datadogie

Azure Dragon!

James Feryana

Name: James Feryana
Codename: N/A
Gender: Male
Age: 14
Race: Human

Appearance:

Personality: James is a boy who likes nature. He gets upset quite easily, and is also made angry easily, though not as easily. He is friendly and kind, but also quite shy.
Likes: Being outside, fun, animals, books, being petted, wolves and friends.
Dislikes: Abuse, people being mean, big groups of people,
Fears: Heights, spiders.

Guild: Azure Dragon
Rank: High C
Guild Tattoo: On his right shoulder.
Meaning: This guild means everything to James. It's his only home now, and it's where his friends are.

Magic: Requip magic
Caster or Holder: Caster
Description: Requip allows the user to change their armour and weapons by storing them in what is known as a 'pocket dimension'. The user may summon their armour/weapons whenever they feel. It is possible to re-quip armour during the midst of battle, but this requires a lot of skill.

History: James is a boy who is quite shy, but still runs to the fields outside of his home, a small village made up of a few houses. He studies hard, and reads a lot of books. Unfortunately, he wasn't liked by his parents. His fun, happy mood was hated by his parents, whom had both had a sad life full of hatred. They continually asked their son to stop running around and do some chores. James just ignored them, though, and just focused on what he wanted to do with his life.

One day, when James was ten, James had taken a carriage to a beautiful country town (due to his parents wanting time to themselves). He was taking a stroll around the town, and he spotted a large crowd surrounding a single boy. James didn't particularly like big groups, not to mention crowds, but he was interested to see who they were looking at. He walked through the maze of people's legs to get a spot where he would actually see something, and caught a glimpse of someone playing with magic. Actual magic. The boy who was doing the magic, was magically switching between different clothes and armour with the click of his finger. Something was a bit off about his beard, though, it looked too thick for his age. He then started to summon swords, and toss them around. The crowd oohed and aahed as they watched the man with his magic. After what seemed hours, the crowd dispersed, and James started to find a carriage to get home.

James found a carriage, and the carriage started to take the boy home. It was a long journey, but once he got home, he fell into tears. The entire village was in flames. He stared at the horrifying site, the carriage closing in on the blazes. Suddenly, bang! The carriage was hit by something, something that had made an explosion. The entire carriage fell over, and James was knocked to the ground. His head hurt quite badly, and as his eyes slowly closed, he saw figures approach him. Then, his vision was filled with black.

"Yeah, come on, do it!"
"He's gonna be one of us!"
"Yeah!"
Groaning, James woke up. Well, he partially woke up. He couldn't open his eyes, but he heard them. The voices, whispers in darkness. James was terrified. He tried to move, but was restricted from moving by what seemed to be straps around his hands and legs.
"He's awake? I thought he'd stay out."
"Ah, well. He can't move!"
"Yeah! Oh well, he's gonna be one of us soon!"
James felt himself being shifted in many different places. He felt pain. He felt something against his back, only, it wasn't his back. It was something else.
"Ha! Look! It's working!"
"Should we tell the master?"
"Nah, we'll tell him when we're done."
Everything suddenly seemed slightly louder to James. He felt something twitching atop his head. Two things, actually. "What's going on? Where am I?" He cried out loud.
"Where are you? You are nowhere."
"You tell him, bro."
"Guys, um, do you hear something?"
Crash! There was a loud noise as something crashed to the floor, accompanied by shouts and the sound of swords slashing against armour, and swords slashing against skin. After the sounds of fighting stopped, there was the sound of footsteps, and then James' vision came back. It turned out that his eyes hadn't been closed, but he had been blindfolded. As the blindfold got tossed away, a woman's face came into view. She gasped. "You're only a boy, and they did this to you? Those monsters!"

