i. my name is death and the end is near.

[tehplagues]

what has been left after the plagues is a constellation of ghost towns.

the lone survivors walk the streets of an emptied world, one that alternates swiftly between discomfortingly eerie silence and chaotic brutality. it doesn't seem to understand moderation, the pendulum swinging from one extreme to the other in the space of a heartbeat. there are times when it feels like you are the only person left in the ruins - like you will be driven mad by the nightmares and the grievous silence that follows. and there are other times. times when you know you are not alone in the darkness, not with the rift opening up one last time to pour into the cracks every monster it has in its arsenal; you must protect yourself.

careful where you step. you might stumble on rotting bodies across desolate lawns. you might stumble on rioters fueled by flagg's nightmares until they committed to his deadly causes - believing you to be the enemy. if you're lucky, you'll cross paths with those who, like you, are trying to find a place to lay their weary heads. if you're not, pray to what gods you believe in that someone hears you.

prayer may be all you have left.

Comments

[gavot]

[ rachel banks has always liked believing that she's prepared for anything.

arguably the smartest girl in her class, she's excelled at most things she puts her mind to. she is determined, responsible, and resourceful. she's the cool head in a crisis, the calm port in a fiery storm. practical to the point of sterility, she is rarely ruled by her emotions despite the fact she obviously has them - she's an eighteen year old girl.

and despite the fact she's prided herself on Knowing, there was no way she could foresee or prepare for the end of the world. much less could she prepare for the chaos and loss that would inevitably follow. she lost her father when she was young, and for most of her life, it's been her and her mom. now it's just rachel, and she does not know. she has no idea what's going to happen once she reaches boulder. she has no idea that she has a latent ability that will only just now begin to manifest.

she's placed pillows and blankets in the trunk of her car; it's a pitiful attempt at a make-shift bed, and while she isn't keen on sleeping, she does need rest. a ray of sunlight hits her face, and a connection springs to life, startling her into a seated position. she speaks aloud, despite the fact she likely does not have to. ]

Who are you? [ and more importantly, is she losing her mind? ]

[sunrunning]

[It was an accident. It usually is. Mara isn't really in control of her powers, which makes it all the more dangerous for her to use them- especially in times like these. But sometimes it just happens.

Sometimes she's just drawn to people, drawn to their energy.]

It's okay. [Mara's voice isn't audible really. It's in Rachel's mind and that's it. But it would give the distinct feeling of emerald green and pearl, if such a thing was possible.]

My name's Mara. Where are you? [She doesn't know just how far along the light she's traveled. And she's too curious about it for her own good.]

[gavot]

[ rachel straightens further, pushing her dark curls out of her face with shaky fingers. only a few weeks ago, she wouldn't have believed any of this. it would've been inconceivable to her. but the world is gone, monsters are real, and so is the devil. why not a girl living inside of her mind, too? ]

Toledo. [ rachel's own emission is closer to a rich sapphire blue, calm and steady. ] I'm in Toledo. How is this possible?

[sunrunning]

[That makes her blink. Holy shit, the same state? Her Ohio geography isn't great so she grabs a map and starts looking up how far apart they are.]

It's me. Sorry. I'm a Sunrunner, but sometimes it just...happens.

[Not that it explains much at all but Mara is looking at her atlas and a little distracted.]

What's your name?

[gavot]

I'm Rachel.

[ and none of this makes any sense, she adds to herself silently. rachel likes her order. she likes the world to function in a way that she can make sense of it. she doesn't like being so uncertain of where she stands and what should happen now. ]

What do you mean, Sunrunner? What does that have to do with being able to hear you?

[sunrunning]

Pretty much everything?

[She puts the atlas away and turns her face towards the bright rays fully, trying to decide how to give the 101 version of her bloodline.]

That's what I'm doing right now. Sunrunning. Or that's what my dad calls it at least. I can follow the light to speak to people- mostly other Sunrunners, but sometimes it works with other people too. That's more rare, but...it happens. Something about your energy must have synched up with mine. Your colors are really pretty, by the way.

[The colors of her spirit, she means (which I'll let you decide btw). Mara is emerald green and pearly white. Her father told her that she was special to think of the colors in gem tones. Apparently it was how things were done in ancient times, but not so much today. Mara just thought it made sense since everything looked like it was sparkling in the sun.]

