epidemiology | [EVENT POST] I FEEL STUPID, AND CONTAGIOUS.

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[EVENT POST] I FEEL STUPID, AND CONTAGIOUS.

CHARACTERS: Open to all!
DATE: 3/11-3/12, ICly
WARNINGS: Zombie attacks? Violence? Shopping???
SUMMARY: Lockdown at the mall! Grab your CDs and your soft pretzel, it's about to get bad.

LET'S GO TO THE MALL

LOCKDOWN

Business has been rough for Woodhurst Shopping Center ever since riots and unrest about the Bristol Virus have shunned most to their homes. Perhaps ill-advisedly, in attempts to draw a few more customers back into the polished halls of the grandest shopping experience Woodhurst has to offer, a weekend of big sales, great bargains, and fun family activities was widely advertised in the Woodhurst Watch. There was even a scheduled public concert, performed by the University Choir.

The turnout was smaller than hoped, yet the air was quite optimistic. Shoppers enjoyed the day of activities and fun, and the sense of security was bolstered by the increased security detail. There was even some members of the press on hand to document this return to normality in a troubled time. Everything was going well, until a scene broke out in the food court.

Security tried to quietly remove members of the choir that suddenly seemed to snap, plowing into one of the food stands and starting to feed on raw meat. However, a good handful of them escaped instant confinement, and while many of the visitors fled the mall as soon as they could, soon Police Detail arrived and put the entire building on lockdown. Nobody in and nobody out until the situation was resolved.

18:00 TO 23:00 HOURS

Anyone unlucky enough to be trapped in the mall is left to their own devices, with very little knowledge to go on. This includes many civilians, as well as a small number of Audentes agents. This also includes a small number of infected, more than just the university choir. There's a voice over the loudspeaker imploring people to hide in stores, barricade doors, and stay put until help arrives.

The majority of the infected seem to linger in the Food Court especially. Bad news for anyone trapped and starting to get hungry as the hours pass by, without any obvious assistance from the outside. The members of ALASTAIR have a choice, help protect or just do their best to avoid the infected themselves. Characters can get into the Security Office for a camera feed on what is happening in the mall, and potentially use it as a base of operations to work from.

00:00 TO 02:00 HOURS

It becomes apparent that the number of infected in the mall are somehow increasing, despite the lockdown. It means that those that have squirreled away into stores and outlets are growing less and less safe as infected numbers multiply and they begin attacking barricades. To make matters worse, anyone that hasn't found cover will find the infected extremely reactive, and willing to give chase around the mall.

The security feed indicates the infected seem to be coming in from the Parking Garage. Investigation will reveal a sewer outlet on the bottom floor. Characters will have to decide whether they should utilize the tunnel as a means of escape, or if sealing it off would ultimately leave the remaining hours of lockdown a little less violent.

04:00 TO 09:00 HOURS

It's been an agonizing 12 hours, and with surprisingly little aide from the outside. With time to make preparations and put plans in place, now it's time to end this lockdown once and for all. Audentes is tasked with neutralizing the remaining infected as well as escorting any remaining civilians to safety, by any means they decide on.

It is up to Audentes to decide how the end of this event plays out, be it removing or otherwise drawing away the lingering infected, or putting them down once and for all. There are plenty of civilians that have been bitten and attacked, leaving the question in the air as to whether they are infected as well. What should be done with those that could be bringing the virus back to their families? The team is going to have to decide on the answer to that.

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I would ask you not spread it around. It is, as I understand, not quite, ah... Appreciated. Amongst the others.

And perhaps, once this mission is over, we might seek one another out? It was quite pleasant speaking with you, Giovanni.

You're assuming they'll remember anything at all, and even more-so, assuming they'll find a way to cure the virus.

So they are. I hadn't intended to be here when it happened, but it seems I am and that there's quite little to be done about it.

And I chose to stay out here because I didn't wish to find a dirty, smelly place to lock myself into. I'm rather confident in my ability to keep myself safe, you see, and thus don't find it entirely necessary to seek refuge elsewhere.

Yeah, that's a good point...I still keep forgetting about stuff like that.

