A Bizarre New World, Chapter One: Cat’s In The Cradle

[Jcogginsa]

"Thank you." She then stepped off to the side the let the next person in line go ahead of her.

Walking back, she noticed a random pile of magazines on a small table. Moving some around from one side to another, she pulled out a wear-worn December issue of Entertainment Monthly. Placing it on the top of the pile, she used her good hand to flip through the pages, her body tensed slightly as she did. She had already read this issue once before, and she knew what she was looking for.

Sure enough, there it was on page 24. A picture of her mother, and Jinny standing next to her. It was from several years back, the Tony Awards. One of the few times she had accompanied her mother, mostly because her mother had been nominated for one.

Below the picture was a headline, "Broadway morns the death of one of their own."

Closing up the issue, she walks over to the place where the Waiting Room meets the hallway into the hospital. Looking down the hallway, she watches the medical professionals moving patients around and dealing with other issues.

John, noticing the change in her emotions, but not what caused it, followed her over. "Are you okay?"

[KingofPie]

Vivian seemed tobe ignoring him for the moment... until a single finger pushed up the brim of her big hat and a smoky eye regarded him coldly. "This here bar ain't big 'nuff fur th' two'vus." Came the ominous rumble, before the soft cackle set in. "Heh... always wanted to say that."

"I'll bet."

She'd be surprised if this bar knew what a Monte Cristo was but hey, Magician could dream. As for that other thing.

"Takes a lot out of me, Witchcraft. Requires energy; which means food."

"Guess that explains the order at the truck stop..." Miguel mumbled to himself. "Didn't know magic had any sort of rules to it, though. What exactly is it you can do anyway? I guessin' you went ham on our 'friends' back on the bus?"

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

"Guess that explains the order at the truck stop..." Miguel mumbled to himself. "Didn't know magic had any sort of rules to it, though. What exactly is it you can do anyway? I guessin' you went ham on our 'friends' back on the bus?"

"It's like a muscle... or whatever." Vivian gestured vaguely. "Usually just light cigarettes, dispose of them so I'm not ruining the environment more than I already am, blah blah. Quick, easy, low overall cost. What tuckered me out was making that guy with the handgun shoot himself in the dick," Vivian noted casually, before taking a sip of her whisky. "Lit the powder in the chambered bullet. Blew a tire too, but that didn't seem to do much... bloody Truck Stop Magic..."

[bruceleegreyhulk]

In the back of Reed Medical Center, Boris looks up at the ceiling." You folks better not gas me. I'm not a wuss. I can take it," Boris said.

"I don't need any stinky numbing gas!" Boris said.

[grampagen]

"...Hmm..." Lucy considered for a moment, then gentle pulled the collar of the girls shirt a little to the side. "You had the fever too....I suppose it makes sense. Don't be afraid....I won't hurt you unless you give me cause."

Taking a moment to examine the star, the girl let out a near inaudible sigh of relief. "I'm sorry....It is better to be safe then sorry, I've heard. Your....without a doubt....family." The cold feeling vanished from Suzies neck, and a moment later the girls hand came into view and in her palm rested....a slightly melted ice cube.

"...eheh...it works better with a popsicle but its all I had...." Lucy chuckled. "..and...Sorry if my teasing is a bit heavy handed."

Stepping up beside her, Lucy leaned forward and shut the case with her hand....then craned her neck and pulled aside her right collar with her two fingers. Suzie would get a proper view of the birthmark that lay under, or at least....it seemed like a birthmark. Someone or something had scarred a rather painful looking series of digits over the mark.

"See....I have one too. Well....I have two family birthmarks I suppose...."

As Lucy inspected the star-shaped mark, Suzie winced. Outwardly, it seemed nothing was out of the ordinary for what her newfound sister's expected to find, but to Suzie it felt as if icy fingers had brushed against an freshly opened wound. The sensation flared a raw pain up her neck and shoulder. Her eyes glazed over, blue-black stains blotting below the waterline, as a low whimper escaped her terse lips.

When she saw Lucy's little prank revealed, her expression curdled, mortified. Her blubbering lips parted, as if about to speak, but before a single utterance left her, the shadows of the room seemed to swell.

「Jigsaw Feeling」 swiped its hand forward, swatting the ice cube out of Lucy's palm and shattering it against the wall. The phantom's manner was rather restrained compared to its rampage on the bus, but was no less precise.

A violent gesture produced from half-formed, fitful thoughts.

