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 The sign on the city limits read “WELCOME HOME” when you passed through it. But that was a lie like most things tend to be. Maybe lie is a bit harsher than I intended. It was a façade. Yes, that’s the right word. A façade. Kings County is a city, not a county. Located out in the American Midwest along the Rust Belt, Kings Country is a well occupied area of about 115,000 inhabitants. For a sense of size, think Allentown PA or Lansing MI. Kings County is known for its diverse population and not much else. It’s a pretty self-contained urban area situated comfortably along the banks of a lake. Main exports and imports include nothing and people, respectively. The insular nature of the city means that it has all its supplies and industries well in hand compared to other cities of the same size. That just leaves people to live there. And lately there’s been a slow drip feed of immigration to Kings County to find housing and work. The settlers originally called it King’s Country. Then there was an earthquake and the sign was damaged. Nobody bothered changing it back. Settled after the Civil War, it didn’t hit its stride until the turn of the 20th century. The city is well known as a haven of Edwardian, Baroque and Art Deco design, the local historical societies striding to preserve the antique architecture. Builders looking to spice up the land around the lake took their plans from New York and Chicago to the County and the local steel magnates dipped deep into their pockets to fund their works. The money flowed like sweet wine and the fun and frolic followed, even during Prohibition when the local authorities turned their eyes away with a wink and a stoic smile. The Depression did nothing but add more inhabitants and buildings, people looking for work and livelihood joining up with construction crews to add to the city along the lake. The only real change to the city came in the 1950s and the rise of Art Deco. World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Cold War, nothing interrupted the city’s fun. And that’s why you’ve come, you plural. Four of you. The first you heard of Kings County was in the context of other Rust Belt towns that managed to bounce back. Outsourcing and overseas manufacturing didn’t deliver too much of a dent to Kings County. The 2008 housing and banking bubble collapse freed up more houses for people to live within the city’s boundaries. By all accounts, Kings County was doing just fine, not needing an ounce of federal money and keeping itself together. But inside the city limits…that’s where the façade falls away. In the past few months, you’ve found that Kings County welcomes but it sure as hell doesn’t provide. The mayor is a crook. Par for the course, some would say, but you haven’t seen anything like this outside of tabloids. He’s an inveterate louche, throwing galas and get-togethers on a weekly basis at his estate on the lake's shore, hobnobbing with the who’s who of society long into the night. The cops are corrupt but in a way reminiscent of how Giuliani handled the problems of NYC. They’re wooden men with tin badges and loaded guns, sweeping any inconveniences under the rug before picking up their own shell casings. The drug scene is heavier than anything you’ve been around so far; everyone seems to need a little something to take the edge off but heroin and other opiates are the main drug of choice. And, perhaps most damningly, is how much of the city that seems to go unused. For every functional building there seems to be an abandoned opposite. The upscale mall is matched with an abandoned stretch of department stores, the public library that was ravaged by a fire had its remaining books sent to a recently renovated university library across town. Empty apartment buildings, factories, warehouses are paired off with occupied counterparts like black and white squares on a chessboard. Not a lot of people are looking to give you a job or a place to live, but at least these gaps in society give you a place to huddle up at night and opportunities are there if you know where to look. The police don’t go there unless they absolutely must. Polite society ignores their existence. And at least you’re around other people who have the inkling that something’s wrong with Kings County, people who’ll keep an eye out while you sleep, people in the same boat as you. But who are you, the four of you? Whose will survive their story being told? Let’s find out together.
