Going to be using military time from this point on.

As always I do not own Highschool of the dead or its characters. If I did there would be more manga chapters already! LOL! (This was written LONG before Chapter 30 came out! LOL!)

Updated: 10/18/13

Once the lights came on, everyone could see that the inside of the building was huge. Trucks and Humvee were driven inside, while the Strykers were positioned outside the cargo door with their ramps facing it. The big door was rolled down and access to the Strykers was through the normal personal sized door to the right.

There were just enough people in the convoy that Tomasa could set two hour watches with four people each. That put two in each Stryker, and with the high school kids he could have one vet and one rookie. Tomasa snorted when he thought this. He could not easily call the high school kids rookies, but they were not exactly trained either. Thinking about it, he would ask for volunteers to work with them and see what shook out.

Looking around he could see everyone was working. Toda, Saya, Rei and Saeko were setting up to try and get some hot meals out for everyone. Shizuka and Dean were looking into medical supplies with the kids following them around. He watched as Paddy went from vehicle to vehicle checking fluids while Kohta and Takashi followed, watching and learning. The rest of the troops were walking up and down the aisles of the warehouse, making notes on inventory.

Seeing Rika come from behind one of the trucks, he waved her over. "I've got some questions regarding the young ones," he said as she sat down beside him. Glancing at his notes he continued, "I intend to put them on watch, each with one of our vets. Of course the medics will not stand watch and…well we all know Paddy can't shoot very well, he's going to busy with other thinks. Are there any of them you think should not be on watch?"

She thought for a minute, "Rei and Saeko. Rei has only used the Springfield as a spear, and fired it only to clear a body off the bayonet.

Tomasa thought for a moment, "And Saeko-san?"

Rika smirked briefly, "Saeko told me even though Kohta had her doing dry fire exercises, she has never pulled the trigger on a live round. While I have faith in her sword skills it will not help her in this."

Tomasa nodded, "What about Komuro and Takagi?"

Rika smiled, "I watched Takagi use that MP5 on zeds the first day I found them. While she can stand some more training, she takes her time and is a careful shooter at close range. Put her with someone who can go long and she will be fine. Komuro is fine with the shotgun as long as he is close. He will be good backup for anyone he is on watch with."

"What's the armory look like?" was the next question he asked.

Rika pulled out a note pad, "Six Howa Type 89 combat rifles, six MP5's with suppressers, a dozen M92's, a dozen S&W M37's and a dozen Remington 870 combat shotguns. Ammo: 50,000 rounds 9mm, 40,000 5.56, 40,000 7.62, 25,000 12 ga. 00 buck for the shotguns and 10,000 rounds for the S&W's. I also found two old M79 40mm launchers with five cases of tear gas, and five cases of hand thrown flash bangs."

"Hmm, that's more ammo than I hoped for, and the guns will be welcome for the future."

"Now I'm going to make you happy," Rika said with a grin. "Out back there are three more standard Humvee's and a 10,000 liter fuel truck that is full. There are also underground tanks that Paddy thinks are about half-full which means another 40,000 liters. On top of that, there are two 'water only' two wheel tanks and three two wheeled cargo trailers."

Tomasa whistled, "We hit the jackpot then! I knew there would be some fuel, but to get a tanker truck in the deal! We can always use more Humvees also."

Glancing down at his watch, Tomasa said, "Call everyone together except the watch in the Strykers. I want to get this organized and start the watch list by 1800 hrs."

Soon everyone was around Tomasa and Rika, either standing or kneeling. "First thing Paddy, how are the vehicles?" the lieutenant asked.

"Except for a few dints and dings from bullets, all of the vehicles are mechanically sound and ready to roll. Also, the building's generator is running fine and we should have hot water for showers in about ten minutes."

The LT nodded, "Good! Ladies not on watch shower first and Sarge will work out a rotation after that. Now watches, two hours, two people per Stryker till we leave here. That's means you will be on watch twice in twenty four hours. First watch starts at 1800 hrs. Medics and wounded will not sit watch nor will Paddy, and we all know why that is." The soldiers laughed as a couple patted Paddy on his back while he frowned and blushed.

