Realistic or Modern The Colony

[LeSmexyFish]

I avert my eyes. "Uhh, probably. I'm not exactly familiar with how to start a fire, though. I've always had the tools at hand, so uh..." I look around and decide that I was warm enough, though I was actually really cold anyway. "Here." I take off my shirt and hand it to her. "You need it more than I do right now."


 
@WantYourSoul

 

[WantYourSoul]

Quickly averting her eyes, Masami quickly tries convincing the girl to cover herself up,"N-no, it's fine! My old F-- My old home took us out to the woods once and we all got friction burns learning how to start a fire!" Sam had quickly danced away from the term foster home, certain that if other's knew they wouldn't respect her. "No... Seriously, it's going to get colder and I can pull my arms in my shirt."


@LeSmexyFish

 

[LeSmexyFish]

I shrug. "If you insist." I pull my shirt back over my head before putting my hands on my hips. "So," I say with a grin. "Lemme know what to do, boss."

 

[Whisker]

Jack looked up as his name was called from a little ways out. Not daring to answer back right away though in case there was more of them lurking around, the hunter kept his grip firm upon Dylan and started the slow trip back to the bunker where the others had gathered. It was rather awkward given that he had only just officially met her and his tongue was kept sealed by this very same fact. He was normally quite open and cheerful to most, but under the circumstances of being dragged into the Zone against his will, essentially sentenced to death by an uncaring government along with these poor sods, his mood had blackened into an unusual moroseness that came only with the burning thirst to survive; he would play their little game to win. It was his only option.


Biting his lip to keep back a howl of rage directed at no one in particular, he drew in close until he spotted the Cello player standing guard outside. With his free hand that clutched the knife, he brought the duo to a stop and waved his hand to signal his attention.


"Take care of her. I've got to go and find Nikolai and Deus."


As ordered by the mysterious note in his pocket. Trusting Marquist to get her the rest of the way, Jack turned on his heel and set off on a low stalk through the desolate battlefield of a time long gone by. As he walked, knife at the ready, he took in the sights of overturned naval ships gutted at the hull; of further aircraft downed an incinerated; of the way the window shuttered on a nearby building creaked eerily as he passed. He drew his jacket closer around him and then turned eyes to the beyond, the inner part of the Zone where more horrors undoubtedly awaited them. But first things first ... he had to help Nikolai and get a shelter going quick before nightfall. Then he could find out what the next moves would be from the silently appointed leader.


Approaching the alleyway, he stopped suddenly as a rank stench assaulted his nostrils. He looked past Niko to the freshly killed 'wolf' and then over towards Deus where the fetid stench was strongest.


Jesus fuck, that is just ... good fucking god ...





He kept his composure and breathed in only through his mouth to help some. Approaching Nikolai, he would go over towards the back end of the wolf where he tried tying off the legs with a bit of loose wire scavenged from the wreckage on the ground. He looked up somberly and then began scanning the area.


"We'll carry him back across a bar this way. I ... I've got a manual in my things that tell me how to skin it and smoke it properly with the items provided. It'll probably be useful depending on how long we're able to keep going."


Waving over Deus to help, he eventually found a long enough twisted iron bar to tie the heavy wolf onto and start back towards camp. The sun was low beyond the horizon and a funny chill was in the air, the clouds black and swirling a short distance off that looked pretty formidable from where they were standing. It seemed of immediate import was to get a fire going as soon as possible along with as much burnable substances as they could ... or they were in for a hell of a night.





@Cadee @Petronov @Calibutcher @TEOYL

 

[TEOYL]

Deus looked away awkwardly when Jack's expression turns disgusted. The stench had become somewhat scentless due to inhaling it for so long, but Jack was just smelling it for the first time, so it probably made his stomach churn. His thinking was interrupted by Jack's words. He walked over to the wolf and grabbed it's stomach. The pelt of the beast welt so rough, like an old carpet covered in stains. Not very appetizing, considering he was going to eat what was inside later. Hell, its better than eating dirt. The thought of food made his stomach growl like the hound he was carrying.

 

[Calibutcher]

Marquist was releived to see Jack and Dylan coming back espeilly since they were still alive. 'Perhaps we can make it maybe we can survive back here' while Marquist didn't know if that was true he desperately wanted to believe that it was. However theat was nHe heard Jack call him over to get Dylan. Marquist checked his surroundings before going out to help Dylan while he wasn't sure what he was looking for it still seemed like a good idea to check anyway.


