Along Came A Spider [OPEN]

Dodoco King

Dodoco King

Active Member
Benefactor
zNSrXHR.png

It was another day in Silson, Nevada where the landmarks were indistinguishable and you were an hour car ride from anything resembling a city. Whether you were taking a test, driving to work, or cutting class, the humdrum of every day life came to a halt with the sound of an airplane. Circling overhead, the plane unloaded flyers upon flyers, descending like rain upon desert soil.

rYtQdHm.png

It seemed too good to be true. How could a project that big pop up over night? Nonetheless, there was little else to do in Silson so you journey to the edge of town on opening night. After you pay and enter the building, you are greeted with plants ranging from typical desert marigold to the rarest saplings known to man. The botanical garden has no shortage of wondrous species, but nothing compared to Lavalal's featured exhibit: Amazing Arachnids. It was everything that the flyer advertised and more! So why couldn't you remember a thing? Was it something in the air or were you simply too tired? You think little of it, but the next day you notice a small bump on your body. A spider bite. The day after, you break out into a fever. On the seventh day, your sickness finally subsides and your bite has bloomed into an intricate pattern. By the time you reach the Jupiter Art Center, Lavalal has already packed up and left, leaving you with nothing but your newfound powers.

Yes, this is everyone’s story. The powers you gained could have been anything. You either told only the one’s closest to you, or hid it from everyone. A year has passed and corpses begin showing up on the news, though the only link between the victims is their cause of death: spider bites. You receive an email an experience similar to yours and a proposal to meet.

Lavalal is returning this year. Will you seek the truth or stay in hiding?

---

Navigation:

IC Thread: Here
OOC Thread: Here
Character Index: Here
Interest Check: Here​
 
Last edited:
TZ1mSW9.png

kDzgb7Y.png


Key:
Red - Restaurants
Green - Grocery/General Store
Blue - Gas Station
Yellow - Specialty Shops/Locations

Silson Mall - This is a common hangout spot for Silson teenagers. As one of the free, air conditioned buildings you'll often see cliques squatting in different areas of the mall with the fountain being the most popular. Skaters and free runners are a scourge among mall security, but the guards can never seem to catch up to them. Many families will walk around during the weekend.
Juniper Park - This is the biggest park in Silson. It features a large playground, several picnic tables, and barbecue pits.
Gurerro Forest - This is the biggest attraction in the city. Gurerro Forest is a niche campsite known only by a handful of Nevada natives. Unlike the rest of the surrounding area, the forest is unusually lush and green so it provides great coverage for outdoor enthusiasts. RVs have been known to come through the area and are mostly welcome, though they are fined if their vehicles are found to be leaking oil.
Gurerro Lake - A man made lake towards the edge of town, it was initially meant to provide more scenery to accompany the forest. Unfortunately it has been taken over by a myriad of plants, algae, and former pets. Citizens have been advised not to swim in there, but that's never stopped anyone.
Jupiter Art Center - The Jupiter Art Center features two separate sections: art and theater. The actual art department features local artists while the indoor theater is used for performances and hosting conventions.
Hometown Kitchen - The one Chinese restaurant in town, and the Li family (mainly the owners) lets you know it. Every year they win "Silson's Best," though the competition is not particularly steep. Aside from takeout, Hometown Kitchen also functions as a psuedo-butcher shop with delicacies such as roast pork, peking duck, and braised squid.
Paw Prints & Fishtails - TBA
Silson Cemetery - As the name suggests, it's a small cemetery located in the northwest of the town. It's often said that those who do not leave Silson are doomed to die there and that appears to hold true. Compared to other cities, the cemetery is quite small and those who partake in the mortician's services often have their loved ones cremated to save space.
 
Last edited:
yZUcZzb.png


In the sleepy town of Silson, Nevada few things are more exciting than tour buses, rain, and a new convention at the Jupiter Art Center. This year the Laval Botanical Garden was making its second appearance, but where your friends and family have shown interest you feel a shiver down your spine. The memory of the bite was still fresh in your mind as was the bewilderment that followed. Six days ago an email popped up from an unknown sender. Whatever replies you sent were bounced back to your inbox; searching their email brought no answers. That was of course, assuming they were even real.

mUuQVk1.png

Whether you spent your day working, in school, or on an airplane, midnight is fifteen minutes away and for one reason or another, you've found your way heading to the park.
 
After a few days of pretty rough and hurried driving, because of course this would catch him halfway across America, Grisham was pretty pissed. He wasn't a cheery person on the regular, mind you. But he was now off of his usual route, in the middle of September, and he had a couple of clients that he had had to cancel with. That was bad for business. At least his dogs were having a good time. The letter said to bring nothing, not to bring no one. And It wasn't like dogs could tell any secrets that may or may not be revealed.

