The End; IC

[Economa Incorporated]

"Well....we could go check out the Chabot space and Science center, maybe get the telescopes open and wait for night.... or hit up the central branch of the public library, and hope to find something not turned to pulp?"

Lyra scratched her head for a second, "Maybe... maybe the Science place?" She had never really been one for books and being quiet, so she saw no incentive to going poking though a bunch of old parchment. "Where even is that place?" She hefted her rifle and slung it over her shoulder as she asked the question. She hated being far away from her base of operations, but hey, it wasnt everyday someone (Kind of) asked her out to some fancy smancy sounding place. So she decided, what the hell, why the fuck not, "How long a walk is it?"

"I was thinking something a bit more motorized..." He grins. "You've sat in it once, but perhaps you'd care to mount up for an actual ride? The streets aren't too bad, and with the lower body armor and reinforced front bumper, I can give most blockage a good push. Plus, then we have food, supplies, weapons, etc on hand, and a fast exit ready to go! I'm glad you chose the center too. Assuming we can get it going, without any light pollution nowadays, it should be breathtaking......"

[Fantrum]

Lyra scratched her head for a second, "Maybe... maybe the Science place?" She had never really been one for books and being quiet, so she saw no incentive to going poking though a bunch of old parchment. "Where even is that place?" She hefted her rifle and slung it over her shoulder as she asked the question. She hated being far away from her base of operations, but hey, it wasnt everyday someone (Kind of) asked her out to some fancy smancy sounding place. So she decided, what the hell, why the fuck not, "How long a walk is it?"

"I was thinking something a bit more motorized..." He grins. "You've sat in it once, but perhaps you'd care to mount up for an actual ride? The streets aren't too bad, and with the lower body armor and reinforced front bumper, I can give most blockage a good push. Plus, then we have food, supplies, weapons, etc on hand, and a fast exit ready to go! I'm glad you chose the center too. Assuming we can get it going, without any light pollution nowadays, it should be breathtaking......"

Lyra considered the man for a second, before seeming to make up her mind, "Ive never actually paid much attention to the stars." After chucking her gear in the bed, she leans up against the truck, "Never really had the time, was always running or surviving. And sleep is a good part of surviving, knowing when to do it, that is." She biting her lower lip softly, she opens the car door and hops into the cab, "So, how do we get to this mystical land of wonder?" Her hair falls across her face, causing her to unconsciously raise a hand and brush it to the side, a bit more girlishly than she would ever have intentioned. She places her elbows on the arm rest and uses her palms to support her head, "What was it like for you, to leave everything you knew behind, that is?" The service woman knew all too well what it was like to be forced on the run, but she didnt ever stop to consider what others had gone through, she had found out the hard way that the best way to deal with things you couldnt shoot was to run from them and not think about it. A shutter passes though her at the thought of all those skeletons chilling out in her closet, but she quickly suppressed it.

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra considered the man for a second, before seeming to make up her mind, "Ive never actually paid much attention to the stars." After chucking her gear in the bed, she leans up against the truck, "Never really had the time, was always running or surviving. And sleep is a good part of surviving, knowing when to do it, that is." She biting her lower lip softly, she opens the car door and hops into the cab, "So, how do we get to this mystical land of wonder?" Her hair falls across her face, causing her to unconsciously raise a hand and brush it to the side, a bit more girlishly than she would ever have intentioned. She places her elbows on the arm rest and uses her palms to support her head, "What was it like for you, to leave everything you knew behind, that is?" The service woman knew all too well what it was like to be forced on the run, but she didn't ever stop to consider what others had gone through, she had found out the hard way that the best way to deal with things you couldnt shoot was to run from them and not think about it. A shutter passes though her at the thought of all those skeletons chilling out in her closet, but she quickly suppressed it.

"Well, the lower body armor and front brace should be able to push any cars out of the way, as long as they aren't full on across, or huge. I guess one good thing about the way this hit was that most people died at home. It's hard to run from a plague, not that many didn't try, but most? Stayed home. I mean, that's what the government said. "Remain inside your houses. Call this number to get your ration of food and supplies. Do not leave your residence." Not good enough in the end though. But yeah, it's not too far. My only worry is the dome....but I think we can get it open manually." All this as he sows his tools, wipes off his hands, and climbs in. "Talking about leaving the QZ? Frankly, most of what I knew there was destroyed or in the process of getting there. My uncle was about the only thing left, and he's the one who got me out. Still don't know what happened to that good old bastard...one day I woke up and he was just gone. That was in a cabin in Washington, where I learned the other half of living in this world. When I couldn't wait any longer...I moved. And kept moving. Met some interesting people. I've heard some good rumors, too. 'Bout a settlement forming up north always around an old school/plague center, and my personal favorite- Met a "Fetcher," he called himself. Job? To get things for people. That's it. Told e he was working for "The Caretakers." Now, who the heck are they, right? Here's what he told me. A bunch of universities, SURVIVED. You know how quite a few were even their own municipalities? Well, they closed their gates, built walls, and kept going. Solar power, wind energy, the best and brightest building hydroponics and all sorts of junk. Names I heard were Stanford, which was a HUGE place, lots of land, MIT still eeking it out in the ruins of Boston, Cal Tech In Pasadena, and a couple others. They even stay connected, share research and knowledge, occasionally run flights to trade stuff....everything. The catch? To join you have to *join.* Pledge your life to the pursuit and protection of knowledge. Hey house you, even mate you, everything is controlled. Some people do security or runs or protection for those "observing the outside world." Now, this could all be BS, and I've never checked on any of it...always wanted to believe that someone, somewhere was taking care of all those books and studies. But that guy said that for some things, they're hesitant to send their people. Too far, or dangerous, or if they're unsure of it's existence, risky and resource-using. So if you go and prove yourself, they'll give you jobs. You get a bit of stuff up front, and at the end, either a lot or a little depending on whether you succeed or just show you tried. It's all sorts of stuff too. 100 Macs. 5000 feet of 1/2 inch PVC pipe. A pound of gold. 13 flat-screen TV's. Scavenge for them, basically, and get food, or weapons, or secrets, or a place to sleep. Sounds nice....if it's real.......Sorry for nerding out on you there" Zander Chuckles.

[Fantrum]

Lyra considered the man for a second, before seeming to make up her mind, "Ive never actually paid much attention to the stars." After chucking her gear in the bed, she leans up against the truck, "Never really had the time, was always running or surviving. And sleep is a good part of surviving, knowing when to do it, that is." She biting her lower lip softly, she opens the car door and hops into the cab, "So, how do we get to this mystical land of wonder?" Her hair falls across her face, causing her to unconsciously raise a hand and brush it to the side, a bit more girlishly than she would ever have intentioned. She places her elbows on the arm rest and uses her palms to support her head, "What was it like for you, to leave everything you knew behind, that is?" The service woman knew all too well what it was like to be forced on the run, but she didn't ever stop to consider what others had gone through, she had found out the hard way that the best way to deal with things you couldnt shoot was to run from them and not think about it. A shutter passes though her at the thought of all those skeletons chilling out in her closet, but she quickly suppressed it.

"Well, the lower body armor and front brace should be able to push any cars out of the way, as long as they aren't full on across, or huge. I guess one good thing about the way this hit was that most people died at home. It's hard to run from a plague, not that many didn't try, but most? Stayed home. I mean, that's what the government said. "Remain inside your houses. Call this number to get your ration of food and supplies. Do not leave your residence." Not good enough in the end though. But yeah, it's not too far. My only worry is the dome....but I think we can get it open manually." All this as he sows his tools, wipes off his hands, and climbs in. "Talking about leaving the QZ? Frankly, most of what I knew there was destroyed or in the process of getting there. My uncle was about the only thing left, and he's the one who got me out. Still don't know what happened to that good old bastard...one day I woke up and he was just gone. That was in a cabin in Washington, where I learned the other half of living in this world. When I couldn't wait any longer...I moved. And kept moving. Met some interesting people. I've heard some good rumors, too. 'Bout a settlement forming up north always around an old school/plague center, and my personal favorite- Met a "Fetcher," he called himself. Job? To get things for people. That's it. Told e he was working for "The Caretakers." Now, who the heck are they, right? Here's what he told me. A bunch of universities, SURVIVED. You know how quite a few were even their own municipalities? Well, they closed their gates, built walls, and kept going. Solar power, wind energy, the best and brightest building hydroponics and all sorts of junk. Names I heard were Stanford, which was a HUGE place, lots of land, MIT still eeking it out in the ruins of Boston, Cal Tech In Pasadena, and a couple others. They even stay connected, share research and knowledge, occasionally run flights to trade stuff....everything. The catch? To join you have to *join.* Pledge your life to the pursuit and protection of knowledge. Hey house you, even mate you, everything is controlled. Some people do security or runs or protection for those "observing the outside world." Now, this could all be BS, and I've never checked on any of it...always wanted to believe that someone, somewhere was taking care of all those books and studies. But that guy said that for some things, they're hesitant to send their people. Too far, or dangerous, or if they're unsure of it's existence, risky and resource-using. So if you go and prove yourself, they'll give you jobs. You get a bit of stuff up front, and at the end, either a lot or a little depending on whether you succeed or just show you tried. It's all sorts of stuff too. 100 Macs. 5000 feet of 1/2 inch PVC pipe. A pound of gold. 13 flat-screen TV's. Scavenge for them, basically, and get food, or weapons, or secrets, or a place to sleep. Sounds nice....if it's real.......Sorry for nerding out on you there" Zander Chuckles.

