The Return (IC/OPEN)

[Mincaldenteans]

Cymitia didn't waste any time in taking the weapon that Hunter had scooted towards her from the dead man's body, also ensuring that it was loaded before she took it into her hands. That was two of the four, if the others didn't return anyway. Cymitia was confused as to why the other men weren't rushing in to help their comrades, but a clattering sound moving down the stairs alerted her to something being tossed down. She spotted a strange canister stopping at the bottom of the stairs. She'd been told about grenades before, they exploded and sent shrapnel flying all around that cut people to pieces and maimed them horribly. She didn't have time to react before it exploded, however.

To her surprise, it didn't kill her, but the bright flash of light sent her stumbling backwards through the room. The white light was so intense that she actually felt an intense headache coming on, her head throbbing as if it were about to explode. She couldn't even stand to be in sunlight for too long, and this canister had exploded with the most intense light she'd ever seen, leaving her on the ground in intense pain, covering her eyes and rubbing at them in a vain attempt to make the pain stop. She only hoped that she wasn't lying out in the open, and if she was, she hoped that the others kept her protected while she was so blinded.

Even with altered appearance and human like eyes, the flash of intense white light sent Hunter tumbling back against the wall. He didn't get the change to react in time and the blinding light was enough to make him drop his gun. Disoriented, unable to see and the thin lance of fearsome pain shot through his head in burning agony and Hunter crumpled to the ground. He heard a shriek, he wondered if it was Cymitia or Thelin, or himself for that matter, but he couldn't register it. He heard George, maybe Mike. Someone was talking, or rather screaming for them. He blinked his eyes and winced, the light hadn't faded and only caused further pain if he continued to blink. He felt a wetness to his eyes but ignored it, too concern with the headache that was coming in like a stampede now.

[Cadia]

Cymitia didn't waste any time in taking the weapon that Hunter had scooted towards her from the dead man's body, also ensuring that it was loaded before she took it into her hands. That was two of the four, if the others didn't return anyway. Cymitia was confused as to why the other men weren't rushing in to help their comrades, but a clattering sound moving down the stairs alerted her to something being tossed down. She spotted a strange canister stopping at the bottom of the stairs. She'd been told about grenades before, they exploded and sent shrapnel flying all around that cut people to pieces and maimed them horribly. She didn't have time to react before it exploded, however.

To her surprise, it didn't kill her, but the bright flash of light sent her stumbling backwards through the room. The white light was so intense that she actually felt an intense headache coming on, her head throbbing as if it were about to explode. She couldn't even stand to be in sunlight for too long, and this canister had exploded with the most intense light she'd ever seen, leaving her on the ground in intense pain, covering her eyes and rubbing at them in a vain attempt to make the pain stop. She only hoped that she wasn't lying out in the open, and if she was, she hoped that the others kept her protected while she was so blinded.

Flash grenade.

Mike covered his eyes as the grenade hit the ground. He had known the effects of them since the last time he'd been in a riot, having been blinded for an hour or so afterwards. After the flash ended, he looked up the stairs and saw the HGV men wall around the corner. Mike aimed at the bloke at the top of the stairs, behind the first officer. The shot caused the man to stumble and fall down the steps, bringing the officer down with him. He walked up to the two and aimed his gun at them.

"Everyone alright?" he asked the group, not looking away from the two surviving officers.

[Lancearc]

"No I'm not alright!" Cymitia shouted, half in anger and half in pain. As she stumbled to her feet again, gripping someone's shoulder for support, the bright light began to fade away and she could once again focus on what was around them. The remaining two HGV men had been dealt with by Mike, but it looked like they were still alive. She felt a similar wetness in her eye as Hunter did, and the stinging pain still present hadn't yet left her. The thunderous throbbing was beginning to weaken, however. She looked over, seeing that she was supporting herself against Mike. She took her hand from his shoulder, wiping her eyes. The red of blood could be seen against her purely blue eyes. "Shit..." she muttered, noticing the blood on her hands after she'd wiped her eyes. "Did one of them have the map?" she asked, trying not to focus on her bleeding eyes.