As he approached Dylan he could better see the extent of her injuries. Marquist was suprised at how much blood there was.


"I got her from here." Marquist shouldered the girl he wouldn't admit it out loud but she was heavier then he thought she would be. He worked his way back to the bunker he felt blood starting to drip on him. He shuddered slightly at the feel of it but kept plodding on. Once he got back to the bunker he took her inside and set her down. "Do either of you have a Med kit? I need to get these wounds taken care of before she bleeds anymore."


Marquist looked to the others inside hoping one of them would have something at least as he didn't have anything else to use to cover the wounds his sweater already having served it's purpose.

 

[Amerikia1126]

Lucy Simmons





Lucy returned from grabbing another box of supplies and noticed a small trail of blood leading inside the shelter. "More injured people?" She placed down the crate and went inside the shelter to find a man holding an injured woman, asking about medical supplies. He did not seem to notice the puddle of puke on the floor, trying to get help for the girl. "I have a med-kit."

Spoiler

@Calibutcher @LeSmexyFish @WantYourSoul @Cadee

 

[Petronov]

Even for three grown men the wolf was heavy. Getting it back to the camp was difficult but rather than relaxation, panic was found at the bunker. Nickolai took everything in all at once and had to take a second to think. So far it looked like two of the group had been wounded and the rest were pretty well still in shock. He decided to make a mental checklist of things they would need to survive the night. Food, water and fire came to mind. They had MREs from the airdrops and water to go with them but as far as he had seen, no way to start a fire. Jack seemed to know how to start one though so he approached him at the bunker and asked "Hey Jack, do you think you could get a fire going? I know that wolf smells bad and will only smell worse if we let it sit but I think fire needs to be a priority."

 

[Whisker]

Jack assisted in bringing the wolf back towards camp upon the splint, but kept an eye to the horizon through out the journey back to the bunker. They wouldn't have much time get any of the other pallets inside that night, but he was no longer worried about the grunt work being completed. The air was dropping rapidly and a chill coming from the northeast was rippling his dark hair around the moment they tramped inside. Taking a moment to tighten his boots, he studied the meager supplies they had concocted and stood up at once with a pang of alarm. They had no hatchets among the airdrop equipment and nothing in the way of matches. He had an engraved cigarette lighter among his belongings, but he wasn't sure how long that was going to last them.


Climbing noiselessly to his feet, the hunter was about to return outside when Nikolai's voice suddenly brought him back down to earth. He gave the other a hard look a moment and then nodded before climbing up the steps of the bunker to search for kindling and things among the stripped scrubs surrounding the battlefield. He didn't ask anyone to accompany him for her was far more silent moving alone; his agile body climbing over and through obstacles like smoke upon the wind. On his journeys, he discovered a dilapidated iron box in the sand which he recovered as a means to help carry supplies. Removing the bits of garbage and past expired objects from the box, his heart leaped upwards in relief as he discovered that one of the items was a small flask of lantern fuel and matches accompanied by an old fashioned kerosene lantern still used when electricity is low. He would keep those in the box in the hopes that they still were good before reaching the scrub line and began using his knife to uproot some of the gnarled limbs and smaller branches scattered there.


It would do for tonight probably ... but they would still need a hatchet in the future if they expected better and longer lasting fires. As he began loading up the box with his various finds for the job, he resolved to check the pallets more thoroughly tomorrow (assuming they got through the night) and see if either the materials to make one were there, or could be salvaged together out of scrap. In the meantime though, he would have plenty to occupy himself with as he did have the materials to begin the curing and smoking process of the wolf hide though it would still take up to 72 hours at minimum to get one right with the proper salt and water mixture. But even more important than curing the hides and guts of the mutilated creature ... was to begin devising a way to find himself a better weapon than just the skinning knife. He had been given a bowstring as one of his items ... so it seemed only logical that like the wolf, the proper saplings were nearby for him to cure and potentially fashion into some kind of hunting bow.