Looking at Rei and Saeko, "Miyamoto and Busujima, you will also not sit watch due to your lack of fire arms training. You both have proven yourselves exceptional with blades, but this is a range-over-skill situation. Komuro, Hirano and Takagi, I want you to sit watch with an experienced trooper. Volunteers to sit with them?"

Every hand went up as the three teens blushed. Smiling Tomasa continued, "Well then, Tatsumi, you're with Komuro on second shift. Yanagiba with Hirano, Wakanae with Takagi on first shift."

The veterans smiled and nodded as the three teenagers nodded.

Tomasa sighed, "I intend for us to rest tonight and start loading tomorrow. We should be able to get finished up tomorrow and spend one more night, rolling out early the next morning. We'll kill the power as soon as everyone has eaten and showered, so after that we will be using camp lights. Right now eat, clean up and rest, we've had a busy day. Dismissed."

000

Thirty minutes later Kohta, Saya, Yanagiba and Wakanae met at the door. Kohta opened the door and Yanagiba and Wakanae went through pistols in hand. Saya went next watching Wakanae and Kohta followed up, closing the door behind him and covering the rest. Once the two troopers were convinced the area was clear, the teams split and tapped on the back of each Stryker. After a quick confirmation by radio, the ramps dropped and they exchanged places with those inside.

Yanagiba settled in the commander's hatch as Kohta climbed out the left hatch and sat cross-legged on top of the vehicle. Laying Rika's rifle beside him, he looked over to the other man, "Ok Corporal, what do we do?"

Yanagiba smiled, "First of all call me Giba unless we are in front of the LT and Sarge. We don't stand on a whole lot of ceremony unless brass is around. We sit, we watch, and we stay awake. It's still daylight now, but when it gets dark we can try using the IR goggles. We report in every fifteen minutes and keep an eye on our counterparts over there. Like that will be hard to do." He waved as he looked over to Stryker 2 where Wakanae waved back.

Smiling and waving as Saya did the same Kohta said, "Okay then please call me Kohta, Giba."

"So where did you learn to shoot?" the man asked as he scanned to area with binoculars.

Giba nodded and watched the fence as Kohta told him the story. "Wow, lucky you! I would have loved to have taken a course like that at your age! We're lucky though, Toda is one of the best shooting instructors on the force and Sarge is the number five ranked sniper in Japan. If they can't teach you something about shooting, no one can."

Glancing down at his watch Giba said, "Report in Kohta, all clear.'"

Kohta nodded as he reached for his mic.

000

Wakanae also called in after hearing Stryker 1 do so. Looking over at the other team she said quietly, giggling, to Saya, "I bet those two are talking about us right now."

Saya glanced at the men before looking back at Wakanae, "Why do you think that Wakanae-san?"

"Boyfriends are just like that Takagi-san. When they get together they gonna talk. Oh and please call me Shion."

Saya nodded, "Please call me Saya then. Boyfriends? You and Yanagiba?"

Shion beamed, "Yep! About six months now. How about you and Hirano?"

Saya blushed, "Ah, now that I think about it we've been a couple only a few days though it seems much longer. I mean he's been around since we started high school, but we were not close at all. He's been so vital to our survival and…well just a lot of other things. He got hurt about a week ago and that's when it really sunk in to me how I felt about him. Things just happened real fast after that. Now I don't know what I would do without him."

Shion nodded, "I feel the same way about Giba. We were teasing and playing with each other, drinking together, when all of a sudden we woke up next to each other one morning. OH! Maybe I shouldn't have said anything like that!" she said as she clamped her hand over her mouth.

Saya blushed again and smiled slightly, "Don't worry, we have already progressed past that point in our relationship."

Shion smiled, "I understand. We're living in the final days of a dying world, many things are moving faster than they once did. I'm just grateful to the gods that he was with me when it all went down. I don't know what I would have done if he had been on some other assignment."

Nodding Saya looked over at Kohta. He was scanning with the binoculars while Giba was checking over the .50.