[Cadia]

"No I'm not alright!" Cymitia shouted, half in anger and half in pain. As she stumbled to her feet again, gripping someone's shoulder for support, the bright light began to fade away and she could once again focus on what was around them. The remaining two HGV men had been dealt with by Mike, but it looked like they were still alive. She felt a similar wetness in her eye as Hunter did, and the stinging pain still present hadn't yet left her. The thunderous throbbing was beginning to weaken, however. She looked over, seeing that she was supporting herself against Mike. She took her hand from his shoulder, wiping her eyes. The red of blood could be seen against her purely blue eyes. "Shit..." she muttered, noticing the blood on her hands after she'd wiped her eyes. "Did one of them have the map?" she asked, trying not to focus on her bleeding eyes.

He walked Cym over to a chair and helped sit her down.

"You'll be okay."

He then did the same to Hunter and Thelin, helping them to sit down somewhere to help relieve some of the disorientation. He hadn't seen George, too concentrated on the survivors. Walking over to them, he took their guns and placed them away to make sure they don't try anything funny. He began to search the dead ones first, before checking the live ones. The highest ranked one had it in his coat pocket.

"We've got the maps." he said, watching the wounded closely. He walked over to Cym and gave her the map, placing it on her lap. He then went over to watch over the prisoners.

[Mincaldenteans]

"No I'm not alright!" Cymitia shouted, half in anger and half in pain. As she stumbled to her feet again, gripping someone's shoulder for support, the bright light began to fade away and she could once again focus on what was around them. The remaining two HGV men had been dealt with by Mike, but it looked like they were still alive. She felt a similar wetness in her eye as Hunter did, and the stinging pain still present hadn't yet left her. The thunderous throbbing was beginning to weaken, however. She looked over, seeing that she was supporting herself against Mike. She took her hand from his shoulder, wiping her eyes. The red of blood could be seen against her purely blue eyes. "Shit..." she muttered, noticing the blood on her hands after she'd wiped her eyes. "Did one of them have the map?" she asked, trying not to focus on her bleeding eyes.

He walked Cym over to a chair and helped sit her down.

"You'll be okay."

He then did the same to Hunter and Thelin, helping them to sit down somewhere to help relieve some of the disorientation. He hadn't seen George, too concentrated on the survivors. Walking over to them, he took their guns and placed them away to make sure they don't try anything funny. He began to search the dead ones first, before checking the live ones. The highest ranked one had it in his coat pocket.

"We've got the maps." he said, watching the wounded closely. He walked over to Cym and gave her the map, placing it on her lap. He then went over to watch over the prisoners.

"Guys..." Hunter said almost desperate if he didn't believe it himself. "Guys!... I can't... What the fuck... I can't see! I can't..." He sputtered, trying to regain his composure but failing, "I can't.. Cym! I can't.. I can't see... There's nothing!..."

[Cadia]

He walked Cym over to a chair and helped sit her down.

"You'll be okay."

He then did the same to Hunter and Thelin, helping them to sit down somewhere to help relieve some of the disorientation. He hadn't seen George, too concentrated on the survivors. Walking over to them, he took their guns and placed them away to make sure they don't try anything funny. He began to search the dead ones first, before checking the live ones. The highest ranked one had it in his coat pocket.

"We've got the maps." he said, watching the wounded closely. He walked over to Cym and gave her the map, placing it on her lap. He then went over to watch over the prisoners.

"Guys..." Hunter said almost desperate if he didn't believe it himself. "Guys!... I can't... What the fuck... I can't see! I can't..." He sputtered, trying to regain his composure but failing, "I can't.. Cym! I can't.. I can't see... There's nothing!..."

It appeared that the one prisoner had died of his wounds, bleeding from the gut. The other had been knocked out.

"Give me a second. I'll get you guys something."

He ran up the stairs and looked around for a bathroom. Once inside, he gathered all the clothes he could find and soaked them in cold water. Ringing them out so it had no excess, he brought them down for everyone to use. He helped Hunter sit down beside Cym and gave them both clothes.

"Put these over your eyes. It'll help the pain and clean yourself off. You guys were hit by a flashgrenade, which is bright enough to leave you without sight for quite awhile. With you guys blind, we can't go very far."

He then sat next to Thelin, giving her the cloth her eyes.

