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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 2, 2012 11:38:58 GMT -8
Stu's eyes were covered in a pair of white shades, a Caribbean style fedora placed casually on his head to shade his fair skin from the intense blaze of the sun. He had a cigarette dangling off his lip in a carefree style that made him look way cooler than he really was.
He carried only his backpack and a jacket slung over his shoulder as he walked down the street. People scurried about, but life looked way different. What used to be a vibrant community full of good looking girls was now a run down slum full of apocalypse survivors. Sure, life wasn't terrible, but it wasn't anywhere near as good as it used to be.
He didn't stick around to talk to anyone, instead moving through the paltry crowds without so much as being taken notice of. Well, he was sure that's not true, but few seemed to be bothered by his presence, which spoke well of his name here; forgotten.
He looked around for any insignia that might show him where he was, or who was in charge. Unfortunately it seemed as though there was some ruling body, but it was disjointed, if not completely fractured. He didn't really care about any of that. He only cared about one thing.
Del.
He continued moving amongst the people, but eventually he grew exasperated. The only thing he found was a crudely drawn crow on one building, and that building was empty when he had checked it out. He drank deep from a canteen he had in his bag, but not too much; he didn't know where he'd be able to refill again, and he was cautious since his trek across the states.
He had seen a lot. Too much, really, and he had done things he wasn't proud of, both recently and in his past. His entire life had been one big mixture of good and bad, but he didn't care about that. All he cared was making sure she was okay, and bringing her back to England.
He had a surviving community there; well, it was surviving. He had planned a return trip that will go through the Panama Canal, something he knew still operated; he'd have to pay for it somehow, but he would get through it.
But first, her.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 2, 2012 14:46:18 GMT -8
“All right, you lot! From the top! BO KATA NO ICHI!”
As one, the six Crows shifted their sticks from Sentry Position at the right side of their bodies to the left and began spinning, turning the stick over twice before shifting it back to the right, spinning it, and then switching to the left again. After the second spin on the right side of the body, the group would sweep downwards at an invisible opponent’s legs, shift their weight back on their supportive leg and make the same cut towards what should have been the face. Next, they stepped forward at a forty-five degree angle to the left, feet together and hands touching in the middle of the staff. An avoidance. From this position, they would thrust out with their lead hands, turning them over to create a spiral that was made for a deep stab through armour. Bringing their right leg back behind their left, they would bring the staff down for another cut towards the legs, bring the staff up beside their faces on the right, drop the left hand and grasp the staff beneath the left, and then bring the stick down over their heads for another slash at the legs. Then they would lift their left leg up in the air as well as raise their staff above their heads – another avoidance – and then slam the foot back down at the same time as their staff, cutting down at the neck of a fallen and nonexistent enemy.
At least, that’s how it was supposed to go.
Delilah watched with a pained expression as her group of six struggled with the six-foot stick in their hands. They were getting better, oh yes. They were much better than when they started three hours before . But better does not a good spear-man make. No sir. There was only one out of the group that was performing at a level that Delilah could consider decent. Everyone else was, as the expression went, shitting the bed.
“Okay, stop, stop….” she held out her hands pleadingly, walking forward. Starting on the left, she thought how best to advise and correct their work without killing them. She took the hand of a skinny, bald man on the left and adjusted his elbow.
“You’re favouring one end of the staff too much, Nick. I know that the whole point of using spear is to create distance and give reach, but you’re creating openings with how much of the stick you’re using to strike. Plus, the interchanges with the hands gets slower and slower the farther back your hands are on the stick. Leave the same length as three quarters of your arm behind you when striking. Wakarimasu ka? <Do you understand?>
The former skin-head nodded once with a determined set to his jaw. “Wakarimasu.” <Understood>
“Genki.” <Good> She moved on to the person beside him, a muscular and hard faced black gentleman who frowned at Delilah as she approached. He still didn’t particularly like her, and she knew it. He didn’t like taking orders from a woman and he had liked it even less when she had spurned his advances and then proceeded to help him kick his own ass when he challenged her. But he listened to her direction and every now and again she could swear that he addressed her with some semblance of respect. She’d take what she could get. She offered him a warm smile that fooled him not at all.
“Nigel, you need to move your feet when you turn the staff during the first part of the kata. That’s why you keep winding up off balance when you do the downward cuts. The only reason you’re not hitting yourself in the face with your stick is because you’re good at interchanging your hands and pivoting at the hip. It’s essentially Ichi-monji no kamae (literally, “first position/stance”) . Try that, will you?”
Looking her dead in the eye, Nigel nodded his head curtly and said nothing. His eyes followed Delilah as she moved down the line, only facing forward when she was out of sight in perfect sentry position.
And so it went that Delilah corrected and nitpicked her way through the remaining four people in her group. She made a joke at Talon’s expense for his inability to handle a stick (he had whacked himself in the shin during the spinning), argued with Cain over the validity of using spear in the modern world, ignored Birch as he stared blatantly down her shirt while she helped him adjust his hands (the former actor was actually the best one out of the group with bo work; he just liked trying to make Delilah uncomfortable) and reminded Heather for the UMPTEENTH TIME that this was a six-foot staff, not a parade baton, so stop twirling it in your fingers because every time you do, it goes flying out of your hands and whacks you in the head.
Her left eye twitching from irritation, Delilah moved to the front of the group again and stood with her hands behind her back, looking over each of them. She was proud of them in spite of herself. They had been loyal to Akechi-sama when she had discovered them, but they were problematic towards anyone but him. They had been low-life’s, abusers, drug dealers and that sort of people before the apocalypse. Now they had a fresh start and they were trying to make the most of it, the operative word here being try.
