Hello loyal readers! The merge is finally here! Along with this good news is the sad news that from the next chapter on, OC's will die. Not in every chapter, of course, but still. By the way, if your OC does die, feel free to send in a second OC. But I will only allow one living OC per person. And I'm a hypocrite because I have three :D. Anyway, THE MERGE!

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Alice woke up, yawning. She had had another nightmare, it looked like no one else was up yet. She got up, and saw that Tristan's bag was empty. He must be outside. She thought. She walked out, and sure enough, Tristan was cooking something over a fire. Breakfast.

"Hi Tristan." She said, walking up to him. He smiled at her and gave a little wave. She sat on the ground with him as he cooked. He was humming to himself. "What are you singing?"

He smiled. "God Bless The USA, by Lee Greenwood. Amazing song, and makes me feel patriotic." He cleared his throat. Then started softly started sing. "If tomorrow all my things were gone, I worked for all my life. And I had to start again, with just my children and my wife. I'd thank my lucky stars, to be living here today. Because the flag still stands for freedom, and they can't take that awaaaaay." Alice smiled as his voice rose. "And I'm proud to be an American! Where at least I know I'm free! And I won't forget, the men who died! Who gave that right to me! And I'll gladly stand up! Next to you to defend her still today. Because there ain't no doubt, I love this laaaand! God bless, the U.S.A!"

Alice giggled. "I like hearing you sing."

He smiled. "Thanks. I enjoy singing for people."

She watched him cook for awhile. "Hey, Tristan?"

"Yeah?" He answered.

"Are you my new daddy?" She asked.

The question caught him off guard. "Uh… kind of, yeah. I guess. I'm… more like a foster parent now. Or whatever they're called."

She nodded. "Ok, cuz I didn't like my old one very much." She said.

"How come?" He asked, prodding the flames.

She hesitated. "I'm not allowed to talk about it."

He tensed at this. Visibly. "Not allowed?"

Alice panicked. She had broken the rule. She wasn't allowed to talk about what happened at home. "I'm sorry, I can't say anything." She whimpered.

Tristan's eyes had darkened. "Alice, you can talk to me. I'm your friend."

Alice shook her head. "I'm not allowed."

She didn't hear him move. Then she felt him turn her to him. "Alice." He said, looking her in the eye. "Did your dad hit you?"

She didn't move, didn't confirm or deny it. After a while she slowly nodded.

"Did he hit mommy too?" He asked.

Alice nodded again, tears coming to her eyes. She wasn't supposed to be doing this.

"Did he… do anything else?" He asked, his voice shaky.

She thought. "He was mean, he hurt mommy more than me. He would send me outside whenever he said they had to have a talk."

"Did he do anything worse than hitting?" He asked. Even Alice could tell he was working to control his voice.

"He would take broken beers and cut us." She whimpered. She hesitated, and then slid her shirt sleeve down to reveal the scar.

Tristan ran his finger over it. It was jagged, and deep. He muttered under his breath. Alice started crying, then she felt his powerful arms wrap around her. "I'm so sorry, Alice. Nobody should ever have to go through that." He whispered. Alice wrapped her arms around him. They stayed like that for awhile. Then he pulled away. "Your father is lucky the zombies got to him before I did." He said. "You're ok with me, safe from him. You'll never have to live in fear of him again." he said, smiling.

Alice smiled back. "Thank you." She said.

He nodded. "Of course. Wanna help me make breakfast?"

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The blue mustang and the APC drove side by side. They had been together a week, and now they were becoming close. They stopped when they reached a gas station. They all got out. John and Jaina went to secure the inside along with Ryan and Alec. The rest started extracting what fuel they could from the pumps.

John, Ryan, Alec and Jaina came out of the station with armloads of food. They loaded it into the two vehicles.

Alec walked over to Connor, who was trying to siphon gas out of the pump. "Here." He said, taking the hose. "Let me." He worked out the gas into the can, filling it up after a minute.

The others filled up their tanks, and started pouring the gas into the vehicles. Then they went on their way.

Connor was riding in the mustang with Alec, Ryan, and Natalie. Rachel was in the APC.