Lyra shrugged, "Its ok." She waves her hand in the air in a, 'can we get moving now?' manner that showed her impatience. "Honestly, I dont know how I'd ever fit back into any society, I've been on the run for so long that I feel like if I stop for too long..." She looks away as her voice trails off, "That my past might come calling." She didnt realize that she did it, but her hand had found its way to her neck, where a small golden pendent resided on a thin strip of blue silk ribbon. It had been a gift from Troy when she had turned 16. They had always been little hellions, getting into trouble one way or another, and for 20 years they'd been best friends. Many of those that knew the duo would have called them inseparable, and when she found out that most of her old friends were gone, along with her family, he had become all that she had left. His death had driven her mad, and on a number of occasions, she had tried suicide, once the gun was on safety, then the rope snapped, then the pills were expired. She didnt like what she had tried to do to herself, but at the time, everything was lost, she had nothing but the clothes on her back and her two hands. After her last attempt, she decided that the winds of fate were telling her she was stupid, that sure, she had lost her reason to live, but that she needed to get up and find a new reason, and rolling over was not going to bring that.

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra shrugged, "Its ok." She waves her hand in the air in a, 'can we get moving now?' manner that showed her impatience. "Honestly, I dont know how I'd ever fit back into any society, I've been on the run for so long that I feel like if I stop for too long..." She looks away as her voice trails off, "That my past might come calling." She didnt realize that she did it, but her hand had found its way to her neck, where a small golden pendent resided on a thin strip of blue silk ribbon. It had been a gift from Troy when she had turned 16. They had always been little hellions, getting into trouble one way or another, and for 20 years they'd been best friends. Many of those that knew the duo would have called them inseparable, and when she found out that most of her old friends were gone, along with her family, he had become all that she had left. His death had driven her mad, and on a number of occasions, she had tried suicide, once the gun was on safety, then the rope snapped, then the pills were expired. She didnt like what she had tried to do to herself, but at the time, everything was lost, she had nothing but the clothes on her back and her two hands. After her last attempt, she decided that the winds of fate were telling her she was stupid, that sure, she had lost her reason to live, but that she needed to get up and find a new reason, and rolling over was not going to bring that.

*Hits fastforward button*
As Lyra trails off and rubs her necklace, Zander does indeed start going. About an hour of interesting driving later, they arrive at the center. As they start working, they begin to chat again, nothing deep, things like favorite weapons and such. Three hours later, they've explored the place, and in another four, they have to dome open, telescopes ready, and manual operations book on hand. Though they totally forgot lunch, a hearty MRE dinner hit the spot, with some treats from the vending machines both stocking up the truck and their stomachs. As night falls, some gunfire echos from a distance, at least several miles out to the south. Noted, but moved on from. The stars, as expected were beautiful, (OOC: Lyra can provide her reaction in retrospect) and completely visible. About 2am, Zander asks Lyra if she wants to head back to the hospital or stay there for the night....

[Kchielsovo]

"Papa Bravo, this is Bravo 2-1, we have a group of civilians, roughly seventy-count, protesting one click south-southwest of the base." Sgt. Czorsky spoke into his helmet's mic system. A short crackle emitted from the earpiece as the squad's leader responded. "Sergeant, do you see if any of them are armed?" Standing up from his previously crouching position, he pulled out a pair of old binoculars. "So far, there's been nothing. They seem pretty peaceful. But, there's no—fuck!" A bullet cracked as it passed over his head and sunk into the brink wall two meters behind him. "Shots fired! Shots fired! Open fire!"

The fireteam all lifted their rifles over the short stone barrier and let loose a flurry of bullets, the lead projectiles tearing through the crowd who had only the misfortune of hiding a pair of armed armed protestors. Body after body fell, as another fireteam joined in the mindless fray, their rifles cracking with the violent explosion of gasses propelling a small slug into the limbs, torsos, and heads of multiple protestors. "Cease fire! That's it—stop shooting!" Called the staff sergeant over the comms. And, hesitantly, all soldiers pulled their fingers from the trigger. In the streets below lay thirty-odd civilians, most of whom held no knowledge that two of their own had been holding a firearm. And, they paid for this ignorance with their lives.

---

William Czorsky woke slowly, the soft rays of the sun peeking over the horizon and into the broken window of the rotting house. His muscled and scarred body lay strewn across the dusty floor, leaving an impression similar to that of a snow angel of winter. Sitting up, he crossed his legs, the tingling sensation filling his limbs, much to his annoyance. He pressed his hands to his face, covering his eyes and cupping his mouth as he yawned for the better half of twenty seconds. Following that, he gently closed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair, the cold, exterior metal of his wedding band cooling his head and passing along pleasant memories, through the touch. Kneeling, he checked his watch with a grunt. It was hard to tell whether what he saw was pleasing or not. Nevertheless, he placed his feet beneath him, stretched and began packing up all his belongings lain about the room.

When that was finished, he did his daily minimum of stretches and exercises, the actions taking up only about an hour and a half. Finally, he casually tossed his possessions through the broken window of the rear-passenger door, strode around to the other side, and hopped in and turned on the car. The thrum of the engine calmed Will's nerves and relaxed him. His foot lightly pushed on the acceleration pedal, and the car pulled from the driveway and back onto the empty backroad, its silence spreading to everything around it. Looking down at the dashboard, a certain number caught his eye. Peering forward, he saw the mileage had just hit 100,000. "Well-p, there goes the fucking warranty." He half heartedly laughed at his own joke.

[Kchielsovo]

Strong beams of light filtered through the dispersing white clouds in the sky. The sun above shone more vigourously than it previously had, just a few hours ago. And emptied and abandoned weed-littered lawns that sped by were lush with life, even if the previous owners of said lawns were likely all dead. In the midst of all this, William's old and beaten humvee rolled down the road at a casual speed. The car had a crippling dent to the rear passenger door, which prohibited its use, from a collision during the rebellions. And, both passenger windows had long since been shattered and gone. But, it continued to serve him well, even if it did guzzle petrol like a motherfucker.

The roads were deathly quiet and still, even after nearly twenty decades since the beginning of the apocalypse, if it could still be called that anymore. The only movement along the tar streets was that of William's car. And, he preferred it this way. Back when there were others, he was always annoyed at how noisy and crowded the world was. As he drove, Will spotted an aged, tattered sign sporting the phrase "You are now leaving Lebanon!" William had been roaming around Oregon since the fall of the QZ in Washington and the death of everyone he knew. Now, he figured that he would check back up north to see how affairs were holding up. 'Hell, I might just go and have a look-see of the old QZ. I wonder if anyone set up a new settlement around there?'

Passing through the town, and turning onto highway 5, heading north. Casually remarking to himself, again, he noticed that "despite all those dumbass hollywood apocalypse movies showcasing highways filled high as hell with cars, there's hardly any fucking here." Grunting, he finished his monologue "Eh, oh fucking well. It just makes it easier for me, after all." And, this was true. There was no traffic. So, commuting by way of highway was incredibly more rapid than it had once been. And, no cops existed to ticket him for speeding. With such great benefits, he soon found himself nearing Portland.

Originally, he had planned to simply bypass the city. But, stealing a quick peek at his meagre cache of supplies in the back, he figured one quick detour wouldn't hurt. After all, the airport could still have vending machines and such, right? 'Guess I'm about to find out.' William thought to himself. Taking the off-ramp, he was driving along without any eventful happenings. Suddenly, his windshield was bathed in a spray of brilliantly bright red, as an unlucky bird was unfortunate enough to not fly out of the way in time. Shocked and surprised, he swerved left and right, the wheels screeching in reaction. And, forgetting the rule of acceleration, he lost control of the wheel. Screaming to the side, the humvee crunched through a store front, plaster, wood, glass and shelves breaking, snapping and shattering as the vehicle crashed into the back of the store and a wall of hard bricks that was shared between two stores. Slumped over behind the wheel, a trickle of blood ran down William's head as he passed out into a realm of black nothingness, a faint murmur of "fucking hell" escaping his lips as he lost consciousness.

