A/N: The State wishes to apologize for a glaring oversight. It would seem that in our rush to get this to The People, the Central Committee for Story Planning failed to give proper credit to the Comrade Editors who worked so hard in making this project possible. The State wishes to thank Comrade Editors jm1681, Draco38 and Rassilon001 for their tireless diligence in spell-checking and continuity.

"Rescuing children and now sexual assaults," Blake muttered as he led his squad over the first barricade toward the forward operations base. Sergeant White, second in line, cocked an eyebrow.

"Sar Major?" he asked.

"Sorry, White. A lot on my mind this morning."

White dropped back into formation as Sgt Pegg leaned over. "Wot's goin?"

"Too much and not enuff, Jimmy boy," White sighed. "The Sar Major's got too much to take care of these days."

"Somethin' abou' a girl was raped yesterday, yeah?" Pegg inquired.

"Couldn't tell ya," White said. "Sharpe comes back and said it was one of the girls wot Davis and 'im and Edmonds took to Osaka over spring time."

"Oh, yeah. It was the short one he said," Pegg mused. "Tha's a ruddy shame, innit. They find out who did it?"

"Gentlemen," Blake called out. "Let's keep our minds focused on what's ahead. Plenty of time for chit-chat when we get back."

The rest of the march up the road carried out in silence, only the soft crunch of boots on pavement punctuated the stifling heat. The column found itself in front of the f.o.b. within a matter of minutes. The sailors had been busy. With the surrounding environs fully secure, they were able to emplace a new barrier incorporating the tunnel and terrain leading to the inn with Sgt Phillips' help. An abandoned box truck had been pressed into service, moving the larger materials. Deep terraces dug into the south facing hillsides prevented two legged predators from ascending into the f.o.b.

Blake led his column through the barricade and onto the winding road leading to Miyagijima proper.

"Parade stop," he called as the hills sloped upward from either side. "Stay sharp. These hills are heavily forested and it's all too easy for an ambush. Every man puts his head on a swivel."

A gated side road was bypassed as the fence appeared untouched. Blake toggled his throat mic.

"Blake to Foxtrot Bravo, over."

"Foxtrot Bravo, we read you, over."

"There is a side road that splits off south of the barricade. Fencing looks untouched, but is flimsy. Suggest a second scout party. Over"

"Foxtrot Bravo copies side road. Scout party will be organized. Over."

"Blake copies all. Out."

"Stay to the center," Blake cautioned his men. "The dead notwithstanding, I don't want to get caught under falling debris either."

The column resumed its slow march as the hills gave way immediately to steep cliffs. Every man scanned in all directions as they advanced to the southeast along the pavement. Five minutes later found the column rounding the first bend and the other end of the side road.

"I've got contact right," Lance Corporal Johnson called out quietly. The column turned to face Johnson and saw a sizeable group of Them shuffling aimlessly about in the underbrush.

"Form up at the mouth," Blake ordered. "Single shots only if surrounded. I shall lure them out into the open." His Marines fixed bayonets and a scattered few picked up improvised bludgeons.

Blake paced out to the opposite edge of the road. There, he checked the approaches for further undead activity. Seeing none at the moment, Blake signaled the attack. White gave the thumbs-up as Blake drew his pistol and turned to face the crowd. "Hey you barmy bastards! Supper's on!"

To a one, the undead turned to face the direction of Blake's shouting. They shuffled out in rude single file. The Marines fell upon the group silently, working from rear to front. Blake leveled his pistol at the lead Zed, only to have his kill snatched by the swift handiwork of Sgt White.

"I see you've claimed my kill once again, White."

"Sorry, Sar Major. It's become bit of a habit now."

Blake shook his head with a smile. "All troopers form up for wounds check." Each Marine stood at attention while Blake conducted a cursory inspection. Satisfied his men were unharmed; he toggled his mic once again. "Blake to Foxtrot Bravo. Have encountered zeds on trailing edge side road. Appears to be unfinished construction site. Advise caution for scout party, over."

