Darren listened with some surprise as the newcomer asked Viktor if she could join his group as they made their way out of the Underbelly. It was quite a coincidence for someone else to be making the same request right after he'd done so, but after she'd said her piece it seemed that her intentions were genuine. Beyond that, a person with the skills she cited would be very useful to have; Darren had been alone for a long time, and it looked like he would be going from one extreme to the next.<br/><br/>When Viktor shot a grin in his direction at the mention of shotgun skills, Darren smiled in spite of himself. He'd carried guns before, long before, but he hadn't used one in nearly twenty years. He'd witnessed a woman, one of his first companions in the Wastes, blowing her own hand off when the barrel of her rifle exploded. He'd also witnessed a 10 year old boy accidentally shooting his own father, and he'd watched helplessly as the man bled out with his son weeping over his chest. That had been the final straw; it made no sense, really, given the dangers all around them, but he'd put down the guns once and for all that day. If a child could do such a thing with one of them, with such<span style="font-style: italic">ease</span>… that day, Darren swore to himself that he'd never pick another one up again. That was around when he found his crossbow - a most timely acquisition.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Speaking of which, I should get myself some extra bolts before I leave,</span>he thought while Viktor delivered his verdict to the woman. There was a stall that he knew had some very good carbon pieces available, but it hadn't been open when last he passed it by. Idly, he noticed some blood droplets on the ground in front of the newcomer.<br/><br/>"Hey, you alright?" he rasped, concerned, but before anything else could be said there was a flurry of movement in his peripheral vision as the remnants of the crowd that had gathered began to scatter. He stared, his mouth opening soundlessly, as the biggest man he'd ever seen moved towards them.<br/><br/>Viktor shifted his position, a hand moving vaguely towards a firearm, but if the beast approaching them wanted to kill them Darren was fairly certain there was nothing that could be done. Perhaps he'd have to tell the mutant a secret, but getting close enough to reach its ear would probably mean losing his own head if it came to that. For the time being, he remained still as the walking mountain reached them.<br/><br/>A long thread of drool fell onto the front of Darren's sweatshirt, trailing down towards his jeans. "Terrific," he mumbled as he took half a step back to escape the range of the giant's precipitation. Even more worrying than the saliva was the growling sound, coming from seemingly everywhere at once. It sounded like the distant rumbles of thunder.<br/><br/>When Viktor addressed the hulking figure, Darren glanced sharply towards him, feeling surprise once again. "You<span style="font-style: italic">know</span>this guy? The fuck do you<span style="font-style: italic">feed</span>him?" he muttered, keeping an eye on the big fellow even as he rumbled an ominous command in their direction. When Viktor inquired as to who was supposed to be coming, Darren grunted. "Tell us what's going on, man. We'll, uh," he grated, glancing at the other two before flicking his eyes back up towards the giant, "we'll do what we can."<br/><br/>Although he tried his best to remain calm, the truth of it was that if there was something coming that was fearsome enough to scare the behemoth in front of them, Darren was perfectly okay with getting the hell out of there. Then again, maybe the monstrous man was just crazed, in which case he wondered if they weren't all about to be crushed into oblivion.