Just A Passerby [Zyna, Ness, Molly]

[risaka]

She took an apple from the small basket, half rotten and miscoloured, the once delicious upbeat red fruit had withered in the worn down basket for quite some time. However, the one to take yet another of the fruitless treat crunched through it with her teeth with just as much enjoyment. She munched it a bunch and even made a few satisfied noises, nonchalantly chewing away as she read through a bunch of papers. Infact, she was just skimming through a dozen of bounty posters she was obligated to carry with her, trying to find a certain face. She silently chewed away and looked up, taking another scan at the fresh catch who was hanging from a dark dead tree. The caught target cursed and flailed about, trying his best to get free.

''You filthy marine! I told you to let me down already! Get me down! Down!''

But the mocha marine just stared at him chewing before taking another bite down, then staring back down at the bounty posters, skimming through the last few before tucking them back into her left shoulder bag.

''Hmmm. *munch* mhm, guess you aren't that wanted, but I need to find the rest of your group.''

She spoke and reached up with one of the half rotten apples up to the angered pirate, giving him an innocent smile.

''I'll let you even have this apple if you tell me where they went!''

''Eeeh?! To hell with you! Who'd want that crappy apple! Ew!''

She pouted and shamelessly ate up the apple, giving the man a small frown before standing up on her feet. She stood ontop of a house of the abandoned haunted town, Colt Town, and right next to the house laid a tall dead tree, which she chose to be the spot to keep her captures. She scanned the distance, resting her hand against forehead to block the sun from disrupting her sight, but so far she could only see the rotten empty town and the wasteland surrounding it, with the occasional few mountains nearby.

''Here I thought this place was long gone abandoned, but I suppose that'd be the spot for lawless kind to meet up at, unfortunate for you guys to be walking right past me!''

She giggled and casually jumped off from the roof and landing on her feet gracefully, still with the man shouting at her, but at that point she ignored him respectfully. She crossed her arms and tapped her foot on the dried up dusty ground, thinking to herself.

Sometimes I wonder why I can't just operate alone, but here I am forced to bring in two fellow marines for a short mission... to be honest I much rather get going and find escaped bandits, but I got a feeling those I am supposed to meet up with are bound to get lost if I am not here... oh joy.

She kicked a small rock and watched the many abandoned houses, squinting at the entrances, noticing the long history they've been through. She has heard of the stories surrounding this place, marine killing marine, a famous treasure, and the unfortunate end for a marine legend. But these were just minor tales she has heard from visiting the nearby islands during her ventures.

[Fox]

Maya didn’t get it. Not at all. Why assign a recruit like her on a mission like this? Maybe to get field experience and shadow more experienced officers sure, but it sure felt like she was being babysat. Again. Wasn’t it enough that they had to babysit her on shore leave, but now on the job too? Tch. This was the worst. Not to mention there was no one here. Not a proper town where she could slack off or anything. It was deserted.

As she stepped off the dock, leaving behind the Marine cruiser that had brought her here, Molly puckered her lips sourly. The air here was incredibly dry, especially with the sun beating down on her from above. Up ahead was the town. The ghost town. It looked like it was in shambles, barely hanging on. She was pretty sure a harsh storm could knock down all of the buildings in one go. With a hefty sigh, she kicked a rock at the distant town and began the long trek thattaway.

When she got past the first couple of rundown buildings, Molly spotted someone. She squinted, trying to make out what they were wearing. After all, Marines were generally easily distinguishable via the color of their uniform. Even when the higher ranks got to personalize their look - favoritism - they all kinda had something in common. This someone… definitely looked like she was wearing their colors, and, as Molly got closer, it became obvious that she was a Marine.

Molly also noticed a shouting man hanging upside down from a tree. His face looked really red, though that could have been from the heat, the blood rushing to his face, the constipated fury, or some combination of all three. Probably the last one. Molly just stared over at him as she walked up to her chaperone. When she was closer enough, she pulled off a sloppy salute and managed to pull her eyes off the dangling man.

