Peter cursed a bit and carefully picked up the burrito as he slammed on the brakes, not full on to throw everyone in the back around...unless they weren't situated well. He set the burrito back on the seat as he turned the truck around and sped back towards the town they had just come from.

"GET READY BACK THERE! I AM HEARING EXPLOSIONS FROM BACK WHERE WE JUST LEFT!"

In reply to Peter Firecrow (msg # 225):

Jane hung on as Peter turned the truck around.  Explosions?  What explosions.  She must have been in a daze not to have heard.  Hopefully nobody noticed that she hadn't heard it and got into position behind Baby so that she would be ready if it was needed.

Looking back over his shoulder, his ugly mug gets a bit uglier as he scowls.  He scowls even deeper as the truck's brakes squeal a bit.  He turns his bike into a hard turn and pulls up along side.

"No!  That's a good 10 or 12 miles away!  Close to 20 or 30 minutes just to get there.  And if it is trouble, you'd be riding headlong into it without a clue.  The task at hand is to guard Simon.  That is the priority!  Sending the whole group back is needlessly risking him.  If nothing else, either Jason or I will take a look and then report back.  Out bikes are faster and more agile.  But we are not taking Simon back there!  He's more important," the scarred up templar barks.

Peter stopped and slowly turned a face upon Trejo which was a combination of almost no expression combined with angry eyes. He didn't speak for a moment since he knew Simon would just "stick up for his boy" and want to press on no matter what Peter said. And telling Simon and his Bookkeeper to ride with Trejo and Jason while Peter took the truck back would just engender arguments and possible stupidity.

He got out of the truck and walked to stand within a few feet of Trejo. When he spoke, his voice pitched low and far too calm for the obvious anger. "Have a care with your tone. Your precious Simon is just a job to me so don't bark orders. Go back to the town and see what happened, while I wait with your Templar here then if that is your choice."

In reply to Peter Firecrow (msg # 228):

Getting out of the cab of the truck, Fred didn't like what he heard either back at the town, or here, now.

"Please. Let's not argue or fight. We have a schedule to keep. If we wait any more, we will be late and that could be serious indeed.

"More to the point, the reason we didn't go with Goose and the Convoy is we feared that Black Hats might stop us, so this is why we left in secret, with you. So far it's worked, the Combine doesn't know where we're gone, and they have not intercepted us or set an ambush. They don't know where we're going but it was possible they could follow us, and I would guess that's what happened.

"Before we left town, I warned them Black Hats might be following us, so they wouldn't have been taken unaware and were willing to stop or delay pursuit. Plus we had other cards up our sleeve to help them out. Either they can handle what was following, or they can't, and anyone going back to try and assist is futile.

"So again, I beg you, let's continue, all of us."

He looked at the people standing there, then back at the valley.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:56, Fri 09 Aug 2013.

Rowan from her perch in the techni

"Let move it people I really do not want to mix it with the black hats again"
"trickster says he hears strange booms and thunder"

The clouds opened up at this point and it began to rain. There were still explosions down in the valley.

From miles away it sounded not unlike the rumble of distant thunder.
This message was last updated by the GM at 10:21, Fri 09 Aug 2013.

Rowan Screams

" All of you move it do it NOW we need to get away"

Smoker listened, head cocked to one side.

"Whatever, we're best out of it, not running towards it!"

Rowan smiles "you got that right"

Trejo just sat on the rumbling bike as he watched the fellow get out of the truck practically stalk up to him.  "Orders? My tone?," he scoffs.  "You mean me yelling to be heard over 2 bikes, 1 truck, the booming explosions and some squealing brakes?  Don't go looking for a fight where one isn't needed and you won't get one," he says with an easy and humorless smile.  "But its nice to know that all his life means to you is another payday."

Of course the smile, such as it was got wiped off, or maybe washed off, in the sudden rain.  "Great," he mutters.  "Better get back in your rig.  This shit ain't healthy," he says as an aside to the ruffled driver.  It wouldn't be long before Trejo got drenched either, rain gear or not.  "Regardless, they're right. We need to move.  One way or another, someone's gonna be coming to look for us.  Better we aren't found when we're not ready.  Pray the town back there listened.  If they did, they'll be alright and likely killing some Black Hats.  More power to 'em."

<quote Trejo>


Trejo just sat on the rumbling bike as he watched the fellow get out of the truck practically stalk up to him.  "Orders? My tone?," he scoffs.  "You mean me yelling to be heard over 2 bikes, 1 truck, the booming explosions and some squealing brakes?  Don't go looking for a fight where one isn't needed and you won't get one," he says with an easy and humorless smile.  "But its nice to know that all his life means to you is another payday."

Rowan looks at Trejo, "no it is not just another pay day Trejo, it is some thing I was asked to do and will get it done if I can."
"The Templars I have called friend have always been decent folks".
"I even carry one of their swords in memory and with Simmons blessing." "So no it is more than a job to me"

Walker, for his part, helps get the Truck Rain-Proofed, quickly and easily. He listens in to the conversation as he can hear it, fits and starts over the noise of the Explosions and Vehicle Engines. Its not pretty and he ends up wondering what he has gotten himself in for.

Simon? Who is Simon? And where are we going? And Templars? Who is a Templar?

