When they finally reached the safe house, Jennifer couldn't be anymore disappointed. She knew she wasn't in the big city anymore, but this was quite the stretch. For a person who's never even been camping, she would have a very difficult time for the remainder of their stay there, and who knew how long that would last. Everyone got off the truck, and Vin helped her get down so that her feet were safely on the ground with as minimal pain as possible. She thanked him as she slapped a mosquito on her neck. It seemed as though no one else was having the same issue. That, or they were used to it. Jennifer grabbed Vin's hand as they were led inside by Eric.

Once they walked through the front door, she eagerly made her way to the nearest couch. She sat down as Vin joined her, but she didn't say much. She was tired and hungry, and now itchy as well. But she wouldn't complain, not anymore. Instead, she leaned her head on Vin's shoulder and waited to see how they would be directed to settle for the night. She was a guest now, so the best she could was be respectful towards their host.

“Jennifer…”

Vincent felt her cool, soft hand on his cheek and lifted his hand to hers, holding it there a little longer. It was stupid of him to have acted the way he did, and the more he was near her the more he realized how big of a heart she really had for helping others. Maybe it was simply the byproduct of her healing powers, and the innate will to press on even under dire conditions. Either way, Vincent had a lot to learn from someone like that, because he knew his heart was never going to be as benevolent as he’d like it to be.

He was definitely relieved they’d finally made it to the cabin, a place that Vincent more or less imagined it would look like, complete with makeshift furniture, dusty antique wall hangings, and just about several other things that made him feel like he were in a shoddy and severely under-budgeted scene from a teen slasher film. His head was leaned against the backrest on the couch he and Jennifer crashed on, which could have been worse considering neither had seen a snake or tarantula crawling out of the tattered -and rather moldy smelling- cushions. Vin turned to look at her and he couldn’t help but smile as he gazed into a face that had seen so much hate and destruction in the world in such a short amount of time, and yet still come out looking damn beautiful.

For a moment, however, Vincent’s thoughts somehow shifted to the rest of the cabin, and realized something odd. “Where the hell did everyone else go?” He asked with a confused expression, looking back at Jennifer, who was grinning and seemed rather calm for the first time in a long while. She shook her head and simply shrugged, never losing eye contact with him. Vin sat up and looked around again, wondering if maybe he’d dozed off and the others were outside, but didn’t they just get here not too long ago? He felt Jennifer’s hand on his chest, pushing him to lean back again as she curled up rested her head on his chest. He smiled, and figured he’d been sorely over-reacting from all the previous events still rolling around in his head.

Maybe this was the break that they both needed.

His body felt warm and the skin on his arms and chest began to slither and crawl, burning him with a heat he’d never felt before. Vin tried to move but he couldn’t as Jennifer’s breathing became erratic and short, her hand reaching up to his face and he could see that the black wiry tentacles had somehow wrapped themselves around her wrists and throat. Jennifer looked up at Vincent in horror, as the life was slowly being squeezed from her, and the sound of cracking bone and cartilage filled his ears. He frantically tried to pull away at the serpent-like creatures that diligently went to work tearing and ripping at her flesh, opening fresh wounds that were quickly festering with disease and magots, and slithering up and around her head as they peeled away at her.

“J-Jennifer!...FUCK!...get off of her!” He growled, as he continued pulling at the massive number of tentacles that formed from his every tattoo on his body.

Again, Vincent tried to move from his position on the couch, to push Jennifer off of him if possible so she could be freed from the creatures that were slowly killing her. His face was a mixture of complete and utter horror and yet an anger that wanted it all to end as he helplessly watched his curse destroying the woman he adored. The more he struggled, the stronger the creatures of death became, until the only thing recognizable about Jennifer was her blood curdling screams as the creatures pulled her body apart, drenching Vincent in blood, tissue, and gore.

“JENNIFER!”

Vin’s eyes shot open as his body convulsed and spasmed, causing Jennifer to get knocked off his shoulder that she’d been laying peacefully on since they arrived at the cabin.

