redshiftrp | BACKDATED TO 21 JULY - two posts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon

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BACKDATED TO 21 JULY - two posts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon - username: cho

[VIDEO POST VERY EARLY IN THE MORNING]

[ Cho's camera feed turns on to show her holding it in "selfie mode" with her face slightly off center to show the kitchen set-up behind her, in need of some elbow grease to get it up to scratch, but still way bigger and better and all around nicer than the little areas in their quarters. ]

Guys. There's a kitchen! A really big one. I know we've probably all been making do, feeding ourselves with whatever we find and using the little kitchenette areas in the-- barracks? Are they still called barracks when it's not the military?

[ She has no idea, and that's also not the point. ]

It seems that a much more efficient use of time and resources would be to have communal meals. This kitchen is more than big enough to get all of us fed at once. I can do a lot of the cooking, but I'll still need some help. First, this place is going to have to be cleaned. I haven't found any cleaning supplies yet, but I also haven't checked every storage area. A couple of volunteers would speed that up, and probably keep the time from dragging. Work always seems more fun when you're not alone. Then, for meal prep, I could also use some help. There's a decent number of us. That's a lot of scrubbing and slicing and chopping for one person.

You don't need to be a good cook, or even have any sort of kitchen experience. If you know what end of a knife to hold, and that sugar tastes better in tea than salt, I can teach you.

[ Her enthusiasm is high, her smile is bright, and she looks incredibly hopeful that someone will respond. She's been wallowing for too long. If she's not getting out of here any time soon, then she really needs to make the best of things. Today is the first day that she honestly thought she could get on the network and not break down crying, because today is the first day she felt like she could do something to be helpful here. Food is a shot in the dark. She can make that a little easier. She can make a difference, even if it's a small one. ]

If you're interested in helping out with any of this, please let me know. If you have dietary restrictions, definitely let me know. Meals will probably be fairly simple until we get a good handle on just what we can expect from the plants and animals here, but once more resources are available, I can probably take requests.

I was thinking between seven and nine for breakfast, and six and eight for dinner. Lunch could be a longer period of things that are easy to grab and go. Or... maybe we could do some sort of packed lunch for people who'll want to pick one up during breakfast? So they won't have to come all the way back to the dining room if they're not working close by. Would anyone be interested in something like that?

[ All right, so she didn't think this the whole way through before getting on the network. She got a little carried away in her enthusiasm. She still feels good about it, though. Better than she has since arriving. ]

[[[AUDIO POST LATER IN THE DAY, BUT WITHOUT THE NEED FOR AN ADDITIONAL POST IN THE COMM]]]

[ A few hours later, and would you listen to that? Cho's back! Sounding far less hopeful and very much terrified. She's breathing heavily, and her voice shakes when she speaks. ]

I messed up. I shouldn't have--

[ Something heavy (like a large mutated creature) hits something solid (like a wall, or maybe a door) and she whimpers. ]

There is-- a thing. Out there. It's fast. Maybe there are more of them? I don't know. I just-- I ran.

[ Another muffled thump, another whimper. ]

It definitely knows I'm here. It's angry. I don't-- This places looked like there might be-- I don't know.

[ She wanted to gather some supplies for those big communal meals she was so excited about this morning. She thought there might be some sort of crops, the way everything was so overgrown. Something edible, or maybe a way to access wherever the orchard is. Why else have a building like this in the midst of an area with all these plants and trees? That's not really a thought she can hold in her head right now. ]

I'm near the top of the city. I'm--

[ There's some fumbling with the device, and then her GPS location comes on (she's in the hatchery's lab), along with a life sign that shows that she's healthy, but that her heart is going like a jackhammer. ]

I'm here. I need help. Please. I don't think I'm going to be able to outrun that thing twice. I need help. Please, I-- I need help.

[[OOC: If anyone would be interested in a log as a response to her second post, let me know. Might be a good way to get yourself some new CR with another hero-type.]]

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[Well at least someone is cheerful, or forcing themselves to be. Either way it's kinda a nice respite from his normal wallowing in misery he does every day. Of all the people to not show up alongside them, he missed Tinya, who was determined to be his own personal cheerleader and actually got him to say something positive maybe a whole three times in the past year.

He didn't have that here, so he's going to have to do it himself. He's not really ready for that hence audio instead of video.]

I can help with the cleaning. You don't really want me around food. Especially meat.

