Futuristic The Crimson Death: Main

[Gears]

Eddie Gears

Eddie Gears clung to the side of the waste disposal truck, watching the bustling streets of New Manhattan. Luckily, there was few traffic other than a few bikers. Automobiles were not common in the fractured states, but bicycles and other small modes of transportation dominated the streets. Eddie double checked the straps on the gas mask he wore, his priority being to conceal his identity in the likely event that Jesse was on patrol.

When he had began working for Lucas: the leader of New Manhattan’s gang in return for shelter and equipment for his lab, he hadn’t known that Jesse had been in the settlement, no less as the police deputy. So he had began wearing the gas mask whenever around strangers.

The mask was military issue, with a few modifications he made. Sure enough, his sister passed by the truck in her patrol vehicle, unaware that the brother that she had left for dead was within arms reach.

Jesse Gears and Damien Edison
Jesse drove the patrol car through Main Street of New Manhattan, approaching the towering walls. She passed a waste disposal vehicle, likely returning from a body dump. New Manhattan might one of the more civilized communities in the fractures states, but even they suffered from small outbreaks of the virus.

The numbers fluctuated, this months being one of the worst. Around fifty people had died that month, but the waste disposal had taken care of them. With the news of survivors near the gates, Damien has waned to welcome them into their community.

Jesse was against the idea, but Damien was stubborn so she had to accompany him to the meeting. Jesse pulled the radio from her pocket and said “Are any officers in the area? Governor is heading to the wall and we need more protection.”

Jesse listened to the radio, dismayed that only Sullivan was available. She sighed and called him in, knowing that despite her apprehensions about him, she needed backup.

 

[Aegis]

Aiden Sullivan
New Manhattan, Downtown
​

A grim man hankered for his next release as he sat in the window of his patrol car— it was lowered about halfway and filled with Aiden’s arm up to elbow clutching an orange-hot cigarette between two fingers. In his right hand, the culprit for starting the fire, a rust-bitten Zippo lighter, he had in his possession since god knows when; The Cop absently flicked the lid open and shut with a metallic whine and click. The balaclava over his face was rolled up just over his chin and mouth allowing for him to purse his lips around the end of the cig and draw that delicious nicotine into his system without interruption, but secretly it was because he was always ready for the next moment he would have to act— the next moment he would do something that required him to be anonymous.

The patrol car? No, not every schmuck on the street had one, but he did. The Smokes? Pre-fall, premium, Marlboro Reds that you bet your ASS not everyone has either. How did a lowly Police Sergeant have all these things? Connections. In terms of his vehicle, he was about as well-off as the Governor or that new washed-up excuse of a Deputy that had taken his place. That— that was experience. That… was fucking power.

Aiden’s radio rose up in a static crackle from the silence of an otherwise peaceful day. They needed him, but god he didn’t want to go. Wait—

Aiden listened and he recognized the voice, Jesse Gears. Okay. He’ll bite. After all, this is bound to be something interesting enough to spend some time on. If he got the chance, Jesse may be someone worth earning some brownie points with…

The Cop reached out and snatched the hand-mic from its stand on the console, “ Uh, Roger that, Deputy. Officer Sullivan responding to request for additional security.”

Sullivan pulled the N95 face mask over his mouth before lowering the balaclava over that. Dropping his lighter into the passenger’s seat, The Cop cranked the car to life as he put her in drive and took the car over the curb. The road was more or less open before him as no bicyclist or busy pedestrian would dare stray in front of this relic of the past. His cruiser swung around a corner and made way for the Main Street— a sign on the edge of the sidewalk promising a fine of ration cards for littering. Heh, Aiden crushed out the butt of the cigarette on his plate carrier and then tossed it into the street.

Aiden punched out of a side street onto the main road just beside Gears’s cruiser almost T-boning her, but missed last second on behalf of his intentionally trying to scare her. Sullivan’s cruiser tail whipped a few times sending up smoke and the squeal of rubber tires as the car swung left and right of Jesse’s vehicle like a shark in pursuit of prey. Eventually, he leveled out just behind her— a fierce glint of sunlight cutting off of his visor and providing an almost supernatural sharpness to the blunt focus in his eyes as he called over the radio, “ Right behind you, Deputy. “

( Gears )​

 

[Miaow]

/* ------ start of code -- no need to touch ------ */

/* ------ text box ------ */

Hoàng Mai Chu

After witnessing the death of her family, Chu is now travelling to New Manhatten with her horse, Teddy. There is a hidden scroll on my post!

/* ------ credit -- do not remove ------ */

© weldherwings.

The sun was beating down in what was left of the Bronx, beads of sweat forming on Chu's forehead. Her hands felt clammy, slipping on Teddy's reins. The only relief she could find was taking her riding gloves off. She could cope with a bit of sunburn on the backs of her hands, but she couldn't fathom exposing any more skin than that. She tilted her head down, the wide brim of her riding hat shielding her porcelain face from the sun's radiation.

She reached down, slipping her hand beneath Teddy's saddle pad. He was sweating, too. In an ideal world, she'd be washing him off with buckets of cold water, clipping all of that extra fur off to relieve him from the heat.
"We're almost there," She assured him, scratching his wither. Teddy's head was low, his steps becoming clumsy, his hooves scraping against the asphalt.

Chu sighed softly, reaching for her map in her saddle bag. She'd found an information stand a few miles back, a few of the maps had somewhat survived, though the ink was faded and the paper was torn. She squinted at what was left of the map, shielding it from the sun with her hand to get a better look. She had just under a mile left... she could walk that far. She halted Teddy, tucking the map back into the saddlebag and hopping down from his back. She patted his neck before continuing on foot, leading him by the reins.

The last mile felt much longer than the hundreds she had already traveled. Maybe it was the heat or the fatigue, but her legs simply felt heavier than they had before... though the sight of the walls of New Manhatten towering over the surrounding buildings filled her with the energy she needed. She picked up the pace, her footfalls becoming faster as she pulled Teddy along with her.