“Uhh… Seaman Recruit Maya Rush… reporting for duty…? Unless… you’re already finished? Ma’am.”

---

Maya Rush | Cyan (#00ffff) | Post Count: 1

[Sam]

Ness #1

---

*stomp stomp stomp*

*rattle rattle*

*stomp stomp stomp*

Like the thunder the ground began to shake ever so slightly. Something big and loud was on its way... something big and loud... yet meaning no harm. First came the stomping! Then came the loud sound of horns? No, not horns... bag pipes perhaps!? The blaring sound began to beat along with a march. On the horizon Zyna and Molly could perhaps spot an odd long figure. A scaly blue neck that stretched out into the sky like a giraffe with a bulky body and stocky legs. The odd looking creature? Person? Wore a justice coat but underneath it had a very interesting sense of fashion. A skirt was it? Plaid in design? With a funny looking black hat and a massive sword strapped to it's back.

"Ho-hum!~"

Exhaled the creature, Ness was his name and being loud was his game. Slowly he marched causing the rickety homes around to rattle in his presence. Warrant Officer Ness, from the North Blue! He'd been transformed down south over to the West Blue just a few months ago and instantly he was assigned to investigate this ghost town. How quaint... truely the West Blue was very wild. You could call it the Wild West? Right? Ness thought it over. No that sounded very silly. After having walked the home stretch Ness stopped, his face slowly obscured by the sun's glare for those who dwarfed under him.

"Hoho! greetings wee lass! Ah have arrived! Hopefully nae late! That'll be a crime hoho! Warrant Officer Ness Lachland reportin for dutay!

Ness looked around, first to Zyna, then at the little Molly and finally at the tomato red man dangling from a dead tree. The ancient zoan raised a scaly brow at the sight. Was this some form of torture or something? He had never seen that before in all his time in the North Blue.

"Warrant officer? Why is this laddie's face red like mistletoe in mid winter danglin' fraem a yule tree? Have ye an explanation for yeself?"

The NCO shook his head in disappointment, he turned to look at the little Seaman. He wondered why they had asked two warrant officers and a Seaman to complete this task. But whatever the reason Ness was looking forward to teaching Molly the ropes. Although he would be a liar to deny that he was worried by the display she was being given by Zyna. Turning to her he craned his neck slightly lower and said. 

"I'm deeply sorry ye hae tae see thes barbaric display lass."

---

Ness | Scottish Blue #0065BF

[risaka]

Zyna took notice of the approaching seaman recruit, with her arms crossed she waited patiently for the newcomer to arrive to the scene. Standing quiet she gave a nod to the sorry excuse of a salute, doing a much firmer solid salute that spoke of discipline. 

''Greetings, recruit! Makani Zyna, Warrant Officer, I've been waiting for you presence. You might be fresh but I will give you the same standards as everyone else!''

The man kept shouting at Zyna and the recruit, in which an anger mark popped from her forehead, having to hear his constant rambling. She sighs and tries to offer Maya one of the rotten apples, forgetting yet again that she might be only one in this world to enjoy these horrendous edibles. But the sound of stomping and a somewhat eerie pipe noise caught the Warrant officer's attention. Staring into the distance, seeing the towering individual with... one ridiculously long neck, slowly approaching. Zyna again waited patiently, and so she expected the same from the recruit.

Zyna saluted the man in his hybrid form, although she gave a skeptical look.

''Not often I see fellow marines using their Devil Fruit powers so openly, but I guess those scales protect from the sun! Warrant Officer Makani Zyna, a pleasure.''

She said respectfully, but honestly she literally could only understand half of his words, it was like a mental puzzle to figure out each sound.

''Eh, yes!...? I don't know what the issue is, but this man is a part of a pirate crew, the kinds of people we're gonna have to track down and wipe from this island.''

''Say that again you dumb bird! My crewmembers will slice your throat and everyone else's! Guh! Fucking let me DOWN!''

