ic Survival Class: Survival in the Hereafter

[RocketLord]

GM

 

The Painted Desert, Arizona

March 3rd, 2024

10:00 AM

 

The Painted Desert survival class has been going on for years at Claremont at this point. Rumors have started to spread by now. Most of the time, the chosen students get to spend some time in the Painted Desert, learning how to survive in a hostile environment, seeing some pretty sights. Then there are, of course, the survival classes that go awry. The ones that end up going into a strange mesa that takes them on time travel adventures as they go through the paths. Sure, it sounds outlandish, and after the first or even second trip, it could have been anything, but after the third trip? Well, there is obviously something out in the Painted Desert.

 

The last few years have been calm, at least. Just a normal survival class, nothing happening. Nobody ending up in any mesas or other time periods. Whatever weirdness happens in the Painted Desert is obviously over by now, right? It should just be a regular survival class.

 

Right?

 

That's what the young would be heroes Baltazar Botez, Carmen Alvarez Arrache, Bernadette O’Connell and Vueriz would perhaps think, at least, as the van that has taken them from the airport stops in front of a small house in the middle of nowhere and opens. They have been told where they would go and what they would have to go through. The heat during the day, the massive drops in temperature during the night, having to navigate and survive without using their powers, at least to the extent that they can. 

 

A woman with black hair tied into a long braid sits by the house, with a massive backpack sitting next to her. She is wearing a wide brimmed dark grey cowboy hat and tan shorts and t-shirt. 

 

"Hey guys, I'm Alexandra Macedon. Welcome to the Painted Desert."

[Thevshi]

Multi-Girl

 

Bernadette O'Connell was one of the first ones out of the van, checking quickly to make sure everyone else was out and not left anything inside before making her way over toward the house where the dark-haired woman was waiting for them. The Claremont Senior had heard plenty of stories about class trips to the Painted Desert, which included more than half her fellow Young Guardians members, Murine, Luke, Leon and Charlie.

 

The tall redhead was wearing a pair of hiking boots, jeans shorts, a white T-shirt with her band’s logo on it, over which she wore a light brown button up shirt (which was currently completely unbuttoned). Although she had worked on her tan some during the recent trip to Fiji, she had on a wide brimmed sun hat to help some with the sun, and sunglasses.

 

With a backpack slung over one shoulder, the redhead led the way over the short distance to the house. "Good mornin' Dr. Macedon, Bernadette O'Connell." She said in greeting to their guide.

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

"I am Gamma Buzz, baby! The amazing Cockroach kid! Kerpow! Kerpow!" said Baz, eagerly throwing a quick punch combination he had learned from Crimson TIger, but not very well. 

 

"Fortunately my amazing cockroach powers allow me to survive in the extremes of hot and cold," he explained, I fact he had learned from experience leaving in squalor. 

 

"But I still need to drink. So I reckon we need to get a grip on the water situation as a priority. Deserts dont have much water in, right? See! I knew I was almost paying attention in the geology class!"

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen rolled her eyes at Buzz's show of skill, finding it rather unnecessary as she carried only a backpack and her varsity jacket tied around her waist. As some form of cat creature or werecat. One far older teacher had even called her a werewoman, but didn't understand at all what he meant by that in English. Carmen was surprised that he had even got anything out of it considering what she knew about him and witnessed, adjusting her cream-colored sun hat on her head. The young heroine had chosen to go relatively light. Jean shorts and a yellow T-shirt that she had spare to wear. Having black fur meant that dealing with the head would be a lot hard, making sure that she carried extra water in her backpack she wore. The oddity was the old red tennis shoes she wore, Carmen not liking the rather intense heat that would likely make it hard to walk around, especially in jagged areas of rock baked in the harsh sun's heat. It was far hotter than any day she had dealt with out in the Carribean temperatures of Puerto Rico.

 

"Carmen Arrache," she spoke in a short and prompt manner.

 

 

[Kaede Kimura]

Blue Bolt

 

Vueriz had learned from her trip to Fiji, making sure to clarify the sort of temperature she'd be dealing with beforehand. As such she was wearing her latest creation, a super awesome climate controlled jacket! Now she could wear her superhero costume without worrying (as much) about overheating (again, as much). She still wanted to crawl under the van and never come out again, but that wouldn't be very cool of her.

 

Still she tried to match Baz' enthusiasm, striking a pose next to him (He was, after all her fellow cool rebel teen). "And I'm Blue Bolt! Gadgeteer extraordinaire!" She paused, having not expected the rhyme in English, but deciding to roll with it. "My homeworld is much colder than Earth, so I'm sure I'll be fine at night, but I am sure there will be other challenges for us along the way." 

