Three weeks later.....

Preface:
This is a continuum of an RP from another website, which basically shut down. I didn't want to abandon the RP, so a friend suggested here.

Here's a link to the OOC: three-weeks-later-ooc-and-sign-open-all-t30904.html

Good luck out there. You're going to need it.

O hai guys!

So, uh, I was the other half of the original RP, so I guess I'll just post my side of the story before we start. I have no patience for the character profile system here, so this is the best summary you'll get:

Kayci:
Kayci Grey, would-be med-student, is looking for shelter in London, when she crosses paths with James. At first, the two of them get off to a rocky start, but it seems he could have had a shocking connection with her mother.

The Terrorists:
Geeze, that's what everyone wants to hear, right? Terrorists! Anyway, 'Lucie' Kaiser, leader of a destructive, pro-war terrorist group, and her follower, Jack Kazinsky, encounter Jessie and Arron, the former of whom would like nothing more than to see Lucie dead. While the leader deals with that, Jack is slowly being driven mad by the apparent death of his lover, Gloria Beckett.

Meanwhile, Gloria has escaped to the United States. She, like Jack, believes her lover to be dead after their final bombing. Just as she's at her most vulnerable, wallowing in grief and regret, she is found and taken into custody by Hanson.

The Band:

Haley Hartwin and Christian Williams, singer and guitarist, respectively, of a band advocating anti-war policy, have been surviving for a couple of weeks in an abandoned amusement park, when Hanson and Allans run into them and offer them help. Coincidentally, they are not far from the site where Gloria was just captured. Do I smell Mass Hysteria?

Hokey dokey, that's all I have to say.

James McDougall, An abandoned mall in London:

James desperately needed a drink, “What was your name again. The whole name, if you would. And then your mother’s name, her real name, if you please.”

James went through the math again in his head. The chances of running into his and Alee’s kid after the world ended were so small, it was near impossible. But here she was. He didn’t need her last name. The facts all added together, and after the equal’s sign came a big fat, “Hey Pa.”

Sgt. Darren Hanson, Abandoned Military Base, Nevada:
Sgt. Hanson exhaled so slowly, it came out as a low whistle rather than a sigh. They had enough radio parts to hopefully fix the array, and then some. All they had to do now was lug it all back.

Pvt. Riley, somewhere in the middle of the Nevadan wasteland:
Riley coughed again, and then spit. The dust in the air was ridiculous today, “Never seen it this hazy out before.” He said, turning to Gloria for a brief moment, before turning back to the open desert.

Pvt Jamison, Outside the Military Occupied Cliff Caves
Private Jamison sat back against the rocks and breathed shallowly, “This arm really hurts kiddos.”

Even with the painkillers finally taking effect, there was still a lot of pain. He wished he had some Morphine, but Morphine wasn’t exactly in large supply, and unless they were able to make some, they probably weren’t going to be getting any, anytime soon. Sweat was pouring off of him now. Pain resonated from his arm up into his shoulders, tingling up his spine, and racking his brain.

Arron and Jessie, A ruined English City:
Aaron trudged through the hot sun. He could feel the sun coming to high noon, the most dangerous part of the day. This was when Sun-Spikes were most prevalent, and even more dangerous; that, and the fact that wolves were drawing closer. He could hear them breathing heavily, panting and circling. Occasionally a wolf would howl somewhere off in the distance, and Aaron would look up with sluggish dawning, but then the howl would fall silent again.

“How much farther?” Jessie asked, taking the tie from her head and wringing it out. Sweat doused the ground, dripping onto the cracked pavement.

“Hopefully not long now,” He said, looking through his cracked sunglasses. His badge lies fallen at his feet now. It is scratched and marred. It bounced far from where he threw it. He stoops to pick it up again, his fingers moving along the warm surface of the metal. It’s hot to the touch, but he picks it up anyway. He tucks it absentmindedly back into his shirt pocket and continues along, the baseball bat jostling in his shoulder sheath.

Jessie shakes her head. The ax she’s holding gives her comfort, fills her with a feeling of protective dominance. She wonders briefly how well it will hold up against a wolf.

London

"I'm Kayci Elizabeth Grey, and my mum's Alexandra Grey," said Kayci, her tone much less abrasive than it had been. The implications here were just too unlikely. But supposing this bloke was her dad...what now? What was she supposed to do? Say, hey Dad, I know we never knew each other because you were off doing who-knows-what, but hey, welcome back into my life?

She wasn't even sure she could pull something like that, seeing as she didn't really have a life anymore, since everything had been blown up.

Nevada

"Is it like a throbbing toothache of the mind?" Christian asked, looking at the pained Jamison. "Maybe you'll do better with some--"

"If you dare say Novacaine, I'll slap you," Haley interrupted him half-jokingly, rolling her eyes. She turned to Jamison and said, "Ignore him. He's just quoting song lyrics again, it's one of his little immature habits."

She wasn't exactly one to talk about maturity--she was usually the hyperactive one. Still, though, the last thing she wanted to hear was Christian quoting American Idiot. In her opinion, that was a terrible album. The main character doesn't go anywhere! He tries to make a difference, fails, turns around, and goes home!

