└ 1x1 ─ Pyra Ilver & peppersdots ┘

[Pyra Ilver]

тнeodore 'тнeo' parĸer - 22 - tagged: ophelia, joeseph, viviane

Theodore didn't have the will to argue over nothing, so simply kept quiet. Butting heads was not needed right now, but he still wondered if this was right for him. Most of the time he had been with a group, and most of his companions had always been with a group. They knew how to work together, to survive as a unit. Now, a bunch of loners were trying to do the same. The instinct with them,, he had found, was to protect themselves first, something that left groups splintered or dead.

Vɪᴠɪᴀɴᴇ 'V' Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ ~ 19 ~ tagged: ophelia, joeseph, theo

V bit her lip in anticipation as she approached the door with Ophelia. She wasn't exactly fond of the idea of going inside a building she could easily scale. But she lacked the skills to get into that centre alone, so for now she would need to deal with this. She forced a smile onto her face and twirled the knife in her grip. "Pop it open, there ain't no rest for the wicked."

[peppersdots]

✿ ophelia 'kitty' winters
22 years ⋗ alert ⋗ waiting ⋗ tagged; all

"ain't that the truth," ophelia said with a little smile in viviane's direction. she looked once more behind her at the other three before turning back to the door. they were all wary of this plan for whatever reason. you're going to get yourself killed if you have to cover for them in there, she thought for a moment as she reached for the door, pulling it open.

the inside was deathly quiet. a desk sat in the middle of the room. ophelia's best guess was that it had been a small office building of some kind at some point. she held a hand up and stepped towards the glass doors that showed a staircase past them. "that's our way up," she whispered, looking over her shoulder at them. "just wait here." again she moved forwards, until she was close enough to bang a fist against the glass. she smiled a little when joseph realized what she had done. "then you can fight them on your terms," she explained. "ready?"

♞ joeseph 'joey' dane
19 years ⋗ wary ⋗ following ⋗ tagged; all

letting out a long sigh, joeseph followed them into the building. he stopped suddenly when ophelia held her hand up. his hands were shaking a little. he took another long breath, letting it out slowly and evenly. he watched as the blonde with the machete hit her hand against the glass door.

"what are you-?" he began, cut off by the banging of two corpses hitting the doors. he smiled a little. "huh, draws them out." clearly, she had done this before. how long has she been out here, he wondered, watching her get into a ready-to-fight stance. survival became a science to some, second nature to others. he hadn't reached that point yet. he could only hope that he would soon.

[Pyra Ilver]

тнeodore 'тнeo' parĸer - 22 - tagged: ophelia, joeseph, viviane

Theo couldn't help but scowl as Ophelia opened up the door and went inside. Somehow he hadn't ended up calling the shots as originally intended. He could worry about that later, there were bigger issues at the moment.

Still, he couldn't resist a scowl as she banged on the glass. They could have gone through without resistance. His hands flew to the holster and he drew, prepared to shoot the moment Ophelia was out of the way. He wasn't fed up enough yet to shoot through her.

Vɪᴠɪᴀɴᴇ 'V' Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ ~ 19 ~ tagged: ophelia, joeseph, theo

It felt bizarre to step inside. This was a building she knew well from outside and above, but she had never stepped inside. She was glad of it now. From what she could tell from the slew of loose paper on the floor and dents in the floor this had once been the sight of a horrible fight.

As the corpses hit the glass, Viviane crouched down, lowering her centre of gravity as she had been taught. Ready to fight or to move. It wouldn't be long now either, she could see cracks forming where the corpses hit the glass doors.

[peppersdots]

✿ ophelia 'kitty' winters
22 years ⋗ alert ⋗ waiting ⋗ tagged; all

she got no answer from anyone, simply a scowl from theodore and a prepared stance from viviane and joeseph. her eyes flicked back to theodore for a small moment. he clearly didn't like her, or at least he didn't approve of her plan. but rather than linger on that, she stepped forwards and pulled open the one door, stepping back as the first of the bodies lunged forwards.

she brought her machete up, then down on it's skull. it fell to the ground quickly. ophelia let a little smile spread across her lips, satisfied with her work, then she looked up. she had missed how the other one had died, but it was dealt with now. she nodded once, then looked back at viviane. "you still want me to take point?" she asked, bending down to wipe the bloodied machete blade on the already stained carpet. she looked up as joeseph spoke. "the same thing that always happens."

