'The Pit: Hell Frozen Over' - Arc 3, Chapter 3: 'The One Truth' (Closed, Started)

[The Funslinger]

"I'm confident she can do it. Or rather... I know she can. We have to believe in her, Riley. For just a little longer."

"Mmmhmm," Riley replied. "Lately I've just had this feeling, though, ever since we lifted the Phantom... survival instinct, maybe. The feeling that something really fucked up is about to come our way." He shuddered slightly. "We can believe in her all we like, but I've never been completely convinced the feeling was mutual."

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Acolyte watched Judah's expression contort in response to his question. First there was complete outrage. Then she actually looked at him, and immediately went scarlet. That was unexpected. In most other situations, he'd probably have found it at least a little funny.

"You're going to be just fine, Judah. It's only a scratch. We're going to dress the wound really quick and you'll be as good as new."

"You have everything you need on you, Lucia?" he asked. If there was anything he could do to be helpful, he wanted to know.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Chen watched the build up to the fight from the shadows. There was definitely something off about this guy. He didn't back down, despite clearly being outnumbered and out-gunned, but neither did he take the initiative and attack first. It was as if he were waiting for a pretext, like their intentions weren't already clear enough from the way they had moved to surround him, worrying at him like a pack of hyenas. When the violence eventually started, he was fast and strong, but even with Aggie's help, there were two many. Breaking from cover, Chen closed quickly on the man nearest to him, his feet seeming to brush along the floor like silk, silent. From behind, Chen grabbed the goon's wrist and delivered a savage strike to his elbow. There was a spray of blood, and suddenly the guy's elbow join was bending the wrong way, a jagged inch of bone sticking out from under the flesh. Before the thug had time to scream, Chen snapped his neck.

The second came at him with a shank, his face twisted in rage, having been spattered with the blood of his friend. Chen was ready for him, his stance solid. He blocked two wild slashes, before the man lunged inside his reach. A two-fingered jab to the wrist made his drop the blade, his hand now useless, followed by the three-fingered one the the throat that sent him reeling. Chen pressed the attack, delivering a sharp flurry of strikes to the man's torso, before clapping his hands to either side of the man's head, and vaulting upwards, using every muscle in his body to drive all the strength he could muster through his knee, and straight into the middle of the man's face. The second attacker was dead before he hit the floor, most of his facial structure having been pushed back and upwards into his brain.

He now had a clear path to where Aggie wrestled with her assailant, and Chen wasted no time. Leaping forwards, he stamped on the man's ankle, shattering it. As he howled in pain, Chen grabbed him through his underarms, his hands interlocking at the back of the man's neck, and hauled him upwards. Kicking his one good leg out from under him, Chen twisted and through the man back over to the work station, where he landed hard, bouncing off the bench with a thud, and landing with his head inside the heat-treating furnace, it's heavy metal door hanging wide open. Before the man could pull himself out, if he was even still conscious. Chen spun again and delivered a roundhouse kick against the door, slamming it shut. There was a sickening crunch, and the third man shuddered, before lying still.

After noticing what had happened to his three friends, the fourth man was smart enough not to engage Chen in hand to hand combat, Grabbing the MAC-10 that was slung round his back, Chen was forced to grab Aggie, and throw the pair of them behind the workstation, before the room was filled with the noise of rapid gunfire.

"Now would be good Clem!" he yelled.

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"Five guards." Yu whispered. "Two fixed on the cache, the other three patrolling. There's a twenty second blind spot in their patrol routes, we can take the two static guys out silently, and then move as much as we can while the third person keeps lookout. Don't bother with the explosives, we don't need anything fancy and they'll just slow us down, just get as many boxes of 5.56 and 9mm as we can and then bug out. Copy?"

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"And thank you too, uh..mister..."

"I am Nikolai." Nikolai replied gruffly. "Are you here alone, Judah?"

While Nikolai had taken responsibility for the girl the moment he'd picked her up, his motivations for his continuing questions were not entirely selfless. He didn't want to talk to the others about what had just happened, and was seeking to put it off. He supposed that would be too much to ask though, and wondered who would be the first to approach him about it.

 

[ProtoChimp]

Felix engaged two men at the same time as an unseen ally suddenly approached. Whatever his intentions were, Felix would need to rely on this man for now, his skill in battle extremely impressive, despite him feeling the need to kill on seemingly reflex; but Felix knew his way was not everyone's way and focused on the men in front of him.

