"ParaSec's creation has reined terror for far too long. The age of research has begun."

The Black Zone

Eight months into the outbreak, The Black Zone's border wall sealing off the entire eastern United States has been largely finished. With this fragile sense of "containment," the new age of research on the Black Flu has come full swing. ParaSec is largely in hiding, stuck in their various DARPA research bunkers and hastily-made forts within the most contaminated areas.

Dubbed the Ecologists by Scavengers and BZJTF alike, these folks are made up of what is left of FEMA and the CDC. Their primary goal is to study the ever-evolving nature of the Black Flu and accelerate the creation of a concrete vaccine. As such, Ecologists are largely left alone by Scavengers and bandits, and are among the more respected factions. Ecologists are generally guarded by the 48th Chemical Brigade of the United States Army, which in itself is considered to be a part of the Ecologists due to their similar nature and goals.

A Mega-City

Part of the United States' industrialization of the south during the 1970s, the once small city of Indigo quickly became South Carolina's NYC by 1994. As the Black Flu broke out, Indigo was quickly made to be a sanctuary, and was rather effectively contained due to SC's strong military presence. But, this fragile safety wouldn't last forever. Indigo's downtown district, which was used as a refugee center to process individuals before allowing them to enter the inner city, has just experienced a devastating outbreak. Almost just as quickly, a spore zone has developed and caused the entire district to go largely unmanned. Ecologists have been deployed to stop this outbreak, as Indigo is a critical sanctuary housing nearly all of the southeastern United States.

Dr. Elliot "Eli" Steele, Ecologists

Once a young virologist for the CDC, the Black Flu outbreak quickly turned his world upside down. Eli was one of the first responders to the outbreak, stationed at a quarantine checkpoint to vaccinate people with the first prototypes at the time. He witnessed the sheer failure that was the "vaccine," witnessing his own colleagues be eaten by what were regular people just minutes ago. Now an Ecologist, Eli is somewhat of a loner when it comes to his field operations. This new op involving Indigo will be quite a change for him.

Some quick lore facts to get everyone up to speed:

-- TBZ takes place in a slightly more advanced world, hence the modernization of the south.

-- Though originally intended to have no clear date or time, TBZ now takes place in the present day (meaning outbreak day would have been in 2025, it is now 2026.)

-- Ground zero for the outbreak was in a ParaSec x DARPA blacksite on the border of South Carolina and North Carolina, known as the Central Complex.

-- The US is currently under a Social Democrat leadership.

-- "Sanctuary" refers to towns, neighborhoods or cities under strong military control and containment within the Black Zone, used for civilians to live a relatively normal life. (Think Safezone Alexandria from TWD or the QZs in The Last Of Us.)

Update:

#1 Added a second scenario set about a week later, the Ecologists have failed and are awaiting evac from their FOB.

#2 3rd scenario + slight overhaul of the bot since the new script is finally set.