biteys: (Default)
NIMBO ([personal profile] biteys) wrote in [community profile] turnout2024-07-06 10:11 am

week 2

WEEK TWO


After allowing the party some time to rest at the stadium, it’s time to get a move on again. As per your mysterious benefactor’s (?) recommendation, the party will be splitting up into two groups, with one group traveling west to a hospital, and the other traveling east to a mall.

if you chose hospital...
To get to the hospital, characters will need to venture into more densely populated areas of Los Angeles – and that means they’ll be coming into contact with a higher amount of zombies. The hordes that roam here descend upon any living creature that makes too much noise, so you might witness an unlucky squirrel or cat get hunted down by these roaming threats. The bad news is that they’ll sprint full speed at you if they happen to catch sight – the good news is that they’re not very coordinated at pack hunting, and you may be able to outsmart them by weaving through the streets.

In a stroke of bad luck, Shoko Ieiri attracts the attention of a horde, forcing the party off considerably off course. Temporarily, hopefully. Detour!

Thankfully, there are several methods of getting to the front door of the location – parkouring atop or traversing inside connected buildings, for example. The zombies aren't the only thing that can kill you, though, if you're not careful; while traveling to the hospital, Auch Aubrey slips and falls to his death off a building. Remember Dr. Bei's warning, about not getting too far away from each other? The party will realize if they get too far away from his body (specifically the bracelet), it'll start feeling like their own bracelet is burning them at the wrist. Better go back — and either lug his body around, or lop off the bracelet somehow....

The area this group will travel through has many tourist attractions – antique stores, the Natural History Museum, old-school theaters, for example. For our sword wielders, there are some dated ones among the antique stores and museums; they're dusty, but they'll get the job done. There are other cool artifacts to "borrow" at these places, too, not to mention some history of what the world was like before all this happened.

And at the theaters? There's candy, DVDs, and cardboard cutouts from a variety of movies that were out when the fall of society came. Maybe there are minions there.

Once at the hospital, the party will find that there are a massive amount of zombies that have been trapped inside. Many are former patients or hospital staff, so several are wielding things like scalpels or crutches, and they are just smart enough to attack with them. To get around the facility to find the medical supplies you need, you’ll need to find a way to either distract the zombies, stealthily make your way around, or, you know, eliminate all of them.

As for scavenging, the hospital is surprisingly well stocked, as the high zombie count has made it hard to raid. Characters will be able to find bandages, medicine, surgical tools, and more, if they look close enough.

Of this group, Satoru Gojo and Mark Grayson are infected.


if you chose mall...
To get to the mall, characters will need to travel underground through the subway tunnels. None of the trains are in operation anymore, so they won’t be at risk of getting flattened – but the aged husks of the vehicles are still down here, rotting away. In some tunnels, it will be impossible to go around them, and you know the saying: sometimes the only way forward is through. Inside the trains, some doors that connect the cars are operational, while others are too rusted to move, forcing characters to climb atop the train to progress to the next car. It'll be a taxing trial, made worse by the fact that in these train cars, there are both regular corpses as well as zombified ones. The unpredictable nature of the functioning or non-functioning doors will making escaping the zombies difficult — characters will need to either stand their ground, or climb up to safety if they find themselves at a dead end.

Exiting the subways leaves one last test for this group: the stairs are collapsed! The light of outside shines through what is essentially a giant hole in the ceiling leading to street level. There's about a one story gap between the end point of the subways and the upper ground of the street, so characters will have to get creative with getting everyone up — using train cables? Throwing each other? Human pyramid?

Once at the mall just outside, the party will find that while there doesn’t seem to be a massive horde, there’s another problem: the first floor of the mall, which is below street level, is completely flooded. They’ll have to swim across the distance to the escalators, find a way to get across using debris, or some secret third thing. There are waterlogged zombies floating about in the water as well, who will swim violently towards you once they hear ripples in the water — they’re not subtle about going after you, and will thrash and splash and immediately let you know where they are. They're like people sized piranhas. Scary!

At one point, Sigewinne is pulled underwater by a zombie, and comes close to drowning.

