Author Topic: In The Wake of the Hempstead Tsunami ... (Read 2142 times)

Carillon · « **on:** November 13, 2009, 02:41:16 pm »

Hundreds sought shelter from the storm within the sturdy walls of the Port Hempstead Tower Academy on Apreal 23, 1457. Inside, an elven sorceress, one of the faculty, converted classrooms into refugee accomodations and large open lecture halls into infirmaries, and cauldrons meant to teach alchemy were filled with boiling water and healing herbs from the Tower supplies.

Once the waves finally passed, the Tower once again opened its doors, but to an unfamiliar Hempstead. Ships were wrecked all over the city, buildings collapsed and smashed like children's toys, thousands wounded and dead, and the city in chaos. Many steeled themselves against the sight, though, and began dealing with the tragedy, refusing to bow down to the force of the storm and give up. With many others, Jaelle headed out into the flooded city, to spread the word that the Tower Academy was being used as a base and to aid in the efforts.

For hours, she and other adventurers and citizens secured supplies, ferried injured through the cold seawater, healed who they could with both magic and mundane means, and tried to keep the city from panic. Eventually, once word had spread through the city and the first waves of injured had been brought back to the Tower, or to the temple of Deliar which was serving as another hub of relief in the city, Jaelle returned to the Academy to oversee things from there and to continue planning the relief of the city.

The Tower, always intended to serve the city, now does so in a very literal sense. The lobby and third floor are full of injured people. The few skilled healers treat the worst off, while less skilled but willing volunteers do what they can for others. Much needed supplies have been brought into the Tower, secured from places throughout the city in controlled loots, and the upper floors turned into temporary refugee camps where hundreds of frightened, bruised and battered citizens huddle. Many still evacuate through the portal, though this is slow going and for a long time there seemed to be more coming into the Tower than leaving it. Jaelle addresses a crowd of brave volunteers and adventurers who may have come into the city after the waves passed:

"Alright, listen up please! I know this seems overwhelming now, but we are a strong city, and together we can handle this and continue to weather this storm and find our feet, but to do so we all need to shoulder the burden and work together.

"Some of you have already been working for hours, I know, out there in the floodwaters bringing people in. If you need to, take a rest. There is no shame in it, and we need to settle in for the long haul rather than burn ourselves out and collapse within the first day. Those of you who have just arrived or are able to keep going, here is what is going on:

"We have turned part of the Tower into an infirmary. Those with healing skills would best serve there. There are still many who need critical attention, and hundreds of less serious wounds that need to be washed and bandaged. Disease is going to hit hard--it always does after a storm, and we need to do our best to stave it off. If you can't heal, you can still help. It does not take much skill to wash a wound, and if you can't stomach that there are hundreds of frightened people who need someone to tell them it's going to be okay and they can get through this. There are two or three floors packed with refugees up there, so you have no shortage of patients.

"For those of you who want to work out in the city, there are some other tasks that desperately need attention. The foundations of the Tower were somewhat damaged by the waves, so if we want to keep using this as a base we need carpenters and builders to assist in reinforcing them. Timulty Keel is starting to clear the docks, in golem form, and we need more people on that effort too. Aid is being sent down from Leringard and other places, we hope, but we need at least one working dock to receive it. Right now we are cut off.

"Beyond that, we still need people to collect any healing supplies, food, potable water or drinks, blankets or other supplies left in the city that can help us. There's some looting going on, so be careful and try to keep it from disintegrating into madness, but right now without supplies people are going to start to get sick. There is often a second wave of deaths after a storm like this, when infection sets in. And that, I fear, will be the worst of our tasks, so if you've a strong stomach or are used to battlefields, we need you there--I've started sending teams of some of the ex-soldiers and guards who were stranded here out to collect the dead once the injured were mostly brought in. If we do not want a plague to rip through the city or a horde of restless undead, we need to work quickly to gather them up too. They are being taken to Allurial's square, where the ground is a bit higher, and collected in pyres on the city walls. A few clerics are saying mass rites, to try to give them as much peace as we can offer.

