Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

As before, the convoy - now three vehicles - is forced into several delays or detours on the road. Some are predictable, like a forced detour around Camden (an almost-certain quagmire) that forces the group to find an alternative route over the Ouchita River; others can't be predicted from road maps alone, like vehicle graveyards or infrastructural damage like fallen utility poles. In one harrowing case, the group encounters another roadblock ambush, only revealed after careful and time-consuming observation to have been abandoned - or its crew exterminated - well before the group got there.

It's very late afternoon, close to evening, by the time the group reaches Milton, a town of about 1000 located a stone's throw from the Red River. Riley grew up here; her family never left.

The convoy spots a few walkers in the outskirts of Milton, but once they penetrate deeper into the town, the streets become uncannily empty of human figures. Though every community seems empty compared to Little Rock, the town makes even Lonoke look overrun. Occasionally the group spots animals; squirrels and birds, of course, and larger game all the way to deer - but no walkers.

Soon, on the convoy has reached the street of Riley's childhood home. They are still a few blocks away, and have the freedom to choose their approach.

Malcolm scratched at his jaw. Looking at the area surrounding them in the evening light.

"Alright, Riley. it's all in your hands now. Whatever you wanna do, you want us with you or nah?" He asks.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 1):

Juan was glad to get out of the car and streach his legs. While he had ridden hours on a bike, it was not the same thing being carried in a moving metal box. It was good to get the blood flowing into his lower limbs again.

Chris gets out when the vehicles stop and looks around to the town he can see, trying to work out how badly the area has been looted.

The sight of the street she grew up on reminded her of her childhood days, despite its unrecognizable state. The closer she was to home, the more anxious she was. She felt her hands trembling on the wheel when the car slowed to a stop. With both hands cupped and brought close to her chest, she gave herself a few words of encouragement in silence.

"I should be fine, but that ambush setup earlier is still giving me a bad feeling. We should go together, there's some fertilizers and tools we can use in my dad's shed, I can't carry those alone." Riley exited the vehicle with weary footsteps. The last time she was this nervous was during her final exam in college.

"Doesn't look like anyone's here... Maybe they decided to lay low in an abandoned town? That's a good strategy, right?" She asked the others in search for reassurance.

Malcolm understood this was going to be a touchy situation and decided taking a back seat was probably the best way to go. Getting out of the car with her he called dout.

"Juan, Chris, Ramona, Diana and Tamara. Come with Riley and I. The rest of you stay put and keep your eyes peeled yeah?" He says, turning to Riley. He kept a light hearted smile on to try and comfort her.

"It's better nowadays to lie low, if your folks are as resourceful as you are I'm sure they'e making it work." He glances down the street towards the houses in question then back at her.

"Ladies first." He says.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:41, Mon 02 Dec 2019.

Chris nods at Malcolm and asks "We motoring, or hot footing it?"

Mal looked at Chris, deep in thought.

"We should fan out, go on foot I think. I domt want to get one of our cars disabled if some asshole finds us."

Diana shakes her head, sliding to the edge of her seat and climbing out of the van. As she does so she purses her lips and says,

"Shepherd, eh? I must remind you that you are expected to conduct yourself in a manner befitting the wielder of that title."

Injury notwithstanding his reluctance to act was beginning to aggravate her. From the moment an individual takes authority over a group of people is the moment where their future rests on that individual's shoulders. All that they do should be for the benefit of the group. It speaks volumes of Malcolm's leadership for him to be so glib in these affairs.

She huffs and furrows her brows, pouting just a little as she speaks in an aside to Malcolm. "The task of supporting your flock comes to you. You are uniquely able to provide emotional support. Try using that gift to guide us down the path you've laid before us."

Diana didn't have the best--or any--relationship with Riley. Projecting her own insecurities and desires onto her made it easier to empathize. Whether or not Riley possessed the constitution necessary to weather the loss of her family she could not say. Perhaps Riley's shortcomings didn't mirror her own.

Diana doesn't know much about grief. She's not known anyone die who wasn't due to die, if that terrible sentiment makes any sense. Both of her grandparents on her mother's side passed away at a good age, when Diana was already out of her teens. She had never known her biological father, so that's fewer people to mourn. Her dog died suddenly, when she was fifteen. Hit by a car. That had broken her heart, but Diana is aware that there might be further, more devastating ways for her heart to be broken, just over the horizon. She's fortunate to have never felt real pain, not really. Diana always imagined loss of family would be as horrific as if she'd lost all her limbs.



She doesn’t turn but responds, “Is it?” her voice airy and unfocused, a casual response she isn’t thinking about. Immediately Diana feels her heart pang. She blinks a little, and then looks vulnerable, embarrassed somehow as she turns to face Riley.

"Unless I'm mistaken the sign we rode past estimates Milton's population at around one thousand." Diana clears her throat, and casts her gaze down the block in both directions before returning to Riley. "Thus it's only natural to assume the town's fighting strength is, for the moment at least, depleted. Perhaps it is the objective of whomever was behind the two blockades we had to disassemble.

While I fully accept the necessity of a real battle from time to time, it is still a surprise to be tasked with punishing bandits without warning. Should we initiate a search we'd best prepare for further confrontation.

Can you think of any locations that would offer refuge you would like to visit first?"
This message was last edited by the player at 07:58, Tue 03 Dec 2019.

Ramona let the conversations play out without getting involved. Instead, she readied herself by doing some leg and arm stretches -- taking care to be ginger with her injured leg. That the town was dead silent gave Ramona some cause to be concerned, though. It seemed like everywhere you went, dead were walking. Where were they now?

Malcolm said nothing as Diana spoke to him quietly. His eyes hinting at a deep resentment to a random lecture. He broke away and unclipped his rifle and reloaded the magazine while letting the others stretch.

"When we walk down dont clump up. I dont want some idiot with a machine gun to end humanities last hope. Kale you hear a gunfight break out grab a car and save our asses." He reloads his rifle and does a scan of his surroundings, finally his eyes rested on Riley. While shes proven to be the competent, friendly and trustworthy he couldnt shake the fact that she was now an emotional timebomb and all bets were off if things didnt go well down the street.

The responses that were given to her question went unheard. "Maybe they're the one who set up the blockades." Riley stared blankly down the street. This heavy feeling in her chest won't be going away anytime soon.



"None that I know of. If they're not here, they'll be at the farm." Riley took the lead. "This way." She began leading the others to her home.

Diana doesn't say anything in reply to Malcolm and just huffs a little bit at nothing, curly hair brushing her shoulders as she undoes her ponytail. Diana knows she's ordering him around, and that he was the leader, but she was right. While it may be their humanity that pushes people to step up and take the lead should the need arise, Diana didn't believe talent was what separated her and Malcolm's approach so much as readiness.

Diana clasps her hands in front of her and softens her expression, intent on watching the youth man until he makes eye contact with her.



Diana retrains her focus on the teenager, eyeing her levelly. While the girl's response warranted further questioning Diana surmises it would be beneficial to leave the interrogation for later. Riley's tone may not have sounded decisive but her words did so the medic smiles and obliges her guide.

She turns her head, looking to see if she has Dahlia's attention. She raises her eyebrows and gestures toward the house with a nod of her head and a shrug of her shoulders, as if to ask her sister whether she wanted to accompany them or not.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:52, Wed 04 Dec 2019.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley


Malcolm lists off the names that will accompany Riley to her family home. Dahlia is not one of them, but she looks over at Diana from the corner of her eye. When Diana wordlessly offers the opportunity for Dahlia to flout Malcolm's orders, Dahlia nods, falling into step behind Diana.

The others stay true to their assignments. Kale steps out of the vehicles but leans against the side of the van, turning his back to the away teams in order to watch the streets. Mason keeps his rifle at low ready, but moves to the lawn of a nearby home, stepping under the shade of a tree and, like Kale, keeping an eye on the streets. Hale, unarmed, stays in the van.

The away team fans out, as Malcolm orders, but no attack comes. The group meets neither gunfire nor the moans of the walking dead before they reach Riley's home. Her father's blue pickup truck is sitting in the driveway, but her mother's Ford Ka is nowhere to be seen. There's also something strange about the house, but it's hard to put a finger on what - it looks normal but off at the same time.

Riley is naturally the first to approach the house. As she climbs the front steps, she notices how silent it is inside. She can't remember the last time she walked up to the front door and the house had felt so cold and empty. When she tries the front door, it's locked.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 14):

Juan readied a throwing dagger as he moved about the outside of the house. Others where heading for the front, so he moved around back. He would most likely end up knocking before going in, assuming there was a rear entrance. After all, the dead would start reacting to any sound the second they hear it, thus giving away thier postion inside. However, he would wait for the others to be ready before he did so.

ooc-06:45, Today: Juan rolled 21 using 2d10+5.  Per/int roll.

Watching Riley go to the front door Malcolm walks over to the truck and checks the bed and cab of the vehicle. Looking for signs of use or anything else that could give her hope.

"Riley, what are their names?" He asks without looking at her.

Ramona walked lightly, keeping herself reasonably spaced between everyone. The curved end of the crowbar taps her palm in anticipation. Although it wasn't their main target, Ramona felt that visiting the house was the right thing for Riley to do. Everybody needed closure. Even if it came in the form of a grisly sight. Ramona looked at Tamara knowingly, then held up her palm in a 'waiting' gesture.

Chris thinks about stopping Riley and is relieved when the door is locked. The fact they haven't been challenged is not a good sign, but a locked door suggests her family may have left in good order. He hopes so.

HE sweeps the area around them looking out for any zeds

ooc

21:20, Today: Chris K rolled 11 using 2d10+5.  Per/Int roll.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Malcolm checks the truck, but there's not much to see. It's clearly seen several years of use, though it probably has a few more years left in it. Nothing gives any indication whether it was used in the last few weeks.

Moving around back, Juan sees that the house has a rear entrance and a small patio. Up against the house is a milk crate that Riley's family apparently used to carry empty beer bottles, as it's filled with them. More beer bottles are carefully placed around it, several rows deep, before giving way to wine, cooler, and liquor bottles. Someone's been doing a lot of drinking.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:12, Fri 06 Dec 2019.

Riley felt the cold handle in her palms, and the resistance of the lock mechanism denying her entrance. Of course, what else was I expecting?

"Murphy's my dad, my mother's Miriam. Connor and Shannon are my two sisters." Riley listed out the names as a response to Malcolm's question. She aligned herself up against the window to steal a peek into the house...

Mal put the hand on the hood of the truck to feel of ots been used recently but it was cold. He took a deep breath, turning back to everyone. He gestured to the lawn.

"Well someones here, and they care about the length of their lawn." He looks to Riley."Should we just knock?"

In reply to Snicker (msg # 19):

Juan moved carefully to the back. His knife ready, he stayed low and away from being in directly front of the door. There might be a person with a gun on the other side. He tried a quick peek via one of the windows to see if he could spot anyone.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Neither Juan nor Riley see or hear anyone inside the house, but Riley - looking into the kitchen specifically - recognizes that the house seems cleaner than when she left. When she lived here, a day would hardly go by without seeing dishes in the sink or frozen food defrosting on the counter, but now it looks downright spick and span.

There's an unnerving quality to seeing a familiar environment so sterile.

Slithers of alarm creep beneath her skin.

"I suspect as much, yes. But we won't know for certain unless we look into the matter."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 23):

Juan tries to catch sight of the others round the front of the house. Waving, he shakes his head no while pointing to the back. Trying to indicate he saw nothing.

"Give me a second, Malcolm." Riley answered. "Guys, get your weapons out. I think someone's been in the house recently." Riley stepped down from the porch onto the lawn. She reached down, removing a piece of rock from the dirt. After a few seconds of unraveling the dirt, she fished up a key. She smiled in relief with the key in her hand.

Mom was fed up with Dad forgetting his keys, so she finally decided to hide an extra pair in the garden, just for him.

With the key in the doorknob, she slowly opened the front door.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:31, Sun 08 Dec 2019.

Malcolm nods at Riley, he still has his rifle in his hands but when he sees her procure a key from the rock he takes a couple steps to get into the side yard so Juan can see him better and starts waving to him to come back to the group. If they were going inside someones home he wouldnt want them to get the wrong idea and start shooting them before we had the chance.

The more details Diana considered about the town location, its population and the labor of love it took just to reach this destination, the more she didn't feel comfortable with just a handgun.

Admit it. You're worried about this one. The facts are all out of order, the pieces don't fit the way they're supposed to.

It was ironic that the reasons compelling her to crack this mystery were the same ones that made her so uneasy. Riley's words of caution underline the possibility that this incident may be more serious than anticipated. Who would have thought that a maintained lawn would be too disturbing too ignore.

Diana grimaces, as though this is all slightly awkward. "With any luck, this will all be for naught. Still, be on your guard."

Diana's glance finds Dahlia, almost involuntarily. She is about to speak when she notices Juan's approach. She gives him a look, and draws herself upright.

No Spanish around that one.

Chris hangs back keeping watch outwards for anyone - or anything - trying to approach from behind them, glancing now and then at the others to make sure he didn't loose sight

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"You don't have to tell me, Princess," Dahlia says. "I'm always on my guard. You're the one who always wants to make friends."

Despite her best efforts, Dahlia's voice betrays her tension. Malcolm's comment about the lawn, drawing the attention of everyone who hadn't already noticed it was recently mowed, had made her distinctly uncomfortable, moreso than overt displays of violence typically do. She casts a side-eye at the lawn, then mutters to herself, "Qué mierda."

The door opens just the way Riley remembers. The house is silent, and still feels familiar. The air smells somewhat reminiscent of her teenage sisters' bedrooms (one of which was formerly Riley's room); not stale but not fresh, of unwashed clothes and bedsheets.

Tamara nudges Ramona's side. "You should go in with her. Just in case."

With the town and its bizarre emptiness, and now the unusually neat state of Riley's house, Ramona was already gripping her crowbar as tight as she could. An uneasy feeling that they were in the calm before the storm sank in. Incredible to think that an island of normality in a sea of chaos could make someone so deeply paranoid. Whatever, this was their world now. Nothing could ever truly be as it seemed, and what she'd seen so far was too good to be true.

Tamara didn't need to tell Ramona twice, and nobody was about to stop her from walking close behind Riley. Ramona gave her a gentle tap on the shoulder to confirm that yes, she'd be coming home with a black woman holding a crowbar in a distinctly threatening way. Hopefully, Riley's parents weren't didn't ascribe to Stand Your Ground laws too strictly.

Juan moves around to the front with the others, knife still in his hand. He watched Riley and Ramona head inside, and prepared the throw his knife in case anything tries to jump ether one of them. However, they all had made plenty of noise already. If the dead where inside, they had no ability to plan an ambush. Meaning he was ready for ether lady to be shot instead...but what he could do about it was in question.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:13, Tue 10 Dec 2019.

It didnt occur to Malcolm until Riley opened the door that he was holding his breath. Looking into the dark interior the kid could feel every beat of his quickened heart.

He exhaled, dropping his rifle to his off hand and pulled his pistol free. He kept it at the ready and fell in behind Ramona and Riley but was noticeably slower, not willing to commit to the mind of close quarter violence Ramona was prepared for.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:30, Wed 11 Dec 2019.

As people head inside, Chris closes up to the door, so he can keep them in sight, but continues to watch around for anything else approaching. Noticing the bottles, he checks to see if any of them have any residue in them.

Diana rolls her eyes, not cross but certainly frazzled. She always does this. Diana always has to find the solution to a problem instantly, whereas Dahlia wants to make light in the face of adrenaline.

She runs her hands through her hair a few times until it's looking a fraction calmer and turns around to survey the neighborhood.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:08, Wed 11 Dec 2019.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Chris K circles around the back of the house and finds the discarded bottles. The ones closest to the edge of the collection - presumably, the ones placed most recently - are dry, but still have a strong smell of their previous contents. The ones placed closer to the milk crate only smell faintly, or of the inch of standing rainwater they contain. The freshest bottles can't have been outside for more than a day or two.

Riley stands in front of the open door, unwilling or unable to step inside. Before she can get over her hesitation, however, the group sees movement from up the street, in the direction of where they left the vehicles. Marching towards them is a tall figure in heavy motorcycle gear - leather jacket, riding chaps, helmet, even gloves. The figure walks with its hands on the back of the helmet. Behind it walks Mason, his rifle kept at low carry but clearly ready to spring up at a moment's notice. When he catches the eye of the group, he jerks his head towards the other, mysterious figure.

Riley stood frozen at the doorsteps, observing the familiar interior of her home. There were some sort of an invisible force stopping her from taking another step. She felt her heart racing, demanding the answer she's been searching for all this time.

"Hello?" She called out. Before she could wait for a response, a mysterious person stride in their direction from the street. "Ramona." Riley said while nodding her head at the stranger, trying to get Ramona's attention.

Chris continues circling round the house keeping an eye out for anyone else before noting Mason approaching with his prisoner. HE waits within hearing distance of the others, but keeps his eye peeled for anything around them

Following Chris' lead, Juan watches for possible hidden foes. It was clear whoever the motorcycle guy was, he was currently under control. It was unexpected threats they should now be on the lookout for. Juan made sure his back was to the wall of the house while he scanned the area.

Mal's eyes scan, scouring every nook and cranny when the turn of everyone elses heads turn his own towards the newcomers. If he was high strung and anxious before this was enough to put him over the top. His eyes go wide, his teeth are grit and he raises his pistol towards the new comer.

"I hate this, I hate this." He mumbles to himself, stepping away from Ramona and Riley.

"Whats this?" He calls out.

Diana exhales softly, the sound strained in the broken quiet, confusion wrinkling her brow. Brown eyes, cold and calculating, assesses Mason and his quarry for a long moment.

What was a biker doing here of all places?

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

By now, the day had truly progressed into evening. The sun, setting low over the horizon, casts long shadows back up the street in the direction of the vehicles. Mason's face is clearly illuminated in the evening light and squints against the sun in his eyes, while the visor of the motorcylce helmet is an almost mirror-reflective bright orange. From Mason's and the stranger's perspective, meanwhile, the group's faces must be virtually indiscernible in shadow. If the stranger tried to attack, they'd surely be at a disadvantage; if anyone else joined in, the group would obviously lose that advantage, but no one spots anyone else in the area even after looking.

When Malcolm lifts the pistol, Mason quickly sidesteps away from the stranger, trying to get out of Malcolm's line of fire. The stranger takes a few seconds to respond - further evidencing the light disadvantage - but when he does, he stops mid-step for a second before correcting his posture and standing still in the middle of the street.

"He was checking out our vehicles, but Kale and I got the drop on him," Mason says. "He had a crossbow, a hammer, and some other things, but he should be unarmed now. I figured you'd want to talk to him."

He nods in the direction he came, towards the vehicles. "I'll go back up Kale again if there's nothing else."

Chris draws a bead on the biker, and moves round so he is at an angle to him, so any fire wouldn't go towards Mason, keeping his distance. He glances at Malcolm and then says "Very slowly, I suggest you take off your helmet."

The kid forces air in and out of his lungs. Taking a deep breath.

"A what-bow?" Mal muttered again to himself, Then took control.

"Good job Mason, thank you." He dismissed his ally, focusing entirely on the stranger now.

"Like he said, helmet off, walk towards us slowly. We dont want trouble, dont do anything stupid we're all packing. What's your name, what're you doing out here?" He interrogated him.

Upon hearing the commotion outside, Ramona traced her tentative few steps back out of the house and faced the stranger with her arms crossed and a stony, impassive expression. After the ordeal with that sniper, Ramona was glad to see the group on edge with this biker guy. For the time being, Ramona watched events play out, but the biker's silence wasn't difficult to notice. Maybe they'd found another mute?

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Mason turns and starts walking towards the vehicles. Tamara looks at the stranger, than frowns at Malcolm and Chris K in turn.

"So we're gonna kill him, right?" she asks sharply. "He's already unarmed and got his hands up. You've got no reason to point your guns at him unless you're gonna kill him. That's just basic gun safety, you shouldn't even carry one if you don't know that."

The stranger had started to take off the helmet, but has now stopped. Even without their face being visible, it's clear they're nervous from their body language. In fact, it looks like they're weighing the option to bolt. Mason, now several paces up the road, turns and slowly raises the stock of his weapon to his shoulder, getting ready for combat.

"So what is it, boys?" Tamara continues. "Are you planning to kill him or not?"

"Stop talking." Malcolm didnt look to Tamara, didnt otherwise change his stance or acknowledge her presence. But his tone was hard, rigid.

"Biker, it's just me and you here." He said to the stranger. "Take that thing off and just answer my questions and the gun goes down. It's as simple as that, alright?" Despite the situation his tone was softer to the stranger than it was to his own ally.

Chris looked at Tamara like she was crazy, but said nothing, and looked back at the Biker.