She pinched the bridge of her nose between her forefinger and thumb with a sigh.“Let’s take this run through a little slower, but don’t stop when you reach the end, just start again. I’ll tell you when to stop. Don’t just move your hands, move your body. Aaand, go!”
“Boss,” hissed a voice on the Bluetooth attached to her ear.“Boss, do you copy?”
Delilah put her hand to her ear and turned from the group, frowning. This was the seventh member of her team, scouting in the Barker territory adjacent to the Crows’ area. What is it now? “I copy Sergei. What have you got for me?”
“A new face is heading West through Barker territory towards the base. Travel worn, blue hair, sunglasses, fedora, male, roughly 25-30 years old. The locals look a little nervous when he passes them. He doesn’t appear to be from around here.”
Delilah’s eyebrows dove downwards, creasing her brow in concern. She reached into her pocket and started clicking the lock on her knife restlessly. “Can you ascertain that this man is not a Barker solider or experiment from your position?”
“Negative. The locals are avoiding him, but he’s dressed in civilian clothes. I honestly couldn’t tell you what he is for sure. All I know is that he’s headed for our territory. He appears to be looking for something; he’s been all over the place, but he keeps heading West.”[/i]
Her frown deepened. If this person was part of Barker’s group and was headed into Crow’s territory, this needed to be dealt with immediately. If he was just a civilian looking for a safe haven, the Crow’s were certainly more than willing to provide that in exchange for service. As Public Liaison and Domestic Officer, this was exactly her jurisdiction. She was quiet for a moment as she looked over the line of people spinning their staves before coming to a decision. “First, maintain your position and tail him. Don’t give him any reason to run or to fight and stick to the roof tops--”
“Tvoyu mat', woman, it’s like 100 degrees out here and you want me on the roofs?!”[/i]
“Don’t interrupt me, Sergei. The sun is bright today, he’s less likely to see you if you’re careful. Just see where he goes and what he does and keep me posted. Second, get a hold of Tai and…” she paused for a moment as she thought it over. “’Unfettered’ too, if he’s available. If this is an unknown Barker solider, I’m gonna need Tai to back me up and maybe we can capture him, take him in for questioning, see what he knows…we’ll need ‘Unfettered’ to conduct at least part of the questioning if we can. If not, we can do this without him. I’d hate to put a Zero at risk. If this is a civilian, however, then we need to get him to safety territory as soon as possible and assess him. We don’t know if Barker’s forces have been tailing him or not, but we can’t take that chance, so I’ll need Tai, and a driver too. From your report it sounds like he’s come from a ways East. He might have useful information, so get in touch with “Unfettered” for that too. Tell him I understand if he can’t come, but give him the assessment of the situation anyway. Copy?”
“Copy, boss. Anything I should tell Tai?”[/i]
Delilah grinned and nodded her head, well aware that Sergei couldn’t see her. “Give him the run down and mention that I asked for him personally. We haven’t had any missions together yet, so it’ll be fun. If you can’t get a hold of ‘Unfettered’ on your own, ask him if he’ll be able to. Also request a driver; we may need to make a fast get away. Tell him to meet me in fifteen minutes out front.”
“Copy. I’ll relay that to them as you requested. Over and out.”[/i]
Delilah removed her hand from the ear piece and she turned back to the group of six behind her. “Okay guys, that’s enough for today. Training is same time same place tomorrow and we’ll work on Bo kata no Ni. Dismissed. Not you, Talon: I have an extra task for you.”
The portly man jogged up to Delilah, sweating profusely from the workout he had just endured, his gray t-shirt clinging to his torso. “What’s going on?”
“ I have some business to take care of and it’s your day for one-on-one training with me, right?” she waited for his reluctant nod. “Thought so. You’ll be watching Oliver for me while I’m away.” She looked over at the white haired boy playing in the corner of the training room with a little stick of his own. He had been trying to practice the kata as well, but he had gotten bored and just decided to pretend beating up an army of evil ninjas with it instead.
“WHAT?!” He cried incredulously. “No, no way. Look, I love the kid, he’s cute and whatever, but I am not a goddamned baby-sitter, woman! No, no, no no…no…no?” His voice began to trail off as he noticed the First’s face steadily become darker and darker with fury. He stared at her warily for a moment, her unblinking expression making him nervous. Then he sighed, relenting. “I mean, fine, okay, whatever. I’d be happy to...m’am.”
Delilah’s face broke into a wide grin. “Good, thank you Talon. Believe it or not, this is actually part of your training. Watch him closely, how he moves and reacts to things. I want you to emulate that.”
“You want me to emulate a four year old boy?” he repeated skeptically.
“Yep. Have fun!” She waved cheerfully and jogged over to where Oliver was wailing on a punching bag with the stick, scooping him up in her arms and spinning him around and making ’woooosshhhhhh’ sounds. By the time she set him back down, he was giggling manically, stumbling around due to dizziness. She knelt beside him and gave him a quick peck and a warm hug. “Mama has a couple of things to do, but she’ll be back soon, okay love?”
“Wakarimasu!”
She chuckled and hugged him tightly again. “That’s my boy! Talon is going to watch you until I get back. Be good for him: he’s a bit of a cry baby.”
“HEY!”
“Heeheehee!!”Oliver giggled. Delilah beamed down at him, suddenly loathe to leave the apple of her eye.