[RocketLord]

GM

 

Dr. Macedon looks around at the group before her, placing her hands in her sides as she looks over them one by one. 

 

"You're a varied bunch, aren't you?" she asks, but with no hint of malice. She just sounds curious, as she looks over the assembled group. "Figure it'd make sense for you guys to get some survival training like this in."

 

"I hope you all brought backpacks with the gear that you were told to bring, right? Sleeping bags, lots of water, all the fun stuff?"

 

She makes sure that they all have what they need, as the van drives off. "Sooo... now we're all alone. Without any way out of the desert. The goal is to make it to the town of Red Rocks. It should be a few days by foot, nothing too bad, but do you have any questions before we get started?"

[Thevshi]

Multi-Girl

 

Bernadette gave a small sigh at Baz's antics, but of course the younger teen's enthusiasm was one of the things that seemed to keep him going, so she stayed quiet. Besides, for all she knew, he could well be adapted to surviving in the conditions they would be facing out in the desert. If anything the redhead was a bit more worried about herself and Vueriz than Baz or Carmen. Vueriz in particular was rather susceptible to heat, and while she had worked on something to help with that, if it failed out there, it could be bad.

 

The Irish teen put her left arm through the loose strap of her large pack and pulled them a bit tighter. "I believe we have everythin' doctor." She replied as she looked over at the others. "I think I understand what we need ta do, might as well get started."

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen, for all her time in relatively sunny environments where she grew up, was not used to the pure heavy heat of the environment around her. It turned out even she was not immune to such intense heat that this part of the country could dish out. There was little enthusiasm for the trip, but getting the chance to get out of the city would be far better than staying within the confines of her room when she was getting an excused absence for a few days from school. It was all worth it at least to her, even if she couldn't see Michael for a few days. Carmen had gotten into the habit of seeing him at least once a day unless it was a super busy. This would be a break period of sorts, one that she was getting used to now as she took a deep breathe.

 

"So, you leading us over to there or something?"

[RocketLord]

GM

 

"Nope," Dr. Macedon says in response to Carmen and pulls something out. "You guys are. And you just volunteered for first shift."

 

She throws the small thing she had just pulled out to Carmen, who hopefully manages to catch the compass.

 

"And you'll need this, too."

 

Having walked closer while Carmen looked at the compass, Dr. Macedon holds out a map of the area neatly folded into a square. 

 

"So... do any of you know how to use a map and compass to find your way, when you're in situations like these without a ton of landmarks?"

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

"Sure!" said Buzz, full of the confidence born from a lack of confidence. "The needle thing points north, and the map has a picture of the land. You use the map and the compass to work out where you are going by using the compass and the map. Together. If you use them together you can work out where you are going, as well as where you are going, and.. ah... where you are going, as well!"

 

He smiled and shifted his eyes left and right. 

 

"But the others probably want to explain it so they can show they know as much as me."

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen catches it without any hesitation, as if plucking it out of the air, looking to the small device of plastic and metal, watching the needle point towards the magnetic North. The map, creased and wrinkled slightly, displayed the area and where they needed to go, "Is that it?" she says, looking up to the doctor.

 

Looking around at the mention of landmarks, nothing seemed all that special, or at the least, nothing that seemed besides the rocks like an outright landmark. It was an out of element experience, used to vegetation, vantage points to orient herself than some sort of hot orange colored landscape that was almost surreal to look at "Huh..."

[Kaede Kimura]

Blue Bolt

 

Vueriz had been positioning her skyboard above herself as a shield from the sun while Dr. Macedon tossed Carmen the compass and Baz took the map. Given the pair's rather uninspiring reactions she figured she'd take a look, first trying to peek under Baz's arm, then jumping, both to no avail. Instead she clambered into her board to look over the boy's shoulder, and then being squarely reminded that she had yet to figure out how to read English.

 

So she was left looking at a flat piece of processed plant fiber with absolutely no way of telling what anything meant, from the weird squiggly lines to any of the words in the part she assumed was a map key. "Ah." She uttered, eloquently as always. 

"Maybe I could fly up with someone to get a better view."

[Thevshi]

Multi-Girl

 

Bernadette listened as Doctor Macedon explained (generally) what they were expected to do, tossing a compass to Carmen and providing a map. "I'm pretty shoor that is what we have GPS fer." The redhead muttered to herself.

 

Her mood did not improve when Baz began talking gibberish that made it clear he had no idea what he was talking about. Carmen was at least trying to work out what to do, and Vueriz at least suggested something that could be useful, but that the Irish teen was pretty sure they would not be allowed to do.

 

“While that is a good idea Vueriz, we are not supposed ta use powers." Bernadette said to the small alien girl. "Yer board might not be a true power, usin' it like that might be the same as usin' GPS ta figure out where we are, assumin' we could even get a signal out there."

