Don't Dead, Open Inside || Action

[postocular]

Who: Carl Grimes, a bunch of zombies, and you
Broadcast: kinda?
Action: Waystation
When: Right now


(( ooc: This is a blanket content warning for blood/gore/death. So! There are zombies ahead and you’ve found yourself on the waystation! You have two options: evacuate, or fight them off. Things of note to remember: Being bitten or scratched are the easiest ways for infection. We don’t suggest being eaten. Magic will be hit or miss depending on player preference/discretion. Characters who become zombies will be treated as in-character deaths. Standard rules apply! The event will last a total of 24 hours. Have fun, and enjoy all the undead things. If there are any questions or anything at all, feel free to pm this journal or hit me up at skorozima. ))

[ The Fleet has been floating along its predetermined path for the past few days, getting further and further away from the Yadrolla System and toward unknown territory. Along the way, those oh-so convenient waystations continue to pop up at their usual intervals. Identical in every way to every other, boring waystation. Neat, right? There are even some of those familiar orange-skinned aliens and some human travelers milling about and generally minding their own business. It’s a good place to stretch your legs, get sodas of questionable flavor, and take those nifty new pets for a walk!

Interrupting the general peace of the waystation, a shrill siren starts, and a robotic voice comes over the intercom as well as all communication devices on the station and surrounding spacecraft, repeating a monotone message. ]


ATTENTION. THIS IS AN EMERGENCY. LOCKDOWN IMMINENT. ATTENTION. THIS IS AN EMERGENCY. CALMLY EVACUATE USING THE NEAREST EXIT. LOCKDOWN IMMINENT..

[ Soon, it becomes apparent to those on the waystation what the emergency is. A gaggle? A murder??? Just.. a lot of undead. They’re not in any particular hurry, shambling and stumbling along.. until they spot what looks like some good eats. That seems to get them excited, arms stretching forward, teeth gnashing, and more growling than any sort of verbal mishmash meant to be words. THEY’RE NOT A WORDY PEOPLE, OKAY?

For those looking to escape, it’s quite easy to outrun them unless you’re not paying attention to your surroundings. Corners can be tough! Just don’t get bit or scratched and all is well, except for their incessant attempts at making you a snack. For those who haven’t come across them before, or have run into some variation of them in another world, they’re resilient up to the point of losing their head or the brain being destroyed. Limbs being broken or missing don’t seem to slow them down, just send them a little off-balance.

All they know is attack and eat.

For those of the fleet still on their ships, they gravitate around the waystation, seemingly not wanting to go anywhere. There is a short window of time from the emergency alert to the entire waystation going on lockdown. Those wishing to help evacuate can do so- but they have to be quick!

Once the lockdown is in place, communication ceases with the waystation. All the rest of the fleet can do is sit and wait, and hope for the best. The doors will re-open twenty-four hours later, once it’s clear the situation is handled and they can regroup, count their losses, and wait once again for the perished to rejoin their ranks. ]

Comments

fighting

[candothat]

[Chekov isn't on the waystation after lockdown on purpose, really. He knows what things he's good at and fighting isn't one of them, so he would never intentionally place himself in a situation like this.

And yet Kitty will find him in one of the station's hallways. Even though Pavel isn't going to win any prizes for coolness with his oversized and gore-splattered raincoat or makeshift spear—a cheap waystation umbrella with jagged shards of what are definitely pieces of a plastic wall panel taped to the end—he is alive.

He's currently keeping a handful of zombies at bay by alternating between running and jabbing at them, but this probably isn't a sustainable method. Kitty is more than welcome to jump in.]

[passingthrough]

[Kitty sees them going after someone at the end of the hall. She can't see who it is yet and it doesn't matter. She's rescuing everyone she can. She bangs her hand against the wall and shouts.] OVER HERE!

[They seem drawn to sound and she hopes they want it more than they want whoever they have down there.

It is enough to get some of them to turn and head her way as she sprints through them toward the rest in hopes of finding someone who isn't a snack yet and phasing them to safety.]

[candothat]

[Chekov hears Kitty, but running away from the two determined creatures that still seem intent on eating him sounds like a better idea than shouting across the hall. Kitty can more than handle herself; he'd only be a liability if he stuck around.

He doesn't get far before he runs out of hallway.

Fortunately, Kitty intervenes and phases them both through the wall and into an entirely different (and mercifully zombie-free) hallway. As soon as he determines that the coast is clear, Pavel slides to the ground. Nonstop running-and-panicking is very tiring, okay.]

Kitty, thank you. Your timing is remarkable.

[passingthrough]

[She drops down next to him for a hug. She realized it was Pavel shortly before contact and she hates the thought that he was spending any time alone with those things and that she can't get him off this station. She should have the perfect power for it but ever since the lock down she can't. She's not sure if there's some kind of forcefield preventing her or if it's the augment.] Are you okay? Did they bite you?

[candothat]

[He hugs her back tightly (and maybe a little shakily). There's no one he'd rather be saved by... even if it would be nice if Kitty wasn't trapped on the station with a bunch of zombies.] I'm fine, no bites. And you?

[passingthrough]

[There's no where she'd rather be if he's going to be here.]

Who me? Never. [She keeps her eyes open as she hugs him. There could be more anytime.] We need to find a safe place for you.

[candothat]

[That's one of the sweetest things that's ever been written in brackets.]

Of course not. [He sounds proud. As proud as someone can be on an inescapable station mid-zombie outbreak when they're fully expecting another hoard to turn the corner at any second.]

I know where several empty rooms are. [Not even going to bother defending his ability to keep himself safe in light of almost being killed.] Although my intention was to lure the... whatever they are in, seal the doors, and then vent the rooms, not to hide in them.