"Hey biker. I ain't planning on killing anyone today, unless they attack me. Same as everyday. But until I'm sure your not gonna attack me or the people I'm with, then you stay covered. Stay calm, and everyone gets to see the sunrise tomorrow, ok?"

Gun violence had been an ever-present, ugly part of Ramona and Tamara's lives before the outbreak. Tamara hadn't managed to cope with the stupidity of people waving guns around and trying to look tough as well as Ramona, though she'd never let Tamara know that. As it so happened, the two agreed. There wasn't any reason why they needed to threaten this guy if he was unarmed. All this? It was a dick-waving competition, some alpha-male bullshit to establish dominance.

It didn't matter if Ramona lacked a voice -- though it sounded as though Malcolm and Chris wouldn't have cared either way. She slipped her crowbar into her backpack and slowly walked into Malcolm and Chris's firing lanes. With care not to make any sudden movements, Ramona raised her hands, then gradually lowered them while shaking her head. Maybe the possibility of accidentally shooting her would clue them in that pointing guns at someone was antithetical to the act of trying to calm them down.

Juan does not say anything. He was more worried about ambushes or their sounds drawing the dead. As a result he was not watching they biker, although he liked the outfit, and instead watched for sites or sounds of anything getting close. Of course, he tries to make sure he has cover, so he heads inside the building.

He moves slowly and carefully in case something is inside. He doubted the dead was in there-after all, there had been more than enough noise to draw them. He was looking for people.

Diana breathes out a harsh laugh.

How trite.

"Please spare us your second-rate theater. There would be no point in interrogation if simple murder were the objective."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:58, Sat 14 Dec 2019.

Juan

The house is modestly decorated - dignified, but everything in there was clearly bought on a budget. It is also diligently neat, to the extent that Juan would suspect it's not actually lived in if not for the fresh smell of unwashed bodies. It reminded him of a certain type of biker he'd met - the kind that would ride across the country and not see reason to stop and bathe on the way.

Given that current state of the world, the neatness of the house borders on surreal. Smaller details - like the TV remote on a freshly wiped-down coffee table, despite the TV having been silent for weeks and probably forever - make the house look particularly as if it was somehow insulated from what had happened outside.

Malcolm, Diana, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Tamara shuts up, but when Chris K looks back, she makes eye contact with a disapproving expression, edging into contempt. Her own weapon, while ready, stays pointed at the ground. When Ramona walks into the firing range, though, all of Tamara's attention is turned on her.

"Wait, wait - ma'am," the stranger says. It's a man's voice, probably middle-aged. "I'm sorry, but I can't hide behind a lady like that. You have to step aside, now."

He steps forward - carefully, with no sudden movements - and slowly lifts the helmet off his head. He's middle-aged and looks rather haggard - hair mussed and greasy, beard overlong and apparently untrimmed. He squints against the sunset light, which is now shining directly into his eyes. He probably can't see anything more than silhouettes.

"My name's Murphy MacCormac. This is my home. What are you all doing here?"

Riley's eyes stayed focused on the mysterious stranger. When the stranger removed his helmet, her heart stopped. She recognized his voice as tears fell her eyes. Before she knew what to do, she was already running down the steps towards the man.

"Dad!" She dashed through the others, straight into the man and wrapped her arms around him.

Finally, she found him.

Ramona made it difficult to keep a bead on the stranger, he gritted his teeth, waiting for an answer from the man when he took his helmet off, revealing someone significantly older than Mal would have guessed.

Dad!

Riley sprinted out from behind them, the word rang in his head. Dad, dad. She embraced him in front of all of them and slowly Mal lowered his pistol, watching the two.

He exhales again, feeling every muscle in his body relax and the kid sinks down until he is squatting on his heels. Finally he rips his eyes from the two and glances at Tamara, he gestures with his free hand for her to walk over to his side. When she does so he keeps himself crouched down but looks up as he speaks.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:14, Mon 16 Dec 2019.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 52):

Juan, seeing as there was no threat, looked for any obvious evidence of the house's owner. As a result of no one fleeing or looting the home, all the details should be there. Including pictures of the owner and thier family. Of course, seeing the movement out the window and seeing Riley hug the biker pretty much answered all the question anyone might have. Still, he looked for a framed  photo just in case someone was super paranoid.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:26, Sat 14 Dec 2019.

As Riley calls out and runs forward, Chris lowers his gun and watches the reunion, a slight smile on his face. Today was going to be a good day to remember. And it gave him hope that one day he might find his sister.

With the stranger's identity revealed to be Riley's father, Ramona could practically feel all of the tension drain away. She allowed herself to relax after that brief standoff and smartly backed away to give the father and daughter their space. Given how decent of a person Riley was, Ramona had a feeling Murphy was similar -- his insistence on not letting a woman protect him seemed more like a goofy eccentricity than anything else. And it must have taken some dedication for him to stay rooted in his home when so many people were running to a mythological 'promised land' of safety.

Ramona noticed Malcolm pulling Tamara aside for a word, and she didn't intrude on that -- Tamara would tell her what they talked about anyway. Ramona snapped her fingers in Tamara's direction, I am going to secure the house, she signed, before casually backing off into Riley's home. While it was unlikely that Murphy would have failed in that regard, Ramona wanted to know for sure. She'd sweep through every room, taking care not to disturb anything.

Juan, Ramona

Ramona gets the same impressions as Juan: the house's interior is modest but dignified. Quickly sweeping through each room, she notices multiple bedrooms, some messier than others. In the master bedroom, the queen-sized bed is made (albeit inelegantly), and the smell of unwashed bodies is strongest. None of the other bedrooms have a particular smell aside from that which pervades the entire house.

There are a few photos around, some of which contain the man and some of which contain Riley. With a bit of work, Juan finds a family photo. In it, he sees the man, Riley, and three others - a woman standing beside the man and two teenage girls. The man in the photo, however, is much neater than the one outside: hair and beard both shorter and neatly trimmed.

Malcolm, Diana, Chris K, Riley

"Riley?" The man's head turns towards Riley's voice, but she crosses half the distance before he can make her face out. When she reaches him, though, his arms open to meet her, wrapping around her in a bear hug. The others see rapidly alternating expressions of shock, relief, and regret on his face, but Riley can only hear her father's breathe rattle shakily out of his throat, feel his arms squeeze her too tight to breathe, and smell his very ripe body odour.

"Riley, thank - " Murphy inhales, then clears his throat. He pulls back from the hug, patting Riley on the shoulder instead. "It's good to see you, Riley. I'm glad you're alright."

When Tamara walks over to Malcolm, she drops to a crouch beside him so he doesn't have to crane his neck or, more importantly, project his voice more than a few inches. Her own voice, whispering back to him, is quiet enough to take advantage of that proximity.

Diana blinks at the scene in the street and rolls her shoulders, easing some unknown tension. Her face seems to struggle for a moment, and then she rubs a hand at her forehead, and just like that the concern is gone.

She begins scanning her nails with an absent-minded concentration.

Malcolm gave her a short, small smile. He says before the smile dies away, replaced with an introspective expression. As if he was contemplating things that had happened in the past, replaying the events over and over again in his head.

After a moment of silence from him he spoke again to her.

Chris keeps watch. He wanted to let Mason know the good news, so he could re-arm the guy, and made a mental note that they should try and get some walkie talkies.

After a a minute or two he then moves in closer to Riley and her dad and coughs to get their attention.

"Sorry to interrupt Riley" and nodding at her dad he adds "Sir. But would it not be safer to take this indoors?"

In reply to Snicker (msg # 58):

That pic should satisfy anyone with any objection-although by now no would should have any issues. He moves the pic in question to the table so anyone coming inside could see it. He then found a chair and sat down, checking over his gear in his slung dufflebag and making sure it was in good shape.

Malcolm, Diana, Chris K, Riley

Tamara is quiet for a moment, looking at Malcolm, before finally sighing through her nose. She rolls back on from her haunches into a sitting position on the ground, resting her arms on her knees.

When Chris K speaks, Murphy looks up. His eyes dance over the assembled crowd for a moment. "There's an awful lot of people in your group. I'm not sure they'll all fit in our little house. Maybe..."

His voice trails off when he looks back at Riley. He hesitates for a moment, then reluctantly continues: "But...it's your home too, Riley. You can go in any time, and...if you say it's okay...then your friends can, too."
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:26, Tue 17 Dec 2019.

Riley took a step back after being released from the hug. She looked over to her 'friend' then back to her father.

"Yeah. It should be fine, they're here only because I asked them to come, they're actually here for the farm." She wiped off the tears from her cheeks.

"Guys, come on in. We can all talk inside." Riley invited the others to the house. She turned to Murphy. "Dad? You're..." Before she knew it she wrapped her arms around her father again. "You're alive." She stepped back, heading into the house with Murphy.

 He responded to her, hearing her out as she rolled back into a sitting position.
 He said, before rubbing his wounded shoulder. Moving on to what to do next.

 He said. Looking over to Riley beckoning them to come inside.

Mal stood up, holstered his pistol and turned, offering a hand to help Tamara up in kind. "C'mon, we better check on Juan and Ramona before they try to kill each other again." He says to her before turning towards Riley and her Dad. He offers a hand out to him.

"Murphy, I'm Malcolm, sorry about all that." He said as they moved into the house.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 63):

Juan checked through his duffle as he sat, looking up briefly to notice the others headed inside. Seeing how nobody was pointing weapons at anyone else, he went back to getting out his gear and preparing a first aid kit.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:22, Tue 17 Dec 2019.

As the others started to go inside Chris spoke to Malcolm "Time to bring in Hale and Mason, don't you think? We know this is safe here, but it gets the vehicles closer in case things go south. Shall I go get em?"

"Shit, thanks Chris. I nearly forgot!" He claps a hand on Chris walking towards the door.

"Go tell them to drive the cars up. They aint gotta come inside of course but there aint no threat here for now. Also, grab Murphy's stuff so we can give it back to him, yeah?"

Chris nods and heads off back to find Mason and Hale, he moves up the middle of the street keeping an eye out for anything untoward, and as soon as he sees them he waves before moving up to them.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Ramona, Riley


Riley's second hug gets a more measured reaction from her father this time. He squeezes her back, not too hard, not too soft, and he releases her before she does him. His arms rest on her shoulders after he releases her, though, and they go oddly still after she speaks.

"Yes...I am," he says slowly, then again, with more conviction. "Yes I am."

The life goes back into his arms, and he pats her on the shoulder. She can't see his face while she's hugging him, but Riley can tell from his voice he's smiling. "I'm not going anywhere, Riley. I'm going to be here for you for a long time."

Murphy follows Riley into the house. As soon as he sees the photo on the table, he frowns, then picks it up and returns it to the spot from which Juan took it. After replacing the photo, Murphy's eyes move to Juan sitting in the chair, then down to linger on his duffel.

After a few seconds, he raises his voice to be heard throughout the house. "Let's get everyone in the kitchen so we can all talk at once."


Chris K

Chris K returns to the vehicles to see Hale already outside, walking around in that aimless way that indicates he's just stretching his legs after the long ride. Kale and Mason are still on guard, though Mason returns Chris K's wave. On the hood of the car are several items Chris K does not recognize, but match Mason's description of the things confiscated from Murphy: a hunting crossbow, several fiberglass bolts, a roofing hammer, several items of preserved food, and a six-pack of bottled beer.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:30, Thu 19 Dec 2019.

Moving up he says "guys" and waves them in. Once they're all in hearing distance he says "Good news. Turns out that guy is Rileys DAD! So I hope you didn't rough him up too much..." he deadpans waiting for their reaction.

"Anyway, were having a pow wow in his house, so we need to move the vehicles up so they're handier for any bug out, and also give him his gear back. His names Murphy ok?" He pauses a second

"Seen any walkers about - or anything else?"

In reply to Snicker (msg # 70):

Juan opens the duffle and shows the man what is inside. "Don't worry, I'm not trying to loot the place. Just wanted to be sure you are who you seem to be. Of course, that was before I knew you where Riley's dad..." He shrugged.

You're not cautious enough.

Malcolm said nothing to that but his face contorted into something insulted and hurt at the same time. After a moment he nodded, but said nothing. Ending the conversation with her but the debate still raged in his head.

Tamara didn't get it. Hell he felt she insulted him, no trust? She didn't see what he had dealt with from the get go. If she did she'd understand why it was necessary, always necessary. He thought back to the base, should have followed the plan, should have shot on sight but he didn't, he talked it out and people died.

He brushed his fingers on his cheek were a small shrapnel scar stretched across it. Surely she was just idealistic, even naive to suggest such a thing. He was being prudent surely? Would Ramona feel the same? Mal had pointed a gun at her and it had only helped her in the end.

He walked into the house adrift in thought. Not really paying attention to things if he wasn't being called upon. Riley would probably have a moment with her father, should have a moment after the hell she went through. There would be time later for other things. He'd respond then, Riley would introduce them all.

The kid though back to his group. Ed and Eli were quick to point guns at anyone and everyone but they had saved Mal's life. Yet they couldn't be friends now, they abandoned him. There was Kale, did Kale ever point a gun at Mal? He couldn't remember.

The realization crept in. Was he dangerous? Did he have a right jamming a gun in everyone face to cover his fear and anxiety? Tamara was naive, but she hadn't gotten shot until she met Mal.

He fished the lighter out of his pocket and fiddled with it, passing it from one knuckle to the next like he had done a million times before while he thought about this. His eyes are distant. He walks into the kitchen and leans against the wall staring at the floor thinking things over, playing events in his head.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:28, Sat 21 Dec 2019.

Murphy's house is like a snapshot of a time long since past. The place didn't look like dozens of people had picked it to the bone, nor did it smell like the rotting dead. There was a lot to envy here, but with luck, the farm would be even better. The aching in Ramona's leg kept her wary of being too hopeful; if driving down a street threatened your life nowadays, commandeering that farm couldn't be any easier. But if they could pull it off... Well, working land would be a dream compared to their current living conditions.

Ramona limped into the kitchen as per Murphy's request and got struck by Malcolm's intense distantness. His eyes had the far-off, unfocused sheen of someone lost in concentration; whatever Tamara said must've impacted him somehow. The way he fiddled with that lighter was something a habitual nail-biter could relate to -- was he nervous about something? Ramona wished she could ask him about it, even if she wasn't exactly his favorite person considering her behavior. She leaned against the kitchen counter, shifted her weight onto her good leg, and made it no secret that she was keeping an eye on their fearless leader. She tried to give off a thoughtful, sympathetic expression with downcast eyes full of understanding, and a slight, knowing smile.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Ramona, Riley

Murphy looks into the duffel bag, then glances around the room, as if trying to remember what it looked like before and confirm everything is where he left it. He doesn't to find anything to incriminate Juan, but he looks nonplussed anyway.

"How about the other one that came in with you?" he asks. "Where's she now?"

He looks up as Ramona enters the kitchen, looking her up and down, but doesn't say anything. Instead, he moves to a the far corner of the kitchen, next to the refrigerator.

"Would any of you like anything to drink? A beer, maybe? They're all warm, but you get used to it."


Chris K

Kale and Mason exchange glances.

"We didn't touch him, except to check for hidden weapons," Mason says, looking back at Chris K. "We may have put a scare into him. Nothing serious."

With three vehicles to move up to the house, even Hale gets a chance to drive. Before he enters his vehicle, Mason answers Chris K, "Nothing other than Murphy and a few birds and squirrels, if you care about that. This town's a silent as the grave - probably more, now."
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:22, Sat 21 Dec 2019.

Riley followed her father and the others into the kitchen. Once everyone's settled in, or at least in sight, she began introducing them all as best as she could. Quite honestly, she's still learning some of their names.

"That would be Ramona. Over there's her sister, Tamara." Riley introduced the sisters when Ramona caught Murphy's eyes. "This big guy here is Juan, and over there's Malcolm." She looked toward the door leading outside. "Chris should be getting the others... But listen, do you know if the farm is okay?" Riley addressed the purpose of the group's journey to the town. "And..." She added, with a lowered voice. "Mom, Connor, and Shannon."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 75):

"Hell yes I will take a beer. No need to open it, I got someone at home I would like to share it with. They are sorta hard to come by these days." Juan said. He nodded at Riley's question.

"Yeah, that is a good question. HOW is the farm ok? I mean, it looks like the dead never even showed up! Like no trace of em, and they stink up and slime every where they go! How do you get that done?"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:46, Sat 21 Dec 2019.

As the last person disappears into the home Diana's light expression dips into a soft parental worry.

"Dahlia, tengo que insistir en que tomes una posición detrás de mí en el campo de batalla. Usted ha estado en peligro con bastante frecuencia últimamente." she clicks her tongue softly, not scolding or irritated, but quietly enough to be considered contemplative. "He estado guardando esto para mí, pero..." Diana begins, her soft tone not detracting from the steel beneath.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:35, Sun 22 Dec 2019.

It had always occurred to him that if the plan were to work out they would decide what kind of people they wanted to be. That was then but this was now, could he get away with acting hard? Playing with cards close to his chest like all the others he met along the way, or should he try to be different?

over there's Malcolm

His attention was brought back to the present. His eyes snapped to the first face looking at him, Ramona's. She was smiling, maybe she understood. Did her sister have a habit of doing things like this? It didn't matter now, he couldn't afford to be philosophical when there were still things to be done.

He grinned at her, sly, his blue eyes twinkling with some admittance, you got me they said to her. He winked. He should talk to her at some point, ask her how she felt about things. See if the sisters physical appearances weren't the only major contrast between the two of them. He looked over to Murphy, shaking his head.

"No thank you." It probably wasn't a good idea to drink on the job, or after scarfing down pain killers like he had. He paid close attention to the questions at hand. Primarily the farm, but he felt empathy welling up inside of him when Riley asked about the rest of the family.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:21, Sun 22 Dec 2019.

Nearing the house, Chris stopped and directed the vehicles to part so they were all ready to depart in a hurry. He pondered why it was so quiet here - it didn't seem right.

Leaving Mason and the others on guard he heads up to the house, and knocks quietly before letting himself in. Following the sound of voices he sees the others and stands in the doorway waiting for a chance to butt in and ask Murphy a question.

When he gets a chance he says "Sorry for changing the subject. But it seems very quiet here. Where are the Zeds? Have you cleared them all out? On your own?"

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Murphy nods at each person as Riley introduces them, waiting for her to finish. "It's good to meet you all," he says. "I hope you're taking good care of my daughter."

He smiles, but after a second something seems to bother him. He glances at Riley, looking slightly concerned, but then suppresses it and looks back at everyone else. "She's got a good head on her shoulders. I know she can pull her own weight."

He turns to open the fridge, retrieving a beer. While the door is open, everyone in the kitchen can see it contains dozens of bottles of alcohol (mostly beer, but some wines, coolers, and harder drinks) and apparently nothing else. Obviously, there's no light, and the bottle is room temperature when he gives it to Juan.

Once that's done, Murphy unzips the biker jacket and drapes it over a chair. With it off, it becomes clear just how grungy he looks. While no one looks as good or bathes as often as they did before the dead rose, most people at least try to maintain some basic hygiene. Murphy looks like he hasn't so much as wiped as rag over himself since the day the dead rose over six weeks ago, and once the air trapped under his jacket comes out, he smells like it, too. Granted, if he wears that leather biker's outfit in the Arkansas summer every day, then perhaps it would take less time to achieve his current state, but even then this is can't possibly be the result of less than a week or two without any grooming or hygiene whatsoever.

"I haven't been up to the farm in weeks," Murphy admits. "Ain't come time to harvest yet, so I don't figure anyone's tried taking the crops, but there's no telling if anyone's run off with the machinery. Lot of stuff there could be awful tempting to salvagers if they've got the skills. Guess it all comes down to whether anyone's thought of it - or if Jed's still around to chase them away, I suppose.

"When it comes to the walking corpses, I don't think they'll be doing much on the farm at all. I haven't seen them eating anything that weren't moving a second ago, I don't think they'll want the crops. Ain't no one living there but Jed and his kin, anyway, so I don't expect there to be any hanging around."


"Naw, I didn't do all of it on my own," Murphy says modestly. "There was a lot of fighting early on - same as everywhere, I imagine. Dead coming back, no one knows what's going on, lots of shooting. Other people in town helped to clear some of them out. Then they left, and I just...cleaned things up. It's a small place, you know, about a thousand of us before all this. After I cleared out the streets, I started on people's homes. Putting them to rest, you know. No one's body should be up wandering around like that."

He nods, leaning on the back of the chair. "So no, it wasn't all me, and I ain't done yet, neither. But all the ones out and about should be taken care of, now. Sometimes a man's got to roll up his sleeves and take care of things himself. I want to be sure my, uh - my girls can be safe on these streets, after all."

He clears his throat. "Your mother and the girls should be back soon, Riley. We'll talk about that later, though. It's family stuff, it's rude to bring it up around guests."

Diana

Dahlia listens to Diana talk. After a moment, she inhales, then sighs.

