"Here we are, California," Leah said from the driver's seat of the Humvee. Logan opened his eyes at the words as he had switched to get some shut-eye in the backseat. Looking down, he saw that Buck, still wearing his noise-canceling headphones, had also been asleep and was using his left arm as both a pillow and a drool catcher. Taking a hand to his head, Logan gently leaned the kid to the other side before brushing off the excess saliva and looking out the window. The Drive after the Native American strip mall was more pleasant and open, as Nora, Akane, and Leah bonded with tales from the cultivator of her path to the top in her world.
Logan had listened in a few times when she talked about fights, beasts of power, and genuine cultivation, but then tuned out the raunchy sexcapades the woman had done. It was honestly rather surprising what one could do with a body that could defy the heavens.
"Awwww~" Nora yawned before leaning up in the seat on the other side of Buck. "So, what happens now?" she asked the three as she leaned to see where her brother was heading.
"You'll see," Leah said as she followed the caddy through the amazingly empty streets of Los Angeles. There were a few dead roaming down the sidewalks, which of course started a small horde to follow the two cars down the road. Though the group was moving just fast enough to lose them, which only caused them to pick up a few more to replace the ones lost. Still, Tally drove the group through the streets till they came upon the TCL Chinese Theater. "Oh, are we seeing the stars?" Nora asked somewhat excitedly. Akane was about to make a fun remark about how they would see one, when an idea struck her.
"Yes, I think we will be seeing the stars, Nora," she said while smiling devilishly. Leah and Logan looked at their lover and knew that some fun was in their future. Leah stopped the Humvee as the Cadillac braked right in front of the theater, and Columbus and Wichita got out. Logan lowered his window as three costumed dead ran past their car towards the visible meal that had just gunned down a few nearby dead. Drawing his handgun out of its holster, he leaned out and fired clean, taking out the runners with headshots. This gave the fumbling Columbus time to both grab the map and get back in the car. Soon they peeled off and headed for Beverly Hills, home of the rich and famous.
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"Looks like anyone who's ever been in a movie lives on this block," Columbus said as he checked the map in the front seat of the Caddy.
"What exactly do you think we're doing in the 90210, Sally?" Tallahassee asked sarcastically. Columbus gave the man a narrowed-eyed look of exasperation at the latest teasing.
"I kind of pictured Tom Cruise living somewhere nicer," Wichita said sarcastically as they drove down a perfectly manicured road, untouched by the dead mass. Each house has a large and extravagant display of wealth.
"B-lister compared to who I got in mind, folks," Tally said as he checked to see that his sister and the others in the group were still following along. "We're going to the tippy-top of the A-list."
"Who?" Both the girls in the back asked as Tally slowed to check every house for what he was looking for. When he spotted the B.M. initials on the electric gate, he knew he had found what he was looking for. Smiling, he pulled in. Behind him, the Humvee followed along, also checking out the houses left and right as they drove. Akane was paying close attention to each one as her hands grew twitchy. When Tally pulled into a house, and they all saw the initials, Nora clapped.
"Oh, Bill Murray!" Nora shouted as she knew exactly which house her brother would pick to spend the night. "Dad and Tally love him. I didn't know he lived in Hollywood." Then she grew sad as she looked at the other three. "He's dead, isn't he? Am I gonna have to kill Bill Murray?" The three smirked as they didn't answer her question.
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"Whoa, this place is incredible," Columbus said as the massive group walked into the mansion that was richly styled to the point of perfection if one wanted to show off wealth but not drown someone in it. Moving through the house didn't let up on the extravagance as each lower-floor room held works of art and overpriced coaches, chairs, tables, etc. Still, one could see the signs of those who lived in the mansion as Murray's movie memorabilia hung on the walls or in small displays around the house.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to la Mansion Demurray," Tallahassee said as they found themselves in a ground-level living room.
"Ah, Bill Murray," Columbus said off-handedly as he gazed at some memorial hanging on the closest wall.
"No way," Wichita said as she looked at another piece of artwork that showed the actor. "This guy has a direct line to my funny bone."
"Agreed, we love Ghostbusters, don't we, Buck?" Nora asked the young boy who was smiling at the extravagant home. He lifted his hands and smiled.
"Who you gonna call!" he shouted out.
"Ghost Busters!" Everyone but Little Rock shouted out in Pavlovian response. Looking at everyone else, the twelve-year-old frowned in puzzlement.
"Wait, who's Bill Murray?" she asked. "And what's Ghostbusters?" she asked as well, making everyone but Wichita look at her in disbelief. Then everyone looked over at Wichita, the girl's guardian, with the same disbelief.
"What? She's twelve," she tried to defend. Only making everyone look at the much younger Buck, who knew about the famous movie, and then back to her. This made the raven-haired grifter blush and look away. "We were on the road a lot, didn't have time to watch a bunch of movies, okay," she mumbled out as she avoided the frowns of the others.
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Searching the house some more, they checked the kitchen and found it somewhat barren of food, but enough for a meal for them tonight. "No Twinkies," shouted Little Rock as she turned with a smirk at Tallahassee.
"Shit, fuck!" he shouted out as he slammed the cabinet doors he was looking through.
"See? I told you we should have gone to Russell Crowe's" Wichita stated from across the room after she finished looking at herself. "No one listens to me."
"Well, why don't we head over and look?" Akane said with a smile as she hopped off the counter she was sitting on. Everyone looked over to her with a raised brow. "What, it wasn't like the dead were exactly swarming the hills when we drove down the road. Honestly, it's still bright and early enough that I'm thinking of ransacking the houses and seeing what goodies I can find." Everyone thought about that, but Columbus raised a hand.
"Okay, fair, but mind scoping out the house with us before you go and do that?" he asked.
"Fair, you guys clear the bottom floor, while we clear the top," Logan said, pointing at the original cast and then to his cineplex group and Nora. Buck was near his father, so while the four original members split up, Tally and Wichita heading one direction, and Columbus and Little Rock the other, Buck ended up following his father.
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Soon enough, everyone was checking every nook and cranny for any hidden threats...at least that's what the group on the top floor did. When the sound of the opening song of Ghostbusters started playing downstairs, not five minutes in, it was clear the bottom group got caught up in releasing stress more than staying safe. A sigh escaped Nora as she looked at the other three with her.
"Please tell me they didn't get surprised by a zombie Bill Murray, cause I don't want to worry about Buck down there with his idiot father."
"Relax, no dead in the building, just a little licorice for the ladies, though," Leah said with a snort as all four flicked their weapons to a door that just opened a few feet in front of them. Soon enough, out walked a rather impressive zombie Bill Murray. Unlike the movie that did a comically shoddy job of making Murray look like an undead, this one could pass, given the black stains, fake dead skin, and messy hair. When the man saw the assortment of firearms pointed at him, he held his hands up.
"Whoa, hey, not dead, not dead!" he said, growing wide-eyed. The four paused for a second before putting their guns away. "Whew, that will tell me not to sleep with this stuff on next time," the older actor said while holding his chest and, clearly, still beating heart.
"Sorry, you just look...Dead," Logan said as he was taking note of the special effects that the actor had pulled on his appearance. Murray smiled as he waved down at himself, "Oh, this? Yeah, great guy I knew for years taught me how to do this after I wanted to go as a zombie for Halloween one year back in the eighties. Freaked out so many people," he said with a laugh. "Anyway, welcome to la Mansion Demurray, what can I get you folks during your stay?" the man asked, clearly desperate for some genuine companionship after so long alone.