That was pretty much what her life had turned into, only now, there was no home to go back to.

----------

Gloria had never much enjoyed smalltalk. Jack had been the conversational one, but she had never engaged in a random conversation if she wasn't going to get anything out of it. She figured she might as well talk now, though, since there was nothing she was really interested in, besides not getting locked in a small, dark space, and Riley had already reassured her that she wouldn't be quite so uncomfortably enclosed.

"Yeah, really, uh...hazy," she said. Her eyes had started to water again. When he turned around and glanced at her, she wiped them and said, "This dang dust keeps getting in my eyes."

There we go, Gloria, now we're getting somewhere, she told herself. Just keep talking, try not to think too much...

"You know, when I was a little girl, I wanted to be a pediatric neurologist," she rambled. "I never fancied myself much of a terrorist, but I guess my plans changed. Then in the war, I ended up killing a doctor because he got in my way. Gods, I never thought that I'd turn into such a hypocrite!"

It was all mindless blabber, but it felt kind of good to be able to run off her mouth.

Some Nowheresville in England

Jack glanced from Lucie to the civilians, nudging the former slightly and whispering in French, "Madame, where do we go after we reach their destination? How much longer do you plan to keep up this alliance?"

Lucie whacked him in the back of the head. "English, boy! Where are your manners?" she hissed. "And I don't see a way out of this alliance, not in these conditions."

He was a fool to take her word for it, as she meant none of it. She was through with entangling alliances, including the one she had with him. Sure, he'd served her well in the past, but he was clearly addled, and out here, it was every man for himself. She couldn't trust anyone. She was going to find a way out on her own.

Pvt. Riley, the Nevada Wasteland

"Pedi-....Pede...Uhm..." Riley tried, stumbling over the words. Not the most literate man in his squad, Riley had often been the brunt of jokes. As soon as Gloria mentioned doctor, though, he understood perfectly, "Yeah. That's the story of my life too. Never meant to be here. Never meant to even join the Army. But you know how things work."

The amusement park loomed ahead. Some of the bears that still lingered were chewing on their fallen comrades. Riley cocked the rifle and prepared for the worst, but the bears simply moved off as the got close. Probably had enough of men and their noise makers.

Pvt. Jamison, Cavern Outpost

"No. No Novacaine, thanks. Some Morphine would be nice, though. Something stronger than Ibuprofen." He said, shifting himself, trying to situate the gradually bleeding wound. The cloth Haley had wrapped it in was now perfectly crimson, and blood was beginning to ooze between his trembling fingers. He was starting to get a little lightheaded, the ground trembling back and forth.

"Hey down there!" Robin called from above, startling Jamison a bit, "Private Jamison, status report!"

"I'm bleeding bad, ma'am." Jamison said, clutching at the cloth even harder.

"Haley! Chris! Tie these ropes around Jamison's waist and stomach! Kind of like a rock climbing harness!" Robin called, throwing down the ends of three ropes.

James McDougall, London

James' eyes went wide. Alexandra "Alee" Grey. He stepped back, the hunting rifle dropped from his hands, clattering to the ground. He felt like he was seeing a ghost, "Alee."

Aaron and Jessie, Ruined English City

Arron sighed. Even if what Lucie said was true, it didn't make it any less depressing.

"Whoo, I'm so f***ing happy." Jessie said, sarcasm bleeding from the statement.

Ahead, the small supermarket loomed. Outside were shopping carts scattered and strewn here and there. Cars that might have worked, if someone could hot-wire it, stood idle in rows, scratched, burned, some even exploded, but most simply standing. The electronic doors still worked, grinding open and filling the dreary silence with metallic shrieking. Shelves upon shelves of discarded crap lay upturned or in complete disarray. The store had barely held against the bombs. It was in complete shambles, at least it was somewhat safe.

Nevada

"It means I wanted to help kids with brain problems," Gloria explained. "Wonder what would happen if someone took a look at my brain...?"

Chemical imbalances, that's what they'd find. Stress hormone levels through the roof and probably some shards of grenade. "Did you have to kill a lot of people in the army?" she asked. "Did you know any of them?" She doubted that the military would explicitly order people to kill their comrades and sacrifice themselves the way Lucie had. It was odd, realizing that the way she had lived simply was not normal.

She let out a laugh as she saw the mostly intact remains of an amusement park in the distance. "Ha! That's just classic! The Twin Towers got taken out by a single attack, and some Funland here makes it through all of World War 3! That's human ingenuity right there! Haha!"

It really wasn't that funny, but if she didn't laugh, she would probably start crying again.

Back at the cavern outpost, Christian was awkwardly trying to figure out how to help Jamison with the rope. "Keep applying pressure to that wound," Haley advised the man. "Christian, I don't think that knot is quite secure enough..."

She nudged him out of the way and secured the rope harness herself. "Always knew Girl Scouts would come in handy for something," she grinned.

