Massasauga

The Three Kings (High Casual)

Well, there was the fire. Joy didn't understand much about why the other girl was so mad, but then again she had a run-in with someone trying to get into her home just today too. Still, the business end of a rifle made her stop and think.

"Jeez, that's a big gun. What is that, an AR-15? No, it's definitely longer. The magazine is also different. It must be chambered for seven six two then. This is bad. I hoped that they'd want to avoid contact but now I'm getting held at gun point. Is my safety still on? No, okay at least there's that but still. What are the chances that I can make a step back without getting shot? Not very likely. I'm still in no position to make any sort of moves unless I want a new hole. Damn, this isn't how it's supposed to go! Wait...a girl? Maybe...it's worth a shot."

Slowly, Joy took her left hand off the handgun from the Weaver stance she was in, and swung the 1911 around slowly until she was pointing it at the wall. There was a soft metallic click as she reengaged the safety before carefully putting it into her holster. She still had her knife, though, so she knew that if anything happened she wasn't entirely defenseless. She put her hands up, but pointed into the doorway. Hopefully, Joslyn would have enough mental capacity to be able to make the distinction from military to GMG with her dog tag.

FRAMEs: Chapter II [Reboot] (Mech combat, politics & corporate intrigue)

"Well, one thing's for sure, we certainly have our work cut out for us now that these guys think we're just in it for the money and nothing else. You can thank that loud-mouth back there for that, as well as announcing the intentions of us not wanting to be entirely cooperative or maybe even being suspicious of their forces. We have a right to err on the side of caution, but you must know the enemy and yourself if you hope to win. They know us, and we don't even know ourselves that well. Just take a look at what happened today, for example. Aside from that outburst in the command room, we had one of our guys just go all gung-ho right into the enemy line. I don't expect people to come from military backgrounds, but we don't have a need for heroes in our line of work."

Sabrina, cold as she said it, wasn't wrong about the situation. She laid down on a crawler and skirted around to the underside of the foot she was working on.

"It's as much our fault, though. We need to try to reel them in. Make them better so that things like that don't happen. We'll need to if everyone's suspicions about the XCD are right. We don't know what they really want, but I smell ulterior motives. I've been in something like this before, and my sixth sense is telling me that something's not quite right with this whole thing. It stinks. That doesn't mean we need to go looking for trouble, though. There's a lot of thought put into this, and it'll weigh on the commander's head. Any slip-ups we make as a unit will just cause more stress. This opportunity is as I said: too good to be true and too good to pass up. This unit needed to get back on its feet badly, but we need to be more careful about how we conduct ourselves along with our business."

She stopped and looked Maxwell in the eyes.

"The XCD have no cause or reason to show us mercy should they decide they no longer require our services. Do not show them any unless you want to be spending your next years six feet under without a pulse anymore. After all, who's going to miss a ratty bunch of mercs just trying to make some blood money to live by in a world like this? We'll be put on the news maybe, with our names listed if we're lucky, but no one will truly care but any family we have left. So unless you're content to get a few extra holes in you courtesy of their rifles, watch yourself out there."

She went back to her work, feeling as though she had said enough on the matter.

The Three Kings (High Casual)

<Snipped quote by Massasauga>

Pff

@AtomicNut

Wrong badger

Know the difference. It could save your life.

The Three Kings (High Casual)

Play nice or I sic the panda on you agains.

@Foster

I have a honey badger.

The Three Kings (High Casual)

<Snipped quote by Massasauga>

I want to

My Hider

cuddle

Massasauga in public and make her

My Hider

blush

@Cherry_Shield

Deploys drastic measures

The Three Kings (High Casual)

I want to

My Hider

hug

Massasauga

@Cherry_Shield

Stop, you're gonna make me blush in public.

FRAMEs: Chapter II [Reboot] (Mech combat, politics & corporate intrigue)

I'll get a post up tonight sometime

The Three Kings (High Casual)

...what?

