[color=gray][indent][right][h1][color=9d362f]Zeltzin Sandoval[/color][/h1][/right][right][sub][hr][color=9d362f]Mentions:[/color] None  [color=9d362f]Location:[/color] Road to The Old Black Manor [/sub][/right][hr]
[/indent][indent]The notion of riding clown-car in Jen's van with the group of strangers she'd known for all of half-a-day was not an enticing one to Zeltzin. Unfortunately, the idea of her bike sliding off a bank and into some tarry-ass swamp-water, which would definitely fuck it up, was [i]even less[/i] attractive. Begrudgingly, she had determined she'd rather leave her bike behind, waiting loyally for her in the Summit Motel parking lot.

As she sat in the furthest-back row of seats, the van cruising down the back-roads of the swamp, she determined her choice was both right [i]and[/i] wrong. It seemed the weather had taken a swing for the worse, transitioning into a torrential downpour, which she would've been forced to endure unsheltered, had she taken her bike. The alternative was that she was instead forced to endure the stench of weed coming off one of her traveling companions - and she could only [i]guess[/i] who it was. Mind you, she had done her share of recreational medicinals in the past - but weed was not one which she had grown fond of. Fortunately, she hadn't [i]too[/i] much time to lament her decision - for the ride was pretty short, as promised.

Her gaze scanned their surroundings through the window as the van came to a halt, looking over the gate and the depths of swamp to either side. She started shifting around as they drew up to said gate, reaching back into the cargo space and retrieving the black canvas bag that concealed the hardware she'd brought along. Considering how calm the ride was through the swamp, it seemed a bit silly in hindsight to come as heavy as they had - but better safe than sorry, as cliché as it was. Either way, it was coming along.

The rain droned against the roof of the van as she checked what few things she had on her person, before reaching over and pulling open the door she was sitting up against. The shower immediately started to dampen her clothes as she started to step out, and it quickly became a drenching. Fortunately, Zeltzin's leather jacket kept her torso [i]relatively[/i] dry, but her jeans were quickly wet-through, and her head was also swiftly soaked. Her heavy combat-boots - which she was fortunate to have worn here - dropped heavily into the mud as she hopped out and took a better look at the gate. Yep, no getting through that with what they'd brought along.

She rolled her eyes at the previous notion of them shooting through the lock - that sorta thing was movie bullshit, usually. And 'specially wouldn't work with a scattergun. A softer Zeltzin would've had a chuckle at the response elicited from Ophrenia though - she surely hadn't expected the irritated snapback from someone as chill as her. But she had other things on her mind at the moment.

She started to mess with her canvas bag for a moment before she drew across it in a long motion, pulling the zipper around its length to pull out the shotgun stored within. She was mindful to ensure she didn't flag any of her 'companions' with it as she ensured it was loaded and the safety was on, before she slung it over her back, barrel-down. She imagined there wouldn't be many people out in the swamp, so her wariness with wearing it [i]bare[/i] on her back was gone. She tossed the bag back into the van before stepping away.

Her eyes once again fell upon the gate that laid before them. The talk of scaling it had her looking up its length skeptically, before she laid a hand on her thigh reflectively. It'd been a while since she'd scaled a fence - the last time she exerted herself over climbing something like this was when she booked a rock-climbing trip, of all things, when she was with Eleanor. She had a stubborn adventurousness to her back then, and would endure many things for her Eleanor, even if the other made a fuss about it. In truth, climbing something like this would've been significantly easier if someone were to help her up -- but she'd rather die, naturally.

She limped up to the gate and looked straight up before measuring in her head how much of a task it'd be. She took a bit of distance before she rushed forward and hopped up to grab the top of the fence. She threw her left leg up-and-over and started pulling herself up, before she began lifting her right leg too. The latter effort caused her body to shudder as she felt a sudden, sharp pain racking her body. For a moment, she faltered, her muscles twitching in protest as she vainly tried to hold back a loud howl of agony at the attempt. 
[color=9d362f]"A-AHNgh-!"[/color] There was a moment where she paused in the pain, and it looked like she might let herself stall - but it itself was halted quickly as she drew her muscles back under her control and redoubled her efforts, managing to finally throw herself over the peak of the fence and fall to the other side.

She [i]just[/i] managed to somehow land on her feet, even if her right leg gave way and she fell to one knee. She took an involuntary moment of pause as she felt the nerves in the right side of her body flare and tweak in pangs. She let out a frustrated grunt as she managed to stand up after a moment, her right leg quivering as she violently shrugged off any looks or attempts to ensure she was okay, should there be any.

In truth, the pain was near-blinding. Once she stood up, it took her a moment for her mind to find purchase on what she was doing before the sudden onslaught of physical torment. After a pause, her head managed to readjust itself to its surroundings as Zeltzin found herself standing in the downpour, her comrades in front and behind her. Fortunately for her, she was not the last of the group to scale the fence, and she'd at least have the reprieve of a minute or so as she waited for the rest of them to climb after her. In this meantime, Zeltzin would take the opportunity to dig a shaky hand into the inner pockets of her jacket, searching for something. She was quick to find a bottle and deposit a few pills into her hand, which she swallowed dry as she waited.

Once everybody was ready, Zeltzin followed. She took it upon herself to take position at the right-most side of the group as they moved down the muddy path towards the Black Manor. They walked for some time, led by Jen as her flashlight highlighted the countless raindrops that poured through the beam of its light. That was, until Lily came to an abrupt halt at the front. [color=mediumorchid]"... What. In. The. FUCK?"[/color] Zeltzin's hand was quick but smooth to reach down and grasp the barrel of her weapon, preparing to whip it up under her arm if they needed it.

Her eyes followed the beam of light that connected Lily's flashlight and the.. [i]thing[/i] that sat in the swamp, silently, as if watching them. Her eyes landed on it and she felt a chill run through her flesh as she paused, her grip of the weapon on her back remaining as it was. The [i]thing[/i] was.. unmoving. It was just.. [i]there[/i]. It - whatever it was - was hard to make out. With the downpour came a misty depth-of-field as the rain spattered down into the putrid, stale water of the swamp around them. Whatever the shape was, it was weird, but.. Jen had the right idea. Ignoring whatever that weird effigy-looking thing was, it was better to keep moving.

Her readiness to pull her weapon eased as they continued walking once again. Although Zeltzin was far from the superstitious type, turning her back to such a thing made her feel.. uneasy. Where she'd normally have tossed a glance over her shoulder every-so-often, [i]now[/i] she made sure to give their flank a scrutinous gaze pretty frequently as she continued limping along.
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