BEAST (forum story) - Chapter 1

[LittleTornado]

Right, this is a single room, so heading back to where you were going would be an option(Sall room, not enough space to run).

I've got a short list building up here, but I'll keep it simple for now- might(not) live to regret this.

Commands:
-Check can of...something.
Query:
-Is there anything else in the room, seeming useful or otherwise?
-How long will the burning paper hold out for?

[Aquaerellum13]

Use a table leg and the handkurchief to make a more long torch, then explore all the room.

[Vortex]

take a look at the papers on the table

There are four small papers on the table. There is something written on them with a shaky handwriting. The notes seem directed to someone else:

----------------

"I've left a map of the underground passages up in the warehouse in case we need it, also bought some glowing paint to mark the way to here so we don't get lost again. A warning, don't touch the paint, it burns the skin. I realized it too late.

Bob"

----------------

"Business is not going well. I'll tell you about it at the meeting point. For the moment keep storing the material here, we gotta get rid of the boxes up there.

Bob"

----------------

"Don't bother to have the window changed. I already told you. The messages are not scary anymore, and these damn kids never grow tired. The police hasn't and won't come, everything's under control.

P.S. There's a spare key I hid in the sewer in case you lose the one I gave you.

Bob"

----------------

"IMPORTANT

We have to leave, they found us. Remove all the material and useful stuff, leave everything else, don't take too long. See you at the meeting point.

Bob"

----------------

Ian and Luke look at each other, surprised.

<LUKE>: Wait, then the message written in the window wasn't made by the shadows?

<IAN>: If we are to believe these notes, yes. And now that I think about it, it didn't make much sense that a shadow would write that message, warning us that they are there. But we can't forget about our worries so easily. We both heard that sound.

<LUKE>: I know, I know... By the way, all the notes are signed by Bob... wasn't Robert Collins one of the two arrested for drug smuggling, like, six years ago or so?

<IAN>: I do remember something like that. My uncle told me about it when it happened. Did you know the man?

<LUKE>: Only by sight. He was well known around here, and not by his good deeds precisely. This probably means he and his accomplice were using the warehouse and these underground tunnels as storage.

-Check can of...something.

Ian and Luke check the can at the corner of the room. It is a bucket of glowing blue paint. It must be the same paint that made the marks they saw, and the one the notes talk about.



There is very few paint left. They wonder whether it could be useful for something.

-Is there anything else in the room, seeming useful or otherwise?

They can't see anything else in the room. Nothing at the other side, nothing at the ceiling, nothing under the table or under the bucket. There are a few dust tracks on the floor, probably made when the previous occupants carried the drug shipment away.

-How long will the burning paper hold out for?

Not much time. Only one third of the paper remains; Ian estimates it will take around half a minute to burn completely.

Use a table leg and the handkurchief to make a more long torch, then explore all the room.

They try to break a leg from the table to make a longer torch, but it is too difficult since the table is made of a strong metal.

Luke gives his handkerchief to Ian so that they can use it before the paper burns. Hopefully it will give them enough time to find a way to fix the flashlight, or another source of light.

[ENIHCAMBUS]

Command: Inventory

[LittleTornado]

ok. there's plenty of stuff to burn lying around, so torch fuel is good long term.
they have maps now.

Commands:
-Dip steel rod in the paint, see if there's anything dropped in there.
- use maps to plan where to go next(don't leave yet. someone else might have a bright idea).

[Vortex]

-Dip steel rod in the paint, see if there's anything dropped in there.

Ian dips the steel bar in the paint, tilting the bucket to cover the largest possible area and being careful not to touch it with his hands. The paint perfectly adheres to the metal surface and dries quickly thanks to the heat provided by the fire. The bucket is now empty, there doesn't seem to be anything in the bottom. Ian adds the newly made "lightsaber" (for lack of a better word) to his inventory.

<i know some people were waiting for this, me included >



Finally, they have a proper weapon! It is a bit impractical to throw flashlights and burning papers around, so they would only be usable at very close range during a fight, but this is very different. The long shape of the bar makes it much more manageable, and now that it's covered in glowing paint it has the capability to hurt the monsters, likely as much as a regular human would be hurt by a regular steel bar.

Command: Inventory

Ian has: his phone, the flashlight with a battery inside, his wallet&keys, the burning paper and the handkerchief from Luke, a glass piece, Elisa's broken glasses including an improvised lockpick, and the lightsaber.

Luke has: his broken watch, some painkillers and part of an electromagnet.

- use maps to plan where to go next(don't leave yet. someone else might have a bright idea).

Ian and Luke would gladly do that, but there isn't any map here, only the four papers. Provided that what these notes say is true, the map should be hidden somewhere in the warehouse. They must have missed it somehow, if it is still there that is.

They could go back and look for it. There's still the possibility that the shadows are waiting for them, but they feel a lot more confident now that they have a weapon to defend themselves.

[LittleTornado]

No Commands Here, just a rundown of what we know.

Ok. lightsaber. not quite what I intended but if it works(which it might not).
The next bit all comes down to risk assessment. There might be more loot(er, useful equipment) so getting the map would help. The lightsaber gives us some light to see with at least.
The odds are that the warehouse section is flooded with Dark Fog, so going back there might not be a bad idea(Darkvision). However there might be shadows, but now it's a matter of quantity(are there more than can we reasonably fight, and can we outrun them).
Since we know where we intend to go long term there nothing stopping us just going that way, but what if we miss something...
what a quandary.
Someone else have a go for a bit, see where it take us.

[ENIHCAMBUS]

Take the four papers so you have more things to burn.

[Vortex]

Take the four papers so you have more things to burn.

Ian adds the four notes on the table to his inventory, in case they need to burn them later.



<quickest update so far XD>

The next bit all comes down to risk assessment. There might be more loot(er, useful equipment) so getting the map would help. The lightsaber gives us some light to see with at least.
The odds are that the warehouse section is flooded with Dark Fog, so going back there might not be a bad idea(Darkvision). However there might be shadows, but now it's a matter of quantity(are there more than can we reasonably fight, and can we outrun them).
Since we know where we intend to go long term there nothing stopping us just going that way, but what if we miss something...
what a quandary.
Someone else have a go for a bit, see where it take us.

<good thoughts>

[ENIHCAMBUS]

Is posible to return back for the missing batteries now that you have more things to burn and a weapon?