Connor kept glancing sideways at Alec. Only his brother knew he was bi, and normally he just focused on surviving, but his eyes kept landing on Alec. His bright eyes, his raven hair…

Then the APC halted, Ryan slamming on the brakes to stop with them. They got out, John was walking over to a man on the side of the road. No, not a man, a boy in his teens. He looked severely dehydrated.

Ryan ran over and offered his canteen, which the boy accepted gratefully. After he chugged the water down, he gasped for air. He coughed, and the others barely heard him whisper, "Thank you." Before passing out.

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After breakfast Tristan walked out of the RV with a dagger, shaving.

Sakura stared at him. "Don't you need a mirror? Or at least a proper razor?" She asked.

"Nope." He answered. He flicked the knife, the hairs falling to the ground. He grinned, finished, no cuts to be seen. "Been doing this for years."

He reached behind his back and pulled out two pistols. "Alice, David, come here." He called. After they ran over, he placed one in each of their hands. "It's time you two learn how to operate these. I've set up some targets over at the edge of the parking lot."

David looked at Alice, then Tristan. "Why is she learning?"

Tristan raised his eyebrow. "Because I would prefer you both know how to defend yourselves."

"But girls can't fight." David said.

Tristan raised his other eyebrow in shock, Sakura turned around and stared at him. "Is that so?" Tristan asked.

"Yeah. My dad said so." David replied.

Tristan sighed. "What the hell was up with the adults in that bunker?" He muttered. "David, never underestimate someone's skill just because they're a woman. It's ignorant, and frankly just flat out stupid. There are women all throughout history who could fight, and very well at that. Joan of Arc was a total badass, and I had a woman in my squad, and she was an awesome shot. And you've seen Sakura fight."

David shook his head. "No I haven't."

Tristan narrowed his eyes. "But when we fought the bandits… You were in the RV. And you weren't with us when we found James." He glanced sideways at Sakura who was visibly irritated by David's remarks. Tristan grinned when he got an idea. "Sakura, hit me." He said.

Sakura looked at him in shock. "What?"

He turned to face her. "Hit me. Right here." He tapped his nose. "Come on."

Sakura stared at him. "I'm not punching you."

"Why?" He asked. He grinned and lightly punched her arm. "C'mon, hit me."

She shook her head. "Tristan, no. I'm not gonna…"

He started punching her arm again. And again, a little harder. "Come on, it's easy. Hit me."

She was starting to get irritated. "Tristan, you're pissing me off."

He kept at it. "Hit me. Come on, hit… Ack!" Everyone heard a loud crack! as Sakura's fist connected with his nose, and he fell to the ground.

Sakura covered her mouth. "Tristan, I'm so… Are you laughing?"

He stood up laughing, his nose bent and blood coming out. "That was one hell of a punch! Nice!" He grabbed his nose and snapped it back into place. He turned to a slack jawed David. "Still think girls can't fight?" He slowly shook his head. "Good. Now let's start the lesson."

As the kids headed over to the targets, Sakura grabbed Tristan's shoulder. "Are you sure you're ok?" She asked. "Your nose is still bleeding."

He smiled, and wiped away the blood. "Don't worry about it. I'm fine. It'll stop bleeding soon." He flashed a grin at her, and then headed for the targets to start the lesson.

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The group set up camp once they reached the city of Atlanta. They cleared out a small hotel, and they selected three ground floor rooms. They placed the teen on one of the beds. His eyes fluttered open, and he groaned, rubbing his eyes. He went wide eyed when he saw the group standing around the bed.

"Who are you?" asked John. Straight to the point.

"Adrian." He rasped. He coughed, then spoke again, more clearly this time. "My name is Adrian. Thank you for saving me."

"No problem, sweetie." Rachel said. "How did you end up on the side of the road like that?"

He shook his head to remember. "I-I got separated from my family. Well, not so much separated as they got eaten." He said. Tears formed in his eyes. "Oh, God, they're dead." He planted his face into his hands.

Alec patted his shoulder. "It's alright, kid, we've all been there."