He blocked a swing, punching the man with bone crushing strength in the shoulder, kicking his other opponent who approached from the side in his chest. Felix quickly ducked under the first man's arm, hooking it with his own, and knocking his fist into the back of the man's head and neck, slipping out of the way and letting the man fall to the floor as the second approached.

This one wielding a massive wrench and swung for Felix's head. Felix played dangerously and swooped in close, narrowly avoiding the wrench and striking the man in the forehead with his palm. His brain rocked in his skull and Felix jabbed with all his strength in his solar plexus. The air was pushed out of him and Felix followed up with a knife edge chop under the chin and in the throat, and finishing him off with a precise strike from his elbow into his forehead. He quickly slipped into unconsciousness, which would have allowed Felix to relax if not for the sudden gunfire forcing him to duck for cover.
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"Now would be good Clem!"

Clementina vaulted over a conveyor belt and followed the man, she began sneaking up behind him as he fired upon her allies. Thankfully he was too focused on the other two men to focus on her aiming down her sights at him. She wanted to take her time on this shot but the man was ragged in his movements. She tried her best to iron up her shot, she'd just have to take her chances with one quick pull of the trigger.

For all the shit that had been thrown at her since she took on this job it seemed God had to throw her one bone at least, the thug moving his head right into the path of her bullet. He fell like a sack of meat as the back of his head exploded and his brains were spilled all over the machinery. Clem breathed a sigh of relief before rushing over to Chen and Aggie. She still had one bullet at least.

"Fucking plan something next time." Clem spat.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

Aggie rubbed her throat as both Chen and Clem took cover behind the machine. While her plan didn't exactly go as she planned, she was able to see one thing that potentially worth it: an ally.

"I have to admit. That was a pretty shitty idea." Aggie gasped. "But we need men like that bloke over there. The more we get the to help us, the easier things are going to be. Hearts and minds, isn't that what Lee would have wanted, Chen?"

Aggie remarked as she took a peek at their handiwork. The gunfire would have attracted men to their position which meant they had to hurry but Aggie knew that she had stepped on the wrong toes already. She then peeked over to the man they encountered earlier. All Aggie could hope for is that man would help them in exchange for saving his life.

"Psst!" Aggie called out to Iberian man. "You alright?"

 

[Fappy]

Lucia nodded at the small girl after being thanked and looked to Acolyte.

"You have everything you need on you, Lucia?"

She shrugged, "This makeshift bandage will do for now. Once we're off the street we can give her something a bit more appropriate." She helped the girl sit up right.

"Are you here alone, Judah?"

Lucia looked at the girl and patiently awaited her answer with a comforting grin.

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"I don't blame you. If... it ever came to it, I want you to save her first. She's everything to me even the way she is now."

Neil frowned, "Are you sure about that? How do you think she'd handle it if she lost her brother?" He was genuinely curious.

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"We can believe in her all we like, but I've never been completely convinced the feeling was mutual."

"Well," Nahla shrugged, "She's right not to trust anyone, honestly. With what she's doing... she'd be a fool to have blind faith in any of us. What faith she does have for me, however, has been well earned. I think that she at least recognizes my loyalty. She's made good use of it so far and I don't see her stopping any time soon." She searched Riley's eyes as he gazed off in the distance. "One day this will all be over, Riley. Let's keep fighting until that time comes."

 

[Terratina.]

"Judah! JUDAH!"

"Subira, I'll handle it." She said to other Cultist in an effort to calm her down. Like it would have any effect. Manyara internally cringed as the old woman shouted in a somewhat panicked fashion, which wasn't going to achieve anything. And so, Manyara searched through the crowds, stopping at every stall there was in the market.

Every time there was no sign of the little ***** or when someone denied seeing any little kid with a bob so lopsided it was almost comical, Manyara clicked her tongue in annoyance. They needed a damn leash on the girl; bloody teenagers always thought they knew better.

And Judah was just beginning that period of her life...

"Caro Senhor..." Manyara found herself saying as she walked away from another stall of naysayers to one that would hopefully have people with eyes. However, on first glance there were just some people arguing over prices. No doubt the fact that it was next to some sort of bar had something to do with the rather... boisterous behaviour of some of the customers.

One in particular was gesticulating wildly, "Lafo be izany!"

"Hey you!" Manyara interrupted, cooling the atmosphere, "Girl about this tall, brown eyes, black hair, see her about?"

