MAY TDM

[monstertruckers]

code

Things are a little stranger than usual at the gas station and garage. Namely that gravity just isn't working as it should. Objects float, pieces of the floor float... Even unlucky new arrivals can also find themselves floating! It's going to be a challenge to get around without any scrapes or scratches... Though at least there's what looks like a hospital nearby? Granted, it's an upside down hospital, but it's better than nothing.

01: SUMMONING CIRCLE

Drifters come to with an odd floating sensation hooked into their stomachs, and instead of laying on the concrete find themselves drifting a foot or two above the floor. An unfortunate few may be stuck on the ceiling. Whether they crash down hard into the floor (and the various vials, daggers, and broken glass scattered about) or remain floating in the air is a coin toss.

Still, it might be best to lend a hand with pulling them back to the ground, and hoping gravity will work as normal in another breath or two.

Once they make their way out, they can see a gas station and garage located in the midst of strange, floating rocks… And an upside down hospital close by, for those who had a rougher landing.

02: START UP

New arrivals will have a similar experience to before; a Convoy waiting for them, and a collection of vehicles, one of which feels like it belongs to them. The key to the vehicle may already be in the ignition, on the dashboard… It may have even been on their person, ever since they woke up in that garage. Either way, Drifters have the keys to the vehicle now.

…But there’s a few rough edges on these vehicles. Flat tires, cracked windows and mirrors, maybe some stuck doors and locks; all of them the sort of thing that requires two pairs of hands and supplies. The garage can take care of the (sometimes floating) supplies… Now it’s just a matter of finding some extra hands.

And hopefully no one's vehicle has decided to float. But one can never be sure in a place like this.

03: HUSKS AND HAUNTS

The inverted hospital seems to have trouble deciding the exact formation of its hallways, whether the new arrivals should be walking on the ceiling, floors, or walls. But one thing that is certain: this place isn’t entirely deserted. Warnings of “Beware the Husks” have been spray painted on the walls. Metallic bodies line those same halls, some of them broken open. A wet trail leads from the broken Husks to the rafters… Where several odd monsters wait to drop down. Some look like they’ve merged with the hospital equipment, while others look like they’ve been cobbled together from different body parts. And all of them look ready to turn the newcomers into a corpse, or part of a specimen collection.

Strange, malformed chimeric creatures that are Unknown stalk the hallways. Unknowns come in three different colors, red aligned with fire, green with poison, and purple with lightning.

Adding to that are the various screens flickering on, and diagnose new arrivals as infected. The screens declare the infection seems to be contained, but requires further study… And if the monsters aren't enough to worry about, there’s also the restraint systems trying to activate and tie the new arrivals down.

04: TESTING (CW: Needles)

The deeper someone plunges into the hospital, the more the building reacts to them. More defenses are deployed, treating them as thieves or intruders. Traps and monsters alike wait for them, with syringes melded into the forms of attackers, or lining places where someone might step or reach for. The syringes make a quick bite on skin… But it’s only a few minutes later where the effects become clear. Something in those syringes is now in the blood and forcing monster transformations. There might be an antidote amongst the supplies… Or the newcomers might need to rely on each other, in order to stay anchored.

The needles can also force temporary Swarm traits, along with:
+Group Mind: compelled to link thoughts with other Drifters, to share emotions, memories, and achieve cohesion.
+An increasing reliance on telepathy/empathy/etc in place of speech.
+Increasing collectivist mindset. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few; this becomes more evident during high stress situations.
+Compelled to hunt and share their prey with others.
+Gravity Affinity: If possessing wings or the ability to wall climb, may freely hunt/traverse corrupted gravity areas.

05: LONG WAY DOWN

A portion of the gas station breaks away with groan and a rumble. And it is slowly pulled up and up, taking a portion of new comers with it! They (and anyone watching) will need to act fast, as gravity starts to go weird the further they rise. They’ll need to find a way back down, taking any supplies from the now-floating garage that they can grab.

What’s more, they are drifting closer to the broken moon, and that seems to be having a strange effect on those stranded on the new floating ruin. They may start to feel their control fray, and their forms shift, the higher they rise.

In terms of getting back down, there’s a handful of tow lines in the ruin that might work as ropes. There’s also a few pieces of rock that are floating up more slowly, and could work as stairs back down… Or there’s just jumping and falling fifty feet and hoping for the best.