“I love you, little man.” She planted a loving kiss on his forehead, got to her feet and left, jogging briskly out of the room and leaving Oliver to terrorize the ever loving crap out of Talon.
As she ran, Delilah would unclip her hair, and then pull it back again, straighter and tighter before clipping it back into place. She patted herself down, ensuring she had all her knives on her as was necessary. She checked her jeans, made sure they were tight and not loose, looked down to ensure her boots were laced properly. Her tank-top was still a mess from the last bike she had repaired, but there wasn’t really much she could do about that. She wished momentarily that she had brought a jacket: the locals tended to get nervous around any one with a large amount of scars...but then she remembered that the day was hot and the sun was still high in the sky and thought the better of it. She gradually slowed down as she exited the building, looking around for her ride and her backup
If and when that would arrive, Delilah would jump in the back of whatever vehicle they were using – hopefully a van – on the passenger side. If “Unfettered” and Tai were both in attendance, she would greet them with warm smiles and an “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything by asking you to be here, but I have a feeling this is important. Thanks for coming.” She would then give a report on what she knew of the situation, constantly checking in with Sergei who would have nothing new to report aside from the target heading northwest.
If only Tai could make it, she would get in the van much the same way and thank him for coming on such short notice as well as whomever else happened to be in the van. She would then quickly outline the situation as they drove, keeping tabs on Sergei as they went.[/size]
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OOC:
@ Mikey: I took a little liberty of assuming you’d be involved in this so early on, so I apologize if that’s not the case. If you’d like me to edit my post, say the word I have my own team for driving,, but I wanted to involve you as best as I could.
For sanity’s sake, let’s say that this will take place before the rally, but after Delilah’s finished running around talking to the citizens to get it organized. Also, if you need to RP something an NPC of mine said, (like Sergei) go ahead and do it. I don't mind in the least.
@ Justin: =D?!
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"Tuvlan"
Soldier
[M:545]
"Smash? x_^?"
Posts: 370
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Post by "Tuvlan" on Apr 5, 2012 10:37:03 GMT -8
OOC: Due to time constraints and the request that I absolutely post within the week... I apologize for the following... the next post'll be better than this.A Personal Touch It wasn't often, but on days like this "Unfettered" enjoyed getting involved in the patrols themselves. He had taken a small murder of Crows out with him, all of them dressed up in raggedy clothes, to blend in with the crowds. Moving from building to building, they were trying to keep tabs of the radio but were in a deadzone.
With a black bandana to cover his mouth and to tie back his hair while otherwise in his typical attire, "Unfettered" sat out on a hole on a wall t survey the scene.
Reconnaissance.
Their goal here was to take a glance at the Barker patrols and the attitudes of the people...
...He wouldn't know it, but he would be in plain sight for someone if they looked to the right at the broken down 7-11. But the German, so covered in the dirt and dust that had blown up from little gusts of wind onto his grayed out shirts might be slightly unrecognizable... except for the few small strands of white hair and the eye patch over his left eye.* * * * * * * * * * * * * With typical salutations, Tai would bring along Roger (a Militia veteran, handpicked to be the driver for this) to Delilah's desired meeting location and would jump out in his typical gear."...Well, the fuck's the problem?" he'd smile.OOC: Gotta go, errands. *WAVES*
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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 8, 2012 18:44:02 GMT -8
((I'm so excited))
The wind kicked up a dust devil that caused Stu to turn his head, covering his face with his arm and coughing, immediately running towards the nearest shelter, throwing himself into the broken down building, on the opposite corner of the 7-11. It would be pure chance that his eye's happened over the motionless form of the man, a jagged rock in the blown out wall that was the opposing building.
Normally Stu would've brushed it off, but the man was staring down the street, and no doubt with Stu's quite loud stumbling into the opposing building the man would now be looking at him. The eyes of the man were shocking enough, since eyes didn't describe him; one eye, to be exact, that all too familiar eye patch. This could be a coincidence, however the shock of white hair tufted out of the facial and head wrappings all but confirmed it for Stu.
Small world, huh?
Stu stood up and dusted himself off, waiting for the devil to pass. It was gone moments later, and the figure across the street was now standing and taking its few hesitant footsteps forward. Stu wouldn't be easily recognizable at a distance, due toa different hair color and a different way of carrying himself, however he pitch black eyes would betray him, as he removed the glasses that covered them.
He took his own steps towards the man, and then bounded, leaping over rubble and towards him. He flung himself into the approaching man's arms and gripped him tight. Fists bunched up in ragged cloth as he grasped and held the man he thought he may never see again, his one closest friend while in LA, after all the debacles. The man who had put him on the right path.
Unfettered. Him.
His eyes welled with happiness, and tears streamed down them quickly, refusing to let go of the embrace. However, he realized quickly that the air grew somewhat tense, and pulled himself with a laugh, one long finger wiping away each eye's tears in succession.
"My friend... It's... It's been so long."
Stu walked over to a piece of rubble and plopped himself down, short of breath. If Unfettered was alive... There was a good chance that Del was too.
No, don't get ahead of yourself.
"Unfettered... Is... is Del... Did she...?"
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 9, 2012 7:55:31 GMT -8
(OOC : –flails-
-FLAILS SO HARD-)
So, “Unfettered” hadn’t been able to come, huh? Alas for that. He was a busy man, after all. She grinned at Tai as he jumped out of the van and strode up to meet him, clapping him on the shoulder, “Excellent timing, glad you could make it.” She’d peer around Tai’s shoulder and give Roger a wave.
"...Well, the fuck's the problem?"
