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Ash Holloway Location: P6, Training Grounds -> Bus

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Ash looked at the exchange between Tatiana and Wayne curiously. She was basically family to him, and her husband was a close friend. Things had been very strained between those two lately and he was not happy to see it. Ash caught a little bit of this after they were able to recover the dainty but badassed ballerina. Something was different. He did not have the same kind of relationship with Tati that Jack did, so he was able to maintain greater objectivity with her despite her changes. There was a little surprise when he noted the familiarity with which she and Wayne conversed. The physical nature of their back-and-forth was not something which Ash approved of, even to the point of taking the start of a cursory step forward before he caught himself. Protective instincts died hard. He knew they were friends.

As for the one-armed lady, she seemed to pay him little mind and so he reciprocated. There was a sort of barrier between the two of them that he couldn't quite quantify. She seemed to be an incarnation of something familiar to him, yet foreign enough that it imposed the social equivalent of the psychological phenomenon known as the Uncanny Valley. Ash knew he just had to get to know her better for this to go away, as a matter of logic. But sometimes the eyes of an older, intimidating man stared at him when he looked at Thalia. And sometimes the words of a woman, to which he gave mercy at the end of a rifle, poured out of her mouth.

Seemingly at the last minute, a final arrival showed himself. Nigel, the Roman guy. Not that Roman Guy was the most flattering callsign, but none of the ones Ash was ever saddled with were anything he wanted to keep, himself. His presence made five. Himself, Tati, Wayne, Thalia, and now Nigel. One number over once-standard minimum preferred for small unit tactics. He nodded to the man then stood quietly while Maddoc went through his speech.

The speech sounded a lot like the standard practical field trial speeches in which he was involved in years past, with the ever so small caveat that he would personally kill them if they became troublesome. This made sense. The only surprising part about this little pep talk was that Hank, of all people, would be taking over for Macsen in the evaluations. The former Sheriff somehow got himself in an advantageous position quickly, from the look of things.

When the bus arrived, Ash filed in and gave brief but polite recognition to the Major, Hank, and Atticus. He then took a seat near to the middle. It would hopefully give him the best vantage for hearing conversation among the passengers as well as carity when receiving instruction from those in charge. And being able to help with the exits, both top and rear, in case of an emergency. After the others arrived, Ash couldn't help but notice that Nigel had mentioned his name. It was talk about him, but not actually to him. Ash declined to throw in his two cents, content to give a polite smile and return to looking about his surroundings. He wasn't wrong in the classical sense - Ash did know his way around pistols and long guns, but he didn't consider himself a specialist. Just one of many who took training in the United States Army and had a rural background which involved hunting. A sniper he was not.

Looking at the team set up for this outing, Ash was rather pleased. Provided that they could come together as a team, this looked positive. He knew what Tati could do and trusted her with his life above anyone else there. Wayne was a wild card but a decent man from what he had heard; a former Detective with good instincts. Nigel was an educated man with a solid frame who was good with a long blade, which made him useful. Thalia (if she was willing to be part of a team), was a quiet, skilled agent with a formidable background. Thana trusted her, which was good enough for Ash. This was a good team. They would do fine. They just had to find their point of synergy.

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Thalia Carmichael Location: P6, Training Grounds -> Bus Skills: N/A

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"Exchange of fists and swords". Yes, Nigel had just said that to her. It seemed a little strange that a grown man spoke in the same manner as an English stage actor portraying a Roman Legionnaire, but considering that she had a brother who quoted Shakespeare and/or just said Shakespearean-esque things when asking her if she had an extra roll of toilet paper, this was actually preferable. Hindsight was a thing.

"But for sooth, daughter of our father, wouldst that thy mercy open the way for a hand's grasp of the cylinder-wrapped squares of sanitary deliverance, to slake the septic yawping of mine lower splat-trumpet," or some such bullshit. She didn't remember but it sounded close enough. Or she might have added things in her head. Whatever. Thalia translated English to English and dealt with it.

Thalia filed onto the bus with everyone else. She wasn't especially happy with how close everyone was in the meantime and probably never would be, but this was the life she signed up for. Soldering, or something like it. She recalled the speech that Maddoc gave them, about being tested and the promise of getting killed if they put the rest of the group in danger. Soooo, to her this was every god damned day outside of the walls. If some jackass was about to get you killed, you killed them first. Quietly. Neatly. Then moved on. Things made more sense out on the world sometimes. But no, Thalia wasn't about to "go rogue" or anything remotely that stupid. She used to be a Lone Wolf type. Reality and the influence of friends made her revise this, and it was probably why she was still alive today.

She took the seat across from Tatiana and gave her a nod not unlike the one she had received from her just before entering the bus. If she wanted to talk quietly, Thalia could move over there with her, or get up close to the aisle like back in escuela secundaria. Then she then tried to take note of as many details as possible in this bus - exits, number of people, status of windows, etc.; details that might be important if she had to leave quickly or cover someone else's exit. Her mildly paranoid security rituals and momentary reflection of recent hindsight completed, Thalia looked up to Nigel to respond to his conversation opener. For the fists and swords portion, she wordlessly grunted an quiet, "Nnn," and tilted her head slightly. Concerning the firearms query and Ash's possible proficiency thereof, she kept her words short. "I'm glad someone is. I gaht to relearn stances and reloading for one hand. Naht there yet." It wasn't wholly accurate. She wasn't hopeless, nor even bad. She wasn't at the level she was before losing a hand, and that was irritating her immensely. Like the off and on pain she was feeling at hurting herself with a toothbrush that morning. That was embarrassing. Realizing she was being a downer, and no one needed to come down on a test day, she reasoned (though in darker tones), "We're a group, right? Cover each other's asses. Only way we survive." In theory, anyway.

Elsewhere in the bus, two things happened. Firstly, Ash was rather pleased to hear that Thalia was embracing the idea of the unit rather than the individual. Again, he did not comment. Observation was enough. Secondly, Hank looked over to his hetero-lifemate Wayne and gave a tight-lipped smile. he nodded his head and gave a reassuring, "Hey, my man," in greeting. In truth, he was a little worried about Wayne for this test. There was brimming confidence that he'd be capable of physically passing them, but he also remembered the guy running off into a group of Dead Assholes when it wasn't necessary just to kill as many as possible. There were others nearby that, admittedly, he wanted to protect, but they didn't know how capable (or even ethical) these people were, having just met them. Hank also remembered several times feeling the need to run into danger after him to make sure he was okay. The older man didn't say anything more right then. But he did hope that their time in CMB's care helped even him out some. This was his best friend, after all. And Wayne could accomplish so much good if given a chance.

