Mad World

Any means necessary... Strong words, stronger connotations. How would he overpower Abel and get the cure without the others stopping him? He guessed he would have to work that out. Look for a situation to arise.

What was this man Samuel capable of? Foreseen? That just didn't sit right. First the dreams and then this. He hadn't seen any documentation of any kind about stuff like this. And here she was talking like he was some kind of prophet. Maybe it was just the media attacks on them but that just made him think of cults.

He was been asked to kill someone for her and retrieve the cure for the Black Tide which potentially entailed more kills if not at least violence and deception. He felt like he was part of some movie script. This was the kind of thing little kids dreamt of. One day their mundane life would be transformed and they'd suddenly find themselves a spy. He'd imagined the situation a few times and he'd never really thought about the negatives and how good a mundane life could be. Simplicity, safety, security. Luxurys he'd been denied as of late.

"What if the cure isn't in the transport what if it's in one of the other two. Or has that been foreseen to? What about the vehicle that was destroyed, that wasn't you was it?" He expected them to say no with the way they talked about not attacking but he didn't know this organisation. Perhaps they'd learnt from experience and were going about it this way now?

Something else occured to him. Something he hadn't considered before. "You said Suzanne was going to leave at the first stop like I did. She was going to leave us?" When he said us he didn't really mean that. He had no sense of unity to the others thats why he was here now. He meant leave him. He was here mainly because of her and he wasn't even sure if she cared for him. Wasn't sure that if she had survived she wasn't just going to walk off into the darkness with the cure and leave him alone with the others...

The others, how was he even going to rejoin them to initiate this mission? THey probably had thatfigured out they wouldn't remove him if they couldn't place him back. They wanted him here in person for a reason otherwise they could have done it via dreams he assumed.

"What if the cure isn't in the transport what if it's in one of the other two. Or has that been foreseen to? What about the vehicle that was destroyed, that wasn't you was it?"

"These are not questions I can provide accurate answers to," she said calmly. "Samuel is convinced that the man in black's presence on your transport signifies that the cure is with all of you." She sat back down in front of him. "And yes, Suzanne was to leave at the first stop. She spoke of bringing another, if she could convince them... but fate apparently had other things in store."

Accurate answers? Was she refering to him asking about Suzannes intentions or about the fate of the other transport. Did that mean they were involved? And was she even telling the truth about Suzanne or was it an attempt to placate him? No she would have spelt it out that she was going to bring him if that was the case. They seemed to be banking quite a bit on the man in black signifying the cure.

"Ok. I guess I'll stop asking questions now. So what now? Where do we go from here?"

"Ok. I guess I'll stop asking questions now. So what now? Where do we go from here?"

"Unfortunately this next part won't be so pleasant," she said quietly. "We're going to have to knock you out, and when you wake up you'll be in pain and be in a not so enjoyable situation. But don't worry, the man in black considers himself something of a hero, and we have faith that he'll see to your absolute security."

She stood up and took her hood off again. "Are you ready, Trevor?"

He didn't like the sound of that. Didn't like it one bit. If he wasn't secured to the chair still he'd probably have taken a swig from his hip flask in anticipation of what was coming next.

"Wouldn't matter whether I was or not it would still happen. Good job I am I guess. Hope your Samuel can make good on that promise of keeping me safe and I'm sorry for your loss. She was a good woman. I'll get your revenge." He looked at her one last time before hanging his head and tensing up in anticipation of been hit to knock him out. He seemed to be making getting knocked out quite a regular habit.

She smiled at him and removed a chloroform soaked rag from her jacket and pressed it gently against Trevor's mouth and nostrils. When he was out she waved her hand again and the sound of a door opening and feet shuffling in was heard again.

"Don't break anything, ok?" she said into the darkness. "Leave him with the bikers you all saw a few miles from the road."

"Yes ma'am."



When the team had filed out of the transport Sue turned to them. "Enrique, you stay here on one of the turrets, keep this beast running and locked."