London

Kayci tilted her head and scrutinized James. "You gonna be okay?" she asked. At least he had dropped his gun, which led her to believe that they'd reached a consensus that she was not Wilderbear bait.

Scenic Nowhere

Jack was relieved to hear that they would be staying. With Jessie around, he would have an ally against Lucie, who he still wasn't sure whether he despised yet.

"Huh. Well, that's convenient," he said as they came up on a barely surviving supermarket. "Y'know, I think that the new definition for 'convenience store' should be 'a store that has conveniently withstood global warfare'."

Nevada:

Riley shook his head, "Well, I mean, yeah. I've had to kill people. Never knew any of them. Most of the time, they were shooting from cover and such. He wanted to laugh at the irony of Gloria's statement, but somehow it just didn't seem right. Especially since this was where Jamison got shreded so badly.

Meanwhile:

Robin pulled on the ropes. They seemed secure enough, "Alright, we're going to start lifting him up!"

Jamison grunted as the ropes began to pull, his body lifting off the ground, "Don't worry you two, they'll lower some ropes as soon as they can."

London:

"A drink. I need a drink. A nice cold drink. Just one." James said, frantically walking off toward the liqour store down the way. He'd kept most of the alcohol locked up in a fridge, but now it was time for some liquid courage, "No, no, no, no, no, no."

He hadn't even bothered to pick up the rifle. It's scope was now cracked, laying forgotten on the tile floor. He wrenched open the fridge and reached inside, taking a cold beer. He flicked the top off and chugged half the bottle in three gulps. He sat down at one of the mall's benches and took another swig of the alcohol.

Ruined Store:

Aaron picked up a bag of beef jerky and tore the top off. The store had a bounty of resources. They were probably the first to come across it so far. What did that say about the scarcity of survivors? Tearing off a piece of jerky, he walked down the isle, hoping to find a gun shop, and was vaguely surprised to find some in the very back, in a storage room, "Hey, Jess, didn't they have crazy gun laws here before the war?"

"Yeah, but seeing as nobody knew when or where enemy forces would come, I'm sure these kinds of places kept some in emergencies. Probably illegal." She said, sifting through some potato chips.

Aaron picked up a USP .45, turning it over in its holster, "This I can use. Jess, come pick one out too."

“Is there anything small?” She asked, looking over the handguns. A 9mm caught her eye, being both small and lightweight, she immediately snatched it up, “Hey, Lucie, come here a minute, why don’t you?”

“That’s not a bad idea. We should all get some guns. Here, take this cartridge of ammo. There are only two clips, so about 30 shots. Do you know how to operate one?” Aaron said, dismissing Jessie’s empty threat. He himself put some .45 ammo into his own pockets, and scooped up a .357 magnum revolver as well.

“Yeah. With any luck, we won’t have to use them. Well…just once.”

Nevada

Gloria stifled her artificial laughter, sensing some discomfort from Riley. "Sorry. Whatever it is," she said. "Actually, I'm pretty sure I owe one big fat apology to the entire world."

At the outpost, Haley smiled, satisfied with her competence during a crisis. "Hokey dokes!" she called up to Robin. "You go next, Christian. I wouldn't want to leave you here to get dropped on your ass 'cause you couldn't figure out how to tie a knot."

"I can handle myself," Christian grumbled. He hated the way she did this sometimes--who did she think she was? He was the more emotionally mature of the two, the one who actually knew what the hell was going on in terms for what this whole world-ending thing meant about the rest of their lives. Haley, on the other hand, was such a child inside. She probably thought they were all just going on one big holiday.

Still, he acquiesced, if only to keep the peace. And besides, she had been a Girl Scout. He couldn't argue with that reasoning.

London

"...A'ight then," Kayci shrugged. She wondered when James would be back, and how coherent he would be when he did. For now, though, she sifted through the burger joint until she found what she was looking for. "Yes!"

After shoving several slices of onion under her bun, she bit into the sandwich and grinned as she chewed.

Perfection!

Ruined Store

Lucie took a Twinkie off of a shelf, opened it, and shoved it in her mouth. "Yeah?" she answered with a mouth fill of cream as Jessie called her name. "What is it?"

Jack, meanwhile, was surveying the guns with wonder. He knew a thing or two about guns, but was no expert in the field--he didn't think them quite as fun as grenades. After all, a bullet could have your name on it, but grenades...those were addressed to whom it may concern.

"Hey Jessie," he said, "Could you show me how to use one of these? I'm more of a bomb technician myself."

If these words served him well, he would have an opportunity to speak to Jessie alone, without Lucie listening in--just what he needed.

Nevada:

Robin called down to the two teens below, "Alright, Haley, you're next. Either that, or Christian gives you the gun." She thought they were prepared for any sort of attack that could possibly come their way, but she didn't want to leave either of the kids out there without a weapon. She lowered the ropes back down, and waited for them to decide.

