there ain't nothing in this world for free [OPEN]

[firefall]

Who| Riley and YOU
What| Obligatory open intro log
Where| District 9's suite, and then wandering the tower
When| TODAY
Warnings/Notes| Riley has a foul mouth. Also possible mentions of violence and zombies & her being expectant of her own worse-than-death fate whoops.


Despite her much more pressing concerns, the first thing Riley does when the soldiers (ignoring the creative invective she sets on them the whole way) leave her in the large room - cleaner and better furnished than any she's seen, that's for sure - is raid the fridge. Because fuck it, you know? She's dead to the world in a few hours to a couple days, if these assholes decided they just needed to bump in on an infected girl's last few moments of sanity then she's going to take or use all their good shit because she fucking can and it won't have any consequences she'll remember. She intends to have something good in the final hours she's spending as herself, and anyway the stuff they've stocked in here is way better than your ordinary unfortunate ever glimpses in their rations.

But once she's stuffed herself to the metaphorical gills and left the kitchen a mess, she's back to her real priorities - finding Ellie, or finding a way the hell out, hopefully both if she's got some luck left. She doesn't want to be in a populated area when the mushrooms start growing in her brain, she's out to protect the people, from her own shambling not-a-corpse if need be. Alternately, if the creepy military jerkwads intend to use her as a caught infected for experimentation, she will do her damnedest to deny them the utility of her mindless shell. She doesn't owe them shit.

She'd rather find Ellie, though. She doesn't want to be alone. Doesn't want to leave Ellie alone like this, either. And if they kidnapped Riley, they probably have her as well.

"Holy shit," she mutters to herself as she wanders the halls, trying to find some kind of exit. The whole place is so lit up it's a sheer fucking waste. They could be using this kind of electric power to actually help people live in a less shitty situation, and instead they're wasting it on some bigwig's personal playground. "Every time I think I can't be surprised by how shitty and self-serving the higher-ups are anymore, they gotta do something like this just to prove me wrong."

Comments

[polyturtle]

His arm was getting better. He could tell - his desire to eat was gradually eroding, which was good for him. If he kept eating the way he had, he'd either get sick from overeating, or just turn into a balloon - or both. But that wasn't going to happen, it seemed. In fact, he was going to celebrate by not eating a lot today, he decided, as he got out of the shower, drying himself off.

It was then he noticed the newcomer. She had to be - he'd never seen her before. But the tenseness radiating off of her? An all-too-familiar thing.

"Oh." Hoping not to startle her too much, Don stayed where he was, nevertheless giving her a greeting. Let her know she wasn't alone, at least. "Hello there."

[observationalhazard]

Hanji is doing her own exploring in the District 9 suite. Much like Riley, she's amazed by the sheer size and decadence of it all. She's going to take advantage of it, of course, but it's still a disgusting display of excess. She turns the corner and comes face-to-face (well, not quite, she's much taller) with Ellie. She also catches the tail end of her observation on human nature. Hanii being Hanji, she simply responds, as if she was the one being spoken to all along.

"I have to agree - humans always want to hoard more for themselves, even if it means the whole human race has to suffer for it."

Hanji grins. Cheery thought, isn't it?

[revvinguptheharley]

"Bwahahahaa! Whoo hoo! Gang way!"

As the newest edition to District Nine wandered the halls she would come across a most surprising and possibly distressing sight.

A blond woman, pigtails waving wildly was sitting in a wheel chair using what looked to be fire works to propel herself down the hall and right at Riley!

Amazingly, the sparks and flames weren't setting anything on fire...but she was coming pretty fast!

"Either move it or jump on!" Shouted the woman with a manic grin.

Ellie will show up in a bit~

[aintyourdad]

Joel can't help but snort faintly at the girl's words. He doesn't recognize her, hasn't seen her face on any screens or around the tower before - she must be new, because she's clearly not a Capitolite. None of the natives react that way to the surroundings.

"Just wait till the next death match starts," he says ruefully. "They'll keep surprisin' you."

