riverviewlogs | exploration mingle: CAPTIVITY

Entry tags:

exploration mingle: CAPTIVITY

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: exploration mingle: rescue mission!
when: June 15 - August 15
where: The River Structure
warnings: violence and/or torture; please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

captivity

One of the major and most highly-valued cultural concepts in Riverview is that of exploration, expansion. Especially now that, with the recent influx of new arrivals, as the portal kicks into high gear for reasons not entirely known, the Inhabited City, already comfortably full, is rapidly becoming overpopulated. With all the refugees from other worlds pouring in from day to day, the city's safe space and resources are being taxed to their breaking point.

Right now, exploration and expansion is key, and each month, the government has decided to focus on a particular objective, in order to unite citizens in expanding, securing, and supplying the city for everyone's benefit.

the story so far

Exploration & Expansion Progress Report ● The Guardians of the Deep ● What Lies Beneath ● Plotting & Questions

After some serious flooding at the banks of the river, the cause was discovered to be the Guardians of the Deep, creatures protecting a circular labyrinthine structure underneath the river. Residents of the city explored and mapped the structure, and dealt with a good portion of the traps and other dangers, until they found a little piece of history in the Central Chamber of the structure, revealing that it was inhabited by the first people to live on the moon.

While this news has been exciting scholars and historians in the city, something a little more pressing has been bothering the average citizen - an ever-increasing number of missing persons. People have simply been disappearing all over the city, and only now are residents starting to realize why...

how it works

● Phases: Each prompt is a different phase of the operation. Characters may partake in whichever part of the operation they choose, whether it is a large and prominent part, or a more of a backseat or support role. Characters may participate in as many phases as they wish.

● Completion: When next month's exploration mingle goes up, the mission featured on this exploration mingle will be considered complete, and game canon, providing the entry has 200+ comments on it.

● Entry Reward: The reward for completion of this month's exploration objective will be...well, the safe return of everyone who was kidnapped. And some sweet hurt/comfort.

● IMPORTANT NOTE: Having observed how the pacing of exploration mingles has been going and how they are tagged, I have noticed that posting one exploration mingle each month has been a little hectic, both plotwise and for me as a mod (writing three mingles a month has been tough!). I have decided to space them out a bit further, and post an exploration mingle once every two months, starting with this one - the next exploration mingle will be posted in August!

phase i: the abducted

People don't simply go missing, they don't disappear into thin air, they have to be somewhere. And while those who are missing people keep frantically searching, those who have been kidnapped are the only ones besides the kidnappers who do know where they are.

Abducted by a group who have taken up residence in the structure under the city after last month's exploration died down, the missing are trapped in the Central Chamber, in fear of the kidnappers. Their abductors are a group of people that is starting to slowly take on cultist tendencies, believing that the remaining spirits of the First People still live in the structure, that it is a temple, and that those First People need offerings of host bodies to inhabit so they can return and bring their wisdom and magic back to the moon. Things are getting a little hairy - there's no agreement among the kidnappers as to how 'intact' the host bodies have to be and whether or not the sacrifice is in the form of alive or dead captives. Even worse, some of the kidnappers are only with the group to enjoy having power over others and using it to hurt them.

Captives are held in the Central Chamber of the structure, with next to no amenities. Blankets, food, water, and other necessities are in short supply, and they are kept huddled together, constantly guarded and either restrained, wearing or in the presence of a power suppressor to keep them subdued. But the captives haven't lost hope - they are working on getting a message out, finding a way to contact the outside world so their loved ones can rescue them...

This prompt is to play out interactions among the captives before they are rescued, and may include violence or other character suffering. It is also to enact plotted plans for the abductees to find connections with the outside world to summon help.

phase ii: distraction and infiltration

Once would-be rescuers become aware of where the captives are being held, they start making plans to rescue them - whether someone they love has been taken, they're just a good person, or they just want to feel like a big damn hero, there are lots of people willing to take the plunge and jump into the rescue. But the cult group has been in control of the structure for a while now, they definitely have the home team advantage. They know the lay of the land and where the traps are, and have used some of them to their own advantage.

