The Ashlanders - Chapter 6: The Blind Man's Last Gambit (Closed, Started)

[NinjaDeathSlap]

One again, Amy woke first. However, once her consciousness had fully readjusted, she was aware of Meredith having moved away from her. The woman who shared her bed now lay apart from her, her bare back facing Amy. It was strange. Such a thing could have a hundred perfectly innocuous explanations, and yet Amy sensed something more to it than that. The barriers that Meredith, in her grief and exhaustion, had lowered last night, were now raised, never to be taken down again. It was all part of the job, Amy supposed. She was used to being irresistible by night, inconvenient the morning after. That was to be expected, but there was something in the feeling Amy got from Meredith that spoke of more than just saving face.

'Is this what being let down gently is supposed to feel like?'

Deciding not to fall into the trap of thinking about it too much, Amy rose and went to make some breakfast.

Even earlier to rise than her was The Gentleman, whom she found in the kitchen already dressed up in his favourite costume. She smiled to see him. So many others saw him as loathsome and sinister, and while Amy was no fool over how remorseless and calculating he could be (she'd seen more of it than most), she just couldn't picture him as villainous. To her, he was like an eccentric uncle... only with larceny and murder. Not that there was anything in Amy's life that did not come with some morbid, clarifying clause.

"My dear." he greeted jovially, rising to see her. "I trust you slept well."

"Oh, well enough." she replied, motioning towards the frying pan. "Bacon and eggs?"

"The very same. There should be enough for everyone. Not all my talents are criminal after all."

"One wonders who taught you."

"Why, it was the mysterious beauty who found me dying in the ashen wastes twenty years ago, and nursed me back to health. I have no memory of anything before that, so she taught me everything I know." he said with a wink.

Amy giggled, not believing a word of it. "I'm going to check on how Florian is faring.

"Of course my dear. If her is awake, don't forget to mention the role you played in saving his life. Having the wise old man of the Iron Maiden in your debt will serve you well for your time with them."

Nodding, Amy crossed over to Florian's room.

 

[Fappy]

"... I remember the first time I held her, she grabbed hold of my finger and I remember being surprised how strong she was. She was so tiny..."

Elizabeth smiled. It was strange, really. All the people she'd encountered these past few days had been born killers. Most of them made a living by forcefully taking from others what wasn't theirs; whether it be their possessions, their freedom or even their very lives. Eddie was no except, despite the fact that the law was more or less on his side.

And yet, none of them appeared to Elizabeth to be any less human than she was. Unlike the Santiago family, these people: Eddie, Florian and even Pixie... they all seemed like they cared for others. Theirs were not simple, selfish desires. The world was looking to be more and more grey after every passing day.

After a long trip in the crawler, they had reached their destination. Astonished what she saw, Eddie to notice and explained the origin of the facility.

"Near as I can tell, this place was built by some tech whiz Noble back before we stopped understanding how all that old technology works. I guess it's connected to the generator of the nearest dome, because I've never needed to fuel it or anything. And it's well heated. It may be three floors of dull concrete, but it's warm."

After a mediocre meal, Eddie showed her to her room and wished her a good night's sleep. Elizabeth was content to simply flop onto the cot and pass out, though as soon as she'd settled in under the warm, albeit itchy blanket, she couldn't seem to fall asleep. She'd managed to pry her mind away from the horrors the day had provided until now, but with nothing else to dwell on, with no one's stories to distract herself with, she'd become acutely aware of her loneliness.

Josephine had been there to trade whispers in the night, but no longer. Not only was she not there to comfort Elizabeth, but she'd never be there for her ever again. She was gone. Elizabeth had watched her final moments through tear-filled eyes. She was gone, never to return.

And the children. So many innocents dead. So many innocents sacrificed at the whim of a madman. Why was it that such evils were permitted to exist in this world.

And then there was the priest. The uncertainty of his fate was what unnerved her the most. He deserved better than to be left to die in the ashlands. She knew it was foolish, but she'd couldn't but pray he survived.

Elizabeth cried herself to sleep in the darkness, below the weathered rock and steal of Eddie's hideout. She'd never felt so alone.

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"... Though unless you happen to have any leads as to where might be a good place to search, myself and Hannibal's best bet would be to start our search back at the marketplace/cafe area where the fight occurred, there might be a clue or two."

Cranston nodded, "Sounds like as good a start as any other."

"If, or rather when we find out anything useful, what would be the best way to contact you, Mr. ...sorry I never did catch your name earlier."

Smiling, Cranston got up from his seat, "Cranston, you can call me Cranston. I will be moving the boy in the morning to a more secure location, but if you need to contact me go to that brothel. The owner can be trusted." He started for the door. "He'll pass anything on to me that you need." Stopping in the doorway, he looked over his shoulder and said. "Happy hunting."

Shortly after, Cranston had returned to the brothel to find Lilith asleep by Sprout's side. After sending Maria home for the night, he spoke to the owner about compensating him for the night of lost business. With a mattress already setup for Sprout, he didn't feel any need to move the injured boy up to his room. Cranston spent the remainder of the night drinking with the working girls. Apparently they liked his goatee.

Lilith slept through the whole affair. A shame really, Cranston's mojo would have made for a few good jokes later on.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Yeah. I'm... Outside the house." Warren looked around, "Around the back. There are corpses, it is easy to find. Opposite side I came in."

"Roger." Bennie said as he gave Ruffles a cursory glance. "Hang in there, Jake. We ain't outta the woods yet." After they rolled out across the lawn, Bennie spun the wheel and stopped the crawler just short of the weathered, brick wall Cameron was set up behind.

"Nice ride." She remarked as she hopped in the back, landing on their unconscious prisoner's back. That would certainly hurt in the morning.

