I'm blushing you guys, seriously, I can't take the compliments! You're all so wonderful!

I am forever humbled by how many people have reviewed saying they don't like the horror/zombie genre but are still liking my story. Thank you so much for giving it a chance. Horror is my favorite genre and I have wanted to test my horror-writing for so long. All you amazing readers have really made it worth it, so wow, thank you! Oh and also, apologies. I actually finished this last night, but I was too tired to post it.

Questions: Oh my god you're ideas for why Sanji is mute keep getting better! Still not even close, but I love them all just the same. (I'm worried that you're going to find out what happened and it won't even be as cool as some of the reader's ideas, hehe.) A general theory I have received a few times is that Sanji is immune to the zombie virus/plague. I can tell you now that, while the idea is interesting, it's not the case. Sanji would be infected if he was bitten just like anyone else. Also, I love writing from Law's pov, but alas, in this fic I'm keeping it strictly Sanji and Zoro.

Chapter 6

They pushed through northern California and made it into the southwestern part of Oregon the first day. Law had been right, the motorcycle made it easy to bypass parts of the highway clogged by obstacles such as collections of abandoned cars or bridges that were all but completely collapsed.

For most of the drive Zoro just leaned back and enjoyed the sun and the wind in his face. It was cold, maybe thirty-five or forty degrees, but the swordsman didn't care. It had been a long time since he had been on a bike; a long time since he'd had the freedom of relaxation during travel.

And an even longer time since the warmth of another body had been pressed up against him.

Having Sanji this close was an unexpected problem. He was lean and hard all over, and the way his body moved as he drove was extremely distracting. Sexuality had never been a consideration for Zoro. He had always just liked who he liked and never questioned, so he had no reservations about being attracted to a man. The problem was timing. Things like the way Sanji's hair fell into his eyes, or the way his lips curled up into a smile when he thought no one was looking, where getting difficult to ignore.

Lobito was not a problem Zoro had figured he'd have to deal with in the aftermath of the world ending, but apparently, it was still a thing.

As the sun started to set, they turned off the interstate and headed down the curve into what should have once been Cedar Creek, a small town along the Oregon coast. It was unlikely there would be anything they would need there, but it would be stupid not to at least check.

Chopper had given them a series of maps pinpointing the exact locations of several clinics and pharmacies. Now, Zoro pulled the map for Cedar creek from his bag and unfolded it to check the roads. However, even though Chopper and Law had given him a quick rundown, he could not make heads or tails of anything. English was his second language and although he was technically fluent, for some reason, maps had just never made sense to him. Not that maps in Japanese were any easier.

"I have no idea where we are," he muttered.

Snickering, Sanji lifted the visor on his helmet and reached around to take the map from Zoro's hands. The cook studied the indiscernible cluster-fuck of red and blue lines for perhaps fifteen seconds before he handed the map back to Zoro and kicked the motorcycle into first.

"Are you kidding me?" Zoro growled.

Sanji snickered again and pointed east behind a supermarket.

Zoro shook his head. "I don't believe you."

Sure enough, behind the supermarket, one street over, was a small pharmacy. As they pulled up Zoro noticed the windows had been knocked out and most of the merchandise was missing. Hopefully, there was still something in the back, but it wasn't very likely.

"You want me to watch the front?" Zoro asked.

Sanji nodded and handed the swordsman his helmet. He pulled a flashlight from his pack, climbed over the broken sill, and disappeared inside.

Zoro leaned against the bike, watching the sun slowly sink behind the top of the church a few blocks away. This had probably been a nice place at one time. A quiet neighborhood where kids could play in the streets and there were block parties and barbeques on weekends. Zoro could remember times like that back home in Hokkaido, when the summers were hot and the old man down the road made shaved ice for him as his friends at the dojo.

Shaking his head, Zoro pushed those memories back where they couldn't haunt him so loudly. According to the news reports right before the nationwide outage, Japan had been all but decimated. The last thing Zoro needed at that moment was to think about home.

Quiet footsteps and a rustling of paper pulled the swordsman's attention back to the pharmacy. Sanji was climbing back through the broken window, his pack in his hands.

"You find anything?"

Sanji nodded and showed him the inside of his pack. A few bottles of pain killers and several boxes of feminine products filled the outer pocket.

Zoro nodded, "Wow, not bad, cook. At least you're covered for your next period."

Sanji gave him the bird and they both climbed onto the bike. They were out of Cedar Creek and back onto the highway just as the last sliver of sun sank behind the horizon.

The next town they fared better, but only slightly. Sanji was able to recover a few boxes of nasal decongestant, and six bottles of cold remedy. It wasn't much, but it was definitely better than nothing.

As they traveled farther north, the highway became less and less of an abandoned car graveyard. It was a blessing really, because a thick fog had set in and it was getting difficult for Zoro to see his hand in front of his face. The motorcycle's headlight illuminated only a few yards in front of them, so Sanji slowed to around twenty miles per hour until they reached the next stop on their list.

