The Deadland

[At precisely noon, while the roaming monsters once again go on the attack, Mami leaves her apartment. It's only the second time, outside of trips out to find food, that she's left the safety of the room, and though she doesn't know it, she's not exactly doing it willingly.

Before she leaves the apartment complex, she manages to break into a nearby apartment - Lightning's - and steal the rifle and ammunition the woman had managed to take from the station. She left the empty apartment, headed downstairs, and outside. In a flash of light, her clothes were replaced with her puella magi costume, and without another moment's hesitation, she headed down the road. Just far enough so that people wouldn't immediately come running.

The first few monsters are taken down no problem. Mami is careful to conserve her ammunition; she was supposed to destroy all of them, after all. But the longer she fights, the more appear, attracted to the carnage. The ribbon around her neck comes alive as she unties it, using the magical item to bind several creatures at once to make targeting them easier.

On and on she fights, nonstop. She's aware of the burn of fatigue beginning to set in, aware of the monster blood splattered over her face and clothes from the occasional close call, but she continues. She's compelled to fight, and fight she will.

It doesn't take long for everything to go wrong. Her Soul Gem was already moderately low when she arrived. It only dimmed faster and faster as the days passed, as she found out about her own failure and lost herself further to despair. It only takes an hour or two of fighting for that despair to finally sink its claws in all the way, and she snaps.

Normal people might notice the ear-piercing shriek coming from somewhere on Market Street. The supernaturally sensitive might notice something showing up in that direction as well. The Puella (and Puer) Magi will definitely feel a chill roll down their spines, and their Soul Gems flair to life.

Witch.]

((OOC: A few quick notes! This is a free, open post for anyone who wants to get their character stuck in a crazy alternate dimension, though I will not be tagging unless someone makes it to the center. If you're not one of the magi, you may, but remember the witch is extremely dangerous, and as there are plans for the magi (Homura, Sora, and Suzaku) to bring it down, your character will be killed. Otherwise, they're free to roam around, comment on the creepy surroundings, and wait for someone else to find them. The barrier will disappear when the witch is defeated, so unless a magi helps them out, they're stuck until it's gone.

Subthreads up. Go for it!))

[It doesn't really matter who he was talking to. Or even what the conversation was about. Just that it was interrupted. Any individual or combination of people can be the other party on the radio.]

Dammit, these monsters are out already! [Shooting can be heard across the radio. After a couple shots, his voice can be heard again. He sounds pretty winded, and he's shooting again with one hand while talking into the radio with the other.] Zero, I'm pinned down at the co- [A screech of a monster, and silence.]

[ The second she saw the TV turn on, she knew it was time. It was obvious to her: something odd like that... must be what that Oliver guy was talking about. Even so, that hour seemed to pass too quickly. Cornelia had been out with her hunting knife going after the smaller, injured and secluded monsters. They were still a struggle to bring down, but she managed to kill three of them and so she was able to collect three bottles of energy.

After a brief rest, she flicks on the radio. ]

Mercy Apartments: we're all well aware everyone needs at least one bottle a day. We have just over 15 people. In addition to this, we need food. Water. We're doing well with that, at the very least.

But Energy is a much more pressing issue. Anyone with Energy, hand it over to me. I'll distribute it among us and make sure it isn't wasted. It's best to regulate something like this. [ What she doesn't say is that preference will be given to those who aren't dead weight. ]

We need more guards for the doors. Let me know if you'd like to take a few shifts.

And unless you've proven you can handle yourself, don't think you're going out to forage alone. Go in pairs. The last thing we need is for any weapons and ammo to be lost along with an arrogant imbecile.

Cornelia li Britannia, out.

[ Beeeeeeeeeeeeeep. If you need her, you can find her pouring over legal documents in the Superintendent's office. ]

[Mami spent the entire time the monsters were on the prowl boarded up in the apartment she's been staying in. It's cowardly, pathetic, and she wholeheartedly agrees on that. But she isn't stupid; she still can't summon a gun that works, and without any other form of defense, she'd be easy pickings for those monsters in no time.

But now that things have calmed down, she's going to try to fix that little problem.]

Is there anyone here capable of teaching others how to fight? With melee weapons, specifically. I'm unable to use my regular means of defending myself, so I need a backup plan.

Hey! [She stops and giggles, radios are so much fun.] This is Jade Harley!

Uh-- What's that they say? Rodger? Over and out? [More giggling. Teeheehee this is so much fun.]


[action]

[if for whatever reason you're out in this godforesaken town, you might find Jade, darting around from building to building, looking for other people! She's being sneaky-sneaky, since she already had to deal with a few monsters, but you can still spot her as she darts around corners and things, her long hood trailing behind her.]

Uh... Where did that little kid go? He was saying something about a wish and helping this universe?

I was in the middle of something really important. I mean, I'd really like to help! But I need to finish what I was doing back home first. Can I just leave for a little while and then come back after that's done?

Open: [As darkness began to fall the sounds of the monsters faded as the moved away from the centre of the city. Suzaku had no idea why and he worried about it. Why would they just retreat? Was it the darkness? That would be strange, Suzaku had read stories where monsters came out at night and retreated in the day but never the other way round.

He made one more loop of the street, he had a shallow scratch on one of his legs, the bottom of his trousers were ripped a little, there was a deeper scratch on his arm but nothing serious. He was wearing the normal clothes that Lelouch had given him, they were blood stained but most of it wasn't his own. He was still wearing the Zero mask. He pulled the radio out of his pocket.]

The monsters are retreating from the central area of the city, what is the situation elsewhere?

A little later, for Lelouch, Fletcher and Patience: Suzaku checked the streets nearby and the whole apartment building for any remaining monsters before heading to the apartment. It seemed the situation was similar over the whole city and the monsters were gone... for now. He reached up to knock on the door realising there was blood on his hand.

Six months of peace, not everything had been perfect but... Suzaku hadn't had to kill since Zero Requiem had been completed. Though he could and should never rid himself of the guilt of all those he had killed before, he hadn't had to kill...

Until today and though they were monsters, monsters that wanted to kill them they still bled and died the same way as humans had. He had lost count of how many he had shot at today... He knocked quietly and rested his head, still wearing the mask, against the door feeling the urge to laugh at the whole situation.

[He sounds furious] What is making all that noise!?

[ during the first few hours of activity in Asper, you might see something a little weird. A movement out of the corner of your eye, in a patch of shadows or on a ledge just above the periphery of your vision.

If you turn to look at it, all you'll see is a flash of white as a small cat-like animal turns and scampers away. Unless your reactions are superhuman or you're a particularly wary person, in which case... who knows? Maybe you'll be able to catch a better look.

Some of you, more anxious about this strange city that the others, or more angry, more vulnerable... You might hear the creature's high, childish voice call your name. ]

[ After listening to everyone else speaking with that Lara woman on the radio, and then hearing someone else order everyone to get inside, Fletcher quickly complies. He hurries inside the building nearest to him -- Shallow Apartments on Travel Rd. -- and finds a chair to sit down in.

This is all a little much for him. ]