EVENT ★ A-LICKY BOOM BOOM DOWN

[futurologists]

WELCOME TO WOODHURST Arrival in Woodhurst goes largely unnoticed by its occupants. Characters will find themselves scattered into the city in inconspicuous places: stepping out of public restrooms that were previously empty, in the middle of a revolving door, appearing from overlooked service doorways and unoccupied retail break rooms. Arrivals -- with cloaking devices already active for those who need them -- will get barely a second look. ALASTAIR researchers and networkers will have already secured housing -- whether that be a motel, apartment, home, etc. -- for Team Audentes as well as credentials for those whose jobs require them, but it is up to the team themselves to weave together their various cover stories and find their way to their new jobs. Luckily, most of the citizens of Woodhurst have more on their mind than usual, and won't be too interested in their new neighbors and coworkers. WEEK 1 There's been a sickness spreading lately. Everyone has noticed it. People sometimes pause to murmur together in worried, furtive tones, the one of them with a cough looking especially distressed. Largely, though, people are doing their best to keep up life as normal. This concerning turn of events will probably blow over just fine, and rent still needs to be paid. Still, little signs here and there (the grocery stores are having trouble keeping bottled water and non perishables in stock) speak to the unease that can be felt in the city. Audentes has about a week to get comfortable. Snow falls now and then, never too much, but somehow always just enough to delay the buses of the public transit system. Historic downtown Woodhurst is picturesque in the light wintery sprinkle, and sometimes the buses even make their schedules there. Things are a little quiet in the business district, as many have opted to work from home until this all sorts itself out. The housing and suburban areas have a little more of a buzz of activity than usual; neighbors talk to each other for the first time in months to see if there's any news or updates, friends check in and visit with one another. Signs of any actual infected are rare, to the point where it may be easy to forget that's why ALASTAIR is here. But if you're lucky (?), you may run into someone staggering down a snowy street who doesn't look very well. They could just be hungover, but what's with those dark, prominent veins on their face...? Seven days into their stay in town, things suddenly pick up. WEEK 2 Woodhurst is quarantined. Local TV and radio stations broadcast nothing but this fact and follow up information for a solid 24 hours. And if TV and radio isn't your bag, it's also broadcast over loud speakers for 8 hours straight during the first day. The news of it is impossible to miss, but the gist of it is simple: no one may enter or leave Woodhurst, and all citizens must be off the streets by 10 PM. Also impossible to miss are the blockades and barricades that have suddenly and swiftly been set up at every road leading out of Woodhurst, no matter how major or minor. They are guarded by military in dark uniforms, visibly armed. Local law enforcement is called in to help, and any Audentes members posing as police officers may find themselves face-to-face with angry, terrified citizens as they take their frustrations out. Panic spikes. Some stores, usually grocery stores, report looting, and one or two riots even break out near the barricades. The military seems to have been instructed to stop people non-lethally, but will use violence in turn if it is used against them. They do not answer any questions put to them by citizens wanting to get to their families on the other side of the border and demanding to know why they can't, and keep their expressions carefully neutral. Still, not everyone is peaceable about it -- a terrified, haggard-looking mother tightly grips her screaming child's hand as she argues with a policeman. Her older son is apparently in Wakefield, and she needs to get to him immediately. Her shouting and her child's wailing is starting to agitate the crowd and the other policeman alike, a noticeable tension rising in the air. The hospitals experience a sharp uptick in activity, admitting those who were hurt in the first initial panicky rushes and serving many who fretfully complain of the symptoms of the spreading sickness. Even those with nothing more than the common cold have rushed in, not wanting to listen when the hospital staff explains to them that the symptoms are nothing alike. For the most part, Woodhurst doesn't look infected. Tempers are flaring, but that seems natural considering the circumstances. Even the fights that break out can be chalked up to scared citizens vying for the limited resources within the quarantined area. Once in a while, erratic behavior can be spotted, though. A man runs down the street at top speeds with nothing pursuing him, his eyes wide and wild, only to vanish down a side street. A thrashing woman at the hospital is sedated and restrained, and the sounds she's making don't sound like words as she's wheeled quickly away. On the evening of the first day, the mayor makes a statement on behalf of the city, urging citizens not to panic. She claims they have everything under control, that life can continue as normal save for a few restrictions, and that the quarantine is simply a precaution. Of course, various news outlets have taken the story and run with it, looking for the scoop. A few conspiracy theorists even try to spread their thoughts, handing out nonsensical pamphlets on the street and frightening people who are uneducated on the Bristol virus. Woodhurst is doing its best, though. After the first two days of initial panic after the quarantine descends, its sturdy citizens make a noble attempt to continue life as usual. About 25% of the population stays indoors, but the other 75% of it can still be seen going about their business, most of them with the concession of flu masks (or bandanas, t-shirts, or whatever else is on hand; supplies are tough to come by sometimes). The situation isn't great, but life marches on. And, after all, surely things will blow over sooner or later. OOC NOTES Welcome to the new mission! Infection sign-ups are now closed for current players, but all characters accepted after January 28th will still have the opportunity to sign up. The offical locations page is now up. Please read it carefully! Some locations had to be tweaked to properly fit the setting. The Bounty Board will be available with the next log. Keep an eye out! REMINDER: The infected population are not undead! We have used "zombie" as a shorthand description on the calendar, but please keep in mind that infected persons are alive, just sick. For more information on the mission, please check the dossier and the January/February calendars. Since this log is coming up so late in the month, threads from this log can be used for either January or February AC, with the stipulation that you still cannot use the same thread for both months. Questions about Woodhurst can be submitted to this thread. Questions about the game in general should be directed to the FAQ. You may submit mission ideas or player plots at any time.

