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The New Reality (Kiari03 & PatricioINTP)

K

Kiari03

Super-Earth
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Roslyn Howe was a rather average college student attending the University of Minnesota with above average looks. She stood at a medium height of 5'4, had choppy, yet stylish, blond hair that brushed against the tops of her shoulders, sharp and intelligent blue eyes, a slender and fit body, and C cup breasts that she found many men would allow their gaze to fall while speaking to her. However, her true passions of quiet places and video gaming left her isolated from the majority of her peers and it was this more than anything that had drawn her attention to an opportunity to be a participant in virtual reality testing. It was never anything she had given much thought to, but the flier promised two things that interested her. The first was a once in a life time experience with technology not even available on the market yet and the second was compensation for their time spent. Considering she didn't have a job or family to rely on, she couldn't turn down the promised two to three hundred dollar check and so she signed her name up thinking that nothing would come of it.

Now, here she sat in the waiting room of a laboratory about thirty miles from campus along with ten other participants who chirped happily away from their excitement. Roslyn sat quietly reading a magazine and was dressed in a casual white tank top and jeans with a sweater tied around her waist. None of them had even seen the machine that they would be attached to and the thought of new technology excited Roslyn greatly making her leg bounce up and down nervously as she sat flipping through the pages of a Cosmogirl. Finally, the door opened and a woman dressed in a sharp white lab coat walked into the room with a bright smile, "If you will all follow me, I would like to take you to the simulation room where we will begin today's experiment!"

The group followed the lab assistant closely through the maze of corridors until they came to the only open door on the entire floor. With another smile she stood to the side and motioned for them to enter. Roslyn was first and immediately gave a small smile to the scientists before walking straight over to the machine to look it over.
 
The VR machines resemble a fancy and sleek reclined chair with a large, hollow semi-sphere dominating the head side, and a number of medical monitors on the side. A middle aged 6 foot tall man approached her with a smile. He was slim and seemed to just starting to prematurely bald. Shaking her hand, he says, “My name is Patrick. Besides being one of the head designers of this system, I will be monitoring your stay with us. Go ahead and lay down. There is a lot here, but don’t be too intimidated by it. The system is in beta and we want to confirm data to the government that its perfectly safe. Me and my colleagues have used it without problems. But for the government to be happy, testing on a variety of people is needed. Once comfortable, close your eyes.”

After Roslyn laid down, he started sliding head gear into place. He covered her ears with what resemble headphones, muffling all the other sounds in the room. Next came two tiny cushion like parts that covered her eyes. While deaf and blind to the rest of what is happening, she can feel him work as he attached things to her arms and body. She heard through the headphones his voice, calm and reassuring, as he explained everything he was doing. It took several minutes, “... but it will be worth it”, he promised. Finally came down the hollow semi-sphere. Roslyn felt something or several things being placed all over her head. “Relax now. The sudden jolt of entering may take some getting use to.”

Patrick went over to the console. Before kicking on the Sensory Output Generator, he first started the Feedback Input Monitor; SOG and FIM to the creators. SOG was the real beta test. FIM was technically just leaving alpha, and not being fully run. The medical portion was not only for regulation. FIM records the users biometrics so that if the user seems to be reacting to the simulation negatively, it can do an emergency shutdown of SOG. But it can do a lot more. It can control the body itself. Being in a roller coaster won’t feel real unless FIM fools the body into thinking it is feeling gravitational forces. It can increase or decrease heart rate, cause mild coughing and tears if one is exposed to smoke, and so forth. It does keep more negative aspects to a minimum. [Expect me to use this on your character, just to warn you] While FIM isn’t needed, without it the VR world will just appear to be a video game than the real thing and at the same time keep the user medically safe. Still, hearing FIM can do all of this was deemed, though necessary, potentially scary for new users. So its function and existence was kept from the participants. What wasn’t being used was it more brute force abilities. Amplify brain chemicals or inject drugs into the body. Fool the user to feel hungry or full. Things that can cause someone, who knows this is a simulation, great alarm if abused.

For Patrick, in or out of the VR world, it allowed him to monitor what Roslyn was experiencing along with her health condition. When FIM was up and running, he said through the headphones, “Starting the sensory output. This might be a bit jarring at first. Your brain expects to see nothing since your eyes are closed and covered. Take a few deep breaths and you should see it kick on in a few seconds.”

A robotic sounding woman’s voice came one saying, “Sog on”. Gradually, a ground and sky appeared, along with trees till the whole area was filled into a thick forest, covering the entire sky. The temperature got hotter, though FIM stopped when it detected her reaching the highest temperature she feels comfortable with. Next, sounds of birds filled the landscape and finally the smell of a rain forest. The robotic voice came on again. “Sog loading of sim finished. You are free to walk around.”

Patrick’s voice came back on. “You should have heard the computer. Please explore the environment and tell me how real it seems. Then I’ll run some things and see how you respond.” FIM reported all of her biometrics was normal. He looked at her, wondering who she is in real life.
 
Roslyn shook his hand and gave him a small smile, "My name is Roslyn and though I'm sure that it's cumbersome to have to run these simulations, I'm glad to have the opportunity." With introductions and flattery out of the way, Roslyn made sure she was the first to get the opportunity to sit in the chair and experience what this machine had to offer. She had always been one for the exploration and examination of technology. She hated it when others were able to experience something like this before her and was not one for sitting back and allowing it to happen. Besides, the others seemed intimidated by the machine's appearance and were unwilling to challenge her desires for now.

As Roslyn became as comfortable as she would be in the seat, she closed her eyes, and allowed for him to take his time explaining the various monitoring devices that were being placed on her arms and chest. She didn't think it strange, but the whispers from the other participants she had been able to hear just a few moments ago, were gone once the headphones had been put on. "Interesting...sensory deprivation. To enhance the virtual reality, I bet." She thought as he reassured her calmly, his voice bringing her great comfort as he attached electrodes and other things all over her head. "Relax...relax..." She thought as she listened to his voice, taking in several deep breaths to calm the nerves created from unfamiliarity.

[That's fine! I anticipated something like that.]

