Willow's Rather Eventful Shopping Trip, and a lot of Blood.
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 8:49 pm
<@AnE> The city of Salem was home to numerous strange and interesting individuals. Some with good intentions, some foul, but that was just how it went. Just beyond Crowley's Row, near the typical shopping areas, a young man stumbled out of an alleyway, shambling in a zombie-like state. He looked to be around twenty or so, and was clutching his stomach. Druggie? Hard to tell -- he certainly looked as though he'd seen better days, judging by the dark bags under his hazel eyes, brown hair disheveled. A few people weaved around him, muttering their disgust. He couldn't stop from vomiting over the curb, coughing and hacking wildly. He was dressed in a plaid overshirt, wifebeater and jeans, and carried a brown satchel at his side that was falling off of his shoulder.
<Suzthulhu> "I'm just going to pick up a few things for dinner tomorrow, love. I'll be home in an hour or two." Willow has parked her car along the curb near one of the shopping areas, intend on visiting a couple of the specialty stores for some different spices and whatnot to use tomorrow evening when she makes dinner. She's got her phone up to her ear, talking to Conrad, most likely. She pulls the strap of a brown suede purse over her head and across her body and nudges the door to her Prius closed with her foot. "Okay! Love you too! See you soon." Ending the call, she drops her phone in her purse and starts up the sidewalk. The sounds of people muttering and the ragged coughing catches her attention. She asks a few passerby what the deal is, but they just gesture toward the alleyway. Ever the Mama Willow, she furrows her brow and starts toward the coughing, sandals clicking softly on the sidewalk. The hem of a long brown skirt brushes her ankles, and she pulls a blue sweater more securely over a cream colored shirt. In spite of the nice weather during the day, Salem is still fairly chilly at night.
<@AnE> Hrgh. He gagged, then doubled over, clutching his stomach and crying out in pain. He began to fish around in his bag now, likely searching for a phone. His weight was resting against a nearby car, braced on his free hand. Out clattered a few things -- a notebook, camcorder and phone, the latter of which shattered as soon as it hit the pavement. "Sh...shit..." He grunted, snapping to attention at the sound of footsteps. He looked over toward Willow as she approached, "Lady--" The man called out gruffly before turning to have himself another vomit, this one marked with bright red. "Please. An ambulance. C-call..." All that vomiting was certainly making him weak, and he fell to one knee, promptly crying out in pain while a sharp series of cracks rang through the air, almost as if he'd broken his leg.
<Suzthulhu> "Oh my God. No, no, sit down! Are you alr-" But clearly, the young man is not alright. Willow can't help but make a face at the sight of blood-tinged vomit, and she rushes to the man's side, trying to catch him before he falls down. "Okay, okay, just hang in there, I'll call 911. Just sit still!" The cracking of what sounded like breaking bones makes her cry out with him, and she reaches a hand out to steady him, the other one digging in her purse for her phone. She looks around at all the other people just walking past them. "Someone, please, help me keep him still! You can't be seriously just walking by!" When she manages to pull her phone out, she unlocks the screen and dials 911, dropping to her knees on the sidewalk next to the very bad off youth. "I'm calling right now. Just hang in there. What happened to you?"
<@AnE> Trying to steady him was likely not the best idea, but it wasn't as though Willow knew! There were a few people who stopped, of course, but it was mostly just... to watch. The man tried to lean on Willow for support, but this only resulted in a second loud crack. His arm bent at a sickening ankle, bone jabbing through skin and grazing his heroine's arm as she tried to support him. Only when Willow pulled out her phone did a few others do the same -- real helpful sort they were. "D-don't kn-- hnnggh. Week... j-just gettnnngghh wors-" He tensed up, then began to seize wildly. The blood that ran from his twisted arm was so dark a red as to seem black, even under the bright street lights.
<Suzthulhu> "Shit." Willow, who so rarely swore, did so at this most appropriate time. When the 911 operator picks up, she starts firing off things like where she is, who she is, what's happening, etc. "Yeah, I'm just past Crowley's Row, on Crowe Street, right in front of the Spice Rack, that alley that coms out right there..." Crooking her neck to cradle the phone against her shoulder, she tries to assess the damage, and then -crack- again! "Ow! WHat the.. oh God!" Even with her medical training, she's in no way prepared for this. The bone grazes her arm through her sweater, and she's soon got more than a little blood on her. "Just hurry the hell up!" She drops her phone on the ground next to her, luckily not damaging it, but her main focus now is to try to stop the young man's bleeding. Hauling her purse off her shoulder, she yanks her sweater open and off, ripping one long sleeve off to wrap around the gushing arm wound. Then he starts to seize, and the only thing she can do then is try to hold him down to keep him from injuring himself even further.
