A desolate city

red skyscrapers rise out of the wasteland, their strong metal beams exposed and oxidized. the soot-caked wasteland turns into hard asphalt, rising over slums that begin to poke out of the sand. an exit curves away to your right, but otherwise, the highway continues onward.

- the slums

- the highway

# the midst of the towers

the buildings are unfathomably tall, cutting through the ashen atmosphere. their decorative exteriors have been worn away by something powerful; what was once colorful paint and detailed engravings are now simply blasted steel, leaving the skeletons bare and open. from certain angles you can see straight through each structure. you arrive at an intersection, where an entrance to a subway to your right leads underground. across the way is a large blue tent, pinned to the street, its opening flapping in the wind. to the left, you notice one of the bare skyscrapers has an intact staircase a few layers into its bones.

- the subway

- the tent

- the skyscraper

## a camping tent

a skull pokes out of a sleeping bag, its body wrapped tightly for warmth.

* 100% chance of containing 1-7 scrap metal
* 85% chance of containing 1-5 cloth
* 85% chance of containing 1-5 wood plank
* 70% chance of containing 1-2 medicine pill
* 66% chance of containing 1-2 rope
* 25% chance of containing 1 bp: personal reality anchor
* 25% chance of containing 1 syringe
* 15% chance of containing 1 bp: metal detector

- loot

## a subway

as you descend the staircase, you notice the air grow extremely still. the stale atmosphere feels almost like wading through a liquid. the tiles lining the walls and floor are filthy, and the path continues down until you arrive at a platform with a single subway track. the train is not here, and one side of the tunnel, the ceiling has caved in and blocked the way.

- the railway

- go back

### the tunnel

it’s now pitch black, the little existing light now totally absorbed. you trail a hand on the wall to keep track of where you are, rubbing mud off as you go. after a few minutes, your hand collides with a cold metal box fixed to the side of the tunnel. feeling at it, you realize it opens, and your hand rests on what feels like a lever.

- activate lever

- keep walking

### the weakly lit tunnel

the lights flicker on, illuminating the black rails and tunnel. further ahead you see another subway platform, but beyond that, you see two bright beams activate, accompanied by the sound of screeching metal. watching for a moment, you realize they are approaching you at startling speed.

- deactivate leaver

- run

### a screaming train

you turn heel and sprint, tearing down the tunnel as the subway speeds at you, and in the light of the overhead lamps, you spot a gap in the wall. ducking inside, you squeeze yourself against the tiny amount of extra room this gap affords you, before finally the train blows past. you step out, and looking back, and you watch as the train collides with the rubble at the original platform, an ear-shattering crash echoing through the dark tunnel before fading back to dead silence.

- keep walking

### another platform

you continue down the long tunnel and are greeted by an entrance to a new platform, filled with an orange flickering light. a trash can is aflame in the center, with corpses in warm clothes strewn around it. these bodies are fairly fresh, hidden away down here, not having succumbed to decomposition like the rest of the world.

- check the bodies

- continue

### homeless bodies

in death, they can no longer hide and protect that which was theirs.

* 100% chance of containing 1-2 medicine pill
* 100% chance of containing 1-2 syringe
* 55% chance of containing 1-5 wire
* 50% chance of containing 1-4 rope
* 25% chance of containing 1-4 cloth
* 15% chance of containing 1-2 plastic pieces

- loot

### the buried platform

the exits on this platform are buried in dirt, but the tunnel continues onward.

- the tunnel

### the continuing dark tunnel

you walk another kilometer down the subway until the tunnel begins to curve upward. after several more minutes of travel, the ceiling opens to the sky, revealing the outside world. the tunnel might have led to more city in the past, but now its buried under sand and ash.

## the tower's bones

you navigate through the building’s supports and to the staircase, which leads to a bare second floor. soot cakes the beams of steel, and your footprints are quickly blown away by the soft breeze escaping from outside. in one corner of the structure, a wall hides the sky beyond.

- the corner

- go back

### the ruined office

an office room is covered in shards of glass, shattered inward from where windows used to be. blood coats the wall behind the desk, and a dead body, its flesh withered away, is sprawled against the chair without a head. in its limp arms, a shotgun rests, its wood rotted and metal rusted. on top of the desk is a short handwritten note.they found me. i see the lights of their cars outside my office. forgive me that i had to leave you all this way. i hope you can find someone else to supply you. don’t let them win.it might be worth a look around to see if anything is left.

- the body

- the desk

- go back

### a dead man

the shotgun is useless and has no bullets, but his form might conceal something.

* 50% chance of containing 1-3 steel shard
* 50% chance of containing 1-3 rope
* 50% chance of containing 1-4 cloth
* 33% chance of containing 1 bp: low-range personal teleporter
* 33% chance of containing 1 medicine pill
* 20% chance of containing 1 bp: metal detector
* 5% chance of containing 1-2 shotgun shell
* 5% chance of containing 1 bp: high-range personal teleporter

- loot

### under the desk

- look inside

- the rest of the room

- go back

#### the safe (Looting)

\* +1 keycard type a

- loot