Jed

Malcolm mouthed the name. Putting it to memory, while he explain the nuances of this one horse town Mal prepared his statement to Murphy, sized him up, understood what kind of man he was.

Then he saw his chance, the remark of their family, good news, uplifting, something to work off of.

"That's incredible." Malcolm says, smiling at Riley. "This might be the first good thing I've seen in weeks, months!" he says, clutching the lighter and crossing his arms.

"We met Riley yesterday in fact. She helped one of my groups out on a supply run and heard us out on our story." Mal said, giving him the pitch.

"I lead a community, about thirty or so strong. Women, children, families, everyone. I had a plan to move them out west. Find a farm and start the world over. Riley here gave us the spark we were looking for. Telling us of Jeds farm." He said to the man.

"I was hoping to know a bit about it. How far is it from here, what kinda equipment it's got and its size and... most importantly, how is Jed doing these days. What happened the last time you been up there?" He asked.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:18, Sun 22 Dec 2019.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 81):

Juan nods and salutes the man with the beer he had just been given. He then stores it away in the duffle, trying to think of ways to chill it without any sort of fridge. He otherwise listens and says nothing during the man's speech. Nor does Murphy's smell bother him any. After all, they all have been using small dishrags with slight damp in order to clean theselves. All used from the small amount of drinking water they had managed to find.

He did looked shocked at one thing that was said. Rileys mother and sisters where alive. That had to be...what? Most likely her entire immediate family? He had lost eveybody, as in not a single person left.

It shamed him he felt so much envy right there. He should be happy for Riley. Thrilled in fact. Instead, all he thought about was those last horrible moments where he could not save the ones closest to him. Then just driving along the highway looking for...well, he did not really know.

Redemption? Dammnation? Hope? He was not sure he found any of those...not for certain anyways. It just filled him with bitter anger and regret, when clearly this was a moment of joy for almost everyone else here.

Maybe he could do something nice for Riley later. Try to make up for his selfish wishes. Granted she would not know about what he was feeling, but he knew. That was enough.

No longer overwhelmed by the immense joy of their reunion, Riley began sensing something odd about her father and the house. While the others exchanged information, she glanced around the  house. Something is off. She thought, casting the thought aside for now.

"I was hoping Jed would be willing to take these people in and have them work on the farm." Riley added after Malcolm revealed his agenda for his people.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Now, hold on," Murphy says, holding up a hand. "I haven't been up to the farm in a long time. Once the dead started coming back, there wasn't much point to going off to work. Then, protecting the family was my full-time job. That means I was last there..."

He turns to a hanging calendar on another wall. It looks as if someone has continued to cross off each day, and Murphy pages back through the calendar to find a day circled heavily with a red marker. Counting the weeks between the circled date and the current date, he finally finishes, "...forty-seven days ago."

For a moment, he stands stock still, then pages back through the calendar again. "That can't be right," he mutters. "Four, five, six, six times seven is forty-two, and five days is..."

He half-turns, looking at no one in particular, a visage of lost, existential anxiety on his face. Then his eyes wander to Riley, and he straightens as if someone had pulled up on his marionette strings and his expression resets to a poker face.

"It's not far from here. About a half hour's drive - probably less, now, on account of traffic. Equipment's going to depend on who or what's been at it, but even if it's all still working right, it's not going to be much good without gas or electricity. Still, if you can get the farm running, it should feed thirty easy enough. Just going to be hard to find spaces for them to rest their head."


"Hope's a good breakfast but a bad supper," Murphy says in a tone that suggests he uses the phrase a lot.  But, after a moment, his expression softens and he admits, "Well...never knew Jed to keep hands who don't know what they're doing, but maybe he'll whistle a different tune under the circumstances. There ain't exactly a lot of people looking for work nowadays."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:46, Thu 26 Dec 2019.

Malcolm scratched at his facial hair as the two of them talked. Whatever Murphys existential problems were Mal's were quite physical. Truth is, he didn't want Jed to be there. best case scenario is a totally empty farm for them to work. He had just earned the trust and authority of his own people. it would be too much to ask them to do the same for some crotchety farmer  who would demand to be in charge.

"Farms are usually like all together yeah? Say Jeb aint feeling charitable. There's gotta be an empty farm nearby we can take over right?" He asked.

Diana nods to herself as though everything is progressing exactly as she would have wished.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:36, Sat 28 Dec 2019.

Chris listened but said nothing. Whilst finding Murphy was good for Riley, in terms of info on the farm, his info was at least 46 days out of date - and a lot could have happened in that time.

"Could you give us a little more detail on the farm please sir? Maybe sketch put the area so we could know how best to approach it - just in case JEd isn't in charge anymore. Is there anywhere nearby that overlooks it we could check it out from thats away enough for us not to get spotted maybe?"

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Farms are wherever the land decides they ought to be," Murphy says, giving Malcolm a slightly condescending look. "There's others around, sure, but I know Jed's more than I know any of them. If he's still around, he'll want me back, and when the time's right, I'll go back to him. If he ain't, then I'll still go there before I go anywhere else, just on account of the familiar territory.

"You can take over any empty plots you want - I'm sure there's plenty - but you won't get far on guesswork, and respectfully, none of you look like you know a furrow from a hole in the ground."

He looks over at Chris K. "Sketch ain't worth the time to draw it. Everything short of a couple buildings is just flat croplands. Nothing overlooking it, either. You sit a mile away and watch and you'll see everything it has to offer."

Diana

Dahlia's expression darkens and she crosses her arms, shifting her weight to her back foot.

Dahlia is watching her carefully, and she begins to grow a bit uncomfortable under the scrutiny. She smiles the way one smiles at a child one is trying to comfort or reassure.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:49, Wed 01 Jan 2020.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 89):

"Makes a good point. That's enough ass sitting for me. Who's up for checking one of those farm lands then?" Juan says as he gets up to go and have a look. Of course he makes sure he is going in the direction by consulting Murphy before he goes.

"I appreciate your concern." Malcolm responds with sarcasm. "But we have farmers, hunters, carpenters and doctors in our group. We'll make it work, we don't have any other choice." He responds to the man.

Juan gets up and Mal agrees that the conversation was over, at least what ever value Mal was gonna get from Murphy. He steps away from the wall he was leaning against.

"You don't have to come with us, all we need is direction to Jeds." He says, then looks to Riley.

"You can do whatever of course, no rush if you wanna stay here while we check it out." He says.

Ramona scratched her cheek as the conversation played out; was Malcolm's group as diverse as he claimed? She didn't know enough of them to believe him fully -- all she knew was that Murphy was right: she had no clue what a furrow was. They hadn't made this trip and taken a few bullets to give up now, though. Whether their future lay in working with Jed or settling down on an empty plot, it was worth fighting for.

Are you sure you can do hard labor, Tamara? Ramona signed to her sister with a teasing smile.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Now hold on, don't go rushing off like that," Murphy says, holding up both hands. He glances at the window, but it's hardly necessary to look outside - by now, the day progressed into the dusk proper, and the kitchen is bathed in orange sunset light. "Jed's is a good twenty minutes away by car...maybe fifteen now, traffic being what it is. Or isn't. By the time we get out there, it'll be too late to see much of anything. Heck, if Jed's still around, he may just blow you away if he catches you runnin' around in the dark."

It still can't be worse than fast food, Tamara signs back to Ramona. How about you? Do you think you can go a working day without punching someone?

Murphy looks slightly annoyed by the sign language, but it's not clear what exactly is bothering him. When he speaks, he says, "It ain't safe for you to be out at night. We'll check out Jed's first thing tomorrow. Riley, we can put your friends up at Shelley's B&B, if you haven't forgotten where that is after your time away."

He adds the last bit with a smile, looking at Riley.

"Oh, I remember." Riley smiled back and turned to the others. "He's right, its going to get real dark when the sun sets. We won't be able to see, let alone scout out the farm. "Come on, I'll take you guys to Shelley's place, it ain't-" She paused, stopping herself briefly. "Its not too far from here."

There were so many questions she still wanted to ask her father. Once she get everyone settled in for the night, there should be plenty of time for that when they have some privacy.

Riley motioned for the door and gestured for everyone to follow.

Chris nodded and smiled when Murphy spoke about the farm saying "Thank you, sir"

At the suggestion to spend the night, he glanced at Malcolm but said "Seems like a sensible idea to me." He follows Riley out of the house, and waits outside for the others to emerge
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 13:54, Thu 02 Jan 2020.

In reply to Riley (msg # 95):

Juan nods, and follows along behind Riley. He checks his injury as he shoulders his duffle bag once more, making sure so sling said bag on the opposite shoulder.

Malcolm flicks his tongue over the tops of his teeth. Not saying anything but his face signaling disappointment, impatience over being told to wait till morning. Why must every problem take another day to fix.

He wasn't going to sleep tonight, he knew that for a fact.

He walked out into the front yard where the rest of the group was. "It's getting too dark to explore now. Riley gonna put us up in some motel to stay the night. Bright and early everyone, no sleeping in tomorrow. I'll take first shift, who else wants guard duty?" He says aloud.

Ramona rolled her eyes; it always came back to punching things.  Maybe she'd lapsed here and there, but overall her temper had improved by leaps and bounds, relatively speaking. That said, Murphy's insistence that the group stays put for the night had Ramona clicking her tongue in no small amount of irritation. Then again, the irritation in her leg welcomed the opportunity to rest.

Following the group, Ramona was quick to raise her hand at Malcolm's offer to stand guard. She wasn't feeling tired, and this would at least give her something to do... Plus, he might spill the beans about what Tamara told him.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Dahlia is about to say something to Diana when the door to Riley's house opens. Her mouth snaps shut and she looks over her shoulder, seeing the rest of the group step outside. She gives Diana one more look - one saying that the conversation isn't finished - before stepping towards the group to hear everything being said.

"I'll stand guard," Dahlia says, raising her hand.

Tamara sees Ramona volunteer for guard duty. Her hand starts to raise, but pauses, unsure. While almost everyone looks worse for the wear after the roadside ambush, she looks fatigued as well, as if she slept poorly the previous night.

"Should we get Kale and Mason down here?" she asks. "I bet at least one of them will get mad if we don't let them volunteer."

Behind them, Murphy steps out the door as well. "I might as well come with," he says. His leather jacket is back on, though he isn't wearing the motorcycle helmet. "I've cleaned this town up some, but you can never be too careful, you know."

Chris spoke up as well "I'll take a shift - theres enough of us for it to be shared out so everyone can get some rest." AS Murphy offered to lead them Chris moved back towards the vehicles "Then I guess we best saddle up"

"Sounds good, Chris, you and Dahlia can take first shift. Ramona and I can take second and I'm sure Kale and Mason would love to take third and we'll go from there." He says to everyone, then looks over to Riley and Murphy.

"You guys lead the way." He said.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

The bed and breakfast is in walking distance, but the group drives anyway. When they reach the vehicles, Hale gives Murphy a friendly hello, but Murphy only gives him a nod of greeting and Kale barely acknowledges his presence. Murphy responds to all three politely but not warmly.

Owing to Milton's small size, the bed and breakfast does not have many rooms. Even if the guards share beds, some members of the group will have to double up in rooms. Of course, by this point, everyone has slept in worse conditions. Murphy helps check every room for walkers, but the building is empty, as the streets had been. Once the group is familiar with the building's layout - which they must do quickly as the evening light dims towards night - Murphy invites Riley to come back to the house with him to sleep in her own bed.

Chris will search the room he's in and take anything useful (but ask for permission from Murphy first). Hes happy to share with anyone, but intends to sleep and do guard rather than socialise.

In reply to Chris K (msg # 104):

Jaun seeks out Chris, and shows him the small medkit he produces from his duffel. "This is my own kit, although I am not very good on using it. Think you can patch me up quickly with it so I can heal a bit overnight?"

Riley gave her thanks to everyone at the motel for making the detour. After everyone settled in the rooms, she left with Murphy back to her house. While being at home, she started going through the pile of questions she had for Murphy.

Riley

By the time Riley and her father return to the house, the sky is a rich purple and the twilight makes it difficult to make out each other's faces. It's only due to both of their familiarity with the house that they're able to get inside and navigate to the kitchen, where they both sit at the table.

"So," her father says, by now just a black silhouette in the darkness. He falls silent for a moment, shifts in his seat, and clears his throat.

"Riley, your mother and I had a fight." Though essentially invisible, Riley can imagine her father's body language: hands clasped on the table, eyes looking down at his hands, face as stoic as if he were explaining they won't be taking the family to the movies tonight. "When things were...more dangerous, here in town, your mother thought we should leave and find somewhere safer - a large town or a military base. Maybe even Little Rock. I said we should stay here, not just because we'd wait for you, but so that we know the area. We both were trying to keep your sisters safe, but we had different ideas on how to do it.

"Eventually, we - we had an argument, and your mother took your sisters in her car. I figured she's change her mind and come back, and...and I was angry, so I didn't follow her. I didn't want to give her the satisfaction of - well, you don't need to hear that. After I cooled off, I went looking for her, but I didn't find her anywhere."

Riley can tell her father is holding some details back, but she also knows he's not the type to be completely forthcoming with his children. Even this is unusually frank for him, whether due to the extreme circumstances or just due to her time away at college.

"So I got to work cleaning things up. I'm keeping the house neat the way she likes it and clearing out the streets, so when the girls get back, everything will be ready for them. Your mother will come to her senses soon enough. In fact, I - I didn't realize it had been about a month. She must already be on her way back. It's good timing on your part - she ought to be back any day now."

Chris was searching his room when Juan turned up. He stopped and took the med kit saying "well, I'm not really a medic, but I can have a go. Is no one else in the group medically trained?"

Chris opened the kit on the dressing table and examined the contents. He gestured towards the bed and said "Grab a seat Juan, and get the wound accessible please."

ooc

08:24, Today: Chris K rolled 22 using 2d10+5.  scavenge.

In reply to Chris K (msg # 108):

"Hey, you know what you are doing. I dont. So you are good enough for me." He said while removing his shirt and and jacket after handing over said medkit. The paper towels that Chris had applied earlier still stuck to the bullet graze around Juan's right armpit.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:07, Tue 07 Jan 2020.

Taking out a pair of medical gloves from the kit, Chris put them on. He then removed the paper from Juans wound, and taking some antiseptic wipes he began to clean the wound, and the area around it gently enough to not start it bleeding again, but firmly enough to try and remove any dirt, dried on paper, or blood.

As he worked he spoke "not a bad kit. Did you have it on you when you got hit? As it would have been better to use it straight away. This might sting" he added, just before applying the wipes.

In reply to Chris K (msg # 110):

Juan winced as Chris went to work. "Yeah, but I was told it was a minor hit, and I figured not to waste it. I also thought I would get a little more time to heal. Guess I was wrong there." He sighed.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:22, Tue 07 Jan 2020.

Chris let out a small laugh when Juan winced "And heres me thinking you were a tough guy" he joked "And sorry, but this doc don't have no lollipops for your boo boos" he added.

He was silent a second as he carried on cleaning the wound and then said "So whats a nice guy like you doing in an apocalypse like this? Whats your story Juan"

In reply to Chris K (msg # 112):

"No lolly!? What don't I pay you for!?" He grinned, and winced again.

"I was part of a gang...Loco Diablos. Also not so nice back then. Did a lot of stuff I am not proud of, but sorta had to. That seems like a million years ago, but needless to say if I knew then what I know now...blah blah blah."

He goes silent for a moment, and then just shrugged. "I tried to get my people out of Houston, but none of them made it. We made all sorts of mistakes...we did not know anything at the start. All that was left was my bike and me. The bike died when I first met Vivian and the others."

He looks over at Chris. "What about you? You always been military?"

Finishing up cleaning the wound, Chris listens to Juan, and then starts to look in the kit for a dressing.

"Yeah a million years ago." he says trailing off

Finding a dressing and some tape, he opens the dressing and puts it down ready, before tearing off a few bits of tape and attaching one end to his wrist. Once he has enough he gets the dressing and applies it over the wound, sticking it with the tape as he goes.

"I'm only part military. I was in the National Guard as a truck driver. The rest of the time I worked in a lumber mill. When this all started, my unit got called up and I wasn't around for my family. They didn't make it - except maybe my sister. She was away so she might have. I'm trying to find her. A long shot, but what the hell else have I got to do"

He finishes up the dressing and says to Juan "ok your good, get dressed. Ive just remembered another errand I need to do." As he speaks he gather the dirty wipes etc in his hand, and then takes one glove off over it all so it contains them. He takes the other glove off over the first - effectively double bagging it all. Putting the stuff down on his dresser he says to Juan "Don't forget your med kit - you'll need to restock it a little if you can." HE grabs his M4 and a couple of spray cans out of his rucksack before heading for the door "I'll be back in a minute" and heads out.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:30, Wed 08 Jan 2020.

"I can't believe you didn't stop her!" Riley expressed her disappointment in the same way her mother used to do with them. Honestly, she was also upset at Murphy for not keeping mom under control. Although he never was able to, none of them could. "You know how she gets, she ain't willing to back down even when she's wrong! You know damn well she will take things to the grave!"

Mom... She always believed she was right with everything, and she would go to any length to prove her point. Still, this is beyond irrational, even for her!

Clearly flustered, Riley began pacing around the room as she laid out further follow up questions.

"Did she say she was headed to Little Rock or anywhere before she left? What about Connor and Shannon? They wouldn't be on board with mom on this without a reason." She went on, without waiting for an answer. "What if they ran into trouble? Its dangerous out there, its been a month since they left, I've seen what people would do! We have to go find them!"

Riley

"That's enough," Murphy responds to Riley's admonishment. He's a strict adherent to life's hierarchies and unspoken rules, Riley knows he wouldn't be admonished in his own house by his own daughter, but even then she can tell his heart isn't in the reproach. The response sounds obligatory, his voice faltering guiltily.

"She didn't say exactly where she went. When we fought, it was always more about staying or leaving here than where she'd go. I did try checking all the places she mentioned. Even got up to Little Rock once, but it was..." He trails off, then swallows. "It weren't safer than here. She'da known that right away."

In the dark, Murphy's voice gets firmer, though it's not clear who he's trying to convince. "I don't know where she took them, but it was dangerous everywhere I checked. Everyone was dangerous. This town's the best place for them, for us. Your mother's smart enough to realize that. They'll...be back soon."
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:15, Sat 11 Jan 2020.

Heading outside, Chris looks around to find a wall facing the main road. Once he does that he spray paints his usual message on it in large letters "Hi Sis Chris Kowalski was here" and the date, based on his diary log.

Heading back to the room, he updates his diary so he can keep track of what day it is.

ooc
consider it done now

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Anyone awake to see the sunrise will note the simmering haze of humidity in the air, but also that it barely lasts long enough for the sun to clear the horizon. Even at the brink of dawn the heat is palpable; it looks like it's going to be a scorcher of a day.

It's rare for Riley to wake before her father; for as long as she'd remembered, he rose before the sun did for his work on the farm. On weekends he might sleep in, but even then rarely as late as 7 a.m.. Today, however, she wakes up to an empty house. Perhaps her father has adjusted quickly to being released from his farmhand job; however, the two empty beer bottles and one empty can on the kitchen counter suggest a different reason.

According to the battery-powered kitchen clock, it was close to 9 a.m. before Murphy wakes. Wordlessly, and with an unconscious ease that suggests familiarity, he deposits the empty bottles and cans out back with the other recyclables - easily over twenty times more than Riley had ever seen out there before - before he and Riley move to the bed and breakfast to meet the others. Fortunately, the late morning gave them enough time for everyone to be well rested even if they volunteered for guard duty.

"Let's get going," Murphy says when he arrives, motioning for everyone to head out to the vehicles. He tugs on his biker leathers, already uncomfortable in the morning heat, but doesn't comment on it.

Among the others, Hale comes outside and greets Murphy. "Hello there!" he announces with a smile. "Don't think I got the chance to introduce myself last night. I'm Hale. Been farming rice near enough fifty years. Looking forward to seeing what's out there."

"You're the expert?" Murphy's eyebrows climb skeptically on his forehead before he changes his tone. "You're the expert. Right enough. Well, everyone'll have the chance to give their opinion."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 118):

Juan got up with the others, checking his bandage that Chris expertly set last night. As long as it was not bleeding or hurting, he would let it be. He puts his leather jacket away in his duffle bag, given how hot it would be today. He then goes to find the others, and when he spots Riley he waves her over. "Just wanna tell you before someone else does, the bullet that grazed me punched a hole in the nice jacket you found for me. I am gonna fix it up...someday...but I just wanna say it was not my fault someone messed it up. It's still a damn good jacket." He grins at her and heads over to where ever he is supposed to be.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:18, Sun 12 Jan 2020.

It was nice sleeping in a familiar room despite most of her things were already gone and replaced by her younger sister's. She never imagined to be sleeping in this room again. Before all this, she had planned a visit during the summer. To be back this soon was both bizarre and calming.

