A Brave New World (Full)

[Jack_Of Avalon]

Captain Spaceman-

-Commander Carver

"Harvey, queue up the lander, I'm going for a drop," John said, getting out of the pilot seat as the AI took over the flight control.

"Are you sure that is wise John?" the AI asked him, John was already dawning the exoskeleton. The powered exoskeleton was actually a piece of military equipment, rated for combat operations. The NASA model was a stripped down labor model, it had a few of the functions of military version without the weapon modules. Most of the armor was intact to help prevent injuries and suit ruptures while working in hostile environments.

"Harvey, I ain't walking to civilization, the lander has supplies and a link to Heavenward. Just launch it," the doors to the drop bay opened up revealing the landscape below. The shuttle fired its thrusters to slow the descent to a stop above the ground. John got inside the lander and braced himself for the drop.

"Drop it," he ordered, the clamps released and there was a moment of vertigo as the lander fell, its own landing jets fired, slowing it to a gentle drop, "Keep the shuttle in orbit until I need it."

"Yes, John," Harvey replied, there was the sound of the shuttle's engines firing and it pulling up into the sky. John took a shake breath before getting out of the lander and having a look at this new version of Earth.

[_Nialla_Daugherty]

Daphene growled at the new comer. She thought she had caught a scent nearby but was too careless to check. She marched in the middle of the group, infuriated. Glaring at the outsider, her fiery wrath began.

"We are trying to save your a**, so quit it with the self defense, it's rediculously loud," Daphene continued, as everyone else quieted. She turned to the bat who intruded and quickly pulled out her other knife from her garter and pointed the tip at his neck. "Whoever the hell you are, if you cause ANY of us any trouble, I will not hesitate to chop you up into bits." She paused and looked at everyone else. "Unless you would like for me to surrender you to the soldiers, I suggest you all calm the ******** down. We need to devise a plan."

With that, Daphene placed her knife back in her garter. She left the group in silence, searching the shop for a back pack and supplies they might need. "Don't get to greedy, but if you see something that might help us out, take it. I don't want to be here too long."
She grabbed a brown backpack of a shelf and unzipped it. Scanning every shelf in the store, she gathered food and first aid... Running into the kitchen knives, she grabbed a couple and restocked her garters.

[Vishra Shae]

Fajin huffed with discontent but listened to his apparent savior, he decided that he owed her enough to assure her safety and if that meant leaving this fight unsettled then so be it. Fajin's stance lighted considerably and he searched the store extensively for anything that resembled the weapons he had trained with back at the monastery. After a little with he did, finding a number of crochet hooks, a chain, a very large fishing weight, and a shovel. In his search he also came across a satchel which he filled lightly with bottled waters and all the vegetables he could find. His religion did not allow the eating of meat though Fajin did not see why he did not fight tradition and followed the rule.

At the end of his small pillage the satchel had plenty of food, water, and weapons to keep him sustained for the next week or so. Though he knew he needed these items it was still breaking the monks code of conduct and he felt ashamed of himself for taking what was not given.

"I am Fajin from the temple of the clouds," he said calmly to those within earshot, "And I thank you for saving my life."

[Jack_Of Avalon]

Captain Spaceman-

-Commander Carver

John stood on the roof of the lander. His suit was displaying an analysis of the atmosphere. The atomic components were mostly the same as prewar levels, there was an increased amount of background radiation from normal Earth levels. The suit would provide protection from radiation, as would the lander. Heavenward also had some treatments available as well on board.

The current levels were less than dangerous though. So John popped his faceplate and took a breath of fresh air. He was back on Earth, something he had never expected. The Heavenward Project was long term. The trip to Mars and back was a total of nine years. The crew had been frozen to prevent aging and keep them as viable as the day they left the Earth but by the time they were supposed to return to Earth, almost everyone they knew would be much older.

But here John was, sixty seven years later, back on Earth. Of course Earth was now as alien to him as Mars would have been. He could feel the shock setting in again.

"John? John? Bioscans indicate your heart rate and respiration are increasing. Is everything alright?" Harvey voice buzzed in his ear. Strangely comforting for a synthetic voice.

"Yeah, just give me a second," he took deep breaths and calmed himself down, "I need a course. Where is some of the activity you've been monitoring?"

