GHU: Chapter One
The GHU series is a twine based narrative of some of the misions you'll find in Gods Help Us, or... as I like to call it: GHU. These small narratives portray stories in a WIP state, and their actual implementation in GHU is subject to change. They're designed to welcome you to the GHUniverse.
This particular story is the Tutorial Quest/Main Story intro.
[[Start the Story->c1p1]]
[[Find Out more about GHU]]
(set: $name to (prompt: "Your name, please:", "GHUnnie"))(open-url: "https://poorrolemodel.com/gods-help-us")You're shaken awake. Niera, your friend and confidante, repeats your name over and over, until your eyes open. The blur from your vision is too much, at first. But slowly, your eyes adapt, and the world around you comes into focus.
You look around and realize you're in the maintanance room of one of the corporation buildings. This has been your home for a few months now, ever since Niera got her job as the maintanance manager. Not like she was managing much though, considering she was the only person working maintanance in the first place. You rarely had visitors here, aside from the ocassional janitor here and there. Thankfully, though... They don't say anything. They understand you. They understand what it's like to have near nothing. They're you, in their own maintanance room, somewhere else. You live by the motto: "People like us gotta stick together"
Life's not easy. Not something you asked for, but not something you're quite ready to give back. Not yet. There's still a little fight left in you.
[[Continue->c1p2]]"Hey $name, $name wake up" Niera still repeats, until you finally lift yourself to a seated position. Though... Very much so against your will.
"I'm awake, Niera. Jeez. Relax. I'm..." you yawn deeply, "I'm awake."
"Good," she responds, "Now... I need you to get dressed, and make sure you're ready. Today's a big day!"
You look around a bit, groggy and half-asleep. You notice at the foot of your sleeping bag, your clothes laying, folded and cleaned. Your mood perks up a bit. Clean clothes aren't something you get to experience every day, and what's more... even less frequent, are they delivered.
You grab the clothes, and start putting them on. The smell of clean fills your nostrils while you slide the shirt over your head, as you let it rest there for a moment. You breathe deeply, and take it in. "What's the rush, Niera?" you ask, after finally continuing to get dressed.
[[Continue->c1p3]]"What's the rush?" she asks, in disbelief. "I just got paid, that's the rush!"
She shakes her head at you, as she reaches into a bag slung across her shoulder, and pulls out a small chip card. She looks back at you for a moment, hesitant, before holding the card out to you. "There's only about 175 credits here. It's not much. But... It should be enough. I hope."
You reach up to take it. Niera's saved for months, and holds on to the card for a second, before finally letting it go.
"This... It's all I could manage, $name." she pauses, and you assume she's having second thoughts. But she shakes her head slightly, as if trying to brush the doubt away from her mind. "There's a new job on the bounty board. It's worth 10k. I've already contacted the client, and told them we'd meet at the Firefly at 3PM. Take this, and buy some gear. It looks like you'll need it, from what I was understanding. The target's a ex-soldier."
You nod, wanting to reassure her it's going to be okay... but knowing no matter what you say, she'll still be worried.
[[continue->c1p4]]Niera fiddles with something on her workbench for a second, more a nervous habit, than work related, before finally looking back toward you. She seems to avoid eye contact and looks slightly downward and says "Okay, I have to get back to work. I'm going to head to the Firefly as soon as I'm off the clock. Meet me there."
You nod again, and she disappears behind the door. You can tell she's terrified. This money in your hand is all she has. The two of you have been waiting for the right time, when money and a good bounty align, to pull this off. She's done her part. Now it's up to you to do yours.
You put your boots on, and make your way outside.
[[Continue->c1p5]]
Serenity City is always dark. Always loud. Always alive.
It exists in a literal bubble, underwater, with stars and clouds permanently adorned all across the fake sky. It used to change periodically from day to night at one point, long ago. The cycle system had been broken for years now, though. No one knew how to fix it, as it was "old tech" in a "New World."
Aside from forever being night, there is little in the realm of indication that it was underwater. Buildings still reach as tall as they can, with their tops disappearing in a thick cloud of smog, from the world down below.
Thing about the city though... No matter how loud, or how dark... The people are louder. Always Darker.
The world has grown to be a dangerous place. Even living in it feels like a punishment from the gods.
