EVENT #11.4 / ARRIVAL LOG #029

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone!
WHERE: The Aerie as it ends in an anime-like fashion, New Tokyo, and New Amsterdam
WHEN: August 23, 2512 onward.
WHAT: Event ending, arrivals, and a lot of changes.
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, religious themes.

> EVENT #011.4 / ARRIVAL #029

As suddenly as they all vanished, the people who remained in the Aerie begin to return. These people have not died: instead, they seem to return peacefully after an extremely unusual experience. As the gods are freed, the Aerie begins to take on a different form, radically altered by this decision. The very fabric of reality unravels. It's not that the city continues to grow more and more dilapidated by the moment—instead, the Aerie ceases to exist, dragging everyone who remains within into a joint, out of body experience.

At once, everyone's memories return in full. As they float in what is an open space, they'll recall who they were once before, right alongside their alternate life in the Aerie. Even if they can't see them, they'll begin to feel the others there: not just that they exist, but their emotions: wonder, surprise, irritation, anger, fear, guilt. Somehow, they recognize that they're connected to the billions of living souls there alongside them.

What once seemed like a wide, open space comes to be recognized as a large, vast ocean. They float in the deepest depths of the ocean, and they begin to see sea life swirl around them. Whales. Sharks. The glint of a dying star? There are constellations in the distance, too far to reach. It's hard to say where they are, and impossible to communicate to ask, to try to reach one of the billions of other souls there. When they open their mouths to try, they only make an unintelligible sound. Have they, too, been transformed into those creatures? It seems, at least for a moment, like they're communicating via echolocation.

The constellations begin to burn brighter and brighter. As they touch the people there, they're able to see more clearly around them. There are hundreds upon thousands of animals, all with bright golden eyes. They push through the water quickly, and the gold in their eyes fully illuminates the space around them.

Once that illumination meets a critical mass, everyone begins to experience a different joint vision. From the very start, the experience itself is excruciating: they feel an object, vaguely comprehended, but perceived to be spear-like in nature, slicing into them, tearing them asunder. The misery results in a complete and total division of self: splintered and incomplete, scattered into trillions of tiny pieces.

An indefinite amount of time later, there is a stirring. Everyone feels frigid and cold. The chill is excruciating, but different from what it was before. And then, as if a physical feeling can become an emotion, that chill becomes anger. And then that rage starts searching, wandering—

Until it adapts and connects with the ocean around it. The gold in the eyes of the sharks and whales begins to dim. A feeling of grief and eventually peace washes over everyone who remains.

And then everyone begins to shift in their beds, awakening as if returning from a terrible nightmare. Of course, given that they recall all of it, it's likely not much of a nightmare. At least not in a literal sense. When they wake to check in on the world, they'll find it in much the same shape—with the changes being far less obvious at first.

> 30 SECONDS FROM TOKYO

At first, you'll hear the buzz of a motor, as well as smell the splash of ocean water not so far away. You'll find that you're on a boat, passing swiftly over the Pacific Ocean to come into contact with a large, man-made structure in the distance. While you're drugged, you find that you're unable to move much. An IV protrudes from your arm, keeping you sedate. When one of the guards on the boat turns to check on you, they'll find your eyes open. "Sit tight and don't move. We have to be welcomed inside." Even if you're naturally defiant, you find yourself forced to comply.

Eventually, the boat pulls onto a dock that extends from the city itself to welcome your arrival. The mechanisms are complicated and hidden. Unlike a drawbridge in our modern times, the dock extends swiftly and completely, welcoming the boat next to it. After the boat seems to anchor itself into place, the guards present begin to move each of the passengers one by one off the boat. You'll notice others like you: dressed in white, long-sleeved scrubs, with recently shaved heads, and a pair of white tennis shoes. Or most of them are.

There are two exceptions: Eames and Aeryn, who have their hair still, but are just as drugged and kept under. They went through a similar arrival process before the Aerie stole them away, and arrived back after the Aerie ended in a similar manner to Max. Their return to society is just less personalized due to the circumstances.

Eventually, you're taken through the city—a wonder in and of itself, as it's a complex system of elevators spanning both vertically and horizontally through the large, metallic structure—and eventually through the back door of a business.

