Test Drive

[travelagency]

Test Drive Ladies and gentlemen and others, robots and augments, cybernetic lifeforms and entities of all sorts, if I may please have your attention for just a moment, we at the Blackstaff Resort need your assistance. Our lovely little town is under threat of attack, but with your help we can both prevent further harm. These artificially spawned creatures could be described as zombies, and unfortunately they are infectious to the indigenous populations of this universe. You brave souls have the great fortune of being immune to their bites. Therefore, your assistance would be most invaluable in this endeavour. You could potentially save the poor citizens who have already been bitten and succumbed to the illness, return them to their healthy state, as well as the ones still attempting to lead normal lives. In return for your service, if you should volunteer, we will finance your room and board throughout your stay. Moreover, we will arrange for a specific request to be granted at the end of your contract. Should you wish to go to a universe where your parents still live, should you wish a custom home built to your specifications, should you wish to meet your favorite famous personality (current or historical), we will arrange any of this for you. So valuable to us are your efforts. Please speak to a travel agent if you might be interested, and thank you for listening. This is the Test Drive for the Last Resort. This test drive will be canon both if you're accepted, or if current players want to acknowledge a thread as part of their in game canon (almost like a 4th wall post). For more information on what's going on, here is our news broadcast and OOC post. If you get bored and want to follow up on some of the history? Check out the news tag. Test Drive starters are required on applications. Prompts Recruitment People need to be recruited from their home universes, so current and would be travel agents should stop in and convince them to come along for the ride. Because, really, who wouldn't want to deal with zombies? Wrangling Being able to one day save the infected, the ones that were once people, seems very likely according to the scientists in the lab and in the clinic. Therefore Jeffers has offered a sort of sancturary: rooms in his resort in a cornered off section specifically meant to hold those zombies so they don't walk out into daylight and die. Imports have yet to catch the infection, or show no symptoms of having done so even months after being bitten. So during curfew hours the few straggling villager zombies (though they're often unfortunate criminals who were trying to sneak around or absent minded idiot vacationers) need to be captured intact. If they don't look like spawner zombies, then they're to be treated with care and moved to one of the rooms. Before dawn, of course. Extermination Spanwer zombies, however, are fair game. And like with all hostiles in the world, they have a bounty on them. They're not much of a problem during the day, but outside the walls at night they litter the countryside as the spiders, the skeletons, and the creepers do. Time Off The odd thing is, during the day? The village doesn't seem to care that they're in constant danger. The sense of community is strong, and people seem bizarrely obsessed in coming and seeing the dangers. Tourists and sight-seers do business with the locals who are very happy to have it again. Senseless though it seems with the trouble of occasional shambling aggressors or quiet toodling green grenades, the people of blackstaff are conducting their lives as normal outside of their curfew. Navigation

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Agent K | Men in Black

[most_feared]

Extermination
[If there is any time that Agent K is in his element, it's when something needs to die. It's hard to believe this primly dressed man with a grandfatherly tone that looks (and sounds) more like he should be giving guided tours of a museum can be so flatly ruthless, but there it is.]

[And he's attentive. He is checking before he shoots, even if it only takes a microsecond to determine.]

[After one more Zombie's head explodes into a mess, he stops to check his motion tracker and turns in place to better find a quarry. With his other hand he tosses his silvery shotgun up to grab the sliding pump, uses the force of swinging it to send another charge into the chamber, and then grabs it by the handle again. All without looking at it. Gun safety is questionable, except he knows that gun well enough to handle it like that.]

Alright, one's over here. [He calls out to anyone nearby, hoping the wiley little shit would come towards his voice.]

[penumbral]

[Saïx isn't a guard, but sleep simply wasn't something that was happening tonight, so he's opted to make himself useful. It is not as though taking up a desk job in this universe has deprived him of his combat skills. Perhaps, if he were a native of this world, he would have no choice but to stay out of the fray, but since he is not, his preferred method of fighting in close quarters isn't a foolish venture. If he could be, he imagines he would be grateful for that.

Defeating these creatures is certainly more gruesome than it is with Heartless, but it is hardly any more difficult. At least he doesn't have to be concerned with cleaning Lunatic. As he wrenches it free from a body, he decides he would most certainly be grateful for that, as well.

