[center][h2]Plains of Ire[/h2]
[sub]Inside the Z-ATV[/sub][/center]

	Haley rose from her seat after the announcement was made, coming face to face with Jager once again. He saluted her with an inquiry for instructions. Haley walked past him and patted his shoulder plate confidently. "Come with me and we'll find out what needs to be done," She insisted. The ATV's massive metal door slammed against a mixture of dirt and dust, allowing the 7 passengers inside a way out. Haley stepped down promptly and strode over to the small cliff-like drop. 10 meters was quite a fall, even [i]without[/i] 5 inches of metal protecting you. She looked back for a moment, down the hill that they'd just climbed. "Can't you just use the cannon?!" Haley barked at the pilot. He shook his head from behind the cockpit window, mouthing the word 'wasteful' with a smirk. Haley pouted. "Zay, Buttercup! We've got some digging to do! Jager, apply your skill set elsewhere. Climb on top of the ATV with Nicolas and Dan. Keep an eye out for our sister vessles, or anything [i]else[/i] creeping around out there," Haley ordered with an air of conviction that bubbled up from the depths of her soul. "Hey! Move the ATV back about 30 feet once everyone's in position!"

	On command, the hulking golem heaved his way past the metal frame of the ATV and stamped across the soft dirt, with Zay lingering close behind, his hands planted firmly in his pockets. "Dig through a [i]cliff[/i] Haley?" Zay quipped, peering over the edge anxiously. Dan made his way up the ATV's side promptly as everyone else got into position. Once Nicolas and Jager joined him, the driver would back up as commanded.

	[i]'skriooo!'[/i] Ire Lizzies cried out as they neared the ATV, grouping together into a hoard of 10, each standing on two equally disheveled legs that held them four feet off the ground. They had no frontward appendages, instead relying on their large round heads that matches the circumference of their cone-like body. Near the center, it split into two rows of equally jagged yellow teeth that parted for their signature squeal, or [i]food.[/i] The walking, or rather, [i]sprinting[/i] lizard creatures made their way towards the ATV, only visible from atop the vehicle over the uneven terrain.

	The other two ATVs however, were nowhere to be found...

[center][h2]Xena Rock Fields[/h2]
[sub]Inside the [i]other [/i]Z-ATV[/sub][/center]

	Yvette glanced at Onweer with a hint of worry in the lines of her face seeping past her otherwise stalwart composure. She nodded curtly at the request. At the mention of truth or dare though, he muscles tensed. Brian looked at Onweer with a frown, already fully aware of where this was headed.

	"Truth or [i]dare!?[/i] Do you recognize the desperation of our situation... [i]Onweer[/i]?" Yvette snapped, stomping across the ATV's metal ground until she was inches away from the wind-mage. "There will [i]be[/i] no travel. We've nowhere safe to turn, no other allies in this desolate [i]wasteland,[/i] and half of our ranks have been desolated!" Cecil backed away from Yvette's outburst, towards the front of the ATV until his head was lined up with the vehicle's front windows. Brian sat down and waited desperately for this to end before it kicked into a new gear of [i]horrible.[/i] "Your attitude is gravely disproportionate to where we stand, fledgling! Perhaps there's a [i]reason[/i] they sent a gimped brat like [i]you[/i] to be executed with the rest of us!" Yvette paused and turned to Brian for a moment. Cecil froze in place and turned to the window on his right. Brian's eyes widened in shock as Yvette's expression changed to one of guilt. "Executed in-"

[center][h3][i]Pssshewww![/i][/h3][/center]

	Yvette was cut off by the sound of a long-range rifle tearing across the rock fields. Cecil's body went limp as blood spewed from the back of his skull. A bullet had pierced his left eye, leaving him dead in the same second. As his body fell to the ground, Yvette instinctively positioned herself near the center of the ATV. Brian didn't move, only able to glance at Cecil's corpse as it fell limp at the head of the cabin. "What the hell!" He cried out in a panic, "Who the hell is out here?!"

	"Quiet down Brian!" Yvette hissed, dropping to a crouch and grabbing Onweer's calf. "Down miss Daybreak!" Yvette didn't bother correcting herself. Names were the least of her concern right now.

	One of the two hunters mounted on the massive rock whistled a shrill note, staring the scope of her rifle. "One down, easy target. looks like he had himself a rifle, too!" The man turned and looked over the rocky edge, yanking his partner's spyglass from her waistline to take a look for himself. He nodded and pouted his lips reluctantly.

	"Nice shot."