There's gotta be a storage closet with cleaning supplies, even if it was done by robots they had to be using something. Or maybe I'll find a fleet of Roombas. Where exactly is the kitchen?

[ Cho switches to an audio response, to match the person she's talking to. ]

Oh gosh, you're right. I should have done that first. Hang on, I'll just...

[ A little bit of time passes, while Cho figures out how to do what she wants to do. Then a beep, as she manages to successfully turn on her GPS beacon. ]

There we go. I just turned on my beacon. If you check it, that's where the big dining area is.

Cleaning is just as important as the cooking. Without a clean kitchen, we run the risk of getting people sick, and we can't have that. Any and all help is welcome, I assure you!

[ Someone's enthusiasm is probably coming through loud and clear, even when it's just her voice. ]

Now, when you say you shouldn't be around meat, is that just a preference for not handling it raw, or are you a vegetarian?

[Oh hey, nice. He'd expected awkward instructions with seven lefts and two rights when you see a pipe that has a crack in it or something.]

How'd you do that? That's awesome. I guess I should be messing with these comm things a hell of a lot more. I kinda figured they just did you know.. phone things.

Vegetarian.

But you don't have to cater to me or anything, I found some pre-packaged junk in one of the rooms here so I'm good for a bit. I can help clean though. And if you want to try and see if the mutant deer on the top level are edible I can have my wolf take one of them down.

They're pretty gnarly though, I'm not sure you really want to eat them.

There's a function menu. It's, um... that little button by the screen, up kind of near the top? Press it, and it should open up a menu. Then you can scroll with the navigation buttons. There's an option for a GPS beacon. Up near the top of the list.

[ Assuming he knows which button she's talking about, and he's found the navigation buttons. She speaks quickly, and does not offer to explain further, because there's something else to focus on. ]

I can help you find it in person if you need me to. You have a wolf? You mean a wolfhound, right?

Ah I see. Thanks.

Nah a wolf. Actual wolf. She's a good hunter so if you wanna see if anything upstairs is edible she can take it down for you. But like I said, a lot of the animals up there look wrong.

I haven't really looked around yet.

[ She should probably do that. Look around.

Also, she wants to see this wolf now. It sounds way more interesting than whatever is up there, and if it's a pet, it probably won't be dangerous, right? ]

We really wouldn't know if anything up there is safe to eat until we test it, right? To test it, we need a sample. If it's safe, people can eat it. If it's not... also good information to have.

I've been kinda bored. And I don't want to stay in my room. There's no windows it's ... I don't like that.

[He's not really claustrophobic but the kind of bunker looking walls freak him out a bit.]

Good luck getting someone to volunteer to eat it and see if they die. But I'll get you a deer. You want it skinned?

[ That gets a little bit of a sputtering reaction, like she can't figure out if she's offended or concerned for him that that's where his mind goes. ]

I wasn't going to make anyone eat it to figure out if it's safe. I'm going to run tests on it. Mutated doesn't necessarily mean irradiated. I can test for that. I can also break it down using artificial enzymes and a mixture of hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, and sodium chloride in a simulated stomach. There's more than enough canned food for a proper control group.

[ She huffs a little. ]

What kind of person would make someone risk their life for a burger?

It almost seems easier to make someone eat it.

[What even is science anyway? Just see if someone dies, way faster.]

Do whatever it is you do, I'll provide the gross deer to test on.

[ It's a little troubling that his first instinct is to cause someone harm to get an answer. Cho bites her lip, unsure of how to ask her question. ]

So, maybe this is a silly question, but... why does your wolf know how to hunt deer if you don't eat them? Is it a sport thing for you? They don't-- suffer more than they have to, do they?

[Preppers don't have access to fancy laboratories to test the bear meat they caught for trichinosis. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.]

I used to eat deer a lot. Not anymore.

Of course they don't suffer. What kind of monster do you think I am?

[Well now he sounds offended.]

I'm sorry. I-- There aren't many reasons for a vegetarian to go hunting. And you think testing possibly harmful meat on a person is better than doing it in a lab. It's-- a bit of a mixed message.

I didn't mean to offend you.

No I don't?

Why would I assume that we had a lab, had someone who knew how to use it, and that somehow you'd be able to tell if meat was edible with it?

[He huffs looking away.]

I'll get you that deer and you can do your tests.

[And with that he's hanging up, fully thinking this is some entitled city girl who's never had to survive a day in her life and is probably looking down on a country boy like him. He will, however; go find a deer for her.]