“Shit!, shit!, shit!” Vincent frantically yelled out, rotating his body so he was kneeling on the floor as he examined, running his hand over her arms and across her chest, as well as checking her face. “Jennifer! Are y-you okay? I mean….holy fuck…”

Vincent’s heart raced faster than he’d probably ever experienced before, as he suddenly dropped his sweat soaked head into Jennifer’s lap and allowed his rapid breathing to slow down for a moment.

“Shit...that was wrong, so fucking wrong.” He grumbled, holding tightly onto Jennifer’s hand as though he were drowning in an ocean. “I don’t want you to die. I don’t want you to die.” He repeated a few times as his heart rate and breathing began to level out, before rolling onto his back and onto the dusty wooden floor, and finally looking up at Jennifer’s puzzled expression with a half-smile while still holding onto her hand.

“Nightmare.”

@Xandrya

"Momma was killed on the front steps. Daddy was killed inside. I think he was beaten with some sorta Billy Club." Eli said flatly.

He followed Nate inside the cabin. It wasn't much but it was comfortable in the it was decent appointed all things considered. Eli didn't have luxuries like a TV or computer it the like but there was everything one needed to be out here for a very long time.

When Eli walked in, he took note of everyone. They all looked bad, each of them looked like the last 24 hours had been some the hardest in their lives. He wanted to feel bad for them but he didn't, not really.

Eli walked in and sat down in a rocking chair. He rubbed his temples for a moment before speaking. "Did you guys eat yet? I know you got a lot of questions and I'll answer them the best I can, we can do it now or later your call." Eli said never looking up from the ground.

He wasn't looking forward to this. He was gonna have tell stories he didn't even want to think of. It was one of the worst days of his life and he was going to have tell a bunch of strangers all about it.

Nate lowered himself delicately into a chair that looked like it had seen better days. A chair that looked like it had literally fallen off the back of a truck. A chair that looked like it was probably older than everyone in the room combined. He wondered where Eli had found it and, more importantly, why he was so fascinated by it. Maybe it was the concussion or the lack of sleep or a mixture of both. He tried not to think about the things that may be living in it and forced himself to listen to Eli.

Questions? Oh Nate had so many. It was why he was here after all. Why he had been through hell. Why he had put up with Jennifer and Vincent and...He had a vague memory of someone else being around but he couldn't remember who. It was why he had come all the way to Kentucky of all places. The only reason he would ever come to God damn Kentucky.

"Oh I have plenty of questions." he informed Eli with a snort. "Why are we suddenly superheroes? How did it happens? Who the hell are these kids? Who's behind this and why and, this is the most important one...What's that smell?"

"Don't worry, I'm alive and well...or, you know, for the most part." Jennifer squeezed Vin's hand in reassurance just as Eli and Nate walked in through the door. As they settled themselves on some chairs, Eli asked the group if they had already eaten, but of course, Nate got right down to business without considering anyone else.

"First things first," she interrupted Nate, looking at Eli who appeared to be more depressed about the situation than they were. "We really haven't eaten much. Well, I'm not sure about him," she added, motioning towards Nate, "but we could use some food in our stomachs. Of course, that's only if it's not too much trouble for you."

Jennifer leaned back, pulling on Vin's hand so he could join her again on the couch. She would have to keep him awake for a little bit longer, or at least until he ate something before resting. Even though she refused to admit it, his nightmares were worrying her a little. They seemed to be violent and extremely realistic, and she was afraid that one of those nights, Vin would lash out against one of them while he was still asleep. Unlike hers, his ability was a danger to others, not that she would use that against him, but it didn't hurt to be a little bit cautious.

The drive to the cabin was long, a bit annoying, even when the truck tried to quit on Eric (It didn't, but it came really close). The ride did suck, driving alone with the radio going was one thing. But being in a truck full of people with so much on their minds, that fucking sucked. Like... Could everyone just shut up for ten minutes?! Is that too much to ask?! Not like he could just be open about his thought, he had no idea who to trust and who to not trust. Then again, he had all the guns here.

Once at the cabin the place seemed like it was in need or a bit of repair work. Could be a potential job for the future, but for now he just needed to focus on survival. Which he probably went a little overboard on the gun collection. But better safe then sorry, and all these ones were legal anyways, no harm in having them. Getting out of the truck Eric grabbed the bags full of guns and ammo, being not as strong as someone his size should be, it was a bit heavier then Eric was really able to carry with out losing balance a couple of times. Not falling, but still about as annoying. What was it, 6 rifles and shotguns, plus one combat like shotgun without a stock, and the .44 mag Eric took of of Danny's dead friend. Eric still wasn't pleased about how that went down.

