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Hey everybody, just a quick heads up. Final exams are starting so the next update might be awhile. Yes, even by my standards. Stay tuned, and a huge thanks to everyone who's participated in this.

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I'm going to provide a dissenting opinion and say ask, because A) The others can deny her, thinking it's not serious, and she doesn't have the guts to stand up for herself, and B) She'll probably have to pee again later, even if she does go now. Mostly, I just don't think it makes narrative sense for her to not ask for a bathroom break, no matter how hot it would be. 

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On ‎11‎/‎09‎/‎2017 at 8:08 PM, lmhawk said:

I'm going to provide a dissenting opinion and say ask, because A) The others can deny her, thinking it's not serious, and she doesn't have the guts to stand up for herself, and B) She'll probably have to pee again later, even if she does go now. Mostly, I just don't think it makes narrative sense for her to not ask for a bathroom break, no matter how hot it would be. 

agreed

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Sorry this one's a little late. Also, I probably should have mentioned this earlier but feedback is welcome

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“Eve!” Miller repeated. “Are ya deaf? We’re leaving!”

I can relieve myself later, Eve thought, heading out of the gas station. “Coming!” she called. They all piled back into their vehicle, with Eve praying that their destination was near.

As the jeep trundled on, there seemed to be no end to the wastelands.

Did Miller underestimate the distance? Eve wondered, her desperation growing by the minute.  It shouldn’t be nearly this far…

She considered giving in and asking to stop, but that simply didn’t seem logical to her. She had already decided on a course of action, she reasoned; altering her plans now would just waste time. Therefore, Eve concluded she had no other option than to hold it, no matter how her bladder protested.

 

“Hey, you all right up there?” Anne asked a little while later. “You look paler than usual.”

“I am fine,” Eve replied automatically. In reality, she was at her absolute limit; her urethra felt like it was holding back a flood. Eve hadn’t had any idea she could hold so much urine, and she doubted she could for much longer. She resolved that she would get out and pee as soon as they reached their destination. In the meantime, she could only hold her midsection so tightly that it hurt.

 

“Here we are!” Miller announced at long last. Eve had never heard such beautiful words in her life. Feeling a few warm drops leak out of her, Eve knew beyond any doubt that she couldn’t hold it in any longer. Before they had fully come to a stop, she leapt out of the jeep, landed harder than she had anticipated and fell down on her rear. Eve realized a split second too late that the impact had been too much for her poor bladder. She looked down in horror as the floodgates burst.

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It felt like a water balloon had burst in her suit. Warm pee flooded out of her urethra, her skintight suit retaining every drop. Eve tried desperately to deconstruct the suit, which was getting wetter by the second, but it simply refused to vanish. She wasn’t sure if it was because it had gotten wet or because she couldn’t concentrate (her feelings of relief were occupying her mind.) In any event, her crotch was now soaked.

 

Eventually, after what had likely been a full minute, Eve’s stream began to peter out. Her bladder gave out a few last spurts then lay still, completely emptied. Her suit finally deconstructed, spilling all the pee it contained onto the ground. Eve sat there, naked and humiliated, in the puddle of her own urine. She dreaded what her companions would have to say about her embarrassing accident. They’ll never respect me as a member of the team after this, she thought, tears welling in her eyes. They’ll think I’m just like a little girl who wets herself…

 

“Well, when you gotta go, you gotta go.” David’s weak attempt at humor finally broke the silence.

“Shut up,” said Anne. “I’ll handle this.”

This is it, thought Eve, preparing for a tongue-lashing from the fiery young girl. Instead, she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. Eve looked up and saw Anne handing her one of the rolls of toilet paper from the gas station.

“Here, get yourself cleaned up and let’s get on with the mission.”

 

Conflicted emotions ran through Eve. “A-aren’t you upset with me?” she asked hesitantly. “Or disappointed? The behavior I just displayed was very inappropriate for a mercenary.”

Anne shrugged. “So? I know I make fun of you, but you’re a total badass. A little weird, but still badass. Who cares if you piss yourself? You’re still an awesome merc; you just need to ask for bathroom breaks sometimes.”