It's not going to be as easy as storming the castle.

There are two parts to this phase of the rescue: a distraction and an infiltration. Distractions are planned to draw as many of the kidnappers away from the hostages being held in the Central Chamber as possible, while those who are stealthily infiltrating will try to find another entrance into the chamber so they can surprise and surround the remaining kidnappers.

This prompt is to play out any plans for distraction and infiltration. If you have plotted something out on the plotting post, feel free to post up a header for specific groups for threading rather than an individual character top-level.

phase iii: the brawl and after

Distractions only last so long, unfortunately, and so eventually the whole thing is going to break down into a big fight. Rescuers versus kidnappers, on the kidnappers' home turf, and surrounded by traps left over from the First People, while pieces of stationary tech throw out auras and waves of power suppression. It's going to be a doozy of a fight, so prepare for an epic throwdown!

And once the dust settles, there's going to be a lot of injuries to tend to, a lot of people traumatized and hurt and frightened. A lot of hungry, suffering people will need to be transported out, given medical care, and brought supplies.

This prompt is to play out the final fight between the kidnapping cult and the rescuers, as well as anything in the aftermath of the fight.

phase iv: wildcard

Have an idea for a mission-adjacent plot, or want to make up an unexpected plot twist or problem and solve it with your character? Just write up a starter, and don't forget to give yourself props by submitting it for the Progress Report.

navigation
[Asterion - Environment Art: Ariadne's Forest by Nicolas Mendoza]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Even after twenty years it's achingly easy to fall into old patterns. To take a Captain on their authority and follow orders. It's not because she wants or needs a Captain, or at least that's what she'll tell herself later. It's just that it's more efficient this way.]

Understood.

[Breq doesn't rush forward as Jim charges his way toward the cultists. She stops, aims her gun, and fires, apparently unconcerned by the prospect of friendly fire. She doesn't need to be-- the other cultist that Jim hasn't started brawling goes down with a shot to the shin, painful but not immediately deadly. There's not even a scratch on the captives the cultist was herding.]

[ He wasn't really telling her what his plan was so she'd follow his orders or anything. Her answer probably would've surprised him a little if it weren't for the chaos around them. She took his words as some sort of command, as though he's her superior officer, but he honestly hadn't meant it that way.

He hadn't realized she asked with that purpose, either.

Anyway, he's not about to stop and ask about that now, of all times. The shot surprises him but her aim is perfect, and the assailant falls to the floor, clinging to his own leg. Jim doesn't waste time asking her if she's crazy or not. Hell, maybe she is. But he'll have to trust that she knows what she's doing.

The cultist he's fighting right now tries to come at him again, but Jim steps out of the way before he throws them both to the ground. He lifts his phaser and shoots him a couple of times, until he's passed out on the floor. Then he moves to help the captives onto their feet. ]

Come on, go! Go! [ It's not hard to figure the way out, all they have to do is follow everyone else running out of the place. ]

[It's for the best if he doesn't ask, probably-- if called out on her actions in this moment, Breq probably wouldn't have an answer for it.

So instead she refocuses on stepping forward and examining the cultist she shot-- not dead, though a bullet to a wound like that isn't exactly safe, either. She uses part of the cultist's robes to tie up the injury in a makeshift bandage, then looks to Jim.]

This one won't bleed out soon. Use that gun of yours.

[Some of the captives, looking at the gun in her hands and the eerily blank expression on her face, shy away from her even as they start to flee toward safety, away from the pack of cultists.]

[ For a moment he's almost surprised to see Breq bandaging the wound, albeit poorly. He's even more surprised when his first thought at Breq's assessment is: too bad.

Brought back to reality, and to reason, he nods slowly, shooting the cultist with the phaser. Stunned, he should stay passed out until the fight is over, and someone comes to collect the unconscious cultists.