[Lancearc]

"What? What's wrong with him?" Cymitia finally managed to say as Mike helped the blinded Hunter over to sit down by her, she putting her arms about him. "It's alright, you'll be fine..." she tried to reassure him, though for all she knew it could leave him blind for the rest of his life. "How long does the effect usually last?" she asked Mike rather urgently as he fetched them wet clothing to hold to their eyes.

[Cadia]

"What? What's wrong with him?" Cymitia finally managed to say as Mike helped the blinded Hunter over to sit down by her, she putting her arms about him. "It's alright, you'll be fine..." she tried to reassure him, though for all she knew it could leave him blind for the rest of his life. "How long does the effect usually last?" she asked Mike rather urgently as he fetched them wet clothing to hold to their eyes.

"Last time it happened to me, it was around an hour or so. I can't say the same for you guys."

He thought of the implications resulting in the flashbangs use.

This could disable them for life.

"It'll be alright, though."

[Eaglleia]

William squeezed his way through the occupants of the area where the men had led them. There seem to be a lot of them.. The man was right, too. Their residence in the back alleys of HGV-London had only been marginally larger, and was far less safe. Though, that said, he couldn't really be too guaranteed or reassured by the safety of this one either, but it was a good deal safer in any case. "I'm sure I will." He muttered, under his breath, only half-sarcastic, in response to the mans comment about the smell. Some places of London smelled just as bad or worse. "Thank you for your efforts getting us here." He told the man as he went into his own quarters and unpacked what little he has brought, while the other three went to their own and did whatever it was they wished to there. William sighed as he rested on the bed, wondering what would be happening to those unfortunate folk who had not managed to escape, who could be directly above them even now.

"Haven't seen you around before, a new rat running about in our little sewer home?" came a voice, apparently directed towards William. If he glanced about he'd find that it emanated from a rather clean looking man, well groomed and rather gentlemanly in appearance to be associated with the rebels, save for the fact he wore the same fatigues as everyone else. "Planning to stay or are you just here for a leisure trip?" the young man asked with a friendly grin.

"No, i'm here on holiday, it was recommended. So that would be the latter." William responded dryly, turning around. He briefly wondered if the man was also new around there, which would explain why he was in a better looking state than his peers, or if he was a higher ranker, which would also explain it. "And who might you be?"

[Mincaldenteans]

"What? What's wrong with him?" Cymitia finally managed to say as Mike helped the blinded Hunter over to sit down by her, she putting her arms about him. "It's alright, you'll be fine..." she tried to reassure him, though for all she knew it could leave him blind for the rest of his life. "How long does the effect usually last?" she asked Mike rather urgently as he fetched them wet clothing to hold to their eyes.

"Last time it happened to me, it was around an hour or so. I can't say the same for you guys."

He thought of the implications resulting in the flashbangs use.

This could disable them for life.

"It'll be alright, though."

Hunter remained quiet, trying hard to keep calm and the best he could do was near hyperventilate at the idea that this may be permanent. He heard George telling Thelin to keep the cloth on her eyes as Mike had done for him and Cymitia. Though she sounded much calmer than he was, though they were farther away from it than he or Cym. "One hour," Hunter said somewhat shaken, his voice trembled but he held hope, "Hold you to that Mike," he mused.

"I could see you guys, somewhat, barely an outline," Thelin said softly. Her head was starting a headache, slow and inevitable but she ignored it for the real concerns now. She had never been exposed to light of that intensity, even sunlight had never had this effect.

[Lancearc]

"Last time it happened to me, it was around an hour or so. I can't say the same for you guys."

He thought of the implications resulting in the flashbangs use.

This could disable them for life.

"It'll be alright, though."

Hunter remained quiet, trying hard to keep calm and the best he could do was near hyperventilate at the idea that this may be permanent. He heard George telling Thelin to keep the cloth on her eyes as Mike had done for him and Cymitia. Though she sounded much calmer than he was, though they were farther away from it than he or Cym. "One hour," Hunter said somewhat shaken, his voice trembled but he held hope, "Hold you to that Mike," he mused.

"I could see you guys, somewhat, barely an outline," Thelin said softly. Her head was starting a headache, slow and inevitable but she ignored it for the real concerns now. She had never been exposed to light of that intensity, even sunlight had never had this effect.

