So I'm writing a story where a the walking dead styled zombie apocalypse starts, with most of the entire country being turned into zombies. Military manages to keep itself barely alive (so nuclear power plants don't go kablooey), but all hope of re-population is pretty much gone. With the military attempting to quarantine, but the two survivors want out to get away from the zombies. The survivors are just two people. Guy is 18-19 angry fit teenager while Girl is a late 20's female who served in the army as a medic. It takes place far into the future so her capabilities as a healer escalated, but with the zombie outbreak, there are still a few setbacks. They're one of the few, if not only people who are completely immune to being infected by the virus itself. But that won't make things any easier since zombies can still kill. But if two people were to realistically survive a zombie apocalypse, what are some other things they would have to prepare for, besides the zombies. What are some skills a teenager could get to help him survive? Might ask some follow up questions tommorow, tired as fuck right now.
Well, basic survival skills, for starters. How to build a fire from practically nothing (aka no matches, wet wood, etc), how to find edible food (plants, herbs, hunting animals, etc), how to use a compass properly to navigate (or the sun/moon/stars/nature), how to keep warm or cool in extreme temperatures with limited supplies, how to find drinkable water....there's a few off the top of my head. How to shoot a bow or gun, the basics of cover and concealment, how to mask your scent (I assume your zombies find prey using scent?). How to use a knife, or heck, even a sword...I'd grab any weapon I had if there were zombies around (I may or may not have a sword from the Renaissance Faire in my closet). How to make leather (useful for clothes, armor, making bags, etc) Gotta be some cows and stuff wandering around, right? On that note, how to butcher an animal for meat, or pluck a chicken... In an end of the world kind of scenario, I for one would raid the closest library for survival books. Soapmaking, candlemaking, off-the-grid living, herbal remedies, poisonous plants, how to preserve food, those kinds of books. Actually, we were at Tractor Supply the other day and they have a large selection of exactly those sort of books. Just food for thought. Anyway, that's all I can think of off the top of my head for now. Hope it helps.
What Stormsong07 indicated is solid. Think about permanent camping, with electricity or communications. The girl's healing/medic ability which is enhanced due to the future will be largely useless unless she has the location/tools/medications to perform such. Otherwise, basic first aid with additional skill and competency. Out in the open world, with only two, keeping safe from zombies or human predators will be a challenge, unless solid shelter can be had. There will be buildings and there will be stuff that can be scavenged to help survive. But every venture into buildings, cities, towns, will be dangerous...unless really the zombies are few or easily dealt with. Think Water (safe water to drink), food (long term will have to grow and/or hunt--getting essential vitamins and minerals and amino acids will be a challenge), and shelter. That will depend on where they are located--seasons, etc. Really, while it is life, for them it may very well be a miserable existence. There should be a really good reason for leaving...wanting out to get away from the zombies? If it's world-wide, there may not be many places to go. Isolated country, up in mountains, or desert areas, maybe. but that would offer major challenges. Of course, maybe that is what the novel is about. Just a few initial thoughts.
Go read the Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. Same style zombie apocalypse, all the technical details to really get you started. It's a literal handbook on zombie survival.
They need toilet paper. The only time I've ever seen people getting toilet paper after the zombie apocalypse was when Michone found a nice fresh looking wrap of a dozen rolls nine years after the world went down the toilet. That was of course the Walking Dead, I wouldn't recommend that series as a good place to look for guidance though. They don't seem to bother with deoderant very much either now I come to think about it. Although the wimin always have really nice hair so there must be a hairdressers still open somewhere. and nice nails. (not just in their baseball bats either.) and makeup.
Noise could be a big one in a crowded area. Shooting a gun could attract every zombie in a given area. Even silenced weapons aren't completely silent, and may attract unwanted attention. Foraging. Everyone raids the drug stores and the grocery stores, without realizing what people really want: booze and cigarettes. I've seen too many zombie stories where they're attacked while sleeping. But I've never heard of a zombie that can climb. Build tree forts. Or, if you come across a hunting stand, just climb aboard. Reminding me of climbing aboard, maybe head down to a marina. Doubt there are many zombies in the ocean (unless the virus or whatever is in the water), and it's a nearly unlimited supply of food with probably little competition for it.
I'd also raid a bookstore. Can't live on raiding forever. Get some survival and medical pocket manuals so you can survive long term. Raid drug stores AFTER you understand their mechanisms of action, so that you know WHICH drugs to get. Aleve is great for fevers, but also get aspirin (for blood thinning), amoxacilin, activated charcoal, clotting agents, and antiseptics. Tons of reusable dressings, a bag valve mask, a King airway. Bag valve mask is bulky, but probably the most important thing you could have outside of aspirin. But you get these pocket guides for when you run out of meds and need a survival guide to tell you how to emulate, for example, acetylsalicylic acid.
Besides staying alive following the apocalypse I imagine the hero, being an 18 year old male, would also have the problem of a near constant erection to deal with.
