ZRP-2: Brave New World

"We'll come with you." Hibiki said. Eve nodded in confirmation, returning the bow to the quiver.
"Let's hope he can help us..."

(James)
"Alright."
=The two men outside didn't stop us from walking in, though I guess they didn't see us as hostile. Once inside, there was an aroma of something familiar. Coffee? My suspicions were confirmed when I saw Marcus, standing by his desk, a steaming mug in his hands=

"Morning Marcus."

*Marcus*
=He saw us over the rim of his mug. Taking a quick sip, he set the mug down on the desk=
"Morning James. I see you brought friends."

(James)
"They voted to help stay and fight. We were wondering when we could start actually."

*Marcus*
"Well, that depends. Are you willing to share that map of yours?"

Hibiki stayed behind James, with Eve just to the man's right. She looked at the coffee, smiling a softly and glancing at Hibiki, who merely rolled her eyes at her daughter's humor.

(James)
=Without speaking, I took the map out of my pocket. Walking over to his desk, I unfolded it and laid it out on the surface, making sure it was flat=
"The nearest camp is about 40 miles from here, probably where that scouting party came from."

*Marcus*
"Good, good."
=He leaned in for a closer look=

"Looks like they have control of these two roads here, though they have their flanks to the woods. We could probably use that to our advantage."

(James)
"Wait, when are you planning to attack?"

*Marcus*
"Today, while we can still use this information. I can get some men together, along with some vehicles."

"And...I suggest striking at dawn. Just before, actually. The night guard will be tired, and everyone else will be asleep. Always the best time to attack."
Eve blinked. "Uh...I read a lot."

*Marcus*
"That would be smart young lady, but it's already dawn and by the time we do attack they'll have already switched guards."
=If he was annoyed at having advice given to him by a girl he didn't show it. Or maybe he didn't mind at all=

(James)
"If you would, I could lead some of your....quieter, men through the woods and attack from the side. We make sure there's a signal, and the rest of you attack from their front here."
=I wasn't much of a tactician, but I figured that could work=

=My eyebrows perk up a bit=

Well...that little lady is smarter than she shows...impressive

=I fold my arms and silently watch=

*Marcus*
"Perhaps, but I don't trust you enough to have you lead. I'll have someone else take charge of that group but you're welcome to join it."

(James)
"Fine. How long until you guys head out?"

*Marcus*
"I'll go over this with my men, and when we're ready we'll send for you."

(James)
"Okay....I guess I'll leave the map here then."
=I turned around, but before I moved away I stopped=

"By the way, Marge said we're free to stay at the Inn, if you don't mind?"

*Marcus*
"By all means, make yourselves at home."

"Then wait for next dawn. They probably don't know where our caravan is. Waiting a day gives us more time to gather our forces."
Hibiki smiled at her daughter with pride.

(James)
=I had to hand it to her. She certainly wasn't one to yield, and I liked that about her=
"Eve's got a point Marcus. Besides, we'll be harder to see at night anyway. Wait the day, make sure we're ready, or else we could lose people."

*Marcus*
=Now I saw the annoyance in his eyes. It lasted for all but a minute, but I saw it. Here in this town, he was in charge, and we were challenging him even if it was just helpful advice. But he stowed it quickly=
"Alright, fine. We wait a day, but we'll attack in the morning. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get started."

(James)
=I took that as our cue to leave, so I started walking for the door, casting a glance at Hibiki, Eve, and Andrew giving them the message to follow=

The two girls filed out, Eve hanging onto Hibiki's hand.
Hibiki smiled at James as she passed.

=I follow James, keeping as quiet as I can=

Well...this should get interesting...

=I look to the two ladies, almost enviously=

(James)
=My heart did that fluttering thing again when I saw her smile. God that just brightened my day. Getting my head straight though, I walked back to the Inn, the three of them in tow=

"Okay, so we have a day to prepare for an attack on a Shepherd camp. I think Marcus will give us access to any weapons or gear they have, but just in case let's head back to the Inn and check on what we've got."

"I could use some more ammo..." Hibiki said. "And Eve more arrows."
The girl nodded. "Yeah. Maybe a hundred and twenty arrows for an even two hundred."

(James)
"Heh, you and me both Eve. I think I have a few I can spare though, let me check when I can. as for ammo Hibiki....if you have anything to trade, the general store has some of the ammo we got from the Shepherds."

I shifted a little and went to sleep. Hopeing that tyler had our backs on this one.

Well. This is odd. It's already morning, or it was morning earlier. And we didn't even notice. I guess we were so tired we didn't care.
I would wake them but they seem to have just went to sleep. Or just Wrex really. The girl has been asleep since yesterday.
Which makes me wonder if she's even alive at this point. I'd be amazed if she died though, from just that gash on her leg.
Will she be any use to us? I wonder once more. Wait... maybe she knows where that lockdown town is. Maybe she came from there?