He hears someone's voice calling out. Hmph. He swings Lunatic behind him and moves towards them.]

Is there a problem? [he intones as he locates the man.]

[most_feared]

Tryin' to lure one out for easy pickings. [He nodded in the direction he'd heard the moan.]

Name's Kay. You're a new face.

[Nice looking weapon too. He'd have to tell him after they culled the herd a little. He's actually a little impressed that the town knew this was going on but was capable of going about their everyday lives.]

[penumbral]

[Saïx inclines his head in acknowledgement.] Indeed. I am Saïx.

[He continues to eye the direction Kay pointed out. The zombie still isn't coming out. Curious. He lifts Lunatic again and walks towards it slowly, eyes narrowed. He can hear the signature shuffling noises get louder, louder... Hm. It should be right... here...

The zombie moans. Saïx gazes in its direction, namely: down. There appears to be a natural dip in the earth here, set up against a steep incline, steep enough that the zombie can't seem to manage to claw its way out.

Saïx lowers Lunatic, resting its head on the ground. He turns his head to look at Kay, a single eyebrow raised in a mimicry of exasperation.]

[most_feared]

[Kay stares, standing there. Let the gun hang loose by his side. He just watched it moan and clamor for a moment, before he casually says-]

Is that piece of shit caught on a slightly raised ledge?

[It's one of those questions that someone asks when they know the answer is yes, but the situation is ridiculous enough to note. Especially with an even expression.]

[penumbral]

[Saïx tilts his head, his own expression even and blank again.] So it would seem.

[When he lifts Lunatic, it's with the intention to take advantage of the situation. A simple well-timed swing is all it will take to cave the thing's head in, and relieve the creature of its shame.]

[most_feared]

Nice sword. [He throws that out there, before he tips his head off towards the fence.]

More down that way. Most can't get in but I wanna make sure they don't have the chance.

[penumbral]

... Thank you. [The pause is because he's never received a compliment on his claymore before. An occasional comment, when it takes a shape the others didn't expect, but never a compliment.

He heaves it free from the zombie below, and although he doesn't make a grimace at the resulting gore, it's a near thing. He swings it behind him in his usual stance.]

The less there are, the better, [he agrees mildly. If they aren't handled now, then they'll just be pests later, should they escape the sun. Heartless are similar.]

[most_feared]

[Kay was a little bit of a weapons enthusiast. Or an expert. Hard to say when it was part of your job, but you also really enjoyed that aspect of the work. New stuff? Always interesting.]

[Come to think of it, he should get that super sledge out sometime.]

Good thing is that they seem to mostly be taken care of in the morning. Bad thing is that they can get away with hidin' under a tree. And all they need is just long enough to get one bite in.

[penumbral]

The tree line could be cut back. Remove the nearest cover, create a clear killing field. [That's what Saïx would do to try to ease this.] It would be a simple matter to re-plant, once the crisis is resolved. [And the lumber could always be put towards defenses or buildings.

... hmmmm. And what they learned about just now...] With climbing clearly being a skill they lack, as well... [They could dig out a ditch, effectively a moat, but without the water. And that's just one way they could take advantage of that.]

[most_feared]

Treeline's already pretty far back. But we can see if it can be pushed back further. With everything literally crawling out of the shadows like that, we're going to need the wide open room to aim.

[At least the fence seems pretty good at stopping them. The skeletons can't fire arrows through anymore, either. But as Kay approaches the fence, a skeleton aiming at him hits a zombie.]

[And the zombie turns on it.]

[He has to pause and watch that, even if he's still holding his gun ready.]

[arnold_j_rimmer]

[Rimmer creeps up cautiously. You never know when a monster might still have a jump scare left in it and if this one does he doesn't want to be anywhere nearby when it happens. He likes these trousers and doesn't want to stain them.]

Right. Well then. Good job. I was...ah...about to rush over to help, but I see that my mere presence distracted the creature long enough for you to do him in.

[most_feared]

[Kay turns and gives Rimmer a quick once over. Guy's hair makes him look a bit taller. Huh.]

Well if you want practice bein' bait I would take advantage of it.

[He has a feeling from the brave and noble tone of his new acquaintance that he would much prefer chicken-shitting out of here.]

[arnold_j_rimmer]

[Rimmer's eyebrows rise, wrinkling his forehead around the "H" plastered there.]