As she stopped in front of the gates, she hesitated. What the heck was she meant to do now? There wasn't exactly a welcome party for her... she frowned. She took a breath, before slamming her fist into the gate, hoping to alert anyone inside. She quickly took a step back, standing close to the hunting rifle she kept holstered to Teddy's saddle.
"Hello?!" She called out.

 

[Bambiholic]

Bonnie ,, Sullivan ❜ ─ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 doctor ─ ❛
mentions: chu ; location: outside new manhattan
tldr: waiting to gain entry to new manhattan, finding chu and teddy

Bonnie rubbed her arm impatiently as she stood amongst a rabble made up of survivors seeking to gain refuge in New Manhattan. It wasn't enough that she had been travelling for days on end with little to no rest. The only thing in the forefront of her mind was what could be about to happen within the next hour. She certainly didn't believe in God anymore, but even so, her thoughts were filled with repeated prayers to whatever fate-based entity would be deciding if her story would be believed and if she would be permitted entry into the settlement. Every minute that passed seemed like hours, and with each one that came she grew slightly more agitated.

After ten or so minutes had passed, she adjusted the position of her backpack straps that had been digging into her shoulders before tucking some strands of wavy brown hair behind an ear, slowly weaving her way out of the small crowd. While it was true that she needed the toilet and planned on finding a private enough place to go, she even more so wanted to get a quick look around the walls of New Manhattan while she could. If she was going to be staying in the settlement for the time being, she wanted to assess how fortified the place was, and see if there was anywhere that looked like it could be a potential alternative exit if things were to go South for a large array of possible reasons.

Not too far into her walk, Bonnie spotted something up ahead, instinctively causing her to crouch to avoid detection - at least while she was assessing what she had come across. Bonnie was fully aware that she was a wanted person among one particular group, and though she didn't know quite how wanted she was, The Citadel, home to violent and unforgiving people, was a little too close to New Manhattan for Bonnie's liking. It was her hope that once she was inside the walls of New Manhattan she would be safe from who she had previously fled from, knowing that no one from The Citadel would be beyond the walls. The house she had travelled from and looted had been further away from The Citadel, but coming back into the general area was a dangerous risk she decided to gamble with. If her long-term plan were to work, she would effectively become untouchable.

Bonnie soon realised that the figure up ahead likely wasn't going to be a threat to her. It appeared to be another survivor seeking refuge - two survivors, for that matter, including the horse. "You friendly?" Bonnie called out, holding her empty hands up away from the Colt Python that was tucked in her waistband to show the stranger that she came in peace. She didn't walk any closer to the figure while calling out to them as she didn't want to startle them. Folks had become way too jumpy and trigger-happy as a result of the end of the world, and Bonnie wasn't planning on getting shot any time soon.

coded by archangel_

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: New Manhattan gates
Interaction: N/A
​

*Gazp* followed by *wheeze* in a rhythmic manner had been the sound that had engulfed Juniper for the last few hours at least as she traversed the ruined city landscape of the past. She could get a glimpse of the other survivors occasionally, but as it had become an unspoken rule, it was better to avoid than befriend unless absolutely necessary so she had walked on towards her goal.

Today was a special day for June as she had set her course for New Manhattan. She planned to stay there for a while and if lucky enough maybe set up a place for herself but the latter was just a dream. She was not sure the resources she had at hand would be enough to even get a hot meal not to mention a way to wash herself clean. God how she missed those simple things! One learns fast to appreciate the smaller aspects of life when all you have is a backpack full of only things you deem necessary and are able to carry and spend hours on end in a cobbled-together hazmat suit that makes every function of life that much harder.

Juniper had reached the entrance area of New Manhattan. It looked nothing like the smaller communities she has met. It was such a wonderful sight to see and the hope in her to have her own place was ever brighter. The mass of people surrounding the area was even more amazing than the city itself at this point. It reminded her a little of her old life in her own little community. Such sadness it all had gone the way it did.

People in that area there were clearly from different places and at different levels of well-to-do shown solely by their clothes and items. The ones who had just rags left of their clothes, no doubt that survivors of some raid party departed before June. I guess the sight of someone covered from head to toe in some kind of dark fabric might bring up some repressed or fairly fresh memories. And then there were people who undoubtedly had had a better year than most. There was this one woman towering over most on top of a horse and whoever was her companion or just had the guts to approach the rider.

 

[Gears]

Eddie Gears
The “Waste Disposal Vehicle” stopped outside of the warehouse district, the thugs jumping from the vehicle, weapons concealed in order not to bring unwanted attention. Eddie exited the vehicle before entering a nearby warehouse. The room was bustling, men working at the assembly lines.

Eddie walked past the men as they constructed various pieces of firearms and ammunition. Eddie opened the door to an office overlooking the workers. Inside a haze of smoke further inhibited Eddie’s vision, the smell of smoke even violating his mask. “If it isn’t my favorite egghead, how was the hunt. production of Morti is down, and your labs costs have increased.”

Eddie sighed and said “We got some more brain tissue, but the power outages have been ruining the batches.” Eddie said before the man shook his head “Just get back to your lab, I will deal with the outages; I would not suggest wasting any more of my investment.”

Jesse Gears
Jesse jumped a bit when Sullivan‘s cruiser pulled aside her, before scowling. She turned the radio on again and said “Got a bunch of refugees at the door, Biohazard team has started testing them, cleanup is gonna have fun dealing with the bodies.” Jesse said as she tried not to think of the mercy killings Bio Team would deal with.

She had worked in Bio Team for a year before transferring, hating both the cumbersome clothing and the job of eliminating any vectors of the virus. The two cruisers neared the gates, perimeter defense corps at their posts.

An officer approached the law enforcement before saying: “We have lots of unknowns, so far Bio Team has found a few carriers, little resistance; they should be in Decom by now, the rookies are preparing the welcome center for you.”

Interactions: Aegis
Mentions: Jaellagirl Bambiholic Miaow

 

[Aegis]

Aiden Sullivan
New Manhattan, Downtown​

So, this was just another glorified DECOM mission? Aiden clicked the tips of his Kevlar gloves along the steering wheel in disappointment. The Enforcer had thought that something interesting might have come from this, but in the end it was just another classic case of incompetence. How many bureaucrats and guards does it take to run a city? Too many-- Aiden supposed.