"All right, listen up everyone. There are people coming to get you. We've got this place for the day, so sit tight." At this, everyone's forced to do as they're commanded. Even if you don't want to sit, you have no choice. "We'll direct the people to bring you water, but that's all. Ask them to show you the glow. And—from me to you?" The guard sounds … tired all of a sudden. Her voice is strained as she adds: "Try not to fuck more shit up."

At once, the guards start to filter out through the back door. As much as everyone left behind can't go anywhere, they sure can talk.

As this process begins, a message is sent to all of the Displaced in New Amsterdam via a private broadcasting channel, one that's meant to only reach a limited number of people. It seems Jimmy's found a way to hack it for his own use, but trying to trace this back to him will prove impossible:

Sorry everyone. Couldn't do an official drop off. I barely scrounged up the people I did to get them to town. They're sitting tight at a bakery called Sweet Omakase in New Tokyo. Just go in and tell the people up front that you're there to pick up a package.

Oh, I forgot to mention: I'll be reaching out to a few of you soon. So … yeah.

JH

As for that compliance drug?

◉ Though entirely capable of independent action and thought, new characters will find themselves completely, unquestioningly compliant to any verbal statement which could be taken as a command or request.

> NEW AMSTERDAM

Though the Displaced can make the choice to keep the newcomers in New Tokyo for longer than a few hours, it's generally not recommended. Morningstar in New Tokyo is in just as much disarray as the rest of the world, and El doesn't want to disrupt their recovery in these trying times. As such, it'll be necessary to take them on a secure route back to the New Tokyo gate, bring them to New Amsterdam, and start to get them ready for their new lives. Of course, they may see a little bit of New Tokyo along the way, but not much given the urgency. (The link is provided for brevity purposes—please see the "New Tokyo" section for a summary of the city itself!)

The abbreviated trip between New Tokyo and New Amsterdam will bring the newcomers back to a city that's been through … a lot. That means it's probably a good time to have a quick catch up, right?

> LAST TIME ON NAMSTERDAM!
Although a year isn't very long for even a human being, the Displaced have managed to make their mark in this unusual world. Having first been released out into the world in mid-June 2511, they started touching the world around them. Whether it was fighting a giant monster or curing people from the sickness caused by inhaling smoke from that giant monster's parts (as well as any tiny little monsters it brought with it) or taking on the UNA when they tried to wipe out an entire chapter of a rebel organization, the mysterious Blue-glowing people were there.

After over a year of interventions left and right, the Displaced finally came forward as a united group—one that's uniquely tied to a business they opened. No one knows they're from another world. They don't even know what the Displaced's powers are, though they've certainly seen them do fantastical things. One thing became apparent: while the Displaced were spotted in other cities around the globe, their influence has been most felt in New Amsterdam. And even if the world's governing body doesn't like it, the people of New Amsterdam have claimed the Displaced as their own.

Most recently, the entire world found itself dragged into another reality called the Aerie. The Displaced had gone through this before on a smaller scale, but this brought everyone present on the planet Earth to this other world. The Aerie was a miracle world: in order to prevent the death of humanity as everyone knew it, a group of heroes chosen by a handful of gods chained said gods and harnessed their power to create a safe haven for all of humanity. As a result of their actions, these people created a major class disparity in order to maintain the secrets of how they created the Aerie. Since billions of people were saved in the process, the Aerie ended up having an overpopulation problem. The answer? A battle royale for anyone who's committed a crime, held monthly.

Well, as these things go, about two hundred years into this horrible experiment, the Aerie started experiencing some challenges. Rebel groups and bombs and more! Eventually the gods were set free, and with it, the Aerie vanished into nothing.

Though the Aerie (and its smaller-scale predecessor, Zerzura) was undoubtedly brought into being by divine intervention, it doesn't help that the Displaced claimed that their powers seemed to be caused by interacting with gods. Troubling much? So, some of the world is divided, with New Amsterdam being the only pro-Displaced left after the Aerie. Of course, it's a touch more complicated than that.

And it doesn't all fall in the laps of the Displaced. After all, they didn't choose to have this happen to them.

An important thing to note is that New Amsterdam is a very, very green city. We don't mean recycling. As if powered by weird god magic, plants grow a-plenty in the city, leaving numerous trees and thousands upon thousands of credits in plumbing issues. Animals came into the city thanks to the absence of humans to start settling in. It's a beautiful city, one that seems as if it's actively fighting against being reclaimed by nature.