The straps were cut, and James stood up, shaking in fear. There was no sign of anyone else being here apart from the girl and James. There were no bodies, no weapons on tables waiting to be picked up, not even a speck of blood on the cold floor. As James turned to face the girl, he felt something behind him knocking something over. He had felt something, but he was sure it wasn't his back. He turned his head to look, and saw a tail protruding from his back! He gasped, and shook even more. The lady held onto him. "Calm down, calm down, it's okay, it's okay." She reached to his head and started to rub against something. James turned to face the girl again, and saw his reflection from a nearby window. He had what seemed to be the ears of a wolf on his head! "What's happened to me!?" James cried, sitting himself down on the table he had been strapped onto.

The girl explained that she was called Sarah, was fifteen, was a mage, and had been hunting around for some creatures that kidnapped people and made the victim one of their own. To do this, the creatures used a curse which corrupted the victim's body. Sarah had arrived while the creatures were halfway through casting the curse, and defeated the monsters. Unfortunately, James was stuck with the wolf tail and the wolf ears for the rest of his life. Well, at least it was wolf features. Wolves are James' favorite animals. After Sarah finished explaining, James looked up at her, and said; "But, my family, my friends, everything I know has been destroyed. What do I do now?"

Sarah sat and had a long think. She seemed to just be staring at nothing, her face blank. After a good five minutes, Sarah looked back at James. "It will take a very, very long time, but I know what you can do." She took his hand, and stood. She started to walk outside with him, and walked through what seemed to be an endless forest. As she walked, she glanced down at you. "Nobody will adopt you with those features, so I'm going to teach you how to be mage." James' eyes lit up, and he looked up at Sarah, who giggled. "You were at a town, looking at a mage who was casting spells to change his armour and summon swords. I saw you there." The boy responded by nodding his head. "You were there too, weren't you?"

Sarah let go of James' hand, and stood back a step. "Actually, want to know a secret?" The boy simply nodded again, smiling. He then said, "I won't tell anyone." Sarah then smiled back, and nodded. Suddenly, her body started to light up. Her clothes lit very brightly up, and James took a few steps back, raising his hand to block out the light. After two more seconds, he lowered his hand, and saw that Sarah had turned into the mage that he had saw in the town. "How did you do that?" James asked, in awe. "I thought you could only switch clothes and weapons." Sarah smiled, taking her hand to the beard. "You're right." She said. She grabbed onto the beard, and pulled it off of her face. It was a fake beard! James laughed. "Nice trick." He said, to which Sarah grinned.

A long walk later, the pair arrived at a small building. Sarah opened the door, and stepped in, James following close behind. "My home." Sarah said, as James walked around the building. Well, the building was actually a pair of rooms, one with two beds, a cupboard, and other needs of a daily life, the other room being a bathroom. "So, my student," Sarah said to James, which made the boy grin. "Get some rest, and eat. Training starts tomorrow." James complied without word.

The next day, Sarah and James were outside the house, both wielding training swords. "James, hit me." Sarah told James, who hesitated. "Do it!" James slashed down with the sword quickly, but the strike was stopped. The girl had blocked the strike. James went for another hit, and another, hitting at different angles, but these were simply blocked as well. Sarah smiled, returning her sword to her side. "Good tries, but you need to catch your opponent off gu-" She couldn't finish her word, as James went for another strike, hitting the side of Sarah's shoulder before she could get her sword up. They both laughed. "Okay, that was good." Sarah said. "Let's practice some more..."

Sarah continued to train James in offensive arts for about three months. After she was satisfied, she began to teach him defensive arts;
"Alright, James. We're finished with offensive arts, now. Now, we're going onto defensive arts." Sarah explained. James nodded in response. He had learned not to question his 'master'. "I am going to strike you." Sarah continued. "These will be slow strikes, just so you can defend easily. Block them." She then launched a strike to James' side, which he failed to block. A second strike connected to his shoulder, and then a third to his leg, knocking him over. He landed on his back, and Sarah launched a final strike to James' chest, and a quick though came across James. He doubted he could bring his sword up, so he rolled sideways. The sword missed by a centimeter, and James got to his feet quickly. A strike came to James' side, and the boy quickly raised his sword. He heard wood clanking against wood as the practice swords connected. Sarah then launched a strike to James' leg, which he barely managed to block. He managed, though, which made him happy. Sarah finally stopped her attacks. "Well, you blocked two out of six attacks, and avoided one entirely. Good, I guess." She smiled. "Though, there is one attack you sometimes cannot block." She raised her sword and gently pushed it, tip first, against James' chest. "A stabbing move," She explained, "Is very hard to block without a shield. Though what you cannot block, you can avoid. Try to stab me." James did so, quickly thrusting his sword toward Sarah's stomach. She stepped back really quickly, keeping the sword away from her. "See. Right, we will continue this for the rest of the day. I'll strike you, you block..."