Riley woke up in the morning expecting to see her mother in the kitchen fixing breakfast for the family. The thought quickly perished when she got up from her bed. She dug through her sister's clothes and changed into something comfortable. At this point, anything's would be better than the dirty clothes she's been wearing. After a few minutes, she decided on a simple violet woven shirt, a green hooded jacket, and a pair of black sweatpants.

After cleaning herself up as best as she could, she joined the others with Murphy.

"Oh." Riley took a glance at the damage on the jacket as Juan described the bullet hole. "It should be an easy fix, we can find something to stitch it over. Really, I'm more worried about the guy wearing the jacket than the actual jacket." She smiled at the man.

Riley watched Hale introduced himself to Murphy. At Murphy's response, Riley subtlety jabbed at her father's side with her elbow. "Dad, be nice!" She said, discretely.

Tossing and turning all night when not on guard duty soured Malcolm's mood considerably. When he finally woke from his exhausted half sleep he found he could taste the humidity in the air. He mumbled about how much he hated this state as he got up and stripped off the black hoodie so he only had his ling sleeve tshirt on to which he rolled up his sleeves revealing just the bandages on his forearm.

With all his gear checked he went outside, his eyes adjusting to the sun begining its climb and scanning the crowd to see who was available. His eyes focused on Murphy interacting with Hale. He walked over to them and Riley.

"Good morning." He said to them both. "Let's get this going."

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Hale keeps smiling for a moment, though the folksy friendliness in his eyes is replaced by something a little more canny and watchful. His eyes flick to Riley for an instant before returning to Murphy.

"You're right!" he calls over his shoulder to Malcolm. "We're not getting any younger here. I ought to know!"

Giving another smile to Riley and Murphy, he steps into the van. The others follow similarly; Kale rides in whatever vehicle carries Malcolm, Dahlia with Diana, and Tamara with Ramona. Mason waits outside until everyone else has chosen their seats.

It's only after Hale steps away that Murphy looks down at Riley. "I am being nice," he says, somewhat begrudgingly, before finding a seat.

Whatever vehicle carries Murphy takes the lead, as only he knows the route to the farm. As predicted, it takes a hair over a quarter hour before Murphy stops the convoy. A few hundred yards ahead is a farm, made obvious by the machinery left out in the sun and the wide yellow crops further back from the road. Murphy steps out of the vehicle and motions everyone to join him.

"There it is," he says, pointing unnecessarily at the farm ahead. "That's Jed's. I know you were asking about checking it out from a distance last night, so if you want to do that, now's the time. It'll be hard for you to sneak up, though, unless you plan to do it on your belly."

The ground is very flat and appears to have been cleared of trees long ago. Other than the farm itself, the tallest structures are utility poles along the side of the road. No activity is obvious on the farm yet, but from this distance, nothing other than moving machinery would be obvious.

Chris wasn't really a morning person, and he came across as sullen as he just nodded and grunted at people. On of the thing she missed most was good coffee. And he realised that was because he was jealous of Riley having found her dad, so he avoided them as much as he could until he had kicked himself for being an ass.

When they stop near the farm, Chris uses the scope on his M4 to scan the farm and the area around it as best he can

ooc
09:05, Today: Chris K rolled 15 using 2d10+5.  Scouting.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:07, Mon 13 Jan 2020.

Juan was feeling much better thanks to Chris and a good nights rest. As a result he followed the other man when he went off to have a look about. Chris clearly did not feel like talking, so Juan let him be. He did follow the other man's example and observed the area via the scope on his own rifle however.

ooc-06:52, Today: Juan rolled 19 using 2d10+5.  Scouting via scope.

Malcolm got out of the car and chewed on his inner cheek. He brought a hand up to shade his eyes as he scanned. It was human activity he was looking for, lack of it he hoped for.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:56, Tue 14 Jan 2020.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Most of the group watches the farm. Kale instead looks over his shoulder, scanning the surrounding horizon for other threats.

From this range, it's difficult to make out anything from the farm with the naked eye. Malcolm can tell there aren't any crowds or moving machinery, but finer details are lost on him. Juan and Chris K are aided by their magnifying scopes, but even they have to watch carefully.

Ramona followed Malcolm out of the car and leaned against its door. Her eyes weren't as good as everyone else's, which started to make her feel fairly useless compared to everyone else. An idea hit her, and she tapped Malcolm on the shoulder and pointed at the car's horn. It'd alert whomever or whatever was at that farm, but at least they'd know, right?

In reply to Snicker (msg # 126):

"I got a slow mover behind that building over there." Juan says to the others. "Not 100% sure it's a deader though."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:18, Tue 14 Jan 2020.

Try as he might the light bothered Malcolm and he fouldnt keep staring at the horizon. His grumbling stopped when he felt pressure on his bad shoulder and flinched. Turning to look at Ramona and then to the car horn.

"I dont see anyone but if there are people I'd rather not piss them off right away." He tells her and then glances to Juan hearing him out. He look to Murphy and Hale.

"Do farmers keep fences up at the edges of their property or is it all love thy neighbor out here?"

Chris nods, still peering through the scope "Yeah I saw that too. Possibly something in the grass too." lowering his weapon he adds "So we should go in carefully. Quietly too."

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Murphy starts to speak, but Hale beats him to it. "Oh, I'm sure there's a fence," he says, giving Malcolm a grin. Murphy shoots Hale an annoyed look at being pre-empted, but Hale doesn't seem to notice. "Don't know how much it'll keep out, though. Half I kept the fence on my farm was just to mark the property line. There'll be a hole or something somewhere, and if there isn't, it'll be easy enough to make one."

"I know a spot we can get in," Murphy adds. "Fence came away from the post a few years back and Jed never did get around to fixing it. It's all the way around back - if we want to get in quiet, that's the way to do it."

"Who should go and who should stay here?" Mason asks. He sits on the car trunk, rifle flat across his lap, watching the group strategize.

Juan slings his rifle on his back, secures his chain bandloleer style around his torso, but readies his throwing knives. "Let's go." He says, waiting for anyone who was coming with him.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:07, Wed 15 Jan 2020.

Malcolm thought about the situation, looking out over the farm land. He turned to his party to inspect the weaponry everyone had.

"Juan, Chris, Mason, Riley. You guys should have Murphy take you around back. Slip in quietly incase things arent what they seem. Kale, you're with me. I think we should hit the main entrance. As for the rest of you if you arent too wounded you should come with me. Otherwise keep Hale company here while we go on up. If we arent all killed we'll come back to grab you. He says. Then he looked back at his flanking team.

"I'm not expecting anything, take out shamblers quietly if you have to shoot, make sure you know what's in your sights, we'll be all over the place." He says.

"Our goal is gonna be whatever house Jeb calls home."

Chris looks at Juan and Mason "seems a decent plan to me - though maybe we could use a few more guards on the vehicles? Murphy, How far is it from here to the fence gap - is it worth Driving?

She nods thoughtfully, tapping her index finger across her lips, regarding Malcolm.

"Best intentions or not I imagine Jed won't be pleased to discover a group of armed strangers stalking across his property. Perhaps it would be to our advantage if introductions were made and intent declared before we take action."

As Chris asks his question she casts an eager glance at Murphy.

"I'd rather Jed be annoyed then all us walking into some bandit camp." He retorts Diana. "The flanking group should do its best to stay hidden of course."

After a slow moment, Diana inclines her head in agreement. "Point taken."

"Wow that's a first" he replied sarcastically.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Driving?" Murphy shakes his head and waves his hand dismissively. "Ain't no roads around that side. We'd need something more rugged than these to drive out there. Anyway, even if we could drive up, we'd lose that element of surprise. What's the point of doing it, then?"

He glances over at Diana as she speaks. "The lady's right. If Jed's still there, and he sees strangers creeping around, he might blow 'em away. The ones going in front better introduce themselves if you don't want this to turn violent - assuming this still is Jed's farm, of course. All the buildings, including the family home, at right up close to the road - ah, you know what? Give me a second."

Murphy rifles through the vehicles' glove compartments until he comes up with a years-old receipt. Fishing a golf pencil out of his leathers, he scrawls a simple map of the property on a blank side: https://i.imgur.com/VESIuGp.png

"It'll take us a while to get around back on foot," Murphy continues. "Maybe twenty minutes if we keep enough distance not to be spotted. Once we get in, it's only a matter of time before we're spotted, but at least we can flank 'em if things get violent."

He pauses, then looks Malcolm in the eye. "I just want to make sure you know, things don't have to get violent. Jed'll know my name. He and I don't always get along, but...I'd rather you not gun him down in his own home. The man's got children."

As the group formulated their plan, Riley wondered what had happened to Jed's family during the past few weeks.

"It would be nice if Jed still owns this farm." Riley stated. "Not looking forward to another shoot out."

Ramona beckoned at Malcolm to get his attention. In the absence of Tamara, she'd have to mime out her idea. Ramona first pointed to her eyes with two fingers, then traced a line to a part of the farm far from the main house, before finally raising her arms as if holding a rifle and peering through the scope. She pointed to Malcolm, made mouth shapes with her hands, which proceeded to have a silent conversation. It seemed as good an idea as any to satisfy the people that wanted security and friendliness at the same time.

Chris sighed "This is when walkie talkies would come in handy, so we could keep in touch, as the last thing we want is for us to wander in guns blazing at the wrong time." He paused and considered a second "We need to work out a signal you can give us that means its clear to come in. If we dont get it we'll come in slow, and if we hear action, we'll know how to deal with that. But some sort of all clear signal is needed. Probably need to be something we can hear, as we wont be in sight. So maybe a hand signal back to the cars, and they honk the horn a set number of times?"

Malcolm studied the map and then held up a hand to Murphy.

"I'm not a maniac man, you dont have to worry about us. We've never shot first." He said, annoyed at the accusation. "All of this is just caution."

Malcolm saw something out of the corner kf his eye and looked over to Ramona, trying to understand her charades. He looked at Chris then and nodded. Walkie talkies was all he wanted at this point.

"Ramona has an idea, we post a sniper up that over watches the welcome party. If things go well she can signal the car to hit the horn.
Signaling you guys the all clear. You'll hear otherwise if it ain't. Does that work for everyone?" He asked.

Chris nods "That should work - as long as they can keep eyes on you guys"

Diana smiles faintly, and a little too knowingly. Her voice is carefully devoid of accusation or judgment when she speaks, but nonetheless seems weighted down with both.

"What I believe Murphy is suggesting is that a moral code, once broken, cannot be repaired. Think carefully before you plunge us all into war."
This message was last edited by the player at 07:08, Sat 18 Jan 2020.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Hope's a good breakfast but a bad supper," Murphy says, looking at Riley. "If Jed's still here, my name ought to be enough to get him talking at least. If not...that's why we're going around back."

He turns his attention to Chris K. "If I understand the correctly, everyone worth anything in a fight is going to be up at the farm already. It'll just be the women and Hale - no offense, Hale - back here at the cars. Ain't gonna be no cavalry coming in. That means any signal is just gonna be between those of us at the front and those of us sneaking in the back. If you want to give the all clear then, just go around back the house. Them fields are flat enough that you can see straight from the back fence to the rear of the buildings."

Dahlia gives a soft hmph at Murphy, then gives Diana an aside glance. Tamara raises an eyebrow, but doesn't directly comment on it.

"Try not to point any guns at anyone you don't have to," Tamara says to no one in particular. "Where's the sniper going to go?"

There's much for sniper roosts in the area. There are only occasional trees, all of which are clear of branches for at least ten feet off the ground. Utility poles line the road, but scaling them might be difficult. There are no buildings outside of Jed's farm for at least a mile. The group passed a billboard a few hundred yards back, but the distance from it to Jed's farm would be over half a mile, making it a challenging shot for even a skilled marksman.

Malcolm's breath was caught in his throat. His hand tightened into a fist and he shot Diana a glare. Fighting every urge to tell her to shut the fuck up. He instead releases it into Murphy. Turning his head to the older man.

"All the women here are fighters, and everyone of them has had their teeth cut. Only one I'm worried about here is you." He says sharply. He turns to Kale.

"You're my marksman, go and take your head start. Then we'll move in. Ramona and Tamara you're with me. Diana and Dahlia you two figure out what you're doing now."

She is mildly puzzled by the glare, and she shows it in a small, querying lift of her brow. "I need no authority to 'figure out what I'm doing'. I had thought that would be obvious to you."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:22, Sat 18 Jan 2020.

He gives her a sly half smile, releasing his fist. "Just wanna know where you'll be, in case you go rogue. Again." He replies.

She is thoughtful for a time, regarding Malcolm with eyes that tell nothing; cold, passionless, speculative.

"Me go rogue?" Diana demands lowly after a time. "Before you reprimand me, take a moment to consider your own failings in that department."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:46, Sun 19 Jan 2020.

"I try not to think about it, it runs my mojo." He said, replying fasciously. "For now we have a job to do." He said, turning to everyone.

"Let's move."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:52, Sun 19 Jan 2020.

The tendons in her throat tighten as she draws in a breath, and starts to speak.



But then the breath is released unspoken.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:40, Sun 19 Jan 2020.

Juan watched the face off between Malcolm and Diana. Needless to say, it seemed totally uneeded. They had stuff they should be doing right now. Then again, he still had his own issues with the man. So he got tired of this nonsense and began to head wherever the hell he had been told to check out. He moved quietly on his own anyways, so he headed to where he saw movement via his scope-knives at the ready.

Chris made a mental note that not all was happy at the farm - and the group hadn't even got there yet - after the face off between Diana and Malcolm. HE sighed,that was the sort of shit he had had enough. As soon as he was ready, he told the others to saddle up and started heading for the gap. HE moved fairly fast,, but made sure they could all keep up.

"Everyone happy with the plan?" he asked as the set off

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Most everyone goes silent as Malcolm and Diana trade barbs, watching and listening to proceedings. Murphy, who looked as if he was weighing the decision to respond to Malcolm or not, instead watches the argument with intense, unamused focus. Mason stays seated and doesn't overtly react, but watches out of the corner of his eye. Dahlia subtly shifts closer to Diana, eyes on Malcolm, and Kale mirrors the action almost exactly, his impassive gaze on Diana. Hale, sitting in the van with the door open, looks concerned, while Tamara fails to suppress a grin and shoots Ramona a few surreptitious hand signals.

"Fine," Murphy finally says, breaking the silence. "Then Riley comes with me, along with you other three."

Kale holds his rifle's shoulder strap with one hand and looks around, trying to decide which sniper's perch is least bad. "I'll cover you," he says, vaguely but committally.

Murphy's group has to circle around the farm's large property, so naturally Malcolm's group reaches the front door first. Closest to the road is a sizeable house, with other, more utilitarian-looking buildings further back on the property. The farm and its buildings are enclosed in a tall, chain-link fence, but there is no fence around the house, which is set about a hundred feet back from the road. A new-looking pickup truck sits in the driveway. From the front, everything is silent and still.

Murphy's group, consisting of Juan, Chris K, Riley, Mason, and Murphy, eventually circle around to the back of the farm. They must keep their distance from the eight-feet chain-link fence to keep from being spotted to easily, but as they circle around, they can spot occasional movement within the farm's property. The figures are humanoid, but they're too far away to tell if they're living or dead. Eventually, Murphy points out one part of the fence, and the group approaches. Reaching one fence pole, he pulls back on one part of the rusting fence, opening a triangle about three feet high and two feet across at the base of the pole. The opening is large enough to fit through, though they'll have to crawl.

Unfortunately, rice does not grow very tall, barely reaching Riley's waist or Juan's hips. They'll likely be spotted approaching the house unless they crawl the entire distance.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:09, Tue 21 Jan 2020.

Chris crouches down and heads through the fence, taking up a position in cover and on guard on the others side, using his scope to watch the buildings. "Whaddya think - we should approach in cover for now? It'll be slower, but until we know whats happening probably better."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 155):

Juan proceeds to crawl through the fence opening, and then crawls through the rice. He has one of his knives at the ready, and otherwise ops for maximum stealth.

Malcolm steps away from everyone, licking his lips in anticipation and looking at the ordeal in front of him. He unclips his SKS rifle and holds it loosely in his hands. Ready to be brought up at any time. He gestures to those following him and they continue down the main road to the house once enough time has been given to the others to get into position.

After trying (and failing) to suppress a snicker at Tamara's silent jab -- a sentiment she shared; Ramona accompanied Malcolm down the road. Her M1911 was tucked into the giant pocket of her hoodie. She looked at Tamara, then Malcolm, and signed to Tamara.

Diana draws in a sharp breath and releases it slowly. It is a moment before she speaks.

"The extent of one's attentiveness is quite often indicative of the depth of one's character. And all that can be seen in how one handles such a simple thing as a conversation."

The wind whips long strands of her hair against her eyes, momentarily obscuring her vision, until she catches it with one hand and nimbly assembles it into a ponytail. She turns her back on the others to address Dahlia directly.

"Considering what occurred last time I would be remiss if I didn't point out that I consider his decision a most grievous error. By all means he can cover his ears and run away from me. I'll still speak the words, for I feel that I must."

Diana's face is, as ever, implacable, though her eyes grow dark with remembrance, or sorrow, or perhaps even horror. Then, with an effort, she seems to force her attention back to the present. Her gaze, and her voice, sharpens.

"I hoped Malcolm would have the capacity to see the unfettered plea of Murphy's words. It is evident that where prudence is concerned, his eyes may only see what he wants them to see."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:24, Wed 22 Jan 2020.

"Yes, good idea." Riley crawled through the fence after Juan. While on the ground, she examined the rice plants around her. She's no expert in agriculture, but she should be able to tell if the plant was dying or not.

Chris hisses to Juan "Hey Juan - wait up, we should stick close togethor. And some of us watch whilst the rest move, then we swap. That way we've always got someone on watch."

In reply to Chris K (msg # 162):

Juan paused, and geatured for Chris to follow. He noticed Riley crawling behind him and gave her the thumbs up. However it was clear he intended to head forward and not wait anymore, so his pause would be brief.

Malcolm, Ramona

Malcolm, Ramona, and Tamara give several seconds for the others to get into position, then walk towards the house. The sun beats mercilessly down on the exposed road, and they feel sweat everywhere one part of their skin touches another as they move. There are no trees or other cover for their approach, and if anyone decides to shoot at them, it'll be a long run to safety.

"What's our plan, exactly, Malcolm?" Tamara asks, shotgun held at low carry.

Diana

Dahlia stands next to Diana, watching Malcolm's, Ramona's, and Tamara's figures shrink into the distance. Beside them, Kale awkwardly climbs onto the roof of the minivan, trying to negotiate a position that will allow him to lie flat and cover their advance. Dahlia glances back at Kale for a moment before speaking to Diana.

"Es peligroso, hermana. Se pone en peligro, pero cuando está en peligro, todos los demás también lo están. No te acerques demasiado a él y prepárate para correr cuando sea peligroso."

Hale waits for Kale to get situation, then carefully steps out of the minivan. He inspects Kale for a moment before walking over to the sisters. His smile is friendly and disarming, but looks calculated, or at least careful.

"I know you probably don't want to hear this from me," he says apologetically, "but I've been around a while and I know some things. That kind of back-and-forth doesn't do you any good, you know? Between you and Malcolm, I mean. You don't end up any better for it. Everyone just ends up worse."

Juan, Chris K, Riley

"That's what he's asking for, so that's what we'll give him," Murphy says, crawling through the fence opening. "Just hope he's planning to give us enough time before he knocks on Jed's front door."

Crawling puts the team's perspective at one not usually explored, the far off buildings disappearing behind a forest of green, grassy trees. Bugs and the occasional mouse move in their vision, a teeming world of bustling activity always present but seldom glimpsed by human eyes. The dirt is dry and powdery in the summer heat, but the rice plants themselves are still vibrantly green, healthy despite the apparently parched conditions.

Crawling past thousands of plants at eye level makes it difficult to see anything that is not directly in front of the team, in between the orderly rows. Nonetheless, everyone catches occasional glimpses of human movement further on, closer to the house, but they'll have to poke their head up out of the crops to get a good look.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 164):

Juan cautiously looks up for a quick look, making sure to keep most of his head and body concealed by the plants. If its the dead, he can take a longer look as their eyesight seems only so-so. Unlike their hearing, which they seem to be drawn to the loudest noise.

"I'm praying to God whoever is in there is dumb enough to let us get close before shooting." He says to her. "It's difficult because we ain't tryna scare him but we dont wanna be noticed until we're in position either. If everything works out theres a man there to talk to, we can even go right up to the door and knock." He says, stopping and turning to the two women. Mal wears an expression of worry for a moment, scanning everything around him. He looks to the women again.

"I Fuckin' forgot to ask if Jed was racist." He tells them. "Fuck, I bet he is, god I fucking hate this state. I'm sorry girls." He says, starting his walk again.