As for scavenging, once they’ve scaled the escalator, they’ll find the second floor of the mall has definitely had its fair share of visitors, but there are still many useful things to find. There are electronic stores that have batteries and walkie talkies, clothing stores (like Hot Topic) that have some extra clothes lying about, and of course, the food court, where you’ll find canned and preserved foods from a variety of different cuisines.

Of this group, Suzuha Amane is infected.


rendezvous

After several days apart, characters will be able to meet back up at a spacious park in the northern part of the city. There are park ranger staff cabins that can be converted into temporary shelters with effort — and the area has a lightly wooded trail, which will make camping outside slightly more safe than if you were plain out in the open.

It’d be a good time to treat the wounded with the new medical supplies, and chow down on the food that’s been collected. Is there someone among the group who’s medical advice can be trusted? Is there someone who might be good at rationing or cooking the food? Everyone’s role in the party should start to become clearer.

There are probably a lot of things to discuss: what will you do with the infected? What's the deal with the bracelets? Reality of how dangerous this mission is will be setting in far too quickly.

Most annoyingly… after all that, some characters will find that moving north has caused their bracelets to inexplicably magnetize together at times, perhaps in response to everything that's happened. Due to this, you might need to help feed each other, or sleep next to a stranger. Hopefully you don't get stuck to someone you totally hate.


!
week two objectives

➤ scavenge for your assigned items!
➤ protect and fight for each other
➤ treat each others wounds
➤ eat tasty canned food


venomnom: (003)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-07-12 08:33 pm (UTC)(link)
I don't know if we have either of those . . . but it should be fine. [He looks like he's having fun, so she supposes they're not necessary.] There are plenty of them flying around.
empression: (I ran out of ideas)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-12 08:35 pm (UTC)(link)
I imagine that's its own kind of shock. Even if you've seen it, the actual act, doing it yourself...

[ Yeah. It does help to know that Shoko likely felt at least a fraction of what Haru had. ]

It's not the same as when you're cutting something down. There's so much more fear to it.

[ So much that can go wrong. ]
empression: (Can't read my--)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-12 08:37 pm (UTC)(link)
I do think that could look very impressive, but I think it would also be best to preserve your other arm to the best of our ability.

[ A sigh. ]

But perhaps I should start looking into how one might only fight with their feet.

[ In case it happens to her! ]
venomnom: (009)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-07-12 08:42 pm (UTC)(link)
[Oh, Shoko.]

Was there anyone in your group who seemed good at stalling or fighting them from a distance? If we have to split up again in the future, I think we should take that into account as well.
irreversal: 🧃 teen (106)

[personal profile] irreversal 2024-07-12 08:51 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Shoko slumps against the side of the ambulance, her clothes now covered in blood - Gojo's blood - as she catches her breath following her use of RCT. Yet still, it doesn't feel right to listen to her own body, her own exhaustion, when her patient, her friend is like this in front of her.

A second. She just needs... a second. And a smoke, but that'll have to wait til much, much later.

Soon enough, Shoko brings herself back to her feet properly, carefully pulling the gag out of Gojo's mouth and then grabbing another towel to wipe at Gojo's face as gently as she can manage. Sweat, grime, tears, and all. ]


You're going to be okay. And— I'm sorry.

[ That it came to this. ]
unliminal: teen (34)

[personal profile] unliminal 2024-07-12 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Strong. Still.

It's telling of just how exhausting he is, how his expression crumples into something tight and vulnerable. Is he strong? He doesn't feel strong, carved and hollowed out as he is.

He's quiet for a moment, willing back his composure. ]


...Course I am. I wouldn't be standing here if I wasn't.

[ Maybe if he keeps repeating that, he'll start to believe it eventually. ]
insinnerate: (7)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-07-12 09:25 pm (UTC)(link)
[That's a difficult explanation, especially when Ninety-Nine feels like what she said made perfect sense. It did to herself. It's not just that the berries taste sweet or freshly ripened, but they have the taste of warm light baked into them. A line of consternation creases across her forehead; it isn't that she cares about being understood, but...maybe there's some frustration of wanting to be heard.]

It's a happy taste. Maybe because they've been left to grow freely out here where it gets warm during the day, so they taste like there's nothing to worry about.

