Doctor Sophie Martins Sophie stepped over one rat, then another, observing the panic three blind mice could cause. The hysteria had irritated her from the first fearful squeal to the muddled chaos that ensued. A migraine was developing and the glare from the morning sun wasn’t helping. The safety of the tent had been enough to protect her, and when one critter had broken through Sophie had simply tossed a blanket over it, before beating it with a shoe. Now outside, the normal morning stroll had more of a tense feel to it. Sophie knelt down to study one of the rodent corpses and found herself immediately drawn to the claws. Each one had a sticky shine to them, glinting in the light. On closer inspection, a thin coating of liquid glazed over the claw; opaque with a shade of green. Curiosity leapt within her and it wasn’t long before she had pulled a claw from one of the carcasses, desperate for a detailed study. The early sun beat down harder. Unbearable heat gripped at Sophie, as she stared at the claw in her gloved hand. A warm droplet dived from the tip, splashing on the ground. She removed a phial from her Bergen, before shaking the claw inside to try and get a sample. A few thick beads fell away, but nothing that would be conclusive. She stood slowly and made her way towards the lake, her eyes glued to the phial. It was like nothing she had ever seen, the colour almost extra-terrestrial. We are in real trouble if this is contagious, she warned herself. Sophie’s concerns were soon realised, when she spotted a woman sitting awkward by the water. Her shrill cry deafened the sounds from the camp and her eyes were heavily bloodshot with rivers of blood running from each. Claw marks and scratches scattered across her arm, with an algae green growing from wrist to shoulder. The choked cries flooded the clearing, and Sophie could hardly breathe. She gave a quick look left then right, looking for others to help. They were the only two in the clearing. Sophie turned back, tilted her head and gave a heartfelt smile. The kind of smile that a mother gives a child when it’s hurt or had a nightmare. The kind of smile that fills a person with hope. The woman smiled back, bloody tears streaming. She felt her pain almost washing away. Sophie raised her arm assuredly, and watched her pistol recoil silently. The serene water of Lake Michigan rippled gently, accepting the lifeless gift.
Lockie and Jack Lockie had shot another rat as he finally got to the girl. He was about to ask her if she was ok when another woman ran shrieking towards them. She was waving her arms like a loon but that wasn’t what caught his attention. It was the pink steaks in her blonde hair and her bright blue eyes. He had to look away for a second to kill another rat. "Stop screaming! You're only attracting them." Lockie looked from one woman to the next. The girl looked calmer than the other woman, but then she did have some kind of martial art training and that helps with mind of matter stuff, he thought. He stepped away from her and made his way towards the screaming lady. As he reached her he put another bullet into a rat, it faltered and then feel dead at her feet. “Sorry bout that,” he said as he kicked it away. “Can’t really help where they land!” He smiled at the lady who appeared to calm down slightly. He was about to ask her how she was when he heard Jack yelp in pain. He spun to see a rat in Jack’s mouth and another holding tightly to him back, its claws dug deep into him back. It looked like it was trying to save the other. No matter how hard Jack shook he couldn’t shake it loose. The one in his mouth was clearly dying but the one on his back just seemed to want to hold on. Lockie ran towards him just as he fell, panting hard, blood dripping down his back. Lockie skidded to a holt, almost on all fours in front of him. He drew his blade and stabbed the rat in the heart before throwing it to one side. He knelt next to Jack not knowing what to do other the stop the bleeding. He ripped the hem of him polo and held it firm against Jack’s side. Then he looked up at the lady still standing nearby. “Go get some clean cloths now. I need to stop the bleeding.”
Kyra Shade This situation was turning out even better than she had planned. As the man smiled at her, he reminded her a lot of Marshal. Couldn’t be him though, her old boyfriend had brown eyes not green. Plus, this guy had way more meat on his bones. Kyra couldn’t resist watching his hard biceps contract with every pull of the trigger. But, out of nowhere he ignored her, running instead to his dog. The animal shook involuntarily, blood pouring out of several puncture wounds. The man held a wad of cloth to the dog’s body, but upon contact the cloth soon turned bright red with the sticky substance. “Go get some clean cloths now. I need to stop the bleeding,” The man shouted at her. All Kyra gave him was blank look in return. Does he really expect me to... work? But, as she watched the dog continue to pant heavily, she realized this was a real life or death situation. She whipped around to face the younger girl, who hadn't been sympathetic earlier. “You heard the guy, go get a blanket or something!” Kyra waved her hands in her direction, like a mother shooing her children out of the kitchen. The girl needs something better to do than kick rats anyway. Kyra held back a smile, while she unzipped her bag. After rummaging through her stash of makeup, she finally got to the bottom, where her phone lay. As soon as the golden morning sunlight touched its surface, Gigi chirped out a greeting. “Good Morning Miss Shade, how can I be of assistance?” “Bring up LifeScan.” She held the device towards the dog. Gigi flashed out a red beam of checkered light, briefly scanning the creature. “Species Canis lupus familiaris, domestic dog." A hologram of a dog settled in front of her eyes. Kyra lightly touched the vitals button on the screen, revealing the dog's heart rate, temperature, respiratory rate, and many other medical terms for animals. Kyra tossed her phone in the man's direction, "That's all the info my phone can get. I don't know anything about animals, only their hair conditions, so I'm not sure if your dog will live or not..."