With the worldwide trauma, current singing events are currently on hiatus. This likely won't be permanent, but it's not as if anyone is looking to become a pop star at this exact moment.

But that's where New Amsterdam is currently, anyway.

> SUMMER PROBLEMS
Ah, water rationing. That's right: one of the tried and true traditions in New Amsterdam summers is water rationing. During the hot summer months, the city puts out water rationing warnings, and the city also answers the intense and extreme heat by making it so that businesses are open throughout the evening, with everyone sleeping during the daytime. However, the Aerie shot a lot of that preparation in the foot, so the city won't be able to reverse the clock.

Expect a lot of hot, miserable, and extremely humid days ahead. Thanks to the nearly tropical nature of the city at this point, humidity is a natural side effect of it all. The temperatures will be reaching from around 105 F to 115 F during the daytime. The evenings cool off, but certainly not by much, as they dip to only around 90 F to 95 F when the sun goes down.

Oh, and water rationing is most definitely in effect.

> RED WINGS
In February 2512, the bar known as Red Wings first opened. Positioned adjacent to the New Amsterdam stadium, where a wide variety of sporting events occur year round, it's the only business in New Amsterdam that's currently run entirely by the Displaced. However, a few other businesses are set to open in the near and distant future, all tailored to cater to the city that most of the Displaced call home.

On the inside, Red Wings is very, very red. There is a neon sign that's been recently repaired of the Great Lakes state (Michigan). In terms of being a watering hole, the bartenders are all Displaced and all very sympathetic to any newcomers headed their way. Need some free food or a chance to play pool to clear your head? Red Wings is the place to do that. There are tables throughout the bar. There used to be booths, but most of them got shredded during a recent monster attack and … well, tables are easier to replace.

It's likely that all of the newcomers will be brought to Red Wings first for a full meal before being taken to the safehouse across town.

And while there are blank projection screens around the bar showing news broadcasts of what just went down, none of the newcomers will be able to see any of them.

> MURAL
Throughout the past year, multiple murals have gone up around New Amsterdam by a Banksy-like figure. This figure is known to the people of New Amsterdam as Legion, and they tend to commemorate both the Displaced and their ties to the gods. In the Aerie, it was revealed that Legion was a wealthy woman by the name of Nirvana. Upon returning from the Aerie, another new mural goes up in New Amsterdam.

Legion's new mural explodes in color in the large corporate buildings that connect in New Amsterdam's financial district. It depicts the whole story of the Aerie from beginning to end: the conception, the Quarries, the attacks on both the Quarry and the Volary, and then the return. The imagery is woven together like a full story, each picture moving seamlessly into the next. Below are the colors of the gods, painted in vibrant colors that can be seen for miles.

There's specific imagery woven in as well, including the birds that represent the different groups of people, the eclipse and different phases of the moon to signify the timing.

It seems to say never forget.

> HELPING OUT
All around the world, returning members of Morningstar, PRESERVE, and even the cultists who once followed the leader, Ball (though the cultists are only working in New Amsterdam), all spur into action to try to help. Everyone may be traumatized, but they also likely prescribe to the notion of wanting to keep busy. Recalling the Aerie won't be pleasant, and the world needs help. New Amsterdam already has a head start thanks to the resource acquisition and work by a small group of Displaced, but now everyone is back to work.

The work in question? Feed everyone, first and foremost. Countless people are without fresh food. Working in conjunction with both the Red Wings employees and the cultists, PRESERVE will be putting up food banks all around the city. Marcos Diaz's food bank is likely to be fully stocked as a result of this, should he want to get that running again.

Other work that needs to be done involves plumbing, as the plants seem to have very much taken on a life of their own. They're absorbing most of the available water in the city, and have even made the water level decrease in the river (just a bit, though). Water rationing is even more important right now, but it may prove to be a futile effort if the plants aren't held back. Time to get moving. Anyone who wants to be an impromptu apprentice to a plumber is likely going to be welcomed onto the job. They need all hands on deck.

Finally, there are just the people who need help. Roaming bands of former UNA soldiers caused problems even before the mass return. Now they're meeting up and moving as if they're a gang of their own to return order to the land. However, these people are truly traumatized, and it's as if they're calling upon an old order that they can't quite recognize. The problem is that they're extremely dangerous. Though their weapons are mostly makeshift ones, they can fight with them. Along with these roaming bands, there are the catatonic and the confused people, all who could use some assistance to get back on track.