[[Continue->c1p6]]The wealthy long since abandoned Earth, as the world was slowly swallowed by wather. They exploited the planet, bled it dry. Sucked every resource they could from it, until the poles finally buckled and melted from the abuse.
It was about that time when they left.
They still bleed us dry though. They still run their corporations, sending envoys as their voice, while they sit up there in luxury, and look down and laugh at us. That'll probably never change. Those bastards.
[[continue->c1p7]]
You look at your watch. It's around noon. There's still some time to kill before you have to meet up with Niera and the client. You take your time, as you dawdle down the busy, crowded street.
The sound of the city, as usual, is almost deafening. But you're used to it. It's second nature to drown it out.
You imagine how a tourist must feel, when they come to Serenity. Not that it happens often, by any means... But the idea still makes you chuckle a bit to yourself, as you approach a busy intersection.
To the left, you have the gear shop, and eventually, the Firefly. Continuing forward, however will lead you to the shopping district, and further on reaches Foxhill Park.
you look at your watch again, noticing only 15 minutes have passed.
[[Go left->c1p8]]
[[Go straight->c1b1]]You figure it's best to not cut it too close, and make your way toward the gear shop. The last thing you want to do is risk being late, and causing Niera to come even closer to a heart attack.
As you continue your stroll, you come across the Archives. Here, you can find as many books as were managed to be rescued, and the only place keeping whatever remaining documents that exist of the history of the Old World. You remember as a kid, it being one of the very few safe enough free places you could go. You would spend hours at a time looking at the picture books of animals, and toys, and all sorts of other things. It seemed almost unimaginable to think of, but still... you would daydream that you too existed in the pictures toystore ads, sprinkled across magazines. The children always looked so happy. So excited. The archives always gave you hope that one day... things could be different.
The building itself stands shorter than most. But as always, it seems to radiate more life than the gray, dim color it wears. You smile, as you pass.
Opposite the road, a much less pleasant building rests. The Employment Center. This building stands much more impressive in stature and size, serving as a testiment to the ego stroking of the rich. If you ever wanted to sell your soul for a corporation's profit... This is where you go to do it. Recruiters from all the different corps welcome you with perfect teeth, and fake grins, trying to get you to sign on their dotted lines.
[[Continue->c1p9]]
This part of the story is not currently written.
[[Go back->c1p7]]
Up just a little further is the gear shop. You continue onward, moving a little faster. You check your watch again, and it's now 1:30. You've managed to kill plenty of time up until now, and you should be done here at almost the perfect time. You'll probably still have to kill a few minutes at the Firefly, but not much.
As you get closer, you hear loud crashing and banging from inside. 'Here we go again' you think to yourself as the sound of glass shatters and you see a body completely thrown from the shop, out.
the shop owner, a good friend of yours nicknamed "Sodapop" steps outside the doorway, and spits on the person he'd just thrown out.
"Next time, you'll pay with your life," he says as he wipes his hands clean. His left arm, fully meched, glistens in the light.
Screwing Sodapop over is always asking for trouble. Not only is he, himself, absolutely horrifying... but he's got a LOT of very powerful friends in the streets.
[[continue->c1p10]]He looks over his shoulder and notices you approaching. Instantly a big smile shows as he waves you over.
"Ah! $name! I've been waiting for ya!" he exclaims, his voice louder than the city itself. "Come on in! Got some cool shit to show ya!"
You pick up the pace, and wave back at him enthusiastically. As you approach, you look at the person he threw out. Blood flowing from multiple places on his face and body, you notice a few fresh bruises as well. He clearly wasn't prepared for whatever trouble he caused.
Sodapop sees your gaze, and swipes his hand, gesturing to say "Don't worry about it" right before he wraps his almost inhumanly large normal arm around your neck, and ruffles your hair.
You feel him practically drag you into the shop, as he starts excitedly talking about all types of new gear he's gotten his hands on.
"OH!" He pauses for a second, and starts making his way behind the counter, "You forgot this!"
He rustles through a drawer behind the counter for a second and then pulls out a small device and lightly tosses it to you before returning to the drawer to dig up some other treasures.
[[Continue->c1p11]]"My comm!" You shout, overflowing with excitement. "where'd ya find it, Soda?!?"
"Jenson over at the Firefly noticed you left it one night, and brought it to me. Says I'd be able to help it find it's way home. Too true, that. Knew it was only a matter of time before I seen ya again!" he answered, while still digging in the drawer, "But. That's not what I got for ya. Hold on a sec."
