[IC] The Day The Earth Fell

[TheCheshire]

Ravenia nodded her head at the man's words. She watched as he adjusted about, getting more comfortable. She mulled the words over in her head as she thought of the size of the following this man had. Ravenia smiled gently when Tobias snapped at the Russian about keeping his sweethearts to himself. Plopping down in her chair again, she rested an arm on the back and pulled the opposite leg up against her chest. She watched as Tobias help Sasha not tear his stitches.

He attention was directed over to Fen when he spoke about talking with the children. "I understand you fear for them, Fen. You may speak with them, but be aware if they cause any troubles to my Children, I will deposit them back out against the Waste. I can't take any liabilities. From any newcomers." Ravenia said, cutting her eyes at Sasha at the end. She was antsy, she couldn't stay still for long. She stood up and cross her arms over her chest. "Fen, take a Warrior with you. Tobias said there's some deadly medicine missing and I don't want you getting hurt." Ravenia said as she nodded at the young man. When Tobias made eye contact with her, she smiled gently. "Tell me, Doc. Something on your mind?"

-x-

The solar powered car rolled up on the scene and came to a halt about thirty or so yards from the crash of the barge. "What in the actual fuck..." Tank muttered as he watched the man spraying the Dead with his rather large gun. Stepping out of the back of the car, Tank rested a hand on the side of the vehicle watching the bizarre scene before him. "I suggest we not get any closer. That guy is going nuts with big thing." Tank said as he looked from the driver to Ramera. He nodded his head and walked over towards a rather large rock, twice his size and slowly hefted it up. With a wide grin at his companions he gave it a hard throw and watched as it sailed through the air, hit the ground hard and rolled over the Dead. Sending a good assortment of them flying. He pulled out the flare gun and pushed the canister in for the orange flare. This was the signal for when they had located a wreck, a survivor, a lost Blessed One/Warrior.

Tank narrowed his eyes slowly and looked closer at the guy. "I think I know who that is..." He muttered, a look of disbelief on his face.

[pyroman]

Marcus knew who Shane was, as Shay had told him about the man when she had first come to Paradise, spending her first few weeks at the gate to talk and vent out her emotions. He had really gotten to know her, and he had a good understanding of how important those goggles were to her. If he remembered right, they were her brothers, and were the last things that she had of him. He watched as he grabbed her jacket, and almost put it on before pausing. He nodded to her and reached to get his arm, but stopped when she spoke again. He shrugged at her and reached out fully to grab the arm. "Not really. Only when I start tampering with things." It didn't really hurt him when he had the arm on, and if it did he had gotten so used to whatever pain might be there to the point that he no longer registered it any more. The man closed his eyes and reconnected the metal arm to his shoulder. It looked odd seeing pieces of the odd metal contraption bend and turn to fit into his arm. It both wrapped around and connected to his shoulder, and once the process was done he rolled his shoulder a few times before putting all of his focus on Shay.

"I'll be out there in a minute, Shay. Go and tell Sun to get his sprites ready so that we can fly back.:

[Metronome]

Sasha let out a half chuckle and a smirk at the doctor's insistence that he stopped using pet names. Was that a little bit of jealousy, maybe? Nicknames was just something Sasha did; he hardly even thought about it. If he were in better condition, he would be tempted to press the doctor's nerves, but seeing as the man had saved his life, he supposed he shouldn't.

Fen got up from the cot at Ravenia's permission. "I think I can handle it. I mean, they're just kids. And I'm great with kids."

[Twilights Curse]

TOBIAS

Tobias, getting the man sat up and somewhat comfortable moved and filled the glass of water again for him, bringing it back over. "just what i said before, the large group of dead. they didnt come just cause, they were herded this way and someone wanted to test us in some way with that attack" he said softly. "the pieces are fitting together after hearing what our friend here just said" looking to Fen. "just be careful Fen, its in a sealed bottle, nothing i've made its from the city, you know what that stuff looks like, if they got it dont mention it, just let us know and i'll come get it from them" he didnt want Fen getting hurt, not that it was going to happen, just better safe then sorry.

