Utterly Mad

Catalina was making her way over to the main entrance of the center, directing a few others who were running around, slinging an M4 over her shoulder and picking up her radio. It was an unusual sight after all this time, vest and helmet on, mask in its usual bag and other gear in her pack. "Larion, I'll want you watching just in case." she said, hearing his calm affirmative before turning to the few others who had assembled with her. "Sargent Branham, if you're ready, you'll take the squad north to intercept and meet with them. All of you are to be at MOPP Zero, limited intel confirms that some of their tricks in Maine have included what would qualify as biological warfare." she said, the others giving a salute before making ready to head out, checking gear beforehand.

The captain was soon enough heading back over to check with Khaki, giving a little nod as the other soldiers had been dismissed. "We should keep the others down in D.C. and offshore informed just in case, possibly get in touch with Walkerville. If all goes well all we'll have to worry about is the risk the Marshal or any of the others might scare them." she joked. "Other than that...who else might be able to help sort this out? I know we sent two to Maryland that might be able to help advise us..."

Khaki felt cold at the mention of contacting anyone in long distance. Walkerville might still be possible by virtue of short range radio. Hell, the AI that often spied on the center could and would probably relay the message, but Catalina didn't know yet that the center was flying blind. A surge the night before, the centers industrial generator having a hiccup thanks to the recent influx of people and the increase of power usage. Just a flicker that had gone mostly unnoticed, and the antenna repeater had been shot to shit. Khaki hadn't discovered the issue until late morning of the next day. She wasn't afraid of telling the Captain, she was afraid of the fact that she was telling the Captain now of all times and not even making her the first person Khaki informed.

"Eeer... I don't want to freak you out Captain but the antenna is fried. I talked to the guys in requisitions about it, but they don't have a spare. I-I'm getting people to see if they can dig one up somewhere." Khaki stammered, throwing the last bit in just to squeeze it in before the explosion she expected.

Catalina gave a blank stare before facepalming at that. "Great...how long have we been cut off from D.C. then?" she asked, seeming more concerned than angry, though displeasure was readily evident in her expression.

"A day at most." Khaki said immediately, "I think whatever happened occurred during the power surge last night. The repeater looks like it caught fire and... well, its broken. We're 'incommunicado' Captain."

'So the situation was like this,' Khaki reflected to herself, 'A couple busloads of GA are stalking a group of our scavengers, following them back to the refugee center, and we are completely cut off from most avenues of advice and assistance save the farm.' She wondered off hand if there were other groups in the area. The party coming over the short range had mentioned that the people in the buses were mostly civilians, but that didn't mean much in these degenerate times.

Catalina gave an irritated sigh at that, shaking her head. "Just like old times, it seems..." she remarked. "Well, in that case if we at least have anything short-range, we should have Walkerville standing by and aware that they may be the only asset available. That would also include The Hall nearby, should be in range too if the farm is. Our friendly neighborhood drug-pusher may or may not be an available asset too, if he's in range."

"He's in the right direction at least to notify us if any other forces are following the convoy. Assuming he doesn't decide to charge for intel that might be vital to the only place that puts up with his shit." she added, grumbling a bit to herself.

Khaki would have spat if she was the sort that hadn't been taught at an early age via liberal application of a wooden spoon to her behind, that spitting was incredibly unladylike. It wasn't that Hoyt would charge, oh no, It was that Hoyt wouldn't tell them period. The man was borderline raider, pushing his shit keeping him more than comfortable enough to keep him from just taking what he wanted from travelers.

"I'll get on it Cap." Khaki said, snapping a quick salute and keeping her thoughts on Hoyt to herself. With that Catalina went off to tend to her own business. She knew full well that Hoyt was not well-like by most of the center, and in fact she herself didn't think highly of him either. As Oliver would put it, Hoyt was a person with no class, no scruples, and no sense of good business. Enough that she herself doubted that Hoyt would actually play along even if not doing so was likely to end with him lynched by God's Army.

---

Hector hummed a bit to himself as he did his usual check on the tank after it was parked, ensuring everything was in working order. It was still missing the solar panels and he knew that the the bio-diesel they were starting to make wouldn't suffice too long, already there were too many things to reserve much for something as inefficient as a tank, even one that had been heavily stripped down and supplemented with an electric engine.

