The Survival Guide

It wasn’t always like this, you know. There was a time when you could go outside and enjoy the warmth of the sun, a time where you can hear the wind through the leaves and enjoy the air. There was a time when the snow fell and was such a pure white it reflected the sun so brightly you couldn’t look at it directly. There was a time where humanity was, well, human. What a time it was. Now the sun is too strong to enjoy. Now the wind carries death. Now, the snow falls black. Now, you can only hear the moans of the dead, and the occasional gunshot. Ben, here, and I’m going to tell you future warriors everything you need to know to survive. Strap in, boys and girls, because I’m going to learn you a thing or two about surviving the zombie apocalypse. Welcome to Ben’s Zombie Boot Camp. [[Next Entry]]

Okay, okay… So… we’re the first generation of survivors. It’s 2098 currently, most of Northern America has been turned into military compounds, the population dropping to… well, to just us, and one other compound somewhere in Nevada. At least that’s what we know, they’re the only ones who ever responded to our radios. If there’s more of you out there, and you happened to find this audio journal – -//Diary!// – Shut up, Lana! Then you need to know what happened to bring civilization to this point, and how you can survive. To sum it up, about 80 years ago, people started to decline vaccinations, and over time, extinct diseases resurfaced. Only this time, not only have they mutated to reject vaccinations, but they also mutated to attack the human brain. 20 years later, vaccines became obsolete in the first major zombie outbreak in Europe, which leads us to now. All borders shut down, nations went to war, and we’re now surviving the Apocalypse. //That’s so cliché, Ben.// What else would you call it, Lana? //I don’t know, but not the Apocalypse.// You know what? Give me the recorder. //No, stop, hey!// Now, you talk, asshole. //Hey, y’all, Lana here. Uh, so… hm. The Outbreak generation had died off after establishing security compounds and pretty much trying to fix the mess they made, but instead we got stuck with the consequences. Now, we’re just surviving.// Duh. //Dude.// You do it, too! //See what I have to deal with, guys?// Listen here, [[you – ]]

//Sorry, guys, the battery died. I didn't know Lana felt that way. i wonder what this means for the rest of us? I mean, like, will she abandon us when we need her? She wouldn't do that... right? Am I being dramatic? I'm probably being dramatic. Anyway, I'm of to the med tent. Smith and his crew are coming back from a supply run and Carrie, our general, told me to meet them here. I just home none of them are hurt. Ben, over and out.// There was always a risk when going on a supply run. Someone almost always came back injured. It was rare when the group comes back and everyone’s unharmed. Rarer, even, that they found enough supplies to help sustain this compound. Ben couldn’t wait any longer. He went into the medic tent and made sure he had all the supplies he needed. He could do with some more gauze, but ripped t-shirts worked well enough. They had nothing to help with the pain, especially after the last supply run. They were down to their last fifth of whiskey, and that wasn’t enough to both sterilize and help with the pain. Hopefully, the injuries wouldn’t be too bad. If they were, hopefully his friends passed out early enough through the procedure that he wouldn’t have to struggle too much in stitching them up. Ben did a lot of hoping in the medic tent. [[“Incoming!”]]

//Hey, everyone. The battery died. So, Ben and I are going to have our own recordings to get you a different scope of the compound. My tech building is on the east border of the compound, Drew is my assistant. Right now, I'm on the way to my tech building to continue the repairs on, well, tech stuff. In order to generate power, we rely on running water to move the turbines. A week ago, a Crawler managed to break into the compound and fell in the stream that powers the generator. Needless to say, it got stuck and ended up damaging some of the rotors. Now I gotta fix it. My battery is low so I'll tune in later once I get started to walk you through basic hydro-turbine repairs. Signing off.// At the turbines, Lana turned on a headlight and laid out the faded blueprints on a table. She could barely see the text and diagrams with sunlight, it was even harder to see them in a building with no windows and dim lights. She understood that indoor electricity was not a necessity in the buildings that weren’t structured safe houses, but she felt like she should have enough electricity in her tech building to be able to at least see what she was doing. She thought it was a bad idea not to make the tech house a safe house, but, hey, she just works here. “What do you see, Lana?” asked Drew, her assistant. He was as socially awkward as it gets, but he was a sweet kid and knew his way around an engine. “I see jack shit, Drew. Jack. Shit. Carrie owes me an upgrade.” “I’ll remind you to ask her after the end of the world…ends. I had something for this.” “It was effective enough to warrant me calling you a smart-ass. So, get back to work, Smart Ass.” Drew grinned and readjusted his headlamp, nothing fit him right. “Yes, Ma’am,” he saluted and started marching outside the building to get back to repairing the turbines. Lana debated whether or not to head outside with him and try and get a better look at the damage while the sun was still out. But if she couldn't come up with a plan, she'd be wasting time outside doing nothing. Time was running out with these repairs. [[Go look at the generators]] [[Continue studying the blueprints and try to come up with a plan]]

