The alliance, forged in the silent understanding of shared danger, quickly solidified into a practiced rhythm. Ethan, Purna, Sam B, and Xian Mei moved as a single, efficient unit across the desolate highway. The vast, open stretches allowed for early detection of threats, and their combined skills made short work of anything that dared to cross their path.
Ethan, with his unparalleled Perception, often acted as the advance scout, his senses extending far beyond the others. He could pinpoint distant walker herds, discern the subtle scent of an infected, or even pick up the faint, tell-tale clicks of a lurking Butcher long before they were visible to the naked eye. This allowed them to either reroute or prepare for engagement, always giving them the tactical upper hand.
Purna, ever vigilant, served as their primary marksman. Her pistol, with its rare and precious ammunition, was reserved for critical targets, a runner too fast, a special infected too dangerous to approach head-on. She was precise, a master of her craft, and her calm demeanor was a steadying force for the group.
Sam B, a hulking figure of raw power, was their tank. He'd often lead the charge into a cluster of walkers, his heavy blade a blur of destruction. He favored direct confrontation, his immense strength matching Ethan's own, though Ethan still held a slight edge thanks to his System's enhancements. Sam B's gruff exterior hid a surprising loyalty, and he quickly came to trust Ethan's judgment in a fight.
Xian Mei, the silent assassin, was their nimble flanker. She moved with impossible speed and grace, darting around enemies, her knives finding vital points with surgical precision. She preferred silent kills, often slipping into groups of walkers to thin their numbers before they even knew what was happening. Her quiet intensity was a constant reminder of the lethality she possessed.
Ethan, despite his overwhelming stats, played his part carefully. He would allow Purna to take the headshots, Sam B to smash through the front lines, and Xian Mei to clear the flanks. He intervened when necessary, saving a teammate from a grappling walker, or delivering a crushing blow to a particularly stubborn thug. His Strength 19 meant one swing was usually enough, but he often used two or three, just to appear less supernatural. His Agility 17 allowed him to move with a speed that still garnered surprised glances, but he attributed it to "good reflexes" and "years of sports."
One afternoon, they encountered a particularly large horde. Not a full-blown swarm, but easily fifty walkers, shambling towards them from the direction of a distant town.
"Too many to take head-on," Purna stated, her voice calm but firm. "We need to go around."
Ethan's Perception, however, registered something else within the horde. A deeper, more resonant growl. Two of them. And a faint, sickening stench that wasn't just decay. A Screamer. He saw its bloated form waddling in the middle of the mass.
"Wait," Ethan said, stepping forward. "There's a Screamer in there. And two Thugs. If we let them pass, they'll just draw more."
Purna raised an eyebrow, surprised at his immediate identification of the specialized infected. "You see them from here?"
"I hear them," Ethan vaguely replied, gesturing towards the wind. "Distinct sounds. We can't let that Screamer go off. It'll bring everything for miles."
Sam B grunted. "So, what's the plan, kid? We can't just charge in."
"We bottleneck them," Ethan said, pointing to a narrow overpass bridge a few hundred yards ahead. The highway constricted significantly there, flanked by concrete barriers. "Purna, you get up high on the overpass. Pick off anything that tries to climb or rush. Sam B, Xian Mei, we hold the bottleneck. I'll go for the Screamer. If it explodes, Purna can cover our retreat."
Purna assessed the plan, her eyes narrowed. "Risky. That Screamer blows, and you're soaked."
"I'll be quick," Ethan assured her, his tone leaving no room for argument. "And I'll be careful. We get that Screamer, the rest is just cleanup."
They executed the plan with military precision. Purna scaled a damaged billboard near the overpass, providing a clear vantage point. Sam B and Xian Mei took positions at the narrowest point of the bridge, ready to engage the oncoming walkers. Ethan, meanwhile, moved with silent, incredible speed along the side of the highway, staying hidden in the overgrown brush.
