You're going mad [IC]

[mikeejimbo]

It is a calm day, much like any other. You wake up in the morning and follow whatever your daily routine would be. Perhaps you shower and get coffee while reading the newspaper. Perhaps you go online to check up on your websites. There is some news today. A headline says that there was a curious bank robbery in another city, where the robber demanded 'all the lettuce'. Thinking it was a slang term for money, they started filling his bag with bills, but he got angry and screamed that he wanted actual lettuce, with maybe some croûtons too. He then went on a tirade about how hard it was to find a good salad these days and even when you did they were extremely expensive. The police escorted him off and he's currently undergoing mental surveillance. Other than that, there isn't much interesting going on.

However, somewhere, somehow, you may come across an interesting ad. There are e-mails about it, newspaper clippings and notes pinned on cork boards. It says "Do you have CPD? Come to the support group." There is a location listed, it seems to be in the community center, and a time and date, which turns out to be later today.

((For this first post, I would like you to include what daily life is like for you... and feel free to write the NPCs in your life, unless I overrule something, which I likely won't.))

[Happytime]

Spencer was having a lovely dream, in which he and Jessica were climbing a ladder up the side of a skyscraper. The whole 'climbing the ladder' wasn't the source of the loveliness, rather the presence of his lover Jess. For some reason the ladders ran zigzags up the side of the building, but since when do dreams have to be rational? The closer they climbed to the roof, the more loud and persistent a nagging beeping sound became. Soon it shook him to his core, and he could only manage a glimpse of Jessica before the sheer percussion of the sound threw him from his ladder...

Ahh, morning. Spencer awoke with a start. Most people coming from a suspenseful dream will physically thrash around upon waking, but a sharp inhalation of breath was the extent of Spencer's waking woes. He was quick to calm, however, when he turned on his side to look at sleeping Jess. She was perfect, and he was pretty damn lucky to have her. Many people say love doesn't exist, but that's a lie, because they never met Spencer Cole and Jessica Tate.

His joy was almost crushed- almost- when he turned to his other side, and the red digitized numbers read 5:45. Time to wake up and go to work. Unfortunately, Jessica didn't need to get up for another two hours, because he usually rushed his work just to see her earlier.

Spencer's routine consisted of a shower, a meager breakfast, some further hygienic actions, and finally taking off in his '97 Ford Taurus. Because they both worked good jobs, and because his father was physically incapable of taking care of children, Spencer cared for his much younger siblings, a 20 year old brother and a 16 year old sister. Well, not amazingly younger, but Jeff was still going through college and couldn't afford to move out. Unfortunately because of this, Spencer couldn't afford a better car for himself. He had bought Jess an 07 Jeep Wrangler, and although he really liked driving it, he felt some connection to the old Taur.

Work consisted of sitting at his desk for 8 hours, talking with his friends about technology, women, and football, and writing code, of course. It was a good paying job, but ultimately boring and not very good for you. Sometimes it felt as if his butt had atrophied, and he was no longer in his prime physical shape, which has remarked some humorous comments from Jess recently. Spence worked out regularly, and while he had gained some muscle, he still had some ways to go.

At 3 PM this day Spencer headed home, and lived his life. Played some Halo with Jeff, played some Madden with Jeff, watched a movie with his 'family', made dinner (for everything Spencer loved Jessica for, cooking was not one of them), and mowed some grass before it got too dark. That night Jeff crashing at his girlfriend's house, and Kelly, his sister, was going out of town. The couple took advantage of the empty house by watching another movie, making love, and finally going to sleep.

The next morning started the same. Except this day, while surfing a local forum, he found an interesting post about a bank robbery. Spencer suffered from CPD, and although it had been some time since his last sync, he knew an attack when he saw one, so he printed a copy of the report and added it to a binder he kept in his desk. Spencer had spent a year under house arrest when he was 20 for attacking the Dean of his school. Spencer considered himself an agnostic, but he swore to a state court that Satan lived inside his Dean and was attempting to brand him with the number of the beast, when in 'reality' the man was only trying to shake hands. The Dean understood Spencer's problem and didn't press a personal suit, but the school sued him for trashing the office. The local paper took on a strange obsession with the case, and Spencer was featured on the front page a record 4 times for someone who lived as mundane a life as himself.