NICOLAS

Nic was having a blast blowing the damn dead apart, watching pieces of them flying all over.. the gun was loud, and he wasnt hearing anything or anyone pulling up til he saw movement coming from to the left of him, and then his fun was ended as a large fucking rock slammed down.. he left off the trigger, spinning around, the barrel finishing its rotating as he dropped it back into its box and closed the lid. he walked around, hobbling now, that leg of his was all kinds of messed up. he stood to his full height, and stared down Tank, swaying a bit. "arnt you fucking dead yet?" the first words coming out of his mouth, directed at the big man.. Nic pulled his knife free and held it, there was beef between him and Tank, anyone could see that. "why in the hell did Lissie send you of all people, and stop your fucking spinning" he pointed his knife at Tank, then swept it around to his driver and the woman, blinking at her, he tilted his head. "damn, that bite is making me see some crazy shit" shaking his head, he swallowed, chest heaving. "dont.. dont leave my ride and stuff out here" and then his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell forward right into the dirt. his runner, an old dune buggy type ride.. it was strapped down and piled with junk where ever it could fit.. in the back, around the engine was the weapons cash and boxes, food rations and water or where the water jugs would go. they see his ankle was bleeding freely and a child could tell it was a bite mark, he'd been bitten.. he was extremely hot and burning up, how he managed to move with the fever he had.. it just showed how tough he really was. the one he mentioned before, Lissie was the nickname of the Previous mother, he didnt know that Ravenia had become the new mother.

[Blox]

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Shay watched Marcus curiously. It wasn't often she got to see him put on his metal arm, and the way the pieces came together to create a most perfect fit was fascinating. She nodded to him as he said he would be out in a minute. She slipped on her jacket and limped out towards her front door, favoring her bad ankle and placing as much weight on her other foot as possible. She could feel her strength coming back but the pain was still there, lingering. It was hard to describe the pain she was feeling. It was much different than before. Her ankle was till swollen, bandaged but obviously still healing from the scratches. The lingering poison still sent small shivers of pain through ehr nervous system. And there was a pain that reached her mind, that flared up the more she focused on it. She could handle pain in general, having a high tolerance for a human's standards, but this pain was different and it was non-stop. Mentally, it was starting to break her down. She did very well at hiding this, wanting to get back to helping her team. A cold shiver rocked down her back and she wiped her glistening brow. She leaned through the door frame and inhaled deeply to get control of herself. Sun came up to her, making sure she was ok. Once she ensured him she was she requested he get his sprites ready, telling him they needed to get back to the Medical Center and fast. Sun began to ready his sprites and when Marcus came out to meet them, they immediately began their travel back towards the front of the city. Sun's sprites floated around all three of them, elevating them in to the air. Shay felt better this time, understanding how to keep herself balanced during the flight. She reached out to grab Marcus' hand as they flew, much faster, towards the Medical Center.

As soon as Sun's sprites let them gracefully touch down and plant their feet to the floor, Shay turned to Marcus nodding. She walked as fast as she could with him towards the entrance. They would go back to her room for her goggles and most lijkely run in to Mother or the Doc or Fen to get an update on the city's safety.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kaiden laughed with his friends at the table, fully satisfied as he ate more than he needed to and full of more peace than he had experienced before. The music in the background, people's chattering voices and laughter buzzing around camp, the din left him feeling at home. The only thing that could make this night before is if they had walls to protect them and a permanent place to call home. Adie had sat for but a few moments before she was back up and walking around their table offering seconds or thirds for everyone. Some took her offer, some declined. Adie came to Kaiden and rubbed his back with her large hand affectionately. "Have some more Kaiden, you're too skinny as it is!" Kaiden laughed and pushed away the serving Adie tried to get on his plate, which would have been his third helping. "No, no Mom, really, I'm completely stuffed. I'd hate to over due it and waste your great food in the back woods." He placed his hand over her free one and pulled it around to his face to kiss the back of it.

Cypher joined their table at that moment, sitting down next to Kaiden in the empty spot to his right. Kaiden looked to him with a smile and glowing cheeks, but turned quickly away, looking at the table. He gave out a smile then a laugh as he saw everyone at the table giving Cypher a boisterous applause and a shouty hello, some pounding the table with their hands. Kaiden took a sip of his drink then turned back to Cypher as the noisy welcome for him died down.

