S2, E1 | Congratulations

​Season 2 Premiere
“Congratulations” the voice greets through the radio, the loss of their friends and all physical hope they had paralleled by this friendly, joyous noise. “If you can hear this automated message, you are within reach of the refugee signal” the voice continues, “if you are seeking sanctuary from the current pandemic, please visit one of these docks.” Listening through the list, Jenn’s ears perk up the moment she hears the docking option for Los Angeles.

“That’s only two hours away!” the woman exclaims, looking towards Ally, who nods along with the suggestion, turning the truck towards the seaside. “Wait, that’s it!?” Terry shouts, curious as to how such a massive decision can be made with nearly zero discussion. “We just lost our home because of a bunch of strangers, now you wanna take more strangers up on their word?” the man asks, Jenn looking towards Terry, admitting the man to having a reasonable point.

“I don’t see any other option” Lou replies, grunting as he pushes himself up with his damaged hand bleeding through the bandages. Despite the pain coursing through his arm, Lou waves off assistance from Jenn, continuing to push himself up to a more comfortable position. “Unless anyone has another idea, we just got something concrete to fall right into our laps” Lou exclaims, peering at everyone in the truck, “are we really just gonna pass up on this?”


Looking towards Jules, Lou tells the man to think about what else could be out in Los Angeles, trusting his opinion. “I’ve got no idea” Jules replies, watching Lou gleefully nod in agreement. “Los Angeles could be perfectly fine for all we know” Lou states, “or it could be completely devastated enough for, oh I don’t know, a refugee boat to be making the rounds, picking up whomever’s left?”

Before a second can pass, Jules puts his agreement in Lou’s camp, but ensures that it is accompanied with hesitation. “I know we’re still really high up on just figuring this out ourselves, and it’s worked out for us so far…” Jules counters, “but I still wanna know if my family’s out there.”

His face falling, Lou turns towards the remaining members of the group and finds their faces just as concerned as Jules’. “Even if they’re not out there waiting for us, I’m pretty sure we all wanna know if they’re alright” Halston explains, looking towards the man with a sympathetic expression. “I’m in favor of going straight after the boat” Jenn admits, “but if there’s a better plan we can all come up with, I’m open to reassessing my side.”

“My house is only five minutes away from here” Terry explains, “if you wanna test out whatever’s going on out here, let’s check up on my place first.” Looking to each other, the group nods in agreement and directs Terry to take over at the wheel. As the truck slows, Jenn looks to Lou, who clutches at his hand, the blood seeping through the open slots of the poor bandaging.

“I did my best” Jenn mutters, “I’m not much of a nurse, but I think I did a fair job.” With a smile, Lou looks towards the woman and assures her she did more than enough to keep him going. “Without you, I probably wouldn’t have made it out of that place” Lou admits, watching Jenn smile at her accomplishment, “thanks to you, I might actually be able to go home again if all of this works out the way we hope for it to.”

As Terry begins moving the truck forward, the sound of whirring in the sky begins closing in quickly, the sights of a spotlight overhead catching the attention of the surviving students. Just as quickly as the blades rip through the sky, the small fleet of helicopters pass over the group and continue their flight back into the major city. “At least there’s still life” Lou mutters to himself, looking back to Jenn, who remains fixated on the mid-flight spectacle with a worried look.

“It’s not a good sign regardless” Jenn replies, feeling Terry alleviate the momentary stop to continue driving off towards his home. Holding his hand against his abdomen, Lou takes Ally’s arm in his free hand and flashes her a comforting smile, the woman responding with one holding more concern, but just as much love as his own. Preparing to go wherever the world intends on taking them, Lou and Ally tilt their heads towards the nearest view and watch the trees flutter by.