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Alexander Polawski Location: The General's Office Skills: N/A

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Alexander drew in a long drag of breath, letting it out again with a heavy, drawn out sigh as he took in of Aeron as possible, just like he'd been taught by Freedman over the past six months. He'd learned that keeping those happy moments, filled with good people and the comforting company of his friends, were amongst the few things that kept the old veteran going those days. Yes, the list of reasons to live had grown longer since he first joined Camp Mexico Beach, but on the top three of that least, Aeron could be found…and now Alexander did his best to remember as much of the General as he could. For when he was going to pass over to the hands of the Father, the old veteran wanted to keep the fond memories, even if they were painted by Aeron's worn face.

"I see…Bless his soul, Doc, he's a good man. We all can use a little hope now and then, but on this I trust your old bones, Aeron. They've carried you a long, long way, so they know their shit." Alexander's reply was a somber acceptence of the time running through their hands, like the very sand they'd stood in many a time, just the two of them staring out into the blue ocean and in deep conversation…sometimes a deep silence. Another memory Alexander would carry of his old friend. Oh, how far they'd come since 'Nam and the 70's. "Days…agreed. May God see to what we mere mortals cannot change, unless he can find me a good cache of military-grade copper!"

Alexander's somber tone fluttered into a chuckle at his own joke, doing his best to push away the lingering reminders of Death standing at a distance, waiting for Aeron patiently. An image was conjured up in his old mind, one where Alexander himself delivered Aeron to the Afterlife and greeting Death like a familar face…would Judith be there, waiting for him when his time came?

Turning back to the list as Aeron requested, Alexander squinted at his own writing in the dim light of the room, reading it out aloud for Aeron to hear. "Like I said, copper wire. The young fellas down in the basement haven't stored what I requested last time properly, so some of it's been corroding like Lady Liberty herself. Nothing too bad, but if we should find a way to store it dry, and I wouldn't mind some more spools down with me in case something hotwires. Same with screws and LED lights, we can never have too many of them." Alexander explained to Aeron, talking as clearly as the radio operator he'd been four decades ago, clearly giving of the vibe of someone who knew what they were talking about. "Then I'd like to put in a request for the scavening teams; rechargable batteries, tons of them. I know it's already a priority for the entire camp, but I've been dealing in those little suckers half my life and know how to take care of them. Kids these days just keep them plugged in the sockets all night, when they shouldn't be charged more than neccecary. Overcharges them, you know…anyway…"

Alexander kept on explaining his wish for a better trained crew down with him in the Communcations Room. Those he had now worked, it wasn't that. They knew the basics, but Alexander had to remind them what and what not to do with those old radios. It was mostly the younger ones who needed his foot shoved up their asses, but he couldn't fault them. Some of the radios they used were as old as he was. Old and reliable, but clunky to use. He would request himself teaching some volunteers in Education when he had the time. Knowing how to operate and maintain a radio was important to CMB after all.

Then came the last request on his list, the one he'd saved for last…and like last time when he looked at that list, his strength failed him. Alexander looked down on the list, read and re-read the bulletpoint time and time again, though Aeron would be able to clearly read what it said and figure out what it was Alexander wanted to request. Still, Alexander let his head hang down, heavy with the sense of guilt for how he had left his old settlement behind so many years ago…how he'd left Judith's grave back there. He sighed, looked up at Aeron and his tired eyes, and at that moment knowing another question he needed to ask. It had been on his mind for the past half year, spoken about with Freedman and reflected over countless sleepless nights in his bed…the image burned into his memory, just like the napalm burned those kids, and the bullet must have burned through his uniform…

"Aeron…I, I mean…Freedman and I have spoken about this since my first week outside of Quarantine, and…Forgive me, I am not good at this." Alexander shuddered at what he was about to tell Aeron, though equally determined to head through with it. He'd spent so much time, uttered so many words and torn himself apart inwards over this, and now the only thing left was to ask for forgiveness…and it all started with Aeron. "Do you remember Sergeant Jackson, my commanding officer back in 'Nam? Tall, stern black man from the South and as firery as a preacher himself. Do you remember…or know how he died? I…I need to talk about it, with you."

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Nigel Cooper Location: Training Grounds -> Bus Skills: N/A

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As they all stepped into and found their seats in the now infamous bus, just as they had done when they first happened upon the scouting party of CMB and decided to join their small piece of civilisation half a year ago, Nigel found himself conversing in the briefest of sense to his fellow passengers about what was to come. He was certain that their briefing of the coming test was not far behind them, but for now Nigel was content to continue exchanging words with those who willed it; for the most part this meant Thalia, at least verbally.

Nigel anticipated the non-verbal response he recieved from the one-handed Amazon warrior, her wordless grunt having become a staple of Thalia to him at this point. It was almost as if he was commucating with a barbarian, not well-versed in the art of diplomacy and orating in finely constructed sentences, though he could hardly fault her. It was he who spoke like the Roman senators and soldiers, not her kind - if one did not count her brother, of course. The "Nnn" was more than enough to get the point across, even for a scholar as him.

The same went for their talk of Ash, who seemed to throw a polite jest in their direction, to which Nigel responded equally. It had not been his intention to forego his inclusion in the conversation, it just so happened…odd. Nigel reminded himself to speak more with Ash, more than they had done before. After all they were military both of them, just from very different times. They had much to teach and learn from another.

That last part of Thalia's observations struck a chord in Nigel. A good one! Nigel nodded approvingly at her words, his eyes taking in those in the bus and very possibly on their team. "Well said, Thalia. Ludemus bene in compania. We play well in groups, as anyone should strive to do when one can. I'm sure we'll find our place in said group once we get out into the field, for our baptism of fire…"

With the bus rolling out towards the gate, like the chariot headed for war awaiting the last gatehouse of its home city, they recieved more information for the coming test. Nigel wasn't wholly surprised to hear the group he'd been put into. Perhaps he'd been more taken back by the inclusion of Wayne, but…so much water had passed under that bridge that who knew how much the reincarnation of Caligua himself had changed? Then again, a fox changed its furs, not his habits. Was Wayne a fox then?

Either way, Nigel sat in deep silence as Maddoc continued the briefing. The task was a simple one in mind, though the neo-Roman knew how much different reality tended to be, certainly out there. Enter the town, move north and scavenge for supplies noted down, then move back and rendevous. Nigel nodded, gesturing that he understood the task at hand and accepted the fairness of it. A test was a test.

