Prologue: A little victory here and there makes the world turn.

"Dad! Look! A ukelele!" Stepping into a small apartment on the eastern side of old Fort collins, Alice had picked it out right away. Though Killian tried to stop her, caution making him shine it in the darkened room, but there was nothing. The little girl picked up the Ukelele and started to pick the strings a little, adjusting the turners on the top until she found a sound that she liked. For a 15 year old, she was talented as hell, took after her mother, bless her soul. He couldn't help but stifle a laugh, seeing his daughter throw caution to the wind and pluck the strings of the ukelele regardless of the fact that there could be undead just outside the door. It didn't matter, if he didn't deal with them in time she'd slice out everything from their brain to their toes. He closed the apartment door behind him and set down his quiver, exploring the apartment a little. It was small and quaint, a little messy but relatively untouched by time. There was a small balcony that overlooked the fort and a couple bedrooms to boot. No undead at all, and even a few food supplies! It seemed that somebody had lived her a while back, must have died at some point outside the room. Oh well, they'd want them to have it. "Hey! Found some cream corn!" "Oh My God! Really?! BEST. PLACE. EVER." The girl got excited easily, but then again, she enjoyed the little things, anything that could possibly make somebody happy for a moment would make her day, that in turn would make Killian happy since his daughter, Alice, was happy. It was all that a father could want.

He brought it out and found an old recliner. He sat down and inhooked a little bit of his armor, placing it on the ground. Alice walked over to the balcony door and opened it up. The light of the sunset poured into the room, coating it in a deep orange glow. She came to her father, whom was holding a the bag he found in the other room. "Is that a bag of chips?!" "Unopened, want it?" "HECK YEAH I DO. GIMMIE GIMMIE." She reached down to grab it but Killian pulled it away. "Have you no manners girl?! Have I taught you nothing?!" "Ugh...please?" "No. Now you don't get chips. Ooooh, and they're your favorite kind too! Chedder!" "You arse!" "No you!" His tongue poked out a little as he laughed, Alice glaring at him with her bright green eyes. "Come on...please?! You know I love them! Come on!" He placed his finger on his chin, pursing his lips and staring into the ceiling. "I...suppoooose. But only because you have a spider on your knee." "WHAT" She jumped back and slapped at her knee several times, finding nothing. Realizing that it was a ruse, she looked back at her father and glared for a moment before a big bag of chips hit her in the face via a throw from him. He had taken off his armor, a dirty black shirt underneath.

"So..." She said, stuffing the chips into her mouth like an animal. "How far do you think we....are from...The Temple?" "Slow down girl, you're going to choke yourself." "Can't...help it...too goo." "Goo?" "Just made...it up. Like...now. Too lazy to...use Ds." "Oookay then....I think we've still got a couple weeks left. Remember, we're in Colorado, the Temple is on the other side of Washington, in fricken Olympia." "Darn it! Oh...well, journey...not destination...right?!" He reached over and snatched the bag from her. She had eaten half of it already. "You pig!" "I take after you!" "You take after your mother!" "Damn straight I do!" "HEY!" "Oh bite me. I can curse every now and then." "Don't make me take your ukelele away." "Don't make steal your diary and pawn it off to a traveller again." "Grounded is too soft a word for what you'll be if you do that again." "Ooooh, soooo scared." He launched off of the recliner, tackling Alice to the ground and wrestling her, rubbing his knuckles on the top of her head.

They had been travelling for a good couple months across the US from their home town of texas, all in search of this place called "The Temple." Rumors everywhere said that there was this place in Olympia that had food stores that could support a town of three hundred for fifty years, protection that could repel the most ferverent of Zombies and views beyond what could be imagined. A paradise. To most people, it was a story, but Killian had proof, a post card from there, a picture from before the end of the world, soldiers and people building it, even giving an address to it! It proved that it was more than just real! It would be their home, he swore by it! He and Alice had never been ones for towns anyway, too crowded, they had each other and were happy. They used to have a third but she sadly passed away when Alice was but six years old. Since then, she and Killian had become especially close, best friends. It proved invaluable more than a few times on the road, having saved each other's lives from not only the undead, but people and plants too.

"That'll teach you to respect me, little missy." She was sitting there, her jaw slacked and her hair messed up, her own shirt sleeves stretched and used to tie her hands together. "Jerk."

Pained screams echoed off the empty walls of the long abandoned neighborhood. A man stumbled, skidded over the asphalt and fell to his face. His new bow came loose from his pack clattered to the ground in front of him. He struggled and tried to hobble back to his feet, only adding to his pain, but the hand axe firmly embedded in his left hamstring made this impossible. Behind him he could hear the barking and snarling of a mongrel growing closer until the beast trotted up beside him and snapped at his ear. He lashed out at the dog but it jumped away from his fist easily and began a fit of furious barking with spit flying from it's bared teeth.

"No!" he spat, "I'll fucking butcher you, mutt!" The man swung at the dog again and again he missed. This time the dog lunged at him, breath caught in it's throat, jaws open. Jagged teeth clamped down on his wrist and sank deeply into flesh. More screaming filled the barren streets.

A loud whistle brought relief as the monster immediately released him. He watched as it stood still, panting and wagging it's tail as if nothing had happened. Then with no warning it bolted down the street ahead. It only paused to look into doorways and sniff here and there as if searching. The sound of footsteps. Slow and deliberate. He grunted and shifted, favoring his leg and rolled onto his side. She was taking her sweet time, letting her hips sway back and forth as she walked. Bitch. He snatched the bow up and turned back to her.

"It's just a stick and a string without arrows, big guy," her voice was low and calm as she patted the quiver on her belt.

