Late October. Missouri. (Approximately a week before the RP starts)
Austin kept his left hand firmly planted in his pocket. It wasn't freezing, but it was certainly cool enough that the cut on his forehead stung like a motherfucker. A bruise in his left side was a bit of a bitch too, probably some bruising along his ribs. He'd had worse, he'd get over it. His right hand remained at his side, twitching every few minutes with anticipation. The air out here felt tense, like every moment since this ragtag group of nerds and prior servicemen walked through the woods. Boggs stayed close to the rear, watching from the back, making sure nobody straggled behind. Everybody had the crash fresh in their minds; he hadn't flown a model quite like that before, but it wasn't much different from what he was experienced in. It was likely he'd never get to use that skill again, but at least it saved this many people. There were just too many of them and the broken fuel gauge didn't help - they barely had take off before the systems began to fail. Thankfully they'd been able to walk away before it attracted too much attention.
He only managed to snag a few things from the supply on the way out, but he felt more protected than the people who had no idea how to use their weapons. A CZ would be a new experience for him, but it wasn't much different than the Beretta he used to wear; same calibre, it might just take some getting used to. One of the security guards from the facility took a stumble farther up in the herd and Boggs rolled his eyes. They were sitting ducks if something happened - the number of 'smart' people definitely trumped the 'experienced' ones, so they all had some extra weight to pull. A guard though? Boy, he hoped she knew how to shoot if she couldn't even walk proper.
He watched his former neighbour, Jon, help her to her feet and furrowed his own brown when the man tensed. He didn't hear the twig snap, but he was a bit down the line from it too. When the trio of men, armed ato the teeth, emerged from the treeline, his hand slowly moved to rest on his pistol's grip. It felt like a long shot from back here, but he could at least help cover if something went awry. Then again, maybe it wouldn't.
He kept one eye tentatively on Jon; the man was little more than a computer tech. They lived next door to one another after Boggs retired. The pilot quirked an eyebrow as the group exchanged words. The feeling that he got from that triad was nothing but danger - a shotgun, sure... but an assault rifle? Something like that wasn't cheap, nor easy to come by. It hadn't been long since they'd all left the CDC, but god a scenario like this never ended well for the merciful. He craned his neck, trying to figure out what it was that Jon was looking at beyond the trees before...
POP! A gunshot rang out, reverberating off the trees and scaring the living piss out of the small crowd. Boggs gripped his pistol and pulled it from its holster, but just as he did, he heard more shots coming from Jon and the men were all as good as dead by the time he was lining one up. Austin ran to the front, watching Jon skeptically, stopping just in time to hear some kid nearby sputter out the obvious. He glanced back.
"No shit, Captain Obvious," He stated bluntly, turning back to look at the bodies. He blinked - that looked like quite a bit of heat... But enough to take out this many people? They must have really been banking on the element of surprise. "You still have a fuckin' head thanks to this guy's timing too."
His pistol remained firmly in his grip, "Shit, Jon... All my years I've not seen many people shoot better than a Ranger or a SEAL... Especially with a pistol. Even for being up close, I'm pretty impressed," He said, shaking his head, "We gotta move though... I doubt they were alone, I'll distribute the guns." With that, he sunk back into the group, holstering his pistol to replace it with the assault rifle, shotgun, and third man's pistol in his hands.
He whistled, assessing a few group members before giving them the weapons. He didn't take them, he preferred his sidearm and wanted as many armed as possible. Of course, somebody who didn't know how to use a gun would be more hurtful than helpful. They each had only the ammo that the 'bandits' had on them, so they'd have to be sparing. A couple of people were brave, or smart, enough to get a hold of a coat that fit, others grumbled about how disgusting it was to loot, especially a freshly bloodied garment. The pilot ignored it and motioned for them to get a move on.
Approximately one week later
Boggs readjusted the rifle in his shoulder. The assault weapon they took from the bandit had become the weapon they equipped the Watch Stander with - whoever it was. It got passed around, everybody took a watch and received a crash course on Holding a Rifle: For Dummies from a few of the military guys. It had been a while since he carried one of these, but it felt absolutely perfect in his hands, just like home. He heard the crunch of boots on the ground and cocked his head to see Jon approaching. He stopped his patrol and did a casual facing movement, "Morning, Jon. Need something?" He asked, his voice low and all-business. He took his job seriously, giving a nod of his head to back, "Walk and Talk."
The pilot resumed his patrol, staying to Jon's outside as they strolled, his eyes cutting through the trees, trying to move over every detail and shadow. Another chilled day, but it would only get worse and these people weren't too well-equipped... They'd have to get their hands on some warmer clothes or start moving South if they wanted to live through the winter. If Jon hadn't noticed it already, he made a note to mention it later; after the event the week before, some people now turned to the quick-shooting mystery man as a de facto leader. On the other hand, some stayed away, feeling it far too threatening that he could take a man's life without hesitating, even though the 'victim' didn't ever actually raise his weapon. Boggs knew - he knew that there was no way in a situation like that... You can't just wait for them every time. Sometimes you have to make that move.
He couldn't help but feel a little bit uneasy about the whole thing, too. Jon was the only one with a gun out at that scene and he managed to kill all three men before anybody else could act. Maybe it was a hunch, luck, or sheer adrenaline fueling him... But Boggs still thought it strange. Then again, people had interests, maybe Jon always loved shooting. He was just a tech at the CIA and Boggs knew nothing about that kind of work - did they even teach the IT guys how to handle themselves? And why would their training be so en pointe?
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