biteys: (Default)
NIMBO ([personal profile] biteys) wrote in [community profile] turnout2024-06-29 09:53 am

WEEK 1

WEEK ONE


!
the beginning of the end

That’s what’s playing on repeat on a tape recorder, when the survivors come to.

Characters will find themselves in a humble, American townhouse, which other than being a bit dusty, is still mostly clean. All characters will be sprawled out on the floor and furniture of the living room, in front of what looks to be a giant portal. Characters will also notice they have a seemingly indestructible silver wristband around their wrists, and they have nothing with them but the clothes on their back.

Take a look around, and you'll realize that everyone in the room is likely a stranger. Aside from the tape playing, there's little explanation or proof that what's being said to you is even true. For all you know, one of the people in the room could be responsible for you being suddenly taken here.

Exploring the house's many rooms will reveal that there are small stockpiles food, water, weapons (a few guns, a few bats, a few knives), and maps, along with a large, strange container of blue liquid. The maps all chart a route from Los Angeles to San Francisco, and sport detailed recommended time stamps on them. Strangely, the recommended path occasionally diverges into two separate routes.

Upon searching the house, Haru Okumura finds a set of notes, while Leontuzzo Bellone finds a separate set. They are free to keep these notes to themselves, or share them with the group.

Nothing has anyone's names on it — not the notes, and certainly not the supplies. Everyone will have to compete for the same things. Or maybe all of you can be civilized about this, before anyone goes hoarding weapons and food? Maybe you can even introduce yourselves, while you're at it. For some strange reason, every window and door in this place is locked (and impossible to break), and will be for at least 72 hours, as if someone wanted you all to be cooped up together for a time before heading out.

Most interestingly, in the deepest basement of the house, there's a room with a large, heavy dresser shoved in front of it… and a low moaning and banging emanating from the other side. The door’s slightly ajar, and a closer look reveals a zombie is the source of the sound. Context clues around the basement, like the PhD in interdimensional travel hung up on the wall (for a Dr. Bei), hint that the woman inside is whoever left you this cryptic message - the woman who brought you here, allegedly. But she's long long gone, only this monster left in her wake. It seems she was smart enough to lock herself away to prevent you from being harmed, at least... and it'll give you a preview of the threat that looms outside.
sewer diving
After 72 hours have passed, one and only one door unlocks – in the very same basement that the zombie of Dr. Bei can be found. It leads down to a dark, dingy tunnel that connects to the sewers. Not only is the smell awful, but (non-infected) rats scurry about, keeping to the shadows – but the smell of any of the food you've taken from the house will attract them. Careful!

The party will need to create some light to navigate their way out and keep the rats at bay, or they’ll be bumping around in the dark for quite a while. Now might be a good time to share if you have some matches, or a special talent for being a lantern. Mercifully, there's only one exit that actually opens down in this labyrinth, as if it's a route the Doctor designed to take all the time.

At one point, Puppy falls into the sewage, and loses something they brought from the house.

oh! that's a baseball

Once characters make it out of the sewers, they’ll be a day’s travel to the first mark on the party’s map: “Dodger’s Stadium.” The road they’ll have to hike to get there is winding, curvy, and uphill, which will give the party a good overview of the now dilapidated Los Angeles, along with the many abandoned buildings and cars that litter the place. The stadium itself looks to have been cleared of threats and fashioned into a safe spot a long time ago, as all entrances but one have been completely welded shut. The high walls keep zombies out, and the winding path up here deters most of them from even approaching.

Inside the stadium, there’s some baseball merch (and equipment) to scavenge, not to mention some really old peanuts! Delicious. Maybe there are even some old fireworks laying around this place. Setting up camp here won’t be very comfortable… but at least it’s very safe. A luxury the party won’t have for much longer, if the map is anything to go by. You'll be heading through the city, next, so rest up while you can.