Samantha Hazel "You heard the guy, go get a blanket or something!” The woman with pink highlights said. Samantha's jaw dropped at the girl's attitude. Great...another full-of-herself supermodel. Just what we need when trying to survive in a dog-eat-dog world. "I was going to anyway." She muttered, but the supermodel was messing with her phone. Amazing. She grabbed a blanket used to dry dishes and handed it to the man who was desperatly trying to save his dog.
Colonel Matt Garter Just as quickly as they had come, the rats left. Those who survived fled back into the dead forest. People sighed with relief and scattered about to help clean up carcasses and clean eachother's wounds. Those who had been scratched and infected with the rats poison, were each experience different symptons. And older woman had a stratch on her leg causing her whole leg to swell up. Another had broken out in hives. Others were simply cleaning and binding bite marks. Thankfully Colonel Matt Garter had managed not to get bitten or stcratched. Those around him had been good fighters and had remained calm. Matt started walking through the camp looking for Lockie. He needed to send out a scout and Lockie was the best he could think of. He found Lockie kneeling beside his dog, wrapping his wounds. A girl with blond hair, and another with pink highlights stood behind him. The dog seemed fine but he wasn't moving. "Lockie, I need to send out a scout. Think you handle a trip into the woods and see if you can find out where these rats came from?" Lockie's hands were covered in blood from wrapping Jack's wounds and he didn’t look up as he said, "Can’t I just have a few more moments with Jack?!" "I understand that you are worried for him. But we need to know immediatly if we are still in danger. It looks like a few people have already died." Lockie sighed. "Yer, I guess you right, we do need to find out where they came from, why they attacked and if we need to move on, even with all these wounded." Lockie stood and wiped the blood on a cloth in his hand. "I will go but I need to see if Jack is going to be ok first. I think he is fine, a bit beat up but looks lilke the poison from the claws has paralysed him. I dont know if it will wear off." "I can give you half-hour but if you don't go before then, I'm going to have to find another volunteer." Matt squeezed Lockie's shoulder comfortingly. Lockie sighed again. "Thanks Matt. Kyra just gave me her scanning device and it shows he is fine, for the most part. The paralysis should wear off…I just dont know how long it will take. If he isn't right to come with me he will need to stay with the caravan till he gets better. Send two more people with me if we can spare them if not I will just need one volunteer to watch my back." "I think we can spare two. I wouldn’t think of sending you off by yourself." Matt smiled, nodded at the girls standing behind Lockie, then walked back off towards the main part of the camp to find a few volunteers.
Lockie checked the make shift bandages on Jack before wrapping him in the blanket that was handed to him. Jack was not in great shape, his bleeding had stopped but his panting was shallow and irregular. He had a temperature and eyes were a bit foggy but according to Kyra’s device the rest of his body was fine. There was no internal trama or bleeding and none of his organs were shutting down. This was a huge relief for Lockie, it meant that Jack would be fine; it was just a matter of time for the paralysis to wear off. Lockie stood up looked around. He had to put Jack somewhere safe so that he wouldn’t be a burden to the caravan if they needed to move. He grabbed a man that was standing watching and asked him to help move Jack. They picked him up and carried him into the camp and put him near Matt’s tent, that way Matt could keep an eye on him and move him if he had to. Lockie then walked off to find Matt. He found him checking repairs and injuries in the middle of the camp. “Matt!? I have put Jack near your tent so you can keep an eye on him and move him if need be. I will take two volunteers with me and leave now if you like. I will head east, in the direction that the rats left and I will meet you in a few days. If you have to move I will find you closer to the lake. Wish me luck and don’t forget about Jack. I am sure one of the kids will like to look after him. It’ll be a welcome change. Oh and his chain and muzzle are with him if needed but I doubt it will.” Lockie slung his backpack over his shoulders and headed out with two of the assigned volunteers.