An impromptu night walk to Juniper Park was good news for them, and they gave Grisham a good excuse to be there. Yeah so he was the weirdo that walked his dogs close to midnight. Who'd give a shit?. Anyone he could meet here at this time had other things in mind besides wondering what he was up to. Maybe cruising, or burying a body. If they tried to rob him... Yeah, the S&W 1911 handgun he'd brought was still in its concealed holster. Under his coat, he also carried a swiss pocket knife. Because he wasn't stupid, even if for now It all looked calm. He held on to Sugar and Spice's leashes, thanked them for bringing him small rocks they thought were interesting or something, and walked. In his bag he had a tablet, and of course he had a phone. But what he could do wasn't obvious or outlandish. He also didn't think he'd be there alone.

Something obvious in the email was that It didn't start with any sort of direct greeting, or names. So it could have been sent to god knew how many folks. The trip better be worth it, and not some elaborate joke. That would be awful, because he had better places to be. More interesting things to do, too.

He was being watched from a tree, but he hadn't noticed the hooded figure. Iza had brought their suit, but only the lower part was visible. They were not wearing the helmet, and they had a thick hoody over the top, to cover their head and middle without being obvious. The email hadn't said to go anywhere in particular once inside the park. So for now Iza watched a creepy dude with two dogs, maybe a drug dealer or a sleepless random. Drawing no attention to themself.
 
Last edited:
"-I only ask that you delete this letter."

OK, Olive thought.

And so she did, the cursor smoothly making its way to click the button as it had done for the countless spam emails she had received before. Were it only that easy to forget, of course, Olive would have then proceeded with her day as if it were any other normal one (well, as normal as cycling through six powers in a day can get). However, the seed that had been planted a year prior was now showing obvious signs of sprouting and she couldn't just, well, ignore it!

So, the cursor navigated to the 'Deleted' sub-folder and she instead reread the letter again.

Then again.

Then finally a third time just to make sure she had properly absorbed its contents.

And of course, she had. God damn it all.

Fifteen minutes to midnight

Near the time she was meant to arrive, Olive had already conjured a list in her head of at least a half dozen other things she would rather be doing that Friday night as she got out of her parked car, and all of them involved being back home. It didn't help ease her mind at all that midnight was also one of her scheduled power switches, and she always felt especially vulnerable during those moments. A slight wind picked up and Olive felt a chill take over, but whether or not that was just what she had on her mind or the cool, ambient nature of the wind was another mystery to tack onto the list.

The letter had mentioned not to bring anything, but even in a small town like this there was no woman in her right mind that went out at night without at least a little protection. Sure, it helped to have a rotating set of super powers, but those were still a rather fresh development in her life and she couldn't always depend on them. What she could always depend on was the car key she held in between her fingers in a closed fist - or the back-up canister of pepper spray that was concealed just within an inner jacket pocket. Those had, at least, always given her some modicum of security.

As her feet met the concrete that was the sidewalk, she reached out her hand to loosely run it along the chain link fence that bordered it as she walked along to meet the path that further led into the park itself. As she hit the gap in the fence that actually marked the entrance to one of the few trails that led through, she looked back at the safety of her vehicle and the streetlights and contemplated just going back home after all. Honestly, she was tired of all this already, exhausted even, and sometimes - this being one of those times - she couldn't even be bothered.

With a small sigh of regret, she took the first step and entered the park.
 
The baseball bat fit snugly in its carrier, not unlike a sword in its sheath. Though aluminum was lighter, she felt more secure with the sturdiness of wood. Jezca had been told in the letter to bring nothing, but what person in their right mind would fall for that? According to her parents, any man she didn't know could be a murder, a trafficker, or a mugger for all she knew! She was a girl. It would be too dangerous for her!

And that hypothetical argument cemented her to decision to leave for the park.

She'd installed an anchor point adjacent to her window a few months after she discovered her power but tonight would be the first time she'd use her body as the actual rope. She was no stranger to sneaking out, but descending two stories a new sort of terror. Pulling two threads from her finger tips, she tied them around the hook before crawling out of her window. Okay, okay. Steady. It's not like you've never jumped off a diving board...or a playground...or the second floor of the mall. Just...go slow. You...you got this.

Jezca inched down the wall, taking care not to look down. What was normally seconds felt like hours and by the time she put her feet down, she was sure midnight had already passed. (In actuality, only three minutes had actually passed on her watch). Holding back a wince as she retracted her threads into her fingers, she climbed over the wooden door separating the backyard from the front.

