Raven stood in silence, watching the tearful embrace between Momma Jean and Amber as the others surrounded them, shaken but alive. This is a scene she wouldn’t have cared for in her previous life, but something about it now struck a chord with her. Maybe this loner life she clings to is not the only path forward. Maybe building something more, even a small force of her own, is worth exploring.
She already had a location in mind as a base for them. One with walls thick enough to hold off a war and deep enough underground to remain untouched by the trouble of the world above. Zombies avoid underground structures for reasons no one understands this, includes zombie plants and animals. Maybe the darkness deterred them. Maybe something older is at play. She didn’t care why. She just knew it worked.
Looking at this group of survivors—Momma Jean and the eight women she rescued, and the two others Jean brought with her. Raven made a decision in her heart and stepped forward, her voice clear beneath the glow of the overhead lights.
"Now that you’ve found your girls, what do you plan to do, Momma Jean?" she asked. "You can’t stay here forever. This mall has too many supplies. Raiders will come here from miles away, and the Red Blood Raiders aren’t here to scare them off anymore."
Momma Jean let go of Amber, wiping a tear from the woman’s face before turning to face Raven directly. Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Who are you, anyway? You just show up, kill all these bastards, and hand my girls food like it’s nothing."
"Just call me Raven," she said.
Jean tilted her head. "Just Raven? What no last name?"
Raven allowed herself a faint smile. "Not one that matters anymore. Just Raven. That’s what you can call me."
She glanced around the ruined store, blood drying on the tile and the air still smelling of death. Then Raven continued saying. "This place will be safe for another couple of days at the maximum. Long enough for you all to eat, rest, and grab what you can carry. After that, it’s a magnet for the next gang of raiders that will come sniffing around. I have a better option for all of you than staying here."
Jean crossed her arms. "I'm listening."
"There’s an old abandoned site you can move to. The NYS Civil Defense Communications Center Bunker. It's an old military communication bunk3r and hub from the eighties. With its own independent power supply and its own water supply. It's abandoned and buried deep underground. With a little help, it can be brought back online, and when it is, it will become one of the safest places in this state. If you can make it there alive, I might just let you stay and help bring the place back online something that is simple for me. Consider this a recruitment test for all of you.
Jean's expression hardened with cautious hope. "I know the place. Nothing there works anymore. Just dust and old concrete. But... if you can fix it... that’s a different story. You’re right, though. Staying here’s a death sentence. We can move out in two, maybe three days time. I will speak for all of us we will go."
Raven nodded. "Good. I’ll meet you there. But a fair warning—don’t trust anyone you meet on the way. Especially those who try to tag along. People who can’t take care of themselves are dead weight. Parasites. If I find freeloaders around that base, I’ll put a bullet in their skulls myself."
Jean nodded slowly, her jaw tightening. "No lazy people. Got it."
Raven turned to leave, her remaining drone hovering to her side. She walked down the center aisle of the clothingstore, her boots stepping over dried blood and broken glass.
"See you in a few days," she called over her shoulder. "I’ve got more work to do."
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