I glad you liked it! Maria might have had a little segment in chapter 10 while she and Danny were checking out her uncle's house and discovered Asher (and the wonderful mutt Mutt) had taken up residence, or, as is more likely, I'm misremembering and it was Danny who commanded that segment. Regardless, I remember well that she had a brief segment in Christmas special!
I just went back to check it and actually, she had two parts back then. Ah, this has happened so long ago that I kinda forgot about it. As you mentioned it, I remember that this was when they first discovered the presence of some guy (later revealed to be Asher) and his good friend Mutt near Laredo. I remember that Danny had some parts later on and I thought that we have seen her mostly through his viewpoint, but I clearly remember the Christmas special and her role in it.
Sasha's special move is Sarcastic Ferocity and Asher's special move is Tornado of Limbs, playable during moments which could end very badly. :^P There aren't many parts left, but I know we'll catch a moment to check up on Danny and the others with him. And not all hope is lost for Domenick and Tom, who still have an avenue of escape from the horde which was very briefly mentioned during Maria's part. I'm thinking the last part will have several segments from several points of view to good picture of what's going down. In terms of events needing to unfold, there's still some more ground to cover.
These moves are super effective on me! Seriously, as dearly as I miss the Laredo cast, I believe this chapter was a really great way to give some characters a chance to shine. Asher is the best example there, because Sasha was already someone I liked way before that. With Domenick and Tom... well, I fear that they might run into the same troubles as the larger group, although being less people and more capable in a fight at the same time might give them at least equal chances. And all things considered, save for Danny's bite the large group got through this relatively fine so far. It could have been much worse.
Whatever this flying hunk of metal is, there's bound to be a... hmm... hunk involved? I guess we'll have to see. Unfortunately, we probably won't get the opportunity to learn about this hunk until chapter 17 or so. There's some good to this, though. I'll just go out and confirm that the reason for this is because I'm planning to delegate the Colorado portions of chapter 16 to flashbacks centering on the fall of Colorado Springs. Tales-from-Telltale, if he doesn't mind me saying, actually submitted the characters who will populate these flashback segments. I really can't wait to get to start writing those!
Hmmm, this is very interesting. So, does that mean that the Colorado storyline in Chapter 16 is going to be entirely told in flashbacks about Colorado Springs? This might mean we'll leave off on our current Colorado expedition in a situation where they can take a break for a chapter. But in any case, I am super interested in how exactly this powerful community fell. Might tell me more about what to expect for our expedition once they return to the spotlight.
The Light Fantastic definitely benefited from having established characters. With that in mind, I'm even more excited to read further into the different plotlines, especially the Watch stuff! Regardless of its lasting impression, I'm sure I'll enjoy Equal Rites! And I'm indeed looking more forward to Mort after each Death cameo! He's probably my favorite character out of the books so far!
That is something that'll continue in the later novels, which will further mostly develop the existing groups of characters, with the occasional newcomer or stand-alone and indeed, these later novels felt so much more personal as I got to know about these characters and saw them being developed. And well, Death is everyone's favourite character At least for those who don't prefer Vimes, Rincewind or Vetinari. His novels, while less in numbers than others, are also among my favourites, to no small parts because Death is such a fascinating... uh... anthropomorphic personification.
I just want to make absolutely certain that you understand that Endymion can be completely avoided for the time being. When you get around to it, you'll want to read Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion back-to-back, or at least within several months of each other (bearing in mind that Hyperion ends in a complete cliffhanger and that the high and climax at the end of that book don't continue into its sequal—things have to build again in The Fall of Hyperion, so it starts slow). It's probably a good idea actually to put off reading the Endymion books for a while after finishing the first have of the Cantos. Dan Simmons is my favorite author, as I think I've mentioned, and I really hope you enjoy his work once you get the chance to read him!
Alright, that's an advice I'll certainly listen to. I have officially added the books to my reading list. Although I could swear I have heard of Hyperion before. This Shrike you mentioned earlier sounds very familiar, but I can't really say where I have read the name before. I think I have read a chapter of it somewhere once, in a sort of anthology collection which features chapters of different novels (I actually learned of the Discworld through the very same way, by reading the part about the dragons from The Colour of Magic). I'll have to look through my collection if I find it somewhere. In any way, I really look forward to get into that one. I'll be on a several weeks long vacation in late summer this year, which might offer the opportunity for me to read through it.
Whoa... this was a super intense part and undoubtedly my favourite from this chapter so far. If I remember correctly, it actually was the fi… morerst time we saw things from Maria's perspective, which I enjoyed a lot.
I glad you liked it! Maria might have had a little segment in chapter 10 while she and Danny were checking out her uncle's house and discovered Asher (and the wonderful mutt Mutt) had taken up residence, or, as is more likely, I'm misremembering and it was Danny who commanded that segment. Regardless, I remember well that she had a brief segment in Christmas special!
First of all, I can't decide who was more awesome in this part, Sasha or Asher. Both were not only badass, I also loved their sarcasm here. At the same time, I was really afraid that Asher and later Danny have been bitten during this walker struggle, though it seems they both got away narrowly. I wonder if Violet and Kurt got into the same trouble and if so,… [view original content]
These moves are super effective on me! Seriously, as dearly as I miss the Laredo cast, I believe this chapter was a really great way to give some characters a chance to shine. Asher is the best example there, because Sasha was already someone I liked way before that. With Domenick and Tom... well, I fear that they might run into the same troubles as the larger group, although being less people and more capable in a fight at the same time might give them at least equal chances. And all things considered, save for Danny's bite the large group got through this relatively fine so far. It could have been much worse.
I agree. I think the expedition, even though I kind of forced the readers into it, was a good decision on my part. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision, however—I had been thinking about an expedition of sorts for a while then. Before starting it, I was updating the story super infrequently. So I'm insanely happy with how the characters in it have developed, and how the plot has developed as well. There are certainly dangers afoot... but we will have to wait and see how the cards align before we'll know how the characters will be affected. I think there are only two parts left in chapter 15.
Hmmm, this is very interesting. So, does that mean that the Colorado storyline in Chapter 16 is going to be entirely told in flashbacks about Colorado Springs? This might mean we'll leave off on our current Colorado expedition in a situation where they can take a break for a chapter. But in any case, I am super interested in how exactly this powerful community fell. Might tell me more about what to expect for our expedition once they return to the spotlight.
Yes! The Colorado storyline in chapter 16 is going to basically tell the story of its fall through several segments and different point of views. And while this delays an update on the expedition, the information gleaned will almost certainly be of value!
That is something that'll continue in the later novels, which will further mostly develop the existing groups of characters, with the occasional newcomer or stand-alone and indeed, these later novels felt so much more personal as I got to know about these characters and saw them being developed. And well, Death is everyone's favourite character At least for those who don't prefer Vimes, Rincewind or Vetinari. His novels, while less in numbers than others, are also among my favourites, to no small parts because Death is such a fascinating... uh... anthropomorphic personification.
Gosh, you're getting me even more excited for the later entries! And Death is just so... spontaneous? I love how he's popped up in the novels I've read so far (I found his lines in Guards! Guards! to be especially funny). Of course, I already love Vimes (can't wait to see how his relationship shapes out) and Rincewind. And I'm looking forward to seeing more of Vetinari.
Alright, that's an advice I'll certainly listen to. I have officially added the books to my reading list. Although I could swear I have heard of Hyperion before. This Shrike you mentioned earlier sounds very familiar, but I can't really say where I have read the name before. I think I have read a chapter of it somewhere once, in a sort of anthology collection which features chapters of different novels (I actually learned of the Discworld through the very same way, by reading the part about the dragons from The Colour of Magic). I'll have to look through my collection if I find it somewhere. In any way, I really look forward to get into that one. I'll be on a several weeks long vacation in late summer this year, which might offer the opportunity for me to read through it.
That's interesting! I might need to check one of those out. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! And if there weren't enough reasons to read already, there is a character named Rachel whose story will tug on her heartstrings.
I glad you liked it! Maria might have had a little segment in chapter 10 while she and Danny were checking out her uncle's house and discove… morered Asher (and the wonderful mutt Mutt) had taken up residence, or, as is more likely, I'm misremembering and it was Danny who commanded that segment. Regardless, I remember well that she had a brief segment in Christmas special!
I just went back to check it and actually, she had two parts back then. Ah, this has happened so long ago that I kinda forgot about it. As you mentioned it, I remember that this was when they first discovered the presence of some guy (later revealed to be Asher) and his good friend Mutt near Laredo. I remember that Danny had some parts later on and I thought that we have seen her mostly through his viewpoint, but I clearly remember the Christmas special and her role in it.
Sasha's special move is Sarcastic Ferocity and Asher's special move is Tornado of Limbs, playa… [view original content]
While in the past some choices haven't had much effect, I just want to say that this choice has three options which lead to three possibilities. This choice definitely matters.
And maybe Domenick isn't out of the picture quite yet. Though since you cited the incident where Domenick performed an amputation, I kind of feel obligated to remind you that the amputee died later due to complications from his amputation.
Reading this part hit me, man.
I believe that Danny is fucked no matter the choice. Cutting his leg off gives him the chance of bleeding … moreout, Liquid mentioned nerve tissue and that is a concern with taking the calf itself, but leaving it alone is just asking for him to die.
I still haven't forgotten that the cannibals and that weirdo foxfreak are still around, so leaving a leg will get the cannibals on their trail.
So, I guess [Carry out surgery on Danny's leg and remove a section of his calf.]
This whole situation reminds me of when Maria mentioned that Domenick was able to successfully amputate some guy's leg at Alpha. However, as much as we can hope for a Domenick ex-machina, I personally am not willing to risk it.
It also reminds me of what happened with Christian, of course.
Overall, it concerns me for the group in entirety. Danny could very well die, and if he does, I'm afraid for Maria's mental health and safety. At least Asher's trying, though.
While in the past some choices haven't had much effect, I just want to say that this choice has three options which lead to three possibilities. This choice definitely matters.
This choice is one of the few where I've really had to give it some time and see what others had said. Normally, I read, vote, and then I take back to my leave, but with this one, I didn't really feel capable of making the decision on my own. I'm glad I waited, though, because I would have chosen to just amputate the leg itself had I not given it time. It was a good choice, though, I'll admit. I think it kind of reminded us that we shouldn't expect light choices and light consequences, at least it did myself, anyways.
And maybe Domenick isn't out of the picture quite yet. Though since you cited the incident where Domenick performed an amputation, I kind of feel obligated to remind you that the amputee died later due to complications from his amputation.
Now I remember that, so yeah, glad I didn't go with amputating the leg. However, taking part of the calf itself bears many risks as well and it's going to be a pain in the ass with their current situation. Most of my hope in the current moment lies with Jerry, if I'm honest. He was around Calvin enough to likely have a small medical insight. At least that's what I think. I also have no idea what kind of medical experience Sasha holds, but I have a guess, per say. It's likely Asher has some medical knowledge, a safe assumption that Jerry does, along with Maria knowing the basics, James probably knew some, Domenick knew enough to believe that he could safely perform an amputation, so it's also fairly likely that Sasha knows something, right? Considering the people she's been around in the expedition and her overall involvement with Jerry.
While in the past some choices haven't had much effect, I just want to say that this choice has three options which lead to three possibilit… moreies. This choice definitely matters.
And maybe Domenick isn't out of the picture quite yet. Though since you cited the incident where Domenick performed an amputation, I kind of feel obligated to remind you that the amputee died later due to complications from his amputation.
Jerry Stewart, 15-09: “We have to attend to the bite,” Jerry told Sasha, and Danny, solemnly, “but we can’t do a full amputation here.” He neither gestured, nor indicated why this might be; he let the rocking pickup bed emphasis his point in his moment of silence, and the snarls emitted from all sides of them underscore it. “That said, we can do the other thing, do surgery, but you gotta understand,” he went on, meeting the younger man’s wavering brown eyes with his own, “that it’s gonna hurt like hell.”
The young man blinked, and moisture—which flies and other insects sought incessantly—filled the corners of his narrow eyes but did not fall. He nodded, seemed to hesitate to speak for fear of his voice breaking.
Jerry forced a friendly smile, and said, “I’m gonna need a little more confirmation than that if the plan’s to operate on your calf.”
Amazingly, Danny smiled and nodded again. “Do it.”
With that, the levity died as if it was shot, and Jerry slipped off his backpack. Sasha did the same and sat her’s next to him. Walking past Danny, she climbed onto the roof of the truck’s cabin. There, she seemed to deliberate, then pointed and said, “We’ll have Asher move up with Maria to that pickup. We’re going to draw a lot of attention doing this. It’s about eight vehicles down. Do you think… they’ll be able to hear it, way over there?”
Jerry didn’t bother to stand and look where she was pointing. “Probably everyone… and everything… within half a mile will hear us.”
“I’m calling them up,” she said, then whistled a sharp, shrill tone toward the pickup behind them. The two there began to move immediately. Sasha looked back down at Jerry, keeping her balance as the truck rocked. “Do you think Kurt and Violet will hear it? James?”
“Probably. Maybe.” A moment’s pause, listening to the horde, and he said, “I don’t know about them, actually. Who knows. Maybe they’re already out of earshot.”
Maria and Asher were moving up carefully. Sasha watched them, whispering to Jerry, in a voice barely audible above the horde, “If they hear, do they think they will come to help?”
Jerry didn’t say anything for the longest time, and just when he was prepared to answer, Maria, then Asher, landed in the pickup bed and he didn’t want to explain to them what they were discussing. He caught Danny’s expression, hopeless and breaking. Beneath his breath, for Danny’s benefit but also with a conviction he wasn’t expecting to come out of his mouth, he said, “I think they will.”
Domenick: Domenick, crawling on his right side, pulling himself forward with his backpack and rifle held over his left half, felt like he was within a wall. Except this wall was about three feet high and composed of two concrete dividers, which ran right along each other. Domenick and Tom crawled in the limited space between the two barriers. Domenick was the lead.
This was the most uncomfortable position Domenick had ever been in, and he had been in some tight scrapes. He was dragging himself forward with his right arm while he used his gear as a makeshift shield, putting a disproportionate amount of weight on his right half. All the while, he strained his neck to keep an eye on the gap not half a foot above his head.
They were heading toward Fort Carson again. Domenick wished he had thought of using the dividers when faced with the decision to fight through the arm of the horde crossing the highway, but the thought hadn’t come to him until they were back to the point where Violet and Kurt had departed and the horde had already descended the western embankment, forcing Domenick and Tom to cross over the concrete dividers. He had realized then that it would over some protection and a means to continue forward. Instead of turning back, Domenick had calculated that their chances would be better if they regrouped the others. So after eastern embankment had been ascended by the horde, and after they had once again been pressed to the center of the highway, Domenick had given the order and the two of them had taken refuge within the gap.
Since then they had covered some distance, though Domenick wasn’t confident they could make it much further without encountering a point where the dividers ended and opened up into asphalt to allow the flow of traffic. Neither Domenick was confident about their chances. For one, all that separated them from the army of the dead was several inches of concrete—he could hear and, especially, smell them as if there was nothing between him and their festering corpses. For two, this exercise was utterly draining. Even Domenick, who had nothing if not endurance, doubted that he could manage it another mile. His brother he doubted even more so. Eventually, the dividers would dead end, and once that happened, they would have to shoot their way to either embankment and climb on the cars stalled there. Domenick didn’t like that, and the likelihood of that possibility, that they might have to use James’s method, made him silently wish James would choke on a dick.
Ahead of them Domenick strained to look at a walker as it stumbled against the barriers, must have been pushed by its fellows, and fell head and shoulders first into the gap. Into their path. Domenick cursed and stopped, Tom bumped into his boots headfirst and cursed as well.
“Shit!” Tom said.
“Shhhh,” Domenick hissed menacingly.
“What is it?” his brother asked, in a softer tone of voice.
“A walker,” Domenick said.
“What?”
“A walker,” Domenick repeated, pressing his back against one of the dividers so he could see of a sliver of his brother and so his brother might hear him better or see their obstacle. “It fell in ahead of us.”
“Oh.” There was a moment of silence. Domenick looked at a sweat-drenched sliver of his brother’s face. Finally, Tom said, “What are we gonna do?”
“I think I’ve got an idea. Hang close, but not too close.”
“No problem.”
Domenick pulled himself and his gear along another fifteen or so feet before he left the gear behind and went on with only a knife he had retrieved from his belt, leaving the machete alone since it would be no good in the tightness of the two dividers. Domenick crawled into position three feet from the walker and observed its pitifully flail its unpinned arm. Thankfully its pinned arm was facing Domenick. He crawled up to it—by this time it had noticed him but could do nothing besides snarl while its torso was held in place upside down, wedged between the two dividers—and stabbed his knife through its skull.
Now more than a hundred pounds of dead meat was wedged in his path. First he wiped his knife on his jeans and sheathed it, then he got a little closer to the corpse. He placed a hand on the shoulder facing him, awkwardly pushed upward, and got it unwedged. He moved closer still (into the gunk left behind by his attack), managed got both hands under it, and pushed until it was over the barrier and slid inertly the rest of the way, leaving a snail’s trail of blood.
He took a breather, signaling for Tom to come on, who reunited Domenick with his backpack and automatic rifle. The screaming began—distant and horrid and with a familiar voice—while he was slipping a strap over one shoulder. Domenick and Tom exchanged a glance and then crawled forward as fast as they could.
To be continued...
Notes:
There's little to note at the moment besides the fact that the next part will in all likelihood close this chapter. I'll see you around soon!
Recent reads:
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman:Norse Mythology is a wonderful read! As usual, Neil Gaiman writes with an easy-to-read simplicity and a lyrical prose, this time retelling the Norse myths. This was my first time reading about them and I can’t understate how enjoyable they were! Unfortunately, due to my inexperience with the material, I can’t say for certain how expansive Norse Mythology is, but either way, it is definitely worth reading! He projects so much character into the various tales the book covers! Now my biggest wish would be that Neil Gaiman retell more mythologies in the vein of Norse Mythology, which definitely receives my recommendation!
Well... on a positive note, Domenick and Tom heard them and now they might have a chance to catch up to them. On a negative note, so did every walker around and it is likely they will go there too. And then there's Foxface. If he is around and hasn't noticed them so far, I am absolutely convinced that he will notice them now. And that is only going to add to the already bad situation. And the next part is going to be the chapter finale and the act finale, right? Oh damn... damn, this is going to be one hell of a messy situation, or at least it has every ingredient necessary for it.
That said, I am sort of thinking that if Foxface is watching them, and by now I am pretty sure he is at least somewhere around and ready to make his move, then he might attack James, who is on his own, or Violet and Nightcrawler, whom I consider to be about as capable together as he is on his own. The other group at least has Sasha and Asher, who can put up a fight and Jerry who can survive anything. And who knows what sort of hidden strength Maria can call upon when forced to fight for her life. Foxface is a smart guy, so I more expect of him to attack the weaker links of this far too thinly spread group. Man, I can already see that I'll be at the edge of my seat when the next part comes.
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman:
And I have finally seen that it is out in Germany as well now! I am glad to hear it's enjoyable, because having recently grown really fond of Gaiman, I consider this something I have to look into sooner or later, especially as a fan of norse mythology in general.
Jerry Stewart, 15-09: “We have to attend to the bite,” Jerry told Sasha, and Danny, solemnly, “but we can’t do a full amputation here.” He n… moreeither gestured, nor indicated why this might be; he let the rocking pickup bed emphasis his point in his moment of silence, and the snarls emitted from all sides of them underscore it. “That said, we can do the other thing, do surgery, but you gotta understand,” he went on, meeting the younger man’s wavering brown eyes with his own, “that it’s gonna hurt like hell.”
The young man blinked, and moisture—which flies and other insects sought incessantly—filled the corners of his narrow eyes but did not fall. He nodded, seemed to hesitate to speak for fear of his voice breaking.
Jerry forced a friendly smile, and said, “I’m gonna need a little more confirmation than that if the plan’s to operate on your calf.”
Amazingly, Danny smiled and nodded again. “Do it.”
With that, the levity died as if it w… [view original content]
Well, I've finally caught up to this story after a very long absence. And I have to say I am super psyched for the finale. I'm also super glad to see Asher getting more screentime, keep up the good work!!
Jerry Stewart, 15-09: “We have to attend to the bite,” Jerry told Sasha, and Danny, solemnly, “but we can’t do a full amputation here.” He n… moreeither gestured, nor indicated why this might be; he let the rocking pickup bed emphasis his point in his moment of silence, and the snarls emitted from all sides of them underscore it. “That said, we can do the other thing, do surgery, but you gotta understand,” he went on, meeting the younger man’s wavering brown eyes with his own, “that it’s gonna hurt like hell.”
The young man blinked, and moisture—which flies and other insects sought incessantly—filled the corners of his narrow eyes but did not fall. He nodded, seemed to hesitate to speak for fear of his voice breaking.
Jerry forced a friendly smile, and said, “I’m gonna need a little more confirmation than that if the plan’s to operate on your calf.”
Amazingly, Danny smiled and nodded again. “Do it.”
With that, the levity died as if it w… [view original content]
Kurt, 15-10—Finale, Part 1: He and Violet had hurried across the vehicles as quickly as they could while still maintaining caution, jumping from one car to the next, scurrying over the roof and onto the hood, repeating. The horde snarled and surged on either side of them. The rising embankment to their left had diminished over time and now they could see to a greater extent the size and challenge this obstacle posed from the west—thanks to the rolling hills, the landscape looked like a sea frozen in time, but covered with a writhing blanket of ants atop the surface. Despite their slightly new perspective, the horde was still simply unquantifiable.
Kurt was scared. Terrified, really. His greatest fear in this new life had been the thought of being devoured . . . ripped to shreds . . . this fear had been the primary factor in his insomnia. In the early days, before he had joined the community growing in Laredo, he had witnessed enough grisly deaths for a lifetime. Now, each meter he moved forward, every step he took, and every leap he made had a horrifying potential for failure.
One thing that surprised him was Violet’s apparent confidence. To him, it seemed she hardly felt the horde’s presence or caving-in, claustrophobic pressure. He didn’t know whether to look at her behavior with admiration or disgust and settled on a combination of both. She was lanky but apparently not without some physical strength—she leaped between cars without ever botching a landing and maintained a good pace, not to mention the sheer physical and mental strength the expedition had required. She had always worn a frown or grimace . . . such so that Kurt, practically seeing the dark cloud hanging over her, felt some sympathy for her.
Several paces beyond him, Violet’s step faltered, then she came to a rough stop, hopping into the bed of a pickup and staring far ahead of them. Kurt saw it, too, and nearly fell as he leaped to the truck and landed on its hood. He stuck the landing, but only just. The horde pressed against the truck, shook it, but, for once, the horde briefly left the forefront of Kurt’s mind. Or rather, it was forcibly replaced. He stared ahead, revolted.
Jerry: There were some living and a lot of dead within the state of Colorado today. Until recently there had been a lot more of the living hanging onto the city of Colorado Springs, nearby places such as Fort Carson and Fountain and Monument, and the far-reaching arms of influence spreading throughout the state in the forms of outposts and several smaller, outer settlements acting as satellites to the greater community. This—a community on its feet, its feet firmly planted in the ground—was what James had described to his compatriots and benefactors some months ago at a time when the expedition existed merely in the minds of several individuals, himself included.
Although the possible situation of their destination, and the conditions they were subjected to, grew grimmer . . . although the expedition had been the first leg of an even more unattainable dream—to link the two communities and combine Laredo’s struggling, fledgling status with the larger and more established Colorado Springs . . . although all this, against the odds, after two months of hard travel, it had somehow neared realization, which was a feat onto itself. But now it appeared the expedition was about to be met with a premature and grisly conclusion.
Jerry fully expected as much as he tried to get things in order for what was about happen, what he was about to inflict. There were four others with Jerry in the pickup bed; the idea to send Asher and Maria ahead to take shelter had quickly evaporated. Danny was lying on his stomach—head facing the cabin, his bare feet facing the tailgate, a space of about one foot between each extremity and bed interior—upon a clean blue canvas which had previously been neatly folded and tucked into a backpack until the need for it had arised. Jerry and Sasha were poised on either side of the teenager. Maria was kneeling by Danny’s head, her duty the difficult task of keeping her boyfriend’s upper body still. Asher—nervous and a little embarrassed for himself and his friend by the slight indignity—was sitting on the lower part of Danny’s buttocks with his own thighs clamped around his friend’s legs to ensure neither would-be surgeon was kicked.
Through all their preparation, the truck had been rocked and jostled, and it still did. The dead were all around their eight-by-five-foot refuge, projecting a multitude of snarls and burp-like gargles. It was possibly the worse place to attempt anything requiring precision. Here they were, Jerry thought, about to perform surgery, however barbaric or crude that surgery was.
Jerry drew in a slow breath, exhaled even slower, and tried to maintain that speed and rhythm. The action did nothing to slow his racing heart. Speaking to the back of Danny’s shaggy black head of hair, he asked, “Are you ready, Danny?”
“Y-Yes, sir,” Danny said to the canvas, blushing from the heat of near-noon and anxiety of the situation, but mostly from the rather intimate kiss he and Maria had moments before he had assumed his current, severely awkward position.
“Maria?” Jerry said.
Reluctantly holding the silicone kitchen spatula she would put between Danny’s teeth in moments like it was an instrument of torture, Maria said yes gravely. She ran a hand through a hand through Danny’s hair, hoping beyond hope that the simple gesture offered some reassurance.
“Asher?” Jerry said.
“Ready, sir.”
“Sasha?”
“I’m ready, dear,” she replied.
“Okay . . . Shit . . . Let’s do this,” he said as he tied a tourniquet tightly around Danny’s leg. Jerry realized a moment later, whether from a surgeon or apartment contractor, that these words would inspire neither faith nor courage. He leaned past Asher, fiercely squeezed Danny’s shoulder, and said, in the calmest voice he could conjure, “You’re gonna be fine, kid.”