As they drove up around the back of the building, a small group of banditos noticed them from the hill and began firing. Using one hand to steady the wheel, Bennie stuck his arm out the window and fired the four remaining shots of his revolver, catching two men center-mass. After cutting down the resistance, Bennie drove up to the back of the compound and saw Warren by the backdoor. He looked exhausted.

"All aboard!" Bennie barked at Warren, as more banditos appeared out of the back of the manor. "LIGHT 'EM UP, MAIDENS!"

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Pixie woke to find herself in the midst of rolling over and sprawling out across the bed. Had Amy just left her side? Basking in the warmth Amy had left behind, Pixie thought to the night they'd spent together. What did she tell the girl in her delirium? She couldn't recall a word of it. "Bleh," She muttered as she squirmed and stretched before rolling out of bed.

Throwing on a t-shirt that was at least three sized too big, Pixie sauntered off into the kitchen to find a punctual Gentleman making breakfast, "Don' mind if I do," Pixie said as she walked by the counter and snatched a freshly cooked strip of bacon. Stuffing it in her mouth, she added. "'Om gonna churck om Froriom." Etiquette wasn't her strong suit.

Pixie came into the room to find Amy crouched down at his bedside, checking his temperature with the back of her hand on his forehead. He was still fast asleep. Approaching her from behind, Pixie leaned over, placed her hands on Amy's shoulders and kissed her on the top of the head, "Mornin', darlin'. I reckon ar' boy's doin' better?" She asked, her hands remaining on Amy's shoulders.

 

[The Funslinger]

"LIGHT 'EM UP, MAIDENS!"

Ruffles pulled out his glock and emptied it in the general direction of the encroaching banditos. Though it was hard to aim while in pain and most of his shots went wide, he fancied at least a couple found their mark as founts of blood erupted and men went sprawling in the dirt from the Maiden's cover fire. Breathing through his teeth, he slotted in a fresh magazine.

"Jesus, you'd think we'd killed their boss or something," he joked wryly.

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

Eddie woke up easily enough. He was ever a light sleeper. Getting up, he went over to the sink in the corner of his room and splashed cold water on his face. Thoroughly wetting his stubbly cheeks, he went over to his bag and found his straight razor. Several minutes later, he was clean shaven. Buttoning on his shirt, pulling on his jeans, putting on his gun belt, and lacing his boots, he moved to the door with his hat in his hand. As he past the room he'd directed Elizabeth to, he called out, "breakfast in a few minutes!"

Then he went up to the midsection's kitchen area. Depositing his hat top down on the table and dumping his coat on a chair, he got to work. Opening the fridge-freezer, he removed a pack of bacon and a box of eggs and got cooking. By the time Elizabeth came up, the kitchen was filled with the sound of hissing and the smell of bacon and fried eggs.

 

[Dogmatic99]

And one by one they came shuffling in, wrinkling their noses and furrowing their brows in disdain like dancers in a line. They only numbered a handful, hired muscle included. A mixture of old and young representatives of Frostfall's ivory court. They looked everything the stories and political cartoons painted them to be, the young, greasy schemers and climbers and the old having tired themselves out reaching whatever perch those above had seen fit to allow them, now forced to be content with a life of stagnation and gout. Had any of the. Ever tasted the true cold of their mother dome before? Perhaps today was a great adventure for them to come back boasting over to those in their towers.

They took their seats, each eyeing the bandits around them with the same unbearable air of haughtyness. They even tried to meet Vasa's cold schoolmaster stare without blinking. They each failed. The negotiations started well enough, both sides were willing to stand their forces down and keep to their side of the battle drawn lines, they were even willing to allow medical and commercial vehicles through. It was deciding where those lines fell that things started to break down.

"You can't be serious!" They blustered.

"I am."

"What would the likes of your... of your KIND even want with banks?"

"Much the same as your kind I imagine."

That got a rise out of them. After a good deal of sputtering from one party both agreed to move onto another area of the dome and come back to the previous one later. This dance repeated itself for some time.

"And give you control of all the shipping in the eastern access tunnels!"
"Who knows what he'd flood the dome with."
"Do you forget who controls the very workings of this place?"
"To have the nerve to even ask such concessions."
"Well I should expect no less from a Bejic. Thugs every last one."

The nobles demands and territory lines ebbed and flowed like the tides as they retreated from one thing and tried to claw back others. Unlike Vasa who stuck by the ancient Frostfall haggling method of choosing your final demand and never moving from it. He knew what he wanted and would have no less. He sat there, a disapproving statue with Erik by his side, ready and eager to throttle them all with a smile. But soon enough the found a wall they couldn't move past. Vasa ppted to end things before they exploded, sending the nobles back to their masters to cool off.

"Well that went as well as expected." Erik said in his rumbling growl as Vasa and his guard stalked back to their crawler.

"Not everything can happen as fast as you like it, Erik, age is supposed to bring patience you know."

***[\center]
Florian stayed awake as long as he could, like a stubborn child told to go bed. There was nothing to be gained from it as his body cried out for more rest but he'd slept enough he told himself. If blacking out from physical trauma can be counted as sleep. Still, fatigue got its way in the end, as it aalways does and the dreams came again. He say all the faces he'd left behind, all the folk he'd sent back to the ash and others he thought he'd forgotten.

The red was reaching out for him again, ready to pull him back into the cold dark. But did it give a light of its own?

He woke with a start, the feeling of something close by that set off his internal alarm bells. The thing was, naturally, the two women of the group in varying states of dress, fresh from another girl-on-girl encounter.

