epidemiology | EVENT ★ I PREDICT A RIOT

EVENT ★ I PREDICT A RIOT

I WANNA START A FIGHT

RIOTS

In the time between the quarantine and now, the virus has spread unnaturally rapidly, with the amount of the population infected estimated to be around 1.5% or approximately 3,750 people. Understandably, the panic has increased considerably. People who were taking the virus seriously before have begun to work themselves up into a frenzy, and even those who were calm are beginning to get anxious.

An infected teacher went on a violent rampage at the local elementary school yesterday, leading the school board to close all Woodhurst schools for the rest of the week while the entire staff is studied for symptoms. There’s no test for the Bristol virus, however, so it’s impossible to tell for sure. This, of course, worries the parents. The unrest starts with a protest at the school, calling for schools to be closed indefinitely until the quarantine is over for the safety of the children, but it doesn’t stop there.

Unrest turns to rioting before long; the majority of the riot is focused at city hall, where citizens are demanding answers, but there’s also mayhem at stores as the people of Woodhurst loot them, stocking up for what some assume is an impending apocalypse. Those who don’t believe this have locked themselves up in their homes not for protection from the infected but the rioters. Suffice it to say, most of the citizens out on the streets are of the slightly unstable variety, although some just found themselves caught up in the riots and became worked up by the crowd.

Local police forces -- including ALASTAIR agents posing as police officers -- have been dispatched to deal with the rioters at city hall. Rioters who attempt to leave the city are taken care of by officers sent by the federal government to enforce the quarantine.

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

It might be a good idea to see what supplies can be found at the supermarkets, although you run the risk of getting attacked by a violent looter. The police won’t necessarily turn away anyone trying to keep order at city hall, but any supernatural powers will only incite the already violent crowd, so it’s recommended characters keep from utilizing their powers if they want to stay in one piece. Then, of course, there’s always the option to protect innocents who happen to be stuck out on the streets in the middle of the riots.

While the entirety of the police force is focused at the quarantine borders and outside city hall, now is possibly one of the only chances to get full access to buildings in the city. There are still some workers who haven’t been sent home and some of the buildings are locked up, but there are few police officers that can be spared to go check out a simple break-in.

Now is the time to search the city, if you're feeling brave. If you’re really ballsy, you can even try to slip in through the back door of city hall and go through their records. The only important building in town that’s not able to be searched is the hospital, which is incredibly busy due to the high number of people injured in the riots and traffic accidents.

Of course, just because rioters aren’t around doesn’t mean you’ll be left alone. There’s always a chance you’ll find yourself alone in a building with someone very hungry. Willing to take the chance?

Submit all CYOA choices to this thread.

OOC NOTES

The Bounty Board is now open! If you are looking for ways to get involved in this mission's optional objective, this is a good place to start. We’d also like to remind everyone that ALASTAIR does not invent cover stories for characters -- that’s all them! The only jobs they’ll help with getting are in the police force and government; everything else is up to characters to interview for.

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.

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[Haise keeps his eyes trained on the crowd, hearing the child move toward Olivia and the shift of weight that accompanies her taking the little girl into her arms. He doesn't want them to be caught by surprise, and so he watches, posture tense and at the ready, until she speaks to him]

I'll show you to the place Lucina is guarding. I've been trying to evacuate people there, as I can.

[He gestures for her to follow, skirting around the vehicle slowly as he picks out a path that should help them avoid being accosted along the way. At least if he's in the lead, attacks should come to him, and not Olivia and her precious cargo]

Fortunately our badges help in that regard.

[Having some among their ranks assume the roles of police certainly proved beneficial for this]

[ olivia feels her heart tick at the sound of her future daughter's name, but she is quick to stuff down the worry that threatens to overcome her. she is fully aware that lucina is a strong, capable young woman, and frankly hearing that she has set up some sort of safe house for innocents could not make her any prouder. ]

Yes... It's fortunate you all had such forethought, [ she murmurs, feeling a pinch of regret that she had not chosen a profession that would have been more helpful in these times of crises. then again, she could hardly pull it off as well as the others do. ]

I think...at least in some of our cases, it was the most natural fit.