<@AnE> It wouldn't be long before an ambulance would come blazing down the street of Salem! Unfortunately, the man's condition hardly seemed to be improving. Foaming at the mouth, he flailed and flailed, some more sickening cracks coming from his body -- all over, in fact. And while Willow's efforts to try and stop him from bleeding were certainly valiant, it only took one wrong crack before the man stopped moving entirely and went limp in the woman's arms. By the time the paramedics arrived, he was already dead, and quite the crowd had gathered. His body was twisted and bleeding, with shards of bone protruding from his skin and blood freely running from his wounds -- Willow had likely endured a few more scratches during the ordeal. His belongings were still on the curb nearby.
<Suzthulhu> Try as she might to both keep him from hurting himself more and from bleeding to death... it was all for naught. When he goes limp, she sobs, paying no mind to the blood, and just sort of cradles him in her lap. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry... I tried." There are cuts on her hands and arms, and even a scratch or two on her face from the man's flailing and breaking. She goes to wipe her face with the back of her sleeve and winces at the amount of blood on her arms. When the paramedics come rushing out of the ambulance, Willow releases the man and stands, looking around for some hint as to where he'd come from. Spotting his belongings, she wipes her hands on her skirt as best she can and goes to gather them up. She puts the camcorder and phone back in his satchel, along with the notebook, but takes a second or two while the EMTs scrape the guy off the sidewalk to look in his bag for anything else, like a wallet... something that would identify him.
<@AnE> They were puzzled. And once he was identified as DEAD, there was nothing but confusion. He had a wallet, but it was in his pants at the moment, probably drenched in blood. However, the notebook did have a name on it -- 'Jeremy Wilde'. Likely something for college or similar. Nobody had bothered to ask for the satchel from Willow, too concerned with gathering up the young man's body -- it was a difficult task, because moving him seemed to cause bones to break. Before they could load his body, that black blood had begun to pulse in his veins, creeping up along his skin and crystallizing noisily. Now, getting out of there before a crowd formed was top priority.
<Suzthulhu> She let the EMTs do their work, answering questions as they asked. No, she didn't know him. No, he wasn't dead when she got there. Yes, this had all just -happened- and she had been trying to save him! Since they hadn't asked her for his things, she carefully stuffs the notebook back in the satchel and puts it over her shoulder before going to pick her purse and phone up off the ground. The EMTs suddenly seemed rather in a hurry to get the body out, and she just catches sight of the pulsating, and the crackling crystalization is sickening in her ears. "What's happening?" It has yet to occur to her that the cuts and scrapes on her skin have come in contact with the man's blood. "Are... am I done...? Do I need to talk to the police or something too, or can I go get this blood off me..." So much for going to the store! Her lavender eyes are still full of tears, and her voice cracks when she speaks. WHoever this poor young man had been, he'd died horribly and in a lot of pain.
<@AnE> "The police will need you to fill out a witness report.." One of the guys nodded his head, still looking a little in-shock. You know how it is -- you've seen everything, but you haven't seen this. This was what Willow got for intervening! We can assume that the cops would come by, too -- later than the ambulance, since that's what cops do (KIDDINGmaybe). Willow would be questioned, asked to fill out some paperwork ... they'd probably reccommend she get some bloodwork done since she was cut up! But all of that could be handwaved and she'd be sent on her way once said report was filled out, likely with cards to 'YOU JUST SAW A DUDE DIE' counselling centers.
<@AnE> Because those exist, dammit.
<Suzthulhu> "Right..." She waits for the cops to finally show up, 6 hours later... (KIDDING). When they show up she answers all their questions, telling them where she'd been and why she'd been on that street, when she'd seen the young man, and everything up until the cracking crystallization sound. Bloodwork was a good idea, and she thanks them for the suggestion, since it hadn't occured to her yet. You know, seen a lot, hadn't seen this and she's likely in a bit of shock. It had been a shocking experience!! She manages to beg a blanket off the EMTs just before they skidaddle, and wraps it around herself to try to avoid getting blood all over her car. When she's finished with the police, she heads back to her car, setting both her purse and the young man's satchel down in her front seat. Hadn't there been a camcorder in there? She fishes it out and inspects it to see if it's still working. If so, she'd turn it on and see what's recorded, if anything.
<@AnE> The video camera was practically full of footage! He might have been one of those film student types, or maybe he was just a voyeur! The screen was slightly cracked, but it seemed to be in perfect working order otherwise. The most recent footage was from one week ago -- walking around Salem, interviewing people about numerous things related to the city's history. Most individuals were rather cooperative, or just plan dismissive, but near the end of the video, he chose to interview a decrepit old woman who reacted with outright hostility, shouting things about how he was a monster who ruined her life. He, of course, had no idea. Just before the camera was turned off, surges of black energy poured from her fingertips and she could be heard shrieking in ... some foreign language! Latin, maybe? Hard to tell.
