>I'm coming. 

Tamar grabbed her backpack from her closet. She packed a spare hoodie and pair of jeans, then looked around her apartment. It sounds like a group of street thieves, she thought. They don't need my flimsy fighting -- they need my science. She grabbed a first-aid kit, her phone and laptop and an extra nuclear battery for each, and her Swiss army knife. She emptied the money she had in her wallet into the front pocket of her bag, and stuffed all the nonperishable food -- bread, oil, some canned stuff, some packages of crackers, and about two dozen protein bars. It wasn't much -- but who knew? Zombies were a totally unprecedented enemy. She wasn't sure how many supplies Luci's group had, so she also took a tent, a couple canisters of gas, like for a camping stove, and finally a sleeping bag. Frankly, Tamar was amazed the whole thing fit in her bag with only a couple of tent poles sticking out the top. 

She grabbed her phone. 

>I'm taking a bus, she told Luci. Where should I meet you and your group?

<We're kind of camped out downtown. There's a tech shop. 

>See you there, then. 

Tamar stuck her phone into the pocket of her hoodie. Swinging her now extremely heavy bag over her shoulders, she set off for a bus station. 

It must have been her lucky day -- the first bus, which came in less than 2 minutes, had its next stop in Torren and was completely deserted except for the driver. She dropped a few bills into the box and took a seat. "Can you hurry, please? It's kind of an emergency."

"Sure, kid," the driver nodded and gunned the engine.

45 minutes later, she arrived in the apparently deserted city. "Thanks, sir," she told the drive as she stepped off the bus. 

Tamar didn't like the feel of Torren. Abandoned buildings showed its recent recession, with pathetically flickering neon signs hanging in windows. Tamar walked as fast as she could downtown.

A girl with brown hair and blue eyes is talking to a few other girls. They're huddled around a fire, sitting on piles of dirty blankets. 

"Um... hi? I'm Tamar. Are you Luci?"

"Nice to meet you." 

''Oy! Addie!" I yell, suddenly. Ah, my childhood friend, is here, to this day.

"Zain? Zain Mol? It's been ages! How long, five years?"

"Look, Addie, somthin's not right. I've lived in the slums my whole life, and never, has it been this quit."

"I hear ya. Somthin's fishy."

I glance at Bud, and hear a moan, "Y-you h-hear that, Addie?"

"I-I sure do."

"Is that what I thing it is?"

"I think it is, Zain."

We look at eachother, grinning,

"Zombie Slayers?"

"Just like old times-?"

"When we were kids?"

"Oh yeah!" we said at the same time, as a the Undead, walk tward us.

------

Sorry, it's short. BHR, if you don't like where I'm taking this, you may ignore this. 

Also, I forgot to say, Zain, is from Australia, and speaks with a thick accent.

Sorry guys, I'm kind of confused right now, correct me if I'm wrong:

Luci is a thief. She went into the store to steal the phone, which is Dr. Pythacom's. She contacted Tamar and recruited her. 

Addie is a thief. She's in an alleyway somewhere, going into a store. *Are Addie and Zain anywhere near Luci and the rest?*

Danie is a thief. She went into the store to hide. After Arista took the purse back, Danie helped Arista kill the zombie. 

Arista is kind of like an amateur policewoman. She went into the store to catch Danie, which she did. She was the one who shot the zombie. 

Bianca is on the run. She's in the woods, so not near the others.

Bluebird... isn't anywhere yet. All the info was from after the apocalypse, so maybe that's later?

Zain is a murderer. She did a deal, then left into the city, where she met Addie.  

Tamar is a scientist. When Luci texted her back, she discovered the existence of zombies, which were created by Dr. Pythacom. Tamar packed up a ton of supplies and left to Torren. She's now with Danie, Arista, and Luci. 

______________________________________

Bluebird = nowhere.

Bianca = forest.

Arista, Danie, Tamar, Luci = in Torren, just finished off one zombie, in front of the store.