06: PSYCHIC ECHOES

There's one last quirk to this area; a few scattered bits of odd plantlife, and the odd dead brain monster. While these things aren't a threat on their own (beyond being unnerving) they still pack a psychic punch; mainly in the form of temporary psychic abilities.

It's possible that after coming in contact with either plants or corpses, newcomers will find themselves gifted with either empathy (projecting or receiving emotions) telepathy, OR the ability to share their dreams with others, and having their dreams influenced by others in turn. This effect fades in just a day or so, but is still capable of causing mishaps.

MICRO ENCOUNTERS:

PLEASE NOTE! These are small bits of set dressing for players to include in threads if they wish, rather than full fledged prompts or events. You may handwave your exploration of these areas, or thread them out.

Broadcast: The garage contains a few burnt out monitors. But a handful of them are playing a message over and over again on loop, filled with static. It’s a recording of important looking people in lab coats advising people to remain indoors and avoiding all objects falling from the sky. Especially “moon shards.” They insist that they are working to contain and cure the infection, but the safest action is to remain inside.

Warped Air: As seen in Long Way Down, the air overhead has strange warped pockets in it. There seem to be slightly different shards hanging suspended in the air, looking more silvery than the surrounding rocks. Almost like it could have fallen from the broken moon overhead.

Medical supplies: Most of the medical supplies found in the hospital seem to consist of healing salves and potions, a handful of healing herbs, and a few antidotes for poison or sickness. As for reverting transformations… It’s advised that new comers be careful of taking any experimental medicine. It may revert a change. It may also leave them hallucinating nightmares and fears, and they’ll be wanting someone close by to help administer the drug.

NAVIGATION || RESERVES || APPLICATIONS

Comments

[acrocanthosaurus]

[yeah, that's weird. She's more struck by how small he seems though. In Marcia's body she doesn't feel any bigger than usual - yeah, there's the tail and totally different arrangement of mass, standing is only really comfortable when her body's held horizontal as if half bent over etc, but she feels normal.

So this weird guy seems about the size of a toddler. It's one thing seeing Mr. London all little, he's a kinda salamander-like running dinosaur. But the additional features still leave Akechi a lot more human-shaped than anything in the Cretaceous. The smell of him is also different, not that she knows what 'human' should smell like through an acro nose.]

Right, well, we can't get everything we want. Just do it.

[propatriamori]

Noted.

[Edward grimaces at the news that there are hazards under their feet, but he can deal with some broken glass. He's wearing a pair of heavy boots so he doubts anything will get through them. He just needs to work on not falling.]

Can you keep hold of my hand once we land, please? My balance isn't the finest.

[There is plenty of suspension of belief Edward is willing to engage with; most of the war felt like a nightmare anyway, with all logic and rules about life thrown to the side so men could throw themselves into the meat grinder. He's rarely sure on what's real or not anymore. But she does say something that immediately catches his attention, something so huge and glaring that it blots out everything else.]

The first world war?

[Oh no, oh no, oh no...]

You mean... there's a second one?

[propatriamori]

No, it's not rude. If anything, it makes a tiny glimmer of a smile flit across Edward's face. Not checking his speech means Levi is treating Edward like a normal person, and he likes that.

"Thank you." He lets Levi lead him through the hospital, adjusting his pace to whatever Levi sets. At Levi's question, Edward nods.

"It's quite obvious, isn't it? But yes, I've just arrived. I fell asleep in a rehabilitation hospital in England and woke up... here."

Wherever here is.

[phantomshow]

Sorry Faith, it’s just not an expression he recognizes. But if she’s moving on, so will he. Does he know Goro Akechi? Hoo boy, does he ever. Ren nods.

“He’s a bit of a celebrity, where we’re from. Not for the Persona, though. Those are a secret.”

Well, kinda for the Persona, in a roundabout way. But Ren isn’t going to start spilling Akechi’s secrets to a stranger. Those are Akechi’s to decide whether to keep or share. She knows what a Persona is and has at least seen Akechi’s, though, which seems to indicate she’s on good enough terms with the other teen for him to explain what a Persona is. Still, best not to assume.

“Do you work with Akechi here?”

And goodness where are his manners.

“Oh - sorry, my name is Ren Amamiya,” he adds, with a bow of his head. “It’s nice to meet you.”

[undyingcrow]

[It's funny, really. For a Japanese boy, he's rather tall, at 5'10'', but compared to a dinosaur... well, that's an entirely different matter.