"It is terrible, I know, but it is what needs to be done. The priests and priestesses are already overwhelmed tending to the living, and we do not have the resources to raise them all, even if they could all be brought back. In order to help the most people, we need to be willing to set ourselves to these hard tasks and pull through together. If you need anything, if you need a job, if you aren't certain where to start ... I am here, as are the others. We are in this together."

Jaelle goes back to her duties, healing the injured, managing the refugees, firing pyres of the dead, and trying to keep up people's spirits in the wake of the devastating tsunami.

RollinsCat · « **Reply #1 on:** November 13, 2009, 02:51:29 pm »

*Andrew Reid hobbles in, favoring one ankle, and falls in to whatever work he's given to do.*

Carillon · « **Reply #2 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:06:08 pm »

*Jaelle brightens somewhat when she sees Andrew hobble in. When she finishes quietly giving instructions to a carpenter and squeezing his shoulder to send him on his way, she moves over to Andrew, wrapping him in a relieved hug. Her body feels worn and tired in the embrace, but her eyes are bright and full of determination.*

"We searched the Scamp's Mug, during the first retrieval efforts, but you weren't there. I am glad you made it out. Your ankle ... we'll see to that. You came to help, I assume?"

*She waits for him to confirm, nodding and listening to his story.*

"I know you are going to want me to send you out there into the fray right away, but I think we should see to the ankle first, and get some hot soup in you. There are cauldrons of it upstairs. No, don't protest--you are going to need that ankle and if you do not get one of the healers to do it I'll do it myself. And you are going to need some warm soup in your belly for what is ahead."

*She leans in and says more quietly, drawing her head close to his*

"You have a way with people. I have seen you. They are all frightened, and hurt, and scared and bruised, and they have lost their homes and many loved ones and friends. I need you up there, telling them they can get through this, making them believe ... and then when you are in better shape to work--what do you prefer, clearing debris at the docks or gathering the dead? How strong is your stomach?"

thedagda · « **Reply #3 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:21:12 pm »

Hedessa nods to Jaelle as she enters the Academy "Minx...I've brought plenty of bandages and blessings. Where would you like me? " She scans the chamber, oblivious to her own bedraggled state, her voice lacking any of her usual teasing and flirtatious tones.

Carillon · « **Reply #4 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:32:44 pm »

*Jaelle once again disengages from what she is doing to greet another worn, bedraggled friend, offering another relieved embrace.*

"Vixen .. it is good to see you as well. The worst of them are down here, in this big hall and in all the rooms along the side there, save that one which is the portal where we're still evacuating and we need to keep clear. Those that were well enough to be moved are upstairs. The whole third floor is devoted to the healing, and there are other healers up there as well. They will be glad of the supplies though, and the extra pair of hands."

*She takes in the grim expression on the priestess's face, and the lack of any flirtatious teasing in her voice and frowns. She leans in closer and lowers her voice, reaching out to touch Hedessa's upper arm lightly*

"Look, I know it is awful, but other than healing what many of them need most right now is someone exactly like you. Someone who can tease them and flirt and give them a smile, let them pretend that their world didn't just end and that they are going to get through this. I know it is a hard thing to ask, as hard as any task those clearing the docks or gathering the dead might be doing, but if you can distract them with a smile and some reminder of better times as you patch them up, they will be all the better for it."

Serissa · « **Reply #5 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:37:23 pm »

*Ferrit shows up at the Tower with shovel, pick and bucket in hand.* Any place in particular you'd like me to work?
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*Sala enters the Tower right behind Essa with a full pack of bandages and healing potions.* Where shall I start, Jaelle?
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*Lana heads for Hempstead Fields with all the bedding, food and clothing she can pile on her ox. Once there, she hands it over to those who seem to be in charge and rounds up a few children for a singing game.*

Carillon · « **Reply #6 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:48:46 pm »

*Jaelle's day takes a turn for the better when she sees two strong women walk into the Tower. She gives each of them a smile.*

"It is very, very good to see you both. Sala, the worst of them are down here, so considering your skill this is probably the best place to start. We have tried to gather them together, so that those who are able can heal them in groups with a healing circle, but honestly there have been so many the priests and priestesses are getting worn. When you are too tired to do any more down here and need a break, there are those less badly off upstairs.

