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
bicth: (pic#17160496)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Other options like what? Taking her as a pet?

[ Hella follows her gaze, then applies that same apprehension to the woman in front of her, pursing her lips into a pout. ]
302: (Your ass is bad and you should feel bad)

[personal profile] 302 2024-07-01 10:28 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Henry immediately flushes, ashamed. ]

I-it's not like that...

[ well. it kind of is. he wouldn't say he's not broke, but it's mostly because his other apartment was haunted by an evil serial killer or something and Eileen agreed to split rent with him if they moved out, but that's easier said than done, especially when she's still in the hospital...

he is not about to talk about this. Rubbing his face, he tries to redirect. ]


Anyway, I'm just as confused as you.
sisterlessbehavior: (pic#17223182)

[personal profile] sisterlessbehavior 2024-07-01 10:29 pm (UTC)(link)
I fear I have no skills in combat. Any weapon in my hand will not likely serve anyone very well.

I suspect my greatest asset is my halo... I am hopeful that it will do much to keep me and others safe. Though I must admit, I am uncertain how these shambling bodies will react to it.
302: (one of my friends got a heart)

[personal profile] 302 2024-07-01 10:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Hundreds?

[ his brow furrows, and he tenses up a little bit at the contact. (The situation has him more anxious than usual.) Needless to say, he doesn't believe her. There are a lot of things he's learned to believe in that he never would have even considered before last month, but little girls who are both doctors and hundreds of years old are still outside the realm of reality in his mind. She gets put back into the mental box of "playing pretend, probably to cope." ]

Okay. If you say so... Maybe you can try and find supplies?
unliminal: teen (380)

[personal profile] unliminal 2024-07-01 10:32 pm (UTC)(link)
Nope. It's an inherited thing.

[ Sorry, Haru. ]
sisterlessbehavior: (pic#17223186)

[personal profile] sisterlessbehavior 2024-07-01 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
[You can fit so much trauma in this bird boy.]

Well, it is a promised land of sorts. Not the one you might picture, of course. Nor will it be the sweetest of dreams but it will be a reprieve. Something of finality. And perhaps for some, upon our return, a second chance.
302: (The Japanese know how it's done.)

[personal profile] 302 2024-07-01 10:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[ this woman is both startlingly beautiful and a little off-putting in a way he can't put his finger on. Henry, naturally, feels nervous around her, and her insistence on being given a giant sword if he finds one (as if he'll find one) doesn't really help, but he nods anyway. It's not like he can say "no." ]

More like a stake, I guess.

[ at least she didn't seem repelled by the violent suggestion. ]

I'll... keep an eye out for swords.
sisterlessbehavior: (pic#17223224)

[personal profile] sisterlessbehavior 2024-07-01 10:36 pm (UTC)(link)
Siscon...?

[He can't ever learn what that means.]

I... Well, of course. I'm very proud of her. I always knew she'd be a star and sing upon the grandest stage of all. And perhaps in time she will make it over. Ideally all worlds will eventually be connected on a galactic scale and she is quick to perform at those sorts of places.
kototama: (♪ kerlerap)

[personal profile] kototama 2024-07-01 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[he must never learn what it means.]

Huh. Well, if I ever see her around, I'll be sure to show up at one of her concerts!

I can't resist a good idol concert, after all.
302: (because mainstream people don't)

[personal profile] 302 2024-07-01 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
[ You know what?? He can't argue with that, actually. Better to have a short, not-so-useful weapon than no weapon at all if he gets cornered by something. Henry nods. ]

... I hope you don't need it.
bicth: (pic#17160486)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:40 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Don't mind her while she makes an amused pffft at him offering his arm so stiffly, grabbing onto it with her gloved hand and giving it a friendly, jolly shake. Smirking: ]

Henry, then!

[ Finally, someone around here that didn't immediately piss her off or judge her for eating oreos. He's just a kid, and she really feels for his situation, so she'll be keeping an eye on him going forward, she thinks — though she won't bring up the topic of his confinement again right now, she's betting she and Ninety-Nine could come up with some good ideas for his escape. She makes a mental note to float the idea to her companion, later. ]

You ever been around this many people before, Henry?