"When we get close we should stack up by that truck, away from the door. If we get caught out in the open, if they open fire you girls turn and sprint back to the truck. Imma do what I can to draw their fire. The shooting should get our other team into the action faster. Remember you got Kale and I covering you." He says.

"Do you have anything else in mind?"

"Dad." Riley called out beneath her breath. "Does it look like someone's been tending to these?" She gestured at the rice plant she had pressed onto her palm.

Chris also pops his head up for a look, but keeps moving in bounds stopping every so often to check around in case anything is approaching from a different direction

If Ramona had known how hot it was going to get, she might have opted to leave her hoodie behind. Walking became a familiar rhythm of wiping fresh layers of sweat off of her brow every few steps, something Tamara couldn't be as used to as a fitness junkie like her. Now and then, she'd cast a furtive look at her sister to see how she was holding up.

When Malcolm finished sharing his worries and explaining his plan, Ramona exhaled softly, then shook her head. She snapped her fingers to get Tamara's attention and started to sign.  After the highway, another gunfight was the last thing they needed right now.

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Juan and Chris K risk poking their heads above the crops to check their surroundings. Given the flatness of the land and the crops' uniform sea of green, this puts themselves and the others at no small risk of being spotted and caught a long distance from any hard cover.

Fortunately, this danger is never realized, and their risky action allows them to inspect the figures in more detail. There are at least a half dozen of them, with possibly more behind and within the buildings, and each one either stands in place or wanders aimlessly. None seem to have any purpose in mind or to notice the brutal sun beating down on them. Though they're still too far to know for sure, the figures are probably walkers.

Murphy looks over his shoulder at Riley, then makes a frustrated, disappointed sound from deep in his throat.

"No," he says quietly, shaking his head. "Field's a mess. Too many weeds and too little water. I wouldn't get my hopes up that Jed's still around."

Malcolm, Ramona

Tamara is dressed quite a bit lighter than Ramona, and though she isn't the athlete her sister is, she's not unaccustomed to hard work on a hot day. Still, though she looks a little more comfortable than Ramona, she's sweating almost as profusely, as is Malcolm. While the three are coping well enough as is, things will get dire quickly when the water runs out.

Tamara watches Ramona sign, then rolls her eyes. "Ramona says don't worry, we have the power of friendship on our side. If we do talk to anyone, you and I can do good cop bad cop and she'll hang back. Do you want to be the good cop or the bad cop?

"Oh, and one more thing - if they open fire, I'm not leaving you to die." She gives Malcolm an unamused sidelong look, as if even suggesting it was ridiculous and insulting.

Chris looks at the others. "So we have an option here, start making a noise to draw them this way. Dammit walkie talkies would be good - we could warn the others"



ooc
is there any sort of barrier between our group and the zeds, or would they be able to just wander towards us?

In reply to Chris K (msg # 171):

"I could get to the top of one of those buildings. Won't even need to yell, they will be drawn by my movement. Then we just start picking them off." Juan whispered.

Malcolm's eyes widen in disbelief. Turning his head to Ramona and then back to Tamara.

"What? Wait a minute, we're friends?" He quickly clears his throat, dropping his expression into one of dire seriousness.

"I was an actor once, I'll be bad cop its harder." He turns back around towards the house.

"Just be careful is all, ladies. Let's go."

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Mason and Murphy look over at Juan and Chris K, listening as they speak. Neither of them have stuck their heads above the rice plants as of yet.

"So are we talking about living or dead or animals or what?" Murphy asks. He gets up on his knees, peering over the rice plants for a moment before he grunts in affirmation. "Dead, then. Could've said so."

"York did say to take any shamblers out quietly," Mason says, his voice low. He rolls onto his back to keep eye contact with the others more easily, still not poking his head above the fields.

"Don't see the point in that," Murphy shakes his head. "Gotta take these things out sooner or later. Might as well make a lot of noise and get 'em all in one place at once."


Malcolm, Ramona

"I've...worked retail," Tamara says lamely. "That's basically acting."

As the group nears the house, Tamara glances back at Ramona, silently confirming that she's still there and ready.  She looks back at the house, then to Malcolm. "So are we just going to go knock on the front door?"

Chris furrows his brow slightly at Mason "York?? You mean Malcolm? Right he did say that. So I think we do that if we can. But if it gets too hairy, shoot. And then once we start we should all open up, try and draw them this way. As for getting on the roof Juan, Feel free. Personally I figure I'll stand up and start tapping like I did in the school " as Chris talks, he slings his M4 and gets out his bowie knife and night stick, and motions banging the stick with the knife. "That way they will hopefully come in small groups. Everyone happy with that?" If no one objects, Chris will sling his M4, draw his bowie knife, take a deep breath and stand up and start the plan

In reply to Chris K (msg # 175):

"Works for me." Juan says, gesturing to Chris to tap away. He gets his throwing knives ready and prepares to back the other man up.

Juan, Chris K

"Hold on," Mason says, raising a hand. "Maybe we shouldn't do this in the fields. One of those things could be out here with us with a broken leg. If we're distracted, it could get the drop on us by sheer accident."

Murphy glances around him, his head below the top of the plants. "They do end up in the damnedest places," he mutters.

"Perhaps we should do this where we have the most visibility," Mason continues. "Of course, that means they'll have the greatest visibility of us. We'll probably have to fight them all at once. Thoughts?"

"We can lure them back to the fence, and get rid of them there. I don't remember any clear spots in the field." Riley grabbed her baseball with her hands. "Either way, I'm ready."

Chris looks at Riley "YEah....Yes! Using the fence to our advantage would be a great idea. That way we can spread out and not risk being swamped, and we're safer from them. Should cover your objection too Mason. Lets do that?"

ooc
What sort off land was outside the fence,

In reply to Snicker (msg # 177):

Juan shrugged and gestured to for Mason to lead the way. It was his plan after all.

"Girls, get ready. Theres someone in there and he's alive." Mal said, not breaking eye contact with the window he caught a glimpse of.

With a genuine dislike for the situation. Mal felt that he was hamstrung in doing anything else. He raised his good arm up over his head. Keeping the gun weapon low and away. As he walked up to the house he let out a long whistle. He gestured for the women to stay where they were, while he slowly walked up to the door. Giving it a few solid raps and then back away from the door.

Ramona did as instructed, hanging back and keeping a watchful eye on the house in case anything happened. One hand laid over the pistol in her hoodie's pocket.

Malcolm, Ramona

Tamara's eyes snap to the front door with laser focus when Malcolm says that. With her shotgun at a low carry, she approaches the front door along with Malcolm. The house has a low, but sizable front porch, the heat cut slightly in the shade provided by the awning.

Tamara obviously sees Malcolm's gesture to stay put, but simply repeats it to Ramona before moving up herself. She does not quite move into place beside Malcolm, but stops in front of one of the porch's support beams, shooting a polite smile into the building. While she tries to make it look casual, it's obvious she's taking cover from potential fire from the window. It's also obvious that the beam is too thin to provide effective cover, with some of her body sticking out on either side.

Both Malcolm and Ramona see movement in the window after Malcolm knocks on the door. Something moves into place very close to the window and door, maybe even pressing itself against the wall in between them. After the movement, it takes several seconds for any response.

"Whatever it is, we're not interested!" It's a man's voice, shouting to be heard from within the house without opening the door. His voice is firm, even polite in a sense, but has a tone that suggests he's not interested in conversation. "We got everything and everyone we need here, so whatever you're selling, just go ahead and move on. Thanks anyways!"


Juan, Chris K, Riley

"Fence," Mason repeats thoughtfully, then glances over at Riley. His eyes blink once, twice.

"That's brilliant!" he says, eyebrows rising and his mouth curling into a smile. "Why didn't I think of that?"

"That's my girl," Murphy says, his voice a mix of caution, relief, and pride.

Mason glimpses up over the tops of the crops. "There are only two problems. First, we'll be exposed - the walkers won't be able to get through the fence, but we'll be very visible, and the gathering of walkers by the fence will make it obvious there's something happening. Second, to attract those things, we'll need to get close to the house. I don't think they're attentive enough to notice us otherwise. And of course, we'll need certain weapons to kill them through the fence - nothing like that," he adds, nodding politely at Riley's baseball bat.

"We'll probably have to expose ourselves to the house to carry out this plan. Is that alright with everyone?"

"Were gonns have to expose ourselves anyway, to draw them here, so I think thats ok. How about Murphy, Riley and anyone else who fancies it heads back to the fence now. Mason, Juan and I can work on drawing them towards the fence. That way were not all trying to get through as they get closer, and theres some people at the fence who can take over attracting them when we three scramble through it?"

"We ain't sellin' sir, we're buying!" He says, raising his voice since he has to speak through a wall to communicate.

"We're with Murphy, one of your workers! I'd like to see you face to face is that alright?" He calls out.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 16:08, Tue 28 Jan 2020.

In reply to Chris K (msg # 184):

Juan nodded, and put away his knife and took out his chain and hook. His weapon of choice when stealth was not the full option. "We ready?" He asked, waiting for the others to get to the fence before he starts to lure the walkers towards it.

Malcolm, Riley

"Murphy?" The voice obviously recognizes the name, but sounds unsure. "Alright, send Murphy up. I'll talk to him."

Tamara sighs softly, giving Ramona a patient look and a few quick hand signs.

Juan, Chris K, Riley

"Riley, c'mon back," Murphy says, withdrawing towards the fence.

Mason watches Murphy for a moment, then looks towards Juan and Chris K. "I figured we'd all get on the opposite side of the fence and then shoot them or stab them through the chain links...but however you want to play this will fine.

Chris nods at Mason "Thats kinda what I had in mind too, but only shooting as a last resort, as Malcolm wanted us to keep quiet. So the plan is to move in close and draw them to us, lead them to the fence,get through it and kill them all from the other side. Might take some time. It also means we risk being seen from the house, but I doubt they will bother us if they see we're leading zeds away from them. So I think we just get up and start moving towards them, making some noise and start drawing them on. Like the pied Piper"

In reply to Chris K (msg # 188):

"Yeah...no shooting. Could bring every dead head from the other near by areas." He gives his chain a few experimental swings to get used to it again. He had been using guns and knives for a bit, and wanted to stay familiar with his old reliable weapon.
This message was last updated by the player at 09:36, Wed 29 Jan 2020.

"Alright sir, imma signal my people to come out of hiding now. Murphy is one of them and hes gonna come up and talk to you." He says, honestly surprised that this seemed to resolve itself without violence. He felt like he was missing something, he shot the two women a glance and then turned around. Somewhere there was Kale with a scope on him.

The other team hadnt moved over to the house yet, he wondered where they were. He outstretched his good arm over his head and then made a fist and pantomimed pulling a truck horn. One solid honk should signal to everyone the coast was clear.

Ramona rolled her eyes and signed back to Tamara.  Annoying as dealing with a distrustful stranger might be, Ramona preferred it to trading fire.

Malcolm, Ramona

Malcolm raises his hand and mimes an exaggerated fist pump in the air. There is a short silence, lasting just a couple seconds longer than comfortable, and then a couple long beeps from the car horn.

Malcolm and Ramona both notice a figure glancing out the window before retreating back out of sight. Whoever the figure is, he seems to be more confident now.

Tamara still stays in her place. She makes eye contact with Malcolm, trying to get his attention. Once she thinks he's listening, she whispers, "I thought you were going to be the bad cop."

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Riley and Murphy pull back to the fence, while Juan, Chris K, and Mason stand up and start to move towards the walkers. Mason constantly glances down at his feet, careful for anything lurking among the rice plants.

The three are about halfway through the crops when they hear two long beeps from a car horn. They sound as if they came from the direction of the vehicles they used to get here. The walkers have not yet noticed the trio; a couple of them seem to react to the car horn, turning and looking in the direction of the noise, but when the noise fails to continue, they lose interest and resume wandering aimlessly.

Chris stopped when he heard the beeps and said to the others "You know its easy to come up with a plan, and fail to see a potential huge flaw in it. Like a beeping horn attracting walkers. Luckily that didn't happen. Anyway, means we can be less quiet in drawing the walkers towards us as the inhabitants are friendly. But maybe Juan, you wanna do an end run round the place and update Malcolm so when they hear action they can pitch in, and also not panic"

In reply to Chris K (msg # 193):

"Goddamn it..." Juan says as the car horn goes off. He nods at Chris's plan, and runs off to find out who was doing the honking. He runs as fast as he can towards the source of the vehicle noise.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:34, Thu 30 Jan 2020.

Malcolm shrugs, moving closer to her. "Yeah I wanted to, was gonna shoot him in the leg the moment he showed himself."

He says, keeping a straight face, looking for a reaction. Finally he reveals he was joking with a smile. "Also he sounds fucked, dont wanna antagonize him, not yet." He adds.

"You guys be careful." Riley said before moving back for the fence with Murphy. Despite what they had planned, she reached for her rifle and turned to her father.

"Just in case." She aimed down the sights at the trio in the field, keeping an eye out for them.

Malcolm, Ramona

Tamara blinks at Malcolm, an expression of disbelief on her face. Then, as the seconds tick on, an expression of belief on her face.

When he reveals the joke, she smiles back, her chuckling in nervous relief. She glances at the house, then leans closer, her face inches from Malcolm's. "I don't think he's that fucked. Just a bit careful. But he's hiding something. You be careful, too."

Juan, Chris K, Murphy

"Right." Murphy nods at Riley, then aims down his sights at the trio as well. He holds that pose for a moment as Chris K talks, then lowers his weapon and looks over at Riley.

"Look, Riley," he says quietly. "I know you're smart and that you can look after yourself. I know you're doing everything you can to stay safe. But there's...a lot of different types of safety. Or of danger, I suppose I should say."

He steps closer to her, his voice getting quieter despite their isolation from the others. "It's like I told you when you left for college. You remember that, don't you? Even if they're protecting them from the dead or...or...bandits, or whatever's out there, it's a different type of danger being in a group of men. Especially if some of them are - "

Murphy looks up, surprised, when Juan draws near. He jumps back as Juan runs past, as fast as possible, through the hole in the fence and towards the source of the honking cars. It takes a few exhausting minutes, but Juan finally runs all the way back to the vehicles, seeing Diana, Dahlia, Kale, and Hale waiting there. Kale only looks up briefly before resuming watch through his sniper's scope, but Hale can't look away from Juan.

"Boy, you plumb lost your mind?" Hale asks, incredulous. "What're you running around for? In this heat, no less! You're looking ready to have a heart attack, you young fool!"

From this distance, Ramona couldn't make out what Malcolm and Tamara were talking about at the man's doorstep. She can, however, make out their smiles. They made up fast, Ramona thought, smiling a little herself. It was nice to imagine Tamara finally finding someone she like liked. Thought she'd go for someone taller, Ramona scrutinized Malcolm some more, mentally stacking him up against the other men of the group. ...I mean, he's probably the best out of the rest of 'em. Lucky her.

Was that jealousy? Nah, it had to be the heat. What kind of sister would Ramona be if she wasn't happy for Tamara?

Chris waits for Juan to go and then looks at Mason "Ok Ready?" He asks. He then starts a gentle trot towards the walkers and starts calling as loud as he can as he goes "Hey deadheads. Chow Time. Over Here. All you can eat Buffet. Free Refills. Free to all Zeds!"

"I'm not sure theres more than just him in there either." He says, following it up. "We'll be alright, I got you here after all." He says before a blur of motion catches his eyes. He frowns, watching Juan sprint down the road.

"Uh, what the fuck?" He says, glancing to her and then Ramona. "Am I forgetting something? The plan was to fucking meet here if it was safe, right? What is he doing? Where is Murph?" He asks outloud.

In reply to Malcolm (msg # 200):

Juan pants a bit and finally stops. "Stop the goddamn honking!" He says to anyone who will listen. "We are trying to lure the dead so we can deal with them. We are planning be as quiet as possible! You know, so we don't call every fucking rotting freak from miles around!" He said.

Normally, Ramona would have been nervous anywhere outside of a safe holdout -- if they were around a lot of houses or a big highway. This was the ass-end of hillbilly hell, however. The land was flat. What few walkers they could find were easy to keep track of, unlike a sprawling metropolis. Why was Juan running around, hooping and hollering, then? Ramona waved at Malcolm and Tamara -- she looked very irritated. Concise hand signs were shot up for Tamara's to translate.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:19, Sat 01 Feb 2020.

After Juan ran past, Riley addressed her father's concern. "They're not that kind of men, dad, not from what I've seen. I don't know how to explain it, but they're different from the others I've met. Even if some of them are different."

Malcolm, Ramona

Tamara looks over at the vehicles, Juan's agitated body language just barely visible in the distance. She glances at Ramona, reading her hand signals, and a look of understanding crosses her face.

"Okay, okay, just calm down," she says, turning to Malcolm. Her voice is soothing, but just a bit too loud, as if she's trying to make sure the man inside can hear. "Don't go flying off the handle. Murphy will be here soon enough. We've got time to spend."

Diana, Juan

"Malcolm gave the all clear," Kale says simply. Hale looks up at him expectantly, as if he expects Kale to continue, but he does not.

Eventually, Hale looks back at Juan. "Well, yeah. We get the all clear, and we let you know with the horn. That was the plan, Juan, we agreed on this."

Chris K

Given the size of the field, it takes an awkward amount of time before Chris K to get within earshot of the walkers without shouting himself hoarse. Nonetheless, when he does reach that range and start shouting, he sees the walkers stop what they're doing and look over at him. One by one, with snarls, moans, and groans, they turn and lurch towards him.

Mason doesn't add his voice to Chris K's. Instead, he keeps his eyes on the ground for any potential dangers at ankle height. So far, he doesn't seem to have seen any.

Riley

Murphy sighs softly to himself. "Riley...it's easy for a young man to seem different from everyone else, but...look, I'm just saying, you don't need to stay with them. You're home now. And if they ask you to do anything, or you get even a hint they're not going to ask...I'll take care of you. That's what a father does."

He puts his hands up to his eyes, looking at the vehicles. "I told Malcolm that if all's clear, to come around the back of the house and signal us. Keep an eye out."

"Yeah well they should know what happens when they fuck up." He also raises his voice for Jed.  He glances to Ramona and then back to Tamara.

"Should we go get them? What if Juan was running away from something important?"

In reply to Snicker (msg # 204):

"Who sent the all clear!? Its not all clear! We got dead heads to deal with!" Juan said, still a bit winded. He pauses as he catches his breath.

"Trust me, if people where shooting at us, you would know! So far it's just a few small groups of them. We can take them out nice and silent, so they dont form one large group." He explained.

When the Zeds turn towards them, Chris says to Mason "Seems they finally heard the dinner bell" Chris tries to count more carefully how many are approaching, and how far away the nearest ones are. He says to Mason "You keep a 360 watch, I'll watch the main event for now. We'll wait for them to get a bit closer before withdrawing"

Malcolm, Ramona

"I...I don't know, I don't think so," Tamara says, though her voice lacks conviction. "If he was running from something, we'd have heard shooting, right? Unless you think everyone else was killed by ninja."

She gazes in the direction of the vehicles, a look of suppressed frustration on her face. "Anyway, if he had something important to say, they'd already have signaled us. Look, he's talking to them now."

Diana, Juan

"Malcolm did!" Hale's eyes are wide and earnest. In fact, the earnestness in his voice only seems to increase with Juan's agitation.

"No, son, nobody said anything about shooting. If Malcolm's giving the all clear...well, maybe he's saying you don't need to go around back at all, so we don't even need to worry about them forming a large group."

Chris K

"On it," Mason says simply, circling around behind Chris K, his eyes scanning the ground.

Roused by Chris K and Mason, the walkers now move as a large group, albeit a scattered one. Chris K counts fourteen of them in all; each of them are spread far enough apart to be tackled individually, but of course they'll clump up in the course of approaching him and Mason.

At this point, it will be a simple task to lead them back to the hole in the fence where Riley and Murphy wait. It will also be very slow, as the walkers will take several minutes just to make the trek across the expansive crop fields.

Keeping up the noise intermittantly to make sure the Zeds didn't lose interest, Chris led them across the field towards the others. HE checked with Mason every so often and said "This is slow - but its safe, so lets not lose focus, and get sloppy, ok?" As they neared the fence and got within shouting distance he called to the others "You guys start up some noise. Mason and I are gonna break for the fence gap. You first Mason."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 208):

"The only ones we saw are the ones hanging around a few small homes. Even if someone crammed every inch of those places full of the dead, that's not a lot of space. We want to avoid calling any outside groups before we clean them out. If we need help, we will start shooting.  If you want to come now, just be quiet about it." Juan took a breather and started to head back. He was not planning on running, and now was going to miss dealing with the dead.

Malcolm stared out at the car which also should have been driving up by this time. He wondered what he was doing wrong for everyone in his group to be a moron who couldnt follow a simple plan.