= RISE and REVOLT is created by Zachary Serra, all rights to the series from Season 1 onwards belong to Zachary Serra and the entity of Pacer1 Media =

Axel screeching to a halt, the truck comes to a stop on the sidewalk just outside of a dual-family house, it’s inhabitants popping out one after the other, Lou emerging cautiously. With much anticipation building, Terry quickly hurries to his front step as the remainder of the group walk at a lessened pace. Fumbling through his keys, Terry finally locates the correct one and inserts it into the lock, only to noticeably stop once turning his wrist.

“What’s wrong, Terry?” Lou asks, Ally now holding his injured hand as he notices Terry’s look of worry, the hesitation completely unlike the hurry to the front door. With a pause, Terry catches his composure, shaking his head before responding, “nothing” as he pushes the door open. Door quietly gliding in, nothing more than a dark interior appears, a lifeless husk of what once called itself a home all that’s left for Terry to return to.

The remainder of the group staring at him with a questionable glare, wondering when he’ll take the first step inside, Terry just stands there and looks inside, not wanting to move for a moment. After what felt like a cold eternity, the man takes his first step inside, slowly following that with cautious steps further while the group follows him in. After the first few steps, Terry finds himself stepping over the glass of shattered picture frames and windows, furthering his inner disappointment.

With a deep breath, Terry stops walking, simply staring into the vacant home and holding back the urge to cry. Noticing the man’s posture changing into something more broken than he’s ever seen him before, Lou approaches Terry with his uninjured hand out, placing it on the man’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort. “No, I’m alright” Terry says as he brushes the hand from beside his head, “I’m just gonna go upstairs for a second.”

With that statement, Terry picks up a decorative rock from upon one of the shelves in the living room for protection and begins ascending the stairs. At a loss for words, Lou looks back to the group, instructing them to inspect the house before taking the chance to catch a little bit of rest. “After the night we’ve all had, we could use some shut-eye” Lou explains, beginning to walk towards the kitchen, leaving the group to navigate their way around the home.

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Stepping into the master bedroom, Halston immediately isolates her attention on the closet in the back, unaware of why, Halston simply feels a chill run down her spine at the sight of it. Approaching the bedside, Halston picks up a heavy lamp and slowly begins approaching the closet doors, her hand reaching out gradually as the doorknob comes closer within reach.

A deep breath taken, Halston places the knob between her fingertips and yanks the doors open, feeling the gust of air throw her hair back. Finding nothing more than an empty closet and an old baseball bat, Halston lets out the deep breath she had been holding in until another gust of wind from the bedroom door being pushed in grazes her back. Quickly turning around, Halston holds the lamp in her hand, her intention of fighting if necessary immediately fading once Jenn walks in.

“Hello to you, too” Jenn replies, looking past Halston to notice the bat resting against a small shelf, taking interest in it. “You thinking about an upgrade?” Jenn asks, her finger pointing towards the lamp now falling to Halston’s side as the woman smiles. “I suppose an upgrade isn’t a bad idea” Halston jokes, getting a chuckle out of Jenn, who leans over to the ground and picks up a wallet left discarded.

“I don’t think that’s an upgrade over that kitchen knife you’ve got” Halston admits, the smile on Jenn’s face turning towards one similar to a doctor amidst an operation. Taking the knife, Jenn imbeds the blade through the leather side and holds the weapon by the handle, the blade completely covered by multiple layers of leather mesh. “Okay, maybe it is an upgrade” Halston replies, having unquestionably been proven incorrect.

Humorously tossing the new knife-pouch onto the dresser, Jenn collapses onto the king-sized bed and begins unlacing her boots. “I still can’t believe they let you get away with wearing those” Halston admits when watching the hefty boots thud onto the ground. “I never really gave them much of a choice” Jenn replies, resting her head against the pillow as Halston walks up beside her, “once they realized I wouldn’t change, they just gave up giving me detention slips.”

With a chuckle, Halston shakes her head and lets her hair down, returning the lamp to its original place on the nightstand. “Come on” Jenn exclaims, patting the empty spot on the bed beside her, “get some rest while you still can.” With a shrug, Halston does as instructed, kicking her shoes off and taking a seat on the other side of the bed. Removing her shirt, Halston unclasps her bra and tosses it in the corner before pulling her shirt back over her head.