[More chagrined, now, because it's true. Foresight and planning aren't Shizuo's stronger suits by a long stretch, most of the time--if a problem can be solved by punching it down, it's what he generally opts to do first, without much further thought put into it. But it's the little things like these, reminding him that this is a sort of situation that requires a bit more delicacy...a bit more looking ahead.

He's not sure if he's ever going to reach a point where it becomes a habit, instead of a realization halfway through. But in the meantime, at least, he finds himself surrounded by smarter friends who remind him time and time again--and Haise certainly ranks among them, exactly for reasons like these.

Peering down at the growing pile between them, Shizuo picks up one of them, turning it over in his hand.]

Mind if I borrowed a few of these? Mostly I've just been knocking out people, but I guess that still doesn't exactly solve the problem in the long run. When they wake up again...

[Ah, truly a new world has opened up...HE ISN'T READY.......

As is evident by the way he struggles to answer the kids' eager questions, before Riza finally does step in. It's a combination of both, really--he's still far more used to being feared than admired, by a long shot--and he's also still a terrible off-the-cuff liar who may or may not have already completely forgotten Riza's earlier suggestion to act like an actor in a movie or something.

Riza ends up coming to the rescue just in the nick of time, at least, and the children aren't the only one staring at her as she recounts......an actually more or less accurate summary of their current mission in Woodhurst on the whole, here. Shizuo blinks at her mildly incredulously, but apparently the kids see no flaw whatsoever in this riveting explanation, so that's probably a good thing...

Aah, but now they're still asking for his autograph...man, and he was just joking about autographs earlier too, way to jinx himself. Shizuo is heaving a very deep internal sigh about now, but he only lets himself look as hapless as he's currently feeling for a few more moments, before...well, alright. Fine. If it's only for a few minutes--and this is the angle Riza wants to take--he'll go ahead and run with it, he guesses. Okay, how does Kasuka deal with his smaller fans again...? ...Like--]

[Shizuo breaks into a wide smile--decidedly at odds with the smaller smiles he tends to slip into very sparingly and mostly on accident--and leans down closer to the childrens' level, planting his hands on his knees.]

Ah, an autograph? Well, I guess I could risk it just once, since it's for you guys. [He drops his voice, equally conspiratorial as he presses a finger to his lips in a hushing motion:] But you've gotta promise to try your best to keep this a secret, okay? We're undercover right now, so it's real important to be sneaky.

[He's regarded with wide eyes and eager nodding.] Okay, we promise! [And this earns a wider smile in turn.] Hey, thanks. Alright, now I've got your promises--huh, I haven't got a pen right now...have you guys got anything to write with? [The girl raises her hand excitedly.] Yeah! I've got, um, I have my crayon... [Which she proceeds to pull out of one of her pockets; green, and more of a stub at this point, but Shizuo accepts it cheerily.] Wow, you guys are prepared for anything, huh?

[He looks up at Riza.] Uh, got any paper or something else that can get written on...?

[Maya yes]

[HUFFS]

Or we could remember that those people are still people, we're fighting to save them, and there's got to be another way!

[She wanted to believe.... but he poses a very good point, one that Maya has to grudgingly accept]

...Yeah, I guess you're right. There's nothing more embarrassing than getting the munchies... and realizing you want to chomp on someone's arm or something.

[She tried!!! To be optimistic!!! But Shizuo ruined that, so now he has to live with his regrets and also women's lingerie flying everywhere. Still, the zombie hoard, interested in frilly panties and nightgowns or not, is no match for the one man army (plus arm mall GPS) and it's like a scene out of the world's best (or worst) action movie. Hangups about snowball wars aside, this is probably the coolest guy Maya's ever met in her life.]

...Maybe it's not much for armour, but I never expected it to be this handy!

[And he's still counting on her to help him? What could she possibly contribute to this??]

---I'm on it, Mr. Heiwajima! Get ready to jump!