Sadly, the hospitals are not ready to be staffed by typical personnel. If anyone wants to take the lead on this and commandeer those medical centers, they can feel free to! Again, all help is appreciated, even if it might involve some slightly illegal choices.

> SPIRITUAL RECLAMATION
One thing that was significant in Meadowlark's world before the Aerie was a complete lack of religious or spiritual devotion, at least on a major scale. Smaller sects like the tiny cult in New Amsterdam were exceptions that ultimately proved the rule. After all, they didn't even have any written doctrine about their belief systems.

Things begin to change. Some of those changes are obvious, while others are less so—at first.

The first sign of this is in various preachers who take up spots on street corners to preach about the end of the world. With a muddled and confused ideology, these people build little podiums for themselves to speak about the end times: the Aerie was proof that humanity is only buying itself time before an inevitable end—and eventually, the gods will punish them for what they did. While the initial preachers will not have a clear messaging system, this will change in the coming weeks. In fact, it'll seem as if they're all deriving their ideology from the same place—even while located in different megacities.

Quietly, tiny religious communities begin to spring up. With real estate already in shambles before the Aerie, much of the construction has come to a halt in order for people to begin to psychologically heal. As a result, various warehouses throughout the megacities begin to be converted into spiritual centers. At first, these locales will be innocuous in nature, but in time, there will be a clear set of imagery connected to them. Some of that imagery will link back to the Aerie (with a lot of birds, as well as ties to either the Cardinals or the gods), or to the sacred geometry imagery that's been connected to the Displaced for some time.

These spiritual centers may simply be people squatting illegally, but it's not as if any of the various local police departments have the resources to stomp them out. It seems that the UN also views this religious devotion as harmless, at least compared to the other problems that could arise.

> NATURE'S RECLAMATION
Plants and a handful of animals have been at it for a while, but the world is definitely in the process of experiencing a second coming of … fauna? Some are springing up unexpectedly outside of walls, while others are inside of the walls themselves in many megacities. Did you know that pigeons were an uncommon sight in 2512? Well, were is an appropriate word for it. They're no longer uncommon. And what about that river in New Amsterdam? Never one to be a place for fishing, it's now filled to the brim with freshwater fish.

Want to go fishing? New Amsterdam will eventually require a license for it, but it's still early days. There aren't any fishing poles around to purchase, but someone can probably fashion one themselves if they have the know-how.

There will also be more wild insects. Pest control was a thing of the past for this world, but with all these new creatures showing up all over, that's going to be a concern once again. Unless, of course, it's prevented.

> SAFEHOUSE

Not long after their arrival, the new Displaced will be brought across the city to an abandoned hover-bike garage in a neighborhood that's clearly seen better days.

Located under said hover-bike garage, access to the safehouse is a hatch in the floor beside a rusted set of metal shelves that used to hold tools and supplies. The immediate area is similarly abandoned: full of rundown and dilapidated warehouses and forgotten businesses, where numerous people squat in hopes of having some stability because they can't afford a place themselves. The inside of this safehouse looks better than the outside, as it was beginning to be transformed into a training center by Ian Fowler. Once everyone is brought into the safehouse down below, they'll find no one waiting for them. Though Gaby, a Morningstar agent, is typically around, she's absent at this time. Any newbies will need to be filled in by their fellow Displaced, though they can also contact El through zeir inbox, if needed.

The safehouse is a large space with multiple rooms for storage, with the largest of the rooms filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large number of people. Basic, but outfitted with everything necessary for daily life. A few doors lead to back rooms for storage, medical care, and a large communal bathroom, and past the long rows of cots there is a communal kitchen, fully stocked, and an eating area. Privacy is mostly nonexistent in the safehouse, with any past efforts that were made to change that destroyed by numerous attacks along the way.

◉ New characters will be asked to pick their beds, and be provided with a change of (second-hand, mismatched and somewhat threadbare) clothes and basic toiletries.

◉ There is a mini-bar set up in the kitchen. The quality of the alcohol inside is akin to what someone might get from the well at a bar, though it's running low because it hasn't been restocked since before the previous set of arrivals.