The driver nodded and hopped back in. "Teams of two, no scientist goes unguarded by military personnel. When you spot anything suspicious, radio your location."

The group nodded and began to spread out, night-vision goggles secure, weapons drawn.



He heard a shuffling in the darkness. And then nothing. Quickly, he drew his flashlight and searched out the source of the noise. All he found was a scientist that looked like he had been beaten unconscious.

"Dinner," the scout said, licking his lips.

He grabbed the man, who moaned quietly, threw him on the back of his bike and drove back to the encampment. Three large fires were going and a large pit and stake were in the center of them. The large group of bikers hooted and hollered as Trevor was hoisted up and attached to the stake.

"Fresh meat!" one of the bikers yelled.

"Well we've got a long trip ahead of his," he said calmly. "Everyone out and armed..." he stopped and looked at the captain. "Give the Russian a crowbar," he told him, "not his gun, it's clear he hasn't learned his lesson about not being such a smartass."

"Roger." Chris said, pretending to fish around in his pack as Sue and the rest of the personnel dismounted. "Dr. Foma, I found some more meds for you, hold up a second." When everyone was outside he approached Foma.

"Here," he said, handing the him his sidearm by the barrel. "If those things overrun us, we'll need all the guns we can get out on the ground." He pulled two twelve round magazines from the small munitions ammo pouches connected to his military issue m9 holster. As Foma reached for the ammo, Chris withdrew a little, making sure the Doctor met eyes with him. "Don't make me regret this, Dr Foma. Keep it concealed unless you absolutely need it. It's fitted with an infrared laser sight, which will only be visible through your night vision. It's zeroed so all you have to do is put the dot where you want it and pull the trigger, physics will take care of the rest. I'll need you to return it once we get back to the vehicle, for obvious reasons." Chris handed him the ammo, reaffixed his night vision and stepped out into the darkness.

"Teams of two, no scientist goes unguarded by military personnel. When you spot anything suspicious, radio your location." Sue ordered.

"Roger, I'll take a doc." Chris said as he locked and loaded his M4. "Who wants to be my date?"

"Everyone out and armed."

Corinne found herself breathing a sigh of relief at the order. While she didn't particularly wish to leave the relative shelter of the truck, sitting listening to Foma and a couple of the other harp on was grating on her nerves. Flipping the safety on her pistol off, she stood and jumped down from the truck into the darkness. A chill breeze swept over her, but when she shivered it wasn't just from the cold.

"Teams of two, no scientist goes unguarded by military personnel. When you spot anything suspcious, radio your location."

When, not if. Clearly optimism wasn't the order of the day.

"Roger, I'll take a doc." Corinne glanced round at Sergeant Emmerich as he spoke. "Who wants to be my date?"

"Quite the offer, Sergeant," she replied drily, leaning against the side of the truck. "I might just take you up on it."

"Teams of two, no scientist goes unguarded by military personnel. When you spot anything suspicious, radio your location."


Sade sighed and looked around, if she was lucky everyone would link up and leave her alone. She doubted anyone would take the Foma along with them though. She didn’t really feel like dragging his spattered body back to the truck today.

“I‘ll take Foma, come on bait ball,” she said nudging him with her elbow.

She pulled her shotgun from it’s place in in it’s holder on her thigh. She felt like giving it a pump to emphasise that she didn’t want to chat with Foma but instead shrugged. At least she knew Foma enough to guess what he would and wouldn’t do it would be better then getting stuck with a complete blank.

Vivienne stepped out of the transport, barely managing to suppress her irritation. They were risking their lives and everything else to go and look for Trevor? The man was unreliable and selfish to run away like that. Not to mention he was probably dead by now anyway. Part of her tried to point out the coldness of her reluctance to go and search for Trevor. She silenced it and focused on the recklessness of this plan. Anger was preferable to fear.

She clicked the safety off her gun and stared into the darkness. The others were pairing up, doctor to scientist. Chris had partnered with Dr. Knights, and the female security guard surprised her by offering to go with Foma. Perhaps it was so that she wouldn't feel guilty about his death when the infected found them.

