With no Soul- Book One

voting closes at 8:00 PM EST, today.

So far it is looking like Wayne will ignore Mr Lewis, board up other entrances, and go after Meredith. Anyone who is lurking, feel free to vote, it's your chance to decide on what happens next!

1-d, 2-b, 3-a

1. What should Wayne do about Mr. Lewis?

B. Sneak out the back door.

Its practical.

2. What does Wayne need to do the most before he leaves anywhere? (He may do them all but which should be the priority)

C. Gather some supplies for the road.

Gonna need stuff.

3. Where should Wayne go next?

E. To see if any of his neighbors are around to help him out.

He's gonna need a posse.

Final Votes
1-D, 2-B, 3-A

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Meredith placed her backpack onto the table next to her pile of supplies and removed all of the old schoolbooks that she used in high school several years ago. The books were replaced by survival tools: a matchbook, a box cutter, a flashlight, batteries, a 3-pound bag of rice, a small pot, a journal, and a first aid kit. The side pocket was equipped with a small thermos filled with water. Meredith put the backpack on and grabbed the aluminum bat propped up against the pantry door- she used to play softball before she quit it to have time to drink with her friends. She grabbed her car keys and ascended the stairs to see her mother for the last time.

The door to the room was locked; and for a good reason, too. Meredith could hear her mother moaning softly inside. Meredith knew something was wrong with her mom because she tried to scratch her and was unable to speak properly. Meredith cautiously opened the door and peered into the room. Although it was dark, she could see the silhouette of her mother; standing crookedly by the window, hands hanging limp at either side of her. Her mother slowly turned to face her, moaned and began to inch toward her.

"I'm sorry mommy, i have to leave you," Meredith said, holding back tears.

Meredith was about ready to give her mother a hug goodbye, but thought that it would not be a good idea. Meredith's mother stopped and gazed at her through cloudy white eyes, groaning quietly. Meredith slammed the door and locked it. She bolted down the steps, out the door, and started her mom's car. After glancing at the dwindling fuel and turning the lights on, she pulled out of her driveway.

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With no Soul- Book One
Chapter Two: Shady Chestnut
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Wayne put the pieces together in his mind. Mr. Lewis was not in an accident. Getting hit by a car does not turn your eyes white and cause you to sound like a dog. Wayne used to watch old films with his friends about zombie apocalypse horror where people would be chased by rotten, hungry zombies. Mr. Lewis seemed pretty hungry himself.

Wayne immediately sprang up- he remembered that in one movie he watched, one of the zombies crawled in through a window and he remembered that his mother usually left a window or two open to get fresh air inside the house during the late summer nights. Wayne dashed to the kitchen, where he closed a small window above the sink, and then a larger window in the dining room. Mr. Lewis was making his way around the house, slowly lumbering along the bushes that lined Wayne's yard.

Wayne had to see Meredith, to see if she was okay. His heart was pounding worriedly. Wayne grabbed his car keys, put a pair of boots on, and ran out the front door, carefully locking it on his way our to prevent Mr. Lewis from inviting himself inside. Wayne booted up his car and immediately started speeding down the street, careful to dodge the debris scattered on the street.

Out of the corner of his eye, Wayne saw figures along the sidewalk. He couldn't tell if they were dead or alive. He exited the housing development and got onto the highway, driving recklessly and furiously to get to Meredith as fast as he could. He dodged a vehicle driving in the wrong lane, silently swearing at the other driver, who was probably trying to get out of town fast. Wayne turned into Meredith's development, Shady Chestnut, and slowed down as he approached her home.

********************

Tears were streaming down Meredith's face as she pulled into her uncle's driveway. Her uncle lived in the same development as her boyfriend Wayne; Oak Peak. She fled to her Uncle because her uncle was a bit of a survivalist. Her uncle's basement was set up for surviving major disasters and the chaos surrounding her certainly qualified. Meredith planned on seeing her Uncle, dropping off her belongings, and going to see if Wayne was at his house, since he didn't answer any of the dozen contact attempts.

Meredith knocked firmly and quickly on her uncle's front door.

"Hello?" a shaky voice said.

"It's me uncle Frank," Meredith said quietly.

The lock clicked. The door opened, revealing Frank, clad in a sweaty grey tanktop and long black pants. His face was stubbly. He motioned to Meredith to come into the house. It was dimly lit by backup generators.

"How are you feeling? Where are your mother and father?" Frank said nervously, embracing his Niece.

"Um, well, daddy is still in Toronto for that research trip he was on and mom... mom is..." Meredith began weeping profusely.

"Honey what happened?" Frank cooed.

Meredith shook her head and wiped tears away from her cheeks.

********************

It was strange. Meredith's mother's vehicle was not in the driveway. Perhaps her mother was well again and was out trying to get groceries or something. Wayne stepped out of the car and strode up the steps to Meredith's door. He knocked and waited. He knocked again.

"Meredith," he called.