The Cleanser “He hehe hehee.” A man in his late fifty’s chuckled and hummed at the same time. His face was painted white, his lips painted red. And on his face, the infamous clown nose. His fevered mind was filled with glee as he watched his victim try and figure out the puzzle before he suffocated to death. “Another person dumb and weak. Another person to cry and weep. Another person to fail my tests, Another whose not worthy of the earth to come next.” The victim gasped for breath as he rearranged tiles. His eyebrows knit at the song the crazy clown sang. The Cleanser watched through his video monitor and crooned mournfully at the man. “Two more minutes before the air runs dry! Two more minutes before you die!” The air in the room was slowly sucked out. The victim failed to finish to the puzzle in time and collapsed to the ground with his hand on the last tile. “The earth is cleansed of another, Not worthy to be my brother. May he rest in peace, his soul to sleep. As I prepare the room for another.”
Colonel Matt Garter It had been two hours since Lockie and two others had gone off scouting. A sick feeling in his stomach told him that they shouldn't stay any longer. Thus, despite the injuries, most were minor, he commanded his caravan to start packing and get ready to head out. Jaxo, amazingly enough, did the same. The rat attack had freaked him out more than he would admit and had no desire to stay where they might attack again. By the time the camp was packed Jack, Lockie's dog, was up and about again. He was running from one side of the camp to the other trying to find his master. Matt worried that the dog might run off in search of Lockie; but unfortunetly he had bigger worries on his mind. They buried those who had died, four in total, and seperated out the supplies. Once everything was in order they began trekking. As the caravans were moving Matt counted the people. As far as he could tell they were down to 20 people. Which meant one was unaccounted for. He counted again and came to the same conclusion. Someone was missing. Perhaps they had run off into the woods in a panic...never to be seen again.
Kyra Shade More walking? Thought I would be able to stop for a few days. Guess not. Kyra sighed as she stomped on the hard dirt with the rest of the people. She balanced a blanket under one arm awkwardly, as she began to fiddle with her phone. She silently tapped into her GPS, making sure it didn’t bring up a hologram of the area. Kyra smiled as she watched the little dots show up on the screen, none of them would ever realize she had a map. Although, she knew Gigi’s coordinates weren’t 100% accurate. What was dead, her device still thought was alive, but no matter. At least it was said they were near Lake Michigan. She had never traveled here before, but it must have been a beautiful place a year back. All that was left was dry shriveled grass and fallen tree stumps. Even the sky had a strange tint to it, replacing what used to be clear blue. Kyra looked up to see the people sweating under the intense mid-morning sun. Some of these people were weak, tired; even hours after the rat dilemma. She noticed the young Karate girl a few feet in front of her, seeming to not mind the heat. I wonder how long she can keep a cool head? Kyra thought, making her way toward the girl. She casually walked beside her, giving a downhearted sigh. “It’s SO hot! You mind holding this a second?” Before she could answer, Kyra dropped her blanket on the girl’s shoulders. “I wonder how much longer until we rest? My feet feel like they are going to fall off.”
Arthur Jones Arthur went to each of the rat corpses after the battle was done taking a knife and slitting open the flesh beneath the claws from each he removed the poison sac and poured the remaining poison into glass vials carefully stoppering each he secreted the vials away into his various pockets. "Bloody stinking rats at least your halfway useful for something now even if it is just for poison." he kicked the nearest rat almost falling on his arse, Arthur growled and spat at the corpse on the floor "If its a hundred years between seeing you mangy buggers again itl be too soon". Arthur headed back into camp and helped out with the preparations to head off. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Arthur walked along grumbling under his breath he held one of the vials to the sunlight looking at the color before dropping a few black leaves in, the poison reacted immediately turning a violent shade of blue Arthur grunted in satisfaction and fumbled around in his other pockets looking for another ingredient. As he fumbled he ignored the road ahead, within a few seconds he collided with a pair of girls tipping himself onto his face. Arthur swore violently and began grumbling under his breath as he fought his way back to his feet only an odd word being able to be heard "Bloody...........knees........not........sodding.......awary..........bugger". Arthur turned and noticed the two girls stood looking at him in shock "He bowed creakily "sorry ladies my eyes ent what they used to be" he patted his pockets and looked around on the grass "either of you see where my blue vial got to? little buggers done a runner on me"
