Adam left the camp shortly thereafter, the impact of War's presence still fresh in his mind, but glad, at least, that he had shown up to help. If he were to judge him based on appearances alone he was a formidable enough fighter in his own right that he alone will be a huge boon to their defense, but the fact that he also brought along a number of soldiers with him was the greatest gift he could have ever received. Their army had very nearly doubled in size from his presence, and not a moment too soon as they were about to begin the operation. Hopefully everyone could keep from fighting long enough to prepare for the incoming wave.
As Adam drove out of the camp and headed east, towards the center of the mass of ferals, he could hear the loud engines of the Vertibird turning on in the distance. They would wait a bit to let Adam start before getting into the air but he was gratified to hear the Vertibird turning on.
Adam looked over at Mira, seeing her inspect the controls she had laid out before her for all three cannons the APC sported. Of course a second gunner could be utilized to operate the controls too, but the primary gunner position had access to all the controls and a skilled enough gunner could handle them all. She seemed unfamiliar with these specific controls but not with the mechanisms themselves, she had already gotten to the point where she was comfortably aiming the guns independently without issue. Likely by the time they arrived at their destination she would be ready. Honestly quite impressive considering that he did not have the ability to effectively use the guns himself despite serving in the war. Then again, he was not in charge of driving these beasts back then so it was a moot point.
"You going to be okay over there?" Adam asked her without looking as he deftly swerved a single feral in the road that was in his way. He knew running them over would be inevitable but the less he did so the better. The chassis of the APC was durable, no amount of feral bodies would break through it. However the wheels were not. There would come a point when the viscera of dead bodies would make it impossible for the APC to move. He hoped it would never come to that point so he was doing his best to play it safe.
"Yes." Mira said as she continued to familiarize herself with the controls, seemingly almost done. "Never been in one of these but I've seen the specs before, and I've used similar vehicles once or twice, I just needed a moment to make sure I have all the controls mapped in my head." Adam nodded, still looking out towards the road as he, once again, swerved another small group of ferals in his way. Even though he had not yet gone far, the amount of feral ghouls that were beginning to show up was increasing, it was getting dangerous.
The silence permeated the car for a long few moments before Mira spoke up again.
"Adam…" She began hesitantly. "I wanted to… thank you… for not asking me any questions." She paused and then gently placed one hand on the symbol she had emblazoned on her armor's chest. "Even when others were not pleased with my presence." It was Adam's turn to remain quiet for a few moments while he sorted his thoughts, as well as keeping his attention on the road.
"We all have our own stories, Mira." Adam said, slowly. "We all come from somewhere, all have secrets, and things we don't want to be out to the public." He glanced at her for a moment to see her with a vulnerable looking expression on her face. "Even me." He punctuated his sentence calmly before returning to look at the road again.
"What matters isn't who you were, or what you did in the past, what matters is, that in the here and now, you came. You are here to help us fight." Adam paused for a moment before continuing. "I won't deny I have… questions, but I will not pry. You can tell me when you are ready. Until then, I will not ask. All I ask in exchange is that you fight alongside me and help save my home, my city." Adam said with a resolute tone.
Mira looked over at Adam for a moment staring into his facial features before she let off a quiet sigh.
"I promise." She said with a calmer tone as she continued to look into Adam's eyes. She remained quiet for a few moments longer before speaking again. "You are different… from everyone else, you know?" She said, with a soft, thoughtful tone.
"Hm?" Adam responded, not sure what she meant.
"The way you think, it's not very common." She continued.
"I'm not sure what you mean?" Adam said again, confused. "I think I'm pretty normal."
"No, you aren't." She asserted gently. "It takes an extraordinary person to throw themselves into danger for others. Most people think about themselves first, some act altruistic but are greedy behind closed doors. You are not like that…" Adam paused to think before speaking himself.
"I just… do what I think is right. There are people in danger and I have the means to help. I want to help. I don't think that's so wrong."
"No, it's not wrong. Just… uncommon." She said with a warm tone. "You remind me a lot of…" She paused, stopping herself short of saying a name she did not want to invoke. "A person I admired greatly." She finished, deciding to keep the name inside for now. Adam nodded slowly.
"I like to think that if we all help each other, do a little good when we can, the world would be a much better place. We may not be able to get rid of strife and conflict, but sometimes, a small act of generosity can go a long way." Adam said before he laughed and then added. "Or, you know, throwing yourself into a wave of feral ghouls in an attempt to stop the destruction of Chicago is good too." He grinned. Mira laughed too, softly, into her hand.
"True." She smiled warmly at Adam. "I just wanted you to know… that at least for me, what you are doing, what you have done, is appreciated. The fact I gained the strength to help is because of you." Adam was not exactly sure what to say to that, he felt honored, embarrassed, and a tiny bit flustered but kept it inside, deciding to instead let the silence once again permeate the APC cockpit.