Cookie narrowed her eyes.  LIP ?  From him ?  Oh, no, not like she was on tap for any of THAT.  HE had a bad day ?  Did he have any idea how sore she was from breaking open undead skulls with the slugger ?  SHEESH !  Lazyass Men ! She lowered her voice to a hostile hiss."You tell me where they put Vega - the stockade ?  And you are goin' with me on a little mission, so you better smile nice now before I lose my temper." 

"What? In front of all these nice people?" Dominic replied with just the slightest hint of a smirk. He'd seen how quickly the Asian guy; Saito had arrived after he'd slugged Vega and he was willing to bet any fight that broke out here would be broken up real quick especially seen as all of the caravan were currently armed to the teeth.
"I take it since you're talking to me and not Jay or the cowboy you need the helo? How many people are coming?" he asked raising a single questioning eyebrow deciding not to push Cookie too far, he'd made his point he didn't want a fight...well...at least not with Cookie anyway "oh and your right where Vega's concerned, they slung his ass into the stockade after our little...disagreement"

"You and whoever else I say, is going, cause we need to give up some help to our hosts," Cookie replied, setting her lips then in a straight line as she favoured him with another slitty-eyed glare.  She had to look up to do this, but then anyone that had seen her smash up a 6-foot tall zombie would not be surprised at the vertical leap the little spitfire was able to command.  "Get some rest, you're cranky," she added, and sashayed off towards the stockades.

"D'accord, just don't invite too many to the party else its going to get real uncomfortable back there" Dominic warned knowing that the Bell UH-1B currently sat outside had enough space for around seven guys in the back. Though that would probably be more than enough space for whatever Cookie had in mind.
As Cookie made for the exit Dominic couldn't help but laugh at the last comment she made "Oui, good advice...Bonne nuit Cookie, come and find me when we're a go" he called after her before heading towards one of the beds.
Removing his boots, jacket and weapons he climbs into the bed and settles down for the night; placing the .38 under his pillow as he does so out of habit. Closing his eyes he eventually falls asleep to dream of a pretty blonde and a land where the dead stayed dead.

*Time jump*

-----> From Exterior

The three blood stained individuals carried Isabelle into the infirmary, Izzy pretty blood covered already. Everyone in the room, thankfully (or perhaps not) had had past experience with triage type incidents in their careers. Dominic lead with the most real-world medical experience as a paramedic, which he displayed with prowess as he informed Loa of Izzy's condition. Loa was a vet. She'd be familiar with surgical techniques and procedures, and would have the equipment and medicine that Dominic lacked in the field. Then there was Karen. Iraq showed her what having friends and strangers die in your arms felt like, and what it felt like to be dying yourself. In that way she knew what Isabelle was feeling, at least while she was still conscious. Karen's experience as a cop taught her simple first aid and she delivered a baby once or twice. She'd seen enough crime scenes and bad accidents to be comfortable around blood and trauma, though these days all anybody ever saw was blood and trauma. There probably weren't any squeamish people left alive anymore.

At least those were the thoughts that raced through Karen's mind as she thought about the horror that would be trying to save Isabelle's life.

"What do you need me to do?" was all the could say.

-----> Exterior Scenes

Entering the cabin, Dominic with the aid of Karen laid Isabelle’s unconscious form where he was directed to by Loa before stripping out of his bloodstained jacket and tossing it on the floor along with his bag and weapons uncaring of the mess or noise he was making in the process “There’s a bag full of medical supplies under my bed” Dominic said in reply to Karen’s question hoping that she would understand the implied request as he pointed out the cot within the medical cabin he’d been sleeping on. Loa no doubt had medical supplies of her own but the less of them they used the less he’d have to try and replace for her later.
It was as Karen was hopefully carrying out this request that Dominic gave Loa a slightly nervous look before asking in a low voice “Have you ever performed an operation like this before? Because I sure as hell haven’t” he didn’t like admitting his lack of knowledge as people expected him to fix them when they got sick or injured but he wasn’t a surgeon and this was unlike anything he’d ever done before, even pulling buckshot out of NM’s arm had been simpler.
Despite this rather worrying fact Dom selects a scalpel and slices open the remains Isabelle’s jeans in order to expose the wounded limb and begin the task at hand.

