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

[bi_otic]

A. Sanctuary

[Once the lockdown had gone into effect, Kaidan could only do his best to keep moving. Sure he could have gone with the evacuees - he'd had the opportunity to make it before the shutters closed them all into this floating deathtrap - but the possibility that there were other still living people trapped aboard the station held him back.

It turned out he was right, and a few hours later he's got a system going. After finding a storage area with only one entrance - probably some kind of maintenance bay, going by the equipment scattered around - he'd designated it as a temporary safe house.

He's returning to it now with a pair of terrified people and, naturally, they've got a small group of zombies on their trail. Panting, Kaidan runs up to the door and bangs on it to get the people inside to un-barricade it and let them in. The zombies, meanwhile, shamble tirelessly towards them.]

Any day now!

B. Space Wizard needs food badly

[This is the kind of thing the instructors would have torn him to shreds for, but he hasn't seen much option. Lacking grenades, biotics were an effective tactic in holding back their numbers, especially when one was outnumbered. Which he pretty much always was. His amp is hot, his head is aching, and his energy is dangerously low after hours of this. Most battles don't go for this long, and he needs calories to sustain the strain on his body.

Silly him, for forgetting to pack an energy bar.

Thankfully, there are some to be found on the station.

Not thankfully, they're stuck in these stupid vending machines which are of course shut down like everything else on the station.

The solution is apparently to try to break it open, but these vending machines are apparently tougher than zombies. Especially when you're very, very tired.]

Come on you piece of junk [He gives the thing another kick, but clearly he's losing steam]

3. Wildcard

[Kaidan is constantly on the move, looking for survivors and killing zombies with his mix of biotics and fleet-issue rifle. There's no hesitation here, only experience and training and the inability to sit still while people needed help</small?]

b!

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Sam - might not look like the most reassuring person right now, considering both he and the metal wings sprouting from his back are splattered with zombie gore. He'd come over to investigate the noise, and there's a moment where he almost turns away when it isn't more zombies or the person he's looking for.

But he'd have never turned away back home, before everything, and he fights the urge to keep moving, keep taking out the threat.

Instead, he makes his way closer, holding himself carefully like he's still kind of expecting a fight. ]

Need a hand?

[bi_otic]

[Thankfully, even a blood-splattered winged person is rather easily distinguished from the shambling and moaning mess that was the undead, so his guard is up and back down in a matter of seconds. He's still wary, of course. The noise might easily draw the things here, but his desperation overrides caution.

He lets out a tired chuckle.]

Whatever gets the job done. Back home I could've hacked this thing open, but no such luck here.

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ The chuckle sets him a little bit more at ease, and he latches on to the familiar frustration. He and Bucky have been trying everything to hack into, hell, anything here, but even a vending machine keeps them out.

It's almost a relief to know it's not just them. ]

Can't even pick up any frequencies here, it's just static. [ He shifts even as he says it, swinging a punch to put his gloved fist through the glass on the vending machine - and it's one of the moments that he's almost grateful for his cybernetic enhancements.

After that he moves back from the machine and stills, wings spread like a shield as he keeps his guard up for any zombies that might've heard that. ]

[bi_otic]

[Kaidan nods, not especially surprised when he punches right through the machine.]

All the tech hears seems to operate off a different language entirely. I've tried, but haven't made much headway in trying to translate it.

Thanks. [He immediately steps up, pulling away the glass and metal and pulling out the little foil packets that come spilling out, not really bothering to inspect what's in them before stuffing them into his pockets as quickly as he can manage, eyeing Sam's wings curiously as he does so.]

Interesting rig.

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Sam snorts quietly, part commiseration and part irritation. Of course, it'd be too easy otherwise. ] It's frustrating as hell.

[ Kaidan's eyes on his wings make him acutely aware that he still has them out, something he'd been less conscious of when he was fighting. He can't pull them back in after using them as weapons, and he can't even tuck them down smaller when he's still keeping them out as a shield, but he settles for hunching in on himself a little bit. ]

Cybernetics. They get the job done.

[bi_otic]

[He hadn't meant to make the man self-conscious and wouldn't have thought that would have been the result, but after a moment it makes a certain kind of sense. Enhancements, even beneficial ones, tended to come with discrimination of one kind or another, and bio-amps were a less visible version of the same.

He gives Sam a small smile.] I can vouch for that. Quite a few people I know have one kind of cybernetic or another - it's not that uncommon. I just haven't seen any that involves wings before.

[Pausing, he rips open one of the last packets with his teeth, then holds out another towards Sam] Do you want one?