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Nov 23, 2017 08:11
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:28 |
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 Hi and welcome to Kings County, a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure about four strangers in a cold city that gives nothing and demands everything in return. I'm Hostile V and I've never really done this before but I love roleplay and CYOAs and need to get myself out of a rut. Here's some basic info before we look at the characters:
COLE WAKEMAN   Thirty three years of being a foreman and a manager doesn't mean poo poo to asbestos. The plant snatched you up after a few years of working on the line and fixing the machinery. You never looked back. The pay was good but the union was starting to fray at the seams. Things were starting to come undone. It was the eighties, they'd say later, everyone was doing it. But you paid your dues and you got bumped up from foreman to manager and you kept the boys down on the line safer. Your father worked in the coal mines. This was better. This was safer. Wouldn't be until later the safety reports came back and shook you. You had a wife for a while but divorce ended up being the smarter option for the both of you. You were helping put two kids through college and pouring over your finances when the doctor called about the results of your physical. About the recent findings at the plant. When you were lying in the hospital bed and recovering from lung surgery, the plant went under. The money dried up. The lawsuits were filed and you joined them but you didn't see nearly the cut you deserved. And then the town started to go to hell. You tried, god bless it, you tried to fight for yourself. But it all just cut out a piece of yourself and before you knew it you numbly signed for the settlement. And the kids were busy with their careers and your ex-wife had moved on and your family was as dead as your father, god bless him. You moved into a much smaller place and they had an assistant come and help you with physical therapy, get you on your feet again. You regained the muscle but you look at yourself in the mirror and remember what it was like to be taller and stronger and...fuller. They were offering work in Kings County. Looking for line workers. The machines are more automated than they used to, safer work. You bit the hook and they smiled politely and said the positions were filled. Even though you applied and they told you to come. Now what? The money won't last forever, Cole. You hear that some of the others like you are offering places to live if you can offer your services. What do you have to lose? Current Residence: Bienvenidos Inn. Advantages: Smart, knowledgeable about machines and organizations, light funds, hardened to helplessness. Disadvantages: Bad health. Older. Not a fighter. Hardened to helplessness. DIA CALDERA   You were born down in Arizona, middle kid of 5. Growing up your big passion was sports, pounding the dirt on the soccer field and for the track and field team. Some of your proudest memories of are your parents and your siblings cheering you on from the sidelines, win or lose. You could’ve gotten a sports scholarship, maybe tried to go pro. Hell, with the effort you put in, the Olympics were a definite possibility. Could’ve been the Mia Hamm of Arizona. Your parents and grandparents were justifiably wary of you putting all your hopes and dreams on a long shot like that. You didn’t really know what you wanted to do with your life. But then, when the president was declaring war on a country they didn’t really talk about in history class, you were inspired to step up and serve. Pound sand instead of pounding track or field. Your folks couldn’t talk you out of this. If not you, then who? 2002-2010 is a hell of a long time to stand around in a desert but you made it out alive. There are things you don't talk about, things the media didn't report. That's all you have to say on the matter. You came back to Arizona but it was hard enough being back in another desert. You didn't think it would be. So you wandered and walked, tried to find a place that'd listen, a place you could hang your ghosts and rest. The hospitals didn't help as much as they could and that was what drew you to Kings County. There were rumors that the VA was actually funded, that people got the help they needed. That was good enough for you. But, again, all a facade. You don't know if they'll get to you. You don't even know the hours they're open; they seem to be having trouble keeping the lights on. When you were a kid, your older brother loved to read fantasy novels with swords and dragons. He used to talk about poo poo like thunderbolt iron, metal shaped from meteors. They had to hammer the metal into a usable state. Thunderbolt iron doesn't break and neither will you. Current Residence: Moonlight Kingdom Estates, an abandoned swath of brownstones on the north side. Advantages: proficient in weapons and self-defense, good health, hardened to violence. Disadvantages: Unemployed, trouble expressing emotions and opening up to people, hardened to violence. TANYA MORGAN   You went to college because, well, that's what you do, right? Class of '09, no community college for you, off you go to a place on the coast. The air is fresh and clean and the campus is warm and sunny and the world is at your fingertips. You're smart enough to get scholarships to a place you really want to go to. You don't worry about the finances at home, you're too busy getting a degree in...? Communications? Literature? Sociology? Can't hurt to dabble a little. The money covers it, the scholarships cover everything. You don't have anything to worry about until you get the call. Your parents have lost a lot. A friend of the family and an uncle were doing some trading and got them to invest in something experimental. When the whistle was blown, you were asked to attend your uncle's funeral if it wouldn't interrupt your studies. It was a murder-suicide but you're never going to burden yourself with the knowledge of who did what. All you know is that the investments were gone and that was the catalyst. You returned to college shaken but motivated. Social sciences it is with a liberal focus. They're proud of you at graduation but surprised when you say you don't want to go home. They insist they can support you as you look for a job but you put on a bright face and say you want to be your own woman. When the financial reality of living on the coast hits you, you move inland with a friend from college. And then further inland. Further. Further. You chase your dream job with every move you make. You are often left grasping at straws and taking whatever comes along. Grocery store clerk, gas station employee, telemarketer, you balance them as you need to. Slowly you grow more and more deadened to the prospect of that dream job and find that the money between the two of you isn't cutting it as well as it could. You hopped a bus to Kings County and said your goodbyes to your friend. You heard there's work and they've just renovated a mall. You can do this. Straighten your back, adjust your hair, smile. Maybe this time it'll be different. Current Residence: couch surfing, checking ads for a place to go. Advantages: Good at reading people, socially-oriented, good at putting together puzzles. Disadvantages: Not great at fighting, demands of working two jobs, constantly worried about burnout and becoming a cynic. WALKER MCLAREN   High school was awesome. College was great. You picked a major your folks would like and lived it up. When the hangover wore off, you had a chem degree you barely knew how to use and an internship. Fortunately you took to lab work like a fish to water, finding your balance and figuring out how to meet the bottom line. Doctors were prescribing your poo poo left and right and the money was good. Good enough for a comfy house, a big TV, more weed than you knew what to do with and the attention of ladies who appreciate a man with a fat wallet. gently caress the 80s. The 90s was where it was at. The music was better anyway. But you had to have more than that. You were smart enough to skip using your own drugs to party. You started sneaking some formulas out of the lab. Nothing that was copyrighted. You're opportunistic, not stupid. Just some tweaks you made to the opiates you were working on, upping the buzz and cooling the crash. You met a guy at a party who knew a guy who owned some boats in Indonesia and before long you were making more money. Probably the worst thing about this time period was needing to learn Mandarin to give instructions to the men in South Asia. But c'mon who said you were bad at learning? You just learn better while partying and incentivized. Alas, the fall. The government frowns on bolstering the Triad's opiate operations. And you waved the world bye-bye from your cell where you cooled your heels for 15 years before they sprung you for good behavior. On the plus side, some of your friends from the Triad watched your back and they had a new job for you, one that didn't require a background check or would turn down a licensed, hardened felon. They wanted an inroads in the Midwest. The painkiller industry was taking a nosedive but people still need a fix for whatever reason. There was a place that the Narcos hadn't touched yet: Kings County. You were encouraged to make your way into the city and open up shop. The alternative to their job offer wasn't great but hey, work is work. Today, weed on a street corner. Tomorrow, not living in a van. Current Residence: Panel van on its last legs. Advantages: Good at fighting, science know-how, unafraid of doing illegal things, hard experience. Downsides: generally a scumbag, bully, not actually super great at science know-how, hard experience. Please vote for which character you'd prefer to start with: COLE, DIA, TANYA or WALKER
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Nov 23, 2017 08:15
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This looks interesting, I'd say we start with Tanya.