"There are some unusual subterranean thermal readings in these sectors that do not match prewar records," a map came up in John's vision, "Maps indicate various cave formations and by my estimation such caverns would make excellent fallout shelters," John got back inside the lander and slid into the driver's seat.

"Alright, plot a course for the closest one," he had found Harvey annoying back when he was training for the Heavenward project but now he was strangely glad to have the AI as a companion. The lander rumbled to a start and began to roll towards the nearest cave system.

[DestroyerX]

The destroyed town that Zero was in looked to have no life at all, but at least it had some structures that could stay up and cover him from any upcoming storms...for now. He just continued to walk around looking around to see a possible town that was once covered with life, a town of peace and tranquillity, now it serves as a base of memory to those who could remember. "...Oh wait...everyone who remembers the good old days are dead..." He softly says to himself with yet another of his sighs as he closes his eyes half way in aggrivation. It would have been nice for the post apocolypse, or at least thats what he thought of the world so far, to leave him any form of data or working computer, it would make his little search for purpose thingy a tad bit easier. He stopped as he looked up at a building with little to no actual vines wrapped around it and one with less cracks in it than the other buildings, meaning that he would actually be able to rest here for as long as the building could stand. He made one big circle around the building until he found a hole in it, dubbing that to be the only enterance to the building.

He examined the room as he made his way into the building, trying to see if there were any traps or anything waiting to spring out and attack him. As soon as the coast looks to be clear, he walks up to a wall and sits down right up against it. As he gets comfortable he lets out a sigh of relief he takes off his helm and sets it to the side, letting his spiked up white hair rise up from the helmet that kept it down for all of the time that he wore it. "So far nothing..." He softly says to himself as he just knocks up against the wall...no reason to really do it, but he just felt like doing it anyway...he was a strange fellow at some times, but it wasn't always his fault to begin with. "I'll make this my base of operations for now...then search for a working computer..." He softly says to himself as he goes over his plans for the short to come future. "...And sceduale a boxing match with a unicorn..." He says to dub his current task impossible.

After he was done going over himself, his right eye glew green so that he could detect any lifeforms nearby just incase he needed to defend himself. Once he saw that there was no detection of lifeforms, he slowly closed his eyes, falling into a nice sleep to rest up for whatever was going to come his way.

[Jack_Of Avalon]

Captain Spaceman-

-Commander Carver

John brought the lander to a stop outside of a mostly ruined city and considered his options, "What do you think, Harvey?" he asked the AI, "There might be something worth salvaging in there," it took the AI a moment to respond to his query.

"Perhaps there is, John but use caution please, I am picking up unusual readings from one of the buildings," John drove the lander slowly into the town. The lander was built to transverse all manner of hostile terrain but he was worried that time might have weakened a water main of sewer pipe too much to support the weight of the lander. John picked a spot with good visibility to park the lander and got out.

He was picking up slightly higher radiation levels, enough to make him cautious for hot spots so he flicked his faceplate down and surveyed the surrounding town. He decided to start with the building Harvey had pegged as unusual. It still looked structurally sound save for the gaping hole in one side. He did not enter but popped his faceplate and shouted, "Hello?" into it. He figured if there were unusual readings then there might be some kind of life in there. He was reasonably certain the exoskeleton could hold up against hostile attacks.

[L O V 3 W I T H J U D A S]

Vladamir Union Duin

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Eternal pleas
This blood lust in me
Terrors of night
Are far from over
Immortal pain
It thrusts in your veins
Drink death of me
And live forever

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

XXXXXXXXXXXXThe noise. The sounds. Bright sea green eyes opened as the sounds of the city came to reach his mind. Of course this was normal. Wake up as the noises gained volume or his mind was done with the rest it needed. One thing that did suck about being a vampire was the coffin. That was true. A soft huff left his lips as he pushed the top of the coffin off, sliding it off before he sat up, peering around the deserted building. Everywhere was destruction. But that was how it was on the surface. Mother nature has taken back her kingdom and the vampire bowed to her wishes when ever she asked or what something from him. The bright eyes moved around and the vampire let out a sigh, a mortal habit he hadn't gotten rid of in a long time. He pushed with his palms up, rising to his feet. The radiation effect the creature none but it was annoying that was for sure. Speaking of which...he rubbed his hand under his nose brushing the smell away before stepping out of the coffin which velvet lining was older then the day. He rolled his neck and rested a hand behind it, his eyes looking out at the window that stood. He was at the fourth floor, safe from whatever did crawl on the ground and he sometimes even did feed on the creatures around the area. But mainly he found wondering lost souls or even the radiation kept him full which was somewhat amusing. For him anyways. He yawned, the long incisors showing in the light of the sun. Yes the vampire could stay in the sun. His age prevented any harm to him. The sun was just there. A thing to annoy his sensitive eyes.

