At first light, Bryan tightens the case’s straps and checks its broken hinge. The evidence is secured, but Soppo’s scavenged receiver suddenly spits static across the pharmacy.
A thin transmission pushes through the noise, repeating fragments from somewhere along the northern route. The signal fades before any speaker can be identified.
Soppo
That route marker was in the case. One of my friends could be sending this. We follow it now, before the signal disappears.
Soppo snatches up the receiver and turns toward the drainage lane, her attention fixed on the intermittent crackle. Bryan keeps one hand on the secured case.
Bryan Mercer
No. The relay station is still our safest source of evidence. We reach it first, then use its equipment to trace the transmission.
Soppo
Safest is not the same as fastest. If that is my friend, waiting means losing them again.
The receiver crackles once more, then falls silent. Bryan shoulders the case while Soppo stands at the pharmacy entrance, leaving the morning departure divided between two directions.
✓ Quest Accepted
Trace the transmission to its source
“lets trace the transmission source, and I believe Bryan is right, we dont know whats expecting us there or even the exact location we just cant go there blindfolded”
FAILURE (Good Reasoning, rolled -2)
Chris Smith
Let’s trace the transmission source, but Bryan is right. We do not know what is waiting there or even the exact location. We cannot go in blind.
Chris lays out the route logic, but heat and static pull a flash of his clan’s destruction across his thoughts. The memory breaks his concentration before he can pin down the signal’s direction.
Natural Survivor steadies him through the aftershock. He separates the receiver’s repeated fragments from the interference and recognizes a drainage reference beneath the northern route marker.
Soppo
You make a fair point, Chris. The station can tell us where the signal came from, but I am not ignoring it. We use the clue to approach faster.
Bryan Mercer
The drainage lane should connect to the maintenance entrance. From there, we can check the station’s equipment before following the transmission.
Soppo lowers the receiver, frustration still bright in her face, but she turns toward the pharmacy’s rear passage instead of the open lane. The signal has become a lead for the station approach, not a reason to abandon it.
“oh for god´s sake, Soppo your going to get us killed, safer is just way better, think about it for a second”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled +3)
Chris Smith
For God’s sake, Soppo, you’re going to get us killed. Safer is better. Think about it for a second.
The warning catches on the edge of a traumatic flashback: burning homes, broken voices, and the helpless certainty that haste destroys what remains. The memory shakes his focus, but Natural Survivor pulls him back to the pharmacy’s exits, the receiver, and the safest route.
Soppo
You’re right. We take the relay station first, check its equipment, and trace the signal from there.
Soppo lowers the receiver and steps away from the rear passage. Bryan’s shoulders ease as she joins him beside the secured case, accepting the safer plan without another argument.
Bryan Mercer
Good. We leave by the maintenance route and reach the station before the heat gets worse.
Soppo checks the receiver once more. The recovered fragments now resolve into a clear bearing toward the relay station, giving the group a precise approach instead of a blind search.
Director's note
i walk away from the group to take fresh air as I hear in the radio that a group of scavangers known as the "demon head" are coming to a location near ours we need to get moving, my face changes all of a sudden, i feel fear
“Hey bryan do me a favor and secure the case”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled -2)
Chris Smith
Hey, Bryan, do me a favor and secure the case.
Bryan nods and cinches the straps around the case, checking the broken hinge and reinforcing the closure with scavenged wire. It is secured for the journey.
The effort leaves Chris with a brief hesitation and a cold pressure behind his eyes. The old destruction threatens to pull his focus away, but Natural Survivor anchors him in the pharmacy’s exits and the route ahead.
Bryan Mercer
Done. It will hold.
Chris steps outside alone for fresh air. Dust moves across the maintenance lane, and the receiver’s sudden crackle carries a warning through the morning heat.
Soppo
Chris, the signal says the Demon Head scavengers are moving toward somewhere nearby.
Chris’s face changes at once, fear breaking through his guarded expression. Behind him, the secured case waits beside Bryan, while the warning turns departure into an immediate necessity.
“demon head, demon head, oh fuck i know those guys, they are know for having gruesom ideas, i heard they took the skin of a guy while they were still alive, they like to make people suffer and they all have horns in their head, pretty sure thats something they made themselves but we gotta move”
FAILURE (Superb Willpower, rolled -3)
Chris Smith
Demon Head? Oh fuck, I know those scavengers. They are known for gruesome things, and they make people suffer. We need to move.
Chris tries to force his fear down and turn back toward the pharmacy. The effort falters as heat, smoke, and broken voices surge through his memory, stealing his balance for one unsteady step.
Chris Smith
The fear is interfering with the route.
Natural Survivor catches the danger in the lane: open ground, poor cover, and a pharmacy entrance that cannot be defended during a rushed departure. Chris regains his footing, but not his calm.
Soppo
Then do not rush blindly. We take the maintenance route, keep together, and leave before they reach us.
Bryan Mercer
The case is ready. I can carry it while we move.
The failed attempt leaves Chris unable to lead a fast departure by himself. Soppo takes the rear entrance position, Bryan grips the secured case, and the group prepares to move under her steadier pace.
✓ Quest Accepted
Escape the approaching Demon Head scavengers
Director's note
i sprint torwards the exit and search for a vehicle
“do we have a vehicle?! we need one right now god dammit, check the cars now”
SUCCESS (Fair Perception, rolled +2)
Chris Smith
Do we have a vehicle? We need one right now. Check the cars.
Chris sprints along the pharmacy’s frontage, scanning the sun-blasted vehicles jammed beside the maintenance lane. Fear blurs the wreckage into smoke and broken voices, but he forces his eyes back onto each chassis.
His Master Scavenger instinct sorts useful details quickly: intact tires, a sealed fuel cap, and fresh dust disturbed beneath one battered utility pickup. The vehicle is old, but its frame and cabin remain serviceable.
A flash of his clan’s destruction drags his attention sideways, making the pickup’s outline swim. Chris steadies himself against the hood, breathes through the memory, and checks the controls without losing the vehicle.
The key is still in the ignition. After one stubborn turn, the engine coughs, rattles, and catches into a rough idle. The pickup has enough fuel and power to carry the group out.
Soppo
You found one? Good. I’ll bring Bryan and the case. Keep it running.
The pickup vibrates beneath Chris’s hands, exhaust thinning in the hot air. Behind him, hurried footsteps approach from the pharmacy as the Demon Head scavengers draw nearer somewhere beyond the lane.
Bryan Mercer
The case is secure. We can leave now.
+ New Item Acquired
Utility pickup
“they are right behind us i can see them in the distance if they spot us we are done for sure”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Agility, rolled +1)