A/N: Hey everyone, just wanted to let you know that my surgery went well. I've been very ill and in pain because of the surgery itself and the medications I'm on, but I'm feeling much better now. It really was just getting past the first few days. I'm hoping I'm okay for the rest of the month until I get my cast off on approximately June 25th. I'm really grateful for this community for supporting me and being patient with me. It feels good to know that even though I'm bedridden, I have the world of my stories to fall into and share with you guys. I have an upcoming Yoongi fic along with a Jin one since Jin needs some love. And of course, I'm a Jimin bias, so I have a million Jimin stories upcoming as well. Get ready for a lot of new stories and concepts! Thank you guys so much for being here <3

~~~

Day 850

Living without Jimin has been hell to say the least. But that's not what concerns you the most. Jungkook hasn't returned since he left with Ves to drop him off at the compound. You've sent search parties out looking for him, but nothing has worked. Why? Where is your best friend? At first, you thought he made it to the compound with Ves, but that theory got debunked when you sent Taehyung to receive the message from Ves. Ves said in the note that Jungkook and him got separated due to a horde coming their way. A horde caused by the Ranglers.

You're not overly worried since Jungkook is a strong, smart man. It's possible the horde - that's getting heavier and more noticeable by the day - is blocking off his escape route. That's the most likely scenario, and Yoongi even made a theory that Jungkook went to Yoongi's old camp so he could get some safety until the horde clears. Hopefully the Ranglers will send out hunting teams and kill as many zombies as possible. It's gotten to the point where you're seeing more and more zombies outside your gates every day. No Howlers or Behemoths, but Runners, Divas, and normal ones.

The good news is that the more zombies there are, the easier your plan becomes. You managed to find two trucks that are big enough to fit a bunch of zombies. Instead of one gigantic, 18-wheeler truck, you opted for two that can fit about 20 zombies each. Thanks to the hordes, it's been easy to lure them inside and shut the doors. The trucks didn't have gas (as expected), but you sent out a team to find some at the local gas stations. They're almost dry, but after working some magic, you got just enough to last for the upcoming siege. The siege happening tonight.

This is like a constant battle between you and the Ranglers. It's Guerilla Warfare, the tactic Jungkook suggested. Not a bad plan, it's how wars have been won before. You're no history nerd, especially considering survival is the only thing on your mind nowadays, but you know the basic strategies used in the major wars. Guerilla Warfare was one of them. Small strikes when the enemy doesn't expect it, then they go back and make a new plan. It's the small wins that matter most, it seems. The small ones build up into big ones, and the big ones are the ones that turn the tide of the war.

In your office that was Jimin's and before him Namjoon's, there's one person other than you. Yoongi is there, holding a glass of whiskey in his hand. It's half full, the man taking tiny sips from it as if the liquid will hurt him if he downs it in one go. The scientist has been rather quiet recently, and you're not sure why. Maybe because of Ves, to be honest. You miss Ves too, but he's doing his job with Jimin. The good news is that Jimin must be through basic recovery by now. The Ranglers will take care of him and keep him on meds. It's been a month and a half since he got shot. He should be able to move without any limps. Not for long, but long enough that if you did the siege today (as you plan to), he'll be in a decent fighting condition. Jimin will likely be unable to lift anything heavy for several more months, but the important part is that he can move. Maybe even run.

"Something you want to say?" you ask, Yoongi peeking up from his spot on the chair. The chair is planted in front of the window, rain pitter-pattering on the glass. As soon as the rain clears, you're hoping to get a move on and attack the compound. The trucks are ready, and you have dead zombies outside waiting to get gutted and used so your people can blend in with the horde. If the zombies can't smell you, they can't attack you. That's what Yoongi and Taehyung have said, anyway. You're choosing to trust them. Not because you want to. It's because that's the only option you have left.

"I fear there's no way I can engineer a vaccine from Ves's blood. I've done everything I can to find a way, but it's near impossible. I have one immune kid and a few samples, that's it. Scientists take years developing vaccines with much more, so how am I to hope that I can solve this mystery in the near future?"

Yoongi's voice is teetering between cracking and remaining strong. So, you go over to him and kneel by his side. "You know what I think?" Yoongi hums, motioning for you to continue while his eyes remain on the outside world. "I think you're right. You're one lone man trying to solve the reason behind humanity's near extinction. You have every right to be afraid. There's only so much you can do. But... you're doing a great job, and we really appreciate what you're doing. For whatever my opinion is worth, I think you're the world's best shot. All my money's on you."

He chuckles, shaking his head. "Do you have money?"

"Not even before the apocalypse."

The two of you share a small laugh, then, he swivels his head to you and offers you his hand. "We have a plan to enact, so I'll make this quick. Namjoon and Jimin are great leaders." You hold up your hand, and he takes it, giving your skin a firm squeeze as his gummy smile comes out. "And so are you."

~~~

Nightfall came faster than you expected, and the rain didn't last through the night. Thank God, otherwise your whole plan would need to wait. Rain will wash the guts right off your clothes. Tonight isn't the perfect night, it's definitely more clear than you anticipated, but you can't control the weather. A couple clouds covering the bright ass moon would've been nice though. Whatever, can't do anything about it now.

"How we looking?" you ask, Jin checking over the trucks one last time to ensure they're sealed properly. After, he gives a thumbs up, and you shift your attention to the rest of the yard. Everyone is here. With this siege being the most important thing you'll ever do, you need all hands on deck. The school will be unguarded, but that's alright. By the time you come back, it'll be more guarded than ever.

"We hid our weapons under our cloaks," Julia says, motioning to the pistols holstered underneath their long cloaks covered in zombie guts. They look like shit, but that's a good thing in this scenario. You give her a nod of thanks, and she goes back to breathing down Yoongi's neck as he pretends he's checking his assault rifle.

