The trio sat in front of the graves of Lucy's family. They had buried them not too far from Arefu on an overlook of the river. "We used to come here to hang out, eat, talk...anything. It was our place." she said somberly. Kirk and Jericho listened silently. Kirk was rubbing his aching hands. Digging graves was hard work. Not to mention the emotions involved with it. He couldn't imagine digging graves for his loved ones. Lucy continued to tell them stories of her family. The men listened for her. They knew this was part of her grieving and healing process, and they wouldn't dare interrupt it. After a while of storytelling, she stopped and went quiet for a bit. "They would be alive if I didn't leave them." she said. Kirk was about to console her, but Jericho beat him to it. "Maybe." he said in his usual gruff manner. Kirk stared at him in disbelief. Lucy looked at Jericho with sadness in her eyes. "But...who gives a shit. You couldn't have predicted such a fuckin wild thing like this to happen. Don't waste time on shoulda, woulda, could'ves... not worth it..." he said, pulling out a flask and taking a sip. He then handed it to Lucy. She took a swig and gave it back, sitting quiet again. They sat there for a bit longer staring at the sunset. It was soothing, seeing it reflected off the water, even when it was dirty and irradiated. After awhile Lucy stood up. "Okay, I'm ready to go." she said, walking toward Arefu. Jericho and Kirk followed. Kirk replayed Jericho's words in his mind on the walk back.
They reached Arefu and were all sitting in Evan King's house eating dinner. Lucy didn't eat much, even with King trying to get her to. Kirk noticed King had a similar bobblehead like his father's. This one held a wrench, though. "Do you like it? Found it years ago scavving. I don't know why I kept it this long..." King said. "I have a similar one from my father." Kirk said, pulling it out of his pack. "Well, look at that. I never knew others existed. I wonder how many there are?" King said to himself. "I would say ask some of our merchants in town if they have come across anymore, but they have closed up their shops since the attacks." Jericho grunted, "Alright kid, let's get this talk over with, I want to go to bed." Kirk put away the bobblehead and cleared his throat. "I have presented an idea to the leader of the Family. I would like to discuss this same idea with you, Mr. King." Kirk said politely. "I hope you told them savages to leave us alone!" King said. Kirk looked at Lucy and Jericho and swallowed. "Actually, uh...I'm proposing that you and him join your...communities together..." he said, without confidence. "What?! Are you out of your mind, son?!" King exclaimed. Jericho started chuckling, and Lucy stayed quiet but watched Kirk. "Let me backup and explain." Kirk said. He then told King of the Family. Rules, vampire style, and his conversation with Vance. King sat silently and listened. After Kirk was finished, he stood up and started pacing. "Let me think on this, but it's a hard sell. I don't think my people will agree to this." he said. Kirk nodded, and they all stood up to leave. "Hold on, did you ever come across my men out there? I sent them days ago..." Evan asked. The trio looked at each other and shook their heads. "Do you mind if guys take watch again tonight?" King asked. Jericho groaned and looked at Kirk, "You're first." he said and walked out. Lucy and Kirk walked out, but Lucy stopped Kirk before he started heading for the guard post. "Hey, do you...um...nevermind." she said, sheepishly. "What?" Kirk asked, turning to her. She rubbed her hands together awkwardly for a moment. "Do you think you can stay...with me...after your watch...I don't want to be alone." she said shyly. "Of course." Kirk said with a smile. She smiled back, "Thank you."
Kirk took position at the guard post, looking down the ramp with his rifle ready. He thought about the last few days. It had been a crazy experience, reflecting back on it. Now, though, he was unsure of what he was doing. 'Am I doing the right thing? Shouldn't I be looking for my father? Should I be here handling the safety and society of two communities? Who am I to do this anyway?' he thought to himself. During these thoughts, his gaze fell over to where the raider gang was. However, something was odd. It was quiet over there and no fire or light. He grabbed the provided binoculars and zoomed in at the site. He couldn't see anything, no movement, nothing. He put the binoculars away and looked down the ramp. Nothing. Kirk was getting uncomfortable. A feeling of dread he couldn't shake. Kirk looked all around him, listening for anything. Nothing. 'My nerves are getting to me. There is only one way into the town, and that was the ramp.' he thought and sat back down. He took a few deep breaths, but the feeling of unease was still there. That's when he heard it, rustling to his right. He got up with his rifle aimed at some buildings. Nobody. He heard hushed, talking and grunting, coming from the direction he was facing. He walked slowly toward the buildings, then toward the start of the ramp. "Who's there?!" Kirk called out. The whispers stopped. Kirk stepped closer, moving around the building and coming to the edge of the highway. He saw a couple of makeshift wooden poles sticking up above the ledges. Kirk moved to one of them and looked over the edge to see a man looking back at him, with a dozen or so others on ladders across the ledge. "FUCK!" Kirk yelled, aiming to shoot, but the raider was quicker and grabbed Kirk pulling him over the edge. Kirk shot his rifle on his 20 or so foot fall and crashed into the ground, blacking out.