"I knew this would happen eventually." Florian propped himself up. "Alright, let's do this."​

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Smiling, the older gentleman got up from his seat. "Cranston, you can call me Cranston. I will be moving the boy in the morning to a more secure location, but if you need to contact me go to that brothel. The owner can be trusted." He then headed for the door. "He'll pass anything on to me that you need." Before leaving the room, Cranston stopped at the doorway and looked over his shoulder. "Happy hunting."

"Will do Mr. Cranston." Viola spoke as the gentleman pulled the door shut, and she started assembling her weapons. The rest of the evening was spent pretty much preparing for events tomorrow. Both of them talked for a while about what they were going to do before heading off to sleep.

The Following Morning

They arrived at the marketplace roughly an hour or so after waking up; most of it had remained the same after yesterday's shoot out, and there were few people about, which meant that if any clues were about, they had hopefully remained undisturbed. One of the more surprising and sudden events of that particular fight was the detonation of the Crawler; as it would have required meticulous planning and foresight to pull off, whoever detonated it must have known where people to be at that time, it wasn't the work of an amateur that was certain.

"Right then, we best start combing the area for clues if we're going to find out where those mercs went. Reckon we should start with that burnt out Crawler over there; then proceed to the cafe, then to the surrounding streets."

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Placing her palm on the boy's forehead for what was probably the fifth time that hour, Lilith furrowed her brow.

They had moved to one of Cranston's safe houses in the early hours of the morning, a small apartment several stories high. How they managed to get the boy through the city and into the building without being noticed was something Lilith was far too preoccupied with worry to even contemplate. Maria, the doctor, had arrived shortly after they had, periodically checking over the boy, using tools Lilith had little understanding of.

The boy's temperature had improved, but he was still deathly pale. Looking little better herself, Lilith had taken a shower to wash the bloody gunk from her hair and skin, as well as stitching the wound on her inner thigh, albeit rather clumsily, followed by a clean bandage wrap. Her colour had improved, but her face was lined with worry, with dark bags beneath her eyes.

Making no attempt to be presentable, she had pretty much burned through all her own clothes, all that was left was an oversized blue t-shirt, and a pair of baggy khaki trousers, as well as the black scarf she had originally planned to wear when they first left the Maiden, now wrapped around her neck loosely.

Lilith had thrown her old red one away, it was ruined now, even if by some miracle she managed to clean the thing, she wouldn't have been able to wear it again, not after it had drank so deeply of her friend's blood.

Now sat next to the boy, in the small apartment, one legged pulled up to her chest, she continued her watch over the boy, remembering happier times, or at least trying to.

As she watched Maria do another routine check, Lilith tilted her head slightly, a thoughtful look on her face. Could she have been a doctor if life had taken a different turn? If she had left the orphanage and tried to help people, instead of taking their money from them with frivolous gambling?

'Dr. Valentine.'

Lilith liked the sound of that.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Mornin', darlin'. I reckon ar' boy's doin' better?"

"His recovery is truly extraordinary." Amy replied as she continued her. "It's no exaggeration to say that he was only a few minutes from death when we found him. I'd wager that Florian, before he was a priest, was a soldier, and a fierce one at that. This kind of ingrained will, this toughness, is not often found in untrained flesh."

It was at that point that Florian began too stir.

"Alright, let's do this."

Amy smiled and raised an eyebrow in Meredith's direction. Why, whatever did he mean?

 

[Terratina.]

Maria sighed for possibility the fiftieth time in a row.

He appeared to be getting better, but it was so slow. It wasn't that the recovery was taking too long, just in large spaces of time like this, worry began to truly set in. Since when was a day a large space of time? Well it seemed like that. Anyways, in a day or more, worry truly began to set in, now that there was a glimmer of hope for the patient. She wished to had a book to read or something else to do. Anyone would think that Maria had an unhealthy obsession with checking her patients over and over again. Which... was probably true. On the other hand, if she didn't keep herself busy, she would probably collapse from tiredness. "Doctor's privilege" or not, she should have forced that poor barmaid to bring her three expressos, or was it more than that? Either way, it looked like both Maria and Lilth were competing for the "Who Looks The Most Tired" award. Nevertheless, while she was glad that they were in a safer place, there was still the agony of waiting.

"Not much to do but watch and wait..." Maria quietly admitted as she slumped back.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Spoiler: TOONS

"Not much to do but watch and wait..."

Running a hand through her hair, Lilith yawned quietly. Getting to her feet, she gently the brushed the boy's hand with her own. "I'm going for a smoke." She muttered, as she grabbed an ashtray and headed out of the apartment.

Quietly closing the door behind her, she crossed the narrow hallway and leaned her back against the wall. Why was doing nothing so tiring? She let herself slide down until she was sat on the carpet, straightening one leg, she placed the ashtray next to her. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her lighter and smokes, lazily lighting one up, she flicked the lighter closed and rested her arm across her knee.

Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back, smoke crawling slowly from her nose and mouth.

"Stupid boy." She whispered.



Millie had been sat on the sofa for several minutes now. Her mother had disappeared off to find a game Millie had never heard of called 'connect four'. After a while, her mind was starting to wander. She'd been into the apartment building several times, but always just the straight elevator ride up to mommy's place.

Sliding off the sofa, Millie headed over to the door, and stretched up onto the tips of her toes to pull on the handle. The door opened and she was off out into the hallway. Surprisingly, there were no stairs (this was to assure that nobody just wandered up to the Penthouse, but Millie didn't know this) so she went into the elevator instead. Stretching up again, she mashed what buttons she could reach and the elevator made its way down.

A couple of minutes later, the doors opened and Millie dashed out. Freedom!

This exultation was short lived, as she sped around the corner and immediately collided with someone's leg.