Because that was surely what would happen. Why were they expected to go outside? Not just expected, ordered. If she refused, would Sue shoot her? She did not want to take the chance.

“F*ck it, do you have a cigarette?” she said to the tattooed mercenary she had invited into her apartment earlier. It was going to be a long night, and it seemed smoking was a small threat to her health in comparison to this.

"Quite the offer, Sergeant," Corrine replied drily, leaning against the side of the truck. "I might just take you up on it."

"I was hoping you'd give me another chance after my embarrassing performance on our first outing, Dr Knights." Chris said, smiling, as he approached where she stood beside the Caiman.

"When we move out, stay close and try to always keep a hand on me, it's pretty dark out. If any of those things attack and we become separated...Well, It's hard to make out faces with night vision devices. Don't want to attack the wrong person."

Chris watched patiently as the others began to pair up.

"Emmerich, check, check, check." he said into his microphone. He got thumbs up from most of the soldiers confirming his comm system was up and funtioning. He turned to Grey and Sue awaiting thm to assign team directions and give the order to move out.

Trev groaned as he felt himself been moved, malhandled. The rev of an engine and a sickening smell of petrol filled his nostrils as the bike accelarated off. He ached all over and he hoped what ever was going on was part of the plan. At first he thought the biker might be an operative for Black Tide. God he wished he had been right about that but it soon became apparent he wasn't.

Soon he arrived at the bikers destination and he felt his heart hammering in hischest his eyes darting frantically to and fro as he was dragged off the bike and the people around him cheered and hollered. He swung a punch at a man infront of him only to find it dodged and returned far more brutally. Once again he found himself tied up and he kicked and flailed as he found himself been suspended up in the air on a cross.

These people? Were they infected or were they just off their nut. Cannibals. He' been dreading the arrival of Sue and the group to retrieve him but right now he was begging for them to arrive. God black tide better be right about this. Otherwise his career as an operative was about to become dramatically short.

"Aww, I knew you cared..." joked Chaos as she pumped her shotgun. The two began to move away from the others and Chaos continually looked around seeing if there were any walkers around... or any of the others. "Look, I know you aren't exactly in a mood to talk with... well anyone probably, but there's things about this whole thing that just don't add up. Particularly when it comes to the Black Tide. The way they're going about this just doesn't fit. If they were truely after the cure, they wouldn't be attacking the transports and needlessly killing soldiers. It'd be much easier to wait until it's mass produced and then steal a sample. For that matter why is the government so hell bent on keeping the formala secret. What's the worse they could do if they steal a sample of the cure or a cope of the formala? Cure people, oh dear goddess no! Ha. We're being kept in the dark about things..."

The scientist who helped Lonny save Chris asked for a cigarette. He didn't take her for the smoker type. Then again, what exactly would a smoker look like? And the lady looked stressed enough without him taking precious moments trying to analyze her, not to mention, it's not his job. Lonny grinned at the woman and gave her what she desired.

"Smoke up, and all your problems will go away," Lonny said sarcastically, still bearing his grin. "Need a light?"

That left Abel and the Master Sergeant. “Right. Reave, you’re with me.” Foma and the mercenary had already started walking, and Abel barely managed to hide his annoyance behind a wry smile. The woman was just as likely to shoot him as she was to actually find Trevor, and Foma... well, he hadn’t really made himself popular or reliable. Then again, perhaps they were a match made in heaven. Who know why the Lord did these things.

He turned to the rest of the personnel, checking the comms one by one before raising his voice to the people still there. “For those who missed it the first time; teams of two. If you are escorting a scientist, don’t let them out of your sight. I don’t want to have to start a search and rescue during a search a rescue. If you find our missing scientist, radio in. Do not engage alone. We don’t know why the guy ran off, and until we do, I dare not trust him.”

Abel turned to Reave and gave the man a small smile. “No more heroic actions, your head is still a larger target then your other shoulder,” he jested before switching to comm.. “Grey to Team 3, good luck, stay save. God be with us. Over.”