[ The question is casual — not insulting. If he's used to being in the labs, it's entirely possible all he ever sees are scientists, she guesses, but she wants to know what she's working with. ]
mediator: (pic#17265655)

[personal profile] mediator 2024-07-01 10:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah, good evening Ieiri. [ a quiet smile settles on his features as she approaches, before he sets his sights over the horizon. ] I guess not. A lot of big movie stars live here, right? A friend of mine told me that once.

[ kinomi watches a lot of movies, even foreign ones, because he's... well, he's really into the actresses in them. ]
sisterlessbehavior: (pic#17223210)

[personal profile] sisterlessbehavior 2024-07-01 10:42 pm (UTC)(link)
[His wings flutter with pride. Despite everything that has occured with Robin and how things have ended... She is still his sister. And he loves her so very much. He will gladly speak of her with endless praise.]

She is. I fear I don't have a picture of her on me... It seems to have been lost. But she's quite dazzling and a brilliant performer. Between the two of us she was given all the talent and she has done spectacular work with it.
normalness: (🌟🕷️ 024)

[personal profile] normalness 2024-07-01 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[Oh. It's not his place to contest Henry's experience in the matter; if nothing else, the ones who've been through something similar is who they should defer to, to a certain degree.]

S-so what do we do, in that case? What did you do, for the people who couldn't be saved back in your world?

[He's almost afraid of the answer; though it's practically obvious.]
bicth: (pic#17160444)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)
What will we do if she breaks out, then? And follows us?

[ Her brows furrow, raising a gloved hand to her chin. Leaving here there seems a little risky.... ]

There's no coming back from becoming a Corruptor — or whatever we're gonna call what she is. I know it.
normalness: (🌟🕷️ 024)

[personal profile] normalness 2024-07-01 10:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[Ah. He feels very, very seen all of a sudden, and Henry's attention flicks over to the packets of peanuts. Wow so interesting.]

That's nice of you to offer.

[More than just "nice." It's such a huge thing, and he almost doesn't know what to do with it. Hates the part of himself that still thinks, But Dr. Brenner would be so angry with me if I left. Chooses to ignore it, instead.]

I've always wondered what it would be like, where "weird" was the new "normal." But...

[He shakes his head.]

I don't think I can.
irreversal: 🧃 teen (115)

[personal profile] irreversal 2024-07-01 10:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Though... didn't her video say she'd tell us more in time? Wonder if she recorded a whole bunch of them for us to find along the way. How fun.

[ the most deadpan 'how fun' ever.. ]
bicth: (pic#17160500)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:48 pm (UTC)(link)
There's a lot of them in the world I came from.

[ She shrugs — she's never really considered the moral conundrum of killing a Corruptor, because they're just not... who they used to be. Maybe she'd feel different if — ]

Or, something similar to the thing in the basement. You've seen it.
empression: (She ain't got to love nobody)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-01 10:50 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Oh. He looks...

She pauses, then reaches out to touch his arm. ]


I'm sorry, if I've made you remember something painful. This is unfamiliar to me, unfortunately.

[ In the end, almost always, they could reach the person who was the cause of the problem. But does that mean there's truly no hope for the woman who had brought them there? ]
empression: (Is it still a poker face when you're mad)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-01 10:51 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah, I see... then I'll have to improve my senses some other way!

[ She'll do her best! ]
empression: (Clap your hands)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-01 10:53 pm (UTC)(link)
Yes! I'll do it just the right amount!

[ Determined huff. ]
bicth: (pic#17160447)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:54 pm (UTC)(link)
We kill them.

[ Her arms fold over her chest. ]

They just sorta.... attack people mindlessly. There's never been a way to put them back — and more people turn into them all the time.

[ If they kept around every Corruptor instead of getting rid of them... probably the whole world would be infected, eventually, she thinks. ]
unliminal: teen (438)

[personal profile] unliminal 2024-07-01 10:54 pm (UTC)(link)
Kotodama, huh? Is that like your... [ Is it okay if he talks about jujutsu sorcery here? In the zombie apocalypse? Eh, oh well. ] Cursed technique? Super special ability?
empression: (What are those??)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-01 10:54 pm (UTC)(link)
Is it? But blades are so elegant!
bicth: (pic#17160405)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-01 10:56 pm (UTC)(link)
I can carry a bag of cookies! I could carry ten bags of cookies!

[ Said with a HMPH, like Shoko is trying to talk down to her. But, no, the way her cheeks puff up is more comical than anything else. ]

But out there, we're gonna be on the run. We might have to leave at a moment's notice, at any time. It's better we travel light.