[passingthrough]

[Sugar, honey, agave nectar...]

By yourself? With an umbrella? [ARE YOU TRYING TO BECOME ONE OF THEM?]

[candothat]

I did have a small statue earlier. It broke on one of their heads.

[Okay, yeah, that wasn't her point.]

I didn't mean to be here, but now that I am, how can I hide while everyone else is fighting?

[passingthrough]

Oh, well, if you had a small statue then by all means. [She breaks the hug and pushes herself up and then offers him a hand.] Let's find you a better weapon.

[candothat]

[He accepts the hand up... and leaves the umbrella on the ground where it probably belongs. Now that there's no immediate need to panic, he feels a bit embarrassed.]

Daryl gave me a gun. [He pulls it out of a coat pocket. Judging by the zombie goo on it, it's seen some use as a blunt instrument.] But I would rather not use a loud projectile weapon in an enclosed space.

[Or at all. He hasn't forgotten the person he shot on the red planet.]

[passingthrough]

You had a gun that whole time? [Pavel...]

Let's get you a proper weapon. A broom.

[candothat]

[He looks appropriately chagrined. Still not going to use it, though.]

I need to do something first, then I promise to hide in a room with everyone else who's terrible at fighting. [If he sounds annoyed that he currently falls into that category, at least compared to most of the rest of the Fleet, it's just because he is.] Will you help me?

[passingthrough]

You're going to make me answer before telling me what you need to do? [She sighs.] Yeah, what is it?

[And for the record she was going to cut off the end of the broom and make it pointy. Real weapon!]

[candothat]

[Are you annoyed, Kitty.]

Thank you. [He takes off down the hall rather decisively. If he doesn't know where he's going, he's doing a great job hiding it.] I need to vent a room that I trapped some of these... these things in. I was almost finished when I was interrupted.

[passingthrough]

[A little bit. JUST BE RESCUED, DAMNIT!

She follows, staying close and in fact reaching out to hold his hand which may be awkward, but it's for potential phasing purposes.]

Why do they need ventilation?

[candothat]

[Look, it's a minor miracle she hasn't had to save him from doing more stupid things than she has. You don't get into Starfleet without having at least a small amount of stupid.

He accepts the hand-holding for the practical precaution that it is.]

They would likely prefer not to have it. If they were still sentient, I mean. [He isn't actually convinced that they're not sentient, but he has to keep believing it until it's a convenient time to have some kind of moral meltdown.] I can vent the room to space. Nothing survives for very long in a vacuum.

[passingthrough]

...Oh.

That kind of venting. [She nods, thinking it over. If they are trapped that seems safe enough. If there is a cure they'd be available for it. But is it more likely there's a cure for death or more likely someone will open that door by mistake and get themselves killed while letting them out?] Okay, let's do it.

[candothat]

Mmhm. [He's not thrilled about it, but he's also not thrilled about the idea of any of them escaping or mauling someone looking for a place to hide.]

Have you wondered if this can be spread by more than direct contact? If it can be airborne? [Probably not a good thing to wonder right now, but.

As he wonders, he stops at a door, ignoring the creature nearby that, while still animate and growly, has had its limbs thoroughly ducttaped together and its mouth covered. The wall panel near the door has been dismantled (these are sophisticated sliding doors because space) and a couple of live wires spark inside. Pavel picks up a blood-spattered computer tablet that he'd left behind in his hurry to not be killed and begins tapping away.]

[passingthrough]

Have I thought that all this might be pointless because we are all going to eventually turn into those things no matter what we do and the important part is that the station is sealed off?

Yep.

[Looking at him.] We're still going to fight until we can't.

Did you do this? [Pointing to the duct taped living dead person.]

[candothat]

Good. I'm glad I'm not the only one who is entertaining thoughts of futility.

[He just nods in response to the fighting. They don't really have a choice even if they are all ultimately doomed.]

I did, yes. [If she's expecting unprompted elaboration, she's going to be disappointed. Whatever he's doing that requires so much thought results in a loud thunk behind the door.]

[passingthrough]

[It was enough for her.] Impressive. [Also time consuming. He wouldn't be able to do that with more than one of them ambling his way. She watches as he works and when she hears the thunk she waits for more sounds for a moment before speaking.]

Was that the venting?

[candothat]

Not efficient, but thank you. [There's a reason he ran when a pack of them located him.]

The--? Oh, no. That was a seal to protect the rest of the station. . This is the venting. [He gives his tablet a final decisive tap, there's a very quiet whoosh, and a red light in the wall panel lights up. That's it.

And although it's not all that exciting and there are no other noises because there's now a soundless vacuum behind that door, Pavel looks relieved. Not happy, but relieved is good too.] In four, maybe five minutes, I can fix the room. I promise to hide after that.

[passingthrough]

Ah. Hopefully the vacuum of space does it for them. [It's a pretty nasty process, but they are dead and walking around so who knows?]

[The soft sound of moans approaches and Kitty stands protectively in front of Pavel, facing outward.] I don't think it's going to be a boring wait. [A group of them is shuffling down the hall to their location.]

[candothat]

Hopefully. [It's not a thing he's comfortable doing. He wouldn't do it if he was confident they would stay contained, or that no one would find a way to open a sealed door, or that whatever disease causes it could only be transmitted directly by bite. If they discover that it's curable or that these people aren't too far gone to be helped...

Well. What's a little extra guilt.]

I think that I would prefer boring. [He is quite content to stay behind her for the moment, thank you.] This hallway ends ahead, no more rooms. The wall to our left is an exterior wall, and I don't know what is behind the others.