Caravan Rubbish

Jezza spat the grey lump of rubber out of his mouth. Fruit Stripe gum never lasted long on flavour, and after four days of chewing this piece, it tasted like spit and regret. He wiped his mouth and turned his attention to the scene below.  

The gang stood at the edge of a steep ridge, staring down at the rusty static caravan surrounded by zombies that shuffled aimlessly in the dirt. Jezza glanced at his companions and let out a resigned sigh.  

Rescue missions weren’t their style. Too much risk, not enough reward. But Del Boy had petrol - a precious three gallons - and his best gun. His precious Raquel was down there, somewhere among the undead. Bring her back, and the deal was yours.

Turn 1

Jezza turned to the group, his expression tense but determined. "Raquel’s down there," he said, nodding toward the small encampment below. "She’s either in the caravan, the shed, or the Landie. We need to check all three." His voice was low, but the urgency was clear.

The others exchanged glances, weighing their options. They had to move fast, but they couldn’t afford to be reckless. After a brief but heated discussion, they agreed on a plan. Freddie, who had only just gotten his hands on a bow, would remain on the ridge, using his elevated position to pick off any wandering zombies before they could become a threat. The rest of the group would slide down the loose dirt slope and fan out, cautiously approaching the three possible hiding spots.

Despite their best efforts to move silently, the gang watched in tense anticipation as the zombies lurched forward, their decayed limbs dragging through the murky bog. But the horror did not stop there. For every zombie that struggled through from the mire, another seemed to rise in its place, clawing its way up from beneath the surface. It was as if the very bog itself was birthing them, an endless tide of the undead slowly but relentlessly closing in on the gang.

Turn 2

On the following turn, Sabine, Jezza, and Hamster crept silently toward the weathered old shed, their footsteps muffled by the damp earth beneath them. The only sound that accompanied them was the sharp twang of a bowstring and the whispering hiss of arrows slicing through the air.

From his vantage point atop the ridge, Freddie kept a vigilant watch, his keen eyes tracking the shambling figures that dared to draw too close. With each measured pull of his bow, another undead threat crumpled to the ground, the only evidence of his lethal accuracy being the soft thuds of bodies collapsing in the distance. Sabine and the others knew they had to move quickly - Freddie was keeping them covered, but his quiver wouldn’t last forever.

Turn 3

With the gang in position, Hamster took a deep breath and grasped the handle of the shed doors. He hesitated only for a moment before yanking them open.

A blur of movement erupted from the darkness inside. Three snarling, half-decayed zombies lunged at him, their grotesque hands clawing wildly. Hamster barely had time to react before they were on him, their weight sending him stumbling backward. He braced for the worst, but their feeble, rotting limbs failed to do any real harm, their grasping fingers sliding uselessly off his thick jacket.

Sabine didn’t hesitate. With a practiced flick of her wrist, she unsheathed her trusty knife and drove it into the temple of the nearest zombie. It crumpled instantly, its body hitting the ground with a sickening thud. Without missing a beat, she spun and plunged the blade into the next one’s skull, dispatching it just as swiftly.

The scuffle had been loud - too loud. Hollow moans drifted through the damp air as the horde of zombies turned in unison, their empty eyes locking onto the source of the disturbance.

Then, as one, they began to move.

The ground squelched beneath their feet as they trudged forward, their sluggish pace belying the inevitable danger they posed. 

Turn 4

Jezza’s heart pounded as he caught sight of the oncoming horde. Gritting his teeth, he swung his shotgun up, bracing it against his shoulder. A split second passed - just enough to take aim - before he pulled the trigger.

The boom of the blast echoed across the landscape. Nearly half a dozen zombies crumpled where they stood.

Up on the ridge, Freddie peered down at the scene below, he spotted a cluster of zombies struggling in the thick, sucking mud of the bog. Wasting no time, he nocked an arrow, drew the string back, and loosed it. The first shaft struck true, piercing a zombie clean through the eye socket. Another arrow followed before the first corpse had even hit the water.

Near the shed, Hamster was still locked in a desperate grapple with one last undead straggler. Sabine circled, dagger in hand, trying to find an opening. But with the two figures locked so tightly in their struggle, she couldn't get a clean strike.

Turn 5

Sabine finally managed to free Hamster from the clutches of the relentless zombie, driving her blade through its skull with a sickening crunch. As the creature collapsed in a heap, Hamster wasted no time - this was his chance. He sprinted inside the old shed. Dust and the scent of mildew filled the air as he rifled through overturned shelves and broken crates, searching desperately for any sign of Raquel.

But she wasn’t there.

A wave of frustration tightened in his chest, but he forced himself to focus. Though Raquel remained missing, the search wasn’t in vain - among the scattered supplies, he found a stash of medicine.

Jezza stood near the caravan, partially concealed behind its rusted frame. He raised a hand, signalling for Hamster to join him. Whatever came next, they had to move fast.

Turn 6

Jezza, caught out in the open with nowhere to take cover, cursed under his breath. He raised his shotgun and squeezed the trigger, the blast echoing through the swamp. But in his panic, his aim was off - the shot whizzed past the nearest zombie, kicking up mud instead of tearing through rotting flesh.