He let out a short burst of his anger as he could feel more and more weak from hanging. Zyna shuck her head and looked up to the fellow Warrant Officer, and she was brave enough to ask him.

''You got the details right? We got this recruit with us, she'll learn and aid with our operation. Speaking of which, Maya Rush! I never got any documents about you when I was told to let you tag along, so would you mind telling us your proficiencies? Preferably for combat and survival if you will.''

[Fox]

Was the ground bouncing? That didn’t feel right. Molly’s eyes narrowed as she broke the salute preemptively to look behind her. There was… a monster tromping through the ghost town. Huh. A monster wearing a Marine uniform, but still a monster. Her eyebrows shot up as the blaring of bagpipes echoed through the desolate town. What. Actually. Though. He had a neck that could stretch up to the sky islands - not really - and stubby little legs. Kind of cute? But also….what? They were wearing a skirt, but they didn’t look like a lady in the least. Who was she to judge though? He was blue and scaly. What was going on here?

Molly stared. She couldn’t help it. He spoke to her - it was a he, she could tell by the voice - earning him a tiny wave from her. He seemed like a friendly type. Honestly, even though he was her superior officer, she kind of took a liking to him almost immediately. Something about the way he spoke and carried himself. Plus, the accent was fun. She could almost imagine herself doing impersonations of him the next time she was on leave with some other recruits.

“Nah, sir. I just got here as well. You’re okay.”

Molly followed his gaze and looked to Zyna who definitely seemed like the more uptight of the two. She smiled crookedly. It seemed like the big guy had gotten the wrong idea of the whole situation, but it was pretty fun. She just patted his side and shook her head.

“It’s okay, Lachland, sir. I’ve seen worse.”

Sadly, her guess about Zyna proved true. She was definitely going to be the uptight one. She suppressed a sigh. Molly took one look at the rotten apple that was offered and then looked back at Zyna like she was crazy. She didn’t take it, but managed to realize that Lachland was probably not a freak of nature, but a Devil Fruit user! Huh. That was rare in the Blues. It also seemed like Zyna was having some trouble understanding Lachland? Which, Maya totally didn’t get. He was speaking loud and clear for all to hear. Molly glanced to Zyna when she asked her proficiencies. Molly winced.

“Uh… well,” Molly pulled out her two pistols, “I got these. I’m a quick shot.” Not an accurate one though. She made up for it with lots of rounds flying everywhere. She omitted that from her report though. “Mmm… as for survival… I mean I went through survivalist training back in military school, so I can like… start a fire on my own, know how to get fresh water and build shelters. Oh. I’m also a mechanic?”

Molly lifted up her shirt to show a belt filled to the brim with tools. She called it her utility belt. As it wasn’t exactly up to dress code, she usually concealed it beneath her shirt. Also under her shirt were wraps covering up her chest. Little white feathers poked out from the wraps on her back, but Molly figured they wouldn’t be looking there.

“Any kind of gadget, gizmo, or technological whatever, I can figure out what makes it tick. Probably fix it if it's broken too.”

---

Maya Rush | Cyan (#00ffff) | Post Count: 2

[Sam]

Ness # 2

---

Lachlan was many things, a brute, a barbarian, a sailor's mouth. But he wasn't a dumbass for lack of a better term. What he lacked in class he made up for in street smarts and reading people. It was clear to him that Zyna didn't understand him much but his point at least went across. Whatever the case perhaps his form was what distracted them.

"Of course! Mah transformation reit. Ah beat up thes goon back thaur an'd ah forgot tae transf'rm back. Silly me!"

The warrant officer announced, quickly he shrunk down at least five feet. To many's surprises despite leaving his transformed state he still towered over both Maya and Zyna. Ness was far from the largest the world had to offer, but there was no denying it! He was a big guy! In his human form, he had a different build, a herculean robust one with a rather well-chiseled body all things considered. His skin was no longer blue and scaly but rather pale with a rosy color to it... covered in brown freckles. His face was noble and lion-like with wavy red hair and piercing green eyes. Although even those features were relatively visible in his hybrid transformation.

