The next couple days are slow. Stan shows Dariűse around his training facility. Dariűse especially enjoyed the augmented reality training. Stan spends the days researching everything he can about the G.B.P. while at night they drink, smoke, catch up on life, and remember the war days. 

One night Stan wakes up in a cold sweat. He makes his way to the bathroom. As he looks into the mirror something changes, something inside him breaks, and something inside him snaps. He punches the mirror, smashing it. 

Stan sits and thinks to himself “This all has to mean something right? The G.B.P., my wife's death, Dariűse showing up. It must mean something.” Stan balls up his fist.

“And if it means what I want it to mean, then there's only one thing left to do before it starts.”

The next day Stan sits down with Dariűse they have a drink together. Stan, determined, blatantly says, "Look, I'm about to go on a trip, you can stay here if you like. I own it so no one will mess with the building."

Dariűse, confused, says "Well, where are you going?" 

Stan, wanting to leave a small trail behind him, says, "I have an old friend I need to see."

Dariűse, excitedly says, "Oh, cool! I get to meet someone from your past. Finally! I can get some dirt on you." 

This makes Stan chuckle and say, "I guess I could use the company, but, look, it's gonna be dangerous."

Now that makes Dariűse laugh. "Would it be an adventure with you if it didn't involve some type of danger?"

Stan, slightly warmed by their friendship, declares, "Then I guess it's a road trip."

Dariűse, happy to be able to help, starts chanting, "ROAD TRIP! ROAD TRIP! ROAD TRIP!" And again, Stan laughs. 

The next day they find themselves out in the middle of what looks like it used to be a beautiful forest. But, sadly, now it is burned and withered from the fallout of nuclear war. 

Dariűse looks around skeptically at the barren land and says, "I hate to judge, but who the hell would live out here? Everything's dead and you can't grow anything good in this soil."  

"It's cold, destroyed, and no one wants to go out here. Best of all, it's quiet," Stan explains.

Dariűse counters, "But all this radiation…"

Stan, understanding his friend, reasons, " It's part of the reason he lives out here. Yeah, it may be out in the open, kinda, but who would be dumb, or crazy, enough to come out here, let alone try and kill someone who lives in this type of environment?"

Dariűse thinks about that for a moment, and then accepts the logic with, "Point taken, I guess."

They come upon an old cabin with the roof falling in. 

Dariűse blinks, and then his eyes go wide, as he exclaims "Is that a bunker? Your nigga lives in a bunker? He was not playing!"

Stan laughs and says, "Actually, it's a decommissioned missile silo. But, no, I have never known him to fuck around." They walk up to the bunker door. A voice on an intercom speaks up, clearly an angry black woman, who answers with, "Who the hell are y'all? And what the fuck do y'all want?"

Dariűse and Stan exchange looks. Stan, using a business tone, says, "My name's Stan and I'm here to speak with the man in charge." A buzzer sounds opening the door for Stan and Dariűse to enter. When they go inside, the woman is waiting to lead them forward. It's a small hallway leading to a spiral staircase which leads to the corridor that would have housed a missile. They followed her through a maintenance hallway to where soldiers would have worked and been housed to see beautiful women from all different nations doing everyday activities. 

The Angry lady looks pointedly at the room, and then back to Stan and says, "So, you see any men here?"

Stan, still business-like despite her attitude, calmly says, "I'm here to speak to Black."

All the women pull some type of gun or weapon from somewhere ready to kill. Stan holds his hands up as Dariűse reaches for his Nodachi. 

Stan, amused, says, "Or the black man in charge, I see?" Stan holds back a small laugh.

            Quiet finally answers, "No one's called me that in years."

            Quiet walks from behind a door. He takes one look at them. His first thought is, "Who's the kid with the big sword?" Then he thinks after all this time what could captain “save the world” Stan want? Quiet says nothing and leaves the room. 

Stan was expecting Quiet's reaction and said, "Really?" before chasing after him. 