[firefall]

Riley shrugs as if it's no big deal to have perfect strangers busting in on her personal reflections, all casual unconcern. "They'll have to get a move on if they wanna surprise me much longer," she replies, inspecting the nails on her right hand rather than meeting his eyes. Her left hand throbs where it's tucked into her jeans pocket - don't want to set off a panic showing people the bite unless it'll get her a quick exit, which right now it looks like it won't. "So not that this isn't fun and all, but which way leads out of this happy little jamboree?"

[aintyourdad]

"There's no way out, kid," Joel says with a shake of his head. "They're watchin', all the time." He glances up, points at a nearby camera. "Try to get out of the city, they'll haul your ass back in before you can say uncle. We've all been kidnapped here, to play their fucked-up 'games'."

She can probably hear the scare-quotes around the word "games". Clearly, there is nothing game-like about them.

[firefall]

Always fun meeting a fellow-traveler. Riley grins up at the other woman in return, assessing her with a brief once-over. She looks the sort of less-than-polished that comes with being easily distracted by big thoughts, she decides, but still, good build. Definitely not average citizen material.

"Eh, I don't think they're setting their sights that high," she replies. "Just so long they can keep the next poor bastard more miserable than they are, you know? Not like we're not all in the same shithole."

[firefall]

"Haha, what the fuck?" Riley laughs, but like hell can she resist that kind of dare. Sure, she could break her arm or whatever, but what does she care when she won't know it soon enough? She steps to the side, and then with a whoop snags the handlebars as the wheelchair speeds past, neatly tossing herself into the stranger's lap and leaning into the accelerating movement of their makeshift chariot. "So how fast does this thing go?" she shouts to the woman behind her. "'Cause if you don't know then we should definitely find out."

[firefall]

"Yeah, well, if they really wanna go to the trouble of hauling me back specifically rather than whatever runner they can get their hands on once I'm out then good luck to 'em. But there's always a way out, and I haven't exactly got a lot of time here." She pulls out her left hand, waggling her fingers to draw attention to the livid bite marks. They haven't even scabbed over. "I'm not gonna care pretty soon, but I'm betting you sure as hell will."

[revvinguptheharley]

Harley cheered at having met someone daring enough to join her. "Alright, just pull the fuse on the rest of those fireworks and try not to burn your thighs! Those safety fire works are mostly fool proof but this ride ain't!" She cackled as she jerked a hard right and sent them blazing towards an elevator.

Drawing back her hand she flung a glass to hit the button. Hopefully the doors would open before they crashed into them.

[firefall]

Riley stares. Okay, she has seen a lot of shit, but this is just plain bizarre. "Okay, so hallucinations are a thing I can look forward to, got it. As long as they're interesting hallucinations, guess I can't complain. You an interesting one or just one of those that babbles disjointedly about the wind being purple and so on, turtle guy?"

[firefall]

"Sure thing!" Riley grabs the fuse and yanks, and the fizzing of the fireworks turns into a dull roar as they shoot forward. At the last moment, the doors on both sides of the elevator slide open and they blaze right through. "Fuck yeahhhhhhhhhhh!" she screams, throwing her hands up as they rocket down the hall.

[revvinguptheharley]

This was the tricky part. Harley grunted and popped back onto the bigger wheels hitting the wall and shooting right up it.

The Elevator turned into a sort of roll cage as they raced along the walls in circles faster and faster while the elevator took them down to the ground floor. Every minute that past had them spinning faster and faster, an insane manic laughter echoing in the tight space.

"If we die, just wanna say, Nice to meetcha! I'm Harley Quinn!"

[polyturtle]

"Eheh..." At this, Don sheepishly rubbed his head. "Well, I like to think I'm a little bit interesting, though I'm afraid I'm no hallucination. And...wind isn't really visible."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy was already headed back to her suite because she had worked up a decent sweat in the training room. Right about now was a good time to lay on the bed and let her muscles unclench. At least, that's what she would be doing if she didn't run into someone new, in her district, no less, with an armful of food.

"Hey!" She said, stopping the girl. "The chicken legs are mine, I called dibs! Also, I'm a mentor or whatever, so...infinity dibs and shit."

