Post #2567085 in The Return, a roleplay on RPG

Silas hated June. To be fair, he hated every month spent in the zombie-infested hell Earth had become, but he hated June in particular. June marked the beginning of summer in Virginia, and summer meant trouble. The heat, humidity, and bugs Virginian summers brought were less than desirable on their own, but add reanimated corpses to the mix and summers became a new kind of misery. Warmer weather meant more zombie activity; the z's tended to become more active in the summer months and slow down in the winter. The biting insects and sweltering heat that made travel so difficult for humans had no effect on zombies, and many exhausted survivors fell victim to the undead under the baking heat of the summer sun. Vigilance was more important now more than ever, but Silas knew the group was on its last leg. Rations were low, and just a few short weeks ago the group had lost one of its own to a vicious zombie attack. The remaining survivors were strong- Earth's extreme conditions left no room for the week- but still, there was only so much a group could take...

The sun was already up by the time Silas awoke, and it took him a minute to adjust to the bright light of its rays. The group had pitched camp in a thickly wooded area, but the unrelenting sun had somehow managed to find it's way through the dense foliage, dappling the forest floor with golden light. Silas looked around at the other survivors, making out the indistinct lumps of sleeping figures through his bleary eyes. It didn't seem anyone else was awake yet (save for the survivor on watch), but in his groggy state he couldn't be certain. Rising from his bedraggled mat, Silas stood and stretched, listening to his bones pop and crack as they adjusted after yet another long night spent on hard ground. If there was one thing that struck him about the whole zombie apocalypse thing (aside from how quickly humanity had fallen apart), it was how old he felt. Though in his mid twenties, Silas often felt like a much older man, both physically and mentally. The only person who seemed immune to the exhaustion the apocalypse brought was Boris, who had the energy of a man half his age (and a brain twice the size of anyone Silas had ever met).

A quick pass of his hands over his body confirmed all his weapons were in their proper places, which was at least some comfort. He drew his knife and walked the camp's perimeter, ready for any starved z's that might come stumbling out of the forest. They'd set up tin cans on a string as a makeshift alarm, but still, you could never be too prepared. After he was satisfied the surrounding forest was clear and the group faced no immediate danger, he returned to his mat and grabbed his canteen, taking a few moments to quench his first and splash water onto his tired face. Just another day in the apocalypse. Fucking brilliant. Today they were headed Northwest, which was the general direction they'd been traveling for most of their journey. The plan was simple: walk as far and as long as they could without getting killed. When it got dark, they would set up camp and go to sleep so that they could wake up and do it all again the next day. Sure it was monotonous, but it was as close to a plan as they were going to get. For weeks they'd been making their way towards Washington D.C., and now they were finally getting close. On that note, Silas decided he had better wake the others. They weren't doing themselves any favors wasting daylight, and it would be good to get the group moving before it became unpleasantly warm. "Rise and shine," he called out, his voice carrying across the camp of sleeping survivors. "It's another beautiful day in the apocalypse." Deadpan humor was Silas' preferred coping mechanism, and it was how he got his kicks in a world otherwise devoid of any sense of fun. He began packing up his things as the others slowly roused themselves, listening to the disgruntled protests from the tired survivors. He already had a feeling today wasn't going to be easy...but then again, things in the apocalypse rarely were.

Snippet #2567085

located in Earth, a part of The Return, one of the many universes on RPG.

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