!
week one objectives

➤ make acquaintances with your fellow travelers
➤ decide what to do with the zombie of dr. bei
➤ arm yourself with what you can find
➤ scavenge some portable food from the house and while traveling
➤ make camp at the stadium
irreversal: 🧃 teen (pic#17252726)

[personal profile] irreversal 2024-06-29 07:28 pm (UTC)(link)
at the house
[ Despite the strange arrival, Shoko has an air about her of absolute nonchalance. Zombies, cursed spirits, what's the difference? The circumstances do seem rather dire, but what's the point of panicking or getting ass-blasted about it?

At some point, she does manage to find an ashtray, perhaps somewhere next to an armchair in the living room they all found themselves in, along with a pack with... two whole cigaretts inside. And hopefully a lighter or matches? She's not subtle about the way she pockets one, though the other goes right in between her lips, even unlit. She seems only all too happy to lounge about in said armchair, holding up her bangled wrist and saying outlout to anyone around: ]


What do you think these are for?

[ Later on, once the mysterious blue lava lamp is found, Shoko sits and stares at it. ]

Huh... Doesn't it kind of look like a lava lamp? Groovy...

[ She's going to have an incredibly chill 72 hours here in this house, though out of courtesy or some other reason, she doesn't try to smoke inside. Feel free to catch her reading whatever materials have been left strewn about, taking stock of the medical supplies, and of the water and food that's been found and gathered communally... which, on that note, she'll just go ahead and say: ]

Heeey, no one's going to be an asshole and hoard food for themselves, right?

[ she can think of at least one person who might hoard sweets, but she might as well put that out there for everyone. ]


sewers
[ Eww, the sewers... Shoko isn't very pleased about this, despite having been in the company of similarly awful smells. She's just going to shoot her shot, here, if nothing else to make light of the mood: ]

I don't wanna walk in this stuff... Someone carry me...


baseball
[ Once they've made their way into the stadium, Shoko goes up to the very top of the bleachers, where she sits, staring out to the view beyond of the ruined city. ]

I've wondered about visiting California before, but this is pretty bad, huh?

[ To her credit, once again, she has not yet smoked her two cigarettes, even though it probably would be totally fine out here.

Later, in the merch store, she'll do her fair share of grabbing clothes. Might as well get a bit comfy and have some fun before everything inevitably goes to shit! She comes out of a fitting booth in an unbuttoned baseball shirt, tank top, and shorts. She's traded her Jujutsu High-issues loafers for sneakers, too. ]


How's this? Do I look ready to bitten by a zombie? Oh no, ahaha.

rifare: ('cause my banner's clean)

[personal profile] rifare 2024-06-29 07:28 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Thorough, methodical, very military in the way he does it. Leontuzzo has always taken good care of his weapons as well, though there's usually something more languid and appreciative in his movements as he examines them. Then again, he's usually examining his own guns rather than whatever has been provided to him to use.

He does notice the way the man holds the gun after, the thought occurring to him that there must be some holsters to carry it around with in this house. Someone had to bring them here, after all.
]

I am. If you're uncomfortable I can take it off your hand, though depending what kind of mess we got ourselves into, you may end up wanting it back.
normalness: (🌟🕷️ 018)

[personal profile] normalness 2024-06-29 07:28 pm (UTC)(link)
[Sus!]

Delivery... That's right. Do you really believe any of what that message was saying, though?
hydrotherapy: (pic#17268249)

[personal profile] hydrotherapy 2024-06-29 07:30 pm (UTC)(link)
[ What a determined young man. Not unlike other young men she knows.....

She can understand and sympathize with his sentiment though. Even if she minds being here less than several of the others, she still has patients to take care of back home. What sort of doctor would she be if she just up and abandoned them? ]


Then it sounds like the sooner we finish our mission here, the better it'll be for all of us. [ Which means they'll need more information. ] I just wish I knew more about what was going on here. I've never seen anything like it before.