Samantha Hazel It’s SO hot! You mind holding this a second? A heavy blanket randomly appeared on Samantha's shoulders. She scowled and turned to see who was whining again. "I wonder how much longer until we rest? My feet feel like they are going to fall off.” It was the girl with the faded pink highlights from earlier, the one who had been screaming like a two year-old. The woman was sweating and looked like she was about to pass out. Samantha felt slightly sorry for her but she was being really annoying. "They are probably trying to get us as far away from those rats as possible. Try and be grateful." She shifted the blanket which was already making her sweat and picked up her pace. Hopefully she'd leave the wining diva in the dust. "Hey, wait up!" she moved quickly to catch up with her,"You sure have a lot of energy for a teenager. I remember when I was a teen, best days of my life." "Yeah, I bet you were the hottest girl around, all the guys loved you, you got everything you ever wanted blah blah blah." Samantha said, still annoyed. Why was this woman bothering with a "teen" like her. "Shouldn't you be off looking for some cute guy to procreate with." Samantha instantly regretted the comment but it was too late to take it back." She laughed, "Not many cute guys around here, sweetheart. Haven't you noticed? Anyway, thanks. I'm glad I still leave that impression at 28. Those days are long gone now, though." Samantha studied Kyra's face. She would have pegged her for 22 or 24 not nearly 30. And she certainly acted like a spoiled teen, not an aging adult. "So why do you act like a preppy 18 year old. I mean...there arn't any cute guys around to impress. Or are you just naturally spoiled?" "Just my nature I guess. When I was your age I was living a dream, now that I've lost it all most do say I need to live in reality. But, I'll live how I want. This is not my kind of vacation, but people seriously need to lighten up." Kyra tilted her head as she looked at Samantha. "Have you ever thought about layering your hair? Or honey highlights? It would look perfect with your skin tone." Samantha glanced back at Kyra with an incredulous look on her face. The blanket getting hotter and sweat was starting to wet her t-shirt but she didn't show it. "Where would you get the stuff you need for that? We are kinda in the middle of nowhere." Just as she said that something bumped into her back. Kyra also stumbled and they both turned to see what hit them. And old man with a can was crouched over and he looked up at them, a strange look in his eyes. "Sorry ladies. My eyes ent what they used to be." He patted his pockets and looked around on the grass, "Either of you see where my blue vial got to? Little buggers done a runner on me." Samantha smiled at the old man's accent then began looking around her feet for the vial. There at her toe was a blue vial. She picked it up. The old man reached out hungerly...he looked like the vial was about to explode. So she quickly and gingerly handed it to him. "What's so important about that the vial?"
Arthur Jones "What's so important about that the vial?" Arthur held the vial to the sunlight frowning slightly "Its a mixture of the poison from the rats this morning and a few other things. The rats poison doesn't kill at least not at first, it puts the victim into a coma like state and takes away pain so the pack can feast on the prey while its still alive, nasty little buggers. Useful though if you need to amputate someones leg or something. If you mix it with Dark Wort and a few other ingredients it makes it into a poison that eats away at the nervous system the person falls into a dreamless sleep that they wont wake from, its the kindest poison i know." "As to why im making it theres always people who take injuries that cant be healed and need to be given death this is the kindest way without using drugs we cant easily replenish. Thres also bandits and other dangers that can be solved with a little poison snuck into food ect, saves us being in danger in an all out fight. My stash of poisons is sorely lacking after traveling alone so long." Arthur Stared away looking into the distance contemplating something He sighed "So how did you ladies get here?"
Kyra Shade Well played Kyra, she thought. Even with the girl's annoying prodding questions, she had still been able to hold her ground without exposing much of her real self. Though, she knew it was going to be more challenging as Samantha continued to get to "know" her. She crossed her arms as the little old man they had bumped into mumbled a bunch of nonsense about rat poisons. Useful stuff, but Kyra hated trying to decipher the man's accent. Where had he come from? "So how did you ladies get here?" Kyra sighed, he had beat her to the question. She casually twirled locks of her hair around her finger. "Fate brought me here. I was wandering the woods looking for my previous caravan, when I heard noises. It was not the caravan that had rudely left me behind, but this one. I've been here for a few days. That other caravan was no good anyway." Kyra moved her hands to rest on her hips, as she kept her gaze on the elderly man. She of course had lied straight to his face, with the same old story she used on everybody she encountered. Poor helpless girl left behind, ha! This time around she had actually been fleeing from a caravan. Hopefully, she was now too far away for them to ever see her again.
Samantha Hazel Samantha listened to Kyra whine about being left behind and was about to respond with a smart remark when the she bumped into someone in front of her. The group had come to a halt and Samantha walked to the front to find out why. They had stopped at the edge of what used to be a beautiful port city. A few buildings were still standing and gleaming in the afternoon rays. An especially pretty set of building were connected by a glass bridge. In the distance about half a mile away was a carnival. Its lights weren't on but it seemed to be intact. A large ride and ferris wheel loomed above the wall that surrounded it. "We'll stop here for the evening." The leader of the other carvan said. Garter, she thought his name was. "Separate into groups of 3 to 5 people and search the city for supplies. Meet back here by dark." "If anyone from my caravan wants to go...see me first! And I'll say wether or not you can go." Jaxo piped in. "There he goes...asserting his authority again." Samantha sighed. She wandered into the crowd looking for Sophie; vaguely aware that Kyra was following behind her. Samantha found her rummaging through her supplies. "Hey, Sophie. Want to team up?" If there was to be anyone by her side, she wanted Sophie.
