Devil's Tower

Who: Pan and Silver
What: Pan is looking for Gypsy and gets found himself!
When: Wednesday late afternoon
Where: An abandoned house somewhere in the northeast fringe of town (what some would call Mountain Lion territory.)

The moment he’d left the meeting last week he’d set out in search of Gypsy. He knew most of her favorite places so he’d started with them. It was when he found no trace of her at any of those places that he truly started to worry. It just wasn’t like her to go off for so long without telling anyone. Sure, she’d disappeared for days before but this was different, this was weeks. It was painful enough for him to be completely separated from his tribe, even if most of them took him for granted. The idea that Gypsy might be gone for good was almost too much to bear, but his will to fight against that thought it what had kept him going for days. He’d hardly had any sleep and found little comfort from the caresses of strangers which at this point he had only sought out of his need for food to keep him going.

He’d searched as far as he could manage on foot without having to camp for more than a night, since he had next to no provisions- only his backpack with what clothes he’d grabbed from his boat. When Wednesday came around he finally was at a loss for where to look and so he decided to search some of the city. He started near the most north-eastern fringe of the city though it took him almost half the day to get there because he’d been very far north west. After searching house after house for two hours he finally sat down in the living room of one and pulled his knees up to his chest so he could rest his face between them. He was exhausted, barely scraping by with supplies and most importantly he felt as though he’d lost his best friend forever and thus had lost his tribe as well. He folded his arms around his knees and began to cry from sheer exhaustion.

Who: Pan, Jed and Silver
What: Pan takes Gypsy’s request to spy on Jed and Silver a little too seriously
Where: Jed’s houseboat
When: Wednesday, late afternoon

If any of the River Runners had been unhappy for winter’s end it was Pan. He liked the closeness in which they all lived during the winter. He craved attention and affection the same way a family pet would and most of the time he only received it from his fellow River Runners during the winter, or if he was intruding upon them. During the winter Pan liked to pretend that they were one big family. Sometimes he thought he might be better suited to live with the Wolves in their doll houses but then he thought better of it. They were way too kosher for him.
The River Runners had moved back to the main dock of the Trading Post since the river had cleared of ice. They’d spent the last week or so trying to get their boats back into good condition. He’d managed to get his boat back to functioning/livable condition before most of the other Runners and so for most of the day he’d been laying on the deck of his boat staring at the crisp blue sky. The air was still chilly for him but he loved being able to see the sun. He wore his ratty pea coat and a pair of over-sized blue clown glasses, of which one side was missing a lens. He fell asleep listening to the lapping of the water and the sound of his tribe members working around him.
When he awoke their was only the gentle sound of the river. He stretched, knocking the clown glasses off his face. He rolled over onto his stomach and crawled to the edge of his small deck to peer over the bottom railing. Just as he reached the railing he felt a splinter sliver into his right pinkie finger. “Bullocks..” he muttered as he thrust his pinkie into his mouth and sucked furiously to try and work out the splinter. It merely stung, and didn’t budge.
He sighed and wrapped his cold hands around the bottom rail. He listened for several minutes before he heard the others at the picnic tables of the Trading Post and clanging pots and pans within their tiny houseboats. He reached for the next highest railing and pulled himself to his feet. He stretched with a dramatic yawn and swept his shock of faded red and brown hair from his face. He turned from the river and leapt the distance from his deck to the dock. Most of the boats were tied at the main dock but some of them were anchored a little farther down the river.
He plodded down the dock and took a left to walk along the river bank. It wasn’t long before he came to the other group of boats. He turned to face the river and wet his lips with thought. That was when he realized that Jed’s boat was anchored not twenty feet from him. He looked around, and didn’t hear or see anyone. Since Gypsy had asked him to spy he hadn’t had much luck finding concrete evidence of things. Pan walked slowly down the bank to the rickety plank that lead to where Jed’s boat was anchored.
He tiptoed down the plank, being careful not to fall over into the icy water. He climbed gingerly onto Jed’s deck. The windows had the curtains drawn. He knocked on the door. “Jed?” No answer. If Jed was home Pan would simply make something up or bother him for a bit, but if he wasn’t… Pan knocked again. After several minutes Pan looked over his shoulder and then tried to turn the door knob. It turned freely. He swung the door open. “Jed?” he asked into the dim light of the cabin. “What a daft lout, leaving his door unlocked.” Pan shut the door behind him and locked it. The three rooms of Jed’s house boat were small so Pan made a quick run-through to see if Jed was hiding anywhere. He grinned. So, this was where the macho-man spent his nights. He went to the room farthest from the door, the bedroom and kneeled on the ground to go through a small trunk in the corner. He doubted he’d find anything here that Gypsy would want to know about but the fun of being in Jed’s business without him knowing was too much fun for Pan.