***

Riley coughed again as they headed for home. He could already see the mountain cave, and to his surprise, the kids from before, sitting alone at the bottom of the shelf, while Robin stood up top. Vaguely he wondered what was going on, but quickly dismissed it. It probably wasn't important. He waved to the snipers set in the cliffs facings, but couldn't tell wether they acknowlegded or not. So, instead of waiting any longer out in the miserable wasteland, he decided to hurry it up, jogging slightly as the dust kicked up around his ankles.

England, The Mall:

James sat at the bar, already one his third bottle. Before he could take another swig, he looked at it with eyes that were disbelieving and threw it over the railing of the second floor, listening tensely for it to shatter. When he was sure it had, he got up and walked back to the burger joint, picking up the rifle and stripping it of its scope, which he simply tossed over the railing to join the bottle. He didn’t know what he was going to say, or to do, but he had to say something. This was his daughter for gods sake.

“Kayci. I think we got off to a bad start. I’m sorry I threatened you like I did, but I think you can understand the reasons, based upon our situation,” He said, sitting down opposite her, “I don’t really know how to say this, but all the clues…no, the facts, seem to point to it. I think I’m your father.”

It sounded dumb coming from his mouth, but it was the only thing to say. No point stopping now, “Alee and I were together for years before she got pregnant. The two of us travelled all over, scamming the pants off of people. Literally! We ran them bone dry. Not like that matters anymore, but I feel I should tell you why I was gone for the past eighteen years. I was in prison:

A Casino in England, 20 years ago:

James and Alex walked into the casino, each smiling at one another. They first sat down at a craps table, and played a few rounds there. Alee was good at the dice games, always had been. That and cards were her specialty. He kissed her and left, making a beeline to the Roulette Wheel. Ah, the wheel. So easy to predict when you knew the secret. He watched a few rounds and circled the table, careful to stay out of site of the cameras and making sure the attention of the man tending the wheel was elsewhere. Eventually, it was his turn at bat. They made a killing, together. As they exited the Casino with their winnings in a heavy bag supplied by the Casino’s owner, who was more than irate at giving that much money away.

James and Alee headed straight back to the hotel, and enjoyed the night. It was a night he would never forget. The next morning, he woke up to pounding on the front door, along with a screaming headache. It was already two months into her pregnancy. She had already vowed to stop after she started getting the stomach.

“What the hell?” James asked, groggily, heaving himself out of bed. When he opened the door, he was greeted by a stern looking police officer, “Officer, do you have ANY idea of what the hell time it is?

“Yeah, it’s time for your conviction, James McDougall. That, and your girlfriend, Alexandra Grey. We’ve got warrants for your arrests, you’re wanted in a whole mess of places.”

James closed the door, “Officer, is this about the gambling?”

“No, it’s for shooting the president. Of course it’s for the gambling!”

James looked down for a moment, before turning his face back to the officer, “Listen Alee has nothing to do with this. I was the one gambling unfairly, alright? Just leave her out of this. Please, she’s pregnant. I’ll shoulder both sentences; just leave her out of this.”

The officer looked at James for a minute. He didn’t really know what made the officer go through with his plan, but he did. He went inside, gave Alee a kiss, and was arrested. He spent the rest of the next years in that rotting hell hole, getting letters from her. Eventually, the guards stopped the letters, just as they had stopped her visits. He never got a look at their child; he didn’t even get to know whether it was a boy or girl. Then the bombs dropped. And now here they were.

The Present:

“And that’s the story of my life for the past few years. But what happened to Alee? She isn’t……dead, is she?” James asked, his quivering voice full of horrible anticipation.
England, Ruined Store:

Jessie stood shocked for a minute, “Me? But wouldn’t Aaron….” She began, but then realization dawned on her, “Yeah, I think I can show you. Come on, we’ll go set up some cans out back, and then I’ll show you what I know. Aaron can inspect my teachings later, right Aaron?”

Aaron simply took Jack’s suggestion with surprise, “Yeah, I guess. I want to check out some security footages anyway. Just be careful. I don’t think we could stand losing our medic, or our extra muscle. In fact, let’s not waste ammo. Use these air soft guns, they’re basically the same.

Jessie smiled sweetly at him and picked up some beer cans, emptying them into the grass as they walked around to the back of the store. Jessie set them up with no intention of actually shooting them, “What?”

Back inside, Aaron walked calmly over to Lucie, “You should go get a gun. There are a few left, and it would be best if we could defend ourselves once we leave the store. If you want, you could start rounding up some food and some backpacks. We’ll need them as well. I’m going to go check the security cameras real quick, and then I guess we’ll stay the night here and set out tomorrow. We’ll have to set up fortifications for the night, as well.” He said to the terrorist, “And I’m sure you’re good at this next one. Could you or your buddy Jack make up some explosives or something? There are….things….out there that some shitty pistols aren’t going to stop.”

Nevada

"...On second thought, I'll go first," said Haley, having no desire to hold a gun. Sure, she was the more coordinated of the two, but Christian was less afraid of the weapon, and if he had almost shot himself in the foot with it, she hated to think of what mishaps she would cause with a firearm.