Entering the cabin, Eric decided to give everyone a little greeting. "Welcome to the middle of nowhere, where if one of us dies, no one else will know but the rest of us here. Meaning please don't die.". Eric could hear the scared tones of people after his speaking, chances are what he said wasn't bad, unless people were already worried about dying. Inside the cabin was, interesting. The place was in disarray a bit, or was just left alone too long. Tomato To-ma-toe. Deciding the guns and all the ammo was too heavy, Eric placed the bags behind the couch, with the exception of the .44 mag which he kept braced to him with his belt still. Overall though, it was still a pain to think, so Eric did the one thing that seemed reasonable to him, and went over to Eli.

Eli was talking to his new, or old friend, Eric couldn't tell, and all Eric got from their thoughts were Fear, dead people, not dead people, phone calls, broken radios? girls, not sure what context, and.... the last thought caught Eric off guard, super powers? Eric almost asked, then this girl, Jenifer from what he could gather, started to interrupt about food. "If you're really that Hungry there's a 30-06 rifle in that bag behind the couch, even some bullets. The boar out here are year round hunting. With that, they make great Bacon." Eric said with a smile. Though chances are his joke was not as funny as he thought. "....have some peanuts." And Eric pulled a small packet of Peanuts out from his pocket, tossing them to her. "I have no idea what food is like here, so if you want something else, that rifle may be a reasonable option. Or we can hope Eli actually left food here?" There was mixed reactions in the rooms, he didn't need to see people's faces to know that. He could hear their tones in his head. Part of him wished he brought an MP3 player to drown out their thoughts. His were fine, but theirs were annoying. Mostly Eli's friend, who Eric still didn't know his name. But all Eric could pull out was gibberish, no tones really, just gibberish. Eric wonder's what was going on inside that poor man's head to make that kinda noise....

Vincent pushed himself up off the floor, feeling a pinch in his back where he was pretty sure the corner of a floorboard was sticking up enough to jab him. “Ouch” He grumbled, sliding onto the couch next to Jennifer, who was in the midst of giving Eli and Nate the third degree. Vin was more than impressed by her fervor, and that she didn't back down from a fight that easily as her voice carried throughout the cabin enough to make a point. He'd spent enough of his life wasting away with the wrong women, too many who were in it for something he had and gave themselves away just as easily. But not this chick. Jennifer's attractive qualities came from the simple fact that she was a fighter.

The kid, Eric, finally spoke up, doing his best to welcome the group to the shit house they were gathered in. Vin snickered at the kid’s comment about “food” however, not overly surprised that there was a lack thereof, and yet in the back of his mused about what Eric might taste like slow-roasted over a fire. He winked at the kid and put on his best thanks but no thanks smile before turning to Jennifer, realizing that he was still holding her hand.

“Um...about earlier.” He paused for moment, trying his best not to allow the vivid, yet unreal, images to invade his head again. “It was a dream. Sure, I’ve had a couple of them already and I damn sure wouldn’t recommend it, but it was just a dream…”

Vincent wanted so badly to tell her what he saw, what he experienced, but why in the hell would he want to scare the poor girl away? Of course Jennifer knew he had problems. Shit, the whole gang had their share of problems! But to confess to her that he could be a potential psychopath with an uncontrollable power that for whatever reason wants to rip her away from him in the most brutal and unnatural way? Yeah, that might be cause for massive concern, and possibly a one-way ticket to hell courtesy of a bullet to the head by any one of these gun-slinging cowboys. The fact that maybe this was his lot in life didn’t escape his mind either, considering he’d lived a lifestyle that was anything but self-less, only ever thinking of himself and his own well-being. If this guy Eli had any answers to who or what they all were, then Vincent hoped that he could find the answer he needed to contain whatever fucked-up evil shit was inside of him.

Vin saw the concern in Jennifer’s eyes and quickly changed the subject, keeping in voice low. “So what’s with the little girl over in the corner I wonder?” He said, looking over at Christi who was trying to keep as low a profile as any. “Do you think she’s related to this guy Eli?”

