Event Log: Dust to Dust

[hadrielmods]

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the Dust to Dust event
Where: All over the city!
When: January 14th-17th
Warnings: A big ol' mess.

It starts off small: the wind picks up, particles of sand and dirt and dust begin to fill the air. You might not even notice at first, not until you have to wipe the dust off your windows to see outside. After all, it's been a long time since Hadriel has experienced weather, and it's never experienced a weather event not caused by the gods before.

But the gods aren't in charge of the weather now, and even if they could prevent this dust storm, they have way too many other things to do. So it's up to you to deal with it, and as the wind rises and the dust storm moves into the city, there'll be plenty to deal with.

Once the storm is at its peak, it'll be almost impossible to see outside - and it won't be safe to go wandering, either. Entirely besides falling and hurting yourself, if you aren't wrapped up well enough the particles in the air will abrade your skin. Love that sandpaper feel! Oh, and breathing? Yeah, better make sure your nose and mouth are covered, or else they'll be full of sand, too. Hope you've got some goggles stashed away to protect your eyes. Luckily, it won't last too long - 'cause you'll have plenty of cleaning to do once the storm is over.

► This log covers January 14th-17th.
► Feel free to make your own logs, as well
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you foolishly get scoured to the bone, please let us know here.

Comments

Rey.

[circumitus]

14th. Riverside/Dam Ruins; [CLOSED to LEO VALDEZ valdazzling]

Since emerging from her self-imposed exile, Rey hadn't had the chance to assess the damage done to the city by the Null invasion. While some parts appeared to be intact as others are being rebuilt, there's still one old project that Rey hadn't forgotten about.

"Son of a bitch!" is what immediately comes out of Rey's mouth when she finds the remains of her dam. She knew that power running through the city was limited to nonexistent, but she didn't think their only backup was this bad.

As the storm approaches, Rey should be looking to find shelter. Instead, she's rummaging through the rubble in hope that maybe she might find salvageable parts. Without protective gear, however, she might not be able to hold out for long, so she goes to retrieve a barrel to scavenge spare parts from the dam to take someplace safe, as well as a quick pit-stop by one of the shops for some layers and a pair of goggles to shield her eyes.

This might take a while.

15th-17th. The Speakeasy;

The wind picks up something fierce. Though her house is relatively protected, she has concerns with her bar.

By the time she steps in, removing her goggles and poncho, then peeling off the ruddy scarf from around her mouth, Rey stops when she sees that there are people who have taken shelter at her establishment.

"What the hell?"

Seriously. Don't people have better places to be?

14th;

[valdazzling]

"Hola, chica. Need some help?"

Well Rey was in luck! He had gone out to finally really investigate the area. Leo has been caught up with who knows what (like making sure he could still catch on fire. Let me tell you how that went) and making sure he could still utilize his tool belt. He grins a bit, offering her a pair of goggles and some gloves pulled from a pouch on his belt.

Not the best layers but it was at least something to keep them safe in the mean time. He was tired of feeling like a hermit (a Latino hermit! Like come on who has ever heard of that?), so might as well start scavenging for things he can use to help out.

[circumitus]

Having been something of a hermit herself these days, seeing Rey out and about is a rare sight. Almost like a real life cryptid.

Over the howling winds, she hears someone calling out. Her reflexes are more disciplined than they used to be, so she doesn't immediately go to punch a random stranger. Making her robot dad proud. Reluctant, she accepts the goggles he offers.

"Depends. You an engineer? The damned Null took out our one dam and generator." They needed that to not rely too much on the gods, dammit!

[valdazzling]

"Finest one on this side of no where." He jokes as he pulls at his suspenders. "Leo Valdez, at your service." He doesn't offer his hand, but he gives her a wide grin. "Looks like we can scavenge a lot of the parts but... there's probably no use repairing it right now."

Not with the dust or the storm brewing. Not with the wind and the chance they were going to be buried under sand. He only really went out looking for a dead Null or any parts that might have come with them -- but he was glad to meet another engineer.

"Did you build this?"

[circumitus]

"If you say so..."

She isn't one eager to see who can spit the farthest in terms of engineering skills. In all fairness, her own is sub-par -- passable at best, but hardly the 'finest' there is. So she'll take all the help she can get.

This storm is really starting to kick up, though. Rey exhales through her nose and pulls the goggles over her eyes as a gust of wind blows a sharp dusty breeze their way.

"Had some help, but it was my first project after coming to this place, since Hope was talking about cutting off some supplies to conserve his own strength." She grimaces at the remains of her work. What a sad graveyard of hard labor. "It wasn't perfect, but it was able to provide a mini-grid of hydroelectric energy to the residential parts of the city."

