OUTBREAK: ZERO is a semi post-apocalyptic pandemic roleplay set in the fictional city of Lethford, USA. Current season: Winter, 20/21.
March 2020. The world is in pandemonium as one month ago, GHNv-20 was confirmed, five months after the beginning of norovirus season. The number of the infected are in the higher hundred thousands, and the death toll is at an estimated 250,000, with about seventy percent of the rest of the population experiencing mild to moderate illnesses connected to the S. pyogenes bacteria.
The fear of the unknown has caused mass hysteria and panic.
In an attempt to provide a semblance of safety and control, military personnel patrol the streets, even here in Lethford City, and the police force is trying to keep up with the rising street violence, assault, and theft.
Welcome to OUTBREAK: zero. Will you survive?
HAYANA
SITE OWNER + HEAD ADMINISTRATOR
Hi! I'm Haya. I'm pretty much your girl for everything! If you have any questions regarding our plot, membergroups, etc. don't hesitate to ask me. I'm also in charge of coding, graphics, anything skin related, and advertising/affiliates.
GENERAL INQUIRIES
CODING
GRAPHICS
ADVERTISING
CHARACTERS
ADDI
ADMINISTRATOR
Hey! I'm Addi. Hit me up if you need help with anything. I'm always for plotting so don't be shy. I like coffee, booze, and working out. I'm back from a long hiatus the dead so if you need anything, best ask the others until I get back into the groove of things!
GENERAL INQUIRIES
APPLICATIONS
THREAD MODERATION
MEDIATOR
CHARACTERS
FINNLEY
GLOBAL MODERATOR
Hi hello! My name is Finnley, or Finn, call whichever and I'll be there for you (yes like the FRIENDS theme song). I am in charge of the claims and helping with miscellaneous things. Let me know if you have any questions!
GENERAL INQUIRIES
CLAIMS
DIRECTORY
CHARACTERS
STAFF NAME
OPEN MODERATOR POSITION
outbreak
/ˈaʊtbreɪk/ zero /ˈzɪərəʊ/
a sudden occurrence of something unwelcome, such as war or disease. number, no quantity or number; nought; the figure 0.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Aaron rolled his eyes at them. "Idiots," he breathed, finishing his sentence after all. He leaned back in his corner of the elevator. Being stuck inside a small space with no way to keep much distance from others during a pandemic was a little irritating. Slipping out his phone he pushed the button on the site and the screen lit up, coming to life. However, the little bars showed no signal. With a sigh he shoved it back into the pocket it came from. He looked up, wondering if there was another way to exit. He wouldn't mind climbing out of it if he had to but unfortunately the emergency exit a lot of movies came up with was exactly that - fabricated. Even though those openings in the ceiling existed most of them could only be opened from the outside, so there was that.
"Hey, idiot number one," he called over to the guy wearing a military uniform. "Do you carry a radio with you?" Aaron asked, both eyebrows lifted in an inquisitive manner. Perhaps a radio would be able to catch some kind of signal. He didn’t imagine spending the rest of the day inside this metal box the size of a tuna can. Turning his head towards the other guy he gave him a quick nod of his head. "Idiot number two," he called over, a cocky grin dancing on his face underneath the mask but even then the mocking tone of his voice showed it just as well. "You got any more ideas as brilliant as staying calm?"
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Aaron gleefully stuffed his mouth with another forkful of military-styled mac and cheese. But there was certainly worse food than that. This was at least decent because what could go wrong with cheese? He kept his eyes fixated on the food, watching the steam dance around as it escaped the small container. His hand was hot from holding it but at least some part of it was as he stood, waiting in the cold.
Once the voice replied to his question he actually bothered to glance up. His eyes met those of a woman patting the helicopter as if it was a horse. Aaron snickered, rolling his eyes and bobbing his head to the sides. Chauffeur, pilot, cab driver… eh sounded pretty much the same to him.
"Let’s make one thing clear from the get-go Parker." he immediately responded right after she introduced herself to him, lowering his gaze to her hand waiting to be shaken by him. Instead of doing that, he pointed his plastic fork at it before moving it slowly up until it pointed at her face. "I don’t do partners. Be it permanent or temporary. Doesn’t matter. Hard pass. No thanks." Aaron gesticulated with the fork before letting it drop into the food container, then squished it all together between his hands and tossed it into the trash can that stood nearby. Half a dunk!
The brunette gave himself a small push from the containers he was leaning against and stepped forward, clasping his hands together in pretended eagerness. The only thing he was eager about to get this whole thing over with. Their mission was clear: get supplies in, fly over to the other side of the city, bring supplies, and return. The end. This couldn’t take too long, could it? Did he want to curse himself? No, certainly not.
