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JANUARY TEST DRIVE MEME
You awaken to godawful static overlaying a female voice that's too monotone to be anything but a recording. The static makes it difficult to understand the warning, but it's clearly a warning if your surroundings tell you anything...
You're buckled into a sturdy seat bolted to the wall behind you. Around you, there are dozens of others like you, some awake and others still unconscious, but it seems most of the seats lining the walls are occupied. The lights are dim, likely auxiliary lighting, leaving you mostly in the dark. You smell smoke and hear the sizzling crackle of electrical systems popping and shorting out. Some of the seats were jarred off the wall, leaving the occupants either wounded or dead. Count yourself lucky all you have is a headache and various aches accounted to whiplash.
You appear to be in a drop ship or an escape vessel of some form but the pilot is dead and the hull bears a massive gash where it buckled under the impact and sheered off. Through the door-sized opening, you can see vegetation. The air that wafts in is heavy with a humid heat, but it's obviously breathable.
Once you make your way outside, you'll see greenery: Trees, grass, and shrubs tangled with vines that grow wildly and suffocate the trees they climb. In the distance, behind the ship, you can make out a sandy desert that seems to stretch on endlessly. Forward through the trees, however, you may see a crumbling wall, but more importantly, you'll see signs of civilisation. Buildings and other structures seem contained within those decrepit walls. Maybe the natives can fill you in on what's going on, because the last thing you remember isn't being in an escape shuttle. As a matter of fact, you don't remember much about your arrival or where you are. But it's going to be a bit of a hike, better get moving. Though you might want to grab the backpack of supplies under your seat before you go.
With that, the power dies, leaving the drop ship in the dark, crackling and groaning as the hull cools from its catastrophic re-entry.
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She was so caught up in attempting to free a backpack from under a seat that she didn't notice she had company directly nearby. It was only after she heard a movement that she gasped softly and abruptly stopped moving so she could slowly turn her head and look over.
The man she saw didn't look particularly threatening sorting through his belongings, but that didn't stop her from sitting up a little straighter and tugging on the backpack more roughly. It came free with the added force but she also managed to send herself crashing backward to land on her backside.
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Even if it was from a strip of a girl.
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"You, you mean?" There was a hint of amusement to her tone as she looked him over. She pulled the backpack she had grabbed into her lap and watched him. She wasn't sure if he would be hostile and do anything to her after a greeting like that.
"Don't worry. I don't want any of your things. I've found my own. See?" The backpack in her lap was nodded toward, like it explained everything.
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"It best stay that way," Daryl grumbled, transferring all of the stuff he'd found to one of the bags and throwing the extra, empty packs in on top of it all. His jaw moved, grinding his teeth some before he dipped his head and looked away, rubbing at his nose with the back of one hand. "How many water bottles you got in there?
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"Only four," she sighed. She wasn't sure if that was a good number or not, but she knew that humans needed water. He was likely interested in obtaining more.
"I have food, a blanket, and flashlights as well. But no weapon. Would you be willing to trade?" He seemed gruff enough that he might be more willing to talk if she offered a trade instead of just handing over the things he was asking about.
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He shook his head, "No weapons in mine, either. Give you another blanket for extra batteries for the flashlight."
Daryl figured keeping herself warm would be more important than the light. At least for the time being.
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"Some people have weapons," she informed him, making eye contact. "Do you know anyone on board that shouldn't have one?" They could be in trouble if the wrong people find backpacks with knives and hammers. She had spotted people with both of them.
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As her new question, he held her eyes for a second, then let them drop as he shuffled the items in his pack around so it would sit better on his shoulder, "Ain't met many people yet. But if'n they don't know how to use it, then thems the ones that shouldn't have it. Why? You think you see someone you wouldn't want having one?"
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"But in a group this large, some people are bound to be dangerous." It was just simple statistics. Even with the dead bodies around, she had spotted enough survivors that there were likely a bad egg or two among the group.
She leaned forward to grab hold of the flashlight she had tried giving to him, and put it back into the backpack. She was sure she would find a use for it eventually.
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"Lesson one," he said, pulling his pack on over one shoulder and standing up. "It's Us and Them. If they ain't an Us, they're a Them. Until Them becomes an Us, they're always a threat. Figure out who your Us is gonna be, and everyone else is a Them."
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"I didn't know it was that complicated." Apparently she had a lot to learn. That made her dip her head and look momentarily worried. She understood that it would be difficult for her, since other people would look at her and instantly assume she was weak and a burden.
"I'll stick with you, if you don't mind."