You wait a bit longer, watching intently, as he finally finds something and tries to cover it up.
"See... Me and the fellas wanted to get you something special for your birthday, but I'm going to be out on business at the Falls, come time. So I decided to give it to ya now, while I got ya here."
He holds his hands out, still covering whatever it is up as best he can, but you can see now through the cracks of his fingers that it's a pistol.
He reveals it, as you act like you hadn't just realized what it was a few moments earlier, and thank him with all the excitement you have in your body. He smiles brighter, and says "We actually had to go topside to get it. Was a hard one to track down. Don't see 'em in Serenity these days. Hell, don't really see 'em anywhere, these days.Not only is she a beaut', but she's a special one, too."
[[continue->c1p12]]
"Yep, she's definitely special," he continues, "has a barrel that changes size to match the bullet. Weird tech from the Old World. Belonged to some richie, up and died recently, and passed it to his kid. Kid owed me, and here we are! Lucky find, that one."
You examine the pistol, and notice the barrel floats above the reciever a bit, probably making way for it to expand. It feels perfectly weighted, and fits your hand exceptionally well. Everything about it screams higher quality than anything you've ever owned. What a day. Clean laundry, and now this, and a job on the table... Almost seems too good to be true.
"So, what brings you this way, anyway, $name?" He asks after giving you a little time to acquaint yourself with your new weapon.
You tell him about the job, needing gear, how Niera gave you her entire savings, and what's been going on in your life since the last he'd seen you. All the while, he works out what gear you'll need and lays it on the counter. You can tell some of the stuff is far outside your budget, but you dare not mention it. "Sodapop never makes mistakes." he always says.
After chatting a bit longer, and catching up, you look at your watch. 20 minutes. Time to go.
You say your goodbyes, and make your way to the door.
"Oh. Hey, $name!" he says, as if having an epiphany, trying to catch you before you leave. "Forgot to tell ya. Her name was 'Valentine.'"
You look down at the pistol, still in your hand, and repeat "Valentine," quietly. "Nice to meet you, Valentine."
[[continue->c1p13]]All geared up now, you definitely look and feel ready for the job. You make your way to the Firefly, and walk inside.
The Firefly is a very well visited bar, built in the style of the Old World, with wooden tables, benches, and the like. It's one of the best places in in the city to find work, drink, and food. The bar has three bountyboards, all receiving feeds real-time. One of which, of course, being the local feed. The other two being what's likely the only bountyboards in the city to feed from surrounding areas.
The lunch crowd still populates the bar, leaving a small, but reasonable amount of space for people to get in and seat. The bar itself is always reserved for the drunks, where the booths are pretty much for everyone else. You signal the bartender, and he whips up your usual. You tip him, and make your way to an empty booth to wait for Niera. You don't know what the client looks like, so you wonder if they're already here, or not, as you take a respectable sip of your drink.
You check your watch. 10 minutes. You're positioned in a way that lets you keep an eye on the door, as you wait for Niera.
[[continue->c1p14]]You check your watch again after a few more sips of your drink. 2:57 now. Niera's cutting it much closer than you thought she would. She's always a little early to things like this. Always, up until now.
You feel a sense of relief as she finally walks in the door, but it's quickly replaced with concern. She'd been crying. You immediately stand up to make your way to her, but she sees you, and signals to wait. She rushes over to your booth and takes a seat. She's clearly distraught. You try to ask her what happened and she simply responds "not now," before picking her comm up and calling the client.
A male, about 40, gets up from a nearby booth and joins you. He'd been here since before you arrived. The situation wasn't as optimal as you'd liked, but it was too late to change the parameters of how it's all happening.
He introduces himself as "John Smith," a very clearly false name, and you know immediately that this job is under the table. He doesn't want people to know what's going on. Discretion is fine, though. As long as the money's good, it doesn't matter how you get to the result.
[[continue->c1p15]]Mr. Smith begins telling a story of a rogue soldier, once celebrated, now crazed, commiting terrorist attacks from Curtain Falls, a topside remnant town. He explains that the location of the soldier is in an old warehouse, around the center of the town, and that they think he's tunneled underground to hide something more dangerous.
