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week 4
WEEK FOUR
road trip!
As the doctor mentioned, the next leg of your trip is quite long, so walking isn't advised; hopefully, you've all secured alternative methods of travel between the abandoned cars and the wild pack of horses you found last week.
These cars are long abandoned, and most of them still have things like CDs and magazines in the gloveboxes and trunks - so at least you’ll have some entertainment for the trip! Conveniently, music you can find comes from the year 2024 and earlier, because in the Turnout universe, CDs were still widely a thing in modern times because I said so.
Be aware that there are not enough cars and horsies for everyone to go solo; you’ll need to group up and decide who’s driving! And, more notably...
Your drive won't be entirely peaceful! There are bound to be some zombies littering the street, which characters will need to clear in order to keep going. Whether that's through running them over, sniping them with your newfound long-range gun skills, or doing it the old fashioned way by hopping out of the car and beating them to a pulp, they've gotta move! Be careful not to let the horseys get bit.
These cars are long abandoned, and most of them still have things like CDs and magazines in the gloveboxes and trunks - so at least you’ll have some entertainment for the trip! Conveniently, music you can find comes from the year 2024 and earlier, because in the Turnout universe, CDs were still widely a thing in modern times because I said so.
Be aware that there are not enough cars and horsies for everyone to go solo; you’ll need to group up and decide who’s driving! And, more notably...
Your drive won't be entirely peaceful! There are bound to be some zombies littering the street, which characters will need to clear in order to keep going. Whether that's through running them over, sniping them with your newfound long-range gun skills, or doing it the old fashioned way by hopping out of the car and beating them to a pulp, they've gotta move! Be careful not to let the horseys get bit.
respite
Whether or not you were suspicious of whatever the “SAFE” marked on the map was supposed to mean, when you come to the coordinates that are marked, you’ll be in front of a door that opens down into the earth — it's a bunker. The entrance is slightly hidden by foliage, seemingly intentionally so.
Inside, it’s obvious this place is not like the places you’ve been traveling to thus far. It’s clean, well stocked, and nicely furnished. Judging by the pictures on the wall, it’s a safe house that’s been used many times by Dr. Bei and her five associates. So, it was built by a bunch of super nerds surviving the apocalypse, meaning that it's pretty well fortified and self sufficient. It seems like the Doctor must have been here at least a few weeks ago, judging by the dust levels and quality of the food.
That means there’s clean running (and hot!) water, as well as a freezer that’s stocked up with some raw meat, vegetables, and a rare ice cream treat. Also in the kitchen are some seasonings and other staples: flour, rice, etc. There are cooking utensils too, of course! Characters well versed in cooking may just be able to throw together a nice feast for everyone.
There’s also, you know. Alcohol. Not a ton of mixers, though!
It seems like the nerds had simple things for means of entertainment: there are some party and card games hidden away in drawers — think pictionary, uno and twister, or other such party games. Of course, only your imagination is holding you back: while you have a safe place to rest, it might be easier to let loose and have fun.
The six rooms in the bunker all have one bed and a connected bathroom - each one is identical but decorated with sparse things, like stray trinkets or a picture frame. Only Dr. Bei's really has anything different about it, because in it, there's still a working computer.
Characters will be able to open basic programs like wordpad, MS paint, or iTunes for music purposes. Like everyone who had iTunes, she has U2 songs on there. There's still no internet, but there are some saved messages from her and another colleague using an alternative connection method.
While exploring, characters can discover a chat log between ♛, which appears to be Dr. Bei's display name, and ♝, another user.
Aside from the beds in the six rooms, there are also sofas and armchairs to rest on.
Inside, it’s obvious this place is not like the places you’ve been traveling to thus far. It’s clean, well stocked, and nicely furnished. Judging by the pictures on the wall, it’s a safe house that’s been used many times by Dr. Bei and her five associates. So, it was built by a bunch of super nerds surviving the apocalypse, meaning that it's pretty well fortified and self sufficient. It seems like the Doctor must have been here at least a few weeks ago, judging by the dust levels and quality of the food.
That means there’s clean running (and hot!) water, as well as a freezer that’s stocked up with some raw meat, vegetables, and a rare ice cream treat. Also in the kitchen are some seasonings and other staples: flour, rice, etc. There are cooking utensils too, of course! Characters well versed in cooking may just be able to throw together a nice feast for everyone.
There’s also, you know. Alcohol. Not a ton of mixers, though!