Naomi After snagging some food, Naomi walked briskly back to the small shack she had called home for the past few months. There, she felt safe from the dangers of the world, both natural and created. Most of all, she felt safe because of Rick. He was a great man, 30 years old to her 18, but she had to admit she'd been getting used to him, and had begun a non-stop downhill roll towards his heart. On top of being very good looking, he'd saved Naomi's life. She'd nearly been killed by one of the mutant wolf things, but luckily Rick had been hobbling around and shot the thing in the head. After introductions were over, Rick brought her back to the little, run-down shack he called home. They talked for a bi before deciding to team up. In exchange for teaching her everything about hunting he knew, she brought back food for him to eat. Today, she was bringing back something else in addition to the food she'd trapped and shot. She was going to tell Rick how she felt about him, how she coulldn't bear to be away from him, how she wanted to feel his arms around her at night. Perhaps she'd get him some real medical attention for his leg. When she got back in, she threw the met onto a table and looked over twoards Rick. "Hey Rick," she said, slightly nervous. "I know you've taught me a lot of things, and I know I'm quite a deal younger than you, but I thought maybe you and I could make our friendship into a relationship. What do you think?" Rick just lay there on the bed, facedown on the bed. Naomi walked over and shook him, and felt something warm on her hand. Pulling her hand up, she found blood covering her righ hand. "Rick!"
Doctor Sophie Martins ”Hey, Sophie. Want to team up?” Sophie ignored the girl and continued rummaging through her bag. Samantha stood there slowly bouncing on her toes and heels, trying to counter the awkward silence. She had more energy than a five year old. Digging deeper into the Bergen to find a non-existent item, Sophie spotted another woman behind the teen, strutting a faded white turtleneck and pink highlights. She too waited in silence with a quizzical gaze, a tag along to Samantha’s entourage. “What is this? Lemmings?” Sophie shook her head and continued searching. “I’m guessing if I jumped off a bridge, you’d be right behind me.” Samantha’s face hardened, her ears rejecting the harsh tone. A smile twisted onto the doctor’s face, “Don’t worry though, looks like someone will be following behind you as well, isn’t that right Blondie?” The other woman seemed startled, not expecting to be caught in the verbal crossfire. Neither of them were impressed with the attitude. Sophie’s mind still struggled to accept the fact that this was no longer the military, and these weren’t soldiers – they were survivors. “Fine… fine." Her tone softened, "I’ll come, but only if we search for relevant supplies. I’m not wasting my time looking for food when half the bloody camp will do the same.” Her mind drifted to images of ammunition, medicine and cigarettes, everything a post-apocalyptic girl needs. A chuckled laugh escaped her nose, before closing the bag and hoofing it onto her back. “So… What did you have in mind?”
Samantha Hazel Despite Sophie's harsh tone Samantha couldn't help but smile as she finally gave in. Samantha didn't even have to put up an argument. "I agree. We won't go on a specific search for food. Clothes, medicine...those are the important things. We’ll pick up food if we happen to run by it." She glanced behind her at Kyre. "And maybe some hair supplies." She pushed the stuff, including the blanket that she had been carrying into some bushes and emptied the backpack into the blanket. Her shirt was darkened with sweat but it the wind cooled her off quickly. She put on her now empty backpack and started walking towards the city. “C’mon slow pokes.” She said turning around and walking backwards. Samantha made eye contact with both Sophie and Kyre. “Lets see how much stuff we can get before dark.”
Arthur Jones Arthur grinned as the order was given out, might get a chance to replenish some supplies even find one of his old companies hideaways if he could find the bloody markings. Arthur frowned as he realized the cavern driver mentioned teams "pah as if any of these young uns could keep up with me" he muttered. He slipped his pack onto one of the caravans and slipped into the city. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Arthur crept along an alleyway stalking two men he had found searching the city rather then try to find a more hospitable clime some people stayed in one place and lived off the remnants. Two ugly buggers these two, with more scars then brains more like however they may have hidden cashes that would be worth stealing. As the two rounded a corner he heard a shout of glee quickly followed by a more feminine scream. Arthur sped to the turning and glanced around seeing the two men had cornered some poor wretch. "Goddess where has all the chivalry gone" Arthur flicked a knife at one of the men as he closed on the girl it sinking in to the back of the nick between the spine sections, the man collapsed instantly and as the other man turned he revived a knife in the eye. Arthur walked slowly up to the girl "Lady luck smiles on me today it seems" he closed on the girl and called quietly "there's caravans outside of town girl if you want a bit more civilization then here get your arse too them" the girl looked at him for a second and dissapeared into the darkness. Arthur took his knives from the dead bodies and crouched to search the bodies, as he knelt down a questioning shout echoed from behind him he turned to see five men approaching weapons ready. Arthur dashed out down the ally the girl escaped down invoking the ancient name for the lady of luck "Ruthara i love you but you can be a cruel bitch sometimes". Arthur dashed through the city trying to shake the pursuing men ignoring the ache in his bones.