With that the bus passed through the gates and found itself out on the road…the outside. Nigel couldn't keep his gaze from taking in what the outside looked like. After half a year inside the safe confines of protective walls, it was indeed a change to see where he'd come from, where he'd fought through to get to safety. Like a Roman merchant returning to the travelling life, away from the comforts and worries of city life, Nigel both looked forward to and steeled himself for what was to come. They could spread their wings, but he knew to beware the eagles hunting them.

Soon they were told to be armed, their names called up for them to decide between two bags of weaponry. Once Nigel's name was called, he decided to take the obvious option of a sword and small side arm, clearly more comfortably with the first. A sword he knew how to swing like Hercules himself, but the gun? He silently cursed himself for not training with the pistol, finding himself look at Thalia, understanding her troubles. Like her, this was something he needed to learn. Nigel even looked over at Ash and gave him a contemplative look, before commenting briefly "You teach me how to use this, " while gesturing towards the pistol, then over to his sword "and I teach you this. I'd like to listen to the expert, after all."

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Amelia Payne Location: Camp Mexico Beach's Beach Skills: N/A

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The innocent laughter of children was often the best possible cure for many an emotional fatigue. That was part of the reason she enjoyed working with the lil guys so much and because of it her game for dragon and knight at the beach as she was playing the role of the big evil dragon that had taken over the castle was a pure joy.” Rawr! I will breathe out fire and take out the pesky knights!” She stated suddenly and made deep breathing sounds as she looked at the kids around her.” However, I prefer hunting, so I will give the knights a chance and only go after the princesses!” Amelia added and purposely a bit slower rose up trying to grab one of the girls from the groups.

A series of surprised and then happy squeaks sounds filled the air as the kids true to their age stood up lightning fast and were already dashing away, shouting happily taunting the ‘dragon’ as the big bad Dragon Amelia gave chase! They ran about for a little bit, before she decided it was time and quickly grabbed one of the kids, putting a pause to their impromptu game of tag.” Look at that, I’ve got myself a knight!” She stated, holding the kid underneath the armpits.” Now this bad dragon shall cast a curse! You shall be the next dragon and the only way to break the curse is to catch another!” Amelia theatrically in grand manner proclaimed, before adding an as evil laughter as possible. She then dropped the kid and let him go so the game can continue on.

Seeing her work complete for the time being, Amelia decided to take a breather from the running and looked around, checking where everybody was at and what they were doing and if anybody from her group was missing or the like. Then she noted where Professor was at and walked over.” Hey.” She greeted as she got closer.” Saw the impromptu teacher meeting earlier, sorry to skip, but was playing with the kids.” Amelia added with a small smile.” So need any help with anything while they are busy playing tag?” She asked, still keeping an eye on the younger students around the beach right now, ready to bolt in any direction at a moment’s notice in case any of them needed help.

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Lisa Mason Location: Medical Skills: N/a

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“That’s good. At least we know they are in capable hands. Hopefully they all return later.” She nodded, having at least one person proficient with medicine to a decent degree on a mission outside the walls was crucial. First aid was crucial to stabilize a wounded person and in a world like theirs where danger’s behind every corner, it was well darn critical. She sighed, sadly there was no cure or even prevention to the zombie virus besides well… not getting bit. Maybe one day in the future when civilization has reformed properly and infrastructure and sciences have returned to being worked on, they will find a cure or at least a method of prevention. She was thinking in ‘when’ instead of ‘if’, because well… being positive!

Lisa made a note of the takes in her pad and nodded at Mary.” Alright, I will get to work right away then. Sooner I’m done with it, sooner everybody would be happier.” She smiled and after making sure all her paperwork for the time being was neatly dealt with, she started walking towards the wing where the flu cases were quarantined. On the way there she put on a mask. While walking, she made a mental list of everything that had to happen. From the dozen patients half were likely to be discharged if nothing had worsened since last night. So that meant 6 people processed and allowed to go home, 6 sets of discharge files to fill out and then the cleaning. Others might do it today, but she as also counting it in her time just in case. Better be prepared than sorry.

With that she walked through the door of the first room with patients.” Good morning!” She greeted with the usual joy and enthusiasm, filling her voice. She was a naturally happy person for the most part and she acted the part. She looked at the patient she had noted last night that was likely to be discharged today. She kept notes of these things such as who’s fever broke on which day. It made it easier to track that way. In fact Lisa had drawn a simple to follow calendar for the days in her notepad to keep track of it.” I hope you had a nice evening rest? Well hopefully it was so, now let’s take your temperature as procedure. If everything is good, you can get discharged today and spend the other 3 days back home!” She reassured with a smile.

“Now while we are taking your temperature, are you per chance feeling anything off about your body besides the usual flu symptoms?” She asked, starting to make notes in her notepad. The patient was likely to be left to go home today, but it didn’t hurt to be extensive with the questioning just to be sure.

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Emanuel "Manny" Newman Location: Jail Skills: N/A

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The talk between Nigel and Manny was pleasant as they walked. Though the man did have a good point that too many people at once may only make the situation worse. The man was definitely a more experienced teacher then Manny could ever be and his wisdom of the situation definitely showed it here. He did however join on most of the walk as Manny made his way to the jail and Nigel moved onto the training grounds to join the teams that would leave the walls. It was something Manny did consider, but he was getting old and figured he could use his main skills a lot better within the walls then outside of them. Though if asked, he wouldn't hesitate to leave the walls in assistance of others. "Knowledge itself is power." He thought about it for a moment and smiled. "What a saying." They chatted a bit before Nigel had to leave. Manny agreed if he saw Hunter before Nigel got back he would pass on his request. He found the man fascinating and respected the education behind the man.

Arriving at the Jail Nikki seemed to be rather surprised to see Manny which he expected in a way. He wasn't her direct teacher outside of a couple lessons, she didn't work in medical, and Manny didn't work in Supply or security. Manny deciding to start things off on a little more of an entertaining note grinned at Nikki's comment. "No? What makes you think that?" He walked in with Nikki's tests rolled up in his hand thinking how to proceed from there. "I am a very experienced hand to hand fighter and was for many years. In my old neighborhood even the foolish ones knew not to pick a fight with me. Bats, knives, fists. Could hold my own with any of it back when I was your age. Now, maybe less so." He spoke it with a bit of a joking tone, it was clearly obvious that Manny was no longer that kind of person. Nor was he in that physical shape to hold his own in any of those areas anymore. Nor had he needed to even in the post apocalyptic world. "I can also handle a firearm rather nicely if I do say so myself. I placed 42nd in the 2004 state skeet shooting competition. Learned the year after that the trick is to go in it not expecting much of it. And I'd like to think that skill has aged rather well all things considering." The year after he hadn't placed as high likely do to his over confidence of the year before. But it was because of those two tournaments that he had the sizeable amount of ammunition when the dead started to rise.