"Inona?" The drunk asked, scratching his head. Then suddenly with as much pomp as his complaint, he pointed over to the crowded bar, "Ah yeah, the klutz, she's over there."

Manyara said her thanks and strolled into the crowd and found Judah next to a tall, Mediterranean woman and an even taller, though disfigured, Caucasian. Noticing that she had just stumbled into the middle of a conversation, Manyara spoke up, "Oh there you are, Judah. Aren't you a little young for this crowd? C'mon, or Suibra'll have a heart attack."

Manyara turned to the strangers afterwards, "She's with me, sorry for the bother. She can be such a handful at times."

 

[ProtoChimp]

How could Manyara behave so irritated in a time like this? Judah was a little girl, a baby, and she was lost in the worst sort of crowd. What if she was snatched? Or beaten? There was no such thing as an overreaction considering these creatures. To the younger woman's credit, she was much faster than Subira, leaving the elderly lady in the dust.

'No wonder she was lost.'

Subira walked as fast as her rusty bones would carry her. Pushing between more untouchables she finally found Manyara with a group of strangers, and Judah!

"Judah!" She marched forwards. "Come away from- oh my dear what happened?" She walked right past Manyara and inspected her head, glaring at the people bothering the girl. "Did you do this?!" She accused the large man with the tank for a leg. "Did you kick her with that monstrosity?"

 

[Rufio's Ghost]

"Are you here alone, Judah?"

No she wasn't, though she might as well have been. Manyara and Subria basically abandoned her, and honestly... what the hell could they have done if they had been there? If someone threatened her or if she were ever in any real danger; what the hell were they gonna do about it? Judah could come up with a few answers, but it all really amounted to nothing. They wouldn't be able to do a goddamn thing.

A part of her wanted to say yes and drop everything she had ever known, but she knew just the thought was foolish.There was no way Subria and Manyara-

'Shit! Manyara!'

Judah had been so caught up in her current predicament that she hadn't thought about Manyara. She was going to be livid. The young girl quickly scanned the crowd. The ***** and the old bag were no where to be seen. If she could find Manyara first then she could possible turn this whole thing around, and if she worded her responses perfectly, she might be able to save face. She shook her head furiously,

"No, I'm not alone. I-"

"Oh there you are, Judah. Aren't you a little young for this place? C'mon, or Suibra'll have a heart attack."

'Fuck!'

Manyara turned to the strangers afterwards, "She's with me, sorry for the bother. She can be such a handful at times."

As always, Manyara knew exactly what to say to really strike a nerve. Judah balled her hands into little fists, an incoherent stream of curses running through her mind. Everyone back at home was going to hear about this, and Judah was never going to see the end of it. The respect she had worked so hard for, that she had earned within the community, was going to be snatched away all because of this woman and her big whore mouth. She kept her head down, veiling her twisted expression behind her thick jagged bangs. She hated her so much.

"Come away from- oh my dear what happened?"

Taking a deep breath, she regained her composure. She wasn't going to let Manyara get under her skin.

"Did you do this?!"

Judah furrowed her brow and stared at Subria. Was she challenging Nikolai?

"Did you kick her with that monstrosity?"

She cut in before Subria could say anything more, "Umdala! Don't say things like that! Nikolai is the one who helped me." She smiled sweetly, giving Subria an innocent look, "You should be thanking him."

 

[The Funslinger]

"Two fixed on the cache, the other three patrolling. There's a twenty second blind spot in their patrol routes, we can take the two static guys out silently, and then move as much as we can while the third person keeps lookout. Don't bother with the explosives, we don't need anything fancy and they'll just slow us down, just get as many boxes of 5.56 and 9mm as we can and then bug out. Copy?"

"Understood," replied Korovitch. Both he and Fiona had large, empty holdalls slung across their backs. "Keep us covered."

With that, they waited. Gradually, when the patrol had passed by, Korovitch and Fiona advanced closer and closer, swinging in from the side to get around the back of the men standing guard over the cache. Finally they were in position. When Yu gave the word that the patrol had once again passed by, they sprung from cover.