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Nov 23, 2017 10:41
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I'm liking Dia
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Nov 23, 2017 17:50
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Dia sounds pretty cool
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Nov 24, 2017 08:36
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DIA
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Nov 24, 2017 14:43
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DIA CALDERA IS NOW IN PLAY http://orokos.com/roll/571557 Luck Roll Results: 32/50, Success, just shy of a crit. Dia's off to a good start, her head is screwed on straight today and she's in a fine enough mood.  The first few months in the County weren't great but they were tolerable. Now winter's on its way and it's time to grit your teeth and give up the lone wolf/outdoor act. Moonlight Kingdom Estates is a series of condemned brownstones on the north side of the County. There was a plumbing accident, the money fell through to fully revamp the pipes for the block and the previous homeowners just pulled up their stakes and left. According to some of your neighbors, that was two or three years back. The city's just let them stand and rot while someone at city hall tries to clear up the paperwork and find funding. The buildings are far enough on the city fringes for the cops to keep their distance, but you're still firmly wedged between two other occupied blocks and that's enough to make you nervous. Someday the city is gonna slam them shut on these buildings like a door and build new housing on the scraps. The downsides are that there's no plumbing and that's enough to keep most people away. There are enough scavenged buckets and shovels to shoulder the burden. And, honestly, you had your fill of that out in the desert, this doesn't even phase you. As for drinking water, camp stoves and boiling do enough of the trick. You find showers where you can out in the rest of the city; someone figured out how to jimmy the lock of a nearby middle school's gymnasium, old enough for there to be limited security systems due to the wiring. The upsides are you're technically indoors, you've got company and you've got power. Someone did a sloppy job tapping into the power grid but it works and there hasn't been a crackdown over that. The buildings are in decent enough shape, the community has enough know-how to keep them in good condition and it's not like the old owners neglected them. The only signs that something might be wrong are when a kid throws a rock through a window or someone with a city clipboard slaps a condemned notice on a door. And, despite your natural bristling, you've ended up with decent enough housemates. Natalya and Darius Weiss are out of work but taking care of their son Alex. They were willing to provide you a room to stay in and you haven't complained. Some part of you thinks they just feel relaxed around you. The other part of you laughs and says "oh if only they knew". Alex is definitely thrilled to have you around because OH BOY A SOLDIER!. It's morning. You and the Weiss family have finished up the last of the food that Darius picked up the other day. They haven't really explained to Alex where it comes from (an anxious but polite grocery store employee who left discarded stock "unattended") but he does know he's not allowed to be picky. You're going through the thoughts in your head as you do your morning workout, keeping yourself honed and healthy. What's on your plate today? Do you: Clean yourself up, get your Casual/Inconspicuous Clothes on and find a place to SHOWER before you fulfill your responsibility to pick up food this time. Go see why CRAIG from a few houses down has been asking around for you. Roll up your sleeves and get to work DIGGING more latrines, soldier. [STR CHECK] I'll handle all rolls, just vote for your choices.
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Nov 25, 2017 03:47
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DIGGING Improve your situation, improve yourself.
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Nov 25, 2017 10:35
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Dig deeply, dig greedily. Home improvement projects are always a good investment, especially when the project in question is making sure you don't all die of dysentery. We can go shower and get food later in the day. Hell, even if we can't, I'd rather go hungry one day than have bad sanitation because that will literally kill you. Crazycryodude fucked around with this message at 17:10 on Nov 25, 2017 |
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Nov 25, 2017 17:07
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Clean yourself up, get your Casual/Inconspicuous Clothes on and find a place to SHOWER before you fulfill your responsibility to pick up food this time.