Roslyn prepared herself as he gave her the warning that what she was to experience might be a bit alarming at first, "I'm ready..." She said calmly as she waited for the machine to kick up. Suddenly, the words, "SOG on" entered her head and she wondered what exactly 'SOG' was. However, she had no time to try and break down the mnemonic device, because just below her feet a ground was forming. Roslyn gasped as her heart rate jumped suddenly from the surprise, but she was in no danger, just shock. Roslyn looked up and instead of seeing the florescent lights and bleak white laboratory, she saw colorful birds flying through the canopies of enormous trees, the size of which she could only compare to that of a building.

Roslyn took another deep breath and instead of smelling the stale air of a building, she smelt the sweet smell of lotus blossoms, moss, rain, and trees. She heard the sound of the chirping birds over head and felt the heat and moisture that the rain forest was known for. This was no video game, it was practically real life, no, not quite, "This is better than real life! I can feel the heat of the rain forest, smell it, hear it, and almost taste it!" She exclaimed as she was given permission to roam around and speak to the Patrick.

The first thing she wanted to do was to touch water in order to see if her hand would feel wet or if her hand would simply mesh into the virtual reality with minimum response. She was very curious to see it's limitations. Spotting a small creek about thirty feet away she first walked and then jogged over to the water source before bending down and sticking her hand in. "I just found a stream and stuck my hand in. My hand feels cool and wet." She reported before getting up and going over to a tree. Swiftly, she gave it a kick to see if she applied force or a quick action if the machine would have time to adjust. It did, "I just kicked one of the trees and it is solid!" She reported again. It was clear she was very analytical, not choosing to run around randomly she was truly curious about the limitations of this machine. Grabbing a fist full of mud and admiring the squishiness between her fingers, she threw it against a rock to see what would happen if two VR objects collided, what might happen. Once again, "This is absolutely fascinating. The mud that I just through against a rock not only felt like mud, but when it hit the rock it splattered against the VR rock just as what would happen with real mud and rock. This is amazing!" She proclaimed, wishing she wouldn't have to exit this world and not knowing that wishes sometimes, for better or worse, come true.
 
Collecting the data FIM was reporting back, he listened to how she was enjoying the simulation. His job required him to find out how safe it is and how much the users enjoyed it, not just getting out bugs and asking for improvement suggestions. Perhaps with a future patch or version. Seeing though how cute she is along with hearing her happiness was getting him aroused. He couldn’t help but to ask.

“So tell me a little about yourself. We like to know who our potential target users will be for marketing purposes.” That might be true, but it wasn’t his job. It was being saved for the post test questionnaire. When he turned 30 a month ago and noticing his hair line starting to move back, he was getting scared that he will never find a woman to have. It didn’t occur to him that worry might be corrupting. So he added, as he needed to know without thinking it will be too pushy, “I suspect it will be people who don’t have much of a social life, wanting to do what they would if they were more active or to experience the impossible. Geeks.” The way he figured, if she won’t be missed, and if her life wasn’t what she wanted, she will be perfect. Besides, can she afford this thing when it comes out?!

After hearing her response, FIM sent back a summary of how accepting her brain was to the VR. It was found some, who knew it wasn’t real, didn’t engross themselves much and that can lead to problems with FIM itself, which in turn caused SOG to act even more disbelivable. Others, who are easily accepting of the simulation, cause FIM to act calmer. It was the one big software problem they faced. Roslyn seem to be in the latter’s camp. She was accepting and let the VR give her the experience it was giving, according to FIM.
 
Roslyn was quietly approaching a crouching frog that was orange with splotches of black. She reached out her hand to grab hold of him, but as soon as she heard Patrick's question he hopped away. She hadn't found a limit to this machine and though she adored it, she knew there was no way she would ever be able to experience this again and it made her a little sad. Still, she didn't mind answering his questions, believing him when he said that he was only after market feedback, "Geeks? Are they still calling people like me that? I would have thought they came out with a more creative name!" She laughed as she grabbed hold of a low hanging branch and swung her leg over and began trying to climb the tree.

"I'm climbing a tree right now...it's really cool this technology. I can feel my hand scrape against the bark!" She called before continuing. It was obvious she didn't want to think about her real life while in this world, "My name is Rosyln and I am a twenty year old university student attending the University of Minnesota." She spoke as she grabbed another branch and began trying to pull herself up, "You're right, I don't have a social life. The last friend I had was in high school and we went our separate ways after graduation. Same goes for family, not having them I mean. My mother left us before I could remember her and my father passed away five years ago." She stated matter-of-factly, clearly more interested in trying to throw her leg over the next branch. "I guess I only have one thing I'm very passionate about and that is playing video games....but this machine is killing that passion mercilessly. I don't know how I'll ever go back to playing on my flat screen!" She laughed as stopped trying to climb the tree and jumped down to the ground. Even in virtual reality she wasn't that great at athleticism.

Roslyn ran her fingers through her hair with a sigh, "So, is there anything else you would like to know? Sorry to say there isn't much more to tell, but..." She let that hang before busting out laughing, "Earlier, I tried to catch a frog and it hopped away. You won't believe it, but it's on the front of my shirt now!" She smiled down at the little beady eyes of the frog as it gave a little croak and then hopped off of her to continue his virtual existence elsewhere.
 
Twenty. Kind of a large age difference, being a decade older than she is. “Well, I consider myself a nerd. Love learning for its own sake, but tell me what the latest Apple product is, and I can’t tell you.” Hearing Roslyn continue, he took out a paper and pen and wrote down ‘Lost friend. Mother left, father died 15.’ The thoughts flying through his mind made him feel guilty while at the same time like a savior. “Sorry to hear that. My condolences.” While he can’t see what she is seeing, he can hear her voice. Her laughing, having fun. And here he is, single with no kids. He worked too hard during his 20-something years for dating. Meanwhile there is other his age and little older who already have kids in school.

“Roslyn”, he said, loud enough for her but quiet enough for the rest in the room. “I don’t have all the aspects of this system up and running. This is only a test of its minimum features if its going to market. We are working on additional features. Like the ability for one inside to modify the environment as she wants.” This is true and in late alpha. A VR person can be run like a communication portal to FIM, which in turn modify what SOG is displaying. However, it is too robotic like in its personality at times. “This is just one of the new features we are working on. If you are available tonight, I can let you in to a private session. Tell me what environment you like and perhaps I can set it up for you by then. Will this interest you?”