Fiona stepped up behind the nearest guard, using her combat knife to open his throat from ear to ear. His companion turned, and Korovitch loomed up behind him, out of the darkness. Seizing the man by the hair, he swung his kukri, separating head from shoulders. All this took merely an instant. Then they set upon the stacks of ammunition, laying down their bags. Fiona began filling them while Korovitch dragged the bodies behind the crates of explosives they were otherwise ignoring. When their twenty seconds were up, the two huge bags were mostly filled. When the guards were set to pass around again, Korovitch and Fiona took up the weapons the two dead men had been holding and stood in the shadows. When the patrol passed by, all they registered were two armed guards standing watch over the ammunition, just as they had been every time for the past two hours. Then they were gone again, and Korovitch and Fiona let their liberated rifles hang by their straps and finished filling up the bags.

"Supplies acquired," Korovitch whispered into his radio. "Are we clear to disengage?"

=========================================

"You should be thanking him."

"It's true," said Acolyte, quickly putting his hands up deferentially as the women turned to glare at him. "We don't know what happened, but there were some of the ah... locals investigating what was up from what I saw. Nikolai here got her away from them."

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"One day this will all be over, Riley. Let's keep fighting until that time comes."

"Yeah, yeah," said Riley, waving her off. "I know. It's just a feeling. Like there's another pack watching me skin my kill." He looked up to see Odin loping towards them. "Speak of the devil."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Are we clear to disengage?"

"You're clear." Yu's voice replied. "Get out of there."

When Luka and Fiona returned, Yu cracked a smile at the payload they carried. Provided they continued to be careful, there was enough small arms ammunition there to keep them alive for four weeks at least. Yu just hoped Chen's group would be as successful.

"Let's get moving." He said "It won't be long until somebody discovers the theft.

They'd go back and check in with Neil and Lewis, then relocate after the others were all accounted for.

===========================================================================================================================

While the entrance of the younger of the two women wasn't so much combative as it was presumptuous, Nikolai was low enough, crouched down on one knee, to notice the change in Judah's body language and expression. She wasn't pleased to see her. Rather than stepping back at the appearance of Judah's companion, Nikolai instinctively put a hand on the girl's shoulder as he got to his feet, ready to stare this newcomer down. That was when the old woman started making accusations.

"Did you kick her with that monstrosity?"

The elderly were a rare occurrence in The Pit, and so the society in which he had been raised had not taught him any social taboo's about pummelling old women into the dirt. He stepped between Judah and these two strangers, his leg making an ominous thunk against the ground as he did so, and drew himself up to full height. A part of Nikolai was still very much in the mood to tear somebody's arms off, and these two were too close, and too loud.

"You should be thanking him."

Judah had changed her tone, and was smiling up at Manyara and Subira as if nothing was amiss. While Nikolai knew she was pretending, it was clear that these two were to be accepted, albeit warily. Nikolai relaxed his subtly clenched fists, still bloody from the earlier incident, and stepped to the side.

"I am sorry if I frightened you." Nikolai grunted through his thick accent. "Judah was lost. I have not been here long, but it seems that this is not a place anyone should walk alone."

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"Hearts and minds, isn't that what Lee would have wanted, Chen?"

A muscle twitched involuntarily in Chen's face. Aggie had struck a nerve.

"You alright?"

Before the other Inmate could answer, Chen had grabbed Aggie roughly by the arm, and wheeled her round to face him, her face an inch from his.

"Here's two things you will never do again:" he growled at her. "You will never run off like that without communicating with the rest of your squad; and you will never, ever, try and tell me what Lee would have wanted. You never even met the man; and the orders he gave me, explicitly, were to keep the Kill Switch and the person who carries it protected at all costs. The only reason you're here, is because Yu and I judged that you and your brother might be able to help with that. Your file said that you were a soldier, and you'd best remember how to act like one, because I will shoot you myself before I let you fuck up like that again, got it?"

Chen released her, before rounding on the Inmate that she'd just saved. In a single, fluid motion, one of Chen's twin G17C's was pointing at the man's head.

"They'll likely be a response team investigating those gunshot's within a couple of minutes. You've seen our faces and heard us discussing sensitive information, so you have to the count of ten to give me a good reason not to kill you. Nine..."

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"Are you sure about that? How do you think she'd handle it if she lost her brother?"

Lewis hesitated in thought for a moment. "She'd deal with it better than I would. She was there when my father died. I was only a baby at a time so I didn't know him all that much but ever since then, I could tell that aged her overnight or so my mother said." Lewis thought how their mother would make of all this. "Aggie's used to death and maybe even the worse kind. I read up on the reports of Operation Ice Pick which was an assault by the Rhine Confederation with some troops from the UK. All was going well until an ungodly storm froze the army in its tracks. Soldiers died of hypothermia before they even knew they had it. For them, hell came in a ice storm." Lewis recalled. "All the Baltic Alliance had to do was pick the invasion force apart till they were nothing. I've yet to ask Aggie about how she was captured but frankly, I don't want to know."