He felt frustrated, sucking in air and holding it in his lungs while he thought about it.

"Fuck it I'm gonna go check. Stay here." He said. He left the two women and walked around the back of the house, his gun still at the ready. His eyes were peeled for the groul, specifically Murphy.

Diana was silent, arranging her thoughts. Given the superfluous nature of the shouting--over volume levels no less--this minor task, when coupled wit the rising heat, was proving itself strenuous.

"That is logical, I suppose," she agrees absently to Dahlia's statement, electing to table the discussion for another time.

Diana's gaze is thoughtful and unimpressed as she surveys the farmland. It was all she could not to stare at Juan and his animated response at the honking horn and Hale's attempts at soothing the combative mesomorph.

When the agitation in the biker's tone begins to escalate is when she glances over her shoulder, briefly and dismissively, before slanting a glance back to Dahlia, then out at the crops before settling upon Hale.

She moves with a graceful economy that instinctively inspires admiration, brown eyes sparking with mirth.

"A fine irony, wouldn't you say? Worthy of O.Henry."

Malcolm

"Woah, you don't want to go back there!" the man in the house warns as Malcolm starts to head around the side. His voice is alarmed and sounds genuine.

Murphy tells the man that Murphy's back there, but the man insists. "There's biters back there, man, like a dozen of 'em. Kind of my neighborhood watch, you get me?"

"I do," Malcolm replies, "but my people might not."

"Alright, it's your ass, man!" the man says. "Just a heads up, that's all!"

"Thanks, Jeb," Malcolm says, and continues. When he gets around the house, he sees that the action - what little action there is - has moved towards the rear of the field. Chris K, Riley, Mason, and Murphy are discernible at this distance, but not in meaningful detail. Malcolm can tell they're clustered at the fence, while about a dozen walkers slowly converge on them.


Juan

Hale glances around. The flat land and lack of nearby buildings make it difficult for anything to sneak up on the group, though if there was anything approaching, it would probably see the vehicles before sound became an issue.

"That's alright, Juan, I'm sure you all can handle it," Hale says, giving him a smile. "We'll keep an ear out, just in case."

Diana

Hale, watching Juan leave, doesn't even notice Diana until she's close. He starts a bit in surprise, then looks slightly sheepish.

"How's that?" he asks. "Ironic, I mean?"

Chris K, Riley

"I'm paying attention," is all Mason says. He doesn't make eye contact with Chris K; instead, his eyes are glued to the ground, only occasionally rising his enough to scan the middle distance and never higher than that.

If Chris K were sitting on a shaded porch, watching the walkers cross the field with a beer in hand and a meal digesting in his stomach, it would still be frustrating slow. When maintaining a battlefield-appropriate level of focus, it is almost torturous; every minute scrapes by at a glacial pace, the heat and lack of stimulation making his brain want to drop into low gear.

Finally, the walkers are close enough - and by now, converged enough - to be trusted to continue forward after Chris K and Mason pass through the fence. Mason goes first as ordered, crouching low and slipping through the gap to join Riley and Murphy.

As soon as Mason is through, Chris quickly gets down and scrambles through the gap.

Once through he says to the others "Ok lets spread out some - we don't know how strong this fence is so don't want them to bunch up too much. Once they get in range be careful. I suggest  we work in pairs. I'm guessing Riley your with your Dad, Mason and I will work togethor. One of you takes on the biters, the other one keeps an eye on the fence - if it looks likes its moving too much, move to a new spot up the fence quick. And switch out after a bit, so you don't get worn out. Sound ok? Apart from that, keep in shouting range."

He turns to Mason "You wanna be on biter duty or fence watch first?"

Ramona nursed a headache brought on by the heat, and the deterioration of an allegedly simple plan. She listened to Malcolm -- for now -- and decided to approach Tamara in the hope that the stranger's house would offer some shade. She gave her sister an exasperated look.

"They're just being careful, dad." Riley said to Murphy discreetly.

Once Chris and Mason returned, Riley nodded in agreement with the pairing arrangement.

"I don't have anything that can reach through the fence. I'll stay here and keep them from crawling through." She motioned her bat at the gap Chris and Mason crawled through.

Diana gives a careless lift of her shoulders.

"Juan hears a loud noise and comes over to needlessly contribute to the cacophony. Watching your exchange allowed me to reflect on your words. Before our interruption you mentioned exchange with Malcolm does no one any good. Based off of prior events it was my intention to have a constructive exchange of opinion which swiftly turned into anything but."

She lowers her gaze, her lashes forming crescent shadows on her bronze skin.

"In fact, I probably came off as the brash reprobate. I'm sorry to have that be your first impression of me."

Diana

One of Hale's eyebrows rise as Diana speaks, though so slightly he may not even realize it. He seems thrown slightly off-balance and takes just a second too long to respond, but when he does, he smiles.

"You're apologizing to me, now?" he asks. "That awful big of you, but I'm not the one you ought to say it to. If you're gonna to say sorry to anyone, say it to Malcolm. Even if he doesn't appreciate it, you'll be better for it."

Chris K, Riley

Mason glances down the length of the fence before looking back at Chris K. "I'll keep watch, then."

Murphy watches the approaching walkers for a moment, then looks down at the hole, then at the bat in Riley's hand. Though obviously uncomfortable, he finally sighs and says, "Fine. Just be careful, now. You get even a hint of trouble, you back up and I'll take care of it."

Even after everyone gets into place, it's more waiting - simultaneously anxious and unstimulating - before the walkers finally reach the fence. Though scattered widely when the group first saw them, crossing an entire farm towards a single target has converged them into a tight mob. The first walker hits the fence right above the hole, snarling, and presses against the links for a moment before it occurs to it to bend down and push through the hole. Sharp stubs of severed chain link drag bloodless furrows through its bald scalp as it pushes its way though, on its hands and knees in front of Riley.

Other walkers press against the fence. The chain links nearest the gap strain audibly with their weight, while the rest of the fence sounds more sturdy. Mason steps close to a pair leaning against the metal and then steps slowly away from the gap, trying to bait them into following him, but they ignore him in favour of the other three.

Ramona

Tamara is mostly keeping her eyes on the window, and Ramona has to wait for an opportune moment to sign for her sister to see it. Tamara frowns and looks back to the window, signing to empty air.

Malcolm raised an eyebrow at the situation. This was a time consuming activity but since Jeb hadn't blown him away yet he figured the shambler situation would have to be handled eventually.

The lean man stands still, clipping his rifle onto his back and pulling his butterfly knife free. He wasnt about to help them as they seemed to have the shamblers well in hand but he needed to get close enough for them to see him and that meant getting closer to the undead.

The kid sighs, and with steady but cautious steps he makes his way to the chain fence. Taking a wide berth from the group of undead. He bet their attention was focused entirely on the choke point they created but he figured one of them would eventually look up and see him. He made his way to the chain fence. Waving his good arm every now and again just to be sure. He kept his eyes peeled on the ground for crawlers.

Trusting Riley to mind the gap, CHris motioned to Mason and said "yeah lets move that way " and moving about 6 feet down the fence he started loudly yelling and banging on the fence with his night stick to attract the walkers. As soon as ones in range he'll try and kill it with his bowie knife through the fence - waiting until its head is pressed up close to the fence, rather than reaching through.

"I will." Riley replied to Murphy.

Then the corpse prowled through the hole, the bat fell onto its head. It made a sickening sound as blood splattered around its head.
Riley reached for the body's lifeless arm and pulled the body closer to the hole. With any luck, the corpse should hinder the other walkers from crawling through.

Malcolm

Malcolm starts to move towards the rear of the farm's property. Given the size of the farm, it will take several minutes for his steady and cautious pace to reach the others, assuming they are still there when he arrives.

Juan, Chris K, Riley

By the time Juan runs back to the hole in the fence at the rear of the farm, his lungs are burning, having run considerable distance twice in the space of a few minutes out of an intensely hot day. Thoroughly winded, he may have trouble fighting effectively, and will definitely have trouble escaping if the situation goes bad.

Chris K tries to gradually pull some walkers away from the whole. Six feet is a start, but not enough to meaningfully spread out the strain on the fence. He keenly catches an opportunity as one walker pushes against the fence, however, driving his knife between the chain links into the side of its head, killing it instantly. The next walker - young, slim, and female, in cutoff jorts and bare feet, does not even hesitate before stepping over its body to push against the fence.

Riley kills the walker, then reaches for its corpse, but the undead are already too tightly packed. One is already slipping through the fence - this one small, formerly a child of perhaps ten years. Riley barely pulls back in time before its small, grasping hands or uneven mouth of mixed child and adult teeth can close around her forearm.

Murphy looks over at Riley but hesitates, eyes widening. It takes him a second before he can react, but when he does, he motions for Riley to get away from the hole. "Rye! Back up!"

Chris keeps moving with Mason "Lets try and spread them out more" he says concerned by how the fence is moving under their weight "And it might actually be smart if you help out a bit as well - thought your main job is still keeping tabs on the fence" he adds. Moving further away trying to draw the walkers, Chris looks out for another chance to take one down

ooc

08:32, Today: Chris K rolled 17 using 2d10+6.  take out a walker.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 222):

Juan tries to relax, breathing slow and steady while staying away from the fighting. Him trying to help while nearly wiping himself out would just get himself and maybe others killed. So for now he stayed low and watched Chris and the others in case they got into trouble.

He got one of his throwing knives out, and planned to stay at range. However, as the dead where attracted to the noise makers they could see, as long as he stayed behind cover eveything should be fine.

Riley took several steps back after she barely escaped the grasp of the small walker. She covered her mouth and stared at the child with widened eyes. Its a kid. And... so young.

Riley shook off her brief hesitation and brought the bat down onto its skull.

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Chris K drives his knife into the skull of the walker in cutoffs, killing it. Mason eyes the move, his hand brushing against the handaxe hanging from his belt.

"My hatchet won't fit through those links," Mason says evenly, eyes scanning the fence. "If you want, I can get creative..."

Hunching over, Mason charges forward and rams his shoulder into the fence where it meets another walker, this one formerly a middle-aged woman in a checked shirt. The chain links creak under the strain as the walker tumbles to the ground. Mason himself stumbles back and almost loses his footing, the fence flexing back against him. Despite his effort, he's bought barely a couple of seconds; the walker is already rising, and in the time he spent ramming the fence, another one - the sagging, obese body of what was once a man in a suit and tie - steps up to throw its weight against the chain links.

"I could also shoot them, if you want," he says, looking at Chris K. "Your call."

The tiny walker's head deforms under the blow of Riley's bat and it slumps to the ground, rivers of brackish blood running from its hairline. Another starts to crawl through the gap in the fence; this one was apparently female, but there is little else to see, as its face and most of its exposed flesh was already torn apart, probably by teeth.

Murphy stares down at the tiny corpse for a moment, grimacing, before raising his crossbow. Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, he fires through the chain link fence, clearing the metal to punch a bolt into a walker's forehead and kill it.

Chris kept moving down the fence trying to draw the walkers on, taking the chance to take out another one through the fence if he could.

To Mason he said "Get your rifle ready, but only use it if it looks like the fence is going to go, I don't want to attract any from behind us. So keep watching our six." He paused as he tried to take out a walker and added "I think that we can take these before the fence goes, we've probably got a bout a third of them already"

ooc
12:46, Today: Chris K rolled 20 using 2d10+6.  Walker take down.

Diana clears her throat, her gaze thoughtful and unimpressed.

"Malcolm and I have reached an accord where part of my duty is to provide him with frank advice if or when he is on the wrong course of action and that is what I strive to do. I don't regret my words, but rather the impression of impudence they had on you. I don't believe we've actually been introduced and what you saw back there would make for poor introduction."

Malcolm

As Malcolm approaches the fence, he sees the others slowly cut through the crowd of walkers. Though the dead can be dangerous when bunched up, the group split and funneled the crowd enough that their extermination is just a matter of careful time.

Malcolm's caution prevents him from reaching the fence in time to aid the group, but it pays off when he sees movement by his feet. A figure is pulling itself through the rows of rice plants on its belly, damaged fingertips dragging through dirt. A noose and a few feet of rope trails from its neck, and it makes no sound; presumably the noose was enough to crush its larynx but not damage its spine. One of its legs is bent at an awkward angle at the knee, visible even when being dragged behind it.

The crawler had been slowly making its way towards the fence, but now that Malcolm is close, it breaks off its glacial migration and starts to crawl towards him instead.

Diana

"You've reached an accord, have you?" Hale is quiet a moment, watching Diana. He rubs his chin, a salt-and-pepper of white stubble on dark skin, before speaking. "I'm going to ask you something, and you don't have to answer me, but I want you to think on it. Put some time into it, if'n you can. What was Malcolm's wrong course of action you corrected back there? And whatever it was, did you really say what you said because you had to say it, or because you wanted to say it?"

He smiles and gives a little wave of his hand, like fanning something away. "Just something to think about, that's all. Anyway, the name's Hale! Met Malcolm just a couple of days ago. I've been growing rice in Arkansas for...longer than you'd been alive now, I'd reckon. Maybe longer than your parents have been alive. Now, how about you?"

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Chris K kills the obese walker. Its weight sags against the fence, causing the metal links to groan under the strain, but there is no actual indication it is going to break. Other than the gap they used to enter the fields, the fence looks sturdy enough to stop the remaining walkers, thus rendering moot the last factor that could potentially put the group at peril.

With this in mind, killing off the remaining walkers is just a matter of patience and prudence. Funneling the walkers through the gap allows the group to handle them one at a time and without realistic risk, provided they're careful. After another minute or so, all of the walkers are dead.

The group sees Malcolm approaching them through the field. He is standing straight upward and making no attempt at stealth, at least from the perspective of the house.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:53, Tue 11 Feb 2020.

Mal glances at the crawler with interest. In an enviroment like this a downed shambler would be one of the bigger threats encountered. With a flick of his wrist he twirls the knife into a downward stab and takes out the shambler quickly and efficiently. He glances up at the rest of the group and gets closer now, holding up a hand and speaking out to them.

"Having fun boys?"

At first, Ramona thought better than to go against Malcolm's instruction. As the seconds dragged by, her tapping feet grew louder, as did her irritated exhalations. Finally, she peeled her hoodie off and held it out for Tamara. She signed off an explanation,  After that, Ramona headed off in the same direction as Malcolm.

"That's all of them." Riley wiped her bat clean with what's left on adult walker's corpse's clothes. She averted her gaze at the child walker and turned to the rest of the group.

"What was that car horn about back there?" Riley questioned Malcolm.

"Remember that car horn was the all clear. Jeb is still alive but he's holed up inside his house and wont come out. Need Murph to do anything." Malcolm responded to Riley.

"Does Jeb got family?"

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Riley

Without following at a cautious pace, Ramona crosses the field faster than Malcolm does, but it is still acres of cropland. She doesn't even get close before Malcolm meets up with the others, especially since Murphy wastes no time passing through the fence to meet him halfway.

At first, Murphy does not answer, simply looking down at the corpse of the walker Malcolm killed. Finally, he raises his eyes to him and speaks.

"I don't think what you just said is true, Malcolm," he says slowly.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:09, Wed 12 Feb 2020.

A frown stretches across Malcolm's face and his eyes follow Murphy's down to the crawler.

"Why is that, Murphy?" He asked.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 234):

Juan, finally rested up went to meet up with Chris. It seemed safe now that the action was over, although he had been forced to sit it out. Still, he had done as requested. "Things look good, sorry I could not be more help but message delivered..." He said to Chris, gesturing to Malcolm and the others.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Riley

"Because first of all, his name's Jed, not Jeb," Murphy says. "Second, he had a family. That's his wife and daughters by the fence."

He points back towards the pile of corpses where the group made their stand against the walkers, then turns to point at the body of the crawler Malcolm killed. "And that's Jed, with the rope around his neck."
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:08, Wed 12 Feb 2020.

Chris killed off the walkers, and when the others had done he sighed slightly"No worries, all good and everyone safe.". He spoke to Juan as he moved over towards Murphy. He didn't hear the exchange between Murphy and Malcolm, arriving just after but said "SO, whats the deal now Malcolm?"

Malcolm said nothing for a moment. He didn't even look up when Murphy pointed to the dead women.

"Neighborhood watch, he called them" He said, looking up when Chris makes his entrance.

"We got a problem, Jeds dead, I dont know how many there are and I got Ramona and Tamara sitting outside the front door." He turns to Murphy. "He seems... not immediately hostile. You should come with me back to the front, second team move in behind the house."

"I would deal with Jed. I'm not dealing with funny business from this guy, far as I'm concerned the farm now belongs to us. We all in agreement?"

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

By now, Ramona is within earshot of the group. Sound travels far over the flat cropland.

"So what does that mean exactly, Malcolm?" Mason's eyes flick to the house, then back to Malcolm. "What's the plan here?"

Murphy frowns, looking at the house. "You said you needed me, Malcolm, to deal with this fellow. Why?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:50, Thu 13 Feb 2020.

Chris shuffled uncomfortably "how far are you proposing to go to get your property back, Malcolm?"

"Now wait a minute, I'm confused." He says, looking back at the group. "The dude I talked too didnt correct me when I called him Jeb. But he did perk up at the mention of your name, Murphy, he wanted to talk to you, and it sounded like he knew you." He shrugs.

"But if he ain't who we thought he was... I'm not dealing with some random loony, for all we know he could have been the one to rope up old McDonald here." He says, pointing to the corpse.

"Murphy, this is a one horse town, did Jed have alot of other  workers for him? If there were others alive surely you would have seen him since shit hit the fan."

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Hold on, now," Murphy says, lifting one hand. "So this 'dude' - did he ever actually say his name was Jed? Or Jeb? Or did you use that name and he didn't jump right in to correct you?"

After a second, he gives a small wave with his hand, as if he were dismissing the thought by physically batting it away. "Maybe that don't matter. Sure, Jed had other people working for him, but it ain't like I kept tabs on all of them. I had to watch out for my own. Some of them didn't even live in the same town."

Chris didn't push the point with Malcolm but added "So could be that one of the workers took over- either by force, or after whatever happened to the family here happened. What did this guy look like Malcolm - maybe that would help Murphy? Did you get a look?"

"Never corrected me." Malcolm shook his head. "But your names your name why wouldnt you unless you got something to hide?" He glanced over at Chris.

"Never saw him, wouldnt come out or even open the door. Just pressed himself against the wall and shouted." He said. "He also did use the word we." He shrugged.

Ramona didn't fully understand the context of their conversation, but it seemed like a case of possible mistaken identity. She tapped Malcolm on the shoulder and mimed opening a door, then shrugged. How else were they going to get to the bottom of this?

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"We. Just great." Murphy sighs, then shades his eyes and looks at the house. "Look, Jed's got guns. That means they've got guns. They could shoot us from the windows right now. Means something that they haven't, if you ask me. It don't necessarily mean they aren't planning to shoot us later, but there must be some reason they ain't done it yet. And yeah - maybe that reason is me."

"What's the plan?" Mason asks again. This time, his eyes travel across the entire group, waiting for anyone to speak up.

"If that's not suspicious, I don't know what is." Riley commented.

While the others spoke of the other "Jed", Riley examined the bodies of Jed himself and his family.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:22, Sun 16 Feb 2020.

In reply to Riley (msg # 248):

Juan heads over to Riley and peers at the bodies himself, but lets her do any close examination. Last thing he wanted was to get any more walker gunk on him.

"So...what are we looking for?" He asked her.

Juan, Riley

Riley is the one to handle the bodies, but with Juan peeking over her shoulder, he sees anything she sees. All of the bodies have bite marks somewhere on their exposed flesh, save for two: that of a middle-aged woman, heavily scratched and torn as if it's pushed through several brambles and bushes, and that of Jed himself. A few of them have gunshot wounds. The only one with obvious knife wounds is that of the middle-aged woman, which has a single long, smooth cut down the inside of each forearm.

It's difficult to draw complex conclusions from a cursory inspection like this. Stripping and examining the bodies more exhaustively may reveal more information, but that would take time.

"Gunshot wounds, or any cuts... " Riley replied to the man. "Ah, see? Right there." She traced her finger at the wounds on the bodies. After wiping her hands she stood up from a crouching position.

"Somebody killed Jed and his family. Yeah, somebody." Riley threw a suggestive side glance toward the house.

"Here's the thing." She addressed to the group. "Maybe another group got Jed and his family, and this other Jed came after, we don't know. But they haven't fired a shot any of us, so that's something, right? So let's talk to them, hear what they have to say." After a firm nod, mostly for her own reassurance, Riley added, "let's not rule out that they might be waiting for a good moment to strike either."

Malcolm was listening intently when he felt a light touch on his shoulder. He turned in surprise to see Ramona so close to him. He cocked an eyebrow, watching her pantomime. This combined with Riley made it clear the group wanted to talk, to see the threat for themselves. He nodded.