Who: Silver, Jed
Where: River Runners winter house
When: Mid-morning on Tuesday
What: Repairs, frozen toes, contemplation


One could not own or wear enough pairs of socks. Silver had spent half the year trading away valuable and personal supplies and belongings just to obtain a few extra pairs of socks, and as she dragged herself back up to the main house, she was convinced that she simply hadn't done enough to prepare her feet for the cold. She had five pairs on, plus her snow boots, but she'd already lost feeling in her toes over twenty minutes ago. The three mismatched gloves on each hand were another story altogether. She couldn't wait to get back inside.

She hadn't been asked to head out to speak with any of the other tribes, but she was well aware of some of the others going. She was aware of most of the things that happened within the tribe's management, being so close with both of their leaders. Perhaps it was for the best that she didn't go, because she wasn't very good at begging or pleading or trading, either, for that matter. She had a good understanding of their current supplies at any given moment, sure, but she just wasn't prepared to give it away to anyone for any price.

She'd spent the night before and a few hours that morning doing what she could in the barn. She and a few of the male River Runners of the much larger variety had moved the undamaged food supplies and set to repairing what they could with what they had, which was next to nothing. If they wanted to use the barn again to hold anything, they'd need to get someone better and more equipped in there to fix it. Nobody could blame her for trying, though.

She forced her way into the house, pulling her hat off and trudging through the front room and trailing snow on the carpet. She received a few ugly looks, but she couldn't care less. Finally she made it to her own tiny corner, which didn't have much more than a makeshift bed and two boxes full of her clothes and personal belongings. She began the long task of removing her two coats, snow boots, three pairs of gloves and extra shirt, then sat down on the bed heavily. She leaned down after a few long moments of relaxing, then removed her socks one pair at a time. They were soaked, but it was nothing a few hours of hanging out couldn't fix.

She wiggled her toes slowly to make sure they were still alive, then smiled slightly as he watched them. She felt like she was twelve again. She looked up and around, wondering if anyone of any importance was still left around.

Who: Jed [Open to any River runners]
What: Jed calls a tribe meeting
When: Saturday evening
Where: The living area of the winter shelter.

Jed had never been one for public speaking. He'd never been one to keep his opinions to himself but having to address the whole tribe about the new pressing issue and possible downfall of the tribe was making his heart beat rather erratic. It wasn't even the eratic excited heartbeat that he had whenever Silver was in the room, nope, it was due to pure fear of the uproar this news could cause...would cause.

He had discussed with Gypsy what needed to be done all of this morning and after she had retired to bed (Jed's idea surprisingly) he walked out and nervously asked everyone to gather all the tribe and meet in the living area. Various faces stared back at him, some with worry already on their faces, some with confusion and some with amusement...though he wasn't quite sure what the cause for the last one was, perhaps a joke he had not been in on. However now was no time for jokes. He stood in front of the old couches and cleared his throat, trying in vain to hush the loud chatters of 'his' tribe members.

"Guys," he spoke letting the lump in his throat fall from his lips and make him sound as if he was choking, "Guys!" he called louder this time, thankful that a hush seemed to fall over them the second time. "Okay I know you are all wondering why you're here," he took a breath....great way to start a speech, or course they were curious! "This morning Gypsy and I walked out to the barn attic where the supplies have been kept for the winter. As you know," he ran a shaky hand through his hair, "As you know the blizzard has been wiping out supplies of and places of refuge for tribes all around and last night it hit us-" he closed his eyes as murmurs broke out through the group, "I don't know how to say this so-" he scratched the back of his neck, "The grain we had left over from the harvest is gone, it's been frozen or blown away, we've got tinned food but it's not going to last us through the winter. We're in trouble but I need you to know that if we can pull together we can 'fix' this, we can make it through,"

The room was not quiet for much longer, people stood up, people panicked, some had so much worry on their face he was concerned the girls of the group were about to burst into tears. All this emotion filling the room was doing nothing for his own nerves. "We need people to branch out and talk to the surrounding tribes, see if we can't ask for their services," he called the words into the loud room feeling them settle in the air but not sink in over the existing noise.

"Guys!" he screeched achieving a lower level of noise than before. "We need to band together, I need volunteers to go to the Lions and try and arrange some sort of extra food supplies, I need people to approach the Twin Feathers and ask for their carpentry services. And I need to know if anybody has any other suggestions or wants to help," he held his breath waiting for people to shout at him, waiting for people to step up...waiting for help.