"Ha!" he grimaced, "Just what are you gonna do with those without this?" he tilted the bow.

In silence she continued her slow approach until she was nearly hovering over him. Her hazel eyes showed no emotion and her full lips were fixed in an unimpressed frown.

"Get away from me you, stupid--" he reached for the axe in the back of his leg but the pain was too much to pull it loose, "You, stupid whore!" He tried to kick her with his good leg leaving it vulnerable.

She slammed her boot down on his ankle with a sickening crack. While he was distracted she carelessly wrenched her axe free.

"You're a good actor, Ben," her voice was near a whisper, "I actually believed I had a trustworthy ally there for a while. You're an idiot though. After a whole month together most people would have thought twice before turning on me. And all that work for some extra supplies and an old bow? Honestly. How much do you think you'll get out of that?" She turned the weapon over in her hand and adjusted her grip feeling the familiar weight and balance.

He chuckled through the sweat and tears and clenched teeth, "Not just that," he gasped, "the sex was good t--"

Before he could finish that thought she flung the axe into the side of his neck. It took several agonizing minutes for him to bleed out but she stood still and examined her reclaimed bow for any damage until the spectacle was completely over. Once she was sure there was nothing more to be seen, she packed up the supplies that had been taken from her, any of Ben's more useful belongings and her axe. She was sure to clean the gore off on a clean part of his clothes before sheathing it. Then she turned and continued down the street after Chevy leaving the corpse to the flesh eaters.

---

A long pink tongue lolled from his mouth between smells. Such amazing smells! The scent of any zombies was stale but the delicious scents of animals and humans and even food was thick everywhere. There was bound to be good eats, fun things and cozy places to sleep around here somewhere! The large mixed breed followed his powerful nose into a nearby apartment complex. Some of them were open and accessible, others were locked and soon lost their interest despite what treasures may be inside. His claws scrambled to a halt on the old linoleum floor. Human voices and a strange plinking noise reached his ears. Carefully and quietly he made his way toward the sounds.

They grew louder in one of the apartments and he slunk through the front door and poked his head in and out of rooms as stealthy as possible. Periodically he stopped, listened and checked his six. He didn't like things being behind him. Then he crept into the doorway of a room with a balcony. There were two humans playing like humans do. The mongrel sat on his haunches, puffed his chest out and pricked up his pointy ears to look absolutely dashing while he determined whether these humans were friend or foe. From his experience the little ones were generally okay. Slow and uncoordinated as well. But the big ones could be very dangerous. However an intoxicating scent dulled his judgment. He licked his lips. Did he smell potato chips?

"Oh god. It's a doggie." "A what?" "A dog! look!" Alice stood, running to the dog. The Shepard took a defensive stance, preparing for the worst, but the gentle hands that graced his head calmed him quickly. A hand under the chin, moving to his stomach. "Oooh, who's a cute little doggy?! You are! Yeah you are! Ooh, he has blood on his mouth and it's fresh...EVEN BETTER." The dog got into the apartment a little and was on his back as Alice scratched at his ribs and stomach, giving him a huge amount of compliments and cutesy comments. Killian stood up, stepping over to the dog and kneeling down. "You're too groomed to be a stray...where's your owner?" He stood up and went to the door, peering out. He saw a woman walking down the hall towards the apartment. "Hey down there! Your dog came in here, least I think it's your dog. Am I going to have to shoot you?! Not really in the mood right now, and your dog is cute...uh...want some potato chips?!" She stopped where she was and drew back her bow, having nocked an arrow for safety's sake before entering the building. With the tip just out of her sight and aimed at the man's head she glared. She wasn't one for suprises. However, this man seemed okay at first sight. Slowly, the woman approached loosened the tension on the string and lowered the weapon. He would be okay if there were no traps in the next room. Even though she didn't sense anything amiss she didn't risk un-nocking the arrow or letting her fingers stray too far. She stood outside the apartment door examining the interior carefully. Instead of properly introducing herself or even bothering to keep the conversation going at all she whistled sharply. In seconds Chevy was bouncing to her side panting and wagging his tail. "Aww." "Sorry, Alice has an affinity for dogs. They like her for some reason." She just glared at him and went back to sitting.

He stuck his hand out to greet her. "Killian." But he didn't get a shake in return, just a stare..."Strong silent type?" She looked between the strange man and the hand offered to her but refused to take it. "Jera," she squared her shoulders and nodded, "Sorry, can't say I'm much for conversation or new friends in light of certain circumstances... Thanks for not hurting my dog." He took his hand back and smiled. "No problem. I'm not an idiot, I don't kill without a reason. Thanks for not shooting me with your bow...is that carbon fiber or painted wood? It looks really good. Oh, my apologies, come in if you want. Not sure how safe the other rooms are or how stable they are, but this one has a lot of the old amenities. Like blankets." "CLEAN ONES TOO!" "Quiet you." Stepping back into the apartment, they shut the door again and sat down. Though Jera didn't join them on the furniture. He handed her a small bowl of chips. "Where do you come from, Jera?"

Jera surveyed her surroundings with some trepidation and was sure to keep an eye on the two squatters while she was doing so. Against her better judgment she sat on the floor with her legs crossed and weapons within her grasp. Hospitality and friendliness were rare and though they always made her more than a little suspicious she had a hard time turning them down. Besides all that, she could use a good rest with a roof over her head.

"Ouray," she answered quietly, "It's a long way south of here. Nice enough place I suppose..." Jera took a deep breath and leaned back on her hands while looking at the ground. After a second or two of silence she looked back up at Killian and nodded, "What about you two?"