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Post by Achille on Nov 7, 2012 20:33:29 GMT -6
"'s an Italian name as a matter of fact." Achille said, chuckling a bit. This kind of question wasn't uncommon. After all, even in Italy not many people had the same name as he. "Truth is my old man and my mother immigrated here from Italy. Sicily to be exact. When I say here I don't mean 'here' obviously. I grew up in the Big Apple actually. Damn fine city." Achille's smile turned slightly wistful for a few moments. "But that's a series of tales for another time. After all of this is over with for example. We can discuss it over our victory pasta. My treat."
A sound from outside drew Achille's attention away from their discussion. Cocking his head at an angle, he was able to make out what sounded strangely like the growling of a feral animal coming from somewhere nearby their building. It quickly passed though and Achille didn't give it much thought, assuming it to be just another noise made by the mindless things outside. Returning his attention to Fran, Achille simply shrugged.
"Not sure what that was. Certainly didn't sound human, though thats never very odd given our current situation I suppose." He said, stretching his limbs and limbering himself. "Speaking of our situation, I think it might be about time we move along. Now that the car alarm is gone those things are going to be far more aware of whats going on. Since I'm the one escorting you, do you have any idea what our next course of action should be?"
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Ian
Truly Feared
Posts: 244
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Post by Ian on Nov 7, 2012 22:28:57 GMT -6
Ian listened to the older man's explanation and nodded in agreement. Zacharie was right; their best chances of making it through all of this was to band together. The Medic considered himself lucky to have run into someone who was thinking ahead like that, even if it just so happened to be a RED. If the young man were to disregard their past scuffle, maybe he could consider the Spy not as bad as Eric made him out to be.
It was rather depressing to realize that their 'skill sets' would most likely not be enough to save this town, though. Ian scanned the sidewalks, ones now infested with townsfolk who were longer themselves. He felt bad for them. The warm community of Rogue River never deserved this outcome at all. Now that they were momentarily out of danger and had time to calm down, his scientific instinct began diverting to the 'why'. Why did this happen? What was the cause? And, most importantly, how is it supposed to be contained? Hopefully the answer to these questions could be brought to light in the near future.
About that time, he felt Zach slow the truck down. Ian turned his head towards the windshield for an explanation, and that's when he spotted the figures riding a bicycle as well. His eyes focused on the two for a second, pushing up his glasses to help. And, sure enough, he spotted Eric perched atop what looked like a small basket. He'd been informed that his team was coming into town today to pick him up, as well as do a few other things, but... where were the rest of them?
"Looks like it." He affirmed calmly, making a reach for the door handle. Another good look at the corpses lining the streets, however, stopped him. It wasn't wise to break their safety barrier when they could just as easily drive up to the women and pick them up. He tried to play off the motion by shifting the moving hand to scratch at his forehead. "We should go get them."
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Post by Franciska on Nov 8, 2012 10:52:57 GMT -6
"What now?" Fran looked out the windows, but neither heard nor saw anything out of the ordinary. Oh course, he could probably hear much better than she could ever hope to. She slid of the counter and stretched as well. "Yes, the sooner we get moving the better. I had hoped to run into my companions, but now I think we should go on with out them. I'm sure they can handle things by themselves."
She thought for a moment of how Zacharie was fairing. If he was still alive, which she has little doubt he was, he was most likely a bloody mess and quite upset about it. That's a hurdle she'd have to deal with when she got there. Her eyes landed on the rows of cigarette cartons lined up behind the counter and she ever so briefly thought of grabbing a couple. She quietly shook her head. No, best not encourage that particular habit. Besides, she'd be shocked if he hadn't stolen a box for himself by now.
Fran pressed her face against the glass, looking around for any immediate signs of trouble. Only about four or five zombies that she could see, all currently engaged in terribly interesting activities such as walking in circles, staring at brick walls, and standing blankly in the middle of the street. If they were carful, they shouldn't run into too much trouble. But then, after the wonderful thrill of their last daring escape, she almost wouldn't mind too much. Fran turned to Achille and said in an eager voice, "Shall we then?"
