She made herself as small as possible by ducking into some nearby shrubs. She caught her breath and steadied her breathing as she waited for the source of her unease to reveal itself. Clutching her knife, she saw a group of three figures approach the waterfall. One large male, one small female, and one infected person with what looked like leopard ears and a tail. The waterfall was loud, but thanks to her position and lack of movement, she could just make out their conversation.
“Fresh water! Thank goodness!”
“We can finally bathe and replenish our bottles.”
“I’ll go last, for obvious reasons…”
“Good, then I’ll go first. Be a dear and play security for me?”
“Don’t be too careless, Dedra said that there was someone around here earlier. How long until your next flare up starts?”
“Three hours, I’ll need to either make myself scarce or find a toy somewhere.”
“Alright, you heard her Ashley? No hour long washed. We don’t have that much time.”
After hearing that, Rish decided to try and slip away, but remembered she was completely naked, all her supplies and clothes were up a tree, and she would need to somehow slide past this group to get them. Unfortunately, their scouting and surveillance skills were more effective than hers. “Jack, I think I found the one that was here earlier. A human, in that shrub over there.” Naked Rish prepared herself to attack when she heard the male voice speak up. “Show yourself, we mean you no harm. We just want to have a share of the fresh water.” Rish hesitated to move, not wanting to expose herself to strangers. She was mostly dry now, save for her tits and fupa, but she didn’t want to give herself away just yet. She took a deep breath and began to explain herself:
“I’m sorry I cannot reveal myself right now. I am not decent. My clothes are nearby, just not with me. I will get them, cover myself, and introduce myself properly if you would let me.”
The two took some time to talk amongst themselves to see whether or not they could trust her.
“We are taking great liberties letting you go with just a word. Do not betray our trust.” They turned around and waited patiently for her to leave. Rish took this opportunity to dash back towards the tree she set her stuff in, dressing herself before anyone else could see her shame. Keeping her word, she returned to the cave and greeted everyone present.
After exchanging greetings, they met at the waterfall and introduced Ashley. Rish learned that this group of friends survived as nomads, wandering from safe space to safe space in search of somewhere they could be together. They were best friends from a since-destroyed city that grew closer over time. Jack was the swim captain of his college team with a built physique, a few scars, and a bit of scruff due to surviving the apocalypse. Ashley was the smart girl when she was in school, always striving to achieve, until the apocalypse started. She would’ve already turned if it wasn’t for her childhood friend with the street smarts that helped her survive. Dedra had a furious aura around her, but only because she was protecting what was hers. She was changed protecting Ashley from a group of horny panthers that took the opportunity to relieve their pent up frustration with her body. She had been an outcast in college, not really having any friends, and was almost guaranteed to be killed or breeded by mutants had she kept up her attitude. Now that they were all acquainted, Rish decided to take her new crew to her hiding spot and show them around.