"then I've taken prisoner with absolutely nothing to show for it. so, what shall we do now?" she said calmly. even if she was a prisoner, she was still a professional
Arcus perked an ear, curious. "Who're you with, anyway? Friends? A caravan?" he asked, idly checking his Pipbuck. Huh, definitely going to have to get more supplies soon...
"My daughter and her husband, as well as a friend of them." Darky limited himself to say. "I need to find them," --- "We should look for him. Come on." lullaby said to Lucky
Lucky nodded to ace a qaline "Please start walking" he told them Ace rolled his eyes at please but complied
"Your daughter? And her husband?" Arcus asked, incredulous. "I understand why you're in such a hurry, then, can't leave family behind..." he chuckled, although a little saddened; I wonder why?
"Lets go." lullaby said as she started walking out of the forest. She supposed they could go to that tree and see if he was there, since that was a part they all saw. ---- "Yes, that is why I should get going soon." Draky calmly said as he turned to them
"Maybe you could hop back up onto the tree? See if you can find them?" Arcus chuckled, turning his gaze to the tree. Well, it was quite tall...
Thunder smiled at the mare He thought she was a bit too cocky But hay he didn't know about the hidden knife she was holding Lucky looked at lullaby and thunder before he followed everypony Ace remained quite He figured it was the best way to not reveal anything that might get him shot
Darky remained silent. He just flew up to have a better view. ---- Lullaby walked a bit slowly so Lucky could catch up with her, then nuzzled him a bit in his nose as she lead them out.
Taffy had been in the wrecked carriage, retrieving the spark battery and levitation talisman she'd been trying to salvage before the radscorpions had attacked. She reappeared next to Arcus, tucking the components into her bags. "Hey, w's goin' on?" She asked, curiously, as she noticed Darky hovering above them. She sat back on her haunches, and cleaned her hooves with a rag, which seemed a little pointless, as when she'd finished, they were still as black as ever.
Arcus was looking up the tree, watching Dark, when suddenly... RKO Random voice out of nowhere! Arcus flinched, his body reacting reflexively, and his hoofblades being silently flipped out on instinct. He turned, ready to defend himself, and found... Taffy. Where the hell did she come from? "Oh, Taffy. Well, uh... he's looking for his daughter, apparently. And his daughter's husband." Arcus sighed, storing his hoofblades once more, and visibly relaxing. Turning to Taffy, who was currently trying to clean her hooves with a rag, he spoke: "By the way.. try not to surprise me like that? I almost sent these blades flying through you..." he chuckled, raising a hoof, and idly extending the long hoofblade.
Taffy looked at the blade, then back at him, smiling slightly. "Yeah, well..." She scuffed the ground with a hoof. "Ah've gotten into the habit of movin' quiet like; Saved ma hide more th'n once." She chuckled and gently moved the blade away from her face. "Ah'll try and keep it in mind," She looked back up at Darky. "Daughter, huh? An' her husband?" She glanced across at Arcus again, "Ya know, for somepony with a bounty on his head, ya sure are trustin'..."
"Indeed, sneaking can be very useful." Arcus chuckled, resheathing the blade as she pushed it away. Pulling the sleeves of his armor back over the blades, he tilted his head curiously at her next question. Why so trusting? Well... "Oh, well, that's because I don't actually trust you yet! But it sure feels like it, no?" Arcus laughed, turning to Taffy, and slightly turning his head towards her. "I'm still keeping myself prepared to slice you, or Darky to bits, at the first sign of hostility..." he grinned, extending a hoof blade, and idly slicing at the ground, "I don't give my trust away easily, Taffy. But you'll feel it when I do."
"how many of you are there, anyway?" Qaline asked. if there were too many of them, she might not be able to escape. "you know, this is rather interesting. I wonder if you any of you might an employer in the future... or a target" she shrugged. "either one" If she could stab the gray one, and then get away before anypony had time to react..........
"Hostility?" Taffy repeated, looking a little hurt, "What am Ah gonna do, brain ya with a socket wrench?" She sighed, and looked back at Darky. "Maybe Ah'm jus' paranoid, but it seems a good way t' ambush a pony, ya know? Pretend t' be lost, find ya mark, th'n call in ya backup..." Darky had seemed friendly enough, but Taffy had learned not to be too trusting either. Arcus she was more sure on; he'd had several opportunites to kill or otherwise take advantage of her, but he hadn't.
"Hey, that'd hurt, y'know." Arcus chuckled, rubbing his head, and imagining how big of a bump that'd leave... Oh, an ambush? "Well, if he's setting up an ambush, it's probably for my bounty, anyway. You'd be fiiiiiine! And plus, he's an alicorn... If he wanted to kill us, we'd probably already be dead from some magical brahmin-crappery." Arcus laughed, again retracting the hoofblade back into the confines of his armor.
"Oh yeah," Taffy said, dryly, " 'Cause bounty hunters're famed for their deep concern about avoidin' collateral damage..." She looked about, and decided to hide in the wreak again, just until she was sure that whoever was coming was some she actually wanted to meet. "Ya sure ya won't join me?" She asked, looking back at Arcus, "Plenty o' room in here; it's real cosy!" She grinned.
"Y'know that they'd probably want me alive, right? They're sadists like that." Arcus chuckled, before turning to see where she was trying to... Well, hide, apparently. "In there?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. But at her grin, he laughed. "I suddenly feel like hiding isn't the only reason you want me alone, hmm... I wonder why?" Arcus smirked at Taffy, but even as he said it, he found himself trotting over.