"The dead are being gathered for burning in Allurial's square. If we start to have a problem with any undead outbreaks you will be needed there, I am certain, but for now it just seems like enough bodies to make one's soul cry.

"Ferrit ... good to see you too. Oh, you brought tools, good, those have been a bit in short supply. If you want to work with them, Timulty is trying to clear a path to the docks right now. We are trying to get at least one working dock up. But Steel spoke very highly of your skill as a tailor for the guild--if you would rather, you could trade your thread for sinew and start stitching up wounds. Stitching flesh is not too different from stitching cloth, and you've the skill for it and we've enough that were wounded and have been sliced up by splintered timbers or shards of glass and metal that the clerics have their hands full."

RollinsCat · « **Reply #7 on:** November 13, 2009, 03:56:29 pm »

*Andrew bends to hold Jaelle tightly, his face mixed with relief and pain. His dark eyes are smudged with lack of sleep, but some of the shadows surrounding them seem etched in place from the horror of the aftermath. He only holds her for a moment, then stands straight.*

I've been helping to clear the dead until someone mentioned you here. I can continue when I can walk better.

*He finds a place to sit and eat and have his ankle tended to, then begins to help the refugees as he can while the bones set. And while his voice is strained and rough, far off his usual smooth tenor, he sings - tunes of hope and renewal, or songs he makes on the moment to bring a smile to a child's face. He takes special pains to help the little ones.*

There is gold in warm and caring hands
A home in arms embracing
Silks and velvets in giving hearts
Who knows what we are facing

This day you don't suffer as only one
This blanket of pain is shared
We all have lost and understand
Being alone, and hurt, and scared

Take my hand, sing with me
Or hold the one beside you
Today we face the world as one
Together we will see this through

*He will go out to find survivors and bodies when his ankle can support him, singing to Ilsare that they find more alive than dead.*

Honora · « **Reply #8 on:** November 13, 2009, 04:14:21 pm »

A strawberry-blonde woman with a swimmer's build rushes in dressed in a blue nearly nothing. She's wet from head to toe but is otherwise healthy and undamaged. She has a soaking wet dog squirming under one arm and deposits the pup with the first set of arms she finds.

I'm here to help! I can check the harbor waters...Mother Ocean will aid me in my search. Who do I report to?

Carillon · « **Reply #9 on:** November 13, 2009, 04:28:04 pm »

*Jaelle, resting her feet for a moment but not her mind or her hand as she pens another letter to be sent off by messenger falcon, beseeching aid and supplies from an ally in another part of the world, looks up and takes in the athletic, strawberry-blonde woman, quickly assessing her and taking her measure. She pauses slightly at the comment about Mother Ocean, face frozen in a neutral, thoughtful look for a moment, then speaks.*

"If you wish to help with the harbour waters, there is certainly much to do. Many of the ships in harbour or in their berths in the dock were washed ashore and smashed, as were the docks, and the harbour is filled with debris and bodies. I am not certain whether any of the ships further out to sea survived--sometimes the storm effects are less further out, where the water does not swell into the great wave. If so they are cut off and cannot return safely until we clear a way for them.

"Functional boats are in short supply, obviously, but a few rowboats and dinghies and skiffs and such seem to have survived and could be patched up enough to be seaworthy, at least in the harbour. If you can find one, you can go out and start towing debris and bodies. Most of the ships were searched for injured but if you find any more send them or ferry them here.