◉ While the kitchen has a lot of dried foods to cook, as well as canned and preserved vegetables, most of what's left in the fridge will need to be tossed. In addition, anyone looking for a jolt of caffeine from coffee or tea will find themselves sorely lacking. The only tea present is herbal in nature, and caffeine appears to be pretty much nonexistent in most of the beverages lying around.

◉ Along those same lines, newcomers will find that this is a world that is steeped in sustainable choices. Paper is a thing of the past. Ever used a bidet regularly? This world gives everyone a crash course in exactly what that feels like if they haven't done that before.

◉ Everyone will receive a modest stipend of credits from Morningstar to help them get by until they can find a job. This will be enough to cover their living expenses for about a month while they hang out in the safehouse, if they're careful with budgeting.

◉ The drugs making new characters compliant will remain in their systems for a few hours after their arrival at the safehouse before finally beginning to fade. They will be gone entirely after a night's rest. In the meantime, they may want to be careful of what others say to them.

◉ New characters will be given rudimentary access to the network upon arrival to the safehouse, but will not have their ID set up yet. They will be able to make posts and replies, but their messages will be anonymous—and they do not have inboxes yet.

◉ New characters also do not have access to the internet until their ID is setup. They only have limited access because they're present in the safehouse, but they can't surf the rest of the internet, check out Cooltalk, or watch the equivalent of Netflix until their ID is made.

◉ New characters cannot leave the safehouse at this time. The hatch is locked tight for them, making it impossible for them to get out for the next four days while they're locked inside. There won't be any immediately obvious ways to cut their way out through turning off the power, either. Time to sit tight.

◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until AUGUST 27, 2512 (JANUARY 23, 2020). These 4 days are for them to adjust, learn about the world they've arrived in from their fellows, and for El to speak with them and work on setting up their IDs.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

Welcome to Meadowlark, newbies! You're now free to post to the network and log comms. To reiterate, your characters will have no IDs or inboxes, nor be allowed to roam free once they enter the safehouse. Meaning: they'll have to sit tight until August 27, 2512 ICly.

All characters will appear as @anonymous on the network. While sitting tight in the safehouse, it's expected that they'll have gotten a good idea of their new situation from their fellow characters, and will have discussed their background and job potentials with El in order for their false IDs to be set up.

If you have any questions or ideas about how you'd like to get your character involved in the world, please head over to the plot engagement post and drop us a comment!

For questions pertaining to this log (and because we accidentally forgot to drop a questions header here, our bad!), please refer to our questions thread on the OOC post.

The January CR meme for the month is here.

Please check out our Event #011 Wrap Up Post for a rundown of all of the changes brought about through the AU, as well as any world changes that will be apparent moving forward.

As we announced on the wrap up post, AC will remain halved until at least June 2021. That said, for the month of January, we're making things check-in only because of the state of the world.

Finally, we'll be back to our standard planned calendar and AC (halved, just to be clear) on February 1, 2021. Reserves will open on January 23, 2021.

> NAVIGATION

Comments

carolina | ota

[leaderboards]

one; keeping the busiest

[ after being among the first wave of people to return from the aerie, carolina's still keeping herself as busy as possible. things are a lot easier, now that she doesn't feel so alone, but she'd still rather be moving than not. she's fumbled her way through a few building repairs and plumbing emergencies, but if there's anyone even sort of better qualified to do those things, she's leaving it up to them. repetitive physical tasks are much more her speed, anyway.

at first, it was helping move and organize supplies in new tokyo. now, it's helping to clear excessive foliage out of transitways and the more important buildings around new amsterdam, a job she winds up helping with whenever she can. she isn't much of a conversationalist, feeling the same way about verbal compassion as she does plumbing — that it's a task best left to someone else — but carolina is keeping an eye on the people around her.

A | between the heat and the nature of the work, she knows how easily people can overexert themselves. if someone's been working too long in direct sun, carolina might take over their place, coaxing them in the direction of somewhere they can at least pretend is cooler for a few minutes. likewise, if it's been too long without a water break or anyone starts showing signs of dehydration, she'll be fetching them water from the nearest cache of emergency supplies to hand the bottle over with an abrupt, ] You need this.

[ she's trying, okay?