 

The redhead then turned to Baz. "Look Baz, bull#@%&in' yer way around stuff ya don' know may be fine a lot o' the time, there are times when ya just need ta admit you don' know somethin', especially if that somethin' is the difference between us gettin’ ta where we need ta, or endin' up lost out in the desert."

 

Bernadette then turned to face Doctor Macedon. "Doctor, I mostly grew up in the suburbs o' Dublin an' Boston, I can generally find me way around a city an' figure out a public transit system, but even then I rely on Apps. I don' know a bleedin' thing about navigatin' with a map an' compass. So, I would very much appreciate some instruction on how ta use 'em."

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

Baltazars antennae stood straight up at Bernadettes rebuke. He mulled over several acidic replies...

 

And was tempted to spit them out. 

 

Hey thats what Cockroaches do, right? Spit acid? So it would like be totally justified... he said feelilng sour. 

 

But what was the point? She wanted to spit acid, he wouldn't spit it back. 

 

"Lifes too serious for me to take seriously..." he said, eyeing her. 

 

And biting his cockroach lip. That girl had it all, no doubt. Looks, powers, the real deal. Gamma Buzz had to crawl through sileage to get where he was. Literally, on one particular difficult day travelling from Mexico. In fairness, she was looking out for them. A good motivation, but it felt, to Baz, like a life of steel. He wasn't sure a life of steel was worth living. 

 

The rebuke stung, doubly as it was warranted. 

[RocketLord]

GM

 

"No fighting, kids," Dr. Macedon says, standing between Baz and Bernadette while holding her hands up to separate them. "Whatever issues you got, you don't bring them up on a survival trip. Trust me, you don't want to end up fighting both nature and each other."

 

"With that said..." she continues, "I'm afraid Bernadette's right. No flying, no GPS. Besides, you're not gonna get a signal out here. So... Carmen, you'll want to start by establishing where we are and where we want to go. We need to plan a route. There's no a ton of landmarks out here, but there's a lot of mountains that you can find and use for your navigation. So try to look for the station over there, and see if you can find anything nearby. The map shows its North, so use the compass with it to align it right. Then we need to chart out a route. You can see the town there," she points it out, "so we need to cross the desert to get there."

[Kaede Kimura]

Blue Bolt

 

Vueriz grumbled slightly at not being allowed to fly, but didn't protest, settling instead on glaring at the map as if giving it the stink-eye would make it give up it's secrets. Macedon's explanation was clear and would probably be helpful, if she could tell any of the details from the mass of lines.

 

Giving up, she got back under her board, lifting it up so that it wouldn't hit one of her classmates, before walking over to stand next to Baz, who she gave a light pat on the arm and made some space under the board for on case he wanted some shade. 

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

"Thanks for the Shade!" said Baltazar. "All I need know is a straw hat, a poncho, and some glasses! And maybe a revolver, like in the Westerns?"

 

He gave a little side glance at Dr Macedon. "That would be cool, right? I mean, this is a survival class, and having a cowboy pistol would be super cool in the desert. In case we, errr.... need to... errrr.... we need to fire it a rock to break it open and get the water inside? I mean, its possible, isn't it?"

 

Even Baz knew this was a crock of bovine excrement, and through his hands up in despair. "All right, all right. Maybe not a revolver, but I think a poncho and a hat would be in order, right?"

[Thevshi]

Multi-Girl

 

Bernadette did not say anything as Dr. Macedon interjected, she had not been looking for a fight with Baz, or even an argument, and had said what she needed to. Even when Baz again fell back on his habit of making things up when talking about using a pistol to break open a rock to get water, the redhead did not say anything. As she had mentioned, most of the time it was harmless.

 

The Irish teen instead focused on Dr. Macedon as she began explaining to Carmen how the deviation diagram on the map showed the difference between the true north of the map and the magnetic north the compass pointed toward and how to use the two together to ensure you traveled in the intended direction. As the doctor pointed out some of the few terrain features that were visible, primarily the distant mountains, Bernadette did her best to match where those features were around them and where they were on the map.

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen was looking at the map, trying to figure out how to get from point A to point B, trying to use the information that the doctor was giving her in order to find the whole little part of theirs a route forward. She had never used a compass before in a situation that had called for it, using like a toy more or less when she was really young. Now, as she turned the entire map upside down one or twice before aligning the map correctly for the first time, she'd begin to orient herself now, using whatever sort of landmarks she could find in the terrain or in the forms of old dusty roads that crisscrossed the countryside for miles to see, unobstructed by anything man made in the direction of their destination.

 

"Is this right?" Carmen asks, unsure.

