesn't do something, I am afraid that this new guy will cause big trouble in some city somewhere...."

[Alexia Ashford]

Alexia kicked the metal door guard repeatedly, her steel toe cap boots doing nil damage to it. The door shook violently, creating a loud thumping noise that echoed through the mall levels. Stuck, for two whole years on 'Level 3', in a small Candy Store. Alexia was lucky to be alive, and also lucky that this candy was untouched, uninfected, and had a shelf life that lasted years.

The door that stopped the zombies from tearing Alexia limb from limb was strong, very strong, and of course, it was jammed. Alexia had tried for eighteen months to become free but the door never eased up, which in part, Alexia was grateful for. She didn't want to become zombie food, for at least a few more decades.

Flipping her long blonde hair behind her shoulders, Alexia made a groaning noise and turned her back on the door, it was useless. "Stupid thing.." She muttered under her breath. Was she to be in here forever? The candy supply was running out, and Alexia felt herself slowly become weaker. The groans of zombies outside got louder, clearly rattling the door only rattled their cages and they piled around in there hundreds, hitting the door with a 'Thump' and a 'Scratch'. Their long nails clawing at the metal.

"How did I ever get stuck in this dump!" She spat, throwing her MP5K onto the floor. It slowly slid to the other side of the room where it hit the skirting. She glared at it, her bright blue eyes infuriated. This was becoming boring now. She couldn't even kill anything, as even the bullets of her 'Marx XIX Desert Eagle' didn't penetrate the strong steel.

Pulling herself up onto the candy counter, Alexia shoved a 'Tootsie Roll' in her mouth, chewing on it in an angry manner as she watched the zombies continue to pound and thud. "I need to change.." She sighed, and looked at the dull and drab clothes she was wearing. The slim black jeans and black tank top were becoming tattier, threads were hanging off and there was a gaping hole at the back of her shirt. She needed clothes. She needed to escape.

[KR0R1C]

The black hawk flew low as it approached the Raccoon City mall. On board where two passengers other than the normal pilots. Jonathan Kroric, and the tyrant S.C.A.R. Jon sat gazing out the side doors as the city passed below them. He reflected back to what had brought him here. He'd received a new shiny pair of red sunglasses (which he was currently wearing) and this had caused an urge to build up within him. Oddly enough he wanted to go shopping. A new wardrobe to complement his awesome new shades would be pretty awesome. Of course he'd probably get scolded for using the black hawk for personal reasons but he could care less. The chopper came low over the building and the dark haired psycho could see clearly through the malls windowed roof.

A crowd of zombies where steadily collecting around one store front in particular. "Hey pilot! Hover here I wanna clear up the crowd a bit before dropping in." The pilot obeyed the order and hovered low for him. Jonathan locked the birds side gun in place and started raining bullets down on them. The floor the zombies stood on slowly began to shine dark red as partially coagulated blood began to cover the floor. When it was cleared a bit more he radioed the pilot once more. "Thanks boys. I'll give ya a call when I'm done." The bird landed on the roof and Jonathan and S.C.A.R. stepped off.

The duo made their way to a roof access door they went in and made their way down the stairs. After coming through the maintenance halls they found themselves in the open room where all the zombies had been collecting. In their place was several large piles of flesh. Jonathan examined the door the undead had been crowding. He then looked at S.C.A.R. "A candy store? You aren't developing a sweet tooth too are ya?" The giant black shadow let out a growl in response. "Well there must be something good in there. Lets have a looksie." As soon as he finished his sentence his tyrant responded by kicking the door dead center as hard as it could. The metal locks snapped and the door moved a bit but not enough to get in. S.C.A.R. laid into it once more focusing instead on only one of the two doors. This time the hinges snapped and the door fell inward with a crash.

Jonathan stepped inside first his eyes trailed across the nearly empty supplies of candy until they landed on a human figure in the room. It was a girl she wore dark clothes and had long beautiful blonde hair. Jonathan was quite surprised, and the girls beauty only added to his bewilderment.

"Looks like those zombies where after something pretty good after all. Jonathan Kroric at your service." He gave a courteous nod as he finished off his line.