After getting ready, he went to work, wash rinse repeat, and came home. On the way back he stopped at the market to stock up, when he noticed an interesting flyer pinned under someone's wipers in the parking lot, about a CPD 'support group'. He normally thought that these groups were for people who wanted attention and had no problems whatsoever, but over time he became curious. It had been a while since he seen something advertising a support group, and he was kind of happy to find this one, so he shoved it in his pocket and proceeded with the rest of the day. When he got home, Spencer sat on the couch, and pulled the slip out of his pocket, and stared at it for a few minutes. Should he go?

[CrimsonTear]

Opening his eyes, Kevin looked at his digital clock a half-second before it started beeping. This was a semi-often occurrence although he had done his fair share of sleeping in on school days. Rising to his feat, he walked across the room and literally kicked the alarm off, (as it lived on the floor,) before grabbing a shirt off the top of a pile of clothes near his bed and throwing it on. Grabbing the rest of his things he walked down the stairs and quietly went on with his morning routine.

He threw his backpack into the van and jumped in before going through the precarious method of starting the old thing. It was an ’87 Plymouth Voyager that hardly started anymore, had a gas leak, and was missing a windshield wiper, (let alone the pealing paint, rusting hood, and faded wood trim,) but it got him from here to there… and it had only cost him $250.

Another boring day of high school passed Kevin by just as slowly as countless others had before it. The school was abuzz with rumors of an odd bank robbery which Kevin paid attention to, agreeing that it was out of the ordinary though he had not even considered that CPD was involved until his friend Brendan suggested it. Kevin merely shrugged the idea off, but mentally noted it as a possibility.

The rest of the day went without hassle though mind-numbingly slow but eventually ended. Kevin went to his locker and entered the combination while trying to remember his homework for the day. Opening his locker, he watched a white note that had been folded up and apparently slipped through the top slot of his locker, fall to the ground. Picking it up, he looked around warily before opening it. It was a professional looking flyer that announced a CPD support meeting.

It wasn’t really a secret in the school that Kevin had problems, it is hard to hide the fact that you do when you begin rolling around in the middle of the cafeteria during lunch, screaming about a fire that no one else sees. Though that wasn’t the only CPD episode that Kevin had had in the school, it was the biggest and most rumored. Teachers watched him with a close eye and students talked a lot around him in whispers through cupped hands but he had learned to ignore it to the best of his ability.

Kevin sighed, wondering in his head if the flyer was a sick joke or could he actually get help. Hoping for help he tucked it into his pocket before heading home. After getting home he called his mom and casually asked her if he could go over to a friend’s house for a while. After repeated assurance (lying) that he had no homework he hung up the phone before running upstairs to grab a better looking shirt to throw over the on he was wearing. Making sure to lock his door, he got back in his van and figured out the directions on the flyer before driving to the meeting. Kevin just hoped he wasn’t making a mistake as he sped off down the road.

[Iethloc]

Abe's eyes flicked open, and his alarm clock was just inches from his face, the numbers "8:19" blinking in red. The novelty of waking whenever he wanted had already left the professional author. The pressure of releasing a book once in every not-too-great while had not, sadly. Like most mornings, the first thing he did was rise out of bed and rub his eyes. He shuffled out of his bedroom and went straight to his computer, unceremoniously pressed the power button, and blinked as the monitor obediently flickered into life. The few moments it took for his computer to start up gave him the opportunity to grab the makings of a bowl of cereal, and, by the time he returned to his desk, his computer was patiently waiting for him to issue his commands.

As he devoured his breakfast, he checked the sales of his books. Three series, four stand-alone novels, all were still selling enough to allow him to live. He browsed the internet for a few more minutes as he finished the cereal, and the news caught his eye. He nearly gave a double-take at the bizarre story. "...lettuce?" he said, the first word said that day in his house. Then he simply checked his e-mail. He was about to delete a bundle of spam when he noticed the title of one mentioning CPD. Giving in to his curiosity, he opened it and read over its contents. It did not provoke any thoughts, at first, and he simply closed the window without deleting that e-mail, and continued his daily routine.

