❣ Breaking Boundaries ❣

[Kicks]

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Washington, D.C 6pm



Tick. Tock.

Vice President Payton Meyers glanced towards the clock plastered to the wall with unease. It was getting late and he had to get home to his wife. But the president sent a message requesting a meeting with him. It had been spontaneous of his partner to request such a meeting out of nowhere and where to meet as well.
He glanced around the mall with concern written all over his face. Secret Service had suggested to let a part of the government check out the source of the message. But the VP had refused. He said all was fine. And at the time, he had believed it. For some time now Clayton had been getting more and more random. He seemed to be doing things without counsel and meeting with powers that weren't just. He had talked of the Annihilation Act just yesterday with Payton, and the VP had been shocked to hear that he was passing it nationally. He had been so opposed to it. But then out of nowhere he changed his mind.
Maybe that's why he had called this meeting. He wanted to talk about what had changed his mind. It made sense, he supposed.
But it was almost twenty minutes after he had wanted to meet. The president never ran late.
The man glanced around for the president again. But he didn't see his face anywhere. A sigh left his lips and he assumed that the man couldn't have beaten traffic. He had to get home to his wife soon. Another five minutes and he would leave.
But he never made it to five minutes. As soon as he turned to glance towards the clock again a bullet shot through the air and ripped through his skull. All he felt before he crashed to the ground dead was a sting.
There was a commotion that began to rise in the air. People rushing to get away from the dead body, others racing forward to help or see what had happened. The man that had taken the shot pulled away from the roof across from the mall. He folded his sniper back up into a square and slid it into his pocket.




Washington, D.C 7pm



Clayton stood before the thousands that had gathered at the mall. Behind him the police tape was blowing lightly in the breeze with the dying light. The body had already been taken away by ambulance. The mall had been shut down for investigation.
"Today marks a grievous day in our history." He stated softly into the microphone someone had given him. He was stood on the back of someone's truck that was now surrounded by civilians. "It was this place that our enemy has taken down a great hero. He served in the War on Iran with my wife. He knew her to the last second of her life and came back from the war with a message to my sons from her. 'Just when you think you can't, know you can!' The message is now a plaque hanging in the White House. The White House- a symbol of our nation's strength! We are mighty, we are great just as Payton was! The only difference between him and America is that while he was a mere moral that could be killed, America is a great nation that cannot be destroyed! I can see America's life in all of your faces. Al Qaeda may be able to take us down one by one, but they will never be able to take down America!" He paused and looked out at all of them. The waves of people went on for as far as he could see and then some. He could see tears glistening in the eyes of citizens and others raising their hands in salute. Other though with stag faces. None of the faces were the same. All of them strangers, but bonded together in one thing.
"I don't know why they took his life. I can make all the assumptions and guesses I want, but my best friend is not going to rise from the dead because of it, now is he? I don't know why they think they can challenge us or even hope to take us! If they can hear me now, I just want them to know that they have made a trespass on the hearts of Americans that will not be forgiven. You can take my life next, you can take my family's lives! But you can't have America!" An uproar rang through the gathered crowds. Americans raised their fists into the air, others waving guns, mini-flags, and children lifted high on their father's shoulders screaming with mighty wails. The people were ready for this to end, they all wanted to see the destruction of those who struck their homes.



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[Kicks]

Tamara raised her red eyes to the three way mirror. She knew people were behind the mirror watching her, writing things down on clipboards, studying her. But what would they find? How would they explain the vice president's death when she had been in their custody for days? A sadistic smile spread across her face as she gazed at the mirror. They wouldn't be able to explain it. It wasn't logical for someone to give orders while locked up, isolated from mankind.
Thick, heavy cuffs that encased her whole arms chained her in place. The cuffs around her legs went clear to her calves to prevent movement. That's what they had thought when they chained her in place against the reinforced wall after the chair had failed. But she was stronger than they had ever expected. She could move her limbs and knock people out with a single blow to their head when they tried to touch her. A few times they had even made the stupid attempt to try to take blood from her. But she scared them off just as easily with fangs like knives. She had bit one of them, taken off their skin and part of their muscle. It was fun to watch them freak out over that. It was fun to watch a soldier shoot the bit scientist through the head. It was fun to watch the body be carried away. But it was exceptionally fun when she heard the chaos about the vice president's death. So many were petrified, wondering how she had done it. Wondering how she had given the order to kill the vice president. But they didn't know her special gift. They just assumed she was a monster with super strength, nothing special.
With the vice president dead it left room for her right-hand man to step in and take office. But nobody knew that. If they did she would kill them. She had killed Roy, attempted to murder Jonah and when that failed had his memory wiped. She would not hesitate to murder those who got in her way to victory.
All the questions they asked her she had never given an answer for. She had made a deal with them. In exchange for her 'cooperation' they would have to kill the team that troubled her. The military hadn't given her an answer yet. After all, it was their greatest weapon she was talking about destroying.

Present Day 6 am
Base Trinity, Utah

[Lil]

Faye lied on her back wit her hands on her stomach and her eyes staring at the ceiling. This sucked. Why couldn't she sleep already? In the past two days Faye hadn't gotten more than a total of 4 hours most likely. She rolled onto her side at last and scanned the bunker to see if anyone else was awake.

[Death101]

I sit in my office at my desk and blow smoke from my cigar. "Henry!" I turn and see my long time Underboss and old friend Lucy. "We've got some forms that you need to fill out." I stare at her slowly as I push my cigar into the ash tray. "Ja, what are they for?" I state as I reach into my desk and pull out a coke o cola. "Nothing much it's for the payout for that investment in Las Paradiso." I knew what she was talking about, Las Paradiso was a new project in the Nevada sands, it was a safe house a big one that'd make a lot of cash for me. "I see bring them here." I state slowly.

[Kicks]

Blake quietly stepped out of the men's locker room inside the bunker room. He sneaked over to the suitcase that was claimed by him from Adalia. She had been generous to locate some clothes for them, and he always wondered how she managed to be on top of things when her life was probably as much of a mess as their's was. He had a towel around his waist because he had forgotten to grab some clothes when he woke up to take a shower. He had trouble sleeping that previous night because he heard a lot of commotion coming from outside the bunker. He had figured something big had went down, but never investigated it. With how their team was always brought around to the details, he figured they would be told sooner than later.
He grabbed a pair of jeans, a black t-shirt, and a red sports jacket before slipping back into the locker room. He was hoping he had been quiet enough to not wake anyone up. But it seemed as if everyone on the team were light sleepers. And why shouldn't they be? They had all survived through California. One learned a lot when they were faced with monsters and zombies twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

"She's not going to give anything away." Caitlin reasoned with the head scientist, "Tamara is a monster and she'll see to it that she can destroy whatever she can whenever she can. Even if she does happen to 'give away' the cure for this awful infection, it will more than likely cause for the opposite to happen."
The Swedish man glanced at her over his large spectacles. "So then what are you suggesting we do? If she won't give up the cure, that leaves us stuck. We've researched the infection through and through. The only thing we've come up with is a way to paralyze those blasted monsters."
"I heard of a guy researching the same deal." She stated with a soft smile, "I say we just recruit whoever we can willing to find the cure."
"A guy? We can't just take anyone off the street to help in our research." The head scientist spat back to her, "We need someone who knows science!"
"Don't worry about it." Caitlin assured him with a passive shrug of her shoulders, "I'm sure you'll have no problem with catching him up." She was turning her back on him already to go make the call when she threw another statement over her shoulder, "Oh, and maybe if you were to go to California you might find some answers. I don't think anyone on your team has even been there. Have an American give you a tour. I hear Richard's more than willing to lead an expedition."
The man pursed his lips into a straight line. "Just go make your call to whoever that guy is."

[Lil]

Something finally caught Faye's eye but it was hard to distinguish who it was. They were just an outline until she realized they had gone to Blake's bed and she made the assumption that it was Blake. Faye rolled back onto her other side and closed her eyes. She hadn't really done anything since her talk with Colton because she figured it wouldn't do anything. Anyway she approached Blake she felt like he would turn it into some sort of joke.

[Kicks]

Blake finished getting dressed. He combed through his blonde hair with his fingers only to just shake it out like a dog when he figured it was too wet to even bother. Quietly he left the locker room again and slipped towards the bunker door. He had heard somewhere that the sun was beautiful this early in the West. But he wasn't so sure, so he would have to find out for himself. He slipped out of the bunker and into the yard. He didn't have to go too far to see that the sun was already peaking and smiling across the horizon. Whatever had happened last night had died down now because although the soldiers rushing around base were hurried, it was a lot quieter than it had been.

[Lil]

Faye finally got up when it seemed Blake had left. She went into the girls bathroom with a change of clothes and took a shower in nice warm water that seemed to soothe her mind. Showers always seemed to make her feel better and made her feel as if all this stuff wasn't really happening and washed it away.

[Death101]

"God, so many forms." I state as I set the last one on the done pile. "There, take them away." I sigh as I stand up and throw my coke into the trash can. "God, there are way too many forms these days. Where did the days go where we could just relax." I sigh as I sit back down. "They ended after it broke ou-" I stare at her and she gets my point and quiets herself. "Leave me alone I need to think." I state as kindly as I can.

[Kicks]

Blake's view of the rising sun was slowly cut off by giant, dark clouds obscuring the sun. It was a sign that it was going to storm. He hadn't seen a storm since New York, and that had been practically deadly. But he figured this storm wouldn't burn their skin or zap them if the rain drops hit them. He could see a few drops of rain start to fall from the sky. They hit the ground and left gray stains. Soon the drops came down as if someone in the sky were showering the earth with a hose.
Blake stepped back towards the door to be put under the small lift of the roof. At least here the rain wouldn't get on him. It was a chilly morning but he wasn't bothered by it. He had come to believe that Utah was just a cold state that never got any better. Every state had its perks and downsides, so he wouldn't complain. Especially this early when he was trying to keep his mind clear of anything troubling. It was hard to do because it seemed he was constantly worrying over something. Tamara was on this very base, something had happened last night to upset the soldiers, and now it looked like it was going to storm. But he was also worried over what was going to happen to them next or what they were going to do next as a team.

[Kicks]

Caitlin moved silently into the office that used to be one of her colleague's. But since the incident when he was stabbed through the chest, he had been dropped as an agent. He was now staying in China where scientists were trying to do something about his memory. They were still trying to work out what he had discovered, but nobody could make sense of anything.
She picked up the phone from the desk and dialed the number she had been given. She had been told briefly by her superiors who this man was and what he was working to accomplish. They had figured that a man with that kind of money and determination could be used. After all, the best people the Americans had working to stop Tamara were just a bunch of young people they had seemingly picked off the streets.
She had an invitation for this man she was calling. Whether he chose to accept it or not was up to him. She would have to warn him of the precautions though if he did choose to accept the invitation.

[Lil]

Faye enjoyed the water washing over her skin but she didn't spend too long. Faye hated showering during storms and as could hear the low rumble of thunder echoing through the bunker. She got out and got dressed quickly before exiting into the main dorm area. It was still surprisingly dark in here so she went ahead and returned to bed where she lied sleeplessly.

[Kicks]

Blake's view of the blotted sun was gone by the time a black truck had rolled up and stopped outside the fence. He watched as Colton got out and came into the fenced area. The man looked as if he had spent last night awake. He had a coffee in hand and a folder tucked under his arm as he rushed up towards the door.
"Wait." Blake stopped him before he could go inside. "I need to ask you something important."
Colton looked at him curiously and stepped aside from the door. This was a first. Blake was normally tentative when asking the captain anything. "What is it?"
Blake awkwardly looked away from him. Maybe he shouldn't have said that or stopped the man. But he did have something important to ask. He roughly scratched the back of his head and asked in a low voice; "How did you figure out what Adalia's ring size was?"
Colton wasn't expecting Blake to go through with the question. The moment he got awkward was the moment Colton thought he would just shrug it off. But nope, the teenager went ahead and asked and the second he did Colton could literally feel the excitement growing in his chest. "What? Tell me more. Why do you want to know?" He asked quietly.
Blake drew away and shrugged his shoulders. "No reason."
"Blake, come on. I keep secrets." Colton insisted while giving his shoulder a shake, "I won't tell you if you won't tell me."
Blake glanced towards him again but he only withdrew more and more. "I said it was nothing. I was just curious."
"You're a liar is what you are." Colton whispered back to him. He was grinning though and he answered the question with: "I asked Ada's friend Courtney. They were like sisters so of course she would know everything about Adalia."
Blake's face fell at the answer. Well, that didn't help him much. "Oh." He murmured, "That's cool."
Colton laughed at Blake's disappointment. "Why don't you just ask Faye?"
Blake's face tightened. "I didn't mean anything by asking you that question." He insisted before going inside the bunker to escape further questions.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai had already left the bunker earlier that morning. He'd awoken from a nightmare he couldn't really remember... something abandonment and death and whatnot or whatever... and was right now in a normal looking house sitting across from a person who was reading something. Isaac's eyes didn't raise once to look at him ever since he was welcomed inside. Ever since they met on the park bench, Zakai had come to befriend the man through their mutual curiosity towards one another. He still didn't know the guy's exact age, but he had learned that he was here visiting a cousin who had recently been stationed here. He'd come around to make sure his cousin got settled, but also after hearing some 'interesting news', which Zakai didn't know what that was all about. This guy was a strange one in the child's mind. The pen he had was used for writing, but he hadn't made clear what exactly it was he had written. He said he'd gone out to think and had forgotten to take it out of his pocket when he stumbled upon the kid, which he referred to then as a 'dumb stray'. The guy really seemed to like downplaying the child, but there was a lot of harsh honesty in his words. He was the type to speak his mind when he had an idea about something. They'd parted ways that night after the man said he had to go home and he was just wasting time now, and that Zakai should really figure out where he wanted to live and what he wanted to eat because everything about him was just screaming 'unhealthy'. The others on the team had still not been introduced to him.
Finally, Isaac looked up, "I see you're still as strikingly fit as ever. Do you even try to sleep at night?"
Zakai had dropped his head onto the kitchen table they were sitting at, "Sometimes."
Isaac nodded, "You'll never grow any taller." "Shut up."

[Death101]

As the phone rings I reach over and pick it up. "Hello, this is Henry Schinder, how can I help you?" I ask slowly. I am still some what worn out from everything that's gone on in recent few months coming home and getting everything ready for my big project in Las Pardiso and then everything else. I am a bit well intrested in who is calling.

[Kicks]

The Irish woman waited patiently for the phone to pick up on the other end. She stared at the screens that overlooked the entire compound. People were bustling around, hurried by the events of yesterday. By the time the phone had picked up she watched someone run into another person and send papers flying everywhere. Before she had time to laugh about it she heard the man she had been wanting to talk to answer the phone.
Caitlin straightened up in the chair and waited until he was finished talking to state who she was and why she was calling. "Hello there, Harry!" Or was it Henry? She shrugged it off and continued, "This is Sergeant Caitlin with the British Armed Forces. I was told you're a man looking for a cure to the disaster that has struck."

[Lil]

"I'm so hungry." Faye moaned out not expecting anyone to head. They had all seemed to have fallen asleep, which was a blessing. But it also sucked cause Colton wasn't here and she was really hungry. He obviously knew his way around this place or brought then food so he was a valuable resource.

[Death101]

"Perhaps, what does it have to do with the BAF, calling me?" I ask slowly. I needed to be careful. I knew that word had gotten around but wasn't sure how far. I slowly go into my desk and get another Cigar. "What is it that the BAF wants with me?" I ask as I light my cigar.

[Kicks]

When Blake came into the bunker, Colton kept the door open and leaned against the wet frame like he had done before. Sure it was raining outside and it was warmer inside, but he wasn't going to step inside. Bunkers hit a little too close to home for him.
"So I have some news." Colton shouted to the ones that were inside the bunker. His eyes found the sleeping redhead, then Faye, and landed back on Blake. But Zakai was missing and Carson wasn't with them any longer. He waited until ArraBella was somewhat awake to continue talking, "The first of which is that the vice president was murdered last night. Nobody can make sense of why except as a move to strike fear into the hearts of Americans. But I think there's more. Moving on though, I was called into a meeting at... was it three? I think it was three this morning. Tamara wants our lives in exchange for her cooperation. Don't get depressed or riled up over that because my superiors told me there was no way in hell they're going to kill us. BUT, they do have an assignment for us. It's about the murder of the vice president. We have to go to Washington, D.C and investigate the murder. I won't fill you in on what's in this folder until we're off to D.C. I'm just telling you now that we are going to be busy and we may or may not have to put up with some angry or giddy politicians depending which ones we're talking to. More than likely though, you will all have the pleasure of seeing Dix again who was seen not more than twelve hours before the shooting with the vice president. They were having pancakes together which could suggest a friendly conversation except those two have been known for their violence towards each other. So while we're off dealing with politics and murder, the military is going to decide what to do with Tamara's deal. Because they can't kill us, but they need her cooperation. All of this is just so messy. Any questions?"

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac read for a moment longer when finally Zakai got a bit interested, "What's that? It's not a book."
"They're notes. I'm still young. Gotta keep up on my studies." Isaac answered.
"What are you studying?"
The guy looked up, "You ask a lot of questions." he studied the child, "That's an interesting hairstyle you got by the way. I might suggest choosing a different one the next time it's needed. You don't look awful, I'll admit, but it doesn't really suit you.. or your hair."
It was the truth. Zakai realized it after a while that some parts of his hair still managed to stick out a little at the ends. It wasn't a bird's nest, but the slight wave in his hair was more noticeable when it wasn't as long. It could be taken in a number of ways by onlookers.
"They said I looked like a shaggy dog... well, two of them anyway." the kid responded.
"Two members of your group said that? Are you sure you guys get along well?" "Well... not exactly group members. They were more... well..."
"I get it." Isaac quickly picked up the pace, "After that little halfbreed came into the world that everyone was so inexcusably frightened over, Daddy 'Awesome' was given a break, right? Bet you liked that. Anyway, then the Uncle 'Awesome' and Mr. Next-Presidential-King took over and decided that the group's house pet wasn't all that presentable and decided to get you groomed, right? They made the fatal mistake of leaving it up to the pet to decide for himself, didn't they? It's a common mistake people who don't really care make. You're not very well trained, so I'd imagine you annoyed the shit out of them right?"
The guy didn't even look up from his notes when he spoke. Zakai found his amazingly good guessing pretty annoying, but he also couldn't really get mad at the guy, "You seem pretty interested in the team."
"Who wouldn't be? You guys are famous after all. If you weren't such an uneducated brat, I might've sang your praises when we first met, but different people need different approaches. You're the pathetic type, so I don't need to go through the whole glorification process so that you'll answer me."

[Kicks]

"That was a bit redundant." Caitlin pointed out over the phone. She snapped her fingers. Dang, she was supposed to be polite. Hopefully nobody important had heard her say that. She checked behind her towards the door to make sure and then turned back to the phone. "Right, I'm calling you because we're looking to enlist someone with your skills. The United States and United Kingdom are already researching the virus, but we'd really appreciate to have some other brains to throw into the mix- aha zombie joke." She laughed while tapping the desk. "So how about it, buddy? You interested in becoming part of our research team?"

[Lil]

Faye raised her hand as if she were on school. "Yes. Why are they having is investigate this instead of, I don't know? The police? Detectives?" She asked while scrunching her eyebrows. This seemed out of place for them and also seemed like a job for the police or whoever investigates political stuff like this.

[Death101]

"Two things, please don't joke about that I lost a lot of good people to CL, and second off depends will I be able to work within my own reasons, I'm sure that you are aware of the ill rumors around my family." I state slowly twirling my cigar.