WHO: Jed and Silver
WHAT: Jed finds himself falling on his ass for her again.
WHERE: Near the River Runners boats.
WHEN: Morning
RATING: TBA

Where Jed came from, he was used to winters like this. He realised that some of the folk that had travelled to this area weren't used to blistering winters that could have them snowed in for days, and Jed was only glad that he was used to it, or the thought of being snowed in wuld drive him truly crazy. When he and Gypsy had first set up the river runners camp, the idea to stay on the river had been purely convinient. The idea of floating against the dock and being able to sail away if you decided you needed space didn't really make Jed feel one way or another; he knew the idea was mostly for Gypsy's benefit because he suspected she hadn't stopped travelling and was used to the idea of being somewhere where the prospect of travelling was an easily achieved goal. However when it came to thinking about winter all they could do was hold up one house and there in lay the problem that bothered Jed everytime this kind of weather came around. The thin walls.

Jed knew that when it came to living on the river rules and behaviour were different. He respected that not everyone liked to hear him entertaining a tiny blonde in the next room and due to his polite side winning out, he'd held off bringing people back to the winter house. Of course not brining back his own company meant he spent most of his time with Moe or Silver (when Gypsy wasn't looking, becuase he knew she still didn't trust him around her) and more often than not Moe and Jed ended up teasing each other and he got a shoe round the head.

When he'd first looked out of the fogged up window the snow that had been falling all week threatened to kill his plans of going down to the river for a little piece of mind. Fortunately the air seemed crisp but clear of on-coming snow and Jed grabbed his coat, boots and gloves and bid a goodbye to all in the house before walking out. He hadn't really banked on the ground being so slushy under his feet and after almost slipping over a hundred or so times he managed to make his way over the thick snow and squinted through the heavy air to make his way down to the river.

When Jed reached the river he took a moment to absorb the scene before him, soon enough the river would be frozen over and then all the brave ones would be out with makeshift skates to dare the stability of the ice below their feet. Of course though ice was fun it always meant trouble for the boats and he was sure he would be accompany Silver down here to help make sure they were still going to hold up and be there when Spring came around. It was often something her and Gypsy did together but Gyspsy had been ill lately, a sight rare and worrying for all, and though Jed didn't really show it very much he was probably the most worried out of everyone. The woman was a bitch but she was a valued member of this group despite her being the leader. He carefully stepped further to the bank and peered over examining how solid the ground would be for him to walk down further. It looked pretty solic to him but he never had been good at estimating and as he put his left foot down on the slope he slipped and sent himself flying back on his own backside. With an 'oof' Jed sat there stunned for two minutes until laughing to himself and praying no one saw.

Who: Silver, Ryder
Where: By the river
When: Mid-morning on Wednesday
Why: Someone needs to make sure everything gets patched up


Silver believed that if she had any less self control, she would have beaten her face on what was left of one of the docks after sending away a few of the people trying to "help" fix things up. They hadn't been hit too hard in regard to damages after the earthquake, seeing as most of everything they had was floating on the river, but a lot of the smaller boats had already been put away due to the impending winter season, though none of those had been damaged beyond repair, but handful of boats were lined up along the bank of the river so they could be fixed. And the few docks located at the center of their tribe's social congestion weren't doing much better. She knew it was probably a lost cause to expect everything to be fixed before things got too cold, but she figured they could at least get most of it done. Besides, it wasn't like the docks would actually be used until the following year, anyway, but it didn't hurt to be careful.

At least, that's what she had figured before half of her volunteers made it clear that they'd rather be stabbing themselves in the legs than out there doing work that had already been done. They'd already started to relax and get ready for living in the house for the winter so none of them had the motivation to get anything done. She couldn't really blame them, and knew she was some kind of freak because she was always jumpy during the winter when there wasn't much for her to do, but the other members of her tribe could be giving the cause half the effort she was and they could be done in a few days. Unfortunately, only a handful of them actually seemed to have the better interests of the tribe in mind and were actively working on the boats while Silver herself was on her hands and knees on the ground where one of the docks met land, trying to replace one of the supports in an attempt to salvage it. She was half drenched from walking in and out of the water and she was frustrated because she'd waited half a day before she even got started on the repairs. Only an hour ago, she'd sent away the two men that had been helping her after listening to them bitch and whine about what else they could be doing if Silver hadn't dragged them out of bed to slave away.