"It'll be okay." Cymitia reassured Hunter again, though she wasn't so certain herself. It seemed childish to be reacting to this degree over a simple flash grenade to Humans she thought, though she also imagined the Humans of their little gang knew just how sensitive their eyes were to light of that degree. "On the bright side, we have the map now." she said, managing a small smile as she gazed down at the map, wiping blood from her face that ran from her eye sockets like tears.

---

"Thomas Reiley, extending my services to the rebels in exchange for a safe, cozy home." the young man said in reply to William's inquiry. "I have a particular skillset that they find very useful, I suppose that's why they still have me hanging around." he said with a smirk. "And what of you, if I may ask? Your parents give you a name?" he asked cheerily.

[Eaglleia]

"Thomas Reiley, extending my services to the rebels in exchange for a safe, cozy home." the young man said in reply to William's inquiry. "I have a particular skillset that they find very useful, I suppose that's why they still have me hanging around." he said with a smirk. "And what of you, if I may ask? Your parents give you a name?" he asked cheerily.

Huh. Mr Reiley was actually somewhat like him in that case, it seemed. "They gave me two." He responded. He turned back to unpack his things. Clothes and weapons, and the basic necessities were what most of it was. "One name, I use more often. William Stark. And one for my Nevidian side, Razrel, which I use as a middle name." On the surface, he would have said William Stark and ignored the middle name, but here he doubted it would cause any problems.

[Lancearc]

"Thomas Reiley, extending my services to the rebels in exchange for a safe, cozy home." the young man said in reply to William's inquiry. "I have a particular skillset that they find very useful, I suppose that's why they still have me hanging around." he said with a smirk. "And what of you, if I may ask? Your parents give you a name?" he asked cheerily.

Huh. Mr Reiley was actually somewhat like him in that case, it seemed. "They gave me two." He responded. He turned back to unpack his things. Clothes and weapons, and the basic necessities were what most of it was. "One name, I use more often. William Stark. And one for my Nevidian side, Razrel, which I use as a middle name." On the surface, he would have said William Stark and ignored the middle name, but here he doubted it would cause any problems.

"A halfbreed then?" Thomas continued, interested. "You don't look to be a year old though, some kind of story behind that?" he asked, as it was interesting to find any Human-Nevidian children nowadays, let alone a fully grown man who was something of a hybrid. "Was it your mother or father that was a mole before they came back up?"

---

"Do you think this is a safe place to wait for the effects to wear off though? What if the HGV come back?" Cymitia pondered aloud to the group, glancing around. The men they'd killed had said they would be coming back soon, so she imagined their absence for such a long period of time would raise some suspicions amongst the HGV.

Meanwhile, Butters had made his way over to Hunter, hissing quietly as he plopped down by his leg and laid a head atop his foot.

[Cadia]

"Do you think this is a safe place to wait for the effects to wear off though? What if the HGV come back?" Cymitia pondered aloud to the group, glancing around. The men they'd killed had said they would be coming back soon, so she imagined their absence for such a long period of time would raise some suspicions amongst the HGV.

Meanwhile, Butters had made his way over to Hunter, hissing quietly as he plopped down by his leg and laid a head atop his foot.

"I wouldn't think so, but we don't have many other places to hide. We could hide back in the sewers, but I dunno how effective that'd be."

Mike walked around the basement, taking one of the bottles of alcohol from a small crate. He examined the label before putting it back.

Cheap, diluted alcohol, eh? Not my style.

He sat down in one of the chairs, trying to calm his mind.

[Mincaldenteans]

"Do you think this is a safe place to wait for the effects to wear off though? What if the HGV come back?" Cymitia pondered aloud to the group, glancing around. The men they'd killed had said they would be coming back soon, so she imagined their absence for such a long period of time would raise some suspicions amongst the HGV.

Meanwhile, Butters had made his way over to Hunter, hissing quietly as he plopped down by his leg and laid a head atop his foot.

Hunter remained silent, though leaning against Cym felt nice. He tried not to think about his current state of blindness and while Mike had reassured them that it'd likely be an hour, it felt like time had purposely slowed down just to torment Hunter's lack of sight. When Butters came by, he nearly freaked out, having not been able to see what it was that came to his feet but then realized it was their pet. "Hey boy, where've you been? You sneaking around again?" He said with a smile and petted the vorshaj.