Still, true to his word, he steps back, when leaps into the air, using his wings to maneuver through the air. He's had time to practice, to adjust to the gravity here...

So he circles behind her, trying to push her toward the ground.]

[androidvictoriam]

"No, there are." Never has Danse sounded more long-suffering than he does right now. "The music is ungodly. I don't know where they even found it. And don't get me started on the stuff they've painted on one of their vans."

Honestly, he really should be fine with big-titty pinup art, as he is with most proud old military traditions, but he is mildly scandalized nonetheless. Even if it's good art.

He doesn't know any of the rowdy teens around here well enough to consider them part of a family unit, dysfunctional or otherwise, and he suspects they wouldn't want his particular type of buzzkill around either--but Deacon's phrasing strikes a chord anyway, and not because Danse has ever been near enough Railroad HQ to hear it said about them. He does feel that kind of frequently-grudging kinship with the people here who understand the hardships of the wasteland, the increasing sense that none of their conflicts--political, ideological, interpersonal--really mean much anymore. It doesn't even matter if he likes them or not. There are bigger things at play.

It doesn't really strike him as all that strange that Deacon has effortlessly insinuated himself into this idea within a span of hours, such that Danse is already wondering idly what he'd make of the others as if the entire dynamic is important to consider. They're already accustomed to sharing a common enemy. It's just an altogether different one here, if not that much more inscrutable or unpredictable than the Institute.

(Or the Enclave. But even if Danse had a reason to think Deacon knew the Capital Wasteland like he does, he's learned his lesson about judging a truck by its paint job.)

He brings the chain over to assess what Deacon's assembled, and nods approvingly as if he knows what he's doing, which he...sort of does. Well enough. It'll probably work. "All right. You get that attached and I'll go get my truck. Rendezvous in five."

Heat | Digital Devil Saga

[iron_stomach]

Summoning

One of the new arrivals stands just outside the garage, a man in a gray and black suit splashed with orange across the back of his cloak, with vividly crimson hair and eyes to match, watching the sky as if he'd never seen it before.

As if he hadn't seen any of this before. Flying rocks and hovering items might be strange to anyone, but even the occasional thorny bush and struggling plant is regarded with the same puzzled wonder, struggling to connect any of it to something he already knows.

Part of him remembers similar things. This is a cactus (and don't touch it), that is a tire iron. Those things over there are big rigs--

Slowly, Heat turns towards the convoy, eyeing it with speculative distaste, rolling a key across his knuckles like a coin. "Not really what I thought Nirvana would be like."

Paradise is floating rocks and big trucks, apparently.

Who knew.

Start Up

Heat has found the vehicle the key goes to, a sturdy looking (jeep) vehicle that looked terribly unsuited for strapping a gun to, but after staring at it for a long, solid silent minute of pure, obvious disgust, has gone scouring through the other vehicles for something he can use. The low growl of "I don't think so," is the only thing he says as he stalks back into the graveyard of vehicles.

The (jeep) vehicle sits where he found it, a little battered and with a cracked windshield, a cheery vibrant cherry red.

Red is not acceptable.

Every item Heat brings back is some shade of orange, gray or black, the driver's seat torn out and replaced with one from another vehicle in more appropriate colors, a battered orange tarp slung across the roof and down the side and literally nailed into place with a wrench of all things and a handful of rusty nails. While it's obvious he's not quite sure what he's after besides color, someone may have a better idea that maybe a can of paint might work better than ... this.

Hospital (tw: gore, cannibalism(?))

There's another monster lurking in the hospital, a heavily muscled red and gold brute of a predator with two eyeless, shark-teeth filled heads chasing down anything that moves and isn't obviously human with relentless, ravenous drive. The only thing that evades the hunt are things that happen to be splashed in orange - just in case - and obviously human-looking things.

Ravenous is the keyword. There's angry hissing and growling whenever a monster simply disappears into bits of energy, but when a corpse actually lingers, it's torn into with voracious glee and no mind for neatness or manners. It doesn't matter what the monster is apparently even made of as cyborg monstrosities disappear down the twin gullets as easily as something made purely of flesh and bone.

And this thing's eaten more than a few. Where's it all going?

It's still prowling for more, little subtle about its stalking through the hospital's halls and rooms. Anyone inhuman will do, nearly. Whether or not this place is Nirvana, at least there's plenty of food.

