Inkwhumptobertale 2024

Day Nineteen

Streetlight - Blood Trail, Abandoned Cabin, One Way Out, "Is there anybody alive out there?" 

Trigger warnings: blood, gore (mostly implied gore, but can still produce visualizations, so still gore).

Comments are welcome and appreciated! 

Please enjoy!

~~~~~

Blue didn't know how long it had been since he'd seen anyone else. The quiet day had turned into a silent night, and all Blue had seen that even hinted of a surviving population was the fact that electricity still flowed through the town. This universe was a wasteland, and a portal malfunction had landed Blue right into the middle of it, likely several years after any "story" had been told here. Ink had mentioned AUs like this before, but actually seeing one..it was a different experience. Universes that had a story take place in an apocalyptic world didn't just..revert to a civilized society after those stories were over - they stayed that way until the universe ceased to exist or another story began. Either a story was taking place somewhere else, it hadn't started yet, or it was likely over. It didn't really matter, though; what mattered was that Blue found his way out of here, and preferably before he would start to have to worry about food. He had spent the day scouring the town, finding nothing much of note, but that wouldn't deter him from moving on; if he was lucky, he would find something useful, such as..someone with enough magic to donate to him to make a portal out of here? Blue's magic reserves didn't typically allow him to make portals, but if he got a little help and overloaded himself slightly, he could manage it. Food would have been beneficial in getting him to that point, but, unfortunately, this AU seemed to lack that resource. 

Blue tapped his foot on the sidewalk beneath him, his figure illuminated by the dull light of a streetlamp. It was a wonder this town still had power, considering the obvious state of the world; maybe the apocalypse hadn't happened that long ago? But, then, why wasn't there any food anywhere? Blue really would have preferred to stay in this town, but it was painfully clear that he would make no progress here; he would have to try somewhere else, and that, of course, meant the neighboring forest. Dream was a great teammate and friend, and most importantly in this specific situation, he started out his life living off the land; he'd given Blue enough knowledge about common plants around the multiverse for Blue to feel confident in his foraging abilities, and if there was no other source of food around here, Blue would have to put those abilities to the test. Hopefully, this wasn't a nuclear apocalypse AU that tainted all the plant life; Blue didn't think it was, though, considering the fact that buildings were still standing and electricity was still running. 

So Blue entered the forest, carrying a bag he'd borrowed from one of the abandoned buildings to hold anything important he would find out here. Maybe he should have brought a flashlight, but his eyelights would adapt to the dark soon enough; he would be fine. Blue wandered the pathless woods rather aimlessly for a while, trying to move mostly in the same direction while also pausing occasionally to forage some plants that looked as if they could be edible (Blue would wait until morning to check for sure before trying to eat anything, since the lack of light might have tricked him into thinking one thing was another), but after a few hours, he came across something promising: a building. Buildings weren't uncommon in appcalypse-type AUs (looting abandoned buildings was an important plot point, according to Ink), and they often had things that would really help Blue right now, such as food! Blue approached the building slowly, finding when he got closer that it was a log cabin, and a nice one, at that! He went up to the door, and when he got there, he..hesitated. 

There were two possibilities, here; either this cabin was abandoned, or someone lived here. And Blue didn't exactly know what he was up against, if the latter was correct. But..he couldn't just stand here. He raised his fist to the door and knocked firmly, but not too firmly; he didn't want to scare anyone!

He was greeted with silence. 

Blue kicked his boot into the ground beneath him before trying again, and there was still no answer; it must have been abandoned, or whoever lived here was terrified..he was hoping for the first option. And just in case it was the second..

"Uh, since no one answered, I'm assuming no one lives here!" Blue shouted. "And if you do, I'm really sorry, but in case no one does, I'm coming in, but I'll leave if you want me to - no hard feelings!"

After that hopefully-nonthreatening warning, Blue put his hand on the doorknob and twisted it, opening the door; it was unlocked. As soon as the door creaked open, Blue was greeted with a heavy copper scent, and he cringed; that..wasn't good. But that couldn't deter him; he needed food to get out of this universe. He stepped inside, looking around, and he found a kerosene lamp with only a small bit of fuel left, but it would be enough to last him his search; he just needed to be able to see-

Ah, man.

There was blood on this floor - a lot of blood..old blood. The blood started at the worn couch in the room, and it trailed across the floor towards a door on the back wall, which Blue immediately dreaded opening; with any luck, the food wouldn't be behind that door. He searched every drawer and cabinet in the main room of the cabinet, finding nothing in the way of food and little else - a box of matches, a machete, and some books. If this was before the start of the AU's story, Blue believed that those items would be helpful to whoever was intended to find them..but not him. His gaze drifted over to the trail of blood and the unopened door, and he let out a long sigh; he had to open the door. Knowing his luck, there would be food behind the door...and likely other things that he wouldn't want to see. 

Blue had been working with Ink and Dream for years; he'd seen death, insanity, and unspeakable amounts of gore. Nightmare's gang did horrible things to people, and Blue was one of the people who tried to help victims recover from those things. He'd seen horribly mangled bodies to the point that he barely flinched, only trying to help those people if they were still alive by the time he got to them. The desensitization of being a Star Sans was something no one else really considered; Blue knew he hadn't considered it before taking the job. But..if he couldn't look at the worst things that could be done to people, he couldn't help; Ink and Dream had once had to go through that realization, and they had helped Blue work through it, too. But..that didn't mean Blue wanted to see what was behind this door; it just meant that he wouldn't break down when he did. 

Blue opened the door, being assaulted with the thick smell of rot - something he never enjoyed. When the light from the lamp behind him filtered into the room, Blue found a corpse; it wasn't the worst he had seen, but whoever this was had been..brutalized before their death. Blue averted his gaze before he could study the body closely; this wasn't someone he would have to take in for an autopsy or report to their family that they had passed. This was someone he had no business meddling with; the thought was strangely comforting. Blue let out a long sigh as he scanned the shelves next to the body, finding come canned food and water; this must have been the poor victim's pantry or bunker room. Blue grabbed a couple cans of the floor, leaving most of it behind in case this was a story-based checkpoint - if it was, someone in the future would need that a lot more than he did now. But..it wouldn't hurt to move the stuff into the main room. Typically, Blue wouldn't touch food of any kind that had been next to a corpse for who-knew-how-long, but apocalyptic AUs tended to have more lenient rules about contamination; this should have been fine, for the most part, and if Blue did become ill, the effects would hopefully kick in once he was in a place he could actually get help..this wasn't any such place. Blue closed both doors of the cabin before leaving it behind, and he walked a short distance away before opening one of the cans of food. 

With any luck, he wouldn't have to come back here ever again.