He set down the papers on the near by table and sat down. "But you do happen to be right in this case. I am here about your schooling. I saw your Math and English grades and I have to say, I did expect more of you." Manny knew she wasn't the smartest kid in class when it came to strait up book smarts, but he liked to hold all of his students to high standards. Those standards were some of the few luxuries that they were able to keep from the old world and Manny would be damned if he was going to just let them slip by. "So I am here to help bring these grades up before The Professor decides she needs too. And if I was in your shoes I'd rather have me come in rather then have her bring this to your attention and attempt to fix it. Let's start on Math." He opened the math test to point out the many blank questions. "Do you want to tell me what happened here?" He figured it could be a few things. It could be she didn't know the equation or how to apply it. She could have been distracted and the question might not have made sense. Or worst case, she didn't see the point of her studies and figured that her life would be set as a semi skilled worker the rest of her life. The way Manny saw it, the more people that were educated the better. In many cases it was the only thing that could prevent a situation from turning into anarchy. In others, leaders of history tended to respect those who were the most educated.

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Hunter Monroe Location: Third Floor Medical --> Administration Skills:N/A

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Hearing that Izibell was doing good was probably the best news he could get. No matter what happened, at least she was doing okay. At least she was okay. Lisa's words of encouragement were also nice to hear. He'd be lying though if he said that all the positive support didn't seem off to him. Especially after how things played out at the trail. He figured most people would either loath him or ignore him. Then again, Lisa was at the Trial. No, she was here working on her own set of problems. Some rough ones at that. "...thanks..." Words were never Hunter's strong suits. With his mumbling he couldn't even be sure he was heard, but he was trying even if at questionable success.

Arriving at the Administration building Hunter had shivers. He had put his final nail in the coffin here and he was nervous to be back again to talk with the same man who he had sealed that nail with. There were more wishes of good luck which surprised him again. Gunny was waiting for Hunter and Co at his office door, entering in he sat next to Doctor Freedman in front of the desk as Gunny took his seat behind it. And he offered Hunter a chance to speak before they began. This made Hunter visibly uncomfortable as he struggled to keep calm. "I uhm.... I..." He struggled to speak. "I don't know what to say." He seemed like he was about to be sick. "Like uh... my uh..." He took a moment to breath and catch his breath and thoughts. He was choking and he couldn't process what he was trying to do. "My uh... communication skills are... poor at best. And... Hostile at worst. There are still things that uh... trigger me and like... I'd like to say I am better at facing those issues but I'd be lying if I said I was confident in that. I've been in a nice comfortable isolated environment and I am honestly a bit nervous that spending time out of that environment and things going wrong again and making things worse before I get the chance to make things better where I already fucked up and like..." His speaking sped up the more he talked as if the thoughts were flooding uncontrollably until it hit an abrupt stop.

Hunter's hands started moving around a bit by his head as if they were bits that helped him process his thoughts. "I am not completely sure I can fix all the damage I've done. Or any of it for that matter. I wouldn't even know where to begin with it." He had known about this specific day for a while. had prepared himself mentally for weeks. And each time in his mind it ended the same. He'd be forced to leave with all of the problems he left unsolved. He'd be forced to leave without seeing those he had gotten to know. Without seeing Izibell or Nikki or Nigel or anyone else. "I'd greatly appreciate the chance to try though. Getting the chance to see my actions from an outside perspective though, you'd be more then justified to kick me out here and now. There are things I have lied about. There are things I've misunderstood and have gotten tunnel vision on and went way too far with. There are times when I have gotten extremely hostile with no real justification to it. And I want to fix it. I just... Don't really know the best way too. But I've been told I am getting better at making sure it won't happen again." He tried to think on his words again, unsure of how he was presenting himself. "I don't think I am explaining this well. I want to do better. But I am not really sure how. To start I guess, I'll cooperate any way I can as best as I can." He wasn't sure what to expect but he really did want to improve. The trial had given him a preview of the person he was turning into. And that was something he wasn't willing risk turning into.

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Ash Holloway Location: Bus Skills: Leadership, Science (Military)

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Ashton kept mostly to himself, giving himself the internal mindset of a man going back out into hostile territory. It was a decent enough approximation of what the world had become outside of whatever security could be carved out for one's self. Being inside of walls for the last number of months didn't serve to make him weaker or more intimidated by the outside world as it might have others in their position. Quite the opposite, he now had even more for which he felt a need to provide, or at least contribute. A much more soldierly version of Ash was asserting itself, still as quiet as ever but taking in and processing operational information from Maddoc as best as he could.

One thing which grabbed Ash's attention was that, despite the fact that there would be a senior officer present, no one was going to be giving guidance or speaking to protocol. In short: these teams, which had not yet been tested in the field together, were flying without leadership. Depending upon people and circumstances, this might not be a huge issue. Then again, for the same reasons this could be very, very bad.

When his name was called, Ash made his way over and was lent the use of a no-frills M4 carbine. Standard since the 90s, and a weapon that he extensively used since basic training. A field knife followed this, which he tucked into his belt. Ash took couple of seconds to inspect the firearm handed to him, going through initial safety procedure before returning to sit.

Ash was mulling over his concerns in his head, debating whether saying something was appropriate, when it occurred to him - the CMB officials were observing. They were trying to see how the groups would function while armed and without oversight. They wanted to see what would happen. In his case, they had already seen that Ash would follow orders with humility and purpose. Maybe this run was partially about something else. Be it possibly a mistake on his part, Ash felt the need to speak. However, someone wound up speaking to him first.

Nigel. He was proposing a deal. Ash regarded him for a moment and nodded, "I'm no expert. But sure, if you like." He leaned forward with a smile, continuing, "Provided we get the okay from brass. And a voucher for ammo." There was going to come a time when once standard, cased ammunition became a relic of the past. It was already a rare cottage industry at best. But if he wanted to learn pistols, great. He could help.

Just now, Ash took the opportunity to voice his concern from earlier. He raised his voice a little and projected mostly in the direction of the team to which he was assigned, but pitched so that the others might also be able to hear if they were trying to listen. "If you've made it this far, you're a survivor. I don't want to insult anybody's intelligence, so, grain of salt, please."