Hospital: The Right Colors

On the off chance it encounters someone wearing that one special significant color of Orange, the demon's hunt pauses only briefly. Who knows how many different people from other Tribes went with them, and if they knew enough to wear Embryon's colors, then .. fine, they'd be treated like comrades. And comrades didn't let comrades go hungry. "You eat yet?" Its voices echo through two distorted mouths, distinctly masculine and easily understood for all the rumbling growl to it.

[solitarysoul]

"Rehabilitation for your, um," He motions towards his eyes then realizes Edward probably can't see that. "T-the scaring?

"That's what happened to all of us, I think, we were somewhere else then it was dark and we woke up here. In a garage with some sort of summoning or ritual circle."

[propatriamori]

"Yes." Edward can't see the gesture, but he assumes it was made. "That, and teaching me independence all over again."

He sounds bitter about it. It's the again part he doesn't like. He went from being a perfectly capable adult to something more akin to an infant, having to learn everything over like it's brand new.

"I didn't notice a summoning circle, but I woke up in a garage." It pleases Edward to realise that; he could smell the oil and rust, and it's nice to have it confirmed that that was, in fact, a garage. "I take it you've been here awhile?"

[facethefacts]

"God, you're really selling this for me." Deacon scoffs, "That stick up your backside is like a meter for how much fun something is gonna be for me."

It isn't that he actually thinks being stuck in this place is offering him a fun side-quest; if anything the thoughts and feelings his mind might project are much darker in tone. Fear, regret, melancholy that he masks with a smile. But there are still people here that need help. And there is a certain comradarie that comes with being stuck in a shit situation together. Deacon knows this better than anyone.

Sharing common enemies does a lot toward building the peace. It's why Deacon finds it so easy to work with others despite their disagreements. As long as a person isn't actively committing truly evil acts, there's no point in holding grudges. Deacon has worked with The Railroad for some time now with colleagues that find him truly obnoxious and unsettling. And in that time has even seen a side of Danse that earns the man extra sympathy- which he has to remind himself he isn't thinking about right now. At least with the other man right beside him.

He seems pleased enough with Danse's approval and makes his way back to his stupidly-shaped vehicle, lacing the chain around the frame and hooking it to itself so that it's secure. When Danse returns with the truck, he hitches it similarly to the back of it and waves the other man on, ready to spot the vehicle and try to wedge it up so that it isn't dragging across the road.

[solitarysoul]

Levi wonders if any of the weird monster traits or powers people get here would help with being blind. It feels wrong to hope somebody gets mutated in some way, though.

"A few months. We've been traveling...the message says its to Nirvana but really its just not safe to stay behind."

Re: 05

[omnicross]

[He wakes with a start, wondering why he fell asleep. He doesn't feel right in the head, but this whole situation is strange and unusual. He stretches his arms and yawns some then looks up. At first he stills, then he starts into a startled bird.] ...... Okay, now I know I'm dreaming.

[He's in shock, it's not anger yet but it might be soon. He stands up suddenly and jumps back on the rock, his buster sword is behind him as he stares down Sephiroth.] ...

[He turns around and keeps going down the rocks instead, he must be hallucinating, something. Then he stops and looks back at Sephiroth, who is still there...] This is going to sound like a stupid question but are you real?

[firstsoldier]

[..At least he's awake.

Cloud's still a complete stranger. Nothing at all about him is particularly noteworthy, except the sword. That blade is very much like Angeal's, but Angeal had taken much better care of it .. that one had scratches and dings all over it, as if it was actually put to use. On one hand, that's fine; swords are meant to be used and maybe they shared a blacksmith. On the other hand, it's strange to see something so like his dear friend's weapon so obviously put to work.

As Cloud hops backward onto a higher point, and then proceeds further downward, Sephiroth remains where he is, only following at something of a distance to make sure this stranger doesn't decide to just take another nap.]

As real as the inexplicably floating rocks. If you're tired, wait til you're on the ground to resume your sleep, few can fly as yet.

[His tone is terribly, terribly dry.]

[phantomshow]

“I used to dream about this, when you were gone,” he says, still staring down at his coffee. “I’d walk in and you’d just be sitting there like usual. Or I’d pass you on the street, or in the subway, and it was like … you’d been gone a long time, and I was finally finding you again. And you were OK, and I was happy to see you, even though we weren’t together.”

It should probably feel weirder to be talking about dreams while in a dream, to the subject of said dreams, but it doesn’t. Ren’s not sure why it doesn’t feel strange, but as long as the feeling persists, he will keep talking. Maybe these are things he needs to talk about.

