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week 6
WEEK 6
!home, home on the range
Last week’s events have understandably driven the group off the intended course — so this week will be about righting your little forest-beach-detour.
However, it seems the rain that began at the tail end of last week hasn’t quite let up yet. Mercifully(?), the worst of the storm looks to be over, which means the party will only have to be mildly soggy instead of fighting for their lives against daunting sheets of rain.
Perhaps due to a combination of poor weather, overexertion, and lingering germs in any of the places everyone’s been traveling through, Leontuzzo Bellone and Mark Grayson come down with the flu.
Covering a wide area of land between the lighthouse and the next marked place on the map are a series of abandoned farms and vineyards. Fruit trees and grapevines have all been left to grow (and overgrow) naturally, and with the party passing through at the height of summer, there are plenty of fresh peaches and grapes to be plucked from the foliage on the way. The rain has made the ground muddy and sticky, which may lead to some unfortunate falls…but maybe it’s worth it for a tasty treat.
Also in the abandoned farms are, of course, farmhouses and barns. There are stray farm animals here and there who have happened to survive through sheer luck, though there are no human inhabitants. No living ones, anyway: there are only skeletons, telling the tale that people died here long ago, perhaps of natural causes. One can only hope they did not succumb to the virus as so many others have. There are medicine cabinets inside the houses that have standard things like painkillers, cough syrup, and things of that nature, so it might be a good time to stock up.
As characters linger in the farms, they’ll also notice another side effect of their bracelets: throughout the entire week, they’ll be empathically linked to the other survivors, being able to feel their emotions as strongly as they would feel their own.
However, it seems the rain that began at the tail end of last week hasn’t quite let up yet. Mercifully(?), the worst of the storm looks to be over, which means the party will only have to be mildly soggy instead of fighting for their lives against daunting sheets of rain.
Perhaps due to a combination of poor weather, overexertion, and lingering germs in any of the places everyone’s been traveling through, Leontuzzo Bellone and Mark Grayson come down with the flu.
Covering a wide area of land between the lighthouse and the next marked place on the map are a series of abandoned farms and vineyards. Fruit trees and grapevines have all been left to grow (and overgrow) naturally, and with the party passing through at the height of summer, there are plenty of fresh peaches and grapes to be plucked from the foliage on the way. The rain has made the ground muddy and sticky, which may lead to some unfortunate falls…but maybe it’s worth it for a tasty treat.
Also in the abandoned farms are, of course, farmhouses and barns. There are stray farm animals here and there who have happened to survive through sheer luck, though there are no human inhabitants. No living ones, anyway: there are only skeletons, telling the tale that people died here long ago, perhaps of natural causes. One can only hope they did not succumb to the virus as so many others have. There are medicine cabinets inside the houses that have standard things like painkillers, cough syrup, and things of that nature, so it might be a good time to stock up.
As characters linger in the farms, they’ll also notice another side effect of their bracelets: throughout the entire week, they’ll be empathically linked to the other survivors, being able to feel their emotions as strongly as they would feel their own.
city escape
Once the group passes through farm country, you’ve finally made it to the outskirts of your destination, San Francisco. The map seems to suggest that you should travel along the east outskirts of the town along the bay, rather than directly through it — similar to how the party had stayed to the edges of Los Angeles.
Hordes here are similar to the ones in LA, though with the added difficulty that San Francisco is very hilly. Groups of zombies will chase the survivors uphill and downhill: they seem to have limitless stamina, so running up the hills and hoping for the best isn’t the best strategy. Conversely, they run full speed down the steep declines of San Francisco roads, which can lead to them completely wiping and possibly knocking you down with them.
Several zombies are also special: of the zombies that attack downhill, a handful have retained enough intelligence to simply stand or sit on abandoned skateboards and bikes, which increases their speed greatly. Of the zombies that prefer to attack uphill, they’ve learned that throwing anything they can find at their prey may slow them down — pieces of glass, bricks, and even shoes might be thrown at the survivors.