Slowly, Eve began to smile. “Next time, I will.” She stood up and used a strip of toilet paper to wipe her privates. Reconstructing her suit, Eve was dismayed to find that it was still damp.

“I guess I’ll have to go naked for a while,” said Eve, making the suit vanish once again.

“Whatever,” said Anne with a playful roll of her eyes.

 

With that taken care of, Eve turned her attention to the building in front of them. The small hospital was in much better shape than the gas station; the brickwork looked sturdy and the glass windows were still intact. Eve guessed it had been abandoned fairly recently. Wordlessly, the mercs drew their guns and crept in through the front entrance. A quick visual sweep confirmed that the reception area was deserted, though Eve could hear the telltale moans of zombies from somewhere in the hospital’s depths. Miller directed them to the nearest door, which a sign identified as EXAM ROOM 1.

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They pried open the door and were immediately greeted by a snarling zombie in a hospital gown. Anne swiftly dispatched it with a blow from her crowbar. Searching the room, they found a few non-prescription medications that would fetch a fair price.

“How much did our client ask for?” asked David.

“They’re payin’ us for each one,” Miller replied. “The more meds we grab, the more cash we make.”

“In that case, we gotta get some more,” said Anne.

 

Back in the reception area, there was only one other door. The sign next to it read TO EXAM ROOMS 2-5 + SURGERY. The door itself had been bolted shut and had DO NOT ENTER scrawled on it in what looked an awful lot like dried blood. Zombies could clearly be heard from behind it.

“Great!” exclaimed Anne. “There’s bound to loads of good shit in surgery!”

“Or we could leave with what we already have,” suggested Eve. “We would still make a decent profit and get out safely.”

“No way,” said Anne. “You wanna get rich or not?”


 

Should they go in?


 

>Yes

 

>No




 

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

This one was really late. Fucking exams, man.

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“More income would be beneficial,” Eve admitted. “Let’s go.”

Anne shoved her crowbar under the door’s barricade and slowly pried it off. She pushed the door open, revealing a long corridor no more than three feet wide. A horde of zombies, packed so tightly that they were almost single file, filled the corridor as far as the eye could see. The undead let out a blood-curdling howl and charged towards the mercenaries.

 

Realizing that they were seconds away from being devoured, Eve quickly pulled out her railgun and fired. There was a burst of heat and light as the electromagnetically-powered projectile literally tore through the crowd of zombies before embedding itself in the back wall. The corridor was so narrow that barely any of the zombies were left standing, and headshots from Eve’s companions quickly sorted that out.  There wasn’t a sound as the mercs caught their breath and stared down the corridor, now strewn with the charred remains of the undead.

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“Holy shit!” Anne’s voice finally broke the silence. “You should use that thing more often!”

“It’s destructive capabilities are unmatched, but there are some drawbacks,” said Eve, deconstructing the still smoking gun. “It is unwieldy in tight spaces, has a lengthy cooldown period between shots and can easily cause collateral damage.”

“Still,” said Miller, “you sure saved our asses with that thing.”

Eve blushed. “Think nothing of it. Now come; let’s get what we came here for.”

 

The formerly pristine white walls of the surgery room were stained with dried blood. The electricity was long dead, but light streamed in through broken skylights.

“Spread out,” Miller ordered, “and grab as much as you can carry.”

Eve opened the nearest medicine cabinet and examined its contents. Various pharmaceutical drugs were strewn across the racks; painkillers, antibiotics, stimulants and a few anesthetics. Eve was disappointed that there weren’t any zombification antidotes, those would have brought in some serious money.

“Hey,” called Anne, “they got blood samples in the next room. Should we grab ‘em?”

“As long as they’re still fresh,” Miller replied, opening the door.

 

It all seemed to happen in an instant. The zombie must have been hiding right behind the door. The instant it laid eyes on Miller it lunged straight for him, teeth gnashing. Years of combat had given Miller incredibly sharp reflexes, but there was no room for him to properly defend himself. Eve watched in horror as the zombie sank its fangs into Miller’s right shoulder. He drew his knife and stabbed it through the brain, but the damage had already been done.

