Chapter 12: Road Trip
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"Hey!" Braxton yelled coming in the weapons training room. He watched Gunther, the kid hadn't heard him but he wasn't surprised since the music was at a deafening level. Walking over to the radio, he switched it off seeing Gunther look over at him.
"Hey Brax, what brings you down?" Gunther asked.
"Road trip," Braxton said grinning, he watched Gunther's eyes light up slightly. "Come on Archer wants us in the meeting room."
Ok," Gunther said following after him. Braxton looked over at the quiet kid as they walked. Gunther certainly had embraced his weapons and tactical job. He had learned about guns that no one had ever heard of before. He could shoot almost as good as Archer, and now always had a gun strapped to his leg. But he was still quiet, seemly only to spend any real time with Adir.
"Good, we're all here," Archer said as they entered and took a seat. "Ok here's the plan, we're gonna be taking a trip north." Archer pulled up a map, pointing to a heavily wooded area. "And just so you know, this isn't just a camping trip,"
"Then what are we going up there for?" Mercer asked looking up at him.
"We're gonna work on training, since not everything we come across is going to be here in the city." Archer said setting a box onto the table. "Gun and Merc were nice enough to set these up,"
"What are they?" Casimir said holding up the small flat device.
"It's a wireless monitor, if you get hit with one of these," Archer said holding up a gun that looked like what they used on the shooting range for training. "Depending on where you get hit will depend on if you're considered dead or just wounded."
"There's only seven guns," Braxton said looking up at him.
"Adir doesn't want one," Archer said seeing the boy looking at the device in front of him.
"I do not need one," Adir said looking up as he reached out to pick the device up and place it over his heart. They heard the laptop in front of Gunther beep.
"There's a list in front of each of you, that's all you're allowed to take with you." Archer said watching as the rest of the team also placed the devices. "You all have an hour."
With that they all stood and left the room. Picking up the paper and moving off to pack, Gunther was the first one down to the trucks seeing Archer loading tents. Dropping his bag, he watched Archer loading stuff. Picking up the next thing he handed it to Archer.
"Thanks," Archer said taking the bag from him. He hadn't touched the kid in the last two months. After the trip to the cemetery Gunther had pulled so tightly into himself that at times Archer was scared. Scared that the kid was going to just shut down one day. As Gunther turned away Archer reached out, letting his hand slid around the kid pulling him back against his side. His one hand reaching for the arm that had dropped towards the gun.
"Let go." Gunther hissed as Archers hand slipped over his, and he found his gun taken away.
"This stays here." Archer said seeing Gunther glare at him. With a muttered curse he got into the truck where he could pout in quiet. A short time later, the rest of the crew arrived, Adir and Mercer crawling into the back with Gunther while Casimir, Jade, and Braxton sat in the middle leaving Jacy and Archer in the front.
They got out each of the eight people stretching their limbs. Camp was set up, and tents were assigned. Gunther had reacted as Archer had expected, telling him that he didn't want to share a tent with him. He tried to get Mercer to switch with him, which still had the computer hacker laughing. Adir had shown some sympathy, but wasn't giving up his man for anything.
"Oh my god, this is terrible." Braxton said dropping the charred burnt hamburger back to his plate. He looked up at his boss with a small grin. "No wonder we always have takeout."
"Oh you people are hopeless," Gunther said getting up from the table and walking around picking up plates dumped them into the garbage. Walking back to the grill he looked at Archer until the man moved. With more muttered Gunther went about cooking more hamburgers. A short time later he set the plate down in front of the crew. They dug in; surprises went around the table as they ate.
"Wow that was great," Casimir said leaning back slightly.
"Who would have thought," Mercer said grinning.
"I'm a farm boy, what did you expect? Cooking is something my father and I always did." Gunther said softly before getting up to clean up. Adir helped, and they had everything cleaned up in no time.
"Gun?" Archer said leaning against the end of the truck watching the kid put stuff away.
"If you want me to cook meals that is fine. But." Gunther turned to him. "I need to go to town to get some stuff, because whoever packed food didn't expect to feed eight people."
