( OPEN ) GAME START.

[monstermasher]

▶ WHO: Everyone.
▶ DATE: July 9th, 2015 (Day 1)
▶ WARNINGS: Blood, violence, general zombie horror.
▶ SUMMARY: You've met with a bad... however that line goes. Welcome to Earth.

GOOD MORNING!

---

Please try and ignore whatever it is that you just heard. It should only last for up to a minute... maybe.

It... it is morning, right?

There are no windows.

There's a light, but it's barely considered one. The compound runs on a solar generator, but that doesn't mean it has a lot of power. The light seems to be hanging from the ceiling, swinging precariously. That's when you might actually start to wake up, sit up, find the things that are familiar to you... and then some of the things that aren't. It'd be wise to explore the small room you're in before leaving through the steel door, but there's nobody around to tell you that.

Outside is a tightly knit compound, just as dark and metallic as the room. The hallway you're in houses dozens more doors identical to yours, and if you're unlucky there may be more people poking their heads out through them, just like you. There's a dull glowing sign that reads MEDICAL BAY but not all of you remember being hurt. Some of you may be just fine, apart from the memory of the sound you heard when waking up.

The Medical Bay is stocked with enough medicine to last a couple of months. There's almost everything that can be found in a hospital. Somebody was thinking ahead.

Outside of the Medical Bay are more doors, some are even locked—many aren't. There are living quarters, a food storage, a kitchen, some laboratories; even a room full of computers and nothing else, all with a screen asking for a password. There's only two doors out of the compound, a vehicle bay with what appear to be a few military jeeps and trucks, and the front doors. It's on the inside of the front doors that something is painted in bright red, flecked with what smell like blood:

DO NOT GO OUTSIDE WITHOUT A GUN AND WATER.
GUNSHOTS ATTRACT THEM.
HOLLOWS IS 1.3 MILES NORTH OF HERE.
GOOD LUCK.

And on the outside of the doors, if you choose to open them:

THE WORLD ENDED JULY 3RD, 2015.

Now... how long ago was that? And where is this place? Luckily for you, Hollows is a small town that can be raided. It hasn't been too long since the apocalypse—surely you'll be able to find something there. Batteries, food, weapons, maybe some people—and what you're guaranteed to find. Them, whatever that means.

Outside of the compound there's a fence with a single gate. Nothing can get past this unless you let them in for tea, so be careful. There's a shooting range and a large shed full of weapons and ammo, enough to last two months if you're careful. Guns, knives, anything that would be used by the military and police is hidden away in the shed. There are even a few hunting bows with arrows.

If you climb up the ladder to the top of the wall, there's enough room to walk along the top. There's definitely something moving in the distance, something you should definitely be worrying about. Maybe it's time to get a good look with a sniper rifle...?

Oh.

It's gone.

Maybe it was just a trick of the light. Regardless, it's impossible for everyone to stay in the compound forever. There are nefarious things at work! The choices are to go to Hollows, stick around, or go somewhere else. Really, the world is almost a blank slate. Maybe more of a used slate, but still yours to explore.

When the night comes, you should be hiding. The screamers, the ragers, whatever the hell they are, are running full tilt through the streets and across the landscape, running through anything in their way, ripping apart anything alive. If you don't make any noise, they won't notice you. Especially since they're stuck listening to each other. But if you get noticed by one, it won't be long until a horde forms... you might be able to outrun one for awhile, but they don't seem to let up on their breakneck pace. Maybe someone should have told you how to kill them.

OOC NOTES.

---

There will be zombies in Hollows. Whether you meet them on the way there is up to you. Apart from the undead and the animals (maybe somebody should let those poor creatures out of their houses) the town is completely deserted. In fact, the closest thing you can find to a human are the bodies of those who died without being bitten, and there's even few of those. You can find anything you'd find in a normal town here, and are free to loot and raid the houses and stores—the cops won't be coming, after all. The power is OFF apart from what you can find that is solar powered or still has a charge. If you're lucky and find another town while exploring the first few weeks, you might find an area that still has power—thank hydroelectricity.

Just keep in mind travel time... and travel expenses.

You have creative freedom over everything else. The world is open. The only stationary places are landmarks and cities—if you want to go to Texas and talk to the poor astronauts stranded up in space, it's there. (Might be a long trip, though...)

If your character can figure it out by geography before getting to Hollows, the compound is located a few hours from the west coast, in California.

The way to kill a zombie is blunt force to the head. The head doesn't need to be removed, but significant damage needs to be done to it. This does not include the throat—it needs to be a headshot.