He held his hands up to his face like he was saying a prayer. He kept saying to himself this will help her live better. Initially it might not be pleasant, but once that subterfuge is over, the end will justify the means.
 
"Thank you..." She said simply in response to his condolences. She had heard plenty in her lifetime, sorry for your mother, sorry for your father, sorry for...well everything. It had really made her quite numb to the idea of sadness as well as any sympathy she might receive and so she truly hadn't felt it in regards to her losses for quite some time. As she slowed down and began to think about it a multi-colored parrot flew past her field of vision and landed on the same branch she had tried to climb earlier. Roslyn smiled up at the bright bird, "Think I was sad, did ya?" All she received in response was a loud squawk that made Roslyn jump and then laugh at her own surprise.

Suddenly, Patrick's voice entered her head again, but it was more hushed and concentrated than before, "Minimum features huh? Really? Would it really be possible for a user to control the environment based on their desires? I can't believe it! Wow...some rich people sure are going to have a good time with this..." She muttered as she looked around kicking at the dirt. Needless to say Roslyn was a little disappointed that she probably would never get the chance to experience the more advanced features of this amazing machine, but then her mood completely did a 180 as she heard him offer her another chance. What was more, it would be a private session, "Are you serious? I would love to come back!" She exclaimed while her thoughts traveled to environments she would like to see in this world. She thought for a moment all of the places on this Earth that she could go, but might never have the chance to.

Then it occurred to her, why ask to see something that was just a plane ticket away? She could have asked to go to one of the places in her favorite games, but was worried that it might not be possible to develop properly by tonight. Besides, it would be boring to walk through scenes that she knew like the back of her hand. So, instead she chose "I would like to be in outer space and ice skate on Jupiter's moon Europa, if that's ok!" She replied, happy with her choice as a destination she could never physically go to, yet was still conceivable to create by tonight and would keep her entertained for as long as they wanted to test their features. She was a bit of a space nerd as a child and the idea of a moon with smooth ice, the potential for life just under the ice, minimal gravitational pull, and with the view of Jupiter and the other moons on the skyline really excited her.
 
Patrick laughed hard when he heard her response. Pulling out their small library of places, “Lets see. We do have a space ship or station one for those Trekkie's, and one winter wonderland. By, say, 7:30 PM tonight, I should be able to combine the two and give you that experience. Alas, this session is drawing to a close. But you can stay till 9 PM when you come tonight. A word about shut down, it will seem like you are waking up from a dream. We suggest to stay still till you seem fully aware of the real world.”

“Initiating shut down”, the robotic female said. The movement of everything seem to slow down, while the sounds and smells went away. Fade to black. She can feel him disconnecting everything and removing the top portions. It went by quicker than before. He took her hand ready to help her up if needed, repeating 7:30 as the time to meet again. [And the real fun begins]
 
Roslyn felt like she had been asleep as she felt the wires being pulled from her slow, unresponsive, body. Once she felt steady enough to differentiate the world she had just seen and the real world, she opened her eyes and took Patrick's hand to help herself up. She gave him a knowing smile and said, "Well, alright then. Thank you for the wonderful experience. I'll be sure to leave a detailed comments on the questionnaire. Have a nice day." She said happily as she walked out of the room and passed the now excited participants who seemed excited by her happy change of mood. After filling out the questionnaire with little else on her mind besides tonight, she walked out of the laboratory and the building with a big smile on her face. Roslyn couldn't remember the last time she had been this excited for anything and she wasn't even sure why it made her so exuberant. The VR was so close to the real world...just minus the dangers of dying, something she feared more than she cared to admit.

The day passed in a painful procession of hour after hour, but this gave her much needed time to think. She also really did need to buy something for Patrick for allowing her back, even though she didn't have to. What was more, he let her pick the scenery and seemed to be a "genuinely nice guy, with good looks, a soothing type of voice, an intelligent mind, a-" Roslyn cut off her thoughts with a big blush as she almost bumped into someone on the busy sidewalk while lost in her thoughts. However, where she stopped to offer a small 'excuse me' couldn't have been better. It was a small, but well known, sweets shop that offered the most amazing individual sized cakes that were baked daily. Walking in, she decided to buy two for the simple reason that she didn't know if he would prefer chocolate or vanilla. Both had cream filling with a single glazed strawberry sitting gracefully on the top, so she figured that she would offer him both and take whatever he didn't want. She smiled at her own excitement as she quickly walked back to the laboratory, coming into the test room at 7:30 sharp.

"I hope that it's alright, but I bought you something while I was out. You know, just as a thank you..." She said the moment she saw him; shyly offering him the bag with the two decorated bakery boxes. More surprising was her reaction, she was lightly blushing. It was subtle, but it was there. She also wasn't making as much eye contact as before. It was a little flirtation on her part, but also the least she could offer considering what an honor he was giving her by inviting her back for this private session.
 
When Roslyn turned to leave, Patrick’s right hand went up to caress her back, but wither she was going to fast or his subconscious stopped him, he failed to connect. Walking to his desk, his left hand massaging his right, he started to work. The bulge in his pants being the only distraction and motivator. When 7:15 came by, realizing he forgot to eat (which was okay), he rushed to the front door to greet her. He unlocked the front door and held it open to allow her in. The sky was clear.

Receiving her gift, he let out a wide smile and a thank you, “I didn’t really expect that.” Escorting her to the room, that was more than enough to let his hand caress her back when he directed her to lay down again. After Patrick set her back up he spoke to her through the headphones. “I am going to be activating additional routines. You yourself might not notice the difference. Unless we find ourselves some serious bugs, of course.” He didn’t say much else, though he did took almost 50-100% longer to set up the medical part compared to last time. Shortly after walking away, she heard “Sog on” and found herself on an icy surface, a star filled sky, and the massive planet of Jupiter dominating it. Yet the air and temperature was of livable conditions, though really quiet. A pair of ice skates was in front of her.

[As long as its not outrageous, she will have some time by herself in the VR world.]