"We should probably stay here for now." Thelin offered, "I mean, we're in no position to even move; I can't even make out the outlines on you guys. But once we've got some sight back, we're home bound!" Thelin said as she couldn't help but feel a swell of hope to being out of the city.

[Eaglleia]

Huh. Mr Reiley was actually somewhat like him in that case, it seemed. "They gave me two." He responded. He turned back to unpack his things. Clothes and weapons, and the basic necessities were what most of it was. "One name, I use more often. William Stark. And one for my Nevidian side, Razrel, which I use as a middle name." On the surface, he would have said William Stark and ignored the middle name, but here he doubted it would cause any problems.

"A halfbreed then?" Thomas continued, interested. "You don't look to be a year old though, some kind of story behind that?" he asked, as it was interesting to find any Human-Nevidian children nowadays, let alone a fully grown man who was something of a hybrid. "Was it your mother or father that was a mole before they came back up?"

'Mole?' He thought, but made no comment on it. And while he didn't particularly feel like telling his pre-life-story to anyone who just happened to pass by and wander, he saw no harm in it. "My father." He informed the man, going through his belongings. He decided to keep both guns he now had near, on the off chance he needed them. "Though I couldn't tell you what he was like."

[Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States]

Chambers Farmstead
Outside Cardiff
Wales

Cardiff was clad in a foggy, wet mist today. The entire week, as a matter of fact. The fog was making everything hard in the city, mostly travelling. You could not see the road ten meters ahead of you, so cars and vehicles had slowed down enormously. Planes were held to the ground because of the bad conditions. Not that it mattered, there were no scheduled flights for that day, besides one to Edinburgh. With no way to travel, Daniél finally had a reason not to go into town tonight, something her introverted self didn’t enjoy anyway. She just kept to her farm, where she was with the beings she loved: her animals.

The farm was actually hers. She had inherited the money of her father, quite a lot, as George was left penniless. With the money, she bought a farm, in fear her money would be stolen, and to support the broken community. Indeed, it was a lot harder to steal a farm. With that farm, Daniél had made some money, which she tugged away in a backpack under the bed, trying to amass wealth for the future. She was planning on going back to London, to help the rebuild effort. Every day, the headlines spouted information about the siege of the city, bragging about every shell hit as if they conquered the city already. The conquest couldn’t be far away, she knew, which made her a tiny bit sad. All the friends she’d made, the toil and sweat with which she’d build the farm, it would all be lost if she went to London.

But today, in the mist, she’d decided to take a rest. She could find her way about the farm blindfolded, crawling, with a baby crocodile in her arms and a wolf chasing her, but there was nothing to do in the afternoon. She’d fed the chickens, the cows, the pigs, she’d checked the corn and the wheat, and the small bio-oil producer next to her house was also checked and fixed. So, she’d put on some jogging pants, a big Tottenham Hotspurs shirt, and a large pair of slippers. She’d settled down in front of her TV, and old one from 2000. It did its job fine, but the programs were a bit dull. It was either the Imperial Broadcasting Channel , with the same news over and over again, or old episdoes from before the Return. She’d put on the BBC 1 program Doctor Who, Season 8, and she was watching the 12th Doctor doing the same stunts he’d done the last time she’d watched the episode, last week.

Suddenly, twelve minutes into the episode, Daniél heard the creaking of her fence. The large, iron fence usually made this sound when it was windy, but there was no wind that day. Besides, the foggy air carried the sound far and strong, and she could definitely hear the sound of shoes on the cobblestone path to her front door, and the voices that came from the people waling there. It was hushed, but she could clearly hear them. She walked up to the TV, and switched it off, to hear better. Immediately after, she heard a hard knock on the door, two of them, followed by a voice. The voice was that of an older man, maybe 50 years old, and sounded nice and warm. “Mrs Chambers, can I have a word with you?” Although the voice was warm and comforting, Daniél didn’t trust it for one bit. In her best Welsh accent, she replied “Mrs Chambers doesn’t live here anymore. She moved to Dublin a months ago” There was a moment of silence, and she could her the men talking to each other. “Come on, Daniél, don’t be stupid. We would like to have a little chat about your brother. Little Georgy.” It had been a long time since Daniél had heard that name. But instead of relax her, she tensed up even more. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Just… Go away, or I’ll call the bobbies!” The man on the other side of the door laughed. “Allright, boys, get this door open.”

