"You ready Ed?" Merryn dropped a casual hand on the girl's shoulder as she stood near the prow of the boat, her eyes closed and revelling in the sea spray as the Cruiser powered through the waves.

"Yeah, I think so. This is some boat isn't it?"

"It's got a bit more power than Dave's old fishing boat, that's for sure. Did you get the hang of flying the drone while you were back at base."

"Yes. I'm better at it than Andrew is. He may be a better shot than I am, but his piloting skills are pants."

"Always nice to have a bit of healthy rivalry in a couple," said Merryn with a grin.

Eddie cast her a sideways glance. "I'm assuming Lily is better at steering a boat than you are?"

Merryn blushed and Eddie cackled. "Gotcha. I had a feeling something was going on there." She gave Merryn a hug. "I'm pleased for you, she seems like a nice lady."

"Thanks, Ed." Merryn changed the subject. "Do you fancy taking a shot at scouting ahead with the drone when we get in sight of Plymouth? The Captain is keen to know what's ahead of us before we dock. I'll be right here next to you and checking the screen, but it'd be nice for someone else to pilot. I hate the buzzy little thing if I'm honest, it never quite seems to go where I want it to."

"I can do that."

"Ok, grand. Thanks, Eddie." Merryn looked ahead along the coast. "It won't be long now. You might want to grab your toy and get ready. There's a rocky triangular island at the entrance to the bay called the Great Mew Stone, once we get around that we'll need Buzzy up in the air and scouting ahead. I don't want to be surprised by any gangs or walkers this time."

"On it," said Eddie and bustled off to leave Merryn standing on the prow enjoying the spray and mottled sea.

~

A few minutes later Eddie and Merryn joined the Captain on the bridge. Eddie had released the drone, had taken it straight up to five hundred meters, and was now watching the screen on her tablet, as were Merryn and Lily, as she guided it in towards the dock area.

"This is the route we'll take in," noted Merryn, tracing the shipping channel marked by the darker deeper water in the river. "That's the old ferry route to France and where we took the fishing boat last time we came here." She traced her finger up the screen. "Up here we have the naval docks. That's where we're hoping we'll find some supplies, as up until recently the area was somewhat infested with walkers. Ed, can you take it in a bit closer to the area we'll be docking at please?"

"Yup," Eddie played with the controls and swung the drone in towards the dock.

"Looks like there's a couple of walkers on the dockside there, but I can't see anything else," muttered Lily concentrating hard on the screen.

"Can you take us back up and over towards the old fort where the turf war happened please?"

"Sure Merryn, hang on a mo."

The view on the screen changed again as the drone lifted up over the dock buildings and on into the streets beyond. After a few hundred metres, the streets opened out into a grassy area and Eddie held the drone stationary above the old fort. There was no movement. A few rotting corpses were dotted around here and there, but otherwise there was nothing.

"Looks clear to me," noted Merryn. "Well outside at least. I'd suggest we draw the drone back here and Ed monitors it while we're doing what we need to do, then we get the heck out of here. What's the plan for exploring the building Captain?"

Lily grinned. "I still can't get used to that title. I think you'll like this though. We've been trying out a few new techniques up on the Isle, with excursions into places like Portsmouth and Southampton over the channel on the mainland. My marines are well drilled so I'd like to give them a little exercise if that's okay."

"You're the Captain, Captain, this is your show."

"Right, Eddie, you get to stay here in the nice warm wheelhouse and watch TV. Any movement or oddity, hit the button in front of you and it'll give you control of the tannoy system. Coxswain Patil here will be with you too as it's his job to make sure we stay where we're meant to be in relation to the dock. Patil, the bridge is yours, take her into the dock please. Merryn, you're with me."

The two of them moved outside and held onto the railings as the cruiser surged forwards towards the dockside. A group of marines were preparing to leave the ship and were doing final kit checks on the deck below.

"You know more about this place than anyone else Merryn, are you happy to go with my team?"

"Of course."

"They'll take point, but local knowledge is always useful."

Merryn wandered off to get her gear and a short time later Patil brought them alongside the dock. The ship cruised in, taking its time and keeping the noise to a minimum. As they drew alongside the concrete, two marines stepped off the boat with mooring lines, the rest of the team lining the starboard side with weapons ready. As the lines were being secured, two walkers staggered into view; two marines standing at the prow waited until they were close then took them down using silenced weapons, the two marines on the dockside finished them off using hand weapons, dragged the bodies to the edge of the dock and dumped them in the river.

Gangplanks were lowered fore and aft and two streams of marines left the ship, Merryn tagging onto the group leaving from the stern. The man in front of her, a corporal, turned and gave her a grin. "My name's Corporal Shaw, Chris, you're with me, miss."

"Call me Merryn please Chris, and no worries I'm keeping you in front of me as bait."

His grin widened and they moved onwards with the rest of the group.