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"You gotta pull your own weight," he said after a long moment. "And we ain't an Us just cause you're with me. Gotta earn it." Which was totally a lie. If she was with him, she was part of his Us. But he didn't want her thinking she could just get away with doing nothing to earn that trust.
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"I can find a safe way out, too. So we have the advantage of assessing our surroundings first."
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He knocked his fingers on her shoulder and pointed to the hole in the hull, "Take a look outside. There's some ruins of some sort not far from here. People been making their way over already. Need you to follow the most walked path there and back. Tell me what you see when you get there, and tell me what you notice about the woods along that path when you get back."
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Moving away, she took the time to adjust her backpack so it could be more easily worn on both shoulders. If she was going to be moving quickly to and from the ruins, she would need it to be balanced.
"In case we're separated," she paused, glancing up at him, "My name is Athena."
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She hadn't exactly been properly taught, but she understood the basics of self-defense well enough that she could fend for herself against someone if it was needed.
"You can teach me more than just enough later. We're already up to lesson three." She smirked as she spoke, amused by the fact that she was able to learn so many things in just one day.
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When Daryl let go of her, he tapped her on the back, just above where the pack sat on her shoulders, "Go on. Get."
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"I won't let anyone take it. I promise." And then, since she felt the need to offer him the same sort of protective sentiment, "Stay safe until I get back, Daryl. It won't take me long."
She knew that she didn't need to tell him to wait for her, because he was likely the sort of man who would do just that. So she moved to climb out of the hole, hopping out to land flat footed on the other side. She only spared him a final parting glance, smiling and waving before setting off with a determined look on her face.
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Athena was part of that group, now. He could probably sneak a couple more boxes of the non-perishable food without anyone stirring up a fuss over his hoarding. He was planning rationing for at least three people now. Maybe four if that guy he'd seen James with was one of them.
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"There's sign of civilization, but it's going to take a day's walk to get there. Possibly longer, depending on the pace set. Luckily, the path through the trees seems safe. All wildlife I encountered was harmless, but the walk can be strenuous for people who aren't used to hiking. I thought I should come back and get you before going all the way there. I can point out the poisonous plants versus the edible ones as we travel, if you'd like."
He would need food, and potentially something better than what was in the supply rations. She wanted to show him she was useful beyond scouting a route to the ruins, and food seemed like a good place to start.
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"I know what's safe to eat and not," was the first thing out of his mouth after she was finished. His jaw worked a bit before he crossed his arms, fingers curling into the arm-holes of his vest, which was worn over his long-sleeve coat. Far too warm of dress for the environment, but it was his and he was used to being over-dressed just to keep his belongings on him.
"Didn't I tell you to stay on the path?" Daryl asked once he was done chewing his thoughts around in his head. "What part of staying on it had you going off and prancing through the bushes?"
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She smoothed down the sides of her pale blue dress before reaching up to fix her hair. Finding the leaves there, she removed them and cast them aside. "It was more practical than walking the entire way there and back to time it. I would've been gone for days."
Her arm extended, so she could give the knife back to him. She didn't need it any longer and knew he would want it back.
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"Let's get some ground rules in right now, then," he said, meeting her eyes. His tone was a little condescending, but it was the same as he'd address any adult who'd done the same as her. Well, maybe not exactly the same. He was actually more patient with her than he would be with an adult.
Daryl took a few steps closer to her so he could effectively tower over her for a moment. Then he knelt down so he was at eye level and unfolded his arms to hold up three fingers, "Lesson Three. You cain't do anything without people no more. Until they know they can trust you to save their asses, you gotta work with 'em and do what's asked of you. You're the one that asked to run with me, so you gotta do the work here. I tell you to do something, you do it. As close to the letter as you can.
"I tell you to stick to a path, you stick to a path. You think you shouldn't, you come back and you tell me," he paused to make sure that she understood he wasn't actually mad she'd gone and done the smart thing. "Then we decide, together, how we're gonna proceed. Deviating from the plan like you did only happens if you don't got the option of talking out a new one. Not until I know you can protect yourself the way you're gonna need to. You got that?"
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It was almost a concept foreign to her that she found herself smiling as she nodded in response to his question. "I came back." She agreed with him on the fact that she had done the smart thing, nodding eagerly as she crouched down to grab hold of her backpack. The knife couldn't be stored properly under her dress, so she needed to hide it there. People would be frightened if someone who looked as young as she did was running around with a weapon.
"Now we should make a plan on what to do next. Together." She held her head high and looked him in the eye, not apologizing for the fact she had deviated from his plan when she went off on her own. She wasn't sorry for doing it, since it had saved time. And he didn't seem to actually be cross with her, just worried she was going to do something to get one or the both of them killed.
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