While he didn’t care about the series of remarks and snarky comments that left his lips ever so often he would never, ever, think about saying those cursed words and phrases - especially not if it involved being stuck inside a piece of metal up in the air with chances of crashing being way too high for his own taste.
Aaron got a hold of one of the bigger boxes filled with supplies and walked to the helicopter. "The quicker we get this done the less time we have to spend with each other. Sounds like a good deal, doesn’t it?"
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Aaron let out a sigh, the disappointment and frustration very much apparent. He slammed his fist down on the top of the front desk, startling the nurse who sat in front of him and earning him glares from other nurses around the station. With a disgruntled growl he turned around, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. It was his day off and he wasn‘t wearing his uniform, just plain clothes. However, he had his military ID tucked away underneath his black bomber jacket and a handgun secured on his belt. One could never be too cautious these days, especially any law enforcement personnel who earned themselves a lot of hatred thanks to the government‘s decision to have stricter regulations.
He walked up to the elevators, slipping inside the one that just arrived. His finger hovered over the button panel to push the one for the ground floor but it had already been pushed as the red light behind the letters indicated. His eyes quickly went over the two strangers, one of them wearing military gear. He couldn‘t help the small, barely noticeable, smirk before he turned away, taking a spot next to the mirror and leaning against it. Aaron lifted his gaze up, watching the vent above him when suddenly the elevator came to an abrupt stop. The lights flickered for a moment before the three were tossed into darkness.
One of the men spoke up, telling them not to panic, and Aaron scoffed in response. The words he wanted so say, something along the lines of If one of you panics I‘ll knock you out didn‘t find their way out of his mouth. Instead, he rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest and making himself a little more comfortable. „Usually backup generators don‘t work for elevators. If they do, they only have enough power to make one work. So I guess we can just hope it‘ll be this one. Because I really don‘t feel like being stuck here with two-“ he said, the last part of his sentence falling into silence as he didn‘t say the word out loud.
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Fuck, it was cold. It was that one thought that repeated itself over and over again for the past three or four minutes as he stood outside, right next to one of the few helicopters parked. Aaron kind of missed the order the military used to have. The assignments only his unit was given. Now it was everyone doing everything, no matter what rank, no matter what unit, no matter what job. In the past few months in Lethford he was assigned guard duty, patrol duty and even latrine duty - although the latter he gladly forced onto someone else. He was still holding the rank of captain and it should provide him with at least a tiny bit of strength.
Emerald eyes checked out the helicopter in front of him. He leaned back against a couple of wooden containers with a red label slapped across the sides and the top of each to mark them as military property, crossing his ankles over another. Next to those were a bunch of smaller, moving boxes and bags all filled with essential supplies. Supplies which he and whoever was going to be the pilot were supposed to get to the other side of the city. The heavy snowfall had made it difficult for citizens to move to get what they needed, hospitals were relying on their leftover resources and with the frequent blackouts also relied on their emergency generators a lot more.
Things slowly started to become much harder. But Aaron couldn’t really care less as he unpacked the microwaveable meal he had warmed up just before marching out and to the meeting spot. He opened the lid, hot steam escaping from the opening into the cold air. His eyes lit up at the sight of something warm and he dug the plastic fork it came with into it, stirring the food around. More steam rose from the small container. He puckered his lips, blowing at the hot and cheesy goodness, waiting for it to cool down so he could eat.
No matter how badass he would act, the thought of flying and being stuck inside an aircraft high up in the sky without being able to have the safety of solid ground always made him feel a little queasy. Would he regret stuffing his face now? Probably. Aaron lifted his gaze, looking up at the sky. Fortunately, they were lucky - for now - the sky was semi-clear with only a few clouds hovering around. As long as it wasn’t going to snow again…
As he shoveled a spoon full into his mouth the brunette lifted his eyes to look at someone approaching, having spotted a silhouette moving in his direction from the corner of his eyes. He skipped over the file he was handed earlier, not feeling like reading at that moment. He found his own name on the first page and another one next to it which he assumed was the pilot's name. "You must be my chauffeur for the day." he said in between chews, not bothering to even think about manners.