As Cypher sat down next to Kaiden and gave his speech to the group, expressing his gratitude, Kaiden pushed away the serving Adie was already trying to give Cypher. Since everyone else seemed full, she set the bowl down in the middle of the table, wiped her hands clean on her hand made apron, and came right up to Cypher from behind him. She wrapped her thick arms around his shoulders and pulled him close to her, pressing the side of his head in to her bosom as she hugged him deeply. Before letting go she gave him a kiss on the side of his temple then promptly smoothed and fixed his hair to keep it looking nice and neat. Kaiden shook his head, slightly embarrassed, but this was Adie, full of love to give.

At Cypher's question, the table cheered and called out with a resounding YEAH! all of them eager to go to Paradise and follow his lead. Kaiden looked to his friends, his mother, and inhaled deeply. He was just as eager but through his work with Cypher and the triplets he had a more realistic idea of how dangerous their mission would be.

Kaiden got up from his chair, ready to follow Cypher to his next spot of mingling if need be. He needed more information. He had spent enough time having fun and wanted to get started on making their mission to Paradise a reality. Kaiden placed his hand on Cypher's forearm to get his attention amidst the noise. "What is our next step Cypher?" he asked. He looked up to him intently, making it clear he was ready to help, ready to make this happen.

[Metronome]

Fen headed down the hallway to the kids' room, biting his lip. The pressure was on: if he couldn't figure this mess out, these kids may be on their own. He passed a man in the hallway who looked like one of Isam's friends. The Arab man smiled and nodded at him as Fen passed.

Omar had decided to hang around until everything had calmed down, hoping he could figure out what exactly was going on. He hated being left outside of the loop, but his language barrier was a major disability. It had gotten better, but people still tended to talk as if he weren't around. He turned as the medical center door opened, watching as Shay and Marcus came in. What were they doing here? He stepped out of their way to let them by, almost stepping right into a nurse who had approached him from behind. He jumped a little and turned.
"Sorry," Omar apologized quickly.
"Oh, it's okay," The nurse smiled. "I just came to thank you for the medicine." She held up the vial to illustrate. Omar got it.
"You are welcome," He said through his thick accent. The nurse nodded.
"The big guy in there would be in a lot of pain if not for this. I'm sure he'll thank you later, too."
"Need more?" Omar questioned.
"That actually might not be a bad idea. Yes, please."

Meanwhile, Fen slowly reached to open the closed door. He had convinced the guard that Ravenia had approved of this visit, and now came the moment of truth. These kids could be innocent children, caught up in the political games that adults played, or they would be conniving and dangerous fiends. The door creaked as it opened.
"Hey," Fen said as he poked his head inside, then came all the way in. The two kids were curled up in a chair with a blanket that someone must have given them. They looked up at him warily. He could tell they were scared.

"So your friend down the hall told us that someone send you here." When talking to children, the nervous halting of Fen's voice always seemed to disappear. "A bad man. Do you know who I'm talking about?" Both of the kids nodded slowly. "Okay. Well, our leader, Ravenia, isn't very happy about that. She's talking about maybe making you leave, and I really don't want that to happen." Fen came over and sat down on the floor to get on their level. "I don't think you do, either."
"If we go back, he might hurt us," The little boy said quietly. Fen's ears still picked it up. He felt a mixture of pity and anger.
"You don't have to go back," He said firmly. "Just promise us that you won't do any bad things, or anything that the bad man tells you to, and you can stay here with us."

The girl looked down, then slowly reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, plastic bottle. She handed it to Fen, who recognized it as some kind of medicine.
"What's this for?" He asked.
"Bad things," The girl said, her voice breaking as tears started to roll down her face. Fen caved.
"Oh no, don't cry," He pleaded. "Don't cry, it's okay." He instinctively began to rub her back, which always made him feel better. "If we give this back to them, I'm sure they'll understand. This isn't your fault." The girl sniffed and let out another sob, making Fen rub faster. He looked around the room for something to distract her and noticed a piece of paper that had doodles covering every inch of it.

"Hey, you wanna draw something for me?" He asked. Fen reached into his pocket to produce a pen, then looked around for a blank piece of paper. "Uh...you can just draw it on my hand, look." He offered his hand up, which seemed to get the girl's attention. Before long, both her and the boy had pens and markers.