[ Unfortunately, they don't have zombies like this in Genshin. ]
mediator: (pic#17268332)

[personal profile] mediator 2024-06-29 07:30 pm (UTC)(link)
[ that phrasing is quite concerning! anyway- ]

What kinds? Hm. I don't know. [ the idea of having a favorite food is a relatively new concept for him. in the mountains he ate what was given to him and never thought much of food outside that. then he moved to the city and food cost money, which he was always low on. ] Whatever's most affordable? I can make a meal out of just about anything if I try hard enough.

[ grindset poor life... ]
rifare: (all the risk)

[personal profile] rifare 2024-06-29 07:31 pm (UTC)(link)
[ The idea of being an officer is an even funnier thought.

Though the question just gets a shrug in response from Leon. No reason to get into his spotty backstory with a child. No reason to get into it with anyone here really.
]

As long as I have bullets, I'll do my best to.

[ His head cants to the side as he considers Henry more carefully though. ]

And what about yourself?

[ There was a reason he volunteered information about himself, and it wasn't that he's just generous and loves sharing. ]
mediator: (pic#17268334)

[personal profile] mediator 2024-06-29 07:32 pm (UTC)(link)
No, it's ok. I'm just surprised. I thought those with special powers like that were supposed to keep it secret.

[ it's a very matter of fact explanation. the fact that he can do this is somehow less surprising than him using it so publicly. ]
bicth: (pic#17160508)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-06-29 07:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Well, if he looks for her approval, she's just going to give him an expectant nod, messily wiping crumbs off her mouth with the back of her gloved hand. With a certainty that implies she's used to living in a world where resources are scarce: ]

How come? We don't know if we'll find anything out there. And the longer we hold onto this stuff — [ She waves a little pack of hostess cakes at him, smirking. ] The longer other people have to steal it.

[ She knows this because that is what she would do (and plans to do) to other people who hold onto their food 😔 This guy seems pretty anxious though, so she doesn't think he'll take anything from her... and in any case, she'd just steal it back. So, her demeanor is quite relaxed while speaking with him. ]
venomnom: (015)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-06-29 07:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[Sigewinne?

Reiju nods back. Nice to meet you, too. Then she sets the first roll down and begins on the second strip.
]

That makes medicinal knowledge equally as important. Whatever is out there, we're more likely to be injured . . . though I'm curious as to what we'll encounter in terms of poison.

[If possible, she'd like to sample it.]
normalness: (🌟🕷️ 007)

[personal profile] normalness 2024-06-29 07:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[Well. Speaking of spotty backstory. Henry stares at the lantern light and fidgets again with his wristband.]

I have powers. I'm trying to learn how to control them.

[Which can mean any number of things, and he realizes that's a dearth of information, but it's not like Leon gave a bunch of details either, right?

Still, trying to be more helpful:]


Like, with my mind.
rifare: ('cause my banner's clean)

[personal profile] rifare 2024-06-29 07:38 pm (UTC)(link)
[ This isn't the kind of situation he's ever been in before, but talking someone into giving up a means of defense is difficult enough, much less asking them to entrust that future defense to a stranger. That she's willing to listen to his reasoning is good though, and he'll at least subtract one reactive point in his mind from her initial score.

He stays in place as she moves to set the gun down, watching carefully but not making any sudden movements towards it. If she really decided she wanted to shoot him, she wouldn't go through all the motions here, so there's no benefit to hurrying and snatching up the gun now.
]

I'll keep that in mind.

[ Hands to his side, calm and waiting for her to feel safe enough to step away. Wolf features or not, it seems a lot more like Leon is the one being careful and moving slow around a wild animal than the other way around. ]
bicth: (pic#17160450)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-06-29 07:39 pm (UTC)(link)
That could be it. Or.... it could be some special power she had, to be able to bring us here.