Comments

BANANAKIN 🍩

[dishearten]

( it is odd, to be back behind the wheel of a police cruiser. the hum of the radio as other officers and dispatch talked. it's a saddle he got out of more than a year ago, and yet some things he can't quite forget. even if Woodhurst is not home, he's doing his best to do right by the people, even though the job is a cover more so than an occupation. after spending so long forced to hurt and torment, it feels like a small recompense to do the opposite for a change. even though it will take some time before he believes he's overcome the damages of his past.

it's certainly new to do it all with a partner, though. he'd never met Anakin before this mission, yet he recognized him well enough as a fellow member of ALASTAIR. so far his partner hasn't complained too much about the "dog" that refuses to leave them alone, so he doesn't much mind the company. getting used to having someone else around is odd for the sheriff that ran a whole town on his lonesome, yet it isn't all bad.

like when he radios in they're on their break, he can shoehorn his partner into a lunch break with him. ) Have you ever had a doughnut before? ( OH GOD GRAHAM WHY MUST YOU LIVE UP TO THIS PARTICULAR CLICHE )

[apoptotic]

[ wookiepedia shows doughnuts in the old eu only so… ]

— Doughnuts?

[ separately, both words call to mind specific objects. together, they mean nothing and sound vaguely disgusting to boot.

on the passenger seat — and clearly unhappy to be there, but graham jumped into the driver's seat and anakin suppressed the urge to fling him out of it through the force — anakin turns away from the window to frown at his newly assigned "partner" as if graham suggested he eat bugs. except insects are a real dietary staple for many cultures and do well for a meal when nothing else is around. he's not sold yet on doughnuts. ]

[dishearten]

( with a heart, he might have noticed the low key resentment for the fact he was driving. as it is, nope. sorry. don't worry, Anakin, he took the wheel only because that's what he's used to — he has no sentimental tie to it. please don't pod race them through red lights once you get the keys, though. )

More dough than nuts. Actually nuts are usually only a topping. ( he's thoughtful as he considers it. when is the last time he had a doughnut with nuts? considering he hasn't even had one since he left Maine, uh, a long time is the answer. ) They're worthy of the cliche. It can be my treat.