Meet ___! A stranger to Aaron but the person who holds the key to unlock the truth about his past. At some point in his investigation, all tips and hints led to her. Why? He doesn't know because I don't know either. [break][break]
Maybe a journalist? TV reporter? A mystery novel author! Haha. And the key is in one of the books she's written. Bwahaha.[break][break] Actually, as I am writing this I kinda like the idea of her having written novels. Maybe she was in an accident, lost her memories. Cue amnesia trope. She doesn't remember what she needs to remember to help him... but she's written it down. Maybe she needs to finish writing her last book to solve it. This is a very chaotic wanted ad.[break][break]
Option number 2 would be that she's his ex-girlfriends' (who died in the bombing he's investigating) sister. Someone he was requested to take care of if anything would have ever happened. Or mix both ideas.[break][break]
I put her ad into platonic but I wouldn't mind if they develop a romantic relationship or turn into enemies. Or both. Or nothing at all. I like to leave these open to see what happens <3[break][break]
PERSONALITY
[break] Her personality is open but from what I see in her gifs/images: [break][break] I kind of see her as a very carefree person who usually has a positive attitude towards all sorts of things. She's probably a little crazy too but in a good way... a fun way? I think it would be fun to write if she's the kind of person who is very emotional and doesn't mind showing it. She cries when she wants to cry, screams if she wants to scream, yells at you if she wants to yell at you, laughs if she wants to laugh. Punches you if she wants to punch you. But also someone who is confident with no one to rely on.[break][break]
FACE CLAIM
[break] I picked Emmy Rossum for the images and it's kind of set but I wouldn't mind suggestions. Just be aware I'm a bit picky for this wanted ad c: [break]
[break]
[break]
[attr="class","alibipanel"]BREAK MY FALL let me belong here
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]I stopped trying to prove you wrong we've fought this way too longno ones to blame but our bad habits
[attr="class","dilyric3"]bad happens
[attr="class","dibody3"]
"I’m sure we can both agree that you are a child as well. Taking your behavior into consideration… would a normal functioning adult follow some ominous looking group of thugs? I don’t think so." he retorted, giving her this small tilt of his head with eyebrows raised that said something along the lines of ‘am I right?’.
The palm of her hand smacked against his cheek with much more force and power than he had anticipated. The sound of it rang through his ears as he fell over to the side, rolling onto his back to avoid colliding with his arm too hard. He couldn’t believe it. Aaron scoffed before a laugh burst through his lips. Lying there on the floor he couldn’t help himself but laugh at it, at her, at himself, at everything.
The masochistic part of him most likely enjoyed this exchange of fists and violence. Getting beaten up by a woman wasn’t an everyday event. He fully let out all the anger and rage that was inside him from her busting his deal. Hopefully for her, this was a singular occurrence because if that would happen again he would make sure not to let her off with just a beating.
"You sound like you don’t have anything disreputable to cry about. But are you really that innocent? I doubt it. You shot me after all." he replied to her previous statement, holding his shoulder as if it still hurt. It did, sometimes, but it was nothing he couldn’t brush off. With a grunt, he forced himself back up into a seating position before pushing his whole body up with his arm. As he was standing again he looked at her, his eyes moving up and down, assessing her from head to toe.
He smirked at her, holding out his hand and twitching his fingers inward to call her forward. "Come on. This can’t be all you’ve got. I’m sure there’s more of that burning rage that wants to break free, hmm?"
[attr="class","CONTENT"] Corrumpere. Corruptio. Corrupt. Adjective. Having or showing a willingness to act dishonestly in return for money or personal gain. Statistics showed about three law enforcement personnel were arrested each day for misconduct. But those numbers were considered to be nationwide. Lethford alone would have a much higher number of misconducts and lawbreaking by law enforcement if they were all caught.
Unfortunately, since a lot were working together with corrupt government officials they were granted some sort of immunity. Aaron didn’t belong to those. He was doing it for his own personal gain. He had a different motive. There was no one he was working with beside himself. And while he wasn’t necessarily evil through and through he couldn’t be considered a good guy either.
‘Juuust a minute, it’s in here somewhere…’
Watchful eyes rested on her face as she fumbled around inside her bag to find her ID. Dark eyebrows were slightly raised in expectation. He ran his tongue over his upper teeth row before letting out a series of snickers. What was this woman carrying in her bag that it took her so long to fish out her ID? An arsenal of toiletry? Did her bag pose as a secret passageway to Narnia? Did it hold endless items? He shook his head softly, never understanding a woman’s purse.
Once she found it - finally - and held it out to him to see, he looked at her ID and then back at her. She didn’t seem to have any intention of handing it over to him. Understandable. He could easily keep it from her, forcing her to accept whatever mischief he had planned. Though, it would never go past bribery.
