The Hexcrawl

Tedic eyes the people circling the Humvee warily, ready to drive off at a moment's notice.

Cunningham replies, "We have a long way to go. A deal's a deal. Thanks for the info."

To Baker, he says, "Rack the bolt, but don't fire just yet."

He tosses the water out his window.

To Reed, he says, "Let's go. Rev the engine."

If the group doesn't move, he'll give Baker the word to fire a few warning shots.

Sheepdog does just that, cocking the weapon, readying it to fire as he continues to eye the group.

The group either from desperation or not believing Sheepdog will fire, resort to throwing rocks and sticks at Sheepdog, while others cautiously advance toward the Humvee with a determined look in their eyes. They don't outright charge, still uncertain about how serious your crew is.A rock strikes Sheepdog square in the back, but thanks to his flak jacket, it inflicts no damage.

Cunningham shouts to Sheepdog, "Let 'em know we mean business."

After Sheepdog shoots and the path clears up, Tedic'll drive away.

Shaking his head when a rock hits him in the back, Baker simple says, "Fucking aye!" and opens up with the Browning.

Thump-thump-thump-thump! the big gun barks and resounds, spitting out heavy brass as Sheepdog tries to drive the crowd back and clear a path. Dirt flies as the rounds hit the ground, but the soldier up top is vigilant -- he's looking for anyone with a real weapon, a rifle, a grenade...

The group of refugees panics, scattering in all directions, and leaves the Humvee alone. None of the refugees had any real weapons which is fortunate for them because Sheepdog would have gunned them down.

---

Day 5 - Night Shift - Skies

Tedic is driving on the road when he sees someone on the road.

"Hey, we got a jaywalker."

As the Humvee advances down the road under the dimming light of dusk, it encounters an unexpected obstacle—a lifeless moose lying in the middle of the road. Surrounding the carcass are six hunters armed with civilian rifles. Amidst them, three individuals engage in a heated exchange in Polish, pointing their rifles at another man, while the remaining three scan the surroundings, oblivious to the approaching Humvee.

Dawid, riding his motorcycle down the road, had failed to spot the moose in time and skidded off the road, tumbling along with his bike. Miraculously, neither he nor the motorcycle sustained any injuries.

The hunters, taken aback by the sudden appearance of Dawid, are gripped by suspicion and paranoia. They rush towards him, demanding to know the whereabouts of the others and vehemently asserting his inability to claim the moose meat. Shouts fill the air as tension rises.

Notably, the hunters who shot the moose display visible signs of illness, exhibiting symptoms consistent with Cholera. This discovery heightens the suspicion among the occupants of the Humvee, suggesting a potential uncontrolled Cholera outbreak in Miechow.

Jakub's demeanor undergoes a dramatic transformation upon spotting the figure in the road brandishing rifles—more pronounced and energetic than any previous display of emotion from him.

"Shit. Baker, we're gonna need you back on the 50. These aren't sick refugees. They're armed, so if they make a move to shoot, take 'em out."

When Jakub gets excited about Dawid, he says, "Ok, we'll see what we can do for him."

Not knowing if the hunters speak English, he asks Marcin to shout at the hunters to take their moose meat and go. And leave the motorcycle guy alone.

If they get belligerent, warning shots may be necessary.

"Yessir," Baker says as he gets situated again. Wary that there might be more rifles around than the ones they see, the man tries to keep a low-profile in the turret, but man the gun he does.

For his part, Tedic keeps the Humvee at a safe distance.

As Marcin leans out the window and commands the hunters to keep their moose meat and leave, the response is hostile. Five of the hunters swiftly turn, aiming their rifles at the Humvee, their voices raised in alarmed Polish exclamations. "It's a trap! This is an ambush! They're going to kill us and take our food and supplies!"

"Hmmm an interesting opportunity... normally I wouldn't risk getting close to that Humvee... but now I can check who those guys are... using those nice and friendly gentleman that almost killed me for their - rightfully so - pray..." - a sudden plan started to formulate in the young man's head. He is relatively slender, but wiry, and his movements - what is only noticeable to a discerning observer - betray remarkable agility and coordination of movements. Dawid - as that was his name - is about 27 years old, wears an old military style motorcycle jacket and a scarf around his forehead. Normally his face is nice and welcoming (also almost looking too young for his age), but right at this moment... his face shows full awareness of the gravity of the situation, what may give it away is that he's been in tight spots more than once in his relatively young life. Even in the standards of apocalypse that have came.

Slowly rising his hand in gesture of calming everyone (in Polish):
"Yes! It's a trap! But not for YOUR... shitty, stupid asses... but... probably for me! Yy..." - he couldn't eliminate complety a note of hesitation from his voice, but remembering some of his training, he recollected himself in a matter of second. Finishing his next sentence with much greater confidence in his voice:
"If they are soviet's dogs in stollen american car... you better get ready to defend not only your pray, but mainly your life! Those bestards take no prisoners! I can tell you... - There was something peculiar, grim and sad about this last claim.

But then changing his tone(once more) to more friendly, he finished: "But... brothers... I can see they are heavily armed... so let's not make too hasty assumptions... I was supposed to deliver some intel to former USA forces in this area. This could be them." - he looks carefully at the hunters to see how his words were perceived.

"Damn it. Tell them that we only want the guy on the motorcycle. If they want to live, they can take their moose and go." In the meantime, he brings the AK-74 up and rolls down the window, ready to add additional fire. "Back it up a bit, Reed." He then wishes that he gave the NVGs to Sheepdog.

Dawid's persuasion works and the hunter pointing his rifle at him lowers it. The remaining hunters keep their rifles pointed at the Humvee, caught off guard by the sudden appearance of what seems like a military presence. They express their discontent in Polish, shouting at Dawid, "What good is your information when we're starving?" Then they add "They look very American to us. Why don't you go and check it out?"

They motion Dawid toward the Humvee.

Realizing the formidable presence of Sheepdog manning the .50, the armored Humvee, and now Cunningham brandishing an AK-74, the hunters become visibly nervous. While they clearly wish to avoid a confrontation, the tense atmosphere suggests any sudden changes could escalate the situation. Five of the hunters maintain their rifles pointed at the Humvee.

Tedic carefully moderates the Humvee's distance from the hunters as requested, muttering under his breath.

"Just take your damn meat and go..."