B | carolina is taking a brief brake of her own, but that doesn't means she's not thinking about what needs to be done next. she's currently eyeing up a wall that will need to be cleared sooner or later, gaze following one particularly large plant up to where it seems to be growing from a broken window a few stories above the walkway she's sitting on. when she realizes there's somebody she knows nearby, she addresses them, head tipping toward the wall in question. ]

Hey, does that all look like the same plant to you?

[ the follow-up question is likely going to be about figuring out how to get up to the base of the plant and taking care of it from there, instead of wasting time hacking it up from the bottom.

C | for anyone who knew her in this world before recent events, carolina has one obvious change in her appearance: her hair. she'd been stubbornly growing it out since her arrival, but it had barely grown past her jaw and she made it no secret that her biggest gripe with everything that was done to them upon arrival in this world was the haircut. everyone has a limit and that was hers.

now, it's the length she'd kept it in the aerie, the distinctive brilliant copper locks falling to the middle of her back. which, it turns out, is annoying as hell during a heat wave. she starts most days with it tied back at the nape of her neck and inevitably winds up readjusting it into higher and higher ponytails as the day goes on. there's never the faintest hint of complaint from her about the work they're doing, but being overheated from her hair is call for plenty of little frustrated noises as she tries to fix it. ]

two; and fighting all the things

[ she's out somewhere in new amsterdam trying to help when trouble in the form of UNA soldiers shows up. it's only a small handful of them and they seem more interested in terror than targeted harm, but carolina would still like to see them move along. conversation isn't going to help, but she's pretty sure that fighting them will, so she herds a few of the locals into a nearby structure for their safety and plans to face the soldiers with a decidedly "come and get me" attitude.

when she spots someone she knows, though, she pauses to address them. ]

Any chance you want to help me go disarm those soldiers?

[ it's far more likely that another displaced is going to be decent backup in a fight than the people native to this world are, after all. ]

three; etc.

[ when she's not fighting plants or people, carolina still stays fairly busy. there's lots of other places to catch her around the city and she does make a habit of dropping by red wings every few days, her way of checking in on the rest of the displaced without actually having to check in with anyone. most people will get a relatively neutral reaction from her, but she's decidedly more hesitant when she comes across people that make her memories from the aerie harder to ignore. she's grateful she wasn't more well known, wasn't one of the more popular quarry designers within the company, but it's a role she hasn't really made peace with yet, even if she's not widely recognized for it.

greeting other quarry designers or any of the former participants she came to know is about the closest to cautious that carolina gets, but she still does, careful until she tests the waters. ]

( ooc: feel free to drop a wildcard or hit me up on plurk for a different starter. carolina's cr comment is here, for reference ♥ )

busiest | a

[revvedup]

[ max is engineered not only to withstand a lot, but was trained to push herself through a lot. as such, maybe she's realized she's been working for a while without breaking for water or to get out of the heat and sun, but hasn't really done anything about it, trying to focus on what she's doing to keep herself from dwelling on things. when carolina comes over with the bottle, practically pushing it into her hands, she narrows her eyes a little, but then in a few moments of not working the heat and thirst catch up with her and she accepts the bottle gratefully, careful to take the bottle without their hands brushing. ]

Thanks. [ the bottle is opened and sipped from carefully, she doesn't want to chug it and make herself sick. even after a few sips she feels and looks better, some of the flush fading from her cheeks and her eyes becoming clearer. ] I guess I should know better, but I got caught up in the job.

[leaderboards]

[ carolina catches that initial reaction before max accepts the bottle and guesses that it's a sequence of thoughts carolina herself is very familiar with: irritation at being interrupted, quickly followed by her body insisting a break is a good thing, because she's been pushing it too much. so that's relatable. ]

Don't worry, I know the feeling. [ at least it makes her a little better at spotting signs of exhaustion in others, so long as she's paying attention. she sounds a little amused, less tense than her initial greeting. ] Let yourself have a breather.

[ and carolina is going to take over whatever task she'd interrupted the other woman doing, so there's no real work loss. ]

[revvedup]

[ she's talking in a way that strikes max as familiar in a way that should be unpleasant, but isn't. which is to say she's talking in a way that reminds her of how a commanding officer would address a soldier, but with a lot more compassion than max is used to hearing from those. ]

Okay. [ carolina takes over where max had been working on rerouting the pipes, smiling a little before she sips from the water again. ] What about you, have you been taking breaks?

sorry for the late tag back!