[To her, the sun and the open sky are freedom, so feeling their kiss affecting the ground is soothing. She seems in content spirits for someone who's spent most of their journey being irritable.]
irreversal: 🧃 teen (137)

[personal profile] irreversal 2024-07-12 09:54 pm (UTC)(link)
[ She hums thoughtfully. ]

Cutting something down...? Hm... Yeah.. Trying to save a life isn't the same as trying to take one, after all.

[ ... ]

You never want your patient to be in pain, or to be the one to cause them to be in pain. But in this case... You had to put them through more of it, in order to save them. I know it's hard to think about that way, but you did save Suzuha's life.
venomnom: (109)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-07-12 10:07 pm (UTC)(link)
[Seriously.

Ice didn't stop the zombie, but slowed its advance long enough for Reiju to snap her leg up in a perfect perpendicular line to the floor. Her heel catches the zombie's jaw with a crunch and sends it airborne.

Meanwhile, zombies from the rows nearby begin to scramble toward them. Reiju swings her bat wide as she backs up toward Kotoha and the door behind them, keeping the growing horde at an arm's distance.
]

We'll have to slow them down—but be careful, or we'll end up separated from the others.
titlecard: (026)

[personal profile] titlecard 2024-07-12 10:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Big inhale. ]

I guess I should get back there, huh... I don't want anybody to freak out or anything.

[ But maybe his presence in camp will be the thing that freaks people out? He. He really doesn't know. This is all very new territory, hence the whole isolating himself thing.

Mark doesn't really move from his position against Haru, but, ]
I'll go back with you, whenever you're ready to.

[ Take the decision out of his hands, place the power in hers. She probably has better judgment right now, so it's only right. ]
empression: (You've got a big storm coming)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-12 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
I think more people would be worried if we couldn't find you. We're all, ah... in various states of processing right now, I believe.

[ Those who had been bitten. Those who had treated those who had been bitten. Those who had witnessed it and reacted to it. All of them, just trying to survive and lick their wounds, physical or emotional. At the very least, Mark isn't on all fours and growling and foaming at the mouth and he isn't trying to nibble on anyone, so ideally they have some time to help him through this.

She just doesn't like the idea of him dealing with this on his own. ]


For now... we can stay here for a little while longer. When the cloth starts feeling dry, let's head back then.
empression: (Give it back)

[personal profile] empression 2024-07-12 10:29 pm (UTC)(link)
[ That's the bottom line, isn't it? In the end... even though she'd been the one to do that to Suzuha, irrevocably severing her wrist like that, it meant she was still with them. And ideally... she's not infected. She won't turn into one of those shambling monsters, and she dearly hopes that's the case. Because if it turns out that it didn't work...

... Well, there's really only one way to know, and that's with time. ]


I hope we were right about amputation... there's so little we know about infection, but Suzuha-chan does seem to be faring better than she did when she was bitten.
insinnerate: (7)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-07-12 10:31 pm (UTC)(link)
Right... they won't last like the canned goods because they're not preserved.

[Unfortunately, now that she's distracted by conversation, Ninety-Nine is less conscious of what she's eating and how much. Berries keep making their way off the vine and into her hand, then into her mouth shortly after.]

But won't they help us float?

[The blueberries, that is. Ninety-Nine chews thoughtfully, but her expression is one of somebody who's partially zoned out.]
titlecard: (074)

[personal profile] titlecard 2024-07-12 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah, okay. [ He'd take a look over the edge, see what the zombie situation is like down below, but he really doesn't feel like moving right now, so Mark continues to just sit there. ] Just... just give me a minute, I can take us both down, I think I just... need to sit for a minute...

[ While Henry's looking around Mark takes a chance, looks down at his bite wound, and... oh. That's bad. He's been hurt plenty of times before, but it's never been anything acidic, clothes and flesh melted at the source, something burning and painful. At least the blood is coagulating, so that's... good?

Not good enough to stop the hiss through his teeth upon seeing it, though. ]


They'll help me. We can get back to the group soon... It'll be okay.
titlecard: (026)

[personal profile] titlecard 2024-07-12 11:02 pm (UTC)(link)
[ His lips part at her apology and stay parted, like he immediately had something he wanted to say but has no idea what. Mark just stares, brow furrowing in a sort of distress — not for him, but for her. The tone of her voice, the concentration on her face... She can't blame herself for his actions. That's not how this is supposed to work.