[Kicks]

Colton pointed to her when she raised her hand like a teacher would. When she asked her question he dropped his finger and puffed out his cheeks. "It's D.C. I don't know if you guys know a lot about D.C, but things there are a lot different than they are in the rest of the States because it is the capital."
"When are we leaving?" Blake asked when he came to his bunk and sat down.
"When they say to." Colton answered him in his way of not quite answering a question with a straight answer. "Red, do you have any questions?" He asked her while glancing towards the small redhead.
"Ah, that's sweet you called me by my nickname." She murmured into her pillow. "I think you're really warming up to us."
"I gotta admit, you guys are definitely chill in my books." Colton told her with a thumbs up, "But don't tell people I have a heart. They might expect more from me."
She laughed and shook her head at him. "Kay, it's a secret. And I only have one question and it's off the topic. What's going to happen to Carson?"
Colton's face fell when she asked about him. He had seen the teenager in the hospital after he had heart surgery and the pacemaker implanted. But he hadn't been awake when he went in. "Well, I tried to call his dad. But he wasn't answering his phone last night."
"That didn't answer my question."
"I know. Isn't it great?"
ArraBella frowned at him and shook her head to answer. "I'm hungry." She murmured at last.
"Well, do you guys want to go out for some breakfast?" Colton asked in reply while glancing at the other two. "Or I can go pick up some donuts."

[Kicks]

Caitlin moved her hand in a mocking way when he retorted to her with not making jokes about zombies. She was certainly glad nobody was there to watch her or she would have been in so much trouble. She hadn't the slightest idea of how to answer him though. "Well I know about the whole mafia thing, if that's what you mean. But I don't really have an answer for you because I'm not Head of Research. So, why don't I just hang up and you can think about this offer? Then call me back later, okay?"

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Why would you go through the trouble of glorifying people you wanted to talk to anyway?"
"It's pretty stupid, but it 's required sometimes of certain people. They exist kid. You're pretty blunt when you think your opinion needs to be heard though, so I don't expect you'd know anything about it. For example, has your opinion on me changed at all?" the man's eyes danced around the child.
"Not much. You're a strange and suspicious person who hides things that shouldn't be suspicious."
"See? Rude! You don't hold back at all! You could just say that you still find it a bit strange talking to me because you don't know all that much about me, yet you insist on throwing in your own harsh words! More than that, you're stupid. You levitate too quickly to things you don't understand due to your naive curiosity. What would've happened if I had turned out to be a raging pedophile who couldn't control his love for molesting small innocent children? You'd be pregnant because you didn't run when you woke up to find a man that you, yourself, describe as suspicious and strange."
"You're not all that different." "I'm just playing at your level." "Really?" Zakai's eyes were hard and penetrating for a child's, but they didn't have much of an effect on the man across from him.
"Nice eyes." he looked down at the notebook again, "Did you know that the vice president is dead?"
"What?" That was a weird transition.

[Lil]

"Oh my gosh. I don't care as long as it's food." Faye spoke as she hopped off her own bed. "We should also probably find Zakai!" Faye mentioned as she noticed the little one was missing from the bunker.

[Kicks]

Colton looked towards Faye with an expression of horror. "I thought you guys knew where he was at!" Oh well, it's not like they were in a large city full of creeps. If the kid got into any trouble, there were soldiers everywhere trained to help anyone in need. And they would call Colton up if they did see the kid just wandering around, probably to chew Colton out about not keeping the team on a tight leash especially with Tamara here on base. But they were young and full of energy and had been locked up with adult work, so he figured freedom was a must.
"...I thought you knew where he was." Blake admitted with an uneasy gaze. "He kind of does that a lot, I've noticed. Just slips away without telling anyone anything."
Colton put a hand to his chest and tossed his head back, "Well, let's just go get something to eat and if he isn't here when we get back I'll hunt him down."

[Lil]

"I really want some coffee too!" Faye chimed to Colton as they set off to get some food. She was hungry but also exhausted and she had become accustomed to getting her energy from coffee now. This also led Faye's mind to wonder if this place had everything an actual city or town would, like restaurants and stores. "So is this like a mini city?" She went ahead and asked Colton.

[Death101]

"I'll be down later today, give me a location?" I ask grabbing a pen and paper.

[Kicks]

Coffee was brilliant. Colton was working on his sixth cup of it now. There was still plenty left in his mug so he offered it to Faye, "Careful you might catch something." He told her while making a gesture towards his mug. When she prodded the question of the base, he nodded his head this way and that. "It's definitely something. City is... an understatement."
"What does that mean?" ArraBella asked as she followed out the door to go get food. "Does it have what a city does except more?"
"You could say that." Colton answered her with a slow nod of his head.

So he was going to meet...? That's what she hadn't expected. Caitlin turned her head towards the door again wishing suddenly that someone was there. She hadn't the slightest idea where the research team was located. "Hold up." She told him before dashing out of the room. She moved down the hall until she found the head scientist arguing with a co-worker about the dynamics of gravity. "Hey, he wants to meet up."
"Great." The man snorted with an added sigh, "Well, tell him to come to London, England. That's where the Americans are going to meet us. The research center."
Caitlin slowly nodded her head before backing up to the room again. She picked up the phone and told him: "Kay. They'll be meeting at the research center in London, England."

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Yeah. He's dead. Blown away. Killed. Probably the work of your guys' favorite devil woman. Lots of people seem to hate her nowadays. She's an interesting one. Anyway, there's been a lot of hype about it, and if you weren't on that team it would be pretty useless telling you anything on the matter, but since you are, I'll be first to give you a heads up: things are probably about the get pretty different for you and your buddies."
He still seemed pretty nonchalant about the whole thing and Zakai was getting a little nervous, "You think Tamara did it?"
"Who else? The woman's pretty slick. People like her are known for getting things done pretty quickly without actually being wherever the action takes place. The best usually are. It happens all the time, but a lot of it is underground and kept close watch over, though an entirely separate party is in charge of that. You probably know more about the details of that sort of dirty work than I do since you're in on that sort of thing. Aren't you lucky?"
Zakai wouldn't say that exactly, "But... how..." "Your terrorist got killed too, right? Only the lucky ones survive stuff like that. It's in convenience for different calculations to fall into play. A lot like those abandon buildings being blown up in the Isle of Wight. They're all components for a plan. That's where your job comes in. You're up to more than just hunting down certain criminals. If that's all they needed you for, they'd leave it in the hands of people with more experience in that field, right? That's not the sort of experience they want though, is it? Well, they probably have others in the case, but you guys must be worth something for them not to hand you over. Well, that's a theory anyway."
This man was talking in riddles. He kept bringing up things that didn't make sense.

[Lil]

"I'll take my chances." Faye said taking the cup in both hands and brining the warm liquid to her lips where she swallowed a good amount. "Thanks by the way." She smiled and held it closely as it warmed up her otherwise freezing hands

[Kicks]

Colton led them to a small diner that was heated on the inside. He opened the door up and was immediately welcomed by early morning chatter of soldiers discussing whatever their hearts desired. A few of them had children hanging off of them or sitting in their laps, trying to steal their food. Others were alone reading newspapers, watching the television, or flirting with the waitresses.
Colton didn't know if they had ever been into a place like this before, but it was pretty old fashioned despite one adjustment. He took a seat at the counter and moved his hand over a small circle. A small squared popped up in front of him that had a menu. "You just click on what you want and the cooks make it. It's then delivered by the waitresses. It also works in conjunction with your payment cards." He told them while taking out his own and showing them, "Once you make your order, place the card on the square and it rings up."

[Lil]

Faye sat down and placed her own hand over the circle and looked over the menu. Without surprise she chose chocolate chip waffles and another cup of coffee. "That's awesome." She grinned as the menu disappeared and she looked over to the others.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Is that your theory?"
"It's a theory. Never said it was mine to begin with. It's an interesting one though. We may be in a deeper scandal than just a dead vice president. Regular citizens are fine for now. It's times like these that we Americans are reminded that we have a greater purpose that no one ever cared about, which is basically to exist and say no to terrorism. It's pretty twisted actually. There's always some sort of force trying to reckon with us, and when there's not, there's some force we're reckoning with. This one just so happens to be in deeper water, and instead of just going back to their ordinary lives, citizens are starting to go back to their ordinary in fear that something actually might be threatening to them for a change, which when you think about it, it really is. Funny how these things work."
He paused for a moment to write something down before continuing, "Anyways, there's things that that Tamara lady knows about that and other stuff that everyone else just must know, and apparently the only to get it is to kill you guys. I'm surprised she doesn't just do it herself, what with her weird powers and all that are hidden from the world, but maybe there's more to you guys and her that I just don't see right now. Luckily for you, though, you're not gonna get killed and this is where your unrecorded and mysterious value comes in. Apparently, the military wants you alive even though you guys are a pretty small subgroup. Still, it makes sense considering what you've done so far, though I'm not sure how others would see it."
"What do you think about our value and the whole vice president thing?" "I haven't the slightest idea what might be going through the minds of our leaders and our enemies, but I like I said, I know plenty of theories that keep flying around. I'm just saying, conditions might be altered for you and your group. You saw what happened when humans suddenly became mutants and everyone went crazy for a while over that. That's still an issue actually. I worry for the well-being of those guys... or at least something similar to worrying."

[Kicks]

Blake moved his hand over the circle to just watch in surprise as the screen appeared. He hadn't seen anything like this before, even in the Isle of Wight where everything so high-tech. He took a look over the menu before deciding that he wasn't very hungry and just ordered some coffee. When he ran the card over it, the screen flickered off upon payment.
"-zombie!" The soldier behind them insisted to his friend, "And he just shot him without blinking! That twisted bitch laughed!"
"Really?" The man questioned him with a look of awe. "Man, she's so hot though. I'd like to have monster babies with her. Sink my claws into her if you know what I mean. She ain't the only one with a blade, eh. I'd make her scream. Tell you what, I'd be the real monster."
"You're a freak." The soldier insisted with a laugh, "But I bet it would be even freakier in bed." The two roared with laughter and slammed their fists onto the table.
ArraBella's face continuously turned green when she heard the two behind them start to talk. "That's so gross." She whispered to the menu. "... What if she hears them?"
Colton turned his eyes towards the two and then back to ArraBella. "She bit someone yesterday. They had to be shot in the head for fear the person might turn into a zombie."

[Lil]

Faye reached over to Blake after paying herself and linked her fingers through his. She waited patiently and also happened to catch the conversation between the two soldiers. "Oh my god." Faye gagged and covered her mouth for a second. "I agree with you Red. That's nasty." Faye shivered

[Kicks]

Blake glanced at Faye's hand when she linked her fingers through his own. He stared at one of her fingers for a moment, noticing how small and skinny it was. After a moment of staring, he turned his blue eyes away and towards the soldiers. Looking at them he could tell they were drunk, or at least on their way to being drunk.
"How many soldiers spike their own drinks?" He asked Colton curiously.
"Quite a few." Colton answered honestly before gasping, "Oh shoot! Faye, I am so sorry." He started laughing while taking his mug back, "Oh well. At least you didn't drink the whole thing. Won't even do anything if you didn't have a lot of it."
"Are you serious?!" ArraBella exclaimed when he took his mug back, "Are you seriously drinking spiked coffee?"
"No." Colton laughed back while shaking his head, "I can't drink alcohol after being assigned a mission- it's the rule. Or maybe I'm lying to you."

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai studied Isaac for a moment who was talking like this was nothing and normal, but he didn't trust how this guy seemed to know a lot of things that he'd never really heard before. He stared at him for a moment before crossing his arms over the table and resting his chin on them, "Do you think that a war is going to start?" "I think it'll become official. As for starting, it's already done that."
The child nodded and still stared at the guy, "Why are you telling me these theories?" "Because you're a child who is mixed in with this danger and your life will be affected by this directly, probably. If it were anyone else on your team, then whatever, they can deal with it, but you're only a child. You require extra looking after, and you're dumb enough to avoid it when you can. Who knows you're here by the way?" "No one." "Exactly!"
He wrote something else down then stared at the kid, "In a group of mutants and trained military men, you don't seem to fit in at all. Then again, you did survive San Francisco. You've got a scruffy appearance and an uncanny air about you, even though it's just a faint glow. Someone taught you how to survive and yet you still had enough childish passion to remain innocent throughout the whole thing... or at least that's how you come off. You must have had a lot of guardians take care of you, huh?"
Zakai glared at him for a second. That wasn't any of his business.
"What? You came here, didn't you? It's your fault since you have an interesting background and you insist on hanging around with someone as 'suspicious' as me." Again, Zakai knew he was probably right.

[Lil]

"I don't feel drunk." Faye mentioned to Red, "but I've never been drunk before so I can't give an experienced opinion." She shrugged and smiled. She was sure Colton hadn't actually spiked his drink and it tasted normal so she was fine. "But now I want my own coffee cause I'm still sleepy."

[Kicks]

"I've never been drunk a day in my life." Colton remarked as he glanced down at his mug, "Because I am a clean soul who does everything perfectly."
"...You were so drunk when Richard called you on the television." ArraBella stated as a matter of fact, "And even now I think you've had some alcohol. Why are you so chirpy lately?"
Colton put down his mug and turned his eyes towards her. "We captured Tamara, remember? Gosh, is it so wrong for a guy to be happy about a victory like that? Even if it is temporary, it proves we have the ability to take her down for good. And anyway, I was actually pretty pissy before I talked to Blake this morning."
Blake turned his eyes to the man when he mentioned his name. His stomach sank and he frowned. "I haven't given any reason to have brightened your day."
Colton shrugged his shoulders and moved his gaze to the waitress that came to them and put their food in front of the designated person. He watched her walk away and then turned his eyes to Faye, "You have really skinny fingers, you know that? I bet you have one of the smallest ring sizes imaginable. Gosh, you must get your jewelry out of a toy machine. I don't know how Blake's hands don't just crush you. Why are you guys holding hands anyway? I haven't seen a wedding, so hands off each other."

[Lil]

"Maybe I was wrong. Maybe that drink did have alcohol in it." Faye said as she listened and watched Colton awkwardly. He seemed to have flipped subjects so quickly and it was rather random too. Something about Tamara and something Blake had done the ring sizes and marriage. What was he thinking? Not like Blake planned on proposing to Faye any time soon.

[Kicks]

"I was only saying that because I noticed you two were holding hands and I thought it was really weird to look at because your fingers are super small." Colton told her while making a gesture towards their hands. "What size are you? Probably even smaller than Adalia, huh?"
"You're not planning to marry my girlfriend, are you?" Blake asked him sarcastically.
"Don't you know? We're in Utah. Polygamy is totally okay here." Colton told him with a snicker. "Oh I shouldn't have said that aloud. Some people hate those jokes." He dropped his voice to a whisper and glanced around, "But no, I'm not planning to marry Faye. I was just wondering how small her fingers were." He grabbed Blake's hand and compared it to his, "Well look at that, we're the same size!"
Blake drew his hand away from the captain and grabbed his coffee cup so that Colton couldn't do that again. "You're acting very off."
"Must be the alcohol." Colton remarked with a chuckle.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac sighed, "Well, anyway, I've done enough studying for now. I'm probably gonna get out of here soon. My cousin doesn't need me anymore and I gotta get a whole bunch of research done."
"Why?" "I've got a paper due. Lately it's just been one after another and with the way things are going, it gets difficult to do that sometimes."
"Are you going to go home?" "Nah. I've gotta go somewhere else first in order. Actually, I'm kind of taking it easy. I've been jumping around a lot." "To libraries?" "You could say that." "Must be some report." "Yup."
Zakai watched the man with curious interest. He really was something to marvel at. "Do you manage your time well?"
The man shrugged, "I have help. I've got an unnecessarily long string of people who want to get something out of me and another unnecessarily long string of relationships. I also have a nutritious diet and get a good amount of exercise throughout the day. You might consider doing the same thing."
Zakai gave the man an annoyed look and then looked away. Isaac sighed, "Are you going to hang around here all day?" "Maybe. I've got nothing better to do." "A kid like you needs a leash. I'm gonna go outside and see if I can't find something that can interest me for more than two seconds, unlike you."
Zakai jumped up from the table, "Can I come?" "Suit yourself. I give up on trying to shake you off."

[Lil]

"I mean, I don't know. A five or a six I guess?" Faye answered but she still felt weird. "Maybe it's just the caffeine because you are a lot more hyper than usual." She said and shook her head before turning to her cup of coffee. She released Blake's hand and wrapped both of hers around her mug and took a sip, letting the warm liquid warm her up even more.

[Kicks]

"Five or a six. Wow, that's really something." Colton told her in an amazed gasp, "Here that, Blake? Your girlfriend's fingers are teeny! I'd say five and a half. Ya know, that way if you do ever buy a ring, Faye, you'll have enough room to grow but it'll still stay on."
"How much coffee have you had?" Blake asked him curiously when he started talking more and more about ring size.
"Seventh!" Colton announced loudly while slapping his hand down beside his new cup of coffee, "Seventy two hours no sleep, and a total of twenty six cups of coffee. I am so ready to kill Tamara." He added the last part chirpily, "She never sleeps. Did you guys know that? She either never sleeps or she's very determined to stay awake while in custody."
"So you've been staying awake... because of her?" ArraBella slowly asked, "That doesn't make sense. You're a hypocrite. You tell us to get good sleep and then you go off on all nighters!"
"It's my job." Colton told her with an eye roll, "There are four soldiers in charge of keeping watch over her that way she doesn't escape. My shift is night shift- except now Jerry is stepping in for me because of this new assignment. And when I wasn't watching her at night- freakiest thing ever by the way. It's like she can see through the 3-way mirror. Anyways, when I wasn't working the night shift, I was talking to my superiors or Richard. He's taking a research team to California and he hasn't been there for awhile so he's having me fill him in. I wasn't supposed to let that slip but oh well. Gosh dang those waffles smell great." He sighed when he glanced towards Faye's waffles. "I hope you eat those all the time and get some fat on you. You and your small, skinny fingers.
He can talk as much as Clayton. Blake thought to himself with a shake of his head. He was glad Richard couldn't yell that much. "When are the elections?"
"Two days." Colton told him while sticking up two fingers, "Dos. Why aren't you eating anything? Coffee doesn't replace food."
"Not hungry." Blake answered with a shrug, "Are we taking a helicopter to the capital?" He asked hesitantly. He was really hoping they weren't flying again. But really, how many choices did they have?
"Subway!" Colton announced with a snap of his fingers, "It's not as fast but the airways are packed. Can't tell you why but they are."

[Death101]

"Alright, I'll meet you by the Lodon eye then." I hang up then go to pack and two hours later I'm standing beneath the Lodon eye waiting for her.

[Kicks]

Caitlin left the office with the intent to go to London. She hadn't the faintest idea what the London eye was because she was from Ireland. But her friend from America would know with all the times he had been to London. She went with him and another scientist to London, England where she was told that the London Eye was a giant ferris wheel. And it was indeed when she took first look at it. The whole place was crowded so she didn't know how she was supposed to find the man she had called, especially since they had never met each other before.
"We should have brought a sign." Richard commented after a long while of just standing beneath the eye. "How does this guy expect us to know which stranger he is? He's really stupid. We should just leave."
"Stop being so pessimistic." She replied back with a slap to his arm, "And anyway, we're bound to bump into him at some point."
"I say we take a ride." Richard remarked while making a gesture towards the wheel of 'doom' (what he liked to call it).
"We can inform him of everything on the ride." Caitlin suggested, "Because we still have to find him, ya know. And I don't think being up there is going to help us any."
Richard let out a snort and shook his head back at her.

[Lil]

"Colton. Shut up." Faye finally said as she cut into her waffles and ate a bite, syrup free of course. It was entertaining and all but this guy really knew how to ramble. "You sure you don't want any of these?" Faye asked Blake as she motioned to the waffles. "They're really delicious!"

[Kicks]

Colton gasped when he was told to shut up. But it only opened his mouth for eating so he had no problem with doing what she said.
Blake glanced towards her waffles and shook his head. "No it's fine." He told her while grasping his cup with both hands. "Besides you really need to gain some weight."

