smaller patch of fading sky [ open ]

[resetbutton]

WHO: EVERYONE. All PCs thus far will be in this log, through active tagging or implication.
WHAT: THRILLS. SPILLS. Hiking trip toward the Diamond City.
WHERE: The Overworld.
WHEN: Forward-dated to May 1st (Tuesday) through May 7th (Monday).
WARNINGS: May contain violence or other mentions of physical harm. This is not summer camp.
NOTES: More information can be found on the OOC post here. Please read it!

Gathered in the morning haze, Sleepers were brought to the mouth of the Cave with plenty of supplies and equipment. Compasses that would point them toward the City. Backpacks full of clothes and food, medical kits, tents and even weapons. Stun rifles and knives — to fight off any unwanted company, they said. ("Watch out for their bite," Ryan had commented. "Those fuckers are downright feral.") The straight and narrow path would get them there in six days if they kept a good clip. They were sent off just like that. Refusals to leave were met with a wall of guard force officers blocking the entrance back into the cave city. No way to go but forward, unless someone was particularly stalwart about remaining.

From the exterminator's station near the mouth, leaving the Cave was as simple as a short hike upward into the fresh air of the Overworld. Dust and an uncomfortable sort of heat pervaded the atmosphere, light winds stirring up the sand and teasing the meager bits of vegetation that had grown. No matter what direction you looked... it was all wasteland, cracked ground and desolate emptiness. Jutting up from scarred ground were boulders and small spires made entirely of glass and patches of stone; instead of reflecting the harsh sunlight, they seemed to absorb it and only add to the muted loneliness of the atmosphere. As far as the eye could see, there was no life to be found.

With no other option, the Sleepers eventually made their way onward.

| Day 1: Calm

| Day 2: Animals

| Day 3: Sandstorm

| Day 4: Mansion

| Day 5: Thomp

| Days 6&7: Long way

Comments

[whowillsaveyou]

The Doctor's head snapped up the instant he heard the sound, having been watching where he put his feet. That was not a good sound. That was a hungry sound. ...At least it wasn't a Dalek sound, though. A hungry beast would only be looking to pick off the weakest of them.

Wait, that was probably him.

Without waiting for the group to figure out where the sound was coming from, the Doctor moved to a middle-point, you know, just to be sure. He had no weapon anyway, and wasn't about to go up against the thing bare-handed. This way he'd be out of the way. It was perfectly sound logic.

"I'd suggest grouping up," he commented. Beasts didn't tend to charge in on a full group unless they were near-starved or diseased - both of which, he had to admit, were entirely possible in this landscape - but it would also afford them a better defence.

[trickntreats]

"Good idea," Gabriel agreed, far more sanguine than he felt. A day's walk had proven that he really wasn't in the condition of most of the others, a fact he regarded with envy and disconcert. He added innocently a moment later, "And if all else fails, we can always throw that twitchy guy to them."

He was joking. Mostly. There were a few people here he suspected he might have enjoyed pranking, but he couldn't say for sure whether they were ones he'd use as bait.

And right now it didn't matter. He hefted his rifle and stepped a bit closer to the Doctor. The archangel didn't particularly want to go hand-to-hand, since it wasn't his speciality anyway (speciality being, of course, a relative thing), but particularly given his current body. And the little old man was funny, besides. Gabriel didn't particularly want him to be eaten; who else would he have some stimulating and ungrudging conversation with?

[whowillsaveyou]

One brow quirked, the Doctor squinted at Gabriel, not entirely sure if that was a joke or not. He hoped it was, and the humour did seem to fit the man's personality. With a shake of his head, his gaze scanned the area for any sign of the beast, while also making sure others were aware of the situation.

When a cat appeared, and was quickly shot down by someone, the Doctor almost relaxed. But there were more. Of course it couldn't be that easy. Eyes wide, the Doctor grabbed Gabriel's arm and backed away from where the cats were coming, stopping himself as he realized there could be more in any direction. Pack hunters tended to circle their prey, didn't they? "Are you any good with that thing?" he asked the man, somehow managing a hint of snark rather than fear.

i'd like a minor injury and/or opportunity for some telekinesis, if you're amenable?