Danny nodded into the canvas then reaffirmed, with a croaking, nervous voice, that he was ready. Jerry squeezed his shoulder one last time before coming to sit beside his tools and Danny’s afflicted leg. Maria slipped the spatula handle between Danny’s teeth. Jerry picked up the sharpest knife in their collective arsenal and began to quickly clean and disinfect it even though it hadn’t been used up to that point. Once satisfied by his work, Jerry sat on Danny’s ankle—Sasha did the same to the other leg, holding the various things necessary to stop the bleeding—then Jerry poised the knife above his friend’s calf, trying to keep his shaking hand steady as the truck itself bucked beneath them.
Violet: Violet was kneeled in the pickup bed, staring forward without blinking when Kurt lowered himself into the bed with her, ambled forward in a crouch, and came to a stop next to her. She hardly noticed him for the sight before her.
Ahead, the four-lane highway became a bridge or overpass . . . she couldn’t tell which, for all the walkers which filled and flooded the area beneath the highway . . . whether or not it was a riverbed. From this distance, things were ill-defined, but Violet could tell the walkers trapped in this long basin had been there for a long time. She looked back at the bridge: walkers crowded it for its entire length, and stalled cars there were spread so thin that they would have to walk on the outer barrier.
Kurt looked at her glumly, the truck shaking beneath them, the walkers snarling around them. She nodded, then stood, placed a boot on top of the tailgate, and jumped to the next car over the heads of walkers. Kurt followed.
As they neared, car by car, the smell somehow became worse, tempting them to hold their breath whenever they could. As they drew closer still, and finally reached the start of the bridge, they could see the walkers filling the possible riverbed more clearly. They both wished they hadn’t. When the horde arrived, it must have functioned as a moat. The steep angles prevented escape for the walkers, causing them to . . . pile, and, as more weight was added on top, compress.
Violet glanced briefly down as they made their first caution push forward on the barrier spanning the outer barrier of the bridge, first climbing onto then balancing on the half-foot of concrete, and saw it was a stagnant river made out of meat, out of individuals who were decaying and rotting into each other . . . into one solid, yet still re-living, mass. Violet felt her composure shatter once she reached the next car. Her extremities shook, her face paled, her empty stomach revolted, and she could hardly breathe for all the gagging.
Kurt appeared to take it far worse, collapsing next to her, his entire body shaking, his gagging far more violent. As she heaved, Violet wondered if James really had come this way. She hadn’t seen any other way to go, so he must have.
There was only one way forward.
Violet pulled herself together, waiting for Kurt to bring himself under control as well. It didn’t take much longer. They walked the length of the car until reaching the hood. The next car was ten feet away. Helping each other, they climbed onto the barrier and adapted a different method—looking straight ahead, sticking to a straight path. Keeping their eyes away wasn’t the hardest thing. The . . . sight . . . below and to their left didn’t offer so much a temptation to look as it did a temptation to back away, like getting to close to the edge of a cliff.
It wasn’t a far drop. Maybe eighteen feet. Probably less. She heard the noise coming up from below, like the typical walker sounds, snarls and groans, but . . . more agonized.
She reached the car and hopped down. Suddenly many things happened at once. In her peripheral vision, she saw Kurt lose his balance. She lunged toward him. He failed to regain his balance, only making it worse, and toppled off toward the riverbed below. Violet hands groped for a hold and caught the strap of his backpack.
There was a violent tug. Violet’s torse slammed painfully against the concrete barrier, the tendons in her arms straining—she couldn’t over the barrier. Kurt grunted as the sudden stop jerked one arm free of a strap. The man spun slightly in the backpack, falling out from the last strap. Violet felt another tug as Kurt’s hand caught the strap just as his arm was slipping free from it. Seconds later she felt the release of his weight as his hand slipped. She heard the impact of his body . . . a heavy slapping sound . . . a moment later, she heard his screams and, almost drowned out by the loudness of the screams, excited snarls.
Violet drew her arm back—shaking, badly scraped on the barrier—and stared unbelievingly at her white-knuckled hand wrapped tightly around the strap. She released her grip, dropping Kurt’s backpack to the car roof she stood on, and pressed herself against the barrier to look over.
He had sunken slightly, down there with the intermingled corpses, but was other wise alive . . . and screaming as teeth found his flesh. She drew her pistol and had to fire four shots before she had killed him.
There—back against the barrier, legs stretched over the car roof—she remained. The sounds of the river feasting rose up to greet her ears. A blankness had crossed over her expression like a cloud. Kurt’s screams of agony echoed in her head for a long time, faint and distant. Eventually, she realized it was someone else who was screaming. She looked back the way they had come, listening.
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away quick.
At first, his pace was cautious—after every jump he slowed briefly to catch his balance before making the next leap—but when a multitude of rounds were fired, echoing above the babble of the horde, he disregarded caution in favor and speed. The sounds of gunfire sounded, to his ears, further off than the first four, making him think they being fired by someone else. The thought of his friends being separated in this hell spurred him on faster. Now, he traversed each car with about three steps—first, landing on the hood; second, mounting the roof; third, striking the truck, and kicking off with that same step.
James stuck the hood, mounted the roof, stuck and kicked off the trunk. He was airborne for half a second, leaping over the heads of walkers. In the next half-second his boot stuck the hood at a wonky angle and he tripped. Suddenly he was crashing and rolling over the roof and trunk and falling into the grasp of the dead.
Jerry: Things were going poorly. Jerry had completed the cut on Danny’s leg fairly quickly, regardless of getting kicked in the crotch, but during the surgery Danny’s screams had escaped from his mouth despite the spatula, inciting the horde’s anger. Now, the truck rocked with vigor, assuming a diagonal angle as the left side of the vehicle lifted—unbeknownst to them, walkers from the left were being trapped under the chassis on account of the constant rocking and downward pushing from the high embankment, effectively tipping them toward the walkers waiting on the highway. Amidst this, Maria and Asher struggled to keep Danny—who was unconscious—and themselves from sliding across the bed to the waiting, eager hands that were reaching over the edge of the pickup bed wall. Meanwhile, Jerry and Sasha did much of the same, while also attempting to dress the wound.
The tipping angle slowly increased, or at least it appeared to their frantic eyes. Things were getting worse. The only way to get out of this, Jerry thought, would be to move forward, out of this inundated area. That would only require a few car’s advancement. Then they could rest, while the horde slowly refocused itself on their new position, and move forward again before anything came of the horde’s efforts.
Jerry recalled hearing at the height of Danny’s screams the faintest of gunshots, but now that recollection seemed not credible, imagined at the cusp of his anxiety and stressed—part of him didn’t want to believe, for the implication a few gunshots had.
What happened next, Jerry didn’t quite understand at the moment of occurrence. For fifteen seconds, Two figures popped up from between the center barriers about twenty feet up the road, ahead of them—one began unloading a rifle on full-auto on the walkers closest to them, keeping their immediate proximity clear, while the other, using semi-automatic bursts, began to pick off walkers around the tipping truck.
Everyone in pickup bed pressed themselves against the textured, forty-degrees-from-vertical flooring as rounds sung and ricocheted around them. Jerry could see sparks even with his eyes clenched shut. The front-left tire popped, allowing the truck to sagged back a bit while, at the same time, nearly jolting them from the pickup bed with the suddenness of the movement.
Fifteen seconds. Jerry opened his eyes, his ears ringing, and watched the two figures vanish between the barriers. In that moment, he realized who they were, and he realized that that was as much as they could contribute to the situation. All in all, the barrage had reimbursed them about twenty degrees by mowing down the walkers on their left, putting them at a better, if still uncomfortable, forty-degree angle. The slaughter had drawn the attention of the walkers on the highway, but had only increased the rate at which walkers descended the embankment—soon, the situation was going to get a lot worse than it had been before.
It was now or never. Sasha understood this as well. Without speaking—in all likelihood, spoken orders would have likely gone unheard for all the ringing in their ears—both of them pressed forward. Maria and Asher took this as a silent command that they were to move forward. Together, the four of them hefted the slightly writhing Danny onto the canted roof, then onto the hood as just as the rocking was beginning to revitalize.
Maria moved to the next car first, which had suffered from the horde’s pushing, but to a slightly lesser degree—its burden, too, had been somewhat leavened by the barrage of gunfire; the dark, silver-lined pits of bullet holes peppered the red casing. Asher took Danny in his arms—the young man’s bloodied, bandaged leg dangled limply—and carefully jumped over. Maria caught with a hug to help preserve his balance. Next came Sasha and Jerry.
They repeated this until they reached the next pickup, at which point Jerry took over for Asher, carrying Danny for awhile. Danny hadn’t regained consciousness yet. The young man’s face, Jerry observed as they rested in the bed of another pickup, was horribly pale. Jerry took painful, sickening notice of the blood covering his own jeans, jacket, and shirt. His headache had not abated—in fact, it had only grown worse. Neither had the ringing in their ears subsided, or at least not a noticeable amount. Jerry thought about Josephine—missing her and Jake and the others deeply—but more specifically he thought about the hearing aid she had to wear. Thinking about that made him very afraid for all of them.
Their movement was slow. They had grown terribly tired. But they were able to keep moving forward at a pace which ensured they wouldn’t find themselves in the same situation as before. It was perhaps one in the afternoon when they reached the bridge, or overpass, and spotted Violet sprawl out in the middle of it on the roof of a car, looking dazed, with an extra backpack sitting beside her.
Looking at the “river” and the scattered remains on top of the rotten surface . . . which had . . . spread . . . into an unrecognized, gory mess, punctuated by torn tatters of fabric . . . they decided to recoup their strength. They broke through a plexiglass sunroof and laid Danny out in the backseat. They decided very quickly that they couldn’t leave Violet out there, so Asher, leaving behind his backpack, armaments, and anything of excess weight, ventured out across the bridge to Violet.
They, too, broke into a car to wait out the heat of evening. He pressed her for information as gently as he could, learning what had happened to Kurt and that the two of them hadn’t managed to catch up to James. Evening turned to night. Asher returned to the others three or so hours before morning to relay the grim news and devise a plan to get Danny and all of them across.
Danny was still unconsciousness, and he still bled through his bandages, which they had to change several times throughout the night, but now the bleeding was beginning to slow down a little. Ultimately, they decided to use some climbing gear they had brought along—Asher hammered anchors into the tiny gaps between each segment of the outer concrete barrier, then strung a rope after attaching carabiners. They had a limited number of harnesses, so Asher first got Violet the rest of the way across and to safety within another car. Asher then went back, got Maria and Sasha across, and brought back the harnesses for himself, Jerry, and Danny.
Both of them were tied to Danny’s harness, and whenever they reached an anchor, they each had to unclip and reclip their safety line to move past it. Movement was slow and made even more difficult by the sight to their left—Kurt’s remains, which couldn’t rightly be called a corpse, were in plain view almost all the time and were disturbing—but eventually they made it across. Spread between two cars, they rested through the afternoon while Jerry, Asher, and Sasha took turns to reclaim the rope and painstakingly remove the anchors and carabiners—they had proved useful now, so they decided not to abandon them. They saw neither hide nor hair of Domenick and Tom during spent there.
They moved on at dusk and soon found James’s remains—tatters of clothing and flesh amidst the horde. Maria clung to the belief he was coming back to help them—James having cracked and bloodied the windshields of the car ahead of his remains; if he had been going forward, Maria reasoned, his remains would have been at the front of the vehicle.
Again, they moved on, leaving behind the “river” and Kurt’s and James’s remains. Ahead lay Fort Carson. Beyond that, Colorado Springs and far greater unknowns.
The Humbling River by Puscifer:
End of Chapter 15: Never Forgotten.
End of Act III: By Those Beyond.
Post-chapter notes:
Probably the biggest thing I can say right now is . . . Foxface wasn't a threat to the expedition this chapter. I feel so bad that I had to keep my mouth shut about that—the possible threat of Foxface had a major influence on how a lot of the choices played out, more than I expected—but it seemed important to keep it a secret since the possible presence of Foxface would have also factored into the characters' decisions, and to dispell that to the voters would have changed their mindset. Ultimately, I felt it better to keep your guys on the same mindsets as the characters. Alas, there were better case scenarios, but there were also some far worse ones. Danny—while his fate is still up in the air—is a good example: the other two options led to different scenarios; the full amputation would have led to the worse, putting others in harm's way as well, but I feel the severity of that option is a little obvious. I'm afraid, at this time, I can't say how Danny will fare once the Colorado storyline continues.
That brings us to chapter 16. As I've mentioned before, the Colorado segments in chapter 16 will be devoted to flashbacks going over in greater detail what happened to the Colorado Springs communities. The expedition won't resume until chapter 17, and it will share the chapter with parts explaining the flying hunk of metal. Back to chapter 16. Additionally, there will be two other segments, one set in East Texas, following a new storyline with new characters about revenge, liberation, and determinately, dark apprenticeship, while the other will be set in Central Texas and follow a few familiar characters in a storyline with themes of growth, rebuilding, trauma, not-dark apprenticeship, and coming-of-age from the perspective of a certain youth.
But before we move onto chapter 16, we'll get a taste of some of the new characters through the upcoming interlude. Most of the segments have been drafted to some degree, so my goal is to get that finished and posted before the end of the month. However, I'm going to focus heavily on finishing chapter 2 of Silicon County since this chapter finale thoroughly took up my writing time and efforts for this week. Anyway. In other news, I learned that my upcoming trip to the north will take place in the latter half of April, so I'll have plenty time to write that month. Sorry that I still don't have a concrete date on that, but I should have more far more than half of April to work on Monument and Silicon County, so I think I'll be able to begin chapter 16 and make some significant progress before it's time to leave.
I'll post a list of questions I would like to ask you soon. Until then, if you have questions yourself, ask away! I'm sure there's especially a lot of questions about the choices this chapter, since a lot was determinate this time around. I'm not really sure where to begin with them all, though, so if you have any questions about any specific choices, I'll answer.
I'm upset to have killed off two wonderful characters. They will, of course, be missed. The fates of Danny, Domenick, and Tom are also still up in the air. Let me just reiterate that, while this isn't the absolute best outcome possible, it is very far from the worse, and it is unlikely they could have gotten out of this situation completely unscathed. There were a lot of determinate characters this chapter.
I would just like to thank you all for your patience. It could me a while to get through chapter 15, and I got snagged in a few places, but I'm glad I was able to pick up the pace and get things moving again. I couldn't have done without your support and readership. So thank you again! Here's to many future chapters!
Things I've read:
The Rise of Endymion by Dan Simmons: I'm happy and a little sad to have finished reading the wonderfully Hyperion Cantos. I enjoyed The Rise of Endymion a ton, despite some problems with its pacing, a few things that were uncomfortable about the relationship between the main characters, and some things that a little hand-wavey. A lot of mysteries from the first two books are revealed, which some may find to have ruined the magic, so to speak, but I just found to be immensely interesting. There were more elements and characters brought over from the first two volumes than I was expecting, so that was a very pleasant surprise. And I just want to say I LOVE almost all of the characters, besides maybe a few of the antagonists. I think, ultimately, Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion are a little better than the sequels, but I still think they were all great! Fortunately, there's short story set in the Hyperion universe, so I have that to look forward to!
The Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King: I had a good time with this book. Maybe besides the Dark Tower books (which this ties into, apparently), this is pretty much King’s only straight fantasy book. There’s unfortunately virtually no world-building, but the characters are all very charming. All in all, it’s more of a fable. There’s even a narrator. It was fun seeing Randall Flagg—the antagonist of The Stand, who was a despicable, creepy and effective villain in that—essentially play the part of a Disney-esque evil advisor. All in all, I don't really think this is a good starting point with King.
The Postman by David Brin:The Postman is now my favorite post-apocalyptic novel. Set fifteen or sixteen years after the apocalypse, American has been reduced to fragmented homesteads and settlements. When the main character discovers the uniform of a postman and puts it on, he unintentionally starts to reunite the state of Oregon. Although it falters a bit toward the end, I found it to be a very enjoyable read! I also really liked the main character!
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to… more the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away qui… [view original content]
Oh my god I knew things would go seriously downhill in this finale and must admit that I even feared for worse, but still... the deaths of James and Nightcrawler were shocking, not only due to the fact that they died, but also due to how quickly it happened. I think this was the bleakest, most brutal part ever and I mean this a lot more positive than it sounds. I have been genuinely spechless for a short moment after reading this part. Three whole acts in and you still manage to absolutely stun me with these twists. I mean, first of all, there's Nightcrawler. To be honest, I had this slight feeling he might die, but seeing it actually happening was something else entirely. Who honestly shocked me though was James. I thought he'd be the main character of this expedition and a major one in the coming events in Colorado, but that is not the first time you chose a completely unexpected path. Argh, he was on a good way to become one of my favourite characters, damn it! I must say though, I am oddly relieved about Violet's survival. I still find my feelings on her complicated, certainly not wholeheartedly positive, but the last two chapters seriously fleshed her out and I wouldn't have wanted to lose her now, not when two of my more clearer favourites, James and Nightcrawler, already bit the dust in such a horribly brutal way.
And well, I currently feel a mixture of being horrified, speechless and in awe at this amazing act finale. Well done. Well done, Ser!
Probably the biggest thing I can say right now is . . . Foxface wasn't a threat to the expedition this chapter.
Oh damn it Man, we have been so off then. That said, I agree that you made the best decision here, by not revealing this detail, as it helped us with seeing the situation as the characters did. I'm sure up to the very end, James was sure that Foxface was somewhere in this area, just like how I was convinced he'd try something. I was sure that people would die in this finale, but I thought he'd be responsible for it. Now it turns out he's never been a danger for them at any point... though that makes me curious what happened to him. I could see him being an antagonist for the flashback scenes and actually being already dead by the time the expedition is set.
while the other will be set in Central Texas and follow a few familiar characters in a storyline with themes of growth, rebuilding, trauma, not-dark apprenticeship, and coming-of-age from the perspective of a certain youth.
That is Laredo, right? Ooooh I am so excited to see them again For once, it sounds like there will be happy themes, though at the same time, there's still the unexplained mystery of Calvin's death around. Actually, I got a new theory besides the one I voiced a while ago, about Nathalie being responsible. It could be that Calvin's death was not entirely planned, more of an accident and that the one responsible for it is currently no longer in Laredo, having used the chance this expedition offered to leave the community until things have calmed down. That brings me to one certain Violet Moore. We know she's more than just a bit on the edge, psychologically. Perhaps something happened that caused her to snap towards Calvin. I know, it's likely not true, but well, it's at least an alternative to the Nathalie theory, which has similarly few things to back it up.
Anyways, the most important thing is, I cannot wait to see my dear Laredo cast back. They obviously have a special place in my heart and it's been far too long without them, even if some of them have thankfully been featured in this chapter
However, I'm going to focus heavily on finishing chapter 2 of Silicon County since this chapter finale thoroughly took up my writing time and efforts for this week. Anyway. In other news, I learned that my upcoming trip to the north will take place in the latter half of April, so I'll have plenty time to write that month. Sorry that I still don't have a concrete date on that, but I should have more far more than half of April to work on Monument and Silicon County, so I think I'll be able to begin chapter 16 and make some significant progress before it's time to leave.
Ah, this sounds really great! Chapter 2 of Silicon is of course another thing I greatly look forward for and hearing that we're likely even going to see our first glimpses at Chapter 16 before the trip is amazing. Fingers crossed for Laredo, but honestly, these new storylines sound pretty nice as well and I look forward to learn more about them
I'm upset to have killed off two wonderful characters. They will, of course, be missed. The fates of Danny, Domenick, and Tom are also still up in the air. Let me just reiterate that, while this isn't the absolute best outcome possible, it is very far from the worse, and it is unlikely they could have gotten out of this situation completely unscathed. There were a lot of determinate characters this chapter.
Argh, so we could have screwed up more, right? This is at least something, that we managed to get some small victories here by getting some characters through this situation at the least. I bet Danny is among those who could have died, even if his survival is far from confirmed of course. I believe we took the option that gave him a chance though, as small as this chance is. If anything, he at least can survive this now. Domenick and Tom meanwhile, they are the only ones still separated from the group and I fear that at least one of them won't reunite with the main expedition. Maybe they will be attacked by Foxface, if that guy is still around at all. If he's still alive, I doubt he will just lay low there. But as I said, I get the feeling he might already be dead, which, in a certain way, is really unnerving, like that diary stuff we got that clued us in on his existence.
I'll post a list of questions I would like to ask you soon. Until then, if you have questions yourself, ask away! I'm sure there's especially a lot of questions about the choices this chapter, since a lot was determinate this time around. I'm not really sure where to begin with them all, though, so if you have any questions about any specific choices, I'll answer.
I actually must think about this first. I should give the chapter a reread, that much is for sure. So, I know I will have questions, but I will probably ask them when I answer your questions, until then I should have had the time to remember specific choices. I know the one to send the bulk of the group around the horde, with only James, Dom, Nightcrawler and Violet going through it is one thing I will definitely be asking about once the time comes. Until then, I can't wait to answer your questions, as always
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to… more the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away qui… [view original content]
Foxface wasn't a threat to the expedition this chapter.
I'd like to thank James, as well as Adam's journal for the countless times I've gotten mad at myself for the choices I've made during this chapter over someone who turned out to not even be a threat. The real MVPs right there.
Alas, there were better case scenarios, but there were also some far worse ones.
In all honesty, I believe we did fairly decent with our choices. I don't really consider Domenick and Tom to be losses because they aren't confirmed dead and with Danny surviving the night, that gives me a fairly good feeling that the infection hadn't spread any farther. On the other hand, we lost the leader of the expedition who likely knew Colorado the best of the group, Domenick and Tom aren't confirmed dead, but they also aren't confirmed to be alive. Kurt had an absolutely brutal death that Violet had to witness, so I'm sure there's to be psychological damage for her. Jerry seems to be in constant pain, which is reasonable considering the circumstances. Finally, while the infection might not have spread, how much blood Danny is losing is a huge concern.
Additionally, there will be two other segments, one set in East Texas, following a new storyline with new characters about revenge, liberation, and determinately, dark apprenticeship,
This seems really interesting with a high potential of violence, so I'm definitely excited for this.
while the other will be set in Central Texas and follow a few familiar characters in a storyline with themes of growth, rebuilding, trauma, not-dark apprenticeship, and coming-of-age from the perspective of a certain youth.
The expedition has been great and I seriously enjoy it and the characters involved in it, but I do miss the Laredo group and I can't wait to get back to them, as well as hear more of Liquid's theories of what happened to Calvin as the chapter progresses, because they're pretty good.
I learned that my upcoming trip to the north will take place in the latter half of April, so I'll have plenty time to write that month.
I hope you have an enjoyable time, because I'll likely forget by the latter half of April, similar to how I forgot about the second anniversary of Monument. Well, it's not so much I forgot the occasion itself, I just forgot to say something on it.
Until then, if you have questions yourself, ask away!
Really, the only thing that has been in the back of my head as I've been thinking of questions is such. If it's not too much trouble, is there any way you could tell us the determinant characters of the chapter and the choices that influenced their survival or demise?
while this isn't the absolute best outcome possible, it is very far from the worse,
Well, so much for one question. Another if you don't mind and if it doesn't spoil anything by chance, what outcome would have been the best and which the worst?
It could me a while to get through chapter 15, and I got snagged in a few places, but I'm glad I was able to pick up the pace and get things moving again.
This chapter easily places itself in my favorite, I'll be frank. I loved it for so many reasons and I think it was nearly perfectly drawn about. I liked how despite the situation, the characters still had development. How basically every part had me nervous for the next one. It's become a very meaningful chapter to me, and I believe I'll reread it many times.
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to… more the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away qui… [view original content]
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to… more the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away qui… [view original content]
Wow... wow, this was heavy. Losing James and Kurt is a big hit for the expedition and I will miss them both. I thought people would die but not them. Especially not James. And the fox guy was never a threat to them? Damn, we screwed up! You tricked us I enjoyed this finale even if it was so sad and brutal. And I am so excited for the next chapter!
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to… more the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away qui… [view original content]
Segment 1: I hung my blood-splattered duster on the back of one of the chairs and propped my Remington 700 rifle up next to it. Her footsteps were soft, I’ll give her that. I hardly heard her following me up the stairs.
“Sir?”
I looked over my shoulder at the girl and smiled, ignoring the black pit of the pistol bore trained in my direction. Instead, I met and focused on those eyes—they were large and cautious things, one green, one blue, not unlike little Laura’s.
“My things are kept in the kitchen,” I said. “I’m assuming you plan to rob me.”
“I don’t want to rob you,” she said.
“No?” I said, turning toward her. The cuffs of my long sleeved shirt bore more blood. I rolled them up over my forearms, which were matted with arm hair. I offered an acknowledging glance at the pistol pointed at me, then looked in the eyes again. “You could’ve fooled me.”
“I don’t want to rob you,” she repeated. “I want to talk to you.”
“Really now?”
“Yes.”
“Lot of stairs for a simple talk.”
“There were a lot of stairs,” she agreed.
“And I’m not the easiest man to follow.”
“You aren’t.”
I rubbed my thumb and forefinger together, grinding some of the grit and dried blood off my fingers. It fell to the onyx-black, tile floor. It was a show; I hoped the particles were visible to the girl. She couldn’t have been more than twelve. “Well, I don’t project the look of a good person. I could be a murderer.”
“I’m counting on the fact that you are,” she replied.
I raised an eyebrow. “Then today’s your lucky day.”
She didn’t say anything for the longest time, then: “Would you kill me, or attack me, if I didn’t have the gun on you?”
“That depends.”
“On what?”
“Are you human garbage?” I asked.
“No,” she said.
“Then you wouldn’t have anything to worry about.”
“I only have your word on that,” she said.
“Yes, only my word,” I agreed. “You said you wanted to talk? Well, we’re already talking.”
She nodded. Admittedly, I was surprised, and a little impressed, by how little the pistol wavered. “I found the guys you offed,” she said. “And I tried talk to their . . . prisoner, that you freed . . . but she ran away from me. The people holding her captive, that you killed, didn’t have the look of good people.”
“Neither do I.”
“That’s true.”
After a pause, I said, “So, you’re looking for someone willing to kill, someone good at killing, and I fit the bill.” She had nothing. A storm brewed outside the window, above the city, far below. I smiled and gestured to the one of the tables. “Would you like something to eat? It’s a great view. We can talk all about this over dinner.”