♞ joeseph 'joey' dane
19 years ⋗ wary ⋗ following ⋗ tagged; all

his hands still shook, his heart rate jumping even more as he watched the glass start to crack. he could see the scowl on theodore's face, but ophelia didn't let it get out of hand. she opened the door the next minute, dispatching the first corpse. the second lumbered it's way through the double glass doors. joeseph closed his eyes.

when he heard ophelia speak, he opened his eyes and his heart sank. what a coward you are, he berated himself, dropping his gaze to the floor as ophelia wiped her dirty blade against the carpet. there were big stains on it, like something had gone horribly wrong. "something happened here," he said, making ophelia look up at him. his eyes flicked around the foyer of the building. papers scattered everywhere, a chair overturned behind the desk, blood spattered on the floor. "something not good."

[Pyra Ilver]

тнeodore 'тнeo' parĸer - 22 - tagged: ophelia, joeseph, viviane

The door was opened and within second Ophelia was moving. It had to be said she had guts for getting that close. When she was out of the way he aimed, and pulled the trigger on the other stumbling corpse. In that moment he saw only his target and bullet. He didn't even hear the shot.

He pit his gun down, hearing the thump of the body and a second behind. Ophelia had dealt with the other, the other two had stood ready. Hopefully they were prepared to do something if anymore came. Though, he hoped that was all. At the end of the day, their priority was protecting V. She was the only one that could get them across the roof tops safely, at least he hoped so.

Vɪᴠɪᴀɴᴇ 'V' Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ ~ 19 ~ tagged: ophelia, joeseph, theo

Viviane wasn't fast enough to attack before Theo and Ophelia brought them down. Her hands flew to her ears at the sound of the gunshot, and then dropped back down to her sides before anyone could notice. She wasn't used to be so close to gun fire, mostly just hearing it from far above. It wasn't uncommon though, not in these streets.

"Probably a good idea," she stepped over the corpses' body, glancing back at it with a sort of grim fascination. They fell like puppets with their strings cut, just hollow, lifeless things. "Let's go before anymore appear." As she said this, she heard faint rustling deeper inside, and knew that was a very unlikely outcome.

[peppersdots]

✿ ophelia 'kitty' winters
22 years ⋗ alert ⋗ waiting ⋗ tagged; all

with one short nod, ophelia moved forwards towards the doors. "at least if anymore find us, we know they'll be coming from in front of us," she said, holding her machete at the ready as she passed through the doors. the amount of scattered papers dropped dramatically after the doors, which made sense in the grand scheme of things, but it made ophelia feel a sense of dread that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"must be nice to have a gun," she said over her shoulder at theodore as she started up the staircase. "instead of a garden tool. course, the noise draws them out and you have to have bullets." she let a little half grin pull at the corners of her mouth. she knew that it was a little sarcastic remark, but she still couldn't resist. she knew that both of them had weapons that worked and that was all that mattered. still, he was giving her a little attitude. and she could give it right back.

♞ joeseph 'joey' dane
19 years ⋗ wary ⋗ following ⋗ tagged; all

he looked over at viviane, giving her a little sympathetic smile. he was glad that at least he wasn't the only one that flinched at the gunshot. still, he followed the others as they moved forwards into the building. he adjusted his rifle on his back as it was swinging a little, trying to steady it. the last thing he needed was it swinging out and getting him stuck and killed.

"let's hope that all the other floors have doors to the stairwells," he said quietly, looking back at viviane for a moment. "and i thought i hated open concept designs before." he laughed a little at his own little half joke as they climbed the staircase. he got his answer as they came up to the first floor, a door with a tall skinny window keeping the rest of the office out of the staircase. he stepped closer, seeing a half dozen corpses wandering around in a darkened office. he shuddered and shook his head.

[Pyra Ilver]

тнeodore 'тнeo' parĸer - 22 - tagged: ophelia, joeseph, viviane

Theo muttered darkly under his breath. He wouldn't respond to her comment, he knew the values of group cohesion and held it in higher esteem than his own pride. It was rather concerning how they were already beginning to grate on each others nerves. This early it was never a good sign.

He continued up the staircase, slightly worried that the material would give way under his weight. It wouldn't be the first time. Last time he had people to help him out and recover, he doubted this lot would wait for him, especially if he broke one of his bones in the process.

Vɪᴠɪᴀɴᴇ 'V' Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ ~ 19 ~ tagged: ophelia, joeseph, theo

Viviane allowed a smirk to form on her face as Joey joked. She had missed the sound of laughter. Before everything, she used to go to comedy clubs every Friday night, with her family and then alone when she moved out. She had never had the knack for stand up and had been far too busy to learn it, but perhaps in another life that would be what she did. Make people laugh, though her skill set was much more useful given the circumstances.