 

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“Shit!” cried David. “What are we gonna do now?”

“We must remain calm,” said Eve, though she was struggling to do so herself. “These medicinal supplies should fetch enough money to buy us an antidote.”

Their arms loaded with drugs, the mercs hurried back to the jeep. Miller grimaced and clutched the wound on his shoulder.

“This arm’s already goin’ numb,” he announced grimly. “Eve, can you drive?”

“I-I guess,” Eve replied quietly, climbing into the driver’s seat and putting the jeep into gear.

 

Sweat dripped down Eve’s forehead as they sped off across the desert. The antidote would have to be administered within a few hours or it would be too late. Miller groaned, sweating even more than Eve. The symptoms of the zombie bite were already presenting themselves; Eve knew them well. First the bitten area went numb, then the victims came down with a severe rising fever which killed them within hours. Mere minutes later, they returned from the dead as a flesh-eating zombie.

 

No matter how hard Eve tried to suppress them, panicked doubts raced through her head.

What if we don’t make it in time? I’m not quite sure how far we are from the safe zone. What if Miller di- NO! Don’t think like that! We will pull through. We always do… right?

From beside her, Miller vomited out of the jeep. His fever was clearly getting worse. Eve pressed her foot down on the gas pedal, but the jeep was already going at top speed. There was nothing she could do but desperately scan the horizon for any signs of civilization.

 

By the time the safe zone came into view, the sun was lying low on the horizon.

“S-stop… there,” croaked Miller with obvious effort, pointing to a small shack on the side of the road. “Our client’s… there.”

Eve recognized the place; it belonged to Dr. Hayes, an old friend of David’s. Eve pulled up beside the hut and grabbed as many drugs as she could carry, with Anne and David doing the same.

“W-wait,” rasped Miller, his voice barely audible now. “Anne… you stay here. If I turn… sh-shoot me…”

Anne gasped in horror. “Miller, I can’t-”

“Do it! That’s… an order…”

 

Hearing this, Eve began to seriously panic. Miller couldn’t die, he couldn’t! Desperately, she and David rushed into the shack and down the stairs to Dr. Hayes’ underground lab. The doctor, a stout grandmotherly woman, was leaned over an operating table dissecting a cadaver. She smiled when she noticed them.

“Ah, David. I take it you have the-”

“No time!” Eve interrupted. “Need antidote! Now!”

Luckily, Dr. Hayes immediately understood the seriousness of the situation. She handed Eve a syringe filled with the antidote and the mercenary ran outside, praying she was in time.

 

When Eve reached the jeep, she found Miller barely clinging to consciousness. Wasting no time, she plunged the syringe into his jugular. For one horrible moment, there was nothing but silence. Then, Miller let out a loud cough. Putting her hand on his forehead, Eve could feel his temperature already returning to normal. Tears of relief welling in her eyes, she impulsively threw her arms around him.

“Easy there,” said Miller, “I’m still not feeling great.”

“I thought you were-”

Miller chuckled weakly. “No way. You ain’t gettin’ rid of me that easy.”

 

Wiping her eyes, Eve saw David and Dr. Hayes heading out of the shack.

“Thank god, he’s okay,” David sighed in relief.

“Glad to see that my antidote worked,” said Dr. Hayes. “He should be back to normal by morning. Now, let me get your payment. I’m afraid I’ll have to deduct some for the antidote.”

“Are you kidding me?” cried Anne.

“I’m sorry, dear, but this business isn’t cheap. Maybe I can make it up to you some other way. Tell you what, it’s well past time for dinner and you probably haven’t eaten. I can cook something up and you folks are welcome to stay here for the night. What do you say?”



 

Should they take Dr. Hayes up on her offer?


 

>Yes, they could use the food and rest

 

>No, they should get back to town


 

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  • 3 weeks later...

 

“That would be most appreciated,” said Eve.

“Okay, fine,” muttered Anne. “It’s better than nothing.”