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Nov 26, 2017 02:58
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Crazycryodude posted:We can go shower and get food later in the day. Hell, even if we can't, I'd rather go hungry one day than have bad sanitation because that will literally kill you. Well, can we? Our current role in this society is to acquire food. Fill our role in this society and go get some food for it.
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Nov 26, 2017 03:38
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I'll rule that all three of these chores can be done today, right now it's just a matter of what can be done in what order.
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Nov 26, 2017 03:43
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Update will come later today. In cases of tie, I'll either roll the result or just decide based off the arguments put forth.
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Nov 27, 2017 15:44
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STR CHECK vs. 65: 37 http://orokos.com/roll/572102 There's only one shovel and the ground is starting to get cold. It's going to be harder to dig in a few weeks so you prepare for the cold with extra holes. Six holes, each a few feet across and six feet deep. You work up a good sweat in the cold air and pile the dirt up behind the holes by the backyard fence. You return the shovel to the inside of the brownstone, lock the back door and grab a tote bag, assembling an outfit of black slacks, a plain blue blouse and a jacket that you sling over your shoulder. You make sure the doors are locked and make your way a couple blocks away to the middle school. All told, your labor takes up a few hours. It's not late enough in the day for the school to be empty. That's going to be a problem but hopefully this'll work to your advantage. It's around 1, meaning that the gym classes should be winding down for the day. Instead of jimmying the door of the gym, you instead decide to try and climb through one of the windows of the girls' locker room. It wouldn't be locked at this time in the day, right? Athletics check vs. 70: 79 http://orokos.com/roll/572110 Which works (you lose 1 willpower to just make it) but the window clatters shut behind you. The girls locker room is damp from use throughout the day, the tiles are faded and mottled, the lockers are old and flaking paint. The school needed a renovation a decade ago. There's no way someone didn't hear that window clattering, though. You strip down as fast as possible and turn on multiple faucets in the big communal shower to create a mask of noise as you throw yourself into a quick, furious shower, grabbing errant soap and shampoo that kids have failed to put away to clean yourself as fast as possible. But not fast enough. You hear the door to the locker room open and fortunately the showers are on the far side from the door. You wipe the soap from your eyes as you grit your teeth. How's this gonna play out? They're not immediately on you, there's maybe a little leeway, but they're definitely going to investigate the showers. Get out NOW. Grab your bag, grab your clothes, escape out the window and get dressed as soon as you're free and clear of the school. (Athletics check vs. 70, half action) Get out SOON. Take a moment to get your poo poo together before you go out the way you came. (Athletics check vs. 70, full action) Attempt to OUTWIT the person investigating. (Stealth check with +20 bonus for the noise vs. 30, half action) Try to TALK your way out of this...somehow. (Persuade check vs. 50, half action, requires a suggestion for what to say) Wait what's that other NOISE? (Alertness vs. 70, half action) Try to get a LOOK at the person investigating. (Alertness vs. 70, half action) WILD CARD, insert recommendation here. (??? action) You can vote for B or two half actions to take place in the order of your choosing. You can absolutely choose two options that don't involve trying to leave. I don't recommend doing that.
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Nov 27, 2017 23:23
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Light nudge for the last update.
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Dec 3, 2017 05:35
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Let's try to get out SOON.
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Dec 3, 2017 05:38
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Wait what's that?
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Dec 3, 2017 05:44
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SOONer rather than later
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Dec 3, 2017 05:45
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SOON.Crazycryodude posted:Wait what's that? You have another half-action available (so anything but SOON).
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Dec 3, 2017 07:12
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Take a look, who just came in?