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Post by ruthjims on Nov 8, 2012 19:34:29 GMT -6
"Uhh," Ruth reached in her pocket and pulled out a handful of shells and handed it to Eric. Just barely noticing the truck that had passed them by. "Whoa, hey! I guess we get to ride with the big boys." Ruth motioned for Eric to get off the bike so they could run up to the truck.
She ran up to the passenger side door almost frantically. "Room for two more?" Ruth smiled nervously.
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Post by Eric on Nov 8, 2012 20:05:18 GMT -6
From her perch on the back of the bike, she noticed the truck much sooner then Ruth. It took her a moment to recognize the two men in the front seat, but once she did, Eric was torn between being incredibly happy, and becoming overcome with rage. Why did Ian have to team up with him of all people? The last thing Eric wanted to do was try and work together with that goddamn spy. She was so focused on her intense hatred, that she barely noticed the ammo being thrown at her.
"Wait I have nowhere to put the-"
But the soldier had already abandon the bike to flag down the truck. Oh well. Gather the shells as best she could, Eric followed behind her.
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Zacharie
Truly Feared
The Proxy
Posts: 247
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Post by Zacharie on Nov 8, 2012 20:21:21 GMT -6
He eased the truck to a stop as Ruth ran up to the passenger's side window, he then turned his attention to Eric. First inspection told him that she'd been in a few scuffles herself. Additionally, what was with the samurai sword? Zacharie didn't want to ask, scouts were known for using whatever they could get their hands on in a fight after all. He'd leave it at that. She also looked pretty upset, it was difficult to tell why at first. Maybe it was because soldier had dumped a bunch of shotgun shells on her? But no, Zach understood pretty quickly, he wasn't too pleased to see her either. What choice did the two mutual enemies have?
Zacharie simply nodded to her with a nonchalant expression and motioned to the bed of the truck with his thumb. "If you were on your way to that big plume of smoke you would be wise to hop in too." As he spoke the surrounding zombies were becoming increasingly aware of their presence. Moaning and snarling, they gradually turned towards the big, red loud thing and began to move towards it. If the two mercenaries didn't get in right away they were going to have more than just two new passengers.
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Post by ruthjims on Nov 8, 2012 20:33:32 GMT -6
Ruth was ecstatic that Zacharie found them, whether it was intentional or not. She looked to Eric who was further away than she'd though. Coaxing Eric towards the truck, Ruth grabbed the gun from her so Eric could fix herself up and get to the truck.
"Oh poop," Ruth looked around at their impending doom trying to get in the truck as fast as possible. Hopping into the bed of the truck, Ruth wasn't really prepared for what could possibly happen. She gave a hand to help Eric up all the while looking at the moaning, hungry things closing in around them.
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Post by Achille on Nov 8, 2012 22:05:31 GMT -6
Finished with his stretching, Achille grinned and nodded, heading over to where Fran stood. "I'm ready whenever you are. " Fully fed, rested, and now with a renewed lust for blood (or ashes as it were), Achille was more than ready to head back out into the decayed town and bash some skulls. Or light them on fire. Either or really. Speaking of skulls being bashed, Achille wondered if his colleagues were doing their own share of skull smashing. Eric would probably be enjoying herself to some extent and Ian... well Ian was probably holed up somewhere waiting for someone to come by. The apocalypse took all sorts Achille assumed.
A growling off in the distance went unheard as a sudden pounding began from the opposite side of the building, indicating that at least one of the creatures shambling about was aware of their presence.
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Ian
Truly Feared
Posts: 244
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Post by Ian on Nov 8, 2012 23:52:18 GMT -6
Ian was about to offer up his seat in the truck to the woman who had approached his window, but Zacharie instructed them to the back instead. He figured they'd be safe enough back there; at least they were both armed. Eric seemed to have snagged a fancy-looking sword from somewhere, while the RED Soldier sported a trusty shotgun. Looking at all of their weapons only made the Medic wish he'd been more prepared.
...But how does one prepare for something like this, anyway?