[Fantrum]

[quote="Fantrum";p="19727597"
Lyra shrugged, "Its ok." She waves her hand in the air in a, 'can we get moving now?' manner that showed her impatience. "Honestly, I dont know how I'd ever fit back into any society, I've been on the run for so long that I feel like if I stop for too long..." She looks away as her voice trails off, "That my past might come calling." She didnt realize that she did it, but her hand had found its way to her neck, where a small golden pendent resided on a thin strip of blue silk ribbon. It had been a gift from Troy when she had turned 16. They had always been little hellions, getting into trouble one way or another, and for 20 years they'd been best friends. Many of those that knew the duo would have called them inseparable, and when she found out that most of her old friends were gone, along with her family, he had become all that she had left. His death had driven her mad, and on a number of occasions, she had tried suicide, once the gun was on safety, then the rope snapped, then the pills were expired. She didnt like what she had tried to do to herself, but at the time, everything was lost, she had nothing but the clothes on her back and her two hands. After her last attempt, she decided that the winds of fate were telling her she was stupid, that sure, she had lost her reason to live, but that she needed to get up and find a new reason, and rolling over was not going to bring that.

*Hits fastforward button*
As Lyra trails off and rubs her necklace, Zander does indeed start going. About an hour of interesting driving later, they arrive at the center. As they start working, they begin to chat again, nothing deep, things like favorite weapons and such. Three hours later, they've explored the place, and in another four, they have to dome open, telescopes ready, and manual operations book on hand. Though they totally forgot lunch, a hearty MRE dinner hit the spot, with some treats from the vending machines both stocking up the truck and their stomachs. As night falls, some gunfire echos from a distance, at least several miles out to the south. Noted, but moved on from. The stars, as expected were beautiful, (OOC: Lyra can provide her reaction in retrospect) and completely visible. About 2am, Zander asks Lyra if she wants to head back to the hospital or stay there for the night....[/quote]
The view was breathtaking, the work to get the place running again had been totally worth it. Lyra had never been so stunned before, and before she realized it, the time was 2 in the morning. She sat up from where she was laying on her little hamlet, "Holy fuckshit! We gotta get back to the hospital!" She stood faster than she should have and grabbed for her gear before toppling over again, her sleep addled mind struggling to realize she was just tired.

[Economa Incorporated]

*Hits fastforward button*
As Lyra trails off and rubs her necklace, Zander does indeed start going. About an hour of interesting driving later, they arrive at the center. As they start working, they begin to chat again, nothing deep, things like favorite weapons and such. Three hours later, they've explored the place, and in another four, they have to dome open, telescopes ready, and manual operations book on hand. Though they totally forgot lunch, a hearty MRE dinner hit the spot, with some treats from the vending machines both stocking up the truck and their stomachs. As night falls, some gunfire echos from a distance, at least several miles out to the south. Noted, but moved on from. The stars, as expected were beautiful, (OOC: Lyra can provide her reaction in retrospect) and completely visible. About 2am, Zander asks Lyra if she wants to head back to the hospital or stay there for the night....

The view was breathtaking, the work to get the place running again had been totally worth it. Lyra had never been so stunned before, and before she realized it, the time was 2 in the morning. She sat up from where she was laying on her little hamlet, "Holy fuckshit! We gotta get back to the hospital!" She stood faster than she should have and grabbed for her gear before toppling over again, her sleep addled mind struggling to realize she was just tired.

"Whoa, what's up?" Concern shows on Zander's face, as her rises to his feet a bit slower, but with adrenaline suddenly rushing, and offers a hand. He cracks, "Leave the oven on?"

[Fantrum]

The view was breathtaking, the work to get the place running again had been totally worth it. Lyra had never been so stunned before, and before she realized it, the time was 2 in the morning. She sat up from where she was laying on her little hamlet, "Holy fuckshit! We gotta get back to the hospital!" She stood faster than she should have and grabbed for her gear before toppling over again, her sleep addled mind struggling to realize she was just tired.

"Whoa, what's up?" Concern shows on Zander's face, as he rises to his feet a bit slower, but with adrenaline suddenly rushing, and offers a hand. He cracks, "Leave the oven on?"

Lyra steadied herself with his hand, before finding her bearings and starting for the exit of the building, "You could say that, Its sort of like your thing with the truck." She busied herself with navigating the deteriorated maze of seats and bleachers as she spoke, "I just, dont trust leaving my shit unguarded for too long, even if I dont have a truckload of possessions." She walked to Zander's automobile, which is parked out front but between two defunct semi trucks that had once been some sort of refugee camp.

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra steadied herself with his hand, before finding her bearings and starting for the exit of the building, "You could say that, Its sort of like your thing with the truck." She busied herself with navigating the deteriorated maze of seats and bleachers as she spoke, "I just, don't trust leaving my shit unguarded for too long, even if I dont have a truckload of possessions." She walked to Zander's automobile, which is parked out front but between two defunct semi trucks that had once been some sort of refugee camp.

"...Hold on a second..." Zander goes digging into his bag as he rounds the truck, eventually pulling out a pill-packet. "Five hour energy," he says with a grin. "Don't like using them, and I've only got a few....but it's preferable to hitting something. Not going to sleep much more this morning anyways by the time we get back." Hopping into the drivers seat and staring it up, he notes the tank's reading at about half full, before pulling out of the lot and towards the hospital...

[Fantrum]

Lyra steadied herself with his hand, before finding her bearings and starting for the exit of the building, "You could say that, Its sort of like your thing with the truck." She busied herself with navigating the deteriorated maze of seats and bleachers as she spoke, "I just, don't trust leaving my shit unguarded for too long, even if I dont have a truckload of possessions." She walked to Zander's automobile, which is parked out front but between two defunct semi trucks that had once been some sort of refugee camp.

"...Hold on a second..." Zander goes digging into his bag as he rounds the truck, eventually pulling out a pill-packet. "Five hour energy," he says with a grin. "Don't like using them, and I've only got a few....but it's preferable to hitting something. Not going to sleep much more this morning anyways by the time we get back." Hopping into the drivers seat and staring it up, he notes the tank's reading at about half full, before pulling out of the lot and towards the hospital...

Lyra nodded at him as they got in, she spent the majority of the drive back daydreaming until something caught her eye. They were about a mile from the Kaiser building before she yelled suddenly at Zander, "STOP THE TRUCK!" As she expected Zander slammed on the breaks and veered off to the shoulder of the city street. The truck hadn't even come to a complete stop before she had grabbed her rifle and jumped from the truck, taking a position behind a fallen support pillar of a nearby building. She gestured to Zander to kill the truck by slicing at her neck with a gloved hand and waited for the man to catch up to her.

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra nodded at him as they got in, she spent the majority of the drive back daydreaming until something caught her eye. They were about a mile from the Kaiser building before she yelled suddenly at Zander, "STOP THE TRUCK!" As she expected Zander slammed on the breaks and veered off to the shoulder of the city street. The truck hadn't even come to a complete stop before she had grabbed her rifle and jumped from the truck, taking a position behind a fallen support pillar of a nearby building. She gestured to Zander to kill the truck by slicing at her neck with a gloved hand and waited for the man to catch up to her.

Zander had guided the truck to the right side of the road (away from anything *in* the road, in theory), so that Zander was on the street-side, and the now-left-hanging door Lyra had exited through faced the edge of road, with the tailgate out in the street. He hesitates at her gesture. With that kind of reaction, abandoning ship, I'm assuming that we're under attack...in which case it's best to leave it running. If she hopes not to be noticed, why dive spectacularly out of the truck? Torn, he decides against his instinct to trust her and cuts the engine, before diving and rolling out the far door. Landing about halfway between the truck and the pillar, he's again torn...and this time chooses to hunker up next to the truck, about two meters away from Lyra's spot. By this point, he's popped the strap on his holster, immediately after stopping cocks his crossbow, grabbed on the way out. With that reaction, silent may be best. I should have chucked the shotgun or rifle in the back....Won;t always have time to open up the tailgate, idiot! Glancing over his shoulder, he whispers, "What the hell, Lyra? See something?"

[Fantrum]

Lyra nodded at him as they got in, she spent the majority of the drive back daydreaming until something caught her eye. They were about a mile from the Kaiser building before she yelled suddenly at Zander, "STOP THE TRUCK!" As she expected Zander slammed on the breaks and veered off to the shoulder of the city street. The truck hadn't even come to a complete stop before she had grabbed her rifle and jumped from the truck, taking a position behind a fallen support pillar of a nearby building. She gestured to Zander to kill the truck by slicing at her neck with a gloved hand and waited for the man to catch up to her.

Zander had guided the truck to the right side of the road (away from anything *in* the road, in theory), so that Zander was on the street-side, and the now-left-hanging door Lyra had exited through faced the edge of road, with the tailgate out in the street. He hesitates at her gesture. With that kind of reaction, abandoning ship, I'm assuming that we're under attack...in which case it's best to leave it running. If she hopes not to be noticed, why dive spectacularly out of the truck? Torn, he decides against his instinct to trust her and cuts the engine, before diving and rolling out the far door. Landing about halfway between the truck and the pillar, he's again torn...and this time chooses to hunker up next to the truck, about two meters away from Lyra's spot. By this point, he's popped the strap on his holster, immediately after stopping cocks his crossbow, grabbed on the way out. With that reaction, silent may be best. I should have chucked the shotgun or rifle in the back....Won;t always have time to open up the tailgate, idiot! Glancing over his shoulder, he whispers, "What the hell, Lyra? See something?"