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Dec 4, 2017 00:44
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You skip toweling off and just settle for getting your clothes back on beneath the window you entered from. You can hear a woman's voice, gruff and no-nonsense. "Who's there? Get out here immediately, no funny business!" she barks as you finish getting your boots on and pop the window open. As you shimmy up onto the windowsill, you're able to get a snippet of the other noise. It's music being played over the PA system of the school, barely audible over the running showers. Athletics check vs. 70: 54 http://orokos.com/roll/574374 You catch only a snippet (where the bluebird sings) as the window clatters shut behind you once more and you land squarely between the fence and the school's walls. Almost immediately you hear the school's alarms go off and you're booking it, slipping out the way you came in as you turn the block and keep your head down. It's early afternoon in Kings County. Work is still in session but the crowds are still on the move, trudging through the ornate streets decorated with gorgeous buildings. You've stuffed your sweats and casual clothes in the tote bag and replaced it with your Casual Clothes: a plain blue blouse, black slacks, comfortable boots, a scarf and nice enough coat to tie the look together. The air's been getting cold and your breath pours out of your mouth in a fog even though everyone else's breath remains reserved and calm. A couple of twists and turns gets you deeper into the shopping and dining district, where the worker bees make deals over food and drink or squirrel away pre-made dinners for lonely nights.  Your target this time is the Del Rey Supermarket. Middle class chain supermarket, accessible to folks looking for deals. You make your way around the side corner of the building to the loading docks, lurking in the shadows of the big faux Spanish red-shingled roofing as you approach the dumpsters. You know the Del Rey changes stock pretty regularly as a popular supermarket. Coming later in the day is a gamble; hopefully the cold air will have help preserved the spoils. Search check vs. 60: 59 http://orokos.com/roll/574390 You're just about to give up hope as you make your way to the last dumpster to find...well a bounty's the wrong word. But there's definitely enough that's still good to cover the bases for a week or so. Using a mix of discarded bags and cardboard boxes you get unopened packages of still-cold meat, discarded cheeses, just-ripe-enough fruits and veggies and even a couple of canned goods, dented but unopened. You're careful in your choices. This isn't your first dive and your stomach may be strengthened, but you're also helping feed a kid and the last thing he needs is food poisoning. After a good fifteen minutes of digging, you have your treasure properly disguised and make your way back home. There's always been a lightly perverse thrill to the feeling of getting away with this under the nose of the people around you. They look at you and see a normal respectable citizen where an "Hey yo Dia, hold up!" You wince and turn around. Guess you're not looking for Craig. Guess Craig's coming to you. Craig's got kind of a thin guy paunch hidden underneath a baggy trenchcoat, jeans and a ripped band tee. Craig is white and has a shaved head and neon green eyes constantly flickering back and forth. Craig could not look any more like a drug-addicted sex offender with racist-leaning views if he tried. He has, in the past, repeatedly said otherwise and other people have corroborated his story (construction worker on hard times who used to have a painkiller problem after welding hosed up his knees). You still think Craig really has to change his clothes and let his hair grow out. "Hey Craig, give me a minute and I'll put this down" you say as you smile without your eyes. "Can I come in? I really gotta talk to you in private." He rocks on the heels of his feet as he talks. "Not my place to say, man." You shut the door behind you and take a good minute putting everything in the fridge and cabinets. You peek outside. Craig is still there, sitting on the stairs. You sigh and open the door and take a seat next to him. "Alright, what's up." "Cool, so. I moved spots 'cuz I thought someone was keeping an eye on my old one." You take a moment to think. "Okay? So where are you now." "Same place, the stock room of that old bodega, I mean I'm just saying I moved from my last place because I thought someone was watchin' me." "Right. So?" Craig's a chronic loner. Lurks on the fringes of the communities. You're not sure if he's a vulture or what, he keeps his distance. So do you but at least you rationalize it with being self sufficient and doing better away from people when you can. "So someone's keeping an eye on me again and it's freaking me out, man. Havin' trouble getting rest, sometimes I think my poo poo is getting moved around. I think whoever is watching me is testing getting closer, y'know? I dunno, just. I got this feeling. And it ain't going away," he mutters as he bounces his legs restlessly as he sits. "Alright. Well," No sense beating around the bush. "Why the hell are you telling me this." "I dunno man. Gotta tell someone even if they don't believe me. Can't tell the others around here, they got a community, families. Puts them on edge, they get spooked, bad things happen, they kick me to the fringes again, y'know? You don't have skin in this game, I know your type. Plus!" he says with a grin. "You got that spec ops training, right?" Your face is stone. "So like maybe if you-" You hold up a hand to silence him. "You asking me to scare your boogeyman?" He laughs. "Man I dunno! You're the pro, right? Can't be, like, too different from poo poo you done." Well gently caress he thinks you're a legbreaker. Are you? YEAH, it's not the first time I've done unsavory things. NO, it doesn't sit well with me and people start expecting things of you when you do favors like that for them. These are the only two choices but if you'd like to push Craig for more information, feel free to enter your own questions along with your vote.
