The Scouts marched south until they reached the grocery store Vas and his Decoys had used the night before.

When they reached the store, Vas and Fem slid down into it.

“Anybody home?” They had no way of knowing what sorts of things attracted the Risen. If a group had found the hundred dead bodies, would that group still be here?

No noises came from the store, so Vas and Fem made their ways down the isles until they found a pharmacy section.

Vas could vaguely make out what the labels said, and grabbed multiple bandage packages along with gauze.

He loaded Fem’s pack with the items and then filled his own with pills. He took as many pain killers as he could find, as well as cold medicine. He grabbed a few bandanas and tissues. Then he grabbed multiple packs of women’s hygienic supplies. Finally, he went and found a large bottle of whiskey.

Vas was sure there were a dozen other things the Scouts could use, but he’d already filled up two bags and couldn’t think of anything else at that moment.

Fem and Vas took about twenty minutes inside the store.

When they returned, the Scouts continued on their way south.

They hiked for another few hours, well past midday. As they seemed to be reaching the end of the little town they’d been walking through, Vas stopped them.

“Let’s dig this house out.”

“Why?” The question was asked by Joust.

Tapo snorted and gave Joust a ‘you are an idiot’ sort of look.

Tapo started grabbing snow where the front door of the house seemed to be and throwing it elsewhere.

Selene and the others immediately started working at digging through the snow with whatever they had.

Joust frowned and watched the other Scouts. Vas patted the man on the shoulder.

“Only one entrance to keep watch on tonight.”

The words seemed to be enough because Joust formed an ‘o’ with his mouth and started digging with the others.

Soon the snow was carved away from the doorway. The handle was an old door handle, one that required a key to open. It was locked.

Alex pushed the others aside and pulled out two hairpins Vas hadn’t even realized she possessed.

They all watched in amazement as Alex took under five minutes to pick the old lock.

The door made a final click and Alex turned to Vas. She nodded.

“Open the door. Get ready.” If there was a Risen inside, it should rush out to Vas. That situation would be far preferable to an encounter indoors.

Alex pushed the door open to reveal a tall Risen. Alex squeaked and jumped backwards just as the monster jumped towards her.

Tapo beheaded it at the same time Joust sliced into its torso from the other side.

“Anyone else,” Vas inquired into the dark house.

Nothing responded, and the Scouts entered after a minute of waiting. They stuck together as a big group.

Alex watched their backs and Fem lead their front.

The shorter swords they both had equipped would be easy to maneuver for indoor combat.

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They searched the entire house, which was only a couple of bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen.

Nothing.

No monsters, at least. The only resident had been the large Risen.

Everyone split up and went to find blankets, towels, sleeping bags, and whatever else they could find.

Everything seemed like it had gone unused, as though the Risen had been standing waiting at the door for years.

Vas went to the front door and looked out.

The sun had yet to go down, so light still peeked through certain areas around the windows and through the doorway.

Vas turned back to the inside of the house and whistled a long, high-pitched whistle that he followed with a low-pitched whistle with roughly the same length.

The whistle was an assembly call that the Scouts used out in the wastes, where voices often didn’t carry well.

The Scouts assembled within a few dozen seconds. “Time for new pair assignments. Alex and Joust can stick together since they’re the only pair left. Any preferences?”

Alex raised her hand, and Vas couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “Yes, Alex.”

“Can I sleep on the couch instead of next to Joust tonight?”

“You can sit by the door next to Joust on watch tonight.”

Alex glared at Vas and Joust grunted out a laugh. Alex turned her glare to him and he quieted, still smiling.

One of the Scouts whose name Vas did not know raised his hand. He seemed to be Native American. Vas nodded at the man.

“Sir, may I, uh, is there any chance I could just stay solo?”

Vas knew the feeling. He’d avoided people like the plague for years.

“No. And just call me Vas. You are?”

“Zy.”

“Zy, team up with Fem. Selene and I will pair up. Tapo and. . .” Vas trailed off as he looked at the other Scout whose name he didn’t know. It was a short and bald man who looked Indian. Vas absently wondered if the man was Hindu.

“Azul.”

Vas nodded.

“Tapo and Azul.”

Vas watched the group process their new pairings.

“Don’t try to forgive. Don’t try to forget.”

Vas pulled out the bottle of whiskey.

“We’ll each take a sip. One sip. Take the night to remember. Find a quiet space if you need one. Go to sleep if you need to. I’ll take the night watch.”

Vas took a sip and swallowed it down. It made him cough.

He walked over and held the bottle out to Tapo.

Tapo cleared his throat. Vas caught his eye and saw that the big man was about ready to cry. He glanced at the others and noticed they were too.

Then Vas felt a tear roll down his cheek.

Selene walked up to Vas and gave him a hug, then the others joined in a large group hug.

They passed the whiskey around and each took a single sip.

The next hour was spent crying, sharing, hugging. Recovering.