by HL TRUSLOVE
You’re lucky that you don’t wake during the night, instead sleeping straight through the cacophony. At the very least the house has provided a bit of a sound barrier between you and the storm. You wake up the next day feeling surprisingly well rested and a lot warmer than you would have, had you tried to stay out during the night.
Sunlight is trickling in through the grubby windows. At least it appears the storm has passed. You thankfully find your clothes mostly dry – the wind blowing through the building must have helped them along. You dress and gather your things before stepping out into the day.
The storm has left its mark. The ground is still viscous with mud. The crisp grass you saw yesterday has been all but drowned in the downpour. In fact, it looks like a couple of trees have been uprooted too. You’re incredibly lucky you got here, you think. You wonder if the others were as lucky – you’d better go back and check on them, as well as making sure they know you’re alive.
Inspect the damage to the cottage – Turn to 2.17.
* * *
Go back to camp – Turn to 2.18.
2.16
The cottage shows all the signs that a family once lived here. There are photographs hung on the wall, and even though the pictures in them have faded you can still see repeated smiling faces staring back out at you. Inspecting further reveals two bedrooms, one with a double bed, and one with two beds stacked on top of each other. There’s a dollhouse in the latter room, and a dusty box of toys tucked into the corner. Teddy bears and plastic people stare up at you with sad, forgotten eyes. You don’t linger in that room for too long; you feel a pang of sadness in your chest.
In the main room your eyes are drawn to a table. It has chairs stacked on it, their seats faced downwards and legs in the air. Like the people who once lived here only put them that way temporarily, to keep the dust off, and had every plan to return. You wonder what happened to them. Then again there’s no point going down that road – what happened to them was probably what happened to most of the people during the war.
Turn to 2.15.
2.17
The cottage has well and truly taken a beating. The roof shingles that had stood the test of time now lie around the perimeter of the cottage, a strange wall now separating it from the rest of the world. A window has been blown through, something you’re surprised you didn’t hear happening last night. You’re thankful it didn’t impact your sleep.
One, two… three trees have been uprooted, taking a few chunks of others with them. Their roots are bared sadly to the sky. Those that stayed in the ground still lost branches in the storm – you can see them trailed up to thirty feet away and you’re certain there will be more even further.
You tug your pack on and leave behind the wreckage of the site, glad that the cottage could help at least one more person before it inevitably falls to time. For now though, you can’t afford to wax poetic on it. You need to get back to camp and check on everyone.
Your pace is more hurried than it was yesterday. You don’t have the excitement of adventure fuelling you, rather the stomach-clench of anxiousness. You hope nobody was hurt in the storm. Gods, you hope Viktor and Gaia didn’t cast off last night! There’s no way your little boat could have survived that maelstrom. You go from a walk to a trot to a run as you clamber over the hill that should overlook your camp…
…to find nothing.
There’s nothing there.
You scramble down to where the camp was. It’s hard to tell because of the way the rain beat the ground but you can tell where the tents used to sit. Over there was the breakfast hall, and that was the command tent – but now they’re all gone.
Were they blown away? No, you think. Surely you’d see evidence of that. And then you see the cart tracks, almost invisible, full up with muddy water – the only indication of what happened.
They left. They ran away from the storm.
Without you.
You fall to your knees, not caring about the muck that gets on your trousers. You’re alone. They ran and you’re alone. They forgot about you.
Panic swells in your breast. What if they don’t come back? What if you’re stuck here forever in this strange land? What if you never go home again?
No. There’s no point going down this path. You squeeze your eyes shut and force your breathing to calm. They had to get away from the storm. They were so close to the coast they’d have been drowned otherwise. All you have to do is track them down. And you still have your assignment, to explore the old world.
You’ll be fine, you tell yourself. People have faith in you.
So why won’t your hands stop shaking?
END.
To show that you’ve completed this chapter, place one of the black circle stickers around this chapter's location sticker on the map. You may not return to locations marked in this way (though you may be instructed to).
* * *
You may now start exploring new locations. More locations will be added through exploration. Pick an available location from those revealed on the map and turn to the start of that chapter.
* * *
If you are in a situation where you must choose a new chapter and you do not have any unexplored chapters to choose from, from those that have been revealed, go directly to Chapter 36. This is a fairly unlikely outcome!
2.18
You don’t turn back to look at the cottage as you leave. You don’t want to see what state it’s in, you don’t want to relive last night. You just want to get back to camp and let everyone know you’re all right. You had tried to prepare yourself for a lot of things but taking a beating by the weather on the first night wasn’t what you had primed yourself for.