Henry Townshend attracts the attention of zombies in these hilly zones, forcing the need for a City Escape™.
Hordes here are similar to the ones in LA, though with the added difficulty that San Francisco is very hilly. Groups of zombies will chase the survivors uphill and downhill: they seem to have limitless stamina, so running up the hills and hoping for the best isn’t the best strategy. Conversely, they run full speed down the steep declines of San Francisco roads, which can lead to them completely wiping and possibly knocking you down with them.
Several zombies are also special: of the zombies that attack downhill, a handful have retained enough intelligence to simply stand or sit on abandoned skateboards and bikes, which increases their speed greatly. Of the zombies that prefer to attack uphill, they’ve learned that throwing anything they can find at their prey may slow them down — pieces of glass, bricks, and even shoes might be thrown at the survivors.
Henry Townshend attracts the attention of zombies in these hilly zones, forcing the need for a City Escape™.
fisherman's wharf + pier 39
Towards the end of the week, as characters continue taking the long way around San Francisco, they’ll eventually end up at the northeastern section of the city. More specifically, Pier 39, and the harbors it borders.
Here, after all the rain and gloom, the weather is a bit clearer, allowing characters to look out into the bay and see some marine wildlife that has kept away from the virus; there are hundreds of sea lions and seagulls here, though because they stay down on the rocks below the pier, the sounds of waves crashing drown out their incessant barking.
There are a number of abandoned shops here, and similar to the mall the group traversed weeks ago, many of the stores seem to be looted, but there are still goodies to be found here and there. With the wide variety of goods, from music boxes to candy to jewelry, there’s sure to be something that tugs on the heartstrings you’re all sharing this week.
Take a look around, find a souvenir, and maybe pick what store you’re going to be camping out in for the night?
This week, Ninety-Nine is infected.
Here, after all the rain and gloom, the weather is a bit clearer, allowing characters to look out into the bay and see some marine wildlife that has kept away from the virus; there are hundreds of sea lions and seagulls here, though because they stay down on the rocks below the pier, the sounds of waves crashing drown out their incessant barking.
There are a number of abandoned shops here, and similar to the mall the group traversed weeks ago, many of the stores seem to be looted, but there are still goodies to be found here and there. With the wide variety of goods, from music boxes to candy to jewelry, there’s sure to be something that tugs on the heartstrings you’re all sharing this week.
Take a look around, find a souvenir, and maybe pick what store you’re going to be camping out in for the night?
This week, Ninety-Nine is infected.
no subject
...
...
Through Mark's very, very lengthy pause there is a growing sense of anxiety, and shame over top of it. He just. Really, really, really had not been thinking this through at all. Had really been thinking only of himself, even as he purported to be doing this for others. (Two things can be true — he'd only been considering the physical consequences, not the emotional ones, because the former is what actually makes sense to him and the latter is a minefield he is thoroughly failing right now.) It is all consuming, overwhelming.
He swallows. ]
... I'm glad I told you, then. [ He doesn't have it in him to laugh weakly. Just... ouch. ] I'm... I promise that if it comes up with anyone else I'll tell them. Really. Like what I did here, with you. Then it's not like I'm springing anything on anyone. That's gotta work, right...?
[ He turns to Haru, eyes big and wet and sad. You know. 🥺 ]
Are... are we okay?
no subject
But she smiles, reaching out to clasp his hand. ]
We are. I didn't wish to upset you, but I thought I ought to be candid with my words, if this is to be one of the last times I speak with you.
no subject
Leave no stone unturned, right? [ There's the weak laugh he couldn't muster up before. ] As long as we're in a good place before I, uh.
[ ... ]
That's all I want... That part never changed.
no subject
I know. You're kind, Mark.
[ Even though this is what it is. ]
no subject
So're you, Haru. [ A beat, and with more conviction: ] If I can find a way to make this right, I will.
[ Not that there are probably any ways to do that in the time he has left, but at least the optimism hasn't totally left him yet. ]