While the foot soldiers were being taken down, the Clown Girl had reappeared on the battlefield. However, she did not avoid the opportunity to fight. She carried a small missile launcher and a portable gattling laser. Very heavily armed yet not well protected, she unleashed upon the ground force. "Go for the leg, just incase she want's to make a run for it." Taylor said on the radio, already pinned down in heavy cover to avoid the endless torrent of laser and missile fire.
After hearing the okay to take her down, Barbara equipped her riot shotgun, loaded some bean-bag rounds and proceeded to shoot the clown-girl four times. Once on the left thigh, once on the right shoulder and twice on the left calf. Barbara: she's down, going in to get her now.
Once the clown girl was down, she collapsed onto her knees. At this point, Damien and Abbey had rejoined the ground force and all of the goons were either dead or incapacitated. It looked like the attack succeeded and the battle was won. Unfortunately for them, they had no idea what they were about to deal with.
Barbara approaches the clown girl from behind then picks her up and slings her over her shoulder then starts to make her way away back from where she breached the back of the compound. Barbara: (over the radio) alright guys I've got the clown lady with me and am heading back to base. I'll see you guys there.
Once Barbara had rejoined the rest of the group, they all couldn't feel like they had all accomplished something successful. Blood Dust was destroyed at the source, resulting in no long-term drug wars sometime along the track for Vegas and California in general. Not long after the group rejoined, one man was watching them through the barrel of a highly customised Anti-Material rifle. His Riot Gear was as black as night, his burning red eyes coming from the pits of hell itself. His bullet-proof mask signified death, and the skeleton-like modifications to his armour told the people that he killed exactly who sent them to the afterlife. "Skeleton" Jack Harper, former Mockingbird Ranger, he was ready to unleash hell. Damien and Taylor noticed Barbara with their newest hostage. Jack was nowhere to be seen, likely away on some mission. As Barbara made it within fifty feet from the group, the hairs on the back of Damien's neck stood up. Something was terribly wrong. "Move!" Damien shouted loudly as he made sure that the group followed what happened. Just as the rest of the group frantically separated away from each other, an explosive 50MG shot exploded where the group was standing. Had they remained there, all of them would have died. Damien and Taylor were with each other while using an old destroyed van as cover, Edward separated across the road behind a building. Jack was alive and had cornered each and everyone of his targets like mice, he had them exactly where he wanted them.
Will and Jenny took cover with Edward While Abbey and Barbara too refuge behind a large boulder. Jenny: what was that?! That a mine or something?! Will: (uses radio) Damien what the hell was that?!
"It's Jack, he's found us!" Damien spoke back into the radio before Edward told the group something. "I'm going to say this once, just incase Jack has managed to hack into our frequency and listen in. The reason that Jack is infamous for his sharpshooting abilities isn't because of his sheer skill, nor is it his perception. It's his endurance. Once he locks onto something or puts his mind to it, he will do everything in his power to accomplish a task or kill his target. He can lock onto us for days at a time and not even flinch. He waits for his target to starve themselves and head out into the open, or kill themselves as they are. He plays mind games" Another shot went past Damien's head, just barely missing his cover and slamming into a building further down the street, causing it to explode. "Whatever you do, NEVER go out into the open while he has his sights on you. If you do, it's over. We need to spread out using the buildings, find where he has set himself up and kill him. We can use the clown girl as a hostage if we need to. Remember, he's a Mockingbird like me and Edward. Be prepared for the fight of your lives."
Jenny: (over the radio) Hey Jackie, if you can hear us please respond. A shot fires from the distance and hits the van where Jenny is hiding with Will and Eddie. Jenny: (over the radio) sorry, I didn't quite get that. Can you respond again please? Will: Jenny! D: Another shot fires and strikes the van again. Jenny: okay, gotcha that time! Right, now I know why you're not very happy with us... Will: what the hell are you doing Jenny?! Jenny: Will, I'm trying to make friends here. (goes back to the radio) Anyway, like I was saying. I know we may have blown up your base, destroyed your main source of income and also captured your girlfriend but I think if we just put that aside and holster our weapons we can talk this out without anyone getting shot.