"Foxtrot Bravo reads and copies all. Out."

The column fell into slow march. Blake took out his binoculars and scanned the road ahead as it straightened out. The Philippine Sea glittered beyond the edge of the pavement, blue and inviting. He observed the structure to his right that held the hill in place.

"What do you make of that, White?"

White stepped forward and brought his L96 to his shoulder. He peered through the scope for several minutes before nodding his head. "Clear for now, but that could change in an instant."

Blake checked his watch. Still an hour from lunch, he opted to chance it. "We make as far as that abutment. Hold that pos until Foxtrot Bravo brings up the rear. Move out."

As they approached the abutment, the rumble of an engine put everyone on guard. Turning to face up the road from Miyagijima, the column noticed a Chevrolet pickup truck making its way towards them.

"This is the second time I've seen a dozer blade attached to a vehicle it does not belong to," Blake chuckled as the vehicle in question came into view. The driver spotted the Marines and came to a halt.

"Davis, your services as translator, if you please." Blake called down the line. Davis hustled up and stood at attention before Blake and the mystery truck.

The vehicle itself looked straight out of a bad post-apocalypse movie. It had been jacked up several inches above stock. The windows were secured over with close mesh metal grate. The wheel wells had plate steel welded over them to offer additional protection to the tires while the light duty dozer blade appeared to have been welded directly to the frame. The entire vehicle was splattered front to back with blood and gore.

The door opened and a camouflaged driver stepped onto the pavement. Davis immediately recognized the pixilated forest camouflage of the US Marine Corps. "I don't think you will need a translator, Sar Major," Davis reported with a smile.

The US Marine stepped forward and offered a nod to Davis. Blake moved to the front. "Name and rank, Marine."

"Corporal Larry Clayton, Jr., Third Marine Battalion, 3 MEF, Marine Corps Base Smedley D. Butler, Okinawa."

Blake nodded. "Sergeant Major RJF Blake, Her Majesty's Royal Marines, former Embassy Detachment, Tokyo. What brings you all the way out here, Corporal?"

"The higher ups at MCB Butler sent us out to try and link up with you," Clayton said. "They knew you were protecting a village out here, so the general wanted to know if you could use some help."

Blake stiffened. This was not the first time he had run afoul of American meddling into British affairs. "We are getting along quite well, thank you, Corporal. You may report to your superiors that the Royal Navy have everything well in hand."

Clayton nodded thoughtfully. "Understood, Sergeant Major. We aren't the Army and we don't poke our noses where we aren't wanted."

"Sar Major, if I may?" Davis spoke up. Blake deferred to his subordinate. "The corporal mentioned 'us'. If I may inquire, Corporal, to whom do you refer?"

Clayton waved back at the truck. "Hey, sergeant, we're clear." The passenger door opened and another similarly garbed US Marine stepped onto the pavement. The Marine removed their helmet and sunglasses to reveal a stunning young woman, clearly of Japanese ancestry. Clayton then gestured between the woman and himself. "Us. Sergeant Mary Sakamoto and myself."

Davis bowed politely." Kon-nichiwa, Sakamoto-san."

Sakamoto laughed. "You don't need to do that. I'm yonsei, fourth gen, and about as American as Clayton here. Besides, I don't really speak the language, so English is fine."

Blake cleared his throat. "All well and good, but why not just use the radio? Safer and faster, I should think."

"True enough," Clayton conceded. "But we're also doing recon for the general. Boots on the ground kind of thing."

"Interesting you should say that, Corporal." Blake mused. "We are embarking on the exact same mission for our commanding officer."

"Oorah, Sergeant Major," Clayton said emphatically. "Could you use some intel?"

Blake relaxed himself. "I would be honored to have you, Corporal."