The thoughts about the hides and the weapons occupied him just long enough to return to camp with the box over his shoulder just as the sun disappeared behind the ridge. It was already pretty damn dark in the bunker by then, but he elbowed his way through the crowded room to crouch over the fireplace and put his new discoveries to work. Within 10-15 or so minutes, a decent-sized fire was going in the fireplace and the place was filled with warmth. Removing the old rusty lantern from the box, he passed it over to Nikolai to hold onto just in case.


"Here, I found one of these on the way over here. The fuel can do as an accelerant for now, but we should keep it only for emergencies. We wont be able to cook anything over the fire if we use it to begin with. It should keep us fairly warm though. If we use the lantern, just make sure it isn't indoors. They can suck the oxygen out of a room quick as anything - we don't have a window in here so outdoors only for now."


So considering his work for the meantime mostly down, he took up residence in a nearby corner and began removing his jacket and other things to form a kind of bed for him to rest in with night coming up, his eyes taking note of the others whom he had all gradually introduced himself to over the passing day.





@Petronov

 

[WantYourSoul]

"Why is everyone getting injured?" Masami observes plainly, seemingly forgetting for the moment that she was one of the injured. An intense anxiety had begun crawling through her chest as she stares at everyone, listening to the conversations of the soldier man and the one who snuck off earlier."Uh, I can start a fire," Sam offers lamely, gaze darting between the two women who were helping her and everyone else.


She had learned how to start a fire as punishment in her group home, where they had a wood stove that was notoriously difficult to light. Considering Masami was a firecracker youth, she got a hang of the old fashioned manner of ignition rather quickly. She also had a friend who liked to light ants of fire, she however realizes that they had already started one, and Masami visibly deflates. So much for being a group asset.

Spoiler

@Cadee @LeSmexyFish @Amerikia1126

 

[Cadee]

Dylan was silent as Jack helped her back to camp and Marquist took over so Jack could go back and help the other two that were dealing with the wolf problem. She could feel the blood running down her side and leg, puddling in her shoe. Her teeth ground together as she tried to hobble along, helping as much as her injured body would allow. She was set down and a med kit was searched for, and all she could do was sit and watch as people tried to take care of her. Tears gathered in her eyes and she tilted her head back so they wouldn't fall. 'I can't believe this. A few hours into this and I'm already critically damaged! How am I supposed to survive if I can't even scout successfully.' The marks pulled every time she moved, and a slight burning began along the edges of the torn flesh. The world fell away as she worked herself up in her head, voices no longer registered and her vision blurred as her mind took over, one phrase echoing in her head. 'Goddess help me.'

 

[TEOYL]

Deus observed those around him. People were already getting injured. His eyes moseyed on over from person to person, analyzing each person quickly. 'Medic, Fighter, Hunter, and the rest look like dead weight.' He thought. His eyes stopped on the woman who was once asleep. 'Maybe not her, I'll have to talk to her later.' He thought about the note he had, and how everyone seemed to be informed about building a civilization of some sort. 'This can't be right, the pieces don't match up. Why wouldn't they give us more guns, more supplies, more well fit people. It's just not adding up.' He took a seat on the floor by the door as he was taken away by his thoughts.

 

[Petronov]

Nickolai walked back to the spot where he had assembled the first AK cautiously making sure to take in everything he saw along the way knowing that wolves in the area meant danger. He reached his spot and picked up right where he left off. He quickly assembled the second AK and went to work loading the rest of the second magazine. He finished quickly and set himself on a path back to the bunker. Along the way he tripped on a piece of metal that he hadn't noticed, though he caught himself it still frustrated him so he spent the next few seconds digging the piece out only to discover that it wasn't just a random bit metal, it was a little box about one cubic foot. He tried to open it but found it locked, time hadn't weakened the lock any either. He carried the box under his arm back to camp hoping someone would have an idea on how to open the stubborn thing. Once he arrived he set the box on the table and sat down in the chair next to it, resting the two assault rifles against the corner a few feet away. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out calming himself and thinking about what the day had held. As he sat there a faint gentle whisp of light that had always been there coming from the slit in the top of the door slowly faded and then slipped from existance as the sun gently sank below the horizon.

 

[WantYourSoul]

Masami had resigned herself to not looking at her leg. The old if I can't see you, you can't see me trick not working effectively on her pain. Going over her French conjugation wasn't helping any either, and she found her head lolling back to examine the structural integrity of this little shack they were holed up in.