"...have you had your fun then...?" Suzie's lithe frame heaved in deep breathing, "What have I ever done to-" She picked herself up off the ground, and pressed her back against the wall.

"...no, what is wrong with you?!"

[grampagen]

It would take some time, but the family's divergent paths would lead to the ground floor of the Driftwood Community Apartment complex. Much like the other floors, the cream-colored walls and green carpeted floors were neat and tidy, although one could see that just a bit more care and attention had been given to this one; similar to how one could scrub the floor yet only give the corners of the ceiling a cursory dusting. Local paintings of ranching landscapes and framed cut-outs of various old newspaper articles about this and that lined the walls going towards the main leasing office and near the main door was a large corkboard covered in business flyers, wanted ads, and other major notices.

A small crowd could be seen near the entrance, although it appeared that dispersals had already begun from the police as they waved people away and gave short and curt comments. They appear to be waiting on someone and upon seeing your group it was clear that the someone was all of you, "'Ey, Captain!" One officer called out, "I think we found 'hem!" Another officer said the captain, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and aviators, approached the group while barking out orders to the others, "Get the stretcher in here! There's a kid--" Pausing, the captain realized his slip-up, "We have a guy here who needs it."

As officers kept onlookers at bay and medics came in to assist Boris to the ambulance outside, the Captain looked to the group, his lips stretched into a frown, "Now, I hear y'all had a bit of excitement earlier... it damn sure looked exciting but for some reason, my men and I have been put under a strict warning not to acknowledge what happened. According to the federal agents, nothing happened, so don't ask us for ****, got it? Anyone who needs medical attention will be given a trip to the hospital and as for the rest of you, I'd rather you leave this immediately, but all I can really ask is that you don't cause any trouble here. Got it?" His words were hushed and sharp at the end, and yet he still tipped his hat to them in departure.

From here the Joestar family's path once more parts. Those needing medical attention or helping those in need will be taken to the [Reed Medical Center] in town while those remaining can explore [Driftwood Proper]. Before everyone departs, Debra informs them that an official representative from the Speedwagon Foundation will be arriving in town to transport them all properly to the Joestar estate in only a few hours and that their meeting point will be a neighborhood diner called the [Cattail Grill].

BGM: Heartbeat, Heartbreak

Stepping out from the entrance of the apartments, Suzie would find herself blotting the edges of her eyes with a tissue. With the exception of the blue-black blooming at the corners of her eyes, it hardly seemed as if any had fallen away. Rather, it seemed the dark, tired circles had somehow intensified.

Nonetheless, though she and Lucy had reached an understanding of sorts, for the moment she'd kept her distance, and when the rush of personnel surrounded Debra Joestar, she'd found the open air relentlessly claustrophobic.

"...at the Diner, right," she repeated to their stepmother, more for her own edification than anything. "Suppose I'll find you all there..."

Her eyebrows raised, affixed in that distant manner, before she diminished and fell through the crowd, finding herself on a solitary walk to nowhere in particular. As usual.

[Driftwood]

It had been difficult to get a grasp on just how dangerous Toby Keith's driving had been within that tour bus, but upon taking to the streets of the town, one could start to get a feel for it. Power poles and street signs had knocked off and the wreckage of other vehicles had been cleared aside for the time being, with handfuls of people taking pictures or searching the twisted mounds of metal and plastic for something. Local shop owners stood outside their establishments, some conversing with others while some helped customers navigate inside buildings without power.

Needless to say, any transactions made in Driftwood right now would have to be cash only.

To say this was the high street of the town would have likely been charitable before, here in a small dusty corner of Texas. Toby Keith and that...that thing slashing through the heart of it, Suzie could see it had thrown things for off course.

What a morbid scene. Never before had she ever laid her eyes on such a scene of urban destruction.

The the tire tracks bled out from gashes in the concrete, split open jagged edges like open wounds. The crumpled metal frames of cars embedded in the side of small shops twisted over bricks pebbling the road, and fine shards of glass caught the August sun like the first frost...

Setting her roller to a stop, Suzie loitered against a wall. Pulling out a small camera, she began to take some photos.

[Tami]

John, noticing the change in her emotions, but not what caused it, followed her over. "Are you okay?"

Turning around to look at him, "John, I'm sorry I didn't notice you earlier. This place is far too crowded then it should be." Jinny relaxed somewhat, "I'm fine, just restless."