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac walked out the door with his small companion trailing behind him, wondering how dumb a kid had to be to get so attached to a stranger he met and didn't even know anything about and not even question how said stranger knew so much about him. Then again, these were all qualities of a common stray, he supposed. This kid was so obviously an orphan, it was almost sad... and most definitely pathetic.
"Did you eat anything before you snuck over to my cousin's place?" "No, and I didn't sneak over. I just went."
The young man rolled his eyes at that response. No one knew the child's whereabouts in his little family-like team circle. That was sneaking. This kid needed a leash or something probably. He was going to get himself kidnapped or something one day! "Well, I'm hungry. Why don't we get something to eat? Something healthy and nutritious since you have such a vile diet... like ice cream." "That doesn't sound nutritious." "Yeah, but I decided I want some, so I'm going to disregard your bad eating habits for now. Besides, eating something like this is better than eating nothing at all."
Zakai followed along without objection. Isaac seemed nice enough even though he still didn't entirely trust him. Still, the man held his impression that he wasn't the sort to inflict physical harm to others, so the kid decided it was okay to go along with it. He reminded him of someone from the past, so he was pretty sure he was safe. They ended up at some convenience store-like place that had a small parlor inside of it. Zakai got cookie dough flavored and Isaac got pistachio, and the two were out strolling the streets soon enough again.
"You look like an adult, but you're really young aren't you?" Zakai asked, staring up at the man as they walked.
"I'm pretty new to the title of 'adult' I'll admit, but I've been on my own for a while now." "Are your parents dead too?" "No, but there were a lot of family issues and stuff and I eventually branched off. No one really seemed to care about anyone else, so I don't think I emotionally scarred anyone."

[Lil]

"Yeah, but you won't still love me when I'm fat!" Faye frowned before eating another piece of her waffle, her eyes still looking over Blake. She only kid though, she doubted that a few waffles was going to fatten her up and soon enough she'd probably barely be eating again. That always seemed to happen when they were on really important missions. She never had time to eat, or forgot to and sometimes didn't even want to.

[Death101]

I over hear two people taking. "Who are you looming for?" I ask as I fix my tie. "I might be able to help, the Shincder family is fairly good at finding people." I smile with just a taint of mayhem in it.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai nodded, "So that's how it is."
Isaac started laughing, which surprised the child, "No. That' not how it is. That would never work anyway. I'm just kidding. The real deal is I became interested in a certain field when I was younger and started to pursue it vigorously. I stayed up with my studies in school thanks to a certain teacher of mine, and when people looking to hire saw that I was willing to get down and dirty for work, I just sort of built myself a base to keep me standing and was able to support myself. When it came time to leave the nest and go off, I already had a ridiculously large supply of connections that would help me out. I'm still constantly studying things though, and these endless assignments I'm given are getting a bit hard to handle."
Zakai stared at the man then looked at the sidewalk, "What's your job?"
Isaac had already gotten to the cone of his ice cream, "A writer. What about you kid? What's it like being and American celebrity?"
Zakai thought, "It's different." "How so?"

[Kicks]

Blake shook his head at her when she mentioned getting fat. "Just more of you to love." He told her while placing his cup back down on the table. Frankly he didn't love her for her looks they were just the cherry on top. Besides it was his job to love her, not judge her.

[Lil]

Faye pecked a kiss to his cheek softly. "You're too sweet." She smiled before picking up her own coffee and taking a sip. He did always know how to make her smile with things like that and she found it adorable. She didn't imagine herself getting fat though, she was already growing full from eating about 3/4's of her waffle it was so good she didn't want to waste it though.

[Kicks]

Caitlin turned her eyes on the man that had approached them. Before Richard could ger up in his grill she placed her hand on chest to shove the soldier back. She recognized his accent from the phone and he had said his last name. "Harold!" She exclaimed. Henry? Harry? Whichever. "We were looking for you! Won't you take a ride on the ferris wheel with us?"

[Death101]

"I suppose it won't harm anything." I state nodding to her. "It's Henry, not Harlord or Harry." I state a little mad that she's goofed up my name twice.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"We move around a lot. I don't really have a set home... it's just... everywhere. I get nervous a lot."
Isaac nodded, "Why?" "Because... well... because. Things get weird and there's a lot of stuff to do and... and..."
"Alright, calm down. Eat your ice cream. It's melting." Zakai started eating his ice cream, "Anyway kid, yeah. I get it. You get nervous. You've been through a lot and now you've fallen behind, right? It happens sometimes. If you were an adult, I'd tell you to get your path set straight and stick to it. You'll do fine, but you're a kid. You don't know how to be independent yet, and you shouldn't be, so that's fine. You're still a kid. You've got people to take care of you, but you need a family right? For hugs and cuddles and stuff like that. You missed three years of it. Do you have someone in mind?"
Zakai didn't answer. "Yup." Isaac continued, "You're easy to read."

[Kicks]

Blake blinked in surprise when she pecked his cheek. He raised his hand to his face and thoughtfully scratched that spot. When he ran his hand over it he could feel the stubble and wondered if it tickled her to kiss his face. He glanced over to the captain and noticed that he too had some stubble probably from being too busy to shave.
"Huh." Blake murmured when he pulled his eyes away. He wasn't the only thoughtful person sitting at the counter though. By the looks of it Colton's mind was going a million miles per hour.
When ArraBella was done eating her eggs and toast she stole her cousin's coffee. Her dad used to tell her she wasn't allowed to drink it til she was eighteen. But he was dead now and she was thirsty.
"Definitely military training." Colton murmured, "A shot from the roof of that building would have required military grade caliber. Probably a sniper. Silent. So then who sent the message to the vice president claiming to be my dad? And why hadn't he allowed Secret Service to trace the message before going out? This must be a huge part in Tamara's game. There has to be more than just striking fear into Americans with his death. What I really don't understand is why Tamara gives people so many chances. A normal terrorist would just take what they wanted. She though... she... I think she likes to watch people. I think she likes to try to understand people."
"Because she isn't human." ArraBella snorted, "She's pathetic. She gets off on watching pain and agony. Just a monster."
Colton shrugged his shoulders back at the redhead. "Or maybe there is a part of her that misses being human. So she tries to see what humanity is. It's an abstract thought though. She's pretty vicious. Anyways I also don't understand what she's waiting for. She has the ability to escape and kill. So why is she waiting?"
"Maybe it's that chance thing you were talking about." Blake suggested quietly, "Maybe it's her way of giving the military a chance to kill us."
"Or us a chance to stop stopping her." ArraBella added with a frown. "Or she's waiting to kill. Maybe she needs to be here for a reason. What if something is here that she needs?"
Colton's face fell at the red head's suggestion. He felt his stomach twist. "I need to tell them to move the hallucinogen to Europe. We also have extensive research here... we have zombies here locked up underground... Oh my heavens. We're the only access anyone has to California." He suddenly felt so sick to his stomach he could puke. "They need to move Tamara."

[Kicks]

Caitlin opened his mouth with a silent laugh and glanced towards Richard. "He said Harlord." She whispered to him while beginning to quietly laugh. "Oh, Harlord and I are going to be great buddies. I can just tell."
Richard tried to keep a straight face when she started cracking up. But it was just so hard to keep it straight. He shook his head at her when a smile began to slip up. "Come on Harlord and Caity, the wheel ain't going to wait forever." He pointed out when he started towards the next empty available seat.

[Lil]

"I don't know why they've been keeping her here in the first place. It always seemed like a poor decision to me. She has access to so much here and it's like they don't see it." Faye said plainly and shrugged. She finished up the last of her waffles that she could and finished off her cup of coffee. "So after we find Zakai, we leave?" Faye asked looking over to the thoughtful soldier and dropping her hand to Blake's and linking their fingers again.

[Kicks]

Colton looked over at her briefly and then back away again. "Something like that." He murmured back. "We should head back to the bunker and see if he's there. It's about mid morning now so if he ain't back, I'm going to go to Head of Communications and have a perimeter check." With the thought of Tamara having access to everything, he didn't like the idea that Zakai was walking around especially with her on the base. The perimeter check was just soldiers keeping an eye out for the person in question. The first soldier to spot the person in question called it in and the one who requested the check was informed so they could go get the person in question.
He stood up from the counter with his mug in hand and made for the door. He was all up for Zakai having the freedom to do what he wanted and not being stuck somewhere like he was at the hospital, but now Colton's nerves were jumping around and his anxiety levels had shot up. Before he was relaxed about the kid missing, now though he felt a sort of panic raise in his chest.
Blake stood up from the counter as well with Faye's hand still linked in his. Colton had been right about her having small hands and fingers. But the man was so obnoxious in getting Faye's ring size that Blake couldn't help but feel a tinge of annoyance. He knew he hadn't verbally said anything, but the captain was supposed to keep that conversation private between them; even though the man hadn't said anything directly about their conversation it still bugged Blake.
"I'll meet you guys at the bunker." ArraBella told them airily when she left through the door, "Might as well go see Carson before we leave. I mean the guy practically praises my entire existence after all."

[Lil]

"Don't get too crazy." Faye chirped after Red with a wink before walking after the others towards the bunkers. She also hoped Zakai was back. She was worried about the kid and hoped that he hadn't fallen asleep in the middle of nowhere. It was apparent last night that he had been exhausted but couldn't sleep and Faye knew that sooner or later the exhaustion would overtake him. He had mentioned something about wanting to see stars though so maybe he had gone to check them out. She figured he would've returned by now though, it was the day so no stars were out any longer. "I'm sure he's alright." Faye mentioned to Colton trying to ease any wild thoughts of worry or concern.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai didn't answer again. What was he supposed to do about this? Faye said it was alright to just ask Colton. Even he knew it would be better in the end but...
"You don't want to be a nuisance, is that it? You don't want to get in the way of something that is already there for the other person and you're afraid you'll do something to upset the balance of whatever it is you're trying to protect right now. You're also afraid of losing someone you care about. Okay, yeah, those are the normal fears that all get in the way of people who have to face things like this. There's another problem though, isn't there? If you do this, you'll have to accept the fact that your real family is gone, right? That's the bond you're used to and that's the bond you're leaving behind."
Zakai ceased eating his ice cream. He glared at Isaac, "That's none of your business! Stop figuring things out and talking about them! I know what the problem is, so just shut up! I'm working on it!"
The guy watched the kid go into a speil of yelling and just stared at him with a blank face before pointing to his ice cream cone, "It's melting again." The kid looked down and saw that it was starting to dribble onto the sidewalk, then rushed to stop it, "Calm down child, and stop worrying so much. Your parents wouldn't want you to be sad, right? You're making yourself miserable."

[Kicks]

Blake watched his cousin dash off in a hurry- probably so that she would make it in time to leave while having a substantial amount of time to pester Carson. He turned his eyes back to the path in front of him and he realized that the bunker wasn't all that far, maybe a block.
Colton glanced at Faye and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not worried." Liar. He was a terrible liar and he knew it. But he had grown up under Christian doctrine so being good at lying wasn't ever expected from him. Richard was great at lying because he could confuse people. He could be telling the truth about something but give a different facial expression suggesting otherwise. "Okay, so maybe a little bit." He added after they had reached the bunker. "But I know that soldiers are everywhere so if he does get into any trouble..." He trailed off while taking a look inside the bunker. His face fell and he pulled away from the door. "He's not here."
Blake glanced at the captain's fallen face when he noticed that Zakai wasn't back yet. "Maybe he's just having breakfast somewhere."
"Or he got lost." Colton remarked with a frown, "It's a big base. He could be anywhere." He grabbed a cellphone from his pocket and flipped it open, "Just stop worrying, guys. Sheeshk. What a bunch of worry warts." He remarked while moving towards the fence as he dialed a number.

[Lil]

"Because were the ones worrying." Faye added as she went back inside the bunker and flopped down on the nearest bed. "Those waffles were delicious!" She said and looked up at Blake. "You totally should've tried them." The blonde girl said before running her fingers through her almost completely dry hair. Faye looked forward to leaving Utah to go back to DC but it also brought up the memory of her seeing her father there and the amount of shock and grief that had caused. How was he still even alive? She shoved the thought from her head, what were the odds he was still even there. Anyways, she wanted out of here because it was too cold for her liking.

[Kicks]

"Well I'm glad you liked them." Blake remarked as soon as she made her opinion on the waffles abundantly clear. Was it just him, or did she seem to really like waffles? He shrugged it off and went to his mat where he found the suitcase and zipped it up. When it was all set for travel he went back to the bunk she was flopped down on and sat beside her. For a moment she looked troubled by something, but she seemed to have pushed it away as quick as she thought it.

[Lil]

Faye rolled her head over and looked at Blake. "What's your favorite color?" The girl asked pretty much out of the blue but she couldn't remember if she had ever asked him or if he had ever told her. She just felt like that was a simple thing she should know about Blake.

[Death101]

"I said its Henry!" I yell softly at them as we walk towards the Lodon Eye. I suppose even now I'm still like a little kid. Even so they can get my name right Atleast!

[Kicks]

Blake reached over and began to stroke her pretty blonde hair. He always admired how soft it was even if she didn't shower for days, like in California. Or New York. He continued to stroke her hair as she asked him about his favorite color. For a moment he was stuck. He hadn't thought about those kinds of things in a long time. They had seemed like something he didn't need to know about himself while stuck with surviving in California. But now he realized its significance. It was these little things about a person that made them, in a way, human. Even though they weren't.
"Blue." He told her after a short pause. "And your's?"

[Lil]

Faye smiled. "I like blue too. Or green. They're both nice." She nodded and closed her eyes while he gently ran his fingers through her hair. "What about animal? What's your favorite animal?" Faye asked. They didn't have much else to do right now and these were things that genuinely interested her about him.

[Kicks]

Richard waited for Caitlin to slide onto the seat before he did. He wanted to make sure he was separating her from Harlord because he had seen the man's glint of mayhem when he mentioned his family and their method of finding people. He sat down next to Caitlin with his arms folded over his chest.
The Irish woman peered over the muscular bulk of a man that was the soldier and glanced towards Harlord. "Come now. We shall discuss business on the ride." She told him while reaching over Richard's lap and patting the spot beside him.

- - - Updated - - -

That was something Blake would have to keep in mind. He shut his eyes and absently continued to stroke her hair when she fired off her next question. His favorite animal? That was easy, "I really like cats. And you really like dogs. We're going to have an interesting life together, you know that?" He had heard before that many people were able to get their cats and dogs to get along. So maybe they could get a cat and a dog to get along as well.

[Lil]

Faye smirked. "Life together, hmmm." She cooed but before giving much time to reply she asked another question: "Favorite food?" She figured she already knew the answer to this- fish- but she wanted to be sure of it.

[Kicks]

Blake realized his slip and opened his eyes the moment she repeated what she said. But she moved on just as quickly and asked another question to which he responded with: "Fish." But he was still hung up on what he said. He hadn't actually meant to say that. He wasn't even thinking at the time he had said it. He was tired and lost in the moment of playing with her soft hair and as a result he spoke his mind.

[Death101]

I sat across from them. "Speak, I'm listening." I state slowly I have a gun but it's for emrgancy. "I assume this is because the goverment can't take public funding to cure, or wipe out the virus right?" I ask starting straight at the women.

[Kicks]

Caitlin nodded her head when the ride began to move. "Pretty much." She told him honestly, "Some people would think that was 'stealing'. Idiots. We're saving humanity here, not feeding the zombies." She moved on quickly though from sarcasm back to the matter at hand, "So instead we're reaching out to people with interest and determination to find the cure. We have a team of researchers each with the same goal and that's to find the cure. The leader in our research is someone who's been through California and back. He's studied the mutation and infection more than anyone else has and is looking for people like you. He's very impressed with how determined you are to find the cure and is offering for you to join the research project. He thinks we could use your brain."

[Lil]

"Of course" Faye said with almost a laugh. "I like waffles by the way." She said but it was probably obvious considering she had asked for waffles so much lately. "Okay, what's your all time favorite movie!" Faye asked as if it were an extremely dramatic thing to ask, this was a hard one in her mind. There were so many amazing movies. Unlike Blake, Faye didn't stay caught up on the rest of their lives thing, to her she didn't actually think he had meant the rest of their lives and if he had she didn't think of it as a super big thing right now, which was odd because usually she would've been more shocked. Faye had always been the one to question whether they would be together forever but now she just assumed Blake didn't mean it like that.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac sighed, "Anyways, I'll change the subject. I don't want you to start crying all over me."
Zakai calmed down and stopped the ice cream from getting all over the place. Isaac had already started walking away and he jogged to catch up.
"In changing the subject, I'd like to ask you," said the man, taking up conversation again, "Why are following me around?"
"The group wasn't doing anything and I had a nightmare and didn't want to wake anyone up, so I decided to go to your house. You live right across from the bench so it wasn't hard to find you. I just needed somewhere to get away from that bunker. Anyone who lived anywhere else would have done really." "I feel so used."
Zakai shrugged and kept trotting along. Isaac continued studying the child.

[Kicks]

"I have a lot of favorites. I can't just choose one." Blake told her quietly. It was easy for him to comprehend things better when people put it into movie quotes or references. Growing up he had watched more than his share of movies. New and old movies alike he had seen, and he normally liked the older ones. The older the better was how he saw it, mainly because he was interested in the graphics and the technology they had used to film the movies. If there was one thing he was passionate about, it was movies.
Outside, Colton sighed into the phone when it rang again to give him a heads up. "Really? That's great news. I was scared that Tamara had some kind of minion running around or something... It's totally logical! Don't doubt my logic! It makes complete sense... I am not. Anyone with a brain would be worried about a kid running off like that... How is that irresponsible? Are you suggesting to me that I should keep them all on a leash?" He asked while he began to walk in the direction they had told them where he could find Zakai. "He's just a child. Children have a natural sense for curiosity. He probably just wanted to see the base... Okay, you're rude so I'm just going to hang up on you." He told the phone before pressing the end call button. It was right in time too for not too far of a ways down the block did he spot Zakai.
But the kid wasn't alone. He was with a man older than the child was. Why was Zakai talking to strangers? Didn't he know the potential threat in that? This wasn't California where if you ran into a stranger you paired up with them for survival. This was the real world where pedophiles existed.
Colton moved quickly down the block towards the two. He shouldn't be freaking out over this. He needed to stay composed. There was a logical explanation to... this... they had ice cream. Zakai was with a stranger and they were eating ice cream. This was exactly the kind of thing his father had told him growing up to avoid. Strangers with ice cream were bad.
"Alright, punk." Colton began when he had reached the two, a finger pointed directly at Isaac, "I haven't seen your face around here. You some kind of perv? What are you doing with a child and ice cream?"

[Lil]

"I couldn't agree more." Faye said in response to Blake's answer. How do people choose just one single movie to love? "Alright, well I don't really no what else to ask..." She said her tone slowly becoming quieter until she finally peeked her eyes open and looked up at Blake. Her hand rose up to where she brushed some of his hair from his eyes and smiled. It was shorter now but it still seemed to linger across his forehead and near his eyes.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac looked at the man, undeterred by his sudden finger pointing. He just stared at him with a straight face, "I'm a raging pedophile. The ice cream he is currently eating is drugged, and at any second he will drop to the floor, at which I would have taken him back to my lair and dealt with him as I pleased if you hadn't so rudely interrupted my horrendously perverted plan." he crossed his arms, "I'm kidding by the way. So you're responsible for this pup, right? If you care about him so much, you might want to consider keeping a better eye on him, and for your information, he is tailing me, not the other way around. As for the ice cream, I wanted some and decided to offer a kind charity to him. It would be rude to turn away a scrawny orphan, after all."
Zakai looked up at Colton and wasn't really sure what to do in this situation. Colton didn't look too happy and Isaac didn't look all that happy either, but he seemed to be handling himself... he wasn't really sure how he was handling himself. That response could be taken a number of ways.

[Kicks]

For a moment Blake wished he could pause everything right there. He wanted to linger there because at the moment she wasn't mad at him for something he had said or refused to say. Because at this time his brain wasn't worrying over something. Because at this time it seemed that the constant sadness that always followed him like a black pit growing in his heart was filled briefly by Faye. But he knew there was no pausing time and that in another few seconds this serendipity would end and he would plummet back down to the darker part of him that consistently reminded him they weren't human and would never again be.

