ZRP-2: Chapter Two, Paradise in Hell

Abel watched across the room as one of the women in the group turned bright red, and the others looking at her in shock.
"Huh."
He sat down at a table in the corner, watching whatever it was unfold.

(James)
=The fork clattered to the table, my mouth hanging open in shock=
"Uh, what?"

(Sam)
"You heard me."
=I took a deep breath=

"I'm in love with Eve, Hibiki. And she loves me."

Hibiki looked at Eve...who looked up, tightening her grip on Sam's hand.
"I love Sam. She's kind, she's warm. She's there for me too..." She breaks off, trying to form her sentences. "I'm happy with her...I love her..."
She can't go on, unable to form any more sentences to convey her feelings.
She just holds Sam's hand.

Hibiki slowly rises. She draws her katana.
"If you hurt Eve, if you break her heart, if you so much as look at her in a wrong way, I will chase you down and cut you to bits. Do you understand me?"

Abel stacked his eggs and other breakfast foods between two slices of toast, turning it into a sandwich, and bit chunks out of it while everyone at the other table seemed speechless. Until Hibiki rose unsheathing her sword. Abel's eyes widened.
"Huh."

(Sam)
=And there it was, my nightmare come true. All the blood rushed from my face out of fear of that blade, but something in me made me stand=
"If I hurt her, I'll throw myself on that sword."

(James)
"Uh....what?"
=Somewhere down the line I had lost my train of thought=

Hibiki studied Sam for a moment, then she sheathed the blade.
"I believe you."

Eve relaxed, looking immensely relieved. She tugged Sam down.

(James)
"Uh, wow okay. This is just going to be weird from now on won't it."
=I picked up my fork again=

(Sam)
"Only if you make it weird James."

(James)
"You're in love with the daughter of the woman I love. It's kinda weird already."

Eve sighs and pulls Sam closer to kiss her cheek. "I love Sam. She's why I can fight. It's not weird to love someone. It never is."

(James)
"Eve, you're a 14 year old in love with a 19 year old.....it's High School all over again. I'm not even opposed to the fact that you're both girls. It's the age bit that gets me....."
=I silenced myself with some more eggs=

(Sam)
"James, it's not like I'm going to be sleeping with her or anything."
=He gagged on his eggs, no doubt at the thought=

"But, we're just together."

=I chip in my two cents=

Where I came from, that image alone would drive a man crazy.

=I raise an eyebrow=

But I'm just surprised.

(Sam&James)
"Butt out of this Andrew!"

(James)
=I turned to look at her again=
"I get it, it's the end of the world and you want someone to love."

(Sam)
"Of course you do, you grabbed onto her within two days. It only took me the better part of a week and small change to realize who I was in love with."

Eve blushed even more. "I love her James...please don't take away my light."

(James)
=I looked to the girl, my gaze softening a little=
"Eve.....I'm not going to take her away. I'm just....."

=Sighing, I looked back at Sam=
"I'm just caught off guard by this you two."

(Sam)
=My voice became more gentle=
"I understand James, and I'm sorry for springing this on you......but nothing you say or do is going to change a thing."

(James)
"And I don't plan on trying. Just...take it slow, will you? I know what it's like, finding someone special and then wanting to jump right in. But Eve...you're still just a kid, and Sam knows that. Neither of us want to see you get hurt."

(Sam)
"So the part where I offered to throw myself on Hibiki's sword if I hurt Eve, that went unnoticed?"
=That actually made James and I laugh=

Hibiki sighed. "I trust Eve now. I...I don't know you well enough yet. But James trusts you. I'll trust you." She sits down. "Eve's my daughter. my world. I'm entrusting her to you."

Eve wiped some forming tears from her eyes.

(Sam)
"And I promise I'll fight to protect her with my life."


=Meanwhile, in one of the penthouse suites of the hotel, Clarissa sent Cooper back down with her reply. She was ready to accept the help of the new people=

Eve hugged Sam tightly. She didn't say a word.

Hibiki now smiled gently. "I'll hold you to that."

(James)
"So...in other news, when do you think Cooper will be coming back?"
=I continued eating my breakfast, though there wasn't much left=

(Sam)
"Cooper?"