Delilah would slip past Tai and walk quickly towards the van, motioning for him to follow. “There’s someone we haven’t seen before wandering around Barker territory as we speak; Male, mid-twenties, blue hair, fedora, sunglasses…definitely doesn’t fit the picture of a civilian these days, am I right? The locals look nervous when he passes them, so we can assume that he’s either entirely new to the area or that he’s familiar to them, and not in a good way. Sergei has also mentioned that he looks like he’s been out on the road for a certain period of time and he keeps heading West, so I am more inclined to believe the former.
“We can’t be sure if he’s being tailed by Barker forces at this point in time, given our limited resources, but it’s safe to assume that he’s been spotted. He stands out something fierce. If he is a civilian, we need to extract and debrief the target, preferably at a safe house. He might have information from outside of California, if he’s come that far. It’s a long shot, but it’s worth the risk.
“However, if he’s not a civilian and he is one of Barker’s…” Delilah allowed herself a wicked little smile here, blue eyes dancing with diabolical glee as she turned to look at Tai, fingering the hilt of her knife. “He might have some information that could be useful to us, at any rate. And that, my profane friend, is where you would come in. We haven’t done this sort of thing together before: thought it might be fun.”
Delilah would slide the door to the van open and slip in the back, letting Tai take shotgun if he so chose. “In summation: Find and extract target, determine his alliances (if he has any), debrief and, if applicable, offer him sanctuary in Crows’ territory. Otherwise…” she smiled again and let that speak for itself. She buckled herself into the van and tapped the Bluetooth on her ear. “Status report.”
“Wind is picking up…a storm might be coming in off the ocean. Target is headed North on Cherry Avenue, heading for the Signal Hill area. I’ve been tailing him so far, but if I go on, I’ll be entering a known dead-zone. Orders?”
She would raise her head too look at Roger, “Target is on Cherry Avenue, North-bound. Get us there,” she turned to attention back to Sergei. “Standby for ten minutes, then follow. Keep your eyes out for Barker troops, do you copy?”
“Copy, m’am.”[/i]
Nodding to herself, Delilah sat forward in her seat, eyes moving quickly over the scenery, absorbing it, They wouldn’t be very far into the drive when the blue-tooth crackled again with the Russian man’s voice.
“Target headed West on E. Anaheim Street, no sign of Barker or patrols. Prepare for radio silence.”[/i]
She would relay that info to Roger and Tai before going back to the blue-tooth, “Copy. Good luck.”
“You too---ah, derqmo!”[/i]
Delilah frowned, “What is it?”
“Target lost…a dust devil kicked up. I can’t see a thing.”
Delilah glanced out the window and noted that the dirt and from the ruins around them had begun to blow around as well. She nodded. “Maintain current position outside of dead-zone, we’ve arrived. Roger, pull into that alley up ahead.”
The moment the van came to a stop, Delilah would leap out the door, hands on her knives as she glanced around herself apprehensively. Seeing no one, she would look around at Tai, her expression serious. “Let’s head back down the alley and slip in to the crowd, try and find this guy. If you see him, tail him and I’ll go around so we can head him off, and vice versa. Signal by…I don’t know, change the way you walk.” she shrugged, knowing that was weird, but it was the best way to let a signal go unnoticed. She glanced over at Roger, “Sergei has flares he’s supposed to use if he sees any unfriendlies coming to pay us a visit. He’s on the roof. If you see one, assume protocol.” Turning away, she would turn towards Tai again, relaxing only a little. ”You ready?”
At his word, they would move. [/size]
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Post by "Unfettered" on Apr 16, 2012 16:40:44 GMT -8
One Step Closer To The Whole There were many things that "Unfettered" had come to just accept in the world. One reason why was out of principle---who was he to judge how the events that unfolded around him played out? The second was more practical: by accepting the situation, it allowed him to react much more quickly. There wasn't much that could actually surprise the German these days.
However, the shuffling of a man, so in view, so in plain sight, more or less strutting down the road, caught his attention easily. This figure deceptively perceived at first glance as not concerned at all with his surroundings, casual white shades covering those empty, black sockets he called eyes. Blue hair was scruffily tucked underneath that fedora, as though to portray the irregular protagonist of a Hollywood Blockbuster just discovering his new burnt out world for the first time. California was naturally a desert, and the approaching figure gave off a few after-images of himself in the sizzling sun, strutting out of the German's imagination and into reality. This man was such a familiar, admired sight that it almost should have not been anything of consequence. Surely it couldn't be."...Mein gott..."On cue, the blustering wind passed by and the man in the distance would continue approaching. More hesitantly. Their eyes would meet and the unmistakable black holes-for-eyes were revealed for certain as the man took off his sun glasses. There was an air of confidence in this man that was both new but ever so deserving and fitting for this man.
"Unfettered" lips cracked into a smile.---
---The man suddenly bounded and leapt towards him, "Unfettered" opening up his arms, taking a step back as the figure hurdled himself into his grasp. He was pushed back slightly, as the man impacted into his chest, hugging him so tightly, as if the German himself were a mirage to disappear in an instant. Stu would feel the man's long, strong arms stretch over his back, gripping him just as tightly, his fingers stretching and tugging over the man's snug-fitting skin. The German's eye was wide, his mouth gaping. Air could barely enter in or out.
Real? This was real?"Mein gott... mein gott...
"...Mein gott..." It took a moment for "Unfettered" to realize it, but a stream had silently begun flowing from his eye, his left socket aching in pain at the overwhelming sensations.