( he lifts his eyebrows, because if doughnuts themselves do not appeal honestly, surely free food will. or he doesn't know humanity at all. )

[apoptotic]

[ fine, he will just leap out of the car and onto another moving vehicle. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ]

You know this planet better than I do.

[ if he sounds resigned to the fact, it is because he is. earth, planet over which he was pressed the most, has thus far lived up to his admittedly abysmal expectations, and in some cases surpassed them — and not positively. the technology is eons behind; the people more shallow in their scope; and even after a year spent amongst the largely human audentes team, it's just weird to not see a single alien or droid in a city.

anakin raps the glass of the window, right hand covered by the ever-present black glove. a rumor had started that he had burnt it where he had last been stationed; anakin did nothing to disprove it. ]

Looks like there's a place down there.

[dishearten]

( please don't do that either. though maybe if they're chasing a suspect and the situation requires it... though hopefully he'll be able to drive after you jump onto another moving motor vehicle.

for Graham, the return to a place similar to earth is a bit familiar and a bit not. he spent three decades in a quiet Maine town, yet being back in one with all of his memories in place does do a bit to remind him that it isn't where he started. there's a uniqueness to his surroundings, even if he's experienced many of them before. he lived through the 90s, and worse, yet without all his memories in place it had been a different experience.

impossible to explain, yet it left him a bit like a tourist, even though he fit into the world better than some of Audentes.

he nods at the suggestion, pulling them closer without a word. Graham was often fairly silent, unless he had something to say. Brother huffed at Anakin's shoulder, a little more keyed into his mood than their human companion. as always, let's be real. when he finds a place to park, he turns off the engine and offers the keys before he opens the door. ) Midway seems a good switching point, yeah? ( asked entirely out of practicality of sharing the load, instead of the realization that Anakin wanted to. )

[apoptotic]

[ anakin snatches the keys. ] You're not getting these back. [ his warning is pure cheek, as is the smirk with which he punctuates the declaration. without another word, he pushes open the car door and climbs out.

the air outside is crisp with a spring chill. anakin inhales. he casts a practiced eye around their surroundings: the movement in the streets, the people hurrying to and fro. a few look over, but most dismiss them immediately as banal. pocketing the keys, anakin steps onto the curb. ]

He might have to wait outside.

[ anakin nods to the sign in the window. no dogs. ]

[dishearten]

( not getting them back? well, good to know. Graham has no response but a shrug.

the Jedi isn't the only one that keeps abreast of the world around them. Graham is a hunter, and those skills don't quite turn off just because he's off the clock for a doughnut. he can see the uneasiness and uncertainty in the people around them, almost more than he could see the annoyance in his partner.

it's always easier to spot fear. the people of Woodhurst are afraid, and considering what Audentes knew of the Bristol Virus? he can't much blame them.

Brother made a disgruntled noise at the mention of staying inside. once upon a time, the Huntsman had blatantly ignored the fact most humans didn't want animals in their businesses. now, he simply shakes his head. ) We'll be back soon. ( the wolf in disguise glares at them both, sitting down with a sullen expression. it is sort of rude to leave one member of the group behind at lunch time, after all. he opens the door and holds it a moment for Anakin, before wandering over to the counter and getting lost in consideration.

this is serious for him, okay. it's been more than a year. )

[apoptotic]

[ anakin takes a seat at the counter, briefly glancing over the board before deciding on a sandwich and coffee. no one has yet taken their order. which is good considering how his new partner remains lost in thought.

anakin eyes him a few seconds more, looking from him to the board and back. he clears his throat. ]

Do you need to be left alone with it or…?

[dishearten]

( no, it's a busy place, and there are plenty of people buzzing to and fro. it gives him more than enough time to decide on what he wants from the counter, though. )

No. ( he's got two in mind — he was very sincere on ordering one for his partner, too. and with that he dings a little bell waiting by the register. it may bring someone to help them, it may not, who knows? it's a good first start, though. )