Good to be back-

Of all the assignments I've been on, I think that was the closest I've come to dying.

I went back to Wynnland, where we lost the other team. I set up camp in the usual spot, then set up a little nest for myself 20 or so yards away. The camp was purely for the benefit of the Spidermen. I wanted to watch and see what they'd do.

They didn't disappoint me. They showed up right after dark, started looking around the camp; two of them. Then the bastards dropped to all fours and started sniffing the ground like bloodhounds.

I tried to get up and sneak off, but I had to move slowly. I didn't want them to hear me.

Once they got my scent they were on me, and roughed me up pretty good. I'm not sure for how long I was unconscious. Long enough.

They're primitive and savage. And they frighten me. They speak some strange pidgin of English and what I think might be French. They have a fairly good grasp of technology, obviously, as they made use of my camera and my communications equipment.

They want guns, for God knows what. And pity on everyone if they ever amass an arsenal.

The only useful thing I learned is that there are several families. One per Mono car, if my guess is right; and that's not good for anybody.

In any case, there are two less to worry about. Again, I find myself in Vanessa's debt. Thanks. I hope I never have to return the favor.

Gotta go rest up.

Extraction

immediate extraction

mono station 3

expedience imperative

before sunset

minimal force required stealth preferred

asleep now time short

now damn it

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Lost Two Men-

As soon as I got back to HQ, they sent me out to Wynnland to check on the two-man recon team they sent out when I left for LA.

I found them; guts ripped out, hanging from the tree which we designated a campsite.

Up till now, we've considered parks, gardens and golf courses to be safe ground, as the gangs and unnaturals have a strong aversion to the overgrown places.

Looks like the Spidermen don't share that aversion. I returned to report, but I've got to head back out there and see what exactly the hell is going on.

Did they follow my back trail? Did these kids make the mistake of sleeping the night away when the Spidermen are clearly nocturnal?

The bodies looked like a warning if I've ever seen one, but the Spidermen hang their meat for consumption.

Reports to follow.

Unexpected Beauty.

Los Angeles, partially under water, partially overrun with terrible things, is surprisingly well off. We fell in with a group of resistance fighters, the descendants of businessmen and gang leaders, who patrol the hills the surround what used to be the city of LA.

They say, once the Doors shut and everything went bad, the governor of California spoke to the citizens of his state with one final television broadcast. Everyone watched as, while most officials were fleeing to their bunkers, this man presented a map of the state, pointing out safe house, weapon caches and temporary infirmaries.

He urged people to stay away from Hospitals, as they were already overrun and useless.

Though around that time, normal news media had ceased to be, it appears that the governor's gamble paid off. Bands of well armed citizens roamed the streets, downing fiends of all sorts left and right, as well as keeping looters in their place.

Our new friends said Northern California didn't fair as well, but gorgeous Southern California, all hills and beaches, is a site to behold. It makes me think that perhaps there is hope for Vegas after all.

But then again, there are unknown quantities in Vegas that makes it difficult for me to make a move. I've always been a man of information; doing what I do so that the men of action can live to be heroes.

I never really want the job of sending men of action out to possibly die at the hands of a bad plan.

Not what I should be thinking about. It's good to sleep in a real bed again. Suppose I should go find out what's been happening while I've been out gallivanting.

Questionably human-

I climbed the Monorail platform during the day yesterday. Every entrance platform, not just the one on Paradise, is blocked with unlikely debris. A Volkswagen, for example, sits upside down, windows crushed, on the second floor of this one.

So, had to climb the exterior, which was fine, until I reached the half-way point and saw the bits of broken glass jutting up from the hand rail. It was stuck there with some sort of bitter-tasting resin. At first I thought it was tree sap, from the smell, but it tasted somehow animal. Turns my stomach to think of it.

I continued the climb, wrapping my palms in handkerchiefs and trying to clear the glass away as best I could with my pocket knife. I usually carry an old Swiss Army knife, for the versatility. It proved nearly useless in this endeavor. Even with the precautions, my hands are full of cuts, and its taken most of the morning for Seline Jericho to take the slivers of glass out of my hands.

Typing this is agonizing.

I've seen a lot, doing what I do. Not much bothers me any more. But what I saw in the Mono, well, it shook me. I've mentioned before that they live in the monorail cars. I don't know how I pictured their living conditions, but it didn't prepare me for the reality.

The first thing I noticed was the flyblown meat hanging from the car's ceiling. Each carcass, skinned and gutted were evenly spaced and were suspended from hooks hanging from the ceiling.

Three spider-people(?) rested in the car, two on benches and the third, leaning against the opposite window, in some mock-cruciform position. I didn't take him in at first, just thought he was part of the scenery. But when my mind registered he was a person and not decoration, I actually screamed and nearly lost my balance.

I decided then that I was done, and began the long climb down, but not before taking a picture.

For now, I'm done with the spider-men. I don't feel comfortable that they can be reasoned with. I'll think on the problem while I'm gone to LA.

Until then, Cheers.

Silk and Hooks

I've been staking out the Monorail hub on paradise and Desert in for three days. The Spider Men are most active at night, so I've rearranged my sleeping habits to. I'm typing this before heading off to sleep.

I'm camped in Wynnland, the overgrown remains of a golf course. It's beautiful, thick with trees and painted with flowers. The animals here don't seem to be hostile, in fact, I've awoke just just before sunset yesterday staring into the strange rectangular eyes of a giant goat-thing. I say "thing" because it was much too tall and wide to be a standard goat.

I'm getting off topic.

The Spider Men are keen, agile and efficient. I've seen them, time after time now, twirl off the high tracks of the Mono to snag one kind of animal or another with wicked looking hooks. It's almost beautiful, watching them. They connect themselves to the tacks by long silk cords wrapped around their body, causing them to twist and spin as they hurtle towards the earth. I assume this slows their fall, preventing them from breaking their own necks when they stop descent.

They are all highly decorated. Their culture has a strong belief system centered around either tattoos or war paint, as their bodies come alive with strange designs and symbols.

The last thing I've noticed- they continually hunt animals roaming the street, but I've never seen a cooking fire. From this I gather they either have working electricity (not impossible) or they skin and eat the poor critters raw.

I need to get up there and do some snooping. If they really are nocturnal, it won't be a problem.

If.