He shook his head. "I… I'm on my own now. What am I going to do? I can't survive on my own!"

"You could join us." Josh piped up.

John sighed. "We're taking on too many people." He said. "We already have eight people."

"He's a kid, John. What's the harm in letting him join us?" Jaina argued.

"I'm sure he'll earn his keep." Ryan said. "You don't survive out here for five years without having skills."

Adrian stared hopefully at John. He sighed. "Fine." He said.

They started fortifying the rooms for the night. The guys slept in one room, the girls in the other. Adrian slept in the third room.

The following morning they started driving through the city.

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"Steady, it helps to take a breath before you fire." Tristan said, guiding Alice's arms. She pulled the trigger, and the shot hit the leg of the dummy.

"Not bad, you managed to hit it this time." He teased. He moved to David. "Look down the barrel, this bit on the end is your sight. Use it to aim." He took a deep breath, and fired. He hit the dummy's gut. "Better."

He kept going to each of them, offering pointers and helping them aim. "Steady, you've almost got it." He said to Alice. She took a breath, and squeezed the trigger. The dummy's head snapped back, a hole in the center. "Nice!" Tristan said, clapping her on the back.

She grinned at his praise. Tristan moved to David as she kept practicing. "David, don't squeeze the handle like that. Relax." He steadied his hands. "Fire."

The dummy received another hole in its forehead just below Alice's. "Very good!" Tristan said. "Keep practicing."

He backed away from the kids as they practiced. Diego dashed in front of him, then Corporal close behind. Tristan smiled as he watched the two dogs play. He was grateful that Diego had another dog to play with. He walked over to Sakura, who was talking to her mom. "Hey." He said.

Sakura's mother smiled. "Hello, Tristan. How are the kids doing?"

"Pretty well, actually. They've both managed to get some headshots, now they're practicing." He answered. He sat down with them to watch. "In a little bit we're heading down to Atlanta, we're almost there."

"Why are we going there?" Mrs. Ayaka asked.

Tristan shrugged. "Just going. What I do is I travel, look for survivors, and take them to the closest safe town I know. I go where my gut says to go."

"And right now your gut says head to Atlanta?" Sakura asked.

He nodded. "Yep. I get the feeling we should go there, I feel like we're going to meet someone."

Aaron walked over. "Sakura, Mrs. Ayaka, good morning." He greeted, having just woken up.

Tristan looked at him. "You must have been tired, it's almost noon. You missed breakfast."

Aaron glanced at him. "I was. Tired, I mean."

Tristan smiled. "I saved some leftovers for you, they're in the fridge."

"I'm fine. I don't want it." Aaron replied.

Sakura jumped up. "Then I call dibs." She ran into the RV, Tristan laughing, Aaron scowling.

Tristan noticed his expression. "Cheer up, buttercup. We'll be having lunch soon."

Aaron said nothing, sitting on the other side of Mrs. Ayaka. "How are you, Mrs. Ayaka?"

"Fine, Aaron. How about you?" She answered politely.

"Pretty good." He answered. He looked at the kids. "What are they doing?"

"I'm training them to shoot." Tristan answered. "They've progressed well, right now I'm just letting them practice." He grinned. "I could teach you, too."

Aaron scoffed. "I know how to shoot."

"Really?" Tristan answered. "Mind showing me what you know?"

Aaron glared at him. "Fine." He said.

Tristan and Aaron stood up and walked over to the kids. "Alright guys, take a break. Aaron's gonna show us his mad skillz." He turned to Aaron. "That's skillz with a Z."

Aaron ignored him and grabbed the pistol David offered him. Sakura came out of the RV eating the leftovers. She sat down next to her mother. "What's going on?"

"Tristan offered Aaron lessons on firing a gun, Aaron said he already knew, Tristan is calling his bluff." answered the smirking woman. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to this."

Sakura smiled and watched.

Aaron wrapped his hands around the grip. "Interesting grip." Tristan commented. "Never seen anyone hold a gun like that before."