To my amazement, she nodded and took a seat. It didn’t surprise me that the gun never left her hand, nor my direction. I cleared off the blood and made dinner in the kitchen from canned food, and when I brought it back into the restaurant portion of the Tower of the Americans, she was still seated, her gun still trained on the doorway that I had left through.
I walked toward the table, the gun following me, and served both of us, then took a seat myself, the panoramic window to my left offering me a view of the city. The above San Antonio was a foreboding gray, and the city was submerged in the dark undersea light of a stormy, turbulent day.
We ate. We talked. We came to an understanding. After I cleaned up the table and washed the dishes, I let her lead me back down the huge flight of stairs, the pistol pointed at my back from only a few steps behind me. We entered the city streets, she led me to them, and she waited there. After I entered the hideaway and killed the men she had indicated, I returned with her stolen backpack and the stolen backpack of her recently murdered friend.
On the way back to the Tower of the Americas, she told me her name was Shouna. I told mine was Jack when it wasn’t—it was just a nickname from before. Except for that, the walk was silent. I used the time to I think about the first time I ever killed a man, besides the one time I did so in self defense as a Texas Ranger, while the blood of five fresh murders dried on my hands, sleeves, and face.
Segment 2: The man found where they were camped just before sunup. Even in his fragmented state of mind, it hadn’t been difficult. His grub-white complexion was bathed in blue-gray predawn glow. His teeth were bared and unbrushed; the expression of rage pulled his face taut over his skull like a semi-translucent mask of skin.
Beads of sweat stood out on his pale flesh. He looked sick and angry. He strode toward the house like man possessed by something old and trifled with. One hand was clenched so tightly his dirty and untrimmed fingernails cut into his palm. In the other hand, he tightly gripped the hilt of a hunting knife to the same result.
The sentry stationed on the porch jolted out of a half-sleep and to his feet. He goggled for several seconds at the approaching apparition before brandishing his rifle and shouting threats and warnings heavily saturated with curses, then he fired his unsteady rifle at the ghoulish intruder and cleanly missed. He cleared the breach of the spent casing, fumbled with a new round, and was about to close the breach again when the serrated knife dragged across his throat, ripping through skin and flesh, severing tendons. The sentry forgot about the apparition and dropped his rifle as he vainly struggled to stop the sudden geyser of blood erupting from the wound. He fell to his knees and rolled down the steps of the porch while the pale man—half covered in blood—threw back the screen door and stepped inside to a chorus of confusion.
Shouted inquiries were thrown into the dimly lit foyer from adjacent rooms. The sounds of men scrambling up from bedrolls were heard by the pale man as he calmly strode with purpose into the immediate room and stabbed the first bandit in the neck. The bandit slid inertly off the blade. The pale man strode further into the room and stabbed the next bandit in the chest before the bandit could raise his pistol. A single shot was fired into hardwood flooring, then the pistol clattered onto the floor—the knife had struck between the bandit’s ribs and had become stuck. The bandit sputtered blood, grabbed feebly at the knife, then groaned when the pale man yanked it free with both hands. The bandit collapsed, writhing, moaning.
Someone hiked it down a set of stairs. Boots tapped out a quick and nervous beat on wood not far away. The pale man, breathing heavily, walked softly to one side of the door frame and, now that he was out of immediate sight, caught his breath. The footsteps grew louder while blood dripped from his knife onto the hardwood floor of the living room, then they paused just outside the room. The barrel of an assault rifle poked through the doorway, and the pale man watched, stifling his panting. The barrel pulled back, boots pounded on the floor, and the screen door opened and slammed shut.
The pale man merely listened from his hiding spot as the fleeing bandit slipped in his comrade's blood and slammed onto the porch. The pale man rounded the door frame, stepping into the foyer, and looked through the screen at the still, yet living, form of the bandit, who lay in a pool of blood next to his still-bleeding comrade.
Blood continued to drip from the pale man’s knife. His grip on the hilt tightened and his own blood trickled past the guard and down the blade to blend with the rest. He ran the back of his cleaner hand across his lips, wiping away peppered drops of blood, and calmly walked toward the screen door with justice in mind for his murdered son, for his daughter Laura and wife who had also been murdered before but by different bandits. His daughter’s and his wife’s murderers had gotten away, so John ‘Jack’ Greyson would just have to extract vengeance on the lot of them.
(Suddenly the film flickers and the distorted image of a young man appears on screen. His skin is tan and olive tinted. Adorning his head is a gray, knitted beanie. Black hair, parted at the center of his scalp beneath the beanie, hangs over either temple, over his ears, and down to his neck. He sits behind a white coffee table. His hands encircle a hot mug of coffee. His eyes are brown, and they gleam sadly. The interviewer is not visible in the recording.)
Interviewer: Would you please state your name for the record?
???: David Adair, ma’am.
Interviewer: Thank you for cooperating with the interview process, Mister Adair. It can be a frustrating . . . and emotional . . . matter. I’m afraid the questions may become personal. You may take however long you need if remembering becomes painful. All I ask is that you answer with the truth.
David: (Softly.) Yeah, I can do that.
Interviewer: That’s good. Let’s get the simple things out of the way first. Your age?
David: I’m twenty-five years old.
Interviewer: You’re Native-American?
David: Yes, ma’am.
Interviewer: Did you belong to a tribe?
David: Yes. Cherokee.
Interview: What’s your date of birth?
David: February 12th, nineteen-seventy-eight.
Interviewer: One week off. Happy early birthday.
David: (On film, he appears uneasy.) Thank you, ma’am.
Interviewer: Okay. Onto the heavier questions. Where were you when it began?
David: The Oklahoma panhandle.
Interviewer: Did you encounter any other survivors? Groups?
David: (With a pained tone.) My family and I started out in a large group. There was about fifty people. Mostly other Native-Americans. I was with my mother, father, and younger brother and sister. It didn’t . . . work out.
Interviewer: How so?
David: There was a lot of internal strife . . . stress was high, people were freaked out, and no one really knew if they could put their trust outsiders. My parents were murdered there. My father had gotten indebted to the wrong people . . . and they were both killed for it.
Interviewer: My condolences. You left, then, with your siblings?
David: I did.
Interviewer: And then what happened?
David: . . .
Interviewer: Take your time.
David: Before we escaped, my younger brother had been bitten. This was before we knew the thing was spread by the bite. He . . . turned . . . while we were on the road, heading west. And he killed my sister. I had to put him down. She turned while I was digging the graves. I put her down, too.
Interviewer: I’m very sorry.
David: (He doesn’t meet the interviewer’s eyes. Instead, he glances around the room, and slumps, veiling his eye sockets from the fluorescent light overhead.) Did I come to the right place?
Interviewer: I’m afraid I don’t follow.
David: Apparently this place is the real deal. Order and civilization in the apocalypse. Is that true?
Interviewer: In my opinion, yes, it is.
David: Can I . . . join?
Interviewer: There’s one last question. And please answer truthfully.
David: I will, ma’am.
Interviewer: Have you killed anyone? We understand that there are some circumstances that require such a thing. Your answer will not affect you right to join, so long as you provide context. So, have you ever killed a living human being?
David: I have not, and I never will.
Interviewer: Welcome to Colorado Springs, David Adair.
The raving, thin man did not hear, or did not understood, or entirely ignored Ryan’s calmly spoken words. Instead, the thin man continued his senseless groveling, forcing Ryan to occasionally kick him off his boots and pants legs, which he clung to oh so desperately.
Funny, little man, Ryan thought, leveling the revolver so that the thin man saw up the barrel’s bore; the man, in reaction, froze dead before it but continued to cast his fit. His hand was completely steady. As was the gun. His finger itched on the trigger, but did not twitch in the slightest. “I said, you have two options. Option one . . . you continue your begging and weeping and snotting and spouting bullshit and I put you down like a dog gone rapid. Option two . . . you stop this bullshit, say your peace, and I put you down like a good old boy . . . you die with a little dignity.”
This was getting tired. Ryan saw his men and women and right-hand men, forming a semicircle around him, were getting restless. It had gone on too long. Ryan saw the animals were getting skittish, too—a child was tending to his chestnut mare, calmingly stroke her dark mane and her long face, whispering assures in the face of the thin man’s agitating, spittle-flinging fit.
The thin man didn’t remain still for long, but didn’t risk advancing any further with the threat of the revolver aimed squarely at his head. Instead, relatively stationary, he flailed, tore at the tall, overgrown grass, swore allegiance, just swore, begged, and with his sobs, sort of bobbed up and down. He was white, with desperate eyes. A filthy t-shirt clung to the man’s back by sweat—showcased were his spine and ribs—and hung loosely in the front. The man spoke English, but his were disjointed and incomprehensible by his sobbing breaths.
Ryan had already had enough of it. His boots—nice boots, they had been and would be again, once he cleaned them up—had accumulated a miserable coat of snot and spit.
His voice, clear and commanding, was filled with a perfectly audible and exceptionally directed contempt. “In ten seconds I’m going to kill you.”
He began his count. Silently.
The ultimatum revitalized the thin man’s efforts. Ignoring the revolver pointed toward him, the man wretchedly clung again to Ryan’s legs, clawing at his faded jeans with pure, pleading terror in his bloodshot eyes and unintelligible words. This only further stirred Ryan’s ranger. Ryan tried and failed to kick him off, emitting a low, disgusted growl. and he announced the five-second mark.
Now the thin man withdrew with a sudden haste, clumsily stumbling over himself and through the grass of the clearing, crawling more than he walked, with a disoriented, terrified speed that was only brought on in the face of death. Ryan held up a closed first to keep those among his people with weapons drawn from firing, then followed the man at a walking pace.
The man entered the woods and didn’t look back as Ryan stopped at the edge of the clearing and campsite, aimed his revolver with a practiced steadiness, and tracked the man’s head as he stumbled further into the woods. Even with everything lined up, Ryan waited until the end of his enteral countdown, then in the span of milliseconds his trigger finger flexed, the shot echoed loudly, and blood, brain matter, and bone exploded out the front of the man’s face and painted the nearest few trees. The thin little cannibal fell forward on what little remained of his face.
Ryan bent his elbow, allowing the bore of his revolver to expel a tendril of smoke straight up into the air like a contented, mechanical sigh. The enraged glint haven’t quite faded from Ryan’s eyes as he turned and walked back to the center of camp. His temper not quite settled, he pointed a finger and a few of his people began to collapse and disassemble the thin man’s tent. He pointed again, this time at the thin man’s half-eaten victim, and some his people commenced digging a grave for the poor schmuck. He was calmer as he holstered his revolver, produced a napkin, and casually bent over to wipe the muck off his boots.
Interrogator: (Male. Impassive sounding voice.) You’ve been identified by as Alex Kotov. The student record attached to this name indicates you are twenty-two. You enrolled at Hiddleson College two years ago, majored in medicine, and minored in health science. Is the aforementioned correct?
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: Your cooperation is vital, Mister Kotov. Is what I’ve said correct?”
Alex (with a soft voice): Yes. You’ve got the right file.
Interrogator: Wonderful. Now that that’s out of the way, I have a few questions for you.
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: What is your relation to Hannah Rhinehardt?
Alex: (Audibly swallows.) She’s my friend. My girlfriend.
Interrogator: She says so as well.
Alex: (The nervousness in his voice spikes.) What have you—
Interrogator: Relax, Mister Kotov. Please remain calm. This doesn’t need to become heated, and this doesn’t have to be difficult. I have another question.
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: What were you and Miss Rhinehardt doing outside Administration yesterday evening?
Alex (quickly): We weren’t part of the protest.
Interrogator: It was not a protest, Mister Kotov. It was rebellion.
Alex: Neither of us were taking part in any rebellion.
Interrogator (sternly): Answer the question. What were you doing there?
Alex: Hannah… Hannah and I were leaving the campus through the Admin’s entrance.
Interrogator: Permanently?
Alex: Y… Yes…
Interrogator: Many of the other “protesters” were similarly equipped as you. I believe… (papers ruffle) you and Miss Rhinehardt were both armed with 22 caliber pistols stolen from the armory, along with additional ammo. Like so many of these so-called “protesters,” you were armed with stolen weapons. (His tone has not become any less impassive.) You’re story, Alex, would be full of shit if wasn’t so full of holes.
Alex: I’m not lying! We weren’t a part of that! You and your men shot at the fucking crowd—Hannah and I barely got away with our lives! We never would have gotten mixed up with that!
Interrogator: Yet you were found on outside the Administration building, armed, taking cover with known rebels. I’ve gotten all I needed to know from this avenue of talk, Alex. Let’s move on.
Alex: I’m not with them! Neither is Hann— (Alex exhales all of his breath and the impact of a metallic object, perhaps an aluminum baseball bat, striking his stomach is audible. Alex gasps furtively and isn’t capable of drawing adequate breath for several dozen seconds.)
Interrogator: We’ll done discussing that, Alex. You’ll tell me all about—
Alex (wheezing): Mister Adrian, you’re a fucking professor! A math teacher! You hit me with a fucking bat!
Adrian (with a clear hint of anger): Times have changed, and I will not have my authority over this campus challenged by a bunch of upstarts unhappy with the status quo! You’ll tell me everything you know about these other rebels. Or die.
Alex: I. Don’t. Know. Anything. (Alex is stuck again, this time on the side of the head, by the bat—Adrian has held back slight but only so he does not knock Alex not. The attack causes the metal back to vibrate, almost sing from the impact.)
Adrian: Whether or not you’ll a rebel, Alex, you’ll tell me everything know, and that’s all I require. Let’s start again. Tell me everything you know about these other rebels or die.
Alex: You’re insane.
(Adrian hits him again, this time with a fist. The recording lasts another half hour, over which Adrian Francis asks Alex Kotov the same or similar questions again and again, and Alex replies each time that he does not know or only heard hearsay. The abuse continues over the course of the recording, when Alex either cannot answer the question or Adrian becomes angry with the answer. Alex’s replies become difficult, slurred, and eventually he is no longer able to speak. Before the recording is shut off, Adrian tells another person, who does not speak, of Alex’s impending death sentence.)
Part 2
Segment 4—The Highwayman: “You have two options.”
The raving, thin man did not hear, or did not understood, or entirely ignored… more Ryan’s calmly spoken words. Instead, the thin man continued his senseless groveling, forcing Ryan to occasionally kick him off his boots and pants legs, which he clung to oh so desperately.
Funny, little man, Ryan thought, leveling the revolver so that the thin man saw up the barrel’s bore; the man, in reaction, froze dead before it but continued to cast his fit. His hand was completely steady. As was the gun. His finger itched on the trigger, but did not twitch in the slightest. “I said, you have two options. Option one . . . you continue your begging and weeping and snotting and spouting bullshit and I put you down like a dog gone rapid. Option two . . . you stop this bullshit, say your peace, and I put you down like a good old boy . . . you die with a little dignity.”
This was getting tired. Rya… [view original content]
Really, the only thing that has been in the back of my head as I've been thinking of questions is such. If it's not too much trouble, is there any way you could tell us the determinant characters of the chapter and the choices that influenced their survival or demise?
I can't be specific, unfortunately, and I can't provide an answer for all of them, but I can say at least the one which is probably most important to you, even if in vague terms. The choice deciding how to handle Danny's bite—bandage, full amputation, or surgery—affected his status as well as Asher's and Maria's. While I can't say if Danny's out of the frying pan (or into the fire), I can say the full amputation option would have put Asher in harm's way.
Well, so much for one question. Another if you don't mind and if it doesn't spoil anything by chance, what outcome would have been the best and which the worst?
Best could have seen them all make it through. Worse option could have maybe left only Jerry, Sasha, and Maria surviving. Considering only two people died out of a possible seven or so, things went much, much better than they could have.
Foxface wasn't a threat to the expedition this chapter.
I'd like to thank James, as well as Adam's journal for the countless times I… more've gotten mad at myself for the choices I've made during this chapter over someone who turned out to not even be a threat. The real MVPs right there.
Alas, there were better case scenarios, but there were also some far worse ones.
In all honesty, I believe we did fairly decent with our choices. I don't really consider Domenick and Tom to be losses because they aren't confirmed dead and with Danny surviving the night, that gives me a fairly good feeling that the infection hadn't spread any farther. On the other hand, we lost the leader of the expedition who likely knew Colorado the best of the group, Domenick and Tom aren't confirmed dead, but they also aren't confirmed to be alive. Kurt had an absolutely brutal death that Violet had to witness, so I'm sure there's to be psychological damage… [view original content]
Whoa, these were seriously awesome segments! I found it interesting how easily you managed to set up 5 super interesting scenarios there and I can even see how they are going to be connected. It appears that, with the possible exception of Ryan, all of these are going to play a part in the Colorado storyline. Or maybe Alex, if he survived, and David will, whereas Ryan and John will play a role in this other storyline you hinted at. That might seem a bit more likely. Or maybe all of them will play a part in the Colorado storyline? Maybe some in the flashbacks and others in the present storyline, perhaps even interacting with our heroes from the expedition. Anyways, super well-written segments, as they always are. I am seriously excited for both of these new storylines and for Laredo and I cannot wait for the next chapter
Part 2
Segment 4—The Highwayman: “You have two options.”
The raving, thin man did not hear, or did not understood, or entirely ignored… more Ryan’s calmly spoken words. Instead, the thin man continued his senseless groveling, forcing Ryan to occasionally kick him off his boots and pants legs, which he clung to oh so desperately.
Funny, little man, Ryan thought, leveling the revolver so that the thin man saw up the barrel’s bore; the man, in reaction, froze dead before it but continued to cast his fit. His hand was completely steady. As was the gun. His finger itched on the trigger, but did not twitch in the slightest. “I said, you have two options. Option one . . . you continue your begging and weeping and snotting and spouting bullshit and I put you down like a dog gone rapid. Option two . . . you stop this bullshit, say your peace, and I put you down like a good old boy . . . you die with a little dignity.”
This was getting tired. Rya… [view original content]
The choice deciding how to handle Danny's bite—bandage, full amputation, or surgery—affected his status as well as Asher's and Maria's. While I can't say if Danny's out of the frying pan (or into the fire), I can say the full amputation option would have put Asher in harm's way.
You're definitely right about it being the choice that is more important to me, because it's the choice that made me most anxious throughout the chapter just because of the setting and current situation the characters were in at the time. I can vaguely see how it would affect Asher and Maria, but seeing that we kind of avoided putting Asher in harm's way makes me a little less nervous for the results of the choice.
Best could have seen them all make it through. Worse option could have maybe left only Jerry, Sasha, and Maria surviving.
Oh Jesus, so we seriously could have done a lot more damage. As much as I love and am interested by those three characters, I'm extremely glad it didn't dwindle down to just them. If I recall, you've mentioned that Violet has an interesting history to share, and I've been fairly excited to see that history. Domenick and Tom, they've no confirmed fates, but I have hopes that at least one of them will make it back to the group.
Sorry for not answering these sooner!
Really, the only thing that has been in the back of my head as I've been thinking of questions i… mores such. If it's not too much trouble, is there any way you could tell us the determinant characters of the chapter and the choices that influenced their survival or demise?
I can't be specific, unfortunately, and I can't provide an answer for all of them, but I can say at least the one which is probably most important to you, even if in vague terms. The choice deciding how to handle Danny's bite—bandage, full amputation, or surgery—affected his status as well as Asher's and Maria's. While I can't say if Danny's out of the frying pan (or into the fire), I can say the full amputation option would have put Asher in harm's way.
Well, so much for one question. Another if you don't mind and if it doesn't spoil anything by chance, what outcome would have been the best and which the worst?
B… [view original content]
Now, I'm pretty hyped up for these new storylines and I absolutely love the interview style, I think it's great.
I think of all of the storylines, I'm most excited for either Jack or Ryan's. I'm beyond happy to see something dealing with the cannibals, as odd as that sounds. On the other hand, I'm personally obsessed with forensic sciences and the psychology of a serial killer, so I'm immediately drawn to Jack's storyline and I could see potential as the dark apprenticeship being in his storyline since it seems like he and Shouna didn't separate, but she obviously doesn't trust him, so I'm not entirely sure.
Alex's segment captured my attention and gave me a good idea of the type of people who were really in Colorado Springs and the idea that they likely won't meet the expedition group gives me indescribable joy. I do feel pretty bad for Alex and Hannah, because it sounds to me like they weren't active participants in the revolt, but then again, I could be wrong and trying to see the good in people who have no good.
David on the other hand seems to be quite honest with his answers, which is another assumption I'm making. I already like his character and I'm looking forward to seeing more of him. I think his moral code, per say, is quite interesting and that his "never have, never will" won't last past the downfall of Colorado Springs.
Part 2
Segment 4—The Highwayman: “You have two options.”
The raving, thin man did not hear, or did not understood, or entirely ignored… more Ryan’s calmly spoken words. Instead, the thin man continued his senseless groveling, forcing Ryan to occasionally kick him off his boots and pants legs, which he clung to oh so desperately.
Funny, little man, Ryan thought, leveling the revolver so that the thin man saw up the barrel’s bore; the man, in reaction, froze dead before it but continued to cast his fit. His hand was completely steady. As was the gun. His finger itched on the trigger, but did not twitch in the slightest. “I said, you have two options. Option one . . . you continue your begging and weeping and snotting and spouting bullshit and I put you down like a dog gone rapid. Option two . . . you stop this bullshit, say your peace, and I put you down like a good old boy . . . you die with a little dignity.”
This was getting tired. Rya… [view original content]
It's set about a month or so after the chapter 15 finale and takes place maybe a week or two before the chapter 16 storyline Ryan will factor into. I've actually given it some thought and have decided to include a basic counter—along the lines of 1 Year, 1 Month In—in the future parts!
I'm glad you liked it, but I feel the need to clarify a few things about Jack and Ryan's segment. First, I somehow utterly failed to see the similarities between the dark storyline I've hinted at and Jack's teaser here. To say it outright, Jack and the girl, Shouna, are not the dark apprenticeship duo I was referring to. We won't actually see them again for a while, definitely not this coming chapter, but in act 4 at some point. Secondly, the storyline involving Ryan doesn't really have anything to do with cannibals. All that said, since you're interest in the seeing serial killer mindset, I don't think you're going to be disappointed with what's to come. To draw comparisons, the storyline in question is going to be like a cross between the Revenant and True Grit and with a high potential for the macabre.
Again, being vague might have backfired a little. Just to clear any confusion when things get started, the segment featuring Alex Kotov isn't set in Colorado Springs. It's a new setting, and it's been described in the segment as a college campus. As for David, I'm happy you like his character! He'll be an interesting fellow to follow, what with his ethics and all, as well as the fact that he'll be a character in the Colorado Springs segments in chapter 16, which as I've mentioned are taking place before chapter 14 and 15. I really can't wait to get things going! It really be won't be long now!
Now, I'm pretty hyped up for these new storylines and I absolutely love the interview style, I think it's great.
I think of all of the st… moreorylines, I'm most excited for either Jack or Ryan's. I'm beyond happy to see something dealing with the cannibals, as odd as that sounds. On the other hand, I'm personally obsessed with forensic sciences and the psychology of a serial killer, so I'm immediately drawn to Jack's storyline and I could see potential as the dark apprenticeship being in his storyline since it seems like he and Shouna didn't separate, but she obviously doesn't trust him, so I'm not entirely sure.
Alex's segment captured my attention and gave me a good idea of the type of people who were really in Colorado Springs and the idea that they likely won't meet the expedition group gives me indescribable joy. I do feel pretty bad for Alex and Hannah, because it sounds to me like they weren't active participants in the revolt, but th… [view original content]
Thank you, Liquid! Actually, only David's segment has anything to do with the Colorado Springs community and none, for that matter, have any connection (as of this time) to the Laredo community. And unfortunately, Jack won't appear in the upcoming chapter, and unlikely still that he will appear substantially the one after that. Something to note about Jack which might have missed is that his segment took place in San Antonio—hence the Tower of the American, a monument there, which hasn't made its last appearance by a longshot. Anyway, I'm glad these teasers worked out so well! It was fun experimenting with different styles (and interesting to sort of return to the script style of some of my older stories). I think this is something I will definitely try again. If not in another interlude, then in future one-shots.
Whoa, these were seriously awesome segments! I found it interesting how easily you managed to set up 5 super interesting scenarios there and… more I can even see how they are going to be connected. It appears that, with the possible exception of Ryan, all of these are going to play a part in the Colorado storyline. Or maybe Alex, if he survived, and David will, whereas Ryan and John will play a role in this other storyline you hinted at. That might seem a bit more likely. Or maybe all of them will play a part in the Colorado storyline? Maybe some in the flashbacks and others in the present storyline, perhaps even interacting with our heroes from the expedition. Anyways, super well-written segments, as they always are. I am seriously excited for both of these new storylines and for Laredo and I cannot wait for the next chapter
Alright! Here are the questions. As usual, you're free to pick and choose questions to answer and skip at your discretion, and you're can be as detailed or brief as you want. If you have any questions, now's a good time to ask them!
Favorite characters?
Least favorite characters?
Favorite scenes/moments?
What characters do you see as having potential?
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
What worked this chapter?
What didn't work this chapter?
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Favorite interlude segment?
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
First, I somehow utterly failed to see the similarities between the dark storyline I've hinted at and Jack's teaser here. To say it outright, Jack and the girl, Shouna, are not the dark apprenticeship duo I was referring to.
Looking back on it, I believe my basis on belief was purely because of the dark apprenticeship duo. I'd forgotten you'd mentioned that the hinted storyline would be in East Texas while San Antonio is in South Texas. Minor geographic mistake on my part, apologies.
To draw comparisons, the storyline in question is going to be like a cross between the Revenant and True Grit and with a high potential for the macabre.
I'm already super hyped for the storyline in question then, for the serial killer mindset alone. With it being a cross between Revenant and True Grit, I truthfully expect nothing less of a macabre, which only makes the excitement greater.
the segment featuring Alex Kotov isn't set in Colorado Springs. It's a new setting, and it's been described in the segment as a college campus.
I have no idea why I thought it did, but it's good to know those details, because I know for sure I would have continued to believe that it did take place in Colorado Springs until it was explicitly stated.