"Maybe I'll be less distractin' noo'w."

Turning over to Maya the Warrant Officer gave her a salute and smiled thoughtfully. The lass had seen worse, had she? For how colorful she was certainly rather tough. That's good, if a seaman can't stomach unsavory scenes then they are hardly worth the salt for a Marine. Might as well quit and get a boring job like being a potter or something. Not that doing potter wasn't a bad job. It's just something Ness considered tedious and rather amusing.

"I see a raither toogh cookie arenae ye?"

He turned his eyes to Zyna who was explaining herself. Ness didn't care, he just hated to see someone suffering like that... too much blood to the head could harm the man long term. They were law enforcers, yes, but that didn't give them the right to such treatment. They were to protect everyone. That is even the criminals.

"Aye! Ah see, we shood turn em upside up bafair his heed explodes. He's radge an' spittin' mair fire than davy jones himself. Ah is nae doctur but 'at seems loch a guid way tae blow a vessel."

Cracking his knuckles like a maestro about to play the piano the man in his late twenties looked back at Zyna. She had posed quite a good question. No in fact he had not forgotten, from the two she did seem like the more uptight one. More straight-laced, that was nice. Ness liked straight-laced diligent people. They were his favorite kind. Always clear-cut and to the point.

"Aye! Ah didne forgit. In fact, trainin' yoong aspirin' marines is a specialty ay mine. Ah gie called fur thes sort ay job a lot."

Ness put his hands on his hips and listened to the young sea woman list her skills. Beads of sweat were starting to form in the man's forehead as his face started to get pink. He really wasn't used to the local weather in this transformation. In any case, Maya Rush sported quite the resume for such a young age... she must be from a rather industrious place to know that sort of stuff. She was from an academy too? Interesting. Ness came from a work heavy background too... a long line of whalers and sailors. He was no good at navigation but he knew how to maintain a ship and work the docs. Yet he knew a lick of survival save for what was taught to him as a Seaman. But judging by Zyna's pile of spoiled goods the man deduced that perhaps that was her specialty. 

"That's quite th' resume lass! Hoo'w good are ye at shootin? Can ye give us a demo please?"

---

Ness | Scottish Blue #0065BF

[risaka]

Standing beside the slightly shrunken down fellow Warrant Officer the Kuja watched and listened, letting Maya speak of her skills. It was a decent list, far more than Zyna expected, but then again it wasn't often recruits started with firearms, pistols for that matter, it was usually the basic swords. But who is she to judge, perhaps Maya is such a good markswoman that pistols just was the way to go? Zyna nodded with that thought in mind, smiling satisfied by the recruit's answer before noticing the restrained pirate finally is knocked out. She strutted over to the hanging body and hopped up high enough to give a single solid slash over the rope, cutting the man down. She caught him when landing back down on her shoulder, carrying him as he was just a sack of potatos.

''I say we do not do that here, your stomping was already loud enough.''

Zyna commented, giving Ness a swift stare.

''As I mentioned earlier, I am currently taking care of a pirate crew residing on this island, and I caught one this morning, but he did not let out a single clue or hint, I even offered him an apple, but no luck.''

She patted the pirate's back nonchalantly before putting him down, tying him up a bit more around the torso and arms.

''And if we make too much noise they might catch where we are at and avoid us, meaning its gonna be a lot harder to track them down. But no worries, they got no escape route from this island, I already butchered their ship last night.''

Zyna explained and took a seat next to the knocked out pirate, taking a bite from one of the rotten apples, she savored it with a smile.

''I'd let you shoot a bunch since there are no civilians in this ghost town, but I am sure you are a sharp shooter! I'm excited to see how you deal with pirates!''

With an almost too optimistic comment Zyna gave Maya a thumbs up and a wide grin.

