After arriving at her home colony, Erin gets off of the bike and jogs towards the house. She opens the door, slowing to a walk to not scare the kids who are sitting in the small living room with Scout. The children greet her excitedly, trying to climb up her legs. Erin picks up both of them, resting them on her hips.
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“How is she, Scout?”
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“She’s…sad.” Scout walks over to take Bailey from her. “You should try to talk to her. See if she’s awake.” Scout sets Bailey on the couch before taking Rylan from Erin.
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Erin nods and walks into Skye’s room. Erin takes a seat in the chair by her bedside. Skye’s awake and looks up at Erin with bloodshot eyes, large dark bags underneath. Erin notes she hasn’t looked this bad since when their mom first died.
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“Did the doctor come and see you?” She pauses a moment. “Father said he’d send one.”
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“Yeah.” She chirps out, tearing up.
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“What did they say? What did they do?”
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“He did what he could.” Her voice is quiet and raspy. “Gave me some pain meds.” Tears begin streaming down her face. “The doctor said I’m probably not going to get better.”
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“That’s bullshit.” Erin scowls. “I’m going back to Neo Angeles soon, and I’ll make sure father will take you in, even if it’s just you. Whatever it takes to get you better, I’ll do it.”
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“You need to be here more often to help take care of the kids. I know it’s hard on Scout.”
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“Stop talking like that, Skye. Stop talking like you’re going to die. You can’t keep talking like that.” Erin clenches her fists, trying to fight back tears.
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“Remember when mom was first sick? She used to tell you that you’d have to take care of me. Do you remember that?”
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“Of course.” Erin shakes her head, wiping away a few tears that fall. “Please stop, Skye.”
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“Mom knew she wasn’t going to make it. I--I know too, Erin.”
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“No.” Erin reaches over to wipe away Skye’s tears. “You can’t give up, not yet. You’re not done yet. There’s still so much for you to live for. You can’t leave me, Skye.”
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“I--I’m trying, Erin. I’m just scared.”
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“I know. But it’ll be okay. I’ll get you into Neo Angeles, and they’ll help you. They’ll cure you, and you’ll have a whole new chance at life. Without worries like you have now. I promise you.”
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“Can you…stay here for a while? I don’t want to be alone yet.”
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“Sure. I can do that.” Erin softly nods, settling back into the seat.
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Erin pulls herself up from the chair now that Skye is asleep and walks out to where Scout is still with the kids. Both kids are asleep, napping on the couch. Scout motions her to follow. Scout carefully gets up off the couch and follows Erin to her bike. Erin removes the briefcase off the back, holding it out to Scout.
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“More injections.” She answers Scout’s silent question. “It’s not safe for us to have these like this. Don’t tell anyone, even Skye.”
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Scout nods. “I won’t.”
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“Hide these with the others.”
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Both of them look as Millie walks over, gun casually strung over her back. “Can I talk with you, Erin?”
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“Sure.” She nods. “You can go, Scout.” Scout walks off towards her bus, briefcase in hand. “What’s up, Millie?”
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“The river has started to thin out, but it’s been snowing farther up, so it doesn’t make sense. We haven’t had the people to send up the river to check what’s going on.”
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“I’ll check it out.” Erin nods.
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“I know you have a lot on your plate right now, but we appreciate it.”
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The two said their goodbyes, and Erin headed over to the bus, knocking. Scout peeked out, asking what’s up.
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“Wanna come with me to check out what’s going on upstream?”
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Scout smiles slightly. “I’d love to. I’ll ask around to see if someone can watch the kids while we’re gone.”
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“No, no.” Erin shook her head. “I’ll do it. You get changed.”
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Erin and Scout have followed the river up to the dam, figuring that’s where the water has been cut off. They pull off the road to scout out the area and see if their hunch is true. They leave the bike and walk through the trees in search of a ledge that looks out over the dam.
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“Erin.” Scout finally speaks up. “What are we going to do if Skye doesn’t get better?”
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“I--I don’t know, Scout.” Erin admits, her shoulders slumping over slightly. “But I’m not going to make plans for her death while I’m still trying to save her. If I give up and make plans without her, what’s the point of doing anything but letting her die?”
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“I don’t think it’s wrong to have a plan, though.”
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“I just…I can’t, Scout. Not right now.” She shakes her head.
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“I understand.” And she does. She knows what it’s like to lose a sibling. To watch them fade away.
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They finally arrive at the edge. Erin pulls out binoculars and looks down at the dam. “Found the issue. Infected nest.” She hands them to Scout so she can see too. “I thought they were zombies, not fucking beavers.” She lets out a frustrated sigh.
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Scout hands the binoculars back after a while. “What does that mean?”
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“We’ll have to torch the hive. I’m gonna have you stay up here. You’ll have to have my back, Scout.” Erin reaches to her back, grabbing the stock of her rifle, and pulling it forward before taking the strap off, holding it out to Scout. “Get comfortable, in a place with a good angle. What’s in the gun and on the stock,” she motioned towards the handful of bullets lining the stock, “is all you have, so you better not miss when you shoot.”
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“What are you going to do?” Scout asks.
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“Light them up.” Erin smiles slightly
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“Hand me one of the walkie-talkies.” Erin holds her hand out. Scout hands her one, and they confirm they work before Erin heads off back toward the motorcycle.
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The walkie-talkie lights up as Scout talks. “What do you mean by that?”
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“Molotov.” She answers simply, arriving at the bike eventually. She looks around the campground until she finds a glass bottle, saying it’s a lucky find. Erin pulls a hose out of the saddlebag, opens the gas can, and sucks until the fuel comes out, putting it into the bottle. She pulls her jacket down and rips off a part of the sleeve of her shirt, tucking it into the bottle’s mouth, making a perfect makeshift Molotov.