Lyra couldn't hear him, she was paralyzed and visibly shaking, "No..." She whispered under her breath, "I-It cant be... I thought I lost them in Fresno..." She was beginning to white knuckle her rifle. The service woman turned to Zander, seemingly broken of her terrified trance, "Im so sorry Zander, Ive brought you straight into the middle of this." As she finished her sentence a deep rumbling resounded off the walls of the lonely towers around them, it sounded like a dragon wheezing in preparation to set something ablaze. It was accompanied by the howls of dozens of men, jovial and hearty, some laughing and others cheering. By this time, Lyra had reassembled herself from her breakdown, "We need to get my shit and leave as fast as possible."

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra couldn't hear him, she was paralyzed and visibly shaking, "No..." She whispered under her breath, "I-It cant be... I thought I lost them in Fresno..." She was beginning to white knuckle her rifle. The service woman turned to Zander, seemingly broken of her terrified trance, "Im so sorry Zander, Ive brought you straight into the middle of this." As she finished her sentence a deep rumbling resounded off the walls of the lonely towers around them, it sounded like a dragon wheezing in preparation to set something ablaze. It was accompanied by the howls of dozens of men, jovial and hearty, some laughing and others cheering. By this time, Lyra had reassembled herself from her breakdown, "We need to get my shit and leave as fast as possible."

The noise of drunken revelry, punctuated by a high-pitched scream, then a howl, makes the hair on Zander's neck stand up. Rising and moving towards the rear of the truck, he says as he unlocks the rear, "Probably not worth asking, but is there anything there you *need* to get?" As he looks up at her, he's in the process of rectifying the recently discovered problem, pulling out the M4, M1014, M9, the M136, and some of the boom-sticks. Unfortunately, he has a lot more ammo than magazines, but he inserts one M4 mag into his chest webbing and tapes the other two to each other, then to the rifle's stock. He placesthat, the M1014, and a fanny pack full of 12-gauge shells on the back seat, the M136 on the floor, a few of the grenades in the driver and passenger door compartments, and holds the M9 out to Lyra, along with two mags. "Keep all this in arm' reach, eh? Got enough for a very small army... just not the men." Starting it up now, he rolls down all the windows. Better to see, better to hear, better to shoot....and they won't get shot out this way. Not like they'll stop anything...

[Fantrum]

Lyra couldn't hear him, she was paralyzed and visibly shaking, "No..." She whispered under her breath, "I-It cant be... I thought I lost them in Fresno..." She was beginning to white knuckle her rifle. The service woman turned to Zander, seemingly broken of her terrified trance, "Im so sorry Zander, Ive brought you straight into the middle of this." As she finished her sentence a deep rumbling resounded off the walls of the lonely towers around them, it sounded like a dragon wheezing in preparation to set something ablaze. It was accompanied by the howls of dozens of men, jovial and hearty, some laughing and others cheering. By this time, Lyra had reassembled herself from her breakdown, "We need to get my shit and leave as fast as possible."

The noise of drunken revelry, punctuated by a high-pitched scream, then a howl, makes the hair on Zander's neck stand up. Rising and moving towards the rear of the truck, he says as he unlocks the rear, "Probably not worth asking, but is there anything there you *need* to get?" As he looks up at her, he's in the process of rectifying the recently discovered problem, pulling out the M4, M1014, M9, the M136, and some of the boom-sticks. Unfortunately, he has a lot more ammo than magazines, but he inserts one M4 mag into his chest webbing and tapes the other two to each other, then to the rifle's stock. He placesthat, the M1014, and a fanny pack full of 12-gauge shells on the back seat, the M136 on the floor, a few of the grenades in the driver and passenger door compartments, and holds the M9 out to Lyra, along with two mags. "Keep all this in arm' reach, eh? Got enough for a very small army... just not the men." Starting it up now, he rolls down all the windows. Better to see, better to hear, better to shoot....and they won't get shot out this way. Not like they'll stop anything...

Lyra took the M9 and placed it in her empty chest holster, her M1911 being in the holster at her side. "Zander, Im not leaving anything there for these assholes to have, you- you dont know what we are dealing with here." She cast another glance down the road, how had they missed the giant encampment that had been set up in the hospital courtyard? The overhead lights were on, they had not been when the duo left earlier in the day. "I- I need to go in alone, the two of us will be more likely to be detected, and trust me, we cant fight this many of them." She turned her head and muttered breathlessly, "Ive already tried that..."

[Economa Incorporated]

Lyra took the M9 and placed it in her empty chest holster, her M1911 being in the holster at her side. "Zander, Im not leaving anything there for these assholes to have, you- you dont know what we are dealing with here." She cast another glance down the road, how had they missed the giant encampment that had been set up in the hospital courtyard? The overhead lights were on, they had not been when the duo left earlier in the day. "I- I need to go in alone, the two of us will be more likely to be detected, and trust me, we cant fight this many of them." She turned her head and muttered breathlessly, "Ive already tried that..."

"Given the right time and place, the two of us could take a dozen or two....but that's another matter. It sounds like it's not safe here. I saw a home depot a mile or two south of here, with a sign that must be a hundred feet high. I'll wait there, until sunrise. If you're not back, I'll swing by the reservoir as an alt pickup, and then get as close to the hospital as I can." Pulling a frag grenade and a smoke grenade off his own chest, he hands them to her. "Give 'em hell with one, get the hell away with the other...if you get seen. And if I hear one go off, I'll swing by. One more thing-" Rooting in the back seat, he pulls out one of the thing's he's fiddled with. It's a tiny RC car, about the size of a magazine folded in half the stout way, with some king of electronic device, a tiny speaker, and several rows of AA batteries taped to it. On top is a single switch. "Used half of some 'electronics for kids' set on this bugger. Rigged so that when you flip the switch, it'll go in a straight line, and play some random sounds - gunfire, a breaking window, boots clattering - for about five minutes, until the batteries die. Distraction, if you need it. Good luck."

[The Vekta-Helghast Empire]

Northeast Portland, disputed territories.
Jack, Joel & John.

The Humvee's engine roared out across the city, the lack of other vehicles meaning that one could hear the true sounds such a wonderful piece of engineering could create. The trio had made their way south west, towards the 5 interstate, as the bridge along it linking Vancouver to Portland was one of the few remaining 'usable' bridges as it had been maintained by the military for several years following the outbreak, as to maintain the flow of supplies from Portland to Seattle and vice-versa.

"So, where y'wan' go first?" Questioned John, his eyes firmly locked on the road as to avoid colliding with the debris scattered across the roads. It was amazing some of the stuff that could be found on the streets now, the remnants of small encampments established by those unfortunate enough to have settled in a rather unfriendly neighborhood, broken down vehicles of various conditions and quantities, hell - you could even sometimes find full skeletons, left within their vehicles or simply upon the streets, as there was no longer anyone around to clear it all up.

Jack pondered the question for several minutes in complete silence before finally speaking up, his voice a tad hoarse, "I'm thinking the airport. Take Columbia Boulevard east, then pull up on Alderwood, we can have a look and see if there's any activity in the industrial parks and shit along there. Hell, I even saw a gas-station, might have a tank of fuel we can come back for and steal with the truck."

As Jack concluded, John briefly looked over his shoulder to Joel in the back, speaking up, "You alright with that, buck?"

Joel's thoughts, clearly elsewhere, merely nods in response, clearly not taking any of what was just said in.

Five minutes later.

As the Humvee made it's way down Columbia Boulevard, the distinct sound of tires screeching rang-out across the region, followed by a faint crashing sound and the crumbling of rock, "You hear that?" questioned Joel, the first words to leave his lips all morning.

"Aye.. It was pretty nearby whatever it was."

"Perhaps we should check it out? If it's one of Winchester's boys, could prove a valuable hostage." Suggests Joel, leaning forward between both Jack and John.

"Aye, let's go. You know what to do John, pull 'er around."

With that, the Humvee picked up speed, making way in the general direction of which the sound appeared to have come from, back along interstate 5. Before long, the group spotted it's source - a Humvee had lodged itself in between two stores, a small cloud of steam rising from it's engine block which had found it's way under a vast pile of bricks and various other debris, from the trio's position, it proved difficult to tell if anyone was still in it. Cautiously, the Humvee pulled in on the opposite side of the street, the trio grabbing their weapons and disembarking silently. Jack motioned to Joel to stay with the Humvee and for John to move towards the vehicle from the left as he made his way in from the right. Jack would take no chances, these were the disputed territories - anything could happen at any moment.. They quietly approached, weapons raised and trained on the Humvee's doors, which appeared to be undisturbed, as stacks or rubble still rested against them.

Jack was the first to reach the vehicle, he carefully wiped some of the dust from the passenger side window, taking a peak inside. It was then, he realized - there was a man inside..

Fort Vancouver High.
Suzanne.

"Paddy, get the Germans - you're crossing the river. Jack's given the word to take out Winchester."

"'Bout time 'e gave the word to take the fucker out." He replied. His Irish accent (ROI not NI, there's a difference) coming through quite strongly, "I suppose you know where the bastard is, if we're going out to get'm, right?"