[ Cho stares at her phone for a few seconds, confused. ]

Thank you...

[ She says it to the dead air, even knowing there isn't anyone on the line any more.

Was she not clear, talking about the tests she wanted to run? She should have done a better job of explaining it, maybe talked about the medbay area. He said it seemed easier to make someone eat it. Did she misunderstand that? Maybe it's a cultural thing. Was it a joke? That seems possible. She's terrible with jokes.

In any case, having a deer is good, and he's getting one, so that's also good. ]

Ooh-- me! [ Yes, he's raising his hand, way too eager to do literally anything that he has to resist the urge to just race to the kitchen. ] I'll help! I mean, I'm not, like, a chef or anything, but I can put together something decent. And I can work under pressure! Once you've cooked pancakes for a bunch of hungry teenagers, you can handle just about anything...

[ His daughter's slumber parties, man. Those were a true test of his skill in the kitchen. ]

[ Raise your hand and wiggle it around and show as much eagerness as you want. It'll make Cho feel better about being so pumped about this idea, herself. The more enthusiasm the better! ]

Prep help would be extremely welcome, Mister Calhoun. It's a lot for one person, but I know a few of us could make it go much smoother and easier. It might even be fun!

Grace under pressure is worth just as much as technical skill, I've always thought. Besides, I wasn't thinking of anything too elaborate. Probably the kind of things we would want to make for ourselves, just made easier for everyone by pooling our resources and skills. Things like pancakes or french toast or waffles and fruit compotes in the morning, maybe some kind of baked egg dish. I've found that you can really improve the taste of canned vegetables by putting them in a nice quiche. I'm not sure where we would get heavy cream, but I think we can come up with something else that will be just as nice. Muffins are a good way to hide a serving of vegetables in a tasty way, too, and they could probably carry over well to be snacked on throughout the day...

[ She has ideas. Many ideas. Not complex ones, but they're still ideas, and they're making her feel like she's taking a pro-active role here, rather than just wallowing. Look at that grin spreading even further. Come on, share ideas with her! ]

[ Jeff smiles. ] Sounds like you've got breakfast covered. I've never made a quiche before, but I'm pretty good at following directions.

I bet we could make a veggie bolognese for dinner. [ He furrows his brow, looking a little perplexed. ] Or is it a ragu? [ Wait, hold on, he has to think about this... ] Are they the same thing...?

[ ...

ANYWAY. ]

Ooh, how are we on grains and beans? As long as we've got the staples, there's so much we can do!

Bolognese is a type of ragu, and all ragus are meat based. We could do a nice marinara, though. There's flour. If there's something we coud use as a binder, we could absolutely make pasta. Maybe an arrabbiata option for people who like a little kick? Someone else offered to go hunt down a deer for us. It will take a while to run tests to make sure it's safe, but if it is, we could have venison ragu!

You should come take a look when you have some free time. There's a really decent supply of food here. This place-- must have fed a lot of people... at some point.

[ Oh, look, she made herself sad. Right. No time to be sad! Pushing through to the other side! Get that smile back! Dial the enthusiasm up to eleven! No time for being sad! ]

Which is good news for us! Lots of choices!

Someone's gonna kill a deer? And, like, butcher it or something? Oh... [ Jeff is LESS THAN ENTHUSIASTIC about that. Looks like venison won't be on his personal menu anytime soon. ] Um.

I think I just turned vegetarian. [ But! He's going to try to keep the enthusiasm going, because now he's sad, and she's getting sad, and we can't have that. ] Yaaay...

[ It's a weak yay, but he's trying! He even shoots a smile and a thumbs up and everything. ]

Edited 2019-08-13 20:26 (UTC)

That's all right, too. We have another vegetarian. Interestingly, it's the man who offered to bring me a deer.

[ Cho just shrugs. She's not sure specifically what Pratt's aversion to eating meat is. If he wants her to know, he'll tell her. ]

If you decide you just turned vegan, that will make my life a little more difficult, but I think I can still work with it.

[Peter was definitely not awake yet when that first post went up, but Cho's second one catches his attention as soon as it goes up.]

Hey, try to stay calm, okay? I'm not far from you, I'll be there soon.

[It super helps that she's already got her GPS location ready to go. Kick ass.]

Right. Yes. I'm calm. I'm calm. I'm--

[ Trying to convince herself and utterly failing. That shaky breath is absolutely not her crying, but it is her being damn close. ]

Please be careful. It's so fast.

