I'm writing a what-if alternate comic book series where something happens that allows the main villain to start a zombie apocalypse. This causes a huge issue where now most of the government's armed forces and citizens are now undead. 2 members of the team leave for various reasons. And now the team is essentially two pairs, one best friends and the other lovers, and a girl who was once a member of said government, even to openly supporting it and being the "mascot" until she switched sides before the apocalypse began. I'm torn as hell. I feel like things would be a little interesting if the team was split up, and each couple along with the one girl get their own little mini series as they all try to achieve the same goal. The main goal being taking a space ship and living on a different, extremely Earth-like planet. But on the other hand. I have a feeling that the leader, a man who cares very much about his teammates, sees them as his closest and possibly only friends in this dark dystopian world, and would even be willing to give his life for them if it came down to it, would be a huge character assassination if he just decided to disband the team. Especially if they are all after the same group and have been together for years. The leader and the guy in the straight couple are best friends and even friends with the girl. Even his best friend since they were teenagers (17 years in total I believe), and the other couple for 6. But the other girl he just met and heard a LOT about her, so he may have some suspicions. But it's only natural. Plus, I've seen enough Dead Rising videos to know exactly what happens to someone when they are alone in a zombie apocalypse. They go batshit insane. And he would obviously know this. Thoughts? EDIT: Changed a detail.
They should be split by circumstance, and work their way back together as you resolve whatever is bothering you as relates to other points in the story.
Why does it have to be the leader's decision to disband the team? A team being disbanded isn't necessarily because the leader willed it. Sometimes teams disband because they no longer can function together. This doesn't mean they no longer care about each other, only that their differing opinions and such create irreconcilable differences that make the group dysfunctional. Other times, it could be the decision of higher chains of commands as their strategy shifts.
Do you mean they disband as the zombie apocalypse is starting, or after it's over? If you're going to split them up you could shake it up a bit by splitting them differently than who they were close to in the team, maybe circumstances force them to. Having the couple have to be apart or one of the best friends having to spend more time with the girl who used to work for the government could make for some interesting character growth. And as @Kallisto said, them being apart doesn't have to mean they stop caring about each other. They could be sent off on separate 'missions' but that doesn't necessarily mean they are disbanded - like how in Lord of the Rings they still think of themselves as 'the Fellowship' even when they are scattered around.
I prefer to have one consistent story that is easy to follow without flashbacks, so that the adventure itself can be more complex. When your story is stuck at an end, you can revisit the most favourite side character in a spinoff.