[The stop sign gives her an idea, actually, she manages to grab her other skate without falling off her armperch, aims and then throws it with all the force she can muster at a rack of half off bras right near the the pair up ahead. Luckily, the rack is light enough that it tips over, making them both stumble. Shizuo's path is slightly more clear, and Maya lets out a triumphant whoop and starts trying to dislodge more of her 90s coverings]

[Funny, up until a few minutes ago, she'd been terrified (despite the bravado), but even though they're both still surrounded by infected and basically bumrushing through a hoard of flesh-eating maniacs, that feeling is evaporating so quickly, that for the first since this mission started, she stops feeling small and helpless]

Oh, all viruses mutate. It's how they survive, just like anything else. [Fugo waves a hand, a little flippant.] But I don't think the Bristol virus is volatile enough to change that much this quickly. Maybe if humans were more resistant to it. It's an interesting process, but it takes time.

No, I think outside infected are getting inside the building. I don't know where and I don't know how, but it's the most reasonable way I can think of to explain their numbers.

[Wylan tries to be a good person, but that doesn't mean he's willing to drag someone who clearly doesn't want to go to safety along with him at risk of his own safety. He raises an eyebrow slightly when Loki expresses his confidence. He can't be planning on tripping everything that gets in his way.]

You are? How are you going to keep safe? You might be the only target out here soon...

Oh, rest assured. You're secret's safe with me. Hahah.

[He understands, after all. The desires are still thick and heavy in him, to rip and tear and maim, and yes he's making an effort to abide by the group mentality, but that certainly doesn't mean he'll enforce it in anyone else.]

And I'd be glad to. It makes a change, let me tell you, to find someone with whom I appear to share at least a little common ground.

[Wylan nods. He's not a biologist, isn't about to question Fugo's facts about the virus. He still feels like there's so much about the virus he doesn't know, every day he seems to learn more worrying facts about it.]

If they're finding a way in, that means we could find a way out.

[Fugo is very tense when Feferi takes his hand; he's not good with strangers to begin with and being exhausted at the end of a very stressful day isn't helping it. His shoulders twitch when, out of nowhere and from nothing, he feels an almost ghostly sensation of his hands being submerged in water. He flexes his hand when Feferi releases it and flexes his fingers, half-expecting flecks of water to fall to the floor.]

They're only bruises. As far as injuries go, they're incredibly minor. [Still. He obediently forks over his other hand, watching intently as the ache and color of his bruises fade.] ... thanks.

Hey, they're all yours.

[That's exactly what Haise brought them out for. He's got a pretty decent collection on him for the moment, and it turns out that was a lucky buy since all hell broke loose before he got around to anything else. Lucky for them, the infected aren't as strong as ghouls are, and don't come with the added appendages either. It'd be much harder to contain them then]

Knocking them out is a good start, at least they'll be out for a while.

[And that surely grants them plenty of time to get things under control. Well, so long as they don't waffle too much. They're also not the only ones here, which is good news given the size of this place. If they'd been by themselves, the sheer numbers might've been overwhelming despite just how strong the two of them are]

[You have literally no room to talk, Sipp.

Also, RIP that SNES, they knew it well. Perhaps one day they can come back for it, give it the proper burial it deserves, but for now, they have more important things to discuss. Like how has the modern day child with extensive knowledge of video gaming systems has never held a baseball bat in her hands before. Maya, please.

Thankfully there's less judgment this time as Riza steps forward to grab the fallen bat before passing it to Maya. (She would have tossed it to complete this ~cool action montage~ but Maya probably would have just dropped it, lbr.)]

It's easy enough. Just swing it hard until you hit something. It should be enough to stun someone, if not knock them out.

[Though if she's going to test it out and hit someone, please make it that zombie guy shuffling into view through the window and not like....Riza.]

[Look, they're kids, who's gonna believe them if they start spouting stories about aliens and zombie viruses and people from different planets. (No one, unfortunately. She's never had kids of her own but she's been around Elicia enough times to know.)

More importantly though—she's completely taken aback by Shizuo's transformation from quiet and reluctant bartender to effusive wannabe actor, more than willing to make small children's dreams come try with a few simple flicks of his wrist. It's certainly a sight to see, and she wishes she had some way to record the event and keep it for posterity. (No video camera, alas, but maybe—she reaches up to twist once at a ring hanging off a chain around her neck before tucking the chain back under the collar of her shirt.)