The Three Kings (High Casual)

Joy snored loudly as she laid in her sleeping bag. She couldn't help it after the long night she had been through. A harsh banging on the back door of the van drew her slowly out of her slumber with each instance until she finally woke up. She unzipped her bag and crawled over to the back door. A small pair of curtains kept the sun out and prying eyes. She slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes and holding her handgun. Slowly she drew the curtain to peek out to the outside. An older man with graying hair under a work cap and a matching beard was standing there. The groundskeeper of the junkyard. Slowly she opened it and peered out.

"What is it, Big Joe? You know what fuckin' time it is?"

"Yes, little lady, I do. I also know that some military types were on their way through here. Said they had rights to search fer squatters and whatnot."

"Military? Oh fuck..."

"You and I both know they ain't here fer the squatters."

"Big Joe..."

"Don't make nothin' of it. Git yerself together and make yerself scarce. I'll try to keep them out of this area as long as I can. Saw one of their big vehicles out front too."

"That makes thing difficult. They near the break in the fence?"

"Not yet, but they may be soon."

"Alright. Take it easy, Big Joe. I'll be around sometime."

With that info fresh in her mind, Joy quickly popped some caffeine pills and washed it down with some rainwater she had been collecting from her rain catcher in the sunroof. She threw her jacket, her belts, and all her pouches onto her person. She tore down everything that indicated the van had been lived in and threw it into her rucksack. Finally, she holstered her handgun and stepped out of the van, pulling her hood up. She gave Big Joe a quick hug goodbye before turning around and high-tailing it out.

The junkyard was a maze, truly, which was both a blessing and a curse. She needed to get out, but finding her way around parts unknown was harder than it looked. At least she knew if she was always heading at least some direction, she'd hit the fence eventually. So even though the soldiers were out and around, they weren't aware that she was moving out. They'd be taking their sweet time, trying to sneak up on her and hoping to catch her napping. Not now, though. No, this time she'd be gone before they knew she was ever there. At least, that's what she hoped. Getting around was difficult, and she had to climb over car piles a lot more than she found comfortable. They were unstable, and it made her nervous.

Just when she climbed up and took a few seconds to judge the distance she was from the fence, she heard metal creaking underneath her. Thinking fast, she jumped and hit the ground on a roll. The four-car tower became a three-car tower as a sedan slipped off the edge and crashed. That was going to draw attention, so Joy beat feet onto her goal, which was almost in sight. Voices from behind her only served to increase her speed until, finally and thankfully, she was able to slip out. For now, she was okay, but it wasn't going to be like that for long. She kept up her pace to head deeper into New York, keeping a lookout on a place to dive in and lay low. An apartment complex that looked like it had seen much better days in the past (and more residents), seemed like a good place to stop for now. She slipped in through the front door after making sure no one else was around and sighed.

Out of the frying pan, but not sure if the burner was lit. Joy drew her 1911 and clicked the safety off. Leaving it cocked didn't hurt it, so she hadn't messed with it after her encounter with Miro. Miro...well, at least he was good for one thing: he let her know just how well her disguise was working. Well...from the neck up anyway. She looked down. With the rucksack straps around her shoulders, she noticed her prominent mounds under her jacket. Great. She cursed herself for her natural bustiness and vowed to try binding herself down with some pressure bandages later on. At least, if she could. The first thing to do was to make sure no one was going to fuck with her in this building, if there was anyone to do so.

Slowly, but surely, she carefully made her first steps inside and began to clear out as much as she could see from the building. She knew to pie her corners, but she really wasn't wanting to try jiggling door handles. Her combat boots also made audible noise that was only slightly softer the slower she stepped. Well, at least if anyone else was here, they'd be wanting to get the hell out. Combat boots were usually worn by the government types, and spelled trouble. Joy prayed that anyone would get the hell out at the sound of her footsteps if they were here. It was just easier. And yet, sometimes things are never easy, nor do they usually turn out the way we want them to.

The Three Kings (High Casual)

@Cherry_Shield

You asked for it...