Stay Down: The Lives and Times of Yorkmizer's Finest (IC)

Grizzwald's eyes narrowed in thought. The Guildmaster answered his question, but he couldn't help but notice a nagging little voice in the back of his head. There was something more behind this than they saw before them. Why the exception for them? Himself, Dawn and Rabbit all had good scores and proved themselves the best of their iteration. And he assumed Ketsuki did as well or he wouldn't be here right now. But they weren't the best group, not by far.

Were they just cannon fodder, some kind of peace offering, or maybe they were a sacrifice. Birdman couldn't say, but the open road was calling and he could hear Annabelle begging for him to turn her on and ride her hard, possibly putting her away dirty and smoking. He tossed the departing boss a quick salute before jumping down from the truck and doing one last check up. He grabbed the caulk blocks and hopped up onto the back end of the semi where a little heavy armored shed was bolted and welded to a tungsten steel plate that was in turn welded to the frame of the truck itself. This was the truck supply shed, extra fuel, some tire patch kits, and a few larger tools were placed inside and strapped to the walls. The door was heavy, armored, and was secure by a padlock that made lock picking tools and explosives cry in fear. The truck keys shared the same key ring so the Driver quickly pulled them from his pocket and unlocked the shed glancing inside to make sure everything was there and secure before tossing the caulk blocks in and relocking the door.

They were ready and Grizzwald Night's mouth was beginning to water in anticipation. He ran around the truck and jumped into his seat sliding his rifle into a special holster besides his seat before jamming the key into the ignition and cranked Annabelle to life. She roared and rumbled telling the world she was awake and everyone should just get the fuck out of the way! He let Annabelle rumble and circulate her blood through her veins. Everyone was in, all the doors were closed. A huge smile crossed his face. "Oh yeah." Grizz hung his mask on the back of his seat and kicked Annabelle into gear and brought her into the light of the dangerous and dusty world. Grizz pulled a pair of aviator glasses down from the sun visor and put them on dipping the brim of his hat a little over them before he rolled to the outer gates of the compound holding his breath just in case this whole thing turned into some cruel hazing joke by Mr. Yorkmizer and the other vets. But as the perimeter guard checked them off and waved them through the gate Grizz let out a shaky breath and locked his eyes on that uncertain horizon. He shouted a single warning before he lost himself in the rumble of the truck's engine. "Hold on tight! We're gonna burn the road behind us and leave the world in the dust!"

Ketsuki had finished his business in the restroom and filed back out and into the truck. He was hoping to have some sort of reaction out of Grizzwald at the time but he didn't get what he wanted. The boy only shrugged and made his way to the bunk to grab his bag only to see it was tossed over to the other set of bunks, pretty roughly might he add by the position to the bag. He assumed The Beast had been the one to toss his bag but paid it no attention. He was ready to go as it was and he would have his time to play with the man later. He was the one driving after all.

Ketsuki moved over to Barsad and rubbed the bald mans head. "Alright Sparky, guess it's just me and you over here. The love bird there have claimed their bunk." He said motioning towards Dawn who had claimed the bunk above Grizzwald. It may have been her who threw his bag but he still had his bets on Grizzwald. Ketsuki could hear the man shouting up front and listen to the sounds of the engine revving. They were obviously about to take off. Ketsuki grabbed a chain on the wall feeling the vehicle jerk forwards from it's still position causing him to lose his footing. He then shrugged it off looking to the front. "Hey! Wake me up when we get there would you?!" He shouted towards the front before hopping into his top bunk adjusting himself into a laying position prepping himself for a quick power nap.

Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Inhale. Exhale.

Barsad sat on his duffel bag, looking up at the dust marks and patterns on the ceiling. Mr. Yorkmizer had always given him the jitters when he was just a whelp, fresh from the wastes. There was no mistaking that Barsad was no stranger to the usual rough treatment that came with guild training, but it had a different effect on his wonky inner workings than it did the other trainees. Some respected him, some feared him. For Barsad, it was both. He held him in the highest regard, like a father, a mentor, and even almost like a higher being. At the same time, he feared him like the warlord and conqueror that he was, seemingly ready to snap at any moment. Breathing deeply, he closed his eyes and repeated his mantra.

Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven--

Barsad opened his eyes and blinked hard. He turned to see Dawn patting his head and mentioning something along the lines of putting his gear on. He shot her a quick smirk then turned to squat in front of his duffel bag, unzipping it from end to end in one sweeping motion. Inside lay his prized possessions, his tools of war.

Bits and bobs of armor, mostly padded leather to protect against both blunt and sharp weapons. Two combat knives, whose faded colors and faintly splotched blade told of ages of use. A spade, similarly well-used, whose folding joints were beginning to stiffen, but the sharpened edge remained meticulously cared for. Two grenade bandoliers, designed to fit snugly and carry up to fifteen grenades (or more, if you get creative). Finally, his two modified Glocks. By far his favorites among his other weapons. The twins were able to dump their entire load into some poor bastard in three seconds flat, all while remaining completely silent, save for the click-clacking of the bolt. About 1/3rd of the remaining space was filled with neatly stacked magazines loaded up with special subsonic ammo. The rest were grenades of all sorts, ranging from the standard fragmentation to the more situational incendiary, flashbang, and even gas.