"Alright. Let's see what he wants and check this out. We need to see how many he's got with him." He held up one finger to the group. "We arent to be bullied by this guy. As far as I see it we own this farm now. Let's go."

In reply to Riley (msg # 251):

Juan raised his eyebrows, seemingly impressed. "Nice job, CSI." He grinned at her. "And Riley is right. They could have shot Chris and his people at any time. Even after they dealt with the dead heads. They should be willing to talk."

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Murphy inhales deeply and holds it for a few seconds as he regards Malcolm. Eventually, his eyes move to Riley and he releases the breath, exhaling slowly through his nose. He looks like he's considering saying something, but chooses not to, instead just gesturing to get this show on the road.

"Alright," Mason's voice is quiet, though audible to everyone in the group as long as they stay together. "Anyone who's going to go around front can go around front. I and anyone else will cover the back."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 254):

Juan wondered if he would be the best person to go around front. People usually hung on to their guns a bit tighter when he showed up. Then again, whoever is planning to talk to the people inside would need someone to get them out of there if things went south...

Chris stood still his legs shoulder width apart and said clearly "Your claiming this farm, Malcolm - how far are you planning to go to get it? Unless they murdered to get it, those people have as good a claim to this place as we do. So whats your plan? I don't intend murdering people over some real estate, when half the fracking worlds empty."
This message was last edited by the player at 08:43, Wed 19 Feb 2020.

"Thanks." Riley flashed a smile to Juan.

When Malcolm verbally claimed Jed's land Riley squinted at the man. For now, she kept her thoughts and comments to herself. "I'll talk to them too, I might recognize those people if they're from here."

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Murphy's eyes flick to Chris K, then to Malcolm, but he says nothing. When Riley speaks, however, he clears his throat.

"Right," he says, nodding at Riley. "But just stick close to the corner, Riley, in case anything happens. It probably won't. But just in case."

Juan waited for anyone to do something, but no one was. "Fuck it. I'm gonna go talk to the guy. Riley, if you dont wanna see me get shot you might wanna tag along." He started walking.

Malcolm breathed deep, choosing his words carefully while walking, before turning to Chris.

"You're right maybe I got carried away. I just got thirty plus folks that need a reason to get up in the morning, Chris. I cant let anything stop me from helping our people."

Chris nods as Malcolm talks "I get that. But this isn't the only farm we could get involved in, and no point killing more people to take it when there's plenty of other options available. Its us against the dead, not us versus each other. Least ways, we dont have to pick fights against others."

"Chris have you noticed every five feet we walk we get shot at? I'm more lead than person right now. The issue was never us picking fights, its that while we're out here floating around the fights find us. You know what I'm saying? We need a place to hide from the world. I don't know how much more rope lifes gonna give us." He says quietly to the man.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"No, I'm tagging along," Murphy tells Juan sharply. "I'm the one he asked for by name. And honestly, you're the last stranger anyone around here needs to see. No offense."

He starts walking towards the front of the house, but as he does, and turns and talks to Malcolm again. "There's plenty of farms, around here, Malcolm."

Juan, Riley, and Murphy cross around towards the front of the house. Murphy's fingers fidget on the crossbow, but he keeps it low, planting his feet in front of the house's porch.

"It's Murphy," he says. "You want to come out and talk?"

"Murph?" There's movement by the window. It's too indistinct to make out much detail, but Juan and Riley can see enough to tell someone is peeking outside.

Murphy's eyebrows rise, visibly surprised. It takes him a moment to answer.  When he does, his voice is unguarded. "...Chase?"

Riley nodded silently at Juan and followed.

On their way to the house, Riley never took her eyes off the building. It might be just her, she had an anxious feeling brewing in her gut. That is of course, until her father spoke.

"You know them? Dad?" She relaxed both of her shoulders and asked.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 263):

Juan let Murphy do the talking. He was terrible with putting people at ease, but was happy to let someone else take the lead. He noticed Riley asking her dad a question, but just listened for now.

Chris follows the others, but hangs back a little, aiming to keep guard on the rear so nothing sneaks up on them, but tries to keep one ear on what is happening

Putting himself in another bad mood. Malcolm hung back from Murphy and observed, focusing entirely on the stranger refusing to show himself.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

When Riley speaks, Murphy almost reflexively lifts a hand and gestures for her to hold on, not talking aloud. 

"Yeah, man, it's me!" says Chase from inside the house. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again, Murph! Even when they said your name I wasn't sure. Hey, what took you guys so long, man? Made he nervous, waiting like that. Hey, hold on - "

Whatever is by the window moves away, and a moment later, the front door opens. Out steps a man somewhere in his late twenties, dirty blond and broad-shouldered. His hair,  beard, and clothes are disheveled, but it works with his boyishly handsome features, giving him an air of tousled masculinity. Nonetheless, it's clear he hasn't seen anyone in a while, though he hasn't let himself go nearly as far as Murphy.

"Hey, y'all," he says, waving a hand in greeting. "I'm Chase. Murphy, are these guys all good?"

"Yeah, they're, uh..." Murphy hesitates a moment, looking around the group. "They're good. Everyone, this is Chase. He works - he worked on the farm with me."

"Hey, don't be like that," Chase says with a smile. "I'll still work, if you're looking for hands."

Malcolm shifted uneasily as the stranger revealed himself. "Malcolm again, how long you been here Chase, it just you?" He asked.

Ramona stood beside Malcolm, trying her best to not look overly threatening. She stared at this Chase, however, not breaking eye contact. She wanted to suss out any suspicious tells.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 268):

Juan folds his arms and nods at the newcomer. Making it clear he is not reaching for any weapons. That should help a little to put the guy at ease, not to mention that three people here seem to know him. "Juan. Good to meet you." He said to the man. "How long where those things here roaming around the place?"

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Oh! Yeah, it's just me," Chase says sheepishly. He shrugs at Malcolm and holds up both hands with his wrists close together, as if expecting someone to handcuff him. "Sorry about lying to you earlier, Malcolm. I just didn't want you to know I was alone in case you were planning on, uh, shooting me."

He leans against one of the porch's support beams and nods at Juan. "Good to meet you too, Juan. 'Fraid I don't know. They've been here longer than I have, and I got here maybe...a week ago? They were in the house when I got here, though. I lured them out and snuck back in. I've been living off of Jed's pantry since then."

"You've been here a week?" Murphy drawls sardonically. "That's funny, coming from you. I never seen you stay here a minute longer than you had to."

"Hey, man, what can I say?" Chase shrugs good-naturedly again. "You know Jed always kept more than he needed. Anyway, it's good to crash in a place that's already got some biters out and about. Keeps out the riffraff, you know? It's easy enough to stay out of their sight. It's the living I don't trust. Uh, the living that don't have you vouching for 'em, I mean."

Chase clearly notices Ramona staring at him, holding eye contact with her for a few extra seconds, but doesn't seem offended. His gaze travels over everyone in the group and doesn't look aggressive or duplicitous. She notices, however, that it lingers disproportionately long on Tamara.

Sorry about lying to you earlier, Malcolm. I just didn't want you to know I was alone in case you were planning on, uh, shooting me.

"Wouldnt dream of it" Malcolm said flatly, the joke lost on everyone but a few. He listened to the others talked and continued to watch his eyes and how they moved. Will a lull in the conversation he took his shot.

"Well Chase since we're all friends now and no ones lying anymore let's get down to business." He said, stepping forward and holstering his weapons.

"These are all my people. I have about twenty or so more back where we left them. Women, children, farmers, electricians, etcetera etcetera." He said, gauging him carefully.

"We were hoping to find Jed, well, I was hoping to find the place dead empty but that's beside the point. I had plans to move my people here, fix this farm and start anew. Real house on the prairie type shit. I dont know what your plans when you finished off the pantry are but I was hoping that you'd be a part of our plan." He said, fixing his cool blue eyes on the man.

Sometimes, it was possible to form an opinion on someone based on the smallest action. In Chase's case, merely looking at Tamara for too long was enough to get Ramona to dislike the man. It was plain to see that Tamara was the most conventionally attractive of the two, with her softer face and kinder smile -- not to mention she was better with words. Ramona almost trusted Malcolm to treat Tamara, but Chase looked like countless other men the duo had suffered in their travels. Ramona flashed a few slow signs to her sister.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Tamara's eyes are on Chase, ready to jump into the conversation if needed. Being so distracted, a layperson may have missed Ramona's slow message, but Tamara is accustomed to noticing her sister's sign language. Trying to be as non-disruptive as possible, she signals back to Ramona with her hands at waist-level, her message crude and clumsy on a technical level due to the limited motion but still comprehensible to Ramona.

Despite Ramona and Tamara's subtlety, however, Chase is watching the group as a whole from a higher position. He visibly catches their back-and-forth, eyes lingering on their hand motions curiously.

"No kidding, you got all that?" Chase looks back at Malcolm, his eyes lighting up and his mouth a crooked smile. He looks like he can't believe his own luck. "And you want me, too? What's the catch, man?"

"Well, like everyone else here. You have to get my name tattoo'd on your chest. That's how I know you're loyal to the cause." Malcolm says with a straight face, waiting a beat for a reaction.

"I'm just fucking with you." He smiles. "But I expect you to get along and help out however you can though. There'll be no shortage of work in making this place work, and you having experience means I expect you to set a good example for the rest of us. Can you handle that?" Mal asked.

"Is that right?" Chase responds before Malcolm gets the chance to clarify he's fucking with him, and possibly before his straight-faced delivery even has time to sink in. His eyes dance over the women in the group. "Why don't you show me?"

Tamara crosses her arms over her chest, though she says nothing and her face doesn't change. Chase's eyes move to Riley, but Murphy steps directly in front of her, blocking Chase's view.

"Chase, meet my daughter Riley," he says, his voice utterly humourless. "I'm sure I've mentioned her."

"Oh. Yeah, you, uh, you have." Chase's smile widens uncomfortably before he turns to Juan. "How about you? Bet you love showing off your ink, am I right?"

He chuckles, though it still sounds forced, before looking back at Malcolm. "Look, man, if you're gonna get this farm up and running, I'm there. I mean, I'm living day to day in someone's basement, eating food out of cans, you get me? Anything's better than that. You can count on me."

"So, Chase..." Riley stepped back into the view when she started addressing to Chase. "Do you know what happened to Jed and his family?"

Surprised at the joke being turned back on him, Mal's face scrunches into mild annoyance. His gaze lingers on Tamara for a moment before looking back at him. He made a mental note to talk to Murphy about him, find out just who Chase really was. At least with Riley he had reason to trust Murph.

He nods to the man speaking to him and lets Riley ask the question. interested in the answer.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Chase winces when Riley mentions Jed. He follows it up with a smile, but as before, it looks forced.

"Can't say I do," he tells Riley. "Everyone was dead when I got here. I opened up the back door and drew 'em all out, or I thought I did. Jed himself was real slow getting out, almost bit me when I came in thinking the place had cleared out. I think he must've hung himself, but by the time I got here the rope had snapped and he'd busted his leg coming down.

"I didn't recognize some of the biters that came out of the house, so I figure they must have gotten in and done it somehow, but I weren't here. For all I know, they were people like you and me, coming by looking for a place to crash, and Jed's family did 'em in. Guess we'll never know, right?"

Chris had been paying attention and keeping watch, but decided to add his 2 cents worth. "Hey Chase. My names Chris. If your happy with Malcolms plan, any chance you could let us in so we can discuss in a bit more comfort? And bring in our people by the cars so we're not all strung out? Would make things a bit easier."

Jaun looked at his arms, and shrugged. Granted these days his Gang tats seemed a bit pointless. The Loco Diablos had some degree of infamy once upon a time, but now? He was the last one left, and even then the gang was only somewhat known in Texas, not here. His past had died along with the rest of the world and his family. Although he does see the ink of flaming skeletal limbs along his arms and legs as if they where burning through his skin. A reminder of who he had been.

"Yeah, you're right." Malcolm remarks to Chris and turns away from the group. He waves towards the distance hoping Kale still has eyes on them all. he gestures for the van to move up.

Ramona clicked her tongue to express her irritability at Tamara's indifference to her warning. It didn't feel like paranoia to distrust Chase, but maybe she just had a natural aversion to leery white guys squatting in the countryside. Malcolm and the rest weren't that bad after all (although Malcolm's "joke" earned him a bemused look). Still, she was determined to stick close to Tamara from now on, and she promptly stood next to her sister without explaining herself.

"Is that so?" Riley leaned to the side with a hand on her hips. Her eyes narrowed at the man.

Maybe there'll be some evidence to what he is telling us inside...

Before she could suggest making entry, Chris already beat her to the punch. Good call. She thought to herself and awaited for Chase' response.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"You got even more?" Chase shields his eyes, then looks up the road towards the vehicles. "Sure, y'all come in then. Might be a bit crowded, but still better than flapping our jaws in this sun. Damn, but it's hot today."

After Malcolm signals the vehicles, Kale signals back, though Malcolm can't see anything more than an arm movement at this range. Diana, being closer, can see Kale - who had been watching the group through his rifle's scope - lift his arm above his head to give Malcolm a thumb's up, then address Diana, Dahlia, and Hale. "Malcolm says drive up."

Between the four of them, they get all the vehicles to the house, and Chase reiterates his invitation to step inside. Jed's house is large and spacious - much more so than Riley's home - but the living room is still cramped with everyone inside. There's not enough furniture for everyone to sit, so Chase stands, shifting his weight from foot to foot with an energy that may be excitement and may be anxiety.

"Right, so, for those of you in the back..." Chase says once everyone is situated. "I'm Chase. I used to work here on Jed's farm with Murph. Now there's no Jed, so it's our farm. Y'all want to introduce yourselves?"

Chris stays standing, and eyes up the living room to see what state it was in. He goes first "AS I said, I'm CHris and I'm not much of one for pow wows, so I'm gonna move about the house and keep watch - if thats ok Chase?"

ooc
Does the farm have more than one storey - had a quick look and couldn't see if that was stated.

Also - Riley - Chris's thoughts exactly about checking for evidence for his story...

Malcolm hangs around, watching the rest of his people file in. He picks Kale out of the group and moves over, giving him a light, playful push. Signaling him to stop and let the others go.

"Look at this." Mal says in a low, quiet voice. "This is ours. Ours, ours, ours." He repeats, his voice is calm, relaxed. He let's out a breath. Smiling as he gazes at the vast emptiness in almost every direction.

"What do you think, the big sign should go there, over the road. 'Malcolmtown' that's got a good ring to it dont you think?" He smiles at his friend.

She stands there, gazing around the room in a leisurely manner that could not be mistaken for anything other than arrogant.

Diana nods, though whether the gesture symbolizes approval or mere thoughtfulness is impossible to determine.

Malcolm

Kale glances over at the road, where the big sign would be located. He makes a show of tilting his head upward, as if his gaze were following the bottom of the sign to the top, not stopping until his neck were craned as if it were hundreds of feet high.

"What was the name of that place with the cult?" Kale asks, turning back to Malcolm. "The one where everyone drank cyanide and died? Dunno why I just thought of that."

Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley



"Keep watch?" Chase blinks at Chris K, befuddled. "You don't got to keep watch in the house. I've been here for days. Nothing's inside but us. What..."

His smile turns nervous again, and his eyes dance over the group. After a second, his smile disappears completely. "Wait, where's Malc? He was just - "

Chase backs up, but with the room already crowded, only takes a couple of steps before he bumps into the wall. His breathing intensifies, his eyes wide and alert. "Alright, what the hell's going on here?! Y'all been acting sketchy as shit since I opened the door!"

"Chase..." Murphy starts. His voice is low and serious, almost a growl. Dahlia's hand slowly moves to the knife on her belt. Hale, who wasn't there for the previous conversation, just looks surprised, as if he has no idea where this is coming from.

"No one's acting sketchy, Chase," Tamara says, holding up a hand. "We're just - "

"Bullshit!" Chase spits, pointing an accusing finger at Tamara and Ramona. "You think I didn't see you two sending messages back and forth? Or the rest of you eyeing me up like a wolf watching a rabbit? I've been nothing but honest to you. Why the hell you playing games with me now?"

Chris glances about for Malcolm and says to Chase, keeping his voice low "Nothing sketchy at all, Chase. I wasn't planning on watching the house, but looking outside. We took out your early warning biters out back, so now we need to make sure no one tries to bushwhack ANY of us. Thats all I meant. Nothing more than that - I 'm gonna watch our backs. Everyones back. Including yours, Chase."

Chris stays where he is as he speaks, not wanting to crowd Chase any more.

"Dunno, must have been one helluva party. Doubt we'll be that exciting." He said, giving one last look at his surroundings.

"C'mon let's go." He urged his friend inside with him. It didnt take long for him to find where the others were but he was perceptive of the main houses interior. Studying each room intently until conversation overhead demanded his attention.

Bullshit!

Malcolm's head snaps to attention. He moves into the room with everyone else as Chase starts accusing people. He pushes past people until hes at the front of the group.

"What's going on here?" He says, taking on a serious tone, designed to grab everyones attention.
"Relax Chase, if I wanted you dead we would have shot you on the porch, I just told you how important you are dont fly off the handle at the first friendly face you've seen in weeks." He said, practically ordering the young man to relax.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 290):

"Dude! Chill! Chris and the others just took out all those dead people! And they use sign language because Ramona does not talk, for fuck sake!" Jaun growled, getting angry.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:05, Wed 04 Mar 2020.

Chase's sudden shift in demeanor was alarming to say the least. With the situation precarious, Ramona glanced at Tamara when Chase pointed an accusing finger their way. Signing out an explanation for Tamara to translate couldn't be a good idea. Instead, Ramona slowly shifted to the side to give Chase a better view of her bandaged leg. Her hand raised up just as slowly as her shift in posture and folded into a finger-pistol, which was aimed at the place she'd been shot a day earlier.

Riley glanced at Chris briefly before following up his words.

"That's right. We were attacked on our way to town, and things being the way they are you can't be too careful." She stated as bluntly as possible.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:31, Wed 04 Mar 2020.

Malcolm, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

(!) Chase will remember that.

Chase was defensive before, but Juan's aggression sparks outright fear in his eyes. He jumps away, his hands balling into fists, but he clearly doesn't think of his chances against the whole room.

"Yeah, I get it! You took out the biters, so you can take out me!" Chase gestures towards Ramona as she points a finger-gun at her injury. "You'll pop me in the leg and go from there! What do you want, information? I don't know anything! I don't have anything! You want the farm? Take it! It's yours! Let me leave and you'll never see me again!"


Chase stops, though his back stays against the wall. Malcolm's words cut through his panic, but he's still obviously wary.

"Look, Malc, out on the porch I could've had more people in the house for all you knew. Now that we're inside, you know I'm alone, you get me? And the thing is, I don't see too many friendly faces. Y'all are looking at me like a Thanksgiving turkey."

His eyes turn to Riley. "I get you, but I can't be too careful neither. You really think I'm gonna start a fight with y'all? Even if I've got a gun hidden away, worst I could do is take one of you out before I die. If a fight starts, I lose every time. But y'all look like you're sizing me up, like you're trying to decide if you can take me out right now without the chance that I get one of you.

"Look, I meant what I said." His voice is serious. "You can have the farm and everything on it. I'll walk away and that'll be the end of it. Just let me get my bag and I'll be gone."

Malcolm gives him a confused look but doesnt break eye contact. "Look, look, I get it. You dont know us, it seems too good to be true." Malcolm attempts to reassure.

"Relax man, again, you got experience working this land i want you on my team. Beyond that even if you were just some guy no one here has a problem with you."

Malcolm brings out a hand to shake. "You're safe now man. Safe I swear." He says.

Ramona slapped a hand to her face in frustration at Chase's inability to get a clue. Nudging Tamara in the side, she used the lull in tension that Malcolm made to sign out a message to her sister.

Chris days nothing but stays ready. Scared people do stupid things, and if Chase got scared enough, they might need to restrain him.

Diana flexes her fingers and moved stretches in slow motion, eyes roaming around the upper floors at the same heavy pace, focusing on one thing at a time, registering and analyzing with deliberation before moving on.

Having witnessed the splendor of the 4-room estate at her leisure Diana descends down the staircase. When she settles on the first floor she leans back with one elbow propped upon the rail, one leg slightly raised on the first step. She gazes at Chase with an arrogant, amused air, her aristocratic features managing to look at the same time both relaxed and alert, and her soft caramel eyes possessed of an oddly sardonic twinkle.

She quickly shifts her gaze from Malcolm to Chase, and follows the brief exchange with lazy amusement.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Chase looks down at Malcolm's hand for a moment, then releases his breath slowly, the tension leaving his body. He shakes the hand firmly. "Fine. Sorry I got heated there."

"Good," Murphy says gruffly. "We're going to need all the competent farmhands we can get, Chase."