Watch out! Black-eyes. Once humans, these creatures had lived normal lives. But now, affected by a unique type of radiation these creatures had developed a hunger and thirst for human flesh. At a glance they looked like normal humans with large black eyes. But if a person got close enough, they would see the tiny scales that had formed on their skin, and notice that many of their teeth and sharpened into painful points. The smell of their skin was enough to knock a sensitive soul unconcious before they were painfully torn to death. Black-eyes now had only the most simpilest of thoughts. Stalk, Pursue, Kill, Eat. In their early evolution, they couldn't stand being in the sun at all because of the pain it brought their eyes. But 4 months have passed since then and they are coming out more and more frequently during the day. Thus their excavasion into the fleashlings living area. Not many fleashings in these parts nowadays but sometimes they got lucky. A particular group of Black-eyes had cornered a small fleshling and were about to feast when out of nowhere two of their group was killed by a leathery-old fleshling. The leader of the group snarled and lifted his knife. Four of his comrades came to his aid. The leathery fleshling took down the alley and his clan followed. They would feast; but on something bigger this time.
Kyra Shade Kyra sighed as she followed Samantha. When was the work ever going to end? She couldn't wait until she could buy another mansion and not go outside for the rest of her life. She had never been a tree-hugger, but now after months in the wilderness it was obvious she wouldn’t become one. She turned around to get a better look at the other woman trailing behind, who Samantha had called Sophie. Due to what she was wearing Kyra knew she must be a doctor, but what she noticed more was her hair. Deep chestnut, silky, and no flyways to be seen. Did she have some expensive shampoo and conditioner hidden in her bag? But, despite her beauty, Sophie wore an ugly scowl. If she was always this irritable, Kyra didn’t understand why Samantha had asked her to team up with them. Was Samantha just overly nice to everyone, even to people who gave her mean remarks in return? Or maybe Samantha was using Sophie to her advantage. Kyra grinned; the girl must be smarter than she had thought. The woman seemed to carry herself well; it could be extremely useful to be on her good side. Kyra continued onward, looking ahead to the deserted city and what remained of a carnival in the distance. How long would it take to search through the buildings? Was there even anything still usable? Anything left to find? For all they knew, the place could've already been scavenged through. Kyra furrowed her brow. Hopefully they weren’t doing this for nothing. Being so collected with her negative thoughts, she didn’t take notice of the scattered rocks in front of her. Kyra gasped as she tried to gain her footing but was too late, getting a face full of dirt instead. Quickly she bounced up to brush herself off, while avoiding eye contact with Sophie, who had no doubt seen her blunder. Kyra groaned, pulling down on her turtleneck, now more of a tan than grey. The day just couldn't get any better, could it?
Doctor Sophie Martins “How was your trip, Princess Twinkletoes?” Her smile crept higher, skipping past Kyra with the grace of ballerina. The fall soured Kyra’s mood but she bounced up quickly and swept the hair from eyes. That will knock her off her high horse, Sophie thought to herself. She still didn’t have Kyra figured out though; the bimbo routine seemed all too coincidental with men, desperate for attention, fighting over which one gets to save the blonde. Kyra loved it. A little too much, and her hopelessness to carry supplies, fetch nutrients and build shelter was completely out of sync with her ability to survive. She was a puzzle. And a suspicious one at that. Samantha led the rest up the trail, the sickly yellow grass spreading high from the ground and hugging the dead trees. Each branch twisted painfully, with hardened grey boils spawning along them. Six months was all it took for the world to implode and the results had ripped right through the countryside, now scarred by mutation. Even the clear sky had a green tinge to it, poisoned and nauseating. But then Sophie stopped abruptly as a flicker of colour caught her eye. Kyra took the opportunity to barge into her shoulder, before quipping, “Get out of the way. You’re slowing me down.” Sophie didn’t hear a word, transfixed by the blue and red; well hidden, yet vibrant. The blonde gave a quick tut and carried on, unaware of the mystical beauty pulsating from the petals. Sophie crept closer, swimming through the sea of yellow to meet the glorious flower before her, its elegance shining from stem to stigma. Was it a mutation? She had never seen such a bloom, even before the end of the world. She knelt closer, the aroma invading her nostrils. Smells like lavender rose in the air; like fresh laundry with a cool summery fragrance. Eager to preserve her new discovery, Sophie donned her gloves and grabbed her scissors, cutting off a flower petal ready for analysis and cloning. She carefully placed the petal into one of her vacuum containers and packed away her Bergen. Distant calls of “Sophie” ran across the yellow sea like sirens. Samantha really didn’t have a grasp of subtlety, she chuckled to herself. The air shifted, and Sophie’s ears pricked. The choppy grass waves died down, followed by a distinct rustling. It had a direction, but Sophie couldn’t place her finger on which way. She looked left, then right. The sound became more violent, shaking towards her. Sophie turned behind her, silenced pistol raised. Her hands held steady, senses razor sharp. But the rustling had stopped, and another long call of “Sophie” rang through the air. She held herself in that moment, ready. Seconds turned to minutes, and only then – when she was sure – did she holster her gun. A lazy turn back to her Bergen, and the man stood there and shadowed the sun. He shadowed the sky, the trees, the grass, the Bergen. And then the world went black.