[firefall]

Riley, kicking back in a chair with her feet propped on the kitchen table, just gives the new girl a shit-eating grin and takes a pointed and obnoxious bite of her drumstick. "Hey, I didn't see your name on 'em, isn't it first come first serve?"

She holds out the plate as a peace offering, though. "Far be it from me to part a girl from this kind of greasy goodness. Some of us know how to share."

[aintyourdad]

It's like a bad, bad dream. It's a strange thing, because Joel is used to there not being any infection here. Aside from maybe R, maybe that weird Wesker guy, but not the infection as he knows it.

Now, suddenly, this girl is talking about runners, and not having a lot of time, and it's like he's back in Boston, back in the Capitol, and Tess is pulling at her shirt to reveal -

He takes a step back from her in surprise. "What the hell - You're infected?" He starts. And then: "Why the hell would they -"

Why the hell would the Capitol bring an infected girl in, just about to turn?

In an arena, maybe, he can see a sick kind of reason for it - put an infected person in, and watch the chaos unfold. But here, in their shiny, perfect Capitol? It makes no goddamn sense!

[firefall]

"Riley!" she yells back. "If we die, at least it's a fucking amazing way to go!"

The elevator dings for the ground floor, and they rocket out, Riley howling in laughter from sheer adrenaline-fueled delight.

[hit_girl_mindy]

That bitch. She liked her already. That was literally the best way to react to her ever. Mindy takes the plate, smiling back.

"Did you just get in? Normally we don't get many visitors here. I think people are still pissed we have another mentor, probably saying we're imbalanced. Or maybe we're just unfriendly as fuck. Anyway, food first, questions later."

She chowed down. Apparently she'd worked up an appetite.

[revvinguptheharley]

The world is a colorful blur as servants and staff and other tributes scream and jump out of the way. The front wheels of the chair crash into a step and catapult them flying through the air. The chair spins wildly over their head and vanishes as the make a beautiful arc.

Twisting in the air Harley reaches out for Riley trying to draw her close and hoping they hit a sofa instead of marble tile floor.

And kind of hoping the wheelchair breaks something expensive.

[firefall]

"But that's what I'd expect a hallucination to say," Riley points out in a reasonable tone. "I mean, if my brain's trying to make me see shit that isn't there, it's not gonna be half-assed about it, right?"

[firefall]

Seeing the horror on his face is shitty. Makes her feel like shit, and god, she wants Ellie. If she has to go then she wants them to go together, not sit around jawing with strangers who will look at her like a time bomb. So what if that's what she is? Doesn't mean she wants to feel like it.

"Bingo. Fresh off the Mushroom Munchies Express," she tells him. "But hey, I'm not the sick fuck here, don't ask me what they're thinking. So point me in a direction, I'm not exactly a fan of the noble suicide thing."

[firefall]

"Oh, you know, just passing through," Riley says airily. "Eat the free food, piss on all the furniture like an angry cat, and then scoot along somewhere a bit more out of the general traffic kind of way. I figure if I gotta get kidnapped I may as well take advantage before I blow this joint, I've got a little time to spare."

[firefall]

Riley's taken her fair share of tumbles, so she tucks herself in to brace for impact on automatic, and if Harley wants to tug her in and be a meatshield she won't complain. They still bounce off a few squishy armchairs before landing heavily in an immense beanbag, and all the air whooshes out of her lungs with the impact.

Even breathless, she giggles so hard her sides ache, uncurling into sort of a person-puddle. "Okay, that was what I call fun," she says when she can catch her breath for a moment, and then she's back to laughing. "Oh, ow."

[hit_girl_mindy]

Mindy sighed, shaking her head. "I hate to break it to you-seriously, I do, because you are making me like you already- but you're not going anywhere. See, think about it. This place anything like where you're from? I mean, really? I guess it might be to some, but trust me, you start poking around, you'll start to see shit that won't add up. I'll tell you why: you and me, and almost everyone else? We're not supposed to be here."

CHOMP. Eating drumstick loudly for emphasis.