No answer. Wayne knocked again. He waited several minutes. He stared at the door. Suddenly, Wayne began to pound on the door, yelling and grunting out of fury. Where was Meredith? He tried to peer into the window by the door and he just saw a dark, empty living room.

Wayne turned to head back to his car but froze immediately when he saw a hulking zombie lurking by his car wearing a tattered flannel jacket and frayed jeans. The zombie slowly turned its head and fixed its gaze on Wayne.

********************

1. What should Wayne do?

A. Try to fight the Zombie.
B. Lure the zombie away from his car and then try to get in it.
C. Try to break into Meredith's house.
D. Run into the backyard.

2. What should Meredith do?

A. Drop off her supplies and head to Wayne's house.
B. Convince her uncle to come with her to Wayne's house.
C. Rest at her uncles house and recover from the traumatic experience.
D. Get gas for he mother's car.

OOC: Wait, wasn't Mr. Lewis at the front door as well?

1. B
Cold and practical. Why risk a fight? Just don't be too loud about it. Also, I could just see him standing there watching the door statuesque for several minutes, contemplating horrible fates...

2. D C
There's no rest for the wicked living. Still, Meredith seems a lot more vulnerable than Wayne. She can't fight off zombies if her eyes are covered with tears.


Also, I approve of more POV characters. Makes it easier for you to punish us for stupid actions.

Mr. Lewis was at the front door, but he got bored and began to stumble around looking for another entrance.

Voting closes this evening at 10 PM EST. The time between updates on the weekend will likely be short because i have more time. During the week, polls may be kept open for 2 or 3 days each.

1-b, 2-c

1-b, 2-c

1-a
2-d

1. A - Need to try to figure out the strengths of these creatures (since it's a garage I also assume something useful will be around to be used as a weapon).

2. B - Given that Wayne was sentimental enough to consider Meredith as a first priority I would assume she would think likewise. Since she was practical enough to go to her survivalist uncle first I bet she'd rather not go it alone though.

1. A (repressed rage issues relating to getting beaten up recently)
2. C (reapply make-up)

Final Votes
1-B (tie, had to flip coin) 2-C

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"Meredtih?" Frank called from the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"I'm going to head out to find some gas for your car. I also need some other things so I'll head into town for a bit," Frank said as he appeared in the Living Room with a backpack on.

"Be careful, uncle Frank," Meredith said, still shivering from the experience she had a few hours earlier.

Frank left, and Meredith let out a deep sigh, sinking into a soft recliner. She was hoping she would snap out of this nightmare. Suddenly, a shout came from outside. Meredith heard growls. She jolted into an upright position and grabbed her bat. The growls continued. Meredith quickly exited through the front door and saw Frank in the driveway, holding a bloody crowbar, kneeling down next to a mutilated zombie corpse. Frank glanced over at Meredith.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Meredith squeaked.

"No. No, Meredith, I'll be alright. You stay home. Relax."

Meredith nodded as she watched her uncle pull out of the driveway in her mom's car.

********************
With no Soul- Book One
Chapter Three: Regret
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Wayne's heart began to race as he watched the zombie slowly limp up the steps. Wayne took off. He scurried across Meredith's yard and desperately looked around for a place to hide. The zombie inched toward Wayne. Wayne spun around and began to climb a large pine tree by the fence. He desperately ascended the tree, getting high enough so that the zombie could not reach him. He chuckled a bit, seeing that the zombie had no way of touching him.

There was a soft crackling noise. Then a deep crack. Wayne felt himself getting bruised and bombarded by branches as he fell down the tree, landing hard on the dirt. Pain shot through his arm. The glass that had been sticking out of his arm sank deeper. The zombie spotted him and was pushing branches aside to reach him. Wayne shouted and rolled out from under the tree. He tried to run, but the zombie grabbed Wayne's foot. Engulfed in terror, Wayne tried to loosen his foot from the zombie's grip. After successfully freeing himself, Wayne dashed to his car.

Wayne fumbled around in his pocket until he found his keys. After getting into the car, he caught his breath and looked more carefully at the zombie who nearly took a bite out of him. The rotting lurker was wearing a blue flannel shirt. His friend Calvin always used to wear flannel.

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Frank pulled into the gas station, nearly hitting a small sign that said 'NO GAS'. There were several cars scattered around the lot, some with lifeless corpses in them. Frank exited his car, firmly clutching his crowbar. There was no use trying to fill up using the pump, so Frank entered the main office of the gas station- a convenience store with a secret room in the back that Frank knew about because of a few months of working at the station.

Frank opened the door to the store and walked in, greeted by the stench of rotting corpses. Frank looked down at numerous corpses, each with heavy damage to the hear- probably resulting from point blank shotgun spray. Frank walked back to the register, retrieved the keys from a secret drawer, and let himself into the back room. He put the crowbar in his pocket and picked up a par of red gas cans to carry back to the car.