It was afterward, dropping off a few tools in the forge area, that he took a look around, taking notice of Floyd coming along with someone unfamiliar.

Floyd waved and ambled over pulling the young woman along behind. Hector noted the girls pale skin and thin form, and Branches one striking eye taking up the center of her face. This last she tried to hide under her hood, but doing that made it difficult to walk straight and so the effort was unsuccessful.

"Afternoon Floyd, who's your friend?" Hector asked, wiping what felt like grease or oil from his hands. Knowing who used some of these tools and how well she kept them, it was probably a little of both.

"Sister of that girl I told you about with the magic mud." He looked to Branches, expecting her to introduce herself. Instead, she stuffed her hands in her pockets and looked at her bare feet. "She lives over across that new lake Hec'. Name's Branches. This is Hector little lady, if you have any problems with thugs or anything, you can come to him for help."

Hector smiled a bit, giving a polite nod. He'd taken his helm off, and the older, more worn arming cap he'd used in place of the last one would be evident as well, if she'd taken notice of the newer one among the stolen possessions.

"Greetings. You're always welcome here if need be. I hope your sister is faring well?" he asked, seeming concerned. "Should see if anything from the collection Mica scavenged will fit her, might be good to get shoes for her." he said, setting the great helm aside.

Branches squirmed silently for a moment before pulling the strings on her hood tight, practically cutting off her face from sight except for the iris of her saucer sized eye. She was in the Lions den, metaphorically speaking, and frankly terrified now. If L, Mohammad, Sharlene, or even Helen had informed Hector of the incident at Sharlene's Clearing, she would be sunk.

Thoughts of running away or hiding who she was turned to smoke and dropped out of her thoughts entirely when Hector took off his cap and set it aside with his helm. He was handsome. A rugged man with experience and kindness in his eyes. His every move was performed with casual confidence and total control of his strong- Branches shook her head. What had that been?

"W-what? No, uh, no shoes. My name is... Branches." She said, loosening the hood again. The homunculus felt sweaty all of a sudden and a little swoony, but the two men didn't seem to notice. "She's... She's fine..."

Hector nodded and raised an eyebrow at Floyd, then asked, "No shoes? Are you sure? We just cleaned up a lot of old wood and there could still be nails around. Broken glass too." Branches shuffled nervously, and thought fast. Such kindness and concern for a stranger. Branches was new to the world, but as far as she knew people didn't just go around offering charity for nothing.

"No. I don't really like shoes. I'll be ok..."

"You're a bit shy eh?" Floyd observed, "Oh, Hec, our new friend here brought in a cart load of some of the stuff that went missing last night."

Hector regarded the homunculus with what seemed to simply be concern, though at Floyd's remark he perked up a bit. "That's a pleasant surprise. Any word on just how most of it ended up missing? I know we've had a rash of strange mischief before." he said, recalling recent events.

"Bandits, it seems." Floyd said, seeming to be giving Branches the benefit of the doubt for now, even though what he'd seen of the missing items made it seem unlikely for bandits to have made off with so much stuff unnoticed.

"That's...disconcerting." Hector said. "First there was the random food thefts, Helen had a vague guess as to what might've caused that, I think? Then a few days ago there were all those little clay figurines...both events were rather different in character compared to what happened this time."

"Uh-huh..." Branches mumbled, "Little... clay people..."

"Ah, so you've seen them around your place too?" Hector asked, raising an eye brow. Branches squirmed a little more under his scrutiny and nodded.

"I've got more stuff and uh..." She went on. The thought of keeping everything that hadn't belonged to the farm or to Helen had been her original plan now that both Helen and Steinar weren't keeping an eye on her while she had no plan at all for the bandits. The two man would have ended up tied to a tree. Branches would have got bored of their threats and complaining and painted their faces. Now she had an option though. An option that was always open to her, but now it seemed like a much better one. It might even please Hector. "Two bandits..."