As Haley made quick work of tying the ropes around herself, Christian noticed a pair of figures in the distance. "Hey look, one of the guys is coming back," he said. "And it looks like someone's with him." Another survivor, perhaps? Another helpless civilian?

Or perhaps a prisoner? They didn't look too friendly over there. He wondered if that meant she was dangerous.

***

Gloria followed Riley towards the outpost, coughing slightly on dust. Through the layer of fluid in her eyes, she vaguely noticed some people off in the distance, a woman up top and a pair of teenagers down below. "They look like boyfriend and girlfriend," she remarked quietly.

It just wasn't fair, she thought, that some people could make it through together, and others...

Ha! Well, I'm one to talk...

London

Kayci finished up her burger and fetched herself a fountain drink from the machine behind her. "Ah, it's no problem, Dad. I'm sorry for trying to bust down your door," she said, as if this was all no big deal.

It was actually a very big deal, the biggest development in her life, but she figured, she might as well not freak out. She'd seen it all, after all, or, at least, as a teenager, she thought she had, and, compared to some of the other things that had happened to her, meeting her father for the first time was a good thing, even if he was a criminal and a con.

The next matter of the conversation was not as easily plowed through. Although she had survived through the post-apocalypse with apathy and irreverence, the whole time, she had been trying not to think about how her mom was probably dead. It was too horrible to imagine. Alexandra had raised her all alone to be a good citizen (without being a pushover, of course), saved up for her college, taught her to fend for herself, but always helped her back up when the big, bad world got the better of her, and now...

"I--I don't know for certain," Kayci said, her voice starting to crack, "but I heard some radio feeds that said...that said that Liverpool was a ghost town...totally decimated..."

Don't cry, she tried to implore herself. She wanted to do anything but that. But it seemed that her biological functions didn't really care what she wanted, so a few tears slipped down her face without her permission.

Ruined Store

Jack was filled with nervousness as Jessie led him out back. He couldn't wait to just have his say and get it over with, but before he could, he had some explaining to do.

"Alright," he said as they reached a safe distance, "I should probably start by saying sorry to you, and to Planet Earth, for, y'know, helping to blow it up and all that shit. I know I'm in no position to ask for anything, but I just...God, how do I say this..."

He took a deep breath, finding another starting point.

"So yeah. I'm a terrorist. But that doesn't mean I'm not human, right?" he said. "I, uh...before the world totally went to shit, I had a girlfriend, Gloria, the one Lucie was talking about. I know she was involved in your brother's death, and I'm sure she's really sorry about that, wherever she is, but this isn't about her anymore, because she's dead. See, for our last mission, Lucie decided she'd fuck with our heads by forcing us to kill each other, only I survived somehow...Jesus Christ, I don't even know why I'm telling you this..."

Deep breaths, Jack. Oxygen in, CO2 out...

"Look. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I want my revenge, and I'll need some support."

Back inside the store, Lucie surveyed the guns with an air of casual laziness. "All these weapons are shit," she complained. Then, after making sure no one was looking, she snatched up a small, inconspicuous handgun and some rounds and shoved them into the front of her corset.

She then picked up a rifle and inspected it. "Hmm. Well, this ain't bad," she said with approval. The big gun was to serve as a distraction, and, if all went according to plan, no one would know that she had the smaller one. The idea was to keep a secret weapon in case of emergencies.

The Mall:

Ghost town. Decimated. These words rang through James' head like a gong. But he had to know. If his daughter, whom he had never met, had survived, and found his way to him, the chances of him finding Alee and her being alive were signifigantly higher, "Alright. We're going to find out. Let's get some equipment, and we'll go. I can lcok down the mall from the outside, and we can ride the motorcycle there. Do you know how to shoot a gun? I've got plenty in that old shop over there. If not, I'll teach you. Have a little....father daughter time, huh?"

As the words left his lips, he could feel how stupid they were, and Kayci was already upset. Awkwardly he opened his arms and moved to comfort her, wondering if, despite being her father, she would trust him enough to do so, "Here. It'll be alright. We'll find her, I promise. I'll need you to help navigate. You don't mind riding with me, do you?"

Another awkward thought passed through ihs mind. Hadn't he just threatened to shoot her, hang her out for animals, and then threaten to throw her over the side of the second floor railing. Pretty shitty fathering skills.

---------------
Nevada:

As Riley drew close, he watched as the girl got hoisted up into the base. The Corporal helped her up, and then threw the rope down for the boy, "Hey there, kiddo. Don't know if ya' remember me, but I saw ya' back at Carnival. You have fun with the Corporal?"

"Riley? What the hell are you doing here, and who's that?" Robin called from the cave, having situated Haley and sending the rope back down the Christian.

"Ah, the Sarge sent me back with this terrorist lady. Supposed to lock her up in a closet, but I promised it wouldn't be too small. She's got claws-claus...She's afraid'a small places." RIley said, still tripping over the word.