Samantha Hazel "Sophie! Seriously?" Samantha sighed as she and Kyra hiked back up the trail to where they had lost Sophie. "Maybe she decided she didn't want to go scavenging after all." Kyra piped in. "Maybe. She is certainly independent." They searched the trail a little longer then decided to give up and head back towards the city. Sophie was indepentant and more than cabapable of taking care of herself. They reached the city and Samantha was once again amazed at it's splendor. "I wonder if this is one of the cities that had anti-gravity cars and trains." Samantha said, not expecting a response. "You mean you didn't live where there were anti-gravity vehicles? What did you live on, an island?" Kyra laughed at the thought. "No." Samantha shrugged, her cheeks becoming hot with embarrassment. "My family and I just lived in one of the small cities still in the mountains. We owned a Martial Arts studio. People would come from all over the world just to be trained personally by my father." She looked over at her with eyebrows raised, "Well, that explains it. Why you're good at kicking things I mean. That probably comes in handy." Kyra smirked, "I never was any good at sports. Hey...maybe you could teach me sometime!" Samantha laughed and mumbled, "Yeah, when pigs fly." She thought about the statement and realized that with all the radiation around it was a very likely possibility they would see flying pigs. Samantha and Kyra spent the next 4 hours gathering supplies. Kyra finding tons of hair and nail supplies while Samantha found more practical things, like clothing, shoes, first aid supplies and dried food. Dark was just settling as they returned to the camp. People were ooh'ing and ah'ing over all that they found and were dispersing the supplies where they were most needed. Samantha began to look around for Sophie but before they got very far in their search a shrill voice broke the night, "Look over there!! The carnival is all lit up!"
Makari ShlecknoA young woman, tied up light brown hair, hovering over a lab coat that conceals her beauty. There she stands, what’s she doing? Crawling, I make my way to a nearby bush to get a better view. A flower? Such a lovely woman, a lovely flower. “Boy! Get your act together! She is going to kill me!” I look around, all I can see is her and that flower. That flower with the face, that rugged face, it’s him! “Sergeant?” I whisper. “No!” then the face contorts, it changes into one of those people from the bomb shelter. Staring right through me, why me? I need to get my head back in the game… they aren’t real… are they? Back to the surviving beauty… why is she alive? They are conspiring against me! All of them, the flowers, my own army! She’s talking to the flowers about how to kill me right now isn’t she?! No no no, not under my watch! A little bit of rustling alarms me as I get up, my cover’s blown no doubt. She pulls out her gun and I drop back down. It could be mistaken as wind at that point, but maybe not. Knowing that I only have seconds before the paranoia gets to her, I sprint over to my enemy, blocking the Sun to give myself a second to keep her dazed. I glare down at her, TKB-506 in hand barrel first. Gently raising it to my shoulder, as soon as she looks up, I bring the gun down hard. Holding her hand softly, I bring this conspiring undesirable back home. Through the meadows to the nearby general store. Ruined from post-nuking riots, this general store makes a nice little bunker. Windows broken to let air in, door still on its hinges, boxes scattered for storage space. Not too shabby. Coils of rope lie near the counter, hanging on a hook. I tug them off the hook, grab a chair and hoist the woman on to the chair. Once she is there, I pull the rope around her lower torso and fashion a simple square not. I continue to do the same with her legs, arms and even gently around the neck. Just in case. How could I make this more menacing? I need to appear as a powerful enemy, not one who has been locked up in a bomb shelter. Maybe if the chair is by the counter, I could put a nice dim light on it to set quite the mood… Waiting, it’s been an hour, boy did I deliver that blow. The scene is set, dim light, ruined shelves, letting in a crack of light via boarded up windows, sitting in a backwards chair looking at her. Staring. “I’m just a friend, you know, here to chat.” I try… no bolder. “Rise and shine morning glory… I hear you’ve got big plans for yourself… I’ve got some too…” Yes. That will do. I’ve been planning the scene out in my head for a half hour, it’s about time that she finally wakes from her slumber. A dazed look enters her eyes, her mouth frowning in puzzlement. Then it hits her, hits her like a TKB-506. “Rise and shine morning glory…” I start, then I think about how to better the second part. It’s not good enough. “Good morning to you too, now riddle me this psycho, who the Hell are