"Well, well, Jaime Allen. Looks like you found yourself in deep, deep trouble. How will you fix that?" he asked her, one hand wrapping around the end of his rifle as it rested there. He gave his watch around his wrist a quick glance, yet another string of snickers running through his mouth. "Too bad. It’s too late to just let you off with a warning." Aaron added with a shrug, mocking her in his own ways as he gave her a contemptuous smirk.
He glanced over his shoulder towards his comrades. "You all agree with me, right?" he called over, turning his head back at Jaime. His lips curved down into a sly pout, pretending to be sad as if he was giving her the faintest feeling of pity. "It’s six opinions against one. You lose."
[attr="class","CONTENT"] The group was standing still, waiting for the person to show themself. He wouldn’t have minded forcing them to, play a little game of hide and seek perhaps. There was a certain benefit and of course pleasure in having authority, power, clout. All these no-name soldiers behind him following his orders, doing everything he wanted, even if it was wrong. They had no say in it all - not tonight.
Although he rarely had a chance to patrol these days, today was just the perfect day to get back the money he had been robbed. Which had also reminded him that he still needed to retrieve his car. A grunt erupted from his throat as he mentally rolled his eyes at the events of the past few weeks and months.
Hearing approaching steps he lifted his head, running his tongue over his upper teeth. A delighted smirk played on his lips as the figure appeared out of the shadows, revealing a young woman. Aaron tilted his head to the side before glancing over his shoulder to look at his unit. "She lost track of time reading! Isn’t that unfortunate." he said, expressing both amusement and sarcasm in his chosen tone of voice. He gestured the others to stay put while he stepped forward, loosening his grip around his rifle. "You know what’s also unfortunate? You crossing paths with me. Running low on luck today hm?" the brunette added, shaking his head, lips softly pressed together in fake empathy.
It was unfortunate for anyone that crossed paths with him, be it willingly or accidentally by chance. Aaron reached up to his left ear, grabbing the small earpiece and removing it. It dangled next to his ear before he pushed the small button to turn it off, signaling his fellow soldiers - or minions - to do exactly the same. Yet again he was proving that perhaps he really was the bad guy, the villain. He was sure that a certain brunette would be more than delighted to be witness to this just to prove to him that she had been right the whole time.
Aaron clicked his tongue before his lips arched up into a simple smile, one booted foot tapping the ground beneath him. "I need to see an ID, please." he stated, saying the please in more of a mocking way rather than trying to be polite. He held out his hand, palms reaching upward, dark eyebrows raised in expectancy.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]I stopped trying to prove you wrong we've fought this way too longno ones to blame but our bad habits
[attr="class","dilyric3"]bad happens
[attr="class","dibody3"]
'Why do I find that hard to believe?'
Her words stung a little, despite him being fully aware that it was indeed hard to believe for anyone from outside. Even for those who knew half the story. Sometimes he doubted himself and his intentions. Maybe he was the bad guy, after all, maybe he turned himself into the bad guy unintentionally - or intentionally.
He held his gaze on hers, locking eyes while trying to read her before he pushed himself away, letting go of his grip. "Whether or not you believe me or listen to me is your choice. Just let me warn you… try to make the right choice. As a doctor, you should be smart enough. Although-" Aaron looked at her once more before snickering and shaking his head at her. "-I start to doubt you are."
She did hit a few true points. His past was more or less catching up with him, even though he was getting closer and closer to the answers he needed and wanted. It was true that he had to worry more about these wolves than her - unless she decided to continue being a pain in the ass.
Aaron just laughed at her. Why was he even wasting precious time with her? Why was he even trying to get her to do the right thing? He didn’t care. He didn’t care about a stranger - especially not stupid ones. He didn’t care about what would happen to her if she did continue to stick her nose into dangerous business.
While he had let go of his tight grip around her wrist he moved one hand to the collar of her top, grasping the fabric as he balled his hand into a fist. "Besides what do you think you know about me or my past?" he gnarled, nostrils flaring ever so slightly as he glared at her. "Who do you think you are? Right. You are some dumb bitch who would be better off as a hooker." he spat out, thinking his anger would have deflated by now but the plain sight of her face made it all flare up again.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]I stopped trying to prove you wrong we've fought this way too longno ones to blame but our bad habits
[attr="class","dilyric3"]bad happens
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Aaron leaned back slightly against the driver’s door, lifting one surprised eyebrow at the sudden opening of his car’s door and the brunette just inviting herself in. "Make yourself a home." he said, gesturing at the inside of his car, sarcasm filling his voice. He listened to her talk, introduce herself, and explain why she was inside his car but he honestly didn’t care about all of it. Whoever she was, whatever she was doing here, and whatever her purpose was was unnecessary information to him.