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"Your file said that you were a soldier, and you'd best remember how to act like one, because I will shoot you myself before I let you fuck up like that again, got it?"


Aggie remained silent, not wanting to push the already pushed Chen. He made his point and it was a good one. Aggie never had a chance to speak with Lee nor receive the orders but bringing up the reason why they were being kept interested her. The twins did a good job of holding certain information close to their hearts and this reveal was a big one. As Chen held the man she tried to save at gunpoint, she rattled off all the people group who possibly could be the Kill Switch because whoever it was would guarantee her escape. All she had to do was play soldier once more. She shivered at the thought of the word.

Aggie glanced at Clem and mouthed an "I'm sorry" before picking up her discarded shotgun and staying silent. It was an immediate thought to Aggie that Clem was unlikely to be the Kill Switch or anyone else who went on this mission for that matter. Someone that important was too risky to lose on a raid but things have been getting more desperate lately. Then her thoughts drifted to the ones that didn't go on the mission. Despite Chen's threats and bleakness of it all, she still found an opportunity to smile within her smile.

 

[Fappy]

"Judah was lost. I have not been here long, but it seems that this is not a place anyone should walk alone."

Lucia nodded and glared at the two women, "He's right. Maybe you should pay more attention next time." Turning to Nikolai, she put a hand on his shoulder. "You okay, big guy?" It wasn't clear whether she was asking about what had happened back at the bar or the current situation.

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"Speak of the devil."

Nahla studied the monstrous animal as it made its approach. Despite her familiarity with it, she was still a bit... tense. It was huge, "God damn," She muttered. "It's been too long. I've forgotten how big he is." Bending over, she snapped her fingers as if the beckon him. "Hey, Odin." She smiled.

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"All the Baltic Alliance had to do was pick the invasion force apart till they were nothing. I've yet to ask Aggie about how she was captured but frankly, I don't want to know."

"Funny," Neil shrugged. "Never realized she was a soldier. I suppose it doesn't matter though. You survive long enough down here and you're worthy for any war. The things she's been subjected to here... don't expect her to ever speak of them." He frowned. "No matter how far you run, Lewis... this place will always haunt her. It's funny like that."

 

[The Funslinger]

"It's been too long. I've forgotten how big he is."

"Yeah, he's a right beast," said Riley. "Reminds me of that guy in charge of the Free Men. The one Talon gave a metal leg."

He stroked Odin's pelt companionably. "But you're much better looking, aren't you, mate?"

"Hey, Odin."

Odin's ears swiveled at the strange hand noise the female made. Like dry twigs breaking under his paws. She used the bark-sound that Brother used to refer to him. Odin turned to look at her, as he sat by Brother. Odin wasn't sure what he thought of the female. He had been around them long enough and smelled them enough times to know that they mated, and he was confused as to why they had had no cubs. It didn't make sense. Odin had visited the pack of forest wolves several times at his Brother's old post and had sired a couple of litters himself. One of his cubs had even grown into the pack's new alpha before dying with the arrival of those other men who he and Brother had tracked.

Still, the presence of the female satisfied Odin. It was the only time that Brother ever seemed much like he had been before the flames. He acted much the same, and it fooled the other two-legs, but Odin was not so stupid. He smelled the difference, and saw it in the way Brother moved when he thought nobody was watching.

Looking away from the female, he curled up at Brother's feet, licking his muzzle. Clean as it was, he could still taste the blood of his prey.

 

[Dogmatic99]

Barrows had been darkly laughing to himself, staring at the ground and watching his blood drip into a tiny pool on the ground in front of him. For such a little droplet that kind of fall must have seemed colossal. Funny the things that pop into your head when your bones are in the wrong place. The commander and the business ***** were busy trying to look tough in front of everyone, cus this was prison and that's what was polite in prison. Stupid prison.

"Sir. I know it's not my place to advise, but perhaps Mr. Barrows should get himself looked at first before going about his duties; I doubt a broken nose and possibly a bloodied hand would be beneficial to him at the moment."

