Intro Log: None Hadriel With Left Shark

[hadrielmods]

Who: New arrivals and everyone else!
What: The intro log for February
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: February 10th-16th
Warnings: Shark week

Once more, new arrivals will wake up on the ground level of the ruined colosseum. There isn't anything particularly comforting about it, either- everything is a bit cold and impersonal and there is, of course, the fact that nobody remembers just how they managed to wind up here in the first place. That can all be explained in time, though- until then, you've got quite a bit on your plate already.

And why is that? Well, that may be because you're also surrounded by sharks.

Yes, on land.

It doesn't mean that they're totally incapacitated though- you still have your two headed sharks, your giant sharks, and your sharktopus that are more than capable of flopping in your general direction before taking you into a death roll. And don't forget the (far more dangerous) sand sharks, capable of swimming through the ground as if it were water itself. You might want to start to find a life raft high ground soon.

But hey, if you manage to get away from the sharks, feel free to help yourself to one of the odd food shaped blankets. These cozy comforters are perfect for your new bed, but they tend to carry a faint scent of the food they represent, so be sure not to sleep on an empty stomach!

Listen to the Jaws theme, grab a harpoon, and get cozy! On your way to safety, make sure to explore the rest of the city! Find a house, a new monster, a project to help with, or simply scavenge for supplies. Good luck, and enjoy your stay in Hadriel!

► This log covers February 10th-16th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► All characters arrive with phones that have network communication and the newbie guide installed.
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!

Comments

[hotspurred]

[Fortunately at this point in his stay, Henry is used to modern guns and won't be startled by them. Keeping his shield up, he concentrates fully on his task and watches the shift of the sand, tracking the position of those circling sharks. The easiest method in his case is to bide his time and let them come. When another does leap, he brings up his shield, letting it crash against it and gutting it with a sweeping cut of his sword. A timely push from his shield ensures that the corpse is flung a few feet back, rather than at his feet, spilling innards across the sand.]

[manofmettle]

[And on his side of the skirmish is the continuous cock and fire of the combat shotgun. Equally if not more messy than Henry's kills, Danse is shooting at every shark that gets within range. It's easier when there are two eyes covering the battlefield, and Danse can focus on the enemy in front.

One shark learns the hard way that just because this man isn't wearing any plate mail doesn't make him any easier to chew. The loud bang and subsequent squelch and squish is telling enough on the shark's fate: the front of its head blown to a pulp. Less fancy than Henry's technique, but it gets the job done.]

[hotspurred]

Two remain.

[As far as Henry can tell. Fortunately the sharks are so intent upon their prey that this does not become a test of patience. Using the same tactic, he takes out another when it bursts out of the sand. The last, however, does not emerge in his purview. While he waits at the ready, he listens out for the sound of a final kill at his back.]

[manofmettle]

Roger that.

[Henry disposes of the shark on his side, but the last one facing Danse suddenly dives back underground, wriggling through sand and packed dirt. Yet the disappearance of their sharp-toothed nemesis doesn't mean its fled. Small pebbles bounce harmlessly off the ground accompanied with small clouds of dust, hinting that the enemy is underneath, trying to find an opportunity to strike. Danse scowls, keeping his weapon trained on the movement above ground.]

Caution; it's gone underground.

[When and where will it re-emerge...?]

[hotspurred]

Hmph.

[Henry flicks viscera off of his sword as his gaze scans their immediate area for sign of the last to no avail. He frowns, only to grit his teeth when he feels a faint rumbling below —

— since the other man is unarmoured, Henry uses his shield on the man's back to shove him with moderate force a few steps forward out of danger but hopefully not off of his feet. The screech of the shark's teeth scraping off of metal immediately follows. While Henry's armour protects his flesh, the collision staggers him, and by the time that he recovers and aims a thrust at it the shark it just escapes the reach of his blade.]

[manofmettle]

[It might have just inched its way out of being skewered, but it sure couldn't escape a quick trigger finger and a lazer beam to the face. The smell of burnt fish is over-powering, but at least the shark's lying dead on the ground, body still twitching even with its head melted off.

Danse lowers his rifle and lets out a slight sigh. The threat has been defused...for now. Now that there's a moment to catch his breath, he can properly turn to and address the man who saved him.]

I don't know who you are and why you're dressed like that, but you have impeccable timing. Without your help, I wouldn't have gotten out of that ambush unharmed.

[hotspurred]

[Henry spares a handful of seconds to check out the corpse, raising his eyebrows. Laser weapons are entirely new to him so the melted ruin of flesh briefly piques his professional interest.]

That is quite the weapon you have.

[He says as he sheathes his sword and gives a brief nod of acknowledgement at the thanks.]

My name is Henry Percy. I am a knight of England, and of more current import, a guardsman. Follow me and I shall lead you to the exit. I need not tell you that this colosseum is unsafe.