[Lil]

Seeing something in Blake's face make him look completely relaxed and happy in the moment made Faye smile. She grabbed him by the arm and pulled him down so he was lying next to her. She hugged her arms around him and closed her eyes for a moment before releasing him and rolling onto her back and staring at the bed above them. She didn't say anything because Faye felt as if words weren't needed for the moment. It was defined perfectly by itself.

[Kicks]

The first thought Colton had was to punch this guy in the face for how straight out he had made mention of being a pedophile. But soon enough he was blabbering about how that was a joke and then how Zakai was tailing him. But he also made mention to a few things that an ordinary person shouldn't know. Like the fact that Zakai was an orphan or that Colton should have been watching him. The man also did make a valid point. Zakai was indeed quite scrawny. Scrawny and short. But Colton's mind flipped right back to the fact that Zakai was tailing this guy around.
"He's a stranger!" Colton exclaimed to Zakai while making a motion towards Isaac. "Just because you think someone is good or seems to be no threat, doesn't mean they aren't! This guy could be a murderer, some kind of criminal, a pedophile, or a terrorist for all you know." Though Colton was sure he wasn't, he was just trying to get a point across. He had been worried that the kid had been kidnapped or that Tamara would send one of her minions to destroy him, or that he had been lured in by a pedophile. But it turns out he was just following around some stranger. "No offense to him and nothing implied, but Zakai you can't just..." He trailed off desperately and dropped his hands back down to his sides. "The number one rule growing up is to not to talk to strangers." He finished after a long moment. "Speaking of strangers, why didn't you just drop him off at the information building? They could have called someone to come get him- like me. It's kind of suspicious having a guy just let a kid follow him around all morning."

[Kicks]

Blake's moment ended with shock when she suddenly pulled him down beside him. This wasn't new. They had fallen asleep in each other's arms more than once together. But the fact that she had pulled him down was new. He ended up on his back with her arms around him briefly before she pulled away and rolled back onto her back. She could be very spontaneous, he had come to find. Just like her emotions, it was always a surprise.

[Lil]

"I wonder of Colton found Zakai." Faye ended up saying after a few moments in silence. She often found herself worrying about that kid more than not and this was one of those times, but she also knew she didn't worry half as much as Colton. "I wonder if Colton and Ada will adopt the poor boy! He clearly wants them too and they totally love him."

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai lowered his head a bit in shame, andIsaac gave out a long drawn out sigh as Colton continued with the whole interrogation, "Of geez, give me a break. Look, this kid fell asleep on bench that was out in the freaking open. Am I just supposed to pick up a sleeping child and carry them to the information booth of an army base? Do you know how much negative attention that would draw? He seems to know his way around fine, anyway. He's not lost or anything. I didn't hurt him. I made sure he didn't get hurt, actually, which is what you should have been doing in the first place."
Again, Zakai didn't know what to do. They didn't seem to like each other, and it was his fault.

[Kicks]

Blake couldn't imagine the captain not finding Zakai. It would drive the man insane if he had lost the kid judging by how worried he had been over the fact that Zakai was missing for just a few hours of the morning. He often found himself wondering why Adalia and Colton didn't just start the adoption process. The only thing that Blake could think of was that neither Colton nor Zakai had even discussed it with each other for real.
"If they don't hurry up and adopt them I will set Tamara loose on them." Blake stated at last. That was a terrible joking threat to make, he knew. But he was being serious. How long could a kid possibly go without a family?

[Kicks]

"Well, it's not like I knew about the whole sleeping on a bench thing." Colton pointed out sarcastically. And what?! Zakai was falling asleep in weird places again. Anyone could have walked up on him and kidnapped him. Anyone could have done anything to the child if this stranger hadn't come along. Colton did owe Isaac though. He frowned down at the child and then looked back up to Isaac, "But... thanks... you know, for the whole bench thing." This whole circumstance only led Colton to believe that from this point on Zakai would no longer be left alone. Or at least without a cellphone, or something to let Colton or someone else know that he was safe and where he was. He was putting himself at risk and Colton doubted he even knew it. He had a child-like view of things and probably didn't even think about the true evils out there that weren't just Tamara and terrorists.

[Lil]

Faye nodded. "I know! But they're both probably too scared to talk about it. Which sucks because the other would definitely agree." She frowned and bit the inside of her cheek. "I don't know. I guess that's up to them." She shrugged.

[Kicks]

"We should stick them in a room and force them to talk about it." Blake commented after awhile of thinking of some kind of solution. Were they both afraid of something? He didn't know what it was either of them would be afraid about. To him it was pretty obvious they both wanted each other as family, so might as well seal the deal. He was pretty certain that Adalia above all else would be more than happy to get that process going. She just seemed to adore the child altogether.

[Death101]

"Our goals, they are very diffrent." I state slowly and simply. "The goverment finds a cure then it shall give it away on health care and in community out reach. The money I could make on a cure. Not just legally with smaller companies, but the price it would go for on the Other market. I'd be set for life." I think slowly. "I'll cut you a deal." I think slowly. "I want no secrets kept between us." I state slowly. "The virus ravaged my CL operations and took a lot of my money. I want to know that if a cure is found that I'll be able to sell it off the shevlves at Schnider family RX stores." I state slowly.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac sighed again, but this time it wasn't annoyed or exasperated, "It's fine. Kids do dumb things sometimes, so it's not that big of a deal. Just make sure you teach him about the dangers of the outside world and he'll be okay." He turned to Zakai, "And don't trail anymore strangers from now on, okay? This guy's right to worry."
Zakai nodded in response to both of them and looked down, not even wanting to finish the ice cream anymore because... well, apparently ice cream was suspicious. He felt stupid, but he didn't even know why or what he'd done wrong exactly. They both seemed to know a lot though on the matter.

[Lil]

"That sounds like a perfect plan." Faye agreed but was clearly joking. She rolled over onto her side and looked at Blake. "Then we could stick Red and Carson in there and see what would happen!" Faye smiled.

[Kicks]

"Greedy-" Richard began in a low growl. But Caitlin cut him off by sliding a hand over his mouth.
"Deal." She told the man in a friendly way, "Sure, you could sell it at those RX stores. But when and if the cure is found, it won't only be available for you to sell only. America and UK will have the cure readily and freely available to immunize the infected such as in California and New York."
"And if the cure does cure the mutation, mutants infected will be given it by their local health provider by their choice." Richard added after pushing away Caitlin's hand. He knew from the very beginning that his brother was strongly against having the mutation or ever getting it. But now that he was infected, he wanted to make sure that even if his brother's opinion had changed he would still have that option to get rid of the mutation or remain a mutant.
"So you get some profit and we still accomplish our goal of saving mankind." Caitlin summarized while folding her hands into her lap, "It's a win-win for both sides."

[Kicks]

Colton stuck his hand out to shake Isaac's, but his eyes were still locked on Zakai. He didn't understand how the child could freely follow strangers around without any worry of who the stranger really was. He would make sure that Zakai did come to understand the dangers of the real world and how different they were from the dangers in California.
"Anyways, we've been given a new assignment." Colton told Zakai carefully, "The vice president was killed last night and the military is wanting us to investigate. They believe that Tamara was involved with the murder, so we're stuck on the job. There's more to it, but I'll inform you on the ride over with the rest of the team."

[Kicks]

Blake frowned at the thought of sticking ArraBella and Carson into a room together. "I don't like that idea." For many reasons. He could see ArraBella destroying the brunette right away if he made even the slightest hint of anything. And where was she even at now? He sat up and glanced towards the door. She was supposed to hurry, so where was she at? It was only because Faye had brought up sticking Carson in a room with her that got him upset. He didn't like thinking about ArraBella being alone with Carson at this very moment.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Isaac went ahead and shook the man's hand and then tousled Zakai's hair as he stood cowering, "Calm down. You're in good hands tyke. You're childhood problems will be solved whenever you get around to them. Well, I'm going now, seeing that you guys want to talk business. Be safe kid. See ya soldier."
Zakai listened to Colton explain the situation which he'd heard of already and he looked up at Isaac with suddenly confused eyes as the man turned and left.
"Wait, that... last night?" Zakai stared at Colton for a moment, then looked down at the ground, "Just... really? Is that...? Does... Colton, how fast does news really travel?"
That felt weird to Zakai. Last night? Really? That... that was very recent. Isaac said something about news circulating fast, but he told him about the vice president just this morning and he wasn't a soldier. Did news circulate that fast even for commoners? Then again, it was a pretty big deal. Maybe it's just... normal?

[Lil]

Faye recognized the discomfort that suddenly caused Blake. "I was just playing you know. I'm sure they're fine right now." She said carefully, trying to reassure Blake. Faye was sure that Red wouldn't tear Carson up right now. Not after a major heart surgery and probably their last time seeing each other for a while.

[Kicks]

Colton watched Isaac leave before he too turned around and started to head for the direction of the bunker. He didn't know why he was still bugged about that guy when he hadn't done anything to Zakai and if anything had saved the kid from potential harm. It was probably just because Zakai had been following around a stranger. Which he still wouldn't understand. Did children really just that willingly follow after strangers? He was also thrown off by Zakai's question about the news traveling fast.
"Yea. Stuff like this travels pretty quickly." He told Zakai after a short pause, "Especially since he was shot in public at a mall. The government knows better than to try to put a stamp on the news. But don't get me wrong either, the government does have a lot of influence on the news. How else do you think people got riled up over mutants? The public didn't even know they existed until someone in Congress leaked it."

[Kicks]

Blake glanced towards her with a frown. Yea, she was probably right. Of course she was right. And not long after she had said that did ArraBella come through the door wearing a frown of her own.
"They put him into a medically induced coma to try and see if they could locate the parts of the brain that are affected by the hallucinogen," She informed while shoving her hands into her pockets, "I don't know what that means, but to me it sounds like that should be done on someone older than sixteen. Or at least with some kind of consent."
"Maybe they got a hold of his dad." Blake suggested to her, "I don't think they would do anything otherwise. Or he told them they could do whatever. He seemed pretty willing to take care of the hallucinogen before I took him to the clinic." And by willing, Blake meant he was willing to let the thing kill him because the hallucinations were too much for anyone to handle.

[Death101]

"Fine, that's as good as it'll get I suppose. How far are you into reasrch. Without a steady supply of fresh samples I can't do much." I state I look at the man and see he's tense. "What's wrong with you big man?" I ask slowly looking right at him.

[Kicks]

"That's why we're going into California." Caitlin told him. "We have a week in Cali to conduct research and gather as much samples as we can." Her eyes trailed to the soldier beside her and a grin broke over her face. "Oh Richie always has a stick up his butt about something."
Richard narrowed his eyes and broke into a scowl. "It's in my job description to be on guard."

[Death101]

"As long as you don't do anything dumb we'll get along find." I lift my jacket just a bit to show the Luger under my jacket. "I will not hold back if attacked." I let my jacket fall back into place as I fix my glasses.

[Kicks]

Richard's eyes moved down when the man lifted his jacket. For a brief second a smile flickered across his face but it was gone just as quickly. "We seem to have an understanding."
Caitlin sighed into her hand at the atmosphere. She rolled her eyes and glanced off to the side so she didn't have to look at either of them. "If you two are done showing how much tetesterone you both have, then we can go ahead to the research center and Harry here can meet the rest of the research team."
"Harlord." Richard corrected her when the ride came to a stop at the bottom. "Anyways, Harold, the Head will be able to tell you more and probably offer you more. He's a pretty reasonable guy so long as you don't push him."

[Lil]

"That's probably a good thing. It'll allow them to control it better until they get a cure." She said trying to reassure the poor redhead. This was a lot more serious that Faye had thought but she was confident in the American medical system to fix him. She sighed and offered a small smile.

[Kicks]

Control it better? The redhead had doubt that it could be controlled. She had known that sedation and sleep only made it worse. But she was also aware that sleep healed the body. Hopefully.
"Well I hope his dad shows up." She commented at last.
Blake sat up in the bed and gave a smile. "Don't all dads show up for their kids? Anyways Faye likes waffles."

[Lil]

"This is true." Faye commented with a smile. "I'm sure he'll be fine and I'm sure his dad will show up." Faye said with confidence then looked up at Blake as she sat up too. And for everyone's sake she hoped Carson was okay because they had become more than a team now, they were practically all family and if you took out one it really affected the rest.

[Kicks]

ArraBella shrugged her shoulders and climbed up on top of her bunk again. She liked that Faye was optimistic. But the little redhead could not help but to only see bad through this. She plopped down on her bed and rolled over so her face was in her pillow and she was on her stomach.
Blake turned his eyes away from his cousin and towards Faye. He gave her a pat on her leg and then stood to his feet. He knew soon the captain and kid would be back. So he didn't know what to do til then.

[Lil]

"Oh come on Red!" Faye groaned and stood at the side of the bed. "You can't really think he won't be okay! After all we've been through you think this little thing will stop him?" She looked at Red with a frown. "He won't give up on you so easily." She said with a playful wink.

[Kicks]

ArraBella turned her head to the side to see Faye. She frowned and stated bluntly: "It is not really up to him whether he pulls through or not. It is Tamara's decision." And that sucked. She hated how much control that evil witch had over them. The only thing that really confused her though was that Carson had never posed a threat to her. So why was she tormentimg him?

[Lil]

"She doesn't call all the shots. If she did we'd all be dead by now. See the bright side maybe?" Faye said and poked Red in the side with a smile. "He will be fine." Faye stated bluntly and very sure of herself.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Oh. Okay then."
Then that was normal. It was okay that Isaac knew about it then... maybe. Zakai didn't know. He followed after Colton, thinking more about the vice president's death than about what he had just done. Whether that was a good or bad thing didn't cross his mind because he was pretty sure that Isaac was a friend now and that he didn't have to worry about him... but also that he was weird and still suspicious, but it was the kind of suspicious that he could overlook. It was complicated.
More importantly, was there some weird heist behind the vice president's death? Could Tamara really have done it?
Then he looked at Colton and that was when his mind went back to the stranger thing. Colton still didn't look too happy. It was almost understandable for Zakai, but then again, Isaac didn't seem like a bad person and he hadn't hurt him, so he really didn't see what was wrong with that.

[Death101]

"Again it's Henry." I state slowly. "And no, we're merely chatting." I state slowly. "Let's go Richy boy." I smile with the same taint of Mayhem.

[Kicks]

ArraBella didn't answer back to Faye. She could say those words and hope they would brighten her mood but the redhead was certain that none of it would be okay. And it was fine to not answer back to her because at that moment Colton had led Zakai back and opened the door to the bunker.
"Come on. The subway isn't far from here." He told the teenagers inside the bunker without actually stepping into it. "Don't forget your stuff."
Meanwhile in London the other Ryker brother was already getting annoyed by Henry. "Listen, if all you are here to do is start shit then I don't want you on the expedition to California. I don't think you realize how expendable you are. We can find another person with the same goal from another country."
"Richard." Caitlin stated slowly, calmly. "We already made a deal. Henry here will be a good team player if he wants his income from the cure. And you will be a good team player if you want to find that cure for your brother and niece. He can make all the threats he wants and you can yell all you want but no one is resorting to violence. Now, come on." The ride had stopped and the man operating it was waiting for them to get off. She pushed Richard out and then followed after him. "I for one think it is cool to have Harlord with us. I have never met a mafia member before!"
Richard stood with his hands in his pockets glancing towards the direction they had to go. "Whatever."

[Lil]

Faye frowned at the fact that the girl was being so negative. There was no more convincing though before Colton came in with Zakai. "Finally!" Faye said with relief. "You had me worried sick!" She said then grabbed her luggage .

[Death101]

I stare at Cat and put my finger to her lips. "Are you trying to get me arrested or killed." I sigh slowly. "Listen Richy Boy, you're not the only one affect by the virus my sister got turned." I stare at him. "We've both got something to lose." I state at him as I grab his jaw. "So don't screw with me, right here and now I want to know that I can trust you, money is money but we want to save our humanity?" I state starting right into his eyes. "Agreed?" I ask not letting his jaw go.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai smiled at Faye, "Eh-he... sorry."
He went into the bunker to grab survival pack and suit case, then stepped out again, not looking at Colton and keeping his eyes staring down the sidewalk. He was bit nervous about what he had just done. Surely this was going to turn into an issue in one way or another and affect, most likely, the fact that he was allowed to go off on his own whenever they had free time, which would be a problem because that was how he thought, but this was his fault he guessed. Even so, Isaac had made sure he was safe when he'd fallen asleep on the bench and he'd put up with him even when he asked a lot of questions and just randomly showed up really early in the morning. Didn't that make that okay? Wasn't that just making friends? But he hadn't asked if they could be friends yet. If not then.... actually, it was around this point that Zakai realized everything he'd done upon meeting Isaac was everything he would have done upon meeting someone in San Francisco. It was the same basic formula he'd used to approach some of the people he'd met. It helped him figure out who was okay and who wasn't. Was that wrong?

[Kicks]

Colton waited for them to get their luggage before he set out on foot for the subway. It was a subway that ran the entire length of the United States. It was hidden in confined tunnels that only the military had access to. It was their way of getting away faster and secretly during times of war, emergency, or special circumstances. He led them down through a crate of the ground into a blue neon lit tunnel that soon led them to a station glowing with army green. The subway was already waiting for them, lit up in light blue and silver for the Air Force. The colors of the lights were all chosen by his superiors who thought the soldiers could use some support even on a subway. It was to keep their minds patriotic even though the last time Colton had ridden this train he was off to be deported to the hell they called California. He wasn't feeling very patriotic then.
"It will take us straight to D.C." He told them when the doors opened for them, "To the Pentagon."
In London, Caitlin was shocked when suddenly a finger was against her lips. She narrowed her eyes and broke into a scowl but it quickly was wiped away when she saw Harlord grab Richard by his chin. The first thought was that the guy was going to get knocked out because this was Richard. But the soldier surprised her.
"First, don't touch me." Richard told the man while taking the guy's hand into his own two, holding it close between his own. He brought Harlord's hand close to Richard's chest and the soldier stepped closer to the man. "Second, if you wanted to kiss me you could have just asked."
"Richie!" Caitlin screeched in both surprise and horror, "Stop fooling around! We have a job to do!" She snapped at him while pushing him away from the man they had only just met. "Gosh, you can be so childish! Honestly!" She exclaimed while throwing her hands into the air and beginning to walk away from the ferris wheel.
Richard laughed at her display and turned his eyes back on Harlord. "No, we a'ight, little man. So long as you don't touch me or disrespect we'll be just fine." He told the man while sticking his hand out to shake, "Hand shakes excluded because hand shaking is manly."

[Lil]

Faye was relieved when they finally got to the subway. Along the way she had very many fits with her luggage not wanting to roll or getting caught on things. "I should've just made the darn thing fly." She grumbled as se say down and crossed her arms with a disgruntled expression.

[Death101]

"Ja, and again my name is Henry. Get it wrong again and I start breaking bones." I let my words hang in the air. "Is Cat always so stressed or did she save it for meeting me?" I ask smirking at her display of childishness.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai's trek to the subway was relatively easy, aside from the shame and guilt burning into him, and eventually they were there and his mind was momentarily taken off of the events that had taken place that morning. He realized once they got there that he'd be stuck in one of these things yet again. Closed places made him antsy, but he'd deal with it without complaint. He didn't feel like he had the right to complain anymore anyway and he wandered inside, taking a seat and staring out the window.
He thought about Isaac for a moment and wished he could say a proper goodbye because he was the first person he had successfully talked to that wasn't involved in all of this, despite the whole stranger thing. The child was sure that he wasn't any type of bad person that Colton had talked about.

Meanwhile, Isaac prepared to go off, himself, so he can continue his research that he was taking a break from.