Another three months of training passed, and it was now the day that he had to test his skills. A match against Sarah, with practice swords of course. The two were on an open field, staring at each other, motionless. It was very early in the morning, and as soon as the first bird sang it's morning song, the fight would begin. Sarah was as still as a rock, as was James, who felt incredibly confident. James' tail was wrapped around him to keep warm in the cold of the early morning, and his ears were folded down. All this needs is a crowd to watch the fight. Well, not really, since I don't like crowds, James thought to himself. Gosh, she's so still. It's actually kind of frightening. I wonder what she's thinking right now. Probably thinking about how much she'll...

"Caw, caw, caw!" It was the noise of a crow. Not exactly the beautiful bird they had been waiting for, but the swords of James and Sarah were already together. James quickly stepped back to avoid a stab, quickly hitting the sword to the side and slashing at Sarah's shoulder. Contact was made, but it only made the woman flinch. She swept her sword sideways, which James blocked easily. It was only a distraction, though, as Sarah pulled her foot around the back of James' leg and pulled hard, sending the boy to the ground. As soon as he landed, he rolled backwards, avoiding a stab, and rolled to his feet. He pounced straight at Sarah, quick as lightening, stabbing straight at her. She dodged sideways, but James quickly brought his sword around, hitting her side, sending her to the ground. James quickly brought his sword down on her, but she rolled sideways, getting to her feet, but tripping over a small branch on the ground. James pounced on her, and did a strike down on her stomach. Before the strike struck, James held the wooden sword just an inch above her, signifying that it had struck, therefore not actually causing physical harm. Sarah let go of her sword, and held her hands up.
"You won." She smiled. She leaned up, quickly grabbing James and pulling him on top of her, hugging him tight. "You actually won! I am so proud of you, James!" Tears of joy and happiness poured down both of their faces. "I can't believe it!" James says, his voice squeaking with happiness and joy.

They spent the rest of the day celebrating, happy. But the next day, it was back to training. They walked down to a clearing in the forest, and stood there. James looked up at Sarah, and asked something. "Sarah, you told me you were going to teach me how to be a mage, but you've just teach me how to wield a sword." Sarah smiled excitedly. "You are correct. Except, what would be the point of learning requip magic if you can't wield a blade?" James' eyes lit up. "And James, today is the day I begin to train you how to requip." James smiled excitedly, and was practically shaking with excitement. His tail was wagging happily. Sarah began to summon things, and then get rid of them, carefully showing James how to do it.

After a month, James did his first requip. He was using the technique shown by Sarah, and was about to give up, when the practice sword started to glow. James focused himself on it, and felt the sword vanish into the air. He looked up at Sarah. "You know what I do to summon my things. Try it." James continually tried to summon the sword back, but failed, and failed, and failed. A few hours later, he was still failing. He continued to try and summon the sword back, Sarah watching closely. Suddenly, saw a quick flash, and felt weight on his hands. Sarah started to clap. He had done it. He smiled at Sarah, who said. "Lucky. Bet you can't do it again." James smiled, accepting the challenge, and tried to put his sword back into the pocket dimension. It failed. Oh, boy, he thinks to himself. Here comes another few months of training...