Phew. Hard part over.

Jezca didn't so much dash as she strolled the rest of the way to Juniper Park, not wanting to attract one of the four cops patrolling Silson. As far as anyone was concerned she was a teenager taking a late night walk with a baseball bat for no particular reason (definitely no vandalism. She promised!). She just needed protection and bringing her cell phone wasn't an option lest her parents figured out how to use their phone tracker again.

Grisham, is that you? It was difficult to distinguish faces in the dim lighting that the street lamps provided; however, she would recognize those dogs anywhere. Not to mention that despite it being a few years since she last saw him, he hadn't aged all that much. Jogging closer into the park, she delivered a harsh "psssst" to grab his attention.
 
The barking of two dogs mixed in with the rest of the night's cacophony. Overall It had been pretty quiet until then. Only birds, the wind and the odd cricket. Iza was still watching from their post on the tree, and could now see three people. Or they thought so, one of them was still far away. But there was the man with the dogs and a girl or something, way closer.

Sugar and Spice got a bit freaked out until Jezca came closer. It was likely that they didn't remember her very well, but Grisham did. He had seen her and her family around, the parents restaurants' food was really damn good. Hell, Grisham had been coming around Silson for the winter since Jezca was little. That was her name, right? It was odd enough, to him, that he'd remember it. He knew her.

"What the fuck are you doing here at this hour??" because the hell?, he held his dogs leads a bit tigther and pulled them back. They calmed down soon enough, though, and Grisham squinted at the girl, struggling a bit with the lack of light.
 
"What am I doing here? What are you doing here?" Jezca asked, stepping over to him.

Sure, Grisham could be walking his dogs but why bother going all the way to Juniper Park when he could make simple rounds around Gurerro Lake? It'd certainly be closer to his RV, even if it was sketchier at night.

Could he be the sender of the letter?

Jezca pursed her lips. No, that was even less of a possibility than him walking his dogs at midnight. She was sure that he'd been an old man since the first day she saw him buy takeout from her family's restaurant. Being able to prevent replies and encrypt an email seemed...above him. That could only mean...

"Don't tell me..." It hadn't occurred to her that other people would be attending the meeting. Even if the email mentioned "everyone else," the line flew over her head in favor of a time and place. For that matter, who would come out so late on a Wednesday night? Didn't people have work to go to, or school?

Before she could finish her sentence, a meek voice hissed at the duo.

"Guys, guys. We need to keep quiet about this." Far from the vague shadow Jezca imagined, a bespectacled man emerged from seemingly nowhere. Without glancing around, he pulled out a notepad and crossed off a few names off his list. "Don't bother hiding I know you're both here."
 
While Sugar was pretty chill, Spice had no reservations and was growling at the man that come out of fucking nowhere. This night was already turning out to be ten times weirder than Grisham had hoped. Even if in his heart what he was hoping for, was for absolutely nothing to happen so he could go to bed and forget about his late walk in the park.

"What??, Who the fuck are you now? Did you send the message? Because I'm pretty sure she doesn't have my email. Speak up." Said Grisham to the strange man, making a grab for his clipboard. He did very little to keep Spice at a distance, and the dog's growls only turned deeper, encouraged by his owner's attitude.

Maybe it was time to come down from the tree, thought Iza, who was witnessing everything that was happening down there. But they didn't feel encouraged by dog-man and clipboard-dude. The girl looked like less of a threat, but he didn't want to subestimate her. If they had all been cited here, then did they all have powers? What could the other two do? Were they different or the same? Should Iza go down there with or without their mask on? The mask was probably a good idea to keep their identity secret and all. But then again if the email had reached them, did it mean they already knew?. Ugh... Decisions, decisions.
 
"Woah, woah, take it easy. I'm here to help you!" The unnamed man yelped, stepping away from Grisham.

"Okay prove it!" Jezca piped in, "how do we know you weren't just trolling us?"

"Alright," he said before lifting a page from the clipboard, "your name is Jezca Li, a fifteen year old native to Silson. You visited the Lavalal Botanical Garden on opening day with your friends between the hours of 2:00 P.M. and 6:30 PM. Around five o'clock, you were separated from your group and reunited thirty minutes later."

"How did you know that?" Jezca face darkened as she reached for her bat. He barely matched Grisham's stature and the loose fit on his cardigan only contributed to his nonthreatening aura. Even with the height difference, they had the numbers advantage as well as the power(s?) to back them up.

"How do you think I found all of you?" The man asked with a sigh, "I don't want to explain myself twice so it would be prudent for all of you to gather around."

Eying a tree not too far from the trio, he gestured towards it. "That means you as well."
 