Aaron ignored him, and held his arms rigid. "That's going to hurt with the rec…"

"I know what I'm doing." Aaron snapped. He aimed, and fired the gun, yelping as the shot went askew and the recoil hit. He glared as Tristan worked to suppress a laugh. Without thinking, he blurted. "Let's see you do it if you're so good."

Tristan raised an eyebrow, and without looking he drew his pistol and fired sideways. The shot hit home, the dummy's head snapping back, a fresh hole dead center in its forehead. "I told you I'd be happy to teach you." He said.

Aaron only scowled, standing up and walking back into the RV. Tristan sighed, then walked over to the dummy. The head was riddled with bullet holes, the kids had done well. He tossed it onto his shoulder and carried it back to the trunk of the RV. He threw it in, then headed inside. "Alright, people, let's move out. Atlanta isn't far."

James, Ella, Amber, and Aaron got into Ella's 67 Impala. Everyone else got into the RV. Ella's leg had improved, and now she was driving. Sakura hopped onto the driver couch next to Tristan, and they all drove off to the city.

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Alec had taken over for Ryan, he was in the back with Natalie.

"So, what did you do in the old world? I mean, I know Alec was a thief, but what did you do?" He asked.

"I had a part time job at a fast food joint, minimum wage. Wasn't enough to keep us going, so Alec stole to keep us provided. I mainly had the job so that people wouldn't get suspicious when we managed to stay in a crappy apartment in New York." She answered. "Alec's heists were our main income."

"Ah." He said. "You guys ever get caught or anything?"

"We came close. People got suspicious, police came, we always ran. Thing is, with all the crime in New York, especially where we lived, petty thieves weren't of much concern to the cops, so we weren't actively searched for."

Ryan nodded. He and Rachel hadn't exactly been well off either, but at least they didn't have the police after them. Their father never called the police about them running away, probably because he knew he could get in trouble with the way he treated them. Unfortunately, he wasn't stupid.

Adrian was in the front with Alec. "Hey, I appreciate you guys taking me in. I was worried I'd be on my own."

"No problem, kid." Ryan said, smiling. "By the way, didn't catch your age."

"15." He answered. Ryan grimaced. This kid had been out here since he was 11. That must have been terrifying.

The APC next to them started slowing down, and Alec stopped the RV. They all got out. They were in front of an old factory, the street seemed deserted.

John was examining the APC. He turned to Ryan. "Something broke, I'm not sure what."

Ryan nodded. "I'll have a look at it." He crawled under the vehicle to search for the problem. After a few minutes, John heard an engine that wasn't theirs. He turned around. An RV was coming, at least he thought it was an RV. It had metal sheets covering the sides, a machine gun on top, and one of those things on the front of trains used to move cattle or whatever out of the way. He felt his sleeve being tugged, and turned to see a pale Adrian. "Listen to me, the guy that owns that RV? He can't see me!"

John raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Adrian hesitated. "Well, see, he… he's a bad guy. Very very bad. Killed everyone in a group I was with. He raped one of the women in my group. Kills kids. He tried to kill me, but I fooled him and escaped. He's the one in the fedora, has a mean dog with him."

John scowled in the direction of the approaching RV. "Go hide." He growled.

Adrian nodded frantically. He ran and hid under the APC.

The RV arrived, and stopped. An Impala pulled up next to it. The doors to each opened, and a few people came out. First an asian girl with red hair, a tall olive skinned man, and then the man Adrian had described, a huge doberman behind him.

The man in the fedora approached him, a smile on his face. "Hey there." He greeted. Friendly. John wasn't fooled, plenty of bandits and criminals acted nice. "Something wrong with your APC?"

John raised an eyebrow. "You know what this is?"

He grinned. "I was in the military, Navy SEALS. I know my stuff. I have some experience with them, need some help?"

John narrowed his eyes. "Not from you."

The man's smile faltered. Connor came up behind his brother. "Don't mind him. He's just cranky. We actually could use some help, we have a guy under there already."

The man nodded. "Sure thing." He went to go under, when John stepped in front of him. "I think it would be best if you moved along."

He was at the same height as the man. And he wasn't intimidated. "If you have a problem with me, then say so." He said. "I'm just trying to help."