//Sorry guys, the recorder died out... again. // Anyways, a big thing that helps is that you should stick together, there’s strength in numbers. //– But, if you find yourself in a bad situation, don’t be the hero.// Wait, wait. Really, Lana? Is that how you feel? //I mean, yeah, if you think about it, soon enough-// [[Ben-> Ben]] [[Lana ->Lana]]

Lana stepped outside of the tech building and squinted against the sunlight. She could hear Drew cursing to himself as he cleared away more of the rotting Crawler flesh. It's been a week since the break in and they're still greeted with lovely surprises of guts and skin. Lana even found a chunk of scalp with the hair still attached to it and everything. The tech building that housed her shop was near the main vein of the stream that waters the entire compound. In that vein are the three giant generators that power the ground while filtering the water to make it drnkable. The treeline that surrounds the fence of the compund makes this spot ideal for operating heavy machinery becasuse it keeps them out of sight. The bridge that connected the tech building to the generators allowed them easy access to the upper half of the turbines, where most of the problems occur. Lana didn't expect to see Drew up to his waist in the water underneat the generators, so when she walked up to the bridge and heard movement underneath the dock, she pulled out a gun and held it low, holding still. "Sonofabitch!" She started and sighed, putting her gun away. "Drew!" she yelled. "What?!" "What are you *doing*?" "I heard a weird noise from under the generator, turns out there were two Crawlers that managed to get stuck in this one... I just found the head of the second one." "Gross." "I'm going to need some help down here,Lana." "Alright, I'm coming down." Lana made her way around the posts of the bridge and worked around the slope of the river bank, trying her best not to fall onto the dirt. She waded into the river and began clearing away bits of Crawler flesh on the right side of the generator. She tried her best no to gag and cry as she felt the sliminess of the Crawler slip through her fingers (even with gloves on) but she couldn't hold back the occasional curse word when a particularly nasty piece came into her view. They spent a few minutes alongside each other when she heard the something hit against the metal fence that laid against the trees. She heard it again, the metal clanking against itself as it was beign disturbed. "Drew, do you hear that?" "Lana, you do this every time. You're literally in a river underneath a big metal generator. Every time we hear the fence it always ends up being an animal or nothing at all." "The Crawlers had to have gotten in here somehow. Two of them got caught in this generator, and none were found anywhere else. There has to be a break in the fence somewhere." "I think you've spent too much time in the tech shop. Sunlight and fresh air is good for the brain, you know." Lana glared at him and dragged him out of the water to go check the fence. She didn't care whether or not she was being paranoid. Survival is what matters in a time like this. It's better to be safe than sorry. [[Walk towards the fence]]

She decided to continue to study the blueprints. It's better she know what she's up against than to continue going back and forth between the blueprints and the generators. She wasn't sure how much time has passed before she realized that she had been staring at the same word and diagram for a few minutes and her eyes were glazed over. She was burnt out. She looked around the shop and began cleaning, anything to get herself moving. She began poring over old files about the compound and saw the first diagrams for the original construction when Drew called out to her. “Lana? Lana!” “Yes?” “Lana! C-c-come out here!” “Oh my god,” Lana said as she threw down the blueprints and stomped outside, her frustration boiling over. “Can’t you survive without me for like five seconds? What?” “Lana… I need help,” Drew said, clutching at his arm. He took two steps forward and fell to his knees, blood beginning to soak through the side of his shirt. “Drew? Drew, what happened?” she ran towards him, catching him just before he fell forward onto the ground. Lana heard hissing and looked up. [[“Shit.”]]