<Suzthulhu> Willow watches the film quite attentively, not recognizing anyone in it. When it gets toward the end, and that final scene shows, she damn near throws the thing on the floor. What the hell was that??? Creepy. Closing the camcorder's screen, she sets it down in the seat next to her and just heads the hell home.
<Suzthulhu> "I'm just going to pick up a few things for dinner tomorrow, love. I'll be home in an hour or two." Willow has parked her car along the curb near one of the shopping areas, intend on visiting a couple of the specialty stores for some different spices and whatnot to use tomorrow evening when she makes dinner. She's got her phone up to her ear, talking to Conrad, most likely. She pulls the strap of a brown suede purse over her head and across her body and nudges the door to her Prius closed with her foot. "Okay! Love you too! See you soon." Ending the call, she drops her phone in her purse and starts up the sidewalk. The sounds of people muttering and the ragged coughing catches her attention. She asks a few passerby what the deal is, but they just gesture toward the alleyway. Ever the Mama Willow, she furrows her brow and starts toward the coughing, sandals clicking softly on the sidewalk. The hem of a long brown skirt brushes her ankles, and she pulls a blue sweater more securely over a cream colored shirt. In spite of the nice weather during the day, Salem is still fairly chilly at night.
<@AnE> Hrgh. He gagged, then doubled over, clutching his stomach and crying out in pain. He began to fish around in his bag now, likely searching for a phone. His weight was resting against a nearby car, braced on his free hand. Out clattered a few things -- a notebook, camcorder and phone, the latter of which shattered as soon as it hit the pavement. "Sh...shit..." He grunted, snapping to attention at the sound of footsteps. He looked over toward Willow as she approached, "Lady--" The man called out gruffly before turning to have himself another vomit, this one marked with bright red. "Please. An ambulance. C-call..." All that vomiting was certainly making him weak, and he fell to one knee, promptly crying out in pain while a sharp series of cracks rang through the air, almost as if he'd broken his leg.
<Suzthulhu> "Oh my God. No, no, sit down! Are you alr-" But clearly, the young man is not alright. Willow can't help but make a face at the sight of blood-tinged vomit, and she rushes to the man's side, trying to catch him before he falls down. "Okay, okay, just hang in there, I'll call 911. Just sit still!" The cracking of what sounded like breaking bones makes her cry out with him, and she reaches a hand out to steady him, the other one digging in her purse for her phone. She looks around at all the other people just walking past them. "Someone, please, help me keep him still! You can't be seriously just walking by!" When she manages to pull her phone out, she unlocks the screen and dials 911, dropping to her knees on the sidewalk next to the very bad off youth. "I'm calling right now. Just hang in there. What happened to you?"
<@AnE> Trying to steady him was likely not the best idea, but it wasn't as though Willow knew! There were a few people who stopped, of course, but it was mostly just... to watch. The man tried to lean on Willow for support, but this only resulted in a second loud crack. His arm bent at a sickening ankle, bone jabbing through skin and grazing his heroine's arm as she tried to support him. Only when Willow pulled out her phone did a few others do the same -- real helpful sort they were. "D-don't kn-- hnnggh. Week... j-just gettnnngghh wors-" He tensed up, then began to seize wildly. The blood that ran from his twisted arm was so dark a red as to seem black, even under the bright street lights.
<Suzthulhu> "Shit." Willow, who so rarely swore, did so at this most appropriate time. When the 911 operator picks up, she starts firing off things like where she is, who she is, what's happening, etc. "Yeah, I'm just past Crowley's Row, on Crowe Street, right in front of the Spice Rack, that alley that coms out right there..." Crooking her neck to cradle the phone against her shoulder, she tries to assess the damage, and then -crack- again! "Ow! WHat the.. oh God!" Even with her medical training, she's in no way prepared for this. The bone grazes her arm through her sweater, and she's soon got more than a little blood on her. "Just hurry the hell up!" She drops her phone on the ground next to her, luckily not damaging it, but her main focus now is to try to stop the young man's bleeding. Hauling her purse off her shoulder, she yanks her sweater open and off, ripping one long sleeve off to wrap around the gushing arm wound. Then he starts to seize, and the only thing she can do then is try to hold him down to keep him from injuring himself even further.
<@AnE> It wouldn't be long before an ambulance would come blazing down the street of Salem! Unfortunately, the man's condition hardly seemed to be improving. Foaming at the mouth, he flailed and flailed, some more sickening cracks coming from his body -- all over, in fact. And while Willow's efforts to try and stop him from bleeding were certainly valiant, it only took one wrong crack before the man stopped moving entirely and went limp in the woman's arms. By the time the paramedics arrived, he was already dead, and quite the crowd had gathered. His body was twisted and bleeding, with shards of bone protruding from his skin and blood freely running from his wounds -- Willow had likely endured a few more scratches during the ordeal. His belongings were still on the curb nearby.
