"Uh, wha' she said," Dirk said, giving Alice a sidelong look. It was one of many that he anticipated the girl would receive from him. It was becoming quite clear she was a little odd, or at least had an interesting sense of humor. "I think."

Looking back toward the newcomer, Dirk found himself a little self-conscious. The hero had blazing red hair and was built like an ox. Compared to him, Dirk was like a tub of vanilla pudding. Clearing his throat, he said, "Anyway, I'm Conduit, an' this is... Cheese Wiz." A sudden worry came upon Dirk that the man before them was acting as a guard for the quarantine. It would make sense that some heroes would be hired to help guard the blockades and this guy looked tough enough to be one of those kinds of heroes. Even if he hadn't seemed aggressive when he had approached them, Dirk couldn't take any chances. With grim determination, his eyes locked on the redhead. "There's a friend of mine trapped in there an' I am goin' to get into this quarantine no matter what."