The First Standoff

Gunshots echoed through the trees.

Leon Graves and Eve Voss pressed themselves against the wooden walls of the ranger station, weapons at the ready. Outside, muffled voices shouted orders, their words lost between the echo of gunfire and the rustling wind.

"The hell is going on out there?" Eve hissed.

Leon risked a peek through a cracked window.

The three survivors from the campfire—the shotgun-wielding hunter, the machete-wielding younger guy, and the red-haired woman—were pinned behind an overturned ATV near the entrance.

They weren't alone.

Two infected sprinted toward them from the treeline—bodies twitching unnaturally, mouths open in hunger. The broad-shouldered hunter fired his shotgun, blowing one apart, but the second one was too fast. It crashed into the younger man, sending them both to the ground.

The woman screamed.

Leon sighed. "They weren't shooting at us."

Eve smirked, flipping her rifle's safety off. "Doesn't mean they won't."

Leon thought fast. If the other survivors got overwhelmed, the infected would turn their attention to the ranger station next. But if Leon and Eve helped them, they'd be putting themselves at risk.

Two options:

Let them die and stay hidden.Help them, but risk a fight afterward.

Leon exhaled. "We take out the infected. Then we deal with the survivors."

Eve didn't argue. "Make it quick".

Leon moved first.

He swung the ranger station's door open, raised his SIG Sauer, and fired two shots in rapid succession.

The first bullet slammed into the infected's shoulder, knocking it sideways. The second went clean through its skull, dropping it instantly.

The broad-shouldered hunter turned, startled. His shotgun swung toward Leon, but Leon was faster—his pistol was already aimed center mass.

"Bad idea," Leon warned.

A tense pause.

The hunter hesitated, then lowered his gun.

The younger man groaned from the ground, his arm covered in bite marks. His breathing was ragged, uneven.

Leon knew that look.

He wasn't going to last.

The red-haired woman knelt beside him, hands trembling. "We—we need to get him inside!"

Leon shook his head. "He's done."

She snapped her head toward him, eyes wild. "No, he's not! We can—we can fix this!"

Eve sighed, checking her rifle. "He's been bitten. You know what happens next."

The woman turned back to her friend, gripping his hand. "Cory—Cory, you're okay, right? You—"

Cory wasn't listening.

His breathing had stopped.

For half a second, nothing moved.

Then his body jerked.

Leon knew what was coming.

He didn't hesitate.

His blade flashed, driving deep into Cory's skull before the body could fully reanimate.

The woman screamed.

The hunter reacted instantly, bringing his shotgun back up. "You son of a—"

Eve raised her M4 carbine and aimed it straight at his head.

Another tense standoff.

Leon met the hunter's gaze, unshaken. "You know what I did was necessary."

The older man clenched his jaw, but slowly—reluctantly—lowered his shotgun again.

The woman, still shaking, whispered, "You didn't even give him a chance."

Leon holstered his knife. "I didn't need to."

Silence settled over the group, thick with tension.

Eve sighed. "Now that we've all bonded over trauma, let's figure out how we're gonna not die in the next twenty-four hours."

The survivors had names.

The hunter was named Travis. Former firefighter. He and his group had been trying to escape Bozeman when they got stranded.

The red-haired woman was named Riley. She had been a nurse before the world fell apart.

Now, she just looked exhausted.

Leon and Eve sat across from them inside the ranger station, weapons still within reach.

Travis watched Leon carefully, his fingers twitching near his shotgun.

"So," Travis finally said. "You two got a plan?"

Leon met his gaze. "Yeah. Survive."

Travis let out a humorless chuckle. "Great. That makes two of us."

Eve leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "We're heading west. Away from the cities. You should do the same."

Travis and Riley exchanged a look.

"You think west is safer?" Riley asked.

Leon nodded. "Less people. Fewer infected. Better odds."

Travis exhaled through his nose, considering. "Alright. Then we'll roll with you for now."

Eve arched an eyebrow. "For now?"

Travis smirked. "Until we find something better."

Leon shrugged. That was as good as he was gonna get.

The night came fast and cold.

Inside the ranger station, the group gathered what little supplies they had left. The old station's radio was long dead, the food stores were mostly useless, and the building itself wasn't built to hold out forever.

But it would do for one more night.

Leon sat near the window, watching the treeline.

That's when he heard it.

A distant roar.

Not human.

Not normal.

Eve sat up immediately. "You heard that?"

Leon's grip tightened on his pistol. "Yeah."

Travis cursed, standing up. "That didn't sound like the ones we've seen before."

Another roar. Closer this time.

The group went still.

Then—something moved at the edge of the trees.

Tall. Lumbering.

Not like the sprinting infected. Something worse.

Leon stood, his instincts screaming.

"We're leaving. Now."

No one argued.