Lana and Drew walked towards the fence, still wet, their shoes squeaking with every step. The clanking came again, louder, more insistent. "Go check it out," Lana said, hitting Drew's shoulder. "First of all, rude. Second, no. You do it." "You just called me paranoid. If I'm so paranoid then what's so wrong about you checking it out?" "It's //because// you're the paranoid one that you have to check it out. We're here because of you." "Just come with me." Lana rolled her eyes. They followed the fence towards the sound, but as they walked, Drew tripped and fell into the dirt. Lana laughed at Drew's expression and went to help him up. "For someone who's so good at fixing machinery, you're very clumsy." She took a step forward and fell to the ground also, smashing her face into the dirt. Lana rolled over, ignoring Drew's laughs and the great, great irony that quite literally hit her in the face. She propped herself up and tried to figure out what tripped her when she realized her feet were lower than her body. "Drew," she whispered. "Drew, shut up." She smacked his arm. "Look." She pointed to the hole dug into the ground underneath a tear in the fence. A tear big enough for a body to fit through. "Is it a bad time to say //I told you so//?" she said. Drew opened his mouth to respond when they heard a low hissing sound from behind the fence. (Insert hissing audio when you roll over "hissing") "Lana, what do we do?" [[Run]] [[Stay still, slowly back away]]

The dampness of their clothes helped mask their scent ot the Crawlers. They slowly began turning away from the fence and towards the compound. Just as they began gaining distance from the Crawlers, Drew sneezed. `[Don't be mad at me, Reader. I had to do it. Just like drew had to sneeze.]` They ran, trying their best to get to the tech building without getting caught by the Crawlers. Lana had a gun holstered on her hip, but she had left the rest of her equipemnt in the Tech building. The Crawlers chased after them, hissing and spitting as they made their way further into the compound. Drew tripped and fell over, his shoulder slamming into the ground. One Crawler lunged and grabbed Drew by his leg. It twisted, turning Drew's leg around with it. It's arm dug into Drew's side, blood seeping thorugh his shirt. Lana drew her gun and fired a shot at the Crawler, catching it in the eye. Grey flesh melted into the skull as black blood spilled onto the ground and Drew. She heard hissing nearby behind a bush and went still. With a screech, a Crawler emerged and lunged at Lana. She screamed and fired a shot to the torso, and a second in the forehead. It’s black blood splattering around, grey flesh melting into the skull. She sent a third shot into the sky, hoping that the echoes of her bullets would be enough to signal [[help.]]

The driver’s side door of the truck opened, and out jumped Smith. Smith opened all the doors and removed the tarp that covered the bed of the truck. Two other members, Reggie and Alicia, left the car and began walking towards the entrance checkpoint. Ben was relieved to see that other than some cuts and bruises and a slight limp, they were okay. When he got a clearer view of Smith, he saw that Smith's left arm was in a sling, browned from dried blood. They both walked into the medic tent. Ben pulled at Smith’s injured arm and looked at the injury. If Smith didn’t get an infection from a Crawler he would almost certainly get one from leaving it open in a sling for so long. There was a deep gash in Smith’s forearm, tapering off at the ends. Flesh curled away from the wound, buried in dried blood and pus. “Jeez, man, how did this happen? Did you get stabbed or did a Crawler decide to brand you?” Smith laughed and said, “you don’t even want to know.” "Did you find any medicine at all? I need antibiotic cream." "There's some in the truck, actually, in the front compartment. I don't know how old it is though." "I guess we'll find out if it kills you or not, Smith." Ben walked out of the medic tent and looked in the herb garden tucked away to the left. If the sage had grown in enough to be useful, Smith had a better chance at a full recovery. Ben heard the crackle of a radio and Smith's voice, hushed and low. [[Go get the cream]] [[Listen in on Smith]]