It seems like the nerds had simple things for means of entertainment: there are some party and card games hidden away in drawers — think pictionary, uno and twister, or other such party games. Of course, only your imagination is holding you back: while you have a safe place to rest, it might be easier to let loose and have fun.
The six rooms in the bunker all have one bed and a connected bathroom - each one is identical but decorated with sparse things, like stray trinkets or a picture frame. Only Dr. Bei's really has anything different about it, because in it, there's still a working computer.
Characters will be able to open basic programs like wordpad, MS paint, or iTunes for music purposes. Like everyone who had iTunes, she has U2 songs on there. There's still no internet, but there are some saved messages from her and another colleague using an alternative connection method.
While exploring, characters can discover a chat log between ♛, which appears to be Dr. Bei's display name, and ♝, another user.
Aside from the beds in the six rooms, there are also sofas and armchairs to rest on.
oops all memshare
While within the safe house, your bracelets will start acting strange. It might have to do with being underground, or perhaps just the highly advanced technology at work down here, but at inopportune times, you’ll find your mind linking with other party members’, especially when initiating physical contact.
When connected to another survivor, you may exchange memories, which may come with 1) the physical sensations you felt at the time, 2) the emotions you felt at the time, or 3) the thoughts you had at that time. Players can be creative with this mechanic and have the memshares be like watching a movie, or physically acted out — whichever is your preference. There’s no prerequisite on the type of memory that might accidentally spill over, and characters may share multiple memories with one person.
According to the map's schedule, you have some time to rest your weary feet from the long ride… you’re not scheduled to leave for two or three days. It seems the Doctor might want you to fill up and face the second half of the trip with your most well rested selves. So, why not relax while you can? What’s the worst that could happen???
When connected to another survivor, you may exchange memories, which may come with 1) the physical sensations you felt at the time, 2) the emotions you felt at the time, or 3) the thoughts you had at that time. Players can be creative with this mechanic and have the memshares be like watching a movie, or physically acted out — whichever is your preference. There’s no prerequisite on the type of memory that might accidentally spill over, and characters may share multiple memories with one person.
According to the map's schedule, you have some time to rest your weary feet from the long ride… you’re not scheduled to leave for two or three days. It seems the Doctor might want you to fill up and face the second half of the trip with your most well rested selves. So, why not relax while you can? What’s the worst that could happen???
no subject
[For anyone else, Ninety-Nine's observation might carry with it a bit of dispassionate sympathy. For these scientists, each of whom she believes is responsible for the suffering the entire group is facing, there's only cold, violent intent.
Maybe she's only looking at their faces to memorize better, so if they ever meet any of them still alive she can kill them on the spot - anything that might free the group.]
When we leave it will go to waste. [How long could they stay here if it didn't matter? Not long enough, and it still feels like a bitter insult to have this here and now. At least she can be grateful for a safe place for them to sleep while she keeps watching, vigilant as an ever-burning, slowly dying flame.]
no subject
Probably.... damn, this could've been the perfect place to shack up. All we need is a lake.
[ For it to be like the Barbie dream house they'd thought up together a few weeks ago. It doesn't have windows where they can watch the sunrise from... but it's pretty cozy, she has to admit. If only there was a stupid portal here, they could escape away to this place whenever they wanted, and return to the MBCC whenever needed. ]
Maybe there will be other ones like this on the map? [ Probably not, but... if she pretends there are, it'll make this whole journey that much less painful. They all deserve a safe place to sleep and a meal that didn't come from the trash. ] We should hide it again when we leave, so it doesn't get ransacked.
[ in the event they get stuck here for longer, perhaps.... ]
no subject
[For the two of them, especially, used to turning holes in the wall into homes, making the bunker entrance undetectable once more shouldn't be a problem. There is a small part of her that doesn't want to leave right away, but even if respite here felt like freedom, they're all still fettered.]
...Hella is louder than usual. [And more upset, but that one has a deeper explanation. No one is happy. Even Ninety-Nine, who finds that any time she touches emotions she becomes lost in a sea of them, feels the haggard misery setting in now that they've found a safe space.
With how ransacked everything they've passed so far is, it's harder and harder to believe that anyone on the other side of their destination is even still alive.]
no subject
[ She looks up at her, twisting her lips into a pout . She doesn't feel like she's being louder than usual. Is it bothering Ninety-Nine? Is that why she brought it up? Her arms fold loosely over her chest, turning her reddened face towards her companion's, all with her brows knit in concentration.