The Perimeter Guard was doing their thing, and seemed to stop and talk to the car in front of him with Gears in it. Aiden scoffed and rolled down his window with annoyance at procedure and blah blah blah. In the meantime, a guard, some kid he vaguely recognized from his time as an academy instructor, and began a conversation, "Sergeant Sullivan, it's so good to see you! How have you been?"

Aiden cut a glance to the kid's eyes, "Eh, been better. Hate fucking lines like this-- probably gonna search us and shit, right?"

"That's protocol, Sergeant."

Sullivan smirked-- his mask stretching to reveal as much, "Well, I've got some time-sensitive business to conduct in there..."

The Enforcer cocked his head toward the "Emergencies Only" gate beside where Gears was going through protocol at the regular entrance. His intention was clear, and that left the rookie officer dumbfounded for a second, "Are you saying--"

"I didn't say anything. It would make things easier for us both, though. As I said, time sensitive business."

The Rookie sat for a second with as a battle of respect and rules waged war for his facial expressions, but eventually respect won out, "Okay, come on through."

"Thanks, kid."

The Rookie popped open the emergency gate for Sullivan and he drove past Gears's cruiser and into the parking lot. Stepping from his vehicle, Aiden popped up his mask and lit up another smoke while waiting for his 'boss' to catch up.

A nearby sign read, 'No smoking, mask up'.

( Gears )​

 

[Miaow]

/* ------ start of code -- no need to touch ------ */

/* ------ text box ------ */

Hoàng Mai Chu

After witnessing the death of her family, Chu is now travelling to New Manhatten with her horse, Teddy. There is a hidden scroll on my post!

/* ------ credit -- do not remove ------ */

© weldherwings.

Chu almost jumped out of her skin as she heard a voice calling out to her. She threw her hands up instinctively, though Teddy's reins remained in her grip to prevent any unwanted bolting. Teddy was a good boy, but he had a nervous streak. Strangers, plastic bags, pigeons... Those were his worst enemies.

She squinted, her poor eyesight proving detrimental in that moment. She could see a shape, someone with their arms in the air, likely female from the voice. She swallowed, keeping her hands up by her head.
"I'm friendly!" She called out, flexing her fingers to ease some of the discomfort in her clammy hands.

"Are you friendly?" She asked, hesitant to lower her hands, just in case this stranger was trigger-happy. She felt Teddy shift behind her, pawing at the dusty ground with his hoof. He could sense her worry and was anxious to get moving, but they were met with a closed gate.

"Are there more people 'round there?" She asked with a small frown. If this stranger had come from around the corner, there might be more strangers. Safety and numbers and all that... or, cannon fodder to distract the New Manhatten soldiers when they start shooting. If they start shooting.

Interactions: Bambiholic

 

[Bambiholic]

Bonnie ,, Sullivan ❜ ─ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 doctor ─ ❛
mentions: chu ; location: outside new manhattan
tldr: introducing herself to chu as they wait to get into new manhattan

Bonnie observed the stranger who visibly was startled by her approach, making her glad she had made her presence known in the most gentle of ways. She didn't blame the woman for reacting like that in the state of the world they were in. In fact, she admired the woman for not immediately going for her weapon. Even though Bonnie would never intend to shoot dead an innocent and virus-free survivor, if she was in the woman's shoes she would probably have armed herself instinctually if she was surprised by someone she didn't know, purely for reasons of self-defence. Being from The Citadel, Bonnie was all too familiar with how dangerous running into strangers can be. She'd seen it first hand and, though she wanted to forget her previous affiliation more than anything, she would be lying if she said she had never been a threat to other people she met on the road before.

The faces of the people she had raided with her previous group plagued her heart and mind almost every night, and although her methods of doing things still aren't exactly the most honest, she hoped she could finally turn her life around and start helping people for once instead of taking from them. Bonnie was relieved to hear the woman say she was friendly, though she didn't want to lower her own hands quite yet in case it looked like she was reaching for a weapon. "I'm friendly, you're good!" she responded, her Southern accent prominent in each word that left her mouth. "I'm gonna lower my hands now," she warned, still aware that things could go south at any given time. "But I'm not gonna hurt you or your friend, okay?" she added truthfully.

Bonnie slowly began to lower her hands, wanting to prove to the stranger that she didn't have any bad intentions by giving her enough time to react if she wasn't comfortable with her actions. "There's a group further back waitin' to be let in.. My guess is you're in the same boat." she replied to the question. The stranger looked rather unique, with pale white hair and snow-white skin - she was positively like nothing Bonnie had ever seen. Being an animal-lover, Bonnie could admire that the mysterious woman had a horse companion and hoped that they wouldn't be given trouble at the gates. "I'm Bonnie, by the way. Bonnie Sullivan." she introduced herself, a small smile forming on her face for the first time in a long time. It still felt strange to say her name out loud, but she was going to have to get used to it very soon. Maybe if she and the woman approached the gates together, the guards would have less of a reason to question if she was who she said she was.

coded by archangel_

 

[Gears]

Larry Greene
Eddie stood at the gates, his few belongings on the backpack he had taken from an abandoned house a few weeks ago. In his waistband was a heavy revolver, loaded he believed. He hadn’t used the firearm once, excluding the time he had accidentally fired it when he was trying to clean the rusted weapon.

He had left the safety off, and after reading a random book mentioning the dangers of rusty metal, he had taken his toothbrush and a good amount of his limited supply of shampoo and attempted to clean the rusty firearm.

He had luckily turned the weapon around right before cleaning the trigger, before the bang and force of the weapon sent his weak frame to the ground.

Not too long after that, he had heard the infected but he did what he was best at doing: Hiding. The “Wolves” had destroyed his supplies but he survived. Weeks later he had mostly restocked his supplies and had decided to venture to the distant settlement: New Manhattan.

Now he stood before the gates as the doors opened, guards in tactical riot gear had entered and began testing the survivors with a strange device. Green light, they moved forward; red light they would be taken to the back, the sounds of what Larry could guess was a BB gun following their departure.

Larry stepped forward in the line, holding his breath as the syringe entered his arm, before glowing green. Larry moved forward to a hallway, three doors before him: Male, Female, Security.