The job seems very... high level. This isn't your normal bounty between warring gangs, or your simple Corporation clean up. This... This is much more precise. You examine Mr. Smith more closely. He's dressed in nice clothes. The sort that are cleaned and ironed daily. He probably wakes up at 4am, solely to iron them. He's probably got his bed made tight, with hospital corners, breakfast on the dot of the clock, and a routine that's very planned. He's obviously prior military, likely working as a security head for a corporation, now. You can't imagine anything less from him, with a job like this. But the money... It's good. It's a way out of the maintanance room, and into a real apartment. It's a way off the streets. You can't say no. These jobs don't come very often, and even when they do... they're rarely available for long.
You have no idea how Niera pulled off getting this meeting. But you have to accept. You have to succeed.
[[Continue->c1p16]]You take whatever information Mr. Smith can give you on your comm. You shake hands, and he goes to leave the Firefly. As he walks out the door, you turn to Niera. She's almost in tears again, and you can tell she'd tried to hold them back through the entire meeting.
"What's wrong?" You ask
"They... They fired me," she says. There's a long pause before she continues, "They got a new mech to do my job. I grabbed everything I could out of the maintanance room, and brought it to Sodapop. He's holding onto it, until we can figure this out. $name... We NEED this to work...."
You look down at your empty glass. A single icecube remains, slowly being consumed by the small puddle of water pooled at the bottom.
"I know."
[[continue->c1p17]]You and Niera split off after another silence filled drink, and you make your way to the Portal Hall.
Portals are a strange thing. It's a combination of old tech, and new, turned into for-profit services. There's mention of something called "quantum entanglement" in some of the science books at the Archives, but a lot of the higher level information is locked to the corporation research teams. Likely a way for them to keep us in the dark, and continue to profit off of us.
When using the portals, you're instanced to a new location. You just... reappear. It's a very strange thing. Unfortunately, instancing isn't precise, and you may get exactly where you want to go, or a mile away. It's like rolling the dice. And... It's not cheap. Thankfully though, part of the contract included your portal fee there and back. So long as you make it back...
[[continue->c1p18]]
As you make your way to the Portal Hall, you decide to stop in to the Archives for a quick read on Curtain Falls. You've only left Serenity a handful of times, and topside is a much more dangerous place. Especially in the Remnant towns.
Walking into the Archives, the smell of books hits you like a sack of bricks, and a thousand fond childhood memories rush to your mind. You wander the shelves for a minute, taking it in. Seldom are moments happy, and you want to sip this one just a second longer.
Eventually, you make your way to the terminals, and begin your investigation on Curtain Falls.
A remnant town, once known in the Old World as Denver. As the Old World went into chaos, Denver was burned to the ground. Little more than a few buildings, debris, and ash remain.
Well, that sounds pleasant.
You leave the Archives, and eventually reach the Portal Hall.
[[continue->c1p19]]Once you arrive, you're greeted by a receptionist, and informed to take a seat. She hands you a comm, and tells you to fill out the displayed form. It asks some information about you, your destination, and what business you have there.
Mr. Smith gave you all the information you need to fill the form out, and have no issues with getting access. You mark the boxes accordingly, and return the comm to the receptionist. She smiles, takes it, and goes back to frantically typing at her terminal.
After a few minutes of waiting, you're called into the portal room, and given your access code. The staff member chauffeurring you through the process tells you how to use the code. Simple enough... You link with the portal site, use the code, and you're instanced back. Thankfully, returing to the Portal Hall is much more precise, and you should pop back up exactly where you stand, as you prepare to depart.
They wish you good luck, and to have a nice trip, and then instance you.
The entire world goes completely black. Nothing exists. Nowhere exists.
All a sudden, blinding light overtakes you. The Sun. You've seen it before, but it takes some getting used to, as your eyes try to adjust.
[[Continue->c1p20]]Thankfully, it appears you've arrived fairly close to the location you'd wanted. You aimed for about a mile out from the warehouse location, and looks like you're about 200 feet closer than planned. This gives you enough time and space to investigate and prepare. You examine the surroundings, and there's decayed and crumbled buildings everywhere. Perfect places to hide.
You start to move forward toward the warehouse. No sense it dragging this out. Sunset should be coming soon. You hope to get through this quick enough to be home in time to get paid, and rent a room for the night.
You hear someone rustling in a nearby building, thrasing about, as if digging through rubble for something valuable. You veer away from the sound, knowing it'd likely end up in a conflict you simply cannot afford to find yourself in.