But he can't figure out how to say that out loud, so he shuts his mouth, turns his focus to his wound. He can't see what she's doing, but he can definitely feel it. The burning pain that's been there starts to subside, more of a background throb than a pulsating agony. The nastiest parts of the bite start to look less melted and burned. It's... manageable. Passable.

He slips his eyes shut, exhales, feels like he's got a second wind. ]


It's better. [ He'd have said that even if it wasn't, but the fact that it does genuinely hurt less adds a brightness to his voice.

Mark opens his eyes again, sees her needing to take a moment, and, ]
Shoko... Are you okay? [ Physically? Spiritually? Emotionally??

And, desperation creeping into his tone, ]
It's not your fault.

[ If anything else, she has to know that. ]
titlecard: (150)

[personal profile] titlecard 2024-07-12 11:10 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Right... right. They're processing. He's been processing. But at Haru's reference to everyone he thinks of Henry, who'd seen it first, freaked out immediately. Shoko, who blamed herself for it happening at all.

And it's been selfish of him to slink off on his own, hasn't it? Like Haru said, they'd be worried if they couldn't find him. He's now someone who has to have tabs kept on him, for all of the good that might do, since he's pretty sure he can overpower most of them.

It's a bad thought. Mark presses himself against Haru a bit further, while he still can. Having her support him, literally and figuratively, again. ]


That sounds like a good idea. [ And he reaches up with his free hand to readjust the cloth on his head. Let out an exhale that's almost contented, because it does feel better. And maybe, right now, he actually is in good hands, despite everything. ] We can go back then.
titlecard: (003)

[personal profile] titlecard 2024-07-12 11:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Mark watches her. The easy way she details all of this, like it's obvious. (Shouldn't it be?) That he'd been silently begging her to show him the way past all of this, and maybe she has.

It's just... kind of difficult to digest all at once. Hella stares out at the world before them, and Mark stares at Hella, like she's some sort of reverent figure he needs to work to understand, and then he can be better for it. ]


... I try. [ It comes out in an exhale, an honest admission that just needs more force put into it. ] I don't want to be like him, I just keep thinking about how I did what he did. He beat the shit out of me, and I survived, because I can do that. I beat the shit out of someone else, and he didn't survive, because he couldn't do that. And I can't take that back. And I can try to be better in the future, and I can keep trying, but if the mistakes keep piling up and I become indifferent to them, like him...

[ And it doesn't even register for him that he's talking about long-term stuff now. That he'll get through this world ultimately unscathed, and go on to live a long life worried about the day he stops trying. He just...

Turns to look at their hands, side by side, on the grass and unbothered, all things considered. ]


Have you ever been through anything like that?

[ Whether you're an alien or a Sinner. That's the two of them. So... maybe she does know how to get past it. He grew up in a stable home environment, wanted for nothing but his powers to kick in. They've lived two very different lives as far as he can tell, so maybe she really is speaking from experience — maybe she already knows it's possible to come out the other side. ]
insinnerate: (4)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-07-13 12:56 am (UTC)(link)
[She really said :catsit:.

Hella's prediction is correct, in that Ninety-Nine doesn't move even when her face is getting squished around and pushed into silly expressions. Now that she doesn't have to brush the fireflies away from landing on her face, Ninety-Nine brings her hang up to gently grasp Hella by the forearm, embracing her gently.
]

Yeah, they're pretty. They led us somewhere beautiful, too.

[They'll be gone by the morning, maybe even so completely that it'll feel like they all shared a nice dream. Since she doesn't usually have those in the first place, though, it's a thought she doesn't really mind. That this is only a fleeting peaceful moment is still at the forefront of her mind. She wants to stay as still as possible to make it last, to avoid touching it in a way that hurts.]

What's Hella's wish?
insinnerate: (3)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-07-13 01:08 am (UTC)(link)
Mmn. [She does know.] We don't know the terrain.

[But it's probably in bad shape... Never mind the mall, where they're going to be at the whims of the layout to hunt for supplies; they still need to reconnect with the other half of their group.