“There was one dream where we went to the beach together. You got pretty sunburned,” he says, with a quiet laugh. “One time, you went with me to the planetarium, and you told me the story of Orihime and Hikoboshi, like I was a little kid who’d never heard it before. But I didn’t really mind, because you were there with me.”

The invisible waves of warm affection surrounding Ren have begun to overlap with layers of sorrow and regret, like the interwoven ribbons of a maypole. He really missed Akechi - more than he realized at the time, he’s discovering.

“A lot of the dreams I had were about being at the jazz club with you. We’d be talking about something I learned in school that day, or even not talking at all, just listening to the music.”

Those were the dreams that always left Ren with the heaviest blanket of sorrow when waking. They were too close to real, and too close to what Ren wanted so deeply. He picks up his coffee and finally takes a sip, swallowing down those feelings of longing and regret.

“Watermelon apples, huh?” Ren looks up at Akechi and pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Guess those would be easier to move than the regular size.”

[firstsoldier]

None who've been summoned here recognize it either. We can only hope there's answers in Nirvana.

[Which sounds utterly ridiculous to him and some of that disparaging thought about whether nor not Nirvana holds all the answers edges its way into his tone while the grim but somewhat mindless process of dismembering the monster continues. And for him, it's definitely dismemberment; he's watching the one Diarmuid is seeing to, and keeping track of how much damage it takes to actually stop the thing, how many heads needed to die before the whole stopped moving.

'All of them' apparently, its efforts to crawl right up the spear to get at Lancer proving to be a feeble effort at most. Both halves are at least, dying. Slowly, and with no reactions that suggest pain, only hunger and almost mindless persistence, which might be why an intended quick and merciful kill gradually becomes a patient puncture what would be vital points on a normal person one by one until it stops trying to climb his sword or reach him with scrabbling, hungry fingers.

It's grotesque.]

If you mean by way of lost strength or power, that's a common thread. As far as I have learned, no-one is where they should be, unless it is a completely mundane skill. The ... monsters we are becoming seem to fill in the gaps, however incompletely.

[This comes with a sobriety that suggests he's being completely honest, and not bothering with things like half-truths or deceptions to try to spin a story.

The last feeble efforts of the bisected and now thoroughly kabobed monster is ignored in favor of stepping with catlike finickiness and grace around the spreading blood pool with a frown; this one doesn't dissolve into useful energy as the previous did, some hungry monster will see to it eventually.]

... I myself lack much of the resilience and regeneration I ordinarily possess, and none of my spells function at all.

[That's sharply and deliberately candid when speaking to an armed stranger, a gamble that may eventually pay off.]

[undyingcrow]

There's a jolt of shock. Very briefly, Akechi stiffens like a pole, trying to process all these rapidfire admissions.

Dreams about him. Dreams about them.

It's so... insufferably sentimental, but perhaps he shouldn't be surprised.

"You took me to Jazz Jin every opportunity you had, while we were waiting to finish things with Maruki. You could have spent your nights any number of ways, yet you sought my company."

He takes another swig of his coffee to ground himself. It's the best thing he can do right now, in this vulnerable state, where his own emotions are hardly secret.

"...How fortunate, then, that we have opportunities. It's a desolate hellscape out there, but since you clearly value my company so much, I'm sure it won't matter." He pauses. "Perhaps we'll even encounter even more outlandish produce."

[phantomshow]

Ren laughs, not unkindly, because he knows that the roots branching underneath Akechi’s shock grew from seeds of abuse, devaluation, and hatred, and not all of those seeds were planted by other people in his life. Some of those seeds were planted by Akechi himself.

“Is that really such a surprise? It’s normal to want to spend time with the people you love.”

It takes Ren a moment to realize what he’s just admitted aloud, and in the speaking of this sentiment - giving the feeling form with words - something in his mind clicks into place. Like earlier, when he came to the realization that Akechi viewed him as better, something inside of him feels realigned, more complete.

He loves Akechi. He’d been dancing around it earlier, swept up in his anger and frustration, circling around the answer to a crossword clue that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Everything is in focus now. Ren hums a quiet sound, some kind of nonverbal that’s interesting, and takes another sip of his coffee.

Fear and anxiety slice into the atmosphere in staccato bursts, and Ren forces himself to keep watching Akechi to gauge his reaction to this revelation. Ren doesn’t expect the news will be received well, but he can hope for the best.