Then he moves slowly towards the captives, putting his phaser away. ]

Hey, it's alright. Can you all move? We're getting you all out of here.

[Breq was not unaware of those looks, it seems-- she is generally keeping her distance from he captives as they start to marshal themselves and band together. There's only one time she moves closer. When one of the captives stumbles and nearly falls, she darts forward, eerily fast, to grab them by the elbow to keep them from faceplanting.]

Help each other. You'll need to move fast.

[She releases the captive in question when they jerk away, stepping back with no sign of offense.]

[ Jim watches the exchange in silence, then promptly takes the lead as they make their way through the caves and corridors, headed towards the exit. There are a few twists and turns but they're not ambushed by any other cultists at least, and eventually they reach another group of rescuers.

They move the captives along and take the lead from there, so Jim and Breq are free to go back inside and get more people out. Easier to keep people moving that way.

He turns to her, nodding back down the corridor from where they came. ] They looked pretty scared of you. [ There's a question in there. Jim doesn't want to be rude, but he can't help being curious. ]

I am not particularly comforting.

[Well. She can be. But in the middle of a fight, when she doesn't have time to bother with making her expression anything but blank, and she's focusing more on saving lives than seeming like an unmodified human, she's aware she's not going to inspire much confidence. Especially not when she's just shot a cultist like it's little more than a chore.

She gestures ambivalence, her attention already more on their surroundings than the captives that are just about done escorting.]

More importantly, they'll be safe.

[ Jim nods slowly. Yeah, he's not entirely unfamiliar with that. Spock isn't especially comforting, either. Even Bones, who is grumpy more often than not, can be far more comforting than his first officer in just about any situation. ]

Let's head back inside? [ Not an order, for the record, but a suggestion. He's not done here while there are still people who need help getting out of here. ]

[Not an order, but Breq nods and steps in front of Jim so that she'll be the first one into the building. It simply makes sense, as far as she's concerned. Why put a human at risk when her reflexes can save both of them the trouble?

But there's not too much farther for her to go before she has to pause and consider. The cultists haven't done much to make this place less of a labyrinth than it already was. She gestures to the openings, as she stares at them.]

Which way do you think the captives came from?

[ He doesn't mind her taking point, and doesn't waste time trying to switch places with her. She's skilled with that weapon, he can tell that much. It's unlikely that anything will manage to go past her.

He looks at the three possible corridors, nodding to one of them. He's been down the same path several times by now. ] Third one.

[Another nod, as Breq continues to take point. She'll let Jim continue to direct their path as they continue onward, apparently without detection.

Until, down one particular stretch of hallway, a shimmery, wavering aura starts to drift down toward them. Breq goes still, planting her feet and raising her gun.]

Those auras-- watch out. If there are more cultists--

[And sure enough, there they are, shouting and raising weapons on Breq and Jim as they appear as though by magic on the far side of the shimmery, wavering aura.]

[ Watching their six, Jim doesn't quite spot anything weird up ahead until Breq speaks up. He looks over his shoulder at her, slowing to a halt, then startling when cultists start showing up out of the blue. ]

Shit—! [ He finds a protruding rock on the wall and tries to hide as much of himself behind it as he can. ] Take cover!

[ He stretches out only one arm, shooting at the cultists. His aim isn't as good when he's shooting singlehandedly, but since he doesn't really stop, he does manage to knock some of them out, thinning the group little by little. ]

[Jim isn't the only one ducking for cover here. Breq brings up her armor, even as she's ducking behind an outcropping of her own and taking shelter there. She's not sure how much the cultists' devices affect technology, but she's not about to catch a bullet to find out.]

Watch out for them trying to flank us!

[Breq takes her own advice there, too-- she's popping out from behind her cover to return fire, varying between covering for Jim and aiming for cultists herself, singling out any of them who seem ready to stray from their group, even as the cultists do their best to return the favor.]