After a few hours I woke back up. Sleeping on the floor isnt exactly the most comfortable thing in the world. I sat up seeing that it was morning but still early and that tyler was still awake.

Looking at him, "So you want to get to sleep? Or head towards that lock down town?"

I open my eyes swiftly. I was only resting my eyes for a bit...
"Yeah. Uh, let's go to the town. We shouldn't stay much longer."
I stand up from the chair and stretch my arms. Then I grab my overcoat ant wrap it around me. That's when I notice the girl is awake.
Just sitting there, watching me silently. I stare at her for a moment before looking at Wrex and replacing my knife.
"Want me to carry her? Or do you want to?"

The girl tries to stand up but ends up falling back down on her rear.
"There's no need. I'm fine, really."

=I look at Eve=

I'm with her...I need some bolts for my crossbow.

=I check my rifle=

That...and I need some rifle ammo as well.

(James)
"Well, like I said the general store over there has some of the ammo we took from the Shepherds, and most of that was rifle ammunition. But either we find something to barter with or we wait for Marcus to give us access to their weapons, your call Andrew."

"I kept the assault weapons and their ammo, James." Hibiki said. "Remember? Eve fetched them before the caravan left. We have a small stockpile now...but we could use more, of course."

(James)
"Right, that also works. But Eve, Andrew, as far as arrows go we're on our own there. I'd make some if I knew how...."
=Making arrows was really a skill I could have used in this world. I still kick myself for never learning it=

=I look over to Hibiki=

Mind if I check out the ammo...see if there's any that I could use for my rifle?

=I give a questioning eyebrow=

Hibiki nods. Even shrugs one pack and hands it over. "That's all the ammo I can't use. See if it works for you."
She sighed softly.

=I check and put a couple rounds in and the bolt cycles properly=

Thank you kindly.

=I then load a round, putting the rifle in safe=

Eve takes the pack back, shouldering it. Hibiki nodded.

(James)
=I suddenly remembered that it had been a while since I had last inspected my own pistol. Hey, I relied on my arrow more often than the gun, and we never had that many encounters that required it=
"Uh, I'll be back in my room if you guys need me. I need to check my gun."

=Without waiting, I walked into my room, closing the door though not all the way. Sitting on the bed, I took out my pistol, and started taking it apart=

=I nod, and find a quiet spot to field strip my .45=

Long time since I've cleaned it...

=I the sit down and strip down my .45, cleaning it a bit=

Hibiki made sure she and Eve had all her bags, then sighed.
"I'm going to get Eve cleaned up."
She entered the other room and closed the door.

(James)
=Checking each part carefully, I was confident that the gun would still work, and put it back together, the assembly ending with a satisfying click as I pulled back on the slide and let it jump back into place=

Now, let's hope my aim with a gun is as good as my aim with a bow.

=Putting the Glock away, I sat there, alone in my room with nothing but my thoughts for company. Since no one could see me....the first thing I did all day was let myself cry. I was sad, so much, about watching my family leave. I lay back on my bed, tears running down my face, shaking as I cried, hoping to whatever God still existed that no one would hear me. It wasn't out of pride that I didn't want Andrew, or worse, Hibiki and Eve seeing me cry. But I was the one they seemed to be following, and I needed to be strong=

Abel got off of the bike, then looked around for a bit... Looked safe.
He extended the kickstand, then grabbed the gas container on the side of the bike.
He opened the tank and started pouring the fuel in. It only took a few seconds before the container was dry. Abel strapped it back to the side of the bike encase he ran into some more fuel. Abel threw the stand up and mounted the bike, then kicked it, starting it up. It made the high pitched whine that dirt bikes tended to make as it started.
"Alright, alright... Good to go..."
Abel looked down seeing that it didn't even give him a quarter of a tank.
"Still better than walking, right?

(James)
=Wiping my eyes again, I left the room, bow and quiver slung over my shoulder and my Glock in it's usual holster. Andrew was in the lobby still, taking care of his own gun, while the door to Hibiki and Eve's room was still closed. I decided I'd wait for a bit, since I was planning on a) getting permission to see this towns weapon inventory, and b) grabbing some ammo and arrows if they had it, in preparation for the attack on the Shepherd camp=

"Never mind, I'll get 'er. But first I'll check the area for hostiles."

With that I take out one of my knives, this one being a combat knife, and slowly open the door. Nothing behind the counter.
I open the door completely and look around the store. The sun lights the most of the room. Because of it I can see the zombie resting inbetween the selves.
It's just sitting there... chewing on something. I can hear it. I swallow nervously as I approach the creature.