"Not a clue. That's why we're not just going to take him out. I'm sending out three teams, you're all going to hit different camps across the disputed territories. Rumour has it, Winchester's negotiating with some of the other gangs, planning on unifying them under one banner. He does that, and we're fucked. We may have the equipment, but they'll have a serious numerical advantage and I ain't talkin' low ratios like 2:1, we're talking more along the lines of 10:1. So, we're going to hit them all - show them that working with Winchester's crew is a dumb idea and hopefully take out Winchester in the process. Bastard's killed enough people. It's time to end this, once and for all."

"We won't let you and Jack down. We won't rest until we've got'm, I promise you that."

"Good." She turned, to take her leave, pausing for a moment, looking over her shoulder as she spoke once again, "Remember, in and out. Don't stick around after each raid." With this, she concluded and made her way out from the atrium - making her way back to her office in the administration block, where multiple maps and documents lay - detailing almost every movement the Republic and it's enemies had made. A collage detailing her network of informants within the various factions fighting for control of the city.

[Fantrum]

Lyra took the M9 and placed it in her empty chest holster, her M1911 being in the holster at her side. "Zander, Im not leaving anything there for these assholes to have, you- you dont know what we are dealing with here." She cast another glance down the road, how had they missed the giant encampment that had been set up in the hospital courtyard? The overhead lights were on, they had not been when the duo left earlier in the day. "I- I need to go in alone, the two of us will be more likely to be detected, and trust me, we cant fight this many of them." She turned her head and muttered breathlessly, "Ive already tried that..."

"Given the right time and place, the two of us could take a dozen or two....but that's another matter. It sounds like it's not safe here. I saw a home depot a mile or two south of here, with a sign that must be a hundred feet high. I'll wait there, until sunrise. If you're not back, I'll swing by the reservoir as an alt pickup, and then get as close to the hospital as I can." Pulling a frag grenade and a smoke grenade off his own chest, he hands them to her. "Give 'em hell with one, get the hell away with the other...if you get seen. And if I hear one go off, I'll swing by. One more thing-" Rooting in the back seat, he pulls out one of the thing's he's fiddled with. It's a tiny RC car, about the size of a magazine folded in half the stout way, with some king of electronic device, a tiny speaker, and several rows of AA batteries taped to it. On top is a single switch. "Used half of some 'electronics for kids' set on this bugger. Rigged so that when you flip the switch, it'll go in a straight line, and play some random sounds - gunfire, a breaking window, boots clattering - for about five minutes, until the batteries die. Distraction, if you need it. Good luck."

Taking the RC and the grenades, she places them in their holding pouches and nods to Zander, "If they catch me, I want you to run, forget about me and move on. They are here for me and will leave you alone." With a deep breath she takes off down the alleyway closest to her, casting one last longing look over her shoulder at Zander before turning the corner and disappearing from his sight. She psyched herself up as she jogged up to the perimeter wall of the complex, quickly finding a gap in the stone work. After squeezing in and breathlessly hiding as a trio of tipsy men passed her, she silently made her way towards side emergency exit and quickly slipped inside. Once there, she was relieved to find that most of the group seemed to be contained to the courtyard, most seeming to have taken to drinking and playing cards. She made it to her room and hastily shoved everything she owed into her bag, she peeked out of the window and sized up the situation, as normal, it wasnt good at all. About six different military transport vehicles were pulled to either side of the large yard, in the center, sat a metal monster of some 60 tons, a war machine of insatiable hatred, a Bradley Infantry fighting vehicle. She didnt know where they had obtained it, but it had haunted her for the past several months. All around there were men in shabby, worn out ACU's and beaten up weapons, she supposed that supplying a small army of some 70 guys was a bit of a strain on logistics. She was just about to leave when the door creaked open, there in the doorway was one of the dirty, ragged members of the band known to many simply as the Regiment. He stared at her for a second, before a smile graced his face, then he looked down and saw how heavily armed she was, and the smile left. He had only just barely raised his rifle before Lyra closed the distance with him and knocked the AK out of his hands with her M4's stock. She followed up by bringing the butt of her M4 up and smashing his face and bringing a satisfying *crunch!* As the man's jaw broke, he fell to the ground just outside the room and Lyra thanked that this asshole had come up here alone, for she quickly descended on his fallen form and snapped his neck, finishing the job. She hid the body under the medical bed and resumed navigating back to the whole in the wall... Only to find that there were five motley guys having a drink right next to it. 'Fucking great!' She thought, she searched for another port of entry to no avail. She would have to go out the front. Thirty minutes of crawling and holding her breath later, she found herself under the Bradly IFV, quietly mumbling to herself, "Oh you just had to get your shit huh Lyra? You fucking stupid bitch, you just couldn't go without huh?" Her ramblings were disrupted when the tank above her roared to life once more, nearly deafening her. Then it started to move forward, and she knew she only had seconds to react before she was fully exposed to the hole group to see. So she made moved as fast as she could, placing the RC on the ground, and setting it to drive back towards the hospital. Next she readied her two grenades, when the tank moved clear, she plucked the pin of the frag and tossed it randomly into a mass of bodies, then she yanked free the pin of the smoke grenade and set it on the ground near her. At the same instant the first person noticed her there, the frag exploded, throwing up a cloud of shrapnel and dust. She flipped the switch on the RC and was met by a moving ruckus as it speed off toward the hospital. Lyra wasted no time at all taking in the scene of utter chaos she had caused, by the time authority figures had begun establishing control of the situation, she was out the front gate and sprinting for the Home Depot sign, which sat in the distance. She had just barely cleared the lake, not giving a single fuck about the wolves at the moment, when she heard the thunderous throaty growl of the Bradley's engine gunning in her direction. She didnt dare look behind her, so she kept sprinting forward, ignoring the burning that was beginning to spread from her legs to her lungs and the rest of her body.

[Economa Incorporated]

Taking the RC and the grenades, she places them in their holding pouches and nods to Zander, "If they catch me, I want you to run, forget about me and move on. They are here for me and will leave you alone." With a deep breath she takes off down the alleyway closest to her, casting one last longing look over her shoulder at Zander before turning the corner and disappearing from his sight. She psyched herself up as she jogged up to the perimeter wall of the complex, quickly finding a gap in the stone work. After squeezing in and breathlessly hiding as a trio of tipsy men passed her, she silently made her way towards side emergency exit and quickly slipped inside. Once there, she was relieved to find that most of the group seemed to be contained to the courtyard, most seeming to have taken to drinking and playing cards. She made it to her room and hastily shoved everything she owed into her bag, she peeked out of the window and sized up the situation, as normal, it wasnt good at all. About six different military transport vehicles were pulled to either side of the large yard, in the center, sat a metal monster of some 60 tons, a war machine of insatiable hatred, a Bradley Infantry fighting vehicle. She didnt know where they had obtained it, but it had haunted her for the past several months. All around there were men in shabby, worn out ACU's and beaten up weapons, she supposed that supplying a small army of some 70 guys was a bit of a strain on logistics. She was just about to leave when the door creaked open, there in the doorway was one of the dirty, ragged members of the band known to many simply as the Regiment. He stared at her for a second, before a smile graced his face, then he looked down and saw how heavily armed she was, and the smile left. He had only just barely raised his rifle before Lyra closed the distance with him and knocked the AK out of his hands with her M4's stock. She followed up by bringing the butt of her M4 up and smashing his face and bringing a satisfying *crunch!* As the man's jaw broke, he fell to the ground just outside the room and Lyra thanked that this asshole had come up here alone, for she quickly descended on his fallen form and snapped his neck, finishing the job. She hid the body under the medical bed and resumed navigating back to the whole in the wall... Only to find that there were five motley guys having a drink right next to it. 'Fucking great!' She thought, she searched for another port of entry to no avail. She would have to go out the front. Thirty minutes of crawling and holding her breath later, she found herself under the Bradly IFV, quietly mumbling to herself, "Oh you just had to get your shit huh Lyra? You fucking stupid bitch, you just couldn't go without huh?" Her ramblings were disrupted when the tank above her roared to life once more, nearly deafening her. Then it started to move forward, and she knew she only had seconds to react before she was fully exposed to the hole group to see. So she made moved as fast as she could, placing the RC on the ground, and setting it to drive back towards the hospital. Next she readied her two grenades, when the tank moved clear, she plucked the pin of the frag and tossed it randomly into a mass of bodies, then she yanked free the pin of the smoke grenade and set it on the ground near her. At the same instant the first person noticed her there, the frag exploded, throwing up a cloud of shrapnel and dust. She flipped the switch on the RC and was met by a moving ruckus as it speed off toward the hospital. Lyra wasted no time at all taking in the scene of utter chaos she had caused, by the time authority figures had begun establishing control of the situation, she was out the front gate and sprinting for the Home Depot sign, which sat in the distance. She had just barely cleared the lake, not giving a single fuck about the wolves at the moment, when she heard the thunderous throaty growl of the Bradley's engine gunning in her direction. She didnt dare look behind her, so she kept sprinting forward, ignoring the burning that was beginning to spread from her legs to her lungs and the rest of her body.