I'm glad you liked it, but I feel the need to clarify a few things about Jack and Ryan's segment. First, I somehow utterly failed to see the… more similarities between the dark storyline I've hinted at and Jack's teaser here. To say it outright, Jack and the girl, Shouna, are not the dark apprenticeship duo I was referring to. We won't actually see them again for a while, definitely not this coming chapter, but in act 4 at some point. Secondly, the storyline involving Ryan doesn't really have anything to do with cannibals. All that said, since you're interest in the seeing serial killer mindset, I don't think you're going to be disappointed with what's to come. To draw comparisons, the storyline in question is going to be like a cross between the Revenant and True Grit and with a high potential for the macabre.
Again, being vague might have backfired a little. Just to clear any confusion when things get started, the segment featuring Alex Kotov … [view original content]
Oh, already starting with a hard one. This chapter had a lot of great characters and some of them even among my all time favourites, whereas others really stepped up to the front seat in this chapter. Surprisingly, it's not Jerry, whom I feel had a little bit less of a presence here compared to most of the others. Instead, it is probably tied between Maria and James, with Sasha being very close by. Maybe it's even tied between Maria, James and Sasha. Now, I have liked Maria for a while now, but I feel like this chapter had some of her best moments, so it is only right if I mention her here. James was amazing and if he would have survived longer, he would have very likely gotten a part among my all-time favourites in a chapter or two. His death has also been the harshest moment in the chapter for me. And Sasha... well, do I need to say more? She kicked ass in this chapter and was overall awesome, though I felt slightly less attached to her than to Maria and James, so she is marginally behind them.
Least favorite characters?
Eh, can I skip this question? Seriously, I have thought about it for a long time, but I have found no answer at all. Every member of the expedition had their moment to shine and naming one of them as my least favourite would be a real disservice towards the characterization you gave them here. With the lack of a villain to hate, I can't even do that. Not even characters I feel uneasy about, but who aren't clear villains yet, such as Nathalie, appeared in this chapter, so out of the cast of chapter 15, I have none I could name as my least favourite.
Favorite scenes/moments?
There are two scenes who really stuck with me in this chapter. I mean, the entire chapter was just plain awesome, but these two have seriously hit me. First of all, there is the diary scene. I actually had to check, as I thought it would have belonged to Chapter 14, but I was wrong and this is a good thing, because now I can mention it. Hands down, one of the top five most intense moments in Monument, even if there has been no action at all. This was a chilling moment that creeped me out, something I haven't felt in that way in any other part. Before, whenever I felt uneasy, it was more of a panicked feeling, but this here was essentially more scary than the shocking and nerve-wracking moments of the past. Truly a unique moment. Another one, and I hate that I have to include it as my favourite, is the final part. Two characters I really liked died there and it was the most shocking and brutal death in all of Monument. The bleakness of this scene even surpassed other tearjerking moments, such as the death of Stan or the death of Anthony. Mostly because they have been played up to be these sad scenes they were meant to be and that worked. This scene worked as well, but it was way more bleak and simple in the way their deaths were described. That has genuinely shook me.
What characters do you see as having potential?
Violet. Yeah, Violet. She's in a bit of a limbo between a character I might seriously like and a character I will likely always feel a bit uneasy about, which is an odd combination I had with no other character before. Well, maybe Clarice thanks to her final action, but with Violet, this odd feeling is way stronger. But it doesn't matter if I like her or not, and to be honest, I probably like her more than I don't. What matters is that she has really gotten some unexpected development in this chapter and she is, without any doubt, the character with the most unexplored potential out of the expedition group.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
Before I answer this, I have to ask, do you mean plot points for the expedition group, plot points for one of the segments, or plot points for Laredo? Or general plot points? Because that would influence my answer quite heavily. So, tell me what you mean there and I shall give you a nice, long answer
What worked this chapter?
Just that athmosphere... that goddamn athmosphere. Other chapters had intense moments, some of them even more intense than the most intense Chapter 15 moment, but damn it, this chapter had the most consistently intense feeling. The entire athmosphere of the chapter felt bleak and grim and unsettling, with me always having this feeling that something horrible will happen. Sure enough, something horrible did happen, but it was still entirely unexpected. I mean, I expected something bad to happen so much that I was quite shocked when it finally happened XD And Foxface... man, you genuinely tricked me and I guess the others as well by making it seem as if that guy was about to attack any moment now. That was brilliant, making us decide exactly as the characters would, with no further knowledge. We've all been basically clueless as to what could happen and to our knowledge, any choice could have resulted in any possible outcome for this information at any given time. The whole Foxface trickery was just one of these factors, but the one I feel was pulled of the best.
What didn't work this chapter?
...nothing? Seriously, I wouldn't know anything I can recall that hasn't worked. Mostly because I naturally don't know if you wanted to do more with some elements of this chapter, but I feel it was generally all perfect and well-rounded. So, I'd say it all worked out, don't worry. I know I say this a lot. Maybe I just suck at even seeing anything negative unless it's really glaring
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
Just what happened to Colorado Springs? How could this huge, well-defended and overall working community just crumble and disappear over the course of the few months James was absent from them? As far as we know, they did more than just fine before he left. In fact, it seemed as if they were already in the process of rebuilding, more than just surviving. From what we have seen so far, they have been so much more fortified than Laredo and yet they are all just gone somehow. This is creepy and if there is a threat to these communities out there, then I want to try the best to prepare Laredo for it. But well, this was a question I was pretty sure Chapter 15 wouldn't answer, so I am certainly not bummed or anything. I know I'll get an answer to this in time
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Well, it certainly was one of my clear favourites. I would say it was a more than worthy finale for Act 3 and it is likely very close to A Man Gone and Dogma when it comes to my favourites. It was definitely the best chapter in this act and one of the best in the entire story so far. Not only in terms of story, which has always been seriously strong, but also in terms of sheer writing, this was incredible and I enjoyed every single part of it. What I found interesting was that it focussed on a lot of characters who have previously been minor or mentioned-only, it gave them the centre stage and it worked. This was certainly a unique chapter and one I thoroughly loved.
Favorite interlude segment?
Well... this one is hard for me, because I enjoyed all of them. If I have to pick one, I'd say Alex' was the most intense, with this interview and the tension slowly building. Seriously, they were all great and if you'd ask for my least favourite segment, I couldn't answer that question, but my favourite is probably Alex' here.
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
You know, as always when I answer a question about the future of my dear Laredo storyline, what I think will happen highly differs from what I hope will happen. At least this time, you seem to have hinted at some happy stuff for them, but I don't expect things to be all sunshine and rainbows there, or to remain happy for long. I mean, as always, I will embrace happy moments for them as long as they last, but I can see enough potential for trouble in there. The supply situation is unlikely to be solved anytime soon and with James' expedition on the brink of failure, they really need to find an alternative that ensures their survival. And with quite a number of able-bodied fighters gone, the defense situation of the community is worse than ever. A number of people are ol, such as Jefferson, or kids, such as Dan and Josie's pregnancy is not making things any easier for them. Not that I'd ever not be happy about that pregnancy, because trust me, I am still beyond excited for it, but I start to see some problems this could cause. Now without Calvin, they don't only need to somehow get a pregnant woman through this, they also need to find someone who can help deliver the baby without getting the mother killed in the process. Is it strange that I somehow expect Nathalie to prove herself there? She had a child, so she's, like, the highest available authority on babies right now. That said, I'd feel much safer for Josie if they could somehow find a real doctor. But speaking about Calvin, there is also this thing about his unexplained death. I have absolutely no idea who could have done such a thing, but I know, someone did and likely with the goal of destabilizing the community by taking away the most essential member of it.
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Hm, the one part I have always been curious about and will likely remain so until it possibly gets resolved is Keith and the way he freed Josie and Lindsay from the clutches of Trevor and his goons. I mean, why did he do it, how did he find them, how did he got them out of there, what was Josie's reaction when seeing the ruined Harvest Hills and Anthony's grave and so on. Not getting to see these events is likely the only thing I could ever criticize about Nine o'Clock Lab, even if it unarguably was a necessary choice to make the reveal that they are still alive all the stronger. That is the only event I could think of right now which I would like to see explored in more detail.
Now... There are two particular questions I can think of about when it comes to the alternative choices. First, the one at the end of part 4 of this chapter, where we had the choice to go to Forst Carson together or to split up. We chose to remain together, but what would have happened if we would have split up?
And second, for part 8, where we chose for Domenick and Tom to head back to the others, what would have happened if we would have decided for them to break through and continue on their way instead?
Alright! Here are the questions. As usual, you're free to pick and choose questions to answer and skip at your discretion, and you're can be… more as detailed or brief as you want. If you have any questions, now's a good time to ask them!
Favorite characters?
Least favorite characters?
Favorite scenes/moments?
What characters do you see as having potential?
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
What worked this chapter?
What didn't work this chapter?
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Favorite interlude segment?
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
Before I answer this, I have to ask, do you mean plot points for the expedition group, plot points for one of the segments, or plot points for Laredo? Or general plot points? Because that would influence my answer quite heavily. So, tell me what you mean there and I shall give you a nice, long answer
I suppose that was a little open ended. What I mean is, what are possibilities or plot points (such as, let's say, focus on a vestige of the US military, characters emerging from a bunker for the first time, a post-apocalyptic cult, or somesuch) would like to see explored?
Now... There are two particular questions I can think of about when it comes to the alternative choices. First, the one at the end of part 4 of this chapter, where we had the choice to go to Forst Carson together or to split up. We chose to remain together, but what would have happened if we would have split up?
Had they split up, as I've mentioned before, there would have been a quick choice determining whether Violet is included with those going directly to Fort Carson—Violet's inclusion would have been vital in ensuring the survival of James, Kurt, and possibly Domenick. Those going the long way around—Jerry, Sasha, Tom, Asher, Danny, and Maria—would have skirted the horde until they reached a suburban neighborhood, otherwise unharmed, but separating the groups by many miles. Splitting up and including Violet would have led to the best case scenario.
And second, for part 8, where we chose for Domenick and Tom to head back to the others, what would have happened if we would have decided for them to break through and continue on their way instead?
If Domenick and Tom had tried to push through the horde, they would have both died. However, their fates would have been left ambiguous. The consequences of their deaths would have been felt by those hunkering down in the truck, putting them in harm's way without the assistance Domenick and Tom provided for their predicament.
Favorite characters?
Oh, already starting with a hard one. This chapter had a lot of great characters and some of them even among my all … moretime favourites, whereas others really stepped up to the front seat in this chapter. Surprisingly, it's not Jerry, whom I feel had a little bit less of a presence here compared to most of the others. Instead, it is probably tied between Maria and James, with Sasha being very close by. Maybe it's even tied between Maria, James and Sasha. Now, I have liked Maria for a while now, but I feel like this chapter had some of her best moments, so it is only right if I mention her here. James was amazing and if he would have survived longer, he would have very likely gotten a part among my all-time favourites in a chapter or two. His death has also been the harshest moment in the chapter for me. And Sasha... well, do I need to say more? She kicked ass in this chapter and was overall awesome, though I felt slightly … [view original content]
I suppose that was a little open ended. What I mean is, what are possibilities or plot points (such as, let's say, focus on a vestige of the US military, characters emerging from a bunker for the first time, a post-apocalyptic cult, or somesuch) would like to see explored?
Ah, I understand it now In that case, I'd say one thing I have always been curious about, which I feel no story in that universe has ever explored before is the government. Not necessarily the military, which has been done in all shapes and forms before, but the real government. One would think that a man such as the president has actually the best chances of them all to survive the apocalypse.
Had they split up, as I've mentioned before, there would have been a quick choice determining whether Violet is included with those going directly to Fort Carson—Violet's inclusion would have been vital in ensuring the survival of James, Kurt, and possibly Domenick. Those going the long way around—Jerry, Sasha, Tom, Asher, Danny, and Maria—would have skirted the horde until they reached a suburban neighborhood, otherwise unharmed, but separating the groups by many miles. Splitting up and including Violet would have led to the best case scenario.
Oh damn it! So this was the choice where we messed up. I mean, I am pretty sure that if we would have chosen to split up, we also would have chosen for Violet to accompany them. I know I would have. It's interesting that she, of all people, would have provided such a vital support for the trio. But the situation for the others would have been better as well, with Danny not getting bitten and things like that.
If Domenick and Tom had tried to push through the horde, they would have both died. However, their fates would have been left ambiguous. The consequences of their deaths would have been felt by those hunkering down in the truck, putting them in harm's way without the assistance Domenick and Tom provided for their predicament.
This however is something I have expected, that breaking through the horde would have been catastrophical. It's still scary to think that not only Domenick and Tom would have died, but that the larger portion of the group would have been put at risk as well. They already have been close to being wiped out completely, so I am afraid any further problems back then could have led to quite a number of additional deaths. I guess that is what could have led to only Jerry, Sasha and Maria surviving, right?
Though this actually makes me curious, what possible outcome could have led to Violet's death? It seems we already accidentally picked the option that is the worst for her by not splitting up, though she managed to make it through despite the danger.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
Before I answer this, I have to ask, do you mean plot points for the expedition… more group, plot points for one of the segments, or plot points for Laredo? Or general plot points? Because that would influence my answer quite heavily. So, tell me what you mean there and I shall give you a nice, long answer
I suppose that was a little open ended. What I mean is, what are possibilities or plot points (such as, let's say, focus on a vestige of the US military, characters emerging from a bunker for the first time, a post-apocalyptic cult, or somesuch) would like to see explored?
Now... There are two particular questions I can think of about when it comes to the alternative choices. First, the one at the end of part 4 of this chapter, where we had the choice to go to Forst Carson together or to split up. We chose to remain together, but what would have happened if we would have … [view original content]
One would think that a man such as the president has actually the best chances of them all to survive the apocalypse.
That would be tricky lol, but that definitely does strike my interest as well. I hope you don't mind if I put it in the idea bin. The big question is whether to use the real president (the apocalypse very loosely began in 2003 here, like the comics, I believe, which would make it George W. Bush) or use a made up president.
I guess that is what could have led to only Jerry, Sasha and Maria surviving, right?
The answer is possibly. I didn't put too much time into planning this possibility because the opposite choice was chosen. Had Domenick and Tom not been there to help, things would have been worse for those in the pickup bed. If it had been coupled with a worse option for what do with Danny's bite, let's say, the full amputation option, the causalities could have been worse or different.
Though this actually makes me curious, what possible outcome could have led to Violet's death? It seems we already accidentally picked the option that is the worst for her by not splitting up, though she managed to make it through despite the danger.
Okay, this completely slipped my mind: there would have been additional choices on the bridge scene (following Violet's inclusion) that would have affected who lived from that group, including Violet. Again, I'm afraid I didn't get that far in planning this particular outcome since it got sectioned off so quickly, so I can't provide more context, unfortunately.
I suppose that was a little open ended. What I mean is, what are possibilities or plot points (such as, let's say, focus on a vestige of the… more US military, characters emerging from a bunker for the first time, a post-apocalyptic cult, or somesuch) would like to see explored?
Ah, I understand it now In that case, I'd say one thing I have always been curious about, which I feel no story in that universe has ever explored before is the government. Not necessarily the military, which has been done in all shapes and forms before, but the real government. One would think that a man such as the president has actually the best chances of them all to survive the apocalypse.
Had they split up, as I've mentioned before, there would have been a quick choice determining whether Violet is included with those going directly to Fort Carson—Violet's inclusion would have been vital in ensuring the survival of James, Kurt, and possibly Domenick. Th… [view original content]
Alrighty, so I normally don't have an answer for this question and I normally hold a bias. I only continue one of those traditions today. For starters, my favorite character has stepped down and the order is now mixed, but I'll get to that in a moment. So, my favorite character is currently Jerry, which is a step up from what I originally thought of him. See, my second favorite would be my overall favorite, if it hadn't been for Jerry's take over command in the finale, as well as his completion of the surgery. Here's that bias I mentioned. My second favorite character is Maria, and a lot of that does stem from her past, but currently I think she had more of an emotional backup to the chapter. Her bonds with James and Danny were clear and it's the emotional factor that normally gets me, so it surprised me when Danny got bitten, but it more so surprised me when James died because his final thoughts were of people he considered to be his friends were separated. I guess that gives away that James was my third favorite.
Least favorite characters?
If I could say Foxface for the way our votes were influenced, I totally would. However, in terms of characters we've seen, I don't really have a least favorite. They're all good characters, and even if I've disliked one or two of them in the past, they've seen redemption.
Favorite scenes/moments?
Goodness, I hate to pick a single moment, because this has become my favorite chapter. If I must, I'd say Kurt's death left the biggest impression on me, because that's what really redeemed Violet for me when she tried to save him. Her failure also made me feel a bit upset for her. Her staying in place told me that it's going to leave a lasting mark on her mind, which thinking of all the ways it could later effect her hypes me up for chapter 17, but the hype for chapter 16 doesn't subside.
What characters do you see as having potential?
I believe that Violet has the greatest potential among the expedition group. She's been through significantly more than what likely most of the surviving people of the expedition have and she has the ability to use her experiences to make changes, it's all based on her willpower to do so, which I'm interested to see if she does have such willpower.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
This one I don't really have an answer for, because Liquid already mentioned the government and Laredo is already working on getting back to humanity, and that's something that always interests me in stories like these. However, the example of the cult that you gave does sound interesting.
What worked this chapter?
Basically everything worked, this is easily my favorite chapter and I hold it very dear to me. I enjoyed but was easily stressed out (which is no surprise) by the ways the choices played out. I liked how the threats that were around the expedition were left pretty open to interpretation, except the obvious walker problem. What I mean is how we figured Foxface was a problem, when he wasn't even around, that's what I mean when I say open to interpretation. I enjoyed the dynamic between the characters, namely the one between Maria and Danny. However, I did enjoy the friendship between Asher and Danny because that did prove my original suspicion of Asher horribly wrong forever ago, so I actually enjoy being proven wrong in such sense.
What didn't work this chapter?
I don't really have an answer for this, so I'll be skipping it, apologies.
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
I didn't really have many questions when chapter 15 started, because they were either answered before now in the story, an interlude, or from you, so my questions have been relatively answered. If I must pick something, I'd say something that I've previously wondered is why those who went on the expedition did so. Josie suspected that Kurt went because of Asher, Danny, and Maria. We know Jerry and Sasha went because there were risks staying Laredo. Obviously James went to lead, but then the rest is just that.
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Like I've mentioned a few times before, this chapter has made its place as my favorite. I believe it made a much more descriptive turn than the other chapters did, offering some more gruesome details that other chapters didn't and I just love it. I'm interested in what the future chapters have to offer, for sure.
Favorite interlude segment?
My favorite interlude segment is most definitely John's segment. It not only brought San Antonio back, but it brought some new, interesting characters into play. A close second is David's, just because his character just seems easy enough to sympathize with. Watch, I'll regret those words next chapter, I'm calling it now.
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
Laredo was left in a relatively decent state, from what I remember, besides the supply crisis. I think Laredo will focus heavily on trying to maintain the supplies until they hear back from the expedition group, which is going to take quite a bit, but also on Josephine's pregnancy, which is something I also look forward to seeing more about. Also, finding out what really happened to Calvin also seems like something that would be probable in the Laredo storyline.
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Sadly, I do not personally, but Liquid does have some good ideas with Anthony's grave and Keith's getting Josephine and Lindsay out of the mall, so I'll agree with those.
Alright! Here are the questions. As usual, you're free to pick and choose questions to answer and skip at your discretion, and you're can be… more as detailed or brief as you want. If you have any questions, now's a good time to ask them!
Favorite characters?
Least favorite characters?
Favorite scenes/moments?
What characters do you see as having potential?
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
What worked this chapter?
What didn't work this chapter?
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Favorite interlude segment?
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Daniel Martinez — Rosa Drive, Central Texas — 1 Year, 1 Month In — 16-01: Rosa Drive consisted of a long gravel driveway which cut an uneven line between two tall, opposing fields of weeds. Daniel hated it on sight. He stared down the driveway from behind Atlanta’s leg. What he saw was a wicked thing, unyielding and harsh in its appearance. Even his considerable imagination couldn’t picture it as having once been green or farmable. His sentiments were reinforced when an October gust set the wilted corn stalks swaying within their weed-coffins in a way that was haunting.
Tugging on Altana’s overcoat, Daniel whimpered. “Please,” he said up to her. “I don’t like it.” And, in Daniel’s opinion, it didn’t like him either—he could sense its contempt for him as well as if it had a sign that explicitly (and vulgarly) said so. Not only that, he could just imagine the things it harbored for this very instant: creatures with claws perfect for cutting him, weaving passageways carved into the undergrowth meant for spying or sneaking up on him to pounce, and weird bugs whose sole intention would be to bite him!
There was no room for argument: the field and its many clawed and borrowing and insectile inhabitants all hated him.
He tugged more insistently at Atlanta’s coat and a hand came down on his head and unhelpfully ruffled his already unkempt hair. He batted away her hand like it was a nosy fly and frowned, pleadingly, up at her. “I don’t like it!” he hissed under his breath, fearing, rightfully, that the field would hear him and take swifter action in its plot against him. “I wanna go home!”
Now Atlanta squatted on her heels, so she would be at eye level with him, and countered his hesitate, fearful grimace with a smile of her own. She put her hands over his cold ears—which were being chilled by the mild breeze—and whispered, teasingly but warmly, “I thought we had a deal, little dude.”
They did. Daniel had agreed to come, to move into the farmhouse, in exchange for the ability to pick his own room. But, realizing what evil lurked in what was supposed to be their new yard, Daniel choose to deny the existence of any such agreement.
“We didn’t!” He looked over at Ashley for support.
His other mom grinned, and at that moment he knew just whose side she was on. Strands of her blond hair lashed her face in the breeze.
She’d betrayed him. Daniel’s intake of breath was audible. Then he closed his mouth and tried to act inconspicuous under his parents’ increasingly amused gazes. He had thought of a plan. It might just work…
He turned around and began to run back to the truck Ashley had driven there. She had taken the keys, but it was unlocked, so he could get inside the truck’s cabin and simply refuse to come out again. It was a short-sighted plan, but he didn’t get far enough into it to realize that: Atlanta caught him around the stomach, pulled him into a hug, and picked him up off the ground.
He tried his best to remain angry, but the giggles came on their of their own accord. Once he realized he was having fun, he pouted and began to struggle again. Then, realizing Atlanta was taking steps down the driveway, a genuine pang of fear passed through. He stopped fighting, buried his face in her shoulder, and tensed up. Atlanta stopped walking immediately.
“Dan?” she coaxed. “What’s wrong?”
“It hates me,” came Daniel’s muffled voice.
Ashley took several steps and began to rake her fingers through his black hair. Her grin had mostly faded. “What hates you?” she asked softly.
“The field,” came his reply.
His parents exchanged a glance while his face was still buried. There was a thoughtful moment. Ashley spoke at last. “It doesn’t hate you,” she whispered, sandwiching Daniel in a hug. It was a little comforting. “It’s just lonesome.”
“Lonesome?” Daniel repeated, looking up doubtfully. His eyes were narrowed to slits as he regarded the field again with greater scrutiny. The stalks swayed again in the wind. There was a sound, like an unintelligible whisper. He once again buried his face. “No! It’s angry! It hates me!”
Ashley frowned at Atlanta as she pulled. Atlanta nodded, thinking, then smiled wryly. She asked, “Do you know what empathy is, Daniel?”
He grunted. It sounded vaguely in the positive.
“Ten try to empathize with the field,” she told him. “It may be hard, but try to imagine what it was like a year ago. It was probably the greenest, most fruitful, most beautiful field in all of the Hill Country. It had a bunch of farmers who weeded it, watered it, kept it pretty, cared for it. But then what happened?”
“The dead,” Daniel whispered softly, taking handfuls of Atlanta’s overcoat in his tightening grip.
“You got, mister. The walkers drove out the farmers and ranch hands, and it was all downhill from there for this poor field. The walkers didn’t bother it so much since the people living there had left, but a mean bunch of animals moved in. Hogs, squirrels, and even raccoons tore up the crops. It came back the next season, maybe a little hateful, but mostly just sad and lonely. It had been thinned out on account of the animals and the fact that the seeds weren’t planted at the right depth. So it came back thinner and weaker. And the weeds took over quickly and choked out what was left. And it learned to be angry.”
“So,” Daniel said, a little confused, “you’re saying I’m right?”
Atlanta shook her head. “Not entirely. It’s angry and hateful because of its loneliness. That’s a very important detail. Anger and hatefulness aren’t its base nature.”
He glanced at the field ponderously. “So...” he said slowly, reluctantly. He was starting to grasp what she was saying but was still resistant to the idea of staying in the farmhouse. “So it’s just sad?”
“Sad and lonely,” Ashley whispered. “And what do you when someone’s sad and lonely?”
Daniel looked at the field again with a slightly altered lens. The cornstalks were indeed sparse now and clearly dying, choked by weeds drinking up all their water and nutrients and ravaged by hungry and vicious critters. He said nothing.
Afraid they might lose their progress, Atlanta said, “We’ll gonna walk down the drive and see the house, Daniel. The field won’t hurt you. It’ll just sulk a lot and look gloomy. Come on, I’ll carry you the whole way. What do you say?”
He said nothing for the longest time, then nodded because he felt it was probably the right thing to do, what his parents needed him to do. Atlanta squeezed him and walked down the drive. Daniel watched the overgrown grass on either side feign lunges at him but never actually touch him. Whether this was because it didn’t really want to strike him or because they were out of its reach, Daniel couldn’t be sure. Eventually, they made it through to a considerably larger clearing with grass that merely came to Daniel’s knees rather than eclipsed him entirely.
Atlanta set him on the ground. He looked back at the swaying passageway they had just passed through and conceded to himself that it was a tad more daunting in theory than it had actually been in practice.
Ahead lay the farmhouse with its cracking and flaking white paint that showed through to weathered gray boards underneath. One window, close to the front door on the bottom floor, was broken and covered by a blue tarp. The house was at the center of a large, square clearing and there was a worn down barn that, coming from the driveway, was located to the left side of the house. And there was a shed behind the house, currently out of sight.
“This is home,” Atlanta said softly.
“Home,” Ashley repeated.
“I still don’t like it,” Daniel muttered.