"Right now we are completely cut off from the world, at least by sea, and cannot receive any aid that way. Timulty Keel is clearing a path to the docks in golem form. There are at least a few others aiding him by now. You can coordinate him and help him clear the water side of the approach, towing the debris away so that any ships bearing aid may safely enter the harbour. Bodies should be brought in too--we are burning them in Allurial's square. You can send any updates here, either to me or to the others here. We are trying to coordinate efforts from here. I'm Jaelle, by the way."

thedagda · « **Reply #10 on:** November 13, 2009, 04:28:18 pm »

Essa forces a smile and nods to Jaelle "I'll do my best minx...as always." Quickly adjusting her rather loose tunic, somehow making it looser, she pulls a bottle from her bag and takes a large gulp "The big room ya say?" Strutting off towards the chamber, she stops and attends to the first she sees in need of aid. With lingering touches, a quick smile, and sporadic giggles she attends to their needs. As she slowly progresses about the room, a similar story can be heard from her told to each she meets.

"Well, this is your lucky day cutie! You can tell your friends, your children, and all you know you were attended to by a queen! Not just any queen..the most beautiful queen of the gypsys. A queen at your beck and call..what more could one ask for. We'll get ya feelin' better and once we get this town cleaned up, there will be a wonderous celebration..and you can even introduce the queen to all you wish." Before moving on to another, Essa winks seductively at the one she was attending to as she leans in to whisper in their ear "Once we get through this, we'll make that day of celebration a lucky day as well cutie." She lets her lips brush against their cheek as she straightens to a upright position before turning to the next in need.

A-Wizzle · « **Reply #11 on:** November 13, 2009, 04:38:14 pm »

The fire-haired halfling enters the tower with a belt stocked full of bandages, a bag full of fresh baked bread, and stacks of children's books and games under both her arms.

"Hey Miss Jaelle. Where is the children's ward? I've found the children like someone their own size to play with," Larissa says, blowing hair out of her face. "And I think I can speak for myself as well as many other halflings in saying that we'll be cooking as much as we can! I can see with so many here already, a lot of pie will be needed!"

Cinnabar · « **Reply #12 on:** November 13, 2009, 04:48:32 pm »

* Throughout the long night, Annwyl continues to fish bodies from the flood waters, stacking them in her appropriated skiff. Every limb she graps raises and then dashes her hopes that another survivor may be found. Each time the boat is full she drags it, wading, back to Allurial or the city walls and helps stack its contents on the many funeral pyres.

Finally, exhausted and soaked, she collapses into the semi-sleep that is her fate, within wafting distance of the continual burnings. When the hazy dawn and the stench keep her from resting further, she smears a pungent ointment across her upper lip, eats some cold rations, and heads back into the city to continue with the seemingly unending task of collecting the dead. *

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* On hearing of the disasters on the coast as he emerges from the Whitehorn Forest near Leringard, Caerwyn immediately takes the land route to Hempstead. He retrieves Seccea from the flood waters in Allurial to take her to high ground and, once she is safe, returns to the city.

His first stop is at the Orc Basher's guild shop and warehouse where he finds both innundated. He secures the guild gold chest and surveys the damage to the stores. *

"This mess will take weeks to clean up and gods know what we've lost in the way of stock", he mutters irritably.

* Locking the doors of both shop and warehouse, he works his way across the city, cloaked and cowled, to the Tower Academy seeking out his colleagues there. After getting caught up on what has transpired, he turns to Jaelle *

"Alright, how can I help?", he says in a tired and despairing voice that seems uncharacteristic of even his foulest moods.

Nehetsrev · « **Reply #13 on:** November 13, 2009, 05:15:23 pm »

(Before arriving at the Tower Academy)

*Amgine wanders into Port Hempstead at some time later, his shoulders sagging as he sees the devastation. He doesn't even pause as he takes in the damage done to the guildhall, and instead goes immediately to helping with the rescue efforts, searching for folks trapped under debris, or helping to tend wounds of those already rescued but still needing care. At one point, as he pauses to take a breath before setting to it again, he can be heard to mutter,*

"So, this must be what it was like at Mariner's Hold a few years back... What a mess."