It's true that she's feeling more down than usual... but she's also not accustomed to showing that kind of vulnerability, especially not while they're in the presence of company. Among other Sinners, Hella is usually the one keeping it together and encouraging people on; EMP is a coward, and Hecate needs a friend that can push her forward sometimes. Right now, if she were to fall apart or show doubt or weakness, who would be there for some of the other members of their group...? ]
I'm just thinking, and stuff. [ She reaches up to poke Ninety-Nine in the cheek, twisting her finger a little teasingly. ] Is my Ninety-Nine worried about me already?
no subject
Though it won't actually accomplish anything due to her physiology, Ninety-Nine lays the back of her hand against Hella's forehead like she's checking for a fever. There's a quiet sniffle of investigation to see if anything seems amiss. If she was injured, Ninety-Nine would probably mask it as long as she could, unless she became a risk and needed to convince the group (convince Hella, really) to give up on her. The eye-watering sting of alcohol, but not quite like in a hospital, surprises her.] You've been drinking, right? [If Chief finds out, Hella will get scolded... but she's not really considering what the Chief will think right now. It's much more like old times in that way.]
... Maybe that's good to help you with thinking. [More accurately, to help her avoid it.] And sleep.
no subject
I know.
[ She says in response, and while she smiles, it seems strained, maybe even a little sad. Since collaborating with Rustfire, seeing more and more casualties, it just doesn't sit right with her to be protected anymore, if it ever did. The feeling isn't defined in such clear terms in her mind; it's just a general sense of discomfort, one she's not sure she can explain to Ninety-Nine, no matter how closely their hearts are intertwined. Would she understand that Hella wants to protect her, too? She's sure her companion sees it something like simple fact that it's her duty to protect Hella, not the other way around.
Hella sighs, and it lacks whimsy and dramatism. ]
And yeah, so I think it's making me tired.
[ It's not, especially, but perhaps a bit selfishly, she just wants a reason to draw Ninety-Nine away from everyone else, to keep her close by her side for the rest of the night. In some ways, it's the same as usual; Hella tends to cling to Ninety-Nine like a buoy whenever she starts getting nervous about what might happen to her, stubbornly and relentlessly — just like she had when the MBCC had dared to try taking her away from her permanently. ]
Aren't you, too? You got to have a big meal.
no subject
For Ninety-Nine, seeing the effect of the zombie virus on normal humans has given her the same sick feeling - though it manifests much differently in her than in Hella. She's already a monster - a monster who is more than a monster - but she hasn't been able to use that forsaken status in any meaningful way. She has never been fast enough or close enough. As guard dogs go, she's been useless. While she might be able to understand what Hella's feeling, she might never really get it.]
Yes, I'm full. [She likewise isn't very good at picking up on Hella's subtle, clinging insinuation, which might earn her a scolding. Subtext easily sails over her head most of the time, but she'll easily listen to instructions when they're direct.] Go to bed if you're tired, and I'll make sure everyone else is quiet. [Not a threat...unless?]
I'll carry you. It's a real bed, so you can steal all the blankets you want. [And she'll know where Hella is, so she won't lash out or get worried looking for her. Her guard is up so high and so concrete that Ninety-Nine isn't sure she'll be able to easily lower it if she sleeps. If she takes the break to recharge now, it's likely she'll spend an entire day unconscious, her breathing heavy and her body still, just to keep up with paying the toll.]
no subject
No, no, you're supposed to say, "do you want to take a rest together?" Pay more attention to me...
[ As if emphasizing her complaining, she drapes herself over Ninety-Nine's shoulders, since she's still standing next to her seat the computer chair — all while maintaining her frown. Her companion is quite used to Hella's needy and attention seeking ways, so she feels no shame at all acting up like this, especially not while tipsy. Speaking of, she sways with the motion.
Besides, Ninety-Nine said she'll carry her, so... she'll just let Ninety-Nine pick her up and move her as she pleases without putting in much further effort to make it convenient. She won't even need to reach up to communicate that she's okay with it; acting like this is as natural as breathing for both of them. ]
This just goes to show you need to lay down, too. [ She gives Ninety-Nine's shoulders a pat, very up we go energy. ] Come on.
[ A perfectly rested Ninety-Nine would understand her wishes with ease, right... not really, but she's not above voluntelling Ninety-Nine to come with her, since she knows she will follow. She can be brazen when demanding things from Ninety-Nine because she knows, and Ninety-Nine knows, that Hella would never abuse that power, nor would she ever ask Ninety-Nine to do something she truly didn't want to do. The thick cord of trust between them ensures Hella can be as temperamental and demanding as she likes without fear of crossing or offending her companion, and she knows she could never truly burden her. There's only a constant, inseparable symbiosis between their truest selves.