Eli pointed at the Kitchenette with his free hand, "There are plenty of MREs and shit like that in the cabinets. Its better than you think and it's got everything the body needs." Eli said as he stood up and lit a cigarette.

“The kid that drove you here is Eric Miller. He's solid and got heart. That's all ya'll need to know. The girl is Christabell Raines. She's recently offed her abusive father and her brother is screaming up and down that he's gonna kill me and her both.” Eli took a deep drag and exhaled slowly. “I don't like his chances to be honest. Already killed a few of his buddies. And… I'm Elijah Craigh. United States Air Force Special Tactics Officer. I have a Medal of Honor, two Air Force Crosses, a few Silver Stars, and Presidential Commendations. Which means, I'm one of the best in the world at getting the other guys to die for their beliefs or country or whatever and I'm scared shitless of the guys pulling the strings.” He took another deep drag.

“I don't why anyone has powers or whatever the hell they are. I know the that hacked into your car, and called me calls himself Julian Guiderone. He's a complete and total ghost. I tried to get contacts from the CIA, NSA, Interpol, and just about every Special Operations group to get me something on the guy but everyone says he doesn't exist. I met him face to face in Bosnia when I was attached to a Delta Force unit… shit I think over a couple hundred people died in that operation. Official story was a gas line or something for blew. Wherever he goes massive amounts of people die… He's polite though, I'll give him that.” Eli finished his cigarette and dropped it in the floor. He never bothered looking up from staring at the ground. Just thinking about the spook was enough to make him look visibly uncomfortable.

“... Next question….”

She offed her old man? Nate tilted the his head at Christi as he looked her over. She didn't look like much. Certainly not like a killer. But then she wasn't the first kid he had heard of killing an aabusive parent. There was only so far you could push a person before they push back. And the harder you push someone the harder they pushed back. Nate was rather proud of her actually. Maybe killing her old man was a little excessive but he wasn't the one being abused so who was he to judge? He made a mental note to give her some numbers to call after this was all finished. He imagined there wasn't much support for abused kids out on the sticks.

At the mention of Julian Guiderone, Nate seemed to lose all interest in Christi and his head snapped around to Eli. His brow furrowed as he tried to put a face to that name. It sounded vaguely familiar but he couldn't for the life of him think why. It was like a mental itch he just couldn't scratch. Eli mentioning that the man was a ghost eased his mind slightly but not enough that he felt comfortable. He would have to do some digging of his own. Just to see if his contacts could pull up something Eli's hadn't. It wasn't that he didn't trust Eli...He just didn't trust anyone...Including Eli.

"None of it makes any sense." Nate mused, more to himself than talking to anyone else. "Why would he want us all together? He obviously wants to use us for something...Either that or they just want to get us all in one place so it's easier to take us all out" He said it in a very matter of fact manner and it was one he had actually used himself, but upon seeing the faces of some of the others, he laughed awkwardly and added "...But I'm sure it's not that."

“Where will we go?”

Christi’s voice was small and trembled slightly as she peered over her knees at the others. To say that her day had not been going well was an understatement. Back in the cave, she had nearly had had a panic attack when she had finally looked up after Danny had left, and found that Eli was nowhere to be seen, even though he clearly sounded like he was right in front of her. The fact that the same phenomena hadn’t happened to Eric when he returned had been somewhat reassuring, but any calming effect he might have had was banished by his own panicked state. It had taken Christi… a while, before she had finally calmed down enough to leave.

She’d retreated into herself after that, and the ride to the meeting place had passed in relative silence. She’d even managed to sleep a little bit, fitful and uncomfortable as it had been. Now, she was in a cabin with a bunch of people who, aside from Eli, she didn’t know at all or what they might want from her.

Unfortunately, it was looking like she was likely going to be with them for quite a while. Christi didn’t know what exactly had happened in the cave, or at home, but even she recognized that it wasn’t normal, and apparently these people were able to do similar things. From what Eli was saying, there was also somebody else responsible for bringing them together. It might have been safer for Christi to just leave and live on her own, but from the way Eli was talking, she would probably end up back with these people at some point anyway. She didn’t trust them, but at this point, she might not have a choice in the matter.