[ It's not that unbelievable to her that someone with a particularly potent ability may be able to kidnap people like this to other realms — there are plenty of Sinners with similar abilities, even if she's never seen something of this scale. It's a comfort that he doesn't know the voice; that at least means he's not secretly in on all this. He definitely seems to anxious to be lying. ]

If I had to guess, it's 'cause she needs people to do dirty work for her, and it's easier to do that under the guise of a "project." Better we get fucked up doing it than her coworkers, right? [ The question is rhetorical, accented by a snort. ] Think of it this way, though — this could be your lucky day. I bet you haven't been out of the lab in a while, if ever, right?
hydrotherapy: (pic#17268248)

sewers

[personal profile] hydrotherapy 2024-06-29 07:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Awwwww Shoko!!! How could a girl as cute as her be forced to endure such misery? :( ]

Unfortunately, if I tried to carry you we'd both end up covered in water. [ And that's just gross. Let her thinky-think for a bit though. ] But if you don't mind floating for a bit, I can try and carry you a different way.
sisterlessbehavior: (pic#17223175)

[personal profile] sisterlessbehavior 2024-06-29 07:40 pm (UTC)(link)
A - Thoughts and Prayers

[Oh... Oh this is quite the situation. Whatever deal has been made on his behalf feels like the greatest of scams. The most wretched of situations. Compared to what he currently is witnessing he'd take his prison cell and whatever was to come next over this current predicament. But perhaps this is all divine retribution.

Fly free indeed.

The situation is all the more dire when the former person that lived here is found in a state that is... horrific, honestly. The immediate question is how to help her. Can they save her from this affliction? And if they can't will there be a way to in time? And if the answer to that is no then... what would be the kindest thing to do?

Is she suffering in this state? Would it be any harm to leave her be where she's not harming anyone?

These questions are too big and great for him. Taking life, any life, is not something he can decide. But he does not wish to leave this poor person. So with these three days he mostly sits with her. She on one side of the door and he on the other, hands clasped tightly together though he's not sure if he will be heard by his Aeon. Or if that Aeon would even listen to him anymore considering... everything. Prayers and belief are all he has.]


I desire that Mercy will flow out upon this whole world through my heart. Let no one who approaches go without trust in this mercy which I so ardently desire for souls. Pray for the suffering. By Your entreaties, obtain for them trust in Your Mercy because they have most need of it and they have it the least.

B - Sewers

[Being in here reminds him of a time that feels a lot longer ago than it was. Of death and decay and rot. As the world he lived in blew up around him and they had to run and hide and be so very quiet.

He remembers a time when he and Robin held tightly to their mother's hand and fled from whatever nightmare was tearing their world apart. Through rubble and sewage... It's happening again. But this time Robin is not here.

It's slippery and wet in here and his polished shoes are not doing well. He has the thought of how horrific it would be to fall in when someone does just that. He grimaces at the splash and would make a move to help but others seem to be on it. Instead he looks out among the edge to see if he can't find whatever has been lost, as is being currently claimed. Unfortunately it's difficult to see anything past the sewage. If it's perishable it is ruined and not worth saving regardless.

Sunday keeps his wings pressed tight over his mouth and nose. It doesn't completely block out the smell but it helps. He does another up and down while the group recollects itself to see if he can't spot their lost item.]


C - Sports

[Once at the stadium it's back to praying. They have a limited amount of food and he's used to fasting. Besides there's a lot of teenagers here. Some, perhaps, still growing that could use what little food they have. He hasn't had much an appetite anyway. He's content.

Not as much praying as he did back at the home. Sitting on these stiff metal chairs overlooking this field does have him curious. It's for sports, he knows that much, though he is unfamiliar with most of them. He's never been deeply involved with anything like that. And he and Robin certainly never got to play anything like that once they were taken in. But he understands the concept. The idea of teams. And mascots.

Dodger's Stadium...]


What's a Dodger...?

[A very valid question.]


((Or make your own prompt, of course! Sunday is like an anime space priest. He can do confessionals and all that all of which is borrowing heavily from Catholicism. Do with that as you like!))
normalness: (🌟🕷️ 028)

[personal profile] normalness 2024-06-29 07:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Secret?