“Getting comfy is a good sign” Jenn mutters under her breath, putting a smile on Halston’s face as she drops back and places her head atop the pillow, hands crossed over her stomach. “Goodnight, Halston” Jenn whispers, mirroring the woman’s crossed hands over her stomach. “Goodnight, Jenn” Halston replies, both women smiling with their eyes closed, allowing the soothing sounds of near silence carry them into slumber.

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Arms folded over the lone windowsill in his former bedroom, Terry looks out into the empty street responsible for being the backdrop of his earliest childhood memories. With a knock at the doorframe, Terry turns to find Lou slowly walking inside, hand newly bandaged, no longer leaking blood everywhere he steps. “I hope you don’t mind that I patched myself up” Lou opens, Terry shaking his head before replying, “nah, if it’s here, feel free.”

Nodding, Lou looks over to a desk, nothing of personality anywhere atop, and pulls a chair over beside Terry, the man assuring him that he’s fine. “I’m not suggesting you’re not” Lou replies, taking the seat as Terry returns his focus to the street outside. “I used to have it good” Terry admits, his chin pressed against his arms to provide a cushion, “I don’t mean like alright, I mean I had it good for a black dude.”

With a chuckle, Lou reminds the man that he attended a private school, “I’m pretty sure you had it better than most by proxy” Lou humors, putting a smile on Terry’s face. “You know you have it pretty good when you grow up with black Republicans for parents, y’know?” Terry jokes, he and Lou smiling at the accuracy of the statement. “They always said ‘if black people always vote for Democrats, Republicans will do everything including kiss our asses to get us to vote red’.”

“Her logic doesn’t really check out” Lou admits, Terry smirking before assuring Lou that he won’t want to tell his parents that. “But these streets always had nothing but good memories for me” Terry admits, his voice showing the wear of someone on the verge of breaking into tears, “it’s hard to remember any of them looking at it now.” Watching the pain flood Terry’s face, Lou holds his healthy hand out to Terry, placing it on the man’s shoulder successfully this time.

“You’re not alone, man” Lou replies, keeping his eyes on Terry despite the man continuing to look through the glass, “that pain you feel is not only yours to carry.” Wiping away the tears from his eyes, Terry nods silently, knowing deep down that Lou’s words held nothing but truth. “You should go get some sleep” Terry mutters, reminding Lou that they have no idea when this ship is set to arrive.

“I’ve gotta keep a lookout” Lou replies, Terry shaking his head profusely. “I’m not gonna get any sleep tonight anyway” Terry admits, “I’ll wake you if I see anything that don’t look right.” Shrugging, Lou nods and pats Terry on the shoulder, handing him a gun he got off one of the corpses back at the school before returning to the remainder of the home.

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Her eyes popping open at the sound of tapping on the glass, Ally awakens from a light sleep in the driver’s seat of the truck and finds Jules trying to get her attention. Unlocking the vehicle, Ally opens the door for Jules, who climbs into the passenger’s seat. “What’s up, man?” Ally asks as she wipes the exhaustion from her eyes, Jules holding out a folded piece of paper towards her.

“It may not be very recent, so there’s a few infrastructural corrections that haven’t been made” Jules explains as Ally unfolds a map of greater Los Angeles, “but it’s got a fair bit of detail.” Looking through squinted eyes, Ally finds a path highlighted in black marker that takes them to the docks, all courtesy of Jules’ efforts. “If we’re serious about catching that ship, this is our best bet” Jules explains, “we don’t know how long they’ll be here, or how long it’ll take them to come back.”

“I’m pretty sure the rest of the group wants to get some things settled first” Ally admits, Jules shaking his head in refusal, assuring Ally that there is little point in going back. “Look what’s happened to Terry since coming back” Jules explains, “I don’t think we should be going back home after something like this, I think we have to keep moving forward and hope we find our families somewhere along the way.”