[Alexia Ashford]

Stretching her arms out in front of her, Lexi tilted her head back until she heard the satisfying 'Click' of her back snapping back into place. Glancing around the room, Lexi's blue eyes glinted as the last remaining bulb on the ceiling flashed, slowly getting dimmer. She was surprised the electricity had even lasted this long. It was certainly not what she wanted to see right now though. Darkness was only good when you had someone to share it with.

In the distance, Lexi thought she could hear the sound of blades.. Helicopter Blades? She shrugged it off, assuming it was just another zombie sprawl, and pulled out her shiny blade from her thigh holster, swirling it round in her perfectly manicured hands. Even in a zombie Apocalypse, she managed to look good. Beauty and Health class really did her well at college, her nails always looked designer. Trailing the knife along her collarbone, Lexi allowed a small splash of blood to flow from her skin. She loved that smell..

Sliding the knife back into place, Lexi's head turned, almost instantly as she heard the sound of someones voice coming from the metal doors. Is someone there? She thought to herself, narrowing her eyes. She couldn't see past the door, but she was certain there was someone there.

Staying fixed in place upon the counter, Lexi sat and waited. If it was a person, there wasn't much she could do about it. The door was jammed and it would take extreme force to get it open. Certainly not human force. She kept her eyes fixed on the door and took a sharp breath, folding her arms then glancing at her gun tossed on the floor. Crap. She thought. What was going to happen?

Before Lexi could have even thought anymore, the door came flying off it's hinges, hitting the floor with a great THUD. Lexi sat in shock as before her stood a tall Tyrant. She knew exactly what it was, but she couldn't react, as beside it she saw a man. A man, standing beside a Tyrant.. Maybe the candy was going to her head, as she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

As the man spoke and introduced himself, Lexi swallowed harshly and folded her arms, almost hugging herself. "Jonathan Kroric." The mans voice came. Two whole years without hearing anyones voice "Uhm.. Hi?" Lexi said distantly, still not aware of the situation. She slipped off the counter and stepped towards the man and the huge Tyrant, but disregarded the monster. Lexi reached out and touched the mans face, almost falling over from the warmth. It was a human, he was real, he wasn't infected, he stood before her, he'd saved her. She could get out of the candy store.

[KR0R1C]

The blonde spoke softly. Uhm.. Hi? She seemed a bit confused. Maybe she'd been locked up in here for a long time. Jonathan had no idea. But before he could counter she approached him placing her cool hand on his face. Jonathan stood for a moment unsure how to continue. It'd been so long since he'd been this close to a girl. Let alone one as beautiful as the one before him. He was smitten, but it was short lived. A sharp pain split Jonathan's brain and forced him to compose himself.

He looked around the room inspecting what was left. Trying to find something to use to hold a conversation. Instead he began to ramble. "I... Uh... I came to do a bit of shopping. But this is much better than anything I expected to find. Pleasure to meet you miss..." He let his sentence trail off. A clue that he was wanting to learn her name.

As he did he took notice to the girls knife. On the floor across the room was an MP5K. He saw no other bodies in the room. Which meant she had been taking care of herself. Jonathan was starting to like this girl.

[Alexia Ashford]

"I... Uh... I came to do a bit of shopping. But this is much better than anything I expected to find. Pleasure to meet you miss..." Lexi listened to his soft voice, a bit of shopping? "Alexia." She said softly, ending with a smile. "Alexia Ashford, but you're welcome to call me Lexi." She held out her hand, expecting a hand shake but quickly pulled it back, forgetting she didn't have her gun. "Uhmm.." She said quickly, before darting behind him and grabbing her gun, shoving it back in the holster where it belonged.

"Nice to meet you, Jonathan.. Do you uh.. Know where I could get some fresh clothes? I've been in these for a few years and well.." She wiped down the shirt that was sodden with dust and held it up. "That says it all really.." Alexia continued to ignore the giant tyrant beside this man, but probably, she should thank it. She was free to get out now, but did she really want to? There would be a hoarde of zombies after them soon, they would hear the commotion and come trotting in. Great.

Standing awkwardly, Lexi rubbed her elbow and smiled, shifting her feet slightly.

[KR0R1C]

Jon watcher her closely as she spoke. She smiled and rubbed her elbow. "So your gunna be lookin for clothes too? You can come with me and my big friend Skar." He turned and patted the 8 foot tall pitch black monster on the chest with two hard thumps. He turned back to Lexi, "Dont let him bother you. He's perfectly tame as long as I am around. So shall we go shopping? Its better if we can get it done before we attract too much attention."