Suddenly the scene around her seem to fizzle and distort, and she heard static coming from all around her. The colors of Jupiter started bleeding together. The sky fizzled, and the icy ground seem to flicker. The robotic female voice returned, saying, “Hardware damage detected. Sog may be compromised. Shutting down.” After a brief period of feeling like she was waking up from a dream, she found the hollow semi-sphere over her head to be shattered on the side closest to the window. Looking outside, instead of a clear, starlit sky was now large amounts of low level clouds. At least, it seemed to be in the dark. Buildings from a particular side seemed to have been hit by some major blast from a distance. Small fires can be seen scattered through the city. Patrick himself was on the floor, with scratches on his face from the glass that was shattered to the inside. He was conscious but dazed. The medical parts on her arms seem basic enough for her to remove by herself, and wouldn’t take long at all to do so.
 
Laying down on the seat again, Roslyn took a deep breath to calm her nerves and gave him a smile before he began to set up what she believed to be only monitoring equipment for her vitals and maybe a few extra sensors for her responses. She took notice of how long it was taking him, how much heavier the wires felt than last time, but thought nothing more of it after her informed her that he would be running additional routines this time. Of course he would need more sensors on her to measure the different responses, that made sense, "Alright, all set." She replied after he finished soon to be greeted by the familiar robotic voice that informed her that her session had begun with the words, "Sog on". Her skin immediately felt much cooler as the icy ground formed below her feet, the view of Jupiter came into her vision, and the distant star that was so close to their home planet twinkled like a jewel.

With a bright smile Roslyn gave a quick twirl on the face of Europa before gazing deep into the eye of the giant red storm on Jupiter's service. Letting out a laugh she called out, "You did an amazing job! I couldn't have imagined this place any differently, it's simply breath taking." she complimented while pulling on the skates that had been provided for her. She had never actually been a great skater in real life, but the lack of gravity would make it very difficult for her to fall down or feel any pain. She started slowly skating on the service of the moon, admiring the glory of space without the bulky body suit astronauts were forced to wear. As she skated, her confidence grew as well as her speed. Spotting a crater up ahead, she smirked and increased her speed even more before jumping off the edge of the crater and into the air, weightless, "Houston we have lift off!" She laughed, but her laughter quickly stopped as she looked down to see the ground flicker and crack. Looking up at the sky, she watched as the beautiful colors of Jupiter melted together before a wave of static and then the robotic voice returned and crashed the dream world to send her back into her body.

She lay in the chair, dazed for just a moment as she pulled off the eye pieces and headphones to look around. She felt warm, too warm, like there was a fire nearby and the side of her face hurt just a little bit too. The first thing her eyes focused on was the cracked semi-sphere that had been over her head as a piece of it fell and landed in her hair. After that, the rest came to her in a blur of destruction, mass fires, and throat burning smoke. It was obvious to Roslyn that a massive bomb had been dropped nearby and instantly her mind went to Patrick's well being who she now saw lying on the floor, "Patrick! Are you ok?!" She called as she ripped the medical sensors from her arm and rushed to his side. Sitting next to him, she gently turned him over onto his back and placed his head in her lap so that she could get a better look. Placing her soft hands gently on his cut face she quickly scanned his body before looking back out the window. She knew that with mass fires came mass burnings and this building would probably not be exempt. If it wasn't already on fire, it would be soon, so she said, "Patrick, can you move?! We need to get out of here! The building might have already caught fire and we need to find out what's happening!" She tried to stay calm, but as she looked into his eyes it was clear by her expression that she was confused and terrified.
 
Letting out a small cough, Patrick said, “I have no idea what just happened. Nuclear? Something else?” He slowly got up and looked out. “The blast came from the south, it looks like. That is the side of the buildings that got blown in. The fires are too scattered.” Gun shots was heard. He turned around and start heading out while taking Rosylin’s hand. “Think... think...”

Taking the stairs out of the building, a plan formed in his head. “Due to the chaos, some criminal types are taking advantage of the situation. Rural areas ought to be safer till order returns. Okay, listen carefully. You are like a half hour away from here, right?” They exit the stairway and the front door was in front of them. “Head north, which is in this direction we are now facing. We are only a few blocks from the outer most street of the city. Follow that road west till you reach the interstate. A mile further north is exit 69. There is like a last chance spot for travellers. It has a fast food joint, gas station, and a small hotel. That’s all; there isn’t even any homes where people live. Staying in that hotel overnight should be safer than roaming around in this heavier populated city. If we loose each other, then we will meet there, okay?”

Exiting the building, further down the road, looters were already taking things from inside a electronic store. Not really paying attention to her but the environment, he briefly paused like he was trying to remember or think where to go. Jaywalking across the street, a police car was on the side on the next road down, facing south, the windshield blown in. “Hold on”, he said, detouring to that direction, pulling Rosylin with him. Upon arrival, letting go of her hand, he opened the door, put something in his front paints, then returned adding, “Lets hope I don’t need it.”

Instead of getting beside her, he got a little to her left and mostly behind her. Directing her with his hand on her right shoulder, they made a beeline to this last street he mentioned, they themselves on the right (eastern) side of the street. Patrick kept looking over her left shoulder. A couple blocks from that street a voice yelled out. “Hey! What’ya got?” Patrick, keeping himself between her and three tough looking young men, started pushing her to a corner of the closest building so they can get out of their line of sight. “Hurry”, he said, but just as she reached the corner, a shot ran out. Patrick lets out a yip. He fell to the ground.

“They didn’t got me. I just hurt my ankle.” He pulls out a pistol... the item he got from the police car. He fired a couple of blind shots in their direction. “Hurry and just go. I’ll hold them off and wait for me at that hotel!” Beyond the building north was a hill downwards to the last street going east-west. The interstate was further west from that street.

[Longer and rushed post due to him just overtaking the situation, leaving you with little creative wiggle room. All I ask is she follow directions and don’t write in any more humans. That last street is deserted, unless you want to add domesticated pets or urban wildlife in.]
 
Roslyn clenched his hand tightly as she looked out of the window, examining the damage caused by the apparent attack. All of the buildings were scorched on the same side, plant life was burning and turning into ash, and smoke rising from the burnt ground was suffocating and made her eyes water as she retreated from the window with her hand over her mouth. It was horrible and the sight of it made her mind freeze in place as she took in the scenery. Shaken, Roslyn jumped when he pulled on her hand and began to lead her down the stairwell, explaining his plan to her, "Yeah, thirty minutes from here, but I don't know if I can-" She cut herself off as they exited the building and finished listening to his plan, "North, this direction. Follow the street to the interstate. Exit 69. Hotel." She repeated these over in her mind again and again before answering him with an unsure, "Ok".