It didn't take long for his sense of worry to outweigh his sense of fear. Rolling down the window, Ian unbuckled and positioned himself to sit on the vehicle's door -- now he had a clear view of the truck's bed. As long as there were no relatively large bumps in the road or sharp left turns, he wouldn't be thrown out on his back. Maybe. Dangerous or not, the young man wanted to assess a few things... even if the surrounding hostiles wouldn't give them a chance for a more suitable situation.
Keeping one hand on the door and another on his cap, Ian looked at the two females. He didn't know the Soldier in the slightest, but he was more than glad to see that they had both fared mostly alright. Eric didn't look too happy, and he assumed it was because of his companion -- but hopefully nothing would come from it.
"Uh, hey." He attempted to grab their attention with a rather serious tone. "Is there anyone else we should be worrying about?" Ian had no idea how many other mercenaries were still fighting in the town, or where they were exactly. Maybe Eric or Ruth did? Any kind of information would be better than staying completely in the dark, and he wanted to at least try and save as many of their teammates as they could. It might even help them get to the bottom of this bizarre outbreak.
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Post by Eric on Nov 9, 2012 19:56:06 GMT -6
Eric hauled herself into the truck bed, ignoring the spies comment. A crowd had begun to gather around the truck, but it didn't bother her. They could simply mow them down with weapons and the truck itself. As she was settling against the right side of the truck, Ian called over to them, and she now noticed his new position halfway out the window. Christ almighty. Was he out of his mind? He might as well hang a sign hanging from his back saying "hey weird cannibal people: just grab me right off the truck".
"Well, Achillie, and I think Taikia or whatever is here too," she replied in an irritated tone, "now what the fuck are you doing? I hope you aren't actually going to stay like that while Zacharie's driving, unless you are actually trying to kill yourself. In which case: good start."
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Post by Franciska on Nov 9, 2012 20:38:32 GMT -6
It took a moment for Fran to pull the shelf from in front of the door and check to make sure the coast was clear. "Excellent. Let's be on our way then." Holding the glass door open for Achille to follow behind her, she made her way into the convenience store's small parking lot. Their sudden appearance immediately caught the attention of the few undead in the area, who began sluggishly making their way towards the pair. Best to run now before they had a chance to build up their numbers again.
"This way." She shouted as she circled around the convenience store and down the side street, heading further away from the plume of black smoke rising in the distance. As her feet pounded the pavement, she grunted in annoyance at a dull pain in her ankle. Damn it, she must have stepped on it wrong during the last chase. Once this was over, she really should make a point to get out and exercise more often.
She continued down the street, looking back every now and again to make sure Achille was still trailing behind. If they could at least make it to where she parked the old beat up truck from the base, it should be smooth sailing from there. Now if only she could remember where she parked the darn thing.
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Zacharie
Truly Feared
The Proxy
Posts: 247
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Post by Zacharie on Nov 9, 2012 21:18:46 GMT -6
While everyone was getting settled in their spots Zacharie took the opportunity to light up another cigarette. He moved as quickly as he could manage, grabbing the case hanging out of his coat, lighter from his pant pocket and taking that first drag. By the time he was done the two jumped into the truck bed, shaking the truck a bit as they walked around. Perfect timing.
“Everyone who does not want to get whiplash should get themselves settled…” Zacharie raised his voice so all of the other mercenaries could hear him. “Now!” With both hands firmly on the wheel, he put a lead foot down on the gas pedal. The truck lurched forward suddenly and began screeching past the growing group of zombies that were starting to form around them. There were much more here than the parking lot, maybe twice as much. The truck brushed past a group of them, knocking most of them to the ground and all over each other. He wasn’t going to chance colliding with one of them head on, not at the speed he was going.
Stopping to pick up the other two turned them a bit off course; he had to take a turn down the next street to be facing the smoke again. As he sped down the streets for some time until he could see the plume rising from the next block over. His heart raced a bit as he caught a glimpse of a familiar vehicle parked on the side of the road. Was that one of the trucks from the sawmill? He eased on the gas a bit as he took another turn, the next street over revealed two people moving at a very non-zombie speed. The truck eased to a stop as he squinted to look; sure enough it was just who he was looking for.