*a bit earlier*
Zander pulls into the lot, noting it's near emptiness. Only some handyman's van, a flipped power company line repair cherry-picker, and a few cars lie still in the lot. Looking up at the sign, Zander gets an idea....

A quick search of the van and it's roof reveals a medium ladder and some line 100ft, 310lbs load limit. Works. Moving to the other truck, he clambers atop the skyward-facing side, and pries open a few doors until he finds his goal....a harness. His pair of binoculars around his neck, gloves on his hands, harness on, and rope in pocket, he uses the ladder to reach the lower rungs of the maintenance ladder built into the pole, rising to a small platform below the giant sign. A harrowing climb and several snapped rungs later, he reaches the top, and ties the line around the main pole, before dropping it off the edge. It falls to the ground with a yard or two to spare. He quickly rigs a few knots for a controlled belay to the carabiner on the harness using some more line from his vest, and escape route read peers out towards the hospital....

....and proceeds to almost fall off his perch.

Holy mother of- Where'd they get a Bradley?!?!? Shit. That's at leas three dozen men, and who knows how many more aren't in plain sight! Why the hell did she go back into *that* if she knew what they have...They look as military as her...why is she running from them? She kill someone or something? Fuck.

Just to complicate things even more, the roar of the engine echoes across the vacant city, drowning out the early morning birdsong. Light flashes, smoke rises, and a figure takes off running from underneath the Bradley itself. She makes it a block or two of the good two miles to the Home Depot before the Bradley is in pursuit. Bradley? 30-40 Mph easy. Lyra? No way... He suddenly realizes she's leading practically a tank right to him, and if he goes by to catch her, he's liable to get a TOW, chaingun, or M240 to the entire body. As if to echo his thoughts, a hatch pops open on the top, and a man takes hold of the M240, smallest of it's guns, using a slightly easier to find (compared to the rest) 7.62mm round, and sets off a burst that eats at a building above her head. A hand grabs his leg, perhaps some reminder or order shouted? The next burst follows her heels. They want her alive, at least for now. Lyra's now about an eighth of the way to where he is, with the Bradley only 100 feet behind, and two of the trucks back at the lot pulling out to follow. He'd need to head down when she's about halfway in order to have the truck started when she got there...but unless she changes something fast, she'll never get there. Running in a straight line from a IFV isn't the most survivable situation. He'd have to teleport down, grab the rocket launcher, and teleport to a nearby rooftop to even stand a chance at helping

Helpless, too far away to do anything but watch unseen, he does exactly that. He hates himself for not trying anything at all....but unless she does something soon, all doing anything would do is make the body count two....

[Fantrum]

Taking the RC and the grenades, she places them in their holding pouches and nods to Zander, "If they catch me, I want you to run, forget about me and move on. They are here for me and will leave you alone." With a deep breath she takes off down the alleyway closest to her, casting one last longing look over her shoulder at Zander before turning the corner and disappearing from his sight. She psyched herself up as she jogged up to the perimeter wall of the complex, quickly finding a gap in the stone work. After squeezing in and breathlessly hiding as a trio of tipsy men passed her, she silently made her way towards side emergency exit and quickly slipped inside. Once there, she was relieved to find that most of the group seemed to be contained to the courtyard, most seeming to have taken to drinking and playing cards. She made it to her room and hastily shoved everything she owed into her bag, she peeked out of the window and sized up the situation, as normal, it wasnt good at all. About six different military transport vehicles were pulled to either side of the large yard, in the center, sat a metal monster of some 60 tons, a war machine of insatiable hatred, a Bradley Infantry fighting vehicle. She didnt know where they had obtained it, but it had haunted her for the past several months. All around there were men in shabby, worn out ACU's and beaten up weapons, she supposed that supplying a small army of some 70 guys was a bit of a strain on logistics. She was just about to leave when the door creaked open, there in the doorway was one of the dirty, ragged members of the band known to many simply as the Regiment. He stared at her for a second, before a smile graced his face, then he looked down and saw how heavily armed she was, and the smile left. He had only just barely raised his rifle before Lyra closed the distance with him and knocked the AK out of his hands with her M4's stock. She followed up by bringing the butt of her M4 up and smashing his face and bringing a satisfying *crunch!* As the man's jaw broke, he fell to the ground just outside the room and Lyra thanked that this asshole had come up here alone, for she quickly descended on his fallen form and snapped his neck, finishing the job. She hid the body under the medical bed and resumed navigating back to the whole in the wall... Only to find that there were five motley guys having a drink right next to it. 'Fucking great!' She thought, she searched for another port of entry to no avail. She would have to go out the front. Thirty minutes of crawling and holding her breath later, she found herself under the Bradly IFV, quietly mumbling to herself, "Oh you just had to get your shit huh Lyra? You fucking stupid bitch, you just couldn't go without huh?" Her ramblings were disrupted when the tank above her roared to life once more, nearly deafening her. Then it started to move forward, and she knew she only had seconds to react before she was fully exposed to the hole group to see. So she made moved as fast as she could, placing the RC on the ground, and setting it to drive back towards the hospital. Next she readied her two grenades, when the tank moved clear, she plucked the pin of the frag and tossed it randomly into a mass of bodies, then she yanked free the pin of the smoke grenade and set it on the ground near her. At the same instant the first person noticed her there, the frag exploded, throwing up a cloud of shrapnel and dust. She flipped the switch on the RC and was met by a moving ruckus as it speed off toward the hospital. Lyra wasted no time at all taking in the scene of utter chaos she had caused, by the time authority figures had begun establishing control of the situation, she was out the front gate and sprinting for the Home Depot sign, which sat in the distance. She had just barely cleared the lake, not giving a single fuck about the wolves at the moment, when she heard the thunderous throaty growl of the Bradley's engine gunning in her direction. She didnt dare look behind her, so she kept sprinting forward, ignoring the burning that was beginning to spread from her legs to her lungs and the rest of her body.

*a bit earlier*
Zander pulls into the lot, noting it's near emptiness. Only some handyman's van, a flipped power company line repair cherry-picker, and a few cars lie still in the lot. Looking up at the sign, Zander gets an idea....

A quick search of the van and it's roof reveals a medium ladder and some line 100ft, 310lbs load limit. Works. Moving to the other truck, he clambers atop the skyward-facing side, and pries open a few doors until he finds his goal....a harness. His pair of binoculars around his neck, gloves on his hands, harness on, and rope in pocket, he uses the ladder to reach the lower rungs of the maintenance ladder built into the pole, rising to a small platform below the giant sign. A harrowing climb and several snapped rungs later, he reaches the top, and ties the line around the main pole, before dropping it off the edge. It falls to the ground with a yard or two to spare. He quickly rigs a few knots for a controlled belay to the carabiner on the harness using some more line from his vest, and escape route read peers out towards the hospital....

....and proceeds to almost fall off his perch.

Holy mother of- Where'd they get a Bradley?!?!? Shit. That's at leas three dozen men, and who knows how many more aren't in plain sight! Why the hell did she go back into *that* if she knew what they have...They look as military as her...why is she running from them? She kill someone or something? Fuck.

Just to complicate things even more, the roar of the engine echoes across the vacant city, drowning out the early morning birdsong. Light flashes, smoke rises, and a figure takes off running from underneath the Bradley itself. She makes it a block or two of the good two miles to the Home Depot before the Bradley is in pursuit. Bradley? 30-40 Mph easy. Lyra? No way... He suddenly realizes she's leading practically a tank right to him, and if he goes by to catch her, he's liable to get a TOW, chaingun, or M240 to the entire body. As if to echo his thoughts, a hatch pops open on the top, and a man takes hold of the M240, smallest of it's guns, using a slightly easier to find (compared to the rest) 7.62mm round, and sets off a burst that eats at a building above her head. A hand grabs his leg, perhaps some reminder or order shouted? The next burst follows her heels. They want her alive, at least for now. Lyra's now about an eighth of the way to where he is, with the Bradley only 100 feet behind, and two of the trucks back at the lot pulling out to follow. He'd need to head down when she's about halfway in order to have the truck started when she got there...but unless she changes something fast, she'll never get there. Running in a straight line from a IFV isn't the most survivable situation. He'd have to teleport down, grab the rocket launcher, and teleport to a nearby rooftop to even stand a chance at helping

Helpless, too far away to do anything but watch unseen, he does exactly that. He hates himself for not trying anything at all....but unless she does something soon, all doing anything would do is make the body count two....

The bullets kicked dirt up around her ankles as Lyra ran for her life, then she made another decision, realizing she was never going to make it, she stopped. The tank stopped 100 feet behind her and the trucks pulled up to each of its sides, discharging a payload of roughly twenty guys that formed a semi- circle around her. From the commander's hatch of the IFV emerged the bane of her exsistance, a man of 45 with the body of a 20 year old. His face was hard and ragged, scars abundant under his well trimmed operator beard, he grabbed a megaphone from the turret and addressed her, "Lyra Heartstrings! Serial number 564327, rank Sargent. I never thought Id see you again, at least not this soon." Lyra turned slowly to face him, his husky voice echoing off into the distance, "Do you have any Idea how fucking hard it was to track you up here?" The woman merely stood there, staring intently at the ground before her. She was listening, for there was something she had forgotten in her adrenalin filled sprint from the Regiment, and now it was pissed.