Lilith opened an eye slightly as she heard the pitter patter of tiny footsteps draw closer, only to see a small figure rush around the corner and instantly trip over her outstretched leg, sprawling out onto the carpeted ground with a loud squeak.

Opening her eyes wide, Lilith quickly leaned forward, a small smile on her face as the cigarette hung loosely from her lips.

"You alright there, little miss?"

Millie went sprawling across the carpet, and peered up dazed. Another girl might have started bawling, but Eddie's analysis of his daughter still held true and Millie merely sat up and said, "that wasn't very nice..."

Furrowing her brow, Lilith smirked. "Beg pardon?" She crossed her arms across her chest. "What did I do exactly?"

Getting to her feet and brushing her hair out of her eyes, Millie pouted. "Tripped me up, ya big fat meanie!"

Letting loose an incredulous chuckle, Lilith crossed both her legs, resting her elbows on her knees. "What about my poor leg? It was just there, minding its own business, then you come along and stand all over it, the poor thing." Lilith mimicked the girl's pout.

Millie couldn't think of anything to say to this, and settled on the failsafe of any cheeky five year old and stuck her tongue out at the strange lady.

Lilith gasped, raising a hand to her chest. "Well, I never!"

The initial dispute practically forgotten, Millie was just curious. "So do you live here?"

Removing the cigarette from her mouth, she tapped it on the edge of the ashtray. "Not really, just staying at a friend's place for a few days." Furrowing her brow, she was silent for a few moments, a sad smile on her face. "My friend, he's very sick, we can't leave until he gets better."

Millie thought about this for a moment and then nodded sagely. "I was sick one time here. Mommy made me chicken soup and hot chocolate. Your friend should drink lots and lots of that!"

Lilith grinned, placing the cigarette back in her mouth. "I'll keep that in mind for when he wakes up, I'm sure he'd love the idea of me feeding him in bed."

There was silence for a few moments. This lady reminded Millie of mommy. She smelled like mommy smelled whenever she came back from the balcony. It was probably this that prompted her to burst out, "my mommy has a funny name. Grandma doesn't like it!"

Lilith raised an eyebrow. She had forgotten how random small children could be. "Oh really? What's her name?"

"Whiskey," Millie replied and started giggling as though she'd just uttered a swear word for the first time.

Lilith paused for a second, narrowing her eyes. Couldn't be the same person, surely? "That's nice, tell me my lovely, what's mummy's last name?"

Millie frowned for a moment. Mommy never really mentioned her last name around Millie but she was sure she'd heard it at least once. "Ummm... ffff....fffffFifer!"

Then she remembered something else, and leaned in conspiratorially. "It's meant to be my last name too, but mommy says it's not!" She had also said to never tell anyone, but Millie liked this lady, even if she had tripped her up.

Lilith frowned for an instant, before letting her face soften into a smile. This might be cause for concern, she was pretty sure the woman didn't get a good look at her at the hostage exchange, but there was no doubt she knew Sprout's face. "Well, what mummy says goes." She said matter of factly. "Not that I would know." She stubbed out her cigarette. "I never had a mummy."

Millie blinked. "But everyone should have a mommy..." she'd never heard of someone not having a mommy before. Not having a daddy, she understood. Her daddy was the man in the picture, but aside from a vague sense of familiarity and warmth whenever she looked at it, she couldn't remember him.

Stepping over the lady's sprawled legs, Millie put her arms as far as she could reach around her waist and nestled her head against the lady's chest, trying to hug her.

"Oh, oh, okay, we're hugging now? Oh, okay, that's nice?" Lilith squirmed slightly at the abrupt initiation of physical affection. She didn't know what to do with her hands, holding them out awkwardly. After a few moments passed, with no end to the hug in sight, Lilith coughed slightly. "Er, little girl?" Lilith moved her hands, hovering them over the girl awkwardly.

'What do I do with my hands?!'

Millie had just let go when she heard the ding of the elevator again, and she turned around just in time to see grandma coming around the corner. "Granny!"

"What's going on here, then?" the old woman asked, mildly.

Rubbing the back of her head, Lilith laughed nervously.

'Shit!'

"I err, hmmm..." Lost for words, she pursed her lips, her eyes glancing around as if in thought.

Taking Millie by the hand, the woman gave Lilith a considering look. After a moment, she decided to give the young lady the benefit of the doubt, and her expression softened. "I apologize for my grand daughter. She's... very affectionate." Tousling the girl's hair, she said, "go wait for me my the elevator, Millie. We'll see your mother before we go and make sure she knows you're alright. She's been tearing round this building floor by floor, scared witless!"

"Sorry granny..."

"It's not me you should apologize to, dear."

Millie vanished around the corner, and the old lady turned back. "I don't know who did that to you dear, but if it was... the man in your life, you need to put a stop to it. My daughter lives at the top of this building if you need a shoulder to lean on..."

"Huh? Oh, no, no I er..." Raising a hand to her stitched cheek, she smiled fondly, "Err, your granddaughter, she's very sweet."

The old lady nodded, with a smile of pride. "Oh yes... gets it from her mother, I think. Anyway, I'd best be off. Remember what I said, though..."

With that, she tottered away back around the corner.

As soon as she heard the elevator doors close, Lilith held her head in her hands. Why couldn't anything ever go smoothly? She remembered back to the note that Fifer had left in the briefcase of carbon, she seemed amicable enough, but still, they'd have to be doubly cautious from here on out. Who knows where her allegiances truly lay.

Letting out a small sigh, Lilith lit up another cigarette, resting the back of her head on the wall, she took a deep drag.

"Sweet kid." She muttered.