Jaina walked up behind John. "Wait, John, I recognize him. Are you Sharp?"

The man looked taken aback. "Yeah, though now I just go by my real name. Tristan."

Jaina smiled. "Your unit was legendary. Tombstone, the best the U.S. had to offer. You were all heroes. It's an honor, sir."

He smiled. "Pleasure's all mine. You have me at a disadvantage."

"Jaina Bekal. I'm a former SEAL myself." She answered.

John stepped between them. "Enough. I said move along."

Tristan glared at him. "What the hell is your problem?"

John got in his face. "I know what you are. Get out of here before I gut you."

"Listen, asshole, I don't know what…" They were interrupted by a bark. The Doberman was standing over by the APC where Adrian had hidden. Tristan had gone rigid. The dog stuck his snout under the vehicle and dragged out a struggling Adrian. "You!" Tristan shouted. He shoved John aside and ran over, picking up Adrian and shoving him against the vehicle. "How the fuck are you still alive?!" He angrily shouted.

Then he felt a fist connect with his cheek. His head snapped to the side, and he fell to the ground he kicked out as John went down to pin him, and rolled to his feet. Adrian struggled to his feet and ran. "Sakura!" Tristan shouted. "Stop him!" Sakura ran to intercept him, and Tristan turned to John.

He recognized John's wrestling stance. He went on the defensive, doing his best to block John's punches and swipes. He kicked out at his knee, and got John into a headlock.

Big mistake. John expertly threw him over his shoulder to the ground and rammed his elbow into Tristan's side.

Tristan grunted in pain, and pulled his opponent to the ground, docking him in the jaw. John shrugged it off and got up with Tristan, and threw a punch. Tristan grabbed his fist and pulled him in close to elbow his face. John ignored the pain in his nose and grabbed Tristan's shoulders, struggling to get him down. Everyone else was aiming their guns at each other, shouting in a stand off.

Then the dog tackled John. He snapped his jaws as John blocked him with an arm against the dog's throat. He shoved the dog away, only to have a steel toe connect with his jaw. Pain exploded across his face as he held his jaw. It wasn't broken, thank God, but it hurt like hell.

Tristan stalked over to Adrian, and as he grabbed him and lifted him into the air John drew his pistol. "Put him down." He growled.

Tristan turned to him. "Tell me, which sob story did he feed you?"

John hesitated. "What?"

Tristan glared at Adrian. "Who was he with this time? His sick grandmother, his defenseless baby brother, his loving girlfriend, or his dear family?"

John lowered the pistol. "Family. What are you getting at?"

"And where did you find him? Dehydrated by the road? Covered in blood from a horde of zombies he barely escaped? Or did he just run into the road waving his arms?"

John was staring at Adrian, who was visibly sweating, and pale. "Dehydrated by the road."

"This is how this shitstick survives. He makes people in groups feel sorry for him, take him in, and then takes off with their stuff in the middle of the night." Tristan growled. "I happened to be transporting a group to a town, and we came across him on the side of the road, needing water. Said his sick grandmother had been bitten. Then he tried taking off with our stuff. I caught him, and threw him over a bridge. I asked around other towns in the area, turns out they all had the same story." He turned to Adrian. "What I wanna know is how you survived."

Adrian swallowed. "I-I managed to grab a b-branch on the side of the r-river."

John scowled. "You little…"

"We trusted you!" Exclaimed Ryan, outraged.

"I'm sorry!" Adrian cried.

"Are you even 15?" Alec asked.

Tristan barked a short laugh. "He's 18."

Adrian looked around the faces, trying to find an ally, and failing. Tristan shoved him to the ground and pointed his pistol in his face. "This time I'll make sure you stay dead."

He got on his knees, and moved into prayer position. "P-Please, don't kill me! I w-won't do it anymore! I promise! I-I'll change!" Tears were streaming down his face as he stammered out his apology.

"For fucks sake, take it like a man. Die with some dignity." Tristan growled.

Ella walked up behind him. "Tristan, I get that it's a shitty thing to do, but do we need to kill him?"