She raised her eyes to meet the man's, which was hard to do with all the headlights on her, "How's Danny boy? Still mourning the loss of his dear family jewels? Or maybe his legs? Ive been meaning to stop by and ask him myself, just havent had the time you see." She smirked as a grimace spread on the man's face, "That why you came all the way here? Just for me? I must say that Im touched by your determination." She raised her hands, palms forward, "We both know that you're not here just to kill me, isnt that right, Gordon?" 'Almost there... just need a few more seconds...' She thought to herself, "Well here I am." Gordon motioned with his hands for the men to move in on her, just as a loud animistic howl tore through the sound of the IFV's idling and the crunch of the men's boots as they walked toward her. The lone sound was joined by dozens of others, this sudden introduction caused the gunmen advancing on her to stop and turn westward, looking toward Adam's Point as a wave of wolves emerged running full tilt at the group of men. Lyra could see it in their eyes, desperation, the wolves were all malnourished, with ribs showing and pelts falling out in patches. They savagely assaulted the men, who had turned and began firing into the oncoming pack, killing and wounding many, but not before a few were able to close the distance and pounce on a few men. Lyra bolted down a side street and then turned the first corner, leaving the sounds of gunfire and screaming men behind her. She didnt stop running until she had run a maze of blocks, not going directly toward Zander, but now she was within eyesight of the Home depot sign, she walked with a limp now. Her legs protested with each step, until she had made it to the base of the towering advertisement. She fell to her knees before it, then turned and slumped against it. Blood trickled down from the grazing bullet wound that had found its way to her cheek, she had not noticed it until now, since her body was coming down from the adrenalin high. She brought her hand up to her face and felt it, "Well shit..." Could have been worse... The words escaped her lips before she passed out, completely unaware of the world around her anymore.

[Economa Incorporated]

*Four days later*

Zander sits in a chair dragged from the dining room, knife in one hand, a decent branch in the other, and some heavy-duty string, along with some sandpaper, wood glue, and a few ripped T-shirts on the floor next to him. Stip the bark. Sand it smooth. Notch or hole it where necessary. run glue around it, shove it in. Tie it for good measure. Wrap some cloth strips around the top. Tie those too. He places the finished crutch next to the other one, near the bed. The figure in it tosses briefly, then calms; he feels her forehead. It's tarting to cool off- a good thing. The past few hours, she'd started to move, which gave him hope she'd wake up soon. He was worried for a while there, when he could see the heat rising off of her in the cool October weather. Zander moved to the window, looking at the little circle of cabins among the trees. He'd gone back to that place he'd seen crossing the ridge, the little walled area, up away from the city. He checks his watch, noting the date as usual, for reasons he still didn't know. October 25, almost Halloween. And five 'till noon, too...almost time for another pill. Moving to the bedside, Zander pops a pill out out of the container (only four left in this bottle!) and places it next to the water bottle there, the squirty kind, about half full. Better to wait a bit. He returns to his seat near the wall, and puts his shotgun, formerly leaning against the wall, across his knees. Using a leftover rag, he begins to absentmindedly polish the M1014, removing the dust and dirt. Hearing a cough and a rustle, he sets it back down and looks at the bed, as Lyra's eyes flutter open. She starts to try and sit up, and perhaps try to say something, but interrupts. "No, stay down. Just relax. You're safe Lyra." Her eyes fall again as she slips into a normal sleep. She can take the pill whenever she wakes up. Fast forward a few hours. Its four o'clock now, and the room is lit by the low light of an early-setting winter sun beginning it's descent. Again she wakes, and this time he helps her sit up, propping her up with some pillows. As her head presumably clears somewhat, Lyra mostly coherently asks a few things. In reply, Zander first hands her the bottle and pill. "Drink, and then take this. It's just medicine." In answer to her questions and more, Zander begins...

"So. You're safe, for now. We're in a cabin up on the ridge I passed while crossing it. You've been out for four days now. That graze on your cheek may look nasty, but it wasn't the real issue. A good bandage 'll take care of that, hence why that patch there is on your face. The problem, and I damn well don't know how you ran through this, was the bullet in your leg. Luckily it went right through, but you lost a lot of blood. That's why you went out. I cut off your lower trouser-leg, got a nice tight bandage on it, and slowed it enough to drag you into the truck and to a house in the suburbs. Made a fire, cauterized where it nicked you worst, and ran as those folks got together and came for the smoke. Came up here next, and took care of you a bit better. Your britches and boots were both soaked with blood. The pants are junk, I kept the boots in case you want to try and save them. Your gun and sack are on the front porch. I ended up just giving you a full sponge bath, as you were absolutely covered in dust and and filth. Cleaned your wounds a lot better - It's probably good you were out for me pouting alcohol in that hole - and dressed them. Tucked you in all nicely against this chill and waited. Kept you hydrated, and started force-feeding you those pills, antibiotics, when you began to run a fever. Should have done that from the start. Had some spare time, so I made you a pair of crutches. You should probably stay off your leg for a week or so at least, and in bed for another day or two. There's some clothes about your size on top of the dresser. I didn't want to give you any while out, but there's acetaminophen in the red vial there. The blue is the antibiotics. Take as the packaging says." Medical needs covered, he moved on to the other issue. "Now. You've got a choice. I wasn't going to abandon you. You've got two options though. One, you tell me why the hell you, apparently military, is being run down like a dog by another apparently military outfit. Shooting to wound, not kill. A well armed group that's still blundering around the suburbs looking for you. You tell me why I should stay, and why it's a good thing I dragged you up here. Now, I'm not going to turn you in or anything. Hence Option Two. I go. Right now. Possibly never see you again. Walk out this door and drive away. You've got a half-dozen MRE's on the nightstand there, four bottle of water nest to 'em, and whatever's in your pack out front. Clothes, crutches, etc. You won't die on your own. If they find their way up here, it's your problem then. If I don't like your answer on one, option two will will follow with at least more respect than otherwise."

[Fantrum]

*Four days later*

Zander sits in a chair dragged from the dining room, knife in one hand, a decent branch in the other, and some heavy-duty string, along with some sandpaper, wood glue, and a few ripped T-shirts on the floor next to him. Stip the bark. Sand it smooth. Notch or hole it where necessary. run glue around it, shove it in. Tie it for good measure. Wrap some cloth strips around the top. Tie those too. He places the finished crutch next to the other one, near the bed. The figure in it tosses briefly, then calms; he feels her forehead. It's tarting to cool off- a good thing. The past few hours, she'd started to move, which gave him hope she'd wake up soon. He was worried for a while there, when he could see the heat rising off of her in the cool October weather. Zander moved to the window, looking at the little circle of cabins among the trees. He'd gone back to that place he'd seen crossing the ridge, the little walled area, up away from the city. He checks his watch, noting the date as usual, for reasons he still didn't know. October 25, almost Halloween. And five 'till noon, too...almost time for another pill. Moving to the bedside, Zander pops a pill out out of the container (only four left in this bottle!) and places it next to the water bottle there, the squirty kind, about half full. Better to wait a bit. He returns to his seat near the wall, and puts his shotgun, formerly leaning against the wall, across his knees. Using a leftover rag, he begins to absentmindedly polish the M1014, removing the dust and dirt. Hearing a cough and a rustle, he sets it back down and looks at the bed, as Lyra's eyes flutter open. She starts to try and sit up, and perhaps try to say something, but interrupts. "No, stay down. Just relax. You're safe Lyra." Her eyes fall again as she slips into a normal sleep. She can take the pill whenever she wakes up. Fast forward a few hours. Its four o'clock now, and the room is lit by the low light of an early-setting winter sun beginning it's descent. Again she wakes, and this time he helps her sit up, propping her up with some pillows. As her head presumably clears somewhat, Lyra mostly coherently asks a few things. In reply, Zander first hands her the bottle and pill. "Drink, and then take this. It's just medicine." In answer to her questions and more, Zander begins...