000

"Giba I've got movement," Kohta said as he focused in on three shambling figures.

Giba's eyes followed where Kohta's finger was pointing. Thinking for a minute he called in. "Yanagiba to Sergeant. We have three undead coming this way. What do you want us to do about them? Over."

After a few minutes she replied, "Sergeant to Yanagiba, leave them alone and observe, if they become a problem we'll take them out. LT thinks they are being attracted by the generator and hopes when we shut it down they'll wander off, out."

Giba double clicked his mic and shrugged his shoulders, "Well I guess it will be someone else's problem. Just keep your eyes on them, Kohta. If they get rowdy, we'll handle it then."

Kohta nodded as the first of the undead reached the fence. It walked into the chain-link and then just stood there as the other two did the same on either side of it.

"I hope those things rot," Kohta said as a cold shiver went up his spine. "Right now I'm itching to shoot instead of sitting here watching them.

Giba frowned, "I understand, but there's not enough ammo in the whole world to kill off all the undead that are walking right now."

Kohta thought on this as the sky got darker with the sun disappearing in the west.

000

At 2000 hrs. Takashi, Tatsumi and two others came out and relived them. Tatsumi swapped guns with Kohta, keeping Rika's sniper rifle and giving Kohta an MP5. "We only have a few of these, better to keep them where they will be of the most use if needed." he explained as Giba swapped his with another soldier.

The two couples went inside and walked over to where Rika and Tomasa were talking. Smiling at them Tomasa told them to get showers and eat before settling down for the night.

Showers done and hot food on plastic plates in front of them, the four set down near Rei, Dean-san and the others who were sitting and talking.

Shizuka was humming some tune and every once in a while would quietly sing a chorus that went, "Gypsy's, tramps and thieves, la, la, la, la, la…"

Another group watched as Saeko went to an open area near the trucks to practice sword routines. Her katana flashed in the bright overhead lights as the blade whistled through the air.

After twenty minutes of this, Tomasa looked at Rika, "Can she teach that?"

Rika shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know but I'll ask. Sure would be useful when the ammo runs out."

Looking at Tomasa Rika paused.

"What? You worried about her for some reason?" he asked.

Rika sighed, "A little yeah. It's almost as if she goes into a battle rage, but not quite. Takashi knows something about it, but I'm sure he would not say. Was there anything that showed up in her report?"

Tomasa thought for a minute, "Now that I think about it there was a report of her being attacked about four years ago. Guy caught her on the street at night and tried to molest or rape her. She beat the crap out of him with her wooden practice sword and almost killed him. Reporting officer noted it looked a bit extreme, but he put it down to a scared fourteen year old girl losing control while defending herself."

You have not watched her in full battle mode Tomasa. She smiles whiles she is fighting and her eyes look…wild. Rika thought.

Looking around and glancing at his watch Tomasa said, "Let's get the power shut off. I want to see what happens to our friends outside when we do."

Futons, bedrolls and sleeping bags were laid out with the Fujimi group near a wall. Shizuka, Alice, Yukari and Masahiko were bedding down near where Tomasa and the trooper with the leg wound were. Rei, Saeko, Saya and Kohta were next with, a spot left for Takashi in between Rei and Saeko. The soldiers were arrayed around them in rows with walking space between them.

Kohta and the three girls settled in a group sitting and watching, as everyone got ready for the lights to be turned out. He noticed Giba and Shion next to each other, sleeping bags almost touching, but not quite. Rika walked over and squatted down next to them.

"If ladies need the restroom in the night, take someone who is armed with you," she told them before walking off to check on others.

Their headsets clicked and they heard Paddy say, "Going dark." Seconds later, the hum of the generator died and the lights faded away. Those who were still moving around clicked on flashlights or small portable camp lights as the warehouse became silent. A few minutes later, Paddy walked up, removed his boots and tunic, and then sat on a bedroll near their feet.

Sighing he looked at the group, "Been a 'ell of a day ain't it?"

