Naomi sat in the center of them all, not saying much as she worried and fretted over the coming events. She was drawn from her haze as Anna and Sidnee talked about what were obviously weed brownies, but the two of them were just too innocent to know what they were. The girl froze as they considered offering them to her, horrorstruck by the thought of what she would turn into if she ate them. Having never tried it before, she imagined herself drooling, eyes half closed and relaxed. A striking contrast to her posture now, as she sat straight as a rod with her arms folded neatly between her. It horrified her. That would ruin her image as a leader forever!

"It's time to go!" She cried before Anna could offer, flustered, rising to her feet. Everyone was done eating anyways. They couldn't delay for any longer and their ride in to the outskirts of the Dead City was more than ready for them.

Naomi turned and made her way to the APC that would drive them there, and the others followed in her footsteps.

__________________________

...

The APC pulled to a stop behind the ruins of what used to be a restaurant. Its engine was electric; capable of not drawing the attention of monsters from far away in the dead silence of the ruins. The area here was not the Dead City itself, but rather a small city of its own that had been swallowed by the larger city's expansion over the years. While self-contained, it was directly accessable to the main area by a giant freeway and many kilometers of open road.

The beginning of that freeway was a few hour's walk away. For now they sat in a large section of businesses and grid-lined intersections, where endless rows of abandoned vehicles still sat in the streets. Many were likely still drivable, were they not locked swallowed by the husks of dead traffic around them.

Staying silent, the APC's driver gave Naomi a sharp salute, and he drove away quickly without another word, leaving the small band of super heroes to fend for themselves in the ruins. They had such little information except for the direction they should be headed, which was to the north east. The enemy could be anywhere, but they would be in small groups if spotted at all. No buildings this far out would be occupied, but that was likely to change as they came closer to the enemy's main conglomeration a few dozen kilometers deeper.

Naomi closed her eyes, listening closely now to the visions of the future around her. She was already on high alert, watching carefully to see if gunfire would suddenly erupt from somewhere unseen. She watched the corners of every building, to know if they were about to walk around into a waiting enemy's crosshairs. She could keep it up for now, but the girl already knew that this would become draining for her in not too long.

"Hey, Francene?" Naomi asked. "Get your drone in the air... The sooner we can know it's safe to walk out from cover, the sooner we can relax a little bit."

Francene blinked at the request, slightly fiddled with the Specs cradled in her arms. "O-oh, right.. Right!" The technopath stuttered as she released the drone into the air like a bird. "H-he should be fine being so high.."

It didn't take long for Francene herself to helm the drone, making it climb higher in altitude and activate its sensors. Alright, Specs! I'll leave you here. Follow us and tell us if danger comes, okay?

You got it, Thirty-Seven! The drone replied as it kept aloft in the air.

Francene then looked to Naomi, bringing her thumb up. "Where to now?" The technopath then asked.

The army provided them with some decent gear. Isaiah strapped on his helmet and kevlar vest. He had taken from the range a submachine gun and a pistol. He focused more on arming himself for mid-range and close range combat as any sniping would be done with his crossbow. The submachine gun was an UMP45 with a side fold-out stock, foregrip, quick swap mag, and red dot sight that he had strapped to his lower back, his pistol was strapped to a shoulder holster that was part of the vest. His pockets were stocked with magazines and a few grenades were slotted in the utility belt; a smoke, a flash, an incendiary, and a fragmentation. Snapping out the stock he propped it in the nook of his shoulder and awaited orders.

Sidnee sat in silence the whole car ride; all of that talking with Anna had earned her a bit of quiet, at least for a little while. Once the APC pulled to a stop, she stepped out and looked at the carnage and hopelessness the area around them portrayed. Buildings in shambles, vehicles long abandoned. It all seemed like an omen of things to come. Once Francene launched the drone, however, Sidnee felt slightly more at ease. They'd have eyes up top, a way to prepare if enemies were coming their way. At this point, Sidnee continued to look around and await orders from her leader. She nervously tapped her foot on the shattered concrete below as she waited in silence.

While in the car, Anna sat in the seat closest to the window and hummed along as she observed in great detail all of the scenery around them.

Anna climbed out with her ruck still on her back and stretched with much exaggeration. The city wasn't as exciting as she was hoping it would be, but that didn't get the small woman down because she knew that they would see incredible things by the end of their journey. She placed her hand on her hip as if to rest it on something, though it fell through because that something wasn't there. Anna sighed in disappointment, but knew that it would be worth it. "Where shall we go first, comrades?"