---------------

The Store:

Aaron watched Lucie stick the handgun down her front, as if to hide it. He shook his head. Hadn’t he JUST said he was going up to security to watch the cameras? Christ. Some people didn’t listen. Regardless, he wasn’t about to draw attention to it. It was pretty much irrelevant. In fact, he actually hoped they’d manage to carry every gun with them, and the ammo accordingly. He wondered briefly why she would decide to hide it, but decided he really didn’t care. Probably in case Jessie decided to jump her again, but he’d already talked to her about that….right?

Meanwhile, Jessie watched Jack with an air of growing irritation. So the reason this guy wanted to kill that….Monster, was because she’d had him kill his girlfriend? Thanks a lot ass hole. Nevermind that all of fuckin’ humanity is dead. She shook her head, but looked back at him with understanding, “What kind of support? I want my share of the beating, she killed my brother, whether this Gloria of yours carried it out, she was the one who had ordered it. Now, are we gonna put on a show for the cameras, or not?”

London

"Uh...no, I've never shot a gun," said Kayci. "It'd probably be good if I learned, though, so I'd know how to use some weapon besides my bare hands and my biology textbook." She just kept talking, talking about her father's stupid, crazy plans, if only to keep herself from breaking down. This was the same strategy she used to use while studying--when the burdens seemed like they would certainly crush her, she would proceed robotically until it was safe to relax again.

She closed the gap between them and engaged in sort of an awkward, brief hug. "Are you sure you're safe to drive?" she asked. Again with the robotic forward movement. Don't think, Kayci, just do, no matter what sort of total insanity that entails. "I mean, yeah, there aren't any cops left to issue DUIs, but I'm just saying, I like keeping my brain in my head, and I'm sure you do to. Maybe I should drive. I don't have a class M license, but how hard can it be."

First rule of safety: when drunk, always entrust your vehicle to an inexperienced teenager.

Nevada

Gloria was almost tempted to correct Riley, but she didn't want to sound like a smartass. Then he might throw her in a small closet, after all.

Just as she decided not to be a vocabulary nazi, Christian stepped in with, "Oh, you mean claustrophobic?"

"Uh...yeah," Gloria nodded.

Christian shrugged. "Weird phobias happen to the best of us, I guess. So, what your name, terrorist?"

"Gloria."

"You blast your name in graffiti on the walls?"

"..."

"..."

"Wait, what?" Gloria frowned.

"It's...it's a song, just...nevermind."

Up above, Haley shouted down, "Hurry up, Christian, we haven't got all day to mingle with terrorists!"

"I'm just trying to be friendly, Haley, geeze..."

"What are we, Quakers?"

Christian sighed and secured his harness, wondering why it was that he and Haley kept on switching on and off. He was usually the cautious one, and she more accepting...somehow, though, he was more willing than she to shed his prejudice against terrorists. They hadn't done anything to him--yeah, war was bad, but now that there wasn't really a war, since there wasn't really a world, maybe it was time to let the lines between groups dissolve. That's where it was all headed, anyway. Towards a new era.

An era of what?

Who knew?

The Store

The world is logical, ordered, even in the midst of chaos, but to someone in love, especially with someone dead, it's all a hazy, unstructured mess. Love could redeem, but it could also make you selfish and crazy. So what if the rest of the world was dead? It hardly mattered to Jack.

Even a lovesick crazy had to make concessions, though. "Tell you what," he suggested. "I get the first shot, and you can have the fatal blows. Take as long as you like finishing her off--in fact, the slower, the better."

The Mall:

"I'll be fine after a little target practice, and some coffee. And no, even if you are my daughter, I don't intend on ever letting you drive my bike. Ever." James said with a small smile, "First of all, we need to find a gun that suits you. I like my Savage rifle, but something smaller might do you nicely. I think there are a few sawed off shotguns here, and then there are some handguns. But if you really want to try a rifle, I've got a few of those as well." He didn't tell her he'd sawed them off himself.

He went down and set up some more dummies, reattached the scope, reloaded the clips, and aimed downrange, “We’re going to need to round up some food and then some other supplies, like sun block, bandanas, and sunglasses won’t hurt either. And we’ll definitely need to find you a helmet. I don’t want you splatter across the pavement either. You know what to do in case of a sunspike, right?”

The Store:

“Sounds good to me. Now pick up that pea shooter, and let me see how well you can aim.” She said, sounding like she was the best in the world. She had only managed to hit three out of seven targets, however, and as she reloaded the air soft guns clip, she spilled some of the beads. She was having a lot of trouble because of her crutch, “Son of a bitch.”

Aaron was watching their practice with little interest. He should have been the one out there showing Jack how to shoot. He was the police officer, after all. Jessie was doing an alright job, though, so he didn’t complain. Then, on the horizon, he saw small shapes circling closer. Wolves. Big ones too, “Jessie! Wolves inbound! Get in here!”

Jessie looked up as her name was called over the stores P.A. system. She glanced toward the horizon. The wolves had stopped, hearing his voice, but began to run toward the two as soon as he stopped talking.

Nevada:

Even the kid was smarter than he was, “Yeah, that.” Riley said with a huff. As he watched the Corporal do her work, he wondered briefly what was going to become of all of them. They could only hold out here for so long. Surely someone was left in the world.