Rei smiled, "You sound tired…and different, there is an accent to your voice that was not there earlier."

"Ach," Paddy said, "Me maw always said when I got tired my Irish brogue would come out. She blamed it on me hanging around with me Pa and his copper friends."

Rei and the others looked puzzled. "Copper?" Rei asked.

"Ach, sorry!" Paddy apologized. "Me Pa was a Boston police officer and 'copper' is just a slang term for that."

Rei blinked several times before saying, "A police officer? Patrick, my father and mother were both police officers."

Paddy stared back at her with surprise, "Really? Both of them?"

"Well mother quit when she got pregnant with me, but dad became a chief inspector," she said.

"Ohhh nice! Me Pa was just a beat cop. He could have climbed in rank, but that was what he liked to do." Patrick looked off into the distance, "I probably would be doing the same thing, but I wanted to try something different, plus I could always get on the force after I got out. Military service was seen as a plus."

"Was he disappointed when you decided to join the army?" she asked.

"Oh no! Not at all!" Paddy exclaimed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "He was second generation American and his dad served in the US army during WW II. He was just as happy I did this as join the force. As long as I wasn't running with some gang or messing with drugs he was happy."

Saeko and Saya smiled slightly at each other as Rei and Paddy talked about being the kids of police officers. Kohta glanced at both of them and then leaned over and whispered to Saya, "Eh, did I miss something?"

She told him what had happened when the two first saw each other. Nodding he watched as the second shift came in and reported to Tomasa. Takashi came over and settled down next to them.

"How things go on your shift?" Kohta asked.

Takashi nodded, "Well, I think. Tatsumi is great to talk to, and he has a lot of knowledge. He's been in SAT almost as long as Rika."

"What was the zed count when you came in?"

"About a dozen or so. Some of them started wandering off after the generator was shut down but most are just standing at the fence." Takashi shivered, "It's creepy to just be sitting there looking at them and not do anything about it."

"Yeah it made my skin crawl to see them standing there waiting, but like Giba said, no use in wasting ammo if they can't get to us," Kohta replied.

"By the way, how do you think we will get out of here when we're done? I'm sure all the noise we are going to make tomorrow is going to attract a lot more of them than there are now." Takashi asked.

Kohta shrugged, "I'm sure Rika and the LT has a plan, but if worse comes to worse we could just throw the gate open and run them down with the Strykers as we roll out."

Rei turned towards them and whispered, "Takashi, give me a hand with Patrick please?"

The guys looked over and chuckled. Paddy had fallen asleep sitting up while talking to Rei. Takashi came over and helped Rei lay him down. She then put his blanket over him and they moved back to the others.

Looking around, they noticed most of the others had bedded down already. The girls decided it was time for one more bathroom run and they all got up and walked quietly together. Letting the girls go in together, Takashi and Kohta swapped places with each other as they watched over the doorways.

Saeko came out first; she leaned over and gave Takashi a quick kiss and hug before the others appeared. "This will have to hold for a while, my love," She whispered. Nodding he claimed her lips again before the door opened and the others came out.

As everyone started back to their beds, Kohta, who was in the rear, noticed something next to one of the trucks. He almost flicked his flashlight on and shined it over, but as he focused he realized it was a couple hugging each other in the dark. Nodding with a smile on his face, he walked on and passed Giba and Shion's empty bedrolls.

The teens settled down and turned off the light near them. This left a few on here and there like in the kitchen area where Toda was reading something, and next to Tomasa where he and Rika were discussing and writing notes.

As Kohta settled down he felt more then saw Saya lean over towards him. Her breath brushed his cheek as she whispered, "I love you." They kissed for a moment before Saya said, "I wish we could hold each other tonight. I was so scared today and wanted to feel your arms around me so bad. I've gotten used to you being next to me."

Kohta kissed her gently again, "I know, Angel, but I'll be right here. I'll hold your hand all night so you know I'm beside you."

Smiling she slid back down into her blankets and took his hand in hers.

A/N: As always thanks again to my friends in the Collective for their help and support. Please Review and/or Favorite.