Your pace is more hurried than it was yesterday. You don’t have the excitement of adventure fuelling you, rather the stomach-clench of anxiousness. You hope nobody was hurt in the storm. Gods, you hope Viktor and Gaia didn’t cast off last night! There’s no way your little boat could have survived that maelstrom.
It seems to take ages to cross the land. A disgustingly long time; you feel sick from the exertion and also from the worry. You go from a walk to a trot to a run as you clamber over the hill that should overlook your camp…
…to find nothing.
There’s nothing there.
You scramble down to where the camp used to be. It’s hard to tell because of the way the rain beat the ground but you can tell where the tents used to sit. Over there was the breakfast hall, and that was the command tent – but now they’re all gone.
Were they blown away? No, you think. Surely you’d see evidence of that, a wrecked tent or a blown-down block. The storm couldn’t have swept them away completely, off into the sea with no remains… could it? Your heart pounds ferociously in your chest as you desperately scan the sea for anything (or anyone, you grimly muse) bobbing around on the surface.
You don’t see anything. But you do see the cart tracks, almost invisible, full up with muddy water – the only indication of what happened.
They left. They ran away from the storm.
Without you.
You fall to your knees, not caring about the muck that gets on your trousers. You’re alone. They ran and you’re alone. They forgot about you.
Panic swells in your breast. What if they don’t come back? What if you’re stuck here forever in this strange land? What if you never go home again?
No. There’s no point going down this path. You squeeze your eyes shut and force your breathing to calm. They had to get away from the storm. They were so close to the coast they’d have been drowned otherwise. All you have to do is track them down. And you still have your assignment, to explore the old world.
You’ll be fine, you tell yourself. People have faith in you.
So why won’t your hands stop shaking?
END.
To show that you’ve completed this chapter, place one of the black circle stickers around this chapter's location sticker on the map. You may not return to locations marke
d in this way (though you may be instructed to).
* * *
You may now start exploring new locations. More locations will be added through exploration. Pick an available location from those revealed on that map and turn to the start of that chapter.
* * *
If you are in a situation where you must choose a new chapter and you do not have any unexplored chapters to choose from, from those that have been revealed, go directly to Chapter 36. This is a fairly unlikely outcome!
2.19
“Yes! I mean, yes please,” you tell him. Jan grins even wider, if that was even possible.
“I thought you might want one. Not to say that you need it!” he corrects himself quickly, and decides to end his sentence before he gets in any deeper. He leads you over to one of the sturdiest blocks in the camp, one that appears to have had effort put into its construction rather than just being some form of tent.
“Do you have a towel?” Jan asks. You rummage in your pack until you bring it out, a weathered, blue thing. “Right, pick a cubicle then – hopefully there should be some warm water left.”
It seems this building has been divided into small rooms. There are half a dozen doors all in a line, behind some of which you can hear the sound of rushing water. You try a door handle, find it opens, and walk through.
You’re met with a small washroom. A single bulb tries to illuminate the place but is dim enough that it fails spectacularly. You can see enough to tell that the floor is cheap linoleum and still wet from the person who showered in here before you. The only items are a showerhead with a basic on/off switch and a bench for your belongings. Locking the door you strip down and stand in front of the nozzle, making sure to grab a bar of soap from your pack before you start the water.
You jump at the feeling of it hitting your skin. It’s… refreshing. Jan was right, you’re lucky enough that there’s still hot water. The warmth of it sings over you and steam begins to fill up the little room, obscuring your vision, but it’s a small price to pay for the wonderful sensation. Bit by bit your numb extremities come back to life from the cold. You wiggle your toes in the run-off and the splash tickles.
Rubbing the soap between your hands you feel the lather build up before you work it over your body and into your hair. A fresh chemical scent fills up the area as you scratch the dirt away from your skin with chipped nails, nearly rubbing yourself raw with the effort of cleaning, but relishing being properly free from grime for the first time since you left shore.
You want to luxuriate in the shower but know it isn’t fair to the other members of the camp, for you to come in out of nowhere and steal all their hot water away. Reluctantly you wash away the last suds still clinging on and then switch the stream off, drying yourself roughly and putting on a fresh lot of clothes from your pack. You’ll need to wash the old ones, you think. They’re beginning to get a bit ripe.
You step back out into the cold weather, but feel far more refreshed than you did this morning. You’re glad you got to take this chance, be warm and comfortable again. You head to the breakfast tent, still happy in the feeling of being clean, and fill up a bowl with thick milky porridge and dried fruit. It’s only when you’re actually eating that the thought resurfaces, you’re probably going to want to head out after this.