Edited (brackets) 2018-07-11 01:34 (UTC)

Yeah? [ He yells between firing sequences, then he reaches down to his belt. ] I'll give 'em something to worry about!

[ With his teeth, he yanks the pin on one of the smoke grenades he brought along for good measure. They're crude and basic, but they get the job done. He tosses it at the group just before it ignites and the smoke spreads, quickly engulfing the cultists and sending them into an uncontrollable coughing fit. The gas also makes their eyes burn, so they shouldn't be able to do much of anything other than try to run away— and once they get through the cloud, Jim starts taking them down one by one with his phaser. ]

[It's a clever trick to pull on them, and Breq spares half a second to turn an approving nod on Jim, regardless of whether he'll catch it with his attention on the cultists and picking off the ones emerging from the smoke.

Then she turns her own attention to doing the same. She can't take them down bloodlessly the way Jim can, but she aims her shots carefully, going for spots that aren't immediately lethal as the cultists stagger and wheeze their way past the haze. It's not noiseless or clean, but it works.

It's only when the smoke starts to fade out with no more standing outlines of figures in it that Breq begins to put up her weapon again.]

They're downed, but be careful. Good work with the grenade.

Thanks, [ He nods, stepping out from his cover and glancing at the cultists lying across the floor. ] Nice aim, by the way.

[ It'll leave more damage than his phaser, but Jim can't help note that she aimed specifically for non-lethal areas. Some of them might have a harder time recovering than others, but quite honestly, they're lucky enough to live.

He sends a beacon so another team can come in and take the cultists into custody, then nods ahead. ] Let's keep going?

It's what I'm trained for.

[And upgraded for, but that she keeps to herself. She scans over the cultists, then, when she spots a gun one of them was using, stops to pick it up and disable the firing mechanism on it.]

Let's. We should be coming across cells soon?

[ Still, doesn't dispense praise, brief though it is. She's good, whether or not she was trained (and upgraded) for it. He believes in incentive, and in offering praise and credit where it's due.

Jim helps himself to a couple of the other weapons, as well as a few grenades and whatever else they might have on them. Anything they leave behind he makes sure to disable or break so they're rendered useless. ]

Yeah, [ He nods to one of the two tunnels ahead. He knows the way by heart at this point. ] Two chambers ahead.

May there be something to find.

[Breq nods, with grim purpose, and lets Jim take the lead this time. Since no cultists came running to give this group backup even with the extended firefight, it's probably safe to assume that they were the last line of defense on this particular group of captives, if they're still there.]

[ Jim isn't expecting to find any other cultists on the way either, but he still doesn't let his guard down. He's not stupid. He peers around the next few corners, making sure there's no movement, and eventually they make it into a small chamber, with only a handful of still unopened cells. ]

In here! [ He goes to the first cell quickly, already figuring out the best way to unlock it. ]

[Better him than Breq. The fact that her gun can shoot through a meter of anything means it has certain uses, particularly when it comes to armed cultists, but shooting out the lock to a cramped cell when there's someone in it is asking to injure the captive inside.

Instead, Breq sets herself up as a guard along the entrance, weapon raised as Jim finished with the locks.]

[ The locks aren't particularly sophisticated. Heating them with his phaser seems to do the trick, and when that fails, a well-aimed kick right after blasts the door right open. The few prisoners still inside eagerly get to their feet, and Jim helps them out, checking on any serious injuries, making sure he doesn't have to carry anyone out of here. ]

Lead them out, [ He says to Breq. ] There are still a couple more cells— I'll take care of it, and catch up to you in a bit.

Understood.

[Not her strong suit, and they both know it, but neither of them have time to be picky in the middle of this situation, not with lives at risk. At least she can leave Jim to finish up with these cells and not worry about his ability to keep watch over his own wards. With one last nod in his direction, she's off, leaving Jim to fend for himself.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

exploration mingle: CAPTIVITY

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