[trickntreats]

"Ow," Gabriel muttered in response to the Doctor's grip, but he stepped around the old man and nudged him back toward the group. At least that way they knew their backs were covered by the others already in combat and protected by stone on one side. Rather, Gabriel scanned their rear, and sure enough, he caught shadows among and atop the rocks.

"Please," Gabriel said with a snort. "It's just a matter of physics." He'd never really fired guns before, not often, but physics, astrophysics, time, space--they'd been his bitches for the better part of two thousand years. Even without his angelic senses, it wasn't all that difficult to know where to aim. Basic physics was elementary compared to the rest.

With earsplitting yowls the cats leapt down from the boulders. The first three he downed by clean shots to their heads and chests, sending them tumbling end over end. There was only one problem. With the gun on his back, just one piece in a greater whole of weight, he hadn't noticed how heavy it was on its own. Holding it aloft toward the far-too-many cats leaping down from above, using a body which was emphatically not in shape? Gabriel noticed it, all right.

His arms shook, his wrist twinged, and his next shot skimmed the fur on one of the cat's backs. He had enough time to curse before it landed and leapt for him in one smooth motion.

I'm up for whatever!

[whowillsaveyou]

Many thoughts ran through the Doctor's head - whether he should have taken a gun, if he'd have even been of use if he had, the fact that they were stun and wondering how long the cats would stay down, and, of course, the safety of the group. While Gabriel took up defence, the Doctor scanned the others, assessing the situation. Even with only stun, the cats would surely get frightened off if their companions kept falling, wouldn't they?

His gaze fell back to Gabriel in time to spot the leaping beast, but not soon enough to do more than attempt to tug the man back, and the Doctor wasn't exactly strong.

woot!

[trickntreats]

Gabriel was already throwing himself back, but the extra force helped, even if it did make his boots slip in the sand. With another, Enochian, curse the archangel hit the ground, deliberately yanking the Doctor down with him.

The cat overshot them but landed with envious grace and turned on its own length. Gabriel rolled over and braced his arms on the ground, and this time the cat went down from a charge fired at point-blank range.

Of course, that diverted his attention from the rest of the cats now behind him ...

[whowillsaveyou]

Finding himself flat on the ground wasn't entirely unwanted, though it was certainly unexpected, the Doctor gasping for breath after having the wind knocked out of him. He barely spotted the beast leap over them, lifting his head in time to watch it fall with the shot. Well, that was one less beast.

He struggled to his knees and peered towards where the thing had come from. Two more approached, and he made a grab at Gabriel to get his attention, since he had the weapon, though he wasn't sure the man could take them both out in time with their speed, one of them already preparing to leap.

[trickntreats]

There was no way. Gabriel rolled over and levelled the gun again, still from the ground, but this time he had to support its weight himself all over again and his position was twice as awkward. Physics was hard to use when one's body didn't want to cooperate like one remembered it used to.

The second shot hit the second cat on the leg, making it stumble and slowing it, but the first completely missed the one pouncing.

"Shit!" Gabriel swung the gun up to block the cat's claws and tried to roll away at once. The blow against the rifle jarred his arms and he almost dropped it entirely; the cat took advantage of the fumble and its claws raked down the archangel's arm. Gabriel bit back a cry of pain to swear, with feeling, at the feline instead.

[whowillsaveyou]

The Doctor watched in horror, not sure what to do. He mentally went through all the items he had on his person, and none of them were suitable for such a situation, but Gabriel's gun was right there...

He made a grab for the rifle, shifted his position and braced the thing against his shoulder, then fired. The shot hit the beast square in the side, and the Doctor turned and fired towards the other cat. The first missed, but the second caught the thing in the chest, good enough to down it.

Lowering the gun, he lifted his hand to rub at his shoulder, silently cursing his age.

[trickntreats]

The appearance of the Doctor beside them caught Gabriel's eye and the archangel tried to shift, to shove the gun toward the older man. The motion made the cat lurch and hiss, its ears flattened, and Gabriel eyed the sharp claws bearing down on him, but he felt the weapon being yanked away. The cat's paw shot out toward the Doctor and Gabriel grabbed wildly to deflect it, his arms shaking something fierce, about to buckle.