 

[Fappy]

Elizabeth was slow to wake, but eventually answered Eddie's summons. She still felt a deep sadness, but her grumbling stomach had returned with a vengeance, distracting her from her despair. Throwing a blanket over herself, she walked across the cold steel floor with bare feet, eventually coming upon what passed for a kitchen in this place. The aroma of bacon and eggs filled her nostrils and hastened her approach, "That smells delightful!" She exclaimed as she rushed over to Eddie's side. A real breakfast!

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"It's no exaggeration to say that he was only a few minutes from death when we found him. I'd wager that Florian, before he was a priest, was a soldier, and a fierce one at that. This kind of ingrained will, this toughness, is not often found in untrained flesh."

Pixie nodded along, "He always was a bit of a mystery. I reckon that's why Lily's been wantin' ta' jump 'is bones." She chuckled.

As Florian woke a sinister grin shone on his face.

"Alright, let's do this."

Pixie smirked as she and Amy exchanged looks. Tilting her head sideways, Pixie laughed, "Come 'on, Father, ya' know I don' bump uglies with my Maidens. I don' wan' y'all goin' in ta' battle thinkin' a nothin' but my firm tits, ya' know." Crouching down behind Amy, Pixie kissed her neck softly and gave Florian a flirtatious grin. "I reckon ya' can watch if ya' like, though."

Carlos stumbled into the room, groggy and grunted, "At least let the man eat before ya' give him blue balls, god damn."

 

[Fappy]

Carthage stood in wait as Vasa and Erik filed out of the room after the nobles. The moment they crossed over the threshold of the office, he spoke up, "Ah, Mr. Bejic I am sorry things didn't progress quite as well as we all hoped. I trust you haven't given up on further discussions?"

Vasa and his guard stopped in their tracks. Each solider of the family shooting murder at him from their eyes as Erik looked the young noble over the same way a butcher does a cut of meat. Vasa himself turned slowly, which was this one, Carthage, yes?

"We will see." He said quietly, shooting the boy the same look that had cowed down family heads before him. He was still the enemy after all, however polite he may have been.

Carthage stood his ground, not allowing the eyes of Vasa's men to whither away his resolve. He would have them all dead before supper, that much was sure. Carthage returned their icy glares with a smile, "Come on, Mr. Bejic, don't be like that. I pushed my peers to give more ground for you. Unlike them, I can see how your organization can benefit the people of Frostfall. Maybe if I were to get a better understanding of your intentions I would be able to make a better case in court." He took a few steps closer to Vasa. "How about this, I have a limo out in front. I take you and your man, Erik, to eat the best steak in town and you make your case."

"Step... back." Erik snarled, placing himself between the two and placing one of his massive hands on Carthage's shoulder. Vasa silently raised a hand and seemed to calm all the edging gurads.

"My case is clear. I do not need you to make it."

Carthage stepped back as Erik towered over him. Shaking off his fear, Carthage peaked over the massive man's shoulder, "Please, Mr. Bejic, I insist! I want nothing more but a peaceful solution to this senseless conflict. I'd be willing to do whatever it takes to reach that end!"

"...senseless..." Vasa was in the process of leaving, until Carthage said that word. His men backed off a step as Vasa handled the grip of his cane. "What have you to gain from this?"

Carthage eyeballed the cane for a moment before speaking, "I-I, I have a family in this city... like many of you. I'd wish for them to go to sleep at night knowing they're safe. I don't want them to fear walking down the streets of this city any longer. Whatever it takes to end the bloodshed..." He sighed. "I'll do it.

"Yes... we all have family." Vasa seemed to measure out each word in turn, the very picture of calm. Erik on the other hand looked like if his jaw clenched any harder it would pop off. He and Vasa looked at each other for a moment and it seemed as if whole conversations passed between them. The boy had guts they had to admit that. And there was something to gain from this. "You will travel with us, with my men."

Carthage hesitated for a moment before nodding, "O-okay, yes, that's agreeable. Shall we be off, then?"

"Yes." Said Vasa, all out of patience and he turned to leave, his men enveloping Carthage into the fold without a word.

They made their way back to the convoy in awkward silence. It was awkward for one of them at least. They came back into the stoney streets, the wind hitting with its usual vigour. If it bothered any of the natives among them they did a good job of not showing it.

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After waiting silence for what felt like an eternity, Vasa and his men were finally leaving the protection of the warehouse, "Second car from the front." Tsubaki whispered into her radio. As the convoy made its way out of the gate, Tsubaki looked to Jun. "The sniper on the roof." Tsubaki pointed to the man who had been standing where she needed Asad. She fingered her radio. "Get ready to move, Harvey. You too, Spunk." Taking her finger off the radio, she whispered. "Take him out on Asad's signal."

Shit was about to go down in Frostfall.

 

[ProtoChimp]

"LIGHT 'EM UP, MAIDENS!"

Laughing maciacally Aesop leaned his hand out and emptied what was left of the clip, rapidly pulling the trigger even after all the bullets were gone.

"Jesus, you'd think we'd killed their boss or something."

"HA!" Laughed Aesop loudly and obnoxiously. "Hey Mr Bennie ya reckon they'll put a personal hit out on me for what I did to the body? You saw it TELL ME that wasn't impressive!"

Warren then suddenly jumped into the crawler, with Vergil now stuck in between the two killers. "Hey Warren? What's up buddy? Why you look so glum?" Aesop noticed his frown and put on a sympathetic childlike voice. "You run out of ammo?"
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Hannibal listened to every word of the conversation of their planning. He didn't say anything and was content to just listen. Now they were chasing a man? God this would end in blood, again, it always does!

Still... doing something for the famed Iron Maidens rather than some psychopath with a grudge on another psychopath, or a druglord wanting tools of suffering delivered, or a madman wanting to blow people up... at least here he would be helping a kid younger than even himself and people who seem to have suffered, perhaps just as much as himself. The Rock was a cruel place and soul crushing misery was unfortunately not a rare sight at all.