*his expression is bleak for a moment longer, and then he begins to smile*

"Well... Mariner's Hold was rebuilt since, and recovered pretty well. We'll just do the same here!"

(Some time later, after he hears the core of organized efforts are being directed from the Tower Academy, Amgine heads there.)

*Amgine steps into the tower Academy, still wearing the smile from earlier on his face despite all the desparaging things he's seen since entering the city. He looks about, stopping to ask who's in charge and where they might be found. After being directed to Jaelle, he drops off a bundle containing 100 clean healing kits, introducing himself as he does.*

"Amgine Lanif, here from the Blackford Castle area... I've got tools, skills with first aid and combat medicine, a lot of strength, and a willingness to help out in any way I'd be most useful in. Where can I best be of service?"

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(Meanwhile...)

*A small figure, even for a Halfling, dressed in black and dark blues, slinks around in the shadows of the city. His eyes hidden behind mirrored goggles, he slips in and out of the debris. Where he finds loose Trues, he pauses to pocket them, but his main focus seems to be zapping any rats he finds with murderous charges of electrical death, or hacking them in twain with a wicked looking handaxe. Seagulls and other scavangers that might feed on the dead and/or spread plague are dealt with in the same manner. After dispatching the various scavengers, he adds their bodies to the burning pyres. Corpses he finds are frozen under his touch to help preserve them at least temporarilly from rotting, and if no one's looking when he comes across them he'll search them for small valuables he can quickly pocket at the same time. Not strong enough to move larger bodies on his own, he will leave and return with others from the recovery effort to show them where the bodies lay. Thus Emwonk T'noduoy carries on after the disaster, doing his own small part.*

Carillon · « **Reply #14 on:** November 13, 2009, 05:19:17 pm »

*Jaelle exchanges a smile with Hedessa from across the room--one of quiet gratitude for her work and her own talent for making her patients smile and forget their hurts. If Annwyl makes it back to the Tower for a rest at any point, Jaelle makes sure she eats some soup and drinks something warm, and if she doesn't see her for many hours eventually she'll send a message with the next team to head out fresh that she needs to be smart and take care of herself.

When the fire-haired halfling comes in she smiles, recognizing her from a couple previous encounters, but it's a moment before her tired mind can summon a name.*

"Larissa ... the injured children are mostly on the third floor, but we have clerics there. What we could really use is someone on the fourth and fifth floors, where a lot of those who lost their homes but aren't very wounded are, and there are still many children there, though many more have been evacuated to Fort Wayfare. They are frightened and could use someone up there. We've been trying to make soups--I've had some supplies scavenged from around the city and brought in, and pulled all the potion-making cauldrons out of storage to cook in, so you can help with those too. We are trying to keep the volunteers fed and warm whenever they come in for a rest. It's cold out there, and we need them to stay strong."

*When Caerwyn comes in, Jaelle breathes another sigh of relief. However as she catches him up on things she seems to notice something in his manner that is uncharacteristic of her long-time friend, even in a crisis like this one. She draws him aside briefly for a private talk before setting him to a task to which he'd be well suited.*

*After a brief talk with Caerwyn, she smiles as Amgine introduces himself, and nods*

"The healing supplies are welcome, and thank you for those. If you've much by way of carpentry experience to go with the tools, we could use someone helping the carpenters look at the base of the Tower. It sustained some damage during the waves, despite our shields of magic, and there are some builders looking at it now, trying to figure out what we need to reinforce it and the best way to go about it.