Tristan turned to her. "Unfortunately there's no prison in the world now. And he doesn't just steal from people. He's caused groups to turn on each other, and who knows how many people have died because he took their food and weapons?" He returned his attention to the sniveling boy in front of him. "Hear that, asshole? People have died because of you!"

He cowered at his words. "I-I didn't mean to make them die! That was never my intention…"

"You knew that what you were doing was killing people. And you kept doing it. In my book that makes you a murderer." Tristan interrupted.

Adrian said nothing. Sakura walked up behind Ella. "Tristan, he's a kid. Honestly, I agree with you, but we're the good guys. We can easily take him to a good town, they usually have their own prisons there."

"I think we should kill him." John said. "I agree with Tristan, he's a murderer."

Ella turned to him. "And this isn't?"

"It's justice." Tristan said.

Rachel walked over with Natalie. "Guys, we're not the enforcers of justice out here. I think we should go with Sakura's idea."

"I am justice out here." Tristan said. "I've dedicated my life to protecting the innocent, and killing the guilty. And this prick is guilty."

As the group debated, Connor and Josh siding with the girls, Alec and Jaina siding with the others, Alice and David peeked their heads out of the RV to see Tristan aiming his pistol at a crying boy and everyone yelling. She had only been with Tristan for a short time, but she already looked up to him as a hero. She didn't understand why he wanted to kill a kid. She ran over and grabbed his arm, causing him to look down. "Stop!" She shouted, and everyone to stop arguing. She looked up at Tristan. "What's going on?" She asked.

"This man has killed people, Allie. Innocent people." He answered.

"No, people died because of my actions, it's different. Little girl, Allie? You have to help me! I'm… Ack!" Tristan pistol whipped his head.

"Shut up." He growled. "Allie, he's done some very bad things."

Allie looked at the barely conscious Adrian. "Can't he just go to prison?" She asked.

Sakura raised her arms. "That's what I'm saying."

Tristan looked back at Alice. His hand lowered. He wanted to be a good role model for the kids, but the prick deserved it. But still…

He sighed, and holstered his gun. He turned to Adrian. "We're taking you to a town I know of. They despise people like you, and you'll be imprisoned for the rest of your life if you're lucky."

Adrian paled. He wanted to argue, but realized this was better than death. He nodded, and let himself be picked up and led to the door of the RV. Then he whipped around and jammed a knife into Tristan's side. His grip weakened, and Adrian pried himself from his arm and dashed for the nearest building. He got two meters when his head exploded from being shot multiple times all at once. John, Ryan, Tristan, Sakura, and Jaina had all shot him at the same time.

Alice and David's mouths hung open, and Tristan guided them back into the RV.

When he came back out, James and Rachel both came up to him. They both had medical experience, and between the two of them patched him up quickly.

Both groups were silent. Then John broke the silence. "Sorry." Was all he said.

Tristan shook his head. "Don't be. You weren't the first group that weasel deceived. Thankfully you were the last."

Everyone was silent again. Then Tristan stood up. "Well, I guess I should introduce myself. Tristan." He stretched his hand out to John, who shook it. "John." He replied.

Tristan smiled. "I'd still be happy to help with your APC." He offered.

John nodded. "Sure. Thanks."

Tristan crawled under the vehicle with Ryan so they could fix it. Meanwhile the others started conversing.

"I like your hair." Natalie complimented Sakura.

Sakura smiled. "Thanks."

No hard feelings kept, they all got along pretty well. After a while Tristan crawled out with Ryan, and Ryan announced that the APC was fixed.

Everyone headed for their respective group's vehicles, when they heard a roar. And everyone recognized it.

The side of a building across the street exploded outwards, and a huge hulking creature barreled through towards the survivors. "RUN!" Tristan shouted. Alice and David ran out of the RV and followed everyone through the old factory doors.