An odd silence fell over the room for a moment when Nate opened his mouth, most likely using scare tactics, or just being Nate. But the idea of some unknown “man in the shadows” didn’t sit well with Vincent. He wasn’t one for surprises, unless they included a stripper popping out of a cake, but that wasn’t the case now, probably never again considering where all of this landed him. He held Jennifer’s hand, as even she seemed considerably unhinged by the ordeal, and was shaking a bit, no doubt partly from lack of food. Being city folk, her and Vincent were both out of their natural elements, and the middle of nowhere was definitely the last place Vincent would have wanted to go.

“Sit tight” He said to Jennifer, as though she had much of a choice to go anywhere else.

Vin got up and headed over toward the kitchenette that Eli had mentioned. For whatever reason, he was rather impressed by the guy’s laundry list of awards and commendations, which also left him with two thoughts: either this guy will be a huge help to the group, or he will go ballistic and kill everyone. The latter thought, of course, causing a lump in his throat to form as he passed the rough looking soldier. Instead, he focused on finding something to eat and maybe even a drink to take off the edge.

“So...what the hell is an ‘M-R-E’?” He said outloud, cutting through the otherwise dull chatter between Eli and Nate, as he rummaged through the few cabinets he found. “And why doesn’t it sound all that tasty?”

Vincent opened a small pantry closet, and initially didn’t find anything of interest, but as he pushed a few old rusted cans of what could have easily been pre-civil war green beans aside, he noticed a rather large mason jar with clear liquid and a sealed lid. “Now what do we have here…” He mumbled as he pulled the jar out and held it up to the light, noticing the contents were about as clear as they come.

“Any idea what’s in here?” He asked while in the middle of trying to loosen the lid, which unscrewed rather easily after a few seconds. “Whoa!” His nose scrunched up and eyes squinted at the pungent aroma that flowed out of the jar. “Holy shit, this stuff smells like paint thinner and apple juice!” He exclaimed in between choking on the harsh fumes.

“Who wants to try it first?” He grinned, hoping to break up the monotony in the room.

At the sight of the mason jar Vin pulled out from the pantry, Nate's eyes seemed to light up. Not so much at the idea of alcohol but more at the memories it brought back. He had shared many a bottle of moonshine with his brothers in arms when the C.O of whatever base he found himself stationed at came down on the boring side of having real alcohol on base. It was usually saved for after a successful mission but it did make those painful days a little more bearable.

A thought flashed in his mind though, prompted by one of the less fun voices in his head reminding him of Vin's earlier shenanigans. The stranger Vin had torn limb from limb was still pretty fresh in his mind. And while the thought of Eli being ripped to shreds was admittedly pretty funny, the idea of it happening to him or, even worse, one of the kids was less entertaining.

He pushed himself up from his chair, forgetting about the pain in his ribs for half a second and then suddenly, violently remembering all about it. He winced and put a hand to the part of his body that hurt the most as he made his way towards Vin before snatching the jar from his hands. "Not to sound like my mother..." he told Vin. "...But do you really think that's such a good idea? I mean do you even remember what happened the last time you lost control of your senses?" He quickly unscrewed the lid on the jar and took a swig, cringing at how bad it was before turning and heading towards Jennifer where he thrust the jar at her like there was no chance she would refuse.

Maybe getting absolutely shitfaced could ease both of their pain.

Jennifer couldn't hide her disgust toward the moonshine Nate had just shoved in her face. His reaction alone after was enough to discourage her from even touching the jar, but he was persistent, and she didn't feel like fighting him, not when she was hungry, tired, and in pain. Although reluctant at first, Jennifer eventually figured the moonshine would give her an excuse to curl up on one end of the couch and fall asleep while the rest of them stayed up talking about whatever the hell they felt like.

I hate you, she mouthed off to Nate as she took the drink, a worried expression on her face when she looked down and imagined what it would taste like. She'd only ever heard the stories, but backing down now would crumble any credibility she could have with these people, not that there was any to begin with. Jennifer decided to get it over with and forced down nearly a mouthful. Big mistake for her. She nearly dropped the jar as the poor girl covered her mouth with her free hand. Her eyes watered a little bit as she set the moonshine down by her feet.