<Suzthulhu> Try as she might to both keep him from hurting himself more and from bleeding to death... it was all for naught. When he goes limp, she sobs, paying no mind to the blood, and just sort of cradles him in her lap. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry... I tried." There are cuts on her hands and arms, and even a scratch or two on her face from the man's flailing and breaking. She goes to wipe her face with the back of her sleeve and winces at the amount of blood on her arms. When the paramedics come rushing out of the ambulance, Willow releases the man and stands, looking around for some hint as to where he'd come from. Spotting his belongings, she wipes her hands on her skirt as best she can and goes to gather them up. She puts the camcorder and phone back in his satchel, along with the notebook, but takes a second or two while the EMTs scrape the guy off the sidewalk to look in his bag for anything else, like a wallet... something that would identify him.
<@AnE> They were puzzled. And once he was identified as DEAD, there was nothing but confusion. He had a wallet, but it was in his pants at the moment, probably drenched in blood. However, the notebook did have a name on it -- 'Jeremy Wilde'. Likely something for college or similar. Nobody had bothered to ask for the satchel from Willow, too concerned with gathering up the young man's body -- it was a difficult task, because moving him seemed to cause bones to break. Before they could load his body, that black blood had begun to pulse in his veins, creeping up along his skin and crystallizing noisily. Now, getting out of there before a crowd formed was top priority.
<Suzthulhu> She let the EMTs do their work, answering questions as they asked. No, she didn't know him. No, he wasn't dead when she got there. Yes, this had all just -happened- and she had been trying to save him! Since they hadn't asked her for his things, she carefully stuffs the notebook back in the satchel and puts it over her shoulder before going to pick her purse and phone up off the ground. The EMTs suddenly seemed rather in a hurry to get the body out, and she just catches sight of the pulsating, and the crackling crystalization is sickening in her ears. "What's happening?" It has yet to occur to her that the cuts and scrapes on her skin have come in contact with the man's blood. "Are... am I done...? Do I need to talk to the police or something too, or can I go get this blood off me..." So much for going to the store! Her lavender eyes are still full of tears, and her voice cracks when she speaks. WHoever this poor young man had been, he'd died horribly and in a lot of pain.
<@AnE> "The police will need you to fill out a witness report.." One of the guys nodded his head, still looking a little in-shock. You know how it is -- you've seen everything, but you haven't seen this. This was what Willow got for intervening! We can assume that the cops would come by, too -- later than the ambulance, since that's what cops do (KIDDINGmaybe). Willow would be questioned, asked to fill out some paperwork ... they'd probably reccommend she get some bloodwork done since she was cut up! But all of that could be handwaved and she'd be sent on her way once said report was filled out, likely with cards to 'YOU JUST SAW A DUDE DIE' counselling centers.
<@AnE> Because those exist, dammit.
<Suzthulhu> "Right..." She waits for the cops to finally show up, 6 hours later... (KIDDING). When they show up she answers all their questions, telling them where she'd been and why she'd been on that street, when she'd seen the young man, and everything up until the cracking crystallization sound. Bloodwork was a good idea, and she thanks them for the suggestion, since it hadn't occured to her yet. You know, seen a lot, hadn't seen this and she's likely in a bit of shock. It had been a shocking experience!! She manages to beg a blanket off the EMTs just before they skidaddle, and wraps it around herself to try to avoid getting blood all over her car. When she's finished with the police, she heads back to her car, setting both her purse and the young man's satchel down in her front seat. Hadn't there been a camcorder in there? She fishes it out and inspects it to see if it's still working. If so, she'd turn it on and see what's recorded, if anything.
<@AnE> The video camera was practically full of footage! He might have been one of those film student types, or maybe he was just a voyeur! The screen was slightly cracked, but it seemed to be in perfect working order otherwise. The most recent footage was from one week ago -- walking around Salem, interviewing people about numerous things related to the city's history. Most individuals were rather cooperative, or just plan dismissive, but near the end of the video, he chose to interview a decrepit old woman who reacted with outright hostility, shouting things about how he was a monster who ruined her life. He, of course, had no idea. Just before the camera was turned off, surges of black energy poured from her fingertips and she could be heard shrieking in ... some foreign language! Latin, maybe? Hard to tell.
<Suzthulhu> Willow watches the film quite attentively, not recognizing anyone in it. When it gets toward the end, and that final scene shows, she damn near throws the thing on the floor. What the hell was that??? Creepy. Closing the camcorder's screen, she sets it down in the seat next to her and just heads the hell home.