"Fine," Archer said holding out the keys to the truck. Gunther raised and eyebrow at it, he didn't move to take the keys from the man.
"What's this? Is this 'I trust you to come back'?" Gunther asked turning away. As much as he wanted to snatch the key from the man, he didn't.
"You'll come back, remember you made a promise." Archer said softly seeing Gunther turn back to him. Gunther nodded his head, he had promised. This was his life now these people were his family.
"Yeah," Gunther said walking towards him. He held out his hand, letting Archer drop the keys into his palm.
"I want to go with, please I want to go with." Adir said hopping up and down slightly.
"Fine with me," Gunther said looking at Mercer who was doing something with the laptop they had brought.
"Fine with me," Mercer said as the two turned back to Archer. Archer shrugged and then nodded. It was fine with him if they wanted to go; at least he knew that it definitely meant Gunther would come back. Reaching into his pocket Archer pulled out money and handed it to the kid.
"We'll be back soon," Gunther said as he and Adir got into the truck. Gunther started it, glancing at Adir before putting the thing in gear and pulling out of the camp area. The trip to town was short, and finding a small market Gunther parked the truck and he and Adir proceeded inside.
Grabbing a cart Gunther followed after the bouncing blond. He blamed Adir hyper activeness on Mercer, since the man seemed to feed the boy candy consistently. Grabbing what he needed he barely listened to the boy ramble on, but was taken by surprise as he was standing in front of the cereal isle when Adir jumped onto his back.
"I want that one, I want that one!" Adir said pointing over Gunther's shoulder at a mostly marshmallow cereal.
"Like you need anymore sugar." Gunther said looking at him.
"Please?" Adir asked pouting as Gunther smiled.
"Do you use that face on Mercer?" He asked seeing the boy smile. Adir nodded his head reaching for the cereal box to toss it into the cart. "Honesty do you need anymore sugar?"
"Merc likes it when I am sweet," Adir said grinning evilly. Gunther just shook his head as he ran down what he would need. He figured a couple of days since Archer never specified how long they would be out. Not only that, but he for one was tired of the takeout and pizza.
"Well look at the pretty little girl," A man said, Gunther ignored them. Considering both him and Shen were male, turning the corner he heard the man hiss out again. "Hey you boy!"
"Huh?" Gunther looked up seeing three men standing in front of them. Gunther let his gaze sweep them, not sure what they wanted as he reached out to push Shen behind him.
"What's this, protecting the pretty little thing from harm?" One asked.
"No actually I'm protecting you from him." Gunther said letting his hand slip down, and cursed Archer for taking his gun away.
"Him?" The second said craning to see around Gunther at Adir.
"Come on, long hair, tiny waist." The first said seeing Adir peek out from behind Gunther.
"No breast," Adir said grinning.
"Come on," Gunther said turning the cart away from the three men. Grabbing onto Gunther's shirt edge to follow after him, turning back to the men he waved, seconds before the boxes of rice the men were standing next to crashed to the floor in a white cloud. "I'm gonna pretend I didn't see that."
"Ok," Adir said following after him. They checked out, and made their way back towards the truck. Getting the stuff in, Gunther let his eyes scanned the parking lot before getting into the truck. Starting it he glanced over at the boy next to him.
Pulling back out onto the road, Gunther looked into the review mirror. "We're being followed."
"Yes I know. They are upset with us, because I did not turn out to be a girl." Adir said reaching into the glove box to pull out a bag of suckers.
"My god, do you stash sweets everywhere?" Gunther asked hearing the boy laugh. He couldn't help but laugh also, his eyes going back to the people following them. "You think they're gonna try something?"
"Not when they see it is not just us, they will back off and try later." Adir said stashing the suckers as they pulled back into the campsite. Getting out of the truck Gunther glanced over at the group at the table. Turning he pulled the bags out, moving to put stuff away.
"What's wrong?" Archer asked reaching in to help him.
"We ran into some rednecks at the store. They got upset when they realized Shen wasn't a girl, and he made a whole bunch of boxes of rice exploded on them." Gunther said shrugging slightly. "They're modestly built men, have the intelligence of a monkey if you put the three of them together."