"Go! Go! Go!" John shouted. They all ran up rickety metal stairs to the second level right as the wall exploded and the tank ran inside. Alice gasped. It was huge, the size of a monster truck. Its skin bulged with muscle, the eyes grey and filled with hunger and rage. You could barely tell it used to be human. It was deformed, contorted, hunchbacked. It roared again, and jumped up and grabbed the ledge to the second floor and hauled itself up. It was met with gunfire, as Tristan, John, and Jaina held it back while the others ran. It ignored the gunfire, the bullets bouncing off its mutated skin. It ran for them, and the three of them rolled out of the way. It turned and barreled towards the rest of the group, who were one by one helping each other up to the third floor.

Josh was the last one, and he screamed as the Tank grabbed him. It smashed him against the ground, then shoved him into its mouth. It chewed, blood running down its rotting face, bones crunching.

Tristan drew his DMR, and fired at the head. The bullets did nothing but infuriate the beast further, as it charged for Tristan. He ran and leapt off the side of the broken floor, grabbing onto a pipe, suspending himself over the twenty foot drop. The Tank turned its attention to Jaina who ran for the ledge where the others had climbed to the second floor. It was faster, and quickly caught up to her. She moaned in horror as it went to grab her, when John started shooting its head, drawing its attention.

It ran for him, and as it passed where Tristan had jumped he swung and landed on the back of the beast. It started lurching, Tristan holding on for dear life. He drew his knife and jammed it into the monster's eye. It roared, and bucked, throwing him off. He landed on the cement floor, the wind knocked out of him. He gasped for air as the beast made its way over to him.

Sakura came to the rescue. She dropped down from a hole in the third floor, landing on its back. She started hacking at its neck with her katana, slowly making a gash.

Tristan recovered his air, and scrambled to his feet, and ran to help. The Tank lurched and bucked, trying to shake off Sakura. She gripped onto its head, giving everything to stay on. It ran for the side wall, and Sakura paled as she realized it was going to try and crush her against the wall. As it got closer, she turned and jumped off, freefalling, then landed unharmed. Tristan had dived and she had landed on top of him, once again his wind knocked out. He coughed, then got up with Sakura. "Thanks for the save." She said.

Tristan grinned. "No problem." He wheezed. The Tank reminded them of it's presence with another resounding roar. It wasn't going down. Tristan looked around, then his eyes lit up. Through the hole, he spotted small propane tanks on a shelf on the third floor. "JAMES!" He shouted.

James ran over to the side. "What?!" He called down.

"I need you to get one of those propane tanks, and throw it directly at the tank! Now!"

James nodded, and ran for the shelf. He motioned for Alec and Ryan to follow him. They worked together to lug the heavy tank over to the ledge. Down below, Jaina, Sakura, John, and Tristan were still distracting the monster. James waved to get Tristan's attention, and he nodded in confirmation that he saw them. The three of them, picked up the tank, and together, chucked it at the head of the Tank.

Time seemed to slow down, the tank spinning in the air towards the enraged Tank. Tristan aimed his DMR, waited, waited… waited… and fired. A huge explosion erupted right next to the Tank's head, and everyone ran and ducked for cover from the flying shrapnel and fire.

As the smoke cleared, the Tank lay on the ground, half its head gone. Everyone took a moment to process this, and then cheered. They had won.

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Everyone made their way back to the vehicles. Everyone was giddy, probably from the adrenaline and the fact that they were all alive. Most of them, at least.

Tristan had retrieved what he could of Josh from the factory. All he could get was his old police badge and some of his uniform. John, Jaina, and Connor dug a small hole in the ground, and placed these into the miniature grave, and paid their respects to their fallen comrade.

After they finished, they headed over to the group. John was approached by Tristan. "Hey." He greeted. "Just wanted to thank you for helping us in there."

John nodded. "Of course. The world needs as many good people as it can get, I wasn't going to let some of them die."

Tristan smiled at this. "Hey, listen, my group and I were thinking, why don't we all stay together? We did pretty good as a team in there."

Jaina and Connor grinned at the idea. "That sounds awesome." Connor said.

John considered his words. After a minute he nodded. "Sure, why not. Our group was getting a little crowded anyway."

Tristan smiled, and nodded. He headed for the rest of the group to share the good news.

Review! The group is now together! Yay!