"That was worse than I thought," she said after being able to speak again, although her voice was somewhat hoarse. Jennifer decided she needed something to get the taste out and slowly got up, walking over to where Vin was standing to get something solid in her stomach.

Eli laughed at them. It was clear that they didn't have anything apple pie where they were from. Eli took then jar and took a large drink from it. There was no sour face or coughing, just a grin.

Eli walked over and pulled out another, larger jar. This was a darker color. "That'll go down a lot smoother than this one." Eli went back and took his seat.

"Help your self to anything we got. If you have to go into town or meet anyone. You're just tourist camping out and passing by. Don't try to make friends, and damn sure don't tell them anything about you. Lie if you have too. People out here don't like a outsiders. And under no circumstances at all, go a party. They'll use it as an excuse to either beat the shit outta you or kill you if they have too."Eli said after another drink. "People are mostly nice and polite around here but the bad ones are about as bad is it gets. Christabell can tell you about if she feels like it. Just be smart about everything. After a day or two of rest we'll leave here and head up to Nobles holler. We should be safe there for till we can figure something out." Eli finished the last of the jar and placed it by his feet.

"I'm gonna take a look around. You guys try to relax." Eli stepped out of cabin and lit a cigarette.

“So uncool...” He mumbled as Nate grabbed the jar from Vin’s hand and walked away while taking a swig of the obviously disgusting liquid that had probably been stored in the pantry for well over one hundred years. As much of a dick move as that was, however, Nate had a valid point regarding Vincent’s lack of control and the brief yet vivid image of the bloodied corpse popped into his head. He’d almost forgotten about that night, considering how quickly it happened, and the shock of the aftermath seemed to suppress the memory up until now. Was it his mind’s defensive mechanism numbing the pain to the point where he’d become desensitized to something so horrific? Had it been too many years of horror movies, Slipknot concerts, and designer drugs in his system to dull the last few vestiges of morality he had?

He snapped back from his momentary reverie when Jennifer started gagging on the jar of whatever that hell it was, which apparently hadn’t worked out too well for her or Nate, but Eli didn’t seem to have a problem knocking back a large gulp while laughing at the ignorant “city-folk”. The guy didn’t really appear to let much bother him, as though he’d been through stranger things enough in his life that the current situation was just “another day” to him. Or perhaps he just played it off well enough as to not cause unnecessary tension among the group. Vin supposed that was what everyone was trying to do in their own way.

Vincent found whatever MREs had been stored away, opening up a few of the dark grey plastic bags labelled “beef and gravy” and something resembling spaghetti with meatballs, which at this point might as well have been steak and lobster. He poured them into a few ceramic bowls that were stacked in the corner, grabbed some tarnished metal forks from the drawer, and tasted a bit of the spaghetti while simultaneously squeezing his eyelids in preparation for something terrible. However, surprisingly enough, it wasn’t half-bad, albeit cold, but still edible, and he slid a bowl over to Jennifer.

“Well, it’s better than trying to live off paint thinner in a jar.” He grinned, wrapping an arm around her and planting a quick peck on her cheek before whispering in her ear. “And, by the way, you’re wicked attractive when trying to be impressive...” He said, poking fun at her earlier bold move of drinking some of the moonshine to oblige the natives, regardless of her reservations about it.

“But I’d stay away from anything you can’t identify.” He said, taking another bite of the pasta and smiling, as a bit of the red sauce ran down his chin.

“Bon apetit!”

He turned to face the open room while shoving another forkful of the spaghetti into his mouth, and focused on Eli as he was headed outside for a smoke.

“Hey, for what it's worth bro, thanks for the rustic dining experience and chef-quality cuisine. I'd give this place one and a half stars at best. Although It probably would have been an even two if it wasn't for the three dead rats over there.” He motioned his thumb toward the corner near the pantry. “But hey, at least they're dead.” He continued, shrugging before taking another bite of Momma Harlan’s home cooking.

“So...Nate, I suppose the question on everyone’s mind is...how long are we going to be stuck here and when, if ever, do we get to leave?” He eyed Nate in between finishing up his bowl of food. hoping that at least he had a better grasp on what was going on.

