• This section is for roleplays only.
    ALL interest checks/recruiting threads must go in the Recruit Here section.

    Please remember to credit artists when using works not your own.

Fandom Life in a Quarantine Zone { The Last of Us 1x1 with icedthemoon }

Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

He could hear grumbles from the people in line as he handed out cards. It was a slow process, and Kaleb was also impatiently waiting as well to see Strong Arms. Kaleb continued to help each person, handing them the cards. Eventually he finally saw the one he'd been waiting for. He felt a smile tug at his face before he schooled his expression. That smile on Strong Arm's face was everything though. "Hello there" He couldn't make small talk, especially not with him. He handed the four ration cards stacked to look like two and again that slight shake of his head to indicate that he should take it and go.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

That little smile was exactly what he wanted to see. Ever since he saw it the first time, he wanted to see it again. And he wanted to talk. He wanted to get to know this man who defied the rules of everything he knew. I put his hand on the cards, but before he took them he took a chance. “So you like art. That’s good. Wanna see more?” Then he pulled the cards to himself and backed away with a wink before swiveling away and leaving. So something about it. Okay. He could do that. Tonight. He could do something about it tonight. He tossed the ration cards at Salim and plopped down at the table. He didn’t have a lot of time. “Salim. You can have most of those if you can get me some more of the spray paint. Quickly this time? I don’t want to wait forever.”
 
Last edited:
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb wasn’t expecting to hear him not only mention that Kaleb liked art but if he wanted to see more. He also wasn’t expecting the wink and that ended up causing his cheeks to flush the slightest pink. Before Kaleb could say a word, Strong Arms was gone. Off in the crowd. Kaleb had finished handing out ration cards but didn’t head back to the bunks. Dumont had put him on night patrol because he could. So Kaleb was out patrolling the border of the zone, at night. Tired and beat. He cursed under his breath as he patrolled. If he wasn’t careful he’d be out here every night.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

As much as he wanted to do The Design, the one he felt like would be the best thing he’d done yet, it wasn’t ready. He didn’t have the blue. He needed the blue or it wouldn’t be anything. So instead, he would do little things. He liked tagging. It was a harmless and beautiful prank. He could make an ugly place look a little better and he could get another one over on the people who were awful. If he did it right, it may even let the people around him have just a little bit of joy. That night, he had a thought. He had this image in his head he wanted to put on one of the main buildings. He had to do it at night otherwise too many people would be around. There was always someone guarding but only one. And this one was a pretty small design. It shouldn’t take too long if he stayed focused. He was focused but probably not enough. If he could think of something that wasn’t those beautiful Blue Eyes, it might have finished fast enough not to be seen. If he hadn’t paused so often to think about things he knew he should never do or think, he might have finished quickly. But as it was, he was slower than he’d like. When he finished, it was pretty small- maybe a could square feet. He painted green mountains and a little silhouetted person at the very top. It read “Don’t forget to dream.” Little but powerful he hoped.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb had been patrolling near where he'd first met Strong Arms. He could hear spray paint and ventured toward the sound, and curiosity tugged at him. Was this that art he'd been talking about? Was he really the one who'd been putting the paintings on buildings. Kaleb caught sight of a man leaving, and he could tell automatically who it was. Strong Arms. Kaleb knew he should go after him, it was what they were trained to do, but he didn't. Instead he moved over to see the small painting. It was beautiful, rolling green mountains and a person up at the top. The words struck something in Kaleb. Dreams. What were dreams? Dreams were things that people had to cling to when they needed something. He had dreams himself, leaving the zone and FEDRA. Of course if he did that, he'd be a fugitive and never able to show up in a quarantine zone again. If he left and came back, it would be the end for him. So if he did leave, he'd have to find somewhere that wasn't associated with FEDRA, or just survive on his own for the rest of his life. It was scary, it was unknown and he didn't have the courage to do that. Kaleb finished his rounds that night as the sun came up. Dumont had been kind enough to give him the day off. Once he laid down in his bed, he was out like a light. Dreams of Strong Arms, of the painting, of being free flowed through his mind. He ended up sleeping half the day and woke up near evening. Kaleb noticed that again, he was on night patrol. Great. Figures. And so he got up, ignoring the hunger in his stomach since he had lost his ration cards as punishment, and started his patrol as night set.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Carlos was known around the QZ as the number one troublemaker of the troublemaking group. He didn’t get into fights or anything. That was Basira. She was far more hotheaded than he ever could be. He knew better than to pick fights even if he was strong enough to probably figure out how to win them. No, he was number one, because he was seen as their leader. In a way, he was. If he told them to settle down and stop being a nuisance for a while, the other three agreed. If he told Salim to lay off the broadcasts because the officers were getting suspicious, Salim nodded and didn’t make any more. He was not their oldest. He was not their youngest. He was average, but he was average with a vision. A vision that was going to change the world. Yes, Carlos was the culprit of the tagging around the QZ. It was one of his favorite mediums. He created art of all sizes and about all things. Sometimes they were messages to the citizens and sometimes they were messages to the officers. Usually one could tell by the message itself. He didn’t like to do anything vulgar or too horrible. He didn’t think of himself as a bad person. He was just a… troubled person, and his trouble was the part where he was being held back by a system that was not working.