[Kicks]

Blake got on after her and tucked both his and her's cases away above their heads where there was space for luggage. He could see some military boots and other miscellaneous objects that soldiers had forgotten on their ride. When he looked closely at the poles running vertically down the subway for people to grab onto he could see the names of soldiers.
"I thought it was illegal to vandalize?" He asked when he pointed towards the poles.
"Deported soldiers are allowed to write their names on the poles." Colton explained to him when he took a seat. "The year they were deported, their branch, and name."
Blake skimmed over one of the poles trying to see if he could spot any familiar names. But they were all strangers to him until he saw a 'Captain Jamie Austin, Navy, 2091.' "Wasn't she one of your friends?" He asked the man while motioning towards the name.
Colton frowned back at him and shrugged his shoulders, "Comrade. Friend. Sister. Whatever. She's dead now. She escaped torture but the injuries killed her. Being skinned alive has that affect on people in a place like California."
Blake's eyes widened in horror, suddenly he wished as if he hadn't of asked. But the next question was already bubbling out of his mouth before he could stop it; "Why was she tortured?"
"I don't know." Colton answered with another shrug, "I think Tamara thought we knew something when she kidnapped me, her, and another captain. I was too disoriented to make sense of any of it-drugged by something." He watched as the subway doors shut when Zakai got on. They were off for the Pentagon. He had to inform them about the VP's death and the details. But he was also still trying to figure out what to do about Zakai and his thing with talking to strangers. Obviously he couldn't let the kid wander off on his own anymore until he learned some safety measures at the very least. "So, to the matter at hand. The VP was shot last night at 6:07pm. Judging by the hole in his head it was done by a sniper. The only access to a high caliber like that is if the person was either part of the military or deals in illegal weapons. But his aim was accurate so it's most likely military training. He was shot from the building across from the mall. Blood spatter indicates the shooter would have been on the roof. Surveillance tapes show that it was a man roughly six foot with a strong build. But he was cloaked in black with a mask so they couldn't match a face."

[Lil]

Faye tried her best not to listen to the Captains past war horrors or stories, whatever you wanted to call them. She only zoned back in when he started to speak of their new mission. "They're thinking Tamara? Or even Dix?" She asked but Faye highly doubted Dix had any involvement. While he may be prejudice and rude towards mutants he wasn't one to just off somebody cause they didn't get along.

[Kicks]

"Henry." Richard echoed the name, as if trying to drill it into his memory. Maybe he would be able to remember that. Probably not. His green eyes followed after Caitlin who was dead set on getting to the research building. He started to slowly follow her, but kept his distance just in case. "She tends to get worked up, yea. Especially on a tight schedule." Oh if only the guy had any idea. She had been the one to start tearing up the compound and destroying the place to find the bugs, he just followed her lead seeing it was more effective than just neatly prodding. She could also get pretty sarcastic with people which he always found hilarious. "You'll meet two other people. The Head who we had talked a little about. He's the guy who has studied the virus in depth and knows more about it than anyone. And then there's a field doctor who's only tagging along with us because... he's somehow essential." Richard didn't seem how, but the British were pretty cautious.

[Kicks]

Colton nodded his head back to her, "They obviously think Tamara has to do with it. But they don't know who she put up to it. They have reason to believe it was Dix because he's about six foot with a lean build and was seen with the vice president having breakfast together that day. But he has no history of gun violence, military training, or anything to suggest that he even knows how to shoot a gun besides being American. And anyways, I'm pretty sure Dix has a solid alibi for the eighteenth hour just because he's a busy man who doesn't waste time."
"So... what's the Pentagon?" Blake asked awkwardly after listening for awhile.
Colton turned his eyes on him when he remembered that Blake wasn't from America. "The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. We're going there because that's where the subway leads... but I was also told Dix works there when he isn't... doing what politicians do." Even with his dad as a politician Colton still had very little idea of what politicians actually did. "As the governor of California he works at the Pentagon with some military officers to discuss what to do defense-wise with California. They're called the CL Assembly of Defense. Ya know how the Harbor of Trinity in Utah keeps the zombies and such from crossing a certain point in the ocean? That was authorized by that group. They make plans for California and pass it onto the president and if my dad approves, the military goes along."

[Death101]

"No knows the virus better then those that lived though the Hell on CL." I think aloud and see them stare. "Oh, sorry I was thinking aloud. I tend to have back flashed to that day. Docs say its normal PDSD or something." I add slowly.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai thought for a moment, "Couldn't it have just been a person she had on hand, like Roy was?"
It made sense to point fingers towards Dix, he supposed by the information given, but anyone could have done it, right? There were more people in the United States than him that had that sort of build and probably plenty of terrorists too and it was at a mall so wouldn't anyone have access to it?

Isaac was packing up his things he had taken when his phone started to ring. After checking to see who it was, before answering, "Hey.... Help? With what?..... Are you sure that it's.. hey wait! Okay, okay, shut up! Explain it to me when I get there!.... Yes, that means I'm coming. You owe me though." He hung up and rolled his eyes before heading out.

[Kicks]

"I don't know anyone who's been to California and back that doesn't have PTSD, or had. Does, had, did, whatever." Richard remarked with a wave of his hand, "Well, except for The Head. But I'm pretty certain that's only because he handles his emotions better than most people." By this time Caitlin had lead to a small building that required a special pass. She presented her's and when waved through, she led the other two through.
"Ads!" She called in the reception area, "Ads! I brought you... Henry! Pretty sure his name is Henry! ... Or was it Harry? Harold? Harlord?" She trailed off quietly while looking down in thought.
From a back room a door opened up into the reception area. An old man with white, frazzled and crazy hair stepped out from the room and shut the door behind him. He walked oddly, but his back was straight like a military man's was. When he came to them he reached about Richard's chest.
"Thank you, Caitlin." The wrinkled man told the young woman. He gave her a pat on the shoulder before moving over to see Henry up close. "Why, I imagined you differently! You look like a little nerd with those glasses. I bet people think you're intelligent." He remarked while sticking out his real hand for the man to shake (the other one was robotic), "My name is Thomas. Or you can call me 'Ads'. Some people call me 'grandpa' when they want to die... Like Richie."
"Keep calling me Richie and I'll keep calling you 'grandpa'." Richard remarked calmly, "We can die together, old man. I ain't afraid to take you on."
"Picking on a poor old man like me..." Thomas sighed back, "Oh you're an awful person."
"Yea, you go ahead and play the 'innocent old man' card." Richard commented with a snort, "We'll see your true side in California, won't we? Anyhow, ain't you supposed to be telling Henry there about this whole operation?"
"We're only just meeting." Thomas answered back with a patient smile, "You can't rush meeting someone. It's rude. How about we get to know each other, Henry? Like civilized people. Do you like hot cocoa?"

[Kicks]

"From what I've noticed about Tamara, she only recruits people she finds value in." Colton told Zakai after a long pause. He was still stuck on the kid tailing around a stranger so whenever he looked at Zakai all he could think was that if Isaac hadn't come along and watched over the kid sleeping on a bench, the kid could be anyone's new 'playmate'. "Like Roy. She could easily manipulate him. Nobody would have guessed he was a terrorist. She could place him in plain sight and nobody would have thought he had to do with the attack. Tamara has a whole plan worked out and she seems to have recruited specific people to fill in certain positions. If you were her, who would you force to join your legion that could take down the vice president so effectively? I mean, they had to have access to my dad's phone, a powerful sniper, and skill to aim like that. I'm just going to ask Dix about last night to be sure and knock him out of the water for the shooter. And who knows? Maybe he might know something."

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai cocked his head to the side at that. Not all of it, actually, most of it was understandable.
"Why would they need access to Clayton's phone?"
He'd also taken notice of that look he had gotten from Colton, which wasn't really much of a look, but he saw it in the captain's eyes that he was recalling certain events and he lowered his head a bit.

[Kicks]

"Because the message was sent impersonating him. Anyone could have screwed with the system and made it look like it was his number, but they did trace it after the VP was shot and it linked back to his phone." Colton told him with a frown, "Except, he told them he never sent a message to his vice that he was busy at the Pentagon hearing what the Assembly had planned for California in the long run."
At this time the subway slowed down significantly and the doors hissed open again. They were beneath the Pentagon. The station was illuminated with green light and from where Colton sat he could see a figure sitting at a bench waiting for the subway. When he left to meet up with this person he soon found himself shaking hands with the director of the FBI.
"Clayton called me up and said you guys would need someone to show you around." He remarked while glancing towards the subway, "He thought I was suitable because we're both interested in the murder of the vice president. Anything you know, I know. Got that?"
Colton wasn't agreeing to that. But he smiled as if he would agree to it. He wasn't though. There were some things he discovered in the past that he never told his superiors about- like the binder Admiral Thomas had given him. "The small one is Zakai, the two blondes are Faye and Blake, and the little redhead is ArraBella."
The man nodded his head when he looked back again. "I don't know if I can let a kid into the building."
"You don't really have a choice." Colton told him with a shrug, "It's military turf now. FBI ain't got nothing on us."
The director made his lips into a straight line when the captain mentioned that the investigation belonged to the military. That was true. All jurisdiction had been over to the military, but he was still uneasy about letting such a young group up into the Pentagon. He didn't really have a choice though as the captain so bluntly mentioned.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai wondered about that for a minute when they reached their destination and were greeted by a an interesting looking person. Now, if Zakai had met this man sitting next to him that night, then he would have run. He had a weird sinister air to him in the child's eyes, or at least, what he thought to be sinister. Like there was a lot to hide. He said he'd be showing them around and he was from the FBI apparently. Zakai didn't know much about them, but they were as scary as he had ever imagined... cool in movies maybe, but face to face... it was different... definitely.
He shrank in a wave of uneasiness when the man said he couldn't let kids in, but Colton took care of that. The child calmed down a bit. The man still hadn't told them his name... and he wondered if he even would.

[Lil]

"It may not mean a thing but personally, I don't think it's Dix." Faye said only moments before they arrived. Once they did they were immediately greeted by some big FBI guy who she could feel some kind of aggravation coming from him. Faye remained silent as the two talked and she gave Blake a nervous glance, wondering what would come of this.

[Kicks]

Blake stared at the man, just as confused as ever with the whole American system. He took Faye's hand into his own when he noticed her nervous look and gave her hand a little reassuring squeeze. The man they were talking to definitely wasn't nice. But he had no idea who the FBI was and frankly he didn't care to find out either. When the man started to lead them up the stairs into what looked like a large hall that split off into more halls, Blake was almost positive he would never get a government job. The place was a maze! Some of the rooms looked like ordinary office rooms, but the place was bustling with activity and the large corridor that they were now in was probably the least busiest though was the most abstract. It was pointed like a pentagon was and had a large screen buzzing with activity.
"I'm surrounded by idiots, I swear!" One sarcastic voice shouted by the screen. "Yea okay, let's just nuke California and send zombie debris flying everywhere! Why don't we just drip zombie blood into our water supply while we're at it?"
"Dix, calm your balls and shut up." One of the other men by the screens stated, "It's the only good suggestion we have."
"No the only good suggestion we have is you sitting your butt down and listen to fact." Dix spat back at him, "Blowing up California will spread the infection which is exactly what we're trying to prevent. Sinking California will spread the infection. We discussed this two years ago, we are not discussing this again. You're an idiot. I'm awesome. So shut up."
"Just as charming as ever." Colton remarked sarcastically when he could hear Dix and some other man go at it.
"He's been like this since last night when I showed up at his office door asking where he was when the VP was shot." The FBI director explained with a grin. "Dix! You have some people who want to talk to you!"
"Well I don't want to talk to them! I'm kind of in the middle of eating people's souls." Dix shouted back before taking a look over at who was there. His face fell and he got a look of disgust, "Why is the foreigner and a kid here? This is kind of the defense building. Let's just let kids and foreigners in here! Great idea!"
"Just get over here and stop being a baby." The director remarked while bringing his hands to his eyes and rubbing his temples. "How he is ever going to win is beyond me if he keeps that attitude up."
Dix shot a glare towards the man he had previously been arguing with before turning off the screen that had been showing activity and live footage in California. He moved over to the group and sniffed the air. "Smells like shit. Oh that must be you. Was someone not there to wipe your ass earlier?" He asked the director sweetly.

[Death101]

"No, I want to get right to work. If we're going to CL theme we'll need to get things and prepare." I state slowly. "Also I'll just call you Onion." I point at his hair and smile just a bit.

[Kicks]

Thomas brought a hand up to his hair and chuckled. "Well that is definetly a new one." He admitted. Of all the names he had been called, Onion had never been one of them. "Well consider getting to know each other business. If we are all going into California together I want to know we can all trust each other. Trust starts with friendship and I hope we can all become friends." He made a gesture towards the door he had entered the room through. "This way is the conference room where we will start our... meeting."

[Death101]

"I am Mafia and here to help cure the virus. If you leave the truth in the open then I will do the same." I make me point clear as I sit down.

[Lil]

Faye immediately frowned upon seeing and hearing Dix. Well she hoped she wouldn't see him for a while but that had changed. "Dix do you have to be such a jerk all the time?" She asked genuinely.

[Kicks]

"Ah yes. I am glad to hear you value honesty." Thomas remarked upon coming into the room after him. He took a seat at the table that another man was sitting at. "I hope we can all be honest with each other. Especially with what I have to say and reveal to you all. Richard, I am actually surprised your brother didn't share my binder with you. But nonetheless all of you will know by the end of today what that binder contains. It is dangerous information. So I expect you all to keep it on the down low."

[Kicks]

Dix grinned and took in a deep breath to puff out his chest. "Yes." He told her before exhaling. "Why are you freaks here?"
"We have to knock you off the suspect list." Colton told him with a shrug. "I wouldn't be here willingly otherwise. So where were you last night?"
Dix let out an obnoxious noise and rolled his neck. "Again with the questions. Where were you? Can you prove it? Why were you with the VP that morning? Why did you hate each other? Hate him enough to kill him?"
Colton nodded along figuring the FBI must have already questioned him. "And?"
"The only time I have shot a gun was hunting in Montana when I was sixteen." Dix stated factually, "I had breakfast with the VP to lay aside our differences. Unfortunately we parted on poor terms. And then I came back here to watch California and zombies and got totally wasted to the point where Cammy had to take me home. She made me dinner and we had a movie night."

[Death101]

"Don't be stupid, if word got out that we started or find a cure, it'd be chaos." I state sharply. "If word got out that the Mafia and Government are working together the whole damn thing will crash down around us." I add as I sigh. "Onion how far along are you in research?" I ask looking at the old man.

[Lil]

"That sounds pretty solid to me." Faye said quickly with a nod. She didn't dint any of it either because she was 99% positive Dix didn't do this. Why would he? Faye couldn't imagine him making ties to Tamara and it just didn't seem like Dix to kill, even if he wanted them dead she doubted he'd pull the trigger.

[Kicks]

"You and I seem to have a very different definition of stupid." Thomas stated kindly. He picked up a remote from the table and pointed it towards the screen on the wall. "As for the research I have all but found the cure. For the next some time you will be caught up with what I found. I will try to tell you all in a way that you'll understand. Starting with the virus and then its variations. If you have any questions at any time don't be afraid to ask them. I won't insult your intelligence so ask away."

"Well that is definetly something I believe." Colton stated after a moment, "Except who's Cammy? Like no offense but you're not really the kind of guy to date around."
"Gross. She will be my vice when I win." Dix commented with a scowl. "I mean she is the most adorable mean thing I have ever met but nooooOoooooOooooOOO."
"Whatever. She took you home DRUNK." ArraBella remarked with emphasis. "She wants more than to be a running mate."
"She is my best friend and you will not disrespect her awesomeness with such filthy talk." Dix told the girl while pinching her cheeks, "Hear me? Friiiiiieeeeeeendshiiiiiip."

[Lil]

"He totally loves her." Faye concluded raising a finger and pointing it at Dix with a smirk. She didn't know if it was true or not but it'd be kinda fun to pick on Dix a little bit for once. Anyways he could possibly like her.

[Kicks]

Dix gave Faye's cheek a little pinch like he had been doing to ArraBella only a moment ago. "Oh look who think she's being cute." He cooed out sarcastically before pulling his hand away. "No. To give you an idea of how best-friendy we are we have both gotten drunk together and then sobbed like spanked children. Last night we watched a fantastic chick flick and did shots every time a girl cried or a stupid cheesy line was made. And then when we passed out like filthy slobs and woke to dramatic hang overs we cheered with a morning shot of whiskey dedicated to our victory the day after tomorrow."
"Sounds like the ultimate bro." Blake commented with a grin. "And you are a total sis."
"I take pride in how feminine I can be." Dix stated proudly. "Every guy has a fem side. Only the real men express it."

[Death101]

After I've been caught up in everything I nod. "I see, we'd need a live infected in order to go any further." I light a cigarette. "Onion, I think that we're going to be good partners." I smile at him mind brewing new possibilities.

[Kicks]

Thomas clicked the button on the remote and a picture of a zombie popped up. "As we all know, zombies rely on their claws and teeth for ripping flesh." He zeroed in on their teeth, "Nothing different about their teeth, right? Right. But on monsters-" He flicked to the image of a monster and its fangs, "The teeth on a humans becomes fang-like. I have reason to believe this happens because their teeth rapidly grow and change when they are infected." He clicked to the image of a young soldier who was baring his teeth for the picture. "Mutants have a variation of the two. You see how their teeth are sharper than the average person's but duller than a monster's? This happens when they are infected. All that pain they go through is caused by their bodies rapidly changing in accordance to the virus- one of the changes made is their teeth. But hardly any of them notice this change because it's very subtle. Now, there are three variations to the virus that you are all aware of: zombie, mutant, monster. I say them in chronological order. Zombies came before mutants, mutants came after zombies, and monsters came after mutants. Tamara was experimenting with the zombies to get more obedient 'servants'. Zombies don't listen to her authority, it seems. During her experimentation she mutated the virus and tested it. Her subject seemed to go through the same changing process that the zombies went through. But at the end of the changing her subject seemed to remain human except for one minor thing that caught her off guard. It had abilities like she did- except only one supernatural ability. For those of you who don't know, Tamara has more than one ability. What they are is unknown to me except for her strength and projection. But mutants only have one ability. This subject was a cocky little one and tried to take Tamara down. She saw its power and killed it. For this reason, I believe that she fears mutants can take her down. That's why she wants to get rid of them, I suppose. When her experimentation with Variation B failed, she mutated it again and from it monsters were born. Variation C was much more successful. They have one ability, amazing strength and intelligence, and follow her orders without question. They are her perfect army which makes them the most dangerous of the Variations."
"Mutants. Do they... are they capable of being controlled?" Caitlin asked hesitantly without glancing towards Richard who had broke into a scowl at her question.
"They are." Thomas told her quietly, "But only if they die and come back as a monster. If they are at all transformed into a monster through death or being bit by a monster, they can be controlled. There is another thing that can transform them and it's the Mutant Disease. For whatever reason, a male mutant can fall under this disease. I've seen it happen in California when I was researching this. If they do not overcome the illness they are transformed. I'm sure you all know everything about Variation A, so we'll skip right to B. Mutants are human in all sense of the word. In fact, I have a theory believing that mutants are a more advanced form of humans. They have greater access to their brains. While an average human uninfected uses about 10-12% of their brain, mutants use 43%. Physically, a mutant's bones are lighter which makes them more apt for breaking. But it allows them for greater agility, speed, and stamina. I've found that mutants need more sleep than a teenager does. Their ability and brains need more rest to fully operate. About fourteen hours of sleep does it for them."
"And a mutant who doesn't get that much sleep?" Caitlin prodded while poking a finger towards the screen, "What happens?"
"A mutant who doesn't get that much sleep doesn't have full access to their power or brain as they could." Thomas informed her with a smile, "So the team you hear so much about could be doing much better in this fight against Tamara if they all slept more. What happens to them when they don't get enough sleep is pretty much what happens to a human: emotional instability, exhaustion, feeling weak, memory issues, poor immune system, and so on." He clicked the remote and a picture of another monster came up. "Variation C. The monsters. Many people have theories on why monsters don't like the sunlight and why they only come at night. The truth is that they're not afraid of the sunlight. Their bodies were just changed differently than a mutant's or a zombie's. Their skin burns easily in the sunlight and they go blind after too long seeing the light. Even though they are the most powerful of the Variations, their greatest weakness is the sun. Mentally they have access to about 30% of their brain, but whatever makes them human is dead. They are highly intelligent and if it weren't for their red eyes, need to destroy, and lack of emotion they would be able to pass it off as human pretty easily. Physically they are greater than Olympians. From what I've seen they sleep twelve hours. Zombies can go with little sleep, moving on 5% of their brain. They lack emotion, intelligence, and really they're just not at all human. The virus that has infected them did not kill them unlike popular belief. If someone is dead, they cannot be reanimated by being bit by a zombie. A zombie must be a living person in order for that person to become one of them. In order to become a mutant you must be alive and be bit by a zombie. But not every person bit will become a mutant. I have reason to believe it has to do with the genetics of the mutant. I have yet to find what gene or chromosome links to that change though. All mutants when bit by a monster turn into a monster." He turned off the screen again with the remote and set it down in front of him. "There's a lot more information, but I dumbed it down for all of you to understand what you need to understand in order to find the cure."
"So why are we going to California then?" Richard asked after his long silence. "I mean, I get that we'll be in their environment and be surrounded by a lot of them. But why?"
"To gather as much fresh samples as we possibly can from all kinds of monsters and zombies." Thomas told him with a smile. "And that Henry is where we are going to get a live infected... I hope you all don't judge how I gather my research when we are there."
"Oh. I already know how you do, monster." Richard snapped to him.
"Ah but without my methods we wouldn't know what we know now." Thomas replied quietly, sweetly. "Are there any more remarks on this or questions?"