He went into the basement, turning on the light as he reached the bottom of the stairs. Now it was time for his morning exercise. He spent around 15 minutes warming up and doing general exercises, then spent at least half an hour sparring with the dummy, the e-mail eventually making its way into his thoughts. His skills still far exceeded that of an inanimate object, but at least it kept him in practice. After a few more minutes of running laps and basically messing around, he went back upstairs, turning the lights off as he left. Aside from dropping the soap a couple times, the shower went without a hitch, as did getting dressed. But the e-mail was still occupying his mind, and it was bothering him more and more.

He tried to ignore it, and then brought up the progress on his current novel. He was just a few chapters away from completing the tail of those construction workers and the shrine. It was a pain to update both the copy on the hard drive, a pen drive, and a copy on another hard drive, but it never hurt to have multiple back-ups. Like most times he started writing, he eventually lost himself in the words, never once looking away from the monitor for a few hours. Eventually, his eyes twitched towards the digital clock on his computer, and he noticed it was lunchtime.

As he expected, not too long after lunch, some time around 1:30, he got a call from his sister. She was confirming her next visit next week, and Abe told her (truthfully) that he was free that day. So far, things were going fairly well for Abe. He hadn't had any hallucinations for a while. That was good, since he was mostly hoping it would go away on its own. But, once that thought came to mind, the e-mail once again pressed itself against the back of his mind. He was starting to lose his patience. Maybe a walk would clear his mind; it certainly helped whenever he had Writer's Block.

He retrieved his nice, polished cane and exited his house, making sure to lock the door behind him. He walked right past his garage, and sauntered down the sidewalk. Eventually, he began spinning his cane in his hand as he walked, and he resisted the urge to whistle. A few times around the block, with no one interfering, and he arrived back home. The support group was still creeping through his mind. After going back inside, he finally gave in. He checked the e-mail and memorized the location and time. If they didn't provide any legitimate help, at least it would help make today more interesting.

When the time came, Abe once again retrieved his cane, and took another stroll. He had walked to the community center before, so he left early enough to get there in time. Regardless, he still felt somewhat nervous as he made his way. He had no idea what was coming up.

[mikeejimbo]

((I've given it two days, I think we can go on))

In the community center, there is a lobby. There is a man wearing a yellow hat behind the desk, with the embroidered letters "GC:CC" on it. You recognize this as the city's municipal logo.

"Welcome," says the man in the yellow hat. He is seated behind a reception desk, and asks if you would like information. There is a sign behind him with a guide to what rooms are on which floor. The one in which the CPD Support Group is meeting is on B1, room 23. You can walk down a flight of stairs, or take the elevator. The elevator was last inspected a week ago, and its operating certificate is on file, you can ask for it at the desk. The maximum weight is one ton, 300 pounds, and the maximum occupancy is five people. (For fire safety reasons.) In case of fire, do not use. Take the stairs. There are two flights and three level spots for passing one another and turning around.

B1 room 23 itself is a largely undecorated room. There are chairs sitting around in a circle, but not enough to complete a circle. People are sitting in the chairs, they look friendly. There is a table with some bagels sitting out.

[Happytime]

Spencer walked into the dank little room with some pessimism, and his low expectations had been met so far. He hoped the bagels were fresh enough to make this meeting worth his time. Taking a bagel and smearing some cream cheese on it, Spencer takes a seat near the end of the incomplete circle, staring at his feet when he wasn't eating. Spencer was always a little shy, and he figured most of these people were probably not sick and crying out for attention from a world they barely understood. Yet despite all his misgivings, here he sat.

[CrimsonTear]

Kevin rushed in the building and into the elevator after quickly checking the sign, punching the button for floor B1. Panting a little bit, he kept reassuring himself that he might not be late and have to enter awkwardly into the meeting. As the door opened, Kevin stepped out and passed room 23 the first time past and had to double back, carefully checking the doors to make sure he had the right room.

Entering as quietly as possible he noted with a sigh of relief that the meeting had not started and that people were milling around and talking quietly. He passed the bagels though did a double take on the table hoping for coffee as he was a caffeine junky. Seeing none he sat in one of the few chairs with nobody on either side of him while noticing to his disappointment that nobody looked near his age. Kevin sighed to himself and almost hoped that this would end quickly because he was already feeling awkward and jittery but until then he would sit there patiently.

