Before it Rings (Zombie Apocalypse AU) (NCT127)

Preparations

Chapter warnings: Mild language

Word count: 1304

-----

"Alright, so we have three tents, five sleeping bags, twelve first aid kits, a bunch of kitchen knives-"

"We're gonna need more than that." Jaehyun interrupted, looking it over. "You did see those things, right?" Taeyong looked annoyed at this. Obviously he knew that they were in danger, but they were also limited in their options. They couldn't rely on picking up random things they found on the street- they had to go raiding. Still, he was nervous about doing such a thing. It required overt aggression- something that he was never very fond of.

"I- I don't care what we have to do, just figure it out." He muttered, waving a hand dismissively.

"Well, how about we take a few people and go on a raid while the rest of you set up camp." Johnny offered, laying it out for everyone. "Obviously Jaehyun would like to come, and if anyone else is interested in gathering supplies and potentially fighting, we could use the extra hands."

"I'll come." Winwin mentioned, shrugging. "Sounds kinda fun."

"Me too!" Haechan added, waving his hand in the air like a school child.

"Alright, anyone else?" Johnny looked around. With no one else piping up, he took charge. "Okay then, I'll drive."

"What if-" Taeyong began to argue, but Johnny waved a hand.

"No worries, we'll be fine. Plus, we can't all fit in those tents. I'd be happy if we found some better weapons, too."

"...Alright." He didn't really have much of a choice but to agree. Johnny took the two other boys to the black van, already becoming the group's favorite car. He helplessly looked on as they sped off into the distance. While they had made it a good bit away from the city they had all been residing in, he assumed that Johnny knew where he was going if he was so confident in his driving.

With three of their crew gone, Taeyong began setting up to spend the night in this deserted area. Since cell towers and internet connections still seemed to be working to an extent, Doyoung separated himself to do his own thing. That left Yuta and Taeil to assist him. They started by removing any rocks and creating a flat surface, then setting up their three tents. They decided that between three structures and five sleeping bags, they could at least have a bit of comfort. Each boy could have one or the other.

After this, Taeil started a fire. While he had no lighter, and the rubbing-sticks-together method wasn't really working for him, he borrowed a mirror from the car to reflect sunlight into a small pile of brush, setting it ablaze. Thankful that they didn't have to resort to using gasoline or the car battery, Taeyong tended to the fire and pulled together dinner preparations.

He didn't have an exact method of keeping the time, as Doyoung was the only one consistently on the devices. Taeyong thought he heard him make a call at one point, but didn't know to who or for what reason. While it was strange, he had other things to worry about. As he was finishing up with his part of the work, he noticed that Yuta and Taeil had just about completed their own setup.

Meanwhile, Johnny, Jaehyun, and Haechan had made it to what they assumed was the closest town. jaehyun was unsure of how Johnny had found it, but had no reason to question him.

"I'm thinking we raid the outdoor sports place for supplies first? If it's not already decimated, that is." He offered. The two others agreed as Johnny pulled up into the parking lot- he clearly was not expecting any contenders on that thought. A bit ironically, he walked through the sliding glass doors as if he would have in a normal situation. Jaehyun guessed that meant the power was still working.

Many of the LED's were flickering, and the place smelled terrible. There were a few zombies littered across the ground, all headless- someone, or a few someones, had been here before them. The bodies were now rotting past their initial infection. Flies buzzed around as such, filling the air with an unsettling buzzing to rival the lights.

"I suppose that means the head is the weak point." Haechan noted. "Just like the movies." The store had clearly already been robbed, but that didn't leave them completely out of options. The place was huge, and there was stuff littered everywhere. Not only that, but it was possible there was more in the storage rooms.

"Alright," Johnny directed. "I'm thinking we're gonna need more tents- let's get some big ones, too, maybe have them multi-purpose? Just see what we can find. We're also gonna need cooking supplies, sleeping bags, medical stuff, and as much artillery as we can get our hands on." Although the guns there were meant for hunting sports, they would have more than enough firepower to take out a zombie. "Feel free to make runs back to the van, we should fill it to the brim. Maybe see if we can find storage tubs, or crates? Don't bother with cardboard, the shit's useless."

As he finished, Jaehyun and Haechan looked at him, expecting him to say more. He evidently had some specifics in mind for what they needed in this situation. Glancing back between them, he made a face.

"What? Go!" Surprised, they did as they were told, moving in to raid the store.

It took them about an hour of back-and-forth before they started to feel as though they had taken enough. As they had suspected, there were plenty of resources left despite the disgruntled shelves. Jaehyun was more oriented on the weapons, picking out guns, knives, and other tools. Haechan focused on necessary resources, thinking along the lines of tents, bags, batteries, and cutlery. Johnny in particular was grabbing very strange and specific items. A light here, a thin knife there, a pack of screwdrivers, some strange metal plate. He kept it all in the same bag, too, as if he was saving it for himself.

Once they had finished up, they all gravitated towards each other at the front of the store.

"Look what I found!" Haechan waved a baseball bat in Jaehyun's face.

"What's the point of that?"

"I don't know, it seems fun. Maybe put some nails in it, spice it up?" The boy shook his head.

"This isn't a movie, man." Before Haechan could argue, their third party member sauntered up. Johnny asked them if they were ready, to which he received two passive nods. He mentioned that they would go pick up more food and medical stuff from the general stores, and that hopefully they would encounter no trouble. It was too much to hope for, as they encountered a few zombies. While shaken, it was nothing they couldn't handle. Before long, they were back on their way to the makeshift camp along with their haul.

When they returned, they found the setup Taeyong had done, which Johnny was fairly pleased with. Adding his tents to the mix, he let the other two boys eat as he went over his plans for the camp with Taeyong.

"This seems a bit excessive." Taeyong muttered as he started to detail his idea for tent setups. Cargo, weapons, supplies, medical- it was a huge endeavor to undertake, and to move it every few days would have to become like clockwork.

"I know, but it's better to be prepared." Johnny said.

"Let's... let's talk about it in the morning." taeyong offered.

"We may not have time in the morning. It's better if-"

"Johnny. I said tomorrow." Taeyong cut him off, moving to join the group. Breathing annoyedly, Johnny unwillingly followed, unsatisfied with the end to their small conversation.