“Since this is all actually an elaborate punishment for you,” Atlanta said, “it’s time for the worse torture of all: you get to pick your own room. If you don’t like that, we can always use an alternative means of torture.”
“I think I’d rather pick my room.”
“Smart man.”
Atlanta walked toward the house and the rest of them followed. Looking up at the farmhouse, it seemed to loom over Daniel, making feel a flash of vertigo. He sought Ashley’s hand and she allowed him to squeeze it for comfort as Atlanta unlocked the door—it was a new lock, put in recently—and the three of them proceeded through the doorway.
Their footsteps were loud and echoey on the hardwood in the empty house, though it wasn’t unfurnished—there was, all told, a complete set of furniture in the living as well as, Daniel was aware, throughout the whole house—it was just empty in a lifeless sense, exactly like the one time early in Daniel’s life that he had visited the home of a recently deceased relative whom he didn’t know. He noticed, glancing around, still clutching Ashley’s hand, that there were no pictures featuring the farmhouse’s previous occupants. They had all been taken down. This realization made him uncomfortable, made him feel like an intruder.
Ashley pulled her hand away and crouched in front of Daniel. “Time to pick your room. Any one of them on the second floor could be yours. Think you can find your way upstairs?”
He nodded.
Atlanta came back over and ruffled his hair. She said, “There isn’t anything in here to hurt you. All the same, stay on the lookout and be careful. Alrighty?”
He made a noncommittal noise and hesitantly moved through the living room.
The farmhouse was massive. Six bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a walk-in pantry, a storeroom, a utility room, a cellar, an attic, a study, a large number of closets, a den, and the living room constituted its interior. Outside were a front and back porch and, of course, the equally massive barn and the more normal-sized shed. For his first visit here, it was all a bit overwhelming, so he made a beeline to the stairs and climbed up to the first landing. It was there, looking up those remaining steps at the eerie emptiness ahead, that his courage faltered.
Just as he was preparing to head back, he heard Ashley listing off chores they needed to get working on in preparation for the others and that provided the push needed to send Daniel up the rest of the stairs and on to the second floor.
He paused at the top, looked left, right, and continued left down the hallway connecting the upstairs rooms. The first door he passed looked like a study—he peeped in, because the door was open, and saw a desk as well as several shelves filled with books—and he hurried to the next door, feeling that he didn’t belong in there. His fingers brushed the cold knob of a closed door and withdrew shivering. He assumed it was only a closet and moved on.
The door of the next room, capping off the hall, was wide open. He entered, feeling a loosening in his sense of un-belonging as he surveyed the interior. There was an undressed twin-sized bed—which he was thankful for because it would have been uncomfortable had the bed still be dressed by the house’s previous occupant—and the tanned, weathered-looking wallpaper bore a repeating flower design that was dark green stalks with small purple blossoms. He stepped closer, squinted, and believed he could make out columns and newspaper text underneath the paint. He realized it had been a custom effort, homemade. He reached out and ran his hand along the stenciled flower. It had a pleasant texture.
Daniel drew a few steps back and saw some kind of veiled specter made movements in his peripheral vision. His eyes snapped to it, and he saw the white curtains hung about the window were being pushed in by a breeze. He approached the window cautiously, eying the curtains with mild concern, and looked out with a terrified, somewhat awed expression. The field was larger from this perspective, and the weeds and grass rolled and rippled in the wind like water or fur, stretching to its northern boundary of a far off treeline, the remaining, dying corn stalks dotting it like blemishes. It did look sad and lonely.
How do you make friends with a field? he wondered, imagining himself shaking a stalk like it was a hand and saying hello, feeling rather silly.
Daniel crept away from the window, giving the pleasant wallpaper another look as he returned hallway and checked out the opposite side of the hall. He ignored another closed closet door, peeked into the den, and passed up a larger bedroom because he knew he didn’t need such a large space. He entered the final room, which was similar in size to the other one he was considering, and he guessed—by the blue wall color and checkered pattern below the trim high up on the wall—that this was a young boy’s room before the outbreak.
Goosebumps broke out on his skin and he rubbed his arms, an unsettled look crossing his face, and shivered. Uncle Jerry’s jacket, while oversized for Daniel, was perfectly capable of warding off the cold. Now he wondered if it could ward off monsters. He touched the cold wall—it had a genetic texture—and his shivering was renewed. Haunted.
Maybe it was just… a lonesome ghost. He could imagine that easier than a field. But, oddly, he disliked the idea of befriending a ghost even more than he did the field. He stayed long enough to look out the window, seeing south down the Rosa Drive all the way to the scar the county road cut into the overgrown fields, but the road itself was hidden. He returned to the stairs and leaned on the banister as he made his decision. Whichever he chose, the one he didn’t choose would be taken by tomorrow. If he regretted his decision, it was unlikely he would get a chance to change his mind, unless someone was willing to trade.
[The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
[The Southern Bedroom—overlook of Rosa Drive, possibly haunted.]
Notes: Here we are, with Daniel and his parents at what will be their new home for the indefinite future, awaiting others who will soon join them. There's been a time skip of a few months, if you count the flashbacks in chapter 14, if not, then it's been even longer. There's a lot this first part didn't go over, but there will be a trickle of information over the course of this chapter filling in the gaps, explaining what has become of the Laredo community. I give a very general explanation, which should clear some things up without having to get into the details: Natalie's plan has been put into action.
Recent reads:
Black Hills by Dan Simmons: Historical fiction with a supernatural element, our main character Paha Sapa, a Native-American of the Sioux tribe, has the ability to see into people’s pasts and futures by touch, and by touching General Custer at the precise moment of his death, Paha Sapa has become haunted by Custer’s ghost. The primary narrative of Black Hills follows Paha Sapa attempting as an old man attempting to destroy Mount Rushmore the day it is unveiled to president FDR, but the time jumps willy-nilly between chapters to different points in Paha Sapa’s life all throughout the late 19th and early 20th century.
A few things about Black Hills are jarring, such as the present-tense the story is mostly told in and the frequent jumps back and forth through time, but I found myself becoming used to these things fairly quickly and enjoying the extended glimpses into Paha Sapa’s life, especially the segments of him as a young boy. Historical facts are interjected somewhat tangentially at times, but I never thought the story was ever lost or buried by them, and they did help build a picture of the time period. There’s the matter of Custer’s… let’s call them sexually explicit ramblings—these were recollections told in the first person. While I found them a too wordy on top of their explicit nature, they were far and few between. I also found them to have a strangely poignant undertone which I actually really enjoyed, given that Custer, at the time of these recollections, has been reduced to a voice inside Paha Sapa’s head and hasn’t realized he’s dead yet.
Overall, I liked Black Hills much more than I was expecting to. So much so that I was actually loving it… for about the first three-quarters. From there, unfortunately, the last seventy or so pages took a very lackluster and odd turn. Despite that, Paha Sapa was a compelling character, and I loved the mysticism and folklore sprinkled throughout. I would place it below the other Simmons books I’ve read with the exception of Drood, which I feel its first three-fourths easily topped despite its fourth half’s major shortcomings.
Dang, that choice took me a bit to decide on, but I think I'll say [The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
just because I think it'll help Daniel keep his mood up and all.
Daniel Martinez — Rosa Drive, Central Texas — 1 Year, 1 Month In — 16-01: Rosa Drive consisted of a long gravel driveway which cut an uneven… more line between two tall, opposing fields of weeds. Daniel hated it on sight. He stared down the driveway from behind Atlanta’s leg. What he saw was a wicked thing, unyielding and harsh in its appearance. Even his considerable imagination couldn’t picture it as having once been green or farmable. His sentiments were reinforced when an October gust set the wilted corn stalks swaying within their weed-coffins in a way that was haunting.
Tugging on Altana’s overcoat, Daniel whimpered. “Please,” he said up to her. “I don’t like it.” And, in Daniel’s opinion, it didn’t like him either—he could sense its contempt for him as well as if it had a sign that explicitly (and vulgarly) said so. Not only that, he could just imagine the things it harbored for this very instant: creatures with claws perfect for cutting … [view original content]
Oh... man, I was not expecting that. I actually read that part twice and my first reaction was something along the lines of "Oh my god, what's happening, where's Laredo, where's the others, oh my god, they're all dead, aren't they?" and it was almost cardiologist time again Though then I read the part again and somehow it does not feel as if something truly horrible happened to the others in the meantime. First of all, Atlanta and Ashley appear happy. I doubt either of them could even fake a smile or be as playful if Jake, Josie or their other friends would have been killed due to something that happened during this small timeskip. Neither do I think Daniel would be as, well, normal, if these people that have become so important of him would have been taken away. I am also pretty sure that, even if Ashley and Atlanta would have tried to hide such a thing, he would have caught up to it by now. He's not stupid, after all. And finally, most importantly, you mention a couple of others that will join these three soon and I have reason to believe that it will be the rest of our dear Laredo sweets.
That opens up the question just what is happening there, why they are at the farmhouse and not at Laredo and why they consider this place to be their new home now. However, Natalie's plan... that sounded really dark and ominous at first, given that I don't trust Natalie farther than I can shoot her, but then it rang a bell and I went back a couple of pages to check it. It was never mentioned in a part, which is why it took me a little longer to find it, but you mentioned in one comment that Natalie and the Scott the scout (I only just now realize how ridiculously similar his name and profession sound ) plan to divide Laredo into smaller, self-sufficient settlements. While I don't necessarily like this idea, their situation has unarguably been dire and they might have decided on this after not hearing anything from the expedition for so long. It is a heavy step, but I doubt they had much of a choice in the end.
And there has been a small timeskip since we have last seen them, but I am not sure how long. This is thirteen months after the apocalypse started. As far as I know, the Harvest Hills/Zafir meet-up in Act 1 happened around 2 months in, then there has been the flight of the remaining Harvest Hills group and the 8 months timeskip. Then there have been the events of Act 3, which couldn't have taken longer than 1 month. Meaning this is 2 or 3 months after we have last seen the Laredo community. This means Josie is likely around 4 months pregnant by now. While I am by no means an expert on pregnancy, isn't 4 months the time where the woman starts to get physically affected by the pregnancy? This could explain why Ashley, Atlanta and Dan travelled ahead, probably to scout the location, while Jake, Josie and probably others (though I don't know whom. Jefferson? Stephen? Keith and Lindsay? Natalie herself?) travel more slowly behind them in case anything goes wrong. I am at least sure that Josie and Jake will be part of the same group as Ashley, Atlanta and Dan, given how much they have been through. They are family by now.
So... my initial reaction has been highly concerned, but now I am calmer again. I doubt things will remain all that happily, but for now, I'm having a relatively peaceful feeling on the whole situation, which is seriously rare, considering that it's me we're talking about. However, I remain concerned about Calvin's death. With the communities splitting up, it seems unlikely the killer is going to be caught, if there has been a killer. That is actually not even the worst outcome. The worst would be that Josie and her unborn baby are going to move in with a potentially still murderous killer, who could end up posing a serious threat to her and to the others. Alright... now I am concerned, but still not as much as I was at first, before analyzing the situation. I just hope we'll get to learn what exactly happened to Laredo and where the others are in the near future as I cannot wait for this information to be revealed. Ah, I cannot wait for more of the group formerly known as the Laredo group in general. That brings up the question, how am I supposed to call them now? The Rosa Drive group? That is going to take a while to get used to
Now for the choice, I choose [The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
There is no particular reason for this, to be honest. I don't see any negative outcomes for either choice, but I must say, I was wrong in the past about such seemingly minor choices. However, this bedroom seems like the better one for Dan, who is still a kid after all and he should get a nice view from his room.
Daniel Martinez — Rosa Drive, Central Texas — 1 Year, 1 Month In — 16-01: Rosa Drive consisted of a long gravel driveway which cut an uneven… more line between two tall, opposing fields of weeds. Daniel hated it on sight. He stared down the driveway from behind Atlanta’s leg. What he saw was a wicked thing, unyielding and harsh in its appearance. Even his considerable imagination couldn’t picture it as having once been green or farmable. His sentiments were reinforced when an October gust set the wilted corn stalks swaying within their weed-coffins in a way that was haunting.
Tugging on Altana’s overcoat, Daniel whimpered. “Please,” he said up to her. “I don’t like it.” And, in Daniel’s opinion, it didn’t like him either—he could sense its contempt for him as well as if it had a sign that explicitly (and vulgarly) said so. Not only that, he could just imagine the things it harbored for this very instant: creatures with claws perfect for cutting … [view original content]
[The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
I'm gonna go with this bedroom because I mean if Daniel's going to make friends with the field, there's no need for a ghost to get in his way, no matter how cool the room looks.
Daniel Martinez — Rosa Drive, Central Texas — 1 Year, 1 Month In — 16-01: Rosa Drive consisted of a long gravel driveway which cut an uneven… more line between two tall, opposing fields of weeds. Daniel hated it on sight. He stared down the driveway from behind Atlanta’s leg. What he saw was a wicked thing, unyielding and harsh in its appearance. Even his considerable imagination couldn’t picture it as having once been green or farmable. His sentiments were reinforced when an October gust set the wilted corn stalks swaying within their weed-coffins in a way that was haunting.
Tugging on Altana’s overcoat, Daniel whimpered. “Please,” he said up to her. “I don’t like it.” And, in Daniel’s opinion, it didn’t like him either—he could sense its contempt for him as well as if it had a sign that explicitly (and vulgarly) said so. Not only that, he could just imagine the things it harbored for this very instant: creatures with claws perfect for cutting … [view original content]
Comments
I just went back to check it and actually, she had two parts back then. Ah, this has happened so long ago that I kinda forgot about it. As you mentioned it, I remember that this was when they first discovered the presence of some guy (later revealed to be Asher) and his good friend Mutt near Laredo. I remember that Danny had some parts later on and I thought that we have seen her mostly through his viewpoint, but I clearly remember the Christmas special and her role in it.
These moves are super effective on me! Seriously, as dearly as I miss the Laredo cast, I believe this chapter was a really great way to give some characters a chance to shine. Asher is the best example there, because Sasha was already someone I liked way before that. With Domenick and Tom... well, I fear that they might run into the same troubles as the larger group, although being less people and more capable in a fight at the same time might give them at least equal chances. And all things considered, save for Danny's bite the large group got through this relatively fine so far. It could have been much worse.
Hmmm, this is very interesting. So, does that mean that the Colorado storyline in Chapter 16 is going to be entirely told in flashbacks about Colorado Springs? This might mean we'll leave off on our current Colorado expedition in a situation where they can take a break for a chapter. But in any case, I am super interested in how exactly this powerful community fell. Might tell me more about what to expect for our expedition once they return to the spotlight.
That is something that'll continue in the later novels, which will further mostly develop the existing groups of characters, with the occasional newcomer or stand-alone and indeed, these later novels felt so much more personal as I got to know about these characters and saw them being developed. And well, Death is everyone's favourite character
At least for those who don't prefer Vimes, Rincewind or Vetinari. His novels, while less in numbers than others, are also among my favourites, to no small parts because Death is such a fascinating... uh... anthropomorphic personification.
Alright, that's an advice I'll certainly listen to. I have officially added the books to my reading list. Although I could swear I have heard of Hyperion before. This Shrike you mentioned earlier sounds very familiar, but I can't really say where I have read the name before. I think I have read a chapter of it somewhere once, in a sort of anthology collection which features chapters of different novels (I actually learned of the Discworld through the very same way, by reading the part about the dragons from The Colour of Magic). I'll have to look through my collection if I find it somewhere. In any way, I really look forward to get into that one. I'll be on a several weeks long vacation in late summer this year, which might offer the opportunity for me to read through it.
I agree. I think the expedition, even though I kind of forced the readers into it, was a good decision on my part. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision, however—I had been thinking about an expedition of sorts for a while then. Before starting it, I was updating the story super infrequently. So I'm insanely happy with how the characters in it have developed, and how the plot has developed as well. There are certainly dangers afoot... but we will have to wait and see how the cards align before we'll know how the characters will be affected. I think there are only two parts left in chapter 15.
Yes! The Colorado storyline in chapter 16 is going to basically tell the story of its fall through several segments and different point of views. And while this delays an update on the expedition, the information gleaned will almost certainly be of value!
Gosh, you're getting me even more excited for the later entries! And Death is just so... spontaneous? I love how he's popped up in the novels I've read so far (I found his lines in Guards! Guards! to be especially funny). Of course, I already love Vimes (can't wait to see how his relationship shapes out) and Rincewind. And I'm looking forward to seeing more of Vetinari.
That's interesting! I might need to check one of those out. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! And if there weren't enough reasons to read already, there is a character named Rachel whose story will tug on her heartstrings.
Voting is closed!
(!) Jerry and Sasha will attempt to operate on Danny's calf
The continuation will be coming soon. Cross your fingers for tomorrow morning.
While in the past some choices haven't had much effect, I just want to say that this choice has three options which lead to three possibilities. This choice definitely matters.
And maybe Domenick isn't out of the picture quite yet. Though since you cited the incident where Domenick performed an amputation, I kind of feel obligated to remind you that the amputee died later due to complications from his amputation.
This choice is one of the few where I've really had to give it some time and see what others had said. Normally, I read, vote, and then I take back to my leave, but with this one, I didn't really feel capable of making the decision on my own. I'm glad I waited, though, because I would have chosen to just amputate the leg itself had I not given it time. It was a good choice, though, I'll admit. I think it kind of reminded us that we shouldn't expect light choices and light consequences, at least it did myself, anyways.
Now I remember that, so yeah, glad I didn't go with amputating the leg. However, taking part of the calf itself bears many risks as well and it's going to be a pain in the ass with their current situation. Most of my hope in the current moment lies with Jerry, if I'm honest. He was around Calvin enough to likely have a small medical insight. At least that's what I think. I also have no idea what kind of medical experience Sasha holds, but I have a guess, per say. It's likely Asher has some medical knowledge, a safe assumption that Jerry does, along with Maria knowing the basics, James probably knew some, Domenick knew enough to believe that he could safely perform an amputation, so it's also fairly likely that Sasha knows something, right? Considering the people she's been around in the expedition and her overall involvement with Jerry.
Jerry Stewart, 15-09: “We have to attend to the bite,” Jerry told Sasha, and Danny, solemnly, “but we can’t do a full amputation here.” He neither gestured, nor indicated why this might be; he let the rocking pickup bed emphasis his point in his moment of silence, and the snarls emitted from all sides of them underscore it. “That said, we can do the other thing, do surgery, but you gotta understand,” he went on, meeting the younger man’s wavering brown eyes with his own, “that it’s gonna hurt like hell.”
The young man blinked, and moisture—which flies and other insects sought incessantly—filled the corners of his narrow eyes but did not fall. He nodded, seemed to hesitate to speak for fear of his voice breaking.
Jerry forced a friendly smile, and said, “I’m gonna need a little more confirmation than that if the plan’s to operate on your calf.”
Amazingly, Danny smiled and nodded again. “Do it.”
With that, the levity died as if it was shot, and Jerry slipped off his backpack. Sasha did the same and sat her’s next to him. Walking past Danny, she climbed onto the roof of the truck’s cabin. There, she seemed to deliberate, then pointed and said, “We’ll have Asher move up with Maria to that pickup. We’re going to draw a lot of attention doing this. It’s about eight vehicles down. Do you think… they’ll be able to hear it, way over there?”
Jerry didn’t bother to stand and look where she was pointing. “Probably everyone… and everything… within half a mile will hear us.”
“I’m calling them up,” she said, then whistled a sharp, shrill tone toward the pickup behind them. The two there began to move immediately. Sasha looked back down at Jerry, keeping her balance as the truck rocked. “Do you think Kurt and Violet will hear it? James?”
“Probably. Maybe.” A moment’s pause, listening to the horde, and he said, “I don’t know about them, actually. Who knows. Maybe they’re already out of earshot.”
Maria and Asher were moving up carefully. Sasha watched them, whispering to Jerry, in a voice barely audible above the horde, “If they hear, do they think they will come to help?”
Jerry didn’t say anything for the longest time, and just when he was prepared to answer, Maria, then Asher, landed in the pickup bed and he didn’t want to explain to them what they were discussing. He caught Danny’s expression, hopeless and breaking. Beneath his breath, for Danny’s benefit but also with a conviction he wasn’t expecting to come out of his mouth, he said, “I think they will.”
Domenick: Domenick, crawling on his right side, pulling himself forward with his backpack and rifle held over his left half, felt like he was within a wall. Except this wall was about three feet high and composed of two concrete dividers, which ran right along each other. Domenick and Tom crawled in the limited space between the two barriers. Domenick was the lead.
This was the most uncomfortable position Domenick had ever been in, and he had been in some tight scrapes. He was dragging himself forward with his right arm while he used his gear as a makeshift shield, putting a disproportionate amount of weight on his right half. All the while, he strained his neck to keep an eye on the gap not half a foot above his head.
They were heading toward Fort Carson again. Domenick wished he had thought of using the dividers when faced with the decision to fight through the arm of the horde crossing the highway, but the thought hadn’t come to him until they were back to the point where Violet and Kurt had departed and the horde had already descended the western embankment, forcing Domenick and Tom to cross over the concrete dividers. He had realized then that it would over some protection and a means to continue forward. Instead of turning back, Domenick had calculated that their chances would be better if they regrouped the others. So after eastern embankment had been ascended by the horde, and after they had once again been pressed to the center of the highway, Domenick had given the order and the two of them had taken refuge within the gap.
Since then they had covered some distance, though Domenick wasn’t confident they could make it much further without encountering a point where the dividers ended and opened up into asphalt to allow the flow of traffic. Neither Domenick was confident about their chances. For one, all that separated them from the army of the dead was several inches of concrete—he could hear and, especially, smell them as if there was nothing between him and their festering corpses. For two, this exercise was utterly draining. Even Domenick, who had nothing if not endurance, doubted that he could manage it another mile. His brother he doubted even more so. Eventually, the dividers would dead end, and once that happened, they would have to shoot their way to either embankment and climb on the cars stalled there. Domenick didn’t like that, and the likelihood of that possibility, that they might have to use James’s method, made him silently wish James would choke on a dick.
Ahead of them Domenick strained to look at a walker as it stumbled against the barriers, must have been pushed by its fellows, and fell head and shoulders first into the gap. Into their path. Domenick cursed and stopped, Tom bumped into his boots headfirst and cursed as well.
“Shit!” Tom said.
“Shhhh,” Domenick hissed menacingly.
“What is it?” his brother asked, in a softer tone of voice.
“A walker,” Domenick said.
“What?”
“A walker,” Domenick repeated, pressing his back against one of the dividers so he could see of a sliver of his brother and so his brother might hear him better or see their obstacle. “It fell in ahead of us.”
“Oh.” There was a moment of silence. Domenick looked at a sweat-drenched sliver of his brother’s face. Finally, Tom said, “What are we gonna do?”
“I think I’ve got an idea. Hang close, but not too close.”
“No problem.”
Domenick pulled himself and his gear along another fifteen or so feet before he left the gear behind and went on with only a knife he had retrieved from his belt, leaving the machete alone since it would be no good in the tightness of the two dividers. Domenick crawled into position three feet from the walker and observed its pitifully flail its unpinned arm. Thankfully its pinned arm was facing Domenick. He crawled up to it—by this time it had noticed him but could do nothing besides snarl while its torso was held in place upside down, wedged between the two dividers—and stabbed his knife through its skull.
Now more than a hundred pounds of dead meat was wedged in his path. First he wiped his knife on his jeans and sheathed it, then he got a little closer to the corpse. He placed a hand on the shoulder facing him, awkwardly pushed upward, and got it unwedged. He moved closer still (into the gunk left behind by his attack), managed got both hands under it, and pushed until it was over the barrier and slid inertly the rest of the way, leaving a snail’s trail of blood.
He took a breather, signaling for Tom to come on, who reunited Domenick with his backpack and automatic rifle. The screaming began—distant and horrid and with a familiar voice—while he was slipping a strap over one shoulder. Domenick and Tom exchanged a glance and then crawled forward as fast as they could.
To be continued...
Notes:
There's little to note at the moment besides the fact that the next part will in all likelihood close this chapter. I'll see you around soon!
Recent reads:
Well... on a positive note, Domenick and Tom heard them and now they might have a chance to catch up to them. On a negative note, so did every walker around and it is likely they will go there too. And then there's Foxface. If he is around and hasn't noticed them so far, I am absolutely convinced that he will notice them now. And that is only going to add to the already bad situation. And the next part is going to be the chapter finale and the act finale, right? Oh damn... damn, this is going to be one hell of a messy situation, or at least it has every ingredient necessary for it.
That said, I am sort of thinking that if Foxface is watching them, and by now I am pretty sure he is at least somewhere around and ready to make his move, then he might attack James, who is on his own, or Violet and Nightcrawler, whom I consider to be about as capable together as he is on his own. The other group at least has Sasha and Asher, who can put up a fight and Jerry who can survive anything. And who knows what sort of hidden strength Maria can call upon when forced to fight for her life. Foxface is a smart guy, so I more expect of him to attack the weaker links of this far too thinly spread group. Man, I can already see that I'll be at the edge of my seat when the next part comes.
And I have finally seen that it is out in Germany as well now! I am glad to hear it's enjoyable, because having recently grown really fond of Gaiman, I consider this something I have to look into sooner or later, especially as a fan of norse mythology in general.
Well, I've finally caught up to this story after a very long absence. And I have to say I am super psyched for the finale. I'm also super glad to see Asher getting more screentime, keep up the good work!!
This was a very interesting part. I wonder if the surgery will bring all the walkers to their location. This is quite a precarious situation to be in.
PS: I answered the question you asked me earlier with a pm.
Kurt, 15-10—Finale, Part 1: He and Violet had hurried across the vehicles as quickly as they could while still maintaining caution, jumping from one car to the next, scurrying over the roof and onto the hood, repeating. The horde snarled and surged on either side of them. The rising embankment to their left had diminished over time and now they could see to a greater extent the size and challenge this obstacle posed from the west—thanks to the rolling hills, the landscape looked like a sea frozen in time, but covered with a writhing blanket of ants atop the surface. Despite their slightly new perspective, the horde was still simply unquantifiable.
