April 25: Find the captive

April 25

We got in but we didn't rescue the captive.

Her name is Scarlett and she is Infected. There are Sniffers near the jail so we need a Cure shot to free her.

We have two Cure shots, but things are complicated.

Getting in wasn't hard. I set up a mixed explosive with a dry powder bomb and some cooking fuel. I didn't destroy much property and I think there were only mild injuries, but it made some noise. It wouldn't look like an accident to a demolitions expert, but I'm counting on me being the only one in town.

We snuck past the distracted guards and clipped the line on the only camera. I used a little acid to make it look like "natural corrosion" to the stupid.

I REALLY hope I am the only trained soldier around.

Scarlett wasn't part of our old camp, she was from a research university that got hit in this area. She was supposed to be supporting a "sample collection" mission that went south and a Leaper got on her face in the confusion. (She had a guard but he ran and saved himself. Always a fucking man!)

Eight hours she was on the forest floor. Eight! I say she was lucky nothing else found her, but she says she wouldn't have known anyway.

Eight hours of that thing pulsing in your throat and pumping "medium" into your stomach! The nerds say you feel nothing from all the aphrodisiacs during that time but I don't believe it. How can you just not know. That's my definition of Hell.

Her colleagues flushed out all those zombie eggs with a little Cure and a lot of laxatives, but the university wasn't the "neutral ground" it's advertised as. Someone told the Purifiers, and they kidnapped Scarlett.

They haven't touched her. They're waiting to see the test results. That was five days ago, so she's got two left.

Scarlett says she has to be Rooted but I've never heard of Root from just a throatfuck. She hasn't either but she lectured me about how she's the scientist and other nerd bullshit. Amelia agrees Scarlett is emotionally compromised, we can't trust Scarlett's judgement.

Scarlett says this world doesn't reward compassion. She says to be ruthless, forget her, save ourselves.

Scarlett is right, only the vicious survive. Amelia didn't agree--Amelia says it's worth the risk, and I can salvage the situation even if it goes tits up. If I was THAT good would we have lost the last camp?

We slipped out easy and we can get back in. Maybe Amelia is right about the morons stationed in this town.

I'm conflicted. I hope writing this helps.

I see three outcomes:

1. Liberate Scarlett. Lose a Cure shot. Oops, Scarlett has a Root Infection! The Cure didn't work and the Sniffers are on us! Big strong Charlotte rescues cute little Amelia, very heroic, but we have to ditch Scarlett because we're being tracked and we gained nothing.
2. Liberate Scarlett. Lose a Cure shot. Scarlett has a Surface Infection. Sniffers can't track us, Purifiers can't catch up, we have time to... Something. But we have time. Big Char, Cute Amel, Smart Scar, we'll figure something out.
3. Ignore Scarlett. Save resources. Plan a safer path forward.

Amelia was right. I did make a decision after writing all that.

I am strong enough to pull it off.

And rhyming her own nickname with "camel" was--No, I can't even write it, it's still stupid.

BUT WE PROMISED NOT TO JUDGE.