June 14th, 2020 10:45

"Damnit..." Dallas murmered, kicking the now limp body of a Walker to the side. He frowned at the dismembered rabit in front of him, yanking his arrow from the Walker's head. As if it wasn't bad enough that there were Walkers everywhere, they had started eating any wildlife they could catch; which meant less for the still living. With the fact that food was scarce anyway, this new development hadn't helped matters.

Dallas kicked the rabbit to the side in dissapointment and disgust before continuing through the brush, bow in hand. He had been out here for about two hours already, and all he'd managed to kill were two squirrels and three rabbits, hanging them up in a tree to keep them from Walkers. As good of a hunter as Dallas was, he couldn't very well hunt what wasn't there. Hopefully there was enough meat on the rodents to suffice until the next hunt. Very rarely were any deer or other creature of the sort to be seen out in these woods, meaning that squirrels, rabbits, and any bird large enough to eat were the groups main source of meat.

The tow-head trekked further into the woods, making sure to step lightly and avoid any dry leaves or twigs if he could. He couldn't risk scaring anything off. His blue eyes scanned the trees and bushes for any sign of life, his instincts kicking back in from his years of hunting. A rustle to his left caused Dallas to freeze, quickly snapping his gaze over to find that a bird had alighted on a branch about four feet away. It was only a small bird, not more than a mouthful or two, but the group needed all they could get. Dallas slowly slid an arrow from his quiver, notching it before pulling back the bowstring and carefully lifting his bow. He adjusted the bow slightly, aiming to make a clean shot through the bird's tiny skull, but before he could get a good shot, a loud bang rang out through the woods, and Dallas felt a sharp pain right below his left eye. A gunshot. Caught off guard, Dallas jumped, his fingers slipping from the bowstring and releasing the arrow at least five inches above where the bird, now gone, had been perched. The tow-head instinctively ducked into a large cluster of bushes, bow at his side and right hand resting on his quiver in case he needed another arrow.

Dallas' heart pounded against his chest, seeming far too loud in the silence that had fallen over the woods following the gunshot. He forced his breathing to remain even as he heard a rustling, quickly approaching his hiding spot. Dallas bit his lower lip, praying that his white blonde hair wouldn't draw attention to himself. The rustling continued to grow louder and louder, before finally stopping. Right by the cluster of bushes that Dallas was curently occupying.

The tow-head froze, holding his breath. He tried to get a look at whoever it was through the branches of his bush cluster, but the foliage was too thick. He wasn't complaining, though; that meant that they probably wouldn't see him, either. This person was proved to be female as she spoke. "Now where the hell...." She shuffled around in the undergrowth nearby for a few moments before letting out an exasperated "Damn!" The woman walked back past the bushes, heading back the way she'd come. "Lost him..."

These words chilled Dallas to the bone. Lost him... She had been aiming for him. Why? He didn't recognize her voice at all, so it couldn't have been someone he knew. Dallas slowly emerged from the bushes, looking around to make sure she was gone. The distant rustling told him that she was still headed away from him. He released his breath, standing up straight. His blue eyes scanned the area around him, and he stiffened. Wood splinters were scattered along the ground near the base of a nearby tree, a bullet hole clear in the bark. His heart rate increased signifigantly as he took note of the height and postiton of the hole.

Had it been just two inches to the right, Dallas would have been dead.

The tow-head felt his breath catch in his throat. He had dealt with near death experiences before, especially in the last few months. But all of the most recent ones had been because of Walkers. Unintelligent, slow creatures which he could easily dispatch if need be. This was a human. She was capable of thinking, planning, scheming. She was agile, and armed with a weapon far more formiddable than his. Dallas swallowed hard. He hadn't had to deal with human threats like this since... He shook his head to clear it. He couldn't let fear control him; now was when he needed to focus the most.

Dallas' left cheek throbbed, reminding him of the sharp pain from earlier. His hand quickly found the source: A piece of bark had embedded itself into the skin below his eye when it had splintered. He had been so close to the tree, it had hit him hard enough to draw blood; a trail of it ran down his cheek, unnoticed until this moment. Guess the fear temporarily numbed the pain... Dallas thought vaguely as he yanked the splinter from his skin, wincing slightly at the pain. His actions caused a fresh stream of blood to emerge from the wound, and he quickly wiped it off. He would have to disinfect it when he got back; he had used the last of his Hydrodrine Pyroxide on a nasty cut he'd recieved on his arm when he'd tripped over an obscured tree root, causing him to land rather roughly on his arm.