Again shaking her head, Ally tells Jules that they’ve made it this far, and if they were to miss the next time the ship came around, they’d always be able to survive long enough to see the next arrival. “What do we do in the meantime?” Jules asks, suggesting he and Ally work out their uncertainties now before it’s too late. “We planned to keep the school running until one small slip up took it all away” Jules recalls, “let’s not let this slip away because we make one tiny fuck up.”

“We’ve learned better” Ally assures, Jules hesitant to let anyone in the camp consider themselves to be geniuses of the apocalypse. “We may have made it work, but we’re still too young to purchase beer in whatever’s left of this country” Jules explains, “we’re still just a bunch of orphaned kids fighting for themselves.”

“So you’re suggesting we just drop all of this and start moving towards the shore?” Ally asks, watching Jules look at her with unwavering confidence. “All we have left of our old lives are the good thoughts that came with them” Jules explains, “the second we see what those memories have become now that all of this has happened, all of those memories die.”

With her head hung, Ally looks through the rear window at Terry looking out into the street from his old bedroom, using him as an example of Jules’ presumptive accuracy. Whilst watching the man above, Ally notices his eyes widen, head lifting from his cushioned placement before he disappears into the room all together. “I think we might have a problem” Ally utters, opening the door and exiting the vehicle alongside Jules.

As they continue to walk towards the house, Ally and Jules watch Terry explode through the front door with Lou hurrying beside him. “Get the others up!” Lou shouts, the heavy wrench in his good hand accompanying the combination of handgun-and-shovel in Terry’s. Their eyes following the two men racing into battle, Ally and Jules both find their sights stumbled upon the growing sea of undead having split from the rest of the pact somewhere in Los Angeles.

Eyes widened, Ally instructs Jules to join Lou and Terry in their fight as she hurries up the stairs, nearly slipping at the top step as she hurries for the master bedroom. “Hey, we need to-!” Ally shouts upon bursting through the bedroom door, stumbling upon her words when she finds a topless Jenn kneeling at the foot of a nude Halston. Jolting to her feet whilst Halston pushes herself up, Jenn holds up one finger towards the surprised Ally.

A few seconds of awkward silence between the three parties as each await Jenn’s following statement, the woman proceeds to pucker her lips before finally speaking. “I can’t convince you this isn’t what it looked like because I’m pretty sure you know what it looked like, and know what it was” Jenn explains, Halston immediately pressing her hand to her face at the failure to even attempt to conceal their activities.

“No, it’s cool” Ally replies, completely brushing off the awkwardness of this entire situation, “what happens in the bedroom between you two isn’t my business.” Climbing out of bed wrapped in the sheets, Halston asks Ally why she decided to barge in without knocking, only for the stunned woman to return to earth. Upon announcing the arrival of a horde, Ally bursts out of the room as Jenn and Halston move into a frenzy to get dressed again.

Kneeling on the bathroom floor, Ally rummages through one box after another of any medicinal needs the group might have, clumsily stuffing bottles and boxes into a bag until Jenn finally arrives to help. “Give us a shout when we’re ready to move!” Halston calls to the women as she hurries down the stairs with a baseball bat in hand. Bursting through the front door, Halston hurries into the street as Lou, Terry and Jules take everything they have to the horde.

Making a dash for the group, Halston watches Lou grab one of the undead by the throat with his bad arm, the strength quickly deteriorating from his body as another of the undead closes in. Without a second left to spare, the final ounce of strength in Lou’s hand gives in, leaving the corpse to lunge in before having its brains spilled upon the asphalt.

 A crunching sound as the skull turns to fragments, Lou watches Halston take another swing before driving a railroad spike through the eyesocket of another one of the undead. A hammer in his hand, Terry continues to swing down on anything moving, slowly gaining tunnel vision, taking out his frustration on one corpse at a time. Soon, another undead goes unnoticed, sliding by Terry before reaching out behind him.

