week 4

[biteys]

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.

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.

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???

code

Comments

regular prompts

[mediator]

dinner is served

[ soujuurou is by no means an impressive cook who can make incredible meals through memorizing recipes. what he does have the means to do is take whatever the hell is available and make something that'll taste savory. the downside: it doesn't look that way.

what soujuurou presents is an amalgamation of cooked meat, vegetables, rice, sauces, all mashed up in an extremely messy and unappealing manner. he would lose many points on presentation from the critics. at best you can say it doesn't seem inedible. he presents it with a genuine and warm smile to his dining partner for the evening. ]

I didn't think I would miss cooking. Please eat up. We might not get another chance like this to eat with fresh products.

uno!

[ he's never heard of this game before, but the rules are simple enough for even a child to grasp. though he's not especially good at it. currently he's your opponent and has put down his second to last card, a red 7, and just smiles politely. yeah! he could win this!

except... well, he either doesn't know or forgot that when you have one card you have to shout "uno!" to avoid suffering a consequence. will you wait to see if he remembers, tell him about it, or just take advantage of the poor sweet boy smiling like a dope. ]

tea time (takes place after kotoha's death)

[ it was her choice in the end. her body was rapidly failing and she would only become a threat to everyone else. everyone, himself included, wanted to avoid that reality for as long as they could. yet there's no comfort in this fact, or that he participated.

(he hit hard enough to stun her, but not enough to stop her heart, and gojo did the rest. he participated, no matter how he may try to rationalize otherwise for his sanity.)

most of the group is either asleep or getting there when he goes to brew tea in silence. it's maybe one of the rare times since they've started this journey that his face is devoid of his typical soft and tender demeanor. his expression instead is empty and hollow, as if a sculptor carved his face out of hard stone to give the impression of a broken man.

he's waiting for the water to boil, hands by his side, looking past the kettle more than at it. ]

uno!

[venomnom]

[He looks so pleased.

Reiju has a few cards left in her hand. Her luck has been decent thus far, but she isn't in this to win it—hence, she waits patiently before piping up:]

Aren't you forgetting something?

[mediator]

Am I?

[ He looked momentarily puzzled and his first thought is to gingerly lift the card he set down by the corner to make sure his move was a legal one. The previous card was also a 7, so his move is permitted. ]

Hm. I'm allowed to put down this 7 if the last card was a 7 too, right?

[venomnom]

[How earnest.]

You are. It's a perfectly legal move.

[Her eyes flit down to the level of his hand—the one holding his last remaining card.]

[mediator]

...

Oh! Uno! [ He finally realized with the movement of her eyes. But-- ] Why did you tell me? Isn't there a special clause around this?

[ Something about how not declaring Uno causes a penalty? ]

[venomnom]

[She beams when he finally says the word.]

What did I tell you? [All she did was ask a question.] I think the game's gone on long enough. Don't you?

[Uno takes a long time to wind down. Maybe that's one reason.]

[mediator]

Hah. Are you saying you're not having fun? Or is it that you didn't expect me to do so well?

[ a light hearted jest, because it has been a while. all the different cards you can throw in can extend the lifespan of even a two person game by a great deal. ]

dinner

[rifare]

[ You know, one bite will probably soothe any worries that Leon might have about the meal that was just placed in front of him. One bite is all he needs to take.

... But he sure as hell isn't moving to dig in as he stares at the concoction in front of him, his ears twisting around to lie flat against his skull. ]

Ah... It looks very... creative.

[mediator]

Oh, thank you. I didn't really put any effort into it though. I used whatever I could put together. It won't be the most nutritious though.

[ :) ]

[rifare]

[ Some thoughts are better left unsaid, but right now Leontuzzo is really struggling to not agree out loud that it does, in fact, look like no effort was put into it.

Instead he hums wordless in agreement, without actually saying the rude parts out loud. ]

I suppose right now we can't afford to be picky about... nutrition.

[mediator]

I wish so. It'd be better to eat a healthier meal, but I did my best to balance it.

[ Soujuurou goes ahead and gives his mystery meal a taste test. Never let it be said he isn't brave. He chews it up, hums, swallows. ]

Could have used more sauce, but I guess I'm not used to cooking in an American styled kitchen. There's a lack of spices and sauces that could have made the meal more flavorful.

[rifare]

[ Well... Soujuurou did try his own poison. It's the least Leontuzzo can do to steel himself to take a bite. With a sharp inhale during the critique the chef himself gives his creation, Leon digs his fork in, brings it up to his grimacing mouth, and--

........

...............

It's passable. His face actually brightens as he realizes it's not the repulsive taste he expected it to be. ]

You did a decent job all things considered.

[mediator]

Thank you.

[ He's actually really happy how Leon's face brightens up after a few seconds of contemplation. There's no telling how people will react to a new meal, so knowing he passed someone's tastebud test is rewarding. ]

If you need to add any salt and pepper, there's some in the cabinets. It's important to keep your salt levels high especially, since walking and drinking water burns up a lot of your sodium reserves.

tea time

[titlecard]

[ Logically, he knows that sometime after he goes to sleep, he'll wake up. Yes, he's looking increasingly rough these days. No, the fever is not subsiding. Yes, he's still coughing. Feeling lightheaded or not all there at times. But... he'll still wake up.