Kurt was scared. Terrified, really. His greatest fear in this new life had been the thought of being devoured . . . ripped to shreds . . . this fear had been the primary factor in his insomnia. In the early days, before he had joined the community growing in Laredo, he had witnessed enough grisly deaths for a lifetime. Now, each meter he moved forward, every step he took, and every leap he made had a horrifying potential for failure.
One thing that surprised him was Violet’s apparent confidence. To him, it seemed she hardly felt the horde’s presence or caving-in, claustrophobic pressure. He didn’t know whether to look at her behavior with admiration or disgust and settled on a combination of both. She was lanky but apparently not without some physical strength—she leaped between cars without ever botching a landing and maintained a good pace, not to mention the sheer physical and mental strength the expedition had required. She had always worn a frown or grimace . . . such so that Kurt, practically seeing the dark cloud hanging over her, felt some sympathy for her.
Several paces beyond him, Violet’s step faltered, then she came to a rough stop, hopping into the bed of a pickup and staring far ahead of them. Kurt saw it, too, and nearly fell as he leaped to the truck and landed on its hood. He stuck the landing, but only just. The horde pressed against the truck, shook it, but, for once, the horde briefly left the forefront of Kurt’s mind. Or rather, it was forcibly replaced. He stared ahead, revolted.
Jerry: There were some living and a lot of dead within the state of Colorado today. Until recently there had been a lot more of the living hanging onto the city of Colorado Springs, nearby places such as Fort Carson and Fountain and Monument, and the far-reaching arms of influence spreading throughout the state in the forms of outposts and several smaller, outer settlements acting as satellites to the greater community. This—a community on its feet, its feet firmly planted in the ground—was what James had described to his compatriots and benefactors some months ago at a time when the expedition existed merely in the minds of several individuals, himself included.
Although the possible situation of their destination, and the conditions they were subjected to, grew grimmer . . . although the expedition had been the first leg of an even more unattainable dream—to link the two communities and combine Laredo’s struggling, fledgling status with the larger and more established Colorado Springs . . . although all this, against the odds, after two months of hard travel, it had somehow neared realization, which was a feat onto itself. But now it appeared the expedition was about to be met with a premature and grisly conclusion.
Jerry fully expected as much as he tried to get things in order for what was about happen, what he was about to inflict. There were four others with Jerry in the pickup bed; the idea to send Asher and Maria ahead to take shelter had quickly evaporated. Danny was lying on his stomach—head facing the cabin, his bare feet facing the tailgate, a space of about one foot between each extremity and bed interior—upon a clean blue canvas which had previously been neatly folded and tucked into a backpack until the need for it had arised. Jerry and Sasha were poised on either side of the teenager. Maria was kneeling by Danny’s head, her duty the difficult task of keeping her boyfriend’s upper body still. Asher—nervous and a little embarrassed for himself and his friend by the slight indignity—was sitting on the lower part of Danny’s buttocks with his own thighs clamped around his friend’s legs to ensure neither would-be surgeon was kicked.
Through all their preparation, the truck had been rocked and jostled, and it still did. The dead were all around their eight-by-five-foot refuge, projecting a multitude of snarls and burp-like gargles. It was possibly the worse place to attempt anything requiring precision. Here they were, Jerry thought, about to perform surgery, however barbaric or crude that surgery was.
Jerry drew in a slow breath, exhaled even slower, and tried to maintain that speed and rhythm. The action did nothing to slow his racing heart. Speaking to the back of Danny’s shaggy black head of hair, he asked, “Are you ready, Danny?”
“Y-Yes, sir,” Danny said to the canvas, blushing from the heat of near-noon and anxiety of the situation, but mostly from the rather intimate kiss he and Maria had moments before he had assumed his current, severely awkward position.
“Maria?” Jerry said.
Reluctantly holding the silicone kitchen spatula she would put between Danny’s teeth in moments like it was an instrument of torture, Maria said yes gravely. She ran a hand through a hand through Danny’s hair, hoping beyond hope that the simple gesture offered some reassurance.
“Asher?” Jerry said.
“Ready, sir.”
“Sasha?”
“I’m ready, dear,” she replied.
“Okay . . . Shit . . . Let’s do this,” he said as he tied a tourniquet tightly around Danny’s leg. Jerry realized a moment later, whether from a surgeon or apartment contractor, that these words would inspire neither faith nor courage. He leaned past Asher, fiercely squeezed Danny’s shoulder, and said, in the calmest voice he could conjure, “You’re gonna be fine, kid.”
Danny nodded into the canvas then reaffirmed, with a croaking, nervous voice, that he was ready. Jerry squeezed his shoulder one last time before coming to sit beside his tools and Danny’s afflicted leg. Maria slipped the spatula handle between Danny’s teeth. Jerry picked up the sharpest knife in their collective arsenal and began to quickly clean and disinfect it even though it hadn’t been used up to that point. Once satisfied by his work, Jerry sat on Danny’s ankle—Sasha did the same to the other leg, holding the various things necessary to stop the bleeding—then Jerry poised the knife above his friend’s calf, trying to keep his shaking hand steady as the truck itself bucked beneath them.
Violet: Violet was kneeled in the pickup bed, staring forward without blinking when Kurt lowered himself into the bed with her, ambled forward in a crouch, and came to a stop next to her. She hardly noticed him for the sight before her.
Ahead, the four-lane highway became a bridge or overpass . . . she couldn’t tell which, for all the walkers which filled and flooded the area beneath the highway . . . whether or not it was a riverbed. From this distance, things were ill-defined, but Violet could tell the walkers trapped in this long basin had been there for a long time. She looked back at the bridge: walkers crowded it for its entire length, and stalled cars there were spread so thin that they would have to walk on the outer barrier.
Kurt looked at her glumly, the truck shaking beneath them, the walkers snarling around them. She nodded, then stood, placed a boot on top of the tailgate, and jumped to the next car over the heads of walkers. Kurt followed.
As they neared, car by car, the smell somehow became worse, tempting them to hold their breath whenever they could. As they drew closer still, and finally reached the start of the bridge, they could see the walkers filling the possible riverbed more clearly. They both wished they hadn’t. When the horde arrived, it must have functioned as a moat. The steep angles prevented escape for the walkers, causing them to . . . pile, and, as more weight was added on top, compress.
Violet glanced briefly down as they made their first caution push forward on the barrier spanning the outer barrier of the bridge, first climbing onto then balancing on the half-foot of concrete, and saw it was a stagnant river made out of meat, out of individuals who were decaying and rotting into each other . . . into one solid, yet still re-living, mass. Violet felt her composure shatter once she reached the next car. Her extremities shook, her face paled, her empty stomach revolted, and she could hardly breathe for all the gagging.
Kurt appeared to take it far worse, collapsing next to her, his entire body shaking, his gagging far more violent. As she heaved, Violet wondered if James really had come this way. She hadn’t seen any other way to go, so he must have.
There was only one way forward.
Violet pulled herself together, waiting for Kurt to bring himself under control as well. It didn’t take much longer. They walked the length of the car until reaching the hood. The next car was ten feet away. Helping each other, they climbed onto the barrier and adapted a different method—looking straight ahead, sticking to a straight path. Keeping their eyes away wasn’t the hardest thing. The . . . sight . . . below and to their left didn’t offer so much a temptation to look as it did a temptation to back away, like getting to close to the edge of a cliff.
It wasn’t a far drop. Maybe eighteen feet. Probably less. She heard the noise coming up from below, like the typical walker sounds, snarls and groans, but . . . more agonized.
She reached the car and hopped down. Suddenly many things happened at once. In her peripheral vision, she saw Kurt lose his balance. She lunged toward him. He failed to regain his balance, only making it worse, and toppled off toward the riverbed below. Violet hands groped for a hold and caught the strap of his backpack.
There was a violent tug. Violet’s torse slammed painfully against the concrete barrier, the tendons in her arms straining—she couldn’t over the barrier. Kurt grunted as the sudden stop jerked one arm free of a strap. The man spun slightly in the backpack, falling out from the last strap. Violet felt another tug as Kurt’s hand caught the strap just as his arm was slipping free from it. Seconds later she felt the release of his weight as his hand slipped. She heard the impact of his body . . . a heavy slapping sound . . . a moment later, she heard his screams and, almost drowned out by the loudness of the screams, excited snarls.
Violet drew her arm back—shaking, badly scraped on the barrier—and stared unbelievingly at her white-knuckled hand wrapped tightly around the strap. She released her grip, dropping Kurt’s backpack to the car roof she stood on, and pressed herself against the barrier to look over.
He had sunken slightly, down there with the intermingled corpses, but was other wise alive . . . and screaming as teeth found his flesh. She drew her pistol and had to fire four shots before she had killed him.
There—back against the barrier, legs stretched over the car roof—she remained. The sounds of the river feasting rose up to greet her ears. A blankness had crossed over her expression like a cloud. Kurt’s screams of agony echoed in her head for a long time, faint and distant. Eventually, she realized it was someone else who was screaming. She looked back the way they had come, listening.
Part 2, Below
Part 2
James: The first gunshot made him falter and nearly miss his jump to the next car. He landed, somewhat awkwardly, and scrambled to the roof, crouching on the rocking vehicle to listen as three more shots were fired back-to-back from the direction he had come. It sounded far too close. Had they followed him after all?
A sudden, horrible pang of fear coursed through him. Guns were a last resort . . . firing one would mean bringing down the horde’s full wrath on top of you . . . the implications meant someone was in a life-or-death situation.
James moved in the direction of the gunfire, retracing the path he had followed atop the cars. His mind recycled accumulated images of walker maulings and, far worse, the remnants of the devoured—a human being reduced to scattered bones, splattered blood, and strays stripts of flesh. Here, he thought, within this horde, there would be nothing left but blood, and even that would fade away quick.
At first, his pace was cautious—after every jump he slowed briefly to catch his balance before making the next leap—but when a multitude of rounds were fired, echoing above the babble of the horde, he disregarded caution in favor and speed. The sounds of gunfire sounded, to his ears, further off than the first four, making him think they being fired by someone else. The thought of his friends being separated in this hell spurred him on faster. Now, he traversed each car with about three steps—first, landing on the hood; second, mounting the roof; third, striking the truck, and kicking off with that same step.
James stuck the hood, mounted the roof, stuck and kicked off the trunk. He was airborne for half a second, leaping over the heads of walkers. In the next half-second his boot stuck the hood at a wonky angle and he tripped. Suddenly he was crashing and rolling over the roof and trunk and falling into the grasp of the dead.
Jerry: Things were going poorly. Jerry had completed the cut on Danny’s leg fairly quickly, regardless of getting kicked in the crotch, but during the surgery Danny’s screams had escaped from his mouth despite the spatula, inciting the horde’s anger. Now, the truck rocked with vigor, assuming a diagonal angle as the left side of the vehicle lifted—unbeknownst to them, walkers from the left were being trapped under the chassis on account of the constant rocking and downward pushing from the high embankment, effectively tipping them toward the walkers waiting on the highway. Amidst this, Maria and Asher struggled to keep Danny—who was unconscious—and themselves from sliding across the bed to the waiting, eager hands that were reaching over the edge of the pickup bed wall. Meanwhile, Jerry and Sasha did much of the same, while also attempting to dress the wound.
The tipping angle slowly increased, or at least it appeared to their frantic eyes. Things were getting worse. The only way to get out of this, Jerry thought, would be to move forward, out of this inundated area. That would only require a few car’s advancement. Then they could rest, while the horde slowly refocused itself on their new position, and move forward again before anything came of the horde’s efforts.
Jerry recalled hearing at the height of Danny’s screams the faintest of gunshots, but now that recollection seemed not credible, imagined at the cusp of his anxiety and stressed—part of him didn’t want to believe, for the implication a few gunshots had.
What happened next, Jerry didn’t quite understand at the moment of occurrence. For fifteen seconds, Two figures popped up from between the center barriers about twenty feet up the road, ahead of them—one began unloading a rifle on full-auto on the walkers closest to them, keeping their immediate proximity clear, while the other, using semi-automatic bursts, began to pick off walkers around the tipping truck.
Everyone in pickup bed pressed themselves against the textured, forty-degrees-from-vertical flooring as rounds sung and ricocheted around them. Jerry could see sparks even with his eyes clenched shut. The front-left tire popped, allowing the truck to sagged back a bit while, at the same time, nearly jolting them from the pickup bed with the suddenness of the movement.
Fifteen seconds. Jerry opened his eyes, his ears ringing, and watched the two figures vanish between the barriers. In that moment, he realized who they were, and he realized that that was as much as they could contribute to the situation. All in all, the barrage had reimbursed them about twenty degrees by mowing down the walkers on their left, putting them at a better, if still uncomfortable, forty-degree angle. The slaughter had drawn the attention of the walkers on the highway, but had only increased the rate at which walkers descended the embankment—soon, the situation was going to get a lot worse than it had been before.
It was now or never. Sasha understood this as well. Without speaking—in all likelihood, spoken orders would have likely gone unheard for all the ringing in their ears—both of them pressed forward. Maria and Asher took this as a silent command that they were to move forward. Together, the four of them hefted the slightly writhing Danny onto the canted roof, then onto the hood as just as the rocking was beginning to revitalize.
Maria moved to the next car first, which had suffered from the horde’s pushing, but to a slightly lesser degree—its burden, too, had been somewhat leavened by the barrage of gunfire; the dark, silver-lined pits of bullet holes peppered the red casing. Asher took Danny in his arms—the young man’s bloodied, bandaged leg dangled limply—and carefully jumped over. Maria caught with a hug to help preserve his balance. Next came Sasha and Jerry.
They repeated this until they reached the next pickup, at which point Jerry took over for Asher, carrying Danny for awhile. Danny hadn’t regained consciousness yet. The young man’s face, Jerry observed as they rested in the bed of another pickup, was horribly pale. Jerry took painful, sickening notice of the blood covering his own jeans, jacket, and shirt. His headache had not abated—in fact, it had only grown worse. Neither had the ringing in their ears subsided, or at least not a noticeable amount. Jerry thought about Josephine—missing her and Jake and the others deeply—but more specifically he thought about the hearing aid she had to wear. Thinking about that made him very afraid for all of them.
Their movement was slow. They had grown terribly tired. But they were able to keep moving forward at a pace which ensured they wouldn’t find themselves in the same situation as before. It was perhaps one in the afternoon when they reached the bridge, or overpass, and spotted Violet sprawl out in the middle of it on the roof of a car, looking dazed, with an extra backpack sitting beside her.
Looking at the “river” and the scattered remains on top of the rotten surface . . . which had . . . spread . . . into an unrecognized, gory mess, punctuated by torn tatters of fabric . . . they decided to recoup their strength. They broke through a plexiglass sunroof and laid Danny out in the backseat. They decided very quickly that they couldn’t leave Violet out there, so Asher, leaving behind his backpack, armaments, and anything of excess weight, ventured out across the bridge to Violet.
They, too, broke into a car to wait out the heat of evening. He pressed her for information as gently as he could, learning what had happened to Kurt and that the two of them hadn’t managed to catch up to James. Evening turned to night. Asher returned to the others three or so hours before morning to relay the grim news and devise a plan to get Danny and all of them across.
Danny was still unconsciousness, and he still bled through his bandages, which they had to change several times throughout the night, but now the bleeding was beginning to slow down a little. Ultimately, they decided to use some climbing gear they had brought along—Asher hammered anchors into the tiny gaps between each segment of the outer concrete barrier, then strung a rope after attaching carabiners. They had a limited number of harnesses, so Asher first got Violet the rest of the way across and to safety within another car. Asher then went back, got Maria and Sasha across, and brought back the harnesses for himself, Jerry, and Danny.
Both of them were tied to Danny’s harness, and whenever they reached an anchor, they each had to unclip and reclip their safety line to move past it. Movement was slow and made even more difficult by the sight to their left—Kurt’s remains, which couldn’t rightly be called a corpse, were in plain view almost all the time and were disturbing—but eventually they made it across. Spread between two cars, they rested through the afternoon while Jerry, Asher, and Sasha took turns to reclaim the rope and painstakingly remove the anchors and carabiners—they had proved useful now, so they decided not to abandon them. They saw neither hide nor hair of Domenick and Tom during spent there.
They moved on at dusk and soon found James’s remains—tatters of clothing and flesh amidst the horde. Maria clung to the belief he was coming back to help them—James having cracked and bloodied the windshields of the car ahead of his remains; if he had been going forward, Maria reasoned, his remains would have been at the front of the vehicle.
Again, they moved on, leaving behind the “river” and Kurt’s and James’s remains. Ahead lay Fort Carson. Beyond that, Colorado Springs and far greater unknowns.
The Humbling River by Puscifer:
End of Chapter 15: Never Forgotten.
End of Act III: By Those Beyond.
Post-chapter notes:
Probably the biggest thing I can say right now is . . . Foxface wasn't a threat to the expedition this chapter. I feel so bad that I had to keep my mouth shut about that—the possible threat of Foxface had a major influence on how a lot of the choices played out, more than I expected—but it seemed important to keep it a secret since the possible presence of Foxface would have also factored into the characters' decisions, and to dispell that to the voters would have changed their mindset. Ultimately, I felt it better to keep your guys on the same mindsets as the characters. Alas, there were better case scenarios, but there were also some far worse ones. Danny—while his fate is still up in the air—is a good example: the other two options led to different scenarios; the full amputation would have led to the worse, putting others in harm's way as well, but I feel the severity of that option is a little obvious. I'm afraid, at this time, I can't say how Danny will fare once the Colorado storyline continues.
That brings us to chapter 16. As I've mentioned before, the Colorado segments in chapter 16 will be devoted to flashbacks going over in greater detail what happened to the Colorado Springs communities. The expedition won't resume until chapter 17, and it will share the chapter with parts explaining the flying hunk of metal. Back to chapter 16. Additionally, there will be two other segments, one set in East Texas, following a new storyline with new characters about revenge, liberation, and determinately, dark apprenticeship, while the other will be set in Central Texas and follow a few familiar characters in a storyline with themes of growth, rebuilding, trauma, not-dark apprenticeship, and coming-of-age from the perspective of a certain youth.
But before we move onto chapter 16, we'll get a taste of some of the new characters through the upcoming interlude. Most of the segments have been drafted to some degree, so my goal is to get that finished and posted before the end of the month. However, I'm going to focus heavily on finishing chapter 2 of Silicon County since this chapter finale thoroughly took up my writing time and efforts for this week. Anyway. In other news, I learned that my upcoming trip to the north will take place in the latter half of April, so I'll have plenty time to write that month. Sorry that I still don't have a concrete date on that, but I should have more far more than half of April to work on Monument and Silicon County, so I think I'll be able to begin chapter 16 and make some significant progress before it's time to leave.
I'll post a list of questions I would like to ask you soon. Until then, if you have questions yourself, ask away! I'm sure there's especially a lot of questions about the choices this chapter, since a lot was determinate this time around. I'm not really sure where to begin with them all, though, so if you have any questions about any specific choices, I'll answer.
I'm upset to have killed off two wonderful characters. They will, of course, be missed. The fates of Danny, Domenick, and Tom are also still up in the air. Let me just reiterate that, while this isn't the absolute best outcome possible, it is very far from the worse, and it is unlikely they could have gotten out of this situation completely unscathed. There were a lot of determinate characters this chapter.
I would just like to thank you all for your patience. It could me a while to get through chapter 15, and I got snagged in a few places, but I'm glad I was able to pick up the pace and get things moving again. I couldn't have done without your support and readership. So thank you again! Here's to many future chapters!
Things I've read:
Wow, just wow. That finale was beyond amazing. Keep up the great writing! I am definitely excited for what is to come!
Oh my god
I knew things would go seriously downhill in this finale and must admit that I even feared for worse, but still... the deaths of James and Nightcrawler were shocking, not only due to the fact that they died, but also due to how quickly it happened. I think this was the bleakest, most brutal part ever and I mean this a lot more positive than it sounds. I have been genuinely spechless for a short moment after reading this part. Three whole acts in and you still manage to absolutely stun me with these twists. I mean, first of all, there's Nightcrawler. To be honest, I had this slight feeling he might die, but seeing it actually happening was something else entirely. Who honestly shocked me though was James. I thought he'd be the main character of this expedition and a major one in the coming events in Colorado, but that is not the first time you chose a completely unexpected path. Argh, he was on a good way to become one of my favourite characters, damn it! I must say though, I am oddly relieved about Violet's survival. I still find my feelings on her complicated, certainly not wholeheartedly positive, but the last two chapters seriously fleshed her out and I wouldn't have wanted to lose her now, not when two of my more clearer favourites, James and Nightcrawler, already bit the dust in such a horribly brutal way.
And well, I currently feel a mixture of being horrified, speechless and in awe at this amazing act finale. Well done. Well done, Ser!
Oh damn it
Man, we have been so off then. That said, I agree that you made the best decision here, by not revealing this detail, as it helped us with seeing the situation as the characters did. I'm sure up to the very end, James was sure that Foxface was somewhere in this area, just like how I was convinced he'd try something. I was sure that people would die in this finale, but I thought he'd be responsible for it. Now it turns out he's never been a danger for them at any point... though that makes me curious what happened to him. I could see him being an antagonist for the flashback scenes and actually being already dead by the time the expedition is set.
That is Laredo, right? Ooooh I am so excited to see them again
For once, it sounds like there will be happy themes, though at the same time, there's still the unexplained mystery of Calvin's death around. Actually, I got a new theory besides the one I voiced a while ago, about Nathalie being responsible. It could be that Calvin's death was not entirely planned, more of an accident and that the one responsible for it is currently no longer in Laredo, having used the chance this expedition offered to leave the community until things have calmed down. That brings me to one certain Violet Moore. We know she's more than just a bit on the edge, psychologically. Perhaps something happened that caused her to snap towards Calvin. I know, it's likely not true, but well, it's at least an alternative to the Nathalie theory, which has similarly few things to back it up.
Anyways, the most important thing is, I cannot wait to see my dear Laredo cast back. They obviously have a special place in my heart and it's been far too long without them, even if some of them have thankfully been featured in this chapter
Ah, this sounds really great! Chapter 2 of Silicon is of course another thing I greatly look forward for and hearing that we're likely even going to see our first glimpses at Chapter 16 before the trip is amazing. Fingers crossed for Laredo, but honestly, these new storylines sound pretty nice as well and I look forward to learn more about them
Argh, so we could have screwed up more, right? This is at least something, that we managed to get some small victories here by getting some characters through this situation at the least. I bet Danny is among those who could have died, even if his survival is far from confirmed of course. I believe we took the option that gave him a chance though, as small as this chance is. If anything, he at least can survive this now. Domenick and Tom meanwhile, they are the only ones still separated from the group and I fear that at least one of them won't reunite with the main expedition. Maybe they will be attacked by Foxface, if that guy is still around at all. If he's still alive, I doubt he will just lay low there. But as I said, I get the feeling he might already be dead, which, in a certain way, is really unnerving, like that diary stuff we got that clued us in on his existence.
I actually must think about this first. I should give the chapter a reread, that much is for sure. So, I know I will have questions, but I will probably ask them when I answer your questions, until then I should have had the time to remember specific choices. I know the one to send the bulk of the group around the horde, with only James, Dom, Nightcrawler and Violet going through it is one thing I will definitely be asking about once the time comes. Until then, I can't wait to answer your questions, as always
I'd like to thank James, as well as Adam's journal for the countless times I've gotten mad at myself for the choices I've made during this chapter over someone who turned out to not even be a threat. The real MVPs right there.
In all honesty, I believe we did fairly decent with our choices. I don't really consider Domenick and Tom to be losses because they aren't confirmed dead and with Danny surviving the night, that gives me a fairly good feeling that the infection hadn't spread any farther. On the other hand, we lost the leader of the expedition who likely knew Colorado the best of the group, Domenick and Tom aren't confirmed dead, but they also aren't confirmed to be alive. Kurt had an absolutely brutal death that Violet had to witness, so I'm sure there's to be psychological damage for her. Jerry seems to be in constant pain, which is reasonable considering the circumstances. Finally, while the infection might not have spread, how much blood Danny is losing is a huge concern.
This seems really interesting with a high potential of violence, so I'm definitely excited for this.
The expedition has been great and I seriously enjoy it and the characters involved in it, but I do miss the Laredo group and I can't wait to get back to them, as well as hear more of Liquid's theories of what happened to Calvin as the chapter progresses, because they're pretty good.
I hope you have an enjoyable time, because I'll likely forget by the latter half of April, similar to how I forgot about the second anniversary of Monument. Well, it's not so much I forgot the occasion itself, I just forgot to say something on it.
Really, the only thing that has been in the back of my head as I've been thinking of questions is such. If it's not too much trouble, is there any way you could tell us the determinant characters of the chapter and the choices that influenced their survival or demise?
Well, so much for one question. Another if you don't mind and if it doesn't spoil anything by chance, what outcome would have been the best and which the worst?
This chapter easily places itself in my favorite, I'll be frank. I loved it for so many reasons and I think it was nearly perfectly drawn about. I liked how despite the situation, the characters still had development. How basically every part had me nervous for the next one. It's become a very meaningful chapter to me, and I believe I'll reread it many times.
They're.... they're dead? Just like that? This has surprisingly really gotten to me, I didn't think I was that attached.
Wow... wow, this was heavy. Losing James and Kurt is a big hit for the expedition and I will miss them both. I thought people would die but not them. Especially not James. And the fox guy was never a threat to them? Damn, we screwed up! You tricked us
I enjoyed this finale even if it was so sad and brutal. And I am so excited for the next chapter!
An Interlude Between Acts
Segment 1: I hung my blood-splattered duster on the back of one of the chairs and propped my Remington 700 rifle up next to it. Her footsteps were soft, I’ll give her that. I hardly heard her following me up the stairs.
“Sir?”
I looked over my shoulder at the girl and smiled, ignoring the black pit of the pistol bore trained in my direction. Instead, I met and focused on those eyes—they were large and cautious things, one green, one blue, not unlike little Laura’s.
“My things are kept in the kitchen,” I said. “I’m assuming you plan to rob me.”
“I don’t want to rob you,” she said.
“No?” I said, turning toward her. The cuffs of my long sleeved shirt bore more blood. I rolled them up over my forearms, which were matted with arm hair. I offered an acknowledging glance at the pistol pointed at me, then looked in the eyes again. “You could’ve fooled me.”