Suddenly, Terry’s tunnel vision turns him towards Jules, watching the man run towards him before leaving his feet and dropkicking the corpse in the final second. “Good looks!” Terry shouts, Jules replying “I got you, bro!” as he buries the blade of his knife into the undead’s skull. After a few further seconds of fighting, Ally and Jenn dash out of the house with a toolbox full of medicine and other supplies, giving the shout for the group to return to the truck.

Diving into the two front seats, Ally and Jenn start the truck and feel the body of the vehicle jolt around as the remaining group climbs aboard, one after the other. “We’ve got some company!” Lou shouts as he pulls himself into the backseat, pointing towards the multiple choppers in the sky flashing their lights towards the sea of the dead tailing behind them. “Let’s book it!” Terry shouts, he and Jules crammed in the bed as Halston dives into the seat beside Lou.

Putting the truck into drive, Ally begins down the road before the sound of gunfire immediately lifts the hairs on their body. “They’re aimin’ at the horde!” Jules shouts, Halston and Lou turning around the find bullets from above filling the dead behind with pieces of copper and brass, coverfire serving as one of the few saving graces left. “I’m not usually one to go all anti-authority, but I’m not too trusting of our friends above” Ally admits, Lou cautiously agreeing.

“These guys might not even be actual military for all we know” Lou explains, “turn onto this road ahead, it’ll take you off the grid.” Doing as informed, Ally pulls the truck left, the asphalt beneath the tires turning into sandy gravel as the truck immediately becomes covered ahead by thick trees whilst the gunfire becomes more faint the further they drive. Head placed back against the seat, Lou takes a breath of relief before grabbing at his arm, the pain still ever-present.

“Is it getting worse?” Halston asks, Ally’s eyes immediately sharing time spent looking at the road ahead and the rear-view mirror aimed at the wounded man. “I’m fine, it’s just sore” Lou replies, rubbing the bandages before dropping the arm back into his lap, leaving Ally to continue attempting to traverse the unsteady grounds as best as she can, the sounds of gunfire now far enough away from breaths to be caught.

Gravel being kicked up at an alarming rate, Ally chooses to take the opportunity to park the truck on the side of what struggles to even qualify as a road. Key turned and removed from the ignition, Ally asks Jules to present his suggestion to the group while they have the chance. Without a second guess, Jules presents his line of reasoning for directing the group towards the docks just as he had minutes prior, leaving the decision up to a vote.

“I’ll throw my hat in the rink for whichever decisions keeps us from running into that shit again” Jenn replies, “If I were to bet, I’d say there’s a lot more of that further in LA.” Noticing the woman’s head lowered, Lou asks Ally what she’s got running through her mind, the woman admitting that her best instinct is the one that severs ties with hopes of reuniting with family.

“Whatever happens when we get to the docks, that’s it” Ally explains, “there’s no going back from there.” Before long, the anticipation of where to go from this moment falls into a state of dread and uneasiness, the truth of moving on forcing an acceptance of never going back. “I didn’t think coming to school on a first Friday would be the difference between family and independent survival” Jules admits, his thumbs swirling around each other in the cab.

“I’m ready to move on, but I know that’s easier for me to say” Terry replies, immediately siding with Jules. Turning to his right as his healthy arm rests upon Ally’s shoulder, Lou looks towards Halston, who in turn, looks to Jenn. “I think I was ready to move on when Wyatt died” Jenn replies, “everything since has just been a new chapter anyway.” Turning around in her seat, Jenn flashes Halston a smile before looking to Jules and responding, “I’m ready to go.”

“Ditto” Halston replies, the remaining eyes of the survivors locking onto Lou, awaiting their presumed leader’s response. Opening his mouth, Lou looks to speak until the sound of additional voices call out demands, guns drawn towards each survivor with instructions made to exit the vehicle. “Hands up and step out!” the armed survivors demand, watching Terry and Jules reluctantly throw their hands into the air.