"Is that your professional opinion?" Archer asked smiling as he glanced over at Adir who was trying to get Mercer's attention away from the computer.
"Yeah, that my professional opinion." Gunther said. "And just think of what they're getting into by crashing our party."
Archer laughed as he followed Gunther to the table. Sitting down, he reached over to push the laptop cover down seeing Mercer look up at him to raise an eyebrow. "Come on, look at the beauty around you."
"I've seen the woods before," Mercer said shaking his head.
"I have cards," Adir said grinning. "Who wants to play poker?"
"With you?" Casimir asked seeing the boy nod. "Sure, lets play poker with a boy who can read minds. Maybe he'll promise not to."
"Well," Adir said grinning again. The rest of the group muttered, and Adir ended up playing cards alone.
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Archer looked across the table at Gunther, the kid pretended to be lost in a card game that Archer wasn't even sure what it was. He had a feeling that the kid was avoiding going to bed, or at least going into the same tent as him. "Gun are you gonna go to bed?"
"Not right now," Gunther said glancing up briefly, before going back to his game. After a few minutes of not hearing anything, he looked up. "Do you hear something?"
"Trucks," Archer said seeing Gunther grin. "I guess it's time to play."
"Should I get the others?" Gunther asked glancing back at the tents. At least Mercer and Adir had been quiet.
"Sure," Archer said, "I'm gonna find out where they are."
"Ok," Gunther said heading towards Mercer and Adir's tent. "Hey are you decent?"
"This boy hasn't been decent since I meet him," Came Mercers' voice. "Shen stop that, Shen that tickles."
"Come on you two, we got company." Gunther said backing up, then seeing them appear a few seconds later.
"Um, the men from town," Adir said grabbing Mercer's hand. "Come this way. Gunny goes that way."
"Wait," Gunther said turning to see them disappear into the woods. Turning, he saw the rest of the team standing there.
"Now what's happening?" Casimir asked scanning the campgrounds.
"Got company," Gunther said hearing a noise.
"Lets split up and see if we can give them a nasty scare," Braxton said grinning. They nodded, the entire group splitting apart. Gunther walked trying to see if he could find Archer or Adir, but came up blank. It was a few seconds later when someone tackled him, looking up he glared at the person above him.
"Hey there boy," The redneck hissed.
"Get off me asshole," Gunther hissed, reaching out to swing at the man.
"Just tell me where that pretty little blond is?" The guy hissed, striking Gunther when he didn't answer. Hearing a noise, Gunther looked up to see glowing eyes coming towards them. He smiled slightly as he looked up at the guy pinning him to the ground.
"Didn't your mama ever tell you not to touch what's not yours?" Archer asked, seeing the man look up and his eyes widened slightly.
"What the hell," He hissed.
"The last person to threaten mine, I ripped his heart out." Archer said, seeing the guy glance down at Gunther.
"Oh I'd listen to him, you should have seen it. With his bare hands too, it was gruesome." Gunther said smiling, as Archer reached down to grab the man by the back of his shirt and lifted him up.
"How about I give you a full minute head start?" Archer asked setting the man onto his feet with a grin, showing off his fangs. He reached down helping Gunther up as the man started to back away. "You okay?"
"Yeah fine, although he hits hard." Gunther said reaching up to rub his face. They heard yelling and headed back to the center of the camp to see Mercer fighting with one of the men.
"All we want is the blond, we don't care if it's a guy," The man hissed, ducking the fist that Mercer had aimed at him.
"And I told you he's mine, and I wont let your filthy hands touch him, moron." Mercer hissed turning slightly and caught the man in the head, knocking him back. He was unprepared for the shotgun that caught him in the side of his head. He hissed in pain as he dropped to his knees.
"Shut up you queer," The guy with the shotgun hissed. "Now my brother asked you for something, and I would advise you to give him up."
"Hey," Archer hissed seeing the man pointing the gun at him.
"Stop right there, asshole." He hissed.