[Now he's not so sure.]

I... maybe. [It's not like what he can do is public knowledge either, and the government is making sure of that, but.] I just thought this is why... I was brought here?

[aaaaa]

So there wasn't much point in keeping it secret.
mediator: (pic#17265661)

sewers

[personal profile] mediator 2024-06-29 07:42 pm (UTC)(link)
[ he's none too pleased about the foul odor in this place, but he's being a trooper about it and swallowing his complaints. not everyone shares that trait though, for better or worse. he looks over to shoko when she makes her request, a tiny frown present past the dark. ]

I know it's unpleasant, but please try to push onward. We'll be out soon.

[ he hopes... ]
rifare: (by way of selfless means)

[personal profile] rifare 2024-06-29 07:43 pm (UTC)(link)
[ There are strange beings in his world, though not exactly zombies. He wasn't part of Rhodes Island when they were forced to deal with the Possessed though, so while he may have heard a story or two there, this is all new for him too.

His expression is grim as he nods his head slowly.
]

It would have been helpful if the doctor had left a longer message for us before bringing us here.

[ Though given the state she was in when the left her in the house, it's hard to say if she really had the opportunity for that. ]
venomnom: (096)

at the house

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-06-29 07:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[Ciagrettes seem to be the trend these days.

Reiju is seated in a crouch nearby, leaving the furniture to the others in the room. All things considered, she appears rather comfortable as she eyes the bracelet around Shoko's wrist.
]

I'm not sure. It could be a motivator.
irreversal: 🧃 teen (90)

gets you here too...

[personal profile] irreversal 2024-06-29 07:47 pm (UTC)(link)
[ What is this small creature doing... Shoko couldn't help but be curious about what Sigewinne is up to, but luckily, the little one volunteers that information without any need for prompting. ]

Oh? That's actually pretty useful. I'll help~

[ Assuming there's a spare pair of scissors somewhere, Shoko will join her and start doing the same thing! ]

You know something about first aid, Chibi-chan?
empression: (You've got a big storm coming)

iii!

[personal profile] empression 2024-06-29 07:49 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Hi, fellow person who found notes--Haru has had no qualms sharing hers (when I make this tl), realizing rather quickly that this isn't something she'd like to keep to herself. Especially when they seem incomplete. But she's choosing to be the one to continue to hold onto them, if nothing else.

That's not terribly important right now; she's approached as she sits and Haru (for all that she looks momentarily surprised at first) offers him a polite smile and the dignified nod of someone who is definitely trying not to think about a sewer adventure. A baseball bat is balanced across her knees. ]


I find it, ah... a little difficult to sleep until I've been able to process all my thoughts. I hope I didn't wake you?

[ Pause on the world talk, she does at least look apologetic-- ]
rifare: (Default)

[personal profile] rifare 2024-06-29 07:50 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Nothing about this revelation seems to startle Leon in the slightest. Powers are common enough in the world that he came from, so his expression doesn't change much as Henry explains, only looking thoughtful at the addition. ]

Are you able to use them here? Even without something to channel through?

[ Though knowing people with powers in his world does mean Leon's automatically putting his assumptions of how they work onto this boy. ]
insinnerate: (5)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-06-29 07:50 pm (UTC)(link)
i. the beginning of our end;

[THUMP...THUMP...THUMP...THUD...ROAR...CRASH!!...

Early risers in the living room cohort might have seen a silver and red blur dart from the room shortly after waking, barely present long enough for the recording to play and definitely not present long enough to mingle with anyone else.

The source of the blur can be found in several rooms of the townhouses she moves from one attempted escape to another. First, she's decimating a bedroom, trying to find something that will break through the barred window. Then she's at a back door that might lead to a yard or the garage, slamming her shoulder into it several times and only becoming more frenzied the less willing it is to break. Remains of what might have once been a restraint jacket hang off of her shoulders, but don't worry about it.