"So. You're safe, for now. We're in a cabin up on the ridge I passed while crossing it. You've been out for four days now. That graze on your cheek may look nasty, but it wasn't the real issue. A good bandage 'll take care of that, hence why that patch there is on your face. The problem, and I damn well don't know how you ran through this, was the bullet in your leg. Luckily it went right through, but you lost a lot of blood. That's why you went out. I cut off your lower trouser-leg, got a nice tight bandage on it, and slowed it enough to drag you into the truck and to a house in the suburbs. Made a fire, cauterized where it nicked you worst, and ran as those folks got together and came for the smoke. Came up here next, and took care of you a bit better. Your britches and boots were both soaked with blood. The pants are junk, I kept the boots in case you want to try and save them. Your gun and sack are on the front porch. I ended up just giving you a full sponge bath, as you were absolutely covered in dust and and filth. Cleaned your wounds a lot better - It's probably good you were out for me pouting alcohol in that hole - and dressed them. Tucked you in all nicely against this chill and waited. Kept you hydrated, and started force-feeding you those pills, antibiotics, when you began to run a fever. Should have done that from the start. Had some spare time, so I made you a pair of crutches. You should probably stay off your leg for a week or so at least, and in bed for another day or two. There's some clothes about your size on top of the dresser. I didn't want to give you any while out, but there's acetaminophen in the red vial there. The blue is the antibiotics. Take as the packaging says." Medical needs covered, he moved on to the other issue. "Now. You've got a choice. I wasn't going to abandon you. You've got two options though. One, you tell me why the hell you, apparently military, is being run down like a dog by another apparently military outfit. Shooting to wound, not kill. A well armed group that's still blundering around the suburbs looking for you. You tell me why I should stay, and why it's a good thing I dragged you up here. Now, I'm not going to turn you in or anything. Hence Option Two. I go. Right now. Possibly never see you again. Walk out this door and drive away. You've got a half-dozen MRE's on the nightstand there, four bottle of water nest to 'em, and whatever's in your pack out front. Clothes, crutches, etc. You won't die on your own. If they find their way up here, it's your problem then. If I don't like your answer on one, option two will will follow with at least more respect than otherwise."

Lyra had sat though his little filling in session, and her eyes widened at the mention of four days and then her face reddened when he said he'd given her a sponge bath. Her head was spinning and her left leg hurt like someone had run her though with something burning, but she managed to sit straight and look Zander in the eyes, "They- They are called the Regiment" Her voice started off meek and unsure from misuse, but she cleared her throat and continued, growing more confident, "Back in LA, there were two sides of government, the military and the civilian branches. Together they tried to keep order, but when the riots started the military stepped in and overthrew the civilian government. It was a coup, and it was lead by our battalion commandant, Gordon Tendiman, or that guy that I had a chat with on that Bradley." She pauses to cough a few times before continuing, "He wanted to keep the Zone under military lock down, a portion of the armed forces, yours truly included, sided with the populace." She looks away, "We were totally out manned and outgunned, but we still fought, to many dead civvies was the outcome. We tried to protect the people from the crackdown, but we had to leave, pull out before we were destroyed. The night I left, we had gathered in the HQ to leave together when they attacked us in force. We managed to hold out long enough for a few hundred civvies to get out, then we activated our fail safe." She looks Zander in the eye a fire lit behind them, "I wanted to stay, but my squad... convinced me otherwise, that I needed to help my own mother and whatnot, too bad I had already lost her an hour before..." Once again she breaks eye contact, "We were three miles away from the zone when the main utilities facility blew, that was our fail safe, cooked up by some asshole major, rendered the entire zone basically inert, shut everything down." Again she pauses to shift into a more comfortable position, "We were in Fresno when they caught up with us, we had already lost half of our 10 guys by that time, they came with that tank and at least twice as many guys." She shutters visibly, her hands keep shaking after the shutter passes, "They- they attacked the camp we had set up... My best friend Troy and I were both captured and taken to some big ass building they were using as a base, I was hogtied and Gordon..." Her voice failed, she managed to hold back tears, but only slightly, "They interrogated me and chucked me into a cell, naked. Thats when this little shitfuck Daniel Tendiman shows up." She has turned away at this point, and started staring at the wall, "He took his clothes off, dumb ass actually still had all his gear with him and just pissed it off onto the floor. When he got close enough, I fucking kicked his nuts as fucking hard as I fucking could, I could even feel one pop. Then I took his shit, stood over his pathetic shitless body, and shot him twice, once in the dick and once in the gut." She turned back to Zander, "I killed a path to my stuff, got it and then sprung Troy. We were so close to freedom..." The images have begun to materialize themselves in her mind, "He went down and they got him again... Later, they had him executed in the street for me to see, I can still see his eyes, trying to be strong for my sake, knowing it was over... Dear lord, that look will haunt me forever, I did the only thing I could do, I ran." She leaned back in her bed, "I spent some time in a gang before they got fucked in the ass by Gordon, wasnt really friends with many of those jerk offs though, and now im here, still trying to run and be free." She closed her eyes, sinking into the pillow, "I never wanted to bring anyone else into this, and I highly suggest you just leave now, before they get you." Her voice faltered again, she had resigned to the fact that with her leg wound and Zander leaving, she would be dead, because there was no way in fuck those assholes were going to capture her, and this time, she would make sure that the gun worked.

[Kchielsovo]

“Fucking hell--look at all those dead civs, ” spoke the squad’s staff sergeant, a man by the name of Freddie Bays. Sighing, he asked his men. “Were any of our own hit?” With reluctance, each soldier reported in that they had escaped from the bloodbath unscathed. Freddie whispered dejectedly into his mic, just barely audible for the rest of the squad. “We’re--I’m--gonna’ get nailed hard back at base for this.” After a moment of near silence, the emptiness only broken by the soft cries and louder wails of people still clinging to life after being gunned down by their supposed protectors, Freddie told the twelve soldiers under his command. “Alright, George, radio in for some medics and stretchers. That’s a real, damn mess down there. The rest of you, safety your rifles--we’re headed back to base.”

Twenty minutes later:
“What the fuck just happened, Sergeant? Why am I hearing that near two score civilians were just slaughtered in Vinerail Square?” Screamed Colonel Geoff Greenwald at a very scared Freddie, whose head was erect and aimed straight, yet his eyes were shaking in fright and his skin oozed beads of sweaty fear. “We were shot at and retur--” Mercilessly interrupting, the colonel barked, spittle flying from his mouth. “Do you think I really give a flying fuck why you did it? NO! The point is you and your team just helped to screw over relations with all the civilians in this god-forsaken QZ. Now, I’m getting calls from people who want your head. And, I can’t do a damn thing about it! Otherwise, this could be the beginning of a damned revolt on our hands.” Suddenly, the overwhelming weight of the situation and the colonel’s words came crashing down on Ssgt. Bays. His face went pale and eyes blank as his mouth began to quiver. “S-sir, you don’t mean . . ?” Staring down Bays, Geoff replied with a stony voice. “That’s right, your trial will be tomorrow. And, I don’t expect you to come out acquitted.”

---

William Czorsky groaned as feeling seeped back into his flesh and bones. His head ached with a deeply felt pounding sensation. And, when he hefted his hand, leaden with an invisible weight, he felt a trickle of liquid dripping down his forehead where it fell off his nose and chin and coalesced on his lap. As another groan escaped his lips, he made to open his door, but found that some wreckage made that action futile. Just then, the sounds of feet scraping through rubble reached his ears. And, when he lifted his bloodied head, he was face-to-face with another person staring through the windowless door. For a moment, he stopped to look at the stranger before speaking. “Ugh, hehe” a weak chuckle spurted out, mixed with a few drops of red life. “Well--ugh--howdy, stranger. What can I--hss--do for ya, today?” All the while, he looked around the wrecked humvee for his rifle, using his peripheral vision.

[Economa Incorporated]

"Wow man.... wow. Wow. Okay. Fucking asshole. Damn..." Zander tries to wrap his head around *that* story... "So he's after you for killing that rapist bastard?"



He thinks to himself, "Man, those guys aren't going to give up on her. And besides me dragging her halfway across the country, she can't run away forever...and even then...THe only way she's going to survive is if these guys are dead. Period. And the two of us would have a very hard time doing that. ("why are you even doing this, dude?" "I don't even know...because.") Maybe..."

He thinks back to a trip not too long ago....

April of that year, about six months ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKggnBh2Mdw&feature=kp

Zander was driving south down a major surface road, a four-lane each way beast that meant even in these days, there was almost always one lane open. He'd just had a series of successful scavenges, and was hoping to run into someone to trade with for a bit. He could also use a bed, a bath, and a chance to clean his currently slightly-bloodstained clothes. After seeing signs of gang activity for days, he'd been in a house when one walked in on him to sneak a cig and pulled a machete upon seeing him, before collapsing to the floor with an arrow through one eye. He didn't even have to hide the body or anything, the small flame lit an old, dry, rug on fire and set the whole house ablaze. While the rest of the group commented on "That idiot, Scoots" and watched the glow, he'd retreated to his truck a few block away and kept going. Those kind of men were more likely to shoot you than even let you give them stuff. Now mentally in the present day, Zander roars down the road behind a couple of tons or truck, light armor, and collected goods. Suddenly, he turns down the stereo...Pretty sure that's a Humvee starting up... He stops the truck, opens the door, hops on the bed, and scans the area with his binoculars. Pretty soon, he sees it - A big building, with guards, a farm, some tents, plenty of women and children, and....a gate that a Humvee soon roars out of, heading away from him. Well, that looks like a decent community. Certainly no gang hideout. Lets go on in and say hi, see if they want some stuff. Before hopping back in, he ties an old white cloth napkin to the useless radio antenna. Zander then drives towards it accordingly, soon approaching the gates at a slow speed, windows down, white flag flying, ready to be be stopped and questioned...