Larry entered the first door and followed the directions on the faded sign: Remove all belongings, decontaminate, and proceed to the welcome center.

Larry threw his personal belongings into a bin before it was taken into a second room, the smell of cleaners burning his eyes. He moved on too a packed shower room of other survivors, scrubbing off the blood and grime.

Larry moved to the furthermost shower, the passing a nearby observation window, likely to make sure no one had sneaked a weapon in.

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: New Manhattan gates
Interaction: N/A
​

The gates of the city creaked open slowly as a small group of what Juniper perceived as guards in riot gear flooded out. They were there to check each and every one of them. She was used to getting a body check where they tried to find any signs of the infection on the body but that usually happened already some way into the compound. Large settlements like this couldn't afford such risk it seemed as they didn't ask people to strip for the check but rather had a device to clear people instead. If it flashed green you were clear if not now that was another matter. At least they had the decency to not leave them to slowly wither away. Fast death is better than no rest at all.

"HAND!" echoed a voice. June had not noticed that one of the guards had reached her so she rushed to get a glove off and pull up the sleeve. The moment enough of her skin was showing her hand was grabbed with a little more force than she would have liked. They stuck the needle of the device in. It felt cold and deathlike as they waited for the light to flash. What a shame it would be if, after all of this time, she was one of the asymptomatic carriers. All the people she had interacted with who now were more than likely dead in her wake. GREEN! The light came on and she could not help but to sigh of relief. She pulled her sleeve back down and put the glove on.

She moved through the gates into a hallway with doors. She picked the one with women on it only to come across a sign saying she had to take off all her gear and leave it there. Now that was something she couldn't accept. Juniper was sure that some who had come into the city with tattered clothing and nothing to their name wouldn't mind doing so as they would probably be given essentials on the other end. Juniper was another matter - she had a backpack full of all kinds of laboratory equipment and last but not least her hazmat suit.

"HEY, BIG GUYS OVER THERE! YOU LISTEN TO ME AND LISTEN WELL! I WILL NOT.......GIVE AWAY MY GEAR THAT EASILY AND IF YOU TRY TO TAKE IT YOU WILL HAVE TO PRY IT OUT OF MY DEAD HANDS. I AM SURE WE CAN COME UP WITH A COMPROMISE BECAUSE OTHERWISE, I MIGHT HAVE TO RAISE THIS PLACE TO THE GROUND." June was just a little livid over all of this situation. She had seen what happens to the stuff taken in other places. More useful things will be nicked the moment you turn around and the rest was just burned. She was willing to fight for her things.

 

[Gears]

New Manhattan Security Officer
The guard scoffed at the woman’s threats, smirking under the gas mask he wore. “Relax lady, you get to keep the stuff in your bag, that poor excuse of PPE will have to be recycled. Relax there’s no need for it out here.” The guard said before thinking for a second “But I can make sure you get it back if you do me a little fa-“

Jesse Gears
Jesse stormed into the decontamination room, having been told by the governor to make sure that things where going smoothly for the survivors when she Security Officer Clark. The creep was the son of a council member, so he didn’t get reprimanded for any of his misconduct.

He had probably had snuck into the decontamination room, but seeing him approach the woman had tipped her off on his intentions.

she grabbed him by the head and yanked him away “Clark, get back to sorting the gear; I know you usually get what you want but I am not letting this slide, get back to the office of yours and if I catch you ‘Monitoring’ the cams, I will make sure you will be on cleanup for the rest of your miserable life.”

Clark looked like he was going to say something, but his face grew red and he ran away. Jesse turned too the survivor, before saying “Sorry that piece of garbage bothered you, he isn’t supposed to be there. I can make sure you get the equipment, but I know a guy who can help you get some more equipment. Just meet me after the orientation.” She said.

Eddie Gears
Eddie walked into his lab, past the heavy steel door, the rack of hazmat suits, and finally the shelves of both 21st century objects. Because the world had relied on Alpha Reactors, a less reliable version of the Beta Cores that the world had been devastated by during the first Atlas Invasion.

Because of this, when Atlas bombed every Alpha Reactor site, people where forced to use the inferior technology from the previous eras. Eddie had a small collection of old technology, powered by his homemade Gamma Core.

He had seen the blueprints at the Shu Corporation research facility in Denver, but without the proper equipment and materials; his Core was inferior, only able to power his laboratory and the factory above.

Eddie sat down at his desk, before getting to work. The thugs had gathered the brain tissue from the infected, and soon enough, Eddie had donned protective gear and began the long process of preparing the drug.

The work was dull, something he had done every day for the last few years, so he found himself tired from the scavenging of the night before. Soon he fell asleep, once again relieving the horrible events of Denver’s Fall.

Spoiler: Denver’s Fall

Eddie stood on the roof of Denver’s Main Street shopping center. His sister and a few Perimeter guards in the roof. A few hours ago, raiders from the nearby gang: The Reapers had attacked the settlement.

Eddie turned to Jesse “It looks like the leader is staked out in the evacuation center. We don’t have king, he rigged up my explosives in the center. Should have a clear shot from here. I got the cameras online.” Eddie said as he attempted to trigger the wireless fail safe.

“I can defuse it from here, but Rico can detonate It manually.” Eddie said as he his sister shouldered her rifle, a Barrett M82 that Eddie had modified for her. A second later, a shot rang out and Jesse said “Rico is downed, get that bomb defused.

Eddie’s fingers glided over the keyboard as he continued breaking through the safeguards he had put in place. He had installed many failsafes to be sure no one with a little technological expertise could stop his explosives.

Eddie began to sweat as the clock displaying the time left on the explosive counted down on his watch, time ran short as he quickly got to the third password.

Eddie entered the last password, before cussing under his breath, seeing a buffering icon in the device. Eddie counted down in his head as he waited for whatever would happen.

Eddie held his breath as the timer reached zero. The explosive stopped and Eddie felt his mobile vibrate in his pocket. Eddie raised the modified phone to his ear and accepted the call, it was Natalie his girlfriend.

