WalkerZ - A Zombie Apocalypse Story

Chapter 14 - Corporal Punishment

The Corporal glanced to his left, caught the look on Andrew's face and lowered his gun to his feet as did the other soldiers on guard.

"Step back from your weapons," ordered Andrew.

The Corporal took a couple of steps back and as he did there was a rapid crunch of footsteps on gravel and a man in an officer's uniform appeared.

"Scout 1, Scout 2, what is the meaning of this?"

Gareth motioned to Andrew to lower his rifle and walked forward to stand in front of the officer. "Morning Lieutenant. We were having a quick discussion about entering the castle." He bent down, picked up the Corporal's gun, and clicked the safety back on. "May we come in? I'm gagging for a cup of tea."

Lieutenant Osborne's face remained impassive. "Indeed. Corporal Rimmer!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Come and reclaim your gun, please. Private Morphy, please escort our guests to an empty room in the west wing of the castle and make them a cup of tea. I will join you in a moment."

The Lieutenant scrunched off across the gravel and Rimmer snatched his rifle back from Gareth. He glared at Andrew. "You'd better watch your back, kid."

Andrew slung his rifle over his shoulder. "Corporal you couldn't get the drop on me unless you fell on me. I don't know why you're such a bell end, but you might want to work on your people skills."

"Why you little..." started the Corporal but recoiled as Stan walked between him and Andrew. Hope, walking next to Stan, glared at the man as she walked past. "Arsehat," she muttered.

Gareth coughed to cover a grin and ushered the rest of the team in through the gates. "Very much looking forward to a cup of tea," he said brightly, clapping a hand on Andrew's shoulder.

~

A few hours later, the tide had changed in the estuary and the group walked down to the river's edge escorted by the Lieutenant. Gareth had stayed long enough to have a quick cup of tea with them but had made his apologies and left to prepare for his next mission. Osborne bade them wait by an old jetty at a disused yacht club as they peered across the river for their ride.

"I'm sorry you had a bit of an altercation with Corporal Rimmer," Osborne said to Merryn. "He's a good soldier, but not the most personable of men."

Eddie standing behind him huffed. "The man's a complete t..."

"Alright Ed, we get it," said Merryn with a smile. "There's nothing to worry about. I'm sure that next time we come across him we'll sit down and have a cuppa with him and everything will be fine."

"I doubt it," muttered Hope. "He was not happy with Stan being there."

"Ah, here's your water taxi," said the Lieutenant, changing the subject. "I'll leave you in the capable hands of Dave." He saluted Merryn and strode off back towards the castle.

Dave pulled his boat alongside the narrow wooden jetty and kept the engine running to hold its position while everyone clambered on board. He poked his head out of the engine house with a grin. "Good to see you alive!" he shouted. "Let's get you home."

Mal was waiting for them on the dock at the barracks and, as the team disembarked he made a beeline for his friend and enveloped her in a hug. A few muffled words were spoken and after a few moments, Merryn laughed and disengaged. "Good to see you, buddy," she said, drying her eyes with a sleeve.

"You too." Mal looked over the rest of the team. "Well, you look knackered. Come on, let's get you inside, showered, and fed. Um, Hope, we've set up outdoor quarters for Stan for now if that's okay."