How long have they been standing around waiting?  Too long for her liking that much was certain, and she was beginning to get worried. The group she had sent to scout ahead had not returned and they were running out of time. Where the hell could they be?<br/><br/>This was supposed to be a simple scouting mission. When she left their hideout a few hours ago she had promised that they would have something when they returned. She really did not want to come back empty handed. Lately there have been too many days where everyone has come back without any luck.  As much as she wanted to at least being back something positive, some food perhaps, she didnâ€™t seem to have much of a choice now. Once the sun set they would have a hell of a time trying to fight their way through and they had barely gotten any hunting done. It was starting to get late and the more they stood around the more she was convinced that something must have happened to them.<br/><br/>â€œWhat the hell is taking them so long?â€ One of the people she had brought with her spoke up. He was impatient. They were all impatient, she didnâ€™t blame them either. â€œAre we going to take the risk and look for them or head back, Boss?â€<br/><br/>â€œI vote that we head back,â€ another called out.<br/><br/>Claire sighed and wiped her brow with the back of her hand, shifting her weight a bit, rifle always handy. â€œThe sun is about to set.â€ She muttered calmly despite her frustration, glancing towards the skyline.  Part of her wanted to wait a bit longer, she didnâ€™t want to abandon her comrades, but she knew better than to stick around, she could already feel the atmosphere becoming heavier. Most of those things were nocturnal but a few roamed around during the day. She could have sworn she felt eyes watching her. â€œI donâ€™t want to leave them behind, but I donâ€™t want to risk our own asses either. Letâ€™s get back before those things realize weâ€™re still out here.â€ She gestured towards a staggering figure several feet away from where they were, preoccupied with what looked to be a something dead lying in the street. The zombie proceeded to devour whatever said corpse.<br/><br/>She cringed a little. At least she knew she had been right about being watched.<br/><br/>There was no word of objection from anyone which did not come as a surprise. The impatient and worried group merely followed her through the streets as she took them back to their hideout despite that they were abandoning their comrades. They were most likely already dead anyway, if they have not returned. When they first formed the rebellion there were many more members of their group than there were now. So many were lost over the past few months and now there were beginning to dwindle, now it seems they have lost more.  It was maddening sometimes. Some days she wondered if there was any hope left for any of them at all. What ifâ€¦ what if they were doomed to die in this town? As far as she was concerned this place has already gone to Hell and there may very well not be any way to save it.<br/><br/>Weaving through the alley ways back towards their hideout, located in one of the safer locations in town, she had come to learn this town better than she had before this mess. She swore she could do this in her sleep. Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing, she would leave that for the others to decide. Like everybody else Claire was growing weary of this lifestyle. It has been so long since anybody had heard anything about this mess being cleaned up. Excelleron sure as hell didnâ€™t seem to care about what it had done. In fact, if anything, they seemed pleased that they had succeeded in creating a drug that turned people in to monsters. So far nothing seemed to stop the powerhouse from growing stronger and these monsters were increasing in number. There had to be another way to go about this. They needed a better plan.<br/><br/>The entrance to the hideout was located around back; the front had been barricaded to keep the monsters out. â€œWeâ€™re back,â€ she called out as she moved through the hallway, hints of frustration laced in her tone, hoping that nothing had happened while they were out. She did not like bringing back such bad news, on top of coming back empty handed. â€œSorry for taking so long, a few people went to scout ahead and didnâ€™t return. Iâ€™ll be taking a few people with me to go find out what happened, in the morning.â€ While there was no designated leader for their group, she was probably one of the people close enough to be considered a leader figure. Like she always did when she came back from a hunt she headed to the decently large room that they used as their briefing area and main hang out spot.<br/><br/>There was a table in the center, upon it a map of the town was displayed showing locations of safe zones and areas which should be avoided, and a couch along the right wall. There was a weapons case near the couch, which she placed her rifle and remaining ammunition in. With a heavy sigh she sat on the couch, leaned back heavily, and closed her eyes.