Room 508, Tuesday Afternoon

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy was hunched over her computer, muttering to herself. "Raven, what the hell? Don't wander off! No, get back--Dante, how do you have dysentery? Again?! No, I am not stopping this car, there are too many--Dammit, Ringo, how did you break your arm?! Were you AT-ing during the zom--DANTE YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DIE, YOU JERK! Anders, you're a goddamn magic-user, heal somebody! OH MY GOD, DON'T MAKE ME TURN THIS CAR AROUND AND DRIVE BACK TO THE NUKES, SO HELP ME!" A moment of quiet and then, "Hey! Somebody stole my last battery!"

Someone had discovered Organ Trail on Facebook. And had foolishly decided to play using the names of her friends. And had nearly decided to give up on this carful of people and try again. Surely Kira and Ezra would be more sensible during the zombie apocalypse.

"Raven! I said not to wander off! Great! Now you're dead and I have to start over!" Kathy didn't believe in leaving anyone behind. Even in the pixelated apocalypse.

[Open! Link to the conversation with Dante]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

"How can you cheat in this game?" Kathy asked. "Also you can't use arrows to move, you have to use the WASD keys on the keyboard." Pause. "No, spacebar shoots." Beat. "You can only shoot in a straight line." A moment's silence. "And there's a pause between shots. This isn't a a submachine gun on full auto, you know." Pause. "And everyone's dead."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Because you were distracting me!"

Yeah, Kathy, this was all your fault.

Ringo scowled, quickly starting up a new game. "You be quiet and let me concentrate." Because that was going to go so, so well.

Ringo got starting supplies and shot Kathy a look. "And no snickering."

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy raised her hands in surrender. "Sure, sure. Sorry, I thought you were confused when you were hammering on the Enter key expecting something to happen. Clearly that was some masterful strategy I interrupted and not you forgetting to use the spacebar. I'll be quiet now and watch the magic happen."

In fact, she was going to eat some chips, just to keep her mouth occupied. HELPING!

[soniaroadsqueen]

With her face scrunched in concentration, Ringo managed to actually remember which keys to use to do things.

"Wait. How did you break your arm, Kathy?" she muttered at the screen. Then she shot Kathy a dirty look for breaking her arm. "How am I running so low on medkits?"

It'd probably only be another playthrough or two before she was doing the exact same kind of yelling that had drawn her into the room int he first place.

[spin_kick_snap]

See? Kathy had reasons for yelling at imaginary versions of her friends on the computer. Reasons.

"Your terrible driving," Kathy decided immediately. "When you spun out of the way of the zombie, I probably slammed it into the car door and it broke."

Granted, the simplistic animation style didn't even allow for the kind of scene she'd described to even happen, but ha! Kathy could make up stuff with the best of them.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"First of all, why am I driving, anyway? I don't even know how to drive." She looked over at Kathy. "Second of all, why weren't you wearing your seat belt?" Even Ringo knew that was important!

[spin_kick_snap]

"You're driving because you put your name in first," Kathy said. "Your little Ringo sprite is the main character, right? So then you're driving."

She wasn't going to mention the seat belt thing because she hadn't come up with a good enough answer yet.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"That's silly. Leaders don't have to drive. They totally get chauffeurs to drive them around." Ringo knew because of TV.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Not after the zombie apocalypse," Kathy retorted. "C'mon. Most people have been eaten at this point. It's just the five of us trying to make it to the other side of the country. You, me..." She glanced at the screen to see who else Ringo had named in this iteration of the game.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Well, Alluka's definitely not driving," Ringo pointed out. "She'd probably be even more lost than I would. Oh!" She shook her head. "Probably Dante was driving. That would totally explain the spinning out thing. He probably thought it would be fun."

"Unless you think Mabel's the bad driver?"

[spin_kick_snap]

"You're in charge, you're driving," Kathy said, shaking her head. "It's just how it is. Stop blaming your terrible driving on other people."

Beat.

"But yeah. Mabel and Alluka are not allowed to drive."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"I'm a good leader," Ringo sniffed, trying to look superior. With predictable results. "I delegate."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Is there something wrong with your nose?" Kathy asked, fighting down a smile. "It's doing something all weird."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"I'm looking down on you, duh." Except that, given their height differences, Ringo was still looking up. Stupid Kathy! Be shorter!

[spin_kick_snap]

"Oh, that's what you were trying to do," Kathy said, nodding. "It looked like you were doing a bunny impression. Or maybe had to sneeze."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Hey! I make for a very cute bunny!"

Not that Ringo had ever actually tried looking like a bunny, but she was sure she'd be cute at it.

[spin_kick_snap]

"You know what's not at all useful during the zombie apocalypse?" Kathy asked. "Bunnies."

[soniaroadsqueen]

"That's enough lip out of you, missy." Ringo watched some questionable TV to be picking up phrases like that. "Where's the button that kicks you out of the car?"

[spin_kick_snap]

"Oh, I see," Kathy said with a mournful shake of her head. "You're a totalitarian who won't let anyone criticize your unjust regime! Ha! As if Alluka and Dante would let you kick me out, either. Maybe we'll have to band together to topple your stranglehold on the Vehicular Republic!"

Of course a simple Flash game would turn to this. Of course it would.

[soniaroadsqueen]

Well, Kathy did bring out the best in Ringo!

"I suppose Alluka would probably look sad. I guess I can't just kick you out."

Ringo grinned. "But I do have a very important mission that I need someone to go on." Thanks for volunteering, Kathy!

[spin_kick_snap]

Other way around, Ringo!

"Is it to do one of the many, many, many tasks you've proven incapable of doing, thus calling into question your fitness to be our leader?" Kathy asked, beaming.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"Yeah. Sure. That sounds like a good explanation. And when you get back from it, you can take over."

Then Ringo put on a sad-but-stoic expression. "Though if you're not back by nightfall, I'm afraid that, as hard as it'll be, we'll have to go on without you, and I will reluctantly keep leading."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Yeah, in that case, I definitely want to hear what this is up front," Kathy said, looking skeptical.

[soniaroadsqueen]

"You won't take my word that it's super-important?" Ringo widened her eyes and looked totally innocent. Well, "innocent", at least.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Ringo, we've met," Kathy sniffed. "Of course I wouldn't!"

Rude, Kathy!

"Not when your competence in leadership is in question, anyway."