Going to market

[gale_force]

Gale did not expect it to be raining. Weather proceeds as usual, apparently, even if life does not. Through the wet smack of raindrops, he can barely hear the sea breathing a few blocks away. The dust from the millions of bodies, trees, plants, and animals seeded the clouds and dragged down moisture from the sea. The precipitation has turned the

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[teradyne]

She was expecting dusty, dry air, and the sort of heat that sucks moisture out of anyone that steps into the sun. So, when she's hit in the face with cold water, Argilla goes from wary to on edge in a second. Her hand breaks away from Gale's at about the same time, and goes to her gun instead.

The first and obvious thought that comes to her head is that this isn't Old Portland. The second is that finding those answers to what's happening is going to be a lot harder.

"This is..." She trails off as she takes in the scenery; the faceless statues, the overcast sky, and the silt of dubious content that is now running up against her boots.

"...Wrong." It's the only word that comes to mind; it's like they've PINpointed into a combination of Junkyard and Old Portland, with all the bad traits from both mixed together.

[gale_force]

If they were anywhere close to Portland, they could immediately make their way to some of the portals Vic mapped during their earlier visit. (In fact, Gale jotted down a loose copy which is neatly folded in a pocket. And will remain there, useless now.)

"We are north of Portland. Quite a great distance if my knowledge of United States geography is correct." The rain isn't too wet; the drops are small and don't drench so much as dampen. Nothing a Junkyard expatriate can't handle.

"That is, not a distance we can easily close without transportation." He only unsnaps the strap holding his handgun in its shoulder holster, ready and waiting for an excuse to draw it. The gun is only useful for slowing another tuner, anyway. Otherwise it'll boil down to an inevitable fire-with-fire scenario.

[teradyne]

"Another result of the sun?" Argilla has to bite down on a groan when she hears that. The name 'Seattle' is starting to sound familiar, mostly thanks to interactions with the Multiverse; and what little she knows about it shows that, yes, it is a long way north of Portland.

"Then, traveling back towards Old Portland and Karma City is out of the question." Or at least only a desperate last resort. "Which means..." She looks around the square again, at the statues. Some clutching at where their faces would be, if any features were left, others standing straight up, as if confused or not quite aware that they're stuck in stone. "We're stuck here, until we can find a way out."

[gale_force]

"Most definitely the sun, yes." As if it couldn't be more of a monumental nuisance.

"We must search for a portal immediately." This is about when he recalls the fresh PINpoint model he invested in and the new tools it boasts. The technology is a little new, perhaps a little flawed, but it's their best shot at speeding up this needle-in-a-haystack search. Again, hinging on whether the sun screws this up or not.

Gale begins tapping away at the device (now a slick little number with a touch screen . . . possibly manufactured by a multiversal branch of Apple). The screen eventually appears empty, but it periodically flashes red and emits a soft beep, like a radar. Gale alters the function, setting it to vibrate instead. Even the smallest noise is shattering in this silence.

"This is a portal detector. The current technology cannot determine the exact location, but it can tell us if we are approaching one. At least, in theory."

Gale walks a slow circuit, north-south, then east-west, paying careful attention to the frequency of the

[teradyne]

"Trust you to come prepared." She actually manages to sound a bit warm with that comment, despite the situation. And with that task safely in Gale's hands, (a bit literally, in this case) Argilla is left with the job as acting as the look out once again. It's still the same as what she remembers, and the time between Junkyard and their last visit to Portland haven't dulled her senses as much as she feared.

...Although, switching the portal tracking from sound to touch helps a lot, too. She gives Gale a quick 'thanks' before looking back around them. So far, nothing out of the ordinary is jumping out at her...Although scanning the ruined cityscape around them makes her mentally change that to nothing threatening.

"This puts us back quite a few steps..." She keeps her voice low as she scans the area again; eye contact with her Tribemate can wait until they're back in familiar territory.