That wouldn't be the best use of my unique skills, I think. No, I'm far better suited to command. I'm adept at telling other people what to do while I stay far behind the front lines in a place of safety.

[most_feared]

[Kay doesn't say anything. Nope. But there's a way that he looks at Rimmer that just dares him to continue that line of thought. Go ahead. Try it.]

[arnold_j_rimmer]

[Rimmer isn't always good at picking up subtle warning signs.]

I was born to be an officer, you know.

[Rimmer tilts his chin up proudly.]

In all my past lives, I was surrounded by military greatness. It's my destiny; it's written into every fibre of my being. It's--

[And then a zombie comes around the corner, growling, and Rimmer squeals.]

Please save me!

[most_feared]

[Kay still hasn't said anything. Just listened to the man ramble on about his theoretical skills and it's pretty impressive that his expression hasn't changed in the slightest throughout the braggery.]

[But oh. There's that guy.]

[Rimmer's just within reach to be splatted by exploding zombie guts when he shoots it. Which Kay, honestly, doesn't seem that sorry for. Whether he's amused is unclear because that vague irritation hasn't lapsed from his expression.]

[arnold_j_rimmer]

[Rimmer flinches as zombie goo spatters all over him. His face twists in disgust, mouth pulling down and nose wrinkling. This is why he doesn't like to be in the front lines. The front lines are messy. And also dangerous. Messy and dangerous and Rimmer likes neither.

He hopes that zombie guts don't leave stains. Although his clothes are just made of light, and he supposes that staining hologrammatic clothes would take some effort. But if anything could do it, a creature of darkness probably could.]

Lovely.

[most_feared]

[Kay shifts and liesurely rests his shotgun against his shoulder. Lazy confidence as usual, something he always pulled off.]

Don't worry, it'll wash off.

[His tone came with the suggestion of, "Believe me, I know." There were a hell of a lot worse things that could have blown up all over him.]

You're doin' the bait job just fine. Keep walkin'. [And Kay'll just keep killing.]

[arnold_j_rimmer]

But I don't want to be bait. Can't I have a bazookoid and shoot at them instead? We could be a team.

[He mimes shooting down zombies. His voice turns suddenly deep and Heroic as he imagines himself being like a great soldier. Minus the danger. In his fantasies, he never quite squares the part about being heroic with the part about not wanting to be anywhere near danger.]

Take that, you undead bastards!

[domesheriff]

[ruthless is not a word that can generally be used to describe Linda, but if something--and even to an extent someone--has become a danger to the general public, her natural sympathy can swiftly disappear]

Got it. [her tone is no-nonsense, and she immediately turns toward him, using the motion tracker to find the offending creature. she'd question his gun safety decisions if it were bright enough for her to see them clearly, but as it is, she's too focused on the task to pay him any notice. she fires, watching as the creature crumples. but hearing a rustle behind her, she swiftly has to spin and deal with a spider that was sneaking up on her] Damnit!

[that done, she wipes her brow with a sigh and before quickly moving to reload her own gun] What the hell's got them so riled up tonight? There aren't usually this many...

[most_feared]

Something happened. Lights must have gone out somewhere.

[They definitely need to go looking for that, a part of the village bathed in darkness minus the safety of lamplight.] Come on. [They need to find it before it gets even worse. If the spiders are showing up, especially.]

[At least there's less innocent bystanders than usual. Very helpful in this case.]

[domesheriff]

I guess that must be it... [she nods at his order, immediately following]

[but soon there's a rustle from behind her, and she stops, spinning back around. straining her eyes against the darkness, however, she can't see anything, and whatever it is, it's stopped moving for the moment. not sure whether she was hearing things or there really is an enemy there, she asks in a low voice:] Did you hear that?

[most_feared]

[Kay slows his step and tips his head, listening for what she might have heard. Then he hears it, a higher pitched moan. One of the smaller zombies is in the shadows. A fast one. And he doesn't know where.]

Watch your back, this one's going to come quick. [He warns.]

[domesheriff]

Ready. [she tenses, holding her weapon in preparation as she listens carefully, squinting into the darkness]

[but as it turns out, it's Kay who needs to watch his back. Linda catches only a glimpse of movement as it lunges toward him. despite the darkness, she immediately takes a shot at it] Watch out!