[Fox]

When Lachland reverted back to his human form, Molly was only a little surprised that he was still a giant among men. Well, everyone was kind of a giant compared to her. Still, his hybrid form looked better suited to the sun and heat. With his fair skin and ginger hair, he’d look like a tomato before very long. Luckily, Molly had something of an olive complexion thanks to her Shandian heritage. So she wasn’t too worried about herself. Lachlan even gave her a compliment. A tough cookie. Well, that wasn’t how she would put it, but yeah. It got him a proud little smile from her.

He seemed kinda concerned about the guy that Zyna had strung up. Molly herself was indifferent toward him. It was kinda funny how his face was starting to go a bit purple. But, it probably wasn’t good for him. But then again, she didn’t really care. This guy was a criminal. He deserved what he got. Probably deserved worse than that. And they were gonna be the ones to bring them to their punishments.

Molly only froze up when Lachland wanted a demo. Uh. She tried to think of an excuse. Luckily, Zyna swooped in with one. Something about not tipping off the rest of the pirates here. Made sense. Aaaand it got her out of the doghouse for now. It seemed like they were trapped here tho. The pirates. So really, hopefully, this was just going to be shooting fish in a barrel. Maybe.

Zyna’s last comment about her being a sharpshooter felt like a stab in the gut. Molly didn’t say anything. In the academy, she had the worst marksmanship scores. They actively cleared out the range when she was practicing. She remembered the time that she’d shot one of her instructors in the butt. Yeah… she was a pain in his butt figuratively and literally.

“Riiiight. Gotta… keep a low profile and everything, ma’am,” Molly uttered awkwardly, ready to not be in the spotlight. Eager to get away, she continued, “So, uh, should we split up and look around then?”

---

Maya Rush | Cyan (#00ffff) | Post Count: 3

[Sam]

Ness # 3

---

Ness rolled his eyes, ugh... Zyna was no fun. But fair, she was right perhaps, although to him it didn't matter whether they knew he was here or not. He would trample those foolish pirates either way. He was a loud strong proud warrior dammit! Not a roguish pansy. Regardless, Ness decided not to interject on the matter. He clenched his teeth holding back his words. At least Zyna had put down the pirate whose face had been purple but was now turning back to normal.

"Fair enough."

He simply muttered crossing his arms and looking down at the little lass mentioning something about splitting up. Weren't they here to train and observe her? Letting a seaman wander around seemed like an awful idea. Their lack of experience made them vulnerable.

"I dornt hink that's th' most prudent thin'g lass. If anythin' we shoods stick together especially if thes place is crawlin' wi'h pirates.""

The warrant officer pointed out, his eyes turned to look over at Zyna, his lips slanted to the side. He had read the paperwork in regards to this mission... Zyna had a Zoan class fruit just like him if he remembered correctly. Specifically an avian zoan.

"Warrant Officer Zyna. Dornt ye hae an avian zoan? Perhaps ye can use it fur scoutin'? Mah neck is long in mah transformations but aam naet exactly built fur stealth. Hoho!"

---

Ness | Scottish Blue #0065BF

[risaka]

Zyna gave the questions some time to ponder on, there being no rush gave the luxury of taking her time, she needed to act calm and collected infront of the recruit and be a rolemodel. Considering how jolly and more carefree Ness behaved she naturally felt the need to be strict, not that Zyna wanted to be the boring one, but someone had to take the role!

She nodded and pointed up to the sky with a confident smile.

''You're correct my good friend, I ate the bird zoan, vulture, and giving me the opportunity to monitor large scales way up above where no one can notice me. Unfortunately the pirates have seen me using my devil fruit so I figured they are smart enough to take cover under roofs or obstacles.''

She sounded a bit aggravated by that fact, she has infact been scouting this island plenty enough to come to such a conclusion, but this single stray pirate was a big enough fool to be in the open.

''It was foolish of me using my privilege as a devil fruit user when taking down their ship, if I had just focused on gathering them up we wouldn't have wounded up in this cat & mouse chase game. However, as much I like the idea to cover the ground when split up it does pose the big problem of communication. We got a greater strength when we're together.. but also...''