“Here’s your payment,” said Dr. Hayes, pulling a wad of bills from a small safe. “I’ll have dinner ready in a few minutes.”

 

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Mission complete!

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As Dr. Hayes put a can of soup on the stove, Eve headed back outside to check on Miller. He was still looking rather pale but he grinned when he saw her.

“Nice work, Eve. I know it wasn’t easy-”

“I-I’m so sorry,” stammered Eve. “It was all my fault, I should have-”

“Easy there,” Miller reassured her. “It wasn’t your fault, it’s just one of the risks that comes with the job. Hell, you didn’t think that was my first bite, did you?” When Eve shook her head, Miller rolled up his left sleeve to expose a pale scar. “One o’ those undead freaks got me here a few months back. It snuck right up on me as I was taking a leak.” Both of them laughed a little at that. “And this one on my cheek,” Miller continued, “I got about a year ago during a nasty scrape. Honestly, I’m lucky I survived that one.”

“So I take it you lost your eye to a zombie as well?” Eve inquired. Miller’s expression darkened, and she immediately regretted her question.

 

“No,” said Miller, his voice barely a whisper. “That was-”

“Soup’s on!” called Dr. Hayes. Eve helped Miller to his feet, grateful for the interruption. When she saw the steaming bowls of soup, Eve suddenly realized how hungry she was. It had been too long since she had a decent meal and she gladly accepted. After dinner, Dr. Hayes showed them the guest beds. They were basic but comfortable, and everyone slept well.

 

Bolstered by their generous paycheck, the next few weeks were pleasant for the mercenaries. Well, as pleasant as things got in their post-apocalyptic wasteland. In addition to decent food, they were able to make a few luxury purchases. David added some smoke grenades to his arsenal and Anne swapped her MK pistols for similar USPs, which were easier to handle and more reliable. The others didn’t change their weaponry; Eve’s guns were more advanced than anything on sale and Miller simply refused to mess with tradition.

 

The money only lasted so long, however, and the mercs soon found themselves back at the bulletin board.

“So which one are we doing this time?” Eve asked.

“I still think we should wait on the ‘Dirty Deeds’ one,” David suggested, “at least until we have more info.”

“Agreed,” said Miller, “so I guess we got one option left.”

 

Mission auto-selected: The King’s Quest

P.O.V character: David

Difficulty: Medium

Details: Make your way to King Harold’s safe zone and protect his convoy on its supply run.

 

“David, you said you know this guy?” Miller inquired.

“Not well,” David admitted. “I visited his safe zone a few years back, but I didn’t stay for long. He struck me as nice enough. A little weird, though.”

Anne took a closer look at the paper. “Says here his safe zone’s in some place called ‘La Joe-la.’”

“La Jolla,” Eve corrected. “It’s Spanish.”

“It’s also quite a ways to get there,” said Miller. “We should get going.”

 

The fastest way to the safe zone was along the coast, but according to Miller a city on the way was too heavily irradiated to pass through. Therefore, they would have to take a longer route through the highlands. To be honest, David was glad to have a change of scenery. The grassy hills spotted with joshua trees were beautiful, with no buildings spoiling the view. Due to the lack of people in the area there were no zombies either, just the occasional deer peacefully grazing.

They’ve got it better than we do, thought David.

 

After a while, they came across what had once been a farm. Most of the crops were long gone, but a stately farmhouse still stood at the end of a dirt path.

“Let’s check it out!” said Anne excitedly. “I bet there’s something cool inside!”

Miller shrugged. “Might as well.”

As the group approached the building, however, David noticed that Gertie was growling and pawing nervously at the ground. When they reached the front door, she stepped in front of him and whined, clearly not wanting him to enter.

“Guys?” said David, hoping his nervousness wasn’t audible. “I think there’s something bad waiting for us in there.”

“Zombies? We can handle ‘em,” scoffed Anne.

“I don’t think so,” said David. “Zombies don’t set Gertie off like this and I don’t know what would.”

“Maybe a cat?” said Anne sarcastically. “Whatever it is, we’ve got more than enough guns to deal with it.”

