Chapter 2: Morning Ladies!
The small group kept to the tree line and moved towards the rock where the lone figure was lying prone shooting what appeared to be a portable cannon into the valley below. They were about 30 meters away when the figure stopped firing, cocked his head, reached quickly downwards then whirled around and pointed a suppressed pistol at them.
The stranger before them surprised them; he was just a kid, or more precisely, a teenager. His face held a look of total and utter intent.
The teenager had dark brown hair and eyes; he wore all black clothing: a T-shirt with jeans with a holster on his leg and a large duffel bag next to him containing God knew what, he wore gold colour glasses that he looked intently through at the surprised group.
"Morning ladies, what can I do for you?" asked the person. His finger hovering over the trigger of his weapon.
"Holster your weapon please, so we can talk like civilized people?" Asked Rick, trying to defuse the standoff before it became bloody.
"Well OK, since you said please, but can you ask guy in the tank top to lower that damn crossbow?" He asked looking at the hick who had his weapon aimed at his head.
"OK, Daryl, lower it please" said Rick
"Alright but can we hurry this shit up? Merle is in danger!" Said Daryl
At this the teenager perked up slightly.
"One of your group is in trouble, any chance can I help?" He asked to Rick as he lowered his pistol to point down at the rock.
At that Rick looked at him and sized him up; he was an average height, about 1 meter 8 but he had a bit of fat which was what Rick focused on.
"If you don't mind me asking... Do you do a lot of exercise?" asked Rick
"Bit of a personnel question to ask but as it happens no I don't, I rely on my marksmanship and guile to escape these freaks, but I can run 100 meters fairly fast and without too much exertion but if you think I am as fit as most athletes then nope, I was a bit of a lard arse back before this crap." Said the teen.
Ricks eyes narrowed slightly as he picked up the accent and "arse" instead of "ass"
"You are not from around here, are you?" asked Rick
He laughed slightly "How perceptive of you, no I am from across the pond, from England" he added to the confused Daryl.
"I see" said Rick with his hand hovering over his Python "Well we need all the hands we can get, but what makes us think we can trust you?"
The teenager pressed a button on the side of his pistol and the magazine dropped from the handgun, he pulled the eject slide back and took the bullet out, he clipped it back into the magazine and dropped the pistol and mag down by his duffel bag, he moved away, hands up away from it, all the while staring at the leader of the group.
"That prove it?" Asked the teen.
"Proves you're too trusting" said Daryl as he raised his crossbow again.
The teen narrowed his eyes at him and stared him down.
"Try me" said the teen as the two stared daggers at each other. Daryl's muscles tensed as his finger inched forwards, the teen shifted on his feet and balled his hands.
"Enough Daryl" said Rick after a moment, trying to break up the fight before it began.
"Hmm, you got balls kid" said Daryl as he lowered his weapon slowly.
"Welcome to the group then. But I have to ask if we can leave your cannon? That rifle is too damn loud, we don't want to attract every walker in the state to our camp" said Rick as he defused the situation.
"Cannon?" the teen laughed hard "You don't know your guns do you? This, my friends is the Barrett M82 50. Cal Anti Material rifle, this thing can kill a guy inside a tank. But I see your point, besides: I'm running out of ammo, plus; the thing weighs a tonne, it's dead weight"
Daryl whistled
"Also, I have to say you may have lucked out with me!" he said to the clearly excited hick as he smiled slightly at the group
"Why is that?" Asked T-Dog
The teenager strode over to the duffel bag and opened it, inside was a treasure trove of guns, ammo and sharp, pointy and deadly melee weapons.
This time everyone laughed at their good fortune, this would defend the group for sure.
"How many can I keep, and what do I share?" Asked the teenager. As he looked from the jabbering hick to the sheriff.
"One melee, one pistol: suppressed if possible and a normal gun." Said Rick "the rest stay with the group, but you can pick and choose as long as you stick by that rule" said Rick as he took his hand away from the Python.
"Deal" said the teenager. He immediately picked up a katana, a suppressed M9 and a L96 with a 12x optic sight with an ACOG as back-up "You never know when CQC may occur" said the teenager as he pocketed the sight, a bipod and a suppressor and ammo for the lot.
"Glenn you and- um, sorry; what is your name?" Asked Rick as he fumbled, realising he hadn't asked a name yet.
"My name's Ben, what are yours?" Asked Ben as he zipped the bag back up and slung the rifle over his shoulder.
"Mine's Rick, that's Daryl with the crossbow, Glenn in the baseball cap, and last but not least T-Dog" Said Rick pointing to each member "Now can you and Glenn take your stuff and take it and put it in the RV?"
"Of course" said Ben offering a handshake to each individual, to Glenn he said "C'mon mate, let's meet the rest of your group, it will be nice to meet some friendly faces for a change." As the two hefted the bag and started waddling back to the camp.
"Well" said Rick to Daryl as Ben and Glenn departed "It could have gone a lot worse"
"How'd he carry that crap around?" Asked T-Dog, Rick looked around and spotted through the trees a humvee in the tree line, door thrown open. He quickly walked over and checked it, the tank was empty and so was the ammo for the 50. Turret.
"So… what do we think of him?" Asked Rick as they started walking back towards the camp.
"Kid seems like a kiss-ass but he knows his weapons, he might come in handy" said Daryl
"Yeah, but it is nice to meet people with good manners, besides the kid was right though" said Rick.
"About what?" Asked Daryl
"We sure lucked out with him" said Rick smiled a little as the three of them caught up with Ben and Glenn.