...In the silence that began to brew, Stu tactfully peeled himself away, laughing? Crying?"My friend... It's... It's been so long."The German, however, remained frozen in his surprise. His... relief. Realizing what he felt, the German began to just stand there, mumbling... holding the man's shoulders for a moment with limp strength, his eye shut as though to stem the flood.
Not everyone out of his gaze was dead.
The German would remain silent for a few moments, before clapping the man's shoulders and then fall to dangle at his sides, managing a real, vulnerable smile."Vat took du so long?" he tried to laugh, bringing up his left hand to rub away the drying moistness from the side of his face. He walked over to sit on the opposing side of a rusted, steel chair, letting it clatter across the broken floor to sit facing his compatriot, still recovering. He would notice Stu's shortness of breath and reach into his pocket, pulling out a bottle that had been sitting there rather uncomfortably. The bottle would be offered silently."Unfettered... Is... is Del... Did she...?""...Huh... Del?" the German asked, slowly recovering his wits in the intense atmosphere."Oh, du mean Delilah?" realizing the rather familiar, affectionate name of the go-to engineer. He smiled, nodding, not thinking too hard."Oh, jajaja, she's fine. Del und quite a few uzzers of ze core group, actually, from vat Ich understand---
"Vy...?"It took the German a moment to realize the nature of Stu's question. And in the few seconds the man thought on it, the more the German began to put a few missing pieces of the past few months together.
Delilah had a kid. Stu, with urgency, was asking for...
The seriousness on the German's face was crooking itself into a suspicious smile.
There would be so much to talk about.* * * * * * * * * * * * * OOC: Not copying everything for obvious length reasons.Tai was the grinning fool, but as Roger looked at his commanding officers, he saw the differing glint that Tai wore on his face to when he was in comfortable company. For one, Tai's razor teeth were visible. His pupils were smaller due to the sunlight, but there was an eerie air of what could easily be mistaken for cockiness in his confident demeanor. In the exposure of the elements, out here on the field was a very scary, very serious Tai. The man nodded his head and silently absorbed, processed, and reprocessed the information that Delilah gave him to chew on, and only kept grinning as he allowed some of his attention to be deferred away to the troops that Delilah was training.
Some unpleasantness entered his eye for a second, viewing the air of complaints that no longer filled the air, but coolly returned his full attention to Delilah, otherwise rather pleased with the overall successes she had been scoring."Yes, ma'am, it's fuckin' understood," he replied both satisfied as well as giving Delilah's newfound rank the recognition it damn well deserved. He popped back into the car, teeth flashing, his voice naturally entering into a harsh bark."YOU HEARD THE FUCKIN' FIRST CROW. LET'S MOVE, ROGER.""Cherry Avenue, north bound... ETA fifteen minutes." was the deadpan response.
Tai would strap himself in, and Roger would wait a good five seconds for everyone to do similarly before he began hauling the van towards their destination. The two Militia veterans were silent, silently listening, Roger updating his driving with differing routes as broken roads and obstacles came across their way.
Upon their arrival, the back doors would be kicked open as they opened up into an empty alleyway. Tai would slowly and deliberately climb out after Delilah looked at him, giving him the all clear, pulling out something from underneath the seat and handed it to Delilah, pulling out one for himself.
He'd begin stripping himself down to the boxers in the middle of the van and began putting on a black shirt, a white poncho, and some jeans---dressing according to the remnants of the county that were left to fend for themselves in the corresponding area. The man was very unabashed about his body and wouldn't even blink twice if Delilah did the same in front of him."It's fuckin' game time," the man would state a little more quietly, with a lead pipe hidden underneath his poncho, down the middle of his jeans."Let's fuckin' move out. Roger, standby."Tai would slam the doors shut, as he pulled a bandana to cover his mouth, keeping out the dust.
Delilah would get a wink and a nod, as Tai prepared himself to follow after her lead. |
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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 16, 2012 17:19:53 GMT -8
Stu listened intently as the man questioned him, and then with some embarrassment as his face cracked into a smile. His own face was one of pure exhaustion mixed with relief; every burden he had carried from England had just been lifted, besides seeing her himself. He knew she was alive.
She was alive.
Immediately he started crying, falling down onto the pavement directly, dust kicking up into the air and mixing, causing him to cough. He used it as a pretense to wipe away the moisture, taking the man's canteen and washing down whatever was inside, relishing the wetness if nothing else.
He tossed it back to him.
"So. When do I get to see her?"
He sort of felt bad. He imagined the closest thing he considered a friend would probably be anxious to sit down and talk about everything, but he needed to see her; she was the reason he had risked his life to get here. she was the reason for everything. That Unfettered was alive was a bonus on top of it all, but he would worry about him when the time came.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 17, 2012 9:18:02 GMT -8
Removing her knives carefully and setting them down on the floor of the van, Delilah took the clothes from Tai with a nod of thanks and began stripping as he had (although she turned her body slightly away from his out of some semblance of modesty and insecurity), down to her underwear, which consisted of a slightly worn out nude coloured bra and black boy shorts.
Visual reference.
She pulled on the clothes quickly and without fuss, grateful that the poncho would cover her scars and her knives (though she did notice that the jeans she now wore were tighter than she would have liked). She hopped out of the van and slipped her knives back into her pants around her waistline, her pocket knife and tanto on her left side and her bowie knife on the right before bending down to relace her boots. Finished, she looked over at Tai to see if he was ready.
"Let's fuckin' move out. Roger, standby." Taking her cue from Tai, she also tied a black bandanna around the lower half of her face, cinching it just behind the clasp that held her hair in place at the back of her head. She returned his wink with one of her own and started back down the alley to where it joined with main road, slipping into the stream of people.