She was clinging to him now as she watched several looters stealing plasma screens and other unimportant electronics, but what scared her more was that she saw the guns they were carrying and was happy to be lead away from their direction and to the cop car. As he rummaged around the car for what Roslyn already knew would be a gun, she wondered where the police officer was and if he had died in the blast. The thought saddened her for a moment before the reality of the situation really sunk in and she switched into survival mode.

Walking quickly down the street and being lead by his gentle, yet firm, hand on her shoulder, "Get to the street, interstate, exit 69, then hotel." She repeated again in a whisper, when suddenly she heard a male voice ring out, "Hey! Wat'ya got?" before she was hurriedly pushed in a corner behind Patrick. She couldn't see the face of the three men, but she could hear them and their presence made her incredibly anxious. Then, what she had been fearing after having seen those looters, gun shots. When Patrick fell it took every ounce of her being not to scream bloody murder as she caught him by the shoulders and crouched behind him. "Patrick, are you ok?!" She asked, tears streaming down her face as she looked at his body for any bullet wounds. Roslyn was relieved to hear that it was just his ankle, but was terrified to leave him alone with these three men. Still, she knew at this point she would only be a burden for him to worry about while trying to stay alive, so instead of wasting what little time they had as the men drew closer, "Ok, I'll wait for you there! So..So you better show up!!!" She called as she ran away, tears of shame, frustration, and overwhelming sadness pouring down her face.

Roslyn ran until she was almost half way to the interstate before stopping to catch her breath. Her throat was raw from all of the smoke filled air she was gasping in, but she didn't care. Turning around, she wanted to go back to find Patrick, "But what if he took a different route? No...it's better that I keep going now..." She murmured in reassurance to herself as she continued north, coming to the interstate almost three minutes later. The road was in the shadow of the city and empty going north where there would be little civilization. "He was right..." She murmured as she walked down the middle of the highway, taking in the ear piercing silence. Picking up her pace, she anxiously began to jog down the highway for another three miles before coming to exit 69.

Just off to the right there was the traveler's stop he had told her about, "I made it." She thought with a sigh of relief as she walked into the parking lot of the deserted place. Roslyn imagined that it would have looked much the same without this catastrophe and while there probably wasn't any danger, she really didn't want anyone to see her until Patrick came. The two buildings were side by side, with the fast food joint to the left and the hotel to the right. Crossing over the decorative shrubbery that always seemed to grow in these places, she leaned herself against the corner of the hotel building so that she could look out over the interstate while she waited, "Come on Patrick...please don't leave me here alone..." She whispered as more quiet tears began to fall.
 
[Remember when I warned you that I was going to put OOC like, “Go to the interstate, but not pass it” or “Go up to the hotel, but not to the door, as Timmy-Tom will notice something first” Well... I FORGOT!!! Plans upon plans with two pages of drafting and I forgot one sentince in my last, far longer than usual for me post! {Waving his hands frantically at the screen} But don’t worry! I can salvage this!]

While waiting, she notice a man she never saw before coming out of the fast food restaurant. His front was clean but, as he turned around to look, his back side was dusty. He was shorter and stocky compared to Patrick. Five feet and eight-and-half inches, with broad shoulders and some muscle and fat to go with it, but not too much of either. He stood with his mouth open, looking around at the scene around him. When his eyes met Roslyn , his face lit up. He was not near her, and more interested in what the situational enviorment “I just woke up from...”, pointing to the building, “... there and... … …this is crazy! So what are you doing and what is your plan due to this? Any idea what happened?” He was waving his hands around, excitable, while also awestruck.

“Oh, forgive me”, he quickly added before she got a chance to respond. He held out his hand, approaching her, saying “I am Timothy Thomas Tatter. Most just call me Timmy-Tom. Why my parents made my name an alliteration, I have no inkling instance indicating an idea informing why.”

[Note also there is a gas station nearby. I added this in case I screwed up, which of course I did!]
 
Roslyn watched the man carefully, not liking his appearance, his frantic way of speaking, or his body language. Pressing herself harder against the building she glared at him before moving away from him. "I was standing, now I'm walking, I don't know what happened, I don't know what I'm doing, and I can't say that I care why you have an alliteration in your stupid name." She answered curtly. As she walked over near one of the gas pumps to look closer at the still empty interstate. She sighed, it wasn't really his fault she was being so bitchy. It was her own and she knew it. Still, something about him put her at unease, so she simply said, "Nice to meet you. I'm Roslyn." in a mutter while leaning against the pump and staring off into space. "Maybe I should turn back...maybe he won't be able to make it because of his ankle. What if he gets killed? What if he is already dead?" She whispered to herself as these thoughts made her head was throb. She gripped her face and tried to think. "Come on...there has to be more that I can do, I just need to think!" She pressured herself while turning her attention away from the eccentric man whom she may or may not have insulted.

[It's ok dude, we can work around whatever it was. Hope my post is somewhat what you were looking for in her response to him. If not, tell me and I can always rewrite!]
 
“Fine!”, Timmy-Tom said. Then in a normal voice, “After all it is a pri...”, after which she was unable to hear him. Then he seem to realize something, putting his hands on his head. “WAIT!”, he squealed, “I got to take advantage of this!” He rush into the gas station. Roslyn notice from her position him taking something and drinking it, then grabbing more. He came out of the place with a small number of bottles in his pockets, while finishing the one in his hand. He approached her again, but kept his distance, just so he can talk to her. “Its perfect. And no, I am NOT an alcoholic! Besides, with my muscle and fat, I need more than this little laughable lot of laudably luscious liqueur to get drunk.”

He started going to the hotel, when a wave of fatigue suddenly hit Roslyn. Timmy-Tom looked around, checked the registry, and commented, “Totally empty. Well. Empty hotel that was unfortunately undeniably unlocked. Unrealistic!” He went for the nearest hotel room. His walk was normal till just a few paces before getting to it. Then he just slammed into the door. He tried to get to the door knob and had to struggle to get it open. “What the... !” He looked at his only bottle he drank. “My precious phial proof is a pathetic phony. Phooey! Effing sounds.” He left the room, stood on the side of the hall for a moment, started to take them all out of his pockets, letting them fall where they lay. Heading back in, he yells, “I am NOT an alcoholic!”