Zyna ended her sentence with a bit of hesitation, she stared up at the tall man that is Ness and gave a sheepish smile, a comical sweatdrop falling from her head as she rubbed the back of her neck.

''See the thing is... that, hmmm..''

She had to pick her words carefully, showing Ness an innocent smile she tried to be as honest as possible.

''You're sort of... big and loud, and uh, the pirates would hear us even from a miles radius.''

She sighed out and looked across the empty street of the abandoned town.

''Even if they are lowlife pirates they aren't dumb, we need to play several steps ahead. See Maya, that is one of the important elements of being a Marine. Unlike pirates, we got proper education!''

[Fox]

Molly bounced on the balls of her feet as her superiors discussed the plan. Lachlan pretty much instantly shot down her idea, which didn’t endear him to her. She clicked her tongue quietly so that only she could hear it and kicked at the dirt. She couldn’t really tell if her plan to get away had been sniffed out. She didn’t really care about all this. If these dirtbags didn’t have a way off the island, couldn’t they just starve to death out here? It would serve them right. Lachland pitched his own idea, which, much to her surprise, came with the revelation that Zyna was also a Devil Fruit freak.

Wait. Did that mean that only she could swim out of the three of them? Molly glanced at Lachland and Zyna dubiously. There was no way in hell that she’d be able to bail them out if they splashed down. She wasn’t a strong swimmer for starters, and she was like half their height. Molly frowned at Zyna when the flying for scouting thing was also a bust. What were they supposed to do then? Sit out in the open? Molly glanced over to the pirate that Zyna had captured. Hm.

Ignoring the discussion between her two superiors, Molly walked over to him and poked him in the head with a stick. Hm. They’d only gotten one so far… Ideally, they’d like to lure the pirates out into an environment that would give them the advantage. This deserted town had a lot of places to hide… which wouldn’t be good for Lachland’s loud approach. If it were just her, Molly would probably rig some elaborate trap. There wasn’t much high ground for Zyna either.

So, if they couldn’t lure them out, then maybe this dummy could lead them to the whole lot of them? They were probably holed up somewhere that worked against a bird Zoan user. If Molly had to guess, she figured they’d be in the mine shafts around the island. Hm. Molly turned to Lachland and Zyna, only vaguely realizing that she’d been addressed.

“What if we let him go?” she asked, jabbing his forehead with the stick again, “He’ll probably lead us straight to his buddies. After that, we can surround ‘em, corner ‘em, or flush ‘em out of whatever hidey hole they’re in? I’d like to use him as bait but…” Molly jabbed him again. “His friends probably aren’t feeling too brave after their ship got wrecked.”

---

Maya Rush | Cyan (#00ffff) | Post Count: 4

[Sam]

Ness # 4

---

Ness quitely accessed the situation, Zyna was correct. Even he had pointed out the fact he was tall. On the other hand, he was unaware of Zyna's involvement in having taken down the ship... which did change things a bit. Pirates, they maybe they would know Zyna's vulture form and try to hide from it as much as they could. Rubbing his chin the large man looked down at the recruit and then at Zyna. Options, options, options. He could stomp around and Zyna couldn't scout around. It threw a wrench in their plans that's for sure.

"Very weell th'en. We still need tae figure somethin' tho."

That's when the recruit who had been quiet for a short period piped up. Ness turned to look at the small girl with multi-colored hair. He loved to hear what recruits had to say... sometimes they would surprise you. Ness himself remembered his time as a recruit and how much he wished his superiors would listen to him more. So that's why he gave Maya his undivided attention.

"Ho-ho! Th'at is quite th' plan. Thes bloke does seem less intelligent than th' average pirate. Nae e'ven th' rush of blood he got tae his noggin will fix th'at! Hohohoho!!"