Fen emerged from the room about 20 minutes later, arms, legs, and face covered in childish doodles. "I think they'll be okay," He announced to Ravenia.

[Blox]

Shay limped next to Marcus towards the Medical Center, stopping just outside of the doors as she grabbed Marcus' shoulder for balance. Inhaling deeply, she closed her eyes for a moment, pain shuddering through her. Her mind was racing with anxiety, the frustration of having no reprieve from pain, even if it came in waves and now mostly dull at times. Shay figured they hadn't been gone for too long so most of the group would be here in the Med Center. The Russian and the two kids they found would still be resting; either that or Ravenia would be interrogating them. Shay was highly curious to find out the story behind the injured man they brought in and the kids who came in with him. It was too much of a coincidence not to wonder how they were connected. There were no known establishments or colonies outside of Paradise for many miles but people migrate so often nowadays for resources that things could have changed. The most strange part of their entire arrival was how few there were, it just being three. People who traveled normally traveled in groups, as families, not alone unless you were some form of a reject. Shay looked to Marcus and gave him a smile. She brushed some hair from the side of his temple then leaned in to give him a quick but soft kiss, lingering for just a moment before pulling back and opening the doors to the Medical Center, walking through.

As Shay walked through she came right up towards Omar as he was passing by, moving out of their way so they could fully enter the building. Shay gave him a weak smile. Shay then glanced around the room. There wasn't as much hustle and bustle as there was before, showing signs of peace coming back to their home. Mother and Doc must be tying up loose ends or finally resting. Shay glanced back to Omar as he almost bumped in to the nurse. She noticed his thick accent but heard what the nurse said, watching Omar hand off the vial to her. She listened to their conversation, getting information about the Russian; no other person would have been called the big guy. So he was still here, alive and well, and Ravenia seems to have him under control or deemed not be a threat after all. Shay heard the nurse request for more of the pain medication and she didn't hesitate to step forward, entering their conversation before Omar could leave.

"Hey, I was just over hearing you guys. I was on my way to see Doc and Mother but if you're getting more medication for pain I could really use a refill for myself as well." She looked down to her bandaged ankle, her jeans scrunched up to reveal part of the bandage over her wound. She looked to the nurse as well since she would remember helping her earlier when she first came through. She wasn't familiar with Omar, didn't even know his name, but she knew someone was helping the Medical Center with their supplies so she figured this must be the guy or one of the guys who did that. It had come in handy many times through out their days of hard core training. Shay turned to Omar and gave him a soft smile.

"I'm Shay by the way" she extended her hand for him, hopping on her good foot a moment to keep her balance as she used but her toes of her left foot, keeping pressure off of her ankle.

[Exit]

There it was again. The man's willingness to help never seemed to falter even in the midst of a party. It seemed Kaiden was one of the few who understood that the path to achieving their goal involved no shortage of hard work. Hard work, planning, patience and people. It was going to be a long journey but with people like him, the road would be an easy one.

Cypher placed his hands on the back of his hips and took one last good look at the people around them. "If you're sure you don't want to see any of this for a long time... Willing to leave this behind for something you may not fully understand... then follow me."

---
Cypher and Kaiden emerged from the camp, passing the large earthen walls that made up the perimeter of their temporary home. Outside and away from the crowd, the cold air and loneliness of a dark night quickly surrounded them both. The lights from the party were obscured by the earth erected behind them and so visibility in the pitch black was low but because they'd both been outside the walls numerous times, the path they took was easy to follow. There were three main entrances to the camp via a bridge made of compacted dirt. It carried men and woman across a long ten foot gap where the dead and other unwary travelers would fall into a ten foot deep hole. If gotten to in time, survivors would be rescued and the dead taken care of. It worked as both a means of safety and in case they ever needed a large collection of the dead, they'd always have some at their disposal.

Waiting for the pair on the other side of this gap was Brand and Shea. They nodded their greetings although Shea gave Kaiden a cross look.

"What are you doing here? Patrol isn't for another couple hours, plenty of time to enjoy the fun."

"He's been wanting to help and I figured it's time."

"We could use the help." Cliff took Kaiden's hand in a strong grip. "Glad to have you here with us now."