[Haise offers, hearing the way Olivia's voice dips low, and knowing what it means. Some of them would stick out like sore thumbs in other positions, especially those with more martial or investigative backgrounds, and Haise thinks of Giovanni in the case of the fore.

For his part, he's assuredly the latter.

He keeps his words purposefully vague, so the child they're escorting won't be left with too many questions. So far, she seems content to bury her face against Olivia's shoulder and sniffle]

Lucina's handled all this better than I have...even the unruly crowds, before violence broke out. I guess we've all got something to offer, in different ways.

[ unbeknownst to haise, 60% of the child's sudden calm is entirely olivia's doing — and not just because of her natural nurturing nature. (say that three times fast.) a gentle hand is kept just behind the child's head, meant to soothe and keep her close, but as an extra precaution, she had affected the young girl with an extra boost of serenity, just to make the process of transfer that much more safe. ]

She's quite the level-headed leader, isn't she? [ there is something faint and wry in olivia's tone. ] Just like her father.

Yes, she does seem to be a natural leader... Although I'm afraid I don't know too much about her father, save that she inherited her weapon and combat style from him.

[It's a matter on which they'd once spoken, back in Perdition's Rest. The two of them were alike in that, though the man he views as his father isn't related to him by blood. They'd both inherited blades and learned from the father-figures in their lives, and marveled at the broad expanse of the universe.

And they'd even entertained thoughts of what stories might be told about their squad, though Haise doesn't think to mention that. When he isn't speaking, he's navigating, purposefully veering away from sounds that herald conflict]

I didn't know you knew her father... Are they much alike?

—oh.

[ olivia reflexively flinches upon realizing; in all their time, had she really not mentioned to haise...? not even once...? ]

Y-Yes, I suppose you could say I do...

[ she glances down at their charge, relieved then to see that the young girl had fallen asleep in her arms. perhaps the chaos around had exhausted her, or perhaps olivia had gotten a little too heavy-handed with the calmness... either way, they are granted this little bit of privacy. ]

Forgive me, Haise, I should have mentioned — but Lucina is actually my daughter from the future.

[ yes, that's simple enough, isn't it? ]

...Your future daughter?

[There's no masking the disbelief in Haise's voice. It's not that he doesn't take Olivia's word for it, so much as the notion that future children would be recruited along with their parents from an earlier point in time.

What a very strange thing. But then, they've been confronted with as much from the start, hadn't they?]

My, you must be very proud then.

[To see her daughter will turn out to be such a good person]

Yes, I...

[ she realizes her folly a moment later. how inappropriate it feels to say this, as if she were staking claim somehow, when she is still quite convinced lucina is 100% her father's daughter. she struggles to cling to the words lucina herself had mentioned back at the winter ball — that others here have noted her kindness, attributed it to olivia herself.

she curls her arms a little tighter around the young girl in her arms. ]

She has grown to be far more wonderful than I could have ever hoped for.

Back home, my superiors joke about my squad being like my kids, but we're about the same age...

[And so while he's never taken issue with it, there's an element of humor about it that never goes away. Haise cares a great deal for them, but it's always been a little strange to have the suggestion that people within a few years of him in age are somehow kids he's looking after.

Granted, they've all needed to grow and mature, so that could be part of it.

His navigating fortunately assures them of a fairly quiet trek, at least, though at one point he puts an arm out in front of Olivia and tips his head to one side before heading in that direction. Course correction, if you will]

If I may ask... What was it like, seeing her grown up?

[ she follows along easily enough, remarkably not stumbling even are the sudden shift in direction, but it helps when she has such precious cargo. ]

...A bit like a dream. [ olivia's circumstances are quite difficult. the only basis she had to go on were the faint but lingering memories of her future self. ]

Truthfully, I... I never thought I would.