He saw a mirror next to a dresser in the hotel room. He held himself up while looking in the mirror, then opened the top door just to see what is inside it. Grabbing a t-shirt and gym paints for women, he stumbled and walked over to Roslyn to hold the shirt in front of her. Throwing both at her, he mumbles to her he promises not to peek. He leans up against a wall and looked like he was about to fall asleep right there. If anything, seeing that made Roslyn all the more tired.

[Rushed thee planned posts into one, but got all my clues in place. Well, at least we can get to the good stuff far quicker than I expected. Though I do need to go to bed myself!]
 
Roslyn ignored him, but did toss around the retort he had thrown at her, "After all it is a pri..." After going through all of the possible words she knew that would make his sentence logical, she couldn't figure it out and gave up. Turning around, she saw him walking over to her with his pockets engorged with wine and beer. She rolled her eyes and smirked, "Not an alcoholic my ass..." She muttered under her breath as she watched him shove the contents of the bottle down his throat. She was a little more at ease with him now, convinced he couldn't really be a threat unless she let him be, when suddenly a strong wave of fatigue crashed into her. Her vision blurred and then corrected itself as she yawned and stretched her arms into the sky while keeping an eye on Timmy-Tom. His sentences were starting to irritate her though and made her curiouser and curiouser. Why were there no other people on the highway? In this hotel? Not even staff. What was it doing unlocked? Had it really just been abandoned? It was possible, something didn't feel right.

Shrugging it off as a result from her overexertion for the day she followed him into the hotel, eager to find a bed to sleep in for the night. She would go find Patrick in the morning and possibly drag Timmy-Tom with her as protection if she felt she needed him. She was keeping a close eye on him from behind and nearly jumped out of her skin when his walk went from normal to a walk of someone who had had five bottles of wine in mere seconds. "What the hell..." She muttered, wondering if it that was really the effect alcohol could have on someone's body. And again, his sentence was strange. It hit her that some of his sentences had words with the same first consonant. Keeping her distance, she followed him into the hotel room with every intention to crash on the bed and to give her brain a rest.

Catching the conveniently available clothing, she rolled her eyes, "That's great comfort." She murmured as she pulled off her top and bra to let loose her smooth round breasts that jumped and moved as she pulled the t-shirt given to her over them. Taking her pants off, she quickly threw on the pair of gym jeans while keeping a weary eye on him. However, the more she watched him, the more she wanted nothing to do but to curl up in the corner and go to sleep. But, the king sized bed in the middle of the room looked much more inviting. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand she dragged herself over to where Timmy-Tom stood half conscious and took him by the arm gently. "Come on, Timmy-Tom. If you're going to be sick, do so on the other side of the bed." She warned as she sat him down on the right side of the bed and quickly pulled off his shoes before throwing back the covers, laying his head down on the pillow, and covering him up with the blanket. Lazily, she crawled over him, her body resting on top of his for the briefest moment before she collapsed beside him and curled herself up under the covers with a heavy sigh. Already, the room felt a little cold, so Roslyn pressed her body a little against his in an attempt to warm herself up.

[Night!]
 
When Roslyn was helping Timmy-Tom to bed, he was still conscious enough to mumble, “Can we cuddle at least”, and after getting in bed, “Dastardly Delirious Drunk Drinking Down his... his... damnation! Can’t think of another ‘D’ word” By the time she was settled in bed he was already in wonderland. She didn’t dream that night, but it was one of the most deepest sleeps she had in a long time.

She woke with bright sunlight glaring into the windows, feeling awake and alert very quickly. Timmy-Tom was over by the window, looking out, with the window slightly open. “Seems like a normal day”, he said mater-of-factly. At the distance a vehicle engine can be heard. “Someone is coming”, and walked to the front of the building.

It was Patrick, driving an ATV jeep. He got out, looked around, and yelled Roslyn’s name. His face had some nicks and marks, but otherwise seems fine. Entering the hotel, he saw Timmy-Tom first and asked, “Who are you?”, and moved on past him to fine Roslyn.

[Okay, other than one scene that won’t be happening for a while at least, all my preemptive, pretentious, not prevailing preplanning is over. Oh, and the awfully annoying alliterations too. That’s a hint.]
 
Roslyn awoke as the bright morning light splashed her in the face and quickly she was to her feet and alert. "Shut the window you idiot!" She hissed as he blabbered on about it seeming like a normal day. No way it could! Not after what had happened to the city just last night. "Timmy-Tom, I don't want to know what a normal day is like for you. Listen, I'm going to see if I can find a brush in the bathroom. Try not to draw attention to us." She warned, shutting the door just as he commented about someone coming. Opening the drawers she quickly found a complimentary hair brush, tooth paste, brush, and some soap. She decided she couldn't leave Timmy-Tom alone long enough to shower, but she could at least run the brush through her hair and take care of her teeth.

When she heard Patrick's voice calling out her name, a wave of emotions crashed against her as she rushed out of the bathroom and the hotel room to see if it was really him or if her mind was playing tricks on her. Roslyn took a sharp gasp as she saw him walking down the hall quickly. Tears of overwhelming relief and guilt welled up in her eyes as she ran to him and wrapped him in a tight hug, pressing her bra less chest and erect nipples against him. "I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry I left you! Please forgive me!" She begged, hiccuping into his chest as she refused to let go. Finally, she gave him a little bit of his space back by taking two steps back to look at his ankle, "Are you ok? Do you need to sit down?" She asked with concern as she finally looked him in the eyes.

[Alrighty!]
 
When Roslyn held him tight, Patrick couldn’t help but to let go with some loud laughing. As she was telling him how much she was sorry and worried, his arms wrapped around her and kissed her on the crown of her head. “I’m fine. I’m fine. I just slightly sprained my ankle when those shots ran out, but they didn’t bother when they realized I was armed. Walking all the way here would have been difficult, so I looked for a reasonable vehicle which I can, well, ‘borrow’. That took far longer than I thought. I meant to find you but...”, his tone changing like he was giving a confession, “um... I wanted to make sure my place was safe. Its further down the interstate. By then I... accidental fell asleep after all the chaos of the night.” Perking up now, “When I woke up and realized I slept through the night and you were perhaps still here, I panicked and came ASAP in my jeep.”