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

When they'd first walked in, Zakai's eyes locked on the screen with the live action from California, seeing as he saw familiarity, and it took him a moment to look away even after it was shut off. Dix seemed to have a solid alibi going, and apparently "Cammy" had been with him. Zakai wondered if they could speak to Cammy too? It probably wouldn't prove anything different, but maybe they'd find something out. He wondered if Dix had any ideas on who might have done this, but he was cranky right now and he wasn't sure how to word the question. Actually, he was kind of nervous to interrogate when everyone else was around for some reason. They all seemed to be doing a good job, but he wanted to know.

[Death101]

"Boring." I state slowly. "I think that it'd work better to just do the field work, talking won't get anything done." I state slowly as I put out my smoke.

[Kicks]

"I'm hungry now. It's like noon and I'm officially done with dealing with people for today." Dix told the captain while prodding him in the chest every other word, "So, if you're done asking me stupid questions, I'm going to go make like a fat person and eat at Subway hoping and praying that those extra carbs will be balanced out by the overwhelming amount of vegetables I will put on those loaded little heart attacks."
Colton took a step away from the man when he started to be poked in the chest. "Just one other question from me. Do you know of anyone with a hatred for the vice?"
"Ha!" Dix exclaimed loudly, "This is America, Captain Stupid! Almost half the population hated the man! But if I were to think that you meant to ask something much more smarter, the answer is no. It was obviously part of Tamara's plan, duh. Who knows what scumbag she put up to the task? Oh hey where's the spazz? He was like the only one I liked. And now he's gone."
Colton made a gesture towards his chest and then an exploding motion.
"Oh my gosh." Dix gasped with a terrified expression crossing his face, "Carter is still here at the Pentagon. I just saw him this morning. Didn't you call him?"
Colton gave a slow nod of his head, trying not to reveal anything on his face but he was slowly building up a rage inside of him that had been present since the other night.

[Kicks]

Thomas laughed into his hands when the man complained about how boring it was. He rubbed at his eyes and continued to laugh until a full minute had passed. At the end of his entertainment he stated: "Someone needs to go back to high school to learn the importance of knowing the facts before going into the field. Would you stick a man with no experience in a pharmacy to distribute drugs? No. And so you wouldn't stick a man in a research project that doesn't know all the facts. But now that I have told you the facts, you will be able to understand some of the things we will do to remain safe in California. For instance, we will not move at night among the monsters. It is safer to roam around during the day with the zombies than roaming around the night."
Richard completely agreed with Henry though. This was entirely boring to him and he just wanted to get started already. "So how are we doing this?"
"I will tell you that when we get to California." Thomas answered back merrily.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai glanced at Colton, then at Dix, then looked away and back up at the screen. Something was brewing... he wasn't sure what, but something, and he was pretty sure whatever it was, he didn't want it to involve him in any way, shape, or form... it did make him curious though. Still, the events on the screen had caught his interest more than the other things. The interrogations seemed like they were done. For Dix, anyway.
"Is California going to be destroyed?" he finally asked, because that was what was eating him right now. What would happen to his beloved homeland? It wasn't that he loved it much anymore, but he wanted to know.

As for Isaac, something stupid just happened. He was leaving. He was going, and no one could turn him around.
"Wait! Hold on! You gotta help me out!" called a desperate person, running after him.
"Would you stop shouting?" he hissed back, "No. I won't help you. You're biting off more than you can chew you idiot. I've been down that road and it's not a path I want to take again! I came, didn't I? I listened to your dumb story, and I'm telling you, just forget about it!" he said in a series of aggressive whispers.
"But you know stuff. You can help me! Just give me some sort of..."
"I said no! I don't know anything for fact anyway. You know that well enough! Better than anyone else even! I don't like drawing attention to myself. Can I tell you stuff? Yes, but I'm not a good source! People will get curious and I'll get into trouble. Build your own connections and do whatever you want with whatever stupid information you get and dig yourself your own shallow grave, but leave me out of it! I've managed to remain unmarked territory up to now, and I'd honestly prefer to keep it that way."
Isaac kept on walking. This guy! A friend, actually, but a useless one! This was looking bad.

[Death101]

"Oi, Onion we made it out of Cal not just cal but san fran." I state slowly. "We're all trained with guns we'll be fine." I look at rich. "Right Richy boy?" I smirk with Mayhem trying to overwhelm me. "This is going to be interesting." I smile starting at them all. "So, when do we leave?" I ask slowly.

[Kicks]

Dix turned his eyes away from Colton and towards Zakai when he asked about California. "I will cut a whore if another person suggests destroying California." He told the kid honestly. "It's a stupid idea that shouldn't be implemented and as long as I remain in the Assembly it will not be implemented. Terrorist nor American shall destroy California. There are better ways to go about dealing with it..." He trailed off slowly when his eyes fell on a strong, tall man slipping through the people in the halls. He wasn't the only one who had caught sight of the man. Colton had too and before his brain was thinking about what his body was doing, the captain was sprinting after him. "This is going to get pretty nasty." Dix commented when he watched Colton dash off after the man. "CLEAR THE HALLS! WE'RE ABOUT TO HAVE A CAT FIGHT!"

[Kicks]

"Yes, but how much did you all lose in California?" Thomas asked him with an inquisitive look, "In the game of survival, the chances are always changing. I caution you all to not be cocky and to keep your wits about you." He put a hand on the table to help him stand back up. "As for when we leave, that will be a surprise. Maybe when I deem you all... well a family. Yes, a family."
"Damn." Caitlin remarked while putting a fist into her hand, "That's going to take forever!"

[Lil]

Carter. Faye made note of that name. She would be sure to ask Colton later who that was and why it made him so stoic. As for Dix though, she was more than happy he was leaving. He had a way to piss her off like nobody else. It made her grow angry to just be anywhere near him. "Well, eat your heart out." Faye said before turning away and looked at the rest of the hall and what there was.
Before the man could leave though she heard him yelling and turned to see what caused the commotion to see Colton running towards someone. This did not seem good. "Uh oh." She murmured.

[Death101]

"Damnit, Onion!" I slam my hands on the table. "We don't have forever!" I yell then I wait for a minute. "Onion, are you really that worried?" I ask slowly tilting my head up to look at him.

[Kicks]

Instead of punching the man in the face or tackling him to the ground like he really wanted to, Colton spun him around instead so he could face him. "Hey, buckaroo!" The captain exclaimed in a tight, chirpy voice. "Your son had open heart surgery. By the way, he's fine! Thanks for asking."
The man he spoke with had dark brunette hair and hazel eyes full of guilt as if he had been caught in the act of a crime. Though he was taller and more built than the twenty year old was, he still could feel himself shrinking under Colton's piercing gaze and tight words.
"I was busy." Carter told the man after a moment, "Work had me tied up with the vice president's death."
Colton laughed and smiled as if he bought into the lie. But he didn't. His profiling classes had more than enough taught him to catch someone in a lie. He nodded his head a little bit and laughed again as if everything were just fine. And just when Carter began to ease up, Colton smashed his fist into the man's jaw. "I called you at 6:03 pm!" The captain spat as he threw another punch, this one connecting with the agent's stomach. "The vice president was murdered at 6:07! Don't lie to me, Carter. Don't you even dare lie to me!"
The breath was knocked out of him, but Carter was already swinging a fist back. This one Colton caught and twisted behind his back. "Colton-" He tried again but the man was putting pressure to his arm making it hard for him to talk.
"Let me shed some light on you." Colton hissed into his ear, "Carson had a 32% of surviving that surgery. Before he even went in he crashed three times, had two strokes, and 16 crippling hallucinations all within forty eight hours. The doctors are giving him two months to live! And where are you?"
Carter could physically feel the blood leave his body when Colton began to spit out facts on his son's condition. "I didn't know... I didn't-"
"I called you during one of his hallucinations! Message number four: Carter, where are you? I'm not his father, he needs his dad. He's shouting something about you and California." Colton told the man with a shake to him, "You want to know what he was saying? You want to know what he knows about you?"

[Lil]

In that moment it clicked who Carter was and her eyes grew wide. She had remembered seeing him briefly back in Georgia.
Faye watched for a moment until things started to get seriously heated and she figured this shouldn't be something that she listened in on. It was something between them and no one else, she found it unfortunate that Colton had to do this in front of all these people. But maybe he wanted just that. To humiliate the man in front of all of them and make him feel like crap. Guys thought girls had a way of doing that but guys could be pretty brutal too.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

In turn, Zakai refrained from moving. Someone was sneaking away, and Colton was racing after them. The best thing to do was not follow... he thought maybe. He didn't know what to do. He looked at Blake and then Faye, and then after Colton. In this situation, there wasn't much he could do.
Staying still seemed to pay off when it was... over? Though? So... this was Carter... the aforementioned. This didn't look good either.

Isaac finally managed to get his friend off of his back and sighed a bit annoyedly. Maybe he'd have to take a longer vacation than he thought.

[Kicks]

Thomas glanced at Henry with a wink. "There's an old wise saying I once heard. But I forget it now." He remarked while walking towards the door and then leaving out it.
Richard watched the old man leave and then turned his eyes back towards the others in the room. His green ones landed lastly on the man that hadn't spoken up at all. He was a young British medical officer but he hadn't the slightest idea other than that who he was.
"And who are you?" Richard questioned pointedly while making a gesture towards the man.
The medical officer raised a thumb and smiled, but as for words he had none.

[Kicks]

Colton leaned in and whispered like a hissing snake into the man's ear who only further seemed to have a dropped heart. When he was done whispering the captain released the man and gave him a nasty look as if the very sight of him sickened him.
"It was just a hallucination." Carter told the military man as he began to walk away, "Tamara could have put that in his head for all you know! Don't go believing what you hear! Especially from someone who's lost their mind!"
"Oh so then I shouldn't believe you?" Colton mused back bitingly, "Perfect idea, buckaroo! I have an idea to put in your mind: get to Utah!"
An annoyed look crossed the agent's face, but he decided not to bite back. Instead he motioned towards Dix, "I came looking for you. I thought you would be in your office, but I should have known you were watching California again."
"For me?" Dix remarked with a smile, "Well. This should be fun. A CIA agent asking for a candidate. I feel so special."
"Don't." Carter told him in a hinting fashion, "I have to talk to you and Clayton both about the day after tomorrow. CIA and FBI are putting up extra security measures and I have to inform you two of them that way you don't... trip anything."

[Death101]

"God, Onion is a odd one." I walk out the door and think as I walk along I get so deep in thougt I don't really pay atetion to where I walk. When I look up I can only say to words. "Damn it." I sigh, I had gone to deep into thought and would have to work my way back.

[Lil]

"Should we...?" Faye lingered as she looked towards the doors then to the others. Were they really welcome here if Colton needed to run off on other official business. Faye was just nervous to be in such an important and secretive government building if it weren't allowed. She could only imagine the trouble this could get them into and the stories that could come out of a bunch if mutants working in the pentagon.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai was surprised to hear what he was hearing. This man was Carson's father. Well, Carter, Carson... whatever. Zakai didn't like the look of him... or the sound. He left Carson. That much he knew. He was sneaking around and looked more scared of Colton than ever... then he addressed Dix. The child wondered for a moment... oh, and he was a part of the CIA. Whether he was a threat or not, the child didn't like him. He wasn't glaring daggers at the man because he was really confused at the moment, but he still didn't like him. He looked down and shifted a bit.

[Kicks]

Caitlin left the conference room with her American buddy. She linked her arm around his and began to march around the research building considering they had nothing else to do and she didn't know her way around London very well.
"I can't believe he wants us all to become... family... before we go to California." Caitlin remarked with a frown. "That seems like something that would happen during like, I don't know. A crisis."
"He used to be in the military." Richard reminded her, "We tend to have the view that a team should be like a family because we all have to have each other's backs and rely on each other in order to be successful. People put down the American military a lot, but we're powerful because of that family value we have."
Caitlin glanced up towards him with eyes full of scrutiny. She supposed she would never fully understand Americans. They were so different from what she was used to. Definitely a different kind of breed. "I think it's stupid."
"That's because you're ignorant." Richard told her with a puffed out chest, "And you don't understand the value of true teamwork."

Colton kept his eyes on Carter the whole time until the man left with Dix down the hall towards what the captain was assuming had to be Dix's office. He knew that Carter could feel his piercing stare but the man didn't look towards him again though his muscles were tensed until he was far enough away from Colton to relax a bit.
The captain left his spot to return back to the team. Well, at least he had blown off some steam on that matter. But he was still agitated about Carter. He had a whole rant he was willing and ready to explode. He still wanted to grab Carter and shove him on the subway to Utah. But he left the matter alone for now. He figured he had spooked the agent enough as it was to last him a nightmare or two.
"Let's go to the White House." He remarked while making a gesture towards the exit, "Even if my dad isn't there yet we can talk to the Secret Service and find out what they know."
Blake put an arm around Faye's shoulders and frowned. He had known from the moment they got off the subway that things were going to get bad. But he didn't know how bad until he saw the captain go after Carter looking ready to kill. This investigation was going to be a lot different than the other things they had handled together. But just how different? And what would they find out?

[Lil]

Faye closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and collected her thoughts for a moment. "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Faye agreed with Colton. Someone in the SS had to know something, what else were they for besides keeping up with the President and VP. When Blake put his arm around her she looked up at him with eyes displaying worry but were also curious. She wondered what he thought about all this.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai ran after Colton, "Hey... are things going to get different for our team?"
After seeing that, it weighed on his mind a little more. Isaac had warned him about something like this, but he said it with some other added words and stuff, so Zakai wondered if this is what he meant... or if the guy even knew what he meant and this was just another 'theory' thing he was talking about. Colton probably knew more about it than he did though.

[Kicks]

Colton pressed the button for the exit and waited for its buzz. He turned his head towards Zakai when he asked if things were going to get different for their team. For their team specifically? "I think it's already different. I think it constantly changes all the time. There is no constant in this team." He remarked at last. And it was true as far as he was concerned. The team started out with Zakai, the three mutants that had been caught, Colton, and Jerome. Then Admiral Thomas joined them in California out of the blue. Then things went haywire from there and they ended up in New York with Carson who was placed on the team by Richard because of the kid's excellent marksmanship. Then they had to leave Jerome in New York which Colton was still hurt over because he felt like it was his fault. But then Admiral Thomas retired from the military and seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth. Following that Carson had to be pulled off the team when the hallucinations almost killed him. Now it was Zakai, the three mutants that had been caught in New York when Faye got sick with appendicitis, and Colton left. The team was always getting different. Nothing was ever the same for them. If it weren't one thing it was another.
When the door buzzed Colton left out the exit and into the fresh air of a currently cloudy Washington, D.C. He didn't want to jam them all into a taxi and anyways it would be nice to walk to the White House. Maybe it would clear his head of all the confusion and rapid factors constantly flowing through his head. He hadn't a plan for the investigation, but he did have different seemingly unlinked facts and questions going through his head. He knew they all had to connect somehow, but he didn't know just how yet.
Blake led Faye through the door as well and ended up taking off his jacket when he saw how cloudy it was. The clouds meant that the temperature was going to drop and might even signal that a storm was coming. So he gave over his jacket to Faye. Even now he was wondering about what had just happened back there. Carter was a father. He thought that a father's first priority was always their children. So how come the man...? He didn't understand. He didn't think he ever would. It was just as bad of a confusion as the day he found out Faye had an abusive father. He still didn't understand how a parent could abuse their child like that. But he didn't have to understand to know if he ever came across that man, they would be having a nice discussion.

[Lil]

Faye accepted the jacket with a small smile. "Thanks." She replied softly as she slid it on over her t-shirt and rested in it comfortably. It was warm in cozy in it, and Blake's scent lingered on it. She hugged him really quick before starting to walk behind Colton and Zakai alongside Blake. She wondered what they'd be finding at the White House and how it would help their investigation but she had a bad feeling about all of this.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai nodded. That was true. So then, things weren't too bad then... maybe... "But... what about the thing with Tamara and the information?"
It was then that he tuned it to listen, then suddenly tuned out. Had Colton even talked about that with him yet? He couldn't remember. He looked at the captain. It didn't really matter in his mind. He wanted to know things and he felt like he needed to. He was a part of the team too, after all.

[Kicks]

Colton frowned in confusion. What information was he talking about? "Specify." He told the kid at last. He knew it had to do with Tamara if he had mentioned her but specifically what?
Blake turned his eyes back to see his cousin. He hadn't been watching her at all until now. But he could certainly tell she was ready to pounce. Her muscles were tense and her shoulders taut the way they got when she was upset or irritated. Hearing and seeing Carter must have confirmed the doubts she had about the ordeal. She was the kind of girl to keep her anger drawn in and then unleash her full fury at the opportune time. He was just praying he wouldn't be there to see her explode.

[Lil]

"Everyone is wayyy to stressed." Faye said quietly not really to anyone in particular but more like she was thinking aloud. They had been in DC for maybe an hour and everyone already seemed like they could snap at any second. It was an uncomfortable environment and it made it hard to concentrate because it only seemed to add more stress.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Well... us... our lives in exchange for information... you know?"
Of course he had to know. It was true wasn't it? It was at this moment that Zakai realized that no, Colton had not spoken to him about this because he was suddenly nervous about whether it was accurate or not. He knew that the military said no and that they were safe, but couldn't that still potentially cause problems? That's what he wanted to know. It was making him nervous... and now, so was something else.

[Kicks]

Blake wished there existed a chill pill because Faye was right. Everyone was way too stressed but half the time they were. More than not someone on this team at some point was high strung. It was nothing new but he sure wished that people could relax easily. Maybe the White House would be a little more peaceful. Then again elections were in two days.
Colton knitted his eyebrows together. Zakai hadn't been there when he told the team about Tamara's deal. "How did you know that?" He asked the child. It wasn't something that had just been floating around willy nilly. Colton had only been informed this morning of Tamara's deal.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Then Zakai just stared at Colton. Okay, he definitely did not hear this from the captain. This might not be good. No. This was most definitely not good. He looked down suddenly, unable to meet the man's eyes.
"Isaac... that guy I met in Utah.. he told me..."
He'd said a lot of stuff actually. Whether the guy was dangerous or not, Zakai had no idea. In the child's mind for some reason, he still did not think he had been. He said he was new to the title of adult.. which meant he was young. He said he'd had connections... what connections? He'd said a lot of stuff about himself... and about the team... and he didn't seem the least bit concerned over any of the knowledge that he had. He was a bit vague on some things, but he seemed pretty honest. Colton already didn't like him. If the guy was bad... then why had he helped him on the bench? Was this a mistake? Should Zakai be telling Colton about this? He saw how he had gotten with Carter. Was he endangering someone who didn't need to be endangered? Was Isaac the dangerous one? He was confused... and not happy.