“I don’t want to rob you,” she repeated. “I want to talk to you.”
“Really now?”
“Yes.”
“Lot of stairs for a simple talk.”
“There were a lot of stairs,” she agreed.
“And I’m not the easiest man to follow.”
“You aren’t.”
I rubbed my thumb and forefinger together, grinding some of the grit and dried blood off my fingers. It fell to the onyx-black, tile floor. It was a show; I hoped the particles were visible to the girl. She couldn’t have been more than twelve. “Well, I don’t project the look of a good person. I could be a murderer.”
“I’m counting on the fact that you are,” she replied.
I raised an eyebrow. “Then today’s your lucky day.”
She didn’t say anything for the longest time, then: “Would you kill me, or attack me, if I didn’t have the gun on you?”
“That depends.”
“On what?”
“Are you human garbage?” I asked.
“No,” she said.
“Then you wouldn’t have anything to worry about.”
“I only have your word on that,” she said.
“Yes, only my word,” I agreed. “You said you wanted to talk? Well, we’re already talking.”
She nodded. Admittedly, I was surprised, and a little impressed, by how little the pistol wavered. “I found the guys you offed,” she said. “And I tried talk to their . . . prisoner, that you freed . . . but she ran away from me. The people holding her captive, that you killed, didn’t have the look of good people.”
“Neither do I.”
“That’s true.”
After a pause, I said, “So, you’re looking for someone willing to kill, someone good at killing, and I fit the bill.” She had nothing. A storm brewed outside the window, above the city, far below. I smiled and gestured to the one of the tables. “Would you like something to eat? It’s a great view. We can talk all about this over dinner.”
To my amazement, she nodded and took a seat. It didn’t surprise me that the gun never left her hand, nor my direction. I cleared off the blood and made dinner in the kitchen from canned food, and when I brought it back into the restaurant portion of the Tower of the Americans, she was still seated, her gun still trained on the doorway that I had left through.
I walked toward the table, the gun following me, and served both of us, then took a seat myself, the panoramic window to my left offering me a view of the city. The above San Antonio was a foreboding gray, and the city was submerged in the dark undersea light of a stormy, turbulent day.
We ate. We talked. We came to an understanding. After I cleaned up the table and washed the dishes, I let her lead me back down the huge flight of stairs, the pistol pointed at my back from only a few steps behind me. We entered the city streets, she led me to them, and she waited there. After I entered the hideaway and killed the men she had indicated, I returned with her stolen backpack and the stolen backpack of her recently murdered friend.
On the way back to the Tower of the Americas, she told me her name was Shouna. I told mine was Jack when it wasn’t—it was just a nickname from before. Except for that, the walk was silent. I used the time to I think about the first time I ever killed a man, besides the one time I did so in self defense as a Texas Ranger, while the blood of five fresh murders dried on my hands, sleeves, and face.
Segment 2: The man found where they were camped just before sunup. Even in his fragmented state of mind, it hadn’t been difficult. His grub-white complexion was bathed in blue-gray predawn glow. His teeth were bared and unbrushed; the expression of rage pulled his face taut over his skull like a semi-translucent mask of skin.
Beads of sweat stood out on his pale flesh. He looked sick and angry. He strode toward the house like man possessed by something old and trifled with. One hand was clenched so tightly his dirty and untrimmed fingernails cut into his palm. In the other hand, he tightly gripped the hilt of a hunting knife to the same result.
The sentry stationed on the porch jolted out of a half-sleep and to his feet. He goggled for several seconds at the approaching apparition before brandishing his rifle and shouting threats and warnings heavily saturated with curses, then he fired his unsteady rifle at the ghoulish intruder and cleanly missed. He cleared the breach of the spent casing, fumbled with a new round, and was about to close the breach again when the serrated knife dragged across his throat, ripping through skin and flesh, severing tendons. The sentry forgot about the apparition and dropped his rifle as he vainly struggled to stop the sudden geyser of blood erupting from the wound. He fell to his knees and rolled down the steps of the porch while the pale man—half covered in blood—threw back the screen door and stepped inside to a chorus of confusion.
Shouted inquiries were thrown into the dimly lit foyer from adjacent rooms. The sounds of men scrambling up from bedrolls were heard by the pale man as he calmly strode with purpose into the immediate room and stabbed the first bandit in the neck. The bandit slid inertly off the blade. The pale man strode further into the room and stabbed the next bandit in the chest before the bandit could raise his pistol. A single shot was fired into hardwood flooring, then the pistol clattered onto the floor—the knife had struck between the bandit’s ribs and had become stuck. The bandit sputtered blood, grabbed feebly at the knife, then groaned when the pale man yanked it free with both hands. The bandit collapsed, writhing, moaning.
Someone hiked it down a set of stairs. Boots tapped out a quick and nervous beat on wood not far away. The pale man, breathing heavily, walked softly to one side of the door frame and, now that he was out of immediate sight, caught his breath. The footsteps grew louder while blood dripped from his knife onto the hardwood floor of the living room, then they paused just outside the room. The barrel of an assault rifle poked through the doorway, and the pale man watched, stifling his panting. The barrel pulled back, boots pounded on the floor, and the screen door opened and slammed shut.
The pale man merely listened from his hiding spot as the fleeing bandit slipped in his comrade's blood and slammed onto the porch. The pale man rounded the door frame, stepping into the foyer, and looked through the screen at the still, yet living, form of the bandit, who lay in a pool of blood next to his still-bleeding comrade.
Blood continued to drip from the pale man’s knife. His grip on the hilt tightened and his own blood trickled past the guard and down the blade to blend with the rest. He ran the back of his cleaner hand across his lips, wiping away peppered drops of blood, and calmly walked toward the screen door with justice in mind for his murdered son, for his daughter Laura and wife who had also been murdered before but by different bandits. His daughter’s and his wife’s murderers had gotten away, so John ‘Jack’ Greyson would just have to extract vengeance on the lot of them.
Segment 3—Interview Tape #281—David Adair—audio/video output:
(Suddenly the film flickers and the distorted image of a young man appears on screen. His skin is tan and olive tinted. Adorning his head is a gray, knitted beanie. Black hair, parted at the center of his scalp beneath the beanie, hangs over either temple, over his ears, and down to his neck. He sits behind a white coffee table. His hands encircle a hot mug of coffee. His eyes are brown, and they gleam sadly. The interviewer is not visible in the recording.)
Interviewer: Would you please state your name for the record?
???: David Adair, ma’am.
Interviewer: Thank you for cooperating with the interview process, Mister Adair. It can be a frustrating . . . and emotional . . . matter. I’m afraid the questions may become personal. You may take however long you need if remembering becomes painful. All I ask is that you answer with the truth.
David: (Softly.) Yeah, I can do that.
Interviewer: That’s good. Let’s get the simple things out of the way first. Your age?
David: I’m twenty-five years old.
Interviewer: You’re Native-American?
David: Yes, ma’am.
Interviewer: Did you belong to a tribe?
David: Yes. Cherokee.
Interview: What’s your date of birth?
David: February 12th, nineteen-seventy-eight.
Interviewer: One week off. Happy early birthday.
David: (On film, he appears uneasy.) Thank you, ma’am.
Interviewer: Okay. Onto the heavier questions. Where were you when it began?
David: The Oklahoma panhandle.
Interviewer: Did you encounter any other survivors? Groups?
David: (With a pained tone.) My family and I started out in a large group. There was about fifty people. Mostly other Native-Americans. I was with my mother, father, and younger brother and sister. It didn’t . . . work out.
Interviewer: How so?
David: There was a lot of internal strife . . . stress was high, people were freaked out, and no one really knew if they could put their trust outsiders. My parents were murdered there. My father had gotten indebted to the wrong people . . . and they were both killed for it.
Interviewer: My condolences. You left, then, with your siblings?
David: I did.
Interviewer: And then what happened?
David: . . .
Interviewer: Take your time.
David: Before we escaped, my younger brother had been bitten. This was before we knew the thing was spread by the bite. He . . . turned . . . while we were on the road, heading west. And he killed my sister. I had to put him down. She turned while I was digging the graves. I put her down, too.
Interviewer: I’m very sorry.
David: (He doesn’t meet the interviewer’s eyes. Instead, he glances around the room, and slumps, veiling his eye sockets from the fluorescent light overhead.) Did I come to the right place?
Interviewer: I’m afraid I don’t follow.
David: Apparently this place is the real deal. Order and civilization in the apocalypse. Is that true?
Interviewer: In my opinion, yes, it is.
David: Can I . . . join?
Interviewer: There’s one last question. And please answer truthfully.
David: I will, ma’am.
Interviewer: Have you killed anyone? We understand that there are some circumstances that require such a thing. Your answer will not affect you right to join, so long as you provide context. So, have you ever killed a living human being?
David: I have not, and I never will.
Interviewer: Welcome to Colorado Springs, David Adair.
David: (On film, he nods ever so slightly.)
Part 2, Below
Part 2
Segment 4—The Highwayman: “You have two options.”
The raving, thin man did not hear, or did not understood, or entirely ignored Ryan’s calmly spoken words. Instead, the thin man continued his senseless groveling, forcing Ryan to occasionally kick him off his boots and pants legs, which he clung to oh so desperately.
Funny, little man, Ryan thought, leveling the revolver so that the thin man saw up the barrel’s bore; the man, in reaction, froze dead before it but continued to cast his fit. His hand was completely steady. As was the gun. His finger itched on the trigger, but did not twitch in the slightest. “I said, you have two options. Option one . . . you continue your begging and weeping and snotting and spouting bullshit and I put you down like a dog gone rapid. Option two . . . you stop this bullshit, say your peace, and I put you down like a good old boy . . . you die with a little dignity.”
This was getting tired. Ryan saw his men and women and right-hand men, forming a semicircle around him, were getting restless. It had gone on too long. Ryan saw the animals were getting skittish, too—a child was tending to his chestnut mare, calmingly stroke her dark mane and her long face, whispering assures in the face of the thin man’s agitating, spittle-flinging fit.
The thin man didn’t remain still for long, but didn’t risk advancing any further with the threat of the revolver aimed squarely at his head. Instead, relatively stationary, he flailed, tore at the tall, overgrown grass, swore allegiance, just swore, begged, and with his sobs, sort of bobbed up and down. He was white, with desperate eyes. A filthy t-shirt clung to the man’s back by sweat—showcased were his spine and ribs—and hung loosely in the front. The man spoke English, but his were disjointed and incomprehensible by his sobbing breaths.
Ryan had already had enough of it. His boots—nice boots, they had been and would be again, once he cleaned them up—had accumulated a miserable coat of snot and spit.
His voice, clear and commanding, was filled with a perfectly audible and exceptionally directed contempt. “In ten seconds I’m going to kill you.”
He began his count. Silently.
The ultimatum revitalized the thin man’s efforts. Ignoring the revolver pointed toward him, the man wretchedly clung again to Ryan’s legs, clawing at his faded jeans with pure, pleading terror in his bloodshot eyes and unintelligible words. This only further stirred Ryan’s ranger. Ryan tried and failed to kick him off, emitting a low, disgusted growl. and he announced the five-second mark.
Now the thin man withdrew with a sudden haste, clumsily stumbling over himself and through the grass of the clearing, crawling more than he walked, with a disoriented, terrified speed that was only brought on in the face of death. Ryan held up a closed first to keep those among his people with weapons drawn from firing, then followed the man at a walking pace.
The man entered the woods and didn’t look back as Ryan stopped at the edge of the clearing and campsite, aimed his revolver with a practiced steadiness, and tracked the man’s head as he stumbled further into the woods. Even with everything lined up, Ryan waited until the end of his enteral countdown, then in the span of milliseconds his trigger finger flexed, the shot echoed loudly, and blood, brain matter, and bone exploded out the front of the man’s face and painted the nearest few trees. The thin little cannibal fell forward on what little remained of his face.
Ryan bent his elbow, allowing the bore of his revolver to expel a tendril of smoke straight up into the air like a contented, mechanical sigh. The enraged glint haven’t quite faded from Ryan’s eyes as he turned and walked back to the center of camp. His temper not quite settled, he pointed a finger and a few of his people began to collapse and disassemble the thin man’s tent. He pointed again, this time at the thin man’s half-eaten victim, and some his people commenced digging a grave for the poor schmuck. He was calmer as he holstered his revolver, produced a napkin, and casually bent over to wipe the muck off his boots.
Segment 5—Interrogation #8—Alex Kotov—audio recording:
Interrogator: (Male. Impassive sounding voice.) You’ve been identified by as Alex Kotov. The student record attached to this name indicates you are twenty-two. You enrolled at Hiddleson College two years ago, majored in medicine, and minored in health science. Is the aforementioned correct?
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: Your cooperation is vital, Mister Kotov. Is what I’ve said correct?”
Alex (with a soft voice): Yes. You’ve got the right file.
Interrogator: Wonderful. Now that that’s out of the way, I have a few questions for you.
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: What is your relation to Hannah Rhinehardt?
Alex: (Audibly swallows.) She’s my friend. My girlfriend.
Interrogator: She says so as well.
Alex: (The nervousness in his voice spikes.) What have you—
Interrogator: Relax, Mister Kotov. Please remain calm. This doesn’t need to become heated, and this doesn’t have to be difficult. I have another question.
Alex: . . .
Interrogator: What were you and Miss Rhinehardt doing outside Administration yesterday evening?
Alex (quickly): We weren’t part of the protest.
Interrogator: It was not a protest, Mister Kotov. It was rebellion.
Alex: Neither of us were taking part in any rebellion.
Interrogator (sternly): Answer the question. What were you doing there?
Alex: Hannah… Hannah and I were leaving the campus through the Admin’s entrance.
Interrogator: Permanently?
Alex: Y… Yes…
Interrogator: Many of the other “protesters” were similarly equipped as you. I believe… (papers ruffle) you and Miss Rhinehardt were both armed with 22 caliber pistols stolen from the armory, along with additional ammo. Like so many of these so-called “protesters,” you were armed with stolen weapons. (His tone has not become any less impassive.) You’re story, Alex, would be full of shit if wasn’t so full of holes.
Alex: I’m not lying! We weren’t a part of that! You and your men shot at the fucking crowd—Hannah and I barely got away with our lives! We never would have gotten mixed up with that!
Interrogator: Yet you were found on outside the Administration building, armed, taking cover with known rebels. I’ve gotten all I needed to know from this avenue of talk, Alex. Let’s move on.
Alex: I’m not with them! Neither is Hann— (Alex exhales all of his breath and the impact of a metallic object, perhaps an aluminum baseball bat, striking his stomach is audible. Alex gasps furtively and isn’t capable of drawing adequate breath for several dozen seconds.)
Interrogator: We’ll done discussing that, Alex. You’ll tell me all about—
Alex (wheezing): Mister Adrian, you’re a fucking professor! A math teacher! You hit me with a fucking bat!
Adrian (with a clear hint of anger): Times have changed, and I will not have my authority over this campus challenged by a bunch of upstarts unhappy with the status quo! You’ll tell me everything you know about these other rebels. Or die.
Alex: I. Don’t. Know. Anything. (Alex is stuck again, this time on the side of the head, by the bat—Adrian has held back slight but only so he does not knock Alex not. The attack causes the metal back to vibrate, almost sing from the impact.)
Adrian: Whether or not you’ll a rebel, Alex, you’ll tell me everything know, and that’s all I require. Let’s start again. Tell me everything you know about these other rebels or die.
Alex: You’re insane.
(Adrian hits him again, this time with a fist. The recording lasts another half hour, over which Adrian Francis asks Alex Kotov the same or similar questions again and again, and Alex replies each time that he does not know or only heard hearsay. The abuse continues over the course of the recording, when Alex either cannot answer the question or Adrian becomes angry with the answer. Alex’s replies become difficult, slurred, and eventually he is no longer able to speak. Before the recording is shut off, Adrian tells another person, who does not speak, of Alex’s impending death sentence.)
End of Interlude
I really enjoyed these parts! They were really interesting.
Sorry for not answering these sooner!
I can't be specific, unfortunately, and I can't provide an answer for all of them, but I can say at least the one which is probably most important to you, even if in vague terms. The choice deciding how to handle Danny's bite—bandage, full amputation, or surgery—affected his status as well as Asher's and Maria's. While I can't say if Danny's out of the frying pan (or into the fire), I can say the full amputation option would have put Asher in harm's way.
Best could have seen them all make it through. Worse option could have maybe left only Jerry, Sasha, and Maria surviving. Considering only two people died out of a possible seven or so, things went much, much better than they could have.
Thank you! I'm curious what you thought about Ryan's segment.
I really liked it! I like jumped up when I realized who it was. So good! Just how I imagined him too.
Whoa, these were seriously awesome segments! I found it interesting how easily you managed to set up 5 super interesting scenarios there and I can even see how they are going to be connected. It appears that, with the possible exception of Ryan, all of these are going to play a part in the Colorado storyline. Or maybe Alex, if he survived, and David will, whereas Ryan and John will play a role in this other storyline you hinted at. That might seem a bit more likely. Or maybe all of them will play a part in the Colorado storyline? Maybe some in the flashbacks and others in the present storyline, perhaps even interacting with our heroes from the expedition. Anyways, super well-written segments, as they always are. I am seriously excited for both of these new storylines and for Laredo and I cannot wait for the next chapter
You're definitely right about it being the choice that is more important to me, because it's the choice that made me most anxious throughout the chapter just because of the setting and current situation the characters were in at the time. I can vaguely see how it would affect Asher and Maria, but seeing that we kind of avoided putting Asher in harm's way makes me a little less nervous for the results of the choice.
Oh Jesus, so we seriously could have done a lot more damage. As much as I love and am interested by those three characters, I'm extremely glad it didn't dwindle down to just them. If I recall, you've mentioned that Violet has an interesting history to share, and I've been fairly excited to see that history. Domenick and Tom, they've no confirmed fates, but I have hopes that at least one of them will make it back to the group.
I'm curious. If you can tell me, how far into the outbreak was that part with Ryan?
Now, I'm pretty hyped up for these new storylines and I absolutely love the interview style, I think it's great.
I think of all of the storylines, I'm most excited for either Jack or Ryan's. I'm beyond happy to see something dealing with the cannibals, as odd as that sounds. On the other hand, I'm personally obsessed with forensic sciences and the psychology of a serial killer, so I'm immediately drawn to Jack's storyline and I could see potential as the dark apprenticeship being in his storyline since it seems like he and Shouna didn't separate, but she obviously doesn't trust him, so I'm not entirely sure.
Alex's segment captured my attention and gave me a good idea of the type of people who were really in Colorado Springs and the idea that they likely won't meet the expedition group gives me indescribable joy. I do feel pretty bad for Alex and Hannah, because it sounds to me like they weren't active participants in the revolt, but then again, I could be wrong and trying to see the good in people who have no good.
David on the other hand seems to be quite honest with his answers, which is another assumption I'm making. I already like his character and I'm looking forward to seeing more of him. I think his moral code, per say, is quite interesting and that his "never have, never will" won't last past the downfall of Colorado Springs.
It's set about a month or so after the chapter 15 finale and takes place maybe a week or two before the chapter 16 storyline Ryan will factor into. I've actually given it some thought and have decided to include a basic counter—along the lines of 1 Year, 1 Month In—in the future parts!
I'm glad you liked it, but I feel the need to clarify a few things about Jack and Ryan's segment. First, I somehow utterly failed to see the similarities between the dark storyline I've hinted at and Jack's teaser here. To say it outright, Jack and the girl, Shouna, are not the dark apprenticeship duo I was referring to. We won't actually see them again for a while, definitely not this coming chapter, but in act 4 at some point. Secondly, the storyline involving Ryan doesn't really have anything to do with cannibals. All that said, since you're interest in the seeing serial killer mindset, I don't think you're going to be disappointed with what's to come. To draw comparisons, the storyline in question is going to be like a cross between the Revenant and True Grit and with a high potential for the macabre.
Again, being vague might have backfired a little. Just to clear any confusion when things get started, the segment featuring Alex Kotov isn't set in Colorado Springs. It's a new setting, and it's been described in the segment as a college campus. As for David, I'm happy you like his character! He'll be an interesting fellow to follow, what with his ethics and all, as well as the fact that he'll be a character in the Colorado Springs segments in chapter 16, which as I've mentioned are taking place before chapter 14 and 15. I really can't wait to get things going! It really be won't be long now!
Thank you, Liquid! Actually, only David's segment has anything to do with the Colorado Springs community and none, for that matter, have any connection (as of this time) to the Laredo community. And unfortunately, Jack won't appear in the upcoming chapter, and unlikely still that he will appear substantially the one after that. Something to note about Jack which might have missed is that his segment took place in San Antonio—hence the Tower of the American, a monument there, which hasn't made its last appearance by a longshot. Anyway, I'm glad these teasers worked out so well! It was fun experimenting with different styles (and interesting to sort of return to the script style of some of my older stories). I think this is something I will definitely try again. If not in another interlude, then in future one-shots.
Alright! Here are the questions. As usual, you're free to pick and choose questions to answer and skip at your discretion, and you're can be as detailed or brief as you want. If you have any questions, now's a good time to ask them!
Favorite characters?
Least favorite characters?
Favorite scenes/moments?
What characters do you see as having potential?
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
What worked this chapter?
What didn't work this chapter?
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Favorite interlude segment?
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Looking back on it, I believe my basis on belief was purely because of the dark apprenticeship duo. I'd forgotten you'd mentioned that the hinted storyline would be in East Texas while San Antonio is in South Texas. Minor geographic mistake on my part, apologies.
I'm already super hyped for the storyline in question then, for the serial killer mindset alone. With it being a cross between Revenant and True Grit, I truthfully expect nothing less of a macabre, which only makes the excitement greater.
I have no idea why I thought it did, but it's good to know those details, because I know for sure I would have continued to believe that it did take place in Colorado Springs until it was explicitly stated.
Favorite characters?
Oh, already starting with a hard one. This chapter had a lot of great characters and some of them even among my all time favourites, whereas others really stepped up to the front seat in this chapter. Surprisingly, it's not Jerry, whom I feel had a little bit less of a presence here compared to most of the others. Instead, it is probably tied between Maria and James, with Sasha being very close by. Maybe it's even tied between Maria, James and Sasha. Now, I have liked Maria for a while now, but I feel like this chapter had some of her best moments, so it is only right if I mention her here. James was amazing and if he would have survived longer, he would have very likely gotten a part among my all-time favourites in a chapter or two. His death has also been the harshest moment in the chapter for me. And Sasha... well, do I need to say more? She kicked ass in this chapter and was overall awesome, though I felt slightly less attached to her than to Maria and James, so she is marginally behind them.
Least favorite characters?
Eh, can I skip this question? Seriously, I have thought about it for a long time, but I have found no answer at all. Every member of the expedition had their moment to shine and naming one of them as my least favourite would be a real disservice towards the characterization you gave them here. With the lack of a villain to hate, I can't even do that. Not even characters I feel uneasy about, but who aren't clear villains yet, such as Nathalie, appeared in this chapter, so out of the cast of chapter 15, I have none I could name as my least favourite.
Favorite scenes/moments?
There are two scenes who really stuck with me in this chapter. I mean, the entire chapter was just plain awesome, but these two have seriously hit me. First of all, there is the diary scene. I actually had to check, as I thought it would have belonged to Chapter 14, but I was wrong and this is a good thing, because now I can mention it. Hands down, one of the top five most intense moments in Monument, even if there has been no action at all. This was a chilling moment that creeped me out, something I haven't felt in that way in any other part. Before, whenever I felt uneasy, it was more of a panicked feeling, but this here was essentially more scary than the shocking and nerve-wracking moments of the past. Truly a unique moment. Another one, and I hate that I have to include it as my favourite, is the final part. Two characters I really liked died there and it was the most shocking and brutal death in all of Monument. The bleakness of this scene even surpassed other tearjerking moments, such as the death of Stan or the death of Anthony. Mostly because they have been played up to be these sad scenes they were meant to be and that worked. This scene worked as well, but it was way more bleak and simple in the way their deaths were described. That has genuinely shook me.
What characters do you see as having potential?
Violet. Yeah, Violet. She's in a bit of a limbo between a character I might seriously like and a character I will likely always feel a bit uneasy about, which is an odd combination I had with no other character before. Well, maybe Clarice thanks to her final action, but with Violet, this odd feeling is way stronger. But it doesn't matter if I like her or not, and to be honest, I probably like her more than I don't. What matters is that she has really gotten some unexpected development in this chapter and she is, without any doubt, the character with the most unexplored potential out of the expedition group.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
Before I answer this, I have to ask, do you mean plot points for the expedition group, plot points for one of the segments, or plot points for Laredo? Or general plot points? Because that would influence my answer quite heavily. So, tell me what you mean there and I shall give you a nice, long answer
What worked this chapter?
Just that athmosphere... that goddamn athmosphere. Other chapters had intense moments, some of them even more intense than the most intense Chapter 15 moment, but damn it, this chapter had the most consistently intense feeling. The entire athmosphere of the chapter felt bleak and grim and unsettling, with me always having this feeling that something horrible will happen. Sure enough, something horrible did happen, but it was still entirely unexpected. I mean, I expected something bad to happen so much that I was quite shocked when it finally happened XD And Foxface... man, you genuinely tricked me and I guess the others as well by making it seem as if that guy was about to attack any moment now. That was brilliant, making us decide exactly as the characters would, with no further knowledge. We've all been basically clueless as to what could happen and to our knowledge, any choice could have resulted in any possible outcome for this information at any given time. The whole Foxface trickery was just one of these factors, but the one I feel was pulled of the best.
What didn't work this chapter?