"If I were you, I'd take a good look at what you're screwing with." Archer hissed seeing the man raised the gun to hit Mercer with it again. He shot around as Adir dropped down onto the table.
"You will meet the same fate as the last person to cause my Merc pain," Adir hissed stepping down from the table, he walked over to Mercer, seeing the man with the shotgun back off. Kneeling down he checked Mercer's head, before turning his gaze back to the man.
"What the hell," The man hissed as it would seem against his will, he turned the shotgun on himself, until the barrel was pressed to the underside of his chin.
"Billy bob?" one of the men asked sounding nervous. Adir turned his attention to the other man, his concentration broke enough that Billy bob could pull the shotgun away and drop it to the ground.
"Shen," Mercer hissed, pulling the boy back away from the men. Archer moved, stopping in front of the men with a hiss.
"Pick up your gun, and take your friends and leave." Archer said low. "Or we'll introduce you to a hell you never knew existed."
"Okay," Billy bob said letting his gaze scan the eight people. Even with the four of them, they were no match for the eight of them. At least not now that he'd gotten a really good look at them. Backing away they made for their truck.
"Yep Gun you were right, the intelligence of a monkey." Archer said walking over to Mercer to check the man's face. But found that he wasn't really hurt.
"Why is it that one of them always carries a shotgun, and has to hit a person with it?" Mercer asked standing up. "Okay, I'm going to bed now, I have a killer headache."
"Me too," the rest of them replied, all of them disappearing into the tents leaving Gunther and Archer standing there. Gunther looked over before shrugging and heading into the tent. Unlacing his boots, he pulled them off before crawling into this sleeping bag.
"Are you going to be this way for the whole trip?" Archer asked as he pulled his clothing off.
"Maybe," Gunther said watching him. He really wanted to turn away, but found he couldn't. When Archer sat down to pull off his boots and pants, Gunther couldn't help but see the marks in the dim light of the tent. "You have spots?"
"Yeah, up my backbone." Archer said glancing at him, he had heard Gunther move but as his eyes met Gunther's, the kid stopped. "Go ahead."
"Are you sure?" Gunther asked curiosity over coming anything else inside of him. Reaching out, he touched the spots that covered the center of his lower back. "They're soft, like fur."
"Here," Archer said, taking his hand as he turned to him. Moving Gunther's hand up, he moved it until it was touching the back of his neck. He felt Gunther hesitate slightly, before the kid rubbed his hand up and down the back of his neck. Leaning in slightly, Archer couldn't help but purr.
"Archer," Gunther said letting his other hand find the side of Archer's neck, feeling for more soft fur. He barely even noticed as Archer leaned closer to him, making him lay back. Gunther gasp as Archer's mouth covered his, Archer taking the opportunity to slip his tongue into the hot moist recesses of Gunther's mouth.
Gunther moaned, trying to break away from the kiss. But Archer reached up, cupping the sides of Gunther's head. He deepened the kiss, tasting every section of the kid's mouth. Archer finally pulled back, watching as Gunther pulled in huge gulps of air. Smiling he leaned back down to gently lick at the kids lower lip.
"Archer, Archer stop." Gunther said as the man slipped lower.
"I don't want to stop, can't you just give in?" Archer asked tugging at the kid's tee shirt, Gunther made some noise. But Archer didn't hear it, as he pulled the shirt up over Gunther's head. Tossing it aside, he looked down at the exposed chest.
"Archer I can't do this," Gunther said seeing the man pull his eyes away from his exposed skin to his eyes.
"Sure you can, just close your eyes and feel my hands and mouth on you." Archer said grinning. Leaning down again, he licked at Gunther's chest, letting his tongue find an exposed nipple. Gunther hissed slightly, unintentionally arching up against Archers mouth.
Archer moved lower, letting his tongue trace the muscles of Gunther's abdomen. He heard the boy groan slightly and shift when his hand went to the kids pant's buttons. Gunther was shaking, small little trembles. Looking up he met the kids' eyes before moving to pull Gunther's pants and boxers down. Leaning down he let his tongue slide across the kid's half-hard member.