It looked like he was gearing up to say something. "A building to building sweep is nothing new for any of us." It was accurate enough; he'd been part of many of them during his military career and many more since the Outbreak. Anyone who scavenged from once-civilized areas did their own version of this. He took a glance around to eyeball the people that he was speaking to, then nodded and continued, "My intent is this: Scope a building's exterior first, quietly if possible. Then organize into a four-man fire team, fifth takes rear guard to cover our collective asses. Hit one room at a time until the building is secure. After, break into teams of two and three and go down our list. Move to the next building and repeat." He took a second to take in a breath. Either he just did something positive or he overstepped. In his mind, the team needed someone calling shots and keeping people together for the safety of all of them. Not to mention that, if the other team was listening and didn't have a solid idea of their own, there was something from which to build.

"If anyone's got a better plan, I'm all ears. If you're willing to follow mine, I'll kick in the first door."

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Thalia Carmichael Location: Bus Skills: N/A

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While the others in the bus were speaking among themselves, Thalia was taking mental note of the direction the bus was going in relation to the gate they had just left. Moreover, she attempted to make out the street signs and general landmarks. Her more observant (mildly paranoid) nature was coming forward and she was already planning on worst case scenarios, in this case having to make her way back to CMB without the aid of the transportation they currently enjoyed.

When "the talk" from Maddoc happened, Thalia was not amazingly surprised. She was not very happy with the situation, seeing as this looked a lot like an unnecessary risk for what was a moderate reward, but she was not surprised. Testing time. Maddoc and Hank were their proctors. It was like college all over again, but with guns, knives, and animated corpses. So, almost exactly like Suffolk University. Go Rams.

When her name was called, Thalia rose and went to collect her weapons for their little outing. Her case became a little troublesome, as her square peg didn't exactly fit the round hole that was their policy for distributing shooting and stabbing implements. A large melee weapon wasn't in her immediate future. Having only one articulate hand made that more difficult than it would be for most. Her skill with a spear, which she might have used one-handed, had been abbreviated and it wasn't in her training regimen to recover that ability. So with a sigh, Thalia took a 9mm Beretta and a knife. It was less firepower than the others had overall, so she might have to make up for this in other, less tangible ways. The first thing she did to make herself ready was to place the knife in an underhanded grip, blade facing outward (because those horror movie slashers were dumb as hell) in her artificial right hand, then compressed her metal fingers around it and locked them in place. It wasn't like her grip would tire.

The Beretta found decent lodging at the back of her belt, shortly after she chambered a round by pressing the slide against the heel of her shoe and making sure the safety was on. While she was most comfortable with a Glock 17, Thalia had to admit that the safety feature on the Beretta was a more ergonomic option. Her initial appraisal of her sidearm out of the way, she settled in to get as much rest as she could considering the circumstances, as Thalia was certain today would be a long day.

Looking around at the people in the bus around her, Thalia realized that she had not been out in the world with any of these people. Thana, Alexander, and Manny were back in CMB. Nigel, while a decent enough sparring partner, was not someone she had gone on a run with ever. The same went for Tatiana. She had been teaching Thalia ballet, for which she was grateful, and they had some interesting psychological qualities in common that she found gruesomely interesting, but again, they had no experience outside of walls together.

In their group, she was the odd one out and she knew it. Wayne and Nigel had history. Ash and Tatiana also had history. Thalia? For all she knew, they were looking at her, wondering if she was going to find a dark corner someplace and screw them all over. Logically, objectively, if one of them was going to, she was the most likely suspect. Sarcastically, Thalia pondered that this was a really fun position to be in. And par for the course for her.

She listened to Nigel's response, taking in the words about finding their place in the group and having a baptism of fire. It sounded colorfully epic, like people who write books about the glory of war, yet did not stick with her heart. To Thalia's mind, either they would do their job successfully, hopefully with all of them surviving, enough timed until something worked out. Until actual trust was formed. It would be a difficulty for Thalia to fully trust someone, though she had no intention of screwing over the others in the meantime. "Yeah," she said simply. This was not a discussion she felt comfortable responding to with overt optimism. "I'm sure we'll be fine." Her words felt hollow.

Thalia was partly glad that the conversation turned away from her and over to Ash. It allowed to to put more of her attention outside of the bus to scan for things which might be useful to her later; more landmarks or even places she might be able to hole up for a night, worst case scenario.

Then without warning, Captain America began to speak again. She wanted to say that he was being condescending, or talking down to the people in the bus as if he was the One Great Authority on doing shit like this. But considering that her assigned group didn't add anything, the people in the other group weren't talking much, and those in charge blatantly said that they were on their own, she was slightly relieved that someone spoke up. Even him. Thalia didn't like taking orders from people she didn't know and trust. Whatever. It wasn't the worst plan ever and she knew that personal factors were probably coloring her attitude. So she added, "Anybody else capable of being quiet?" in a cold voice with a hard edge to it. If she had to pair with someone, she'd rather it be someone who wouldn't immediately give away her position. But, beggars and choosers.

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Emanuel "Manny" Newman Location: Jail Skills: N/A

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Manny was glad that Nikki had some joy from his comments. He was nowhere near the physical fighter he was almost fifty years ago but it was nice to get a laugh out of it. "I don't think I could hold my own against Maddoc in a hand to hand situation anymore. Skeet shooting? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curios how that would go down." He smiled. Moments like this brought what youth he still had in him to the surface and it also served as a nice ice breaker. "I do suppose you're right though. I don't work with security or safety. I'm fine with being arguably the best dentist left on the planet." Likely by default, but that was apart of the humor of it.

Nikki took the real news about as well as expected. Manny let her speak and say what she needed to say. The better Manny understood what her thought process was the better he could help her with this. This was worst case scenario and the situation Manny would struggle with the most. She couldn't see the practical reasoning to learn these things in school. "I suppose you are right." He spoke in a completely relaxed tone as if she had a point to be considered. "I suppose there is nothing I can do to change you mind on the matter. I know when I was your age there was nothing my father could say that would make me change how I was doing things." He paused for a moment deciding his next words. "I simply don't know you well enough to motivate you. The best I can do is warn you of some of the struggles you will face if you decide to brush off your work now." He grabbed the papers and looked through them a bit, opening to a page with the incomplete math work. He turned and showed them to Nikki. "Do you know what those in administration and among the officers will think if they see this kind of stuff on your work? A lack of dedication. Commitment. An inability to problem solve. It wont matter if it's true or not. But as a member of security your responsibilities will be greater then a grade. It will be people's lives. These tests we give you serve more then to test your knowledge of topics. It's also a test of character." He sighed setting down the papers. "This information also isn't meant to be useful or practical now. It's simply impossible to teach and prepare people for every possible situation that may arise. It is meant to be a foundation of knowledge to make tasks and problem solving easier throughout your whole life. Not just the short term. Even this, the undead. It's short term. Someday there will be a day where the living outnumber the dead again. I don't know when, but it will happen." It could be years, it could be generations. But Manny did believe humanity would recover from this. The only advantage the dead had was their ability to take punishment and a total lack of arrogance. Humanity held the rest of the cards, and when push came to shove were pretty decent at setting aside their arrogance..