C'mon dude. Really? REALLY?? You //fell// for that?? There's no way you want Smith's approval that much. C'mon, Reader. There's no cream. You should know that he wanted you out of the tent so he can communicate with someone //he clearly doesn't want you to know about//. Get back over there, Soldier. Kids these days, man. [[Listen in on Smith]]

Ben strained to hear Smith through the tent. If he moved any closer he would reveal himself. Smith's voice was low. "What do you want?" //We need to talk.// "About what? I brought the supplies here and the Southern Border is open." //Did you kill the generators?// "Kill the generators? No, they're broken." //You sure?// "You idiot, yes, I'm sure. They're all so old and damaged I wouldn't need to do anything, anyway." //You're on thin ice, Smith. You caused a lot of shit after you disobeyed me last time. Screw this shit up again and I'll hand you to Crawlers myself.// Smith was silent as he listened to the threats. Ben thought now might be a good time to step into the tent again. [[Walk in]] [[Stay hidden]]

Ben bounded into the tent, pretending not to notice Smith's quick shuffles. "I couldn't find any cream, maybe they took it to the main cabin?" "Yeah, maybe." Smith was quiet."You almost done with me here, Ben? I got work to do." "Oh, I'm sure you do," Ben said, avoiding eye contact. His hands trembled and his face felt hot. He grabbed the last of the gauze and soaked it in ointment. He silently wrapped Smith's arm and avoided eye contact. He held up some of the sage that he picked while listening in. "Take this sage and boil it with some water, the tea will help with nausea and any side effect you might get from an infection." He flashed a light in Smith's eyes. "Pupils are equal and reactive, no silver reflections, moderate redness. If you start feeling dizzy, find me immediately." Smith was already out of the tent before Ben could say another word. [[Ben's Entry]]

Ben crouched lower and stayed in the herb garden. He didn't want to rush an entrance and possibly set off Smith. A few moments went by, and just as Ben thought about standing up, Smith pulled back the flaps of the medic tent and saw Ben, crouched low by the mint. "How much of that did you hear?" Ben's mouth was dry. "How much of what did I hear?" "Don't play dumb with me," said Smith, a vein bulging in his forehead. He grabbed Ben's arm and pulled him up to his feet. Smith dragged Ben outside of the compound and tied him to a tree for the Crawlers. When Smith made it back to camp, he let news spread of Ben's brave fight against another invasion. Of how no matter what he did, it wasn't enough to stop the Crawlers from dragging Ben's body off into the night. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- You've reached the end of this part of Ben's story. Try again. [[Listen in on Smith]]

//Guys, I think something's going on. Smith has been acting weird lately. I've been watching him lately since I heard him on the radio and I think he's a reason why the compound has seen more Crawlers around. I checked on the gate after dark and it looks like it's been sabotaged. I need to talk to Lana first. I need to find Carrie Who's Jeremy? I'm so confused, here, I don't even know how to get my thoughts together. Ben, signing off.// [[Go Find Lana]] [[Go Find Carrie]]

Ben crossed thorough the compound on his way to the Tech building when he saw Carrie looking at all the supplies Smith and his team brought in from their run. "Carrie! Carrie!" He ran towards her. "Carrie, I need to talk to you," he said, clutching his side as he caught his breath. "I need help." "Can it wait, Ben?" she said, not looking up from her checklist. "I'm kind of in the middle of something." "It can't," he said. When she looked at him with an eyebrow raised, he said "I mean it can, but I think you should know now." She handed her clipboard off to another soldier and crossed her arms over her chest. "What is it, Benjamin?" "I think Smith is-" A gunshot rang through the compound, the echoes bouncing off the walls. "I didn't authorize any training at the South Gate! Who's shooting?!" The South Gate is where the tech building was. [[Lana.->help.]]

