[hr][hr][center][h1][i][b][color=steelblue]Ash Holloway[/color][/b][/i][/h1] [img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/0d55b471-c5e5-4224-a6dd-f93f52f38ebd.png[/img][/center] [hr][center][color=steelblue][b]Location:[/b][/color] Inner Gate -> Outer Gate [/center][hr][hr] Ash returned Miss Sally's nod, continuing his pace next to Thana down the straight and level road between the inner and outer gates. There was quite the crowd gathering to see James off, but that was expected. He was a personable guy and tended to make friends easily. The sheer volume of people coming down made Ash question for just a moment whether he was doing the right thing by Newnan. He knew full well that the community would be weaker for his absence, and not just because of his giant sniper rifle. James was the kind of guy that drew people to him and made them feel comfortable, despite not being what one would call a "leader" in the classical sense. Unfortunately, Ash knew that his decision was the correct one to make. The only other recourse was to kill him, and that was something he was simply unwilling to do. No matter what the Smoked Meat Aficionado might show outwardly, he was hurting inside, and big. They had a lot in common that way, though Ash was too self-absorbed to see past his own pain. The two of them were more similar in that way, except that James hid behind his optimism, while Ash his stoicism. Both threw themselves into work. He may as well have eaten that bullet, himself. Ash's tidbit of introspection was put on hold, with the approach of Beatrice and Ryan in the back of James's truck. Jim had stepped out of the driver's seat and handed him the keys, which he accepted with quiet confirmation. As Jim reported the situation with the other two in the truck, he glanced over to them both with an odd expression; sorrow mixed with gratitude. Ash opened his mouth to say something, only to be cut off by a massive slice of drama in the form of Chloe Ridgeway. Momentary violence led to a open and honest expression of feelings for one another, a mood swing of mere seconds drawing upon the emotions of almost everyone around them. The part of it that got to him, and it really did, was Ryan's insistence that James was family, after a sense, and he was going to make sure someone had his back. When it calmed down, Ash approached the freshly bruised man and extended his hand. [color=steelblue]"Whatever went on with us... it's done with. James is my brother, too. Help him, Ryan."[/color] He hoped to God this wasn't some ploy. James might not have needed people [i]before[/i], wandering about the backwoods, swamps, and hills of the American South, but when you add in infectious walking corpses, it changes the dynamic. He did remarkably well flying solo for a year or two; while there was no doubt his background served him well, he had taken on the mantle of Agriculturalist for a long while. Everyone needed people now. Ash hefted the woodaxe in his hand so that the head rested over his shoulder, and addressed the second of the duo departing with James. [color=steelblue]"Beatrice. We never got a lot of time to talk outside of work. I regret that. James brought you in, didn't he?"[/color] His tone remained solid, even though the content of his speech was heartfelt. [color=steelblue]"Make sure you look after each other. Irish here's right. It's dysfunctional as hell, but we are all a family here. Even if we don't see so much of each other anymore."[/color] [hr][hr][center][h1][color=firebrick]Black James(!)[/color][/h1] [img]https://v.cdn.vine.co/r/avatars/6AE78329E91063505631975227392_pic-r-1396533712688c4afde8ecf.jpg.jpg?versionId=ZnGOSit0zozlhxpJk0w6QVx4cSozVRdq[/img][/center] [hr][center][b][color=firebrick]Location:[/color][/b] Arriving at Outer Gate [/center][hr][hr] James wrapped an arm around Kristina's shoulder as they walked along the edge of Agriculture. She was like a little sister to him, and he stepped bodily into the role of Big Brother after Maria's passing. He did dearly like Maria, and considered her family his, as well. Of course, that was an easy statement to make considering she only had one living relative, of which he was aware. It just so happened to be the young lady with whom he walked at that moment. Whatever the reason, he and Kristina had become fast friends, and she deserved a little more than the standard, [color=firebrick]"Bye, y'all!"