So, as Carlos walked away, he happened to look back in time to see someone moving over to look at the small painting. Was that Blue Eyes? It was late, he was tired, and he could not be sure. Oh, no, he could be sure. He knew that body. He had drawn that body too many times to not know him when he was there. Was he looking at the art? Even though he had a feeling that this was a good sign, that this guy was not about to running off to push for a punishment, Carlos was still a little afraid. Or maybe he was afraid about something else. Did Blue Eyes like his art? The confidence of his words earlier was gone and entirely replaced for his immense fear. What did that mean if this guy liked his art? What did it mean if he liked that he liked it?

The next night, he was back at it. Salim told him that he was going to have his highly specific blue soon, but it wasn’t there yet. Tomorrow. Okay, he could work with tomorrow. He needed one more day to make sure it was perfect. He needed one more night to see if he was right. So he did another one. This one was a little bit bigger than the last. This one had a lot more color. It was like a kaleidoscope or stained glass effect of a face. Of course, he knew what face he was doing, but it was so fractured and full of colors that weren’t the color that he doubted anyone else would know. This could be any person. This was how he saw him. It took more time, and he had to be careful when he got into his art. Sometimes the rest of the world disappeared when he was like this. But he had to do it. And as he finished, he smiled, because this was good. Not he needed to stick around to see if Blue Eyes was going to come looking. He disappeared into the shadows and waited.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb was tired, he was hungry and he was little grumpy tonight. Kaleb never let his grumpiness effect how he worked, it wasn't fair to his officers. Though the groan of annoyance in his voice as he got up from his bunk was a clear sign. His group was still awake, and they gave him looks of pity but he waved it off. "I'm fine, keep up the peaceful work." He muttered before he headed out of the bunkhouse. Kaleb started his patrol on the far side, shooing a few people back to their sleeping quarters. He kept walking, patrolling, and he felt himself moving slower than normal. Kaleb had been a little later getting to the spot where he'd seen the other art. He was back in the same area again and something vibrant caught his eye. Another piece of art with a beautiful stained glass effect of a face. Kaleb stopped, looking at it, studying it. Admiring it. It made his night better and when he did continue on, he had his natural gait. He wasn't moving so slow and mopey, and his grumpiness had vanished. Like the art sucked it all away and he was left with only happiness.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

“This is a bad idea.” Jade being cynical.
“No, this is a terrible idea.” Basira being jaded.
“I think it’s sweet.” Thank you Salim for being the only supportive person in this whole world.

Carlos slapped the paper on the desk with a giddy grin. This was happening. It was really happening. He couldn’t wait for the night though. Salim’s questionable contact brought him the blue spray paint early that morning, and now this was all he wanted to do. He should work for ration cards. He should be a good citizen. He really shouldn’t do this big mural, but the world was boring, everything was horrible, and he knew this was what he was meant to do. It felt right.

“Can’t you at least wait until night? We could come with you to stand-“
“Nope. It has to be now. I need to be able to see it. So, I’m going to need a distraction.” He smiled at the girls who stared back at him with the biggest disdain he had ever witnessed. Oh, but they were in. Neither of them and their beautiful arms could say no to a good fight.