Finally, desperation has her trying to smash out a tiny ventilation window in the bathroom - she couldn't fit through it, but someone much smaller might be able to. It also seems like someone might have turned on the shower to make it a sauna, because there's steam in the tiny enclosed space, and the reflective surfaces are all fogged... but as Ninety-Nine yells in frustration at the unbreakable glass, it's impossible to hear any running water.
]

ii. the beginning of someone else's end;

[There are no Big Fucking Swords in any of the stockpiles (she's torn the house apart looking), so Ninety-Nine has settled for a bat, a weapon that she keeps closely guarded on her person at all times.

After eating something, Ninety-Nine heads down to the basement and plops down on the floor across from the barricaded door to Dr. Bei's room. She sits there silently, hitting the head of the bat against the floor every so often, dragging it slightly, hitting it again... she's clearly lost in deep thought, her expression muted and even a little sad. It's a stark contrast from the earlier feral rage. Finally, she breaks her silence.
]

... We should kill her.

iii. sewer diving;

[Any rats unfortunate enough to get underfoot get kicked away with full force. A very taciturn Ninety-Nine walks a few feet ahead of a section of the group, albeit slightly...disgusted? Her expression is hard to read. At an intersection where the walkable surface becomes slippery or more narrow or covered with unidentifiable sludge, she stops walking, and her mutated claw snaps over to seize someone by the scruff of their shirt, lifting them to safety.]

Don't fall.

[And she'll just keep walking.

(If you are very, very little, and also if your name is Hella, she might carry you the rest of the way.)
]

iv. wildcard;

[I'm going to play the second half of the week with more of the stadium and the travel, etc.! So there may be more prompts later. But for now if you wanna do something, please do hit me up!]
mediator: (pic#17265657)

[personal profile] mediator 2024-06-29 07:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah, that makes sense. Someone with powers like you would be useful.

[ though that makes him wonder why he was brought here over aoko or alice. ...then again, they aren't especially helpful toward others if there isn't some benefit to them. that must be it. ]

Well, thank you for trusting me. We should get moving.
mrknifeguy: (042)

[personal profile] mrknifeguy 2024-06-29 07:53 pm (UTC)(link)
NO.1 ⚔️ THE BEGINNING
( A ) [ After everyone wakes up and disperses, Hoshina lingers for a bit longer, sitting on the floor with arms and legs both crossed, just listening to the message on the tape recorder over and over and over. After a bit, he reaches over and switches the damn thing off. ]

So, this is how it’s gonna be.


( B ) [ Now it’s time to explore the house. The first thing he wants to do is get himself armed, and the rest can be taken care of later. When he finds a small stash of weapons, he notably disregards any sort of firearm that might be around, picking up a hunting knife and pulling free from its sheath. He makes a few quick motions with the blade, deft and well-practiced. Seeming satisfied, he clips it to his belt. ]

It’s not much, but it’ll have to do.

[ For now. Anyone caught gawking will get a broad grin, as he motions to whatever else is lying around. ]

If you want the rest, it’s all yours.


NO.2 ⚔️ NO CRYING IN BASEBALL
[ As soon as they all get settled, or close enough to it, in the stadium, Hoshina lifts a hand like he’s in class. ]

I hate to be a buzzkill— [ there’s literally no buzz to kill, the whole thing’s been pretty grim ] —but we should probably take stock of what we’ve got and figure out how to make it last. This’ll probably be our last safe haven for a while.

[ Alternatively, catch him rifling though some baseball equipment and hefting a bat in his hands, as if testing the weight. ]

Hm.


NO.3 ⚔️ WILDCARD
[ You know the deal. Hit me with whatever, or reach out to me in the discord to plot something if you want! ]
venomnom: (097)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-06-29 07:53 pm (UTC)(link)
Whether we believe it or not, it's a starting point. As of now, we don't have any other leads.