apocalypsehowcomm | A handkerchief held all my gear (OPEN LOG Catch-all April)

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A handkerchief held all my gear (OPEN LOG Catch-all April)

Who: George Milton and ???
When: Most of April
Where: In ADI, on the grounds, and Gloucester proper
Summary: George is familiarizing himself with his new environment and is never content to be in one place for too long.
Warnings: Possibly some of the eye flower weirdness if anyone wants to do a fair/festival prompt, possibly drinking to excess, will update if needed and also warn in individual thread headers.

1. Home Sweet Home?

It's weird, having such a huge space just to himself and maybe two other folks. For now it seems like it's just Nick, and well, he could have done a whole lot worse. Settling in is always a little awkward. He didn't have much of anything to put away. That took no time at all.

So now he's sitting on the sofa in the common room fiddling with the phone, not because he likes it or particularly wants to but because it has been emphasized so much as important, he'd be a fool not to keep at it. He's less outwardly or visibly frustrated working on it alone, just grunting and muttering to himself off and on as he fat fingers his typing or has trouble making one of the apps do what it's supposed to.

He doesn't know how long he has been at it. Long enough for his butt to be sore and his legs to feel like they could use a good stretching when there's a knock at the door. Immediately, he tucks the phone in his jacket pocket as he stands and crosses to it.

"Who's there?" His voice is deep and sharp enough to carry through the wood just fine.

2. The Library

The short guy sitting at the computer terminal doesn't much look like he belongs there. He's staring very intently at the monitor, his typing a painfully slow hunt and peck style. He seems to be trying to research basic history of the region, currently on one of the local government pages of helpful links.

Every now and then he awkwardly moves or clicks the mouse, often followed by a low, "Dammit," or, "No, not you. I want...you." He's so engrossed in the work that he doesn't react at first to the person who comes in behind him. It's only when he hears a definitive noise that he jumps a little and whips his head around, looking almost guilty.

"Sorry. Did you need this?" He's not completely sure he ought to be here, and it shows.

3. The Grounds

At various locations around the grounds, a short, slight man in a brimmed work hat can be spotted wandering and familiarizing himself with the area. He has a fast, no-nonsense gait, like somebody used to being on his feet, and he's never in any one place for very long. When spoken to, he touches his hat brim and gives a nod. He's fine with stopping to chat, especially if he has already met you, but even if he hasn't, he won't brush off a friendly overture.

4. The General's Store

George's voice is increasingly strident as he argues with the beleaguered cashier behind the register. "An' I'm tellin' you 50 bucks for a plain ol' fishin' pole is highway robbery. Not to mention you ain't even including tackle or bait in that. I ain't gonna stand here and let you swindle me. You been swindlin' everybody who works at ADI? That it?"

"Sir, if you'd just..."

"Don't you sir me. Do I look like a sir? Jes' admit you're doing people dirty. I'll tell you what. You put all a' that mess back on the shelf. I don't want none of it. I wouldn't take it if you paid me." Without another word, he's storming for the door.

5. A Bar at the Docks

It took long enough to find the kind of place with the vibe he was looking for, nothing too fancy, just a hole in the wall with beat up barstools and an older woman behind the bar who seems happy enough not to ask too many questions. Like everything else in this damned town, the price of the drinks is sky high. By this point he doesn't care.

He's seated belly up at the far end of the bar pounding gin like there's a run on it, and he may have found the last bottle. There's a certain fixed quality to his thousand yard stare. Hard to tell if he recognizes you or not if you approach.

6. Wildcard!

((OOC: Bring your own prompt, or feel free to use some of the fair prompts from the TDM. George would be playing any number of games there. If you have any questions or want to run something by me, you can hit me up at

velocinapper, PM, or Disco. Brackets are also fine!))

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"Places are a good start. Prob'ly gonna be some businesses I don't even know what they's for or what they do. It's alright. Jes' having names and seein' how it's all laid out's gonna help me a lot." It's always the first thing he does if he winds up somewhere completely new. Learns the ins and outs, the places to avoid, the bolt holes and the dead ends both.

There's nothing particularly complicated about his smile at her offer. "Sure won't turn down help."

He takes in the names, not sure he'll remember them on his own. He probably will if he finds himself introduced. It'll come back to him then, especially the odder one he's never heard before. "I hope I don't get into the kind 'a bind with this thing it'll take an engineer to solve."

"Mind if I...?" She gestures to the mouse and computer. In the event that George gives her his leave, she'll add another tab to the browser he's on and bring up Google Maps. It centers automatically on Gloucester, showing the basic map view.

"Don't expect we'll need engineering much for just this, but he's a good resource. You just gotta be patient. He'll spend five minutes telling you something he could said in ten seconds. But he ain't got a bad voice for listening to." She offers a quick wink.

"They got all kinds of shops in town. More'n I'm used to, that's for sure. This is the biggest city I ever been in."