you?” I chose a feisty one… I do enjoy the hunt. “Now I don’t believe you are the one, out of us, fit to ask the questions…” I tighten the ropes around her arms. I get the resulting wince, but nothing more. “Now, how about you riddle me this one, little girl. Who are you? Where do you stand with the KGB? And what was your business with that flower?” Hopefully this is a better approach for such a feisty one. “Doctor Sophie Martins, sir.” She emphasizes the doctor, and taunts me with her little “sir”. “As far as I know, I have no standing with the KGB, and the flower was supposed to help with my science… but you had to ruin that study didn’t you?” I laugh heartily, and tighten the ropes around her lower torso a little. This time I got a bit of a cry, and more of a wince. “Mind your manners doctor. I am a well-respected ally as well as a well-respected enemy. Now you best start talking truth, I could waste you right now. I could find your ‘Careful twinkletoes’ pal. Yes, I was watching, I know you have allies.” Showing knowledge shows power, but I can’t get carried away. “You truly are psychotic, aren’t you? ‘My careful twinkletoes pal, is certainly NOT my pal. She’s just some flirty bimbo that I’m surviving with. Now let me free before they find you.” She has allies. This is certainly not good. “If there’s a chance of them finding me, there’s a higher chance of you not making it out of here alive. Would you like to co-operate? How about you start talking truth?” Then, as if one of those old cartoon light bulbs pops up over my head, I remember my knife. I whip it out and put it to her wrist. Doctor Sophie Martins Alright, this is a difficult situation. Sitting vulnerable in front of a psychopath. I’ve dealt with these guys, I can just talk truth. They will either question it for hours on end, or believe it. Either way, I have a good shot on at least getting out of here. “That KGB stuff, I’ve certainly heard of it. Fortunately for you, I was against them. The past is the past though, I’m not working for anyone right now. If you hadn’t noticed, we got nuked. I’m just trying to survive out here.” The puzzled expression on his face shows that he is at least taking it in. “I’ll call your bluff doctor, but you’ll need to tell me a lot more than that…” An adrenaline shot of pain trembles through my wrist as he applies pressure on the knife. “I want you to tell me all about the nuke, life before, life after. I want you to tell me the truth. I want you to tell me it now. Understood?” I nod slowly. Of course he chooses the one that keeps me here…
Colonel Matt Garter "D*** it." Garter mumbled to himself as he walked through the group of people twice more. He hadn't counted wrong. Two caravaners were missing. One from his group, and old man who had arrived the night before and Sophie. A female doctor from Jaxo's group. A young teen, Samantha, had said Sophie hadn't even made it to the city with them. The people were distracted by the lights from the carnival. That was good. It meant he could take a team to search for the missing people before the others reliezed something was wrong. He grabbed four men, including the recently returned Lockie and set off down the trail with bright flashlights. It would take a miracle to find them. But maybe they'd get lucky.
Lockie Davis Earlier that day Lockie had returned from his little expedition to find the caravan had moved on. He had expected that of course so he wasted no time in following their trail towards the city that Garter had mentioned to him several nights prier. He had spoken about stopping there to restock so Lockie figured that’s exactly what he had done. As Lockie approached their new camp Jack came racing up to him like a maniac, he had obviously been looking for him and smelt him coming. Lockie stopped to pat him and did a quick check of his wounds. Some would scare and had already started to scab and much to his relief nothing looked permanent. He did notice that he was still limping slightly but he hoped that would heal over time and with rest. He stood and made his way to find Garter, Jack trotting as best he could at his side. ****** So some of the people had been sent off to find supplies and not returned. This was somewhat distressing news. It either meant they were not alone, that they had fallen and hurt themselves or more likely that they had no sense of direction and had gotten lost. Lockie sighed, not all that were left behind after the war had the skills or mind set to survive. They relied on others with those skills to help them and keep them alive. This is what happens when people don’t play thing smart, he thought to himself as he strod over to Garter. “Hey Matt, we can try using Jack’s nose to help find a lead, hopefully he can point us in the right direction. It’s not his strongest suit but its worth a try and lets face it he can pick up things quicker than us, good or bad!”