"Ooooh don't worry about me, love." Barrows laughed hoarsely though bloody breaths. Wasn't like this was the first time his nose had seen the business end of capitalism. '1-2- FUCKIT-'

And both his hands were up over his nose and snapped the bloody thing back to where it usually was, sending him into a painful roar of laughter. It was not nice. It was never nice and Barrows would never recommend it to any of his friends. No matter how sick his inner child thought it was.

"No need to worry about any of that nonsense, we've all had a drink but now it's time to play at grown ups now." It took a lot longer for him to say it between growling laughs.

"You see!" He shouted to the bar, pointing at Abigail. "Now there is a woman who knows how to handle things maturely!"

He'd sort out the bar or something later. It'd get him off his arse in his free time.

The crew started to file out and Barrows gave himself a sorting out pat down on the move. "Upper class birds, am I right?" He grinned gormless at Travis.

Barrows had a bunch of jobs to keep him busy, his plan had gone accordingly, today was shaping up to be a good day.

 

[ProtoChimp]

"Umdala! Don't say things like that! Nikolai is the one who helped me. You should be thanking him."

"Judah was lost. I have not been here long, but it seems that this is not a place anyone should walk alone."

"He's right. Maybe you should pay more attention next time."

Subira had been staring the massive man down with an unwavering glare, yet this made her feel guilt, it was her fault Judah had been lost. Subira sighed as she looked down at the innocent smile of Judah, ignoring the large man and the young woman. "Oh Judah," Subira rested her can against the wall and crouched as low as her body would allow her, hugging Judah's head softly into her chest, resting her chin on the girl's head. "I'm sorry Judah this is out fault, we shouldn't have let you out of our sight I am sorry."
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"They'll likely be a response team investigating those gunshot's within a couple of minutes. You've seen our faces and heard us discussing sensitive information, so you have to the count of ten to give me a good reason not to kill you. Nine..."

If Felix swore, he would have been swearing now. Yet he kept his cool, he was nothing if not concise and precise as a gentleman and a knight.

"You're being hunted, I wish to help. I'm being hunted, I need your help. I've assisted a warden already but we had to separate, we can co-operate, and I don't wish to die." His face hid nothing as he spoke, he had confidence in his words yet fear of the gun. He knew what to say but knew he could still die here, Felix was nothing if not an honest man.

Clementina glared at Aggie, stupid woman, as she picked up the Mac 10 from her fallen enemy, a good replacement and a decent amount of ammunition at least.
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"Upper class birds, am I right?"

"Snobby **** you mean." Travis chuckled, laughing at this man's joke, his own slur, and at the fact this guy got punked out by rich ****.

'These the kinda faggots I have to compete with? This is gonna be so much easier than I thought.'

 

[Rufio's Ghost]

"Judah was lost. I have not been here long, but it seems that this is not a place anyone should walk alone."


"He's right. Maybe you should pay more attention next time."

Lucia and Nikolai took Judah's side immediately, shifting any and all blame on to Subria and Manyara. She appreciated defending her, but she doubted it would make a difference. Her two elders would fault her regardless...

"I'm sorry Judah this is out fault, we shouldn't have let you out of our sight I am sorry."Subria sank down to the young girl's level and embraced her.

Or... maybe not? That worked? Neat, that was definitely something she could get use to.

Judah comforted the old woman, gently patting her on the arm, "It's no one's fault, Umdala... sometimes things just happen."

As she spoke she began to formulate a plan. She wanted to keep these strangers near for as long as she could- not only would it be safer to travel with someone imposing like Nikolai, but traveling with this group would make things easier for her as well. She had a sneaking suspicion that Lucia and Manyara wouldn't get along great, hopefully a little rivalry would keep the ***** off her back.

Based on their clothes and their kindness it was safe to assume they weren't from around here... and she could almost guarantee that they were unfamiliar with many of the languages in the port city. This could easily become mutually beneficial.

"So you guys aren't from around here, huh?" The question had little tact, but it didn't require any. One of the perks of being a child, you could be blunt and people would call it endearing.

 

[Terratina.]

There was another click of the tongue as the strangers decided that of course it was their fault Judah had decided simply shopping in the market was too boring. But Manyara had to be all smiles and rainbows about it, didn't she?

"Well, you know how kids are - especially stubborn ones." She chuckled.

Part of the woman's mouth curled up into a smirk, however, in truth she was disappointed in Subria - couldn't she see through the 'innocent little kid' act? Judah was a little ***** and at times her true colours shone through.

Maybe the old woman's memory was even badder then Manyara had thought.