Indeed, another few months came. Not just months, but years. Four years. Luckily, after those four years, his training was complete. He could successfully requip armour and weapons. Sarah gave him a lot of armour and swords to requip, which he did. Only, those weren't practice swords and armour. They were the real deal. After all of his belongings were requiped, Sarah looked really sad. "What's wrong?" James asked her. She looked up at him, tears in her eyes. "Now that we've learned everything, i-it's time that you went to find a guild. My time is over." James' eyes widen. He starts to cry. So does Sarah. The hug tightly, and cry for several of hours. After the time that they've been together, James doesn't want to leave.

After the crying stopped, they were gazing into eachother's eyes. "Well, I hope I'll see you in the future." James says, sniffing slightly in sadness. Sarah nods. "Sarah?" James whispers. "Yes?" She whispers back. "I-I love you." James whispers. They lean a bit closer, and they kiss. A while later, James was off, walking in the direction that Sarah had provided him with. She had told him that there was a guild nearby, in a nearby town. By nearby, she didn't tell him he'd be walking for several days, eating berries along the way. He occasionally glanced back, wanting to go back to Sarah, but he just kept on walking, tail between legs, ears folded down.

Eventually, James made it to the guild. He got a lot of funny stares and people wondering why he had wolf features on him. James ignored them, and asked Beatrix if he could join the guild. she said yes. To James, this was a home that had people he wouldn't have to leave behind.

Azure Dragon!

I have to say, those are amazing! By the way, I'm almost done with my CS. It's huge! Well, huge for me, anyway.

Azure Dragon!

I PMed you.

Azure Dragon!

What would be the minimum age for a character? I as going to make a 14 year old. Is that okay? Also, am I allowed to make up a race? Just a minor race?

Walking Dead rp

Chapter: Admission

James Feryana - Auto Garage - Shannon/Daniel/Amelia

James followed Shannon into the auto garage, and into a room with Daniel and another woman whom he hadn't met. He was away to say a greeting to the woman when Daniel asked him a question. "Um..." He had to run through his mind briefly, redoing all the events that happened. The only 'alive' people he had seen were the three bandits, Shannon, Daniel and the people on the tracks...

James remembered glancing at the people on the tracks through the window, just a glance, but he saw some figures. One may have barely met the description, but it was hard to tell from where he had been. "I'm not sure. I think so. The person I saw kind of matches what you are saying." James then realized one vital thing. His voice dropped a little. "One of the people I think Shannon was shooting at, at the train tracks..." He swallowed hard. Please don't hurt me, please don't hurt Shannon, it was only a mistake, we didn't know who we were shooting at, James whimpered in his mind.

Walking Dead rp

Chapter: Can't This be a Nightmare?

James Feryana & Shannon Greene - Beside truck, auto garage

As the others went into the auto garage, James stayed in the truck. He continued to sob and cry, upset at what he had saw. Why am I still alive? What do I do with myself? Will I just be running all my life? James argued with himself in his head as tears continued to cascade down from his eyes. "Why can't I just die?" He whimpered to himself. "Why do I have to be alive?"

After a little more tears being shed, James had fallen into an uncomfortable sleep. Snoring lightly, he shifted around, having nightmares, as if the world wasn't already a nightmare. As a giant force of walkers overwhelmed him, a knocking noise was heard. The walkers all walked away, and James blacked out, his eyes opening only seconds later to find himself back in the truck. He looked around for a second, yawning, then turned to see someone standing outside the truck. He then heard a voice, and knew who it was.

"Shannon?" He said, opening the truck door, stepping out and hugging her tight. After a few seconds, he let her go. "Is everything alright in there?" James asked, nodding slightly toward the auto garage. "I don't wanna be in this truck any longer. It's scary in there. A walker could just come and break in. Can we go inside?" He talked a little fast, desperately wanting to go inside of a building rather than run around outside or sit in a truck.

Walking Dead rp

Chapter: Troubles With the Past

James Feryana, Shannon Greene & Daniel Crowe - To the Truck

“Well for both of our sakes lets hope I do this right.” Daniel hurried down the stairs, wielding his pistol frontwards as he had done many a time before. Shannon paused for a moment to gather herself before gently pushing James ahead of her. She took a glancing look back toward the broken window and followed the pair downstairs. There was very little to assure her that Daniel didn’t mean to harm them once they were out of here, but there was no way around it now.