Jonathan turned and left the candy shop. He and S.C.A.R. looked around the area to make sure it was clear. So far nothing seemed to be ready to pounce on them. The sun shone down through the hole in the ceiling two stories up and illuminated the rest of the mall. There wasnt much left but hopefully they could find a few things. Jonathan was personally looking for a new pair of boots, a belt, and one of those large bandanna's. He had one a long time ago and it was insanely useful, but he lost it some where long ago.

He wondered a few steps to try to get an idea where they could start but he decided to wait for Lexi before going too far. So mentally he ordered S.C.A.R. to move forward and keep an eye out for any infected. The beast wondered down a few stores watching, waiting, smelling, listening for any signs of its targets. So far everything seemed clear.

[Alexia Ashford]

It soon became clear to Lexi as to what this huge Tyrant was doing here, his name was S.C.A.R and he was pretty much a bodyguard... that Jonathan controlled. Wow, that really was bodyguard material. Lexi smirked, she liked the idea of being protected by a huge monster.

"Shopping sounds awesome." She said with a smile, already becoming excited at the thought. She loved shopping.. Clotheeess..

Following Jonathan and S.C.A.R out of the Candy Store, Lexi made sure she stayed close by to Jonathan at all times, but not too close. She didn't want to seem clingy or dependent. That's certainly what she wasn't, but after being locked up for so long, she wasn't sure what to expect, and made sure a hand was always upon her gun holster.

Her boots made a slight noise as she walked, and she was worried this would attract attention. Looking down at her feet she mumbled to herself. "Need some quieter shoes.." It would be the second thing she looked for, after clothes. New clothes. She couldn't get the thought out of her mind.

"Thanks for getting me out of there." Lexi nodded and continued at a steady pace, looking for the first sign of clothes shops that weren't completely destroyed.

[KR0R1C]

"Thanks for getting me out of there." said Lexi. She followed nearby. Jonathan spoke to her while keeping his head on a swivel. "No problem. So where do you come from?" It was simple question but one that could speak tons during a zombie Apocalypse.

They walked past an old wilderness store. The place was obviously one of the first to be hollowed of anything valuable. Knives, survival kits, everything all gone. S.C.A.R. walked out in front of them keeping point always tense always ready, his dark spiky figure would slightly vanish into the dark shadows from time to time. Jonathan walked keeping his eye out for anything that looked helpful, as he walked he carried his silenced 1911 in his right hand finger limp in the trigger guard. They came upon something that looked promising. Jonathan let out a shrill whistle. S.C.A.R. quickly reacted by turning on the dime and returning to them.

"This store doesn't look like its been gone through quite yet. We can give it a try. Skar will stand guard in the entrance while we look around." Jonathan entered the small store and began looking around. He gave Lexi a bit of distance so she could do her own searching. The guys section Jon soon found was almost non existent. He did find himself a few good belts, t-shirts, and socks, all of which he stuffed into his sling backpack. Other than that he picked up a jacket and a pair of boots. He put both on instantly discarding his old ones. His old boots where so worn down that the soles where starting to come loose and they no longer provided any sort of trustworthy traction.

When he finished he decided to check the cashier's station to see if any money was left. Unfortunately that was completely smashed someone already robbed that aspect of the store. So Jon took a sit on the counter and patiently awaited lexi to finish.

[Alexia Ashford]

A simple question meant a simple man. "England." She said simply, she didn't really want to elaborate, though the fact she had moved to America during a zombie apocalypse spoke volumes. "And yourself?" She said, walking into the store, close to Jonathan, before distance came between them as she walked to analyse the female wardrobe. "Hmm..." Picking up a black corset, Lexi smirked. It was just her thing, but after so long doing anything she could to survive, she thought it wasn't really appropriate, the days of corsets were long over.

Gliding over to the jeans, Lexi picked out her size in a pair of black skinny fits, almost identical to the ones she had on, only less tatty and in perfect condition. She then swanned over to the shirts, and picked out a black and red chequered shirt. Comfortable, and with a pocket, always handy for something. The shoe selection, however, was incredibly poor, nothing suitable for their journey, and thus she stuck with her clippety cloppety boots until they found something else.