When they reached the first floor, she drew up next to him to peak through the window. Bodies moved about, stumbling, tripping, turning. Her grip on the knife increased. She couldn't wait to get back up high were she could actually see and move properly. "Strange, to think this was once an office," she whispered in his ear. "and now anyone can wander in. I wonder what happened here." she said partly to herself.

[peppersdots]

✿ ophelia 'kitty' winters
22 years ⋗ alert ⋗ climbing ⋗ tagged; all

theodore offered no reply. here i am trying to make conversation and get him to trust me a bit, she thought, rolling her eyes a little at his seriousness. "whatever," she said quietly, but loud enough that others could hear. she had made an attempt. it couldn't be said that she hadn't tried.

in truth it had been a long time since she had been with a group. she was a little worried about how it would go. but she couldn't be alone. and she had been with groups before. the transition wasn't hard, it just took time. if he won't give me time, then he doesn't get it, she thought, pausing on the second floor landing, waiting for joeseph and viviane to catch up. "looks like two more floors," she called softly down the stairs to the other two as they rejoined.

♞ joeseph 'joey' dane
19 years ⋗ wary ⋗ following ⋗ tagged; all

joeseph let out a long sigh and nodded once. "i'd rather not know," he said as her comment about what might have happened. he turned from the door, going back towards the staircase. "i already know too much about how this world works." he let out a breath before he started to climb the stairs again.

ophelia was stopped at the next landing, waiting for them to catch up. joeseph felt a little flush in his face, embarrassed that he had held them up over a moment of simple curiosity. still, he followed when they continued to climb, his gaze pulling at the door to the second floor, glancing inside as he went by. there were bodies lumbering around inside that office too. if they get out, we're beyond screwed, he thought, looking up ahead at ophelia and theodore ahead of them.

[Pyra Ilver]

тнeodore 'тнeo' parĸer - 22 - tagged: ophelia, joeseph, viviane

It really was remarkable how quickly he and Ophelia had fallen out. He was used to people with strong personalities, he knew he was one himself, but this woman was a far cry from the one who had offered condolences inbetween supermarket shelves. Not to say it wasn't appreciated, however he knew it took time for people to show their true colours. He had stopped taking things at face value a long time ago.

Vɪᴠɪᴀɴᴇ 'V' Tᴀʏʟᴏʀ ~ 19 ~ tagged: ophelia, joeseph, theo

Viviane stared as Ophelia called them up. Looking through that window she had almost forgotten why they were here. Even now being so close to the undead really unsettled her, when she was younger she used to refuse to walk through grave yards. She had no such choice now.

She shook the thoughts out of her head and followed the rest up, following Joey's eyes into the second floor where a similar scene was evident. V tapped Joey on the shoulder and nodded up the stairs. "Probably best not to hang around too long."

[peppersdots]

✿ ophelia 'kitty' winters
22 years ⋗ alert ⋗ climbing ⋗ tagged; all

ophelia froze as they passed the third floor, aware of a sound up ahead. something was banging, trying to get free. she held up a hand, indicating that she was stopping and the others should too. course they can do what they want, she thought, taking tentative steps forwards. it just might screw me over.

slowly she inched up the staircase, her machete held at the ready. "heard the gunshot no doubt," she thought aloud, still moving forwards, still holding her blade up. the fourth floor landing was littered in debris. something had happened there. ophelia jumped a little, crouching down into a ready position as the banging continued. she stepped closer to the door, which was half falling off its hinges, to see a corpse, trapped and struggling. she let out a little breath, shook her head and turned to keep going. "it's not going anywhere," she said when joeseph spoke. his next words would have chilled her to the bone if she wasn't already cold-hearted. instead she froze, nodded once, then moved on, headed for the roof.

♞ joeseph 'joey' dane
19 years ⋗ wary ⋗ following ⋗ tagged; all

"right," he said quickly, clearing his throat. he turned and followed. silence filled the air. he had heard a few words passed between ophelia and theodore before, but now nothing but silence. it hung in the air like a ten tonne anvil, almost like in the cartoons. these two could be a problem, he thought, letting out a little sigh.

ophelia held up a hand and he stopped, his grip tightening on the knife in his hands. ophelia moved forwards. when her stance relaxed, so did joeseph. his heart dropped at the sight of the once human being trapped, desperate. he knew what it was desperate for could kill them all, but at the same time, he felt something tug at his heart. back at his camp, he had been the one that had to put down several of his friends. "i'll take care of it," he said finally, a little new-found courage welling up in his chest as he watched ophelia step away. she spoke again, a little reason. "it was still somebody. someone that didn't deserve this." he stepped forwards, grabbing the corpse's arm to hold it back, then putting it out of it's misery.