Jericho heard the gunshot and bolted out the door with his rifle ready. "KID?!" he yelled. Then he heard the hollering of the raiders as he saw them flood down the street toward him, breaking into the houses. "RAID!" Jericho yelled at the top of his lungs and opened fire on the raiders. A few shot back with makeshift guns, and others threw objects toward him. Jericho took cover at the side of the house and returned fire. A few residents came out with weapons, some with small guns, and others with melee weapons. King came out with his rifle and opened fire as well. The firefight quickly turned into a melee one as the raiders rushed the residents high on drugs, ignoring the shots and danger. Jericho switched to his knife and pistol, taking the ones that charged him with ease. However, the residents struggled as more raiders rushed past the defenders into more homes. Jericho looked back to see two of them running toward Lucy's house. 'Fuck, where the hell is the kid?' he thought. He went to stop the raiders but was attacked again by another. He slashed the raider's throat and shot another one coming toward him. 'Fuck me, this is a big gang, this can't be same gang we ran from the other day.' he thought, trying to make his way to Lucy's. As he stabbed another raider, a big one tackled him into a house. As they broke through the wall of Karen Schenzy's home, she screamed and huddled into a corner. The burly raider stood over Jericho. "HA! I thought that was you, Jericho." he said, cracking his knuckles. Jericho stood up and readied his knife. "Hammer." he said, seething.
Kirk woke up with his back and skull aching. He could hear the fighting and see the makeshift ladders the raiders used to raid the settlement. He got up as fast as he could, but his body was killing him, so it was slower than he liked. "My bag must've cushioned the fall.' he thought, taking it off. He grabbed a Med-X and injected himself. The pain dulled, and he let the relief wash over him. He took a deep breath and readied his rifle. He looked up the ladders and steeled himself. 'They need your help, you've killed before, you can do it again.' he thought and made his way up the ladder. As he made his way up, he was battling his consciouness. 'Is this how it will always be up here on the surface? Fighting and killing for your life? I want to save lives, and now I have taken more than I ever thought I would.' He cleared his mind as best he could as he climbed over the edge and readied his rifle. He looked down the main road of the town and saw chaos. Residents fighting for their lives against the raiders and women being dragged out of their homes. It was too much to process at once. 'Lucy and Jericho, where are they?' he wondered, scanning the mayhem. He didn't see either of them. He saw King though fighting for his life. Kirk aimed his rifle and shot one raider down and made his way toward King. One raider charged Kirk, but he shot him down before he got too close. King was struggling against a raider when Kirk approached and kicked the raiders' legs out. King brought a pipe down onto the raider skull, killing him. "Thank you..." King said, out of breath. "Where is Lucy and Jericho?" Kirk asked. King looked around, "Jericho was here, but Lucy... Oh, NO!" King cried. Kirk looked where he was staring and saw Lucy's door to her house broken down. Kirk didn't hesitate and ran toward the house.
Jericho and Hammer went blow for blow with each other. Hammer had disarmed Jericho, and they were now fist fighting. "I can't wait to drag your sorry ass back home and make an example out of you, traitor!" Hammer yelled, punching Jericho in the jaw, flooring him. "Fuck you!" Jericho yelled, his jaw broken from the punch, stand back up. Jericho tried to tackle Hammer, but he was too big and simply kneed Jericho in the gut and threw him across the house. Karen screamed as Jericho crashed into her cupboard near her. "Shut up cunt! I will break you in after I am done with this bitch!" he roared at her, grabbing his crotch and shaking it at her. Karen whimpered in fear and try to make herself as small as possible. Jericho stood up, mustering his strength. He reached into a pocket and pulled out some brass knuckles and put them on. "Ohhh, that's how you want to play huh?" Hammer said, pulling out a short sledgehammer. Jericho spat some blood out and charged at Hammer. A jab to the nose, and then a hook the ribs. Hammer stumbled back and swung his hammer to keep Jericho away. Jericho pressed his advantage and dove in, uppercutting into his gut. Hammer grunted and swiped at Jericho, but he dodged and countered with a blow to the jaw. Jericho didn't let Hammer get his footing back and delivered precise blows to the head and body. Jericho went to deliver a haymaker but Hammer headbutted him suddenly. That was all Hammer needed to turn the tide and brought his hammer down on Jericho's collarbone snapping it. 'Fuck.' Jericho thought, and watched as the hammer came down on him.