Add the Shower Perk (P.1) to your character sheet – once, any time, if you are told to add +1 Instability, you may choose to ignore it.
* * *
Find Gaia – Turn to 2.2.
* * *
Find Mari – Turn to 2.3.
* * *
Find Fanon – Turn to 2.4.
* * *
Head out into the Old World – Turn to 2.5.
2.20
You shake your head.
“No, I want to get going. I don’t want to waste any sunlight,” you say. Jan shrugs.
“Suit yourself. Offer’s on the table if you change your mind,” he tells you. You wish him well and head to the breakfast tent.
It’s busy, just like it was yesterday. You stand in a queue before a middle-aged woman who spoons out a bowl of porridge to you and hands you a small pile of dried berries. You tuck yourself away on the end of a dining bench and dig into the meal. It’s not bad; the porridge is thick and milky and the berries explode with flavour on your tongue.
It’s that thought that makes you realise: after you’ve eaten, you’re probably going to want to head out. Into the remnants of the old world for the first time. Absolutely on your own.
Find Gaia – Turn to 2.2.
* * *
Find Mari – Turn to 2.3.
* * *
Find Fanon – Turn to 2.4.
* * *
Head out into the Old World – Turn to 2.5.
Chapter 3
The Powerplant
3.1
You wake up early the next day. Dawn is creeping over the horizon and sneaks in through the gap in your tent’s door. There’s a mist which has risen with the morning, giving everything in this new land a strange, ethereal glow. This world really is so far from the cold, clinical walls of your old home.
Fingers numb with the cold that had also crept in, you gather your pack together, rolling up your bedroll and dismantling your tent. It’s so quiet out here. Back at home you’d be surrounded by the hum of activity, of people going about their lives. But here it’s almost entirely silent, save for the sound of the wind and occasional bird call. It’s eerie, but pleasant – you’ve never heard wild birds so clearly before.
You check your map while you make yourself a small breakfast from the rations you took with you. Not too far from here is marked with an old symbol that you recognise from your briefing to be some sort of power facility. It seems like somewhere your group may have gone to for safety, depending on what sort of condition it’s in. And even if not, it’s definitely worth checking out for your original mission.
Somewhat relieved to have decided on a plan, you roll up your map and begin to head out.
The ground is hilly but, apart from the scrubs of pale green grass desperately searching out the sunlight, it’s barren. It’s difficult to tell how much time passes as you make your way there, your only indicator is the sun desperately trying to light up the landscape. The mist lifts as time passes and soon you’re able to spot the outline of a building on the horizon, its shape strange and angular against the curves of the natural land. With a renewed sense of purpose, you walk towards it, excited at the possibility of finding your team.
The building is vast and grey – weather hasn’t been kind to it, it looks weathered and worn. Several large windows have been broken leaving only gaping holes with jagged glass ringing them. Tall towers line the place – you remember seeing a book with an illustration of a place like this once, smoke billowing out of them, but now they sit neglected and barren. The metal framework that seemed to help hold the place together is rusting through.
Search inside building – Turn to 3.2.
* * *
Explore perimeter – Turn to 3.3.
3.2
You carefully walk under the rusted scaffolding, keeping an eye for any beams that may be prone to falling through and crushing you. You consider calling out to see if anyone answers but you decide against it, worrying that too loud a noise may startle anyone – or anything – that’s nearby.
The main entrance to the plant might once have had some sort of lock on it, a passcode even, to prevent the unwanted from getting in, but it’s long since been bashed in. Now the doors are wide open with a heavy dent in the middle. You wonder how much is going to be salvageable if it’s already been raided, but decide it’s still worth a look and you carefully make your way inside the building.
The room you walk into is simply vast. It must be at least five storeys tall. Abandoned machinery sits all around the sides of the room, complicated and mysterious in its nature. Apart from you and a few spiders the place seems utterly, utterly empty.
Test the soil – Turn
to 3.4, Needs Chemistry.
* * *
Try to pull apart the machinery – Turn to 3.5.
* * *
Look for written records – Turn to 3.6.
3.3
You decide not to push your luck by going into the main building. Given the state of the outside you can only imagine how neglected and dangerous the inside must be – you allow yourself a moment to indulge in morbid fantasy, of you walking along a platform inside and stepping on a loose bit of floor, your leg going through rusted metal and cutting you into ribbons. You shake the idea from your head, your toes curled, and instead decide to inspect the rest of the grounds.
