![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
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.
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.
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.
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
➤ 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
no subject
Suddenly, his nervous demeanor seems to make a lot more sense. Hella thinks of all the other test subjects that she outlived, several who had his disposition, and her expression softens, warmed with empathy. ]
You're a lab kid... [ She says, knowingly — maybe everyone who got brought here is. ] Listen — I don't think this has anything to do with the lab you came from. Aren't the laboratories you've seen usually, I don't know, more... sciencey? Like with syringes, and machines, and stretchers?
[ Tile, glass beakers everywhere, the works? And lots of nerdy scientist staff. None of that seems to be here, though she also hasn't looked around everywhere. ]
It seemed like it was a lady in the recording, anyway. You didn't recognize the voice, did you?
no subject
A lab kid? [Which implies more lab kids? There's been talk about the experiment expanding back in HNL, but it hasn't happened yet... Which means that maybe she knows what he's talking about on a more personal level?
That seems to be the case, maybe. With the familiarity in which she talks about labs; that or she's read a lot of sci-fi books.]
They're a lot more... white, yeah.
[Plain, sterile. That's what he means.]
No, I didn't know her voice. She's no one from back in the lab, at least I don't think so. But in that case, why would she do this? How could she take all of us and just... put us in this house? Were we drugged?
no subject
[ 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?
no subject
Despite himself, a part of him resonates with her cynicism. The world isn't not without those who want to treat others as disposal tools, and maybe that's just a universal truth.]
It's been about a year now. [For the first time, his tone lowers a bit. It doesn't quite reach the same bitterness as her, but it's discontent.] I don't know exactly how long, time moves strangely when you're stuck in one place.
So maybe it is a reprieve but... I still don't like it. It's not like we were asked whether or not we wanted to be there, to do this.
no subject
Well, maybe it's not exactly how you wanted to get out, and I don't really wanna be here either, but...
[ She tilts her head, encouraging. ]
Now you've got some time to plan your real escape. Right? Or at least have a break.
[ She heard that discontent in his voice — being a test subject is no way to live. It's not right for any human, and she'll always take the side of people who have suffered exactly like she has. ]
no subject
I...
[But that instinct fades as soon as it arrives. He would have seen him by now if he was here, right? If this is the whole of their group. And so, he looks at er and her smile, and desperately tries to take some comfort in it instead.]
Yeah, I guess so. It's still not ideal, but it's definitely more "freedom" than I've had in a while. [And he's not!! Going to be bitter about that!! (Right now.)]
You talk like you know a lot of- [pause] -kids in labs?
no subject
Not just knew them, I used to be one. Those bastards did any sort of test they could think of on me...
[ Which she says casually, with a shrug. ]
But I broke free and escaped. I took my friend with me, too. [ Her eyes light up, thinking he could benefit from knowing another lab rat. ] She's actually here! Her name's Ninety-Nine. She looks scary, but she's actually really adorable and nice.
[ source: just trust me bro ]
no subject
It's such a plain declaration, and one stated it so casually, but the way it resonates with Henry is poignant. Feels like a shard of glass lodged into his insides for how surprising it is.
For the first time in a long while, maybe he's found someone who can— understand what it feels like. To be so abnormal, or created in such a way, that the world's only option was to hide you away. Imprison you.
He crosses his arms tightly over his chest.]
...really? [To being a lab kid. To being able to escape. It's not a revelation he expected, and therefore, he almost doesn't know what to do with the information. She'll get the sense that this is still settling in; that he hardly knows where to begin, what to ask.]
Wait— That's her real name, or did they assign her a number, too?
no subject
That's just her name. Maybe they gave it to her, but it's hers now — she's her own "Ninety-Nine."
[ The distinction is important to her. Hella doesn't know the full details, but she knows enough to know that just as the boy says, the number was likely "given" to her when she was created. At the same time, Hella hates the idea of anything about herself or Ninety-Nine being "owned" or "bestowed upon them" by the lab. ]
What should I call you? I'm Hella, by the way.
[ She remembers how she'd been numbered too at the lab, but personally, she hates being associated with the number at all. And so, she doesn't elaborate — not that she'll take it from him if he prefers being referred to as the number he must have been assigned. ]
no subject
My name's Henry.
[He says it quickly, assuredly, like it's some manner of declaration. Good for Hella for having her own name, and good for Ninety-Nine for making it hers, regardless of it being assigned or not. But Henry will always be Henry to himself, no matter what people call him now. (Or what people call him in the future.)]
It's nice to meet you, Hella.
[Awkwardly, very straightforwardly, he sticks out his arm for a handshake.]
no subject
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. ]
no subject
He drops his hand, clasping them both in front of him.]
Oh, yeah. [It's a question that makes sense, though. There's no way of a stranger knowing how long he's been sequestered at HNL, and given the scientists' zealot in that place, he wouldn't put it past for them to keep even younger test subjects there... indefinitely if they had the choice. And it's not like Henry comports himself in a way that shows comfort around a group he doesn't know.]
I was a freshman in high school before Dr. Brenner took me in. I've been around plenty of people before, just never like this.
[Trapped with complete strangers from different worlds.]
no subject
That's good then, I don't have to explain what the sun is or how to make friends! [ Which was definitely the case for some experiments she knows. At least she can take solace in the fact that he's seen the outside world. ] After I got stuck in Parma — the lab — I was only there for a few years, but not everyone is so lucky.
[ For now, she refrains from talking about how she ended up there — it's certainly not anything like being taken under the wing of a doctor. But it's all in the past. ]
We'll probably have to get to know most of the people here, even though this is a weird situation... anyone give you bad vibes, yet?
[ She is more likely to take his word for it for bad vibes than good, just because of her own suspicions regarding everyone. At least he's definitely in the clear, in her eyes. ]
no subject
But it's hard to fall into those dark thoughts when Hella seems so... cheery? Stubbornly energetic about the whole thing? He wants to ask why she was in the lab, what they wanted to experiment on her for, but he isn't sure if he should. That's probably rude, and invasive, just as invasive as a scientist poking and prodding, right? She hasn't asked him, and therefore he'll offer the same courtesy.
The question makes him shift his weight to the other foot, fidgety.]
Well... Not really?
[Everyone has been very Nice so far. And not in that paternally patronizing can't-quite-figure-out-if-it's-fake-or-not way that he's used to. VERY WEIRD]
So far everyone's been nice to me when I've talked to them. What about you?
no subject
[ She huffs, complaining for complaining's sake. No, he didn't seem evil, but she'd like it to be known that he pissed her off. ]
The other Henry [ sorry henry 2 ] seems a little shy, but not bad... everyone else seems okay so far, but I haven't talked to everyone. The biggest problem person is obviously that doctor.
no subject
Yeah. I mean, no one's done anything as bad as the doctor. At least, not that I know of. ["Annoying" is not nearly as egregious. Neither is being shy.] I guess no one has a reason to share their darkest secrets right off the bat, though.