[Lil]

"Is this how out lives are gonna be for now on?" Faye asked with disappointment in her tone. She didn't want to be this stressed forever, it couldn't possibly be healthy. She was going to give herself an ulcer, which of course would only cause more stress. It's like their lives ran off that junk now. But as much as Faye hated it she didn't know what she would do if she wasn't constantly busy now. Only worry about things even more. Things like Tamara's takeover or the Annihilation Act. A sigh escaped Faye and suddenly she don't feel like really moving anymore. She just wanted to curl up in a ball and just sit there or something.

[Kicks]

Colton could feel his muscles tightened when Zakai revealed his source. He didn't know why a guy like Isaac would know something so classified unless he had a family member working inside the jail where the deal was made. He was liking Isaac lesser and lesser by the second. It only just reminded him that Zakai had trouble with not talking to strangers and the danger that the child had put himself in.
Colton clenched his jaw and merely shook his head at Zakai. He still had no idea what to do about the stranger thing. And now he didn't know whether or not to be concerned with what Isaac had exchanged with Zakai and how much the kid had revealed to a stranger.
"No." ArraBella mumbled with a kick to the rock. "To hell with living the rest of our lives like this. I refuse. Once that terrorist organization is destroyed I am living life the way I want it."
Blake didn't know whether or not to call that optimism. His cousin was more determined than anything to live life accordingly than she was hopeful of it. Confidence?
Yes confidence. And what about Faye? She had asked that on more than one ocassion he had noticed.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

It was when Zakai saw the head shaking that he just glared at Colton. He was still confused because he didn't understand everything, and he knew probably part of what was going on in the man's head.
"I didn't tell him anything, okay? He told me a bunch of stuff! That's it! He was all nonchalant about it and acted like it didn't matter at all! He said news travels fast and... well, that's it! Now if you have something to say, then hurry up and say it, because I know I did something wrong and stupid, but I don't understand what exactly that is! He made sure I didn't get hurt when I fell asleep on the bench! What is so wrong with talking to someone who technically helped me first?"

[Lil]

"Let's just hope that happens sooner than later." Faye added looking back at the red head who looked completely glum which upset Faye. "I'm sure one day we'll all be living our dreams." She said but those odds were completely unlikely. If they made it out of this alive they'd probably be stuck in the military forever which didn't sound very ideal to Faye but now it made sense. Going back to school would be long, hard, and tedious and who knows how old they'd be when this did actually come to an end. Would going back to school even be worth it? That's why a military job seemed likely. And that bummed Faye out. She was all for America and stuff but she didn't want to spend the rest if her life like this.
Faye was pulled from her thoughts by Zakai getting a little snappy with Colton. It almost made her laugh a little, she has never seen the little kid stand up against anyone before it was entertaining and she found it pretty darn awesome.

[Kicks]

Colton narrowed his eyes when Zakai started to yell. The child was defending a stranger. A stranger who shouldn't know about Tamara's deal and from what Colton was now hearing this was a stranger that knew a lot more than any other civilian.
"That's just it, Zakai! You don't even realize how defenseless you really are! You fell asleep carelessly on a bench out in the open with no protection. You are defending a man you hardly know and who could be anybody! For all you know he rapes little girls. What are you going to do when you are walking alone and someone offers you a ride because they're trying to help you? Not every stranger wants to help! Not every stranger wants to be your friend! I just... you... never mind!" He tossed his hands up into the air. He couldn't even try to get the words out. It was bad enough he had been sick with worry when Zakai went missing this morning. He didn't need to continue this when the kid probably wouldn't even take any of it into consideration. "Consider yourself grounded. Until you can learn to be careful and cautious with strangers and not to leave yourself open for attack like falling asleep in public then you will not be allowed out on your own."
Blake turned his eyes away from the worrying girls to Zakai and Colton. He wish he hadn't though. It seemed pretty serious at the moment. But the girls weren't happy either. He decided that the best thing to do was to remain utterly silent and pretend he wasn't even there.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai slowed his pace a bit, but he still kept relatively close, "I know that not every stranger wants to be my friend and whatnot, but Isaac didn't do anything to me! I don't know how he knows all that stuff, but I do know he did make sure I was safe! It was dumb of me to fall asleep on the stupid bench, so I'm sorry okay? But even though I hardly know anything about him, you don't know anything about him at all! You didn't talk to him! At least I have something to go off of and that's that he made sure I was safe and he left me alone after I woke up! Nothing bad happened! I didn't mean to do anything wrong! But whatever!"
He slowed down more before picking up the pace again, staying farther behind. He needed to cool off, but this was just stupid! He bit his lip. Some part of him did feel bad, but he was not going to let that get the better of him now! He'd deal with that later!

[Lil]

Faye looked at Zakai who still remained a little bit ahead of them. "Look they already act like a real family." She whispered to Blake as her eyes traveled between the two. It made her sad to see them fight but it was also really normal for that to happen sooner or later. Anyways eventually they'd both get over it and maybe this would just prepare them to be a family someday.

[Death101]

I soon see Rich and over hear what they are saying. "Just ask Vietnam how good they think America is." I can't help but chuckle a little. I'd never really been a fan of armies in the grand of it.

[Kicks]

Colton ran his hands over his face. He completely gave up on trying to get the point across that strangers were dangerous and always to be cautious with them. Even if Isaac did watch over the kid while he slept (which the captain was grateful for) that didn't automatically someone a good person. But Zakai was a child and didn't seem to understand that.
Blake somehow was pulled out of his own little world when Faye made point. He glanced towards the two and then back to Faye. "You could say that." He could also say that Colton needed to learn how to communicate with a child and that Zakai needed to learn to understand if either of them hoped to avoid another of these disputes.
At this time they were allowed through the gates and security of the White House by the SS gate keepers. Colton marched up the steps but before he could toss the door open it swung open to reveal a very happy Clayton. But Colton wasn't happy to see him. He was suddenly livid with Carter and Dix.
"You're not supposed to be here."
"Where am I supposed to be then?" Clayton asked, his smile faltering a bit when he noticed the anger flaring up in those green eyes.
"At a security meeting with Carter and Dix about the elections."
"We had that two days ago..."

[Lil]

Faye followed behind Colton and was surprised to see Clayton. He wasn't supposed to be here right? When he mentioned they had the meeting a few days ago her heart dropped. "Wait. What does that mean then?" Did that mean Carter was tricking them or were they in trouble now.

[Kicks]

Richard turned his eyes on Henry as he came and put his take in on it. "I don't give a damn what other countries think of my home. They can all go screw-"
"Nope." Caitlin cut him off when she put a hand over his mouth before he could continue. "We are definitely not starting up a politics discussion here. Especially when I hate politics as it is. Don't give me more reason to despise it."

[Kicks]

"What's happening?" Clayton asked when Faye began to ask what this meant and Colton continued to grow even more angry. "You need to calm down. You don't think when you're angry."
"I don't have to think to know that Carter and Dix are up to something!" Colton shouted while balling his fists up, "This means that Carter is a liar on top of being a terrible father and that Dix is a no go lying weasel. I bet he wasn't even with Cameron last night!"
"Cameron was here with me last night." Clayton remarked with a frown, "Maybe I need to have the SS bring in Carter and Dix. This definitely doesn't sound very good. Especially with all that's been happening. I didn't even know Carter knew Dix. They work in the same building but rarely does the Assembly and CIA cross paths. Come in, everyone. Come right in. Make yourself at home and I'll go make a call."

[Death101]

I laugh a bit. "Anyway the sooner we get a live infected the sooner I can start the experiments." I say that last word with such zeal that even I'm a little bothered by it.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

"Great. We just got lied to."
The child said to no one in particular, as he walked into the place and looked around for a moment, wondering if anything might be different from last time due to the elections coming up... and wondering if they could get this whole thing sorted out before then. If Dix had something to do with the vice president's death, which he was now kind of thinking might be the case, and he got voted into office, then what did that mean for America? He then remembered, even though he'd mentioned that people some people thought he was a terrorist to the man himself, he'd never outright said he was not... not to the child when he spoke of it to him directly anyway.
He was still upset about the whole "stranger" thing, but he was letting this occupy his mind as he tried to forget about it momentarily. It wasn't easy to do.

[Lil]

"Let's just hope they haven't already done something terrible." Faye commented to Clayton. He told them to get comfortable but at this point no one would settle in for a long time. All this did was create some paranoia in Faye now.

[Kicks]

Richard put a hand up to his eyes. He shook his head back and forth. "I swear." He whispered to himself.
Caitlin was uneasy with the whole experimentation part. She knew it would get the cure but from the way she understood the Variations she would be sick to like it. If they were to cure the zombies they would seem inhumane if they were to do inhumane things. And from there what would happen? She prayed that Thomas would be able to evaluate thoroughly before starting the experiments. She imagined it would involve a lot of needles and a lot of zombies.

Clayton disappeared up the stairs while speaking with one of the SS. When Colton came inside everything looked like it had the day his dad was sworn into office. Things were in boxes scattered across the mansion but he was hoping that was only temporary with how things were looking for the election right now.
Blake took a seat on the couch and glanced towards one of the windows. "I don't think we should jump to conclusions. Nothing has been proven yet."

[Death101]

"Where is Onion anyway?" I ask looking at them and seeing that onion is not here. I want to start but Onion is not the type I want to provoke.

[Kicks]

Richard shrugged his shoulders upon dropping his hand from his eyes. "Don't old people usually run off and take naps or steal pudding?" He had no idea where Thomas was. He seemed to always go off somewhere and only be found when he wanted to be found. He knew that the soldiers in California used to have a hard time keeping track of the now retired admiral.

[Lil]

"Well people usually don't lie unless they're doing something wrong." Faye commented as she also took a seat and sighed. She wondered what was going on with Dix and Carter now, were they both bad people too or just misguided?

[Kicks]

Blake frowned at Faye's assumption. "That isn't always true." He told her quietly. He wasn't meaning to argue or defend anyone but it simply wasn't true. "People lie for many other reasons. It doesn't always have to be when they are doing something wrong. And really I still think that we don't know all the facts and therefore don't have the place to state anything for fact."
"Blake, how can you say that?" His cousin demanded in a quiet voice. "We all know Dix is an awful individual and that the only person Carter seems to care about is himself."
"I can say it because all of you are jumping right to conclusions without giving either a chance." Blake replied calmly. "I refuse to be swayed on either side until I hear what all of this is about."

[Death101]

"So, when we get to Cal, what's the idea Cat?" I ask turning my Attetion to her.

[Lil]

"Well I'm agreeing with Red and think they're up to no good. It seems like something they'd both do." Faye said with her typical stubborn demeanor and crossed her arms. It wasn't really something she was aware of but Faye was extremely stubborn and usually stuck by her ideas and thoughts. She wasn't easily swayed to say the least.

[Kicks]

Blake shrugged his shoulders suggesting that he really didn't care whether they believed they were right or not. And he didn't. He felt as if people should be given the benefit of the doubt and not condemned because of their personalities especially when there was no actual evidence. So they had lied. And? Everybody lies. Did it mean they were up to no good? Maybe, maybe not.
He stood up from the couch when he could still feel his cousin's glare on him. With a sigh he removed himself from the room entirely and stepped outside. Fresh air was always better than a suffocating room full of people who were on opposite terms.
ArraBella kept her eyes on him until he left the room. She folded her arms across her chest and went to the chair to take a seat. Though American law said innocent until proven guilty she would still assume guilty over innocent in this case because of who the men were.

[Kicks]

Caitlin shrugged her shoulders when asked about the plan in California. "Well I think we're splitting into pairs the first day to cover ground and find where the monsters and such are located and hide and where they are the most active. And then we will all come together again to make a map of it. And then... well Thomas didn't really say anything after that."

[Lil]

"It amazes me how nice he is and is still able to see the good in people." Faye said to Red once Blake was gone. Yeah sometimes it annoyed to poop out of her but she imagined that just came from the envy she felt for his ability to do that. She wished she could be so forgiving and gracious towards others but all of this had caused her to become bitter.

[Death101]

"That's... helpful." I sigh slowly. "Well any idea what he meant when he said when we become family?" I ask looking at them.

[Kicks]

ArraBella would prefer to say that he was just blind and being unrealistic. But she didn't say that out loud. Instead the girl gave a slow nod of her head. Her mind was still spinning over how much she wanted to kick Carter in the face with a steel toed boot. Blake could believe what he wanted to but to her Carter was already guilty.
From where he stood on the porch Blake could see a black car pull in. When it rolled to a soft stop two men got out. The first to get out was wearing a suit but his the was wrinkled as if someone tried to choke him with it. The second man to get out was wearing a heavy CIA jacket and orange jumper sweats. They were followed by some SS to the porch.
"Damn't, Blake." Dix sighed as he came to the blonde, "First the Pentagon and now the White House. Are you sure you ain't a terrorist?"
Blake smiled at the remark and rolled his neck. "People are wondering the same about you."
"Let them!" Dix laughed back while passing the teenager, "I don't care!" And he sure didn't. Rarely did he anymore.

Richard clamped his mouth shut and made an unknowing gesture. It could be days, hours, or weeks before Thomas decided they were ready to go. But more likely than not the man would return to them after they had gotten to know each other all a little better.
"I suppose he wants us to be able to trust and rely on each other like Richie was saying earlier." Caitlin commented after a brief pause.

[Lil]

Faye curled up from her spot on the couch and stared blankly at the floor letting her thoughts roll. She was worried for Carson, about what would happen to him? She tried to stay optimistic about his situation but it only grew harder with time. She was also worried for Clayton and that he would lose the election but also worried what would happen if he won. There was a lot to worry about

[Kicks]

"Clayton!" Dix shouted as he entered into the mansion, "Come on, old man! Let us do this! I got youth on my side."
Clayton appeared at the stair well and stared down at the sight. He was very serious with his hard expression. "Payton was murdered last night. Dix you weren't with Cameron and Carter you were not at work."
"Well. This is awkward." Carter commented almost jokingly. "Are you our dad?"
"You don't even bear the right to decide what a father is like." The president told him coldly. "Colton repeatedly called you. Where were you? Funny how you disappeared right before Payton was killed."
"You think I shot him?" Carter laughed with disbelief. "I mean yes I have a great aim. But I was busy with work. Who else was going to get all that security set up?"
"Yes please." Dix whispered towards the butler while making a drinking motion with his hands. He watched the butler laugh and go back to the kitchen before turning his eyes on the current president. "Hey, buckaroonie." He greeted the man with a wide white smile.
"Dix." Clayton stated warningly, "Stop."
"What?" Dix asked innocently with a smile still. "I am not doing anything, silly. Just marveling at my rival and how strong he looks from down here."
Clayton sighed into his hand and slowly shook his head. It was at times like these it became hard to hate and be angry with the man. But that was the magic of Dix. "No wonder why Tamara needs you."
Dix laughed back at the comment and came towards the stairs. "Needs me? You have me mistaken, buddy. I mean yea I am pretty questionable but I am solely American. We fight for the same thing, Clay. We always have."

[Lil]

Faye soon recognized Dix's voice in the house and groaned. "Great." She mumbled and her eyes moved from the floor to where she had heard the voice echo from but she couldn't see the man from here.

[Kicks]

ArraBella turned her head sharply when she heard the voices ringing by the stairs. She left her spot on the chair and peeked out the room in order to see the men. They had significantly lowered their voices and she watched until all three went up into Clayton's office. She heard a door close and knew that they were keeping it private for now. But for how long until the team knew what was going on?

[Lil]

"What was that all about?" Faye asked Red who went to go check it out or whatever. She knew Dix was here, clearly, but what were him and Clayton going to talk about? Did he plan on interrogating Dix? She wasn't really sure what to expect.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai hadn't moved much from where he was, so he caught a glimpse of Dix and Carter walk in, but he didn't follow after them or their ushers. He stayed back and watched them for a moment before turning and looking over the boxes in curiosity. This meant that Clayton was going to be moving... if he lost anyway. The child wasn't sure what exactly any of this had to do with anything. Actually, there was a lot he didn't understand, so he found himself cautiously approaching Colton. It wasn't that he was in any mood for reconciliation, but if anyone could tell him anything, it was the captain. He might be angry and all, but he was still in charge, and Zakai was willing to let it go for a minute just to figure things out... though he kept a good distance from the captain even so.
"Hey..." he was quiet and his head was lowered a bit in nervousness, "Besides everything, are our lives really the price for certain information?"

[Death101]

"Then let's all good and have a drink." I add thinking. "Or perhaps we could get lunch?" I suggest smiling.

[Kicks]

ArraBella frowned when she took a seat again. She glanced towards Faye and then back towards where she had seen the men. "Dix was messing with Clayton. Ever tried yelling at someone who is smiling and complimenting you? It's really difficult. So they went up to the president's office or whatever. I guess that's where they'll talk or something." She had no idea what they would do up there but she did have a feeling that the president would be able to ream the truth from the men.
When Zakai approached him Colton sunk into the couch like a deflated air mattress. He was half expecting the kid to spark up the stranger thing again but instead he asked about their lives. He would have found out anyways if Isaac hadn't of told him. "It's not that bad." The captain told him after a moment of staring at the kid. "Tamara wants us dead in exchange for her cooperation. But nobody believes she will cooperate so they're not going to go through with the deal as far as I was told. I don't know what they're going to do though. They do need her cooperation, but she won't just willingly hand it over. She's been causing trouble for them. She bit someone clear to the bone when they tried to take her blood. As a result a soldier had to shoot the guy in the head for fear she might actually spread the infection. So they haven't allowed another person that close to her again." Even chained she was a nightmare to behold.

Richard shook his head at the suggestion of going to go get drinks. That usually mean to him alcohol which he no longer drank. "Sober for two years now. Not going back." He stated proudly with a puffed out chest.
Caitlin poked him in his chest as a result and watched it sink again. "I like alcohol. Whiskey. Wine. Beer. Oh, beer. Mmm. Beer pancakes, beer tacos, beer potatoes... list goes on, mates. List. Goes. On."
But the idea of food? The idea of food was fantastic and Richard was all in for that. Offer the soldier food and he wouldn't turn down the offer to go get some no matter what. "Oh please. Something greasy and meaty and hot."
"Got that r-" Caitlin stopped herself from continuing her joke. She cleared her throat and waved a hand in front of her face to blow it off.

[Lil]

"I don't know what Clayton expects to get out of Dix, he's not an easily swayed man and probably won't open up all that easily." But that wasn't for Faye to worry about now. Clayton was the president for at least a few more days and could do really what he wanted. Eventually he'd probably be able to get something out of the two, like he did back in Britain. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that point this time around though.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai listened to the explanation that Colton had. So it was all true, and they weren't going to be killed. Isaac's theory had been wrong about the value if all it was was that the military didn't think Tamara would cooperate if they did kill them. That was even more unsettling than some hidden value though. As far as the bone biting thing... well, it sounded awful, and his eyes did widen a little bit, but he knew being surprised over something like that would be... well, it would be dumb because something like that was probably bound to happen. The information made him, more or less, a bit uneasy about the entire situation. Normally the child would have asked another question to provide some sort of assurance from the captain, but he was mad at him right now. Instead of actually feeling any of the anger though, even though he was convinced he was still angry. Actually, he felt sort of a dragging feeling at his chest. Once the explanation was given, he just said, "Oh. So that's how it is." kind of quiet like and turned his eyes away from the soldier and looked around at the boxes again.
There wasn't anything to do right now it seemed. He wanted to talk to someone about it further he supposed, but he could get all of that later and he ended up looking at the stairs, wondering if being grounded meant he couldn't go on the roofs of buildings alone. He did better thinking when he wasn't indoors. It was a weird thing, he knew, but that was just how it was.