His face screws up a little in puzzlement.

Just another Caravan... Everyone has their own issues...

Let it go Anders, find out later.

Just Smile and Wave...

He does just that as Jane catches his eye.

"What-ever we are going to do... we should do it... quickly."
This message was last edited by the player at 12:58, Fri 09 Aug 2013.

He looked past the driver and towards Rowan.  He her a quick nod and a half smile.  She was doing remarkably well, pushing on and still trying, considering her man just blew her off.  He could respect that.  Odd crew.  Solid but odd.  "Never said it was.  I can only go on what I see and hear.  And never heard otherwise from you."  He lifted his foot to click the bike back into gear, a sign he heard Walker and wanted to get a move on.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:56, Fri 09 Aug 2013.

Jane nodded to Walker and then looked back at Peter.  "We need to move Peter.  Make the call.  While I don't like it, we would be arriving too late if we went back.  Rowan and trickster are sensing something and say we need to move.  You know baby and I go with you but whatever your decision, it needs to be made now."

Jane didn't have to like leaving the town but if they had been warned then they had  a chance.  The times didn't call for them to win all the fights but if she lived another day to carry on the fight, then she'd be happy.

Peter shook his head but said nothing else. He walked back to the truck and climbed in. He started it up again and turned it around again, then started driving. He kept his eyes on the road and didn't look at or respond to anyone.

He was starting to have second thoughts about this job.

Walker started to piece some things together.

The Monk dude was not Simon, he wasn't sure who he was at this point.

So Simon had to be someone else. Someone hidden in the Cab?

The "Caravan" has been hired to take this Simon somewhere, and that is somewhere North. That's good at least. I know where we are going... A little.

And this whole thing is Templar Related?

Keep your mouth shut!

Walker does so, but he cannot help looking around his companions.

He lists them... Trying to remember their names. There was a trick to it somewhere.

Trejo and Peter... Nix... Jane... And Rowan. And the Canine. Trickster?

Someone named Roadkill had been left back with Davey. Hopefully the two had gotten out of town and had managed to Salvage the Rig they'd been talking about.

Jane leaned on Baby so that she could look in the mirror at Peter, hoping to catch his eyes.  Hers were worried but she wasn't sure if it was the job or that it was better to turn around or that Peter was being silent.  He was normally silent but she could tell that he wasn't please with turning around.

Trying to avoid further pursuit, the small caravan soon turned off the Interstate. They travelled for the rest of the day using surface routes, until it begins to grow dark. The going was slow for the little caravan, but aside from washouts and bridge outages there was no one or nothing that wanted to have anything to do with them.

The rain continued in fits and starts until dusk. They climbed into the mountains, and it grew chill.

The passenger, Simon, kept to himself in the cab of the technical, save for quick bathroom breaks. He seemed to be weak, but got no weaker. He was wearing ragged clothing under a patched duster. Fred, the man in Librarians' robes, directed them where to go, which turns to take in the hills and mountains.

Finally, as the last light faded under the angry clouds, they turned off the road and bumped up a badly weathered, potholed side road. The rain had stopped but blocked out the stars.

"Stop here," said Fred the Librarian, consulting his palm computer, which had a map display running. They were in a wide clearing, wooded hillsides all around them. It grew quiet.

Marshall's Note: Everyone can make an Onerous [TN 7] Task Check using Cognition.

Walker dismounts into the rain ahead of the rest of the crew, poncho on, M4 up and at Port-Arms as he walks the perimeter of the clearing, checking tracks, looking for places to post watch etc.

Something has him a little spooked and he is very very quiet as he walks, about 15-20m into the treeline.

---OOC---

Cog 18, Survival (Mountain) 7.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:46, Mon 12 Aug 2013.

Smoker scrambles out, feeling a bit lost without the rig to do routine maintenance on.

He approaches Peter, rather nervously.

"Um. Is there... is there anything I can, er, well, help with? On the truck, I mean?"

He's fidgeting from foot to foot...

Jane stayed with baby until the all clear was given.  While she waited, she scanned the area and hoped that things would go better this time around.

Driving a bike in the rain through the back roads was far from pleasant.  Going onto dirt roads that were washed out, pot holed and filled with mud was just that much worse.  At least the rain washed off most of the mud that built up on Trejo, his duster and his bike.  Mostly.

Dismounting and killing the rumbling engine, the burly blade covered fellow gave the tree line a dark scowl.  Hands on his weapons, he kept an untrusting glare searching the area.   He didn't know the new fellow well but letting the man walk alone into the treeline wasn't going happen.  Too many things out in the wilds to not be careful, be they human or otherwise.  Trejo followed enough to keep an eye on him.  If Walker seemed to be about to leave sight of the clearing (which Trejo wasn't  leaving; he was here to guard Simon after all), he'd call out to Walker.  It wasn't like that would be louder than the vehicles.

In reply to Trejo (msg # 247):

Rowan sits on the truck with Trickster both sheltering under a semi water proof blanket." Do you sense any thing out there Trickster" she asks her friend

In reply to Rowan Dawson (msg # 248):

The coyote walked around in the darkness, marked a tree.

"I Dunno! Nothing around. But funny noises above," he said.