[RocketLord]

GM

 

Looking at Baz, Doctor Macedon smiles lightly and pats her side. Or rather, pats the holster on her side that seems to be holding a revolver. 

 

Turning back to the two students that seem willing to learn at the moment, she looks at what Carmen is pointing out. "That seems right, Carmen. See those rocks over there?" she points out a formation that, if you squint, look sort of like a man with a top hat. "They're right there." She pauses, and points to another spot on the map. "So, if we need to get here," she points at another spot on the map, to the North, "what direction do we need to go then, if you look at the map and the compass?"

 

Once Carmen and Bernadette figures it out, Doctor Macedon lets them take the lead through the desert, while she does her best to make Baz and Vueriz come along.

[MoonSimply]

La Puma Negra

 

Carmen looked over to the rocks. The rocks that looked the same as other rocks but slightly different enough to be a different rock. The top hat was not seen by her, but the uniqueness of the rock was enough to give her some sort of orientation in order to go ahead and make an idea at least of where she was at that moment, "So... that way," she says, pointing towards the wrong way. Carmen would then change the direction of where she was pointing using the compass and what she was so far taught to point at the least in the proper way forward. It wasn't much of a start but it was something for someone that was only now reading a proper made map.

 

"This is it, right?"

[Thevshi]

Multi-Girl

 

Bernadette thought she had a pretty good idea of what they needed to do, and it seemed like Carmen did as well, although the other teen seemed a bit less certain of herself with the navigation. “Aye, that looks right Carmen. Don' feel rushed with this, better ta take yer time an' be shoor we are headin' where we are supposed to." The redhead replied in support of Carmen as the cat-girl started leading them off into the desert.

 

The redhead set off after Carmen, easily keeping pace with the other teen. From time-to-time, Bernadette glanced back to make sure Baz and Vueriz were within sight, although Dr. Macedon had moved to the back to keep an eye on them. Every so often, the Irish teen and Carmen stopped to consult the map and make sure they were still heading in the right direction, allowing for the others to catch back up.

 

After about an hour, Bernadette took her turn as the primary navigator, and took the lead as they continued through the desert.

[Kaede Kimura]

Blue Bolt

 

Vueriz nodded along with Baz's conversational stream of consciousness, deferring to his greater familiarity with terrestrial geology. This world was strange, what with its superheroes and time travel, she wasn't taking any knowledge for granted. Sure dihydrogen monoxide wasn't exactly great for her, but if she needed to find it for the others now she knew where to start looking. 

 

She reorients as Doctor Macedon explains how to read the map, making sure to memorize which landmarks she pointed to. She may not be able to read the arcane little symbols, but she could at least remember one pile of colorful rocks over another. And so they began walking. 

 

And walking...

 

And walking...

 

And walking some more. 

 

She had spent the first little while watching Baz's glow reflect off the sand. It was very pretty, but there was only so long that you could stare at your classmate before it got weird. (and she'd probably left it a bit too long as it was.) And so she quickly scrambled for a topic. "So... you listen to any new bands recently?" (Nailed it.)

[Supercape]

Gamma Buzz

 

"The desert is really cool, right? I mean. Look over there! Theres some sand! Oh wait... over there! Some more sand. Hey... sand. And.... wait for it... rock!"

 

Baz did a little tap dance of faux surprise. 

 

"Oh I mean sure there is cactus and insects, and sunshine beating down on you neck like a drill, but.. yeah, the desert is pretty dry, right? Gettit? Dry... dull... dry... no water?"

 

"The best thing about the desert is the tumbleweed, am I right?"

 

Baz kicked some sand up, just to be able to watch some sand jostling around in the dry air. 

 

To be honest, he was more concerned about his classmates. Heat was no problem for the cockroach kid. But they might be feeling it. And then there was the problem of water. 

 

"New bands? Its all i listen to?" he said to Blue Bolt. "I mean, I want to be a DJ when I grow up. Nothing better than banging out some new and original tune!"

 

Edited March 4 by Supercape

[RocketLord]

GM

 

As the group continue their trek through the desert the day, night slowly begins to fall. The light begins to fade as the sun passes beyond the horizon. With Carmen and Bernadette taking the lead, and, if Dr. Macedon manages to make them do the same Vueriz and Baz as well, they eventually make it to the spot that had been pointed out as their goal before all light is gone. The wind is picking out.

 

"Alright, great job everyone," Alexandra says, as she puts her backpack down. "We've dealt with the heat during the day, and you did fine, but it's about to get real cold out here when the sun goes down, especially with the wind picking up like that. In other conditions, you should go forage for wood or something to start a fire, but what do you think we should do here?"

 

The wind continues to pick up. Blowing stronger and stronger. Sand is slowly beginning to be moved about it, blowing around them.