lucetilogs | Zompania Draft - Draftees only, days 1-3.5

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Zompania Draft - Draftees only, days 1-3.5

Who: All Draftees
What: This is your death. Followed by your time-traveling life and desperate bomb hunting.
When: From May 22 to May 20 to early May 23 (days 1-4)
Where: Zompania
Summary: Information post here
Rating: Varies on thread, please mark explicit material.

This post is for the draftee-only portion of the Zompania draft--the day 3 death, time travel to day 1, and then the events until the arrival of the reinforcements. Be sure to use the above info post for any plotting needs you might have. Enjoy!

Please note that there is a specific top-level comment thread for:

The day 3 arrival of the draftees and the 6 hours that follow until the bomb is dropped
Death--This thread can be treated as REFERENCE ONLY. Responding to it isn't necessary.
Threads prior to departing for Zompania--post resurrection freak outs, arguments over how to proceed, etc.

All other threading, from day 1 until the reinforcements arrive, should be conducted as normal.

Be sure to tag this post appropriately: [canon] character name

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Firo wishes he had a confident answer for the look she gives him. It probably gives her no reassurance that his eyes are about as wide as hers.

All he can think to do is make use of one of the small, winding streets that split off from the one they occupy. Moving as quickly as he can--the footsteps are getting closer--he tries to shove her into one. If she goes, he'll be right behind her.]

[And go she does. Out of all the things she actually has experience with, running from people who want her dead isn't one of them. As such, if someone gives her the indication to move, she's moving as fast as she can.

As they run into the narrow side street, Pilouette can hear her heart pounding in her ears, along with the heavy footsteps of the approaching cultists. She looks back over her shoulder at Firo, her voice a whisper.]

What do we do...?!

[The closer those footsteps get the more panic starts to set in.]

I--Uh...

[Firo does have some experience with people wanting him dead--or at least people who'd like to hurt him badly. Unfortunately, none of those people were armed as well as the Third Party. And they didn't have half the fighting ability.

He's panicking too, which makes it harder to think of anything helpful. He didn't think much beyond getting out of sight.]

M-maybe we can get up on the buildings..?

[If this city has sewers like his, maybe it also has fire escapes? Or something they can climb on.]

Get up...right, okay...

[It seems like a pretty sound idea. At the least it will provide some temporary safety so they can sort things out. She looks around frantically as they move, keeping an eye out for anything they can climb up on.

After a few moments, she catches sight of a stack of wooden crates, right under a high-up window. It's not the most stable looking thing, but maybe it will do. Pilouette is quick to point it out.]

O-over there!

[Firo follows her pointing, unable to hide his relief when he sees that. What lies beyond, he doesn't know, but that should be enough to keep them safe just a little longer.]

Yeah, that'll be perfect!

[A few yards away, at the entrance to their little street, are the sounds of the cultists murmuring and grunting among themselves. Probably planning their next course of action. Whatever they're doing, these two shouldn't stick around.]

You go first.

[As far as he knows, she isn't armed. It's probably better to have the person with the weapon on the ground to fend off any cultists that do manage to find them.]

[Pilouette gets right to it. She clumsily climbs the crates, a little nervous and probably takes a tiny bit longer than either of them would like. She's never been terribly athletic in any sense of the word, after all. However, she soon manages to haul herself through the open window, popping her head out just long enough to quietly call down to Firo.]

Hey...! I'm in! Come on!

[He nods and immediately sets to scaling the crates. It's been a while since he's had to climb like this, so his effort is slow and clumsy at first. Perhaps temporarily stowing his knife would make the climb easier, but he doesn't want to risk that.

Finally, he ducks into the building. And not a moment too soon, because the footsteps resume. And closer, this time.

The steps sound like there are fewer cultists than before, at least. Perhaps they split up?]

[As the footsteps grow closer, Pilouette unthinkingly holds her breath, as if just breathing too loudly would be enough to give them away. She crouches down pressing herself against the wall doing her best to keep out of sight. She can't help but tug on her hair nervously.

After a bit, she exhales slowly. She can only hold her breath for so long. When she speaks, it's in a whisper.]

Y-you don't think they know we're here, do you...?

[Firo also keeps himself as flat against the wall as possible. He's not a fan of hiding, but he likes getting killed even less.]

...No idea. Guess we'll find out when they come after us.

[But the sounds of marching gradually fade away into nothing.]

[As the footsteps get further and further away, Pilouette relaxes just a bit, letting herself slide down to the floor, her back still pressed against the wall. She lets her shoulders slump, wiping the sweat from her forehead. She hadn't even realized she had been sweating.]

That was kinda close...

[As she sits, her expression darkens. Even this far above the ground, the heavy smell from outside lingers. Now that they're not running for their lives, she actually has time to think about it. Thinking about doesn't make it any better; if anything, the horror of it is really starting to settle in.]

[It takes him a moment to register that she said anything.]

Yeah.

[He's much more shaken than he thought he'd be. What would the Family say if they saw him like this? He's supposed to be tough, but all he can do it hide from those things.]

Are you okay?

[Inside he feels ashamed to know that he's asking just as much out of a need to fill the silence as he is actual concern. He doesn't want to fall into thought for even a minute.]

I...I think so. [Her voice shakes a bit when she answers. She's not sure she's ever felt so...anything. Frightened. Helpless. Horrified. It's all she can do to just keep herself together.] Maybe we should just lay low for a little while. I-I mean, we don't even know who else has made it into the city yet...