[Kicks]

ArraBella didn't know what to expect either. Dix was a different kind of guy. She could easily see how he could be used by Tamara and what she could use him for. But was he really a terrorist? She remembered faintly a year before California was destroyed that the governor had been on television. He was saying something to the public, telling them he had something important to warn them all about. And then he was shot in both of his lungs. She hated him for all that he was worth, and she strongly believed he had to do with the vice's death but she still wasn't sure about the terrorist thing. And then there was Carter. A man she grew to despise quite quickly. She didn't care what Clayton did to him. She hoped that he would string the man up by his toes and feed him mayo through his nose.
"I just hope they get this done quick." ArraBella commented at long last. Time had flown by quickly waiting for those two to arrive. It was getting late she could tell by the setting sun. She hated being outside after dark.
Colton shrugged his shoulders. He didn't know what else to tell Zakai. Yes, that's how it was. There was nothing more he knew about the deal or what the military was planning to do. It was how it was at the moment until something changed. What he wished though is that the kid didn't stand right there and look away like that. Colton wasn't happy about their current state between the two of them, but he was even more unhappy seeing the state in plain sight. He felt uncomfortable is what he felt. Unhappy and uncomfortable. He wasn't mad at the kid so much as he was disappointed. He had so willingly just left himself vulnerable and then followed around a stranger. He knew that Isaac had protected Zakai, but for pete's sake if the child did it again to another stranger and that stranger was some pedophile... Colton shook the thought from his head and got up from the couch. He couldn't sit there any longer with this uneasy air and the fact lingering above his head that in the office of the president could be two potential murderers. He wanted lemonade. Lemonade and to sit out beneath one of the trees in the large yards like he used to. Except he didn't have some text book to read or homework to do. He just had his thoughts to accompany him when he left the room.

[Lil]

"Me too." Faye agreed with Red then scanned the room quickly. She noticed Blake hadn't returned which made her feel a little uneasy, especially with all this going on. Anything could happen at this point. "Did you happen to catch where Blake was headed?" The blonde asked Red with worry hinting in her voice. She didn't want him running off and doing something to get him in trouble or hurt or killed. It was clear Tamara could call the shots from being locked in New York why would prison stop her?

[Kicks]

"The porch." ArraBella answered back with a shrug. When she had looked to peek in on what was going on, she had seen the door open and Blake leaning against one of the poles on the porch. He hadn't been paying any mind to Dix, Carter, or Clayton as they talked. His back had been turned on them and his bright blue eyes had been focused on the dimming horizon.

[DizzyMaelstrom!]

Zakai watched Colton leave then stood there for a moment more. He looked up at the ceiling, then glanced around for a while before he, too, left the room, but a different way than Colton had gone. He remembered the fireplace that he'd slept next to around Christmas, and he ended up going there. He sat down beside the fireplace and stared at it. It was clean and wood there was only for show, he figured. He sat still for a moment, thinking on stuff. It was awful. Not the stuff, the fireplace room. He got up and walked away. He'd find somewhere else.

[Death101]

"Then let's go get something to eat." I state as we all start walking I just follow them until the exit then we head for my car. I open it and get in the drivers seat. "Any where you guys got in mind?" I ask as I start the car.

[Lil]

"You think he's alright?" Faye asked quietly while her eyes skimmed to the door but she couldn't see Blake since it was closed. She hoped she hadn't made him mad with her assumptions about Dix and Carter. It didn't seem like something he'd get mad over but that didn't mean it wasn't possible.

[Kicks]

ArraBella glanced towards Faye again when she asked if she thought her cousin was alright or not. "I don't know what the definition for that is with him. He's become a very silent person since California, it's eerie. I don't think I've even heard him crack a joke around me since then." She used to watch him in the halls with the other football players laughing and telling jokes, hiding within the packed group eating candy so that nobody else in the hallway would steal it from him just to offer some to the first lonely person he saw or a teacher in class yelling about how no food was allowed in the classroom. When the small group was stuck inside the school that's when he had started getting silent. He was still teasing people a little and making a joke every now and again, but from there he just sort of plummeted. She didn't like the change. It made her think something was wrong.

[Kicks]

"I was really expecting him to be riding a limo." Caitlin admitted to Richard when they had come across his car.
Richard gave her a sideways glance in return and just shook his head. He opened the door for her and waited until she slid into the back until he got in as well. When asked of what place to eat at, he only had one answer: "Bodean's BBQ." It was the best London place he could think of to eat at. When he had come here on leave after California, Bodean's was his favorite place to go. It was a funny place to sit down at and have some BBQ.

[Death101]

"GPS, you got that?" I look at the small dash bored mounted screen as a map lights up. "Yes." A female voice responds. I smile at their shock. "This AI GPS is the companies latest prototype." I state smiling. "It's still in development but it understands 350 words in three different languages." I add patting the top of it.

[Kicks]

Richard glanced briefly at the GPS, not understanding why he was getting so excited over an AI. Those had existed since 1959. Maybe he should act happy. Nope, Richard wasn't a happy individual and couldn't fake it if he tried. It was 2093 after all, things like these were pretty common. But maybe he had never had a car like this before which would be rare. He had only ever seen one car that didn't have built-in GPS and that was from the 2010s. It was ugly, in Richard's eyes with a box-like shape that didn't fit the modern sleek looking slim cars so common now. Even Richard's dad had a car that had GPS when he was a teenager and that was back during the 2060's. And then he remembered that Henry wasn't from America and other countries were still behind on technology, even further behind than America.
"This is England." Caitlin remarked to the man up front. "If you're excited over that, wait until you visit the Isle of Wight." She stated with a little bounce, "The place is the very definition of Modernism. Buildings that are outdated are rare to find so it's always exciting to find a little low-tech place. But there's an AirGlyde rink there too, you would really like that." Who wouldn't like flying around on a board sort of like a snowboard? "In fact, construction is under way to make AirGlyding a form of transportation in Dublin, Ireland and the Isle." The UK was #1 in the world for technology with China coming in second, Japan third, and America fourth.

[Lil]

Faye frowned but soon she looked away and hugged her knees. "What're we doing next Colton?" She asked looking up at the Captain who had been talking with Zakai.

[Kicks]

Colton peeked back into the room when he heard someone address him by name. He had been around the corner wondering where the butler went to get some lemonade. But the man never passed by so he just stood there still waiting. He looked back into the room though when he heard Faye ask him something. It took a moment for his brain to catch up and when it did he had no answer.
"I think we're waiting." He told her, "Until we know what's going on between the guys upstairs, we can't do anything else."

[Death101]

"Yet Germany produces new weapons every year." It's true Germany wasn't the most advanced in some areas. We did however have some of the best weapons such as the Z-19 laser saw a prototype but it worked well.

[Lil]

Faye nodded. "Sounds easy enough. In the meantime I think I might go attempt to sleep. Same rooms as last time?" She asked while she tried to remember where the rooms had been. This place was kind of huge so it was complicated but she figured she'd find a bedroom eventually. Faye just hoped that when she slept this time she wouldn't be so haunted by nightmares.

[Kicks]

"I wouldn't mind getting my hands on one of their weapons." Richard admitted while glancing out the window. He loved their chemical weapons. And if he weren't so patriotic, and didn't like the UK so much, he would definitely would have wanted to be born German just so he could serve in their military so close to those chemical weapons. Or Russia. Russia and their biological weapons were amazing. It came to no surprise to him that the Russian- Tamara- attacked California so efficiently with the virus.
"America and Germany used to trade for weapons." Caitlin remarked with a grin, "That was before America isolated itself from trade. Even with Canada! Canada, Richie."
"I'm not allowed to say anything on the current status of our trade or why we cut off." Richard answered back seriously, "I will say though that I admire Germany's chemical weapons. I don't think anyone realizes just how great their chemical weapons are." He paused a beat, "Never mind. I guess I like a lot of countries for their weapons. South Africa for instance-"
"Shhhh." Caitlin cut him off before he could go into a whole vent of the topic. She may be military, but she wasn't into it the same way he was. "I think we should talk about ourselves! Not in a vain way of course, but to get to know each other better. So, Henry-" Yes, it was Henry. She hoped she got it right anyways, "Why are you so tied into California? You're obviously not American, which makes me wonder why you want the cure so bad."

[Kicks]

Colton nodded back to her, "That's a good idea. I think the rooms are unlocked too." It would only make sense. His dad had known they were coming after all and he always liked to have visitors and guests at the White House. Besides, it could be a few hours before Clayton got anything done with Dix and Carter. Carter was CIA and trained in the art of interrogation. He wouldn't break as easily as Dix would. But even Dix was a very stubborn, secretive man.

[Death101]

"Do you recall the group of bikers that all died shortly after the came home, they president was distant family." I state slowly. "While I'm not American and I do hate that country for what they've done to my homeland these zombies they could bring about Revelation if they aren't taken care of." I spot and think. "As for weapons I hold a seat on the German Federations bored of people against chemical weapons." I think slowly. "Of course everyone knows that's just because the chairman is my uncle." I sigh slowly. "As far as Germany cares official it's sorrow goes out to the states and families, but inside we don't give a damn we've got our own problems inside Germany. For example the missing M-23 missile and who attacked warehouse 27." Both were projects that were top secret the warehouse had supplies in case the world was infected so high up people in Germany would be safe the missiles were an relative of the nuke. They blew in mid air and had Mustard Gas in them. "If course what about you Richy Boy?" I ask as we turn down the main road.

[Lil]

"Awesome." Faye says and leaves the others in the living area and off down one of the connecting halls which was lined with rooms. She entered one of the first ones and was relieved to see it was in fact a bedroom. Faye went ahead and flopped down on the bed and splayed out on it. She doubted she would really sleep but it was worth a shot.

[Kicks]

Richard did know the bikers he was talking about. He had been a captain at the time when they came out of California. He had been the one to lead the decontamination of the bikers, and had been there at the funeral for the infected biker. Now thinking about it, the president of those bikers and this guy did act a lot like each other. Both seemed always willing to pick a fight or try to get what they wanted when they couldn't have it- like the bikers wanting to ride their bikes to the base. That was a huge no-no, but Richard had been sure that the bikes were taken to the base in compromise. He hadn't known though that all those bikers had died.
Every country had their own problems deal with in times like this. Especially Russia, Richard had noticed. Countries were becoming tight and isolating themselves from Russia which was a shame. Richard really liked Russia despite Tamara being from there. He supposed people were afraid that Russia had been up to this, when they obviously hadn't been. He supposed they were afraid Russia had that virus in their weapon stock, which Richard knew for a fact they didn't. The only person alive that had the virus in their weapon stock was Tamara. He would have to ask Thomas later if it were possible for a country to get the virus though by taking it from a zombie and making it into a biological weapon. Or if Tamara had only been able to do that because... well he didn't know the reason but rumor had it the woman was Patient Zero.
It came as no surprise to Richard that Germany had its own problems. It always had problems. But he did find it funny that Henry was blaming the States for 'what it had done'. "Right, because stopping Germany from taking over the rest of the world and killing off an entire race was a bad thing." He commented sarcastically. "We were neutral to begin with until we were attacked. We just simply retaliated. And furthermore, it just wasn't the States. May I remind you that Great Britain, the Soviet Union, China, and France were involved as well?"
"Hey!" Caitlin snapped while hitting his arm, "What did I say about that kind of discussion? No more. No. More."
"He started it." Richard grumbled back childishly. He turned his eyes away again and back out the window. "Besides being obviously American and an admiral for the Navy, I was deployed to California when it first went under attack. I was bit by a zombie and my comrade chopped off my arm to stop the spread of the infection."
"No." Caitlin commented with a look of disbelief, "You have both arms!"
"It looks like I do." Richard corrected her as he flexed his right arm, "It's a prosthetic. Anyways, among with some other injured soldiers I was sent back home. Two years later my younger brother joined the fight against the zombies and was deployed to California where he was bit and turned into a mutant."

[Kicks]

ArraBella turned her eyes towards the captain and asked: "Where is Ada and Spring?"
"In Europe." Colton told her casually. "With some family. You gonna go get some sleep?"
"Yea." She sighed back in a defeated manner. Despite her anxiety about the other two upstairs being here she was still tired. And besides it would pass the time. The little redhead stood from her chair and disappeared down the hall just as Blake came back inside. He went back into the living room and laid across the couch.
"Have they confessed to anything?" Blake asked the captain after a long silence.
"I haven't heard anything yet." Colton answered him with a frown, "I don't get why you think they're innocent."
Blake meet shrugged his shoulders back at him. He didnt want to debate this or argue again. He would just simply keep to himself.

[Lil]

Faye did manage to fall asleep but she had wished she hadn't. Nightmares flooded her head worse than any hallucination or nightmare she had ever had.
Faye's arms were tied above her head and her head hung low until she lifted it to see Tamara walking in, a sinister grin spread across her lips. "So glad you could make the show." The evil woman hissed before between her and Faye Blake appeared. He was already coated in blood and drained of color, looking like death was just around the corner for him.
"No!" Faye yelled but before the word was completely out of her mouth Tamara was behind her, and her claws were out slashing across Faye's back. The blonde bit down on her lip until it bled to stop a scream.
With a snap of Tamara's fingers monsters appeared around Blake with blood thirsty expressions and they started tearing at him. With every scream or yell Tamara scratched through Faye's back again. Over and over until the girl just sobbed. After agonizing minutes the two beasts stepped away to reveal a dead Blake.
"I'll be here all week." Tamara whispered in Faye's ear before digging her claws into Faye's back once more.
With pain overtaking her entire being and her eyes locked on the image of the dead Blake the nightmare ended. She shot up on the bed without screaming, her throat was too hoarse to scream again, instead she just stared at the wall with the image burned in her head. Faye gasped for air as she clutched at her chest trying to slow her heart rate.

[Kicks]

Colton let the teenager be in silence without bringing up the topic again. For whatever reasons Blake he better not be too attached to them because Colton just knew that Dix and Carter weren't innocent about anything. He kept leaning against the door frame even as the blonde on the couch fell asleep after about an hour. Some time later into the night the office upstairs finally opened and the three men came down.
"After the election." Clayton seemed to tell Dix as they came down, "Not before. With all this mess on our hands, it will be better to inform them after tomorrow."
Dix checked the time when Clayton mentioned 'tomorrow' as if they day had passed already. And he was right. He hadn't even realized they had been in that office for hours. It was now two in the morning. "I don't know if you've noticed, Clayton, but I'm the kind of guy who doesn't just give out information." He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and glanced at the older man, "I'll see you tomorrow. When I win."
"Cocky to the end, aren't you? Even when you know I'm going to win." Clayton commented with a snicker. "And Carter, if you are not in Utah by four this morning, I will hunt you down. Personally. Or maybe I'll let ArraBella hunt you down. She seems to really hate you."
"That's an understatement." Carter commented with a frown, "I make no promises for how long I'm staying in Utah. Tamara's there."
"I hope to have her moved after the election." Clayton stated firmly, "I think the only reason she is staying put and hasn't tried breaking out yet is because she needs something there. If either of you find out what that is, let me know."
After they were gone, Colton left his spot and came to the stairs. "Well? What was that all about?"
"You'll find out in due time. Just trust me." Clayton answered back quietly before leaving up the stairs, "After the elections, I promise. The team will know."

[Lil]

Faye left the room quickly trying to escape what she had just experienced in there. She wandered down the halls not looking for anyone or anything in particular just want to be gone. Faye rubbed her hands up down her arms as she just stared at the floor blankly until she stumbled across Clayton and Colton. "Oh sorry. My bad."

[Death101]

"Seems like we all lost something." I push up my glass that ate sliding down my face slightly. "At any rate we're here." I point as I turn off the car.

[Kicks]

Clayton turned his eyes away from his son's hard green ones that were distrusting and annoyed. He glanced at Faye and smiled at her, "Don't worry about, child. If any of you need anything, don't hesitate to ask." He told them before leaving back up the stairs. He paused at the top and glanced down at Colton who was still glaring at him, "I hope that no matter what happens today, you'll understand." And then he left to go to his own room.
Something was going on. Colton wasn't sure of what it was just yet, but things had gotten even more complicated than they were before. He tore his eyes away from where his dad had been a second ago to Faye that had stumbled across them. She looked terrified as if she had just woken up from a nightmare. "You okay?"

[Kicks]

Richard pushed out of the cramped car with Caitlin in tail. He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked through the automatic doors of the BBQ and bar. Like the other times he had been there someone was waiting to take away people to tables. The tiles turned different colors in paths to lead to the most unoccupied sections or towards a free table. In this case there was a blue path of tiles to lead towards a table for them.
"I smell beer!" Caitlin sang as she followed a waiter to the table. "Richard, you dog! There's no way you could be sober for that long if you frequented here."
Richard shrugged his shoulders back at her, "I guess alcohol doesn't have the same appeal to me as it does to you."

[Death101]

"No true human can resist beer." I smile as I see a shelf behind the bar. "But if the man went dry then we should respect that." I add slowly as we're shown to our table.

[Kicks]

Caitlin took a seat and glanced towards the bar before she looked towards the soldier that had sat down next to her. "Fine. I don't think London beer would taste as great as what I'm used to anyways." She commented while grabbing the menu, "What do you recommend, Admiral?"
"A salad." Richard answered subtly. He tried to keep a straight face when she turned sharply on him. "Or steak. Steak is good too... steak with a salad."
The woman grabbed the fork on the table and went to stab him with it when he blocked the fork with his own menu. "Sleep with one eye open tonight." She whispered to him over the menu.

[Death101]

"Are you two seeing each other?" I barley hold back a laugh watching them. I only order a buger I've heard that food in England isn't that good anyway but to be truthful only Germans, Russians and Italians seemed to know how to really make meat based foods good.

[Kicks]

"Only physically." Richard told Henry with a very serious face. "She's carrying my child."
"Liiiiiiiiiiies." Caitlin hissed out just as the man beside her began to laugh, "This is what we call friendship. We became friends two years ago when he was in Europe on leave."
"Or surrogate mother. You could call it that too." Richard added casually, and this time Caitlin did manage to stab him in the leg before he could block it with his menu. "Ow! Okay, okay. I'll be good. Sheeshk, no need to get-"
"Say it." Caitlin told him while grabbing his lips with her hand and squeezing them so he looked like a fish. "I beg you." When he didn't say anything back to her but raised his hands in surrender, she released him and leaned back in her seat. "Jerk."
"I prefer charmingly mean." Richard whispered to his own fork.

[Death101]

"Alright no more stabbing, Caltin have you always lived here in the U.K?" I ask looking at her as I flip though messages on my phone and tap out an answer to one or two here and there.

[Kicks]

"Cork, Ireland." She answered back as the menu on the table disappeared. It was one of the electronic versions. When you pressed the button on the table, the menu appeared and you selected your choice. Upon selecting and payment the menu vanished. "After I joined the military I got to travel more, it's rather exciting. If for no other reason, I think a person who wants to travel should join the military: great pay and travel. And you always lived in Germany?"

[Death101]

"Yes, my family has been in Germany since just before the first world war." I add slowly and think. "Back then we were farmers but after the second war it became hard for anyone to find a job that's when we became a mafia." I add slowly and think again. "I grew up in Germany, I was in the German army for a short time and saw a little combat when a spat with Russia broke out thus my glasses." I recall that dust had gotten into my eyes and the docs had saved my sight but I needed glasses from now on.

[Kicks]

Well having a mafia was certainly one way of getting income. It wasn't what Caitlin would have done, but at least it kept his family alive and thriving. She was also pretty happy to hear that he had seen some combat. It meant that they weren't going into California with someone who wasn't well trained. She liked knowing that everyone on the research project all had some sort of military experience.
"So then you know how to shoot a gun?" Richard assumed with raised eyebrows.