James followed closely behind Daniel, knife in hand. “Um, exactly how far did you park the truck?” He walked down the stairs, glancing behind him at Shannon with a look on his face that literally said; Are we really going to do this? Looking back in front of him, he saw the exit door, along with a walker that had apparently walked it’s way in front of it. “Walker,” James whispered.

Daniel raised his pistol level with the walker’s head as it turned around and gnashed its decaying teeth. He fired a single round and put the walker on the floor, proceeding to the half-opened exit door. Precariously, the man pushed through the door quickly checking left and right side to make certain no danger lurked outside. He moved with practiced feet to the corner of the building, peeking his head out and looking towards the railroad. Albeit no shots were fired, the group was still at their spot. “Get ready to run when I say go.” He raised his hand and counted down. Three… two… one… “Go!” He waved his hand forward to motion their advance.

Shannon hunched over James protectively. “Okay,” she said into his ear, pushing him into a run. Together, they ran to the nearby truck, crouched low in case of gunfire. When they hit the truck, Shannon threw open one of the back doors. “In!” she commanded, to which James complied without word. She then moved to circle around the truck, stopping momentarily to look back toward Daniel. She realized then that he had been right behind them the whole time, as she was staring at him in the face. She nodded her head toward the truck before wordlessly getting into the seat next to James.

Daniel quickly turned the key, which he’d left in the ignition, and shifted gears to drive. He drove forward, firmly tapped the brake, and veered a sharp left turn, doubling back onto the street from which he’d come. Gripping the headrest of the seat in front of her, Shannon felt her heart leap into her throat as the trucked veered sharply to the left. She closed her eyes and waited for the ride to smooth out. Leaning forward, she breathed heavily into the headrest.

He kept on the road from which he’d come. “Sorry about that, buddy.” He turned right onto another street. “Do you guys have anywhere in mind? If not, I do,” he said, glancing behind him. Before he turned his eyes back to the road, he noticed that James had tucked against Shannon, looking a little scared.

Shannon couldn’t answer Daniel right away, only responding by turning her head slightly toward James, who was now tucked in beside her. She wanted to smile at that, but it felt like her heart was splitting in two. “Are you okay?” she asked.

James looked up at Shannon’s face, and shook his head slightly. “I-I saw some walkers while we were running earlier,” the boy stuttered, looking like he is going to explode in sadness. “A-and, a-and…” He swallowed deeply, and started to shiver. “T-two of them, l-looked like my parents.” James erupted into tears.

Shannon stared; she didn’t question if James had been mistaken, didn’t even bother to pacify him. She simply didn’t have the energy. Hugging him closer, Shannon lifted her head to finally answer Daniel. “Just drive us wherever you want,” she said, her voice exhausted. Leaning back into the headrest, Shannon felt something rise in the pit of her stomach. She swallowed, trying to abate the feeling, but it came regardless. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She was finally mourning for Lexi, and maybe just about everyone else who had left her. Her sobs were nearly silent, a valiant effort, but they were sobs nonetheless.

Daniel absently heard the two in mourning, he’d think them foolish had he not understood exactly what they felt like. His voice interrupted the silence. “Every one of those walkers used to be somebody… but they aren’t more. They’re just empty shells…”

“Bastard,” James cried out suddenly. “You really think that?” He turned his head to look at Daniel. Tears were streaming down from his eyes like a waterfall. “They can’t be like that. They can’t.” James swallowed hard. “It’s like vampires. Their personalities are still there! They’re not gone!” Even the boy himself knew he was telling rubbish, but he couldn’t stop himself.

Daniel pulled the car to a sudden stop. He turned his head to look the boy in the eyes. “No. They’re gone.” He turned back to the road and driving. “Trust me… I put a bullet in my girlfriend’s head.”