The plan was to start a fight but not just any fight. The plan was to have one of those really big ones where literally everyone was fighting literally everyone. Basira and Jade were good at those as the resident fire starters. If they could keep everyone busy for long enough, then he should have plenty of time, especially since Salim was feeling better and could be useful. He would be lookout. He wasn’t much of a fighter, and he would certainly not know how to help with the mural, but he could at least tell Carlos when they were about to be found out. He chose a large wall of an old building that was not likely to be torn down soon. He wanted this to last for a while. He wanted it to be something everyone was going to look at. And he wanted it to be something that Blue Eyes looked at. He for sure liked the art. He watched how it changed his movements from the night before. This was going to change everything too. He set up and he waited for the aggressor girls to run off to pick the biggest fight they’d picked in a while before he started. This would be all the colors. This would have everything. And the central point was going to be this blue. This blue would rule it like a king. He was going to use this spray paint create a watercolor painting.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb had made it to the bunkhouse that morning, ready to drop and sleep. He managed about an hour of sleep when an officer came running in. "Sir! Sir! All officers are to help with a huge fight" Kaleb groaned and rolled over, up and off the bed. "Alright I'm going" He said, following the other officer out. He could hear the shouting all the way from the bunkhouses. Just what was going on? Kaleb had a bad feeling that Strong Arms was behind this. He made his way to the fight, helping to break it up when he heard the faint sound of spray paint. Of course. Distraction. Kaleb worked his way through the fight, picking people apart as he moved. The sound grew more distinct. Kaleb left the fight behind a few moments later, walking toward the sound like he was in a trance.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

It was an explosion. That was what he was creating. This entire wall was exploding with colors. Every color he could find or obtain from most definitely illegal sources. Every color he could mix together before the paint dried. He needed it to gradient while still feeling like the explosion of light. He needed it to scream excitement and joy. This was joy. This was everything that he stood for. He added in the black between and around the color to create subtle fractals. He mixed it in for the shading. He got his hands so dirty that if he wasn’t able to run from this before someone caught on, there would be no question. He would be caught rainbow handed. Last to add was the blue. The blue at the center that then radiated throughout the entire painting. It emulated the sun shining but instead of yellow, it was blue. He went through and added it to all of that shading. He cast it like the light that it was. Everything got just a little blue washed. He stepped back to look at it. It felt like it was missing something. After all that planning, he was missing something. He frowned in frustration. What was missing?
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb looked around, not sure exactly where he was headed anymore. The sounds of paint had vanished. He knew he'd gotten close but he didn't known how close. It's hard to follow a sound that isn't there anymore. Kaleb kept walking in the direction he'd been walking in. Kaleb looked around, not sure what he was looking for at all. His footsteps echoed around the now silent street as he'd moved away from the fighting. Kaleb wasn't even sure what he was looking for, all he knew was that he was tired and curious about what new artwork he'd see from Strong Arms.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

“Carlos,” Salim pleaded. “You need to hurry up. I don’t hear as much of the fighting anymore.”
“Give me a second, Salim. I’m so close. But I can’t leave it like this.” He held both of his hands on his hips as he stared at this giant wall of pain. He was running out of time. Go with your gut, Carlos. Do what feels right. Get your hands dirty. He grabbed one of the bottles and sprayed his hand. And then he did it again. And again. He rubbed it in. Okay. Let’s do this. With his hands now their own kaleidoscope of color, he began to dash quick lines across the wall. Don’t think. Just do. He let the curve of his hand dictate the shape.
“Carlos.” Salim’s voice was rising in panic. “I think I hear someone coming. We’ve gotta move.”
“I’m so close,” he breathed through gritted teeth as he leaned against the wall, working the pain in exactly as it needed to be.
“Carlos-“
“Go.” He didn’t even look up. “I’m almost done. Thank you for your help. Go and don’t look back.” Finally he tore his gaze away from his work and smiled at his friend. “Get out of here before they catch me. I’ll be right along in a moment.”
Salim wanted to question this. Refute it. He could tell from the way his face sagged. But he did as he was told. He stood up, looked at the art, nervously looked around, and ran.
Carlos was so close. Little silhouette scenes on the bottom he hoped could convey the rest of the message he wrote at the top with his primarily black but occasionally colorful letters. “NO MORE WAR”
 
Last edited:
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

As Kaleb drew closer, he heard footsteps racing off and headed that way. He wasn't sure if he'd actually see Strong Arms, or if he'd find a piece of art in its place. Kaleb walked further down, before he saw color at the side of his vision. And there was Strong Arms, hands covered in paint standing by a mural, a huge one that Kaleb couldn't help but look at. "Well. What do we have here?" He asked, his voice still that stern tone, yet his blue eyes sparkled with humor. The mural was gorgeous. Kaleb walked closer, turning and looking at it.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

The little silhouettes of people were fractured on the very edges. They conveyed visions of hurt and pain. People bent over, holding up their hands, sitting lazily. The heavy lines of dark broke across them. But as they neared the center, the places more heavily washed by the blue, the silhouettes had a far better fate. People together, waving. Climbing little mountains of color. One even hung off the edge of the R in ‘War’ that made it slightly askew. This was good. This was what he wanted to say. This was exactly what it was supposed to be. That blue is what made it. That blue was what kept the war from breaking them. In fact- wait. Almost done. He brought the blue back up and covered ‘War.’ Not completely of course. Just to show that this azure light was overcoming that. That’s when it was done.