"Smoke up, and all your problems will go away."

There was a sarcastic edge to his voice and Vivienne narrowed her eyes behind the night vision goggles. Did he think she was an addict or reliant on smoking to ease her problems? Like Trevor was dependant on alcohol?

"Need a light?" he asked.

“Yes, thank you,” she said, taking the cigarette and accepting his offer of a light. She was probably reading into his words too much. Relax. Vivienne breathed in deeply, but it did little to relieve the tension. Still, it was better than nothing.

Around, the others looked to have formed pairs. She looked at the mercenary. They were two of the few left and standing closest. It didn’t really matter who her partner was, as long as they got back alive.

“So, does my protector have a name?” she asked, sounding slightly sarcastic. Even with an army she would not have felt safe going out into the dark, but with one man? She checked that the safety on her gun was off.

She matched his wit. Not so much a surprise, Lonny actually liked people that can go with the flow as he did. He lit himself a smoke and tilted his head back as he exhaled his first drag. He looked back at the good doctor and answered her.

"Yes he does," he said with a smile. "Lonny Bennett, ma'am. And who am I protecting?"

"Yes he does," he said with a smile. "Lonny Bennett, ma'am. And who am I protecting?"

“Vivienne Chaud,” she replied. “I would offer a hand, however -” She looked between the gun and the cigarette and decided that neither could leave her hands for the moment.

It was quite companionable when Lonny lit up as well. The chaplain was issuing instructions and she listened carefully. When he had finished speaking, atmosphere was tense as they prepared to leave. Vivienne breathed in the smoke, looking out into the darkness. She would have to go out there with this man protecting her. He seemed friendly enough, but it would be good to know more about him.

“So when the infected find us, can I scream Lonny or is it Mr. Bennet?” she asked, taking a final drag and then crushing the cigarette under her trainer.

"I was hoping you'd give me another chance after my embarrassing performance on our first outing, Dr Knights." Emmerich smiled as he crossed the space between them. The corner of Corinne's mouth tweaked up in a reply half-grin. Though she wasn't really in the mood to be overly humourous, it was better to focus on light banter than the reality of the situation they were in.

"Everyone deserves a second chance, right?"

While the sergeant did his own checks, Corinne, out of habit, doubled checked her own pistol. The safety was definitely off and she had several rounds worth of ammo. Hopefully she wouldn't have to use them, but what were the chances of that happening?

"When we move out, stay close and try to always keep a hand on me, it's pretty dark out. If any of those things attack and we become separated...Well, It's hard to make out faces with night vision devices. Don't want to attack the wrong person."

"Yes, sir." Corinne gave a mock salute, but she took the orders seriously. She knew how dangerous what they were about to attempt was, and she certainly didn't want to shoot any of her colleagues. Or get shot by them. Lord knew, if she got separated from the sergeant she'd probably rather shoot herself.

Soon enough, everyone was paired off. Grey gave them a final, quick briefing, wishing them all luck.

Luck. Yes they'd definitely need luck.

Corinne nervously tightened her grip on her Jericho, and looked up at Emmerich as they took their first steps away from the group into darkness. "Here goes nothing."

“So when the infected find us, can I scream Lonny or is it Mr. Bennett?”

Lonny raised an eyebrow, briefly thinking up a retort.

"Well, I think Mr. Bennett sounds so formal. Besides, the other ladies usually scream Lonny when they want my attention," he said with a grin as his eyes followed her movements.

He took a lengthy drag before flicking his cigarette out by thumping the end. He never really smoked the whole thing, just enough to get a buzz or calm his nerves, whichever he was more in need of.

"And for the lady? I had fantasies of a doctor, but I would be glad to call you by your fist name. I think it's kinda sexy. Or maybe it's the way you say it."

"Well, I think Mr. Bennett sounds so formal. Besides, the other ladies usually scream Lonny when they want my attention," he said with a grin as his eyes followed her movements.

Vivienne smiled slightly, even if she did not want to. He had a sense of humor. As long as he could curb it at appropriate moments, it would be a blessing. “The other ladies?” she repeated. “I hope their screams were not famous last words.”

