Roric watches the mysterious woman melt into the trees, then follows the man with the gun. As they walk on, Maddy began to stir and mutter to herself. Taking this as a good sign, Roric begins walking faster, anxious to get to camp and attempt to begin sorting everything out.
As they walk, he says to the man with the gun "I never quite got your name. Forgive me, but I'd like to have an idea of what we're walking in to when we get back."
Roric kneels next to Maddy and is relieved to see she is just unconscious.
"I'm gonna have to lift you, kiddo," he says, before lifting her as gently as he can. When he straightens, he is somewhat startled to see another figure- this time a woman holding a bo staff. Looking to the person who spoke, Roric debates for a moment before nodding and saying "Lead the way. Do you have any medical supplies at this campsite? I'm pretty sure she's hit her head."
Roric had just picked up his bow when Maddy yelled out. He turned around and barely avoided a wild stab, his shirt slicing open and blood oozing from the cut. Maddy took another swing, nicking Roric on the arm. On her third swing, Roric managed to grab her arm and knock the knife from her hand. Shaking her, he yelled at her to snap out of it.
Roric quietly assisted with moving the camp, raising an eyebrow at the weirdness of watching him carry his dead body. Shaking his head, he gathers up what he can find and starts to set up a makeshift water still and cooking grill in the new camp. Searching around he finds some salvageable tarp and makes a serviceable covering for over the cooking area. Pleased, he steps back and looks around for what else he can make. Getting lost in doing things is exactly what he needs right now to help deal with all this crazy bs.
"I'm going to go hunting. We're going to need fresh food sooner or later,and I want to look for more materials. I would appreciate a second set of eyes to watch my back."
Roric, ears still ringing, picks himself up from the bush he was thrown into. Cursing, he assessed his arm- bullet thankfully went clean through and didn’t hit bone. Applying pressure to slow the bleeding, he watches in amazement as a woman’s throat is slit and a ghost materializes into flesh and blood. It stoops down, retrieves a weapon, then collapses. The younger woman raises, and begins to prophesy- that’s the only way he can describe what is happening. She takes his arm in an incredibly strong grip- almost superhuman- and applies antibiotics and bandages all the while continuing her fortelling. At her mention of his death, Roric becomes even more determined to survive. If he must die, it will be surrounded by enemies and worth something. Done, the woman staggers away and collapsed. The man rouses and talks to someone he can’t see, then checks on the younger woman.
“What,” Roric asks “the actual f**k just happened?”
Nothing. No shots, no noise. The forest was quiet. With one last look at the tent with Maddy in it, Roric gathered himself and sprinted out from behind the tree in the direction of where the shots had come from.
He had run for a couple of minutes when he heard another shot ring out, much closer than anticipated. This time, he heard a grunt of pain and a female voice say something that made no sense almost directly in front of him. Moving to get clear line of sight, he watched an older woman curse and grab at her heel, her back to him and unaware of his presence.
"STOP!" Roric yelled, pointing the handgun right at her back, center mass. "Do not turn around. Do not make any sudden movements. Drop your weapon and step forward slowly."
Roric heard the shot, watched the man fall, and immediately withdrew into the tent, feeling the cold rush of adrenaline. He was dead- he just knew. Had seen it too many times before. Tense and pale, he listened as the woman ran off, then a few seconds later a light step rummaging around and what sounded like dragging the man’s body. His arms ached from holding his bow so tightly, but he barely noticed. The unknown person shortly left and he heard the woman return again.
He turned to Maddy to tell her to be quiet when she suddenly exploded past him. He made a grab for her but she evaded him and ran out. Roric cursed and listened for another shot, but none came. Instead, he heard raised voices, then the sounds of Maddy attacking the female who’d pointed the gun, but hadn’t shot. Risking a bullet between the eyes, Roric edged open the tent flap to observe.
The woman took it, not even fighting back, and Maddy eventually fell to the ground exhausted. Roric watched the woman leave, and heard no further shots. Cautiously, he edged out to examine Maddy. She was out again. Shaking his head, he picked her up once again and lay her on the cot in the tent. Going outside, he took stock of the scene. Roric gently closed the man’s eyes and searched him with a quiet “I’m sorry.”
Pocketing the handgun, he found some ammo in the bag. He removed the man’s coat, emptied the pockets into his bag, and put it aside to cover Maddy. He removed his boots, searched his pants pockets, and verified that there was nothing else on him. Turning him over and removing his shirt, a strange mark on his back immediately caught Roric’s attention. As he leaned in closer to try and make it out, 2 more shots rang out. Immediately diving and rolling into a crouch behind the meager tree cover, Roric loaded and drew the handgun and waited.
Roric, ignoring Maddy's insistence that she was fine, brought her to the campsite. He looked in one of the two tents that had been pointed out and saw the remains of what seemed to be an IV drip. Clearing a space, he gently set Maddy down and was about to look for more first aid supplies when he heard voices outside. Whoever it was, it was female and it was talking almost too quickly for him to keep up with. It sounded manic and hostile, and so he silently nocked an arrow, motioned for Maddy to remain silent, and pointed an arrow at the strangers back. He watched her laugh and raise a gun to his guide's head, and drew his bowstring tighter, ready to fire.
Roric watches the mysterious woman melt into the trees, then follows the man with the gun. As they walk on, Maddy began to stir and mutter to herself. Taking this as a good sign, Roric begins walking faster, anxious to get to camp and attempt to begin sorting everything out.
As they walk, he says to the man with the gun "I never quite got your name. Forgive me, but I'd like to have an idea of what we're walking in to when we get back."
Roric kneels next to Maddy and is relieved to see she is just unconscious.
"I'm gonna have to lift you, kiddo," he says, before lifting her as gently as he can. When he straightens, he is somewhat startled to see another figure- this time a woman holding a bo staff. Looking to the person who spoke, Roric debates for a moment before nodding and saying "Lead the way. Do you have any medical supplies at this campsite? I'm pretty sure she's hit her head."
Granted - I lkadgsflkjabsdflkjasdkfghklsj lksadjhfnjkla ;.sdhsf asl/dkha'pgru9'alknm/R 234;poylt iuiufillasihgflkjadsbfknadjs32089 and then recover long enough to curse you and your family for all time with stumpy limbs and foul odor.
Roric is just about to offer a shoulder for Maddy to lean on instead of a wet tree, when a sudden voice startles him. Whipping around towards the source, he notes a figure stepping on a rifle of some kind and hands raised.
Keeping his own loose at his side in case he needs to make a quick grab for the bow, he calls out to the stranger.
"Who are you, my friend? I can't see you that well in the gloom over there."
Granted - you are immediately crushed by 15 tons of gold. Scientists are still baffled and your family is torn apart by the brutal in-fighting of who gets to keep it all.
Roric, concerned, reaches a hand out when the girl jumps to her feet and almost immediately slumps against a tree. He just as quickly retracts it, not wanting to scare her further. It's pretty obvious she is not well and he doesn't want to scare her- he needs answers and allies.
Holding his hands in front of him with palms out, he says "I mean you no harm. I'm Roric. Do you know where you are?"
Granted - It's so comfortable that you become addicted and refuse to get out of it ever again. Your family is then forced to take care of you, and finally gets fed up. You are then sent to a mental institution for the rest of your life, with very hard, cold beds.