She'll find another way to attach the cable up there, whether it's Hellaball or climbing up herself once she finds an appropriately high bit of rubble to use as a starting point. While she doesn't say anything about what she's setting off to do, Ninety-Nine does look around in a way that should communicate that part.
]

Restricted how? [Maybe they're all restrained in some way.]
venomnom: (002)

[personal profile] venomnom 2024-07-13 01:17 am (UTC)(link)
[She's so frank.]

Is that what you think? You don't seem like someone who'd startle easily.

[Especially if it doesn't concern Hella, if Reiju were to guess. Those two have an interesting bond.]
insinnerate: (8)

[personal profile] insinnerate 2024-07-13 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
I believe you. [He's good at keeping secrets? That doesn't really surprise her. Does he have many people to share them with, in the first place? It's the same for Ninety-Nine. All of her secrets are Hella's secrets, too, but no one else needs to hear them. That was true when it was just the two of them, and it's true now even when they're surrounded by others.]

But it might not need to be secret if it never comes true.

[She empties her arm of the dented weapon she's carrying, staying on the defensive even in the middle of this peaceful walk. Forming a bowl with her hands, she waits for one of the bugs to come lower in the air, then makes a too-fast attempt to close the lips formed by her thumbs around it.

Huff. Tiny, exasperated, but with the threat of anger coiling up behind it. This shouldn't be as hard as it is. The bugs are so slow and she could swat them all out of the sky in seconds, but she doesn't. But they're just bugs. Bugs are so easy to kill.
]

Do you have a lot? Too many secrets can be dangerous.
bicth: (pic#17160492)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-13 01:36 am (UTC)(link)
Murr-sent-ary?

[ vocabulary not found... ]

What's that?
bicth: (pic#17160496)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-13 01:41 am (UTC)(link)
No, I just wasn't sure if you were as okay as you seemed! I try to be nice and this is the thanks I get... you assuming I would be so cruel! Humph!

[ Literally this slander???? Hellas puffs out her cheeks like a hamster again, bringing her knees up and crossing her arms around them in a show of dramatized displeasure. ]

Maybe next time, I'll smoke all the cigarettes before giving them to you!
bicth: (pic#17160430)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-13 01:42 am (UTC)(link)
Huh? How slow?

[ She starts moving in dramatic slow motion that is definitely too slow, barely moving an inch at a time. Her light eyes flick over to his failure, and she slow points at him. ]

You're not even catching them, so what do you know!?
bicth: (pic#17160432)

[personal profile] bicth 2024-07-13 01:48 am (UTC)(link)
Maybe not exactly like you, but...

[ She trails off, looking back at him. ]

You know Ninety-Nine, right? She's in our camp. [ She gives a quick nod of her head back towards that direction. ] The two of us aren't like other Sinners; we were made into them by researchers. Ninety-Nine was their magnum opus, their perfect weapon, and I was the punching bag they used to strengthen her.

[ There's a flippancy to the way she speaks about it, no clear resent or fear still lingering in her words, not towards the doctors nor towards Ninety-Nine. Most of this is their secret, and a lot of this is Ninety-Nine's story to tell, so she doesn't want to get too deep into the details... but she does want to give Mark hope that he's not the only person to ever feel like this. ]

People hear that and assume she's a monster. They assume I must hate and fear her for hurting me. To this day, there's still times where she loses control and might bite me or attack me...

[ To put it the way they were just talking about it, there are still times when Ninety-Nine "makes mistakes." But Hella has never stopped believing in her or in the good of her heart — it's why she can feel so certain that even if Mark continues to make mistakes, so long as he keeps struggling, keeps striving towards being better, he'll always remain a good person in Hella's eyes. And while it doesn't sound like he flies into the type of uncontrollable rampage that Ninety-Nine does... the fact that Ninety-Nine has maintained such a hold on herself gives her the utmost confidence that Mark can too, so long as he puts effort into it. ]

But I don't feel scared of her becoming indifferent. After all this time, she's never come out of that state careless or cruel. Actually, hehe... she's just like you — scared of hurting others.

[ Which she says entirely fondly. Teasingly, she reaches up with her free hand to poke him squarely in the forehead, the poke forceful and strong, because she knows he can take it. That, and she can be something of an affectionate bully, enjoying provoking people who are in a funk if it means it'll help them get out of it. ]

If her mind can be that tough after everything she's been through, I know yours can too, dumbass.

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