The next day he went out, following Viola. It didn't surprise him things had gone 'business as usual' so soon after a violent gunfight. Again this was The Rock, if everyone stopped after a car exploded or a few people died then... well maybe it would be a much better place, where people cared. Hannibal thought so at least.

"Right then, we best start combing the area for clues if we're going to find out where those mercs went. Reckon we should start with that burnt out Crawler over there; then proceed to the cafe, then to the surrounding streets."

"Right, though anyone who might help will probably be quiet or angry when we talk to them. Um, I should say despite working with bombs the past week or so, I don't actually know the names of stuff, when we look at the crawler I mean. Um, does that make sense?"

 

[The Funslinger]

"That smells delightful!"

"Damn straight it does," replied Eddie as he reached for a pair of chipped plates. "I ain't never met a trustworthy person who didn't like some good bacon in the morning."
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"Roger that, ma'am," Bryan replied. "Alright 'Harvey'. I'll stop 'em, and you go and take your shot at whatever vehicle don't have the big man in it."

He waited. And waited. The sound of motor transports filled the street, and soon enough, armed foot patrol filed past the alley where Bryan was lurking. And that was when he struck. Bursting out into the street, he kicked the first man to the ground, turning and taking off the head of the next man with his sword. The last couple of men on the foot patrol's vanguard were backpedaling to take a shot and he followed them, cutting down one man's rifle before slashing his throat and stabbing his fellow through the chest. With the bodies around him, he waved his bloody swords and yelled, "VASAAAAAA! IT'S WAR, YA FUCKEN SHRIVEL DICKED GOBSHITE! CONSIDER YOURSELF ANNEXED!"

The vehicles had come to a stop several yards in front of him and the drivers and passengers seemed utterly startled by the turn of events.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Peering around his hiding place, Asad glimpsed at the marksman watching over the street below.

"Alright 'Harvey'. I'll stop 'em, and you go and take your shot at whatever vehicle don't have the big man in it."

Asad furrowed his brow, "Roger that."

A few moments passed, before he heard the sound of crawler engines roar to life. Tightening his grip on the RPG, he took a few deep breaths.

"Take him out."

No sooner had he finished talking, the guard fell to the ground with a streak of crimson arching from his head. Dashing across the rooftop, Asad reached the edge.

"VASAAAAAA! IT'S WAR, YA FUCKEN SHRIVEL DICKED GOBSHITE! CONSIDER YOURSELF ANNEXED!"

"Let's make this convincing." Asad muttered, taking aim at the rear crawler. Bracing himself, he let fly the RPG, tossing the launcher to the ground as the vehicle exploded. Crouching to one knee, Asad pulled his rifle strap, repositioning his weapon to his front. Pressing the reloading mechanism above the magazine, the rifle made a satisfying clunk as it loaded the first round. Clicking off the safety, he rose to his feet and began giving covering fire to Bryan, who was busy doing what Bryan does best.

 

[Ruedyn]

"Hey Warren? What's up buddy? Why you look so glum? You run out of ammo?"

"Use that voice again, and I'm throwing you at them." Warren growled instantly, looking wistfully over at the gunfire. He probably had the highest kill count, but he could hear the voices scratching in the back of his skull, a few more and he'd prove he was better. Just a few more. Lose yourself in the violence, everything worked it's way out eventually...

Vergil sat inbetween the two bloodied men, tucking his knees into his chest. He should've chosen another entry point, this was not going according to plan. He really didn't want to die here, things seemed easier before. True, he'd been in situations like this before, but fuckin hell, nothing really compared to the violence HERE. He needed a nap. Maybe a hug. From someone who wasn't covered in blood. He pulled his hood up, waiting for them to just drive out. He was useless again.

'Yay, uselessness.'

 

[ProtoChimp]

Austin supervised over the maiden engineers, watching with eager eyes as they worked into the night along with his own handymen. As the suns set over The Rock the two men kept working, they were exhausted but Austin still watched over them like a hawk, all the while holding a powerful sawn-off shotgun in his hand. Children swapped over in shifts as the maidens kept working for hours and hours on end. Their eyes drooping over and their digits getting stiff, yet Austin still looked as if he were as active as he was when the ship was first taken. God knows how long the maidens worked for, and any attempt of conversation not to do with work was swiftly shushed by Austin.

"Can I ask something?" Said the one young enough to become a child of Austin's.

"I told you to keep working." Said Austin coldly.

"But its about you father." The man said sounding sincere.

Austin cocked his head to the side, intrigued. "Alright, go on."

"What are your plans for me? I mean, I work, or used to work, for the enemy? Am I going to be punished? To learn the error of my ways?" He said mockingly.

Scowling, Austin replied, "I will teach you how to behave, boy! Whether it takes weeks or months I don't care, you are my son and all I care about is you. That is, unless you are lying to me." Austin raised his shotgun and levelled it against the man.

"Oh come on, you need me to get this ship working."

"Do I? Are you really that necessary to get this ship working? I mean, surely if that was the case the head engineer wouldn't be out on a mission right? He would be here with the ship. Ruffles, would be here, with the ship, protecting and manning it." Austin leaned against a wall to get comfortable. "Seems to me they left the expendables behind."

He turned around to face Austin and spoke angrily but not loudly, "You shut the fuck u-"

"Think about it. You're Captain isn't even here? Why? Why is that? Why would she leave her own vessel, her own crew, for so long? With such few fighters to protect the ship, AND the hostages, and so few engineers to keep it running?"

"Oh yeah, you did a fucking great job with the hostages." Laughed the man.