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Sgt. Hanson and his men carried the pieces, grumbling about the weight, and how they wished they’d had some trolleys or something. Hanson watched as the sun began to set. He thought about his daughter again, and her….passing.

NEVADA

Aylssa started into a light jog the flickering lights of the small abandoned town seemed to be watching her, she pulled out a radio from her pack "Guys. this is alyssa come in." she stopped in place and waited for an answer. this slience and crackling of the thunder seemed to light the area, just for a moment. she sighed sharply as the cold rain began to fall on her increasing ever so lightly.

"guys i need a evacuation." Aylssa began with a flicker of panic. she groaned and slapped her leg beginning again in the light jog. "what now.."

Robin finished hauling Christian up to the top of the cliff and sent it back down for Gloria when the radio began to hiss with chatter, and a near-by soldier jumped, “Uhm, Corporal, we’ve got chatter on the radio!”

Robin’s heart jumped, “Well, boost the signal and clear it up!”

The radio hissed again, “-uys I need- vacuation-”

“Where is it coming from? Can we get a lock on some coordinates?” Robin asked, momentarily forgetting the rope and simply dropping it, hitting Riley in the head, to which he responded with cursing, “Whoever you are, please state your location! This is the United States Army, we have a safe zone! Say again, please state your location, and we will come get you! We are the United States Army!”

she stopped in place and sighed hearing talk from the radio. "yes! this is sargent Alyssa rodriguez. i need an-" she stopped mid sentence and turned around, her finger still on the button on the radio. she heard what sounded like growling and noticed someone running quickly at her. "oh shit.." she said suprisingly calm. she pulled out her silver bretta and began taking carefully aimed potshot and the persons legs. getting a hit the person fell down.

"what the.." it seemed to get back up and running with a greater speed, she put the radio up to her mouth. "i got bogies! hurry up!!" she fired a shot again which she hoped echoed into the radio and would express just how urgent her situation was. Alyssa threw the radio down and bent to one knee firing a single round right in between the eyes of her target. "Finally.." she reloaded her gun and turned.

As she did another one quickly speared her and knocked her down her guns sliding just out of her reach. she tried to keep her calm and block the creature as it began to thrash and try to bite the poor girl. depertly she tried to reach for her knife. but the creature pinned her down and locked her right arm behind her. "damn, damn, damn, damn!"

The Corporal was mildly surprised to hear a military rank being used, and grabbed up two men near her, “Come on, boys, we got a search and rescue.”

“Ma’am, I’ve isolated the signal. Head three clicks north of here, there should be a small town.”

“Sorry, kiddos, but it looks like I’m heading out. Stay out of trouble!” She rappelled down the side of the mountain, covering the distance in three jumps. Her back-up followed her, and they began to sprint in the direction of the distress signal.

Zarya had spent the last few weeks on the roads, wandering. She'd spent time lost in her mind, lost on the roads, lost in almost over-whelming anger and sadness. She had tried to keep clear of blast zones and cities in fear, instead scavenging and stealing whatever vehicle she could find with a key in it. So far Zarya had found a pick up parked next to a house with the keys conveniently hanging just inside the doorway not far from Watertown, SD. That beaten up old truck had been a complete god-sent running on it's last leg and pilfered gas through half the country.

Sticking to back roads whenever possible had been a good idea, Zarya had decided, once she had taken a major interstate for a short time. Cars and bodies littered everywhere, birds feeding on corpses, constant suspicious movement on the edges of the road making her think she would be ambushed at any moment.

Her only great plan had been to drive south. Zarya had always wanted to see Mexico and for once her desire and her needs coincided. Warmth, abundant water and plant life, some large stretches with few people even before disaster struck. She'd go there and start a farm, live off the land. A farm. After all the trouble and time she had spent trying to escape from a farm and here she was desperately trying to escape to one. It was so typical of life it was almost disgusting.

Weeks on the road had left her with nothing but her own thoughts for the most part and Zarya had gotten to know the darkest parts of her personality rather intimately. The rage of everything that had happened, the confusion, the heart ache of an entire family dead and gone. She had never thought she would survive the end of the world and had certainly never thought of what to do with herself after everyone was gone.

Her truck lasted for such a long time, had done her such amazing service that when it finally clattered to a halt, spewing steam and seizing up Zarya had spent more time crying over it's demise than her own mother's. That rusted red body, cracked windshield, loose muffler, torn and scratchy interior that had at least given her a soft surface to sleep on... It had all become like home when she needed a home the very most.

The truck had broken down not far from Cedar City, Utah. Zarya had wanted to stay away from it but had no real options. She had no transportation, no food, no water. Zarya hit up the first gas station she saw, stealing everything she could carry in her backpack and plastic grocery bags. Lots of water, canned food, a few bags of chips and candy, money removed from the cash register that she had slammed against a wall until it gave up it's loot. It was probably worthless now, but some habits would never die. Her next target had been the local grocery store, but she had found only trouble in there. A man that looked like he had survived the worst the world could throw at him had been in there, half crazed and raving. He had attacked her, clawing and slapping, kicking, biting her hand until she bled. Zarya hadn't been able to understand what he was screaming, could barely hear him over her own screams of pain and terror. She knew better than to go into a city. She knew this would happen.