Hector hmmed a bit, seeming to regard just how nervous Branches was, though he shrugged it off. "It's alright then, you can go ahead and tell us. We'll go ahead and sort out whatever they took and get them back to where they belong." he said, before her last remark seemed to make him noticably perk up, though he tried to hide it behind his usual calm expression.

"Is that so? Go ahead then, lead the way. There may well be more of them. It's a good thing it was just bandits and not God's Army. Though they've been far less active in the region, it's still good to be careful." he said, taking a look at some of the items in the cart.

It wasn't long before the sampling of items started to concern him, however. "So they...huh. This is a lot of stuff taken right from under our noses..." he said, concerned. "Maybe they took it from whoever did this? Might be why we haven't seen any of those little clay creatures for a good while. The other bunch only ever stole food." he pointed out.

The lies and half truths were beginning to break down and Branches could feel it. She expected the man to hear about bandits and cast off any suspicions in a fit of "case closed" but he didn't. In fact, he'd just grown more suspicious of a combined effort to swipe stuff. She couldn't quite see a way out of this, but if these men went with her to go and question the bandits... Oh boy, question the bandits? If they talked to the bandits, everything would fall apart right away and Branches would be exposed. Not just as the thief, but as a liar. In any other case, she wouldn't care. Helen knew the Homunculus was a tricky one and Illiana knew Branches nature all too well. These men though. The old man was friendly, treated her nicer than most people had and Hector...

Branches gave him a quick glance, one he noticed, and hid her face again. "Oh... Um... Ok... I..." She mumbled, "Ok, follow me then..." She spun and scurried off, the knight and the cowboy following. Before long though, Branches just couldn't take it much more. She didn't want to be a liar. "The little clay people are mine... I... I didn't mean any harm... I just forgot..."

When Branches finally admitted to it after a few minutes of walking along, there was a momentary look of surprise on the knight's face, one that quickly faded to...disppointment, it seemed. "You did that? Why, though?" he asked, a bit leery of her, seeming to be sizing her up, unsure just what her intent was, yet he didn't yet lash out at her.

"I just forgot! They were just supposed to go borrow books and clothes, but I forgot to tell them to stop and they just kept taking things they thought I would need! I didn't mean to..." Branches tried to explain, "They were just supposed to go to the hall, but they started going to other places too... they took so much stuff that some bandit guys came, and then Helen showed up, and... and..."

She had disappointed them, and that seemed worse than the other possible outcomes to her. She stood there on the bridge with them, staring down at her own bare feet and disappointed in herself in a way that Illiana and Helen hadn't been able to get her to be. Not just Hector though, Floyd too. He was disappointed as well. He had the look of a father finding his child stuffing candy into their pockets at the store.

"Please... I just want to return everything and get rid of the bandits..."

Hector gave a little sigh at that. "Well. I'm glad you came forward with it now at least. I'm guessing Helen's already given you an earful, for whatever magic goes into those creatures if not for stealing." he said. "I'll deal with the band-"

It was then that Floyd finally spoke up. "Don't go traumatizin' the kid. She already looks scared half t' death as it is." he said calmly. "I know. Still, attracting bandits out here doesn't bode well. They'll likely escalate things, and it'd be reasonable to do so if she stole from them as well, they might think we did it."

The effect of the reprieve on Branches was internally profound. Floyd's addition compounded the feeling of having dodged a bullet. Or it would have if Branches hadn't been too busy imagining what it would be like to see Hector dealing with bandits. How he'd grab one by the shirt and punch him in the face like an action hero. Branches hadn't seen an action movie before (yet) but that's the sort of things she imagined the knight doing. Action movie stuff, but in armor. And he wouldn't punch people, he would cut them with his sword and hit them with his shield.

"Taste my steel knave!" She imagined him crying as he cut down one unfortunate thug before spinning on another and smashing him in the face with his shield.

"You alright little lady?" Floyd asked, snapping his fingers in front of Branches eye.

"W-what?" Branches stuttered. Her imagination had carried her away for a moment, and that was a new experience.

"I asked," Floyd said, "Do you know where this lot is? You said Helen showed up when these guys were around, I imagine she took care of them. Did they have anything on them we could use to track where they came from?"

"Oh, they're still there. We tied them up and I was supposed to bring them to Mr. Hector."