Next moment there was a flash and the feline went limp, collapsing on him. Gabriel coughed at the sudden weight, though luckily that last-minute reach for the Doctor had shift its weight so it was ... sort of ... to the side.

That didn't mean he could breathe. "Tell me--that's all," he croaked. He couldn't see past the cat's bulk and his legs were going numb already. And his arms? Forget his arms. They could just go lie in the sand somewhere. He'd never known the meaning of the word 'exhaustion' before this moment.

[whowillsaveyou]

The Doctor took a look around. Whatever cats remained weren't in their imediate vicinity, at least, and he appreciated that, since he wasn't exactly suited for shooting things, and doubted Gabriel would be up to more of that immediately.

"Well enough," he muttered, letting the rifle fall from his hand to the sand as he scooted closer to Gabriel, giving that cat a shove to try and disloge it. With his shoulder aching, it was a difficult thing to achieve without help, and he dug his feet and knees into the sand to push at the thing with his other shoulder.

[trickntreats]

The cat gave--just a little. Gabriel watched its, well, face, suddenly worried it was going to wake up while they were trying to get it off him. He bucked his wrist to slide his knife into his palm and raised it for a killing blow, and then hesitated.

It was a cat. It was doing what it was made to do. And as ridiculously large and ferocious and whatever else, it wasn't a threat right at this moment. And it wasn't his habit to slaughter helpless beings. "Dad friggin' damn it, I'm getting too sentimental," he grumbled, sheathing the knife again and propping himself up on his elbow to try and help the Doctor roll it off him instead.

And again it shifted, rolling a little, and then settled again, big and limp and damned heavy.

[whowillsaveyou]

He was not suited for heavy labour! The Doctor shoved with all his might, worried about the cat waking up almost as much as Gabriel was (he didn't have the thing's teeth in his face). When it seemed unlikely the thing would budge any further, he shifted and nudged Gabriel. "If you roll towards it, it should move further." He did pull the rifle closer, keeping it within reach just in case it was needed.

[trickntreats]

It was hard to move at all, given the cat was lying on his hips, but with a grunt Gabriel tried to obey the direction. To do so he had to brace himself better, and he glanced down to find a better purchase on the ground--and then up again, to find one on the cat.

Which was when he saw the one slinking down from a rock, moving swiftly across the ground, ready to pounce. His eyes widened. "Shit."

He wasn't thinking. It wasn't a thinking thing; it was instinct. He just needed a weapon, now, and then the gun was in his hands and he was firing a volley at the ninja cat. It went down in a sprawl just as it made to leap on the Doctor.

[whowillsaveyou]

He hadn't seen the cat sneaking up on them, distracted as he was with trying to free Gabriel. And as he'd only just moved the gun, having it jump into Gabriel's hand was rather unexpected, the Doctor's eyes going wide as he watched the man shoot the beast that had been about to leap at him.

He stared at the felled beast for a moment, shook his head, and scanned the area for more of the creatures. He made no comment on the trick; there were more important things to worry about than how Gabriel had managed it, but he'd certainly keep it in mind to ask about later. The Doctor took the gun from Gabriel's hand and kept an eye on their surroundings, just in case any more of the cats tried to creep up on them. Hopefully his friend could free himself, otherwise they were in a bit of a bind.

[trickntreats]

It was only after Gabriel's awareness caught up and the Doctor took the gun back that Gabriel actually realised what he'd done. He stared down at his hands for a moment and then shook his head slightly. Couldn't be. Could it?

Gingerly he laid his hand on the cat's shoulder. Then he shook his head with a snort. Since when did being hesitant ever fix anything? "Idiot."

Fingersnapping had always worked well for him, though it wasn't something that quite fit telekinesis all the time. Either way, the archangel snapped his fingers with a little jerk, as if to drag the cat off him. He intended to fling the feline around a bit, but wasn't surprised at all when it, instead, rolled limply and half-heartedly in the direction he had indicated, as if flying through the air was just too much trouble.

Either way, it meant his legs were free. And numb. Walking was going to take a little while.

[perpend]

"Neat trick you got there," Cabanela commented boisterously, finally jumping into the action, stun gun raised at the cat. He wasn't sure if he had just missed him shoving the cat, but it certainly looked like he had done that just thinking about it. Now if only Cabanela could shoot bullets or something with his mind. That would be great, and useful!

