[click]
[walking]
"October 25th, 5.22 PM, and still no sign of Jason or Piper. We've got the whole gang here - me, 'Beth, Valdez, Will, and Red - and we've searched pretty much all of the west side of the city, had a couple of close calls and incidents, but I think we're doing alright,"
[Rachel scoffs]
"Yeah, if by alright, you mean totally fucked, then sure,"
[Jackson tsks]
"No need to be so pessimistic, princess -,"
"I told you not to call me that, asshole,"
"- it'll get you nowhere,"
[a beat of silence]
[a sigh]
"Where even are we?"
". . . New York,"
"No shit, Sherlock, where in New York?"
"I don't know, Valdez, you're the one with the map,"
"Well -,"
[a thump]
[somebody stops]
"Gus, did you hear that?"
"- if you hadn't -,"
[a louder thump]
"Guys!"
[a shout]
"Get down, get down!"
[gunshots]
"What the hell, what the hell, what the hell -,"
[click]
-..-
[click]
[frantic rustling]
"Stop! Whoever you guys are, we're not - we aren't infected!"
[gunshots]
[screaming]
[click]
-..-
[click]
"Shit, shit, shit, come on Valdez, come on,"
[shaky breaths]
[crying]
"I need a bandage, now!"
[package rustling]
[a pained groan]
[a cough]
"They really got me good, huh?"
"Shut up, Leo, you'll be fine. And when you're all healed up, we'll go after those assholes, okay?"
[another grunt]
[bandage packaging]
[a wince]
"Fuck me, are you almost done?"
[nodding]
[heavy breathing]
"Y - yeah. Almost. Just gotta -,"
"FUCK!"
[more groaning]
[grunting]
[crying]
"Okay, okay, I'm done!"
"Thank, God,"
"Is he gonna be okay?"
[silence]
"Yeah, he should be. We just have to make sure it doesn't get infected,"
"Okay,"
[relieved sobbing]
"We gotta get you back, man,"
[Jackson sniffs]
"You can't be out here with an injury this bad,"
[nodding]
[Rachel clears her throat]
"I'll take him,"
"I will, too, in case something goes wrong with the wound,"
"That's a good idea,"
[Annabeth exhales]
"If we're not back in a few hours. . . don't come looking for us. It'll be safer for you guys to just stay at camp,"
[click]
-..-
[click]
[a sigh]
"12.37 AM, we have made it safely back to camp, Leo's doing better - still can't believe he got shot - but there is still no sign of Will's friends. I feel terrible. Will's turning fifteen in a month.
[a pause]
"He's just a kid. I don't know much about him, but there's no way he's got nothing tragic to his name. We all do. I mean, we're in the middle of a fucking zombie apocalypse,"
[a breath]
"Anyway. He fell asleep a few hours ago, exhausted. He did all he could for Leo, which I'm grateful for. We expect him to know what to do, but Will's just a med student, not a doctor, and we've got to remember that. I don't want him blaming himself if. . something goes wrong,"
[another pause]
"He's doing great, though, especially with what he has. I can only hope we can return the favor by finding Jason and Piper. Alive,"
[click]
-..-
[click]
[footsteps]
"It's almost normal, 'Beth, if you don't think too hard. Walking through the streets of New York, eating little Debbies,"
[someone - Annabeth, presumably - hums]
"Yeah. It reminds me of our first date,"
[a chuckle]
"You were so cheap,"
[the two stop walking]
[they kiss]
[a pause]
"Percy, what if - what if things never go back to normal?"
[a pause]
"I'll stay with you, then. No matter what,"
[a sniffle]
"Hey. As long as we're together, right?"
[a shaky inhale]
"As long as we're together,"
-..-
[click]
"We found them, holy shit, we found - Annabeth!"
[running]
[crunching leaves]
"Annabeth, come here!"
[frantic breathing]
"Coming!"
"Hurry, I found them!"
[footsteps]
"Hey, what's - holy -,"
"Yeah! I know! I'm just trying to figure out how to get their attention without scaring them. . .,"
[more footsteps]
[thoughtful humming]
"Move,"
"What?"
"I have an idea. Move,"
[shifting]
[sticks cracking underfoot]
"What are you planning, 'Beth?"
"You'll see,"
[bang]
[thump]
[distant footsteps]
[whispering voices]
[tent unzipping]
[a new male voice is heard]
"Who's out there?"
"Jason Grace -,"
[frantic breathing]
[footsteps]
"Who's there? Will?"
[more rustling]
[leaves crunching]
"No, it's not Will, but we know him,"
"You know - show yourself!"
[running]
[heavy breathing]
"My name is Annabeth Chase. This is Percy Jackson. Can we talk?"
[click]
-..-
[click]
[a new female voice is heard]
"So, how did you meet Will?"
"There was a zombie attack in front of where we set up camp. It was going after Will, we managed to kill it, but Will got hurt, bad, so we brought him in; healed him,"
[a sharp inhale]
"He's okay, though, right?"
"Yeah, he's great,"
[a breath of relief]
"That's good,"
[a beat of silence]
"How long have you guys been here?"
"A couple of weeks. Every other spot was -,"
"Raided, yeah,"
[another beat of silence]
"Is it just you guys and Will, or -,"
"Oh, no. There are others, too. Percy's friend, Rachel, and my friend, Leo. What about you two?"
[a sniffle]
"Yeah. Just me and Jason,"
[silence]
"I know we just met, but -,"
[Jackson is interrupted by Annabeth, who pointedly clears her throat]
". . .Will you guys give us a moment?"
"Of course,"
[tent unzipping]
[rustling]
[tent rezipping]
"You can't just invite them over, Percey, we're already running low on food and supplies,"
[a sigh]
"Annabeth, they're stocked to the ceiling! Besides, with more of us, it'll be easier to find what we need,"
[a pause]
"I dunno. . . ,"
"Annabeth, please. Maybe - Maybe, we can help these people,"
[another pause]
". . . Fine,"
[leaves crunching]
[a sigh]
[tent unzipping]
[click]
-..-
[click]
"It's 5.42 on November 1s and the sun is just beginning to rise. It looks especially beautiful this morning, everything is calm, and it - it almost feels like everything's gonna be okay,"
[a pause]
"I'm not sure how much we're all gonna be able to last, though. We've cut down food rations to two meals a day, but it seems like we're running out faster than we're finding any,"
[a sigh]
"I guess that makes sense, though, all things considered. We've raided all the stores in a 15-mile radius,"
[a beat of silence]
"I'll have to talk to the others about going further. Maybe moving camp. It's all we can do right now.
[more silence]
[a chuckle]
"Will was absolutely ecstatic when we returned with Piper and Jason yesterday, you should've seen his face. I think he cried,"
[a pause]
[another sigh]
"There are no clouds out today, which is disappointing. I hope it rains soon, we need to water -,"
[beep, beep, beep]
"Shit,"
[click]