(James)
"Soldier here, works for Clarissa."

"Right now."

Cooper just materialized behind James.

(James)
=I almost jumped out of my wheelchair=
"FUCKIN HELL MAN!!"

(Sam)
=I saw the guy come up behind James, and I would have warned him.....but he was due some payback=

Cooper was impassive.
"Clarissa would like to see you."

Hibiki covered her mouth with her hand to hide a smile.

Eve giggled, still cuddling up to Sam.

(James)
"Okay...okay just next time, try not to scare me to death."
=Picking up my plate, I wheeled over to a trash bin and dumped the plate=

"To the elevators then, or are you coming with?"

(Sam)
=I got up, hand still holding onto Eve's and moved to follow James=

Eve stays pretty close to Sam, her hand comfortably resting in Sam's.

Hibiki follows, one hand on Eve's head.

(James)
=We got to the elevators no problem, though Cooper was the first one to enter. He kept the door open for us, and pressed a button, holding the door open for us=

(Sam)
=Climbing into the elevator was easy, but that damn wheelchair of James made the whole thing cramped as hell=

(James)
=I grimaced as I realized my chair was making things in the elevator cramped=
"Sorry..."

Eve turned and pressed against Sam to make room. "In the interest of room, I think picking me up is a tactical decision." She said.

Hibiki rolled her eyes. "Show-off."

(James)
"Oh I don't know, I'm already in a chair here. Someone could sit on my lap, make me feel like Santa Claus in a retirement home."

(Sam)
=I snorted at that remark=
"Eve, I'd pick you up, but....and I'm not calling you fat, but you're too heavy."

Eve sighs. "It's not like I'm asking you to carry me to our room."

Hibiki laughed. "We'll be out of the elevator before a decison is made anyways..."

(James)
=As if on cue, the elevator stopped at the floor in question, and the doors opened. I was the first one to wheel myself out of there, Cooper following suit=

(Sam)
"See, no need for me to carry you Eve."

"Yeah. *She takes both of Sam's hands. "Doesn't mean I can't try and stay close to you in any way possible."

Hibiki smiled. "That's the Eve I knew for two years."

(James)
"Really? For two years you knew you're daughter was a playful lesbian?"
=We found ourselves soon in a spacious sitting room, a woman I never met before sitting in comfortable looking chair=

"Clarissa I presume?"

*Clarissa*
"Yes. You must be James. How's the wound?"

(James)
"Doing better, thanks for asking. So, if you don't mind why don't we cut to the chase. These jobs, how do they help us?"

"No, that she was a sweat, mischievous girl. As for being a lesbian...Maybe she wasn't. Maybe it was just her finding love."

Hibiki fell silent as James and Clarissa talked.

*Clarissa*
"Hmm, I see you have the mind of a business man, good. We have encroachments of walkers within the city borders for starters. They managed to get in somehow, and while we've been doing a good enough job of eliminating them, we still can't find the source of the breach. And the number of walkers makes sending a search party for it too risky. What I want in that department, is for you to deal with the walker, distract them long enough for my own people to track down the breach and plug the hole. It has to be them, for the sake of appearances. I need to be the one that gave the order to do something about the breach."

(James)
"Sounds easy enough, but I thought you couldn't find the breach?"

*Clarissa*
"My men tell me they have a good idea of where it is."

"So, we're live bait." Hibiki said. "Great..."

*Clarissa*
=She actually looked troubled=
"Yes, I am sorry about that. I can grant you access to our armory though, and allow you better weapons if you need them?"

(James)
"That might work, and we'll think of something to make sure we don't lose anyone. What about the Shepherds?"

*Clarissa*
"I have scouts looking for where the raiding party is camped. When they find it, you're welcome to join my people and take them out."

"I justneed ammo. My rifle has served me well."

Eve perked up. "I want a newer bow. Are there any there?"

*Clarissa*
"I don't know the details, I just know we have a large armory. Feel free to go down and check, Cooper will give you full access."