A shout started the vampire and he spun around as the voice echoed through the building he stood. He moved to a center of the building and peered down at the large hole that reach the bottom floor. He saw a head peeking out and he frowned lightly, cocking his head to the side before a smirk broke the look and he moved to the window, placing his feet on the ledge before pushing off and landing graceful behind the creature.

"Hello yourself...." He mummered and looked at the creature in fascination. What the hell was it? Another mutated human that he had to put down. Those things were becoming too abundant. He would have to watch everything this creature did. He had no scent or it could be covered in some way. His nostrils flared as he tried to pick up anything and got a soft smell of a slight aftershave. A human possibly that was not so dead? He cocked his head to the side, his eyes switching to inferred. A human alright. Or a mammal at least. His mouth watered at the prospect and he flashed a slight grin.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

[The_Jere_Bear]

Jerimiah recovered from the blow to the face he had recieved from a foot when the monk had dismounted him. He regained his sight and saw a humanoid looking creature, that turned out to be a bat, who was his old friend Pierre. "Pierre you son of a b***h!" he yelled. He saw pierre was a little discomforted, and decided to lay off a bit. "So what's up?" he asked, "I swear I thought you were dead."

He walked closer to his friend and decided to wait for a response before opening his mouth again. "Always better safe than sorry," he thought to himself.

[Panther King Decari]

Slightly recovered from the shock wave, Pierre forced himself to sit up and look around at the motley crew assembled before him. His hazel eyes lighted upon a familiar face approaching, and he cracked a rough smile. "Jerimiah, you a*****e! It seems like forever since we've seen each other! But how's about we skip the formalities and you get over here and lend me a hand, eh? That bald guy's not human!" He tried to stand, but due to the monk's attack, his center of balance was off, and he ended up falling back on his stump of a tail.
Giving up on his attempts to stand up, Pierre turned his attention to the female who had brandished the knife at him. "Cool your jets sweet cheeks. I won't hurt anybody here." His eyes darted toward the monk, who had begun busily pilfering supplies and stuffing them in a sack. "Well, almost nobody."

[DestroyerX]

As he slumbered after what he thought to himself was a long enough day, Zero was just sound asleep strangely enough dreaming of weird visions of his past, though he was confused by what they meant. The perfect, ultimate weapon gentleman! Not even the threat of nuclear warfare will stop him. A voice of a man with a weird white mustcahe while in the middle of a group of people who stood infront of him spoke outloud. Though the shadows covered their faces, they word business suits meaning that they were just that of business men looking down at Zero. 'Who...are you...?' Zero spoke out to deaf ears as his vision blurred more and more until he blacked out, only to be awaken by a scream of agony and a few more screams of terror. His vision came back to him as he was standing over several people who had looked like they had come out of an asylum of some sort, with the wrap around sleeve coats on them. He just looked around the room at all of the blood splattered across the room, then he looked down at his hands as he noticed that he had some on his own hands. 'W-what the!?' He spoke outloud again, suddenly whiting out for a second, having his vision reappearing again outside what looked to be a small village on fire.

'What...is the meaning of all this?' Zero spoke out as he looked around at the burning village. 'Was I...given someone elses memory?' He questioned himself, while slipping into a more and more confused state. 'What the hell is going on?! What is this!?!" He shouted outloud. It is your destiny... A voice spoke to him from behind, he turned to face the person or creature speaking to him, only to glance up at an evil glare that made his robotic circuits shiver in fear. The glare then grinned as it was apparently made of shadows, crashing down towards him while all he could do was let out a shriek of fear. Though to his relief it was all just that of a dream as his eyes shot open and he leaned forward taking a dream breath. He just sat there looking at the ground as he just took deep breathes, his pupils shaking from the terrible nightmare he just had. Once he realized that, he stopped breathing as he placed his right hand over half of his face to feel...sweat? He held his hands out as he saw the small collected sweat from his face.