Daniél, who had a feeling about what would happen, rushed upstairs, to her room. Up the stairs, to the left, past the bathroom, to the right, through the door. There, she shut herself in, just in time to hear the front door of the house shatter. “FIND HER!” She could her one man shout. Quickly, she rushed to her closet, which she pulled open. A doorway to Narnia would have been nice, but there was no such thing behind the wardrobe doors. Then again, she was looking for it, so it couldn’t be there. Instead, she pulled a baseball bat from under her dirty socks, and took a batting position, just next to the door. Just in time, again, because she could hear heavy boots on the creaking wooden floor of the corridor. “She’s in here. O’Brien, put your shoulder to the door.” Daniéla braced for the impact, and put the bat on her shoulder, exactly the way she’d seen the professional do it on the telly.

The rest of the fight went past in a flash. O’Brien, clearly the strongest of the three men, bashed in the door with his shoulder. Probably the last time he ever used that shoulder for that purpose, because the iron bat shattered several bones in it. The man shouted, almost cried in pain, before trying to grasp a gun with his other hand. But he was too slow. With another swing, the bat crushed his hand against his hip, which probably also broke in the process. Quickly, Daniél grabbed the gun from the holster, after throwing the bat at the next person to enter. He got the bat in his face, against his nose, which broke with a sickening crack. Again, like she’d seen in the movies, Daniél cocked the gun and pointed it at the last of the three, the last on capable of combat. The man pointed his hands skywards.

“What the f*ck are you doing in my home?” he barked at the man, one of her eyes covered up by her hair. “Come on, I want to shoot you today.“ The man, a bit taken off by the obvious failure of their mission, stuttered a bit, before answering. “alright, alright. But please be careful with that thing! I’m corporal Lance Richards, an officer in the HGV.”

“The what?”

“The HGV, ma’am. It’s the military branch of Humanity First, a political party, established partially by your brother Geor… Your brother. We try to save humanity from the rodent threat.”

Daniél knew exactly what he meant with the rodent threat, In her mind, she cursed her brother. She cursed him for his hatred, his stupidity. In her anger, her hands began to tremble, which made the man even more frightened.

“What exactly do I have to do with that?”

“He turned coat, ma’am. He joined forces with rebels and the Empire. We wanted to… lure him out…”

“Bad choice. He doesn’t care for me. He couldn’t care less. Now, stand aside, I have police to call.”

“But ma’am!”

The man came to regret those words, as it took another two months for the bullet wound in his shoulder to heal. The men were arrested, and taken to jail, where they were treated as POW’s. The police promised to look after her farm, but Daniél was still worried. For the first time in years, she was worried for the fate of her little brother… For all she knew, he was trapped in a cave, with people shooting at him. She was worried, but she couldn’t go to London anyway. It was gridlocked bu the military. Her only hope was that they would find her, something she didn’t think possible.

[Lancearc]

"A halfbreed then?" Thomas continued, interested. "You don't look to be a year old though, some kind of story behind that?" he asked, as it was interesting to find any Human-Nevidian children nowadays, let alone a fully grown man who was something of a hybrid. "Was it your mother or father that was a mole before they came back up?"

'Mole?' He thought, but made no comment on it. And while he didn't particularly feel like telling his pre-life-story to anyone who just happened to pass by and wander, he saw no harm in it. "My father." He informed the man, going through his belongings. He decided to keep both guns he now had near, on the off chance he needed them. "Though I couldn't tell you what he was like."

"I imagined that was the case, otherwise we'd have heard of the people from below a lot sooner I think." Thomas said with a nod. "Wish I could say I was interesting. Born in Oxford, now I find myself working as a something of a spy for our friendly neighborhood rebels." he said, lying back on his cot and sighing.

