"Cunningham, hurry up with those boxes!" The Sergeant hissed with venom in his tone as his eyes narrowed at the small lady hunched over, catching her breath. He threw a couple of bags into one of the trucks with ease as other soldiers piled boxes of supplies inside the three vehicles like a giant game on Jenga. Neave let out a heavy sigh as she squatted down, heaving a large box from the ground. With a big exhalation of air, she shuffled the weighty object over to the truck and slammed it down in the boot, causing everything to shake. Her eyes scanned the crowd to see if any soldier was glaring at her and her lack of strength but luckily for her, everyone was distracted.

The orange hue of the sky cast down on the tired soldiers as they packed everything up and loaded the trucks. As much as they wanted to rest, there was no time if they wanted to make it out alive. Despite their silence, the noise was still being carried by the wind and with every moan, the soldiers died a little inside. They'd wished the ending was different; that they could have come in and saved these people but the truth was they couldn't. The virus was too far gone by the time they got the call and, despite their best efforts, barely any survivors - or soldiers - had made it. The few that hadn't been bitten had been locked in the barracks and tried to work out an escape plan, one that could take the people and the supplies that would keep them alive to the only place that was free of the virus, Tristan da Cunha.

"Yeah Neave, there's no I in team." Alex nudged her jokingly with his elbow as he grinned childishly at her. In an instant, Neave's face lit up as if her worries had all disappeared.

"Bite me." She sneered as Alex threw a box into the truck with ease, making it look easy. He was a very fit man, muscular and tall with short brown hair which was practically the opposite of Neave, a short, slim lady who was tanned and had a mess of black hair that she had to tame into a bun every morning. Alex shook his head at her response, knowing to some that would be an offensive joke.

"That's what those things are there for, sweetheart." Alex nudged his head over to the south side of the barracks where the noise emanated. Neave had tried her best to ignore it because, well, ignorance is bliss, right? If she didn't look behind her at the thousands of zombies desperate to devour them then she was safe, or so she thought. Before she could answer, the Sergeant's voice rang out again.

"Harris, get your ass moving. Load those last boxes." The smile on Alex's face fell instantly as he straightened where he stood. Neave was almost certain she could see sweat beading on his forehead like he'd been caught out doing something wrong.

"Yes, sir." He called back formally as he began to march away.

"Yes, sir." Neave mimicked in a childish voice as she ran to catch up, bending down beside Alex to pick up another box.

"Shut it or I'll drop one of these boxes on your foot." He retaliated, nudging Neave hard enough for her to fall onto her buttocks. She let out a surprised gasp as she landed, shooting to her feet as she scowled at Alex once again.

"Do that and the other foot will boot you up the ass so hard you'll be shitting leather for weeks." Alex stopped in his tracks and spun round, eyes widened at Neave's threat. All was silent for a moment before the two bit their lips together and tried to silence the laughs that were so desperate to escape. It didn't take long before Neave let out a goofy guffaw, attracting the attention of other soldiers who seemed disappointed in her. Now really wasn't the time for jokes.

With the boxes finally loaded, the soldiers and survivors gathered around for the debrief. Neave could see the Sergeant nervously eyeing up every person in front of him as he calculated his words. Her stomach knotted in anxiety as they fell silent once more, her and Alex exchanging worried glances as he sidled up next to her so their arms were touching. This small bit of contact seemed to soothe both of them as they waited for the orders that could see an end to this virus and all the awful things it had done.

"Now, I want to start off by thanking everyone for their hard work. We've lost a lot of good people out here today and I promise, once we're in the clear I'm going to make sure everyone knows what they did for the world..." The sergeant sucked in a sharp breath and sighed heavily. Neave rubbed her sweaty palms on her trousers as the nausea creeped up and took over. Alex glanced back at the gates and looked at every zombie that was desperate to break the wall between them. As his eyes fell on a teenager he looked down at his boots, hating himself for not saving him. "However, we're not there yet. The trucks are packed and ready to go but we don't have enough space to do this in one journey. Some of you will have to stay here and wait for the trucks to come back..." Murmurs built up in the barracks as people began to shout their annoyance and disagreement towards him. "I know, trust me this is the last thing I wanted to do. Three of you will have to stay behind." Silence ensued quickly, like someone had pressed the mute button as every soldier took in the people surrounding them, eyeing up their comrades because it could be the last time they see some of them. They'd watched the others get bitten, taken from them so quickly that there wasn't a single thing they could have done to stop it... and now even more were going to be left to fend for themselves, possibly ending in the same fate.

"Shit." Alex sighed as he stared at the family with small children who huddled together to stay safe inside the barracks. He'd signed up to this to help people and, after all, he didn't have anything to go home to. He was one of the only soldiers without a wife and kids or parents to need him. He took one long look over at Neave as his shoulders drooped."I'll stay." Her eyes were on him in an instant. Her mouth dropped open in surprise as she tried to work out why he'd volunteered himself, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Me too." Michael, another soldier without a bright future, had added. Neave, still in shock at Alex's bravery and stupidity, raised her arm and volunteered herself.

"I'll stay too."

"Thank you, soldiers. Your bravery will be rewarded." The sergeant said before breaking up the meeting and getting everyone loaded into the trucks swiftly. As the gates opened to let the trucks out, zombies began to run in and head straight to the three warm meals awaiting them.

"Why the hell did you stay?" Alex hissed to Neave as he loaded his weapon, his eyes never leaving the bloodied monsters running to them.

"I'm not leaving you, Alex. I'd never forgive myself." Neave said as she aimed her gun and shot one zombie, which fell heavily to the floor as it skidded to a halt.

"I chose to stay so that you could go and live a life, you idiot." His playful banter still continued, causing Neave to smile. He took a few shots and brought down a couple of zombies with ease.

"We've fought beside each other for months. You're the only person I want to be with. We're ride or die." Neave said as Michael unloaded a clip at the crowd of zombies that had managed to get through whilst the trucks left the barracks and the gates shut again. Each soldier swallowed their fear and dread as they readied their weapons, taking one long look at their comrades before the fight ensued.

"Let's pray its not the latter of the two."