"But, I never considered what it would be like outside of Karma City." Either it never came to mind, or she didn't want to think of the other

[gale_force]

"I will admit I have been very curious as to what might lie beyond the Portland area." While this is a setback, it's an enlightening setback

[teradyne]

Argilla's eyes go a bit wider as they see the interior. Both because of what's inside, but also because of the change in light. Most of the windows are boarded up from the inside, planks of wood nailed into the frames to keep sunlight at a minimum

[gale_force]

Gale kneels to investigate the offending limb, pressing a finger against it to test its freshness. It's long since unyielding to the touch, implying that this skirmish took place perhaps twelve to twenty-four hours ago. Or more.

"There were human survivors here." He rises to his feet again, taking another long look around the destroyed room. "Clearly there were -- perhaps still are -- Tuners as well. Be on your guard; I have no doubt that they are as desperate for food as those in Karma City."

Stepping deeper into the darkness, the PINpoint feebly illuminates the scattered debris with a pulsing, red glow. Gale grunts in surprise, though, when the frequency drops, prompting him to backtrack all the way out of the building, where a glance around brings his attention to an unusual patch of sidewalk. Pocketing his PINpoint, he reaches down and smears away the thin film of dusty mud to reveal hunks of glass embedded in the cement. Through the small, cloudy windows he can see the blackness of a void

[teradyne]

Argilla follows Gale back out quickly enough; the discovery of a half eaten arm is enough to get her back outside, where at least all of the remains are completely stone

[gale_force]

"If there is a portal down below, it would be a shame if the refugees were not aware of that possibility of escape." Or maybe the portal leads to, say, a world without oxygen? Knowing the sheer breadth of the multiverse, that could very well be one of many unpleasant possibilities

[teradyne]

"I know, but even so..." She trails off as she follows Gale back inside. They can debate possibilities after they've found out more.

"And, I'm ready." She doesn't sound eager about this per se...It's more like a sense of urgency has crept into her voice and posture. She's keeping her thoughts fixed on the idea that the fight was only a day or half a day ago; a short enough span to hopefully be in time. The stubborn, more experienced part of her mind reminds her that the fight could have happened much longer ago, but she ignores it.

If the smell coming from below bothers her, she doesn't show it. Actually, if Gale wasn't already ahead of her she'd probably be leading the way, despite lacking a flashlight.

[gale_force]

The regular, red pulsing of the PINpoint almost mimics a slow heartbeat. The shadows stretch long, then slink back with each rise and fall of light. It works well enough to reveal large obstructions, but any close investigation is limited

[teradyne]

Unfortunately, Argilla is just as on edge as Gale is, and jumps backwards when she sees him recoil. Her gun is outside of the holster and aimed over his shoulder in a split second, and there's a slight pink glow in the hallway to go with the PINpoint's red

[gale_force]

"Sorry -- it was nothing." Okay, she did notice.

It takes a moment for him to realize what she means by a "feel," but when it dawns on him, it's a relief. They could use a little navigational help, even if it is from . . . unusual sources. "Yes, that would be preferable, actually. Perhaps save us some time, depending on how labyrinthine this underground is."

He looks expectantly through the darkness at Argilla. As he continues to move about the space, his boots continue to kick and crunch suspicious debris on the floor. He's almost thankful for the concealing darkness; light holds the possibility of confirming what he can already vividly imagine.

[teradyne]

Argilla moves with a little less noise when she goes to take the lead. Her feet step over the larger pieces of debris, although she still can't keep from rustling a little or accidently kicking the odd bullet casing.

"Right, then." She keeps her hand on the wall, and shuts her eyes for better concentration. In another moment, she starts moving ahead, still keeping her eyes closed. The red glow from the PINpoint is more of a distraction then anything right now; she needs to focus on the shadows mapped out in her mind, suggesting turns, bends, and any changes in the ground.

Although that need to focus doesn't eliminate conversation, thankfully. "I've just noticed, but it's oddly quiet. And not just underground; there's no noise from the sun-" She cuts off, not sure how much Gale knows about that. "...Have you experienced anything like that in this world? I tried to make a report about it once, but it might have been lost with all we had to do."

[gale_force]

Gale keeps his PINpoint out for his own benefit. He could probably draw on his own Atma-based sixth-sense to help his navigation, but the idea doesn't appeal to him at all; right now it would muddy his thinking, possibly make him motion sick and he wants all of his wits about him