sixthiterationlogs | (no subject)

WHO: Cougar Alvarez
WHERE: Bungalow #22
WHEN: July 2nd - Day After Arrival
OPEN TO: OTA
WARNINGS: n/a
STATUS: Closed

It takes Cougar two tries down the well before he gives up. The sirens and the windstorm force him to move on and make nice in the inn, but when things clear up and the sun rises on another day, Cougar slings his pack over his shoulder and heads out to explore the rest of the strange settlement they seem to be in the middle of.

It's quiet.

Normally, Cougar likes the quiet. He's a taciturn man himself, preferring signals and gestures over words, but this is an eerie kind of quiet that he doesn't like. The homes are empty and that means something drove everyone out, but for Cougar's life, he can't figure out where they went. He tries to go to the edge of the cliffs, but he can't climb the sheer face. Returning back to the village, he finds a dark green bungalow near a forked path and knows that if he wants to get a better view, he needs to be in a sniper's nest.

More than that, he's going to need to set up base. Throwing his bag to the roof, he grabs for the porch and starts to lever himself up, using the windows and the shingles of the roof to scuttle his way along until he's managed to free-run himself up to the apex of the roof. He tugs his bag along with him (stuffed with a few berries he'd found on his exploration) and settles down at the top. High above everything, he feels at home even in this strange place.

He sits, cross-legged, and chews on some of the berries as he stares at the streets that wind below him. He'd prefer to be much, much higher, but this will do for now as he stakes his claim on this house as a base and keeps an eye on all the vantage points around.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"So...sniper. I have a friend you would have liked," Sam remarks. Clint was slightly more talkative than this guy was proving to be. "He was former active duty too...couse he still seems to somehow get dragged into trouble most of the time."

Yeah, he had a feeling the two would get along. Or at the very least it would have devolved into a pinecone chunking competition to see who had the better aim. Sam smirks at the thought, almost laughing, but instead he shakes his head, "I get that. I think in this situation we're all gonna have to do what we can to survive."

"Sniper," he confirms, even though it's not a reputation he wants to go shouting about. Still, it's not like it's something he's ashamed of (not most days) and so he gives a firm nod of his head, wishing that he had his rifle, if only for the sight in the scopes. "Trouble finds me," is all Cougar says roughly, poking at the small fire to put it out now that the rabbit is done.

"Where did you fight?"

Sam feels like he can relate to that. Maybe trouble finding them is why they are both here.

"Two tours in Afghanistan while I was still in the Air Force, after I joined up with that other group I mentioned I've seen action all over the world now: U.S, a couple of different countries in Europe and Africa. Definitely seen more desert than jungle, although that changed recently too -- just before I wound up here anyway."

He stretches, the meal was good, but he did still mean to head out and explore the forest more. "You've probably been all over too I would guess."

Cougar's face darkens slightly at the mention of Afghanistan, seeing as he's done his own fateful tour there. That's when he'd stopped talking so much the first time around, before Bolivia had made it worse. He doesn't like to think about what he did in that country, but he's given blood and time to it. "Yes," is his answer, when Sam suggests that he's been all over. He can't count the number of countries he's served in, but the bad ones will always be highlighted in his mind. Afghanistan and Bolivia are the worst, yes, but there are others he dislikes. Anything too cold had chilled his blood and makes him far from eager to go back.

And after LA, the United States is fairly high on his list of countries he takes issue with. "This place, it's like none of them, though." Too cold for the jungles he's used to, not dry enough to be the deserts he's fought in.

Cougar definitely reminds him of some of the veterans he's helped and even more that he'd served with. It was both the way he carries himself and those short, to the point answers. Sam doesn't comment on it, but it definitely is something he makes note of in the back of his mind.

"Agreed. This place makes me nervous and I don't think it's just cause we got pulled here through a fountain," Sam admits. It's several things that have just been rubbing him the wrong way, some he can put words to and others are just gut feelings that he isn't sure he could explain. Either way, the reactions of some of the others makes him think they feel it too. "I was actually heading out to explore some of the places outside of the village before I saw you. Figure the more information we have the better."

"Want company?" Cougar's not exactly going to be at his most comfortable because he doesn't have a weapon to speak of and he doesn't even have his scope in order to sight the situation, but he also doesn't like the idea of people going out there. Both because he doesn't trust them, but he also doesn't trust this place. "Maybe I can keep you company."

And maybe he can get the chance to investigate himself while someone else is there to watch his six.

"Doesn't bother me one bit. Would actually be a little reassuring," Sam says. Sure, he'd planned to go on his own, but he isn't going to turn down company. This isn't a jog around the Washington Mall and he has no idea what to expect out there. It would be nice to have someone who could watch his back. He may not trust the man entirely, but he'd offered food and a pair of extra eyes were better than nothing.

"Maybe we can find some good hunting spots too."

His nod is accompanied by a gleam of pleasure in his eyes. He might not regularly hunt, but he also finds pleasure in letting his mind quiet and focus on the shot. Hunting allows him that peace without the guilt of human blood on his hands. With everything that's been happening lately, he's more aware than ever of his kill count. He's not keen to add to it, at least not here.

Without a gun, though, he can't see that happening. "We can find enough to feed all, at least for a day."

Sam thinks that sounds good. Honestly food was probably their biggest concern around here since, at the very least, they technically had water and at least had stable shelters. Even if he was skeptical about this place, it wasn't like he was about to turn his nose up at the luxury of having a bungalow when they could just as easily have wound up in the middle of a forest with none of that.

Sam doesn't say much else, and just gestures with a nod of his head for Cougar to walk with him back towards the road and head out of town.

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we can end here if you want?