 

Despite Anne’s confidence, David hung back as they entered. At first glance, the building was abandoned. The lower level was sparsely decorated, with nothing worth taking.

“Damn,” said Anne, clearly disappointed. “Let’s check upstairs.”

David followed her up a set of felt-covered stairs. After a landing, the stairs took a 90-degree turn. David rounded the corner and his heart nearly stopped. Standing at the top of the stairs, its maw dripping with blood, was a fully-grown tiger.

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David had only seen pictures of the beast, and none of them had conveyed the sharpness of its claws and the ferocity in its eyes. The tiger let out a deafening roar and started towards them. David was paralyzed, unsure if he would be able to reach his gun in time. Besides, what if his shots just angered the beast? In the back of his mind, he recalled some advice about intimidating predators to avoid an attack. Would that work against such a ferocious animal?

 

What should David do?

 

>Attempt to shoot it

 

>Try to scare it off

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

 

Bit of a warning; the second picture here is a little gorier than most of the story. Anyway, on with the show!

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With the tiger closing in so quickly, David decided not to risk going for his gun. Instead, he raised his arms into the air and yelled at the top of his lungs. Taken off guard, the tiger hesitated and retreated slightly. Before the beast could do anything else, a volley of bullets flew towards it, narrowly missing and embedding themselves in the wall.

“Thanks for that,” said Anne, reloading her pistols. “You bought me some time there.”

 

She raised her guns again, but there was no need: the tiger had fled after nearly being shot. Continuing up the stairs, David could see the open window it had jumped through and its striped tail disappearing into the tall grass. On the floor was a dead cow: the tiger’s last meal. It looked like it was quite fresh.

“What’s goin’ on?” asked Miller, coming up the stairs. “I heard gunshots.”

“No worries,” said Anne. “We were just finding some dinner.”

“Excellent,” said Miller. “It’s been awhile since I’ve had a good steak.”

 

They travelled a little farther before setting up a fire by the side of the road. Roasted shish-kebab style, the meat was delicious. Over dinner, David told the others of the encounter with the tiger.  

“Good work,” said Miller. “Mercenaries need to be ready for anything and you really came through.”

David didn’t say anything, but he beamed at the praise.

“There is just one thing I don’t understand,” said Eve between bites of steak. “Where did that tiger come from? They are not native to North America.”

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Miller chuckled. “Now there’s a story for ya. I heard it from this old family friend named Herman. He worked at a zoo a little ways south of here, the biggest collection of animals you’ve ever seen. When the apocalypse hit, the workers decided the most humane thing to do was to leave the animals with enough food for a while and come back for ‘em when it was all over. But that day never came…”

 

“Anyway, Herman was the only one that stayed behind at the zoo. And once the zombies had devoured all the humans in the area, they went for the animals. Herman swore there were hundreds of ‘em, if not thousands. They swarmed over the fences and headed straight for the biggest hunks of meat they could find: the elephants. It was a massacre.”

 

David shuddered. “Those poor creatures…”

To his surprise, Miller laughed. “You mean ‘poor zombies!’ Elephant skin’s an inch thick; the zombies couldn’t bite through it. Anyway, you know how the undead freak animals out. The elephants went berserk; they plowed right through the zombies and trampled ‘em into a paste. In the process they smashed up the zoo and freed most of the animals. Some of ‘em just fled, others joined in the zombie killing.”

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“That was when Herman hightailed it. Between the zombies and the wild animals, it was a smart move. After the carnage was over, the animals escaped into the wild. Some of ‘em died out pretty fast, but others managed to do pretty well for themselves. They adapted to their new world and managed to thrive.”

 

Eve nodded in agreement. “‘It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.’”

“Well put,” said Miller. He looked up at the stars. “It’s getting late, we should get some rest. David and Anne, you got first guard shift.”

“Sure thing,” said David. He and Anne set up a perimeter as the Miller and Eve headed back to the jeep.

“This is stupid,” Anne grumbled once they were out of earshot. “We’re in the middle of nowhere! We haven’t seen a single zombie all day, you really think one’s gonna show up now?”