Regardless, she turned to Judah and Subria and said, "Hey, we do have some shopping left to do. Besides, some people really do get grumpy when their food is taking too long. Let's try and prevent that, shall we?"

It was mean to pull the kid away from her new toys, but they were not of the Cult.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"You okay, big guy?"

Nikolai did not answer, and tried to shrug his shoulder away from her as subtly as he could without drawing attention to the action. He did not want to talk about it, whatever 'it' was. Not now, in front of these strangers.

"So you guys aren't from around here, huh?"

He bit his lip, uncertain how to field the question. Not that Nikolai was invested enough to lie, but how exactly was he supposed to explain to her that they were escapees from the most infamous prison in history, and that they had rode a tide of violence and suffering from half a world away to come this far. He didn't particularly want to discuss it in depth, and he was certain answers would just lead to more questions.

Nevertheless, Nikolai had just opened his moth to respond, when the woman called Manyara interrupted.

"Hey, we do have some shopping left to do. Besides, some people really do get grumpy when their food is taking too long. Let's try and prevent that, shall we?"

They were about to leave, and the one connection that Nikolai had managed to make since he stepped off the ship would be severed. He would once more become the lost one, that others looked to for direction. Not to mention, he would be forced to confront his earlier outburst, and Nikolai was in no hurry to be badgered about strange happenings that he didn't even understand himself.

"We will help." He blurted out, just as the strangers were turning their backs. "It will share the load. We could also use someone to show us the way around."

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It took Chen a couple of seconds to make up his mind. When he did, he lowered the gun.

"Let's see if you can keep up then." He replied. "There's a supply cache just been delivered not far from here. Food and medical, mostly. We need to get our hands on it. You help us do that, and follow my orders the the letter, and we're solid. Now move out."

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"Sir. I know it's not my place to advise, but perhaps Mr. Barrows should get himself looked at first before going about his duties; I doubt a broken nose and possibly a bloodied hand would be beneficial to him at the moment."

"Your concern is noted, Miss Nyte," The Commander replied, flashing her a warm smile. "but that will not be nec-" he was interrupted by the sickening sound of Barrows realigning his nose.

"As you can see," he continued, his expression caught between distaste and slight amusement. "Mr. Barrows is quite resilient. Now, fall in!" he ordered, slinging his rifle off his shoulder as the men made their way out into the cold, off towards The Atrium.

Selena simpered at their retreating backs until they were all gone.

"Abigail!" she called out, once the establishment was empty, apart from the two of them, and Zach. "Come and lend me your ear for a sec!"

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"Your concern is noted, Miss Nyte." The Commander replied, flashing a warm smile towards Abigail. "but that will not be nec-" he was then interrupted by the sound of Barrows putting his nose back into place, which made Abigail visibly wince like she felt the snap herself. "As you can see," The Commander said, continuing from where he left off. "Mr. Barrows is quite resilient. Now, fall in!" It was then that the assembled security headed off to wherever it was the disturbance was taking place.

"Abigail!" Selina called out once the place was clear, aside from her, Abigail and Zach. "Come and lend me your ear for a sec!" It was at this point that Abigail finished tidying up the glass shards and was back behind the counter, taking a look at the bar tap.

"I'll do so gladly once I've given this here bar tap a look over, got to make sure it hasn't been damaged from that little stunt you pulled earlier." Replied Abigail, speaking in a both annoyed and intrigued. She tested to see if the pipe that the tap was connected to hadn't become loose, there was a little bit of a wiggle, but that could be mended with a quick tightening of the screws underneath; and apart from a little clean up, it was good as new.

"Well, that should hold for the time being, I'll give it another look over once the day's done just to be safe, can't have a faulty beer tap in a place like this." She said aloud.

"Now then, Zach, since we currently seem to be empty at the moment, you couldn't fix us a pot of coffee could you?"

"Of course Abby, I'll get right on it." Zach then disappeared upstairs as Abigail motioned Selina to one of the booths, taking off her serving apron in the process.

"So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"It's funny like that."

"Yeah... I guess it is." Lewis said, pondering the man's words. "Has it always been like this though? Has this place always been a hellhole for the worst that humanity has to offer mixed in with those that don't deserve a thing?" Lewis blurted out. He was frustrated with the way things worked and how they continue to repeat in a cycle. It was like he trapped in a circle within a circle.

"Sorry, I don't mean it to be so philosophical." Lewis sighed. "Its just with the way things are, its getting harder and harder to see something clearly."