“It’s quiet down there, I have some kids from the school up here, Eddie and the others relaxed, knowing that Rico was the last Rico.

The quiet was shattered by a sudden explosion, the sound of the explosion deafening as the streets shook, the buildings around the evacuation center collapsed, leaving twisted pieces of rubble in the streets.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, shocked into silence. This couldnt be real, they had succeeded; thus had to be a dream, a bad dream. Eddie would have pinched himself but before he could react, a perimeter patrol officer punched him in the face, knocking him to the ground.

Eddie lay there as the guard kicked him in the guy as he lay there, screaming at him “This is all your fucking fault, if you hadn’t built that bomb my family would be alive.” The guard said before picking him back up, and began beating him relentlessly.

Eddie barely felt the blows as the horror of what he had done blocked the outside world. Eddie felt the knife in his satchel and brought it down on the man’s arm, making him drop Eddie. The man pulled the blade from his arm, swearing while he stepped forward.

“Your gonna die for that you son of a bitch.” The man picked him up by the throat, before using the knife; still covered in his own blood to slash along the left side of his face and dropping Eddie to the ground.

Eddie fell to his knees as he clutched his eye, barley able to breath, luely having cracked a rib or two. Eddie got to his feet, ready to fight. The man charged forward, sinking the knife into his gut, before shoving Eddie over the edge of the building.

Eddie woke up a second later, having hit his head on a chunk of rubble, before he saw the twisted piece of rebar that stuck from the rebar and through his lower chest.

Eddie looked up at the building, looking for his sisters help as he bled from the wound. He stared at his sister as she looked shocked at him, before turning and following the two guards, leaving him for dead.

Jaellagirl

 

[Miaow]

/* ------ start of code -- no need to touch ------ */

/* ------ text box ------ */

Hoàng Mai Chu

After witnessing the death of her family, Chu is now travelling to New Manhatten with her horse, Teddy. There is a hidden scroll on my post!

/* ------ credit -- do not remove ------ */

© weldherwings.

Chu swallowed in an attempt to wet her dry throat. She was thankful for her riding gloves as her clammy hands would be slipping all over Teddy's reins without them. This lady claimed to be friendly. She sounded friendly, or maybe Chu just felt that way about Southern accents.

As the woman rested her hands by her side, Chu mimicked her movements, keeping her palms open so she knew there was nothing in them. Her mind was racing. What if this woman was lying? Her back was facing her hunting rifle, there was no way she could grab it, cock it, aim, and fire fast enough if the stranger posed a threat. She hadn't exactly encountered many strangers, sheltered by the safety of her ranch, but the ones she had met were far from friendly.

"Uhh, yeah... I guess I'm at the wrong gate," She responded awkwardly to her assumption, a feeble attempt to reduce some of the tension. As she introduced herself as Bonnie, Chu smiled. Bonnie was a kind, Southern lady name. She momentarily bowed her head.
"I'm Mai Chu," She told her, "but I go by Chu."
She swallowed. Did this woman really care what she went by? They'd just met. Either of them could still totally turn out to be a murderer.
"Oh-- and this is Teddy," She added. People liked animals, so surely a mustang would sweeten the deal.

She frowned, the creaking of metal gates erupting behind Bonnie.
"Ah! That's them, right?" She asked eagerly, though her excitement was muddled with nerves. What if they didn't let Teddy in? What if they took Teddy for themselves? What if she was infected and they shot her and Teddy was left to fend for himself? She and Teddy were a package deal. No Teddy meant no New Manhatten for her.

She quickly pulled his reins over his head, ready to lead him to the gate. She took a step forward, though hesitated, her gaze meeting with Bonnie's. She should probably let her take the lead... sprinting towards a strange, possibly unarmed woman, wasn't the smartest move.

Interactions: Bambiholic

 

[Bambiholic]

Bonnie ,, Sullivan ❜ ─ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 doctor ─ ❛
mentions: chu ; location: outside new manhattan
tldr: entering new manhatten with chu

Bonnie's forest-green eyes followed the stranger’s hands as they mirrored her own by lowering at the same cautious pace. The transparency of the woman’s actions in keeping her palms open reassured her that she wasn’t hiding anything, which she greatly appreciated. While Bonnie was quite confident in her combat abilities, it seemed that for the moment, she wouldn’t be needing to defend herself. Though being suspicious before anything else was a much-needed trait for survival; in this world, it was also extremely useful to have people on your side, and in all honesty Bonnie couldn't remember the last time she had someone she could trust.

When Bonnie learned Mai Chu’s name, she responded with a warm smile that only grew wider upon hearing the name of her horse. "Well it's mighty nice to meet you, Chu," Bonnie replied. If the world around them had been normal, this probably would’ve been the moment where they shook hands. Her gaze then shifted to Teddy, the majestic albeit tired-looking horse that stood beside Chu. "And your boy there - he's beautiful. Must be quite the companion on these roads," she added.

Soon enough, the sound of the large metal gates opening caught Bonnie's attention, urging them to cut the conversation short. She felt a sense of urgency to quickly catch up with the other survivors, wanting to put a wall between her and The Citadel as soon as possible. She didn’t know how often New Manhattan opened its gates to refugees, so she didn’t want to risk getting left behind. Bonnie longed for the serenity of a place where she wouldn’t have to spend every waking moment worrying about how to stay alive, whether it was temporary or not. Even if New Manhattan was too good to be true, at least she wouldn’t have to fear being recognised by those thugs while on the inside.

Bonnie nodded in agreement with her new acquaintance's observation. "Sure sounds like it. We best not miss our ticket!" she responded with a hint of excitement in her voice. She couldn't help but notice Mai Chu's hesitance to start walking and, wanting to ease her worries, Bonnie decided to take the lead first. “I’m gonna trust you won't shoot me in the back. I’ll be real hurt if you do” she joked playfully, pun fully intended. Just as she said she would, she turned and began walking back to the now-opened gates without wasting any time.