As he began to fill up the car, a large zombie emerged from the tree. It had a deep chunk of flesh missing from its stomach. Frank stopped, screwed the cap back on the can, and got into the car. The zombie approached the car, reaching its hand inside just as Frank was shutting the door. The door was slammed so hard that the zombie's hand broke off from its arm. Frank maneuvered his way out of the gas station and out onto the road, breathing as heavy as one would breathe after running a mile.

********************

Wayne parked his car in his driveway and stepped out. Mr. Lewis was at the front door, feet firmly planted as if he were guarding it. Wayne clutched at his arm, which was now numb and bleeding profusely. Wayne did not have the energy to fight Mr. Lewis. He got back into his car and sat, clutching his arm. Mr. Lewis slowly began to move toward the car.

Wayne thought about Meredith. Where could she be? Where was her mom's car? Could they have gone somewhere to safety? Wayne remembered from many years ago that Meredith's uncle Frank lived a couple streets down from Wayne. A loud noise made Wayne refocus himself. Wayne looked around for Mr. Lewis. He spun around and spotted Mr. Lewis climbing onto the back of his car, making loud thudding noises while doing so. The top of the car was sinking from the weight of Mr. Lewis' husky frame.

********************

Frank pulled into the parking lot of a large shopping center. Several abandoned cars were scattered about. A pile of corpses were laying next to a large van. It seemed like nobody had been here in years, even though it had only been several days. Frank emptied his backpack's objects onto the seat next to him- he would need a way to ferry supplies back to his car. He sighed.

He had been a survivalist for several years but he was completely unprepared for the recent events. Before the apocalypse, he had cleared out his drawer that had massive amounts of various plant seeds in it and replaced them with alcohol. Frank sold some of his survival guide books and lent his camping gear to a friend, never to see it again. He needed to stock up on supplies. His niece had to be kept safe. Frank never had kids or a spouse, but he wanted to keep his niece safe so bad.

********************

Meredith awoke from a short nap. She glanced at the clock. It read 2:15 PM. Meredith was getting hungry. Meredith got up and searched through the drawers in the kitchen, looking for a snack. She passed up on cookies- too sweet. Meredith wasn't to keen on salty chips either. One drawer she opened had multiple bottles of alcohol.

Meredith paused. She stared at one of the bottles. After picking it up, she felt the cool glass against her skin. She hadn't drank in weeks; not since she started classes at the community college.

"Get your life straight, Meredith!" a voice said in her head. "You're throwing all of your opportunities away."

Meredith gazed long and hard at the bottle.

********************

1. What should Wayne do?

A. Get out of the car, run inside his house, and tend to his injured arm.
B. Get out of the car, find a weapon and attempt to kill Mr. Lewis.
C. Drive to Meredith's uncle's house.
D. Drive to Thomas' house to see if he is alive and able to help.

2. What store should Frank loot?

A. The home improvement store.
B. The pharmacy.
C. The hunting gear store.
D. All three, but finish filling up his tank first.

3. What should Meredith do?

A. Drink the alcohol.
B. Put the alcohol in her bag for later.
C. Try to go to Wayne's house on foot.
D. Go outside to explore the yard.

1-c
2-b
3-b

OOC: It's somewhat unfair that we didn't know Frank was going to get the Gas without Meredith. ^.^
Also, his arm is really f*d up. I really think we should have made contingencies and stuff.
Here goes.

1-A
It literally says that he is too weak to fight due to his injury. Also, he doesn't know that Frank is a survivalist or has any reason to suspect Meredith is there. If possible, look for a weapon after he's all bandaged up.
2-C
Frank is a survivalist, he lives for the hunting goods store. Sure he could get potential weapons and needed supplies at the Home Improvement store, but at Hunting Goods he can get water filters, basic aid/survival meds, freeze dried foods, as well as the obvious: guns'n'bullets
3-B+C
Ok, alcohol can be used to sterilize and the bottle is a last resort weapon. Other than that, she'll leave a note for Frank and make for Wayne's house. If she goes outside at all, at least do it for a possibility of a better situation rather than just attract more zombies

1. C - Wayne is injured and needs help. After the previous zombie encounter it is too risky to attempt enough while injured so going to nearby potential help is a bonus.

2. C - The hunting gear store offers the best all round options for possible loot. With potential weapons, traps/defenses, food and basic medical supplies.

3. B+D - Keep the alcohol for later and cautiously go outside and take further note of the immediate area (is it near a forest/suburbs, how many zombies visible and possible nearby locations with valuable loot etc)

if you haven't voted, the deadline will be this Thursday at 8:00 PM

deadline pushed back until Saturday at 9:00 AM, i'm a bit busy right now

please vote if you havent

1-C: The house can't be too far away, and with zombies nearby, staying in the area is too dangerous, particularly with a wounded arm.
2-C: What Justo said.
3-D: Meredith has no way of defending herself if something happens; nevertheless, it's important for her to get a handle on her surroundings. This is the best option, because it allows Meredith to do that, without straying too far from safety.