Silence surrounded the town for a while before the sound of a deep gravely voice responded back to the crew over their radio frequency and only said one word to them. "Good" And with that, he hung up.
Jenny: I think well be safe now. c: Will: or we could be even more screwed. -_- Jenny: hey, I'll prove our safety by going out and waving to him. (picks up the radio) by the way I'm the one with the blonde hair and sunglasses. Jenny then puts the radio down, takes a couple of deep breaths then proceeds to cautiously walk out from the cover of the van.
Far into the distance was a figure of black and white, easily out of the range of any of their weapons or at least far enough away to avoid them easily. Still, he wasn't taking any chances incase the group turned hostile afterwards. He could defeat them all, even Taylor, but it was just that Damien would take a hell of a long time to take down, not mentioning that his former mentor was back from the dead. His deep gravely voice spoke into the microphone built into his mask. "I see you, I've been zoned in on you during this entire time." Jack spoke. "Now...what's your side of the bargain?"
(all this is over the radio) Jenny: There's no bargain here, my friends and I just wanted to get to know you. Barbara: Jen, I think he might want to know what we want for his girlfriend here. Jenny: oohhh! Well I don't think we want anything for her do we guys?
As the group shook their heads, Jack spoke over the radio. "You let her go safely, and I'll let you live. I'll leave..." Jack said over the radio. "Easy as that"
There was a silence on the radio before an audible sigh came from Jack before a short yet sinister sounding chuckle. "Really? And what would that be?"
Barbara: You're someone the people of Vegas could really use in the upcoming battle of Hoover dam. So I propose that we work together to help create a free New Vegas and in exchange you'll be able to set up a life there away from your past and it's demons.
"Really? I'm sure that Damien here has told you plenty of stories about me, and all of them are true. My methods of conducting business are very...unorthodox, but they work." Jack said again before silence occurred again. "Fine, I'll work with you. My business is ruined if the Legion reaches California anyway. I'll come down to you." As the radio frequency shut itself off, Damien went over to Barbara. "During his time in the Mockingbirds, the only thing that prevented Jack leaving us was loyalty. He values it almost more then anything else in the world. If someone betrayed him, things got violent. He lost his loyalty when the NCR finally to him when the Mockingbirds were disbanded and court-marshalled him. He was devastated, so he became who you see him as now. A psychotic chem addict and an angry man in general. He is loyal to nobody, but Vegas? Vegas might be something he is ready to fight for." Damien told Barbara. "Let's hope that we've made the right choice, surely the Legion is enough of an enemy to satisfy his bloodlust." Skeleton Jack soon appeared on the Main Street, looking absolutely terrifying in his expertly modified armour. His eyes were almost glowing an unnatural red as he got closer, like lights inside of his mask. He wasn't as big as expected, only at 5'8, but he looked like an Olympian underneath that armour. He stopped some feet between the rest of group, just incase another fight occurred.
Barbara unties Crystal (the clown girl) and asks her to come with her so she can be reunited with Jack. Barbara didn't approach Jack with any level of fear as she knew that all she was dealing with another guy playing dress-up. She knew that regardless as to how threatening Jack was trying to look that there was just another person behind the mask. Barbara: you must be Jack. Pleasure to meet you.
Crystal quickly went to Jack's side as fast as her bruised legs could take her and just hugged him as tight as she could. Jack then started to unstrap the back of his mask one by one until he took it directly off and held it in his hand, revealing a blonde man with short curly hair and no beard. Although, his eyes were blood red and certainly not natural. "Jack Harper, glad to be of assistance." Jack said as he attached the mask to his belt, with the long black haired wig adding as a decal to his armour. This was the real Jack. A mentally unstable drug addict with rage issues who was raised very horrific and abusive parents. Although he didn't actually seem like a bad person, his sadistic attitude or sociopathic and psychopathic tendencies made sure that being a "hero" was impossible. As long as there was something to fight, something to kill, him and Crystal would cause chaos together. It was what they were good at, it was how the two fell in love.
Barbara: Great to hear. Name's Barbara. (over the Radio) you can come on up guys. Eddie, Damien, behave yourselves now.