All the women go back to what they were originally doing. Dariűse finds a nice spot to sit and enjoy the view. When Stan finds Quiet he is sitting staring up through where the missile would shoot out. 

Quiet hears Stan approach and says, "So what do you want? Saving the world not working out?"

Stan, bluntly says, "No, it isn't working out." He pauses, and continues with venom in his words, "Actually the world has pissed on me and set my world aflame. Look, I'm sorry I left but there was nothing left for me here. I needed to see what the world had to offer me. When I found out about everything you had been doing and how the world had fallen apart I quit the marines and I wanted to come back sooner but with the world at war traveling was so hard and with me being AWOL I had to hide from everyone. I couldn't trust anyone. Then, when the world changed, you vanished." 

Quiet tries to think about what Stan went through and feels sympathy for his old friend. 

Quiet, less annoyed now, says, "What do you want now? Cause I doubt it was to say sorry."

Stan chuckles, but says, "Actually, it was."

Quiet, taken aback, asks, "You on some path of enlightenment or some shit?"

They both chuckle. 

Stan, more serious now, says, "Nah, my wife and unborn baby have been murdered and I needed to see an old friend." By the end of his explanation Stan’s throat feels tight, and he holds back a tear. 

Quiet apologizes with, "I'm sorry, I had heard-- word has spread fast, unfortunately. Does this mean you want revenge?"

Stan shakes his head back and forth and says, "I want war."

Quiet, understands but warns Stan, "He who goes seeking revenge should dig two graves?"

Stan, determined now, rebuttles with, "Imma need a fuck ton more than two graves."

Quiet says, "I understand your anger. Wanna smoke?"

Stan, still emotional, says, "It's all I wanna do -- well that and kill everything I can get my hands on."

 Quiet starts to walk back inside. He chuckles and says, "Still rightfully angry as always."

That night the women party but the men sit at a table. They pass around blunts and drink as the women continue to party around them. Finally, Dariűse speaks. 

Dariűse, concerned for Stan's well being, asks, "So you want to die?"

Stan answers honestly, "Not before I kill everyone who had anything to do with my wife's death."

They sit silently as they finish the blunt. Dariűse was trying to think of something to say. Quiet and Stan were enjoying the blunt and the party. Before any of them can continue the conversation a few ladies walk over to try and liven up the mood. A couple ladies walk over to Quiet, they all whisper things to each other. Quiet gets up. 

Quiet, distractedly says, "Duty calls gentlemen." 

As he walks away Stan and Dariüse laugh. Just then some asian women walk over to them. 

One of the women looks at Dariüse and says, "Hey there, big boy, a friend of Quiet’s is a friend of mine."

Dariüse, surprised, says, "I think she is referring to us."

Stan smirks and says, "Actually I think she's talking to you, 'big boy'."

Stan begins to walk away while the women and Dariüse talk. A woman approaches Stan. 

Stan looks at the beautiful woman and says, "Sorry, pretty lady, I don't think I will be very much fun tonight."

She smiles sympathetically at Stan and says, "Well how about a hug? Everyone could use a hug."

The lady gives Stan a hug, which, to his surprise, makes him feel a little better. Stan leaves, sits, and stares up from where the missile would fire. As he looks into the night sky taking in all the sounds around him, he begins to cry silently to himself as he rocks himself to sleep in the cold. Stan dreams of a never ending fire. Dariüse and Quiet enjoy their company till they're all exhausted.

BOOM! The earth shakes and Stan jumps up. WACK! Something smacks him in the side of the head. As he falls over he throws a sweep kick in the direction of the blow. Stan hears someone hit the ground and launches himself in the direction of the sound. He lands on someone and begins to throw punches as he slowly regains some sort of awareness after being smacked in the head. A punch lands square on the attacker's jaw and knocks the man out. 

Stan finally regains his senses and realizes Quiet's bunker is being attacked. Sounds of gunfire, screaming, and explosions rush into Stan's ears. He lets out a loud roar, picks up a gun the now unconscious man had on him, and rushes into the base.

- End of third issue