Patrick looked back and noticed Timmy-Tom was by it, as though he expected he can come too. Getting on Roslyn’s right side, his left arm wrapped behind her while his right hand held her’s, wrapping around her thumb while his thumb started petting motions. “This person here. Who is he and where did he came from? What did he say to you? Do you know him?” He sounded stern but he wasn’t making any moves against leaving him here yet.

This was in earshot of Timmy-Tom. He seemed in position to get in the cramped back seat of the jeep, leaving the two front seats for Patrick and Roslyn. His face though was stoic, and his body still, despite hearing Patrick’s words. On the front passenger seat was a medium sized plastic food container with scrabbled eggs and a wrapped plastic fork tapped on it. [Upon seeing it, she will start getting a little hungry]
 
Roslyn listened to him closely as he told her what had happened after she ran away from the group of men, leaving Patrick by himself. She was a little irritated to hear that he went to his house to make sure it was ok and then fell to sleep, leaving her the whole night long with Timmy-Tom, but she couldn't begrudge him. After all, if she hadn't left him, she wouldn't have had to spend the night alone with jabbering idiot. Despite her feelings towards Timmy-Tom, she still felt a tinge of loyalty to him. Without him, she probably wouldn't have bothered trying to find a bed and would have slept outside all night waiting on Patrick. He had taken care of her and thus, leaned towards him coming too.

Roslyn enjoyed the comforting motions of his thumb and the arm wrapped protectively around her as he spoke to her in not hushed enough tones. Thinking back on the previous night, she decided she would need to tell Patrick everything in order for Timmy-Tom to get a fair chance, "Well, I came here like you told me to and was waiting by the hotel when he came out yammering about what was going on. I told him to beat it. He did for a minute, but so that he could go into the gas station to pick up some wine..." She broke that off when she could tell he was listening and gave him a quick glare before leading Patrick a couple of more steps away, "He speaks really strange sometimes, because the words in his sentences all start with the same consonant. I don't think he is all there. Anyway, we decided to go to a hotel room to sleep through the night and I would go search for you in the morning. He drank one bottle and got drunk really quickly while insisting he wasn't an alcoholic. I was tired and didn't care about his personal problems, so I changed into this and then I went to sleep, woke up, and here we are." She said simply, while apologetically looking him in the eyes for what she was going to say next. "Look, I don't think he has anywhere to go or anyone to take care of him. I know he sounds really weird, but, maybe he should come along with us?" She questioned quietly while staring down at their hands.

Looking over at the Jeep, she saw something that made her mouth water, breakfast. "You brought breakfast? It looks really good..." She murmured as she took a step towards it. "Can I have some?" She asked, taking another step, her stomach leading her by this point.
 
Before getting in the jeep himself, Patrick looked at Timmy-Tom and said his name as though to confirm it. “You may get in the back.” Which he did, quickly, getting in the middle and folding his hands in front of him, saying nothing and staring strait ahead. Patrick kept talking about him. “Unusual name. What is it called when one puts together words with the same starting consonant?” Patrick said that like he was trying to remember himself while starting the engine.

Timmy-Tom answered, in a nearly monotone voice. “In language, alliteration refers to repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of a series of words and/or phrases. Also known as a tongue twister if long and complicated enough. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers being one of the most common, well known ones.”

After hearing all of this, Patrick slammed his hands on the steering wheel, like he was very annoyed at what or how Timmy-Tom was saying or talking. He lets out a loud sigh and tells Roslyn, “Yes, I got that for you to eat along the way.” Shifting to drive, he headed further away from the city. “I have my own cabin by a lake for you to stay at as long as you wish.” At exit 74 he got off, then only a mile later he turned again to a road leading to the cabin and lake. He seemed nervous and edgy.

The front of the cabin faced the lake to the north, and the ATV jeep was parked in front. Upon entering from the front (facing south), a dining table was to the immediate right by the window. It was long and can seat four, two on the end and two facing the window. To the immediate left was a small chess table. Further down, pass the dining table on the right is the kitchen, and pass the chess table on the left was a couch, chair, computer, TV with DVD, and music system.

If one continues to walk back, on the left side is a bedroom with a king size bed on the south wall, a large window on the east wall, and a dresser & closet space on the south wall. Right is a locked door. On the southern most part of the cabin was the bathroom (who’s bath has a bubble dispenser) to the left and the start of a staircase going up to the right. There is a door connecting the bedroom with the bathroom. The top of the cabin is just one large empty space with a window that can be opened on the north, with a mattress in front of it. Outside is a simple patio porch.

Upon arriving, a short haired cat was on the bed, looking outside as though enjoying the morning sun. A golden retriever was on the back porch. Everything is clean and perfect. [And, just coincidentally, clothing that will fit both Patrick and Roslyn is in the bedroom. But nothing for Timmy-Tom. Also, if she looks, Patrick’s DVDs are mostly sci-fi/fantasy, psychological but not gory horror, and some historical dramas. Music consist of classical, oldies, and a some from E-Nomine which has a German singer backed up with a Latin choir. If you have to know:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxQxqm_jInU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz2NTbNsyWo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szHRm_U4l2o

The computer has no games or Internet access; its just for 'work'. There is no cable or any other TV feeds.]
 
Roslyn smiled happily, mouthing a "thank you" to Patrick for allowing Timmy-Tom to come along. It wasn't that she particularly liked Timmy-Tom, but she didn't hate him enough to leave him here all alone either. Taking the her seat, she picked up the food container and lifted the lid a little to just smell the food. She wouldn't eat it until it was confirmed to be hers, but she had a good idea it was anyway. She listened to their little exchange with interest busting out with laughter as Patrick slammed the wheel with his hands in frustration. "Oh yeah..alliteration. I learned that in high school, but I can't say I have used it since. Good to know someone has though" She said in between stifled giggles. It didn't take Roslyn half a minute to start digging into the scrambled eggs after he told her that it was for her. After she finished the contents of the food container while listening to Patrick she was still hungry, but not starving. "A cabin huh? Sounds good." She commented with a shrug, figuring there couldn't be anything too out of the ordinary for him to have a cabin nearby. After all, he was a scientist making a billion dollar product. Surely he had money.