Hella knows from experience it won't be so easy for Ninety-Nine to truly rest, but she also knows that just resting alongside Hella can do a lot for stabilizing her — though she wouldn't complain if Ninety-Nine did manage to fall asleep. Hella's clingy plan isn't completely selfish. ]
no subject
[She agrees easily, like she almost always does. Ninety-Nine knows that there are people, like the Chief's adjutant, who think she's slow and lacks understanding, that she's just following Hella around like a dog being led. What that woman fails to understand is that she has no reason to question her; it's an implicit trust, even if it ends up being a little confusing like all those little tricks about food Hella played on her.
Outsiders, especially people who saw Ninety-Nine princess carrying Suzuha around the Wild West town, might not be expecting the more casual way she scoops Hella up like a stray kitten or ragdoll and boosts her into her arms, but that's just how they are. Not rough, just as casual as breathing, lifting her and swinging her around a bit until she clings on or gets settled. For them to be softer would be abnormal; it would mean something was wrong.
And a lot is wrong, so maybe that's why Ninety-Nine is placing her down gently by the time they find an open bed to share. When she takes her jacket off, the progression of the corruption crawling up her skin is more obvious. It's not much farther than it was before - how could it be? - but her neck and shoulders are darker, and the area where she was shot still blazes with the occasional red starburst.]
Does drinking make you feel better? I heard Shoko say there were games. [She's abstained - not wanting to lose control in an enclosed space and already wary about some of the others and how they see her. She flops down on her back, unzipped down to what she's normally been wearing to sleep.]
no subject
While it is a surprise to be deposited so gently on the bed, she doesn't mind, immediately wiggling this way and that to make sure she finds the most comfortable spot, not quite unlike a small rodent rearranging their burrow to ensure maximum security and coziness. Her movements only slow when her eyes fall upon the corruption seeping up Ninety-Nine's neck and arms, immediately able to diagnose and compare the severity to the thousands of other times she's seen Ninety-Nine like this. Of course she's concerned what the stress of this situation is doing to Ninety-Nine's corruption... all the more reason for her to try to tuck her in forcibly.
Her gunshot wound hasn't escaped her notice, either... but she also knows implicitly that Ninety-Nine will be okay. It wouldn't be like her to fuss and worry over her companion with teary eyes, not over something like this. The foremost thought in her mind is actually about how she should go about getting closer without causing her any pain, and she sits up half way to move one of Ninety-Nine's arms out of the way so she can tuck herself under it at her side. ]
Yeah, I don't feel so sore from all the walking anymore.
[ She hums, lazily throwing one arm across Ninety-Nine's midsection, careful to keep it far from the lingering soreness of her wound. ]
I was chugging beers with Suzuha, but I ought to try playing with Shoko. She's kind of a bad girl... [ Said mischievously and teasingly. ] Well, I guess Kotoha is too, hehe.
[ Everyone's avoiding talking about her, but with Ninety-Nine, Hella can bring her up with more ease. She's sure it's unsurprising to Ninety-Nine what her attitude towards Kotoha's infection is; until there's an indisputable turn for the worse, she's going to keep believing in her, of course, and believing that they'll play those drinking games together one day. Despite her stubbornly hopeful outlook, she can't help but quietly confess, while they're alone: ]
... Everything's happening so fast, huh?
no subject
With a full meal in her for the first time - something cooked by a person who knows what they're doing and not her haphazard attempt at putting meat on the stove - Ninety-Nine feels some strength that's been at half-mast returning to her. Over the weeks, her metabolism has burned through the food and forage stores; that she's been fighting going manic for so much of their journey has only weakened her more. She needs the recovery much more than she lets on - or, perhaps more accurately, much more than she herself knows.
Because Hella is so tough, Ninety-Nine doesn't always have to worry about her getting hurt—but she knows that she can. When she mentions being sore, her expression immediately turns to one of gruff worry. When Hella's arm drapes across her middle, she wraps her much longer fingers around her wrist, pulling her close to check her over.]
If they're friends with Hella, then I don't think they're really bad girls.