[His last sentence is said wryly. He begins to walk, checking after a few steps that the other man is following.]

[manofmettle]

Danse.

[The least he could do was give this stranger his name, even if all this talk about knights and England is sowing serious doubts on Henry's sanity. If his name even is Henry.

Danse is right behind the guardsman because anything beats being stuck--...wherever the hell back there was. But while this Henry might be an incredible fighter, Danse wonders if he's one of those who have snapped under the pressure of living in the Commonwealth and lost their sanity. He should get this man some help. Double back to Sanctuary, get Curie to look at him.

But first, he has to figure out where he is, because he's certainly never seen a structure like this in the Commonwealth before. How the heck did he get here anyway!? The last settlement he crossed was Tenpines Bluff.]

Where are we? Is this near Tenpines?

[hotspurred]

No. Welcome to Hadriel.

[Henry says as he leads on, oblivious to Danse's thoughts.]

You should have woken with a phone upon your person. There is a guide for those newly arrived on it.

[manofmettle]

[Unfortunately, while the Commonwealth may have cool looking lazer guns? Mobile phones did not exist in the weird post-apocalyptic, 1950-esque world Danse grew up in.]

I definitely did not wake up with a telephone in my inventory. [He's not the Vault Dweller, picking up scrap and junk everywhere she goes!] And I've never heard of a place called Hadriel either. What exactly is going on here?

[hotspurred]

[Henry sighs, giving Danse a sideways glance, before offering the unvarnished truth.

However it may sound, he is completely serious.]

This is not your world. A magical relic named the Door dragged you into this realm. We are all imprisoned in this wretched cavern city at the mercy of its so-called gods.

[What Danse makes of that, well... Henry will soon find out.]

[manofmettle]

[Oh, Henry can be sure he was going to get an entire mouthful; an angry scowl had twisted its way onto Danse's face, and his mouth was about to open to let the knight have it...but luckily for Henry, they emerge out into the open right at that point. And nothing is better proof to Henry's words then the sight of the spiraled city and in the far distance above them, the jagged stone roof of the cavern.

The stunned silence behind the knight is telling enough of how Danse is feeling right now.]

[hotspurred]

[Henry steps aside and turns to look at Danse. For a moment he is silent. The truth is absurd to most, and takes time to sink in: days, months. He knows better than to expect Danse to settle and immediately accept it.]

Hope. Fear. Rage. Delight. Sorrow. Confusion. Tranquility. Those are the current living gods. They feast upon our emotions. What they are named makes known their particular taste.

[He rubs the back of his head, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.]

I have resided here for a year and a month.

[In case Danse has questions.]

[manofmettle]

[Danse looks back to Henry, jaw still agape and eyes wide, reflecting all the confusion and disbelief undoubtedly clouding his mind right now. But to his credit, he doesn't scream. Doesn't freak out. Instead he takes a deep breath and reigns it all back in. Now is not the time to lose his head.

His hand goes into his pocket to clench around his Brotherhood dogtags: a habit he's picked up whenever he's feeling as trapped and powerless as he is now. His fingers brush against an unfamiliar rectangular object though, and when he pulls it out he sees the dialpad and another piece of the puzzle falls into place.]

This...is the phone you were talking about? [His tone is steady. Controlled. He's going to keep a cool head about this, and figure out what the hell is going on.]

[hotspurred]

Yes.

[Henry pulls his own out of a pouch hung on his sword belt to provide visual confirmation.]

By your weapon I would have thought you familiar.

[manofmettle]

No. The telephones I'm used to are bigger, and after the war all the telephone lines fell into disuse and deteriorated away. Telephones are mostly used for scrap.

[Strangely, reciting facts helps to calm him down. He's always been one to like his random trivia, snatches of pre-war history plucked up from years of reading old inscriptions and transcribed copies of old books stored in the Citadel library. Maybe it's because keeping things factual helps to remove the emotional element out of this mess, and god knows he wants to keep his mounting horror at bay.

Thankfully this new telephone is rather intuitive, though it certainly takes a few tries before he finds the message Henry had told him about.] Is this it?

[He does a hasty scan of the message, and the more he reads the harder his grip gets. Eventually he pockets the phone, lets out another deep breath, and nods at Henry, grim.]

Thank you for being patient with me. I have more questions, but there may be more people in need of your help.

[hotspurred]

[It's hard to imagine what Danse describes, but Henry's seen the consequences of war. Or so he believes — nuclear war is far beyond the grasp of a medieval man. He puts his own phone away whilst Danse reads, then graciously dips his head in acknowledgement of the thanks he is offered.]

I would not shirk my duty. Contact me or pay visit to the Guard headquarters later.

[Danse has a point, and the guide has all the practical basics covered despite its author. No other questions that he can answer should be time sensitive.]