As Olive proceeded warily into the depths of the park itself, her senses found themselves dialed up to 11. Every sound, scent, and sight became raw, unprocessed input for her brain. The rustle of the leaves on the wind, the freshly wet grass from its latest date with the automatic sprinkler system, the occasional chirp from a nocturnal creature saying, 'look at me, I am here'. A snapping branch might have been able to startle her.

Which is why a dog suddenly barking in relatively close proximity nearly made her jump out of her own skin.

She froze, heart now pounding in her ears alongside her chest. She listened. Barking subsided into dialogue, though obviously not as discernable. She chose to head towards the source, as it was too late to be backing out now and leaned into the small comfort of knowing there was at least a potentially cute dog ahead. Perhaps it went without saying, but she preferred the company of animals to people anyway. Unfortunately, the logistics of the email she received being sent by a dog were a little far-fetched, pun not intended, but a girl could dream.

As she entered the range for the conversation to become intelligible, so too was she able to see who was engaging within it. Two men and a younger girl, familiarity rang for some of the faces, but the names that belonged to them delayed their arrival. The dogs, however, were instantaneous. Sugar and Spice, which made Mr. And Everything Nice holding their leads the man named Grisham.

He had been in the store plenty of times whenever winter came through. The girl Olive recognized from her store as well, as everybody in Silson had popped in from time to time - either to actually purchase something, or to just play with the adolescent animals that were for sale. The other man was entirely unknown, and as his back was mostly facing her, she couldn't even see his face to tell if she knew him or not.

She raised a hand in a sort of half wave, hoping maybe to garner the attention of either the girl or Grisham while they were engaged in their conversation with the mystery man, as she continued her approach. She had gotten close enough to catch the last thing the turned-away man had said before his gesture at a tree off to the side.

"That means you as well."

Unaware of the other stranger up in the tree, Olive could only assume that this man was somehow referring to her despite not having seen her yet. She came up short from the group by maybe six feet, remaining extremely aware of this distance she had placed between them.

"Actually, I'm right here." She looked from Grisham to the unknown man, to the familiar girl who she now noticed was also brandishing a bat.

"Hi." She forced a nervous smile. "Is everything, uh, okay?"

It felt awkward to ask and so it was probably equally awkward for them to hear, and because she wasn't quite sure what to do with her hands, she put them in her pockets and awaited a response.
 
It took two sniffs when Olive approached for the dogs to recognise her and change their behaviour entirely. The bespectacled man now completely forgotten as they whined and pulled on the leads to get to the nice lady who often smelt of food. And who often provided good scritches and treats.

"Olive?!" Said Grisham out loud, still puzzled. How many people were going to be here tonight? Were they all in the same situation?.

Iza rolled their eyes. Alright, from the gesture alone that guy had seen them or was somehow aware of their position. Which sucked. How'd he know?. There was more barking and whining, and a woman they were pretty sure they had met before if their memory didn't fail them joined too. So it was dog-man, clipboard dude, bat-girl (heh) and now Olive. They'd heard dog-man say her name.

"Coming!" They said, making rustling noises from up the tree as they put the bottom part of their costume and Anubis themed shoes in their backpack. Sticking to the leggings they wore underneath and sneakers instead. When they were done they climbed down without using their power, promptly scraped a knee, and stood at a safe distance. Dogs were awesome and so were baseball bats. But Iza had no desire to come too close.

"Oh come on! Anyone else hiding around? If so, COME OUT!" Shouted Grisham, whose patience was the running out fast.
 
"Relax," the man nodded with a hint of exasperation, "the last one of us will reveal themself soon."

But Olive's already here, Jezca frowned, turning back. Did he see something she didn't? His gaze seemed to reach past the group as if honing in on some unknown figure.

"Now," he finally started, "you're all here because you want answers. Is that correct?"

"I mean yeah you could have started with that," Jezca muttered, "so what is it? Are we all mutants now?"

"No...not exactly. I prefer the term infected. Wait, no! Put down the bat," he massaged the bridge of his nose for a bit before continuing "what I mean to say is that those spiders did more than poison you. These spiders are an ancient species thought to be extinct until my team found a mother and its egg sac hidden in the ruins of Cobá."

"Oh so this is your fault," Jezca deadpanned.

"What? No! I was doing my best to prevent this from happening," the man huffed, "I warned everyone that their venom was highly unstable and that they needed to remain in captivity. For the most part they listened so imagine my shock to find them being advertised at the botanical gardens. I tried to call the police, but I was told that they could find no evidence of robbery. I managed to track them down but not before...this."

He lifted his sleeve, revealing a scar not unlike the other superpowered people in the vicinity.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top