[leaderboards]

[ it's a valid question, but one that draws a soft snort of amusement from carolina before a real answer can come. she's had to be forced to take a water break or breather more times than she can count, but with the state of the city, with how easily overwhelmed the locals are, she's... trying, at least. ]

Enough breaks to keep everyone else off my back. Getting heatstroke isn't exactly helpful.

fighting all the things

[braveoff]

[ Drake is also herding people away from the soldiers -- he actually hadn't noticed Carolina in the group while they were clearing the streets, and he's glad to see her now.

He's definitely not as confident in his ability to disarm someone out to cause harm as he can tell she is, but they really need to try. Worst case he can use his power on whoever turns a weapon on him. ]

Yeah, that'd be for the best. I'll come right at them, you go around?

[leaderboards]

[ with someone she trusted less, the plan might not be a good one, but drake is, if nothing else, reliable. carolina knows that he's not going to balk as soon as he's caught the soldiers' attention, that he knows how distractions are supposed to work, even if the fight isn't an evenly matched one. if she moves fast enough, she can make sure he's not in any real danger of being hurt, anyway.

so carolina nods, her attention already down the block again, eyeing a route that can get her beside the targets, if not behind them. there's a long-abandoned stand that she can duck behind if she keeps to the shadows well enough; that should do. ]

I need a head start. Fifteen seconds will do.

[ it's a confident-sounding estimation, one that doesn't actually require drake to acknowledge it. carolina glances at him long enough to confirm he's not immediately regretting the call before she slips away, taking the route she's already decided on. the soldiers won't know she's there until after drake makes his presence known. ]

[braveoff]

[ It's a show of trust on his end, too -- if she's too slow or were less skilled he could easily get shot. And that sucks, he knows from experience.

Carolina gets one firm, certain nod, and Drake starts counting, weaving back through the fleeing civilians to make his presence known. She'll have just enough time to get in position as he approaches them with his hands up, eyes scanning between the soliders to see who's the jumpiest if he can only target one person with his power. He's never actually tried more than one person at a time and isn't going to bet on it in this situation. ]

Whoa there -- how about we let these nice people go and take a minute to talk, okay?

[leaderboards]

[ drake draws the attention of the soldiers (all of them, carolina is pleased to note) and catches them off-guard enough that they're obviously not sure what their reaction is supposed to be, a few of them exchanging uncertain looks.

it's in that moment of hesitation that carolina moves, snatching a metal pipe from the hands of the nearest soldier and sweeping his legs out from under him. only when he hits the ground hard with a little yelp of surprise do the others have any idea that she's there, which is just the sort of advantage she was counting on. the first soldier that lunges for her gets kicked into a nearby wall, carolina using the momentum of it to turn and face the second who comes swinging at her with a makeshift bludgeon of their own, raising her freshly acquired pipe to block the blow.

it looks like carolina's going to have her hands full for a few minutes— she also looks completely unbothered by this, despite the fact that she has most of the highly trained soldiers moving to subdue her. most, but not all. ]

cw: gross?

[braveoff]

[ Most of the soldiers go for Carolina, but not all -- which is good, he's confident she can handle the number that split off. As for the ones that come for him, he gives a lighthearted shrug and stretches one hand out towards them to use his power on whoever comes into range first.

The closest one stumbles, looking confused at both the glow and the feeling of calm that has their desire to fight vanishing, but there are still three more coming at him. Too fast to switch targets, Drake assesses. Instead he drops into a ready fighting stance and dodges the first attack, then the next. But the third.... Drake has never fought an organized force ganging up on him like this except for the Null and in that case he had weaponry of his own. This is people actually trained to fight together, and just as he's staggered one to grab their pipe, the third has come around behind him and he doesn't quite block it. The hit is glancing but stunning, to the side of his head, and that apparently counts as a perceived threat to life.

Enough that his eyes begin to glow gold. And when he manages to catch the wrist of the soldier as he swings again, something very strange (and horrifying) happens. The soldier's veins start to bulge, coming thick and black to the skin. Which then starts to degrade, taking on the putrefying colors of an old bruise. The soldier screams in pain and Drake staggers back, eyes still glowing. ]

What the--?!