"Yeah," Chase says, glancing over the rest of the group. His eyes stick on Ramona's hands as they sign to Tamara, though he tries not to make it obvious.

"Chase," Tamara says, her voice quiet and clear, "my sister, Ramona, suffers from aphasia. She's mute. We don't use American sign language to keep things from you, it's because she has no other way to communicate. When she pointed to the bandage on her leg, it wasn't to threaten you. She was asking me to tell you about the stranger that attacked us and shot her. That was yesterday."

Chase looks at Ramona for a moment, thoughtful. "Is that right?" he asks, his voice suddenly softer. "Huh. Okay, I get it. Just remember, I've got to be cautious of strangers too, right? And when you've got me outnumbered a dozen to one and half of you start giving me the evil eye, it makes me nervous. That's all."

Chris relaxed a little and said loudly "Ok we're good. I'm gonna go keep watch - ok Chase?" He smiles at Chase and gives him a thumbs up before leaving the room. Chris quickly scopes out the rooms downstairs to see what he can see in them and from their windows, before heading upstairs and doing the same. From the upstairs he tries to work out which windows give the best views around the house.

Malcolm grasped his hand firmly and shook it. Taking a deep breath, he kept a friendly. Small smile while he spoke but looked around the room to study it more. He let the others explain themselves then talked to Chase directly.

"If we all look intimidating I apologize but that's the point. With the exception of Hale here." He gestures to the elderly man. "Everyone here are the real fighters of our community. Most of us have spent long periods of time alone just like you Chase. You'll have to forgive the mean looks, as Tamara said most people shoot first and ask questions second out there."

He says, turning around. "You'll have a tough time remembering everyones names as it is. I'll let them introduce themselves on their own. I have to admit I care more about this place than anything else right now. I mean, look at it." He says, rapping his knuckles off the wall.

"A farm, a whole fucking farm and a house! And it's ours, people!" He says turning back to everyone.

"We did it, this is it, this is the first day of the rest of our lives. I can fucking see it now. We can build more shacks, is there a barn?" He says, going over to the window to check.

"Look at these wide open fields people. Think of all the space we can have for ourselves. We get this fence repaired and the kids can hang out outside, we can have real families here. A whole future, we can all settle down. We can live." He says excitedly, a small frown forms on his face and he sighs.

"We lost alot of people to get here, Chase. This has to work, for us and for them." He gestures to the three farmers. "Alright, I got questions then for my wonderful farmers. Hale, Murph and Chase. What can we do, we should clean up those bodies, we still got tools right? Fix up the fence? You tell me guys." He asked.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:42, Fri 06 Mar 2020.

"I'll come too." Riley said to Chris, following the man out of the room.

Its time to get some answers. She thought.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

"Oh, that's what you are!" Chase looks over at Hale and grins. "Gotta admit, I thought you looked out of place walking around with these commandos. No offense."

"Oh, don't you worry about that," Hale chuckles. "My commando days are behind me. No, I'm here for the farm. Been growing rice on fifty years now."

"No shit?" Chase's eyes light up. "Oh, pardon my French, just excited is all. I guess that you means you know how to do this analog-style, right? You just tell us what to do, man."

Murphy frowns, stepping away from the group as Riley walks out of the room. Matching stride with her, he taps Riley on the shoulder and whispers into her ear.

The house is a large, two-storey building with nice, if conservative decorations and furniture. There are windows on all four sides of the house, each of which provide a good view of the surrounding countryside; while the second-storey windows have a better view, the land is flat enough in every direction that even the first-storey houses still provide good visibility. The house also has an unfinished basement mostly filled with shelves of supplies such as canned food, water, and toiletries, but about half of the food and water of the water has already been consumed. In the basement, the group finds an out-of-place backpack filled with a jumble of survival gear, and in the master bedroom, they find Diana, who had apparently wandered away from the group during a conversation.

The farm does not have a barn per se; except for an empty doghouse out back, there is no indication the farm kept animals. However, there is a building filled with farming equipment, including a bulky, fire-truck red tractor.

Map: https://imgur.com/a/YxJuVaR


"Well, first thing I'm going to do is take a look at the crops," Hale says, stretching his back. "Rice is particular. We ought to know how bad the damage is."

"We should fix the fence," Chase adds. "Don't want anything sneaking up on us, you get me?"

"No," Murphy shakes his head. "Our first priority's the dead. We have to give them their due."
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:25, Sun 08 Mar 2020.

Ramona nodded at Murphy, as she was of the same opinion that rotting corpses didn't have a place in their new home. She snapped her fingers to get his attention, then slid her finger up the side of her thigh, as if she were lighting an invisible match. She tossed said invisible match away while looking at Tamara. After Ramona explained the plan to her sister, she interlocked her fingers and began to pop them in preparation.

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Tamara looks over at Ramona as she communicates her plan. Chase, too; his eyes following her finger as they traveled up her thigh before watching, without comprehension but with interest, as she signs.

Tamara looks back at Hale, Murphy, and Chase. "Ramona thinks we should cremate them. It wouldn't be safe to bury them where we're growing our food."

Murphy's eyes widen and his nose wrinkles in consternation. "Obviously we weren't going to use them for damn fertilizer! We'd put 'em in a real grave! That's only decent."

"Now hold on, I'm not even sure that's a good idea," Hale says. "We don't really know what they could put in the groundwater. And seeing as we're probably going to have to go back to well-water..."

"Yeah. Cremation." Chase nods, then looks over at Murphy. "Jed had all that diesel stocked up, didn't he? That'll burn 'em quick."

Murphy sighs, obviously nonplussed. "...yeah. It still ain't right, but...we ought to put up a marker of some sort. Taking the man's home, bringing in all sorts of...can't just let his ashes blow in the wind after that. We got to give him his dignity."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 307):

Juan shook his head. "It does not matter after we go. We gotta worry about the living, especially when corpses can make you sick in more ways than one." He says to Murphy.

Malcolm nods, listening to the others. "We'll put markers up for the whole family, that's only fair." He says.

"Hale, take Mason with you and go inspect the crops. Be careful out there, could still be a shambler with no legs or something." He looks over at Chase and studies him.

"Come with me to the shed I want to see what we're working with. We have a place back home where we can grab things like tools and shit. I'd like to know if we're missing anything. Anyone else can come too, or hell take a moment to rest and look around. You all earned it." He says, gesturing Chase to follow as he heads out of the room.

AS Chris looked round the house, he tried to make out if any rooms had been possibly occupied by the family, and left unaltered (ie not tidied). He also tried to spot any positions where he thought someone could try and hang themselves from and looked at them more closely. However, he did this in between checking regularly outside, so it was a slow process.

Riley parted ways with Chris once they were upstairs. She started checking the rooms one by one, determined to find the place where Jed supposedly ended himself. It might looking for a needle in the hay, but she certainly will try to find any sort of clue to the event that had transpired with Jed's family.

Diana draws a steadying breath and tries as unobtrusively as possible to blot her wet palms on her jeans before she walks over to Chase.

"Excuse me," she says in a bid to flag his attention. "You came to our aid, yet I hadn't even the courtesy to properly introduce myself. I am Diana."

Malcolm, Diana, Juan, Chris K, Ramona, Riley

Murphy looks over at Juan, his eyes narrowing. "So what, we take the man's home, take everything he's built, and we don't even remember his name? We can't be bothered to put up a damn marker?"

He shakes his head, looking away. "Why would I expect anything from you," he mutters to himself.


"Good," he says, nodding in relief. "I'll say a few words over his ashes. At least they'll be remembered, even after what happens. It'll have to be enough."

As instructed, Chase leads Malcolm outside, though Diana catches him before leaving the door. Diana sees Chase's eyes scan down and up her body as she introduces herself, and and for a moment, there's a hint of concern in his eyes.  Still, he smiles, and says, "Hey there, Princess Di. I'm Chase."

Malcolm spots Mason and Hale in the fields as Chase leads him outside. Both have their eyes on the ground, though probably looking for different things. Chase guides Malcolm to the large building full of farming equipment. Along with large, heavy machines whose function Malcolm can only guess at, there is a tool rack along one wall with more recognizable household tools such as hammers, wrenches, screwdrivers, and so on. There are far too many things for Malcolm to memorize the entire catalogue, if he could even name the differences between many of the tools, but whatever he or his people could need, it's probably there.

Chris K and Riley both look through the house. Virtually every room is untidy in some way, but the ground floor looks untidy in a way that looks lived-in, while the upper floors look untidy in a more chaotic and meaningless way. Though the distinction is subtle, both have lived in the post-apocalypse long enough to tell that the lower floor probably shows evidence of Chase's habitation (and lack of concern for tidiness), while the upper floors were probably disturbed by walkers and then untouched. For whatever reason, it seems as if Chase avoided spending much time upstairs, even though that's where all the beds are.

In the master bedroom, Chris K and Riley find the remains of a rope tied to a ceiling rafter. Only a few inches of rope remain, but the end looks heavily frayed, as if it was worn through slowly through repetitive movement rather than cut with a knife. A bedside table lies on its side underneath the rope, but even then, the height of the ceiling makes it unlikely that a man could drop far enough to snap his neck.

Seeing Riley around Chris finds after spotting the rope and says "Well, that rope seems to confirm Chase's story - do ya think? But whoever used it probably strangled themselves slowly" He shook his head, slowly. "Musta been pretty desperate" he added, more quietly

She regards him with cool amusement.

"Good to meet you. Let's join Malcolm outside."

She moves with a graceful economy which instinctively inspires admiration as she follows Malcolm's exit.

Malcolm frowns when he sees Diana join them. He gestures for Kale to join them too, the more the merrier at this point.

"Ah, great, you met Diana. She is my second in command I dont know if she mentioned that. Shes also our doctor, her work I can personally vouch for." He says, ending with a smile. He looks up at the second floor of the house before turning away towards the shack.

"We'll have to use one of the bedrooms as like a hospital room. Would be better than relying on dirty motel suites for our wounded." He says. "This is Kale, hes my brother." He gestures simply to him.

"I figured I'd fill you in on whatever questions you might have about us Chase. Feel free to ask, I feel about as lucky to run across a farmer as you are to run across an entire community. We got alot of different people, carpenters, artists, hunters, even a fucking dentist. We get rolling here I figure we'll be solid come winter. At least I hope. Did you have any plan before we tan into you? You're holding up pretty well for a loner all things considered man." He asks.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:53, Fri 13 Mar 2020.

Malcolm, Diana

"Did I hear that right? Your name's Kale?" Chase looks over at Kale, but Kale just looks back without any explicit response. After a moment, Chase shrugs and chuckles, "Hey, I'm not judgin', you get me? I go by Chase."

He glances up at the second floor of the house, his mouth quirking into a grimace for a moment. "Yeah...I mean, there ain't really any good spot for a hospital around here. The bedroom's as fine as anything. It just might not be all that clean, you know? Nowhere in the house is, really. Biters spent a lot of time in there before I got them out."

He snaps his fingers, brightening. "Yeah, I might as well get into that. Only reason I came to Jed's is because I knew he always had a little extra stored away. I thought maybe he'd take me in as some extra help since we had a history. I didn't expect to find him dead, but...just as good. I was just going to hang around until I finished off his food, then find somewhere else I could do the same thing. I didn't have a plan past that. You can't take care of a farm by yourself, so that wasn't on the table.

"Speaking of other people, what's the, uh...people situation in your group? Are we talking families? Couples? Loners you picked up, like me? How about that mute girl, you got a sign language community there? What's the social network looking like?"

Malcolm flicks his tongue over the tops of his teeth while he thinks, resting his hands on his hips.

"Most of the group is people who split off from another community they didnt see eye to eye with. A few bigger families, I wanna say, what like six or seven kids?" He looks over at Diana. "We'll probably give the house up to the families for now, sorry to dislodge you so quickly Chase but you understand. The kids should get a warm bed at least and the weathers nice enough for tents and cars under the stars."

"We have a couple kids who ain't got any families too, orphans. Beyond that we have loners like yourself from all over. Ramona and Tamara was from Saint Louis, Riley coming from Philly. Myself and Kale came got stuck in Mississippi when shit hit the fan, and Diana seems like she clawed her way out of some South American shithole." Malcolm takes a breath.

"Then there are many others that are..." He studies Chase intently. "Products of their enviroment. Found them in bad situations, not something they like to talk about. I will tell you this Chase since you'll figure things out on your own fast enough. These people are loyal to me, loyal to the idea, but they ain't exactly loyal to each other yet. They'll come around in time here, open up a bit, but dont expect any block parties or anything off the bat." He says.

"As for sign language we could have had a real community of them but things changed. As of right now just her and Tamara speak it. Both of them will give me private lessons soon enough and I imagine itll spread on from there."

"I should mention that all of us here are wounded in one way or another, a few of us worse than others. I trust you to be respectful and shit. What else you got for me?" He asks.

Malcolm regards her thoughtfully for a moment, and under his gaze she felt vulnerable, naked, yet at the same time oddly empowered, as though the mere fact of his regard gave her importance.



She inclines her head slightly, as though in approval.



She laughs musically. "A partial truth, at any rate," she observes. "Careful Chase, Malcolm will take you into his intrigue, and risk your life, your comfort, your security and all you hold dear." She gives him a teasing look. "I'm joking. Malcolm seldom thinks beyond the immediate benefit of the group. While this is important, I prefer to consider the greater good when I make decisions. I believe that is a leader's duty."

Diana turns back to Malcolm, her expression sanguine.

"All I ask is that you continue guide these open minds with virtue, care, and sincerity. They are all promising remnants of humanity who bear the weight of America's future upon their shoulders. I know you appreciate what an honor it is to lead them. If you can keep them going, then I will too."



Diana is silent for a moment, as though debating how to answer, and turns her gaze on Chase.

"Sadly, we have no facilities for incarcerations. Our means of justice are much more...." she makes a deliberate pause over the word, "direct. There are, of course, exceptions to the death penalty. But there will always be people so desperate that the need outweighs the release of death and renders it an ineffective deterrent. There will always be people with egos so large that any amount of danger becomes a trophy win. And with that..."

She takes a breath here, signifying the importance of her next statements. "I want to assure you that any acts of violence committed against us are the acts of a foe without reason, without honor. We never go looking for trouble, and should diplomacy fail we are prepared to defend what's ours. On that matter there can be no argument."

She flashes Chase one of her quick ebullient grins and brings up a finger to lightly brush a curly lock of hair.

"Fortunately understanding has made friends of many different people. We've had a good beginning and look forward to having a productive relationship with you. As a rule, we try to avoid discrimination based on social status or ethnicity here. But some people can be..." she clears her throat hurriedly, "insistent when it comes to matters of propriety."

Diana regards Chase with eyes that are amused and speculative, the peculiar curve of a half smile on her lips.

"Speaking of, it would be best for you to avoid improper conduct. I expect you to set a good example."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:39, Sat 14 Mar 2020.

With the others either cleaning up outside or searching the house, and Malcolm leaving with Chase to do...Malcolm things, Ramona was rudderless. Feeling as though she would get in the way of someone's job, she hung back in the living room with Tamara. The prospect of sitting around doing nothing while everyone else busied themselves nonetheless didn't sit right with Ramona, who eyed the coat closet curiously. She approached it, and, after looking inside, tested the bar where the racks hung. It seemed sturdy enough, so Ramona made room for herself and began a set of pull-ups.

Ramona hadn't worked out in about a week, but the motions still felt natural. Ten pull-ups soon became twenty, then thirty. Eventually, Ramona lost count as her mind wandered thanks to this almost meditative routine.

"I'm not sure Chris, there's a lot of birdshots here. Especially on the ground." Riley waved her hand around the room, pointing at the gunshot marks. Riley crouched down to level her head against the floor. "I don't think they were shooting at people, there's not a lot of blood."

Finally, she stood up and sighed. "I don't know, maybe he really did slowly strangled himself..." Before leaving the master room, Riley took a quick look underneath the bed.

Juan moves about the house, checking it out. He doubted he would find anything useful-but maybe something pretty for Viv? He doubted the Chase would really care, but it was worth a looked around. Plus he wanted to be near by in case Riley and Chris got into trouble.

OOC:
17:31, Today: Juan rolled 18 using 2d10+6.  Looting?
This message was last edited by the player at 21:31, Sat 14 Mar 2020.

Malcolm, Diana

Chase listens intently as Malcolm and Diana speak. Diana's words in particular have a hold on Chase, and they can visibly see trust building behind his eyes as he nods, unconsciously, at each of her sentences.

"Products of their environment," Chase finally echoes. He frowns, but nods at the same time. "Yeah. I get that, man. I've been keeping my head down, so I've avoided the worst of it, but it's rough out there."

He rubs his unshaven chin for a moment. He seems uncomfortable with what he's about to say next, but decides to go ahead with it anyway. "You or your people probably saw the biter with a bum knee and wearing a rope. If you didn't, you'd better watch out, he'll be around somewhere. Anyway, that was Jed, and for a while, I couldn't figure why. Jed ain't - weren't the type to give up. At first I thought maybe someone busted in and made him put his head in the noose, but that don't make any sense. None of his food or stuff was missing, and anyway, why would they bother? Not to mention, Jed would probably have made them shoot him just so he could die not being told what to do.

"So I got to thinking, and it came to me, his wife and daughters are out there - were out there, too. And I don't know how that happened - maybe he took in someone with a bite, or maybe they were one of the first ones that turned. I still don't know how all this started, you get me? Anyway, maybe what happened was, something happened to them. And if Jed had seen his woman and his girls go like that, even as stubborn as he was, maybe he just figured, what's the point? Right?"

He shakes his head, then shrugs. "Anyway, what I'm saying is, it's gotta be tough having a family out here. I've been alone, and that's had its own problems, but at least I only got to worry about me, you get me?"

He leans against the side of the building's doorway, looking out at the crops. Out in the fields, Hale continues to walk through the rows of plants, with Mason walking after him. It's too far to make out either's face, but Hale's attention is clearly on the plants, while Mason's alternates between their feet and the horizon.

Chase looks back at Malcolm and Diana. "Right, so back to what we were talking about. You mentioned justice and death penalties. Tell me more about that - what's happened so far? And you said some people are big on propriety, who do I got to watch out for? Also, just how many people you got in total?"

Juan, Chris K, Riley

Juan's search for something appropriate for Vivian brings him to the bedrooms on the second floor. One of the bedrooms is feminine, but clearly for someone quite young, perhaps early teens. The clothes look like they'll fit her height and build the best, but probably not her style. The next bedroom is better, fitting someone in their late teens or early twenties, but the clothes and jewelry is almost salaciously provocative, unlike the clothes Juan has seen Vivian in so far. Finally, in the master bedroom, he finds a collection of more conservative jewelry; while they may be more appropriate for a woman older than Vivian, he does spot some green-coloured pieces that would contrast nicely with her red hair.

Under the bed, Riley sees a pump-action shotgun, a half-empty box of shells, and a handful of loose shells. Both the shotgun and the box look like they were shoved under the bed hurriedly, with the loose shells spilling from the latter.

Ramona

The rack creaks when Ramona lifts herself, but holds. With no electricity, the closet is all shadow, but all of the windows are currently closed, so the summer heat is especially brutal inside of the house. Ramona doesn't even get to a half-dozen pull-ups before her skin sheens with sweat.

"Seriously?" Tamara spreads her arms wide. "You were shot yesterday. You know, sooner or later you're going to do that and tear the bar out of the wall. Again."

Malcolm sighs, listening to Diana prattle on. When he listens to Chase's question he shrugs. He isnt about to reveal what happened a few days ago.

"I dont know what shes talking about she just goes on sometimes. We dont have a justice system in place yet. As far as I know I'm gonna handle things on a case by case basis and I hope to God this isnt something that comes up soon." He glances over at Diana.

"Some of the people got an edge to them is all. As for numbers? We keep adding people every day. I dunno, thirty to forty people in all?" He looks out over the field.

"Speaking of families by the way, what can you tell me about Murph, did you know that some of a bitches whole family is still alive? Riley started out in Philly and he still got everyone. I cant believe it." He says, switching the conversation.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:04, Sun 15 Mar 2020.

When Chase finishes there is a flicker of something unpleasant in her eyes--perhaps she had not expected him to be quite so blunt--but it is gone in an instant, and replaced with an approving smile.



"Of course. Even in a group our guards have to be on high alert as well, but there aren't enough of us to keep watch on every corner. It is far from ideal to be forced to mobilize teenagers, but the gravity of the situation requires that we all bend to avoid breaking."



The doctor's eyes narrow, although her sharp chin seems to jerk a little with suppressed amusement. Her only response, however, is a disparaging sniff.



There was a slight tightening of the corners of Diana's eyes, just enough to let Malcolm know she recognizes the abrupt change of subject. But she was gracious enough--or intent enough on the purpose for which Chase had been brought here--to permit the evasion.