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Dec 5, 2017 06:04
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YEAH, we've done worse, and maybe one lovely cold evening we'll need help with something and despite looking like he exposes himself to passing school buses he'll remember and pay it back. Edit: watch it turn out to be a cop who has him under surveillance 
Hexenritter fucked around with this message at 06:17 on Dec 5, 2017 |
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Dec 5, 2017 06:14
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YEAH As that lovely movie said: We're All In This Together
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Dec 5, 2017 06:46
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You let out a resigned sigh. "Alright, sure, I'll watch your back." He brightens up at that and you hold up a hand before he speaks. "This isn't like some bodyguard poo poo, Craig. I'm just gonna tell them to gently caress off if I see anything, alright?" "Yeah no man that's fine, that's perfect actually," he says as he gets up and offers a hand for a shake. "Swing by tonight? We can sleep in shifts." "Sure, I just gotta tell Darius where I'll be." He nods and bounces down the stairs, wincing lightly when he lands. "Cool, cool, end of the block, you know the one." You wave him off and groan when he's out of sight. You're gonna start to have a reputation as either a protector or a thug depending on how this goes tonight. Neither one is particularly preferable. Natalya gets home before Darius and Alex. She gives you a weary smile that causes her thin lips to draw tighter. The two of them are, well, let's not mince words. They're illegals from Russia. The family landed on the East Coast but have moved inland to avoid the folks who brought them over. This makes it that much harder for them to find work. The Weiss family handles language just fine but the lack of documentation means it's not easy for them to find stable employment. Some part of you knows that this might be the best it gets for them before ICE stuffs them in the back of a van. Natalya is stern but confident, a sharp face with blonde hair and callused hands. She just gives you a knowing nod that you know means "not today". You break the silence by preparing some of the beef with a can of corn for dinner and some leftover bread kept as backup food with her help. Darius and Alex arrive later and help clean up the kitchen before you sit down to dinner. The similarities between husband and wife are striking, though he wears glasses, and the only thing that separates Alex from his parents is that he smiles wide and often. You make small talk with them and mention you'll be helping Craig down the street and will be out tonight. Alex doesn't pay this any mind. His parents share a look. You sigh and explain that it's just putting some of Craig's fears to rest. They soften a bit at that but it doesn't really calm all of their fears. You do tell them that if you don't return in the morning, they get help. Natalya squeezes your hand and nods. After dinner you get your knife, your good warm coat, your boots and your black sweats. You bundle up with a hat and sling your sleeping pack over your back. The air is biting cold as the wind picks up from the edge of town. It might snow tonight. Hopefully not.  Craig's bodega doesn't even have a sign out front anymore. It's the type of building that's held a three different businesses in the span of a year. Luckily the glass is still intact to keep the cold out. He unlocks the door for you and lets you inside. The previous owners never collected the old metal shelving and Craig has put it to good use as makeshift barricading, using it to block the doors and other windows in the stock room for his protection. He's made his primary home in the old stock room, spreading a mattress and sheets on the floor. A suspiciously new space heater is huddled in the corner, desperately working overtime to keep the room above freezing. It's connected to a rat's nest of electrical cables. You wordlessly set down your kit and unpack, taking a seat and shivering as you nod to him. "I'll take first watch." "Sounds good to me." Luck roll vs. 50: 32 http://orokos.com/roll/574877 Awareness roll vs. 70: 50 http://orokos.com/roll/574878 It's on your third shift that you notice something out of the ordinary. Out in the estates, it gets quiet at night. Less power means less running appliances and there's less foot traffic around. You've been so desperate to hear anything besides Craig's sleeping breathing that the moment you hear a crunch outside, your hand flies to the handle of your knife. You suck in a breath and relax yourself and that's when you realize the smell. How did you not notice the smell before the sound? Something rotten. Something foul. Something unwashed and festering. Something familiar. You take slow, even breaths and cover your nose with your hand. Outside by the side of the building you can see a shadow move past the window along with another noise. Footsteps. Shuffling footsteps. The noise is whenever the feet hit a bit of debris in the alleyway. Judging by this approach, you think whoever is out there is headed for the back door. Your hand is on your knife and you don't think whoever is out there has reason to believe you or Craig are awake. What do you do? Take a peek from the SIDE windows. Take a peek from the BACK door. Head out front and look down the ALLEYWAY. Remain STILL and see how this plays out. Optional: wake CRAIG. Optional: REMEMBER where you've smelled this before. There are consequences to remembering.
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Dec 7, 2017 04:47
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REMEMBER and peek out the SIDE windows
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Dec 7, 2017 04:59
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mcclay posted:REMEMBER and peek out the SIDE windows
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Dec 7, 2017 06:54
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Wake Craig, Don't remember and head out the front door to o into the alley. Pincer move
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Dec 7, 2017 13:36
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mcclay posted:REMEMBER and peek out the SIDE windows
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Dec 7, 2017 17:59