Ben ran around the compound searching for Carrie when he ran into Smith. "Why are you running around, Ben? Who's on fire?" "Uh... I was just looking for Carrie." "She's looking at the supplies that was brought in...why?" "No reason, I just really need to talk to her." Ben avoided eye contact. He was a terrible liar and tried to find any reason he could to get away from Smith. Smith narrowed his eyes at Ben. "What are you up to, Ben?" "Uh, well, ya see, I gotta-" A gunshot rang through the compound. "That sounds like it's coming from the South Gate... I don't remember Carrie authorizing shooting drills at the Tech building..." Tech Building? [[Lana.->help.]]

“Dammit, Drew! Don’t wimp out on me now!” Lana said, she can hear the panic in her voice as she tried to carry Drew into the tech building. He was skinny but damn was he heavy. She only had one small gun on her, but the holster was on the hip that Drew was being held against. The hissing grew in volume. Lana’s panic grew, as well. “Come on, Drew! Just take a step, stand, do something!” But it was no use, Drew was passed out and weighed too much for Lana to lift on her own. Lana managed to drag him to the bottom of the steps of the tech building. She laid him down and pulled out her gun. It was difficult for her to keep a steady grip on her gun, her hands were sweaty and trembling. She had always prided herself on the reliability of her hands, that and her smarts made her such a great technician. But now, as she looked in the chamber of her gun to only find four bullets, she found herself faltering. She heard hissing nearby behind a bush and went still. With a screech, a Crawler emerged and lunged at Lana. She screamed and fired a shot to the torso, and a second in the forehead. It’s black blood splattering around, grey flesh melting into the skull. She sent a third shot into the sky, hoping that the echoes of her bullets would be enough to signal [[help.]]

Ben ran towards Lana and saw Drew laid out on the ground, motionless. Lana laid beside Drew, her gun aimed at the Generators. Carrie, who had been behind Ben, started yelling. "What are you //doing?!// Lana, do //not shoot//!" Carrie pulled out her rifle and took aim at the Crawlers. But she was too late. Lana shot at the turbines below, and everything went [[boom.]]

They ran, trying their best to get to the tech building without getting caught by the Crawlers. Lana had a gun holstered on her hip, but she had left the rest of her equipemnt in the Tech building. The Crawlers chased after them, hissing and spitting as they made their way further into the compound. Drew tripped and fell over, his shoulder slamming into the ground. One Crawler lunged and grabbed Drew by his leg. It twisted, turning Drew's leg around with it. It's arm dug into Drew's side, blood seeping thorugh his shirt. Lana drew her gun and fired a shot at the Crawler, catching it in the eye. Grey flesh melted into the skull as black blood spilled onto the ground and Drew. She heard hissing nearby behind a bush and went still. With a screech, a Crawler emerged and lunged at Lana. She screamed and fired a shot to the torso, and a second in the forehead. It’s black blood splattering around, grey flesh melting into the skull. She sent a third shot into the sky, hoping that the echoes of her bullets would be enough to signal [[help.]]

Hello, everyone. This is going to be the last installment of The Survival Guide until further notice. We're currently in the middle of some major rehabilitation that will require us to take a short hiatus. With me today, I have my dear friend Lana. So… What did you learn, Lana? //Shut up. // No, no, tell us. Share with the class. //Ugh, you’re so damn annoying.// It’s okay, I’ll say it: Lana was wrong, everyone. //Uh, no, I wasn’t.// But you were. //No. I was not.// Lana was the hero, guys. //Ugh. Some hero I was.// You killed like three Crawlers at once! //And blew up the good generator, ruined my tech shop, tore up my legs and burned myself, and I couldn’t even save Drew.// … That wasn’t your fault Lana. The gate wasn’t even patrolled, and there was foul play involved. It wasn’t your fault that the Crawlers got through. And I’m the head medic, give me some credit. You’ll be healed in no time. //Foul play?// I’ll explain later. Right now, we have an audience, and I don’t go around saying things without doing my research first. //Can we talk about something else, then?// Alright, okay. So, guys, in case if you’re short on ideas and supplies, if you have a bullet and a generator and are crazy as hell, you have the perfect detonation device to rid yourself of some Crawlers. This is The Survival Guide team, signing off until next time. //I like that better.// Can’t you let me be cool just for once? //Hm… nope.// -------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for reading! Go back to the [[beginning ->Intro]] if you want to explore some more!