BD
Squire
Stay Classy, Ymaggion
Posts: 26
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Post by BD on Dec 12, 2010 1:14:03 GMT -5
"No, I won't chance it; i'm not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. I can tell from your rigs you guys know what you're doing. What tools I have are in the box, you're more than welcome to try with those, but if you already know that you need other tools don't bother. I appreciate the help though; it's hard to find good people out here," Kite said in a somewhat relieved manner.
I guess that I can take it easy. If they knew who I was i'd have swords in my hand right now. Looks like i'm fine for now.
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Post by Steinerman on Dec 12, 2010 1:47:17 GMT -5
Inwardly, Michael sighed in relief, nodding outwardly as he did so. "As you wish," he replied. Glad that they wouldn't have to bring Kite back with them to the convoy. He didn't want to imagine what Uban would be like back at the convoy, as Michael was sure Uban was still suspicious of the man.
By the bike, Nicole nodded, "Right, so we need to send the vehicle back to the convoy, or radio them and have them send a Vee back with the part."
Uban shrugged, "I can take the Vee and catch up to the convoy, they're moving slow, and I don't want to deprive them of another vehicle right now. Knight-Commander, would you like to accompany us? or stay here with the travelers?"
Michael stared contemplatively at his friend, unsure of what the Sergeant was up too, offering to take their vehicle to the convoy. Obviously he suspected a trap, not unusual for him, Uban was a suspicious man by nature. But to suggest that he leave Michael there...
"Yes, that will do nicely, Adams. Radio the convoy and tell them to get the part ready, Riley and I will stay. If bandits do happen to be in the area, seeing our colors should dissuade them from attacking."
Riley seemed completely oblivious to Uban's strange behavior, though in truth she didn't know the man well, and perhaps thought it normal for him to leave the Knight-Commander in the field. She spoke up quickly, obviously excited about being left out with the Knight-Commander, that the Sergeant trusted her enough to leave her made her smile from under the heavy helmet she wore.
"Sergeant, Trooper Wells will need to know what parts I need, if you could tell him I need the stuff from lockers 2-C and 6-C? The part and everything else I need is in there."
Uban nodded, repeating back the numbers to make sure he had them firmly in his mind, and then stalked off to the Humvee. He banged on the side of the vehicle, "Ash!" He called into the vehicle, "Get on the horn and relay what I tell you, we've got some work to do, trooper."
A moment later he hopped into the Humvee, activated the vehicle and drove off, leaving Michael and Trooper Riley alone with Kite and Rua.
Michael turned to Rua, "I apologize, sir. I wasn't meaning to ignore you. You're welcome to stay, even travel with the convoy for a time if you wish, but I truly don't mean to be keeping you from your business, you're more than welcome to leave, if you so choose."
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Dec 14, 2010 14:17:09 GMT -5
Relayia cocked her head quizzically at the Knight-Commander and chirped, but Rua lifted a finger to silence her. "No, it's alright," he replied, shaking his head. "I might as well join you for now. Maybe you have better maps of this area than I do."
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Post by Steinerman on Dec 15, 2010 3:08:38 GMT -5
Michael cocked his head to the side in thought, eyes narrowing in concentration.
"Hmm, maps. Yes, the convoy has several up-to-date maps in the databanks, we've done several sweeps in these areas over the past few years, and make it a point to map out the area for use by travelers."
He smiled broadly, "Yes indeed, I think we can help in that regard. We should be able to get you some very detailed maps of the terrain once the Sergeant returns with his vehicle."
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Dec 15, 2010 15:03:00 GMT -5
Rua nodded appreciatively. "I'd like that. With better maps maybe this expedition won't take so damn long."
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Post by Steinerman on Dec 16, 2010 1:04:38 GMT -5
Riley, who was leaning against a sizable rock a few feet away from the bike, looked up slowly, the heavy helmet focusing on Rua.
"Expedition? Out here? You on a treasure hunt or something?" She asked curiously.
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Dec 16, 2010 13:50:55 GMT -5
Rua cocked his head a bit and shrugged, causing Relayia to rebalance herself on his shoulder. "Something like that, yeah," he replied. "It helps bring in money to supplement what Kalia makes."
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BD
Squire
Stay Classy, Ymaggion
Posts: 26
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Post by BD on Dec 25, 2010 22:51:09 GMT -5
Kite, finally relaxed, decided that it was time to attempt to make the best of the situation and learn what he could about the order's motivations without stepping on toes at the moment. They were friendly enough, granted that was without knowing who he was, but it still seemed to be the supposed high road to take. They were all waiting for parts, so it couldn't hurt to attempt to mingle and see if the commander would bite.
"Man, I don't know how you guys do it. I hear about you guys braving the jungles and surviving the arctic, and it scares me shitless just to think of what all you guys are tasked with, hell, my hat's off to you guys for all you do" Kite said as he leaned back against a tree to avoid the sun.
He turned to Rua and smirked, "And you're just a damn survivor if you've been doing this hunting stuff around here for too long."