There's also a glaring hint. The computers in the compound, asking for a password. It is impossible to hack at this time. There will be more on this later!

Finally, if your character is exploring outside of the compound (or extensively inside of it) there's a comment here for linking me the thread. You can also PM me! I'll be ducking in with what your character may or may not have found, via a response to the actual RP thread.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS please direct them here!

Comments

[glacius]

"What is that supposed to mean," Glacius growls, stepping away himself as Nux stumbles backwards; that had been very unpleasant. It's only when he's put some space between them that the meaning of the human's words click. "Of course I am cold, my skin is made of ice." This is said as the alien rubs at the spot where the human had touched him, like he's trying to clean dirt off. It's nothing against you personally, Nux--he just really doesn't like breaches of his personal space.

[kamikaze]

One hand grabs his own wrist and clutches it like he wants to rip it off. That cold was so severe it almost hurts. Almost felt like a flash of fire licking at his palm or maybe his own foolishness, like grabbing an overworked engine still steaming-hot. Nux stares at his palm with intensity then tugs his head back up to stare at the creature. Barks:

"Ice!" This was a thing he'd only heard of. The night never got cold enough to turn aqua cola hard. But he'd listened to the stories of history. Snow and ice used to be a thing. They were wondrously opposite the desert.

"Why are you made of ice-- ?!!" He must know the details here.

[glacius]

Glacius' eye twitches at Nux's suddenly raised voice. What sort of answer is this human expecting? It would be like asking someone why they were made of flesh and blood. Because that is what the laws of their planet dictated, that was the rule of their physiology. Even Glacius wasn't exempt from nature's fundamentals; within his icy armor laid a traditionally organic underbody, but he wasn't about to reveal that fact given his secretive nature. "Because my homeworld is a white planet," he answers, "Completely blanketed in ice and snow. My species evolved accordingly; we thrive in the cold, just as your species prefers the warmth."

[kamikaze]

Oblivious to how grating he is with his frantic questions, Nux only bestows an astonished look at Glacius when he answers. Is it possible for a person to look more awed than the War Boy does in this instant? A white planet. Completely blanketed in ice and snow. Not a thought given to how the extreme end of the spectrum would be, Nux is only enthralled with the vision he gets. It must be so beautiful. So nice on this-- "planet". Is that what it's called? Someplace like what he's walked on, but elsewhere. Up past the stars.

Magnificent. His mind is mush.

"That's one of the most shine things I've ever heard," Nux breathes, his voice lowered. Got chills thinking about it. Thinking about things he's never really thought about before.

[glacius]

The alien is surprised by the sudden change in tone, but the reverence there serves to soften him. His gaze falls on the War Boy, and he nods. "It is beautiful... one day, I will return. But not before my task is complete." Too much has been left on this planet. His ship, his technology... and now his own kind, if what this human is telling him is true. He must see to all of it before he can go home and feel his homeworld's cold embrace. "If you help me find my people, I am sure they will look upon you favorably."

[kamikaze]

Ice creatures, looking upon him favorably! It brings to mind the all-seeing eye of the Engine. Machine-gods that float above and grant glory to their followers. This is something Nux wants: to be looked upon favorably.

"-- Yes! Let's find them!"

Them still being everyone else in the compound. The miscommunication continues as Nux starts an enthusiastic walk in some direction. Any direction. Has no idea where they're going.

[glacius]

Glacius nods resolutely, following Nux easily with long, even strides. When he inevitably finds out that the human was just confused and there aren't other ice aliens, Nux isn't in any real danger, though Glacius will be highly exasperated. Until that revelation occurs the War Boy has a towering alien trailing along after him, one that still seems highly defensive given this situation.

"Where did you last see them? Were they imprisoned--were they harmed?"

[kamikaze]

They're wandering the halls, and at some point Nux is running a hand over his shorn scalp, stopping and wondering if they'd already gone past this point. Hard to tell since everything looks so much the same - could argue that for the barren rock tunnels of the Citadel, but he'd spent most of his life there. Knew every little crag and scratch. This place... unfamiliar.

He whirls around to Glacius. Looks concerned.

"Ehh-- no. Just walkin' around. Lots of 'em coming from everywhere, seems like. Not just the Fury Road." And, well, there's a verbal confirmation that he doesn't know what he's doing.

[glacius]

Glacius furrows his brows--studying Nux, listening to his words. This really doesn't make a lot of sense. Lots of his people on this planet? A select team would make sense, maybe, but they largely did their best to stay away from this ruthless world... and he'd heard of no missions that had been arranged to this place, aside from his own. Secrecy was paramount for his kind. This doesn't add up.