That one soldier, the one who looked like he knew his way around a gun, had arrived again. She hadn't noticed him leaving, but now he had a box. With a painful jerk, Masami moves slightly so she could face him and the table.


"Hey, are you going to shoot that box or something? Because I promise it's not the best way to open it," she jokes lamely, trying to ease some tension in the room.


Sam knew a bit about how locks work. She researched them a bunch when she went on one of her manic episodes and studied something obsessively for days on end without breaking to eat, drink, or bathe. Maybe this could be hinting at the group's resourcefulness.


In all reality, Sam was shaking and clammy and the more she tried keeping her calm, the more she seemed to float away from her head.

Spoiler

@Petronov

 

[Amerikia1126]

Lucy Simmons





Lucy looked at the various people in the shelter. So far there were at least two injured people, one healed up, the other being assisted. Heavy-sleeper was resting, and some guy looked as if he were getting ready to sleep in the corner. "I never was good with names, and now there are way too many to keep track of." It was driving Lucy mad how she couldn't see where everyone was, the locations and actions of all these people. Though perhaps she should pay more attention to herself. Right problems, the others could deal with their own; Lucy leaned against the wall and observed her feet. Small cuts all over, they would sting if sanitized and a couple were bleeding. More of this barefoot walking and she would have to find another shoe.


She overheard the injured girl talk about a box. This box was indeed a menacing container filled with who knows what. But back to the shoes, perhaps there was something among the crates? But that would require more walking, and it was starting to get dark out. Lucy sighed, it was like that old song "There's a hole in the bucket", so many problems, but you couldn't fix any of them. She sat down against the wall, defeated for the moment.

 

[Petronov]

As Nickolai lounged back on a chair in the corner of their little bunker, he allowed his eyes to meander through the rich complex group and think of their similarities and differences. Everyone knew English at least but thus far everyone seemed to be different in every other way. A dull hum of talking in the room told him it was time for bed and as Masami reached for the box he handed it to her from the table. He got up slowly and walked to the door. A short but terrifying thought crossed his mind, and it sent a deep, blood chilling shiver down his back. Remembering back to one of his tours as a UN peacekeeper he found himself on the good side of the wall. Relief efforts and peacekeeping efforts were necessary for the slums that had formed by the displaced residents of the zone. He remembered that the contractors that patroled the wall would hold firing tests on all the guns at night, every night. He had found it strange back then but now he realized that it was a ruse. There was something on this side of the wall that they had to beat back every night. He swallowed hard and told Jack that he was going to take a leak. He picked up one of the AKs and stepped out the door. He walked up the stairs to the surface slowly and looked towards the wall. The zone was so quiet and still and with the heavy cloud cover making it near pitch black he could see small flashes of light coming from that direction. He took a deep, slow breath and began searching for a big piece of metal. He found several but only one fit his purpose. He picked it up and sprinted to the bunker with it. He opened the door panting slightly and quickly got to work. He fit the metal into the slots between the boards in the floor and jammed it hard against the door. When he turned to face everyone his face was slightly red and he could barely hear their questions. He dragged his feet as he made his way to the fireplace. He sat and watched the small fire blazing away as he began to tell the others everything he knew about the wall. About the contractors that had built and maintained the wall. How even their janitors carried assault rifles. When he was finished their was a deep silence in the room. It lasted for several minutes before someone started to speak. As the first word was uttered, a gut wrenching, blood chilling scream rang out across the zone. Not like an animal in pain but more of something out a horror movie. Nickolai stood listened as a stampede stormed above them coupled by more screams. The distant sound of heavy artillery was heard echoing through the bunker. "Everyone get some sleep. I'll take watch, if anything happens you'll know." Turning to Jack and Deus he said "If I get too tired I'll wake one of you up." As everyone settled in for the night, Nickolai sat by the door with an AK in his lap and his pistol on his hip. It was going to be a very long night.

 

[TEOYL]

Deus watched as Nikolai walked out with the weapon and soon came back to board up the door. Paranoid much? I guess it was just a good idea to fortify this place while we sleep. Then Nikolai spoke. He went on about wall, so abruptly though. It didn't seem like he had much of reason to go on about it, until we heard that scream.