"Well then, I suppose we should pay them a visit. If they're any of the Hell's Raiders leftovers this will be an...interesting visit." Hector remarked, Floyd already having a bad feeling about this as Branches led the way.

---

Nashio dug into his meal, which consisted of a flatbread, some sort of homemade, soft cheese, and some stewed meat. When Aurelia sat down in front of him he jumped a bit, swallowing his food. “Oh- uh, Hey. Doin’ alright?” Nashio asked, setting his meal aside for a moment. Aurelia smiled a bit as she took her seat, giving a little nod. “Doing fine in fact. Not too worn out, hmm?” she teased.

Nashio shook his head, “Huh? Nah, just starvin’ ‘cause someone had me sleep past breakfast…” He teased right back, grinning a bit. Aurelia nodded a bit, taking a sip of the cup of coffee she’d brought over. “Suppose you needed your rest.” Nashio let out an amused snort, “Says the gal who wouldn't let me go ‘cause I was ‘too warm’” He joked, poking at his food again.

“Funny, usually I’m the warm one.” she teased, wings giving a little flutter as the two settled down to eat a belated breakfast.

As Nashio finished his meal, he checked his watch. “Shit- The pastor gave me a job, I got five minutes. Unless you wanted to join me…” He trailed off, thinking for a moment. Aurelia gave a nod at that. “To be honest I was thinking about volunteering for something, as it seems I might be around for a bit before trying to head any farther south...” she admitted, though there was a degree of hesitation in her voice as she finished her sentence.

Nashio hmmed a bit at that, “We can talk about what- uh, happened later. And about you heading out.” He said, getting up from his seat. Aurelia nodded as she finished what was left of her cup of coffee, gathering the cup and tray to put things away before following along.

As the two made their way to a yard outside the cathedral, Bigby was giving a rundown of the situation to the Shepherd’s Wolves’ ‘misfits’. “Now. Since you all have been acting like dipshits, and I’ve had it with babysitting you fucks. So the pastor had the pleasure of having one of the newbies teach some discipline into you.” The captain barked, giving Nashio a nod as he left.

Aurelia watched in amusement as Nashio stepped up, giving a little wave to the group that had been gathered there, likely already sizing them up herself. Cyclops, there with the others, gave a little chuckle as he looked over at Aurelia, looking away towards Nashio once he saw that the winged woman was practically looking right through him. “Huh...so this is the boy you picked? Thought you’d pick Donny, he in the garage for repairs or something?” he joked. “Even Taji’d be a better choice than this shrimp...”

Nashio glared hard at Cyclops, walking up close until they were eye to eye. “Watch your tongue, dipshit.” He said coldly, the bottom half of his palm striking the misfit square in the nose, the cartilage letting out a soft crack. “You need to adjust your attitude.” He snapped at him.

Cyclops acked a bit, stumbling back and clutching his nose at that, glaring furiously at Nashio, his resulting remark mumbled in a nasally tone. “You fuckin’...” Nashio glared back, “Had enough?” He smirked, clutching his fists and getting into a stance. Cyclops glared at Nashio before lunging forward, taking a swing at Nashio, Bigby promptly facepalming at this. “I’m surrounded by fucking four-year-olds...”

Nashio ducked and weaved under the swing, going for a heavy haymaker and nearly knocking him flat, if not for him grabbing him by the collar of his shirt. He brought Cyclops close to his own face, “Had enough yet?” He said quietly, staring him in the eye.

Cyclops glowered up at Nashio, half-tempted to spit in his face, before finally calming himself, muttering a bit before he spoke up. “Alright...” he grumbled, Bigby grinning a bit. “About damn time we’ve had new meat here with the balls to instill some fucking discipline around here. Pick yourself up Cyclops, and count yourself lucky I didn’t have to hand out the discipline myself.”

Nashio let go of Cyclops’ shirt, “I’ve been sent here to do two things, to teach some of you some actual discipline, and to teach you how to fight properly with your own bare hands.” He said clearly, “And with Fuckboy over here, makes a great example. He was stiff as a board, no flow. He put too much thought in what he was going to do, he was pissed off. I was calm. Be like…” Nashio paused for a moment.