[For all they know, it could be just the two of them right now.]

I'm not gonna argue with that...

[As the full force of the close call hits him, he can feel his legs threatening to shake. He unceremoniously plops down on the floor with her, afraid that if he doesn't sit he'll fall.

Her comment makes him realize that he didn't even consider coordinating their efforts with the other Lucetians. There's a lot he didn't even think of, he's starting to realize. He just hopes his neglect won't get them killed.]

Yeah. Shit, we're really outnumbered.

[It's not at all a helpful thing to say. It just slips out.]

[Pilouette hadn't exactly thought to figure out what anyone else was doing either. As someone who's used to doing what others ask of her, this whole flying by the seat of their pants thing has her pretty shaken up.]

W-Well, I'm sure everyone else will make their way in soon. If we could get in on our own, I'm sure they'll get in pretty easy. Um...N-Not that... I mean...

[She trails off awkwardly. Perhaps she's not so good at providing reassurance. Pilouette does her best to try and distract herself from her ever growing apprehension by aimlessly digging around in her bag. After a moment, she pulls out a small bottle of water. She stares at it for a moment, as if she had forgotten she had it, and offers it to him.]

Here.

[Though she may not find her comment the most comforting, it actually gets a short laugh out of Firo. She doesn't seem too bad, but he knows he's about as smart as a brick wall. If they could find their way in, at least some of the others could.

He doesn't realize how thirsty he is until he sees that water. With a grateful nod, he takes the bottle and starts gulping it down. He's about halfway done before he realizes she might want some too. A little sheepish, he offers it back.]

...Thanks. Smart a' you to bring that.

[She shakes her head when he offers the bottle back, managing a weak smile.]

No, it's okay. I have a couple more. A-Actually, someone traded them to me for some of my stuff earlier. I've got a little bit of food, too, if you want some. [She lets out a small sigh, drawing her knees up to her chest.] I might have tried to pack some more if I'd known how bad it was going to get. The last draft I was on wasn't anything like this...

[He nods and holds on to the bottle. It'd probably be smarter to make it last The food he declines with a shake of his head; he probably couldn't keep anything down right now.

At her mention of her last draft, he raises an eyebrow. Though this would definitely be a terrible first draft, he's angry to hear the Malnosso send kids on multiple drafts.]

Which one were you on?

[He's been on a few and this is by far the worst.]

I was on the draft at Terrace...the one before this, I think. It was my first one, too. I managed to go like, two whole years or something without being drafted, so I was so totally scared when I saw my name on that list.

[After all, back on Terrace, she had been able to stay in the medical area, where it was relatively safe. She had been able to just follow orders without having to think about whether what she was doing was going to get her killed or not. She had been able to work without thinking about the possibility that she might really die.]

When they called us out this time, I thought I could handle it easy, but...

[Ouch. He can't even imagine what that must have felt like. A first draft is bad enough, but he imagines it might be even worse if you've managed to wiggle out of them for so long.]

I was on Terrace, too. Wasn't too bad, but this one was a real curve ball.

[He smacks his knee with the heel of his palm. He's not sure why he does it, except perhaps to try and work out some of his anger.]

They're real bastards, aren't they?

Y-Yeah, they're- [Well, she wouldn't say "bastards." Not because she doesn't think they are, but because it's not very lady-like to say.] ...They're awful.

...Back on Terrace, I wondered what my dad would think, seeing me bandaging injuries in a war like that. I bet if he could see me now, he wouldn't be able to believe it.

[More likely, he would totally lose it. Thinking about it gives Pilouette a strange feeling, one she can't quite place. She's relieved that her father would never know about any of this, but at the same time, the idea that he would never know if something were to...happen to her is unsettling.]

Any parent worth the name would be pretty pissed off to see their kid in a place like this.

[Though Firo's concerned about what his Family would think of him fighting for someone else. They're understanding people, but it must be against the rules somehow.

That thought it a painful one to hold on to, so he thinks back to her comment about Terrace.]

Is he a doctor or somethin'?

[Maybe that's where she learned to use that first aid stuff?]

Nope. Investment banker. You know, helping people figure out how to make money. ...I think.

[She looked it up a while back, tired of admitting to not actually knowing what her dad did for a living.]

Grandpa used to be a doctor, though, but he mostly treated like, athletes and stuff. I kind of wish I'd asked him more about his work, being stuck out here like this.

[Though, she admits to herself, there's no way she could have known.]

That's a job..?

[Firo would have thought that anyone good at making money would keep that secret to themselves or their family. And, actually, with the number of times banks have messed up in his lifetime, he's surprised anybody trusts bankers anymore. ]

Either way, I bet they'd be proud. How did you learn to do stuff like that?

[Even given their current situation, Pilouette can't help but feel a tiny bit pleased when he says he thinks they would be proud of her. She hopes that he's right.]

Do stuff like...? [Oh, right. He'd asked if her father was a doctor. He must mean the first aid stuff.] Oh! Mia, one of the people at the battledome clinic, has been teaching me for a while now. I think I've only recently started getting a handle on it, though. Really, I never thought it was the kind of thing I'd end up doing.

[He never spent time on it pre-immortality, but any sort of first aid seems like a useful thing to have. Perhaps there are ways to protect your friends beyond just beating up the person who beat them up...

He almost laughs when she mentions she didn't expect to have to do that; do any of them? He definitely didn't.

Both because he's curious and it's a nice distraction, he asks:]

What kinda stuff did you wanna do?

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