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“I’m gonna go in on foot,” Erin tells Scout, “get as many as I can in the nest, but we'll have to clear out all of them.” She grabs the AR off her back and checks the magazine, checking how much ammo she has. She grabs another magazine from her saddlebag and heads out. She walks for a while to get to near the dam. “You in a good spot?”
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“Yeah.” Scout replies. “I’m ready.”
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Erin steps out of the clearing, looking around. There is only a handful out right now. She sneaks up on the first one, stabbing it in the head, before moving to the next one, making short work of them.
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The walkie-talkie comes to life once more. “There’s a pack of infected wolves coming your direction.”
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“Shit.” Erin curses. “Plan B, I’m going to toss the Molotov now and get to higher ground to pick them off.” She lights the Molotov, throwing it in the nest. Infected behind to run out of the nest. Erin books it to the nearby building. On the way there, she can hear Scout shooting, killing those who follow after her, still alive — or more correctly: undead.
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Erin hustles up the ladder, climbing to the roof. Once up there, she starts shooting at the wolves, which Scout also starts shooting. After a while, and emptying a magazine, they clear out the infected that they can see as the nest burns up. Erin radios Scout as she reloads the gun, telling her to go get the bike and come down here. Erin takes a moment to catch her breath, but before she can get comfortable, there’s a crash underneath her, causing her to follow off the building. She groans, grabbing her ribs, and tries to look around to find out what happened. She quickly scrambles to her feet, seeing a towering infected in front of her, seemingly mutated from the usual infected as it has multiple heads, limbs and is much taller.
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Erin grabs her rifle out again, shooting the giant in its biggest head. Unlike the usual zombie, it doesn’t die, but does react.
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“Shit.” She curses moments before it smacks her with its arm, throwing her into the river. She lands on rocks, which hit her back. Though she’s in pain, she gets up to her feet, running through the water as the infected runs after her, shaking the ground. Erin growls. “You want a fucking fight? I’ll give you a fucking fight!” Erin runs back over to the building, shooting the fire box with her pistol, and grabs the fire axe out. She checks back to see it turn around after its charge and runs up the ladder. The infected runs into the building, making her lose her balance as the roof cracks, but she keeps upright.
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“Yippee ki yay, mother fucker!” She jumps onto its back, cleaving it into its head with the axe. They both fall, making her land on the ground again. She checks if it’s moving, and when it doesn’t, she lays her head back down. “That was so stupid.” She laughs quietly, but cringes from the pain, stopping.
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She looks over as she hears the motorcycle, watching as Skye rides it over to her. She slides to a stop, throwing some dust over Erin. Scout runs over to her, letting the bike fall to the ground, making Erin cringe.
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“Are you alright?” Scout drops to her knees next to Erin. “That thing is fucking huge!”
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“I’ve been better. So, help me up.” She holds her hand out to Scout to help her to her feet. “We need to clear up the nest.” She groans, holding onto her side.
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“Let me do it.” Scout looks over at Erin.
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“Fine by me. I’m not about to argue.” Erin sits back down by the river.
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Erin takes a bowl of the porridge before sitting down at the table with Scout and the kids.
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“Do you think Skye will join us?” Scout asks quietly, spooning at her food.
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“She was asleep when I checked before making food. She could barely stand up, even with my help last night.”
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Scout doesn’t look up from her bowl, her expression saddening. After a few moments of silence, she looks up. “How are you?”.
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“Admittedly sore.” Erin moves her shoulder tenderly. “But I’ll be fine. Helluva day yesterday.”
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“Yeah. I’m glad you’re okay.”
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“Would you be willing to feed Skye when she wakes up? I’m going to take the kids for a walk after we finish up here.”
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“Sure. When…are you leaving again?”
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“I’ll stay here a few days to help you out with the kids and Skye, but then I’ll head back to Vegas.”
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“What’s he like?”
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Erin blinks a few times in confusion. “Who?”
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“The guy you’re friends with there.”
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Erin takes a deep breath, before responding. “He’s…different. He’s not all bad, but not all good. I’ll leave it at that.”
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“Bye guys. Be on your best behavior while I’m gone.” Erin says her goodbyes to the kids before turning to Scout. “I’ll be back with good news. I just know it.”
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Scout smiles lightly. “Stay safe.”
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“I will.” Erin nods before swinging her leg over her motorcycle. She drives out of the colony and heads down the road, enjoying the cold air and light snowflakes, but hoping it won’t get too bad on her way down.
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She drives for a while before stopping after being waved over by a Ranger’s caravan. The leader of the group greets her before getting to the point of having her stop.
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“We heard you went to Neo Angeles.”
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“How did you know that?”
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“We have men in the area, both in Vegas and Neo Angeles. We know your connection to Biotech.”
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“Which is practically none.”
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“More than you know.” He corrects her.
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“Whatever you want, I don’t have time to get involved. My sister is sick. That’s why I went there, and that’s what I’m on my way to deal with.”
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“We understand you have your priorities.” He holds his hands up. “But we’ve been trying to infiltrate the city and have their scientists help us with making an antidote. To help everyone in No Man’s Land and now Haven.
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Erin takes a few moments to think before responding. The Rangers have always done good in her book. She trusts them. “Okay.” She finally concedes, causing the Ranger to smile. “I’ll see what I can do, but I’m not risking too much. My sister comes first.”
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“We understand.” He nods. “These orders, this information comes from General Sioux himself.”
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“I understand the severity, then. I need to get going.”
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“We’ll be in touch.” He smiles once more before allowing her to go back on her way.
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