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ That - actually makes him feel a little better. He may still be on edge from, well, being in the middle of a zombie outbreak, but at least he doesn't have to worry about explaining any of this. ]

They're a little new. Still getting used to 'em. [ He tells himself that's all it is, anyway, and it's not because he didn't have much of a choice. Some days it works more than others, but right now, at least they're proving useful.

Sam considers the packet for a second, but then takes it when a small smile in thanks. It's a good idea, if he wants to keep flying around. Gotta get fuel from somewhere. ]

What kind of ones have you seen?

[bi_otic]

[Food seems like a trivial matter, but he has to keep himself going if he's going to survive this - and maybe help a few other people do the same]

Mostly limb replacements - arms, legs, eyes, that sort of thing. Kind of a sad reality in the service, but thankfully we have the tech to make it almost like new. One person I've served with is probably fifty percent cybernetics at this point, but she's kind of an exception to the rule...in...an lot of ways. [He shakes his head in a sadly fond way.]

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ His attention is caught immediately by Kaidan saying in the service, his focus sharpening at the same time as he seems to relax a little more. ]

I know a couple of people like that. [ Himself included, these days. ] You were in the military?

B

[hollowvictor]

[It's the banging that draws his attention. It startles him for how close it is, but that sudden alarm changes when he hears someone's voice follow it. That was no zombie.

He rounds the corner, curious but cautious. Just another guy stuck in this nightmare too. Although how he could be hungry at a time like this was beyond Bucky.]

Problem?

[He took a few steps closer, calling out as he walked and careful to keep his body language as calm and nonthreatening as possible. Last thing he needed was to be shot trying to start a conversation.]

[bi_otic]

[If he had a choice he wouldn't have an appetite, but passing out is not a option he wants to explore. Someone speaking gets his attention immediately, but the presence of language is the best indicator that this isn't a threat.]

Yeah. You know...vending machines are a problem even people aren't trying to eat you alive.

[The hunger might be making him a little punchy. He gestures at it in frustration, a few dents in the metal but otherwise no progress towards food.]

You wouldn't happen to have a screwdriver or something on you?

[hollowvictor]

[Bucky's body language relaxes, thankful it's not about to be a fight or anything like it. He's exhausted and sore, but that junk the Capitol had put in him keeps him going so, for now, he's thankful for it.]

I have...or something. [He searches the pockets of his pants and jacket and finally removes what is definitely packaged beef jerky.]

Courtesy of that self-restocking store a couple planets back.

Sometimes paranoia is useful.

[bi_otic]

[He lets out a breath of a laugh] I'll remember that for next time. I've started treating most planets like potential combat situations...thus the gun...but I didn't think to include the stations as well. Silly me.

You're willing to share? [I mean, that seems to be the implication, but he's not about to get grabby when they're both obviously keyed up and wary.]

[hollowvictor]

[Bucky nods and holds it out more.]

I used to lead soldiers, small groups and larger, I know the value of keeping good people on their feet.

[He doesn't know this person well, not more than a vague knowledge of 'he's in the fleet' but he was clearly a fighter and not a bad person initially, so he took the liberty of assumption.]

Name's Bucky. Bucky Barnes.

[bi_otic]

[He nods gratefully and takes some of the rations, pocketing some and immediately starting on one portion.]

Yeah...yeah me too. Well...the latter part at least.

[It feels a little strange in this deadly quiet part of the station, knowing that zombies were roaming in others, to be having a relatively friendly conversation. Nevertheless, he offers a hand]

Kaidan Alenko.

[hollowvictor]

[Bucky shook Kaiden's hand amicably. It didn't feel so strange to him, but then, he'd stopped to talk to people just before open war zones several times. It was the held breath before the fall; there was no point in waiting around during that time.

But, he did still have something to do.]

Nice to meet you. Even under the circumstances.

I have a question, if you don't mind. While you've been helping people, have you seen a Sam Wilson? Tall, dark-skinned, maybe sporting some cybernetic wings from his back?

[bi_otic]

Yeah, actually. I ran into him on my last sweep. Friend of yours?

[hollowvictor]

[The relief was visible and his smile grew a little brighter.]

Yeah. Thanks, I've been looking for him through this mess. I'd hoped someone had seen him recently.

[Which meant he was out there and still fighting and Bucky needed to do the same.]

I should find him. I'll let you get back to safety, Kaiden. Take care of yourself, this's got to end eventually.

[bi_otic]

One way or another.

[It's a little grim, but it's the truth - the kind that soldiers make their own peace with. Not that he hasn't already died once, here. He doesn't intend to repeat the experience]

Good luck finding your friend.