The Stand (IC)

[Celticbear]

Captain Trips. 1990. Summer.

So much has happened during the months of June and July. The world ended do to the superflu known as Captain Trips,the orgins of which are unknown, though conspiracies have started to be drawn.

Over the past two months people have started to have visions in their dreams. Some see an old woman playing the guitar, asking you to hurry towards Boulder, Colorado. On the other hand, some have dreamed of the Dark Man (Walkin' Dude, The Hardcase, and other various nicknames) beckoning them through the smoking rubble of the world towards Las Vegas.

Josef

A very intelligent man from Texas, namely Josef, has been getting the dreams of the kind woman with the guitar. Though they are a litte hard to remember, the parts that stick do not sound that well.

You best hurry to Boulder, Josef. The other fella' doesn't want you here, afraid of you turning the power back on. It will be rough road, but you must walk through the valley of darkness to come to me.

Hiro

Another prodegy, though a little less reputable, named Hiro has gotten very different dreams than Josef. Hailing from North Carolina, Hiro has had a very unique history, as his pentient for murder has led him down a dark path. The choices Hiro has made have gained the attention of the Dark man, and the Dark man has been talking to Hiro through his dreams, with conversations such as this.

You and me Hiro. Kings of this world. With your brain, and my charming demeanor, we can do just about anything together. You have a taste for blood, I understand that. Come on over to Vegas, and I'll lay out a buffet for that taste for ya'.

The most recent conversation actually warned Hiro that the adversary was going to be targeting him directly, sending ones who had dreamed of the kind lady to capture him. Te Dark Man also told Hiro that others who were going to Vegas were near, and that if he could get to them, he might be safe.

Eden

An actress with a heart, and looks, of gold, Eden Hall from California was totally unprepared for Captain Trips, but survived it nonetheless. She was having dreams of the kind old woman, though like Josef's they held a warning of the danger ahead.

Sweet child, Boulder is your destination. There is a problem though. The path you must walk is through his domain. Do not accept any deal they offer you. Do not let them try and dissuade you from the good path. You must be strong, both in heart and in will.

[JeenLeen]

Hiro

The dreams, both disturbing and tantalizing. The Walkin' Dude promised a place where he could practice his proclivities without provocation. Tempting, but Hiro's life of caution taught him not to trust those who knew his tastes. Hiro also didn't care for a beckoning in his dreams, but after most of the world died, well, he had no strong reason to believe the supernatural didn't exist.

And now the 'Good' were coming to capture him, huh? Well, he'd killed one cop before who had sniffed around too much, and a group of hungry do-gooders shouldn't be too hard, if he had some people to act as a shield.

Let this be the experiment. If Hiro can find the others the Walkin' Dude said could help him, and if some of the 'Good' did attempt to capture him... well, then perhaps all this stuff of dreams is real after all.

After checking his supplies -- some chemicals on hand, a week or so of food and a few days' of water -- and sharpening his knife, Hiro heads out on the quickest route towards the west.

EDIT/OOC: if a car is available, he's in a car. Otherwise, on foot.

[Jasminenocturne]

Los Angeles was a nightmare. It spread faster than any wildfire, and it didn't stop. It left millions of corpses baking under the summer sun. The rats and flies and coyotes and birds were everywhere, but they weren't the worst. The people were the worst. If you weren't strong enough to defend yourself, you had to be fast enough to run away. Eden tried to get out when there were still people getting sick, but the roads were choked. There was no way to get onto the freeways, and the city streets were full of violence.

Eden laid low, going from house to house in her neighborhood, taking food and water. Pretty soon the lights went out, the water stopped coming out of the taps. Then the dreams came. That sweet old lady, telling her to go to Boulder. Night after night, and always giving her the same warning. She didn't know whose domain she would have to go through, and she didn't know where it was. There was no more power or internet, so she had to find a paper map. It was a thousand miles of deserts and mountains to Boulder.

At least the desert air wouldn't carry the stench of rotting meat.

She prepared carefully. A car would be useless, but she couldn't walk. She had a mission. She went to the Harley Davidson dealership in Hollywood. The windows had been smashed in, most of the bikes were gone, but quite a few never made it out of the parking lot. She found a Road King that she was able to get off the ground, and rode it slowly over to the Big 5 sporting goods store. It was a huge beast, but she kept it in low gear, weaving slowly through the miles of broken down cars.

She would need to pack light, just the essentials. She told herself it was just like a movie. She had hoped there might be a gun left, but that section had been thoroughly looted. She got a tent, a sleeping bag, a camp stove, and some clothes that looked more suitable to her journey than designer jeans. She packed everything onto the bike, and got on the road.