The Royal Marines jumped from the back of the pickup as Clayton and Sakamoto dismounted the cab. They could drive no further than the barricade, so the vehicle was left parked outside. Clayton clicked a button on the key fob eliciting a chirp from the truck. "Not like Zulu Charlie is gonna steal it." he said with a chuckle. "It's them damn Army scroungers I worry about. Thievin' bums are everywhere."

The detachment was met at the f.o.b. by Marine Captain de Souza who assembled everyone in the dining area. Introductions made, the captain set to business.

"What have you found on your way here?" he asked as Blake took notes.

"Miyagijima is crawling with them," Clayton said. "Your sergeant major will attest to the blood on my truck. My sergeant and I had a hell of a time just getting onto Miyagi from Henza. There's only one bridge between the two and it's a natural choke point."

"Did you run across any survivors?" de Souza asked.

"Negative on survivors," Clayton shook his head. "I don't mean there are none, but we did not encounter any. Our primary objective was to scout ahead and reach you guys. Rescue parties are coming later."

"What did you notice about the lay of the land?" Blake asked. "Geography and the like."

"What I saw," Sakamoto volunteered, "are a lot of low hills and narrow, winding roads. That would make a sweep and clear very time consuming and extremely dangerous."

"We are quite aware of that," Blake conceded. "Took us most of the morning just to get from here to where you rendezvoused with us. Zeds seem to have moved up the island towards our settlement."

"You had a run in on foot?" Clayton asked.

"How many would you say, Davis?" Blake asked.

"At least twenty, perhaps more," Davis said. "If what Corporal Clayton reports is true, we can expect a lot more before our time is done."

"Yeah," Clayton mused. "They really came after the truck, like they were following us."

"They can't see, but can bloody well hear good enough," Blake said. "Makes movement by vehicle hazardous."

"I noticed that too," Clayton said. "Wasn't a problem in and around the installations, lots of noise there, but once we got away from Kadena and onto Kaichu Road, we picked up a lot of attention."

"How much in the way of resources is the United States willing to commit to clearing these islands?" de Souza asked. He pointed to the map laid on the table.

"We haven't heard from anyone in the US government since a week after everything went to shit," Sakamoto said. "As far as we know, we're it. We can offer what we think we can spare, but the general wants to make sure that Okinawa itself is secure. For now, we're okay, but there's a lot of territory and only so many of us."

"Understood," de Souza said. "We can easily hold Ikei Island and we are moving onto Miyagi, but if this island is swarming as you report, we are going to have a very tough slog indeed."

"We are moving to secure what appears to be fuel oil tanks on Henza," Sakamoto said. "I don't think the general would be hesitant in splitting stores if you are willing to move in a coordinated pincer."

"I think that could be arranged," de Souza offered. "However, we are very few, even compared to you lot, so don't expect much from us by way of spectacle."

"Understood," Sakamoto said. "We can make the Army clean up after us. Since they got run off the mainland, they're just in the way here."

"What do you mean?" de Souza asked.

"The bunch that were stationed at Camp Zama got overrun." Clayton explained. "They left a lot of their stuff behind, but they do have helos. And helos make for great insertion ops. Right now, the general has 'em holding the north by Nago City and pushing outward to give us breathing room."

"Sir, I have an idea," Sakamoto said. She pointed to a large area of Miyagijima dominated by open farms. If we could lure as many Zulu Charlie into this area as possible, we could drop incendiaries and HE. That would cut the risk and time of a follow-up sweep."

De Souza thought on the idea. "I hate the idea of torching so much farmland, but our immediate concern is the walking dead, so remediation can come after we secure the island. I shall bring it up with my commanding officer and see what he says."

Clayton checked his watch. "With all due respect, sir, we should check in. We're five minutes over due."

The company stood to attention and summarily dismissed. "Blake, you and White escort our American friends to their vehicle. Then you and your squad are free on leave until first light tomorrow."

"Sah," both men saluted.