“Better safe than sorry,” argued David. As the night dragged on, however, he had to admit that Anne had a point: there were no zombies. He lay down beside Gertie and tried to stay awake by counting stars. It looked like it was going to be a long night.

 

Hours later, David had almost fallen asleep when he felt an ache in his bladder. Recalling what had happened to Eve, he decided to take care of it right away.

“Can you cover me for a minute?” he heard Anne call out. “I’m dying to take a piss.”

That put a wrench in his plans. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold it.

“I have to go too,” he admitted. Anne strolled over to him from the other side of the fire, a mischievous grin on her face.

“Since we both gotta pee, how ‘bout we have a little contest?”

 

That woke David right up. “What are you talking about?”

Anne’s grin grew wider. “You know damn well what I’m talking about. We both pee and whoever can shoot it farthest wins.”

“I, um, hate to break it to you,” said David, growing increasingly uncomfortable, “but you’re a girl. You don’t have a p-penis.”

“You know that as well as I do,” said Anne, “but that doesn’t mean I can’t piss standing up. I just have to get creative.”

“I-I really don’t think-”

“Aw, what’s the matter?,” Anne taunted. “Afraid you’ll lose? With a dick that small, I don’t blame you.”

“What did you say?” David demanded, starting to get irritated. Meanwhile, his bladder was begging for relief.

“You heard me,” said Anne. “Now are you gonna accept the challenge or are you gonna pussy out?”

 

Should David accept Anne’s dare?

 

>It’s on!

 

>It’s off.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Finally finished! I like how the drawings came out in this one.

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David swallowed hard and made up his mind. He had to pee either way, and he wasn’t going to give Anne the satisfaction of seeing him back down.

“You’re on!” cried David. “I can pee farther than you any day!”

“Let’s see if you can back up that claim,” Anne retorted.

“Oh I will,” said David in a sudden burst of confidence. “And if I win, you take back everything you said.”

“Deal,” Anne agreed. “And if I win… you lose a peeing contest to a girl. Honestly, that’s enough.”

 

With a mix of embarrassment and determination, David unbuttoned his pants and pulled out his penis.

“So how are you planning on winning this anyway?” he asked.

“Watch and learn,” Anne replied, dropping her shorts and panties. “Ready… set… pee!”

At her command, David released his bladder. A strong golden stream shot out in a high arc. Confident he would win, he looked over to see how Anne was doing. To his shock, her pee stream was shooting out farther than his! Despite himself, David took a closer look at Anne’s vagina. He had to know how she was doing it!

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Anne had made a V-sign with her fingers and appeared to be spreading the lips of her privates, leaving her urethra unobstructed.

“Hope you’re ready to lose!” she taunted.

No! thought David. If I lose, she’ll never let me hear the end of it. I can do this!

He adjusted the angle his penis was at until his arc of pee matched Anne’s. As he felt his bladder running dry, he gave it a few shakes to gain some extra distance. Next to him, he heard the hiss of Anne’s pee stop.

 

“Done!” said Anne, putting her clothes back on. “Let’s see the results.”

She lit a torch and the two examined the dark streaks they had left on the pavement. David’s reached farther than Anne’s by a good few inches.

“Yes!” cried David.

“Congratulations,” said Anne flatly.

“Now it’s time for you to fulfill your promise,” he reminded her.

“I take back what I said earlier; you’re not a pussy” said Anne. “And your dick isn’t small, I can clearly see that.”

 

Horrified, David realized his penis was still hanging out. Blushing furiously, he quickly stuffed it back into his pants while Anne laughed hysterically. He turned to head back to his guard duty when he felt her hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, David,” said Anne. She was smiling, but it was a softer and more sincere one than her usual smirk. “Thanks for doing that with me. I had a good time.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I love being a merc, but it’s nice to just relax and do dumb kid games every now and then.”

David smiled too. “Anytime.”

“I’ll take you up on a rematch, Anne offered, returning to guard duty as well.