"Archer," Gunther hissed reaching down to grab the man's hair and yank.
"OW, stop it." Archer said reaching up to pull the kid's hands from his hair. Slipping down again, he slid his tongue across Gunther's erection again. Archer moved, slipping Gunther's erection into his mouth, to slowly slip his tongue around it.
Gunther hissed, arching up against the man's mouth. He didn't want this; at least he kept telling himself he didn't want this. Reaching out he tangled his hands into Archer's hairs pulling the man's head down further. Closing his eyes, he moaned, his eyes popping open when he heard the noise. Another moan escaped him when he felt Archer's tongue move around his erection again.
"Gun," Archer said pulling back slightly to look up at the kid. Gunther was panting; his face flush and sweat was running off him.
"Please stop, I can't take anymore," Gunther said trying to roll to his side. Tears slipped from his eyes as he felt Archer lay down behind him, wrapping arms around him.
"Why?" Archer asked resting his head against the back of Gunther's. The kid didn't answer at first; slowly he turned in the man's arms, looking up.
"Because in either pain or pleasure, when I lose control it's the same." Gunther said meeting Archer's eyes. "Can you imagine what it would be like to hurt someone you're with?"
"Did you?" Archer asked seeing Gunther shakes his head no.
"I blew up my radio, scared the girl I was with so bad she never talked to me again," Gunther said laughing slightly. "I can't lose control like that again, not ever."
"Gun," Archer started only to have the kid roll away from him. With a sigh Archer gathered him into his arms again, holding him close. Gunther didn't argue but he didn't relax really, either.
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Gunther rolled over the tent was warm. Glancing over, he looked at Archer who was sleeping part on his stomach, part off. Kind of like a cat, he moved closer seeing the black spots clearer in the brightness of the daylight shining though the tent.
Getting up, he pulled on his on his boxers and pants and stepped out of the tent. Adir was at the table eating the cereal they had gotten the day before. Walking over, he sat down next to him, seeing the boy grin at him while pushing the box towards him.
"Uh, its to early for that much sugar." Gunther said scanning the area for coffee. He glanced up when someone set a cup down in front of him. "Thanks Jacy."
"Sure, and see Shen, I'm not the only one who thinks that." Jacy said hearing the boy laugh.
"I am a kid, it is my job to be hyper and eat sugar." Adir said grinning again, turning slightly he saw Mercer step out of their tent. Mercer grabbed coffee before dropping down next to the blond, his eyes scanning the three of them.
"I hate camping," Mercer said as if they couldn't tell.
"I like it," Adir said still grinning.
"Ah sure, the hard ground, the bugs, the little boy poking you in the side half the night because he swears there was something in his sleeping bag?" Mercer asked seeing Adir's grin grow.
"And there was something in my sleeping bag," Adir said poking Mercer in his shoulder.
"Yes, it was a cranky kitten," Mercer said swatting at the hand that was poking him in the shoulder. "Stop that before I find a river to toss your sorry ass into."
"And I am the cranky one?" Adir asked returning to his cereal. Over the next fifteen minutes, the rest of the team came out. Archer was the last, his eyes scanning them, stopping on Gunther's back.
"Morning," Archer said dropping down next to the kid. Reaching out he grabbed the box of cereal seeing them look at him strangely. "What?"
"How can you eat that?" Jacy asked, watching as Archer poured out a handful of cereal and tossed it into his mouth with a smile.
"Really, I figured you'd prefer to kill what you eat," Gunther said getting up to find something to make for breakfast. He heard Archer snort.
"Raw meat makes me sick," Archer replied seeing Gunther glance over his shoulder at him.
"And that sugar cereal doesn't?" Gunther asked starting the grill as he moved to where they kept the food. He looked with the rest of the team when he heard a truck, and saw a truck pull to a stop that said sheriff. They were quiet as one man got out.
"Morning," The officer said as Archer stood and came around the table.
"Morning," Archer replied grinning slightly. "Something wrong?"
"Um well, we got reports that something strange was going on out here," The sheriff said turning when another got out of the truck.