Manny took a moment again. If he fucked this up it could only make things worse. "I'm not saying you can't do it. In fact out of most of the students I think you're one of the few who could probably get through this world without giving a damn about your education. My hopes aren't as high for some of the others. What I am saying is that you will be faced with a whole other set of complications and problems if you don't. You and others your age will already have countless challenges to face that no one in history has had to face before. I am simply asking you to try and utilize every tool we can give you to make these challenges as easy as possible. Or at the very least, give you as many options to deal with them as possible." He took a moment to look through her papers again before looking back at her. "We're here to help. All you have to do is work with us. And if not us? There are others who can help. Some who have gone through school here, others who have gone through school in the old world." Manny stopped at that. He was referring to his world. One that existed only 6 years ago. It visibly took him back for a moment. "But in the end the choice is yours anyways." Manny would help her however he could, but he could do nothing unless she wanted the help.

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Hunter Monroe Location: Administration Skills:N/A

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Hunter sat a moment, concerned he had fucked up again. After some notes were taken Gunny had decided that he had heard enough. Hunter looked sick for a moment. He had fucked up and now he was about to lose what little he did have left to him. He sat there mouth agape trying to speak, but his ability to speak had been crushed and he froze. Then Gunny stepped around the desk towards Hunter. Was he preparing for Hunter to put up a fight? Then he spoke. HE was staying. He had to get his act together, but he was staying. He'd be back working tomorrow and he would have to be on his best for 60 days. Two months. He'd be outside again, he'd see people again, he'd see Izibell again. Hunter stood up as Gunny offered his hand. Hunter at first did back off from the gesture. Hesitant. He had to remind himself there was no malice at play here. Hunter reached out and accepted the handshake, the motion of which felt awkward for his hand. It was an odd thing how your body would find itself being uncomfortable with things you haven't done in a while. It was a weird train of thought, but he figured the last time he did shake someone's hand was likely while he was in basic training. Six years. "I uh..." He was still fumbling his words. He put his other hand on the handshake and reorganized his thoughts. "Thank you..." He spoke like he was struggling to believe it was really happening. He knew it was, but it was hard to see it happening now in front of him.

Hunter took his hands back slowly. Not out of caution, but because the shock of the situation was still taking up a lot of his thought process. "I'll uhm... I'll do better. Thank you." This step was done, and now he was onto the next. That's how he had to do this. One step at a time until things were okay. His next step? Get through these 60 days. That would involve a lot of mending work to what relations he did have. And trying his best to fix what hostile relationships he had formed. He had no idea how he was going to pull that off though.

He looked at Freedman, then back at Gunny. He was at a loss of words, and he was at a loss of what he was supposed to do now. He didn't start work until the next day and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't on edge about getting himself in trouble. "uhm so... so what now?" The way he figured it, Izibell was likely locked up inside someone's room the poor girl. Anyone he may talk to was likely working at the moment as well. He also had no idea what he could do in the camp while not working either. He had less then two days outside of lockup and had no idea what was going on in the camp proper outside of rumors he had picked up from the medical staff.

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Amelia Payne Location: Camp Mexico Beach's Beach Skills: N/A

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“Not sure anyone short of Thana can talk to her on such a topic and not get an eyeroll...” Amelia replied after a brief thought on the topic and sighed, taking a seat by the older woman. Nikki was her friend, her first friend in the camp actually, but that didn’t mean she was going to pretend to be blind to stuff.” Yeah, not sure how Manny having a talk with her would go and I am not really inclined to attempt anything like that.” She replied.” Best I could do is try to help her with anything if she asks, but I’m not going to preach to her. We are friends and I choose to believe she has her reasons and if she needs and asks for help, to be there to provide it.”

Amelia gave a chuckle and shook her head lightly.” Oh she will more than likely feel attacked even with just those two going for a talk.” She stated, her eyes trailing one of the children that were running across the sandy beach. She did take her duties here seriosly after all, so worries about the well-being of all the kids running about was expected, but it made her feel better about life in general. She was one of their teachers and for better or worse, she was getting attached to the kiddos. Maybe it was her innate maternal instincts, she wasn’t sure, but looking after them brought smile on her face every day, no matter how annoying or loud they got.

She suddenly made a face and nodded.” Yeah…” Time for the day was running out, they barely blinked and it was almost time to end the picnic and return. She wasn’t going to lie, she had just as much fun here on the beach playing with the kids as the kids themselves.” Very well, then I’m going back to my brave knights and princesses, since I see the substitute dragon’s not doing too good right now. Better go even the odds and tire them out properly before we head back.” Amelia grinned and stood up, heading back to play with the kids. They noticed her when she got close to them and she suddenly grabbed one of them. “ Got you~! What a tasty morsel, not to catch you all knights and princesses. Nobody can defeat me, the big evil dragon!” She drew out her sentence with a growl and so the game of tag resumed.

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Lisa Mason Location: Medical Skills: N/a

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Lisa was going through a full set of questions and examinations for each patient, to make sure of the state of each one in most precise manner possible so they could with good conscience release them to home rest instead of keeping them locked up tight in the hospital. She knew full well that it wasn’t the most comfortable thing to be at the hospital no matter what, being at their homes always calmed people, sometimes it was inevitable, but human nature was such. After all the questions and checkups were over with, she noted this patient down for home rest and to be discharged, said her polite goodbyes and headed out of the room. She was polite and friendly with all the patients after all.

To her surprise, she came face to face with Mary right out the door in the hall. Lisa right away realized something had happened if this was happening. It was all a matter of learning out what it was now.” Mary? What’s going on?” She asked, seeing the woman. She still had patients to go over after all and she well knew that Mary wouldn’t disturb her unless it was important.