The horde reached the bottleneck, their numbers forcing them into a slow, struggling crawl. Purna's pistol barked, dropping walkers attempting to climb the barriers. Sam B was a destructive force, swinging his massive blade, while Xian Mei danced among the limbs, her knives cutting down targets with brutal efficiency.
Ethan, a shadow, reached the flank of the horde. He saw the Thugs lumbering towards the bottleneck, and the Screamer, surprisingly close to the edge of the mass, pushing through the struggling walkers. He moved in.
He ignored the standard walkers. His focus was absolute. He lunged at the Screamer, his machete a lethal extension of his arm. He didn't aim for the head, too risky for an explosion. He aimed for its legs, swift, crippling blows.
CRACK! CRACK!
The Screamer stumbled, its immense body lurching. It let out a choked, wet gurgle, its torso beginning to distend rapidly. Ethan didn't hesitate. He thrust his machete deep into its chest, aiming for the core of its volatile insides, then ripped it upwards.
The Screamer imploded, not with a deafening boom, but a contained, wet explosion. Bile erupted outwards, but Ethan, with a burst of Agility, was already spinning, leaping clear, barely touched by the corrosive spray. The walkers closest to it were dissolved in a shower of green.
Hostile neutralized: Screamer (Class-IV). Battle Points acquired: 8. Current BP: 53 + 8 = 61.
The lack of a massive explosion, a surprise even to him, bought them precious time. The remaining walkers, momentarily disoriented by the internal collapse of the Screamer, slowed. The two Thugs, however, snarled, now heading directly for Ethan.
"Thugs are on me!" Ethan yelled, his voice cutting through the groans.
"I'm on it!" Sam B roared back, fighting his way through the remaining walkers at the bottleneck. Xian Mei was already a blur, darting through the mass towards Ethan.
Ethan faced the two Thugs. They were powerful, but slow. His Strength 19 and Agility 17 were more than a match. He dodged the first Thug's clumsy swing, then retaliated with a crushing blow to its knee. As it roared and stumbled, the second Thug came at him. He sidestepped, then used his machete to dismember its arm. It shrieked, its limb falling uselessly.
Before either could recover, Sam B arrived, a whirlwind of muscle and steel. He slammed into the first Thug, sending it reeling, while Xian Mei, appearing as if from nowhere, used her knives to swiftly sever the second Thug's Achilles tendons. The Thugs collapsed, rendered immobile, and the trio moved in for the kill, finishing them with coordinated blows.
Hostile neutralized: 2x Thug (Class-III). Battle Points acquired: 10. Current BP: 61 + 10 = 71.
The rest was a massacre. With the specialized infected gone, and the horde funneling into their combined, overwhelming strength, the walkers fell like dominoes. Purna rained down headshots, Sam B pulverized, Xian Mei sliced, and Ethan crushed. The highway was soon littered with motionless corpses.
Hostile neutralized: 50x Walker (Class-I). Battle Points acquired: 50. Current BP: 71 + 50 = 121.
One hundred and twenty-one Battle Points. A massive haul. Ethan felt a profound sense of satisfaction. They had faced a horde, complete with specialized threats, and emerged virtually unscathed. His leadership, combined with their skills, had been flawless.
"That was… efficient," Purna stated, walking over, her pistol still smoking faintly. She looked at Ethan with a new, grudging respect. "You handled that Screamer. And you were right about the Thugs. Good call."
"Teamwork," Ethan replied simply, wiping his machete clean on a fallen walker. "Everyone pulled their weight."
Sam B clapped Ethan on the shoulder again, a bone-jarring blow. "Damn right. Good fight, kid."
Xian Mei gave a slight nod, a rare gesture of approval from the quiet assassin.
The sun was setting, casting long, crimson shadows over the gruesome landscape. They had cleared the way. Their journey was far from over, but the bond between them had deepened, forged in the fires of collective combat. Ethan knew he could rely on them. And for the first time in a long time, he didn't feel entirely alone.