Nate was pleased when JJ took the jar from him. Both her reaction to its contents and the mere fact that she had tried some made him somewhat proud of her. Maybe she wasn't the stick in the mud that she seemed at times. Seeing her mouth the words I hate you only promoted a smile on his face and slight laugh, which he immediately regretted when his ribs ached again. If he gave a damn what Jennifer, or anyone for that matter, thought about him, he may have been somewhat offended. He had saved her life a couple of times already after all.

He watched Vincent prepare some MRE's but immediately decided not to join him. Field rations were definitely not something he had fond memories of. Instead he picked up the second jar Eli had pulled out and lowered himself back down into his chair. Once Eli left and Vincent returned, Nate was already halfway through the jar. It took him a moment to realise that someone was talking to him but once Vin's question actually registered in his brain, he responded "As long as we need to. Opie over mentioned some place we can head to in a couple of days. Hopefully it's better than the Courtney Love of safehouses we have here." He looked around at the room, clearly disgusted by it, until he noticed Eric staring at him. Nate narrowed his eyes at the kid, curious about why he was so curious. "Hey." he said "I know I'm pretty but you're making me uncomfortable."

Eric wasn't sure how to react when Nate started talking to him. In fact he almost didn't hear him. Eric was trying to make sense of all the noise that was being produced from this man's head. Eric stood still for almost a solid minute before actually answering Nate. Though Nate wasn't wrong, he was pretty but that was not why Eric was starring at him. "Are you on Medication? Like... Very strong medication? Are you getting enough sleep?" Eric sat down next to Nate and looked him in the eyes. Eric almost forgetting he still had a shotgun in one hand. "I want you to know something.... Something important." Eric took a deep breath before speaking. "Please figure out what is going on in your head before it kills us both.... That would be awesome. Thanks." Then Eric gets up and heads for the kitchen, grabbing himself a Mac and Cheese MRE. Great times.

Eating the MRE Eric noticed a few things. First, Mac and Cheese is Awesome. Next, He was going to need more Mac and Cheese. Third... He was in a cabin in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of strangers who many of which were getting some pretty intense vibes coming from their heads. Lots of Fear, Answer, hate, possibly something porn related? Point is... Things being the way they are, it could go anyway from this point on. And no matter what Eric though of the situation, he was in the middle of it. The only thing to do now was enjoy the Mac and Cheese while it lasted.

Three days had passed since everyone arrived in Harlan County. Though Eli would let them have their own fiction. He knew that Hunter or Nate and thst other one were hurt worse than they let on.

Eli couldn't blame Nate for it. Though he couldn't tell if it was in spite of him or fear of him that Nate act like he did. It didn't matter much either way.

That other one, the tatted boy toy didn't seem like a bad guy. He was just worthless. He held no value that Eli could see but he kept his mouth shut about it.

Christabell still hardly spoke but it did seem to Eli she as getting along well with young Eric Miller... That boy was strange and he had heart. Heart was something Eli always respected.

Once they could make the hike, Eli took them to Nobles holler. For lack of a better a term, it was where the black folk lived and nobody wasn't from there, went there. There were a small but clanish group. While no one from the mountains liked outsiders. The people of Nobles didn't want anyone around. It was understandable for most people. Racism was a bigger problem in the mountains than most places and it wasn't going change anytime soon.

It everything about their small community was old and rustic. It from the outside it shouted and screamed impoverished. However to anyone who looked close enough it as easy to see that wasn't the case at all. If the truth was known, Nobles had every bit as much money as County. How that to be was nothing myth and folk lore. They hid that fact very well, only a handful of people knew the truth.

Eli was owed favors from a good number of people in this community, this was going to be the safest place for the time being. Each and every member of the community was armed and the best part of all was there was only one way out.

Everything about this community seemed isolate from the rest of the mountains. They're other places like this, more than anyone would think of.

This community had everything from livestock farms to gas stations,country stores and even an old mine shaft. That's where they would be staying. It's exterior looked like a rundown shack. One that was long for forgotten and for time to take its toll.

The inside however, was a different story. It was decently appointed by almost any standards. There were more creature comforts than anywhere Eli could have kept them safe at. It was still a hole the ground yet it did have a homey feeling to it.