“We’ll see about that,” said David, though he didn’t mind the idea.

 

The rest of the night passed without incident. The mercenaries ate what was left of the beef for breakfast, then hit the road again. As the highlands gradually leveled out, buildings started appearing more frequently.

“We’re getting close,” David announced as the entered the ruined remains of the city. “King Harold’s compound is just a little ways southwest of here. Apparently it used to be a high school.”

They kept their eyes peeled for zombies, but there were surprisingly few for such an urbanized area. Eventually, David found what he had been looking for . He gave Miller directions and the jeep rolled up to the gates of the compound.

 

Several sturdy brick buildings were encircled by a wall made of metal sheets held up by scaffolding. Guard towers were set up along the wall and a deep ditch had been dug around the perimeter.

“Gotta admit, this King guy’s got a pretty good setup here,” said Miller.

“Halt!” came a voice from the closest guard tower. “Who goes there?”

“We’re here about the job the King put out,” Miller called back. “You know, the supply run.”

“Then you may enter,” boomed the voice. One of the metal sheets was lowered to the ground, forming a drawbridge across the moat.

 

Once they were inside, they were shown into a small building at the far end of the compound.

“Everybody, meet King Harold,” said David, opening a door labeled ‘Throne Room.’  As usual, the King was seated in his decorated wheelchair. His bright orange robes and bushy auburn beard were impressive, but his most distinguishing feature was that his legs ended at mid-thigh. He smiled broadly when he saw the mercenaries.

“David, my boy!” boomed King Harold. “It has been so long! I didn’t know you were in the mercenary business. How-”

“Why are you dressed in such an anachronistic fashion?” Eve interrupted. “And why do they call you a king?”

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“Very good questions,” said King Harold. His voice became less bombastic. “ When the apocalypse hit, I was one of several survivors trapped in this school. I never asked for leadership, but the others looked to me for it anyway. I decided I couldn’t let them down. I organized them, and together we wiped out the zombies, then set to work fortifying the school.  I guess I became a pretty good leader, because our community really started to flourish. We brought in new survivors and established trade routes with other safe zones. Eventually, the others started calling me King. At first I didn’t like it, but then I realized that the idea of a king motivated them and made them feel secure. So I played up the part with the crown and the throne and everything. I always did have a flair for the dramatic.”

 

Eve opened her mouth to ask another question, but King Harold held up his hand for silence.

“You’re going to ask about my legs, aren’t you?”

Eve nodded, looking somewhat guilty.

“No, it’s okay,” King Harold sighed. “I was out on patrol a few years ago with my second-in-command Richard. We had almost made it back to the base when our truck hit a pothole and swerved off the road into a ditch. Of course, the noise of the crash attracted a whole swarm of zombies. Richard got out safely, but my legs were trapped under the truck. There was no way we could move it and the zombies were closing in. I told Richard to get the axe… Long story short, our paramedics were narrowly able to keep me from bleeding to death.”

 

An uncomfortable silence filled the room. King Harold slumped in his wheelchair, looking weakened from recounting his harrowing ordeal.

“Um, King Harold?” said David, awkwardly breaking the silence. “Can you tell us more about the job you hired us for?”

“Ah, yes,” said King Harold with the boom back in his voice, “protecting my cargo on a supply run to the Mount Laguna safe zone. The last few have been waylaid by a gang of thieves and murderers known as the Ravagers. I could use a little extra firepower.”

“In that case,” said Eve, materializing her railgun, “you have hired the right group.”

King Harold laughed heartily. “Brilliant! Those Ravagers won’t stand a chance! Come, let me show you the convoy.”

King Harold wheeled himself out of the building and to a garage with remarkable speed. A flatbed truck was piled high with wooden crates, flanked by two pickup trucks equipped with mounted machine guns.

“You’ll be in those, two per vehicle,” King Harold explained. “One of you mans the machine gun, the other backs them up with handheld firearms. The convoy doesn’t leave until this afternoon, but I would like to know now: who will be riding with who?”

 

Who should David partner up with?

 

>Miller


 

>Anne


 

>Eve



 

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