"Well, Officer Sullivan of the Special Forces. I don’t remember asking for a team. Also, maybe you’re not aware of this but right now I’m off duty. So if you could mind your own business." he began, a pursed lips smile forming on his face as he gave her a quick once over, raising his eyebrows just slightly. Aaron expected her to leave, get out of his car, really just mind her own business. He gave her a quick once-over, somewhat wanting to make yet another comment on her choice of occupation but instead, he just snorted at her.
Rolling his eyes at her, he grabbed his cold coffee and took a long sip, licking over his upper lip as he finished it. "I’ll talk to the big boss tomorrow morning. Don’t worry. This whole team issue won’t be a thing anymore by the time you wake up tomorrow." he said, shrugging ever so slightly. His gaze moved from her to the guy he was busy observing, only to see him gone.
"Seriously?" he let out, slamming his hand against the steering wheel. Halfway moving his body back to the intruder he glared her down. "Thanks for the distraction." he snapped, turning on the engine, stepping on the gas softly to roll down the street. Furious eyes looked around, trying to spot the dude. His gaze flickered towards his phone but no new text appeared. If he lost yet another chance for information he might consider murdering someone. "If you want to leave, go jump. I won't stop."
The beginning of curfew wasn‘t announced with sirens or anything one would see in a movie. It was just… there. Everyone was expected to know. At least the blackouts would signal the hour past the beginning of the curfew, with all the lights from the streets and the buildings diminishing, drowning the city in darkness. Seeing candles being lit inside apartments and houses felt like being thrown back into medieval times when electricity wasn‘t a thing yet. It was a strange feeling yet it slowly became their new reality. Aaron could almost say he was already used to it.
Several pairs of combat boots stomped through the wet street. Fall hit the city with an abundance of rain. It was a nice change after the horribly hot and humid summer but it added an eerie feeling to the empty and abandoned streets. Aaron had his rifle slung across his chest, one hand loosely resting over the trigger. It was the same one he had used back during the riots. He could tell by the scratch marks on it and perhaps the smudge of dried blood on the butt that hadn‘t been cleaned off yet. His uniform, however, was brand new although he abandoned the jacket for the night sporting nothing more than a t-shirt despite the drop in temperature.
Aaron glanced over his shoulder towards his group of soldiers following him closeby. He was in charge of this patrol unit for the night and even though Aaron wasn‘t usually the one assigned for work like this, he didn‘t mind. Desperate times called for desperate measures, even if it meant doing patrol duty as an officer within the military. "Isn‘t it a nice evening to empty some wallets?" he called over, a mischievous smirk playing on his lips. Of course, he didn‘t mean their own wallets but rather someone else's.
The group hollered, agreeing with stomps on the ground. Unlike the bunch behind him, Aaron wasn‘t stupid. He ran a quick background check beforehand, making sure the privates assigned to him were either dumb enough or clever enough to keep their lips sealed. The lot he had here was more or less just idiots. Good for him. Bored eyes looked around the street until a dark silhouette of a figure fell into his line of sight. Aaron clicked his tongue, the smirk returning to his face.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]I stopped trying to prove you wrong we've fought this way too longno ones to blame but our bad habits
[attr="class","dilyric3"]bad happens
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Two things just happened that he did not see coming: the first being Dakota’s self-defense move catching him off guard, the second being finding himself pinned to the floor by a woman. And then there was her fist plummeting his way. Fortunately, that one he saw coming. You couldn’t expect a trained elite soldier not to. If he was going to take that blow he would be doing it willingly but he wasn’t in the mood to be nice.
Before it reached his face he grasped her fist, twisting her wrist and locking his foot under hers, his free hand went to her waist. He waited for a moment, emerald eyes staring back into hers. “I’ll make sure not to give you another chance to shoot me.” Aaron said and proceeded to flip her over in one smooth motion.
A satisfied and very much arrogant grin played on his lips as he snatched both her arms to prevent her from doing anything, pinning them to the floor beside her head. “I never said I would be the one killing you because you know my name. If you keep butting into my business there’s a lot of other people you wish you will never meet. I’m not the bad guy here.” Aaron told her, his head doing a small side twitch, putting more pressure on her wrists.
He leaned down, closing the space between them. He loosened his grip, lips twitching into a cocky smirk as he stayed next to her ear. “Sergei is nothing compared to them. The guys you just met? Wimps. The real psychopaths behind all of this? Wolves ready to tear you apart because you make easy prey. So do yourself a favor and don't stick too close to me. And don't... let my name leave your lips ever again.”
[break]