Making sure she stayed close to Tai, Delilah picked a steady pace that wouldn’t attract too much attention but would allow them to weave easily through the clusters of people. Her gait even, she would walk up the road to the last place Sergei had mentioned, her eyes slowly swinging from side to side, pinpointing every minute detail for clues. Now inside the dead zone, she would be out of contact with the member of her team who was out on the roofs, hopefully tailing them, unseen. She spared a quick glance at the rooftops, dropping her eyes a moment later to continue surveying the populace, however sparse it may be, trying to pinpoint the characteristics she was looking for.
They had nearly made it up to the 7-11 when her worry had started to set in. Sergei hadn’t sent up any flares yet, so she assumed he hadn’t seen any patrols, which would also lead her to assume he hadn’t been captured or accosted. She hoped.
It was, of course, possible for the man to have pulled into one of the abandoned buildings surrounding them for a break from the heat and sun. Sergei and his group were out here too, weren’t they? He was just spotting for the other Crows while they ran reconnaissance on the area…perhaps they noticed that the target was somewhat out of place and pulled him to the side for questioning. She hadn’t seen the man before, but blue hair tended to stand out, or so she thought. But she had seen stranger things, particularly in high school. There, no one would have looked twice if—"So. When do I get to see her?" [/b][/center] Delilah suddenly stopped, her legs deadening on her immediately and she reached out to grasp Tai for support. Her breath caught in her throat and she struggled to take the shallow breaths she was forcing out. With wide eyes, she slowly turned her head to look back at the 7-11, clutching at Tai’s poncho with a trembling hand, her knuckles white, the colour similarly drained from her face. It was not often that Delilah was overly affected by anything, much less often when she showed it. It was something she took some measure of pride in. Now though, as all the memories and emotions she had felt and hidden for the last four years came rushing out, her resolve failed her. She looked like she had just seen a ghost.
She stared hard at the 7-11, trying to restart her shock-numbed thoughts. When they had passed it, her eyes had simply moved over the two people within, hardly even catching the fact that one of them assuredly had blue hair. But that wasn’t why she stopped. It wasn’t because of the German accent she knew so well resonating behind her either. Hell, she couldn’t even process that, her astonishment was so great. It had been the voice of the person she had heard, the telltale Cockney accent she would know anywhere.
You imagined it, she immediately thought. There’s no way he could be here, absolutely none. He’s probably dead! It CAN’T be him![/i] Her lips moving soundlessly, she released her hold on Tai and staggered back towards the 7-11 like a woman possessed, reaching out to the wall for support. Provided she would make it there unimpeded, she would tear away the bandanna from her face and stand in front of the hole, her silhouette blocking out the sun that leached in through the opening. If the two men within would look toward her, they would notice immediately that tears had begun sliding freely down Delilah’s cheeks, cutting a path through the accumulated layer of dirt and grime that had formed on this short trek. She would lift a shaking hand to clutch at the cloth over her heart, the blood rushing in her ears like a torrent. Her wavering blue eyes, bright with the over flowing tears she could not control were fixed on him, the man with blue hair ( It had been green… she thought dimly, remembering), the white fedora and the black almost-not-there eyes that identified him beyond any shadow of a doubt. She took a tentative step forward. In a choked, cracking voice that dared not believe but was burgeoning with a joy she could not suppress, she managed a single word that was more of a hesitant question than a confirmation. “Stu…?”Just say you’ll wait…
You’ll wait for me. [/size]
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Post by "Unfettered" on Apr 18, 2012 17:09:49 GMT -8
Timing Putting the pieces together...
The German took back his emptied canteen and belted it back in place."So. When do I get to see her?" He was still "ey"ing Stu, his smile still continuing---until his ear perked up. He would look around to see a familiar set of eyes underneath a poncho.
Tai had moseyed about, walking with indifference, his toothy grin hidden underneath his mouth cover, up to this point. When Delilah had started to use him for support, he listened carefully for a moment as well, before letting her stagger off without him...
Without knowing much more, Tai took out his signiature metal pipe and began to follow rather carefully after Delilah---until he saw "Unfettered" looking over at him too.“Stu…?”"...Right now, apparently," the German replied coolly to Stu. With a wink (involving a nod of the head and quick opening and closing of his eye) to Tai, he would begin to walk, passing by Delilah. To her, the German would give her a quick pat on the shoulder. Three paces after he walked past her, he would turn around, to Stu, regardless of what he was doing."Have Delilah send du to me ven ze two of du are done here. Vould du like me to send du a transport or vill du be walking?"If there was no response, the German would just smile and walk back with Tai to Rgoer's point, allowing Delilah and Stu to walk back. If they wanted a ride back, the German would wait for Delilah to say around what time (hours, minutes, or what have you) and at which location).
Otherwise, the German would leave the two alone to sort themselves out and exit unless interrupted. |
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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 19, 2012 7:48:35 GMT -8
Stu's eyes immediately widened when he heard his name. That voice could only come from one place.
Del.
It was a voice that he had heard a million times since that day, 4 years ago. That day he had boarded that plane, intent on coming back. Unfortunately, life had a way of fucking up even the best laid plans. Something about mice?
Anyways.
He turned slowly, his blackened eyes catching her image almost immediately. She was more beautiful than he remembered. She didn't look any different, not truly, perhaps a little more grown up. Her hair wasn't two tone.
Red. I remember.