...nothing? Seriously, I wouldn't know anything I can recall that hasn't worked. Mostly because I naturally don't know if you wanted to do more with some elements of this chapter, but I feel it was generally all perfect and well-rounded. So, I'd say it all worked out, don't worry. I know I say this a lot. Maybe I just suck at even seeing anything negative unless it's really glaring
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
Just what happened to Colorado Springs? How could this huge, well-defended and overall working community just crumble and disappear over the course of the few months James was absent from them? As far as we know, they did more than just fine before he left. In fact, it seemed as if they were already in the process of rebuilding, more than just surviving. From what we have seen so far, they have been so much more fortified than Laredo and yet they are all just gone somehow. This is creepy and if there is a threat to these communities out there, then I want to try the best to prepare Laredo for it. But well, this was a question I was pretty sure Chapter 15 wouldn't answer, so I am certainly not bummed or anything. I know I'll get an answer to this in time
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Well, it certainly was one of my clear favourites. I would say it was a more than worthy finale for Act 3 and it is likely very close to A Man Gone and Dogma when it comes to my favourites. It was definitely the best chapter in this act and one of the best in the entire story so far. Not only in terms of story, which has always been seriously strong, but also in terms of sheer writing, this was incredible and I enjoyed every single part of it. What I found interesting was that it focussed on a lot of characters who have previously been minor or mentioned-only, it gave them the centre stage and it worked. This was certainly a unique chapter and one I thoroughly loved.
Favorite interlude segment?
Well... this one is hard for me, because I enjoyed all of them. If I have to pick one, I'd say Alex' was the most intense, with this interview and the tension slowly building. Seriously, they were all great and if you'd ask for my least favourite segment, I couldn't answer that question, but my favourite is probably Alex' here.
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
You know, as always when I answer a question about the future of my dear Laredo storyline, what I think will happen highly differs from what I hope will happen. At least this time, you seem to have hinted at some happy stuff for them, but I don't expect things to be all sunshine and rainbows there, or to remain happy for long. I mean, as always, I will embrace happy moments for them as long as they last, but I can see enough potential for trouble in there. The supply situation is unlikely to be solved anytime soon and with James' expedition on the brink of failure, they really need to find an alternative that ensures their survival. And with quite a number of able-bodied fighters gone, the defense situation of the community is worse than ever. A number of people are ol, such as Jefferson, or kids, such as Dan and Josie's pregnancy is not making things any easier for them. Not that I'd ever not be happy about that pregnancy, because trust me, I am still beyond excited for it, but I start to see some problems this could cause. Now without Calvin, they don't only need to somehow get a pregnant woman through this, they also need to find someone who can help deliver the baby without getting the mother killed in the process. Is it strange that I somehow expect Nathalie to prove herself there? She had a child, so she's, like, the highest available authority on babies right now. That said, I'd feel much safer for Josie if they could somehow find a real doctor. But speaking about Calvin, there is also this thing about his unexplained death. I have absolutely no idea who could have done such a thing, but I know, someone did and likely with the goal of destabilizing the community by taking away the most essential member of it.
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Hm, the one part I have always been curious about and will likely remain so until it possibly gets resolved is Keith and the way he freed Josie and Lindsay from the clutches of Trevor and his goons. I mean, why did he do it, how did he find them, how did he got them out of there, what was Josie's reaction when seeing the ruined Harvest Hills and Anthony's grave and so on. Not getting to see these events is likely the only thing I could ever criticize about Nine o'Clock Lab, even if it unarguably was a necessary choice to make the reveal that they are still alive all the stronger. That is the only event I could think of right now which I would like to see explored in more detail.
Now... There are two particular questions I can think of about when it comes to the alternative choices. First, the one at the end of part 4 of this chapter, where we had the choice to go to Forst Carson together or to split up. We chose to remain together, but what would have happened if we would have split up?
And second, for part 8, where we chose for Domenick and Tom to head back to the others, what would have happened if we would have decided for them to break through and continue on their way instead?
I suppose that was a little open ended. What I mean is, what are possibilities or plot points (such as, let's say, focus on a vestige of the US military, characters emerging from a bunker for the first time, a post-apocalyptic cult, or somesuch) would like to see explored?
Had they split up, as I've mentioned before, there would have been a quick choice determining whether Violet is included with those going directly to Fort Carson—Violet's inclusion would have been vital in ensuring the survival of James, Kurt, and possibly Domenick. Those going the long way around—Jerry, Sasha, Tom, Asher, Danny, and Maria—would have skirted the horde until they reached a suburban neighborhood, otherwise unharmed, but separating the groups by many miles. Splitting up and including Violet would have led to the best case scenario.
If Domenick and Tom had tried to push through the horde, they would have both died. However, their fates would have been left ambiguous. The consequences of their deaths would have been felt by those hunkering down in the truck, putting them in harm's way without the assistance Domenick and Tom provided for their predicament.
Ah, I understand it now
In that case, I'd say one thing I have always been curious about, which I feel no story in that universe has ever explored before is the government. Not necessarily the military, which has been done in all shapes and forms before, but the real government. One would think that a man such as the president has actually the best chances of them all to survive the apocalypse.
Oh damn it! So this was the choice where we messed up. I mean, I am pretty sure that if we would have chosen to split up, we also would have chosen for Violet to accompany them. I know I would have. It's interesting that she, of all people, would have provided such a vital support for the trio. But the situation for the others would have been better as well, with Danny not getting bitten and things like that.
This however is something I have expected, that breaking through the horde would have been catastrophical. It's still scary to think that not only Domenick and Tom would have died, but that the larger portion of the group would have been put at risk as well. They already have been close to being wiped out completely, so I am afraid any further problems back then could have led to quite a number of additional deaths. I guess that is what could have led to only Jerry, Sasha and Maria surviving, right?
Though this actually makes me curious, what possible outcome could have led to Violet's death? It seems we already accidentally picked the option that is the worst for her by not splitting up, though she managed to make it through despite the danger.
That would be tricky lol, but that definitely does strike my interest as well. I hope you don't mind if I put it in the idea bin. The big question is whether to use the real president (the apocalypse very loosely began in 2003 here, like the comics, I believe, which would make it George W. Bush) or use a made up president.
The answer is possibly. I didn't put too much time into planning this possibility because the opposite choice was chosen. Had Domenick and Tom not been there to help, things would have been worse for those in the pickup bed. If it had been coupled with a worse option for what do with Danny's bite, let's say, the full amputation option, the causalities could have been worse or different.
Okay, this completely slipped my mind: there would have been additional choices on the bridge scene (following Violet's inclusion) that would have affected who lived from that group, including Violet. Again, I'm afraid I didn't get that far in planning this particular outcome since it got sectioned off so quickly, so I can't provide more context, unfortunately.
Favorite characters?
Alrighty, so I normally don't have an answer for this question and I normally hold a bias. I only continue one of those traditions today. For starters, my favorite character has stepped down and the order is now mixed, but I'll get to that in a moment. So, my favorite character is currently Jerry, which is a step up from what I originally thought of him. See, my second favorite would be my overall favorite, if it hadn't been for Jerry's take over command in the finale, as well as his completion of the surgery. Here's that bias I mentioned. My second favorite character is Maria, and a lot of that does stem from her past, but currently I think she had more of an emotional backup to the chapter. Her bonds with James and Danny were clear and it's the emotional factor that normally gets me, so it surprised me when Danny got bitten, but it more so surprised me when James died because his final thoughts were of people he considered to be his friends were separated. I guess that gives away that James was my third favorite.
Least favorite characters?
If I could say Foxface for the way our votes were influenced, I totally would. However, in terms of characters we've seen, I don't really have a least favorite. They're all good characters, and even if I've disliked one or two of them in the past, they've seen redemption.
Favorite scenes/moments?
Goodness, I hate to pick a single moment, because this has become my favorite chapter. If I must, I'd say Kurt's death left the biggest impression on me, because that's what really redeemed Violet for me when she tried to save him. Her failure also made me feel a bit upset for her. Her staying in place told me that it's going to leave a lasting mark on her mind, which thinking of all the ways it could later effect her hypes me up for chapter 17, but the hype for chapter 16 doesn't subside.
What characters do you see as having potential?
I believe that Violet has the greatest potential among the expedition group. She's been through significantly more than what likely most of the surviving people of the expedition have and she has the ability to use her experiences to make changes, it's all based on her willpower to do so, which I'm interested to see if she does have such willpower.
What are some plot points you'd like to see explored?
This one I don't really have an answer for, because Liquid already mentioned the government and Laredo is already working on getting back to humanity, and that's something that always interests me in stories like these. However, the example of the cult that you gave does sound interesting.
What worked this chapter?
Basically everything worked, this is easily my favorite chapter and I hold it very dear to me. I enjoyed but was easily stressed out (which is no surprise) by the ways the choices played out. I liked how the threats that were around the expedition were left pretty open to interpretation, except the obvious walker problem. What I mean is how we figured Foxface was a problem, when he wasn't even around, that's what I mean when I say open to interpretation. I enjoyed the dynamic between the characters, namely the one between Maria and Danny. However, I did enjoy the friendship between Asher and Danny because that did prove my original suspicion of Asher horribly wrong forever ago, so I actually enjoy being proven wrong in such sense.
What didn't work this chapter?
I don't really have an answer for this, so I'll be skipping it, apologies.
What do you feel is the biggest question that chapter 15 didn't answer?
I didn't really have many questions when chapter 15 started, because they were either answered before now in the story, an interlude, or from you, so my questions have been relatively answered. If I must pick something, I'd say something that I've previously wondered is why those who went on the expedition did so. Josie suspected that Kurt went because of Asher, Danny, and Maria. We know Jerry and Sasha went because there were risks staying Laredo. Obviously James went to lead, but then the rest is just that.
How do you feel this chapter shaped up next to the previous ones?
Like I've mentioned a few times before, this chapter has made its place as my favorite. I believe it made a much more descriptive turn than the other chapters did, offering some more gruesome details that other chapters didn't and I just love it. I'm interested in what the future chapters have to offer, for sure.
Favorite interlude segment?
My favorite interlude segment is most definitely John's segment. It not only brought San Antonio back, but it brought some new, interesting characters into play. A close second is David's, just because his character just seems easy enough to sympathize with. Watch, I'll regret those words next chapter, I'm calling it now.
Before it's revealed in chapter 16, how do you think the Laredo storyline will continue?
Laredo was left in a relatively decent state, from what I remember, besides the supply crisis. I think Laredo will focus heavily on trying to maintain the supplies until they hear back from the expedition group, which is going to take quite a bit, but also on Josephine's pregnancy, which is something I also look forward to seeing more about. Also, finding out what really happened to Calvin also seems like something that would be probable in the Laredo storyline.
And lastly, are there anything you would like to see appear as a one-shot? It could be either a premise, a little-explored aspect of the post-apocalypse, or a particular timeskip you would like to see filled.
Sadly, I do not personally, but Liquid does have some good ideas with Anthony's grave and Keith's getting Josephine and Lindsay out of the mall, so I'll agree with those.
Daniel Martinez — Rosa Drive, Central Texas — 1 Year, 1 Month In — 16-01: Rosa Drive consisted of a long gravel driveway which cut an uneven line between two tall, opposing fields of weeds. Daniel hated it on sight. He stared down the driveway from behind Atlanta’s leg. What he saw was a wicked thing, unyielding and harsh in its appearance. Even his considerable imagination couldn’t picture it as having once been green or farmable. His sentiments were reinforced when an October gust set the wilted corn stalks swaying within their weed-coffins in a way that was haunting.
Tugging on Altana’s overcoat, Daniel whimpered. “Please,” he said up to her. “I don’t like it.” And, in Daniel’s opinion, it didn’t like him either—he could sense its contempt for him as well as if it had a sign that explicitly (and vulgarly) said so. Not only that, he could just imagine the things it harbored for this very instant: creatures with claws perfect for cutting him, weaving passageways carved into the undergrowth meant for spying or sneaking up on him to pounce, and weird bugs whose sole intention would be to bite him!
There was no room for argument: the field and its many clawed and borrowing and insectile inhabitants all hated him.
He tugged more insistently at Atlanta’s coat and a hand came down on his head and unhelpfully ruffled his already unkempt hair. He batted away her hand like it was a nosy fly and frowned, pleadingly, up at her. “I don’t like it!” he hissed under his breath, fearing, rightfully, that the field would hear him and take swifter action in its plot against him. “I wanna go home!”
Now Atlanta squatted on her heels, so she would be at eye level with him, and countered his hesitate, fearful grimace with a smile of her own. She put her hands over his cold ears—which were being chilled by the mild breeze—and whispered, teasingly but warmly, “I thought we had a deal, little dude.”
They did. Daniel had agreed to come, to move into the farmhouse, in exchange for the ability to pick his own room. But, realizing what evil lurked in what was supposed to be their new yard, Daniel choose to deny the existence of any such agreement.
“We didn’t!” He looked over at Ashley for support.
His other mom grinned, and at that moment he knew just whose side she was on. Strands of her blond hair lashed her face in the breeze.
She’d betrayed him. Daniel’s intake of breath was audible. Then he closed his mouth and tried to act inconspicuous under his parents’ increasingly amused gazes. He had thought of a plan. It might just work…
He turned around and began to run back to the truck Ashley had driven there. She had taken the keys, but it was unlocked, so he could get inside the truck’s cabin and simply refuse to come out again. It was a short-sighted plan, but he didn’t get far enough into it to realize that: Atlanta caught him around the stomach, pulled him into a hug, and picked him up off the ground.
He tried his best to remain angry, but the giggles came on their of their own accord. Once he realized he was having fun, he pouted and began to struggle again. Then, realizing Atlanta was taking steps down the driveway, a genuine pang of fear passed through. He stopped fighting, buried his face in her shoulder, and tensed up. Atlanta stopped walking immediately.
“Dan?” she coaxed. “What’s wrong?”
“It hates me,” came Daniel’s muffled voice.
Ashley took several steps and began to rake her fingers through his black hair. Her grin had mostly faded. “What hates you?” she asked softly.
“The field,” came his reply.
His parents exchanged a glance while his face was still buried. There was a thoughtful moment. Ashley spoke at last. “It doesn’t hate you,” she whispered, sandwiching Daniel in a hug. It was a little comforting. “It’s just lonesome.”
“Lonesome?” Daniel repeated, looking up doubtfully. His eyes were narrowed to slits as he regarded the field again with greater scrutiny. The stalks swayed again in the wind. There was a sound, like an unintelligible whisper. He once again buried his face. “No! It’s angry! It hates me!”
Ashley frowned at Atlanta as she pulled. Atlanta nodded, thinking, then smiled wryly. She asked, “Do you know what empathy is, Daniel?”
He grunted. It sounded vaguely in the positive.
“Ten try to empathize with the field,” she told him. “It may be hard, but try to imagine what it was like a year ago. It was probably the greenest, most fruitful, most beautiful field in all of the Hill Country. It had a bunch of farmers who weeded it, watered it, kept it pretty, cared for it. But then what happened?”
“The dead,” Daniel whispered softly, taking handfuls of Atlanta’s overcoat in his tightening grip.
“You got, mister. The walkers drove out the farmers and ranch hands, and it was all downhill from there for this poor field. The walkers didn’t bother it so much since the people living there had left, but a mean bunch of animals moved in. Hogs, squirrels, and even raccoons tore up the crops. It came back the next season, maybe a little hateful, but mostly just sad and lonely. It had been thinned out on account of the animals and the fact that the seeds weren’t planted at the right depth. So it came back thinner and weaker. And the weeds took over quickly and choked out what was left. And it learned to be angry.”
“So,” Daniel said, a little confused, “you’re saying I’m right?”
Atlanta shook her head. “Not entirely. It’s angry and hateful because of its loneliness. That’s a very important detail. Anger and hatefulness aren’t its base nature.”
He glanced at the field ponderously. “So...” he said slowly, reluctantly. He was starting to grasp what she was saying but was still resistant to the idea of staying in the farmhouse. “So it’s just sad?”
“Sad and lonely,” Ashley whispered. “And what do you when someone’s sad and lonely?”
Daniel looked at the field again with a slightly altered lens. The cornstalks were indeed sparse now and clearly dying, choked by weeds drinking up all their water and nutrients and ravaged by hungry and vicious critters. He said nothing.
Afraid they might lose their progress, Atlanta said, “We’ll gonna walk down the drive and see the house, Daniel. The field won’t hurt you. It’ll just sulk a lot and look gloomy. Come on, I’ll carry you the whole way. What do you say?”
He said nothing for the longest time, then nodded because he felt it was probably the right thing to do, what his parents needed him to do. Atlanta squeezed him and walked down the drive. Daniel watched the overgrown grass on either side feign lunges at him but never actually touch him. Whether this was because it didn’t really want to strike him or because they were out of its reach, Daniel couldn’t be sure. Eventually, they made it through to a considerably larger clearing with grass that merely came to Daniel’s knees rather than eclipsed him entirely.
Atlanta set him on the ground. He looked back at the swaying passageway they had just passed through and conceded to himself that it was a tad more daunting in theory than it had actually been in practice.
Ahead lay the farmhouse with its cracking and flaking white paint that showed through to weathered gray boards underneath. One window, close to the front door on the bottom floor, was broken and covered by a blue tarp. The house was at the center of a large, square clearing and there was a worn down barn that, coming from the driveway, was located to the left side of the house. And there was a shed behind the house, currently out of sight.
“This is home,” Atlanta said softly.
“Home,” Ashley repeated.
“I still don’t like it,” Daniel muttered.
“Since this is all actually an elaborate punishment for you,” Atlanta said, “it’s time for the worse torture of all: you get to pick your own room. If you don’t like that, we can always use an alternative means of torture.”
“I think I’d rather pick my room.”
“Smart man.”
Atlanta walked toward the house and the rest of them followed. Looking up at the farmhouse, it seemed to loom over Daniel, making feel a flash of vertigo. He sought Ashley’s hand and she allowed him to squeeze it for comfort as Atlanta unlocked the door—it was a new lock, put in recently—and the three of them proceeded through the doorway.
Their footsteps were loud and echoey on the hardwood in the empty house, though it wasn’t unfurnished—there was, all told, a complete set of furniture in the living as well as, Daniel was aware, throughout the whole house—it was just empty in a lifeless sense, exactly like the one time early in Daniel’s life that he had visited the home of a recently deceased relative whom he didn’t know. He noticed, glancing around, still clutching Ashley’s hand, that there were no pictures featuring the farmhouse’s previous occupants. They had all been taken down. This realization made him uncomfortable, made him feel like an intruder.
Ashley pulled her hand away and crouched in front of Daniel. “Time to pick your room. Any one of them on the second floor could be yours. Think you can find your way upstairs?”
He nodded.
Atlanta came back over and ruffled his hair. She said, “There isn’t anything in here to hurt you. All the same, stay on the lookout and be careful. Alrighty?”
He made a noncommittal noise and hesitantly moved through the living room.
The farmhouse was massive. Six bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a walk-in pantry, a storeroom, a utility room, a cellar, an attic, a study, a large number of closets, a den, and the living room constituted its interior. Outside were a front and back porch and, of course, the equally massive barn and the more normal-sized shed. For his first visit here, it was all a bit overwhelming, so he made a beeline to the stairs and climbed up to the first landing. It was there, looking up those remaining steps at the eerie emptiness ahead, that his courage faltered.
Just as he was preparing to head back, he heard Ashley listing off chores they needed to get working on in preparation for the others and that provided the push needed to send Daniel up the rest of the stairs and on to the second floor.
He paused at the top, looked left, right, and continued left down the hallway connecting the upstairs rooms. The first door he passed looked like a study—he peeped in, because the door was open, and saw a desk as well as several shelves filled with books—and he hurried to the next door, feeling that he didn’t belong in there. His fingers brushed the cold knob of a closed door and withdrew shivering. He assumed it was only a closet and moved on.
The door of the next room, capping off the hall, was wide open. He entered, feeling a loosening in his sense of un-belonging as he surveyed the interior. There was an undressed twin-sized bed—which he was thankful for because it would have been uncomfortable had the bed still be dressed by the house’s previous occupant—and the tanned, weathered-looking wallpaper bore a repeating flower design that was dark green stalks with small purple blossoms. He stepped closer, squinted, and believed he could make out columns and newspaper text underneath the paint. He realized it had been a custom effort, homemade. He reached out and ran his hand along the stenciled flower. It had a pleasant texture.
Daniel drew a few steps back and saw some kind of veiled specter made movements in his peripheral vision. His eyes snapped to it, and he saw the white curtains hung about the window were being pushed in by a breeze. He approached the window cautiously, eying the curtains with mild concern, and looked out with a terrified, somewhat awed expression. The field was larger from this perspective, and the weeds and grass rolled and rippled in the wind like water or fur, stretching to its northern boundary of a far off treeline, the remaining, dying corn stalks dotting it like blemishes. It did look sad and lonely.
How do you make friends with a field? he wondered, imagining himself shaking a stalk like it was a hand and saying hello, feeling rather silly.
Daniel crept away from the window, giving the pleasant wallpaper another look as he returned hallway and checked out the opposite side of the hall. He ignored another closed closet door, peeked into the den, and passed up a larger bedroom because he knew he didn’t need such a large space. He entered the final room, which was similar in size to the other one he was considering, and he guessed—by the blue wall color and checkered pattern below the trim high up on the wall—that this was a young boy’s room before the outbreak.
Goosebumps broke out on his skin and he rubbed his arms, an unsettled look crossing his face, and shivered. Uncle Jerry’s jacket, while oversized for Daniel, was perfectly capable of warding off the cold. Now he wondered if it could ward off monsters. He touched the cold wall—it had a genetic texture—and his shivering was renewed. Haunted.
Maybe it was just… a lonesome ghost. He could imagine that easier than a field. But, oddly, he disliked the idea of befriending a ghost even more than he did the field. He stayed long enough to look out the window, seeing south down the Rosa Drive all the way to the scar the county road cut into the overgrown fields, but the road itself was hidden. He returned to the stairs and leaned on the banister as he made his decision. Whichever he chose, the one he didn’t choose would be taken by tomorrow. If he regretted his decision, it was unlikely he would get a chance to change his mind, unless someone was willing to trade.
[The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
[The Southern Bedroom—overlook of Rosa Drive, possibly haunted.]
Notes: Here we are, with Daniel and his parents at what will be their new home for the indefinite future, awaiting others who will soon join them. There's been a time skip of a few months, if you count the flashbacks in chapter 14, if not, then it's been even longer. There's a lot this first part didn't go over, but there will be a trickle of information over the course of this chapter filling in the gaps, explaining what has become of the Laredo community. I give a very general explanation, which should clear some things up without having to get into the details: Natalie's plan has been put into action.
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Dang, that choice took me a bit to decide on, but I think I'll say
[The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
just because I think it'll help Daniel keep his mood up and all.
Great way to start off the Chapter!
Oh... man, I was not expecting that. I actually read that part twice and my first reaction was something along the lines of "Oh my god, what's happening, where's Laredo, where's the others, oh my god, they're all dead, aren't they?" and it was almost cardiologist time again
Though then I read the part again and somehow it does not feel as if something truly horrible happened to the others in the meantime. First of all, Atlanta and Ashley appear happy. I doubt either of them could even fake a smile or be as playful if Jake, Josie or their other friends would have been killed due to something that happened during this small timeskip. Neither do I think Daniel would be as, well, normal, if these people that have become so important of him would have been taken away. I am also pretty sure that, even if Ashley and Atlanta would have tried to hide such a thing, he would have caught up to it by now. He's not stupid, after all. And finally, most importantly, you mention a couple of others that will join these three soon and I have reason to believe that it will be the rest of our dear Laredo sweets.
That opens up the question just what is happening there, why they are at the farmhouse and not at Laredo and why they consider this place to be their new home now. However, Natalie's plan... that sounded really dark and ominous at first, given that I don't trust Natalie farther than I can shoot her, but then it rang a bell and I went back a couple of pages to check it. It was never mentioned in a part, which is why it took me a little longer to find it, but you mentioned in one comment that Natalie and the Scott the scout (I only just now realize how ridiculously similar his name and profession sound
) plan to divide Laredo into smaller, self-sufficient settlements. While I don't necessarily like this idea, their situation has unarguably been dire and they might have decided on this after not hearing anything from the expedition for so long. It is a heavy step, but I doubt they had much of a choice in the end.
And there has been a small timeskip since we have last seen them, but I am not sure how long. This is thirteen months after the apocalypse started. As far as I know, the Harvest Hills/Zafir meet-up in Act 1 happened around 2 months in, then there has been the flight of the remaining Harvest Hills group and the 8 months timeskip. Then there have been the events of Act 3, which couldn't have taken longer than 1 month. Meaning this is 2 or 3 months after we have last seen the Laredo community. This means Josie is likely around 4 months pregnant by now. While I am by no means an expert on pregnancy, isn't 4 months the time where the woman starts to get physically affected by the pregnancy? This could explain why Ashley, Atlanta and Dan travelled ahead, probably to scout the location, while Jake, Josie and probably others (though I don't know whom. Jefferson? Stephen? Keith and Lindsay? Natalie herself?) travel more slowly behind them in case anything goes wrong. I am at least sure that Josie and Jake will be part of the same group as Ashley, Atlanta and Dan, given how much they have been through. They are family by now.
So... my initial reaction has been highly concerned, but now I am calmer again. I doubt things will remain all that happily, but for now, I'm having a relatively peaceful feeling on the whole situation, which is seriously rare, considering that it's me we're talking about. However, I remain concerned about Calvin's death. With the communities splitting up, it seems unlikely the killer is going to be caught, if there has been a killer. That is actually not even the worst outcome. The worst would be that Josie and her unborn baby are going to move in with a potentially still murderous killer, who could end up posing a serious threat to her and to the others. Alright... now I am concerned, but still not as much as I was at first, before analyzing the situation. I just hope we'll get to learn what exactly happened to Laredo and where the others are in the near future as I cannot wait for this information to be revealed. Ah, I cannot wait for more of the group formerly known as the Laredo group in general. That brings up the question, how am I supposed to call them now? The Rosa Drive group? That is going to take a while to get used to
Now for the choice, I choose [The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
There is no particular reason for this, to be honest. I don't see any negative outcomes for either choice, but I must say, I was wrong in the past about such seemingly minor choices. However, this bedroom seems like the better one for Dan, who is still a kid after all and he should get a nice view from his room.
[The Northern Bedroom—overlook of the field, pleasant wallpaper.]
I'm gonna go with this bedroom because I mean if Daniel's going to make friends with the field, there's no need for a ghost to get in his way, no matter how cool the room looks.