[leaderboards]

[ that's not the sort of noise carolina expects from drake's side of the scuffle. she knows how he fights, knows exactly what his power feels like, so she expects a few blows traded and some confusion, mostly. not that scream.

she's busy but not too busy to turn and get a visual on her friend, not sure what might have happened but needing to know he's okay. ]

Drake?

[ his eyes are glowing gold, she realizes. and while he still seems like himself, that's not the sort of sign she has any real reason to trust, all things considered. so. that's concerning.

concerning enough that carolina loses track of one of the soldiers she's occupied with just long enough for them to get a hard hit in on her shoulder before she can dodge the swing. it's enough to almost make her lose her grip on the pipe she's acquired and she instinctively has the other arm up before the next blow can come, summoning her shield in the same gesture she sweeps it to one side, roughly pushing back two of the soldiers. she hadn't really been planning to broadcast her own glow, what she was capable of, but now screw it, she's worried. it'll probably help her end the fight a little quicker anyway. ]

Are you okay?

[braveoff]

[ Drake backs away from the soldier he mutilated, who's now writhing on the ground with the other two that were attacking him staring in horror. They might snap out of it and go after him again but for the moment he's more focused on whatever's happening to him so it's good they've paused. He glances to Carolina, sees her using her shield to beat the soldiers back, and calls out sounding worried. ]

I don't know what's happening.

[ This certainly isn't an evolution of his power -- his chest isn't glowing. He gives the soldiers a warning. ]

Stay back, don't touch me.

[ Unfortunately, they don't listen. His words seem to incite them again, and he still has nothing but his fists to hit them with. Shit. ]

[leaderboards]

[ well, at least drake's still himself, even if carolina's still not entirely sure what's happening with him, nor how to help. wrapping her head around the situation isn't necessary to get them out of it, though, so she can think about it later. right now, it seems like drake could use a weapon, which is something that she can help him with. ]

Catch!

[ she tosses the pipe in her hand his way, the arc of it a little higher than necessary, but intentionally so. if drake doesn't catch it, it's aimed to hit the soldier just past him so there's no risk of wasting the throw.

this leaves carolina empty-handed, but she has one of the soldiers slumped against a nearby wall before she has another moment to turn and visually check in on drake, so it's obviously not much of a problem. she can get herself something else to swing if she needs it, anyway. ]

[braveoff]

[ Drake catches the pipe and breathes a grateful 'thanks' to Carolina even as he's turning back to swing it -- it makes contact with one of the soldier's heads with a sick 'thud' and he goes down instantly, leaving Drake to dodge another one's baton swing.

As long as they don't touch him, the power seems to be restricted. Good. He tries to back his way towards Carolina as he fights the remaining soldiers. ]

Is anything happening to you?

[leaderboards]

[ when carolina realizes drake's trying to close the distance between them, she makes an effort to do the same while she continues to try to get the soldiers staggered enough to just stop fighting. she doesn't want to hurt any of them more than necessary, but they're not making it easy.

with only two soldiers between them, carolina punches one hard enough to disorient and then ducks under the next one's swing, positioning herself so that a good hard kick sends him back into his companion, knocking both of them to the ground. it buys her a moment to get to drake's side, throwing an arm out to put her shield between him and the soldier about to take another swipe with enough force to send that one stumbling back, too.

keeping them shielded isn't a viable way to end the fight, but does give drake and carolina a break while the disoriented soldiers get back to their feet, with at least one of them looking wary of attacking again while she has the barrier up and her chest glowing the way it is. it's a good deterrent, for the moment. ]

No, nothing. Do you feel alright?

[braveoff]

[ Drake nods, his eyes still glowing, the adrenaline keeping his new power up even though he doesn't understand what's causing it. ]

I'm okay, just... shaken.

[ Carolina doesn't know what this power reminds him of, why it's so upsetting beyond the suffering it causes. He breathes out, trying to calm himself while the shield is up between them and the soldiers. ]

You think I can use both at once?

[leaderboards]

[ tempting though it is to ask drake how the hell she's supposed to know that, carolina keeps herself from snapping, just looks to drake with a quick shrug of her shoulders before her gaze is tracking the soldiers outside her barrier again. ]

Might as well try. I've got your back.

[ and even though this fight isn't exactly ideal, she's still kept her friends safe through far worse— so if drake wants to try, he might as well. ]