She sat back to look at her work and sighed, pausing only a moment before getting up again and wading out into the river. The water was already too cold to be working in, but she was determined to get at least this much done. She placed her hands on the end of the dock and pushed herself up, testing how well the structure held under her weight. She grinned when it didn't cave and mentally gave herself a pat on the back. She'd really just replaced a few supports, rebuilt the left side and patched up the underneath, but it looked like the quick fix would actually hold for a while. She lifted herself up and turned to sit on the end of the dock, looking down along the river at the few boats that were still out. Things were starting to get too cold to stay out in the boats and most of the tribe had already started moving inside.

She looked down at her hands, only then realizing how cold it was to be working in the water, but the thought was pushed away almost as soon as she saw a cut the palm of her right hand. The cold water must have numbed her hand to the point of masking the pain, but she also felt lucky that it probably helped to stop the bleeding, as well. She figured she should probably take a break, and didn't want to just sit around while others worked, so she turned her head to call down along the river for the other volunteers to go take a break, relax and get something to eat.

Who: Silver, Gypsy
Where: In town, eventually
When: Mid-morning on Tuesday
Why: Silver has someone she wants to visit


Silver had already decided before going to bed the night before that she wasn't doing any work on Tuesday. She didn't often go into town, mostly because she was afraid of getting abducted or worse, but there was something she hadn't done in a while and figured she should get it done before the weather got too cold and she wouldn't want to anymore. Her pack was ready by the door of her boat when she woke up, early, as usual, but she just relaxed around the room for a while. She was feeling antsy because she was so used to her routine, but she knew the feeling would pass eventually. The antsy feeling might also have been caused by the fact that she was planning on asking Gypsy to go with her, something she hadn't ever done for a trip like this.

There was always the looming association she made between town and her family. It was where her father's house was and where she had gone to school, though only for a few months before things got really bad. She always felt as though she should be allowed to just walk through, because she had been a citizen, but really she knew better. Things were very different now. She doubted anyone from her high school even remembered her, if they were still around.

She decided it was late enough and time for Gypsy to get up anyway, so she grabbed her pack, swung it over her shoulders with much difficulty, and left her room. The pack had a purpose, and it would seem stupid to anyone else but her, she was sure, but it's contents were part of the reason why she was leaving. She'd carried the heavy pack into town a few times before and it was never easy, but it was what she wanted to do. She moved off the boat and onto the bank, moving up the river slowly until she reached her sister's boat. She climbed out onto it easily, never feeling unwelcome but always cautious because she knew how her sister could be. She stopped at the door and knocked once before stepping back. She didn't want to just let herself in, despite the fact that Gypsy was family.

Who: Anyone who attends the cage fight (all are invited!)
Where: Mountain Lion Territory, largest warehouse on the Vance Copper Mine property.
When: Saturday from dusk till late into the night
Why: Because gambling and bloodshed is fun!
(((OOC: This post is simply a starter for those of you who want to attend the cage fight. Please post all cage fight related threads here. J)))

Northeast of Sundance lies the open pit Vance Copper Mine. Before the virus it was a busy area. The price of copper had skyrocketed in the last fifteen years and by the time the virus struck the mine was so profitable that it was in operation 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. After the virus the mine had become a place of death and fear. The open pit was now nothing more than a yawning coffin, its stepped sides like rows of teeth grinning up at those that dared walk to close to its edge.

The mine warehouse was abuzz with life in a way that it hadn’t been for the past two years. In the center of the fluorescent lit building was an enormous chain-link cage. It’s a square cage of simple construction, complete with a roof to keep competitors from climbing out should things get too intense for them. The Mountain Lions have announced only two rules: There are no weapons allowed and the first person to be knocked out cold loses. The prospect of gambling, even if it is only for minor supplies, drew quite a crowd. There were a lot of drifters there and faces unknown to many of the tribes.

Since a few hours before dusk people have been arriving steadily by walking, the River Runners, or the Mountain Lions’ own horse caravan. When the sun finally sets there is quite a crowd and the warehouse has become noisy with anticipation. The rumor going around was that two drifters the Mountain Lions had personally trained were going to fight first, then things would work on a voluntary basis. Betting was encouraged by all those involved.

One of the Mountain Lions came over a loudspeaker they had managed to rig up and told everyone to be quiet. He explained the two rules, encouraged betting and welcomed everyone that had showed up. The two drifters were finally brought out from the tents that were set up just outside the warehouse. They were naked from the waste up and only one of them had a pair of cotton, fingerless gloves on their hands.

The two boys, who couldn’t have been older than 18 were then let into the cage and the gate locked behind them. At the Mountain Lion announcer’s whim he called on the fight to start and the whole warehouse seemed to erupt with sound as people placed their bets and called to the fighters who began to circle each other nervously.