Zarya had managed to fight her way free of him and onto her feet. Far enough up and away to grab her rifle and slam the butt into his face. She pounded it into his face. It barely slowed him down. She hit him again, aiming for his mouth. Teeth broke and lips split. Blood spilled down his chin. His screams changed tone from rage to pain and Zarya jumped on her chance to take him down. Another slam of the rifle to the face and he went down, breath gurgling softly from a broken nose and bloody welling in his mouth. Her raiding continued then, quickly and with targeted purpose. She had to get some bandages and ointment for her hand. That mouth had been filthy, at best, and she didn't want to die from infection if she could prevent it. She moved fast, panicking at the thought of that man waking up or someone else coming into the store. Zarya had been leaving the store when she heard. A soft, crackling hiss. A voice.

Her heart pounded as she stood frozen in the doorway trying to decide what to do. "...We can provide food, water, and protection from the sun. It’s a harsh world out there. I wonder what they thought, dropping the bombs? I wonder if they thought about what it would be like… Three Weeks Later." The voice sounded so sane, so normal. Zarya desperately wanted to believe it but after the run in from moments before she couldn't make herself. Instead she rooted around the store until she found the small radio. It was home-baked, clearly. Zarya clicked the thing off and stuffed it into her backpack, she didn't want anyone hearing it jabbering and giving her away. It took the whole day of skulking to match a set of keys to a working car, but once she was back on the road the radio was turned back on. She waited for more transmissions to narrow down this Hanson's location, driving slowly towards it. Zarya never reached out to the group of people. This girl had grown wise to the world and had no intention of revealing herself to anyone until she decided they were safe to be around.

Zarya had taken her time getting there, dreading and anticipating seeing people again. Listening to transmissions, trying to get a feel for the group out there and for an opportunity to approach them. That opportunity came in the form of another person seeking help. Worked for her. Over the last few days she'd heard females and males, all sounded sane and safe. It was a massive risk but probably no worse than driving blindly to the middle of nowhere and hoping she could squeak out a living on probably poisoned ground. The cliffs below the caves she'd seen the most activity from were impressive, nothing she could tackle alone. She'd never even seen a cliff before this past week much less climbed one.

Zarya picked up the radio, her stomach tied in knots and heart pounding. Pressing down the button to transmit, she took a deep breath and tried to speak. Nothing came out. Her throat was sore from lack of use. Clearing it brusquely Zarya hit the button again.

"H..hey...hello? Got room for one more or no room left at the inn? I'm out about a mile from the cliffs..."

OOC: Sorry for the length, most of it is just back story.

Hanson, having returned to the base with the rest of the squad and rebuilding the tower had been hard work, but it was worth it. He was finally able to send out a message. He sighed with relief when not long later a voice came over the radio.

“H..hey...hello? Got room for one more or no room left at the inn? I'm out about a mile from the cliffs..."

“This is Sergeant Hanson of the US Army. If you give us a location, we’ll come and get you, ETA about twelve minutes. There’s always more room. If you want, I can have someone stay on the radio with you as we come to get you.”

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Robin approached the town with mild caution, hearing gunshots echoing through the streets. She wondered how far off she was from the VIP. She waved a one guy around the right, and then waved another around the right. She went down the main street, crouching low and keeping out of the line of sight. She didn’t want to get shot on accident.

Zarya breathed a sigh of relief at the familiar voice coming through the hand-held radio. Eyes slid shut for a moment in thought, considering the offer of a nice chat while waiting for rescue. It was an appealing idea but just as she was about to agree to it a scent came to Zarya's nose. Frowning and wrinkling her nose the downsides of conserving water for the past few weeks made their pungent selves known.

"Umm... It's great to hear your voice Sergeant. I have to get somethings ready to go before you all arrive." Her finger lifted off the transmit button for a moment to clear her throat. "I'm just to the west of the little hill out here."

Putting the radio down on the rocky ground Zarya tore into her backpack and pulled out bottles of water and a spare, filthy shirt. Saturating it with water the girl began to scrub furiously at her face and underarms, for the most part just swirling reddish dust around into a wet swirling pattern. All the water and scrubbing in the world wasn't going to help much with the bad smell she knew, so the wet shirt was draped over a rock, empty bottle shoved back into her pack. 12 minutes and several already wasted.

Her rifle was collected and slung over her shoulder, several extra shells going into her pockets. They won't be leaving me defenseless, even if they do offer protection. I'll leave before I let them disarm me. Her thoughts were adamant and bordering on angry. Even with the apparent upturn in her fortunes Zarya continued to be angry at everything from her throbbing, reeking hand to the burning hot sun to wind that would never seemed to cease. Picking up and engaging the radio again Zarya spoke quickly and in a clipped voice.

"I'm ready to go when they arrive."