"Naw, go right ahead." He turns it over to her while watching what she does, then leaning in to be sure he has a good view of the screen. It's sort of like the map on the phone only much easier to see and read.

"Likes to jaw, huh?" He can handle that as long as whatever he has to say is useful. He's known plenty of talkers in his life. Makes it easier not to be one sometimes.

"I been through Los Angeles a few times. Never liked it none." Way too big, too loud, too everything. Always much too overstimulating for Lennie. He'd take days to settle down when they passed through the city. "Cars are faster here. Where you from?"

"Evergreen Abbey! Well... most of my life, anyway. Don't reckon you heard of it if this place makes a bit of sense to you already. Ain't on this planet, near as I come to understand." She switches to the satellite view and zooms in on ADI's headquarters, tapping the plus sign rather than using the mouse's scroll wheel. That's still a little too advanced.

"Never heard of Los Angeles. Is that near here?"

"Huh. Naw, never heard a' that, and I guess that's why." He'd placed her as a nun when she introduced herself as a sister. Now he's not so sure. It doesn't seem like a bad idea at all to stay respectful. Easy enough to want to when she's so nice.

He keeps his eyes on the screen. This is something new altogether he hasn't seen yet on the phone. Crazy that it looks as real as the room they're in. All greens and browns, lines running where there are roads, little squares of buildings that get bigger with every click.

"Clean across the country," he says. "West coast." As for an exact distance, he couldn't begin to guess.

"Hmm..." She pauses thoughtfully for a moment, then clicks on the directions button and types in 'California' for the destination. A moment later, the map changes to show the whole of the United States and more than 3,000 miles separating them from California. Mercy's eyes widen. The scale of this place, that that could still be the same country leaves her a little breathless. She quickly clicks back to just Gloucester.

"That... aye. That's a ways away. Wonder how much it's changed since you was there at home." She wonders how different it might be if this world isn't quite like George's with all its monsters and eldritch entities.

It's odd seeing it all like that in a way that isn't paper. It makes it feel more real, more jarring. He's just as glad when she clicks it back, feeling an unexpected pang, not exactly of homesickness, since none of that ever really felt much like home, but of this thought that he could at least be...there. Instead of here.

Her wondering gets him wondering, and suddenly, that's not anything he wants to know. "Prob'ly a lot," he says, his voice a little gruff. "Bet I wouldn't recognize anything but the mountains." If those. Would he even be able to find the creek? He inhales a sharper draw through his nose. "If I gotta be time displaced, I guess it's better to be somewhere else. Makes me feel less like a ghost."

Her expression turns sympathetic. "Sorry. Didn't mean to..." She lets that trail off for a moment. "I'm sorry this place makes you feel like that. Anything I can do to help with that, you let me know. No one deserves to feel like they been left out of time when they're already reeling from out of place.

"We'll get you familiar with the place you are." Mercy's attention turns back to the map. This building here? That's the General's Store. You can get a discount on things if you tell them you're working for ADI. Don't got a selection like they got in the grocer's store here, but it's good knowing we got some friends in the community."

"You're helping now." Whatever it is about the way she talks and her mannerisms. Knowing she's from some completely other world doesn't make it feel any less familiar or down home. That could be its own mind bend if he thinks about it too hard. He's happy not to dwell.

He nods, paying attention. "That is good to know." Not that it will help him with the sticker shock when he gets there in a day ort wo.

"Must be even harder for you in some whole other place. I know you got a leg up on me with how long you been here, but..." He shrugs. He's not so great with this. "Guess I'm jes' sayin' if I can help you, I will, too."

Mercy's smile turns wry. "Letting me help's a help, sir. Got pulled away from home in the middle of traveling to a temple to do my learning as a cleric for the Spring Tide. They're a healing and helping order. I know there's good to do here, too. Anyone letting me do it? That's helping me serve my god, right as I can tell it."

Focusing on others means she can also ignore any of her own traumas... or at least work through them by proxy. Caduceus would probably prefer she do the latter.

"Now, some of the other important places to know is this one. That's the Midnight Theater, run by Mr. Lucky. He sells stuff you can't get nowhere else in town. Buys it, too, I think. I ain't one of his customers, but I heard tell. And this is Ms. Bonnie's flophouse. Them who come here and don't care for the rules ADI lays down for us go there. It's... I been thinking it'd be good for all of us to work on making it a better place. Not much too look at. Leaks when it rains, and it ain't near as safe as the apartments ADI's got us in. I got a head for sawing and nailing boards to build, but plumbing like they got here's new to me. Trying to learn that when I can to help. And then electricity. Haven't started on that, but it's important."

"Well, I sure wouldn't want to get in the way of anybody's service to their god." Although he's smiling just a bit, he's not mocking her. Not being actively religious anymore doesn't mean he can't respect those who are.

He listens and follows along with her pointing. He's not sure he'll ever have enough money to buy rare things or much of a need for them. It's still good to know where they can be found. Maybe where others might be buying.