[She frames it around their friendship because that's always influenced how she's seen the world. It's easier for Ninety-Nine to define things using that crutch. She's learning more every day, but stepping away from her one comfort isn't something she's interested in doing. Despite the framing, this is more than that: She likes them, these other girls, even if she doesn't think they would call her friend. This trip started with her only caring about getting one person to the other side, but now... She wasn't fast enough to stop Suzuha from being shot. She couldn't get to Kotoha in time. Maybe now that she's had more food -]
It is fast. We can't go backwards, either. There's no...stopping now that everything has started. [It's easier to talk about when it's just the two of them, but they've been on very different sides of the point of no return.]
no subject
But maybe there's a way to slow it...
[ "There's no stopping now that everything has started." That's true of the mission they've been forced on, as well as the fate of their fellow survivors, but it rubs her the wrong way, and deeply, at that. It's difficult for Hella to ever accept that things are "the way they are" or are unchangeable once the ball starts rolling. She lets out a quiet huff, turning her cheek pensively in to the body of her friend, her skin still flushed from the alcohol. ]
If we can get to the Chief in time, maybe the Shackles could stop the infection from getting worse. Or pull them back.
[ That's essentially what the Shackles do for all of the Sinners, after all — it puts their Mania contamination on pause, so that they don't immediately turn into Corruptors at the first thing that causes their M-Value to spike.
For the majority of the journey, Hella has put on a tough face when it comes to the circumstances they've been thrust in: she insults the doctors when she can, and maintains a can-do attitude about saving them all. But alone with Ninety-Nine like this, she's able to let some of her sorrow spill over, something far more dimensional than the righteous anger she shows to everyone else. ]
I just don't want to give up on anybody. You know...
[ The way she'd had to in the facility from time to time, the way she refuses to about Ninety-Nine. It'd be too wretched, too sad, to have to begin willingly leaving members of their party to die, or worse yet, spilling the blood on their hands themselves. Times like this on this trip, she feels like she's in those pristine white rooms again, forced to watch others perish while barely keeping her own head above water. It isn't right, it isn't fair. ]
no subject
[It's the reason Ninety-Nine is still alive, after all. If it weren't for the Chief and Hella believing in her, she would have given up when things were at their most dire.
They need people like Hella, who know the world is a beautiful place even when it's causing pain, who want to believe in others even though they've done the same over and over again. They need people like Hella, but they also need people who can take the heat so Hella won't be the one feeling betrayed countless times.
Ninety-Nine thinks about her conversation with Mark. He still probably hopes that she can convince Hella, but convincing her isn't the way to protect her in this situation. It's in being someone who can take the fire from her rage at the injustice.
Pulling the blanket up and around them (though to tuck Hella in fully, she has to leave at least half of herself exposed to the elements - it's fine), she smushes the pillow behind her shoulders into a rumpled little mess, punching it into place.]
... Do you want to bring them all to DisCity? Do you think they'd really go?
[That it would cause a pretty big disturbance almost makes her want to see it. She's on her best behavior these days; she doesn't even move unless told to, most days, and she spends the free time she does have resting in the rec yard. It would be interesting to see the chaos...but they're treated so poorly by everyone but the Chief. Someone like... like almost anyone in their group... would only be met with suspicion and hatred.]
no subject
[ She'd never want to take anyone away from their own home, unless she were rescuing them. Henry 1, for example, might benefit from slipping away to DisCity to live in the Bureau, rather than under the thumb of the scientists studying him. Hella uses both hands to further pull the blanket up to her chin, nestling down into the comfy nest they've created and closing her eyes in deep thought. ]
The infection doesn't seem so different from Mania. Just because they got it doesn't mean they deserve to die.
[ Which she huffs into the edge of the blanket, blunt and stubborn. Kotoha doesn't need to die, even if her powers are dangerous. Hella is perhaps the only one among their group to think so, or to be so lenient on members of their group that may become a danger to others. But she thinks of Ninety-Nine, Wendy, Hecate, all the Sinners in the Bureau's care who have a potential to hurt others. They need to be cared for, not put down like rabid dogs. She hates that the latter seems to be the kneejerk response in situations like these.
She keeps her eyes shut, breathing in deep through her nose. ]
I won't let that happen to you, not ever.
[ Whether it's executioners or members of their party who elect to get rid of her, Hella will do anything and everything to sabotage it. She knows she doesn't need to say more to show her sincerity — she's already proven to Ninety-Nine that she will break her chains no matter who puts them there. This is the root of her worry, after all: that inevitably, Ninety-Nine will try to protect Hella and get infected in the process. Then it's only a matter of time before people start averting their eyes and thinking the worst, just as they're doing now with Kotoha. ]