Age of zombies

[58] Tavern night for day 1 (part 2)

The tavern was buzzing with the usual hum of conversation, people trying to drown out the stress of another day. We'd all found our usual table, beers in hand, the low light of the fire casting flickering shadows over the wooden walls. I leaned back in my chair, nursing my drink while Daisy sat down heavily across from me. She looked tired—more tired than usual. Something was weighing on her.

Ethan was the first to pick up on it, his eyebrows raised as he took a sip from his mug. "Damn, Daisy, you look like you've been through hell."

Daisy scoffed, grabbing her beer and downing half of it in one go. "You're not far off," she muttered, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "Shit's getting worse out there."

Liza leaned in, always curious when Daisy had some news from her patrols. "What happened?"

Daisy shook her head, her expression grim. "Found a guy today, just outside the town border. Missing a goddamn leg. Said raiders hit him."

That got everyone's attention. Ethan leaned forward, setting his mug down with a thud. "Raiders? Shit. I thought we hadn't seen them around in a while."

"Yeah, well, they're back," Daisy said, her voice laced with frustration. "And they're getting bolder. The guy said they hit his caravan, killed the others, took all their supplies. Left him for dead."

Yabe, who had been quietly sipping her tea, looked up with concern in her eyes. "Is he going to make it?"

"Med team picked him up," Daisy replied, tapping her fingers on the table. "Got him to the clinic, but who knows if he'll pull through. He was in rough shape when we found him. Stomach looked like a butcher's shop, and his leg... well, you don't just walk that shit off."

Liza snorted, though there was no humor in it. "Raiders, huh? Those assholes really have nothing better to do than mess with people trying to survive?"

"Apparently not," Daisy grumbled, finishing off her beer in one final swig. "They don't care about anything but taking what they can. And now they're getting closer to town. That's the part that really pisses me off."

Ethan ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. "Damn. So, what's the plan? Are they sending out more patrols?"

Daisy nodded. "Yeah, we called it in, and they're beefing up security around the perimeter. But still... these fuckers are organized. We're not dealing with some random scavengers. This was planned."

I raised an eyebrow, taking a long sip of my beer before setting it down. "Planned? How so?"

"The guy said there were six or seven of them, all hitting his caravan at once. They took out the guards, grabbed the supplies, and then left the survivors to bleed out. Classic raider shit, but with a lot more coordination than I've seen before. Makes me wonder if they've got a leader pulling the strings."

Liza crossed her arms, her lips pursed. "Great. Just what we need—some psycho raider king causing more trouble."

Daisy snorted. "Yeah, well, if that's the case, I hope we get a shot at him before things get worse. I don't want to wake up one day and find those bastards knocking on our gates."

Yabe spoke up again, her voice soft but firm. "Do you think they'll come closer to the town? Try to get in?"

Daisy paused, her expression serious. "I don't know. I want to say no, that we've got enough defenses to keep them out. But they're desperate. And desperate people do stupid, dangerous shit."

Ethan let out a low whistle, shaking his head. "Man, it's like every time we think we're getting a handle on things, something else comes along to screw it all up."