"I am going to tie a rock to that ribbon of yours yet." Nicky scowled as my arrow once more hit the target perfectly even with the wind.

I stepped back to let the next man have his turn, "You are just jealous."

"Of course I am. How could I not be?"

Liz was practically bouncing beside Nicky. I had let her aim my bow once, but convinced her to use her own bow without the ribbon after that. Nicky watched the man shoot before hefting her bow, "My turn. Cheer me on Liz!"

Liz clapped excitedly, "Go Nicky! You will hit the target if you keep trying!"

I snickered at Liz's innocent comment. Nicky winced, "I am not sure if that was encouragement or an insult."

Quite a few others were grinning, but this game was often accompanied by bantering and joking. Nicky fired and managed to hit the piece of plywood, but was nowhere close to where it should have hit. She groaned, "Okay Luke, your turn."

Despite his earlier objections, we had managed to convince Luke to come into the archery area while Nicky held a bow. Luke and his brother were intrigued by the game and had joined in. Luke's aim was better than Nicky's, but not by much.

A wind gust made his arrow hit the donkey's front leg instead of the rump. He shook his head with a faint growl of disappointment. The sound didn't bother anyone and only a couple even glanced over when they heard it.

Nicky scratched her head as she looked behind me, "Well, that is a new one."

I turned around to see what she was looking at. She had a right to be surprised. I hadn't noticed since the wind wasn't in my favor, but Nina and Daniel were coming over.

Once they got within easy speaking range I tilted my head as a silent inquiry. I had already given Nina three vials of blood yesterday, so I couldn't see her needing more already.

We must have looked curious since Daniel enlightened us, "We figured that Nicky's aim had improved to the point where it was safe to stand somewhere behind her."

The jibe hit home with Nicky. "Hey! I only managed to hit something behind me once! And that was an accident!"

Nina was looking at the giant donkey with a grin, "It looked like fun, so we thought we would join as well. If you don't mind, that is."

I shrugged, "Go for it."

Turning them away would have been ten stages past rude even for a zombie. We would just have to separate Daniel and Nicky. Nina and Daniel went to the shed to acquire a bow.

Nicky and Daniel predictably sent a few jibes at each other as the game progressed. It mostly consisted of Nicky complaining about his far-too-perfect aim while he inquired about where she was actually aiming. The wind sometimes grabbed the ribbon and took Daniel's arrow for a ride, much to my silent amusement.

Nicky cheered as she finally hit the donkey's rear end. She tried to playfully elbow me in the ribs and I used my arm to block her while growling idly. Liz peered up and tried to mimic my growl again. Many chuckled at that. I snorted faintly, "Keep that up and most Strongholds will think you are infected."

Liz just smiled up at me before turning to watch the next person firing their bow. She clearly did not understand what that meant or the implications of a human trying to act like a zombie.

Nicky grinned at me, "You have sure mellowed over the last few months."

I growled wordlessly at her. Nicky smirked, unaffected by my growl, "Just do all of us a favor and don't become as humanized as Daniel."

I glanced at the Terror as he rolled his eyes. I shrugged, "I highly doubt that there is any chance of that."

Nicky chuckled and rubbed her hands together, "I plan to stick around and make sure of that."

Daniel muttered, "Lucky us..."

Nicky either didn't hear his mutter or was ignoring him. Sometimes I hated it when Nicky was observant. Had I been dropped in a group like this on the day I first met Liz, I would have been snarling at those around me. Now it barely bothered me enough to take note of it unless someone got too close or otherwise irritated me.

John fired his bow and missed the target as a wind gust took the ribbon for a scenic tour. He shook his head before coming over to our group. He stood beside his brother, "You know, if I told people from most Strongholds that I played an archery game with three zombies, they would probably think I was crazy."

Luke was amused by his observation, "Very likely. I don't think I have heard of another Stronghold with a zombie in it before either." He glanced at me, "Have you ever heard of a Stronghold welcoming a sane zombie?"

I considered it for a moment. I hadn't personally stopped at such place, but I had talked with a few sane zombies who traveled a lot. "Two." One of those was the place that had Runner in the barn. If he was even still a zombie at this point. If only the controlex had been available, then I was positive that they would have welcomed him in. They had kept him nearby in that barn the entire time and checked on him daily after all.

I glanced at the sun. It would be setting in another hour. It wasn't long before it was my turn again. I hit the target, although the wind kept me from managing a perfect shot. I watched as another woman took her turn.

Distant eerie calls echoed out of the forest to the north. Two of them, one right after another. My head whipped in that direction as I took a deep breath before releasing my own proximity call. That spooked most of those around me. My instincts detested being the center of attention as nearly fifty people stared at me or glanced toward the north where the similar sounds had originated.

Luke was watching me alertly, "I don't suppose that was someone you know?"

I nodded, "Actually yes. That was Kelly and Travis, although they were supposed to be heading toward the coast last I heard." I glanced at Daniel, "Did you pick up their scent on your last patrol?"

Luke relaxed at the sound of those names. He hadn't met them, but I had spoken about them in the past. I passed him my bow and arrows.

Daniel took a few steps closer, "No. Your scent was the only Nightstalker around. I wonder how they got so close this swiftly since I did that last patrol only a few hours ago. Do you need any help?"

He seemed a bit reluctant to go and I knew it was because the sun was so close to setting. He didn't see well in the dark and he had been ambushed by Nightstalkers before. If they were aggressive, he could easily defend this place if they lit it up. He would then wait for morning before going hunting for them.