What was great was about it was the room. Though it was a little narrow, it seemed to go long as the day. Eli had every intent to explore every inch of the mine.

“Well isn’t this just a fine upgrade from our previous cabin in the middle of fucking nowhere.”

Vincent leaned against an old lamp post that looked as though it had been stuck in the ground for a hundred years, as he stared at the long abandoned miner’s barrack ahead that would be considered their new “home” for awhile. Past the old shack was a mining shaft that probably went to the other side of the world, but Vincent had no intentions of finding out just where in the hell it lead. Although something told him that their new guide would probably think otherwise since he was probably born in a mining shaft such as that.

“Really Eli, you shouldn’t have.”

He grumbled, shaking his head at the shit hole that the group had been tossed into and immediately thinking back to his place in Atlanta. Luxurious in it’s design and more room than any one person needed, Vincent’s penthouse was his sanctuary that overlooked a city which never slept. It had been a place he could escape to if he needed to be alone, or to throw the most outrageous parties without a single care in the world. Sure, that life wore him down at times, but it was nothing as unbearable as living out on the set of Deliverance with gunslinging rednecks all around him who would rather eat him in his sleep.

Nate didn’t seem to care a whole lot about where they were, as long as they were somewhere he could relax and heal in his own time, which Vin couldn’t blame him. The guy took as much shit as he dished out, so he could use a reprieve if there was such a thing. The Eric Miller kid was decent, seemed to pretty much say whatever was on his mind at the time, and yet Vin still couldn’t quite understand what his role was in everything. The little girl, Christi, on the other hand was timid, but from what he’d heard, she had every right to be reluctant to interact with strangers. No one should go through that kind of shit, no matter what their upbringing. No doubt she saw the three from the city as something entirely different, maybe almost alien from a culture she was accustomed to.

Vin turned to Jennifer and grinned. “I don’t suppose you want to step in first and check out the new digs. Maybe scare all the rats and shit out before the rest of us come in.”

She’d been, for most of the hike up to Noble’s, at his side and they kept each other company trying their best to keep their minds off of the train wreck of their current lives. It was no secret that he liked her, and sometimes he believed he might even love her considering how protective he’d become of her, but he pushed those thoughts aside knowing that growing so emotionally attached to someone at this point was probably not the best course of action. However, as much as he wanted to fall back to treating Jennifer like he’d treated most women in his life as though they were simple playthings and sexual diversions, Vin couldn’t. They’d been through too much for him to ever think of her like that.

“Eh...I was kidding, by the way, babe.” He said, rubbing her shoulder as he turned to the others in the group.

“So, who’s going in first, because I don’t know about the rest of you but I’m tired as all hell...”

Joseph looked down at the scrap of paper in his hand, then up at the house in front of him. He nodded to himself once then knocked on the door. He didn't really want to be here. He wanted to be sat down eating his Aunt's pancakes, not stuck checking out some kids hunting wound. The sound of clattering came from within the house, Joseph stood back expectantly, the door opened to a large man, most of his forearms and hands covered in blood. "Um. Hi. I'm Richard's nephew. You wanted me to check out your brother's wound?" The man nodded frantically.
"Yeah, he's on the sofa. Please hurry."

Joseph smiled briefly and stepped into the living room. It was not a pretty sight. The boy couldn't be older than 12, his bandages were blanketing the floor, and his eyes were glazed.
"Fuck me sideways..." He went over to the boy and tapped his face. "Hey buddy, anyone in there? Hello?" He got a weak nod in response. He looked over at what he could only assume was the boy's mother.
"The wound's infected. I need something to clean the wound, fresh bandages, and some antibiotics for his bandages.

"We have some bandages, but I don't have the money to buy anything else". Joseph nodded solemnly.
"But some other people came through town not too long ago, they might have some of the stuff you need." Joseph's eyes lit up. "Which way did they go?" The woman pointed out past the houses. "They went out towards the old mineshaft". "OK. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Joseph exited the house and looked down at the small device on his wrist, as he was walking. He upped the voltage to 30 and looked around him. Clear streets. He smiled and pressed the shock button. He felt the electricity surge through his body, the volts making his finger tips tingle, and the world slow down. In a burst of speed, he shot through the streets of Nobles, heading directly for the mineshaft.