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Sanity roll vs. 55: 12 http://orokos.com/roll/575135 0 SAN loss. THEN 2007. Your squad got called in when someone reported seeing a wrecked car. The grunts played security while they called in the bomb squad to clear the threat. You helped hook it up to a winch and get it behind a truck. That's when you first got a whiff of it. You were still security back at base when the mechanics cut the car open to inspect the wreckage. Eight dead. The smell was ungodly. You remember doing everything in your power to not throw up. Another sergeant would later teach you the trick of soaking peppermint into a bandanna. It wasn't just that they were dead. It was that they were human BBQ, stewing in the desert heat in a crumpled metal box. You shared a drink later with a medical assistant who spilled the beans: IED on the roadway. Blew out the front tires, shrapnel through the windshield, car crashes, everyone dies. They'd been festering under the sun for at least three days with the rot on them. They had forged papers for Turkey, they were running for the border. To this day you're not sure what they did with the bodies. NOW You have no god drat idea how a single person manages to smell like that but it's clear as yesterday to you. The person outside is big and built, maybe not with muscle but definitely with mass. Under the light of the stars and a little night vision you can get a look at them. They're not wearing any sewn clothes besides a jacket as far as you can tell. They're wearing trash bags all over their arms and legs, tightly wrapped around their feet to function as shoes. You think you see newspaper or cardboard poking out of the trash bags at irregular angles. You have no idea how this manages to stay intact but you hazard a guess that it's probably duct tape or clear packing tap scavenged to hold it together. The jacket looks like a scavenged fleece hoodie patched up with tape as well. The hood is up from this angle. They've absolutely got to be basting in their own filth and sweat (maybe even their own infectious pus), that has to be the reason they smell this bad. The Trash Man grips the handle to the back door and jiggles it lightly, testingly. The door rattles a little but then stops. From your POV, they're either looking for a way to try to climb in through a window or find something to break through the window. Judging by the chuck of rebar he (barehandedly!) rips off the neighboring building, he's probably going for the latter. If he's been stalking Craig, he's probably going in for the kill. What are you going to do? Try and TALK to the Trash Man and maybe get him to back off. (Persuade vs. 50) Prepare for an AMBUSH. This will initiate combat. This combat will either be TO THE DEATH or TO WARN. Wake Craig and initiate a RETREAT. Wake Craig and GANG UP on the Trash Man. This will initiate combat. This combat will either be TO THE DEATH or TO WARN. Vox Valentine fucked around with this message at 05:22 on Dec 8, 2017 |
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Dec 8, 2017 03:06
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Wake Craig and GANG UP on the Trash Man. Edit: To The Death Helical Nightmares fucked around with this message at 22:42 on Dec 9, 2017 |
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Dec 8, 2017 04:23
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GANG UP TO THE DEATH
mcclay fucked around with this message at 07:42 on Dec 9, 2017 |
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Dec 8, 2017 21:01
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Please don't forget to indicate if you prefer combat to be TO THE DEATH or TO WARN.
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Dec 9, 2017 03:34
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Ambush alone in a fight to the death It'd be a mercy, really
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Dec 9, 2017 03:58
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 You duck back down below the windows and give Craig a light nudge. He groans and then looks blearily at you before he hears the shattering of glass as rebar breaks through the back door, a bag-clad hand clumsily reaching through the hole to paw at the door. A sliver of jagged glass tears the bag and a fresh wave of that smell pours forth from the doorway as he grabs at the handle. You hold a finger to your lips and motion for Craig to remain where he is as you back up and crouch down by the shelves, drawing your knife and putting the Trash Man and the door between you and Craig. Craig desperately rubs the sleep out of his eyes as he glances between you and the hulking figure opening the door, deciding to make a move for the front of the store as he backs up and the Trash Man lunges forward into the room. As the Trash Man turns to face Craig, you see Craig's face go pale and you emerge from where you remain crouched and lunge. Melee Weapons Roll vs. 30, surprise attack, +20 so vs. 50: 40 http://orokos.com/roll/575512 Damage: 2, all successful surprise attacks count as crits, double damage. http://orokos.com/roll/575513 The Trash Man bellows in pain as the knife sinks into his back, slicing open the jacket and tearing the bags beneath, that revolting smell pouring forth like a broken dam. Craig is gagging as he grabs the nearest thing to him (spare metal shelving rod) and brandishes it in self defense. COMBAT! Order of Actions: Trash Man (15), Dia (12), Craig (11) The Trash Man howls and wrenches away from the knife as he swings the rebar at you, lashing out in pain with his attack going wide and going absolutely nowhere near you. (Melee vs. 30, failure at 92) http://orokos.com/roll/575517 You're not the best around with your knife but the fact that he whiffed so bad leaves him wide open for another thrust of the blade...and you just whiff awfully in turn, accidentally overexerting yourself and straining a muscle in the process, leaving a bad kink in your right shoulder. (Melee vs. 30, +20 advantage, FUMBLE AT 99! Temporarily lose 3 Strength.) http://orokos.com/roll/575518 http://orokos.com/roll/575519 Craig stares at the two of you in disbelief and goes for the simple pipe beating to the Trash Man as the two of you just groan from loving up. He seizes the opportunity and brings the pipe down to bear but just barely, slamming it into one of the Trash Man's arms. (Melee vs. 40, +20 advantage, success at 50, 6 damage) http://orokos.com/roll/575520 http://orokos.com/roll/575522 The Trash Man collapses in a pathetic heap from the damage, crumpled with one arm lingering uselessly as his head lolls at a strange