Armed with water supplied by Marge, Hibiki drenched Eve's hair and washed out all the dirt she could, then squeezed the remaining water out before grabbing a wet towel and washing Eve's face, hands, and feet. She put the water outside to be filtered later, then began to dry Eve's hair with a towel.

Once she was done, Hibiki led Eve outside to find James already out.
"We're ready." She said.

(James)
"Alright, let's go. I'll have to ask one of the guards about where they keep their weapons first though."
=We all walked out of the Inn, and I looked around for a guard, though oddly enough there were not that many out=

=I reassemble my pistol, checking that it was in working order=

Still works like a champ...

=I then follow the other three, hoping I could get some crossbow ammo=

(James)
=Thankfully, we were able to find a guard, or at least someone I thought was a guard. He had a rifle slung over his shoulder, so I figured, why not?=
"Excuse me, can you help us? We're working with Marcus for the attack later, and needed some ammo. Do you guys have a store room or something?"

*Guard*
"Yeah, I was actually heading there myself. You said you're working with Marcus? What's your name?"

(James)
"James. Did he mention me at all?"

*Guard*
"Ah, yes James. He spread the word and told us to help you and your group out any way we could. Just follow me."
=He turned, and we followed as he guided us through the town=

"Suddenly we're Generals?" She chuckled. "Hey, guard? How Manu ex cops or military do we got here?"

=I look to the guard, and simply just follow=

Generals...Well, let's see how well I do leading

=I smile at the thought=

*Guard*
"I wouldn't call you guys generals really. You're just the same as us: soldiers. And we've got only two ex cops, the rest is militia."

(James)
=I grimaced a little. That didn't sound encouraging. Before long we arrived at what looked like an old warehouse of some sorts. Two stories tall, one side lined with big metal doors that served as a loading dock, the whole thing was maybe 100 ft in length, from the edge of the loading dock itself, to the small door at the corner that served as the entrance, two men standing watch outside. In the loading area, I noticed a string of vehicles, most of them not unlike the vans we used in the caravan=
"Wow. Guess you've stocked up on gear?"

*Guard*
"We have a few things."

"Mhm...guess neither were SWAT..." She sighed. "We'll need arrows for Eve. And I need..." She rattled off the rounds she needed for her pistol and rifle.

I sigh as I pick up my backpack and slide it onto my shoulders. I leave over grabbing my shotgun and slinging it over my left shoulder towards my right so it doesnt fall off. Then I reach over and grab my bat, seeing that tyler was heading outside.

I feel bad for the kid, no one should have to spend their teenage years in something like this. But then again no one should be stuck in something like this.

I creep towards it with my knife at the ready. My boots squeek against the hard tile floor. But it seems too interested with what it's eating.

I get right behind it before it bothers to look at me. In that instant I plunge the knife deep into it's eye.

I crouch down, bending both my knees to try and look at the girl around eye level. If it wasnt for my balaclava and mask she would be able to see me smirk. Due to how weird it must look to see someone like me crouched down.

I ask, "So whats your name?"

*Guard*
"You'll have to take that up with the quartermaster ma'am. He should be easy enough to spot, he'll be behind the bars."
=With that, he led us inside through the small door up front. Inside, the place had a whole lot more people inside, an assortment of men and women maybe 10 in number. There were these large shelves, made of metal bars and wooden pallets, along the wall across from the loading doors, though it did nothing to make the place look small on the inside. To the far left, past the loading doors, was a hastily erected shooting range, cardboard cut outs arranged in a neat line, some of them peppered with holes while the wall behind them was covered in even more. A large metal cage had been erected around a section of the aisles, and I was guessing that was where the weapons, and the quartermaster were=

(James)
=I couldn't help but whistle=
"You sure have a lot of guards."

*Guard*
"For a town this size? You expected less?"

I rip the knife out and grab it's neck. After a minute of staring at it I wipe my blade off on it's shirt and put the knife away.
I notice on the shelf to my right there's a brand new pair of Machinx gloves. I take off mine and stuff them into my coat.
Then grab the new ones and put them on. Full gloves. And they fit perfectly, sweet.

The girl shrinks herself under the giant's stare.
"It's... it's Jennifer."

"Oh, dont be scared." I say with a chuckle. "If me or tyler had wanted to hurt you we would have done it by now, besides we saved your life."

"So how old are you?"

(James)
"I guess not. Okay, guy behind the bars? Got it."
=We parted ways, as I walked over to the quartermaster's station. He was a middle aged man, a serious expression on his face and a clipboard in his hand. He stood behind a metal mesh, a slot between the mesh and the desk he stood at=

"Excuse me, my name is James. Marcus said I could help myself."

*Quartermaster*
"Hmmm, James, James....ah, here you are. Had your name written down. Alright, what do you need?"

(James)
"Well, the girl, my friend and I need arrows. As for the girls mom...well, she has the list."

She relaxes a bit.
"Sixteen since yesterday."