As they reached the main entrance, Bonnie's heart raced with a mixture of anticipation and apprehension. She knew if things went well it'd be the first step in the right direction. Thankfully, it appeared that they had arrived just in time to join the last few survivors who were walking in. Bonnie eventually stepped through the gates, keeping her head down as she crossed the threshold into the decontamination and checking areas. Somewhere up ahead, she heard a woman’s voice angrily yelling at what she assumed to be the guards. It put a slight smirk on her face as she continued to keep her head down, always glad to hear someone challenging authority - it was something that she'd have to avoid doing with her new identity.

coded by archangel_

 

[Gears]

Border Protection Officer “Frost”
Truck saw the two women from afar, noting the horse, he quickly checked his mobile for regulations involving equestrians. In the end he couldn’t find a regulation against it but decided to use the mandatory 48 hour quarantine of livestock. He adjusted his gas mask before approaching the women with the scanner. “You are gonna have to turn in your possessions and clothing for decontamination, the horse is going to have to be in a quarantine for 48 hours; just go o the shower rooms and grab new clothing, first I have to search for contamination; have you had contact with anyone infected recently he said as he prepared the device used to test people for signs of the virus
Bambiholic Miaow
Security Officer Clark
Clarke waddled away, before returning to his office. He saw officer Sullivan’s patrol vehicle, smirking that he could get some revenge. He knew Sullivan was as corrupt as he and a few of the rookies where, so he headed to the truck and motioned for him to lower the window, looking around to make sure no one was looking. “The Gears girl gave me a hard time when I was getting some stuff done, think you can try and make sure she gets cleanup detail or something.” He said, his smirk growing before he added “And one of the new survivors is awfully protective of her possessions, might want to have a look into that.” He said.
Aegis
Damien Edison
Damien sat in the welcome center, a large room full of food, water, and other things newcomers may need or want when they arrived. The room was quiet but even he could hear the distant gunshots as the Border Protection Force executed the infected survivors, he tried not to think of anyone who had family watch as they where taken away.

Damien told himself it was the only way to protect the newcomers and the settlement. He knew he had around half an hour for the speech approved by the council for the newcomers. He had sent Jesse away, knowing she would be miserable waiting for the refugees to arrive. So he waited for the doors to open and the refugees to arrive.

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: New Manhattan gates
Interaction: Gears Jesse
​

A man spoke to her in a condescending tone. Insulting her suit and making out-of-line suggestions. If she hadn't seen red before she would have now as she was ever so close to just punching the life out of him with her fist already curled up. The rage inside her was boiling and bubbling so much that if she had any less control of herself the promise to raise it all to the ground might have come true then and there.

Suddenly his words stopped and were interjected with some woman's voice. She scolded the grown man like a child and he responded like he was one. He had turned red as a radish and ran to the where ever he had came from. She was still mad and directing that madness towards her saviour seemed too much so she shouted after to the man but she doubted he could hear her: "RUN! BOY, RUN! AND SO YOU KNOW MY GEAR HAS SERVED ITS PURPOSE WELL UNLIKE YOU! YOU USELESS WASTE OF AIR!"

She turned to the woman now with more calm and pleasant expression. "Thank you, lady! And I will pick you up on your offer it's just in this world of ours giving away even vaguely useful things is as good as dying. I will remember that." She took off her stuff and headed to the showers. The hot water running down was a luxury and her worries were slowly washing away like the dirt from her skin.

 

[Aegis]

Aiden Sullivan
New Manhattan, Quarantine Processing​

Sullivan watched with a passive disinterest as Clark approached his car-- a scowl slowly forming under his mask. Of course, to the outside world he was a still and expressionless as a placid lake, so when Clark knocked on his window and Sullivan rolled it down there was no hint at the Sergeant's true feelings about his coworker. Unblinking eyes studied the Officer as he gave provided some information and tried to make him do something petty to Gears; the former probably some kind of payment for the latter.

This was Clark's problem: he was too small time.

Technically, he had more rank and work-related connections by default due to his job, but their execution had differed so greatly that Clark had ended up little more than a crook. A crook who happened to be skeevy and of all the things that Aiden tolerated that was NOT one of them. Regardless, he had said something interesting about that survivor, so he decided to inquire more about her looks and attire as to be able to identify her.

Sullivan opened his mouth and spoke slowly, his tone flat-- as to not portray any excitement, "Okay, I'll see what I can do. Thank you for you service."

Aiden gave Clark a sarcastic salute as he cut off his car and made his way straight into the building where new entries made their way for processing. The man stalked the halls on his way like a wide, lumbering menace. He was all of 6' 3" and he owned it with every thump of his boot as he stormed up and past anyone who may have thought to ask him what he was doing back there; his shoulder rocking forward and back in a static, practiced motion that added intensity to his forward momentum.

The Enforcer finally stopped outside of the door to the woman's decontamination zone and waited. Was he supposed to be there? It was debatable, but probably not. Was that going to stop him? No, and neither were the guard who shirked away from him as though he had just taken their post.

The ambush had been set-- now it was just time for her to walk into the kill zone.

Gears Jaellagirl ​

 

[Bambiholic]

Bonnie ,, Sullivan ❜ ─ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 doctor ─ ❛
mentions: frost, chu ; location: decontamination
tldr: being asked questions by the officer and about to be tested for the virus in decontam

As the protection officer approached them, Bonnie looked the man up and down to assess who would be dealing with them. “Sure. As long as I can have my stuff back later.” Bonnie responded to the officer’s first request, one of her hands fiddling with her backpack strap as she listened to him continue to talk. She usually wouldn’t have cared all that much considering her main goal was to take refuge inside the settlement walls, but she was fully aware that she needed her tampered-with identification and stolen medical equipment back as soon as possible.

“And I can’t say I have,” she added after his last question. She had definitely come across dead bodies recently such as the two she had looted, but she was pretty sure they hadn’t been infected - if they had been, she was pretty much screwed. Bonnie glanced over at Chu, wondering what her new acquaintance’s reaction would be - especially to having to be separated from Teddy for so long.

coded by archangel_

 

[Gears]

Clara

Clara walked through the doors, keeping an eye on her surroundings as she raised her mask further, not wanting someone she might have scammed or robbed recently to recognize her. She didn’t often steal more than food or other supplies but occasionally if she needed cash to buy something she couldn’t steal then she could grab the contents of any passerby’s pockets. She tried not to think of how valuable some objects where sentimental-wise, but they kept her fed and somewhat content in the fucked up states.