The man looked in the direction the woman had gone, contemplating. He knew he should really head back to camp and tell Caleb about this encounter, but something urged him to follow her. Caleb probably wouldn't listen anyway. Dallas reasoned with himself. Besides, it would be better to have more information to tell him, if I even do. He knew he would end up telling the ginger, no matter what he told himself. This was a serious situation, and everyone could be in danger. Including Emily. There was no way he was letting her get hurt, not if he had a say. He stood there in the woods, reviewing his options. The fact that there was someone else out here intrigued him, and it would be best to gather some more information before reporting back. Curiousity got the better of him, and he crept after the woman, following the faint path she'd made through the undergrowth. It was a couple of minutes before he started to hear the distant sounds of talking. The tow-head paused, lisening closely in an attempt to hear the conversation. Unable to make out anything more than mutters, Dallas continued closer, stopping every so often to listen. As the voices became clearer, Dallas slowed down, creeping forward with senses alert.

He could now make out two distinct voices, a male and the female who'd taken a shot at Dallas. Based on their tones, it would seem that they were in quite a heated argument. He slunk forward a little more, slipping behind a tree as he caught sight of the women. He was careful to stay hidden; the woman had nearly killed him once; he wouldn't put it past her to try it again. Dallas focused in on the voices, listening intently.

"-rry I was startled by a f***ing rabbit, alright? If it hadn't come out of no where, I would've hit that motherf***er right in his pretty little skull, and you know it!" the woman was growling. "Excuses. excuses!" the man retorted. " You missed, that's what matters. For all we know, he could be telling the rest of that group of his we're here! We need the element of surprise if we're gonna take that stronghold over!" Dallas narrowed his eyes at this. They had to mean the hotel. "It's the strongest one for miles! We've got Walkers up our a**es while they're sittin' pretty in that sanctuary of theirs!" "Why don't we just ask to-" "We've been over this, Claire! I'm not gonna be under some chump's leadership! Hell. No!" the man spat. "We need to take over, and that's gonna be a hella lot harder now. Ya know why?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Because YOU. F***ed up!" "I said I'm sorry alr-"

There was a click, and Claire cut off with a short gasp. "Sorry. Don't. Cut it Claire." the man growled, his voice suddenly quiet. Something about his tone unsettled Dallas. He cautiously poked his head out from around the tree, hoping to catch a glimpse of the people who were plotting against his group. He spotted them about 15 feet away and bit his lip.

The man had pulled a handheld gun, and now had it aimed dead between Claire's eyes. "You. Blew it. And no amount of 'sorry' is gonna fix it." Claire's hostile demeanor had been rapidly replaced by one of pure terror, and Dallas now noticed that Claire had set her own weapon aside prior to the confrontation; she was defenseless. "W-wait, Sc-Sc-Scott! I can- I can fix it! I-I'll find him I swear!" she stuttered out, her hands raised in surrender as she pleaded for her life. Scott just laughed. "You stupid little b****." he said, gun held steady. "It's too late for that. He's probably already made it back to the hotel by now. Luckily, he only knows about you. I am still perfectly capable of taking over that stronghold. You, on the other hand..." He cocked his head slightly. "Are now just dead. Weight." "Scott, please! We can work something out!" Claire begged;it was clear from her voice that by this time, she had started crying.

Dallas felt anger rise up in his chest. What kind of man kills off his own crew members? Especially for one mistake? You don't do that; you stand by your unit. The living have gotta sick together... that honorless piece of s***... "We can still sneak in!" "Now that they're on their guard? Ha!" Scott scoffed. "Fat chance. No, Claire. It's over. At least for you. All because you couldn't kill one sorry son of a b***." "Scott!" Claire pleaded again. Scott shook his head. "Ya know, we could've been something. But this has to be done. Sorry..." Claire let out a muffled sob.

In that split second, Dallas made a decision. She may have tried to kill him, but he wasn't about to let such an act of disgrace go. Gathering all of his courage, the tow-head stepped into the clearing, arms open.

"Lookin' for me, a**hole?"