After a few hundred yards they reached the gate to the compound where Merryn had first met Hope. A marine checked ahead and then rejoined the main group. The team lead, a stocky-looking sergeant named King, held up two hands with one thumb folded in and pointed in turn at nine men. They disappeared through the gates and a few seconds later there was a series of dull thuds and King motioned them onwards.

"Chris, what's the hand weapon the team are using?" asked Merryn.

The Corporal handed her his weapon. "It's a modified pickaxe. The blades at the end have been trimmed back so that the handle still has the metal end, but it works more like an old-fashioned mace. The medieval folks knew what they were doing with blunt weapons. We've tried a few things as a team, this one seems to work pretty well."

Merryn nodded. "Seems efficient."

Sergeant King looked back at Merryn for direction and she motioned towards a large storage unit with sturdy metal doors. A heavy chain held them shut and King motioned forward a private who produced some bolt cutters from his pack. There was a heavy-sounding crunch, another soldier caught the shattered padlock before it could hit the concrete and the cutters were stowed.

King arranged his team in a semi-circle and two marines stepped forward to open the doors. One hinge howled in protest as they swung open and a chorus of moans greeted the marines as the sunlight hit the inside of the warehouse for the first time since the outbreak. All pretense at stealth forgotten, the marines hauled the doors open as fast as they could and the team opened fire, bullets slamming into the group of walkers trapped inside. The marines checked the downed deadheads, finished off a couple who weren't quite done, and moved the bodies out of the way.

Merryn looked up, the drone was still hovering overhead and she waved, then joined Chris inside the warehouse.

"Not bad," he said. "Plenty of munitions. Got any diesel?"

"Well Corporal, if memory serves me right, that's in the next courtyard down the dock."

~

Over the course of the next few hours, the rest of the crew joined the marines, and munitions, food, fuel, medical supplies, clothing, electrical equipment, radios and communications gear, tools, and spare parts were loaded into the hold on the cruiser, Eddie keeping a careful watch on the area using the drone, with several marines watching the perimeter on Captain Sands' orders.

Merryn checked her watch and radioed in. "Cruiser 1, this is Scout 2."

"Scout 2, this is Cruiser, how's it going there Merryn?"

"We're almost done here, Captain. We're starting to lose the light a bit, what's the plan?"

"We're going to pull back to the concrete breakwater in the bay. It's more defensible and we'll be able to see anyone who approaches us on the water."

"Okay Captain, we'll be heading back to you in about an hour." Merryn looked at Sergeant King as she said it and the man nodded agreement.

~

As the last of the team made it back to the ship, Merryn walked across the gangplank and as soon as the mooring ropes had been cast off, the ship made its way back into the bay.

"Nice job everyone!" called the Captain from the upper deck and there was a tired sounding cheer from the team. "Hot chocolate in the mess!" That prompted a louder cheer, and Merryn walked up the metal steps to join Lily.

"We'll give 'em a bit of a treat tonight," she said. "They worked hard, and tomorrow is going to be rough. The trip around the southern point of Cornwall is bouncy at the best of times because of the tides and currents that meet there, but we need to check on the Isles of Scilly to the south west before we head north east up the coast. No-one's been that way since before the Outbreak so it might be an interesting trip."

"Well at least we have the fuel and ammunition to do it now," said Merryn. "Right, where's that chocolate?"

~

"Morning Captain, morning Patil." The Coxswain nodded at Merryn as she entered the bridge and Lily turned from her position at the window to greet her.

"Morning Merryn. You sleep okay?"

"Yes, thank you. Eddie and I were put in a little room with a couple of bunks on the starboard side. I haven't slept that well for a long time. Where are we?"

The Captain walked over to the map table and pointed. "We're coming around Lands End which is why things are getting a little choppy, but we're pretty lucky today as the sea is relatively calm. We're going to head up the coast a little then head west past the old Longships Lighthouse. Our route will take us out to the Scilly Isles so we'll see if we can see anything there. There's an airfield on the main island that we're hoping is in good condition, and the PM is interested to see if we can clear the Isles and get people settled on them again. So, we'll do a quick recce there, then cut up the coast past Sennen Cove and follow up through Cornwall and Devon, then up towards the River Severn and the power station. Should be quite a trip."

"Sounds good to me. It's a beautiful morning isn't it?" Merryn looked out of the window at the clear blue skies. A few white fluffy clouds were visible, and aside from the currents swirling around the southernmost tip of England, the sea was calm.

"You sometimes see seals on the rocks around here," said Patil. "I was posted down here when I first joined the Navy. Went fishing off the rocks back up the coast near Penzance a few times. Never caught much."

"That's kinda the point of fishing isn't it?" said Merryn. "Look at the view, enjoy the sea air and hope no daft fish interrupts the day dreaming."

Patil smiled and was about to reply when the speaker on the control panel crackled into life. "Captain, flare spotted, dead ahead."