"Are you here to see a doctor also? Or just to give moral support." She smiled slightly at that, "If it's the latter, you know you don't have to stay. Still, there is something about this place, this situation that's making me uneasy."

[Jcogginsa]

Turning around to look at him, "John, I'm sorry I didn't notice you earlier. This place is far too crowded then it should be." Jinny relaxed somewhat, "I'm fine, just restless."

"Are you here to see a doctor also? Or just to give moral support." She smiled slightly at that, "If it's the latter, you know you don't have to stay. Still, there is something about this place, this situation that's making me uneasy."

"Just moral support." John replied, "And I'd rather say, because to be honest I feel the same uneasiness that you do. Plus, there are people after our heads, so we need to be careful. There's strength in numbers, and that goes double when people are hurt "

[Tami]

"Just moral support." John replied, "And I'd rather say, because to be honest I feel the same uneasiness that you do. Plus, there are people after our heads, so we need to be careful. There's strength in numbers, and that goes double when people are hurt "

She gave him an appreciative smile, then glanced around the over crowded waiting room, "Is it possible that Toby caused all this? I know it was a wild ride, still..." Jinny then looked down the hallway again briefly before turning back to John, "I'm tempted to slip out of this room and go explore the hospital proper. Maybe find some answers that way."

[Yun Lao]

****. Figures that ******* couldn't avoid getting people caught up. "****, that's a real shame."

It seemed the police couldn't keep the fact that they were being forced to seal their lips about the entire affair a secret. People were suspicious, or at least this old man was. If he was, then other people were too. She knew that this so-called Speedwagon Foundation had something to do with it, whatever that was. Maybe I can get some answers out of these people.

"Think they're hiding something about all this?" She looked around, as if making sure no one else was listening. Then, she leaned in and kept her voice low, "Like a for real cover-up?"

He shrugged, "Word is that some VIPs got involved, aside from that, I dunno why they'd bother with a cover-up."

"Place could use a couple more lights," Miguel whistled as he walked in. Didn't matter much so long as the food was good, he supposed. "Buenas!" he greeted raising a hand to the proprietor, before taking a seat, next to...

"You and food are just inseparable, huh?" he asked his sibling as he pulled over a menu. With 20, he couldn't get something too heavy but there was always something delicious on the cheap. "Lemme get a Monte Cristo, por fa!" he informed the barkeep, pulling out the twenty Jinny had lent him.

"... I'm sorry, I make real food here. If you want a ham and cheese sandwich, I'd suggest the deli. If you still want a sandwich, I can make you a hamburger, chopped brisket, country-fried steak..." He continued listing off a few things as he stepped in and out of the kitchen, watching Vivian's steak.

In the back of Reed Medical Center, Boris looks up at the ceiling." You folks better not gas me. I'm not a wuss. I can take it," Boris said.

"I don't need any stinky numbing gas!" Boris said.

A pair of hands rested on Boris' shoulders, keeping him firmly pressed against the gurney. The owner, a fierce-muscular nurse with curly hair replied back, "Sir, we need you to calm down."

Meanwhile, another nurse was preparing a large needle.

[Yun Lao]

After exiting the building following her heart to heart with Suzie, Lucy put off reporting to the diner right away....instead opting to explore the town a little and look for something she could do to earn some quick pocket change...maybe enough to afford something to eat.

A new bag of jerky would be nice.

In any event, there was a lot of damage...which made it rather simple to pitch in here and there with assisting others, in sorting the debris, helping find items buried, getting a cat out of a tree. All the while the small solider kept an ear to the ground as she worked.

From what Lucy can hear and observe, there was a lot of confusion about what happened. Most seemed to know about the bus, but stories varied from there. Surprisingly, there was little to no recollection of the bus driving up the apartment building.

Jamie looked around at the damage done by Toby Keith's maniac drive through the town, a small frown crossing her face at the sight. 'How could he do something like that, harming all these innocent people pointlessly?' Jamie wondered mentally, shaking her head sadly.

Sighing, she looked for a proper store to either buy a pre-made first-aid kit, or items to make one herself. Maybe they'd have shirts, a self-defense item, and rope as well. But she wasn't going to get her hopes up in regards to that.

Jamie would find a small general store that would most likely suit her needs. Like a lot of other stores in the area, the power was out so the owners were requesting cash only.

To say this was the high street of the town would have likely been charitable before, here in a small dusty corner of Texas. Toby Keith and that...that thing slashing through the heart of it, Suzie could see it had thrown things for off course.

