( 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

[blackagar]

[ Whoever she is and where ever she's from, she's not had an easy time of it. That's very apparent. He watches her steadily for a few seconds, something like sympathy in the look. ]

So they can help you. [ He turns to face her more fully. ] My name is Black Bolt.

[sigillum]

[Only witches help witches, but Ollie isn't about to admit what she is.

To anyone from her world, the symbols on her hands would be enough to cast suspicion on her, but she doesn't want to scrub off her protection.]

O-l-l-i-e. [And then she shows the sign for her name, the one she created for herself, since that's easier than if he spells it out every time.] Why do you want to help me?

[blackagar]

[ The symbol for her name puzzles him for a moment, until he realizes what it is. That's clever. He's not used to using any of the human sign languages, so he'd simply used the words that make up his name — assigning it its own sign is a good idea. But there's more pressing things at hand, so he just commits the sign to memory. The answer to her question isn't a difficult one. ]

Because we aren't enemies.

[sigillum]

They call me a terrorist.

[It's the easiest way to explain without explaining, to make this man realize that it's safer not to be around someone like her. That if the military does show up and tell him what she is, he'll want to leave her to them.]

[blackagar]

[ That makes slightly more sense. It certainly doesn't alarm him though, and his expression goes unchanged. ]

I've been called that.

[sigillum]

[He can't mean it in the same way, because men can't be witches, but it still piques her curiosity, and a little of her tension eases away.]

Why?

[blackagar]

[ His hands pause, and he's not sure how to pare it down into the concision he prefers for signing. In a moment a tiny smile quirks his lips, shifting his serious face into something warmer. ]

Which time?

[sigillum]

[Ollie's answering smile is unsure and a little wary, like a kid who isn't sure if she's allowed to laugh at a joke, but at least it's there.

That's answer enough, for her.]

Is there food in this place?

[Abrupt topic changes with Ollie Stallworth.]

[blackagar]

[ This topic is an improvement. He wants to know more about her, and doesn't mind sharing about himself — but the change indicates at least some new level of ease. He'll take that. His smile lasts for a moment more before fading back to neutrality, and he turns to move back the way he'd come with a beckoning gesture that she come along. ]

[sigillum]

[Ollie still stays out of reach, but walks beside Black Bolt, keeping an eye on their surroundings in case anyone jumps out at her.]

What are you wearing?

[It's weird.]

[blackagar]

[ That is... not a question he's been asked before. It's possible humans have wondered it, he knows their style of dress is pretty different, but none of them have gotten around to actually asking it. He looks bewildered for a second, not sure how to answer, and when he does his hands are a little halting. ]

My clothes. [ and a tuning fork on his forehead. what else would he wear??? ]

[sigillum]

[What is manners.]

It's weird.

[Says the woman in a heavy cloak, and tattered clothes that look to have like fifty million pockets.]

[blackagar]

[ There's a ghost of that wry smile in place again; he doesn't talk to anyone so blunt often. It's a little novel. ]

It's customary clothing to my people. [ He can give a little better answer than that, though. One hand goes briefly to touch the metal ornament at his forehead, then returns to add: ] This is to focus my power.

[sigillum]

[It's almost like he signed a magic (heh) word; Ollie's eyes widen in surprise then narrow in eager interest.]

Power? You have magic? How can you have magic?

[blackagar]

[ Like a switch was flipped. Black Bolt watches her with an amused interest as he answers. ]

Genetic abilities, not magic.

[sigillum]

[Ollie thinks that's the same thing; some people say witchcraft is inherited, others say it's demons possessing women, and she knows which one makes more sense.

(It isn't demons. What is this, 1750?)]

What can you do?

[She wants to say that she's magic, too, but she needs to know for sure that he isn't lying.]

[blackagar]

Flight. My voice is destructive. Molecular manipulation.

[ The last one sort of warrants more explanation, and it's easier to show. He makes a fist of one of his hands, and for a moment golden energy crackles around it. It diffuses again as soon as his hand relaxes. ]

[sigillum]

[If she knew what Christmas was, she'd say that it just came.]

Watch.

[Ollie stops walking, drawing her knife again with slow movements so that Black Bolt knows she isn't planning to hurt him. Instead, she holds up her hand, the symbols written all over it, and gently pierces the skin over one with the tip of the knife.

And then she punches the wall, cracking the concrete with no damage to her hand.

Magic!]

[blackagar]

[ He stops when she does, openly curious, and... hm. That's very impressive, considering he'd thought of her as an ordinary human until just now. He quickly readjusts his mental evaluation. He considers it with a hand to his chin, watching her thoughtfully.

Eventually: ] Are you human?

[ He thinks so, and there are plenty of humans that can do amazing things, but he has to make sure. ]

[sigillum]

[The knife is wiped free of blood and tucked away again.]

Witch.

[She signs it automatically, and then frowns as she realizes that he likely won't know that sign.]

W-i-t-c-h.

[That means she isn't human.]

[blackagar]

[ She's definitely right that he doesn't know the word, even after she's spelled it out. But it means something other than human, he understands that much. He nods. ]

I'm I-n-h-u-m-a-n.

[sigillum]

Is that why they called you a terrorist?

[She doesn't know the word "inhuman", aside from the obvious assumptions that go with it, but she can empathize with, well, not being human.]

[blackagar]

[ He shakes his head. ]

Humans called me a terrorist when I took back what had been stolen from us. The Inhuman [ it's spelled out again — he should really make up a sign for that ] Genetic Council, when I broke their laws.

[sigillum]

[Ollie has literally zero respect for authority, so neither of those answers get anything other than a nod of understanding.]

All witches are terrorists. We're all meant to die.

[blackagar]

[ His stern face grows a little more stern. ]

Not here.

[ Just that, like he's making up for the verbosity of his last explanation. He hasn't known her more than ten minutes, but it's enough to know he would protect her, if necessary. ]