[oooh she's not calm at all, but it doesn't sound like she's freaking out too much. So far, at least. He's not sure how much it'll help, but he does his best to keep his own voice calm when he replies.]

It's fast, okay. I'll keep that in mind. Just stay where you are, help'll be there soon.

[ She's, like, normal and understandable amount of freaking out? She's not going to just sit down on the floor and cry until she gets eaten, but she's not exactly keeping her composure with that creature battering at the door she ran through.

Probably worth figuring out if there's another way out of this building. Keep them all a little bit safer, maybe? Yes. She's going to do that. ]

I won't leave the building. There's someone else coming. His name is Finnick. He's blonde and tall and handsome and very fit.

[ Describing Finnick sounds like setting someone up on a blind date, but it's true. ]

You shouldn't come in here without each other. I think you'll be safer together.

[Peter's about 99% sure that he'd be fine on his own, but if someone else is coming to help too he's going to not just barge in by himself. What if the other guy gets eaten because of it? Unacceptable.]

Look out for the hot blonde dude, got it. We'll come in together.

[I mean there are worse blind dates than teaming up to rescue a lady from mutants. Probably.]

I didn't mean...

[ Though, all right, if she's being objective and honest... ]

Yes. Look out the for hot blonde dude.

Got it. I'll let you know as soon as I get there.

[And off he goes to find this hot blonde dude, it's gonna be a party.]

[ Finnick knows that voice. And he knows the fear in it too. There's no question of offering help; he's already reaching for his rifle before he picks up his communication device.

Mutts. He knows how to deal with mutts. ]

Hey.

I'm coming to get you. Stay out of its way, it'll be okay.

[ FInnick! A familiar voice. Someone she knows is strong and capable and coming to get her. ]

I'm inside. I think I'm safe here. There's a big low building behind the treeline. Someone else is coming to help, too. Wait for him at the door and come together? Please?

[ It does not take a genius to figure out that Finnick doesn't really like people. It also doesn't take a genius to hear in Cho's voice how worried she is for her friend. And for this new stranger. ]

You'll be safer if you're together.

[ Careers train to use alliances. Not to trust in alliances, but to use them when they're helpful, and to understand when it's time to break them. Finnick never really played that game, because he'd struck out on his own the first time, and the second time, everything had been about protecting Katniss and Peeta.

He considers the possibilities before he responds: the chance of fighting off whatever mutts make those unsettling noises in the forested areas, compared to the risks of trusting a stranger.

But Cho's worried, and he doesn't know the measure of the thing he's going to be up against. ]

Okay. Just stay there, we'll come find you.

[Diego sees the post, and there's an instant wash of a thick coat of guilt trying to stick to every part of him. He'd made her a promise he failed, completely, to follow through on. Not that the promise would have stopped this from happening, the two things are only tangentially related because they both involve Cho. Doesn't stop it from sliding across him like molasses.

But he boxes it up, sets it aside and hits the button to respond to the familiar voice on the post.]

I'll come with you. [Beat.] I know her.

Oh, hey, I could help out in the kitchen.

[Lord, give her something to do. She's going stir crazy between the wide, empty spaces of this place and not being able to do the things she'd want to because it isn't really safe (and she's not about getting herself killed if she can help it). There are only so many wrecks and hidden rooms she can squeeze into for a look-see before they start blending together.]

Used to throwing meals together with whatever's there at the time.

[ Cho is here with all the tasks! Not only that, but it's kind of a fun one. For her, anyway. She enjoys cooking. ]

Well, that's good, because making meals out of whatever's here at the time is probably going to be our only real plan. For a while, at least. Luckily, we seem to have a pretty good supply. I haven't checked it all for freshness, but a lot of it's canned and sealed and... I'm hopeful.

[ She turns the camera so that Julie can see the cans and containers and large bins. Lots of them. Which is good. ]

See? Not too bad, all things considered. Especially if we can supplement with a little bit of fresh stuff. How are you with cleaning?

[ A lot of people don't like it. Cho doesn't expect she'll get a ton of offers of help for that part. She has Pratt, though. That's something. ]

And prep work. That's probably going to be the biggest time consideration, really. Roasting potatoes for twenty people is easy. It's the cleaning and dicing that really eats up your day.

[That's more of a reliable food supply than Julie's seen in a while, and she lets out a low whistle. Not that she ever starved in Hadriel, but you never knew when supplies might be cut off.