“I’ve been on my own for, I don’t even know anymore! I lost everything! I’ve got nothing left!” James cried, his eyes staring straight into Daniel’s eyes like lasers.

“You’ve got Shannon. No, you’re not alone. As far as I know, everyone one of my relatives is dead. You’ve got to grow up and realize what this world is now.” And with that he discussed with him no further.

James simply turned away from Daniel, and instead, nuzzled his head against Shannon, crying loudly to himself. ’You’ve got to grow up and realize what this world is now.’ I already know what this world is. It’s hell on earth.

Walking Dead rp

James was relieved when the man said he wasn't going to hurt him, and answered his question by nervously saying, "I'm James." He looked at Shannon, then back to Daniel, but then back to Shannon. She looks exhausted, he thinks to himself. He strolled next to Shannon and stood beside her, feeling slightly safer with someone he knew, and looked at Daniel. "Well, yeah, I think we should get out of here. If those people on the tracks assault us, we're scrap." James looks nervous for a second. "Or, they could steal your truck and drive away. Not good for us either way."

Walking Dead rp

Hearing gunshots, James gets a little worried. What's going on? Did the bandits follow us? Should I see if Shannon needs help? After a few more seconds of thinking, James heard footsteps walking around. He couldn't stop himself. He got up, and started to maneuver around the pieces of furniture. Do I actually want to do this? What if someone shoots me? Nonetheless, he peeks out from where he was and into the next room. Nobody there. James slips into the room, but as he does he hears someone talking. He walks to the next door and peeks through.

James saw two people. Shannon, and a man with a pistol which was pointed at Shannon. Oh god, no. I don't want to lose her. If she dies nobody will be here for me. I need to do something. Many thoughts ran through James' head of ways to react to this situation, but one shone through. "Don't hurt my mum!" He suddenly cried out, stepping out into the open. Nobody would want a child to see their mother being shot in front of them. There were a few problems to this plan, though. Shannon would possibly have to lie about her age, and play along with what he was saying. With a little luck, it could work. "P-please, don't hurt her." James said, doing the most innocent and upset face he could.

Walking Dead rp

Chapter: Running with a Limp Leg, Gunning with a Bad Aim

James Feryana & Shannon Greene - Stumbling their way around - Floyd/Lynn/Jess/Tom/Jack/Emma (Railroad Group)

James was completely terrified. As in, he was completely frozen up, his skin completely pale. Come on, now isn't the time... He mentally shook himself, blinking rapidly and quickly taking a look around him. The first thing he noticed was the dead walkers at his feet, and the steadily gaining troop of walkers in the distance. James then looked at Shannon, whom asked if he was okay. “N-no.” He answers. “My leg is sore, and I’m scared to the core. This place is horrible, yet I’m still adorable. Okay, now is not the time for rhyming.” James takes Shannon’s hand, and tries to stand, only to groan in pain.

Frowning, Shannon gripped his hand tightly. No, it wasn’t the time, but she decided not to say anything. When the boy groaned, Shannon looked back toward the walkers anxiously. “Please tell me you can stand,” she said, crouching down to her knees. She shoved her knife back into her pack and placed one arm underneath James. “I’m going to try lifting you so you can stand.” Her voice was calm, a feat even she was surprised about. “Then you’re going to have to lean on me.” Slowly unstretching her legs, Shannon started to lift James, one arm around his torso and the other gripping his hand.

“I’ll try.” James answers Shannon. As she lifts him up, James pushes on his knees and raises himself up. The second he stands straight, he leans on Shannon. Glancing behind him, his eyes widen. The walkers were literally ten steps away from them. “If we don’t move, we’ll be zombie food.” James starts to walk with the help of Shannon. He points down the street, to where he sees no walkers. “That way!”