Maybe he just doesn't want to go to sleep right now. Yeah, that's it.

For the benefit of those trying to get some rest, Mark tries to muffle his coughs. He's maybe even mostly successful, unless someone else is still up, is in the room he's wandering in to.

Soujuuro's back is to him. Mark looks past him, at the kettle. A muffled cough.

Quietly, devoid of emotion, wrung out: ] ... I think your water's ready.

[ Is it by now? Who knows. ]

[mediator]

Oh. Thank you.

[ He honestly didn't notice. He takes a slow breath in with his nose as he turns the burner off, the whistle finally subsiding as he lifts it off and sets it on one of the unused ones. ]

Do you want a cup?

[titlecard]

[ Mark's on the verge of saying no. Can he even handle tea right now, does he want to consume anything, but, ]

Sure,

[ it just slips out.

And hangs there in the air between them, awkwardly. He makes no move to approach, no move to get his own cup, no move to do much of anything. ]

Are you okay?

[ That just slips out, too. ]

[mediator]

[ he'll pour mark a cup of hot water and pull out some boxes of tea bags, green tea or earl grey, and leave it for him to decide what he wants. as for the question, soujuurou can only smile grimly. ]

No, not really. [ as usual, he can only ever be sincere with his true feelings. ] We knew it could happen, but I guess I was still hoping it wouldn't.

[titlecard]

[ Part of him wonders if it would be weird to just take the hot water on its own. Is he really feeling up to more than that.

But Soujuuro says he isn't okay, and you know what, Mark doesn't need to add more to his plate. He steps forward to join him properly, deciding on... hm... green. Sure. Not like he's a big tea drinker or knows a lot about the different kinds, but green is supposed to be calming, right? Or soothing? He'll take green, haphazardly rip the bag from its package. ]

Yeah. I didn't... think it would.

[ Plonks the bag in his cup. Ignores it to look at Soujuuro instead. ]

Kind of makes you start wondering if it's gonna get worse, huh.

[ And he isn't even necessarily talking about himself... though also, like. He very much could be. ]

[mediator]

When it rains it pours. [ He blows out a breath between his lips like he's upset about getting wet on the way home. Truly he isn't trying to make light of things, but he's also exhausted and doesn't know how to process what he did to Kotoha. Where could he even begin? ] ...You're not going to get better either, are you.

[ It's time to be realistic -- Mark has been visibly getting worse and alien physiology can only protect him for so long. ]

tea time!

[parttimesoldier]

[Sleepless nights aren’t exactly new to Suzuha. Maybe not with alarming frequency, but enough that she can face it with a sort of weary resignation when it happens. Sometimes it’s simply too dangerous around to doze; others, there might be an endless repeat of recent events playing on and on in her head every time she closes her eyes. Being a light sleeper can help salvage something of the former, but the latter… that one’s a little harder.

And it’s unfortunately a problem she can’t quiet seem to resolve tonight.

For a moment, she’s not entirely sure what to make of the feelings roiling in her chest when she limps her way to the kitchen to find Soujuurou standing at the stove. What she does know, is she doesn’t particularly feel like being alone right now, and maybe he doesn’t either.]

Not really a great night for sleeping, is it?

[Testing the waters a bit as she leans against the doorway leading into the kitchen for support.]

[mediator]

No, it isn't. Not that any night has been.

[ This one is only punctuated by a loss. Kotoha was such a bright ray of positivity in their group, and she thought a lot about the needs of the others past her own. He'll miss her a lot, but his feelings aren't special in that regard. ]

Would you like a cup?

[parttimesoldier]

[She supposes that’s true, even if the anxieties surrounding this one feel a bit more oppressive. Kotoha being gone… it doesn’t feel real. None of this really does, sometimes.]

Guess I wouldn’t mind one, sure.

[If he’s already in the process of making it and everything. She takes that as her cue to stop lingering there in the doorway, slowly limping over to the small table at one end of the kitchen. She pulls out one of the chairs and settles into it, quiet for a moment as she watches him.]

You doing okay?

[mediator]

[ He dutifully delivers two cups of hot water and then sets down an assortment of tea bags, mainly green tea and earl grey, so that she can take her pick. Soujuurou sits as she asks the question, and blows out a slow and pained breath. ]

Not especially. I didn't think things would take a turn for the worse so quickly. [ Mark has been doing considerably better for instance, so he thought... well it doesn't matter what he thought. ] I guess she went out the way she wanted, so that's what matters.

[parttimesoldier]

[Yeah, that… that tracks. She tries to offer him a small smile in thanks for bringing over the tea, but it fades remarkably fast.]

Not much of a silver-lining, but… [But it’s better than nothing at all.] Yeah. I think she would have hated the alternative.

[She reaches over to grab a tea bag seemingly at random, staring at it and fiddling with it idly for a moment.]

I don’t think any of us were expecting how bad things have gotten.

[She tries to remember the confidence and nonchalance they all had when they first set out. It feels like a lifetime ago.]

[mediator]

No, not at all. The time we sat together at the baseball stadium could be a lifetime ago.

[ He tests a drink from his cup, winces, and sets it back down. Still too hot. ]

But for what it's worth, I'm glad we're still here. It means we've come a long way despite it all.