I shook my head, "No. I know them. You even caught a glimpse of them along the road that one day. I will go out and greet them, but don't expect me back until morning. Oh, and let people know to not worry about the sounds they might hear."

He raised an eyebrow, "And if you run into trouble?"

I snorted, "I doubt I will encounter any trouble. I know them fairly well. If something goes wrong I still have that communication radio you gave me."

I moved swiftly through the crowd as it parted for me. The guards on the gate were on alert, but didn't seem terribly worried. Once I was out of the gate I started jogging. The moment I hit the trees I began running toward where I had heard their calls.

Why did they come here? They were supposed to be on the coast. How did they even know I was here? I wasn't sure, but I would find out shortly. I made the proximity call again and they answered swiftly enough. They had been coming closer, but like I had expected, they had gone at a bit of an angle.

It was a typical thing for a Nightstalker to do. We preferred to come in from behind or from the sides. I altered my path, knowing that they would also alter theirs again just in case the local Terror was trailing me and was hostile.

I slowed when I was pretty sure I was getting closer. I called out, "Kelly? Travis?"

I slowed my pace even more and it wasn't long before my sharp eyes caught a hint of motion. I stopped and grinned in Kelly's direction. She was the more outgoing one. Travis preferred to linger behind. If Kelly triggered a trap or another sane zombie was aggressive, then he would come roaring in like a tsunami and usually take anything by surprise.

I growled a low welcome greeting and she responded likewise. I glanced around, "Come on out Travis. It is just me."

I caught a glimpse of movement to my left and bared my teeth in acknowledgement. Kelly was closer by now, "I think I should have ambushed you like you surprised me last time. You are lucky I caught your scent that time or I might have done some damage."

My zombie body language was more prominent around these two since they also used it. I grinned ferally at her, "I made sure to wait until you caught it."

She snorted in an unladylike fashion, "I will have to return the favor one day."

I bared my teeth in a playful response. I had missed wrestling with these two. It was very different to wrestle with zombies of your own rank since the instinct-driven desire to subdue those under your rank didn't interfere. The outcome could vary more easily as well.

I would always pin Luke unless I let him win, which was rare with my overinflated pride and instincts. Just as Daniel would always pin me. Travis inquired, "Is that Terror likely to show up?"

I shook my head, "Unless I use the radio to call for help, very unlikely."

Kelly glanced in the direction of the Stronghold, "How badly would a few cries freak them out if we get carried away out here?"

I chuckled, "I warned them before I left."

Kelly bared her teeth, "Good."

She shifted into a low crouch and growled at me. I growled in return as I also prepared for the play fight. Our last match had been interrupted when her sunglasses had fallen off, but in another hour we would probably tuck our glasses into their hard protective cases. Then all bets were off.

With a low snarl she lunged at me. I ducked out of her way and struck the back of her shoulder with a light blow. She snarled at the strike and the instant her feet hit the ground she whirled around to come at me again.

Kelly was fast. Not as fast as Daniel, but unusually quick for a Nightstalker. Her fighting style was about as good as Nicky's aim though. Some things just couldn't be salvaged.

This time I met her head on and we went rolling into the leaf litter. I was glad I had dropped my backpack onto the ground when she had altered her body language. It would have hampered me otherwise. It took a bit, but I managed to pin her. She stilled with a low growl and I released her before springing to my feet.

I offered my hand and she took it as I easily pulled her up. She shook herself off and the movement sent a small rain of dirt and leaves to the ground, "Your technique has changed a bit."

I shrugged, "All I have had to wrestle with is a Runner or a Terror. I either have to hold back or get my ass handed to me. I will be glad to have someone else to wrestle with, although I am confused as to why you are here and not on the coast."

Travis sighed, "We did go to the coast, but a hurricane or flash flood must have occurred because everything was washed away. The house isn't there and the trees will take years to regrow. We started heading toward the mountains, but you clearly had not come back to your cabin. We stayed there for a bit before heading south to see if we could locate you."

Kelly picked up the story, "We came across a sane Runner who spoke about a cure and some sort of drug that lowers bloodlust. Considering he spoke of a place with both a Terror and a Nightstalker, we were pretty sure that you were at the Stronghold he spoke of. He gave us directions. It has taken us some time to get here, but here we are!"

She waved her hands in a flourish. Travis rolled his eyes at his sister and glanced at the sky, "The sun is starting to set. Is there any place we should avoid or areas we should know about?"

I shook my head, "You can go anywhere. I advise avoiding the barn since they have some feral Runners locked up in there. There is a cave not far from here if you feel like spending the night. Only one bed though. On a side note, how did you get so close so quickly? Daniel didn't pick up your scent on his last patrol."

Kelly tilted her head, "Daniel is the Terror? Yeah, we knew the moment we came close to the edge of his territory. He must run laps on that thing for it to smell like that. We found a working car. It is parked a bit further away since we wanted to be on foot when we called."

Travis sniffed the air, "Speaking of scent, your scent is strengthening as if your instincts are rising, but the sun has not set."

I sighed, "That is due to a drug called controlex. It eliminates most of the bloodlust you feel toward humans, but it strengthens your instincts from the moment the sun touches the horizon until the sun rises above it once more."

He nodded slowly, "I am surprised you took such a drug."

I growled faintly as I recalled Louise's trick, "I didn't take it intentionally."

Kelly gave me a long look, "Why don't you give us a tour and fill us in on what has occurred since we last visited in the cabin."

I bared my teeth in agreement before I started walking. This story could take quite some time to retell...