She's still largely in awe as Shizuo asks her for a stray piece of paper, and stays silent as she digs through her wallet for something she won't need later. It ends up being a business card, boring and stodgy but with a nice empty back for Shizuo to write on.]

Will that work?

[Otherwise he could totally go the route of wild concert fans and sign the boy's t-shirt....not that such an idea ever dawns on her.]

[ She reaches out to test the door handle...

...It doesn't budge. (She's sure there's got to be a camera trained on the area here, and doesn't dare try anything as potentially incriminating as summoning a giant key-sword.)

With a grim shake of her head, ] I'm afraid it's locked.

[ Unless he's got the tools to pick it, it'll be lost time for them to stand around here... ]

[Sans' leans back on his heels, his grin taking a turn for the pleasantly surprised. It looks the same as most of his grins, sure, but get to know him a little better and the distinction is clear.]

A freeze pop? Well ain't you sweet. [He eyes up the bones, then eyes up Shizous offer.] ... You wanna just bring 'em with us?

[Well, that cleared things up. Sans shrugs again.]

And how much of that is travel time, kiddo?

[Sans takes a beat, letting the kid finish his thought. He keeps the bar outheld, waggling it enticingly.]

I don't think we're going to have that problem, you n' me. I'm not big on fluids. Not even a very good swimmer.

[Vague? Certainly.]

If you're so nervous though, you can bite the other end.

[well EXCUSE HIM spincess.]

I can work with that.

[In the first moment, Sans lets the bone wall surrounding the zombies disappear, leaving only crumbled floor tile behind. In the next, everything goes black. There's no real warning, aside from the brief sensation of falling.

But it is brief, and in the next moment Peter would see... the southside. Not exactly beside the garage, but about what his vague estimate could afford. As if an afterthought, Sans erects another wall around the disoriented infected. A few beads of sweat start at his forehead.]

Whaddya know, guess it was closer than we thought.

[Well, that's a salient observation. Sans' perpetual smile shifts slightly, downgrading a few degrees in intensity despite inching up in fondness.]

Heh, well... we're monsters.

[It's not much of an explanation, at least not to someone who wasn't of their species. Here, surrounded by humans and organics, with only four of their race present... it's oddly grounding. A cultural touchstone that only they would understand.]

Just our way.

That's right. And if we can find and secure an exit, we can maybe start the process of escorting civilians out of here. [Fugo's eyebrows come together in a scowl; he doesn't like that the official solution to this crisis was "lock everyone inside with a large group of rabid infected". And then they don't even have the ability to maintain a secure perimeter. Police! Totally incompetent, as per usual. He tosses his head, physically shaking his thoughts out of the way, and shoulders his bag.] So that's something to look out for while we're on the ground floor.

[Very quickly, Fugo's expression shifts from annoyed and distantly embarrassed to ... not much all, really. The frustrated wrinkle between his eyebrows and irritated set of his mouth smooth out, leaving behind a flat expression that's difficult to read.

Express yourself. That, more than anything else, is what reminds Fugo that Mettaton honestly has no idea what he's talking about. So what's the point of getting angry about it? He doesn't have the energy to. Even if he did, it's never been safe to let himself indulge in that feeling.]

Sure. Whatever. [He shoulders his bag, preparing to leave.] You're sticking around to maintain this area, right? If you are, I'll direct anyone who needs to rest to this storefront.

[He's. Some kind of thug, alright.

Fugo bends down and hooks his arms underneath the guy's armpits. He's ... totally going to regret this, isn't he.]

Okay, on three. One-- two-- three! [Oh, yeah. He already regrets this. Unconscious bodies are heavy. Time to scurry backwards towards the sunglasses stand...]

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[EVENT POST] I FEEL STUPID, AND CONTAGIOUS.

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1/2 oh my god congrats riza...u get to witness Akane Mode, a rare sight

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i'm still not over this, i hope you know

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