Reaching Salvation: Post-Acer Part 2

The figure in the jeep just continued to cry, taking out a pill of sorts and popping it into their mouth. They took off their hood to reveal a liver-spotted and slightly grotesque body. They looked up at the sky from the broken glass window, and clsoed their eyes.

In the sky above the mountain, where Joey, Ven, and the jeep, had just been, came an explosion.

A few seconds later, the sound of the explosion reached the village, causing them to stop and turn to the source of it.

Kira nodded, burying her face into Luke's shoulder. She'd forgotten how nice it was to have another person around you, someone you knew you could trust. She was really happy Luke was back.

She screamed again as she heard the car explode, clenching Luke's shirt in her fists as she started shaking again. "M-Make it stop, make i-it stop..." she whimpered quietly, any progress she had made in calming down disappearing.

"Mr. Paul!" Sage called out, finally reaching him. "It's been a while!"

Paul blinked at Sage, his distraction just enough to let a few of the runners escape. "Oh, hello there. Uhm, Sage, right?"

Sage nodded as she hugged him before backing up. "Okay...you stink. How've you been?!"

The ones that tried to flee from Paul had the unfortunate event of being blown backwards by Zackary. "I don't think so."

"Well," Paul answered, "I've been beaten, kicked, punched, shot at, nearly blown up, I stepped on a land mine, I've been mauled by a very large bear, killed everything within a ten mile radius about two years ago, and have been wandering the wasteland. So I'd say it's been pretty good."

Josh and his brother yelled as they were pushed back by the winds. The smaller of the two stood up. "Stop... please."

---

Simon did what he was told and sat in the bunker with Elena, but he was very silent, digging the knife Heidi had given him into the floor. Eithne... Eithne is alive. But... he's with them?

Elena sat next to Simon, hugging his arm and doing what she did in any stressful situation: take a nap. She used his shoulder as a pillow, seemingly unfazed by the fact that they were in half-enemy territory.

"Geeze, you still live a fucked up life," Sage responded, folding her arms underneath her cloak.

Zackary simply chuckled as he shooked his head. "Oh no. You two are not going anywhere anytime soon. Unless you want to be torn apart by the wind's gales." he smiled. "I suggest staying down and out of trouble for right now, kids. I'm not in the best mood anymore."

Luke had to stop himself from jumping at the scream, but he kept his grip, making sure not to hold too hard. He kept muttering words of comfort in her ear, telling it was all going to be okay, that he was there and everything was under control. 

"Don't worry now, Kira, that's the last of them," he replied soothingly.

"You kidding me?" Paul laughed, "I've been through Hell and back. Looking back, it seems like nothing."

Josh moved to attack, but his brother stopped him. "We'll do what you say."

"Still living a fucked up life~" Sage responded in a sing song. "Then again....I can't really say much else..."

Zackary chuckled as he folded his arms. "Good call." Oh how he would have enjoyed ripping them apart...Would have made up for that helicopter earlier.

Paul shrugged. "You just get here too?"

Kira stayed quiet besides the occasional sob, slowly calming back down, or at least to the point where she felt embarrassed for clinging to Luke like a child. "S-S-So-So-r-r-rry..." she stuttered as she pulled away, clutching her forehead almost as if she was wounded. Rubbing the tears from her eyes, she looked at the forest, before back at Luke, fidgeting where she stood.

Sage nodded, pulling back her hood to show her brown hair with now light green highlights. "Yeah, we just got here. I thought it would be abandoned...but Zack said something about the wind being different from this way."

Five years ago, he would have corrected anyone who called him Zack, now he didn't even care.

"Ah, that numbskull his here too?" Paul joked, "Wonder if he's still pissed at me.."

OoC: My Internet is being godawful, in case you were wondering about the slow posts. Damn iPod hasn't been right since I updated.

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Luke shrugged muscular shoulders, his burnt face twisting into a warm smile.

"No worries, it's perfectly alright," he replied comfortingly, eyeing the newcomers with surprise.

After a minute, from the direction of the explosion, a huge thing dashed right over the village, dropping someing completely covered in White Flow the middle of it. When it hit the surface, the flow went into the ground, and began to go through the whole village.

Soon, the entire viallge was covered in White Flow, and the damaged buildings and gates began to reform, and repair them.

The thing then stood up, revealing to have been wearing a now slightly burned, unbuttoned tux. The thing, which was actually a young man, then turned to the villagers.

"...Where's my wife?" Joey asked.

"I heard that you prick," Zackary said from where he stood, keeping an eye on the two.

"Well...you heard him...he's right there," Sage pointed at Zackary who still had his hood up, shadows covering most of his face.

As soon as he heard a god damn familiar voice, Zackary mentally groaned. Out of all the god damn places, he has to be here!?

Kira nodded slightly, before slumping to the ground, unconscious. She'd been pushed far beyond her emotional limits in a time span of around an hour.

Erika had been knocked out by the smoke and was still being carried by Carly.

Joey then noticed them, and sighed. "Of course, just my luck...I knew you guys would show up eventually."

Paul shrugged. "'Ey, can't always make the right choices. people might to start thinking I'm going soft," he chuckled, slinging his gun over his shoulder.

To Joey he said, "Hey, you should be happy to see me. By the way, how's that Rattata?" He chuckled to himself on the inside. It was a joke he had picked up in a village on the west coast.