It was horrid, as if civilians were being slaughtered. He knew all too well what that sounded like unfortunately. Then came more, with the sounds of pounding above them. Then came the booms of the artillery. Nikolai then ordered us to sleep, like that was going or happen. " I don't know how anyone but him could sleep while this went on." He thought to himself. Nikolai then looked at him and Jack, telling them that they'd be taking his place if he were to grow wery. "Wake me up first if you have a hard time deciding." He said, then walked out of the room into another with a cot. There is were he laid down, and tried to sleep.

 

[Amerikia1126]

Lucy Simmons





Lucy stared at her feet as Nickolai talked. She only heard bits and pieces but understood enough to know that the wall was dangerous, and something about janitors and guns? That couldn't be good. Nickolai and what was his name, Deus? talked about lookouts. The scene was one of suspense in a way, awaiting the unknown horrors that were almost certain to come to them on this night, past the wall. Then came the screams, so many screams.


Lucy couldn't sleep with that, besides she was in the zone for christ's sake! who could sleep? Apparently Deus could, since he went over to a cot. She decided to go over to the injured girl from earlier. After all, it was good to have freidns, right? "I don't think we got to know each other that well earlier, so... hi. I'm Lucy. And it looks like we're going to be stuck here for a while.." Lucy gave a sort of nervous chuckle. It would most likely be a very long while, if they could, you know.. last the night..


@WantYourSoul

 

[WantYourSoul]

Masami thanked the man, beginning to look and fiddle with the box. She was heartbroken her old lockpicks were gone, but couldn't say much because she hadn't used them since her exchange family got locked out of their house.


Sam agreed with his idea of sleep, and decides that she will do that once her curiosity with this box is sated enough for her to stop playing with it. She was hoping in the back of her mind that it wasn't a bomb, she didn't like loud noises.


The man, whom she was guessing was Nicko-something, had disappeared and reappeared with a significantly sized hunk of metal which served as a barrier, and then he began talking.


After a while, Masami finally breaks the silence with a soft question.


"Uh, Mr.?" She calls softly, watching him curiously,"If you want the most for that, you should tilt it more. Closer to an 11 degree, because it absorbs force better," her words are drowned out by the shrieks and the woman who helped her-Lucy-begins speaking to her.


"My name is Ito, Masami. It would be nicer to meet you under different circumstances. Do you think you'll be able to sleep tonight?" The loud noises had visibly frightened her, and the girl's eyes dart around the room in search of the Marquist man. They shared a fear of the dark, maybe they could all be brave together.


@Amerikia1126 @Petronov @Calibutcher

 

[Whisker]

Jack turned towards Nikolai when he said he was on his way out and nodded grimly. Deciding that meant he was in charge while the other was out, he immediately began going through the MRE rations and water bottles and began passing one out for everyone to hold on to. It wasn't going to be much in the way of dinner, but it was the best they could do for the time being.


"Before any of you sleep, get that down you. The drugs they used on us can dehydrate a body and drain it pretty quick. This will help some until the effects completely pass from the body."


After making sure everyone got some, he went over to stir up the fire to make sure it was alright. He added a couple more twigs here and there, using a much bigger stick to adjust the embers, before returning to his own pile of rags in the corner of the room. It was steadily getting colder out there so he made sure that as much of him as possible remained sitting on top of his discarded jacket. Stone like the bunker was made of could drain body heat like a siphon. He was just getting comfortable when Nikolai suddenly returned and in a hurry.


"What kept you?"


But it looked like that question would be answered in seconds as Nikolai began working on securing the door. Jack thought about offering help, but decided it was best to remain where he was for the time being. When Nikolai was finished, he began filling them in on information about the Zone; a harrowing experience that more or less confirmed what he himself had already suspected. If it wasn't dangerous and anyone could just walk in, then why even construct a wall to begin with? Gut instinct had already told him that the ugly monstrosity was as much to keep things out as well as to keep whatever was out there in.


Dark eyes narrowed slightly and calloused hands gripped the handle of his knife even tighter as Nikolai finished talking. Silence hung in the air for maybe a minute or so only to become filled with the booming of distant artillery and spattering of gun fire. Unlike the others though, Jack was more than willing to get some rest, his eyes closing immediately the moment he leaned back into his corner. It was going to be an uncomfortable night, but they didn't have cots for everyone. He was more than willing to sleep there after downing part of his rations while others took advantage.