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Dec 26, 2010 4:52:56 GMT -5
Rua gave Kite a narrow-eyed, sidelong glance, and folded his arms. "Tough talk coming from someone who couldn't stay on his own bike," he remarked. Relayia made a sound that was neither approving nor disapproving. "Besides, most bandits out here keep closer to the roads, and I won't be on them where I'm heading."
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Post by Steinerman on Dec 27, 2010 17:46:36 GMT -5
Riley cocked her head to the side, glancing at Kite through the heavily tinted helmet visor, her cold eyes suspicious. Admittedly, she told herself, she was suspicious of everyone, except for the Knight Commander.
And Sergeant Adams, she quickly added in her mind.
But still, the way he worded the question seemed odd, something about it struck a nerve with her.
Dragonheart's comment made her want to laugh a little, Kite's bike really wasn't that good of a machine, the quality wasn't exactly shoddy, but the machine was heavy and a gas guzzler due to it. She much preferred speed to armor. _______
Michael also took extra notice of Kite's question, but shrugged and replied easily. "We're Hospitalers, meant to offer aid mostly. Almost half of our subdivision is medical in nature. We mostly do sweeps and patrols of dangerous areas," He nodded up towards the highway in the distance,"The Highways especially, bandits prey on many travelers, we intend to put a stop to that."
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BD
Squire
Stay Classy, Ymaggion
Posts: 26
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Post by BD on Feb 2, 2011 0:34:43 GMT -5
Kite turned to Rua a bit hurt at the jab towards him.
"Woah there, that was meant as a compliment to you..."
He turned to Michael and smirked at the thought of a parade of tanks going down the Highways. Nothing like a police state to force the criminals into undesirable areas; now they were deciding they wanted those undesirable areas too.
"Hell, bandits are bandits; it's just a shame that they choose the main roads around here, bit uncharacteristic compared to the ones i've always dealt with. That said, at least there's some people out there who actually give a damn. More than I can say about a lot of people."
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Post by Steinerman on Feb 2, 2011 16:53:12 GMT -5
Michael nodded amiably,"The bandits generally stick to the lower ground, but the truly brave or foolish ones come up to the highways themselves for better prospects. Our main convoys patrol the highway, and we send out scouting vehicles to cover the surrounding ground."
He took his eyes of Kite for a moment, glancing instead at the young trooper, Riley. He reflected that the girl was extremely self-conscious about her appearance when around anyone not in her unit.
And while he respected her privacy greatly, it was also quite warm out.
Poor child must be roasting in her helmet, those things turn into ovens given the smallest chance.
"Riley," he called out, "Dear goodness girl, it's toasty out here. I don't want to imagine what it's like inside that helmet. At least flip the visor up before you pass out from heatstroke."
Riley wanted to glare at her commander, he knew exactly how she felt about her appearance when around others. She honestly hated seeing the looks in others' eyes when they saw her Verivian features, fear and hatred got old quickly.
But he was her commander, and her helmet felt like a skillet. So with a fair bit of apprehension, she lifted the helmet from her head and let it fall to her side, letting her mechanical arm take the weight of it.
Michael grinned happily, the poor girl's face was sweaty and pale, she really had been roasting in there. But at least she'd complied and taken it fully off, rather than simply lifting the visor, as he had suspected she'd try.
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Feb 2, 2011 19:57:47 GMT -5
Rua opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again when Commander Saint chastised--as he was certain that's what it really was; he'd spent enough time around Kalia to recognize it--the engineer about the helmet she wore. He could see the Cher Plek in the girl's face, though he didn't quite recognize where exactly, but he said nothing about it. He didn't really go with the racial tensions that'd been building up between the Empire and the rest of the world, that wasn't his concern and he was raised better than that.
"I can't say for certain, but I really don't think bandits aren't going to be much of a problem for me," he finally said after Riley had taken off her helmet. "They always stick to where civilization will be, and I'll be heading pretty much off the grid in that respect. I'd be surprised if I found any hideouts that far from the highways themselves."
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Post by Steinerman on Feb 2, 2011 22:53:06 GMT -5
Michael cocked his head to the side as he recalled what information he knew about the area. Last reports they'd had of this particular space around the Highways agreed with Rua. If he was going out to an older settlement, he would most likely avoid all of the bandits in the area.
He nodded slowly, "Yes, you are correct. There weren't many bandits operating along this particular stretch of highway last time we were here. I doubt they'll bother you."
However, he didn't want to leave the man totally without an escape route, if he needed one. Single travelers could fall prey to many sorts of dangers, bandits only being one of them. "I think, however..." he added, his expression thoughtful. "That it is always wise to have a back-up plan. Do you have a radio to contact aid, in case something happens, if your vehicle breaks down, perhaps?"
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Post by The Rising Dragon on Feb 2, 2011 23:14:45 GMT -5
"I've got a kit in the back of the junker to help me fix any problems, and I've got a few communication window scrolls stored in there," he informed the commander, nodding a bit. Relayia chirped in agreement. "I have an actual radio but I wouldn't really trust it in this situation. Too many plateaus and mountain ridges, which will only get more plentiful if I find my destination."
He was surprised they hadn't asked him where exactly he was headed yet. And part of him hoped they didn't, either, it was a crapshoot at best, which is why he packed extra supplies for this venture.
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