Zain, Addie = in a city alleyway. Near the store??????? 

@ Air: Most of those things are correct, though Addie isn't a thief, only a street roamer. And yes, we're just outside the store.

This is getting confusing though, I will agree. Could we please make it just a bit clearer as to what our characters are doing and where they are?

Addie ~

I was shocked, needless to say, to see Zain again. It had been years since I'd seen her. Back when my life, was well a bit more stable. 

We charged the thing coming toward us, though part of me didn't really think this was a zombie. Zombies only exist in books, and movies, and video games. The zombie apocalypse was something that people talked about jokingly when they talked about the end of the world. But the idea of charging something, whether it be some abnormally large cat or a drunken guy coming out of the tavern, was too good to pass up! We charged it. 

By the time we wrestled the thing to the ground, I realized it wasn't a cat or a person. 

"What the heck is this thing?!" Zion shrieked, jumping up.

"I dunno," I said, as the thing clawed at us maning and groaning. It was too dark in the alleyway to see it properly, but even so I didn't bother to stick around to find out. We ran, looking for any sort of safe haven. That just happened to be the computer the shop. We slammed the door shut behind us. We didn't speak, instead remaining still. The chill that was creeping down my spine had nothing to do with the air temperature. I wasn't positive what was happening, though it suddenly explained the ominous feeling I'd been feeling.

*I'm switching to 1st person, I realized it's probably going to be better that way.*

Tamar~

Luci is a brunette, younger and shorter than me, which I didn't expect. She definitely looks like a street-smart thief, though -- she's got a wicked knife on the ground next to her and is dressed like she's going into combat. 

"Nice to meet you, Tamar," she greets me.

"Right back at you," I nod.

"This is..." she looks back at the other two girls. "Um..."

The other girls are both blondes. One looks about my age and height, the other maybe younger. The shorter one stands up, eyes me critically. Her eyes are green, making her look a little like a cat. "Arista Nall," she introduces herself. There's a gun in her hand, so I keep a little distance.

"Tamar Alain," I tell her. We shake hands and she sits back down.

The other one then stands."Danie," is the only way she identifies herself. She's wearing a black hoodie and really beat-up blue tennis shoes.

"Nice to meet you." I drop my backpack on the ground and sit on it. Danie sits down too. Luci's gotten a fire going somehow, and we all lean in. "I brought some bread," I offer, pulling the loaf out of my bag. Luci looks like she's going to ask me something, but I beat her to it. "Share?" I spear eight slices of bread and prop it up on sticks by the fire to toast. "So... what's up with all of you? Why are you here?"

They're all staring into the flames silently, so I guess I'll go first. "I used to be a scientist at Global Sciences. Dr. Pythacom was the scientist who worked in the lab next to me. He wanted me to help him with some cloning experiments, so he gave me a phone number, but he was really busy, so he gave me an old one, probably from before he moved to my city. Luci found the phone, and when I texted the number, she answered. And she told me that she found messages on the phone about how Dr. Pythacom created zombies. And then when she asked me to come here, help her in the fight, I packed up and... left."

I shrug, cock my head at my full backpack. The others are still silent. They nod as I talk, but make no comments. I guess if you're a street thief, you wouldn't be too social. To fill the abyss of no noise, I stick a square of cheese between two slices of bread and pass the grilled-cheese sandwich to Luci, who's on my right. She passes it to Danie, across the circle from me, as I make another and hand it to Arista, then the last two to Luci and me. 

The food seems to make them loosen up. Luci straightens up like she's about to speak, and Arista takes her hand off her gun.  

@Air, yes, Zain is a murderer, and no, at the same time. See, every one knows she can get any job done. However, she hardly ever keeps her deals, grabs the money, and runs. Also Zain has a secret, she can't stand the sight of blood! 

Zain~

What? A real Zombie? I thought it was just some drunk bum! Never a real Zombie!