(James)
"That's appreciated ma'am."
=I turned to wheel away from her, but she stopped me when she started talking again=

*Clarissa*
"Since you're here in person James, allow me to give you the same warning I gave Hibiki: Slate will kill you, if he feels threatened. So tread carefully James, with how you handle things."

(James)
"No problem there Clarissa. been treading carefully my whole life."
=I wheeled my way back to the elevators=

=I had been following along, playing the part of the silent minder and waiting in the shadows=

Not that I could do much, anyways...

=I then come out of the shadows, a little brighter eyed than I was a day ago. I then ask what's on my mind=

So...what's the plan?

I decided that I'd take a shower awhile ago. Baths aren't my type of thing, even if it's tempting.
So my clothes lay on the counter as I cleaned myself. Dirt, muck, grime and hardened mud all came off.
Honestly? It was great. Amazing even. But, of course I couldn't enjoy it. I was thinking about Jennifer again.

Why?! Why are your thoughts always filled with her? Just think about something else!

(James)
=I wasn't all that surprised when Andrew came out of nowhere, he was always good at hiding=
"Now, we head down to the armory. But before that, we find the others and work out a plan."

(Sam)
"That shouldn't be too hard to do really."

=I nod=

Agreed. That's just the easy part.

=My expression falls a bit=

The hard part will be if the plan works.

(James)
=We all piled into the elevator again=
"We'll need to find Tyler, Able, and Brook. Cooper, where's the armory located so we have a place to meet?"

"First let's see what we have to work with." Hibiki said.

Eve looked up at Sam. "If you're going to fight, so am I."

(James)
"Alright.....Cooper, take us to the armory first so we can see what we can use. After that we'll track down our friends."

(Sam)
"And then perform some Walker pest control...."
=I felt my hand squeeze Eve's shoulder=

=I simply grin=

Eve looks so much like my sister, it's startling...

=I then look to my empty holster=

I'd just like my .45 back...

With prejudice.

=I flash my trademark cocky grin=

(James)
=We reached the ground floor, and Cooper was the first one out, leading us out of the hotel and into the city. Following him, he led us to a giant building, a worn sign labeling it as the Edward Jones Dome. Interesting....their armory was a stadium, or at least inside. We entered and passed through a series of doors, more soldiers guarding the interior and I couldn't help but wonder at the exact number of their forces=
"So, you guys built the armory.....in the stadium, away from the hotel?"

=I whistle appreciatively=

I saw the last Super Bowl played here...it was a helluva game...

=I couldn't help but have a boyish grin on my face=

Eve blinked. "This is bigger then the one back at the training camp..." She said, not thinking. The facts just dredged up from the recesses of her mind. She grabbed Sam's hand.
"I hope they have a new bow for me..."

(Sam)
"Hopefully they have something."
=No sooner did the words leave my mouth, then we entered the next room, what looked like a large stock room of sorts. Whereas the warehouse back in town had maybe the one small cage with scavenged weapons, this place looked like the kind of armory you'd see for military bases. There were rows of weapons on tables, along with body armor, explosives, and boxes of ammo=

(James)
"Holy fuck......where did you get all this?"
=I looked up at Cooper=

*Cooper*
"Most of this stuff we salvaged from National Guard posts and a nearby Military base. Others.....well, we used to have contact with a black marketeer before they skipped town. And we make the ammo ourselves>"
=To emphasis this, he pointed to a strange machine I didn't know=

(James)
"Damn."

=I mirror James's sentiments=

Damn.

=I then look at over all the weapons like little kid in a candy store=

I think I've died and gone to heaven...

(James)
=I wheeled over to one of the tables, an assortment of pistols and submachine guns laid out. I picked one up, a boxish gun I recognized from a tv show=
"A P90....always wanted one of these for the outbreak."

(Sam)
"This is early Christmas."

=I then go towards the table, grabbing an M1911 off of it=

It may not be my old .45, but it still feels like I've had it forever...

=I then spot an old friend among the assault rifles, and bolt over to the table=

An M4...oh baby, Christmas has come early for Andy...

=I then spot a table full of crossbows, grabbing one that was a similar model to my old Stryker=

I feel like I'm a kid in a candy store.

=I grab the crossbow, pocketing as many bolts as I can=