Well, one of them at least.
"Oi!" He leaned out the truck window and called out to the Fran and Achille, honking the car horn a few times as well. He had little time to be eloquent about getting their attention; it was obvious they were attempting to lose a pack of zombies as well. Zacharie reached in to the back seat and tugged on one of the door's handles, popping it open for the two.
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Post by Achille on Nov 9, 2012 23:03:53 GMT -6
Achille felt good as he kept pace with Fran, a small smile never leaving his face. He had woken up that very morning to find the entire town in a state of panic. The small hotel in which he had spent the night had been empty aside from a few of the shambling things that had taken the place of the townspeople. They hadn't been all too troublesome to deal with, though he had nearly had a chunk bitten out of him the first time he had approached one.
Now here he was, jogging alongside (well behind actually) a woman who seemed to appreciate his violent tendencies and even seemed capable of handling herself without needing his help all the time. Not only was he able to bash as many skulls as he wanted, his opponents for the time being didn't seemed possessed of any desire to retreat or surrender. Their sole desire appearing to be nothing more than killing Achille and he wouldn't have had it any other way. Truly today was a wondrous day.
So you could imagine his slight disappointment when he heard a vehicle honking at them followed shortly thereafter by said vehicle pulling up to a stop near them.
"Someone you know?" He called out to Fran, not entirely sure who or what was driving the vehicle.
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Ian
Truly Feared
Posts: 244
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Post by Ian on Nov 9, 2012 23:16:57 GMT -6
Ian frowned at Eric's remarks, but it quickly turned into a light-hearted chuckle. "As long as you guys are fine... I'll be fine. I just needed to know if anyone else was around." The Medic knew positioning himself that way was a really stupid thing to do, but he was only worried about his friends' well-being. He didn't spend any more time thinking about it though, instead opting to heed the Scout's words and getting back into the safety of the truck. Good thing, too -- because the moment he began to lean forward into his seat, Zacharie stepped on the gas pedal.
Ian was barely able to resist being propelled across the truck as the lightly smoke-scented vehicle screeched over the pavement. He adjusted himself and hastily rolled up the window just as they began brushing up against some of the nearby zombies. Close call. Straightening his glasses and cap, he buckled himself in for the ride once more.
They sat in silence for a bit -- well, at least he and Zach did. The Spy was heavily preoccupied with getting them all through the town safely, and Ian didn't want to bother him. However, he did notice the second set of wayward individuals at the same time as the older man. This time, neither of them were unfamiliar to him; they were Achille and RED's Medic. One in a state of urgency and the other... well, at least someone was having a positive outlook on this whole mess.
Ian was just glad to see that more of the mercenaries had survived.
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Post by Eric on Nov 9, 2012 23:43:09 GMT -6
Eric's relief at seeing Ian duck back inside the car was quickly overshadowed buy the truck lurching forward, sending her into a brief panic as she struggled to cling the side of the truck. Was that goddamn spy trying to throw them off? Probably not- in fact, most certainly not, but that was the only conclusion that came to the mind of a spiteful little scout. She made a mental note to be angry at the spy at a more convenient, however, and instead focused on watching the people passing by the truck.
It was almost surreal to see the hordes of undead wondering the streets.
There were only a small handful of infected people this morning, but it seemed now that the cities entire population had turned. It occurred to her that if that was the case, the disease must be highly contagious, by why hadn't any of them been infected? It seemed highly unlikely that they all just happened to be immune. Maybe it was something else that set it off, like the town water being the cause. Maybe. It still seemed like an odd coincidence. She would have pondered the question longer, but by the sounds of Zach's yelling, they had found more teammates.
Eric jumped up and leaned over the other side of the truck to get a look at who they had found. Achille! Amazing. She hadn't expected him to last a moment by himself surrounded by the cannibal peo- oh. She was with him too. Goddamn it. She just couldn't have just one thing, could she.
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