"I been places like that, and it's a misery. I ain't no better with plumbing or electricity. I can nail and shingle or tar a roof. We can fix them leaks. When you's ready to get some work done, come find me. I'll pitch in." He's not fond of all the rules, himself. Some of them make him feel like they're being treated like kids, especially the curfew. He doesn't want to see others in this situation living bad just because they buck a little.

"Never worked up on any roofs myself, so that's a mighty fine skill you got, sir. Well, never worked up on them outside of climbing up there to get a good jump on my big brother." She offers a wink at that. "Gotta get the high ground when they've got half a foot or more on you."

Brother how she misses Colm. But there's not much she can do about that ache apart from bury it down with the other hurting for people who have gone missing. At least if he's at home, he's not here. And there is much better, even if she can't talk to him.

"Last couple of places you might take an interest are here. That's the docks. We got a lady named Ms. Sable there. She finds extra work for folk who might want it, moving things around on the docks. And ADI works with her, getting cursed objects she finds and having us collect them for destroying here at headquarters. Never worked with her, but I done a few docks runs. Easy enough pay if you're looking for some extra money.

"And then here. This is a big old museum and castle up north of town. I've been a fair few times and they got interesting stuff. Seems like they got a connection to ADI, too. Gave over a tablet from their collection that was telling futures for folk. Keeping an eye on that in case they get anything else strange."

That gets him laughing. He and Lennie horsed around plenty as kids. Had to be quick, because he was so big and never knew his own strength. He can at least smile about it now. "It ain't so different when you're a little fella, neither."

He settles back down to listen, committing the name to memory. Extra work sounds good, especially manual labor. He's never been a stevedore before. Nothing says he couldn't start, and hanging around ports is a good place to listen and pick up information. "Sounds good to me." As expensive as everything is, he'll be hoarding money for the foreseeable future.

"Fortune tellin'? Sounds pretty creepy. Did it say anything bad?" He's not so sure he wants to go there in light of that. Then again, he can't afford to shy away from these sorts of things, not if he intends to be useful.

The questions have her quieting for a moment, some of the joy and the excitement of sharing chased away by darker shadows. "It told... a lot of things. But the most important one was that we were all gonna be buried. Snow came on a while after that prediction. Show that covered everything, froze us inside the apartments, and sealed us away there for more'n a week. It... it was bad.

"But knowing what's coming ain't the bad part of a fortune, is it? Tablet didn't make any of that happen. Someone else, one of them avatars did it."

He takes a deeper inhale. It comes out in an audible huff through his nose. It sounds bad. Snowed in isn't something he's ever experienced. He never went high up into the mountains enough for it. Had no business going anywhere like that, so he didn't.

"Naw, I reckon you're right. Knowing ain't the bad part, 'cept..." He hesitates a second then decides to say it anyway. "That fella Crowley said something to me a few days ago stuck with me. Our fear feeds these things. So...tellin' us something's gonna happen sure sounds to me like a good way to get us stewin' afore it does."

"Some people have said that," she allows. It's an argument she's had with a few people and has her defense at the ready. "But there's gotta be a balance, right? If there's some good that comes out of it, maybe we can live with a little bit of it. And if it's just one person choosing to take that on, then that's on them.

"What happened was bad, and I'll admit I worried when I saw that last prediction, but at least it meant I was on my guard and went and made sure I had plenty of supplies and things for Aelwyn, my roommate, to take care if something happened to me. Didn't realize it was gonna happen to everyone."

"That one person bein' you." That paints it a bit of a different color.

"I don't know enough about any a' this stuff to say what's right or wrong. You seem to know enough to be careful at least." He's never had enough religion in his upbringing to feel any one way about prophecy beyond hearing they can be cryptic.

"Don't gotta be me." She shakes her head. "Ain't so proud I can't see there might be folk better suited, sir. But if no one else steps up? Just seems like there's something to be done, and I'm a body that can be doing it. Had a friend back home who ended up in a situation like that. I was younger then, and he... well, something needed doing in our Abbey, and he stepped up. Weren't no one else willing to do it. He led and I followed. Reckon I'll do right be him leading now I got a few more years and sense in me.

"I do plan on being careful, though. Don't you trust most cursed objects they got here, Mr. George. They're dangerous as wasps kicked up in high summer."

"Sounds to me like you doin' him real proud, Sister." If he had to get his fortune told by something like that, he supposes he could or would. He doesn't feel like he's the most clever head for interpreting, especially if it's not obvious.

He nods, his expression serious. "I'll be as careful as I know how." Which all things considered? Is pretty damned.

She nods smartly back. "Right. Just a few more things to show you, then..."

Mercy will go through a few more of the sights in town. Places to eat or go out dancing once George has the money to do so. She'll also point the way to Dog Town and the many ways out of it if he needs to make a quick escape from there.

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A handkerchief held all my gear (OPEN LOG Catch-all April)

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thinking we can ftb on this one