Although she meant the reply as a joke, there was real concern mixed in. Although he had handled himself well enough in the corridor to survive, Lonny had seemed almost as panicked as her.

"And for the lady? I had fantasies of a doctor, but I would be glad to call you by your fist name. I think it's kinda sexy. Or maybe it's the way you say it."

Nearby, Chris and Dr. Knights were stepping out into the darkness. The sight of them leaving made her heart beat faster and she mentally cursed Trevor for leaving.

“Vivienne is fine,” she said, adjusting the night vision goggles. "Will you lead?"

"I guess that's best," Lonny said in response to Vivienne.

He smiled at her again and started walking. She held his attention, he would actually want to keep her safe. He looked behind himself to check if she was following yet. When he saw her, he decided a little conversation might lighten the mood.

"And by the way, I'm not a creep, in case you were wondering. But I'll be damned if your accent isn't hot. Say something in French."

"Look, I know you aren't exactly in a mood to talk with... well anyone probably, but there's things about this whole thing that just don't add up. Particularly when it comes to the Black Tide. The way they're going about this just doesn't fit. If they were truely after the cure, they wouldn't be attacking the transports and needlessly killing soldiers. It'd be much easier to wait until it's mass produced and then steal a sample. For that matter why is the government so hell bent on keeping the formala secret. What's the worse they could do if they steal a sample of the cure or a cope of the formala? Cure people, oh dear goddess no! Ha. We're being kept in the dark about things..."


Sade listened to Foma jabber away, she surveyed the distance with a steady gaze.

“Foma…I don‘t get paid to think that‘s your department…”

He was right, things seemed a little off to her as well. Who was she to ask questions? She got paid, the end result under any circumstances except if she was t become demised.

Chaos gave a sigh of defeat. It was obvious she wasn't going to put as much thought into something unless money was involved. Chaos continued this line of thinking internally...

...I don't remember that many new people getting access to the labs or the scientists so theirs spies at the base had to of been there from the start. But how did they get messages back and forth? The base was completely enclosed and only high ranking military could have gotten around with getting questioned. But if it was one of them, they wouldn't have need a scientist to defect to get a sample. So how did they contact the alcoholic or Smith? Maybe one or both of them were spies from the start. No, the military would have interrogated all of us if they found one or two worked for black tide from the beginning and they likely would have delayed the transport of the serum. Black Tide has to have a special way to contact people without alerting others, but how? I wonder if the military will be able to get the truth from the alcoholic. The ape and hero wannabe can be easily decieved. The priest and Chris may be able to ask the right questions. If not, I'll have to get answers from him, but I'll need some help...

He looked over at the sociopath with a grin...

...and I think I know how to acquire that...

"I guess that's best," Lonny said in response to Vivienne.

Lonny started to lead the way and she stayed close behind him, frowning at how exposed her back felt. Every breeze was the breath of a brute. She glanced over her shoulder every few seconds.

When she looked forward, Lonny was looking back at her. Was he checking up on her? Just as she was about to tell him to watch where he was going, he spoke.

"And by the way, I'm not a creep, in case you were wondering. But I'll be damned if your accent isn't hot. Say something in French."

“À la différence de vous il semble, je n'aiment pas le bruit de ma propre voix,” she muttered under her breath, wondering if Lonny heard or understood what she was saying. “Observeriez-vous svp où vous allez ? Pour tous les deux nos sakés.”

Vivienne clutched the gun and almost shot herself in the foot when a bird call echoed through the night. Get a grip, she thought, irritated with herself. She shook herself and took a few breaths, calming down. The silence was worse than when Lonny spoke. Now she wanted the silence filled. Realizing that if the mercenary understood French she had probably just offended him or at the least made him dislike her, she sighed and rotated her shoulders. Already her arms were starting to cramp from the hold she had on the 9mm.

“Sorry if I seem rude," she said, looking around. "This is not your fault, Mr Benn - Lonny.”

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