"Otherwise, if you've a lot of strength as you say and a knowledge of combat medicine, we could use you out by the docks, clearing the debris and starting to gather the bodies to be taken to Allurial's square to burn. I think most of the injured have already been cleared out but there's always a chance there are some more trapped in the wreckage that no one has found yet, and it'd be good to know there was a field medic out there working. The seawater isn't particularly friendly to injured victims, and if we find any more survivors much later than this, they are going to be in a bad way quite likely, and need a skilled pair of hands. I'm glad you're here."

minerva · « **Reply #15 on:** November 13, 2009, 06:20:01 pm »

*a runner sends word to those in charge of the Academy that the Foundation's doors are open to provide meals, aid and shelter to any of those in need; however because of its location close to the docks it was effected by the flooding but sustained little structural damage. Miss Katrien was not as fortunate as her dockside home was hit harder. She will be staying at the Foundation guild hall until such time that repairs can be made, more vital structures of course taking presedence.*

Lord Dark · « **Reply #16 on:** November 13, 2009, 06:32:01 pm »

*Tod stands beside Jaelle, looking around at the refugees before looking up to her, and gives a big grin.*

Hiya Miss Jaelle! Well, I'm here, put me to work! I can play with the toddlers, make chit-chat to calm people down, or make some blankets an' clothes, you already know I'm pretty handy with a band-aid, an' I can make some potions... or! You can stick me outside an' I'll clear away sticks an' other debris. An' yes! I can do heavy work, it just takes me a minute or two longer than bigger men, but I can do it. So I can go out an' chop wood to make buildin' planks, or go out an' mine metal for nails, or I can make some glass, or... whatever else you need me to do! If none of that is needed, put me out to stop looters.

But some of these other helpers really need to straighten up an' brighten up their attitudes an' stop mopin' around. Attitude an' expression is really contagious an' we need to be hopeful an' determined, I think that would help a lot.

Carillon · « **Reply #17 on:** November 13, 2009, 07:05:20 pm »

*Jaelle listens to the runner from the Foundation and nods, thanking them before sending them back on their way. She is standing there, clearly trying to work out what best to do with this information and how to use the resources of both establishments to help the most people when Tod walks up to her and grins at her. As she listens to him, her worn expression becomes a smile and she claps him on the shoulder.*

"You are exactly right, Tod. You seem to have the right attitude for this, and you have such a diversity of skills ..."

*She thinks for a moment, then grins.*

"Tod, how do you feel about helping out here, running the base? You must know your way around the Tower by now, and I need someone with your determination and drive to help keep the refugees in good spirits and keep the volunteers on their feet.

"They are working hard, so hard they sometimes forget to take care of themselves. Make sure they take rests too, and eat something, or drink something. Make sure they don't wear themselves out to the point of collapsing. And you can help out around here, coordinating things. We have a lot of people around, some of them just regular citizens, who are doing their best, but they can't make all the tough decisions.

"I just received word that the Foundation is open and ready to provide meals and aid and shelter, but they are pretty flooded. Miss Katrien Hommel is there, so you can start with that. Figure out what they have, what we have, and how we can best work with them to help people. Maybe we can move some of the refugees there, though if they are flooded .. depends how badly, I guess. The water is very deep in some places. The Tower is lucky to have been built a little above the ground. But find out what they're doing, and how we can work with them. Sound good?"

*She pauses, then adds*

"I'm glad you're here, Tod. We need more people like you on this."

Honora · « **Reply #18 on:** November 13, 2009, 07:56:10 pm »

The strawberry blonde woman nods at Jaelle's words.

Genna - Genna Brendimeere. I'll find this Timulty and get to work.

She leaves in the same hurry she entered and heads in the straightest path she can to where the docks once stood.

Serissa · « **Reply #19 on:** November 13, 2009, 08:21:45 pm »

Sala heals the injured until she can do no more, then collapses in a corner for a brief rest before getting up to do it again.
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After giving her tools to other willing hands, Ferrit raids the guild for juices and strong spirits and pulls out her sewing kit. On the theory that at least the liquid inside the bottles is clean, she mashes what belladonna she has into her pail and pours in the contents of a few bottles. Then she washes and stitches less serious wounds for those who can stand it and picks out splinters by the dozen. When volunteers for her services dwindle, she returns to the guild for pick and shovel and joins those searching the ruins.