Her arm around James’ shoulder, Shannon could feel her adrenaline soaring. Her hand squeezed around his arm, likely causing pain. Shannon barely noticed, her attention only on taking step after step. She could practically feel the putrid breath of the monsters on her neck no matter how fast she pulled James along. She knew they were no faster than the average walker in this condition, and the reality was that some walkers had moments of unbelievable speed. “We’ll turn right up here, and then-” Shannon’s voice cut off when she spotted a man bursting out of the bushes. She was about to call out to him for help when he aimed a rifle at her and James. Panicking, Shannon fumbled out her gun with her free hand and shot wildly in the direction of their new threat. The man ducked back into the bushes, only to be replaced with yet another attacker. This one looked like a giant, a big bushy brown beard taking up the majority of his face. He had a shotgun.

As James ran with Shannon, his arm started hurting slightly from the way that her hand was squeezing it. He said nothing, though, just focused on his footing. He looked up in time to see that Shannon had fired at a man with a rifle, whom had ducked down after the shot was fired. As a second man with a shotgun popped up, James reached his spare hand (as one was around Shannon so the support was not so awkward) behind his back and pulled out his knife, quickly throwing it at the man. The knife managed to the man, but it hit hilt first. The man ducked down, and James whispered, “Run, run, run…”

Shannon thanked James inside her head for saving her a bullet. With the two men momentarily distracted, Shannon abruptly cut to the left, pulling James toward an alley. She normally would never use an alley as an escape from walkers, as it was almost always a tight fit. Just about anything could go wrong in cramped locations. Of course, this was one fucked up situation. Please, please, please… she repeated inside her head. As they neared the alley, a third man appeared off to the side. Shannon was ready for this one as she smoothly fired her gun in his direction. This one didn’t get scared like the others and shot back. His shot went wide, though it pushed Shannon into a burst of speed, essentially dragging James along with her.

As James limped into the alley with Shannon, he took a glance behind him at the two men, who were starting to follow them into the alley. Not just because they started something and wanted to finish it, but because of the flood of walkers that had continued to follow behind. Unfortunately, for them, the walkers put on a sudden burst of speed, claiming both of the men in a flurry of flailing arms. The pair could be heard screaming as the disappeared from James’ view. As they ran through the alley, a third man appeared and shot at Shannon and James. The boy’s arm suddenly got jerked as Shannon put on a burst of speed, and James was forced to follow as fast as he could. The man pursued as walkers started to put into the alley like water. Please, please, I don’t want to die, he thought fearfully in his head.

The hobbling pair stumbled over some discarded trash, but managed to stay on their feet. Shannon pulled James closer, looking back to check on the man still pursuing them. He seemed more concerned with the walkers coming in from behind, but Shannon fired off another shot in his direction anyway. The man cursed and stumbled over the same bit of trash. He fell to his feet and Shannon turned her attention back to getting out of the damned alleyway. As she lead James out on to a new street, she heard the man behind them swearing loudly.She didn’t look back, only turned to the right and continued down the road. “There could be more,” she said, as explanation why they weren’t slowing down. She soon spotted railroad tracks in the distance, and a building nearby that looked sturdy and defensible. “Here,” she said, grimly. They entered the building and Shannon dropped off James to begin barring the door. There were desks and filing cabinets scattered around the main floor, indicating it had once probably been an office space. Once she felt the door was safely barred, Shannon collapsed to the floor. “... Wait here, I’ll take a look outside.” Pausing for only a few seconds, Shannon got back up to her feet and headed upstairs. James simply just sat in a chair and put his feet on a desk, trying to relax but at the same time tried to watch the entrance.

Snaking around discarded furniture, Shannon went to one of the second floor windows. The glass was broken out, and Shannon aimed her gun out the hole as she scanned the horizon. She spotted a group standing on the railroad tracks nearby, though she couldn’t quite tell if they were looking in her direction. Her immediate thought was that the men who had attacked her was from this group. They were certainly close enough, and looked well armed. Besides, Shannon knew she couldn’t take any chances now. Gritting her teeth, she fired on the group, using up her remaining two shots. She then ducked down and fished through her backpack for more ammo. She only had one clip left. Seventeen shots. She doubted it would be enough.