The moment the words ‘hospice ward’ left Mary’s mouth, Lisa barely held back a gasp, but couldn’t hide a really deep breath. It’s been months since then, but lil Lilly passed away, but as the one there when it happened, Lisa still very much remembered it. Positive as she was with her outlook on life, some things were just too great for simple positive thinking to overcome easily. She finally too took a deep breath. The more she heard, the more her mood grew grimmer. Finally she couldn’t contain it anymore.” Shit...” She cursed under her breath, rubbing the bridge of her nose and closing her eyes to think.” So… it’s that bad, huh.” Lisa mumbled. For them to be taking in the General into the Hospice Ward… things were bound to change in the near future.” I...” She started and stopped talking, closing her eyes once more and shaking her head for a moment.

After bringing her mind back on track and focusing, Lisa nodded to Mary with serious face.” I will take care of it right away, don’t worry. The rooms are kept clean to begin with, so it’s not like we will be preparing it from scratch.” She added.” I will go prepare it now, will resume with the patients for discharging later. In fact here’s the list so far.” Lisa mentioned and showed it to Mary.” Will check over the rest after this and I will come inform you once I’m done preparing a room in the Hospice Ward.” With that Lisa headed over to her desk first to drop off the papers and files she carried since they would be a hindrance while preparing a room. Afterwards she headed towards the Hospice Ward, grabbing cleaning supplies in the way there before deciding on which room felt the best for the purpose and going inside. As maintained as they were, since it wasn’t occupied it wasn’t in perfect state, so first things first. Clean it and make it ready for receiving patients. With that in mind she picked the broom. She was going to sweep the floor, wipe the dust, change the bedding, wipe the floor with disinfectant and so on. She had a few full hours of work ahead of her. Her personal pride didn’t allow for shoddy work when it came to this type of thing. She was going to put in her many years worth of experience into this..

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Alexander Polawski Location: The General's Office -> On the way to Medical Skills: N/A

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Seconds became days and weeks, even months and years for Alexander as Aeron accepted his need to talk, prompted by those four simple words; "Then let us talk." Alexander took a deep breath, filling his lungs with much air to carry him through this insurmountable mission he had just set himself out on - to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The truth, which he'd been told many times by Freedman, would allow him to pass through that painful obstacle and finally move on. And so he needed as much air as he could, before he started telling Aeron about…

A knock interrupted Alexander from uttering a single coherent word, making him hold his breath in suspense, the knock taking him by complete surprise. Who was it? Before he knew it, Doc Michael entered Aeron's office, paying Alexander little attention. His presence was probably not an issue to the doctor, after all they both knew about Aeron and what was killing him from the inside. His presence only disheartened the old veteran though. From the sound of what little conversation he and Aeron had, things were only growing worse.

And he couldn't help but feel an immense pride in seeing Aeron outright refuse the wheelchair, yet a bottomless sorrow knowing where this was going. Even in the face of Death, The Dragon stood tall and strong as example for his men. This time however, Death would be the last one standing.

The entire interaction was brief, allowing Alexander to remain with Aeron alone as he was asked to follow him for the walk. Alexander, having forgotten to breath throughout the conversation, let out a long breath and taking in another deep one, before nodding woefully to him. He got up on his foot and prostethic, approached his old friend and gave him a disheartened smile. "To the end of the World, General. Come on, Aeron, grab my arm if you need."

Holding out his arm for Aeron to grab onto as support, Alexander pushed aside his own troubles for the time being. His need for confession could wait, when Aeron needed him the most. And in that sense, Alexander felt happier, knowing he was still of use, if only for an old man fighting a losing war against cancer. With or without helping Aeron, Alexander would open the door for him and follow him out into the hallway, then outside into the streets and the hospital. "I have to give it to you. You're one stubborn old bastard, with all due respect. Glad to be by your side, old friend."

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Nigel Cooper Location: Bus -> Gaskins Still Skills: N/A

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With Nigel's proposal for resiprocal training in the art of war being accepted by the self-claimed non-expert, the Neo-Roman felt slightly more confident in their ventures as of today. Calling Ash an expert might have been a fancy florishing of words on his part, but in true comparison Nigel was still very much the novice when it came to handguns. He'd always used his sword after all, and that was both quiet and efficient enough for his own liking, so the need had never arisen.

Times changed though, and even he understood that. Now at least he had someone to help him on that unknown path that was the future.

The time for Ash to talk had not ended though, with a new matter which the new-world soldier decided to put his weight behind. The plan, or at the very least A plan going forward. The plan was as simple as it was sound, though the explisite inclusion of modern firepower was a tactic Nigel wasn't too familiar with, very least at this close range. Thalia's inclusion of stealth was a warm welcome to him, prompting Nigel to reply. "Fairly, though nothing compared to yourself. I can be quiet when the need arises…" He even managed to keep his mouth shut at that point, instead of going off on a long Latin quote about silence and whatnot, as if making a comedic point in contrast. Nigel simply took a deep breath and continued with another comment. "We head out as quietly as possible. As lain upon us earlier, we are not fighting time itself, so silence and patience are virtuous in this battle."

Looks like Nigel managed to sound ancient again. Touché.

It didn't take long for the bus to arrive at their designated drop-off point, an intersection before their planned foraging duty up north. Their target, a food mart. Outside the 'fresh' air caught Nigel in the face as he disembarked their galley on wheels, stretching out on the way out as if cramped inside CMB. His senses sharpened quickly as he mentally ordered himself to return to duty, a retired legionaire put back into service for the Empire. No sooner than they'd been given their final orders and Team B had ran off like Iberian skirmishers, Nigel turned to his group and looked them up and down. They all looked prepared, as prepared as one ever could be in this world of death, blood and fire.

A lone road kept going north from their position, treelines on all sides and far away in the distance the sight of a rooftop. Flat and industrial, that had to be their goal for small campaign. A road kept going to the east, encompassing a small overgrown field of what had probably been farmland, while the left contained more trees. Fairly simple, as long as they weren't being watched.

"North it is then, though let's head on the left side of the road. If we encounter resistance, may give us more cover..."

A pause from the now sword-wielding Roman came as a hushed reaction to something his eyes saw. In half a year Nigel hadn't seen one of Them, not this close and in reach of him. A certain instinct took posession of him, his hand gripping tightly around his sword - a fine blade, though sadly not his own beloved Gladius he'd carried into CMB. Eyes narrowed and locked onto the shambling Servant of Hades off in the distance, he breathed slowly and reminded himself of the threat of life outside the Walls.

A single Walker, off in the distance. Yes, they still existed out there. It didn't seem to notice them, at least not for now as Nigel eyed it like a scout keeping watch for a passing Gaul band of bandits. A brief look from Nigel onto the others told them he was ready to go deal with it at a moments notice, as he waited for it to wander off or approach them.