"Thank you Patrick, for all of your kindness. The eggs were delicious and now you are taking me to your home. I'll have to find a way to repay you someday." She said a little shyly as she watched him driving. Something seemed off about him. He was nervous and on edge. Of course, why shouldn't he be? Their country was just attacked, he was shot at, and is now being forced to interact with a man that he didn't like. "I would be edgy too.." She thought to herself as she placed a hand on his arm, "It's ok. Calm down..." She said just loud enough for him as he parked the car. In truth, she knew everything wasn't ok, but she felt the need to comfort him now.

Getting out of the Jeep with the container in hand she took a look at the two story cabin and gave a broad smile. It looked very nice, quiet, and simply perfect for their needs right now. "Any alcohol you have in your house, hide it." Roslyn warned Patrick in a hushed whisper as they walked up to the door. The first place that Roslyn went to was the kitchen to wash the container he had let her use and then she proceeded to look around the house. The first thing that caught her attention was the TV. She immediately tried to turn it on to hopefully find out what had and was happening right now in the city. However, to her frustration, all she received was static. Roslyn sighed, "Capable is out." before she immediately tried the computer to find that she couldn't get a wireless signal. Everything that could inform her of what was happening outside of this cabin wasn't working. "Damn it..." She cursed under her breath as she went to look around the rest of the house.

She found the master bedroom where she spied the sleeping kitty, the restroom with a nice sized bath, and then the stairs that led to the single bedroom on the second floor. Until now, she hadn't been able to find a window facing north and she was hopeful she might find one there. She wanted to at least see the city, if she could. And so coming quickly up the stairs, she found to her disappointment that the room was empty with the exception of a mattress leaning up against the wall. It never occurred to her to move the mattress, because who would place a mattress over a window? Besides, it wasn't her house. She had permission to stay, but she didn't want to start moving things around and risk losing that permission by breaking something either. So, she simply walked back down the stairs to join the guys and to see what they were doing. "Patrick, I know it is a bit much to ask, but do you have some clothes that I can borrow? I like sweats...but...well.." She covered her chest with her arms to keep her nipples from being visible. She could really use a long sleeved shirt. Feeling awkward that Timmy-Tom was hearing her at that moment, she quickly changed the subject and turned her body away from them as her face turned red, "How about I make us something to eat? Patrick, can you help me out?" She asked pleadingly, hoping he would understand.
 
Patrick let Roslyn take the lead, and telling her why he doesn’t have cable or Internet access. “I found that new iPad to be more useful, while I have lost now. And other than watching movies and streaming videos, not much into being a couch potato for the tube either. Alas, I have no idea where my iPad is anymore.” Timmy-Tom walked slowly behind, keeping a distance, his hands placed behind his back, watching them both.

When she moved up, she can hear Patrick talking to Timmy-Tom in an annoying tone, but not loud or clear enough for her to catch his words. Even when she walked back down stairs, Patrick seemed on edge. Like he was nervous about something that is or will be happening. Whatever he told Timmy-Tom, the now introverted third wheel seemed to be unmoved. Hearing both of her questions, Patrick started to explain, “I don’t have that much. Mostly microwavable entrees like pot pies. Besides, for...”

But by now Timmy-Tom himself was already heading for the kitchen. He paused briefly in front of the refrigerator, then after opening it, pulled out sausage links, biscuits, and then from another door of several, a pancake mix. Seeing him do this without being told like he just became the hired help made Patrick face turn red. Patrick walked up to Roslyn’s side, putting his hand on her back and leading her to the bedroom.

“Let... him... do whatever he is doing. Um... I have a younger sister like you that likes to stop by during the weekends. That’s her room there.” He pointed to the right, the locked door. “Its smaller so she actually keeps her clothes in here. Since she has a similar body size like you, it ought to fit.” He sat on the bed, then it dawned on him he really ought to leave, and nervously started to head out. “I’ll leave you some privacy.”

He closed the door and started chewing in hush tones Timmy-Tom yet again. All she got was, “You are being such of a...” Their conversation became more civil sounding, but Patrick was the more exigent sounding. When she opened the door, she caught the last thing he said to Timmy-Tom, the last words of their conversation before he saw her. “You can’t seduce a nymphomaniac!” Timmy-Tom was still cooking, while Patrick was on the chair, appearing exacerbated.
 
Roslyn watched Timmy-Tom as he walked to the cabinet and refrigerator, pulling out sausages, biscuits, and mix like he had known they would be there before he even walked into the house. It was strange. There was no way he could know that, and yet he didn't looked even remotely surprised that he found that food there, "Hey Timmy-Tom, how did you know that-" Suddenly, she was cut off as Patrick began leading her to the bedroom quickly. Roslyn was curious, but didn't want to be rude, so she decided she could ask him later about it. Maybe she was just making a big deal out of nothing. After all, if there was one thing Timmy-Tom had mastered, it was the art of confusing her.

Roslyn winced slightly as he exaggerated the word 'him', feeling guilty that she had asked that he should come along, but smiled and said, "Thank you! I'm sure I can find something to wear." She said confidently before giving him a small peck on the cheek. As he sat left the room and began firing at Timmy-Tom in a hushed voice, she laughed and began to look through the drawers to find a shirt and some pants that would fit her. After settling on a long sleeved violet shirt with a v-neck cut and a pair of blue jeans, she stepped back out of the room to see what they were up to now. The comment she heard though, made her blush all the way down to her neck, "What on Earth are you two talking about?!" She asked as she walked forward and took a good look at both of them. Patrick seemed almost exhausted from a lengthy conversation that ended with nymphomaniac's while Timmy-Tom seemed hardly fazed at all. "I swear, I'll never understand men. Not in a million years." She sighed as she ran her fingers through her short blond hair and took a deep breath.

"MMM! That smells good Timmy-Tom. Who would have known you would have been such a good cook!" She complimented as she took a seat next to Patrick, "And thank you for letting me borrow your sister's clothes. They fit perfectly!" She said, obviously trying to keep both of them from fighting with compliments and gentle ego strokes. Whether that was going to work or not remained to be seen, but she was trying her best as the oven went off to indicate that the biscuits were ready, "I'll get it!" She offered as she hopped up. Anything to keep silence from taking over the room.
 
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