Karen sprinted to the corner of the room, picking up and throwing aside the cot and blankets. She picked up the black bag and brought it over, wheeling in a small cart on her way. Karen pulled open the bag and rolled the cart within reach of the medic and the vet. Then she went to the doorway of the infirmary and shouted outside "We need some water in here!" and pulled her bloodied coat off and tossed it to the side revealing a sweat stained, low-cut black tank. Karen's chest wasn't anything Dominic hadn't seen before, but last time her skin was a dark purple color. Now, about a week later, the bruising had cleared up some, thought now the old wounds were mottled with the new.

-from Exterior Scenes

Working as a team they transfered a still unconscious Isabelle into the medical cabin, Loa keen to cause as little additional discomfort or trauma as possible despite their haste. Blood dripped down from the now soaked tourniquet, leaving a trail along the old wood of the cabin floor. Setting Isabelle down with the others, Loa kept a watchful composure, keeping as close an eye on Dominic and Karen as for Isabelle. Before she could respond to Karen the woman was going after Dominic's medical bag, earning a look of acknowledgement and appreciation from Loa for Dominic's contribution. First thing Loa did when her hands became free was recheck the patient's pulse. Alive, but very weak.

"Any thick or longer bandage rolls please, if you have any.. If you're low on antiseptic I have some left, if need be." She requested of Dominic, professional and gentle, and letting the owner of the medical bag more expertly retrieve what was required. "Grizzly stuff. I used to work on pets who were in the same situation. I've treated a few human patients as well.." Muscle memory taking over, Loa was keen to remove Isabelle's tourniquet, then clean and inspect the wound. Dominic started off by cutting away the clothing obstructing their work. The initiative was greatly appreciated. The Fort had been low on survivors with medical experience.
There was potential they'd need to set some bone back into place. Bear traps were a nasty business. Hopefully Isabelle would not wake up till afterwards, if she woke up at all, though the fact she wasn't conscious was of equal concern. "We'll need to perform a blood transfusion as soon as she's stabilized. What is her blood type?"

Glancing over to Karen at the doorway then back to Dominic, her hands were already working ahead, gloveless as always due to lack of medical gear, like a real Civil War surgeon. "You did the right thing, Dominic." She began to remove the tourniquet, "I'll need you to apply pressure to the wound for a few moments, please.

---->from Exterior


Um, where do you want this? Hank asked, stepping in. He stayed to the back of the room out of the way until told where to put the bucket. He tried not to look too closely at table they were working over. Given the past couple months he wasn't new to the injured. Just not injured living beyond the various cuts and scratches he and his brother had gotten in their travels.

Relieved to hear that Loa had had some experience in treating injuries of this kind Dominic quickly began sorting through the various bandages and gauze he’d managed to gather together during his travels before pulling out what he wanted and handing it to Loa along with a half bottle of antiseptic and a syringe of morphine. Still in its sterile packet Dominic had been amazed to see the single dose of morphine when he’d first pulled it from in amongst the medical supplies given to him by Benson. It was the kind used by the army and would come in handy should Isabelle have the misfortune of regaining consciousness whilst they were operating on the bloody stump of her leg.

Applying pressure as tightly as he could he gave Loa a single nod of his head to signal that she could remove the tourniquet before grimly replying to her affirmation that he’d done the right thing “It doesn’t feel that way at the moment...I’ve ruined her life, if she even lives at all” he hadn’t realised how weak she’d gotten as he’d carried her all the way through the woods with the firm belief that she would be alright once they were back at the fort running through his mind on a constant loop. But now that they were actually here it seemed so futile to actually hope that they would be capable of keeping her alive with what precious few resources they possessed yet that was what they must do “I don’t know her blood type, but there may be some type O left over from when I treated NM” though whether it would be any good was another matter entirely, after all it wasn’t like they had a refrigerator to keep it in.
Hearing the unfamiliar voice asking where they wanted the water placing, Dominic briefly looks up at the young man. He didn’t look familiar and so he just figured him to be a fort dweller “bring it over here and place it near the table” he instructed in a business like tone before turning his attention back to the matter at hand.

Hank just nodded at the instructions, not wanting to be more of a distraction then necessary. Trying not to imagine what would happen if she didn't make it and the others weren't fast enough he made his way to an open spot close to the table and put the bucket down. Moving out of the way he stepped back outside to a waiting Tom.