"Are you sure you saw others of my species--or are you just saying that there are others like me, other... outsiders?"

[kamikaze]

Others like him. Outsiders. That works. Works better than what Nux was trying to think of and failing, and he snaps his fingers, points with a grin.

"Yeah, yeah, outsiders. That's right." A quick nod as he pivots to face the hall again and start marching right back off. There's gotta be someone around here. Saw a bunch of them before.

[glacius]

Well. Glacius suffers a pang of exasperation; here he is, following this human around under nothing more than a false understanding--the blind leading the blind, essentially. The alien emits a quiet grumbling sound, dropping his hands for a moment and rubbing at his icy temple. The only saving grace of this scenario is that he figured it out before he wasted too much of his own time on a search that would yield no results.

"I have no business with outsiders," Glacius explains, "My duty is to my own people." Well, that's not entirely true; his mission was to protect both his kind and humanity simultaneously, it was just that humanity wasn't supposed to know about it. "Perhaps you should have clarified before leading me in this search?"

[kamikaze]

Nux stops his shuffle-step right in place, looks yanked backward when he turns to look at Glacius again. All that elation is gone. Now he looks kicked again.

"Sorry--" Nux blurts, winces. "Didn't see no ice people yet. Just you." Yeah, they've been over this. Still he looks apologetic.

[glacius]

Glacius tilts his head, considering the human before him--almost like he's surprised by the apology. The War Boy's demeanor seems so different, suddenly. His desire to help had clearly been more genuine than the alien had supposed. The icy being huffs from his gills, sending clouds of freezing mist into the room.

"I cannot begrudge you," he responds, "It takes strength to acknowledge a mistake, and thus your apology is noted and accepted. In a way, this makes things simpler." It's better, he tells himself--now none of his people are at risk, just him--as it should be, as it has always been. He can endure the loneliness of separation a little longer still knowing that the rest of his kind remain safe.

[kamikaze]

-- Ah. Truly, Glacius is something that has Ascended, Nux thinks. Such a kind ice-creature, something Above The Stars more worthy of devotion than the typical Imperator or even the Immortan, that lying filth. Nux's face is a wild little canvas that shifts accordingly; once he's forgiven he's grinning with wide relief, listening to that strange and majestic voice and watching the mist that seeps from him-- once it washes over his body Nux looks incredibly surprised. Cold. Obviously cold, but so cold and so concentrated. A breath of night wind. Just another thing to be amazed by.

"Uh," Nux begins, trying to twist the conversation away from his failure even if it was accepted, "-- Where to now? Will you go beyond the sky?" Thought they were already in the sky, really, but maybe Glacius can go even higher.

[glacius]

"I wish I could," Glacius responded, "But I am... for the time being, trapped." The word grinds in his throat; it is obviously difficult for him to accept, let alone admit to. "I have no idea where I am, no idea where my ship is in relation to my current location. I will have to find my way back somehow, and then perhaps I may work towards my return."

[kamikaze]

Disappointing. Nux had hoped to see the ice-person fly. Still,

"It's Valhalla," comes the reply, solemn and quieted. "Already in the sky. Not touchin' the stars, though, so you'd have to go further." At least it would seem that way. Did the sky have levels? Is that why he could see pinprick lights up above? Had thought the hall of the slain would be the highest point in existence, but maybe everyone at the Citadel had just been wrong.

[glacius]

Oh boy, here comes more skewed information. Glacius lifts a brow, interpreting Nux's unique brand of faith as actual geographical information. "'Valhalla'? That is what this area is called? Is that the name of the compound, or the city, or the state..?"

[kamikaze]

Compound? City? State? These are things only heard of, not really known. Nux is blinking. Processing.

"Valhalla is a place," he replies, solemn warmth trickling into his tone as he recalls: I made it. Somehow. "It's where warriors live after life." Could only imagine the sort of spectacular death Glacius had... !

[glacius]

And now the alien is blinking back, trying to parse the meaning from Nux's words. "After life? Human, you must be confused! I have shed blood in service of my people on many occasions, but I have not been bested by any that stood in the way of my mission--though I would be happy to give my life to see my people safe."

[kamikaze]

Glacius isn't the only one who's told him this. Makes you reconsider where you are. Rather than argue about his confusion-- 'cause it's true, now he is confused-- Nux just gives him a stupid stare before blinking, taking his gaze downward to nothing. Doesn't know what to say to that, really.