She had been staying at the citadel for a few months now, after getting caught robbing her previous employers. These ones were smart, their cash somewhere she probably wouldn’t be able to reach if she even found where they stashed it. So she was stuck with a hit mission, mostly for how she could smuggle things in easily and keep others attention away from her and if she felt like it, others.

The test was quick, she wasn’t immune so she knew it was a risk even if she hadn’t come in contact with any infected to her knowledge so she was let through. She was dismayed to see that everyone was expected to leave their belongings and clothing behind, so she quickly took the gun from the secret pocket, not wanting to strouds suspicion from anyone searching their belongings before she took a shower.

As she walled to the shower, she saw a familiar woman talking to some deputy, but she ignored it as she took a shower, a bit longer then usual deciding to enjoy the warm water before she walked to a room labeled complaints and requests.

Inside a bored gaurd sat behind a desk, filling out paper work as loud fan blew on his face in the hot room. The officer looked up, barley concerned as he handed her a form and gestured to the stack of documents, before she saw the sidearm on his hip. She took a second applying for a low class firearm permit before grabbing the a drink of water, filing it with scalding water before handing the man the form, spilling the water as he hailed in pain.

Clara quickly grabbed the firearm, stuffing it in the jacket she has been given while apologizing, pocketing a small knife that was on the table of refreshments. The guard swore for a second before noticing the missing weapon.

He looked at her suspiciously but before he could stand up Clara buried her knife in his chest, slashing his throat after a moment. Clara took off the jacket, using to while the blood from the ground as the man gasped for air before she shoved him into a broom closet and broke the lock. After cleaning up the room and erasing the footage of her interaction she left, grabbing a jacket that had been hung onto a coat rack next to a photo of the man with a family that Clara tried to avoid looking at.
Bambiholic

 

[Bambiholic]

Bonnie ,, Sullivan ❜ ─ 𝘵𝘩𝘦 doctor ─ ❛
mentions: jesse gears ; location: new manhattan
tldr: talking to jesse and offering to help out around new manhattan as a doctor

[After a brief time skip]

Bonnie was glad she had passed the test earlier, but not so glad about having her belongings taken away even if they were soon going to be returned to her. She felt completely naked without at least one weapon on her, even in areas that were supposedly safe like the showers, but thankfully nothing terrible had happened while she was in there. She hadn’t paid much attention to any of the other women in there, wanting to keep her head down for as long as she could so as to avoid trouble. Even being on edge the whole time, she couldn’t deny that the warm shower felt absolutely amazing.

Her hair still slightly damp from the water, Bonnie now stood in front of a pretty blonde woman who she had recently learned was the Deputy of the settlement. “Don’t suppose you folks are needing an extra doctor here in New Manhattan?” she asked, a small smile on her face as she spoke. “I’m Bonnie - Bonnie Sullivan. Happy to help out in any way I can” she added, wanting to make a good first impression with the woman. There was no reason for anyone to doubt her just yet now she was inside the gates, so she wasn’t all that nervous anymore.

Although she had been lying about her identity, she meant no harm to the people of New Manhattan and still fully intended to do her part by making herself useful around the community, even if that meant starting to learn from medical books in secret while on the job. She had already made the effort to skim through the original Doctor Bonnie Sullivan’s bookshelf to soak up as much information as she could in little time, but it was only brief, and she still had a very long way to come. Hopefully, no one would be needing life-altering surgery any time soon… But little did Bonnie know, all hell may have been about to break loose inside the walls.

coded by archangel_

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: New Manhattan gates
Interaction: Aegis Aiden
​

The warm water had run down Juniper's back for quite a while now. She had scrubbed herself at least three times over just to justify staying a little longer in the shower. Oh, how she had missed it so much. To be fair June couldn't even remember the last time she had taken one. in the zombie-ridden world, the safest thing to do was to just wash off dirt with a damp towel or a piece of cloth. Sometimes she had even boiled some pine needles in the water before to give it the faintest whiff of the trees' scent.

Juniper got out of the shower and looked at her now wrinkly hands. She looked like a prune or raisin. Even those were now memories from the past. June sighed as she put on a new set of clothes only to find them just a tad wrong. They were both too soft and too coarse, too tight and too loose. This was her reality of now well for the time at least as she intended to get her stuff back rather sooner than later.

The decontamination room door opened up to a wide area that had people moving all about. Some were dressed like her with the same kind of unflattering clothing, while others were marching around in full riot gear or more "normal" clothing. In front of each decontamination room were set up guards. Men's door had but one with them while women had two. One of them is not scrawny looking but certainly small compared to the other. The man, at least she presumed they were a man, was towering over all the rest and he seemed to take up so much space as the guard next to them was a good way away from him. They ought to know about gear retrieval reasoned June.

Juniper straightened her posture, tossed the damp hair, which by this point had already soaked her shoulders to her back and walked closer to the figures. "Excuse me, people! Do you know where I could get my stuff back? I talked to this really nice woman at the entrance and she told me I can get it all back." Juniper said as she held her gaze on the taller one. She kept her tone calm even though her heart was running a mile a minute and her head was telling her that this might not end that well.

 

[Aegis]

Aiden Sullivan
New Manhattan, Quarantine Processing​

It was a longer wait than he was expecting. Although, he couldn't blame anyone in their situation-- a shower after such a long time is a blessing few knew about in the old world. It didn't change the fact she was wasting his time, but he could respect her reasoning. Aiden watched passively as the guard before him averted his eyes from their contact and drew breath after breath as if to prepare to say something that never came.

Finally, the door cracked open and people began to leave. Several women left the showers, but none matched the description he was provided. In all fairness, a person can change a lot with some shower products and cleaning. The Enforcer turned on heel with a fury in his step. That damn Officer had wasted his time, and he was going to make him pay for it. Then, the final woman emerged. She approached without so much as a care in the world and immediately started making demands.

This was her. The attitude The Officer had described was unmistakable.