"You don't take my point boy. You were abandoned. Left behind. And with the Maidens apparently being paragons of virtue, you were left with the most brutal of the bunch-child killers."

"You led the fucking charge with them!" Yelled the engineer, totally forgetting his work. "Of course they were gonna die!"

"Oh really? You know a pretender was on his way out of your vessel, and he swore to me that he didn't kill any of my sons and daughters. Of course I don't believe him, but now that I think about it, he seemed so... disturbed by their deaths. By their bodies. He himself appeared to be the birth giver of a girl named Millie. So, it makes sense to me why he, even a pretender, wouldn't kill my youngest. Yet the rest of this crew were eager to slaughter those who hadn't spent even a decade on my planet."

"You're planet!" He laughed at the delusional man. "You're a fucking lunatic. No one person rules The Rock mother fucker!"

Austin ignored his words, he knew how to get to him, as he continued with his point. "All those who have a reputation for upholding what is right, for protecting the weak and the young, they must all be out, along with your captain. Meanwhile you are stuck here with a skeleton crew of psychopaths. Tell me would you have been able to kill a youngster?"

The man couldn't answer. He found himself speechless.

"ARE YOU??!!!"

Austin's words echoed around the hull. The man, doubt running through his mind, turned around to continue his work. "If we keep at it, the ship should fly by morning." The older engineer sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. He just wanted his friend to live... but indoctrination was a terrible risk, and unfortunately a likely one.

Austin meanwhile gave a subtle smile before letting the intimidation settle back into his face as he stood back and allowed the men to work. They'd stay all through the night, working to the bone, until sunrise the next day, when all three men were utterly exhausted. Standing in the same spot for so many hours, the cult leaders legs hurt like hell but he dare not show it.

It was only a matter of time now.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Amy smiled sweetly at Florian.

"Well, the fact that you can joke speaks volumes about your recovery in itself. However, we'll see how you fare once you have some solid food in you."

At the juncture The Gentleman walked into the room. He acknowledged the conscious Florian with the most cursory of nods, accompanied by a twitch of a smile. Then, he turned to the captain, his expression grave...

"Meredith, I have received word about the whereabouts of our missing guests. This 'Metal' did indeed make the Bengali dome his destination. However, they did not remain there long. It would appear that the Lady Josephine did not survive the flight from the Iron Maiden. The dome is currently in a state of national mourning, and the Lady Elizabeth and her new companion were not granted so much as an audience. Let alone asylum. My people tailed their crawler as they exited the dome, but followed at some considerable distance so as to not give themselves away. As a result, they couldn't track Metal to an exact location, but they do believe he and Elizabeth have gone to ground inside an area of five square miles. My guess would be that Metal has a hideout concealed underground beneath the wastes. My men in the field are asking whether they should move in and attempt to pin-point the location and recapture Elizabeth, or else wait and see who else might come calling."

 

[Fappy]

"Hey Mr Bennie ya reckon they'll put a personal hit out on me for what I did to the body? You saw it TELL ME that wasn't impressive!"

Bennie sneered, "SHUT UP AND KEEP SHOOTING!" Once Warren was safely inside the crawler, Bennie slammed his foot down on the gas and barreled down the hill. Though most of the opposition had been blown away, a few remained firing at them as they spun around the side of the compound. Just as they had broken line of sight, a stray bullet ricocheted off the crawler, flying between Aesop and Warren and took a chunk of flesh off Bennie's right triceps. "SHIT!" Blood poured over his fingers as he clutched his wound. He was lucky it had only grazed him.

After putting several blocks between them and the bandito HQ, Bennie turned his head, "Everyone better be okay, 'cause I ain't stopping this crawler until we're clear out of this piece of shit dome. Get your masks ready." Steadying the wheel with his good arm, Bennie reached into his pocket and yanked out his old bandit scarf: a plain white bandanna with a the silhouette of a slender woman, sitting crossed legged in black. Some say it was an old trucker motif from the old world.

Pixie had picked it out for him.

His mask and bandanna in place, Bennie checked those of his comrades, "We'll rendezvous with the other two at Proto Dome. Hope none of y'all have a problem with that." A few shots were fired their way as they flew through the city, but none of them had any hope in reaching their mark. The Santiago family had been shaken to its core. Bennie had no clue what the future had in store for this city, but he knew it wouldn't be pretty. They'd best get the fuck out as soon as possible.

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"I ain't never met a trustworthy person who didn't like some good bacon in the morning."

Elizabeth plopped down at the table in anticipation, "So, is this your... home? I mean no offense, but it seems rather drab. It could use a bit of a lady's touch." She mused. "And the floor's freezing!"

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Tsubaki's heart-rate steady and her breathing controlled, she calmly spoke into the radio, "Pull out now, Spunk. Harvey, lay down cover fire---" She paused a moment as Jun fired another shot from his rifle. "Lay down cover fire until Spunk is clear. I will---" The sound of heavy footfalls started echoing from below. They had enemies inside the abbey. But how? "I'll cover you!" She shouted towards Jun as she lept to her feet, grabbing her carbine off the floor beside her.

Crouching low, she proceeded down the stairwell, the footfalls getting ever closer. She emptied half her clip into a group of three of Vasa's bandits as they rounded the bend of the spiral staircase. Their bodies toppled backwards and down the stairs. Looking back up towards Jun, she shouted, "More are on the way up! Is Spunk clear!?" An ambush like that wouldn't work twice. They needed to get clear of the abbey and they needed to do it now.

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************

Carthage screamed out in terror as the crawler in front of his erupted into a fireball, sending out a shockwave that shattered the glass of his vehicle. Deafened and in shock, he stumbled out of the moving vehicle after one of Vasa's troops jumped out, rifle at the ready, "Wh-what is happening?!" He muttered under the roar of gunfire. As his wits returned he noticed a group of noble soldiers engaging some of Vasa's. "Oh no..."