[DoctorFaust]

Josef

The German-born scientist wakes up with a start, grabbing instinctively for the gun he's been carrying for the past week. The old woman has been haunting his dream ever since the world went to hell, always telling him to head north, to go to Colorado. If it weren't for his past work, he would almost think that the stress of being alone was driving him insane, but as it stood, Josef was beginning to wonder if something was actually trying to contact him. The talk of "the other fella" was concerning, if nothing else.

Seeing the sun begin to rise, he heaves a sigh and crawls out of his sleeping bag. Traveling day in and day out has sucked almost all of the energy from Josef's body, but he knows that he needs to get out of the heavily populated parts of the state before things start to rot. He had set off with no real plan beside that, and after a week of biking aimlessly up the 35, Colorado's beginning to sound pretty good.

A quick meal of dry oatmeal later, and Josef is back on the road peddling north. At some point, he's bound to hit a sign that'll point him in the right direction, but until then, he's just going to have to keep going and hope for the best.

[Celticbear]

Hiro

After about a day of driving (yes there is a car), you start to pack up for sleep, but you notice smoke on the horizen...

Eden

The first few days are not really prevelant. Nothing bad happens, but then again nothing good either. When you eventually cross the Nevada state line, you get a feeling. Like goosebumps, but worse...

Josef

After about a three days of travelling, you're about to stop for a quick lunch, but you hear the thrum of motorcycle engines. They are getting louder by the second...

[Jasminenocturne]

"Well, there's no point in riding halfway across the country because of a dream and then not listening to your gut," Eden said to herself, pulling onto the side of the highway into the shade of the Welcome to Nevada sign. She had never liked Nevada before, and now it filled her with dread. Vegas was like LA if you removed the art, the creativity, and the beauty, leaving just the sleaze. She took out her map. She could go south of the Grand Canyon, through Arizona and New Mexico. It would add a couple hundred miles to the trip, but gas was cheap, and she had a bad feeling about what lay ahead.

Decision made, she folded the map back up and got back in the saddle, heading back into California. She didn't feel the relief she had hoped to. Whatever she had felt was still there, like gum stuck to her shoe.

[JeenLeen]

Hiro

Hiro stares at the fire for a while, contemplating the possibilities.

A camp fire, with either his supposed captors, supposed allies, or an unknown party; or perhaps a loner who would make good prey.
A dangerous fire, that may cause injury. Could a forest fire reach him here?
Just residual flames from looting and mayhem--although something big would have to be the source if it were still burning now.

After a minutes pondering, he decides to drive closer. (Assuming it doesn't seem big enough to be a forest fire), he parks his car some distance away, then starts walking on foot to try to get a sight on whoever has the lit the fire before they can see him.

[DoctorFaust]

Josef's head whips around, shock plastered over his face. Still, he keeps his wits about him enough to shovel the few bits of food he had out back into his pack, kick his bike over, and make a dash for the nearest house with an open door.

Once Josef makes it inside, he crouches down underneath a window facing the road, pulls his gun out, and flicks off the safety. He's pretty sure he doesn't have anything worth taking, but it never hurts to be safe.

[Celticbear]

Eden

Eden's road is long, but she does make it around Nevada. Much like Josef though, she sees a fire in the distance.

Hiro

Hey Markus! Look over there! There's a car over there! yells a voice.
I can see it. Now shut your yap, I think this one is the one. yells back what appears to be Markus. He walks closer to your car, hands held up signifying he has no weapons. You Hiro? The Hardcase has been talking all about you in my ear. Come on over,
we got beans.

Josef

Come on out! I got a couple forty-five millimeters that would love to get right into your skull! yells a voice outside.

make a "stealthy" roll, please.

[DoctorFaust]

Josef pushes himself harder against the wall, gripping the pistol tightly, and tries very desperately to not make any noise.

[roll0]

[Jasminenocturne]

Eden is feeling good, now that Nevada is behind her. The roads through the desert offer long stretches where she can open up the bike a little, without worrying about what might be around the next bend, because the next bend is five or ten miles away. Around one such bend, though, she sees a column of smoke in the distance. Curious, she rides closer, slowing down.

[JeenLeen]

At first cursing himself for being seen, his anger passes to intrigue as they mention his name and the Hardcase. Guess that's a good name for the Walkin' Dude.

Hiro walks out, his arms outstretched to show no aggression and a charming smile on his face.

"I apologize that I was an inconvenience, but I am glad to see you. He has directed me to meet some others who have heard his call. I admit I wondered if I were just crazy. I'm glad to see I am not."