"They all are a bunch of freaks, sheriff, you should have seen it." Billy bob hissed pointing at them. "That one, that ones got fangs."
"Sorry?" Archer said smiling as he looked between them.
"He showed up this morning saying the eight of you attacked him and three friends." The sheriff replied. "Something over a blond girl?"
"Ah," Archer said watching as the sheriff scanned them. Neither Jacy nor Jade was blond, and his eyes stopped on Adir.
"I take it, that child is who they were talking about?" The sheriff asked, seeing the blond get up. "You dragged me out here because of a little boy?"
"No sheriff, he's not a little boy." Billy bob streaked.
"How old are you son?" the sheriff asked, watching the blond walk over to stand beside the big man.
"I am twelve sir," Adir said softly. "Oh please daddy, I am scared."
"Its ok," Archer said wrapping an arm around Adir's shoulders and worked hard on hiding his smile.
"It is not, I was so scared last night," Adir said his big eyes looking up at the sheriff.
"You were drinking again last night, weren't you Billy bob," The sheriff asked looking back at him. Billy bob didn't answer he just glared at the group. Turning back to the group, he looked at them, this time stopping on Gunther. "Why don't you tell us what happened?"
"Sure," Archer said. "Gunther why don't you tell the sheriff what happened in town?"
"Yeah," Gunther said walking over. "This man's brother and some other guys stopped me and Shen in the store because they mistaken him for a girl."
"And?" The sheriff asked glaring at Billy bob again.
"We explained their mistake and came back here, but they followed. Later that night they showed back up wanting us to let them play with him." Gunther said looking over when he heard a sob from Adir.
"Well, I'm really sorry about that, Billy bob and his friends are known to get rowdy when they drink." The sheriff said shaking his head.
"Its ok, no harm done, they just scared my son, but he'll be fine." Archer said seeing the sheriff nod as he turned back towards his truck.
"Sorry to bother you folks." He said glaring at Billy bob. As soon as they were gone, Adir turned back to the table and bounced back over to Mercer.
"I see you gotten that distressed child act down." Gunther said.
"Well one must do what one has to." Adir said as Archer also joined them. It was a short time later after they had eaten, and everything was cleaned up that Archer was explaining the point of dragging them out.
"Ok, so heres the deal, I'm gonna let you lose into the wood, and all you have to do is survive the next four hours." Archer said grinning.
"Who's gonna be hunting us?" Mercer asked.
"I will be, if you take me out before the four hours, then we'll start over." Archer said. "This first exercise is to learn to use what you have to survive on your own, the next will be working as a group."
Nods went around the group, Archer smiled as he handed out the guns. It was a second until Gunther asked. "How big of an area do we have?"
"As big as you need, except town." Archer said getting nods again. He watched as the group got up and headed into the woods. Archer waited, sitting at the table finishing his cup of coffee as he listened to the stomping of the group. Getting up slowly he sniffed the air trying to decide which one to go after first. A smile split his lips, he moved out making his way towards his first victim.
Braxton looked up, trying to gage if anything was close. His senses were pretty good; far better then most people and slightly more sensitive. Yet he didn't hear or smell anything, at least not close. Turning he almost missed the smile on Archers face, just before the man leaped from the tree to tackle him. He didn't even get to yelp before the computer single on him went out.
"Guess your out," Archer said grinning as he pulled him into the woods. Braxton just nodded looking slightly whipped. Archer pushed him back into the campsite and disappeared before the man could even turn around.
Jacy looked up, her face set in stern lines. She was a doctor not a fighter. Keeping her eyes peeled, she kept to a slightly open area. This was just asinine, what the hell was she to do if Archer caught her? She certainly wasn't quick enough to shoot him. And she certainly wasn't strong enough to bring him down. Hearing a noise, she turned quickly and raised her gun, but she saw nothing but a streak before everything went black.
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Jade heard a scream, and turning headed the way it came from. She had barely taken a step when she saw something and turning, she fired the gun she was holding. A small cry escaping her as darkness surrounded her and she heard Archer's voice.