"I'm gonna go put these on." She ended with a smile and headed to the changing rooms, that were already some what battered. Lexi noticed a trail of blood, and thought nothing of it, blood was everywhere these days, it didn't particularly concern her. There were occasionally half rotten bodies that she had to step over, and my gosh they really stank. Opening the cubicle door, Alexia stepped inside, the remains of a zombie strewn across the floor. However, this was the only cubicle where nobody could see her changing. Not that she really minded, after all, she did have a gorgeous body..

After changing into the new attire, Lexi rejoined Jonathan with a huge grin. "Not my style, but it will do." Nodding, she stood tall, reattaching her gun holster to her thigh. "Ready when you are!"

[KR0R1C]

Jonathan stood guard as Lexi changed. He played with the notion of using the excuse that he was making sure she was okay just so he could try to catch a glimpse. But somewhere deep in his mind a faint memory of his grandmother scolded him, and he obeyed. She was the one person who had taught him and his brother to be a gentleman. And although he rarely listened, he chose to this time. After a few moments Lexi returned.

"Not my style, but it will do. Ready when you are!"

"Not your style? Please. You look great!" And that she did, he had a hard time keeping his eyes off of her once she came out of the changing room. Putting himself back on track now Jonathan played off the question about his past, his wasn't one he particularly enjoyed reflecting upon. Instead returned to hers. "So your from England. Ive never been I bet it's awesome. I'd love to go some day. Where are you heading here in the U.S. and in Raccoon city of all places." At this point Jonathan had eased up a bit. No zombies had attacked, he was with a beautiful woman and for the first time in ages he let out a smile that wasn't forced, wasn't out of spite, or the product of his usual smart ass attitude. But deep down Jonathan knew better than to let his guard completely down. Something was bound to happen, good things never lasted too long in the world he'd grown up in. And Jonathan was living proof of that.

[Alexia Ashford]

Blushing slightly at his comment, Lexi grinned and flipped her blonde hair from side to side, allowing it to fluff up a little, before settling perfectly around her shoulders and down her back. "So your from England. Ive never been I bet it's awesome. I'd love to go some day. Where are you heading here in the U.S. and in Raccoon city of all places." Lexi thought about the question for a while, before shrugging slowly and shaking her head. "I guess.. I don't really know." She said honestly, her eyes widening a little.. She really had no idea what she was doing here.

"England got infected much later after America, so we were safe, but I'd planned a vacation and I guess I.. stuck by it really. Came here, killed some zombies, killed some more.. You know. Nothing out of the ordinary really!" Giggling at herself, Lexi moved closer towards Jonathan. She had the strangest feeling something was about to happen.. And it wasn't good. Sliding her MP5K from it's holster, she held it close to her chest. It was only then she noticed how pronounced her chest looked against the chequered shirt. The slight opening at her breast area enhanced her cleavage. Lexi knew how to do things in style.

[Sinn]

Siris leaned on forward in the commanders chair as he listen to MacGyvers carefully, he stretched his arms out as he waited for MacGyvers to finish; "That's f**ked up." he chuckled as he continued, "Your accent...You are Scottish correct? My closest friends is Scottish. I think you two would get along very well, comrade." his radio buzzed with a conversation, maybe two people, a male and female. The conversation itself spoke of clothes, not much info to Siris. But the fact that two people were still in the mall made a concern to Siris, he tapped MacGyvers on the shoulder, "While I was in the mall I managed to set up bugs in stores that posed tactical value, I also have the Freq' for PA system in the mall." he sighed as he brought his radio up for MacGyvers to listen to the conversation, "There are two people left in the Mall, we cannot leave them behind." He pulled his radio up and spoke into it, "To those still in the Mall, Do not I repeat DO NOT enter the Food Court, do not remove the barricades surrounding it either. Find a safe location and dig in, the main lobby is littered with dead Union soldiers, weapons can be found there. If you have a radio contact me on Frequency Six-Six-Seven-Two-Niner. Otherwise talk to any intercom and I will receive you. Good Luck and safe hunting." He looked at MacGyvers, "You are the driver. I will leave the decision to you. But keep in mind these people might be expecting us, but I can tell them we cannot get to them." He leaned back in the commander's set as he waited for MacGyvers to answer.