He gasped at the sound of words behind him. He spun around quickly, afraid of who it was that caught him. He knew it was coming. He knew in sending Salim away, he was risking himself. But he had to finish. He would never be complete without finishing this. He stared at Blue Eyes who was looking at his mural. Was he angry? Was it not to his liking? Was he about to get in a whole heck of a lot of trouble? No, he was past being weird and awkward around this guy. He was over it. So what if he was an officer? This was probably wrong, but also, what could ever be more right?

“Hey, Blue Eyes.” And that just came out. Great. Well, too late now. “Come to see the next installation?” If he was going to be in trouble, he might as well own it. He rubbed his hands together before turning to look at the word. He did good if he did say so himself.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb had been focusing on the mural before he turned his head to look at Strong Arms. His lip quirked up in a faint smile. “Blue Eyes?” He asked with a little chuckle. He’d had a lot of nicknames but never that one. He turned his head back to the mural, taking in the little details, all the small people but everything was washed in a layer of blue. But the most prominent thing that stood out was the blue over the word WAR. “I had a feeling it was you leaving those paintings, but I have to say, this one is the best I’ve seen so far.” Kaleb mentioned. “You know, this could get you in a lot of trouble.” He added, gaze flicking from the mural to Strong Arms and back.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Carlos was practically sweating standing there, pretending like all of this was super normal and not at all the most terrifying thing he had ever done. Not the mural. He painted all sorts of things across the QZ. No, the scary part was having his most favorite officer who was also very much his muse looking over his work. His best work. Oh, wait, Blue Eyes thought that too? He could feel the flutter in his chest spread until it was a death grip. He didn’t just like this. He seemed to like really like it. That was also terrifying. And wait wait wait did he just say so far? As in he’d seen the others and was aware of them all being his and also wanting to see more? That was… that was crazy. Absolutely crazy. OFFICER OF FEDRA, CARLOS. This was bad. This was so bad. But it felt so right. So right. Nothing in his whole life ever felt as right as this moment. “Why, Officer Price, I am honored to have your attention.” He looked back at the work with new appraising eyes. “Yeah, I guess it could, but would you have it any other way?” Then he stepped away, bending down to pick up all the different paints. Salim was kind enough to take as much as he could hold with him. He turned to Blue Eyes, unsure. Did he want to go? No. He really didn’t. He should before he got himself into any bigger trouble. So what was he going to do about it? Because this worked out relatively well. He didn’t know. He had no idea what his next plan of action was going to be. This was a far wilder ride than he was expecting.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb looked at Strong Arms when he spoke. It was weird again, hearing him say that. Calling him officer Price. It felt wrong, so wrong. He hated it. Why? Why should he hate that? It should be normal to hear the man call him officer Price. Kaleb shook his head as he looked at Strong Arms. “Most people try not to have an officers attention here. And if I’m being honest, I wouldn’t have any other way no.” Kaleb told him, that small smile creeping on his face. He watched as the man went over and collected his paints. “I can give you enough time to get away.” Kaleb said, telling him that basically he’d make sure that the man got away without punishment.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