The tears that streaked through the light layer of dust that covered his face came completely unbidden. He stumbled forward with one hand outstretched at first, however it was but a second before his frame covered the distance between them and he had her in his arms.
Its her. It really is her.
His arms wound around her completely his face buried into her neck as the tears streamed down his face. He tried to blink them away, but this only caused fresh ones to sprout, tracing dirty veins down his face. He didn't care. He had her, finally, and that was what mattered.
Her!
He set her down, gingerly, but refused to let go of her. He would never let her go again. Ever. She would be by his side forever.
"Delilah.... I... I've missed you."
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 19, 2012 8:53:22 GMT -8
She felt the pat on her shoulder through the haze of her tears and she shifted her hand to grip his tightly before letting him go an instant later. Doing that gave her an odd sense of déjà vu, something she was unable to place in the state of half joy half disbelief she was in. The Crow part of her kicked in at his touch and she managed to mutter something incoherent including the words ‘walk’ and ‘Sir’ and ‘patrols’. What might have been a report, a caution, and, perhaps, a thank you was reduced to gibberish. Part of her, the duty-sworn, honour-bound part, was dismayed by her lack of control. It was quickly silenced as she took another faltering step towards Stu.
And then nothing mattered, because she was in his arms.
Trembling, she clung to him tightly, the piece of her that couldn’t believe he was here quickly melting into the overwhelming, almost painful joy she felt. Delilah ran her hands over him, double, triple, quadruple checking that he was in fact here and not a dream or vision. She felt his tears against her shoulder and that only spurred her own. She pressed her face against his shoulder and shuddered against him.
Delilah wondered vaguely why this physically hurt her so much, why the elation that built up excruciating pressure inside her chest could only be released in choked sobs and tears. Quickly, she realized that it hurt because he was back. He came for her. The piece of herself that had left with him on that plane to England was here, holding her against him, reattaching to her soul. She was whole.
Her legs gave way beneath her and Stu slowly lowered her to the ground, still holding her tightly. She remained there, listening to his heart, his breathing. If this is a dream, she decided, trying to control her shivering and her tears, --Please God, if You’re there, if You have any mercy at all, don’t You dare wake me.
"Delilah.... I... I've missed you."
She let out a soft groan into his shoulder, his voice like velvet to her ears. She hadn’t even realized how much she had missed him until this moment, the heavy weight of longing on her heart being lifted. She pulled her face away from his shoulder too look up at him with a wavering smile, face wet with her tears. She moved her hands from his back, running them through his hair, looking into the pitch-black voids he had for eyes as if truly seeing them for the first time.
“Y-you came back…” she whispered, her voice barely getting past her lips. “I thought--…you might have been--…” Unable to finish her thought, she learned forward, touching her forehead against his, closing her eyes. “…I missed you so much.”
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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 19, 2012 16:58:09 GMT -8
"I told you I would, didn't I?"
He leaned down and kissed her, and it was everything he could ever hope for it to be. Her lips were cracked and so were his, but he didn't care; he only wanted her and she was there and now she was kissing him back. Life was great.
Life was great.
He pulled away from her so he could take her in again, but he couldn't stay away from her. His hand went to her and held it as he sat down next to her, his head leaning against hers. He stared down the dusty street as he processed all the emotions that rampaged within him.
"I've thought of you every day. Constantly. I've dreamed of this exact moment... Admittedly, I had hoped it'd be a little more scenic."
He laughed and held her tight. He would always hold her tight from then on out.
She was never getting away again.
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 20, 2012 6:48:40 GMT -8
"I told you I would, didn't I?"
She accepted his kiss eagerly, leaning into it as if his lips were water in a rain starved desert. In Delilah’s emotion ravaged mind, time seemed to stand still. Her body pressed up against his, head swimming, heat rising within her…these were sensations she was mostly certain she would never experience again. Just being here, reveling in this moment, was easily the happiest since—
Everything hit her at once, jarring her away from this otherwise perfect moment. Delilah’s eyes widened as she realized she had very, very, very[/u][/i] important things to discuss with Stu.
Very, very, very, very, very, VERY important.
He pulled away from her, looking at her with an expression that made her heart wrench. She gripped his hand tightly with her own and tucked her head into the crook between his neck and shoulder, staring out at the ruined cityscape through the hole in the wall. She closed her eyes, trying to get that peaceful feeling back where there was only her and Stu in this moment.[/size]
"I've thought of you every day. Constantly. I've dreamed of this exact moment... Admittedly, I had hoped it'd be a little more scenic."
She laughed with him, relishing the feeling of being crushed against him, but she could not push away the urge to talk with him. It kept rising up, interfering with her jubilation.
And then, an idea found her.
She pulled away slightly to look up at him, beaming. “I couldn’t think of this moment, let alone dream about it. I didn’t want to let myself hope…but I never stopped thinking about you. How could I when you’re— ” she stopped herself and swallowed hard. There would a time and place for that, but not yet. Not yet. “—so important to me.” she finished, smiling.
Delilah shifted and started to rise to her feet, keeping a tight hold on Stu’s hand. “C’mon. Let’s go somewhere more…’scenic’.” She would lead him out of the 7-11 and back down the road in the direction they had come, turning West towards the ocean. Where was she taking him?
TO THE BEACH, OF COURSE~.
But first, she aimed to give Stu a brief tour of the Crows’ territory. Her home.
As they walked, she looked up at him, content with simply watching him, the way the sunlight glinted off his hair. This felt so…surreal. Like something out of a movie. The fact that it was happening --to her no less-- made it that much more precious to her.
“How did you get back?”