@Petronov

 

[Petronov]

Nickolai turned to the girl that had suggested a better angle for the barricade and smiled slighty. "Well, Ms. Ito, I'm afraid that if the wall has to be defended to keep these things in then this barricade isn't going to do much." He looked around as Jack handed out MREs and water with the same small grin. He had to ask himself "How many of these people actually know how to properly prepare an MRE?" looking at the package nearly got a chuckle out of him. The labels were English but it didn't come with any instructions. He shook his head a little and opened the package. 'Chicken Noodle Soup' was written on the front but he knew better. He opened the inner package, poured in some water and sealed it. About 5 minutes later he had a warm pouch of "Chicken Noodle Soup" it tasted more like chemicals and sadness. Finishing the high calorie meal he downed more water and continued his sentry. This was going to be a long night of staring at a door.

 

[TEOYL]

Before falling asleep, as if he ever was going to, Jack had dropped by and set an MRE by the cot next to him. He looked down at it from up on the cot. "Food does sound pretty good right about now." He picked up the package, and scanned it. "Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes, now, were are those directions." He looked all up and down both sides of the packet, but no directions. A saddened expression and overall mood fell over him. "I'll just have to ask Nikolai or Jack how to open it later when I take over for 'em." The MRE would surely keep him awake. But for now, he was heading to sleep.

 

[Amerikia1126]

Lucy Simmons





The girl introduced herself as Ito, Masami. It sounded like a foreign name and she seemed to be of asian origin. "Didn't that movie "Mulan" have the names reversed?", she thought. Why don't countries just agree to have the family names in the same place? It would be easier then. "Respond, dammit, you've been quiet for too long. Stick with one and go with it." Okay, Masami it is.


"I don't know if I'm going to be able to sleep at all... I'm still too.. too- scared..." What's even out there? Anything could be out there, and it had to be bad if there was a wall blocking it off. Panicking! Panicking is bad. Stop. Now. But how? Oh right, the food. Lucy looked down at what the man had given her. "Note to self. Learn names. And remember them."


Right, back to the package. It read "Spaghetti and Meat Sauce". A meal as good as any, at least for the night. She opened the package and fumbled to get it open, because boxes had to be hard to open. Several packets came sliding out on the floor. One read spaghetti. Spaghetti, in a bag; How would this taste? Lucy placed all the packets back in the box, got up, and walked up to Nickolai, who was guarding the door. "Sorry to intrude on your guarding duties, but do you know how to prepare this?", she held up the box containing the "spaghetti", mildly embarrassed.


@WantYourSoul @Petronov

 

[Petronov]

Nickolai was shaken from his train of thought by Lucy asking for help with the MRE she had been given. He smiled a little and took the package from her. He set the ingredients on the table and opened the one containing pasta. He poured water into the package and sealed it and placed it inside a bigger package. Pouring water into the bigger package and sealing it he looked up at Lucy with a small smirk. "I hope you aren't expecting this to taste good." he ended with a faint tone of comedy. Reopening the bigger package he took out the smaller package and mixed in the rest of the ingredients and handed her the bag. "Enjoy, if you can." Smiling as he realized that unless Jack knew how to make all these he would have to do most of the cooling or at least teach someone how until they could get other food. Sighing and turning toward the door he noticed that the door had a faint but recognizable set of letters stenciled onto the door frame. Reading the letters one by one in his head filled him with a sense of dread. He averted his eyes and shook off the fear and hoped no one else would see them. He was beginning to suspect that whoever or whatever ZRS was, they had been around a long time.

 

[WantYourSoul]

Masami looks to Lucy with a bit of pity,"me too," she says softly.


As her MRE is handed to her, Masami flips the packet around to find Maple Sausage written on it in utilitarian script. She stares at it, as if trying to force it to unlock it's secrets. She vaguely remembers and old film she watched involving infantrymen. It had to do something with water but otherwise she was lost.


Thankfully, Lucy asked the soldier man and he showed her how. Sam quickly follows suite, following his directives almost to the T.


She smells it and proclaims,"This smells nothing like maple. or sausage. Soldier guy-I don't know your name, how much like sadness does this taste like?" She had picked up on his comedy, and decided to try playing off on it. Everyone needed a little laugh, especially considering their situation.

Spoiler

@Petronov @Amerikia1126