Aiden towered in place an entire two heads taller than this woman as he watched on in blank, expressionless study. She was more fair than he had imagined, nice hair, a physique that had been toned by the world beyond the walls. He tensed his shoulders and spun to face her-- his boots falling with such a thunderous crash that the room fell silent for a moment. The black fabric stretched around his body seemed to obscure any idea that he was human; the exception being a small slit cut from around his eyes. Though, even his pupils lacked a certain excitement that would suggest human life and interests. Blank. He was blank. Yet, that was what was so terrifying about him.

Aiden's hand fell to rest on the pistol in his holster as he stepped forward to within inches of the woman-- her attitude enticing whether it be arrogance or hubris. He cast a shadow over her form with his own before tilting his head down to look her in the eyes from above, "Sure, let's go get your stuff-- just like the nice woman said."

The Enforcer's words could not have been more unnerving as they swayed from a honeyed charm to venom as he spoke of the aforementioned woman.

Aiden snagged the woman by her arm with just enough force to leave her questioning whether he was kidnapping or escorting her-- his large hands gripping with enough force to press to the bones in her arm. Quickly, they made their way over to a room where personal belongings were kept. Here was his interest, whatever the woman was hiding. It better have been worth his time. Better yet, with testimony from this woman, he may even be able to get Gears into some serious trouble depending on what she let this woman in with. The Enforcer couldn't contain the euphoric smile such a thought stretched across his face as he ran his tongue over his teeth in self-indulging delight at the taste of malice.

Of course, this evil before his escortee wasn't so clearly visible.

A guard was posted in front of the door, but upon Aiden's nodding of his head the man stepped away and left the two of them alone. They slipped inside.

"Go ahead, get your stuff. I'll be waiting right. here."

The Enforcer stood in front of the one exit-- arms crossed.

Jaellagirl​

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: Quarantine Processing
Interaction: Aegis Aiden
​

*Click* *CLICK* It echoed around her as the man turned to face her. He was even taller up close than from afar as he towered over June. He looked so robotlike as there was no hint of him being all human. The clothes and gear on him made him look rigid and like a statue with only his eyes showing. Juniper examined his face trying to search for any emotion or fault in the blankness to know if she had made the right choice by talking to him. She couldn't. It seemed like a house with lights on but no one is home. It scared her as he might as well be a zombie and none would be the wiser. The feeling of having totally messed up was slowly creeping up on June.

She was too occupied with trying to figure one who he was to notice how close he had gotten. Now his eyes were also fixed on hers. He spoke with a low voice that turned from such soft sweetness into terrible poison making shivers go down her spine. She knew most definitely she had messed up.

The man grabbed her arm and started dragging her in a direction with haste. Juniper looked around with concern only for her eyes to meet the other guard ones who must have been looking at the two of them for a while and they were filled with terror, sorrow and apology. "OW! THAT HURTS! Can you please loosen the grip?" she exclaimed as he was pressing down on her arm so hard she was losing feeling in her fingers already. June tried to pull herself free from him as tears started forming.

They reached a door with another guard who backed away as fast as the one next to the decontamination. The man opened it a little and pushed himself in along with her. They came into a room with countless shelves and boxes. He let go and growled at her to go find her stuff. This had ended far better than she hoped for. There were so many different ways this could have gone but at least now she will get to reunite with all her gear.

Juniper dashed away in between the shelves looking back every once in a while to make sure he stayed in the same place. She tracked down today's date and females before looking into every box until she saw her hazmat suit peeking out. She lowered all the stuff to the ground and started taking everything out to make sure all of her things were there and not broken. June did a once-over of the suit and could not resist hugging it and sighing. "Oh how happy I am to see you again." She took out the beakers from her bag one by one holding her breath with each only to sharply exhale when it came out in one piece.

 

[Aegis]

New Manhattan
Quarantine Processing​

Aiden sat with his arms crossed and right index tapping on his left arm as an annoyed tick. Although, beneath his mask was the face of a salivating predator whose prey was doing all the work for him; it would’ve been ages if he tried to find this stuff on his own. The Enforcer feigned passiveness as she searched through shelf after shelf for her things— finally settling on a box that seemed to satisfy her quest.

It dawned on him that she continued to monitor him as she looked, and the thought that her items were that precious fueled a corrupted flame that ran his blood hot from his heart. Aiden wanted what she had— whatever it was. So, when she became infatuated with her items going as far as to inspect them each one by one, The Enforcer made his move.

His footfalls were exceptionally quiet for such a large man when he wanted them to be. Aiden skulked across the room in a mere two seconds with the all the stride of his incredible height, and settled in place behind the now-crouched woman. Fingers crept down and settled a crooked hold on both of the woman’s traps as his grip wrapped her like chains, “Well, what do you have here?

Aiden’s grin was audible in his word’s as a twisted gaze befell her and her gear like acid rain— burning at her will as his hollow eyes strained and pierced with an intent that was all too obvious.

Jaellagirl ​

 

[Jaellagirl]

Juniper Pines

Location: Storage room
Interaction: Aegis Aiden
​

Juniper didn't know when or how the man had made his way to her but she could feel a moment too late him standing behind her back as the man clasped her shoulder with his hands. She could feel the tips of his fingers digging into her flesh near her clavicle. They felt like the talons of a vulture capable of ripping meat from the bone. All previous actions left her questioning his morals but this felt to June like a clear sign of the mess she had dug herself in. She and her things were now trapped and probably on death row.

His voice oozed with sickly glee. So the robot still had a heart just a vile one though Juniper. She wanted to see what life looked like in the man's eyes so she could know when to run away before she got caught again. She slowly turned her head and body as much as the gripping hands of the man allowed. He looked intense and the eyes were indeed alive, more than alive even. They burned with passion and want just sole glaring past her and to her gear. A sense of terror filled June as her gut feeling told her this could only end up bad or worse. The hair on the back of her neck stood up and a shiver passed over her body as the realization slowly set in.

Juniper turned back to her gear but now with a plank stare in her eyes. The fear had consumed her much more than she would have loved to let on. "It's my lab equipment....... Just some beakers and test tubes and such. Nothing of interest," June whimpered weakly. She hoped and begged that the guard had no interest in what was just fancy glass for the average person.