To the question, she shrugs.]

I can clean.

[She might not enjoy it, but it's methodical and routine and she doesn't mind.]

When did you wanna start?

Oh.

[ There's a little laugh on Cho's end. ]

I already started. You can do a lot with a wet cloth, and I'm sure I'll find something a little stronger as I go. It seems to be mostly just dusty, so far, which is good.

[ She turns the camera again to show Julie a section of cleaned off counter top, the metal gleaming (though faintly streaky) now that the dust has been removed. ]

Vinegar.

[Julie shrugs, taking a cursory glance at the cleaned worktop as it's shown to her.]

Vinegar mixed with water. It's basic and stinks like hell, but it works.

[ Cho's hoping for something a little more reliable. There must be a janitorial cupboard somewhere int his place. There just has to be. ]

I'm hoping I'm going to find something a little more... professional grade. In a kitchen like this, there must be something. There's no white vinegar, only cooking vinegars, and I'd rather save them for pickling things if I can. And I'd rather not use up all the baking soda on the more set in stains, if I don't have to, but I will if there isn't anything else.

[ She turns the camera back around to herself. ]

Don't suppose you've seen anything that looks like it might be stainless steal cleaner anywhere you've been?

[And Julie, well, she'll just take what she can get. You learn to make do after over ten years of continuous looting.]

If you haven't found it in the kitchen, what makes you think it's gonna be anywhere else?

[But she'll think, illustrated by the way she moves her eyes away from the camera, casting them upwards while she filters through her memory.]

Don't think I've seen anything like that. If I was looking for it, I'd be looking where all the stainless steel is.

[ Cho shrugs. She's not certain it even exists, but it's not like she's got a ton else to fill the many hours in her days. ]

Sometimes in restaurants, places with big high volume kitchens like this, they don't keep anything that could be potentially toxic near the food. Just to be safe. Sometimes. It might be a similar situation here? The cleaning products could be in another spot.

[ Of course, sometimes the restaurants don't care, and the toxic stuff is right by the fridge. Or maybe this place doesn't even have cleaning supplies for people to use. Maybe it was supposed to all be done by a little fleet of robots that are broken down now and someplace she'll never find them. ]

Or maybe... maybe there are larger stores to replenish the immediate use supplies from, and it's just those immediate use ones that have run out or are missing. Or just... someplace I still haven't found.

I just figure it can't hurt to have more eyes on the problem, right?

[ There's a pause, barely a beat, and something in her eyes says that her mind has switched tracks. ]

I'm Cho, by the way. I didn't introduce myself upstream, did I?

I dunno. Every time I've been through a restaurant looking for supplies the cleaning shit is always near the kitchen. Or like, in the basement?

[There's an idea. Julie tips her head slightly to one side.]

Is there a door in there to another room? Or any stairs? Places like this run off efficiency. There's nothing efficient in keeping all of your stuff miles away from where you're gonna need it.

[Then she pauses, a beat, and jumps tracks.]

I'm Julie. You didn't, but no big deal.

[ Cho had not considered that. The room with the tables must be cleaned, too, and no food is prepared there... ]

It's nice to meet you, Julie.

[ She says it as she walks, directly out of the kitchen and to a door somewhat near it in the seating area, which she pulls open. ]

Ha! I thought this was going to be a bathroom, for some reason.

[ She turns the camera to show Julie the small closet full of cleaning supplies. ]

You were right.

Hah, I knew it. [She grins, but it's an expression of triumph rather than any smugness.

As soon as she'd mentioned efficiency, she'd thought of the glitchy robots and doubted herself immediately. But there it is, right as she'd thought, and she can't help but feel like she'd stepped up half a rung in understanding this place, somehow...]

I'll come down and give you a hand. Not doing anything else right now.

[ Hey, a win is a win. How long might it have taken Cho to get around to investigating this cupboard on her own? ]

That would be great. I'll probably be easy to find. Just follow the music and the smell of-- ooo, bleach.

[ She says it like it's a set of winning lotto ticket. ]

We are going to have such clean floors.

[ Yup, this makes her happy. ]

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BACKDATED TO 21 JULY - two posts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon - username: cho

Voice @Pratt

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video; un: j.calhoun

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Audio; un: Spides (for that second, horrible thing)

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Audio; un: Odair65 (afternoon)

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video; un: cabernet

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