Addie and I run, I drag her into my hideout, an old abandon phone shop. I board up the windows, lock the door, and turn the lights out.

"That was close!" We said at the same time,

"Jinx!" we said, again at the same time, and started laughing, just like old times,

"Whoooo! I forgot *giggle* how much fun *snort* we used to have!"

"Right? So, Add, where have you been, these past five years?" I asked, pulling on my finger less gloves

"Long story."

I sat down, "I'm listening." 

~Luci~

I straighten up a little, take a deep breath. "I never theived before this. No one does stuff like that just because. Everyone has a backstory. When Moth-" I choked up a little, but quickly swallowed and pretended nothing happened. " When my mother died, they took her only piece of jewelry, something my dad had given her, to pay for the funeral. I stole it back, and that started it."

Tamar's eyes were full of pity. I felt a rush of annoyance, and as Tamar opened her mouth to offer some consolation, I shook my head. "I don't want to talk about it."

Sorry! Been sick:(

 I walk along  the side of the highway, cars flashing by me. I have a few dollars in my pocket, and I need supplies, so when I finally near a gas station, I pull a slouchy green cap over my reddish hair, hoping that no one will recognize me. 

As I shop, I scan the store, looking for police officers. However, there's no one here but the tired-looking lady at the cash register and a guy around my age who is sitting on the bench outside, texting. I grab half a quart of lighter fluid, a new pocket knife, a couple of Snickers bars, and a roll of duct tape. As I pay at the counter, the woman eyes me suspiciously. 

"You going camping sweetie?"

I bob my head like a little girl, trying not to look suspicious. "Yeah. My dad and I are on our way, but he realized we forgot a lot of stuff." She seems to be satisfied with this and hands me back my change.

As I leave, the cold wind hits me full force. It leaves me breathless for a moment, and I'm not sure how I'm going to continue on in this weather. I can't go back inside, or the woman will be suspicious. But it's starting to rain, and there isn't another rest stop for miles. A red truck pulls over to the curb and a haggard woman in her late fifties rolls down the window.

"Girl, do you need a ride?"

I'm about to say no, but the rain begins to pick up and I'm pushed against my better judgment.

"Sure. Thanks!" I grin up at her.

She grins back. "Hop in."

We ride along for about half an hour, chatting occasionly, but mostly just listening to the  radio as it plays old country music. I try to tug my hair into my face, obscuring it as much as I can. Suddenly, I hear a siren start. It's a cop. The woman pulls to the corner looking confused. 

"Sorry girl. You might want to get out now," she says to me. I crawl out the passenger's side door. And that's when I watch it happen. The police officer has dead eyes, a scanned over face, and a bloodied mouth. He grabs the woman, and bites into her neck with a sickening crunch. He's a zombie. But it's too late. I shove the woman from the driver's seat, onto the road, and slam on the gas. But my mind is still numb. 

Zombies. Zombies....... I have to get to Katty. 

Can I submit a character? Or am I too late?

Oops, I don't think my last comment got through! Would ya'll mind if I submit a character?

Tamar~

"Um... Danie? Danie!" The girl looks like she's seeing a ghost, or maybe a unicorn. Her eyes glaze over. 

Luci rolls her eyes. "I got this, Tamar." She steps over to the girl in the hoodie and gives her a shake. "Snap out of it, Danie!"

Danie shakes her head. Her eyes go back to normal. "Sorry."

I feel a little nauseous. Is psycho-ing out normal on the streets? "What... happened?" 

"I... I kind of get hallucinations."

I scoot off my backpack and riffle through the front pocket. I pull out an orange clear plastic canister and pick out a white-and-green pill. "I've got meds. It's an anticonvulsant."

Danie leans forward to take the pill from my palm, but Arista reaches it first. She closes her hand around the little capsule. "Save it," she orders. "We're going to need it later. Right now? Not important."

*You can totally ignore this if you want!*