This AU contains disturbing content.
Welcome to the bungalow, make yourself at home. Stay as long as you wish.
Cast

Torrid - She/Her

Nightkeeper — She/her
A former pirate after losing her family, Nightkeeper has no other choice but to face the apocalypse, and even finding respite in her new friends.

Oswin - He/They

Kit - Any pronouns
The groups medic. He tries his best to support everyone physically and mentally, even at the cost of their own well-being.

Peep/Rory/Emberstrike - She/Her

Ghost - He/Him

MaL - She/Her

Jinx - Zey/It

Rou - She/Her

Kal - She/He
A canine doing his best to cope in the apocalypse. Her attachment to his friends keeps her going, but she doesn’t know what he’d do if she was ever without them.

Venice - she/her
As the resident scientist of the group, Venice devotes her time in working on a cure for the virus, all while juggling her own struggles and keeping the team straight.

Mantis - She/Her

Java - She/Him

Arrow - He/It

Magenta - She/They

Angel - She/He/They

Azure - She/They

Oz - She/Her
Hello, my name is Venice. For the past few years, or ever since I escaped near death, I’ve devoted my time into the research and study of zombies and a cure to reverse the damage done to them and the world. Feel free to take a look at my journal, the pages I want to show at least. Any zombie related questions should go straight to me, everyone else here is a little stupid.

Virus BiologyThe virus acts like a fast paced rabies, but instead of the victim dying, the virus keeps the decaying and rancid body alive in order to spread the virus more. The virus is only spread through saliva, which causes the constant drooling and foaming of the victims. Once symptoms appear, the health decline is rapid and is 99.9 percent fatal. However, if caught early enough, limbs and extremities carrying the virus can be amputated to prevent infection.The life of an affected individual is up to 6 weeks, and the body is filled with insatiable hunger. Brain activity is displayed until the 6 week mark. However, after the 6 week mark all brain activity stops, and the virus takes full control of the cadavers, effectively using them until the body falls apart. This stage can last usually anywhere between 1-5 more weeks, however longer activity has been recorded.Initial InfectionThe virus becomes notable around 1-2 days after infection. The first symptoms are
- Fever
- Headache
- Tingling at bite woundOnce the virus hits the brain, the brain will swell. The victim will suffer insomnia, intense anxiety and aggression, notably becoming violent.MidstageVictims are now violent, and start to salivate abnormally. Victims will also display intense hydrophobia, otherwise known as a fear of water. Swallowing will cause extreme muscle spasms, which can cause the victim to choke on their own saliva in rare cases. Victims exhibit extreme insomnia, most individuals unable to sleep for more than three hours. Because of this, the host's eyes will appear bloodshot and red.Some victims will also experience seizures, loss of coordination, moments of confusion, and extreme agitation. Some victims will be seen visibly shaking, throwing their head back and forth, walking in circles, or become visibly panicked.Victims may also display disturbing behavior- talking to individuals that aren’t there, gnawing on random items, biting the air, and bouts of aggression or paralyzing fear.You may feel some sympathy for these victims, as they are trying to fight back against the virus. But there is no point of return from this point. Do not interact with victims displaying these symptoms.Later StagesOnce in the lager stages, the victim becomes rabid, losing all sense of individuality and civility. The host will now attack others much more frequently, and “zombified” victims now move in a herd mentality. You will rarely see a zombie alone. However, it is worth noting that brain activity still occurs here, proposing two possible theories,- The host's original mind is still intact, able to understand its actions, but is not able to control itself due to the virus controlling the muscles and other organs-however this theory is loose and needs to have more research conducted.
- The brain now enters a primitive state, making the host feral, and non-sentient. The brain now relies on instinct. This theory is much more likely. However, the brain could still display issues such as fear or anxiety.In this stage, all previous symptoms are now amplified, except for saliva production. Since the virus installs hydrophobia in its host, the body has no fluids to produce saliva.Victims can no longer stay still for long periods of time, becoming incredibly unbalanced.Final DaysOnce the victims body can no longer be used, the victim enters paralysis and the body is unable to move. The virus dies inside the body, and the body decays normally. Notably, fungi and other protists help break down the body, but wildlife stays clear.If a body is found in a body of water, or near a food supply, do not drink or eat out of this area.
September 2022
September 9th -Torrid escapes containment, and the virus spreads quickly
Nightkeepers ship is attacked, leaving her as sole survivor. She finds Oswin, and the two team up.
October 2022
Kal and Java, previous internet friends, find each other and team up.
In the city, Kal and Java find Nightkeeper and Oswin. They decide to team up, to look for a home and share recourses.
Oswin finds a base just outside the city. Magenta joins not to long after, as well as Kit.
November 2022
A small group goes to look for supplies, and find Venice. She is unconscious and without a hand. Venice is accepted into the group after she is cleaned up.
Kit finds Ghost.
Before the winter weather sets in, the group goes out on a final supply run, hoping to get enough supplies to survive the winter. The group finds Jinx, who joins the group as well.
December 2022
The dead winter stalls the zombies, allowing the group some down time. During a snowball fight, Rou joins in from the sidelines and joins the survivors.
The group celebrate a makeshift Holiday season, passing around gifts they found for each other.