15th

[hot_mes]

Not when there's an enormous hole in the wall of his apartment. Besides, Law can teleport short distances and it's only a few good jumps to the Speakeasy...

He's perched at the far end of the bar with bottle at hand, wearing the t-shirt Atem gave him and looking pretty moody himself. 'Sup Rey, good to see you alive and all that.

[circumitus]

Okay, that's fair.

Her timing seems to be made of shit these days, if the first time she decides to get out of the house she ends up being shut in all over again.

At least today she isn't completely alone, and among someone she had been meaning to track down the last few days. If she still had her phone then she could've just called him, but... Rey hasn't been great at making the best decisions lately.

"Hey, can we talk?" Rey asks as she approaches Law, scratching the side of her neck.

[hot_mes]

Law had seen her enter, and maybe inwardly smirked to himself at Rey's reaction to finding people there, but as she comes right up to him, he sits up and turns to face her. Sure, they fought together and he doesn't dislike her, but he definitely wasn't expecting a direct question like that. "You want to talk to...me? Uh. Sure."

[circumitus]

"Yes." Rey pauses, folding her arms. "Helped Atem put his eye back in. He said that it was your work. There anything you can't do?"

After seeing what Rose is going through, and knowing what she endures, maybe something can be done about it after all.

[hot_mes]

There's a quick flash of relief in his eyes, Law doesn't hold it back. And then sighs. "Good. It's about time he got around to that. Yeah, I used my ability - the same one I fight with. It can do a lot of things." He shrugs a little, not to brag but. "I can't raise the dead. As long as a person is still alive, though, I can keep them that way, among other things."

[circumitus]

From the way Atem brought up Law, and entrusted him with his own eye, it's easy enough for Rey to guess that the two might have a connection. It's a big city with a small population; word traveling and people mingling is hardly a surprise.

"What about someone who's physiology had been scientifically altered? Would there be anything you could do for them?"

[hot_mes]

The speed with which Law's eyes flick up and turn keen betrays his interest in the idea. There's a touch of dread in there, too. "Maybe," he answers, and then clarifies. "It depends on how. If their lineage factor has been altered, I don't know that anything I can do would fix it." He's aware that it's called something different in some worlds, what was it? "I mean. Genetics. The basic code at the cellular level."

Really, if he could alter DNA, he'd be able to remove Devil Fruit from their users. That shouldn't be a thing, it would be dangerous to have that power.

[circumitus]

That's a more hopeful answer than Rey could expect from anyone else. "Not sure about that. Guess it might be easier for you to see for yourself if that's the case. Again, she doesn't know what was done to her."

She pauses, hesitating on whether or not this is information that she has any right to give to someone. If she didn't feel that any of this wasn't necessary, she wouldn't have bothered to talk to Law about it at all.

"It might help to know... she comes from a species of man-eaters. But it wasn't until her body was altered that she became unable to sustain herself on anything but human flesh." She stops again, shoulders tensing. "Got her to look into getting help from one of the gods, but it seems they're only able to supply her with food rather than a more permanent solution. So while they're out of commission, she's starving herself. Don't want to think about what she might do without a 'supplier', which shouldn't even be an option."

No. Rose needs autonomy, not to be trapped in a cycle that could leave her either too codependent or starved.

[hot_mes]

Aha, so it isn't Rey herself. Good? Not that someone else is in this situation but still...

"Yeah, I can't be sure until I make a direct examination myself." Law's gaze drops, hunting around the floor while he thinks. His interest in comparative physiology is getting quite the workout, all of a sudden. "A species that lives off human flesh...I'll give it a try. I can't guarantee anything."

[circumitus]

Having been in a similar situation herself, Rey can't help but feel compelled to do something. She never needed something so gristly to survive, but she knows what it's like to not eat. To hate eating. When Rey's senses were righted, it was one of the most amazing things she got to experience. It isn't something she takes for granted.

"Better than nothing." She nods. "Apparently it seems the gods don't even want to try."

It's bad enough they call everyone here 'humans' and advertise that they know virtually nothing about them, so it's probably better that way.

[hot_mes]

"Yeah, well." Law swivels back to grab his bottle. "They've got a lot going on right now. Might as well do what we can for ourselves instead of relying on them."

Really, he'd be glad if the power didn't come back and he had to live on grilled fish from now on. Fish and rice, it's like that age-old theoretical of what food you'd choose if you had to eat one thing for the rest of your life.

[circumitus]

"Mn, agreed. Never did like the idea of relying on them for much, which is why that original deal with Sorrow was to provide us with the means to make our own alcohol rather than depending on another one of them to supply us."

And that's why they are blessed with a continued stock of liquor, instead of running dry on stormy days such as these. At least some things are still working.

Which they'll have to wait out for the worst to pass before either of them can do shit for Rose, so...