“Like water. It’s not about strength or power, you have to be fluid. Using Fuckboy as an example, again, he applied excessive force, I control that force through fluid motion. So you all gotta relax your whole body so it can react instantly, understand?” He explained further, giving an aside glance towards Aurelia, before looking back at the Misfits.

Cyclops chuckled a bit at that, standing up and looking over at Aurelia. “Right. So ya gotta be soft on ‘em, eh? Guessing your girlfriend there must not be all that hap-” He was interrupted by taking notice of the way Aurelia was looking into his eyes, the other Misfits about to start snickering, whether at his joke or how he stopped himself, before she seemed to cast her gaze over the group, cold blue eyes sizing them up. “The point is using your own energy efficiently. To use his metaphor, water can flow around obstacles, but it can also wear down stones.”

“Use that control and fluidity, so that when the moment is right, your strike is not just immediate, but decisive. That sound about right?” she said, Bigby chuckling some. “Whatever gets this bunch from having their asses handed to them, and keeps them from embarrassing this unit any further like Fuckboy here has. So, the other fresh meat’s joining in I guess?”

Nashio shook his head, “Naw, she’s just here to supervise. Make sure I don’t break any bones or what-not.” He said, and the session continued for a while. There was a point where Nashio was happy with where the misfits have arrived, and he gave a nod, giving his farewell.

Aurelia of course had nonetheless been eager to join in, occasionally remarking on things and at one point being paired up to spar with one of the younger men among the Misfits, getting a few remarks and critique from Nashio about her technique in the process, much to her embarrassment. By the time they were heading back after being dismissed, it had already gotten a bit later in the day. “So...you mentioned wanting to talk about some things?”

Nashio let out a soft ‘uh…’, “Do you want to be, a uh… ‘A thing’” He asked, looking away for a moment, scratching his chin. Aurelia was surprised by that question, seeming not to expect it, looking away nervously. “I had, well...considered it to be honest. The problem is I did have reasons to keep heading south...” she admitted. “Not sure what your plans are.”[/color] Nashio let out a hmm, “I… wouldn’t mind coming with you…” He admitted back, scratching at his chin.

Aurelia nodded a bit at that. “Wouldn’t mind that...it’s a lot more difficult getting through alone. Though at least the worst of it seems to be farther north anyway.” she remarked. Nashio let out a hmm, “S-sounds good…” He said, awkwardly. Aurelia smiled some, trying and failing to hide a blush. “Fine by me then. We can stay as long as you feel the need to...”

---

Back at the village on the foot of Mount Katahdin, an assortment of travelers, regulars formerly living in now-ruined houses, and a few of the Canadians assigned to the village. Celine and Abraham were among them, the two talking over coffee, or at least what passed for it eight years after the cataclysm.

"Are you certain your...friend will be alright?" the mage asked, the weathered old gunslinger simply nodding. "I've seen th' bastard look up at the fuckin' space octopus himself and not back down. A bit of snow and some overgrown bugs won't do a thing to th' likes o' him." he drawled.

One of the villagers took a seat at the table as well, an old man with a few noticeable bionic implants. "So long as he doesn't go bringin' the wrath of Pamola down on this place doin' stupid shit like that. Already had one person maybe a week or so ago pull that kinda stunt." the old man remarked.

Abe raised a brow at that. "He make it back down?" he asked, the cyborg nodding. "She, yeah. Dunno what the deal with that was." Abraham chuckled a bit. "So maybe this Pamela...er...what is it anyway?"

"Old native god of thunder, bird spirit, somethin' like that, supposed to live up on that mountain. Some of the locals think that's why the monsters infesting this part of the Appalachian act like this." he answered. Celine seemed noticeably curious, and was about to ask questions if not for Abraham speaking up. "Well, maybe the ol' buzzard's gettin' tired or summit. Never know with inj-"

It was then that the door to the building opened, bringing with it a brief chill from the wind-driven snow still blowing outside, though by now it had calmed down enough to travel through, if not for the two of them waiting for the figure who'd just now stepped in.

As he closed the door behind him, Horace spoke up. "We'll move on whenever you're ready."