Right as the commando was in the middle of reuniting with his old friends, he was interrupted by another one of his squadmates rubbing his dome and heading to the bunks. It seems everyone else had already chosen their spots, and Barsad was left with the other lower bunk. It didn't matter much, seeing as he wouldn't be using it for much else other than storing more gear, as well as the occasional power nap every now and again.

The engines roared to life just as the last padded leather plate tightened around Barsad's figure. Before he knew it, some sunlight was pouring into the back from the windshield up front. The rhythmic bouncing and jerking of the truck had begun to rock the trailer. Like a lizard, the commando clambered up the side of the trailer's interior, grabbing on to stray edges and outcrops to maintain stability. He made his way to one of the hatches on the ceiling leading outside to the top of the semi, dangling beside it with one arm, and pushing it open with the other. A trickle of dust and sand seeped through the corners as he pulled himself up halfway through and sat on the edge, exposing his upper body to the outside and letting his legs dangle inside. A long journey was about to begin, and he made sure to savor every bit of wind and sunlight that he could before the action starts.

The merry band of Mercs rode hard and into the night, but as darkness fully fell across the desolate land it became too difficult and too dangerous to keep driving. They'd spent a few training exercises out here and the one thing the Vets always went on about was traveling at night. Many would think night time would be the best. Nice and cool, less sand clogging up the truck, a few other things, but the Vets shot nearly all the Pros down. Most big predators out here hunt at night, your headlights will be seen for miles and ambushers could set up trap without anyone even seeing them.

All in all they always favored camping at night unless time was of the essence, and since Team Dynamite didn't have to be in the town for a week they all voted and decided to camp. Grizz pulled Annabelle into a small rocky alcove that had a clean pond of water in the middle with some bushes around it. They were lucky there was enough room to maneuver the semi, but soon she was parked against the wall with a clear shot to the entrance should they need to beat a hasty retreat.

Grizz was the first out of the truck he stretched tall and yawned the servos in his left arm whining from the movement.
"Hmm this looks like a good place to make camp." He said cheerfully going over to the pond and splashing some water onto his face waking himself up a little. His arm continued to whine, he may need to work on it a little tonight before bed. Still though he was happy with the distance they covered today and was whistling a soft tune as he retrieved the chaulk blocks and kicked them under the truck's tires.

Dawn, laying in Grizz's bunk had her feet against the upper bunk's springs, her legs fully extended as she striped and cleaned her pistol. When she felt the semi slow and come to a stop she jumped up, replacing the weapon into its holster and clapping her hands. She side stepped/slid to the next set of bunks and saw Ketsuki still sleeping...and gave him a solid slap on the thigh to wake him. "Come on...get up. We're camping!" She spoke with excitement, happy to be getting outside, the stuffy interior not to her liking. She didn't wait for the others before exiting. Standing outside, she looked up to the dark sky and breathed in deeply, stretching her arms above her head before heading over to Grizz.

"How did my girl run?" she asked, putting her hand on the warm hood, the engine still ticking as it cooled. She ran her palm over the dusty surface, the day's grit heavy on the new vechicle. She put her back to the truck and used her heels to lever herself up onto the warm surface, a wide grin on her face.

"Can we have a fire? A really big one...one that we can cook over? Yorkmizer don't say we couldn't...did he?" Her grin faded, then appeared again. She couldn't believe they were actually on the road...just like a family...a disjointed and disturbed family...but still...

The night was calm, cool, and quiet. Out here, there weren't any lights blocking out the sky, and so the evening sky presented itself in its best and purest form. A vast bluish-black sea pockmarked with brilliant white dots stretched in every direction that wasn't downwards. Large clusters of stars seemed to form rifts, almost like cosmic mouths that held back untold secrets behind their bright lips. Finally, the moon, the great eye in the sky, it hung there almost half open-- or half closed-- it was hard to tell. Such was the symphony of the unadulterated night sky, and relishing every minute of it was one specific insignificant speck in the grand scheme of the universe, lying face up on the roof of a semi truck.

And then suddenly, it was all gone. The sight of the wondrous night sky had been consumed by sheer blackness. Upon closer inspection, it was... rocks? Barsad jolted up and looked around, only just realizing that they were pulling into an little hideaway in the middle of nowhere. A surprise, definitely, but a welcome one.

As soon as the engines died, Barsad pulled out his legs from under the rooftop hatch, letting it fall back down with a blunt, echoing thunk, dropping just a bit more dust and sand into the crew quarters underneath. From up there, he could see that Grizz was over by the pond and Dawn was by the engine, and Ketsuki was still most likely just rousing from his sleep inside. The entire front side of his upper body was covered in a thin coating of sand, which he quickly dusted off with a few good shakes.