Roseburg was not, by definition, a small town, but neither was it a large one. There were three pharmacies and two clinics Chopper had marked on the map, easily accessible from the main drag. However, when they entered the town, Zoro realized right away that they were going to have to search on foot. The streets were barricaded with all manner of things: cars, large wooden crates, and other debris. There was no way the bike was going in. The people of this town had gone down, but they had gone down fighting.

Sanji parked the motorcycle behind a dilapidated tackle shop and motioned for Zoro to follow him. They kept their flashlights off and let their eyes adjust to the darkness. The fog wasn't as bad as it was out on the highway, and so the faint moonlight was sufficient in lighting their way.

They climbed the barricade and dropped silently onto the ground. Zoro drew his sword just in case, and Sanji pulled a wicked looking knife from his belt. Sanji indicated a side street with a nod of his head and Zoro followed.

When they neared the corner, a soft clicking stopped them in their tracks. Sanji adjusted his grip on the knife and crouched low to the pavement. Staying silent, Zoro moved and pressed himself up against the side of the building.

A quick look around the corner and Sanji turned back to him, indicating "four" with his fingers. Zoro nodded and stepped out into the street.

The first "Deadie", as he found Sanji's group liked to call them, had once been a woman, small in stature, with dark, brown hair. Zoro swung and dropped her easily, the only sound was her body hitting the pavement. The second was a man, wide, with a beard down to its chest. Zoro's blade found a way out through the top of its head from underneath its chin. The swordsman lowered this one to the ground easily before retrieving his blade.

Sanji had moved across the street and was taking out the Deadie with blond, curly hair. Its massive body mad a soft splattering noise when it hit the ground. The fourth was easy, as its body was so rotted that its legs had come off somewhere long ago.

When they regrouped, Sanji was wiping the blade of the knife clean, and his eyes had a shocking brightness to them. Interestingly, Zoro couldn't decide if that was disturbing, or maybe just a little sexy.

The first of the marked pharmacies was just down the street a few yards. Sanji led the way, Zoro close at his heels, searching the shadows and open doorways for movement. Nothing appeared, so Zoro sheathed his blade and followed Sanji through the door.

Inside was like a storm had swept through. Nothing was on the shelves, and any supplies or materials that were left were broken or scattered across the floor. Sanji took a quick inventory, searching the shelves and climbing over the pharmacy counter to check the back. There was no obvious threat to face, no time constraint, but Zoro felt an inexplicable urgency, and he was sure Sanji felt it too. Something was coming, and they needed to get what they needed and get out fast.

Climbing back over the counter, Sanji shook his head.

"Damn," Zoro muttered.

Heading back to the front, Zoro was hit again with another sense of intense urgency. It was a crawling, itching, almost painful wave of dread that came over him so suddenly it took him by surprise. He slowed, and grabbed Sanji's sleeve.

"Wait."

Sanji turned to him, confusion in his eyes, but he stopped.

"Be careful, I got a weird feeling."

Nodding, Sanji crouched low and peered around the edge of the isle. Zoro slipped in behind him and looked towards the entrance.

There were at least twenty Deadies pressed against the glass of the pharmacy's front side. Their dried, blood-caked fingers scratched absently at the window, and their open, slack lips flapped as their teeth clicked together.

"Holy shit," Zoro whispered, "where the hell did they come from?"

Sanji stood and looked up, searching. He turned and motioned Zoro to follow him towards the back of the store. Zoro followed the cook through the "employee only" doors and out into the freight bay. Sanji pointed to the far side of the bay were a ladder led to a door above the scaffolding. With any luck that door would open to the roof.

Zoro clapped Sanji on the shoulder and started toward the ladder.

Cold hands came at his face and Zoro recoiled. A Deadie shambled out of the shadows, teeth yellowed and eyes sunken back into hollow sockets. Sanji took out its legs and the thing met its end on the tip of Zoro's blade. It had all happened within a span of a few seconds, but the swordsman was sure he would feel those dead, chilled fingers on his skin for a long time.

The door was locked, but Sanji made that seem sort of trivial as he kicked the thing out with minimal effort. Another set of stairs awaited and beyond that was thankfully the roof.

"Shit…" Zoro murmured as he looked over the side. Deadies had swarmed, almost completely surrounding the building. They were trapped unless they could get over to the next structure, but the gap was easily over twenty feet.

Where had they all come from? How had they found them? Had they all just been sitting around silently waiting like some sort of impossible beyond the grave trap?

Sanji ran a hand over his mouth as he turned around, searching for another escape.

"Do you think we could…"

At that moment, when it seemed like things couldn't get any worse, Zoro heard a sound that froze his blood, a sound that he had never expected. Sanji turned to him, his pale skin turning to ash, his eyes wide in alarm.

The sound was the rev of a motorcycle engine.

Someone was stealing their ride.

TBC