Before he could reload, the creatures lurched forward with unsettling speed. Their clawed fingers reached for him, closing the distance far quicker than he expected. His heart pounded as he realized - he was in trouble.

Turn 7

Seeing Jezza struggling against the encroaching undead, Sabine didn’t hesitate. She sprinted over to her gang leader, with a fierce cry, Sabine lunged, driving her knife deep into the creature’s temple. The blade met bone, but she forced it through with a savage twist. The zombie gave a rattling moan before crumpling into a lifeless heap at Jezza’s feet. Yanking her knife free, she barely spared a glance at the fresh corpse before turning to him.

Jezza grunted in acknowledgment, his breath ragged. “Damn good timing,” he muttered before leveling his shotgun. With a thunderous blast, he sent a spray of buckshot into the horde pressing toward them. A couple of zombies dropped instantly, their bodies flung backward from the force of the shot, while the rest hesitated, giving the gang a precious few moments to regroup.

Turn 8

Hamster took a deep breath and flung open the caravan door, but before he could even peer inside, a trio of rotting figures lurched forward. 

Hamster barely had time to react. Instinct took over as he stumbled backward, throwing up his arms to block their clawing hands. One zombie snapped its jaws inches from his face. Hamster twisted away, his boot catching against the muddy ground as he fought desperately to hold them off.

Sabine, standing a short distance away, froze for a split second as she registered the scene. Then, understanding the danger, she sprang into action. "Hamster!" she shouted, racing toward him, her weapon drawn and ready to strike.

Turn 9

One of the attacking zombies lunged at Hamster with a guttural snarl, its rotting fingers raking across his arm and tearing through his jacket. Pain flared as a wound was opened.

With a swift, practiced motion, Sabine drove her blade deep into the skull of one of the undead, the sickening crunch of bone giving way beneath her strike. The creature shuddered before collapsing lifelessly at her feet.

Jezza, standing firm despite the chaos, fired his shotgun in controlled bursts, each deafening blast momentarily lighting up the darkness. The remaining zombies recoiled under his onslaught.

Turn 10 

With a swift and precise motion, Sabine drove her knife into the chest of the last zombie lunging at Hamster, the creature crumpling to the ground in a heap of twitching limbs. 

Hamster, still caught up in the thrill of his victory, momentarily forgot the pain from his earlier injury. It took a moment before the adrenaline wore off and he remembered something important - the small stash of medicine he had found earlier in the shed. His mind clearing, he quickly retrieved the vial from his pack and began to tend to his wound, carefully wrapping it with the makeshift bandages.

Realizing he had one more action left, he scanned the nearby caravan. His eyes flickered over the cluttered scene, but something shiny caught his attention. Kneeling down beside a rusted crate, he carefully pried it open to reveal a hidden shotgun!

Turn 11

With Raquel nowhere to be found in the shed or the caravan, Sabine's heart sank as a sinking realization washed over her. The only place they hadn't checked was the "Landie." There was no other place she could think of where Raquel might be hiding. Without a moment's hesitation, Sabine bolted toward the vehicle.

She yanked open the driver's side door. A dreadful sound erupted. Three rotting, foul-smelling zombies tumbled out of the vehicle.

Sabine slashed at the closest zombie with grim determination, her movements sharp and purposeful. As she fought to keep the remaining undead at bay, Jezza continued to take out zombies emerging from the bog with deadly accuracy, each blast ringing through the air like a reminder that their fight for survival had no end in sight.

Turn 12

Hamster eagerly joined forces with Jezza, a wide grin spreading across his face as he proudly clutched his newly acquired shotgun. The weapon felt heavy in his hands, but he was eager to put it to use. Jezza, however, barely acknowledged his enthusiasm, his eyes locked on the advancing horde of zombies. With an air of indifference, he gave a simple command: "Just point and fire at them."

Meanwhile, Sabine had already cleared the last of the nearby zombies. Using her third action to inspect the Land Rover. As she rifled through the vehicle, her heart skipped a beat when she found Raquel - but it was too late. Raquel had already succumbed to the infection and had turned into one of the very creatures they had been fighting. Before Sabine could react, the zombie Raquel lunged at her.

The infected Raquel's attack was swift, and she managed to land a hit on Sabine. However, in an unusual turn of events, we decided to make use of the rules (perhaps bending them a bit). We invoked a 'reroll,' forcing the zombie to roll once more. This time, the undead Raquel missed her strike.

Turn 13, 14 & 15

With Raquel's fate now finally uncovered, the gang's next move was clear: head back to Ridge and reunite with Freddie. The poor guy had recently exhausted his supply of arrows, rendering him a mere spectator in the chaos that had unfolded. While the group had come out unscathed for now, they knew their luck wouldn’t last forever - once again, they'd rolled an unusually high number of sixes, tipping the scales in their favour.

Hamster, ever the opportunist, had scavenged a shotgun and some medicine during their travels. Unfortunately, the medicine had only been useful for tending to the wound he'd sustained earlier - another reminder that no good fortune came without cost.

But the real question gnawed at everyone: how would Del handle the truth? Only time would tell.