What was happening? Had he been double-crossed?!

Bullets flying in every direction, he scrambled for cover by a nearby storefront.

Would he die here?

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Well, the fact that you can joke speaks volumes about your recovery in itself. However, we'll see how you fare once you have some solid food in you."

"Aw, he was jokin'!?" Pixie giggled.

"Meredith, I have received word about the whereabouts of our missing guests..."

"Is that so?" Pixie got to her feet and approached the Gentleman; her carefree demeanor all but discarded.

"... This 'Metal' did indeed make the Bengali dome his destination. However, they did not remain there long. It would appear that the Lady Josephine did not survive the flight from the Iron Maiden..."

Pixie's plane expression wavered but for a moment. That was... unfortunate news. Perhaps she should have dropped Josephine off when she had the chance. She was a good woman. She didn't deserve her fate.

"... My men in the field are asking whether they should move in and attempt to pin-point the location and recapture Elizabeth, or else wait and see who else might come calling."

Pixie shook her head, "No, we can't wait fer someone ta' come scoop 'er up out from under 'ar noses again. Tell 'em ta' use whatever means necessary ta' bring Elizabeth back unharmed. Yer welcome ta' disagree, but I reckon they should kill Metal on sight. If you'd rather interrogate 'im first ya' better fuckin' invite me ta' the party. That work fer you?"

 

[The Funslinger]

"So, is this your... home? I mean no offense, but it seems rather drab. It could use a bit of a lady's touch."

Eddie chewed thoughtfully as he set Elizabeth's plate in front of her. "Nah, it's not really my home. It's more like... I dunno, my lair or some shit. I don't really have a home. I just bounce from dome to dome, and rent rooms."

They were both fairly hungry and breakfast disappeared quite quickly. As they were finishing up, Eddie asked, "so with everything that's going on, you ever thought about learning to defend yourself? How to shoot, or something?"

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

"Pull out now, Spunk."

"That's something I'm well practiced at, ma'am," said Bryan as he wiped his swords on the shirt of a fallen man, put them together and sheathed them with practiced efficiency. Turning, he dashed between two buildings as bullets filled the space he had just occupied. The two squat buildings he went between were storage units, and crates littered the alley. Leaping atop the nearest crate, he kept running. Hand on the wall, his feet followed. Five steps along the wall's surface carrying him further up, Bryan twisted and pushed off, catching the edge of the building opposite with his hands and hauling himself over the edge. Crouching atop the building's flat roof, he drew his pistol and watched. He could hear the footsteps and see the sounds of the men making futile efforts to follow him. None of the eruptions of colour made it more than halfway up the building's wall at first. Then by pure luck, one man's head did clear the edge of the wall somehow. Bryan reasoned he was standing on someone's shoulders. He fired twice and the man fell back, with a gout of blood erupting from his neck. Chances were he was safe where he was, but regardless, he turned and ran and jumped onto the next building. And the next.

"More are on the way up! Is Spunk clear!?"

"No need to fret, Tsu," Bryan responded as he loped over the rooftops, looking for places to ascend. "I'm clear and dandy. Any orders for me?"

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

"We'll rendezvous with the other two at Proto Dome. Hope none of y'all have a problem with that."

"So long as it ain't here, man," said Ruffles through his teeth as he tried to keep pressure on his ribs in a vain effort to keep the crawler's movement from jarring him about. Taking one hand away from his side, he pulled up his mask and inhaled.

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

Whiskey stood on the balcony, watching as her mother and Millie walked out onto the street below. As she'd expected, they were greeted by men in suits wearing komodo dragon bandanas who just seemed to materialize from the shadows. She'd known when she'd spotted that first sniper on the adjacent rooftop during her trip out for a smoke. Subsequent trips had revealed two more.

The message was clear. Time to get moving. The letter had been planted according to her instruction, and now there was no holding it off any longer. She took a long drag that seemed to consume the entirety of her cigarette in one go. Stubbing out the butt, she flicked it off the side of the balcony, where it landed satisfyingly in the hair of one of the Wilkes-Vines goons and headed back inside.

Riding the elevator straight down to basement level, Whiskey came into the underground parking area and found her quad bike. Pulling on her jacket and the riding helmet that contained its own breathing filter, she mounted the vehicle. Fifteen minutes later, Whiskey was heading south through the Ashlands at a good clip.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"That work fer you?"

"I was rather hoping that there'd be no need for anything like that." The Gentleman said, amused by the thought that for once he would be the one arguing against violence. Metal has no allegiance to our true enemy other than a paycheck, and even that doesn't seem to have stretched very far; and it just so happens that we may now be in a position to pay him a great deal more. Now, I wouldn't expect you to welcome him into the fold with open arms, after he helped scuttle your ship and kill members of your crew, but the man is undoubtedly talented. If we are able to recover both of them alive, Metal could prove to be a valuable resource in time, something which, at the moment, we are in short supply of."

From Meredith, The Gentleman looked to Florian on the bed, with an expression on his face that looked oddly like respect.

"Perhaps we should let the Padre decide Metal's ultimate fate. You did come face to face with him after all, and lived to tell about it. You have a perspective on the man that we all sadly lack. In any case, it's all moot unless we can actually recover them both. I'll tell my men to move in, but it will be a slow process. I wouldn't be surprised if Metal has a dozen escape routes from wherever he's hiding, and I'd venture that there's no use even stepping foot inside his base until we've got him utterly surrounded. It would not do to have him slip through our fingers with Lady Elizabeth in tow."