Ness laughed out loud, he was on board with the plan. It wasn't perfect but it had potential, besides the stubborn pirate hadn't revealed much even while being tortured and everyone knows! A rat always returns to its nest! Besides! Ness wanted to give the recruit a chance to shine and get her plan used. It was good for self-esteem and confidence something they were going to need in the Marines.

---

Ness | Pictish Blue #0065BF

[risaka]

Feeling frustrated not only at the situation but at herself too Zyna clenched herself in her crossed arms. Looking down at the dusty dry ground she drew with the tip of her sole, drawing a simple shape of the entire island and trying to think where they are the most likely hidden.

But like a shiny sudden light, Zyna listened to Molly's suggestion and instantly began brainstorming the high potential it held. Along with Lachlan, the two Warrant Officers seemed optimistic about the idea. Zyna usually never used anyone else for her own benefit before, she did everything with her own two hands, but considering he IS a pirate they could use him for a while. But would he cooperate? Or was an alternative method required? Zyna approached the pirate too and tilted her head.

''A bait is a classic way to lure the prey out, but despite being foul pirates they're not animals. I think we need to be cautious about this considering we probably will need to trick him to believe he's free. I know for a fact he won't tell a single word, therefore I believe the optimal solution is to trick the bait to become the bait.. sort of.''

Zyna knelt down and scooped up the unconscious pirate over her shoulder, looking over at Lachlan and Molly.

''But if he escapes and our search becomes fruitless it'll put shame on us! So we better make the best of all our efforts to not lose the sight of him. I think placing him right outside of town and let him wake up is the best way, but we need to assure he -thinks- he's safe.''

She points at Lachlan with a confident smile.

''You can pretend to be dead near him, you don't mind getting roughed up with dirt and dust do you?''

She then points at Maya with an even bigger smile.

''Our trusty sharpshooter! You're the smallest of us, you can easily stealth from a distance and survey where they go!''

And finally she points at herself with a thumb.

''And I'll to the highest point of the sky! From there they won't be able to see me but I can see them, if they dare to go out in the open that is. It takes me at least thirty seconds to dash all the way down to the ground from up there, just keep that in mind.''

[Fox]

Lachland seemed supportive of her plan. Molly looked over to Zyna only to see her face light up as well. Oh no. She could see the gears turning in Zyna’s head. Then Zyna started to think out loud, sort of echoing Molly’s earlier thoughts. Only. Zyna rephrased it so that it sounded like her own idea. While that was the best way to get things past supervisors, it annoyed Molly to no end to have someone take credit for her ideas. Molly scowled.

Zyna went on, talking about positioning him outside of town. Won’t he think that was weird? Molly stepped back when she went to pick the guy up, not wanting to be close to Zyna. She had a weird idea about Lachland playing dead. And even worse, Zyna turned to her with an ever bigger dumber smile. Oh no. Molly got chills. Of course, she got volunteered for the most dangerous job. Ugh. She should have just kept her mouth shut.

And, as always, Zyna took the easiest job for herself. Molly knew what the plan was. Lachland would hang so far back that he couldn’t get to her in time if things went south, so Zyna would swoop in and save the day and take all the glory and credit. Not that Molly particularly cared about those things, but she hated scummy officers like that. This on top of Zyna stealing credit for her idea… Molly shook her head.

Dislike for Zyna firmly determined, Molly folded her arms over her chest. She had to think. How did she ruin this plan of Zyna’s while still catching the bad guys? Acting against orders would only get her in trouble. Contrary to what Zyna said - Molly suspected now that it was some kinda sarcastic jab against her - she was not a sharpshooter. She didn’t like her odds if things went south. Gah, she’d have to play it by ear. If the pirate went into the tunnels, she’d have more options. Plus, Zyna couldn’t swoop in at that point. She’d have to come down. So, with a vague idea in her head, Molly walked past Zyna toward the edge of town.

“Yes, ma’am,” she uttered flatly.

---

Maya Rush | Cyan (#00ffff) | Post Count: 5