He stared at him for a long time. Bewildered. What was happening right now? How was this going so well, and why was that worse? Why was that better? That smile. That small little smile was going to actually be the death of him. He needed to go. He needed to take this out that this FEDRA guy so graciously gave him and run. But he didn’t move. He couldn’t leave when he was so close to something great. With his paints in his arms and a grin that probably made him look like he was either high or possibly stupid. “I like having your attention.” He took one step back, still staring at him like he was so prone to doing. Okay, he could go now. “See you around, Blue Eyes.” He flicked his gaze one last time towards the mural then turned and ran off to hide the evidence and hopefully clean away his sins.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb watched as the man stared at him. He was quite expecting that grin on Strong Arm’s face. It was actually rather endearing and Kaleb found it adorable. He liked having Kaleb’s attention? That made this weird feeling increase in his chest. Kaleb watched as he walked away. “See you.” Kaleb said softly. He watched him walk away. Kaleb turned himself, looking at the mural one more time before he headed back to the bunkhouse. When he made it to his bed, he found his ration cards back and he was back on demolition guard tomorrow morning. Kaleb stayed awake for a while before he went up and got his ration, ate it, and he returned at night and slept, thinking of the mural and of Strong Arm’s eyes and just him.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Returning to that little room was easy. It was when he walked through the front door that the whole world seemed to explode. He was bombarded by questions from Salim who wanted to know everything like how he managed to get away with his life and also all of the paint. Carlos could hardly say anything, because all he could see in his mind was that little smile and those haunting eyes. He fell onto their couch and sank in never to move again. Jade and Basira weirdly enough were able to get back late that night. Apparently they were able to throw the blame on some other people enough to get away with not being far more severely punished. Ration cards were gone, but Carlos didn’t even care. He pointed to Salim who had his larger pile and stayed right there daydreaming for hours. Finally, he fell asleep and dreamed of the person behind the officer mask.

Next day meant that he was back to work. He could stir up more trouble in a couple of days when the excitement died down. As he passed the mural, he looked up to marvel like any other passerby. He watched the reactions of different people. The awe and the disgust. He listened to the cranky guards who all speculated that it was him but had nothing to prove it. He was clean of the paint on his person. That took much effort but was so worth it. Finally he picked up his job. That stupid theater. It probably still had another couple of days on it before it was done. He made his way down and could not help but look for Blue Eyes. He’d been there every other day.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb had woken up that day, his mind still filled with images of the mural and of that man, with his grin. Kaleb rubbed his face, shaking himself awake. He got up off the bunk and adjusted his uniform. The officer headed out of the bunk house and made his way back to the theater. He was unfortunately with Dumont again. Kaleb hated working with him, but today he was too busy looking for Strong Arms. He heard Dumont step up to his side.

“Did you hear about that mural down the way?” He asked, arms crossed. Kaleb shook his head. “No. No I didn’t. Do we know who did it?” Kaleb asked him. Dumont huffed and shook his head. “No but I bet it’s that trouble maker that was staring at you.” He said. Kaleb shrugged. “Could be. Could be anyone.” He said, and Dumont rolled his eyes and walked off. Kaleb started walking around the site, looking for Strong Arms without thinking about it.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

It took him too long to find him. Granted, it probably wasn’t very long at all, but he so desperately wanted to find him. He wanted to see him and talk to him. He wanted to inquire on his every thought about every piece of art he’d seen around this godforsaken QZ. He rehearsed a million different things that he could day, but the second that he saw him, they all flew away and he was left with literally nothing. He probably shouldn’t start talking to him from across the the zone, so he tried to find some surreptitious route that somehow managed to get him in the same path but not look like he was exactly trying to get to him. He didn’t seen Scowl anywhere, so maybe he was safe at least for now. “Mornin’ Blue Eyes,” he greeted with a grin. “Heard someone made a whole big mural. Isn’t that just something else?” And he slowly kept walking so that he could look like he was moving on if Officer Cranky Pants came by.
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb had been walking through when his eyes caught on Strong Arms across the zone. He wanted to talk to him, and he didn’t know why. He shouldn’t want to, shouldn’t even think about it. He was making his rounds and suddenly he heard Strong Arms and he looked to see the man walking by. “Yeah. It was definitely something.” Kaleb agreed. “Definitely caught the attention of the guards.” Kaleb added.
 
Carlos Da Silva
Trouble-Making Citizen | 23 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Carlos struggled to bite his tongue and not laugh at the irony of their exchange. “Well, that seems pretty silly of whoever did it, don’t you think? Wonder why he would want to do that.” He kept moving forward but still slowly so that he could easily look back over his shoulder and keep talking. “Seems to me like you should stop those kinds of crazy radicals in here. Can’t have them spreading anything like that.”
 
Kaleb Price
High-Ranking FEDRA officer | 25 | Current location ;; Denver Quarantine Zone

Kaleb couldn’t help the small chuckle that slipped out. Fortunately they seemed to be kind of an alone, or at least Dumont wasn’t around to see or hear them. “I have no idea why he’d want to get their attention. I’ll have to try and work on getting these radicals out.” Kaleb said, his eyes watching the man before him completely, even as he kept walking by.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top