The sound fades in the distance, as the warehouse finally starts to come into view.
[[continue->c1p21]]You take in the surrounding area of the warehouse, looking for any tactical points you can find. Anything you can potentially use to your advantage. There's a few spots for taking cover, and recon, but aside from that... there's little in the way of strategic value.
Part of the warehouse is completely crumbled away, exposing the inside. You creep closer to the opening, all while carefully listening for danger.
There's a voice from inside, talking on a comm. You can't quite make out what they're saying, but it doesn't sound cheerful. Anger pollutes their voice, as volume rises and falls with responses. It sounds like an argument. You wonder if this is the soldier you're hunting.
It only takes a moment before they walk out into the light, and you know in that instant that this is in fact the soldier.
[[Continue->c1p22]]It's only a matter of a few seconds before you see an opportunity, and take it. The soldier turns his back to you, and walks back toward the shadows.
You fire Valentine. The shot pierces and sinks into the Soldier's left shoulder, and you hear him snarl as he contorts a bit, in pain.
You bound forward as quickly as your legs can take you. He turns, and fires his own pistol in your direction. You're not sure if he actually saw you yet, or if he was just laying down suppressive fire. Either way, you take cover behind a pallet covered with boxes.
Another round flies toward you. You hear it whiz by. He definitely knows where you are. There's no doubt about that now.
You peek the corner, and recoil just in time to hear another round whiz by. This... this isn't good. Shit.
You frantically search around for a new position. A connex nearby. You run. More rounds fly by. Closer and closer. The soldier doesn't seem to be too affected by his wound. You feel a wave of terror sweep across you.
This was a mistake.
[[continue->c1p23]]Opportunity isn't on your side today, it seems. You're clearly outmatched, and you can't help but wish you could tell Niera you're sorry.
You wish it could have been different. You wish you said no. You wish this day had never come. But even more than all of that... You wish for an opening.
Luck favored you, this second. The soldier seems to stagger now, likely from blood loss. You don't question it. You fire again. And again. Two shots, one hit. You'll take it. You leap up and run closer, taking cover behind a big yellow machine with two prongs.
You fire again. Miss.
Fuck.
He sees you, and fires. He didn't miss. The searing pain shoots through your body for a moment before the adrenaline takes hold and everything goes numb. The world slows down. Gets quiet. You push forward again. There's no cover left. This is the last chance. This is the last moment.
You mouth "I'm sorry," as visions of Niera drift into your thoughts. You don't know if your legs are even moving anymore. Everything is dulled.
You aim Valentine at his head, and fire, until there's nothing left in your magazine.
Your body gives in, and you fall to the floor. Everything goes dark. You hear your body hit the ground, as if you were far away detached from it. Everything stops.
[[Continue->c1p24]]
You open your eyes. You can feel the pain in your gut. It throbs, sending exponentially more pain in a pulselike pattern.
You're not dead.
The Sun's set probably an hour ago. You reach into your bag, and grab out a small pen looking device. You can barely move, but you have to do this.
You bring it to your mouth, and bite the cap off, before plunging it into the wound. You almost faint from the additional pain it causes, and then a strange sensation starts to immediately take place. It feels as though your skin is pinching itself. You look down, and realize just how much blood you had lost, right before the bullet ejects itself from the now closing wound.
"Thanks Soda..." you say out loud. This medpen was something you simply couldn't have afforded on your own. It was one of those things he gave you, knowing he'd rather you have, than not.
You're able to move again, albeit very carefully. You look toward where you last saw the Soldier. His head... completely gone. remnants of his neck are all that remains. You did it. You actually did it...
[[Continue->c1p25]]You slowly stumble up to his body, and search it for anything valuable. No use in leaving any goodies behind. There's a few chips, and other odds and ends. You put them in your bag, and finally scan his finger on your comm.
You send the image to Mr. Smith, and a few minutes later he responds: "Identity confirmed. Payment transferred. Job complete."
So impersonal. You check your account, and the payment was received.
From there, you link with the Portal Hall system, and enter your code. The world again goes black, and you reappear in Serenity. Home sweet home...
The staffmember in the room looks at you, in shock, as you politely wave, and stagger out to the door.
Time to find Niera. Time to go home.
[[End->Start]]