[undyingcrow]

More shock waves tear through the dreamscape. Akechi's eyes pop wide open, unblinking, and he draws a sharp breath. That's...

No. He needs to be rational. "Love" comes in many forms. Ren said people. That implies plural. It's not...

He should set his cup down, just to be safe.

He tries smoothing his feathers, tries adjusting his posture. He feels that fear pulsing through. His own fear bubbles in return.

"Rather a bold statement, given that I nearly murdered you."

[invisiblefloatinghead]

"First meeting with a teacher? You mean you've never been to school?" Even mutant turtles deserve an education, should they so desire. He wants to do something about that, but he's distracted by the moon deal and all it entails.

"Hm." Professor Stein frowns. Tries not to think about were-hyenas. "I must admit, I had no baseline normal for your species...er...is there any way to reverse the transformation?"

[invisiblefloatinghead]

He carries on running oblivious to any amusement out of her, but it's clear his energy is flagging. It's not going to be hard for her to outrun him. "I think--I think we lost it." If there's another one he's half tempted to lie down and die just to get some relief from all this blasted running. "I hope we lost it." Yeah, he's definitely flagging here. Adrenaline can only do so much--usually by now he'd have managed to fuse and this would be Firestorm's problem.

[phantomshow]

The reaction is … better than Ren expected, actually. Still not what might be classified as good, but it’s not bad, either. Akechi isn’t angry or disgusted, just shocked and afraid, and really, who could blame him? Love is a terrifying thing.

That’s part of why it can be so great.

So Akechi isn’t yelling at him, or throwing a punch, or even materializing a gun to shoot Ren again. He’s just doing his classic brand of deflection. Ren will take that as a win. He laughs, and his own fear and anxiety subside, and his love grows bigger, warmer, brighter.

“Good thing I’m not so easy to kill.”

He grins playfully into his coffee cup, taking another sip. He probably shouldn’t be joking about such a personal attempted murder with the person who pulled the trigger, but Ren has a habit of doing things he probably shouldn’t.

Like stepping in between two adults to stop a man from assaulting a woman.

Like becoming a vigilante and a thief to change the hearts of corrupted adults and reform society.

Add “loving a murderer” to the list. Ren’s not even keeping a running tab.

[undyingcrow]

His hands fold together on the bartop, clawed fingers intertwined. He ducks his head slightly, avoiding eye contact. Damn it all.

What does he even do with this knowledge? That searing warmth, that blinding light...

"You're so..."

Stupid? Sentimental? Why is it that now, of all times, words fail him? It's so humiliating.

"...If I wake up, will you actually remain here? You vanished not long after our first encounter."

More deflection, but it's the best way to cope with such an overload of... feelings.

[phantomshow]

That’s a good question. Ren remembers meeting Akechi in the garage, but then he apparently disappeared? That part, Ren doesn’t remember, and a chunk of missing time is … troubling. He hums, thoughtful as he finishes his coffee.

“I think so. Though I don’t remember vanishing.” He lightly drums fingertips on the surface of the bar, then stills them when an idea forms in his brain.

“Maybe you should wake up and find out,” he says, with a sly grin. “Do you think you can find me before I find you?”

[purplexing]

"Aside from the times I've snuck into my friend's school to help her with her assignments? Nnnnegative. But technically I do not legally exist."

Donnie shrugs, not seeming too bothered about that, but such as has been life, and they've gotten by fine, otherwise, much as he's lamented not being able to formally attend any school.

"Well, for starters, I am an apalone spinifera mutated with human DNA so baseline would be about what you'd expect of normal Earth turtles and I guess humans." He sighs, trying and failing to hide a wince at the question of reversing things.

"There...seem to be occasional instances where there's a chance that such transformations can be reversed. But more commonly, things just get worse. Wish I had answers as to the why's and how's but there's a lot we're still trying to figure out, and no easily available answers."

[cantgetoverit]

[Maggie squeezes his hand reassuringly to reaffirm she is not letting go. She's not sure what they'll find outside, but it's likely something both of them are better off not facing alone.]

Don't worry, I've got you. We're in this together now.

[There's a pause as the realization sinks in that she's essentially just dumped on him that there's been more than one world war. She takes a deep breath and nods before continuing.]

Yeah. There was a second one, about... twenty years after the end of the first one, if I remember my history classes right. A lot's changed since then - but that probably goes without saying.