"...Guess I was given too many human characteristics..." He softly said to himself as he leaned his head back up against the wall, the nightmare that he just woke up from was going to get at him for the next few weeks, but if he tried his best, he could hold it back and ponder about it another time. Suddenly his right eye glew green as his eyes widened, he could detect something that he hasn't been able to since he awoke from the capsule, a living organism. The signal was faint but he could definetly pick it up with his eye. "...Hmm...so it's not broken..." He said as he looked down at the ground, glad that one other piece of machinery in his arsenal wasn't broken, it was going to be hard enough to find a working radio in these parts again.

[_Nialla_Daugherty]

Daphene rolled her eyes at the bat as she finished placing another knife in her garter. She looked up at the crowd. A room full a strangers. As limited as her patience was thanks to thoughts of a lifetime in jail or death, she knew she was responsible of leading the group to... the Surface World. She had spent years memorizing the city's layout; discovering holes, cracks, crevices and all other cave formations and where they led to. This had to be the day.

Catching a glimpse of the counter, she made her way to the register, noting which items had been taken. Pressing her paw against the screen, it lit up. With her claw, she began scribbling a message for her friend:

Becky,

No, you haven't been robbed. It's that time. I've got a few people with me, and we need to leave. I'll be back. Wish me luck.

Much love,
Daphene

Daphene stared at the screen. Unable of writing anything else, she simply turned off the screen, and headed toward the middle of the store. She watched everyone gather supplies, the human and the bat conversing, and took in a deep breathe.

"My name is Daphene," she began. "Obviously, we're in a tight spot," she smirked at the outsider. "Baldy here, has caused quite a stir in our little city. Exciting, yes, but this means there will be soldiers hunting our asses. Possibly even law-abiding, a** kissing citizens. Whatever the damned TV says about us, those zombies will believe," she paused, taking a glimpse at each face. "For some of us, it will prove to be a bit difficult to trust each other since most of us have never met. But for now, we're all we have, and we have to get the hell out of here. I know this city like the back of my paw, and as long as we can watch eachother's back..." Daphene paused once more, imagining what the outside would hold, "... we can go to the Surface World."

[Vishra Shae]

Fajin put the satchel of his shoulder and put the shovel through the back loop of his robes. He was listening to Daphene who was discussing the situation, but he only really caught her name and the shot at the smoothness of his head. He waited until she had finished talking before responding. "And then what? It is a harsh and unforgiving place, getting out together is great but I doubt that any of you can survive very long alone," his tone was calm and non-judgmental he was simply making a statement, "If we are to survive you will need a plan for what is to happen when we get out there." he finished with a small sigh. "Also I must ask where is my staff it is quite important to me."

[Jack_Of Avalon]

Captain Spaceman-

-Commander Carver

"Gah!" John said, jumping as the other being seemed to come out of nowhere. The faceplate of the exoskeleton snapped down automatically, "Christ, you're a pale b*****d," John said, getting his heart beat back under control. He was unarmed, there had been weapons on the Heavenward Station and he had yet to find one on the surface.

"That is the source of the strange readings, John, please exercise caution," Harvey's voice buzzed in his ear. With the faceplate down the suit would only project his voice if he turned on the external speakers. Leaving him to talk to Harvey privately.

"Can you tell me what it is?" he asked the AI.

"Scanning... No, John, I cannot," there was no sense in appearing impolite to the only other sentient life form he had run into so far. John activated the external speakers

"Sorry, you caught me by surprise there. I guess introductions are in order, I'm Commander John Carver of the Heavenward Project," he extended his hand for a handshake. Although the exoskeleton's gauntlet was a rather intimidating thing to trust the fate of your hand to.

[Panther King Decari]

Pierre's grin widened. "Oh ho ho! Feisty, tough, AND dominant! Just what I like in a girl.Well it just so happens that I'm in the exact same situation all you dandy folks are in, and if you wouldn't mind letting me join your little uh, -he motioned around the store at the others- family here, I'd be more than happy to help you out, just as soon as I get back on my feet here and find my... ah, there you are my babies!" He stood carefully and stretched, twisting his neck left and right until the joints popped. Then he walked over to the wall where his guns had flown and picked them up, wiping them off on his sleeves and replacing them in their respective holsters within his coat. "Right then. I'm all set. So what d'you say honey? Can I come with you? I promise I won't bite...much."