[gavot]

[ rachel's colors are a deep blue sapphire with hints of gold, not that she knows this. as far as she's concerned, she's always been a normal girl. as normal as they come. okay, maybe not entirely normal. she's the adult in the mother-daughter dynamic, but the caretaking, responsible role comes to her naturally. this? not so much. but now that she's stepped out of the truck and stands in front of it, looking toward the sky, the thoughts that are decidedly mara's and not hers grow stronger.

she shakes her head - ]

And you're - you're green? [ green and pearly. she almost wants to cry. ] I'm sorry, you're just - you're the first person I've talked to since everything happened. I don't even know if I'm just making you up in my head. [ and she's not sure that she cares, right now. ]

[sunrunning]

Wait you can see it? [Mara's spine stiffens a bit.] My colors, you can see them?

[As far as she knows, only other Sunrunners can see the colors on the light.]

[gavot]

Am I not supposed to? [ S-SOB SHE IS SO CONFUSED. ] It's like green and pearly. I think it's pearly.

[sunrunning]

No- I mean, yes it's pearly. Pearl and emerald. And you're sapphire and gold. But... You shouldn't be able to see them unless you're like me.

[wow she wishes her dad were here. He would have the answer. She could stop and try to reach him, but no. She can do this. She can figure it out without his help.]

It's a family trait, usually. But it can skip generations sometimes.

[gavot]

[ the fact it can skip generations would explain a lot. ] My father wasn't close to his family. He died when I was pretty young - [ something that stings to remember, to this day, but she is pragmatic at heart, focusing on relaying this information as detachedly as possible. ] - if this was a trait in his family, I don't know if he knew it himself. Or if he'd tell me when I was only seven. [ she doubts it's on her mother's side... ]

[sunrunning]

[That makes her super sad. She's an absolute daddy's girl, so hearing about Rachel's dad dying young just breaks her heart.]

Okay, well... Surprise?

[She wasn't expecting to accidentally find another Sunrunner today! She doesn't really know how to begin.]

[gavot]

[ rachel was a daddy's girl, too. ): he was... well, the sane one of her two parents. he took care of not only rachel, but rachel's mother. they weren't a match made in heaven, her parents - arguably, the only reason they got married was because of rachel, a fact that's always made her mother bitter, certainly now that he's gone. ]

A little bit, yeah. So. You say it runs in the family. Aside from being able to do ... this, is there other stuff?

[sunrunning]

Yeah, there's all sorts of things. Elemental magic. I'm only up to fire and water, though. Oh and moonrunning, but that's super advanced because the light is weaker so you have to be careful of-- OH! Oh god. Are there any shadows around you? Stay out of shadows while we're talking. God, I'm sorry. I should have said something before. It only matters if you're like me- like us, but... If you lose the light while we're connected, you can become shadowlost.

[Shes not trying to scare the new girl but wow that's an important lesson whoops.]

[gavot]

[ ALARM. SO MUCH ALARM. ]

Shadowlost? [ rachel remains firmly in place in the middle of the street, soaking up the rays and possibly looking like a weird person. it's starting to get hot but she can cool off later. what matters here is information, which mara seems to have. ] I'm going to guess that's a really bad thing? I'm out in the open road.

[sunrunning]

It's like your spirit can't find your body again. You're alive, but...

[She's never seen it happen but her dad has warned her about it.]

Just tell me if there are clouds coming and I'll break the connection. I'm serious.

[gavot]

Okay! I promise. [ she glances up at the sky now with certain trepidation, but they should be good for now. she shifts in place, converse-clad feet still planted firmly against the warm asphalt. ] So. I know you asked me where I am, but where are you?

[ maybe they can meet in the middle eventually. the lack of a single soul around her is starting to wear on her. and ... if they agree on meeting, she can at least know if this is really happening or she's in need of hydration. ]

[sunrunning]

Near Cleveland actually. Weird luck.

[Except it feels like it's not luck. It feels like this is meant to be somehow.]

[gavot]

Do you believe in luck? [ rachel never has. she's always said that you make your own luck. but sometimes even coincidences rarely feel like them. ]

[sunrunning]

Not really. [She answers honestly.] Okay, so... halfway point. I've got a map here, so... Norwalk, maybe? Or- I'm actually headed west so I could probably just get to you instead.

[And probably bring a new friend. Just...makes you play two people in one group, no big deal.]

[gavot]

[ i love group threads, okay. you've discovered my weakness. ]

Are you sure? I can stay put but I wouldn't want you to do all the legwork. [ not that she expects them to walk all the way over here literally but YOU GET HER SENTIMENT. ]

[sunrunning]

It makes more sense this way, I think. No sense wasting twice the resources. If you want to spend some time gathering extra supplies or something? I wouldn't say no to some chips or some beef jerky or something.

[She's a gal of pretty simple needs.]