---->To exterior

----> Exterior scenes

As soon he and anyone else who had chosen to follow him was inside the cabin Dom slammed the door shut behind him before sprinting over to where Isabelle lay “LOA! We need to get Izzy awake and the hell out of here now!” he bellowed as smoke started to drift around them.  With thick, sturdy wooden walls and only a handful of small windows the medical cabin would have made an ideal place to make a stand had the roof not been on fire.
With his kit still on the floor where he’d left it he reluctantly places the guns upon a nearby bed in order to pull on the leather biker jacket and the rucksack he took on patrol with him, hoping that the leather would offer some protection from the arrows flying around outside and that the handful of supplies in the bag would keep them alive once they were all outside. With a pang of regret he knew he’d have to leave the rest of his belongings and most of the medical supplies behind to burn along with the rest of the cabin.
As soon as they managed to get Izzy awake they’d have to get the hell out of here, out of fort preferably but first they needed to wake her up and figure out a way getting out this place alive.

----->Exterior


We need to get Brady. Hank said, turning to Tom after the door was shut. Moving deeper he started looking in the other rooms. BRADY! A small part of him cursed for not looking for their things earlier, the promise of safety impairing his judgment.

Brady pulled open the curtain behind which he was struggling to get dressed. His T-shirt was hung up against his gauze-wrapped chest and he slowly grunted as he tugged it down over his wounds, the sleeve covering a tattoo of a grey rose on his left shoulder. Brady looked to Hank for answers, the others, some more familiar and some less, were busy with some other patient. "What the fuck is this shit, man!?!" Brady screamed over the sound of the roof burning and intermittent gun-fire and things falling over. "Anybody got a gun for me?" He asked, looking around the room helplessly. As he crammed his feet into his boots and took a step forward, he collapsed onto the rolling cart, knocking over some rolled bandages and pill bottles and assorted loose medical supplies. "I'm okay, I'm okay" he assured Hank and Tom, righting himself and continuing on.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:55, Thu 15 Jan 2015.

Loa was halfway out the door to the back room/doctor's office, pulling on a dirty but still the cleanest clothing she could, anticipating wounded but instead seeing the new boys and Dominic bolting inside. Quickly she put two and two together when the smell of fire caught her senses. "I've got her!" She was near Isabelle's bedside, beginning to gently but urgently bring the wounded woman towards consciousness.

With the smell of smoke drifting into the cabin, Isabelle began to stir and open her eyes.

"Brady be careful!" Loa called back to Brady as he tried to get moving at the urging and assistance of the brothers. "There is a hatchet and some knives in the office if you need some weapons." She wished she had more to offer but she rarely allowed firearms inside of her medical bay.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:40, Sat 17 Jan 2015.

Isabelle's blue eyes shot open as she coughed, having breathed in some of the encroaching smoke. Confusion gripped her at first, but fortunately(or unfortunately) this was not the first time since Z-land dropped that she'd woken up under duress of some sort of danger. Reflexively, her hands reached out and gripped Loa's shirt by the lapels, holding her back as if she expected an incoming bite from a walker. The doctor's calm presence assisted in bringing the woman into some understanding that they had to go.

Turning to sit upon the bed with her legs hanging off Isabelle tried to shift up and stand, only to realize that she was a foot short, her right leg ending below the knee, where she was heavily bandaged and sutured, her jean leg shredded where they'd had to operate. "Dominic-" She began to speak out in a barely-keeping-it-together voice. All at once the throbbing of pain and the emotional hurdle of the moment and the realization hit her and she threw up.

Loa extended an arm to support her, pulling one around Isabelle's shoulders to guide off the bed, politely ignoring the puke as she sidestepped, as quickly as possibly guiding the patient along.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:49, Sat 17 Jan 2015.

-from Fort (Exterior)

After securing the door NM wheeled around to grab Dominic's rifle while the new guys, Dom and Loa gathered their wounded. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck!" N'Mexico gathered up the firearm in his hands after briefly fumbling with it. "Got it!" He exclaimed, some anxiety in his voice from the imminent danger he hadn't been expecting. Prepared to pass the rifle to Dom, he was also ready to fight if need be. However with his shoulder he wasn't sure he could handle the recoil of the gun.

Flames ripped along the old wood and thatch work that made up the contents of the cabin, causing bits of burning debris to fall to the medical cabin floor, resting upon cloth and other supplies, starting small fires, the forerunners of further flames.

Brady was at the front door as the first of the heavy wood beams fell smouldering to the floor. "The roof's going!! Get the fuck out!!" he screamed at the other occupants as he pushed the door open. Then he yelled to the young man holding the rifle. "You gonna use that?" he asked as he looked out to see all of Colton's men pillaging and plundering and slaughtering. "You mother fucker Colton! Jesus fucking Christ!" Brady ushered Tom and Hank towards the door, telling them to get out and stay down. Then he barked at the (not quite) doctors to hurry up. Then he got back around to New Mexico. "Shoot those fucking guys or let me do it! We gotta de-ass this place right fucking now junior."