He aimed the guy at the animal, one eye glancing up at Gabriel. "You okay?" he asked, not about to pull the gun away in case the cat decided to make another attempt at an attack.

[whowillsaveyou]

The Doctor almost missed that, but the snapping caught his attention and his gaze returned to Gabriel to watch the stunt, one brow arched high. It took a moment, but he managed to glance around again, keeping an eye on their surroundings for other beasts.

When Cabanela arrived instead, gun in hand, the Doctor lowered his own gun (well, Gabriel's) and looked up at him. The trick had been unexpected, and it had him wondering if the archangel was getting his abilities back. Perhaps the Cave dampened the abilities of those dwelling within and leaving allowed them to return? Interesting.

"The beast managed to get his arm, there," he answered for Gabriel, nodding towards where the cat had clawed him. Ignoring his shoulder, which still ached from firing the rifle earlier, the Doctor moved over to inspect what damage the beast caused, glad for another body, or, more importantly, another pair of eyes, which meant less chance of beasts creeping up on them unseen.

[trickntreats]

"Oh, I'm just peachy," Gabriel said, his tone genuinely upbeat. Telekinesis. Maybe it wasn't Grace, but he still had something left. Not a coincidence. He sat up properly, groaning a little at the way his legs prickled, and finally re-registered the throbbing pain in his arm. He glanced up at Cabanela and smirked. "I'd offer to teach it to ya, but pretty sure you can't afford my price."

The archangel found the place where the cat had shredded his sleeve and swallowed hard with a grimace. Blood didn't normally bother him. Not even his vessel's blood tended to bother him. Except this wasn't his vessel's, it was his. And it did kinda bother him. Just not enough to stop him from trying to rip away the rest of the sleeve. "How're you doing over there, Doc?"

[perpend]

"We should give that a look-see once the coast is clear," Cabanela said aloud, both to the Doctor and to Gabriel. Hopefully the medical kits would have enough to keep him from getting some sort of horrible infection before they could arrive at the city, though Cabanela honestly didn't trust them enough to expect for anyone in the city to care about the poor pilgrims who had apparently been dreaming for centuries.

"You can keep the cat tossing, I'm more of a dancing man myself," he said, winking.

[perpend]

"Sounds like a plan," Cabanela said cheerfully. He w was no soldier, but they had managed to get this far, hadn't they? He was determined to keep everyone safe. Somewhere, Jowd probably had some sort of sneaking suspicion that Cabanela was up to something and he would be right.

"Have you spotted something?" he asked, after scanning the area without any luck. Not that they needed an excuse to huddle together in a protected group, but if the other man saw something that Cabanela had missed, he was going to make sure he saw it now.

[whowillsaveyou]

"That sound," the Doctor answered. "Like a beast, a hungry one. Hunting, perhaps." They made good prey, out in unfamiliar territory, many of them hardly in shape for this sort of adventure. Squinting at the landscape, his hand rose, pointing into the distance. "There. I thought I saw..."

In the distance, a cat-like figure slipped from behind a rock, only to vanish again in the shadow of a glass spire. The Doctor kept his eyes towards it as he spoke. "Did you see it?"

[perpend]

Cabanela glanced up into the distance, hand shielding his eyes to look out. "Yeah, I see," he said slowly, brows quirked. He couldn't make out what it was, but whatever it was, it was big. "I don't think we can take that on with a stun gun at this distance," he said. Maybe they'd get lucky, but he didn't count on it.

Cabanela was used to hunting down people, not animals. Especially not big animals. "We should keep the ones who can't fight towards the middle. I just hope there's just the one and no more lurking around."

[whowillsaveyou]

"Yes, an excellent idea." And one he'd already thought of, but he wasn't going to say as such. It was more important to work on actually getting people safe. Was it too much to hope there was only the one?

Another yowl came in, and the Doctor frowned. "Keep your weapon ready. Beasts can be quite fast, especially when hunting."

[perpend]

Cabanela kept his eyes focused on the direction of the cat, trying to see against the odds if there was another. He couldn't tell, and that made him rather uneasy. "Looks like some kind of wild cat, too. And here I was hoping that our little exile would be free of things trying to eat us."