What a morbid scene. Never before had she ever laid her eyes on such a scene of urban destruction.

The the tire tracks bled out from gashes in the concrete, split open jagged edges like open wounds. The crumpled metal frames of cars embedded in the side of small shops twisted over bricks pebbling the road, and fine shards of glass caught the August sun like the first frost...

Setting her roller to a stop, Suzie loitered against a wall. Pulling out a small camera, she began to take some photos.

It didn't take long for others to notice Suzie, although no one would approach her outright. Keeping their distance, the locals whispered, making their own judgments about the girl snapping photos.

[MrSandman]

As Lucy inspected the star-shaped mark, Suzie winced. Outwardly, it seemed nothing was out of the ordinary for what her newfound sister's expected to find, but to Suzie it felt as if icy fingers had brushed against an freshly opened wound. The sensation flared a raw pain up her neck and shoulder. Her eyes glazed over, blue-black stains blotting below the waterline, as a low whimper escaped her terse lips.

When she saw Lucy's little prank revealed, her expression curdled, mortified. Her blubbering lips parted, as if about to speak, but before a single utterance left her, the shadows of the room seemed to swell.

「Jigsaw Feeling」 swiped its hand forward, swatting the ice cube out of Lucy's palm and shattering it against the wall. The phantom's manner was rather restrained compared to its rampage on the bus, but was no less precise.

A violent gesture produced from half-formed, fitful thoughts.

"...have you had your fun then...?" Suzie's lithe frame heaved in deep breathing, "What have I ever done to-" She picked herself up off the ground, and pressed her back against the wall.

"...no, what is wrong with you?!"

"Fun? No...it was meant to break the ice...." Lucys deadpan delivery meant Suzie had no idea if what she said was an intentional pun or not. "Its ok if you think something is wrong with me....there likely is, but I'm not a bad person. I hope you can forgive me....."

Lucy lifted her case and threw it over her shoulder. "Anyways.....That's all I really need to talk about. I had my doubts when I saw you had a ghost....but your not like the ones on the bus, or my other family. If anything your a bit too trusting....If you have any problems, please come to me. I'm not good with people but I'll be a dependable big....little...." Lucy raised an eyebrow, as if a weird thought crossed her mind. "are you younger or older then me...."

[bruceleegreyhulk]

He shrugged, "Word is that some VIPs got involved, aside from that, I dunno why they'd bother with a cover-up."



"... I'm sorry, I make real food here. If you want a ham and cheese sandwich, I'd suggest the deli. If you still want a sandwich, I can make you a hamburger, chopped brisket, country-fried steak..." He continued listing off a few things as he stepped in and out of the kitchen, watching Vivian's steak.



A pair of hands rested on Boris' shoulders, keeping him firmly pressed against the gurney. The owner, a fierce-muscular nurse with curly hair replied back, "Sir, we need you to calm down."

Meanwhile, another nurse was preparing a large needle.

" Come on, is numbing me necessary for a flesh wound?" Boris said with a fake smile.

[Yun Lao]

" Come on, is numbing me necessary for a flesh wound?" Boris said with a fake smile.

"It is necessary to ensure that you don't further aggravate the wound," The nurse replied, the other nurse preparing to inject the needle near the site of the wound. "You can look away if you're afraid of needles."

"Just relax, you're just going to feel a big pinch," The other nurse said.

[KingofPie]

"It's like a muscle... or whatever." Vivian gestured vaguely. "Usually just light cigarettes, dispose of them so I'm not ruining the environment more than I already am, blah blah. Quick, easy, low overall cost. What tuckered me out was making that guy with the handgun shoot himself in the dick," Vivian noted casually, before taking a sip of her whisky. "Lit the powder in the chambered bullet. Blew a tire too, but that didn't seem to do much... bloody Truck Stop Magic..."

"Yeah, the whole bus was fortified like a tank or something," Miguel shook his head. "How the hell does someone even get that kinda tech anyway?"

"... I'm sorry, I make real food here. If you want a ham and cheese sandwich, I'd suggest the deli. If you still want a sandwich, I can make you a hamburger, chopped brisket, country-fried steak..." He continued listing off a few things as he stepped in and out of the kitchen, watching Vivian's steak.

Turning his attention to the barman, Miguel rested his chin on his hand and nodded. "Uh, alright yeah. Grill me up a burger then, compa."