"That bastard Colton has turned on us!" Dominic shouted in reply to Brady's question as the wounded man headed towards the door; shouting at NM to start shooting "here take this, five rounds make them count" Dom shouted; tossing the .38 to Brady hoping that the guy was a decent shot, or at least a better shot than he was.
It was at this point that he heard Isabelle's voice, the girl sounding like she was on the verge of breaking down as she discovered what he had done to her. Guilt hitting the paramedic like a punch to the gut "I...I am sorry Izzy, I didn't want you to find out like this and if you never want to see me again I'll understand. But first I need to get you out of here...Loa is there a back way out?" he said suddenly turning his attention away from the girl he'd mutilated to the former vet trying his best to keep it all together.
Dominic waited long enough to hear her reply before speaking to group as a whole "ok we stick together and head for the chopper, Now lets move!" he shouted trying to make himself heard over the burning roof.
With his Beretta gripped tightly in one hand Dominic loops his free hand under Izzy's shoulder before then heading for the door and the battle raging on outside.

---> Exterior scenes

Hank didn't know where to begin with what was happening. One minute he was drifting off waiting to talk to Brady, the next the fort was on fire and people were dying. Thankfully the other man answered, leaving him to cough as the fire really got rolling. No matter what happens, stay with the group. He instructed Tom, about to go for the weapons Loa had mentioned. Time did not seem to be on his side however as he barely took two steps before the roof started collapsing. Shit. Turning he ushered his brother forward, trying to keep him toward the center of their little group.


--->Exterior scenes

In reply to Brady (msg # 37):

NM hesitated only briefly when an intense Brady confronted him and ordered him to action. The first knee-jerk response was a teenager-ly narrowing of the eyes from N'Mexico, the second response being compliance. "Alright! Alright!" He replied, frustrated at the situation in general, which seemed to follow them no matter where the Caravan traveled.

Moving towards the window the teenager smashed out what remained of the glass with the butt of the rifle. Leaning out he gauged the distorted scene, only making out some of the combatants through the burning haze. He was tempted to pass the gun off to this Brady guy, but the man was out of sorts and injured. While NM had his own wounds on the mend, he was more able bodied.. Maybe.

Popping out from the corner of the window the shaggy haired teenager fired off one then another round at a huddle of forms half engulfed in the smokey atmosphere out in the courtyard. Pulling back, an arrow and then a bullet round chipped the windowframe. "Don't call me 'Junior'!" NM snapped at Brady before Dominic mentioned a possible way out.

The fire breaking the place up, he was only to eager to file out.

-> Fort; Exterior Scenes
This message was last edited by the player at 04:56, Fri 23 Jan 2015.

In reply to Dominic Dubreton (msg # 38):

"There might be, but only Sam, Anne-Marie or Toby would know for certain." Loa answered Dominic promptly, gauging the urgency and pulling Isabelle along as gently as she could considering the situation. Brady's urging wasn't uncalled for, though there were wounds to consider, even for Brady himself.

"C'mon Isabelle, stay with me." She tried to keep the wounded Caravaneer focused and moving, as she would need the injured woman's help to make mobility easier. She glanced back to make sure Hank and Tom were still with them.

-to Fort; Exterior

In reply to Dominic Dubreton (msg # 38):

ISabelle's eyes searched Dominic's for some answers, her recollection of being out in the woods being muddle by recent events and the tumult of surgery without ample anesthetic. She remembered falling, and seeing something biting her leg, but that it wasn't a walker. There was Christopher's sword, in Dominic's hand, swinging downwards, blood stained steel.. She remembered the fear.

Doing her best she hobbled along, grasping onto Loa with one hand, the other holding onto Dominic's jacket. She was at a loss for words, her eyes tired, her form light and weak, but she held on, around people she recognized and knew cared about her.

-to Fort; Exterior

Brady followed the rest of the crew from the old medical cabin as what remained of the roof caved in. Smoke and flames leapt into the sky, and onto another section of the Fort. Now the outer wall behind Loa's infirmary was ablaze. Brady cursed Colton as he saw the only home he'd known since leaving his family's farm go up in flames. The only weapon close by was one of the war-band's bows. Brady grabbed it and the quiver of arrows and caught up to Loa, Dominic and the maimed girl.

Onwards to Fort Exterior ->