"I got two for one, although Jade got a shot off," Archer laughed.
"Yeah, yeah," Jacy said shaking her head as they were pushed into the campsite with Braxton. Turning, they found the area behind them empty.
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Casimir shifted, he knew that Archer was around somewhere. Faint traces of Archer's essence ran through the area, the only problem was that he couldn't figure out which was the newest. Looking up, he scanned the trees before letting his eyes scan the woods in front of him. He could almost feel the beast breathing down his neck, but still couldn't find the man.
Turning quickly, he spied a movement only to lose it in the woods. Moving towards it, he didn't see Archer sneaking up behind him. He let out a yelp as man tackled him to the ground. He fought, but found that his strength was no match for Archer.
"What the hell, you were that way." Casimir hissed.
"Um, no that was Merc." Archer said grinning. Pushing Casimir back into the campsite he turned his attention back to the last three.
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Mercer looked around, he grinned slightly as Adir tracked Archer. He knew the boy was in the trees to his right, and that Archer was somewhere behind them. Stopping he felt confusion from Adir suddenly and turning saw Archer grin just before the man shot him in the chest.
Archer turned quickly catching Adir as the boy attempted to protect Mercer. Smiling slightly, he tossed Adir over his shoulder as he helped Mercer back up. He walked them back to the campsite, a smile on his face as he set the boy down and turned to his last quarry.
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Gunther moved his eyes from the trees to behind him. He wasn't going to let Archer get him, no way. Turning slightly he found an area to place his back against a tree; no one would be able to get close to him without his knowing. Letting his eyes scan the area again, his eyes tracking a movement.
Pulling his gun he sighted it, pulling the trigger only to see that he missed. Seconds later he felt a pulse hit the tree next to his head. Ducking down, he waited a second before moving only to trip over something, and turning looked up at a grinning Archer.
"Got you," Archer said.
"Not yet," Gunther said shifting slightly to pull his legs under him and pushing against Archer's chest, surprising the man enough that he was able to push him off and send Archer down a small hill. Gunther didn't waste time, getting up he heard a roar that spurred him on.
Gunther wanted to swear when the woods around him suddenly went silent. Just great Gun, he thought to himself, piss off the beast. Moving quickly along the ridge, he kept scanning the area around him. Hearing a noise he turned and fired his gun, but heard nothing after that. Turning back around he walked into what felt like a wall and fell to his butt.
"Go ahead and run," Archer said watching as the kid scooted back. Take a step towards him; he dodged the shot from Gunther's gun. He laughed seeing Gunther's eyes narrow. He dodged the shot again, turning to shoot back and caught Gunther in his chest hearing the kid grunt. "Now I got you."
"Fine," Gunther said getting up and holstering his gun. They walked back to the campsite where Mercer was going over stats.
"How'd ya do?" Archer asked, dropping down next to them.
"Well Gun survived the longest, but by the intervals between each captures, you didn't even break a sweat." Mercer said looking up. "Only Gunther and Jade got any shots off."
"Yeah well guess what's now?" Archer asked with a grin. He heard groans as he divided them up into groups and sent them back into the woods. They also found that in groups they did worse then when they were by themselves. And by the end of the trip, they came to see that as a group they sucked.
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Archer picked up his phone; only have listening to the person on the other line as he went over the reports that Gunther had just given him. But something finally caught his attention. "What did you just say?"
"That as of now, your section has been authorized and you are now recognized by this mans' Army, sir." The man on the phone said. "Any cases that anyone comes across that either are unexplained or points towards the paranormal, it will go to you and your group, sir."
"Really?" Archer asked slightly amused. "So when should I start seeing the really big bucks?"
"Excuse me, sir?" The officers said.
"Never mind," Archer said grinning. "Thanks for calling."
"Yes sir, have a nice day sir," The officer said.
"Yeah, you too," Archer said hanging up the phone with another laugh. Getting up he headed down to tell the rest of them that at least now they wouldn't be ending the project, in fact they were just placed among the ranks of the FBI and CIA, although they thought their name was cooler.
THE END