"So... the next step actually starts now. When i said during the meeting that we don't have the man power we used too, I wasn't kidding. If we were to try and take the Promised Lands as we are now, we'd fail. We want to take this city but safety for my people always comes first. In the wild, safety is found in numbers... We have sparse information about another large group of survivors somewhere in the area. The plan is to make contact with them and hopefully find some kind of common ground. If we can group with them, we may have enough people to successfully take the city and reduce causalities to our people. People will die... our people will die but if I can save some lives I will." Cypher turned to look at Kaiden. "We don't know how far away this camp is so the team is leaving tonight. Shea, Brand, Cliff when he gets back. A couple others from night patrol and..." He motioned back toward the gates of their camp, beckoning a man forward. In his hands was a chain and attached to the chain was the woman from before, a collar had been fixed around her neck. "In return for taking a life, she'll be helping to save lives. She'll be your guide. You'll find where to begin tracking men from the other camp by following her lead. After she's helped you, I've made it clear to her that her life is entirely in your hands." He looked at each of them. "Kill her or let her live. Up to you."

The woman kept her head down and avoided eye contact with all those present as the chain was passed from the man to Cypher. He in turned handed it to Shea. "I know what she means to you but realize her importance to us. I know you won't fail." Shea nodded but kept her eyes on the woman. Finally Cypher addressed Kaiden. "You want to help... this is the first step in taking that city. In finding a home for us, for you and me and your family. There will be many night like this without sleep but if you're willing, we can make it."

---
A Few Hours Ago
The hammer smashed into the butt of the pistol and the resulting click filled the air between the two. The woman flinched... and then opened her eyes. It only took a few seconds for her to realize that she was in fact still alive. She looked up at Cypher with a confused expression covering her face. "I didn't figure you for sympathy."

"Punishment." He corrected her. "You take a life, you give a life." He holstered Crystal's pistol and dropped to a knee to level with her. "Where'd you trade with those men?"

[Blox]

Kaiden followed Cypher closely, ready to be more useful than simply helping with patrolling the grounds. He knew he had more to offer and knew how important this was to Cypher. He followed just behind Cypher, his eyes surveying the back and side of the man as they moved. A small smile bent his lips as he imagined their life in Paradise. The more he thought about this the stronger he got mentally, ready to do whatever it took to complete their mission.

When they came to the others, Kaiden looked to Brand and Shea. When he caught sight of the look Shea was giving him he said nothing but raised his eyebrows slightly. When Shea spoke her words cut through like an interrogation but Kaiden was determined not to let her attitude hold him back from wanting to be here and feeling like he belonged in this part of the mission. Cypher had his back as he spoke to them about why Kaiden was here, making it official and something they couldn't argue against.

Kaiden took Cliff's handshake and offered a smile. "Thanks, glad I could help" he said.
When they let go, he glanced back to Shea, narrowed his eyes just slightly and gave her a smirk at her defeat. Kaiden quickly then turned back to Cypher as he spoke of the details in their plan. He knew it would be dangerous and Cypher's words only heightened this reality.

When the woman was presented Kaiden looked at her carefully and with a bit of sympathy. He knew what she had done but still didn't care to see a human in such a tormented, animal like state. He watched as Shea took hold of her chain and could see the desire in her eyes. Unless he or Brand or anyone else could persuade her otherwise, this woman would most certainly die after she was found no longer useful.

Kaiden looked back to Cypher as he addressed him. Kaiden nodded. "I'm here to do whatever it takes Cypher. I'll be here for the group 100% and with Akasha's help we'll scout the land as soon as possible. I'm not afraid of a little lack of sleep and travel and I'm definitely not afraid to fight for our family." This was the first time Kaiden had verbally shown Cypher he was willing to be involved with any violence that may come their way. He wasn't particularly a violent man but it was clear he would do whatever it took to claim their new home.

Kaiden turned back to Brand and Shea, glancing to Shea and the woman she held on chain. "You know, I can watch her for you if you want. Just let me know." He didn't want bad blood between them and he also wanted to watch the woman's back at the same time. Hopefully offering his help gave Shea a sense of trust with him but with her firecracker attitude he was never sure how she would react.