As for larger weapons, you don't have too many. You have an assault rifle on you, and so does Yoongi. There's more in your armory than basic pistols, but you want to travel light as to not draw too much attention. You're not trying to start a gunfight. That's a fight you won't win. The two ARs are for emergencies only.

"Jimin is a friend to all of us. He was going to lead us, even. Namjoon and Ves are somewhere in there too. Both of our leaders are there. My child is there. If you don't want to come, you have one last chance to back down." Almost in-sync, everyone steps forward. "I appreciate this, and I'm sure our friends do too. We've been over the plan. Does anyone have any questions or want me to run through it again?" Not a single peep. You dip your head and bang on the truck, zombies growling from the inside. "Jin, Julia. Drive."

They agree, you hopping in the passenger's seat. There's not much room, but Hoseok comes inside too and sits in the small space in front of you. You rest your feet on the chair only for Taehyung to come in and sit on your lap, Sky behind him and resting beside Hobi. Great, four people on one seat. What could go wrong?

"Jin, you crash, you kill all five of us. No pressure," you say.

"If I manage to crash while no other cars, at least not moving ones, are on the road, then we have bigger problems than us dying."

"What bigger problems? Your stupidity?"

"I'd argue that's a much bigger problem, yes," he says, you rolling your eyes as amusement creeps into your expression. It's nice to have a bit of banter before the big fight. The odds are it's the last piece of banter you'll get. So, you bask in it. And after, the journey commences. Trucks are zooming away into the night, your vision blocked by the amount of people in one space. You grunt but don't complain, praying the bumpy ride doesn't impact your chances of success or smear the zombie guts too much.

It takes an eternity, but finally, the compound is among you. Zombies are in the area, snarling at the trucks as you guide Jin. "Go right through, don't hold back," you say, and he obeys. Your truck and the one Julia's driving ram into the front gates, knocking them clean out and sending them flying forward. "Go go go!"

You hop out of the truck with the rest of your friends, screaming and howling heard as you run to the back, throwing open the latch and opening the gates that will release the zombies. They pour out only a few seconds later, growls filling the night as gunshots ring out.

Silently, you and your friends gather, both trucks inside and opened as Ranglers run around like chicken with their heads cut off. More weapons are fired, but you ignore them to instead run off with Sky and Hoseok. The others split up as to find your friends faster.

Luckily, you blend in with the newfound horde of zombies cloaking you. They all departed the truck now, and the ones from outside coming in are walking by your side too. And the best news is that your plan is working. The disguise is perfect, the zombies not so much as sniffing you as you walk with them.

The interior of the camp is hectic with guards shooting at the zombies while simultaneously getting civilians to safety. You do feel bad for the innocents mixed up in all this, but if all goes according to plan, very few, if any, actual survivors should die from this. You didn't bring enough to overwhelm them, only enough to last long enough for you to get in and out. Granted, you weren't accounting for the fact that there's a lot of other zombies in the outside area coming in now since the gates are down, but they should be able to handle that too since they have such amazing resources, right?

Regardless, at the very most, the casualties should be minor. So you keep going. You and your squad go to the closest house and bang on it, Hoseok watching your rear. "Is anyone in there?" you ask, the shipping container remodeled into a house creaking its door open. Not Jimin, Namjoon, or Ves, so you grunt. An older woman is there. Not older than 60, but not younger than 50 either. Her hair has streaks of gray in it, wrinkles pulling on her forehead, but no where else. It gives her a youthful yet older look at the same time. "Sorry, wrong house."

Her eyes expand, but you pull your people out of there before you can do anything else. More screams erupt from the crowd. You're off to the side now, the zombies taking up the main area known as the Ranglers' camp. You sneak around the back and check the sides. Many soldiers are sprinting to join the fight, Hoseok observing them. After a minute of sneaking to get to the next home, Hoseok freezes.

"Hobi?" you ask, shaking his shoulder and regretting it since you get more zombie blood on you.

He points, his finger shaking. "Is that... Namjoon?"

You follow his point and see that a soldier is about twenty feet away, and unmistakably Namjoon. His dragon eyes are recognizable from a mile away, his hair the same length and color as the last time you saw him, much to your surprise. The excitement bubbles up and down your chest until joy radiates in your eyes, your body moving on its own. You go forward, Sky grabbing your hand to prevent you from going too far.

"Namjoon!" you shout, two soldiers, including Namjoon, turning to face you.

The unknown soldier beside Namjoon raises his rifle, but as soon as Namjoon recognizes you, he uses his own rifle to knock the weapon out of his comrade's hand. The soldier backs away, Namjoon saying something unintelligible from your position to him. And soon enough, the soldier runs off, Namjoon taking his rifle from off the floor. He fires at some zombies that are approaching, then, he dashes over to you.

He halts only a few feet away, the fading gunfire symbolizing that the zombies are getting deeper in the camp. You pant, meeting Namjoon's eyes with a smile. "I never thought I'd see you again," you say, him chuckling and agreeing before hugging you. You hug back right away, rubbing his shoulders. "We missed you. Thank you for everything you've done for us, Joon."

Even though you can't see him, you can feel his smile. He pulls away and gives you a nod. "You did all this?" You hum. "Clever... I knew I made you my right hand for a reason. Thank you for coming back for me. We need to move before things get out of hand. Let's get going-"

"Wait, we need to get Jimin. Do you know where he is?" you ask, leaving out Ves since the odds are, Ves is wherever Jimin is. Ves is kind of attached to his father figure. Just kind of. However, instead of relief from seeing your friend again, your emotions become a mix of terror and anger when Namjoon tilts his head, furrowing his brows.

"Jimin's here?"