[ moments before finding her future self here, after all, she had been quite certain she'd taken her last steps alive. ]

Never?

[Perhaps no time soon, he'd understand that. But the idea that she expected she might never see Lucina grown is worrying. More so because of the conversations he's had with Lucina herself. The wistful manner in which she spoke of her father...]

In that case, I'm glad. A pleasant surprise is always welcome.

[They turn another corner, and large storage units come into view. The cacophony of the riots is a distant rumble here, fortunately for them]

[ olivia does not elaborate, frankly for reasons that would only bring down the mood.

luckily, the sight of the storage units bring about a small sigh of relief in her. even without haise announcing it, she can already tell they've reached their destination. ]

Shall we see about finding her a caretaker...?

[ because they both know neither will stay for very long. not when there's still all that fighting happening elsewhere. ]

[Haise nods, stealing a quick glance around even though his other senses would surely alert him first. They've seen enough oddities that he has no intention of taking any chances]

Good idea. There're a pretty good number of people there, now.

[Between Lucina's initial efforts and his own, they've been rather able people-collectors.

And once they reach the entrance to the storage unit, Olivia will be able to see that too]

[ she grows quiet once she does, her eyes quickly taking in, first, the volume of people there... and next their injuries. anxiously, she shifts the little girl in her arms. ]

Sh-Should I tend to them...?

[ she feels awkward rushing in when this isn't her operation, not like the triages back in perdition's rest. ]

If you're not feeling sapped, I'm sure people would appreciate being looked at. My healing's improved, but I lack your presence.

[Interestingly enough, something he's also told Lucina. Haise can comfort people, it'd be a lie to say he couldn't, but there's something about Olivia and in turn, her daughter, that soothes people. Gives them some confidence they wouldn't otherwise have.

He wonders if Olivia realizes that]

Presence?

[ her clear confusion is answer enough.

still, she hesitates, lingering by the doorway as her eyes trail from person to person. she worries in revealing herself, in compromising the mission, but she has made so much of her use in this team in healing... it seems wrong not to heal now when she can. ]

[Haise nods]

Yes, you and Lucina... People relax around you, like just having you around reassures them things will be okay.

[He recalls marveling at Lucina's capacity for that before. At the time he'd considered it a mark of leadership experience, but maybe there's a little something more to that]

Ah, but I've got some first aid supplies, since we can't get too flashy here.

—ah. [ she turns to him then, eyes slightly widened. ] I don't know about that...

[ then again, of course she wouldn't. the only time she ever really turns her thoughts inward is when they take a downturn. ]

It was easier to use my powers outside, when everyone was too busy to pay attention. But in here... First aid supplies would be wiser.

I've seen it for myself, more than once.

[And it seems he needs to make a point of the fact that he does in fact know. It's quite apparent to an onlooker, from his perspective.

Having said those words, he turns to collect the nearest kit from one corner of the room, inspecting its contents before he picks it up and returns to Olivia]

We're pretty well-stocked, so far.

[ more than eager to shift the conversation off of herself, olivia makes a show of looking over the kit he holds in his hands. ]

That's a relief to know, [ she sighs, holding her hands out for it. ] As for you... I would not wish to take up any more of your time. I'm sure you have many other places to be...

Edited 2017-03-20 15:07 (UTC)

I should see who else I can find, while Lucina's holding the fort here...

[He ducks his head with the thought, reminded that he should be more on-task at a time like this]

Would you mind staying with her, for a little while? I feel I've saddled her with quite a lot of responsibility, looking after so many.

[Granted it was her idea as much as anyone's but]

Of course, [ olivia intones, reaching out briefly to rest a hand upon his arm in reassurance. ] Go — we will take care of things here.

[ he is far more equipped than she (and even lucina) to handle the chaos erupting outside these walls, after all. though she wishes she could help... she knows she will at least be able to do some good here. ]

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EVENT ★ I PREDICT A RIOT

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