Kirk charged into Lucy's house and saw a sight that brought his anger out in full. A raider laid dead on the ground with a shotgun blast through the chest. Lucy was against the wall by three raiders. They had torn her clothes off and were getting their genitals out. Kirk roared and shot one in the back with his rifle. The other two fumbled with their pants as Kirk went to cycle the bolt of his rifle again but jammed. "Shit!" he yelled, struggling with it. The raiders charged Kirk, but he took his rifle and swung it, cracking one over the head, downing him. The other tackled him to the ground and started raining punched down on Kirk. Kirk guarded himself and grabbed his pistol and pumped rounds into the raiders stomach, splattering guts and blood all over himself. Kirk stood up and saw the other raider he hit getting up, but Kirk wouldn't let him. He kicked the raider in the face, knocking him on his back. Kirk straddled the raider and started punching his face over and over. Kirk roared as he forced his fists down into the man face, ignoring the pain in his fists. Kirk stood up and grabbed Lucy's shotgun. The raider leaned his battered head up and weakly laughed as he stared down the barrels. Kirk pulled the trigger, destroying his entire head. He dropped the gun and stared at his handiwork and his hands. Lucy got up and hugged Kirk, sobbing into his shoulder. Snapping him out of it, he returned the embrace. "I got you, I got you." he whispered.
Bloody brass knuckles laid on the floor. Jericho bruised and battered being held up by his throat at the end of Hammer's hand. Hammer threw Jericho out of the house and grabbed Karen despite her screaming and pleading. As Hammer walked out into the street, he saw what was left of his men had overpowered the residents, who were all on their knees huddled in the center of the street. "Who is the leader here? Or is he dead?" Hammer demanded. King stood up, covered in bruises. Jericho tried to stand up, but Hammer stomped him down to the ground, kepping his boot dug into his back. He dropped Karen to her knees and held her by the hair. "I am taking these two, along with food and medicine!" Hammer snarled and waved his hand. The raiders dispersed and started raiding the homes. "If any of you move, I will kill her!" Hammer said, smiling. Kirk looked out the door of the house when he heard the fighting stop. He witnessed everything the big raider demanded. 'They don't know we are here...yet.' Kirk thought. He turned to Lucy, "Is their another way out of here?" Lucy, just finishing getting some clothes on, nodded. She walked over to a corner of a house and pulled a panel off the wall. "My father made this in case...well... if this happened." she explained. They both crawled out and put the panel back. They peered around the house and watched the raiders plunder the town. "They have Jericho, I think." Kirk said. "What do we do?" Lucy asked. "I don't think we can do anything... but I got a plan... after they leave." Kirk said.
"Disarm the mines at the entrance old man." Hammer ordered. King got up and did what he was told. Once he was done, the raiders made their way back. "We will be back old man, once we are done with this piece of meat and the spoils. Until then, enjoy your life, but I would advise against struggling next time. I always have more men I could bring." Hammer said, dragging Karen and Jericho with him. "Oh, I almost forgot." Hammer said, throwing a back at King. Hammer laughed as he carried his victims away. King watched them go in despair, hearing Karen pleading and sobbing. He opened the bag and fell to his knees in hopelessness. Inside were the heads of his guardsmen he had sent out to find the Family.
Kirk appeared at his side soon after, watching the gang return to the baseball field. He looked down and saw the heads in the bag, with King shaking in tears. "We are doomed. We will have to run away." King sobbed. "No." Lucy said, walking up to King. "Kirk has a plan." she said. King turned to Kirk, waiting to hear his plan. "We are going to rescue Jericho and Miss Schenzy and wipe out these monsters." Kirk explained. "How? All by yourself?" King asked, hopelessly. "Yes, but with some help." Kirk said. King stared at Kirk, trying to figure out what he meant, and then he got it. "The Family." King said. "The Family." Kirk affirmed.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Hello everyone, and thank you to those who have favorited and followed my story so far. It has been fun writing this story, and I apologize for the time between between new chapters being posted. Family and work take priority after all. I wanted to explain some things and answer a question from a review post here. First, if you haven't picked up on it yet, most towns will be much bigger than what the base game had. I will do my best to explain atmosphere and environments in future chapters, but I also like letting the readers' imagination do the work. Arefu, for example, has in my head maybe 20 or so families, and the overpass it's on is much longer. As for characters, I am changing up their background stories a bit and also expanding on them, much like I have with Jericho and Lucy West. As for James' story parts, later on, I will explain the time comparison to his and Kirk's journey. Probably, when they meet up, I am still trying to figure that out. To answer Wolf's review question regarding DLCs, yes, I will be writing about them. However, some I will be changing drastically. I plan to write about pretty much the entirety of the game. For now. Please leave some reviews or questions so I can see how I am doing. This is the first and probably only time I will ever write a story like this. I am always open to ideas and feedback, but I pretty much have a lock on what I want to write. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy Kirk's journey.