Dawn suggested that the squad make a big bonfire, and Barsad's eyes immediately shot towards Grizz, as if asking permission as well. "Yeah, a fire! It's gonna get mighty cold out here tonight and we wouldn't wanna get frozen now, would we? Come on big man, it'll be great!" The commando reached into one of his pockets and produced a single bullet, then reached for one of his knives. "I can start one for all of ya easy!" He yelled, brandishing them with a grin.

Grizzwald grunted pulling Dawn off the hood of the truck pointing a finger at her. "My Annabelle ran great like I knew she would. Now don't get her any more dirty!" He spun the woman around and away chuckling. "As for a fire we can prolly do it, but not a huge one, there's still only four of us here and we don't need to get jumped by some dusty desperadoes!"

He then pushed Breadbox's hands down.
"We don't need to be blown up rabbit! Let someone else do it, we here at Team Dynamite don't want to die today!" The birdman walked to the truck and pulled out one of the food boxes Mr. Yorkmizer packed the truck with. "Here let's see what kind of food the bossman gave us." He dropped the box onto the ground and opened it up.

Ketsuki adjusted himself from his sleep and yawned blinking a few times. "Wow we're here already?" He asked before jumping from the top bunk and hopping down onto the floor of the truck stretching. He could hear his bones pop from being stiff and stepped outside the back to see that they were not even close to their destination. He could hear Dawn shouting about a fire and Barsad flicking out a bullet and a knife. Ketsuki sighed and went to avert his attention from the bullet only to see Grizzwald had already done so.

Ketsuki took a glance around the area before returning to the truck and hopped out with his rifle and a box filled with ammo holding a large grin on his face. "Who the hell cares what Yorkmizer has brought for us. What's better than getting your own dinner. Plenty of rabbits over here. Including the infamous bald rabbit. Pretty sure we can shoot and kill atleast one of them. " He said with a large grin. Of course the bald rabbit was a joke towards the Commando but it would still be fun to shoot the rabbits themselves. He figured they'd be a great meal too.

Dawn managed to stay on her feet, despite Grizz's attempt to toss her aside. She flipped him the finger but otherwise ignored his claim on her "Annabelle". She grunted...how she hated that name... She was just thinking of starting a small fire when Suki finally joined them.

"Not there....just here," she responded to his question. She started collecting clumps of dry grass and twigs for the fire, assembling the tinder in a circle. She stopped what she was doing and brightened again with the mention of hunting. "I wanna hunt rabbits too...just not the bald ones..." Then she winked at Suki and laughed good heartedly. "The bald ones bite...right Barsad?"

With a grin of mischievousness on her face, Dawn went over to the box Grizz had set down, thinking to grab a bite to eat before the hunting expedition. She rifled through it, pushing Grizz out of her way playfully. She pulled a wrapped bar from inside and read the label aloud. "...protein bar...how bad can it be?" She took a bite, then spit it out, wiping the remains from her tongue with a look of disgust on her face. "Jeeesuuuus...what the hell is that...a shit stick?" She wiped her hands on her pants and stood up. "I think we need to hunt now and build a fire after. Who's in?" she asked, cocking her eyebrow at Ketsuki.

Barsad stood there awkwardly for a second before putting away the bullet, grumbling to himself as he did so. "WellalrightbutImeanwe'renotgonnagetblownupbyateens yweensylilgunpowderbutokay." He fiddled around with his knife before turning his attention to the sniper and the mechanic, who seemed to be talking about rabbits-- him included. The bald rabbit thing was a nice touch, and Dawn was right too, he did have a tendency to bite in close confrontations. "Uhuh. Daf's waf da teef ah for." He said, baring his teeth at them with pride. Funnily enough, the front rows did look suspiciously jagged if you looked hard enough.

He bent down and grabbed a protein bar just as Dawn did, and likewise opened the wrapper. Her apparent disgust didn't faze him one bit. He munched on a quarter of the bar and chewed for a few seconds before nonchalantly shrugging. "Well, it's definitely food." His words were slightly muffled by the mulch in his mouth. To him, it wasn't good, but it wasn't really bad either. Just plain bland by his standards. "Could use a bit of spice and all that, though." He lazily munched on it, taking bite after bite until nothing was left, then wiped his hands clean on his pants.

He looked at Dawn and Ketsuki once more. It seemed they were about to have a hunting challenge. Barsad thought for a moment before cracking a wide grin. "Hohoho, a hunt! I'm in!" He clambered up the semi and looked out into the moonlit wastes, spotting a few silhouettes hopping around. In his experience, the fact that there were rabbits around and the fact that there were quite a few rabbits around the area pointed to one conclusion: There was a den nearby. Without breaking his gaze at the rabbits, he added to his previous remark. "... Come to think of it, I might even get the biggest haul, given the right circumstances..." Absentmindedly, he flipped his knife through the air a couple of times and balanced the tip on his palm as a bit of a warmup.