“The rest of you, step out of the vehicle now!” the voice calls out, his two other survivors slowly approaching each side of the vehicle and pulling the doors open. “One at a time, hands above your heads!” the leader calls out, the faces of all three theives camouflaged by the night. Doing as told, Ally, Jenn and Halston do as instructed, only Lou left seated without any intentions of moving.

Looking to his left, Lou notices an unfamiliar female face holding the barrel of a gun in his direction, issuing commands as another unfamiliar face to his right holds his friends hostage. Despite the uncertainty of the situation, Lou remains defiant, eyes squinted forwards as the woman beside him demands he exit the vehicle once more. “What’s taking you so long, dude!?” the original voice calls out, his question directed towards Lou.

“You sound familiar” Lou calls back, the original man without a response at first, leaving the woman holding Lou at gunpoint to begin staring at the man just a few feet away. The sound of a gun wavering in the air the only response from behind the truck, Lou listens to the man commanding his small group respond in kind. “I may be mistaken, but I can say the same for you” the man responds, putting a look of confusion on Lou’s face.

“I guess one of us is gonna have to put a name to a voice” Lou replies, “or else, you’re gonna have to open fire on me.” Looking back, the woman lowers her gun from Lou’s head and nods, walking away from the door and passing by her leader, who slowly walks around the truck and turns towards the rear passenger’s seat. With a smile on his face, Lou turns towards the open door with a laugh, the same expression spread across the face of the man that turns the corner.

“What’s up, Theo?” Lou asks, the armed gunman beginning to laugh in utter shock, offering his hand to Lou, who shakes the man’s hand and exits the vehicle gingerly. “What happened there?” Theo asks, looking towards the arm before grimacing at the retelling of the story. “Oh, you’re living in the woods!” Lou replies with humor, “I’m sure you’ve had to live with worse!”

With joy, Theo instructs his two fellow survivors to lower their weapons, the arms of Lou’s group once forced in the air now slowly falling to their sides. Glares of tension and caution shared amongst both groups, Lou and Theo quickly share with each other how they’ve managed to make it so far before Ally calls out to remind Lou that they’re currently amidst something.

Just as Ally speaks up, the distant sound of helicopter whirring passes overhead, signalling to Lou that the new nine-person group should start moving before it’s too late. “Where are you guys going?” Theo asks, a small smirk on Lou’s face suggesting that they have somewhere in mind. Looking back to the now-combined groups, Lou says that it’s probably if they get going as soon as they can, wanting to waste no time in getting out of Los Angeles.

“How do you feel about the coast?” Lou asks, Theo looking around in confusion before responding, “I don’t think this is the time to go surfing.”  With a smirk, Lou shakes his head and points Ally towards the front seat. Looking towards Theo’s fellow survivors, Lou asks for names. “Elsie” the woman responds, followed by the man exclaiming, “Lee.”

“Lee and Elsie, keep Jules and Terry company in the back” Lou directs, nodding Theo towards the backseat before continuing, “you ride with me.” Unmoving, Elisa and Lee look towards Theo, who simply looks at them with his arms thrown outwards. “What do you want from me?” Theo asks, “you heard the man!”

With a rebellious laugh, Theo hops into the back of the truck before Lou joins in, Halston and Jenn taking their original seats as Terry and Jules make room for their new counterparts. Tapping on the back of the truck’s cab, Terry holds onto the open window and the vehicle accelerates, veering off the rocky grounds and onto smooth dirt.

“Where are we actually heading?” Theo asks, his face directed towards Lou, who points towards the front seat, Ally turning on the radio to nothing more than static. “I don’t get it” Theo replies, Lou holding one finger up as the truck meets the end of the dirt road and the beginning of paved asphalt, the refugee signal beginning not too long after.

“Congratulations.”