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Ash Holloway Location: Gaskins Still, Foodmart Exterior Skills: N/A

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A mild twinge of objection took Ash as he noted alongside their observers that Team B was fracturing. Better judgement might have them staying together as a group, obviously, and he had to suppress the urge to say something, make some suggestion, bark some command that might have kept them operating as a cohesive unit. The problem wasn't that he felt they were going against protocol, like some impotent stickler for all that which was spit and polish, prim and proper; for Ash, this was a simple matter of trying to keep people alive. Their lack of tactic increased the likelihood of tragedy without equivalent potential reward for their risk.

Ash glanced to their observers and then back to Group B, briefly. Was it part of the test for them to act in the best interests of all parties, including the other group? He shook this idea from his head. They were out in the world. He needed to focus on what was best for the people he was with now, not the greater community. "Alright ramblers," he began, a sense of pride forming now that he realized that his group was sticking together like an organized team, "let's get rambling." He noted the suggestion coming from Nigel and gave him a nod. It wasn't a bad idea, whenever they got around to moving farther up the street. This wasn't exactly an urban area and such a practice would give some cover to one side. Not quite the strategy used by his people in The Sandbox, seeing as his enemy there was fond of utilizing Soviet era RPGs which could be used to great anti-personnel effect if the targets were near to a wall detonation. But if the Dead were capable of properly using such a weapon in the first place, Ash figured there was a whole lot more to worry about. Likewise if the living had casual access to said armament.

The erstwhile Captain kept his focus on his task at hand, trusting that the team had their own angles covered. They were assessing a building before entering, and he was keeping to this, advancing with his carbine in a low ready position. Ash took in the knowledge of animated Dead being spotted by others, in the first instance Nigel, and mentally filed this away. Too far out to be an issue right that second, not enough of a threat to fix it with a bullet and draw more attention to themselves. His tactic was fairly simple - being in possession of a weapon with range, if a noisy one at that, he could serve as excellent, accurate backup to the others in case a melee attack went awry, thusly giving two chances to down a corpse and provide cover from any living assailants. Again, noisy. But the lives of his team were worth more than the contents of the list. Maybe next time, he might request the use of a bow or crossbow to round out the group's options.

The convenience store wasn't the only structure in their immediate vicinity. Large, above ground diesel storage tanks lay in front of the main building, closer to the road than the regular gas pumps and the overhead rain shield. An unattended dumpster quietly sat, peeling green paint out behind the store, as well as another low building a little ways off. Ash reasoned that they might give it look when they were done with the food mart. It could likely wait. When they came back around, he quietly mentioned to the rest of the group, "Wouldn't mind finding their transfer pump inside. Give that storage tank a look too, time an' circumstance permitting."

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Thalia Carmichael Location: Gaskins Still, Foodmart Exterior Skills: Knife

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Others looked for Zeds, Thalia did too. Keeping one eye on your surroundings, even when one was asleep, was the best way to not die that she'd figured out so far. That and only coming into formerly populated areas when she absolutely had to. To that note, this whole outing seemed like a waste of time except to see if they could function as a group. Perhaps it was a good thing that she spent all of that time with Thana the rest of the "Eden" team. Without this necessary experience working with a group, originally led by a former Naval officer, Thalia might have felt even more out of place with these people. Possibly to the point of taking her quick and quiet leave of these people now that she was well fed, armed, and outside of the walls.

Thalia volunteered for the role of rear guard with this group. It was one suggested by Mr. Army Captain, and this was the key point here - suggested. He didn't order, nor did he specifically point to her to assume a role. This made a difference to her. He mentioned a plan when nobody else seemed to. It made sense, more or less. So Thalia took it upon herself to hang back a little, keeping her eyes on not only the details of the building they were to enter, but to the group's back. She saw the one Zed that Nigel pointed out earlier and mentally started a tally. That was one. Another corner of her brain kept track of exterior doors to the building they were scoping. Front, obviously, with large windows that a metal fist or piece of ammunition could get through. Rear loading door, likely only opened from inside.

Another note was the dumpster out back. It could possibly be useful to climb on top of or stand inside in case of more Zeds than they could handle, as both a defensive measure and as high ground they couldn't get their rotting asses up to. Easier pickings then.

As the group passed around a corner of the building, Thalia remained toward the back, not quite liking the look of a blown over stack of wooden pallets. She couldn't quite put her finger on it until she saw it shift. The ground suddenly became dangerous. Shambling to a crawling stand among the tall, brown grass and scraps of stapled wood was a creature which used to be a woman. Stringy, sparse hair of a now indeterminate color stuck sloppily to a desiccated face, featuring milky, sunken eyes.

That was two. "Got one heah," she announced, stepping to one side slightly to clear a line of secondary fire. The move was not from any military training she had received recently, but rather security protocols from her previous life with the MSS corporation. The memory of that life made her feel conscious of a scar residing below her collarbone, received from a bullet back before Zeds were ever a consideration. She shook it off. From the corner of her eye, Thalia saw the muzzle of a carbine turn in her general direction. She stepped forward, keeping her 9mm pistol at the ready but leading with her metal arm in a defensive posture. Defensive, unless one counted the knife pointed forward in an underhanded grip. It was with this that she struck out, taking one lunging step forward to drive the blade into the eye socket of the former person before quickly stepping back, letting gravity bring the corpse down. It was a funny feeling, using a knife without the telltale sensations in her hand. Foreign, somehow.

First blood to the Edgelord Mestiza from Boston. Back to one.

Satisfied, Thalia regrouped and kept tabs on the Zed farther out. It wasn't critical. She couldn't quite tell if it even sensed their presence yet. But her job now was to watch their backs, and that was definitely worth notation. The once-around the building complete, Thalia's eye caught sight of another one. It wasn't right on them, but might be a problem if Ash wanted to check out the diesel tank like he mentioned. It was partly underneath, seemingly pinned by something or otherwise unable to use its legs. They couldn't see it from the vantage of the street, but from here it was clear as day. And back to two.

"Diesel tank, down low," she intoned, motioning with her prosthetic. Now came the question: Did they handle them before they attempted to enter the building, or after? "Two total."


Hank kept quiet, just as he said he would. He held a woodaxe in one hand, upon which he was precariously balancing a clipboard. Notes were taken. Occasionally, odd facial expressions or an errant head bob every now and again. This turned into something more serious when actual danger came to the forefront, but still, the notes. He looked to his fellow proctor and shrugged, then went right back to his observations.