---

One Hour Later
The Basement of Joseph's Smuggler

Cymitia had fallen asleep with Hunter leaning against her, realizing that blood had accumulated on her face as she awoke and not wasting any time in using the wet clothing Mike had given them to wipe it away. She glanced down at the map in her lap, now able to actually read it accurately with her eyes having reverted to their previous state. They still hurt somewhat, though nowhere near as bad as the horrible throbbing headache she'd been suffering earlier. She glanced around, wondering if everyone was still awake. "Are we ready to depart?" she asked, hoping someone was up to hear her.

[Cadia]

One Hour Later
The Basement of Joseph's Smuggler

Cymitia had fallen asleep with Hunter leaning against her, realizing that blood had accumulated on her face as she awoke and not wasting any time in using the wet clothing Mike had given them to wipe it away. She glanced down at the map in her lap, now able to actually read it accurately with her eyes having reverted to their previous state. They still hurt somewhat, though nowhere near as bad as the horrible throbbing headache she'd been suffering earlier. She glanced around, wondering if everyone was still awake. "Are we ready to depart?" she asked, hoping someone was up to hear her.

Mike had been throwing a baseball into the air for the last half hour.

"I am. Anyone else?"

He looked around for another person to speak up.

[Mincaldenteans]

Much of his vision was still a blur but Hunter nodded. He could make out the room, the fuzzed out forms of Cymitia, George, Mike and Thelin. The walls were equally blurry, the view outside was just another fuzz, but Hunter had his hopes up that his vision would return to normal. Butters had moved off and decided to wait close to the doorway, as if expecting nothing less than the group to follow its lead.

Thelin got up, tugging on her backpack. Her vision was mostly normal now, though a steady thrumming headache remained. "Ready when you all are," she said to everyone, spurred by the feeling that getting out of London.

[Lancearc]

Cymitia nodded, standing and helping Hunter to do similarly as she raised the map to examine it more thoroughly. It seemed simple enough, mapping out the tunnel the man had once used to smuggle items into and out of the city, and a few smaller ones that branched off in various directions. He'd even been so kind as to include a compass rose neatly jotted into the top right corner. "The only problem is that it doesn't give us an entry point from inside his home..." Cymitia noticed, glancing around. "I guess we should start looking around then." she said, somewhat disappointed.

[Mincaldenteans]

Butters hissed and moved along with them as the group fanned out. Thelin ran her hands along the walls for any possible break that indicated a entry point, though she was running this on instinct than expertise. It didn't stop her from trying, however. Hunter moved along with Cym, as he wasn't much help at the moment with his vision though he kept his distance so not to stumble upon her and also ran his hands down the walls as he moved along the hall.

Butters nudge his head at Cym's leg and moved off to another room, hissing softly.

[Cadia]

Butters hissed and moved along with them as the group fanned out. Thelin ran her hands along the walls for any possible break that indicated a entry point, though she was running this on instinct than expertise. It didn't stop her from trying, however. Hunter moved along with Cym, as he wasn't much help at the moment with his vision though he kept his distance so not to stumble upon her and also ran his hands down the walls as he moved along the hall.

Butters nudge his head at Cym's leg and moved off to another room, hissing softly.

Mike watched along the walls, looking for some sort of entry point. It was when he was looking around did he see the lizard dog walking away into the corridor.

"Whatcha find Butters?"

He followed Butters into the other room.

[Jessjohnesik]

Anna ducked as the heavily armoured car crashed through the camp, covering her head. She wasn't sure who had planned such an attack or where these cars came from. She quickly got up and looked to the direction of where the car crashed. "Connor! Get up!" She said, trying to help him up.

[Mincaldenteans]

Butters hissed and moved along with them as the group fanned out. Thelin ran her hands along the walls for any possible break that indicated a entry point, though she was running this on instinct than expertise. It didn't stop her from trying, however. Hunter moved along with Cym, as he wasn't much help at the moment with his vision though he kept his distance so not to stumble upon her and also ran his hands down the walls as he moved along the hall.

Butters nudge his head at Cym's leg and moved off to another room, hissing softly.

Mike watched along the walls, looking for some sort of entry point. It was when he was looking around did he see the lizard dog walking away into the corridor.

"Whatcha find Butters?"

He followed Butters into the other room.

Butters looked back at the man than forward once more, as though expecting the human to follow. He moved off, nudging the access point open and scampered down the stairs into the dark hole.