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Post by Stu Pott on Apr 20, 2012 10:07:12 GMT -8
He walked with her, eyes roaming over the destroyed city. She pointed things out as if they were significant, but truly he saw almost nothing. Though he looked where she pointed and heard every word she said, his eyes were firmly placed on her, as was all of his attention.
They walked arm in arm, and his hand also laid across the arm she gave him, as if unsure that should he let her go, she might disappear again. Finally, after some time looking around, she spoke to him directly.
"It wasn't easy... I got home and father died soon thereafter. I sent you a letter, but not long after that Barker happened so I doubt it ever got here. I was in charge of a township that survived The Breaking.
That's what we called it over there."
His eyes seemingly wavered and his face grew grim. He was remembering the things he had to do... the people who died along the way. Mother and Father.
"Without Dad it was my job to run the company, and then The Breaking, it was natural for people to continue following me.
We survived. Hell, we had it good over there, compared to... Compared to this."
He had to say it. This place was a hellhole. People were actually warring still! War! In the apocalypse.
"There's bandits, but they aren't a real threat. we've heard of serious bandits closer to the city, but the cities still surviving too. It's nasty there, but it lives. America got it hard it seems."
He looked around and nearly wept. The world he had lived in was shattered here. None of it would ever be able to go back to the relative innocence it had. It was disheartening.
"I bought some fisherman's boat and paid him to bring me to the east coast. I've been walking ever since. Most of America is like this. The forests are nice. That was the most pleasant part of the trip. Most of the midwest was reclaimed."
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Post by Delilah A. Black on Apr 20, 2012 11:20:27 GMT -8
"It wasn't easy... I got home and father died soon thereafter. I sent you a letter, but not long after that Barker happened so I doubt it ever got here. I was in charge of a township that survived The Breaking.
That's what we called it over there."
‘The Breaking…’ Delilah thought, glancing around them for a moment, reliving the destruction. That’s rather apt, actually. She watched carefully as a shadow slipped over his features, not at all surprised to find herself deeply concerned for him. She smiled gently, encouraging him on. She refrained from speaking the whole time, deeming it more important that she just listen. It was incredible that he was even here. It was the least she could do.
"Without Dad it was my job to run the company, and then The Breaking, it was natural for people to continue following me.
We survived. Hell, we had it good over there, compared to... Compared to this."
"There's bandits, but they aren't a real threat. we've heard of serious bandits closer to the city, but the cities still surviving too. It's nasty there, but it lives. America got it hard it seems."
"I bought some fisherman's boat and paid him to bring me to the east coast. I've been walking ever since. Most of America is like this. The forests are nice. That was the most pleasant part of the trip. Most of the midwest was reclaimed."
Delilah thought about that, nodding along. In the same way the destruction disheartened Stu, his words had renewed some of her hope. Not everywhere was obliterated by Barker. People were surviving. Civilization and society…it wasn’t all lost. It was good to hear and quite a relief, particularly about that bit he mentioned about the Mid-West here in America. The Crows were by no means ‘alone’ in the fight against Barker here, but it was good to know that his attention might be otherwise diverted by the people who were succeeding East of here. This news excited her a little: the Zero Crows would have to hear this right away.
She sensed the dismay in him and moved closer to him even as they walked, hugging the arm he had offered her. Her heart lurched with a pang of love for him as he told her how he got here, was so unbelievably touched at the lengths he went through to get here. That on its own brought a small smile to her lips, as she was unable to say anything that would match that. He was different from the man she had let board that plane four years ago, but in many ways, he was the same. And for that, she was glad.
But she was sad, too. Sad that the apocalypse had to happen, sad he had to go through so much alone. It damn near broke her heart all over again. Turning her head and rising briefly on her tiptoes, she planted a light kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you for coming back to me,” She said in a soft voice as she smiled up at him endearingly. She turned her attention back to her surroundings, trying to talk around the lump forming again in her throat. “Life hasn’t been easy here since the attack, but we make do. The Crows – that’s the gang that Militia is now a subsidiary of – are trying to get a sort of government going in their…our area. Instill some order. But we’ll probably talk more about that once we get back to the Crows’ Nest and meet up with ‘Unfettered’.”
The pair rounded another corner and came upon the boardwalk, just off the beach. It looked different from the last time Delilah had been out here, already months ago. Most of the debris littering the sands had been cleared away, and that which was too heavy too move was either oxidizing or rotting in the sun. Otherwise, apart from the ruins of the city around them and the twisted hunks of steel buried in the sand, the Pacific coast line was as it had always been.
Reluctantly releasing Stu, Delilah bent down to take off her boots, then tie the laces together. She rolled up the legs of her jeans to the middle of her calves and slung the boots over her shoulder. She looked out at the blue-green water, smiling. If she squinted hard and focused on nothing but this image, she was almost able to forget the chaos and destruction Barker had wreaked on the world.
She turned her head to look over her shoulder at Stu, a slightly devious smile on her lips. She ached to be near him, but forced herself away from him for the moment. Just for a moment… “The ‘Nest isn’t too far ahead now...but it can wait.” her smile became somewhat sorrowful here and she sighed, holding her hand out to him, to bring him close, giving in to her need for him and abandoning her plan to run around in the sun with him hot on her heels.
“We need to talk about…a couple of things. Important things. I really don’t want to ruin the moment, but they’re things you need to hear.
“If you want to wait until later to do that, that’s fine. We’ll go to the base and I’ll take you to ‘Unfettered’ and we can talk after.” She reached up and put a hand on his cheek. “Your choice.”
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