angle. He lies face-down on the floor, unmoving. You let out an annoyed groan and roll your shoulder, swearing under your breath at being so sloppy. Craig, despite the situation, is smiling shyly, clearly very pleased with himself and patting your good shoulder in consolation. "Jesus, you and I make a good team, huh?" You grunt in response and reach down, rolling the Trash Man over onto his back. A bloated, misshapen face stares up at you with unblinking, glassy eyes. You crouch down and pull back his hood. Sanity Check vs. 55: Failure at 68, -2 SAN http://orokos.com/roll/575524 http://orokos.com/roll/575525 This man is clearly dead. Not because you and Craig just stabbed and beat him to death. He was clearly dead and walking. You gag and cover your mouth at the sight. His face is misshapen because it's held together with large metal staples (surgical?), dotting up and down his face, large pieces of metal piercing his throat and jaw. Craig goes from jokey to pale again as he steps back and you carefully remove the torn jacket and slit the trash bag shirt from the neck down the middle as you stare in disgust. Even in the light of the moon, his skin is pale, borderline blue, with death. His stomach is riveted with holes and puncture marks, metal screws mounted to pieces of rotting wood attached to the underside of his arms almost like a frame. Flesh is nailed to flesh at points where joints should be and then wrapped up with duct tape in the crook of the elbow, a large jagged scar running up his chest and clearly stitched up with what has to be twine. You don't cut down past his waist because you really don't need to see much further. A cursory check reveals no pockets, no ID. Intelligence Roll vs. 55: Failed, 96 http://orokos.com/roll/575526 You have no goddamn idea what any of this means. Craig won't stop staring at the dead man. He just softly mumbles the name "Nolan" over and over. You have a dead man twice over and your "friend" looks terrified. What do you do now? Try to get INFO out of Craig, Persuasion vs. 50 Relocate SOMEWHERE ELSE for the rest of the night. Amateur AUTOPSY, Intelligence vs. 55 Get HELP from others in Moonlight Kingdom Estates. Go back to SLEEP but away from the body. [ENTER SUGGESTIONS HERE] You can select up to three of these choices with reader suggestion varying on how many actions this will take. Dia now has -3 Strength for the next three days until that stretched muscle works itself out. Dia has now lost 2 SAN.
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Dec 10, 2017 08:05
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Get INFO, get HELP and get SOMEWHERE ELSE
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Dec 10, 2017 18:26
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mcclay posted:Get INFO, get HELP and get SOMEWHERE ELSE
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Dec 10, 2017 21:07
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Craig's in no position to be answering any questions at the moment. You take his hand and urge him to move and he follows your commands as you pry him from his home and head back towards the Weiss house. Natalya is up and she looks concerned when she sees your faces and you have a very hushed late night conversation with her. Come morning most of the estate has crowded around Craig's bodega. It's probably the most people that place has seen in a while. There are some dirty looks shot your way but the body is still there in daylight and it looks...worse than it did by moonlight. The residents of the encampment talk amidst themselves as various members occasionally inspect the body and discuss what happens next. In the cold morning air you're able to try to get some answers out of Craig. Persuasion roll vs. 50: 80, failure http://orokos.com/roll/577663 Craig just shakes his head and refuses to talk about it. "Look, for real, thanks for what you did, but..." he just shakes his head. "I dunno, man. I dunno." "You recognized him though?" "Thought I did. I dunno. I don't want to go back in there and take a look. Gonna see if I can find somewhere else to stay." You simply nod in response. "Might be some folks willing to take you in if you know people are after you." "Maybe." He sucks air through his teeth and exhales tendrils of white smoke in the air. "Maybe. Dunno." "I mean I could see if the Weisses-" "I appreciate it Dia but it's fine, okay? I'll manage." It doesn't take any great insight to see that what you did last night, while necessary, shook Craig a good deal. After a few minutes one of the more "senior" members of the encampment waves you over, a red-faced woman missing a few teeth they call Malik. You pat Craig on the shoulder and walk over to her. Malik is bundled up in patched up and repurposed clothes, nodding to you as she rubs her hands together. "Real fuckin' dumb killing him, Caldera." "You look at him? I don't know if I killed him, I think I just made him stop moving." "Yeah and ain't that just a hell of a thing. What the gently caress is any of that?" You respond with a shrug and she sighs. "Craig saying anything?" "He said the guy looked like someone named Nolan but outside of that I don't know a thing." "Don't know any Nolans around here. Doesn't look like anyone I recognize." "Me neither." You take a moment to drink in the silence as the members of the encampment start to break up a little bit. Malik scratches the back of her head. "I know some folks who might be able to point you in a direction of who that might be but it's a crapshoot." "Might work. You don't recognize any of the poo poo on his body?" "I dunno, looks like poo poo you could find in a hardware store. I recognize that kind of crap from a few retail jobs." "Hm." "Just gotta figure out what to do with the body." You nod silently in response. We're drawing close to the end of this chapter. Your decisions may prolong it a little bit or end it sooner. Choice One What's to be done with the body? Open vote. Choice Two Investigate by focusing on NOLAN Investigate by focusing on IMPLEMENTS Hold off on investigating and WAIT to see what happens. Choice Three Change to COLE Change to TANYA Change to WALKER
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Dec 17, 2017 22:45
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:28 |
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BURN the body focus on the IMPLEMENTS change to COLE
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Dec 17, 2017 23:29
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