[/color] that he would likely have to give most of the people in Newnan. James could have remained happy just walking with her in silence. But he felt it would be a disservice to her. [color=firebrick]"Hey, don't you go worryin' about me now, hear? I been out there just about as long as I been in here, an' a lot longer'n that before. 'Course, things're different now, but I got that big guy gonna look out for me."[/color] He wasn't about to tell her what he really intended to do, that he was making plans to hit Eden hard and fast. He didn't want anyone to worry, or worse, try to stop him. He was doing this for people like Kristina; one of the few innocents left in the world. He couldn't protect them from inside anymore. This hit, if they were unbelievably lucky, would remove the singlemost massive human threat of the area. And if it didn't, he'd be dead. Hopefully. [color=firebrick]"You worry 'bout you, little lady. Tend them animals. Work them crops. Keep yo' people warm and fed. Keep with friends, y'all gonna need each other. Shoot a bitch if ya need. But only if you [i]need[/i], understand me? Survive. Live, even."[/color] They were getting close to the Outer Gate now. There were only a short few minutes left until he had to be out, and off on his next Life's Mission. He could see the crowd gathered to see him off, even a few stragglers running up. It felt good, knowing that what he had done, taking Richard's life like that, the people didn't despise him for it. As he neared the Gate and the people around it, he removed his weatherstained stetson. Looking over at his truck, he noticed that the back seemed to be more packed than he anticipated, and had Newnan folk about it like they belonged there. Maybe he missed something. [color=firebrick]"Aight, what's uh... what's goin' on, y'all?"[/color] [hr][hr][center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/e7de846f-30f3-4613-933c-40dce7104529.png[/img][/center] [center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/e4117d5f-65c8-4b8e-98df-5810a59267c5.jpg[/img][/center][hr][center][color=dc143c][b]Location:[/b][/color] North Of Newnan (Veterans Memorial Park - Corner of Temple Ave. & Jackson St.)[/center][hr][hr] [color=dc143c]"Glad you understand where we're coming from."[/color] responded Thalia frankly, concerning his remark about his actions, were he in their position. She climbed up the tank after him, maneuvering for the hatch on the turret. The going was a little tricky considering she was hauling up a primitive spear and a bag containing of bottles and jars and such full of packed snow. The weather was a boon in that regard; thick snowfall meant a readily available source of fresh water virtually guaranteed to be clean and safe. Precautions had to be made, certainly, but it was a shiny silver lining. Thalia swung open the hatch and lowered her bag into the tank. She leaned in, stretching her arm out as far as it would go to hook around the strap of a backpack. When she straightened back up, her pack came with her. Thalia carefully tucked away the tinder she had procured earlier and let the pack gently drop back to its spot inside. The older man who introduced himself as Alexander seemed to have an improving mood in the short time he had access to a good fire. She could relate. [color=dc143c]"Yeah, don't worry about it, Alexander. Old just means you've seen more."[/color] She made her way to the back of the tank, near the lit grill, and settled into one of the patio chairs. Her spear rested in the crook of her knee, partially leaning against the arm of her chair. The leisurely way in which Thalia sat belied the level of readiness she was putting into the situation - she did not believe that this man was there to cause immediate harm, but she was not ready to fully trust someone she'd known for a couple of minutes. Still, the process had to begin somewhere. [color=dc143c]"The sharpest, most frightening man I know's older than you. He was always kind to me, no matter what. Old doesn't always mean daft, just saying."[/color] The questioning about the Stuart Tank was best left to Lola, seeing as Thalia herself was just a guest, anyway. But the sudden burst of song (again) might warrant a little explanation, of sorts. In a quieter voice, Thalia mentioned, [color=dc143c]"She's an acquired taste. Wicked sport about things, though. Can't say for the smoke; I was wondering that, myself."[/color] Conversation with a new person was fun and all, especially now that she was reasonably certain they were in no immediate danger, but Thalia's primary desire at the moment was for the water to come up to temperature. Coffee or Cocoa, she did dearly want a nice, warm beverage to sip on.