[mikeejimbo]

"Welcome," says a man with dark blond hair once everyone gets settled into chairs. "I'm Adam Light, the leader of GC's CPD support group. I see we have a number of new members," he says, gesturing to the newcomers. "In a moment, we'll have you introduce yourselves, but first we'll introduce ourselves.

"I became infected with CPD two months ago, but I've been dealing with it quite well ever since. Through this support group, you'll learn how to minimizes the risks associated with CPD. As an exercise, I would like the next member to explain these risks."

A young woman to his right stands up as he sits down. "I'm Elizabeth Bishop," she says, smiling. "No relation to the poet. The biggest risk of CPD is doing something dangerous during an episode. You have little to no control of your actual actions when undergoing an episode, you only think you do. It is a sensory illusion. Another big risk is attracting attention from the authorities, and possibly even getting arrested. When you snap out of the episode, you may find yourself in jail."

"Thank you," Adam Light says. "Will the next member please tell what you're supposed to do if you think you're having an episode?"

A middle-aged man stands up from the seat to the right of Elizabeth. "I am Sam West. If you are having an episode, do not contact anyone. Do not go anywhere. Try to stay put and wait for it to pass. After your episode, call your sponsor."

The rest of the group introduces themselves. They tell about how long they've been infected and what their early hallucinations were like. Then it comes to the newcomers.

"Please, introduce yourselves to the group," Adam says.

[Happytime]

Spencer had finished the bagel by time the attention had swung around to him. He stood up awkwardly, and looked around.

"My name is Spencer... I had my first episode in college. I'm sure most of you guys remember the "Demon in the Dean's Office" headline from 11 years ago." Looking awkwardly around the room, he sat down again, not sure what else he could say.

[CrimsonTear]

Kevin waited nervously as the newcomers went around introducing themselves. He paid attention to what they said and registered as much as possible though he did not understand the concept of syncing up but did not want to ask anyone what it was and draw attention to himself. When it finally got to him he stood up.

"Hi, I'm Kevin. I've had the symptoms of CPD for almost three years now, and this is my first time meeting anyone else with the disorder."

He sat back down his face a bit red, he was good at speaking in front of groups but he did tend to get nervous talking in front of people he didn't know.

[Iethloc]

Abe gave the hatted one little more than a nod as he walked over to the stairs, and immediately made his way to the CPD support room. He gave the room a good looking-over before snatching one of the bagels and taking a seat. He did little to attract attention during the meeting; he mostly just listened and occasionally took a bite from the bagel. Eventually, everyone else had spoken, and his bagel was no more, so he stood up to speak.

"I'm Abe. I've only had CPD for about a month or so, but most of my hallucinations were...disturbing enough to make up for that..." he explained somewhat curtly, unknowingly rubbing his forearms near the end; one could still see the fading scars if one looked close enough. He sat down quietly after his turn, noticing what he was doing. He proceeded to sit still in a comfortable enough position.

[mikeejimbo]

"I see, I see," says Adam, nodding at each. "Some of you have been infected for a very long time," he says with a hint of surprise. "It's less common for us to have such members. Perhaps you will be a valuable asset - tell me, how do you try to deal with it?"

[CrimsonTear]

Kevin waits nearly a whole minute for someone to speak up but after nobody does he stands up.

"The best thing that I have been able to do is to just go somewhere else in my mind and leave my body on autopilot. I don't get as freaked out when I do that you know. I just wait for it to pass and hope that it does so soon. When I get out of one the first thing I do is see if I'm okay, I check for blood and stuff you know. Then I find out where I am. I apologize if there is anyone around and then I just go home. Sometimes I feel an episode coming but other times I don't even realize it until I'm way into it. Some songs have triggered some of my episodes I think so I don't listen to the radio or turn on my computer anymore."

Kevin sat back down and hoped that it was the answer that the people were looking for, he was nervous and didn't want to make a fool out of himself. He wanted more than anything to go find a bottle of water, as public speaking usually left his mouth dry, but he patiently waited for the other members to share.

[mikeejimbo]

"That's good," Adam says reassuringly. "You might also want to try to avoid contact with others. Sometimes locking yourself in your room may help, but other times it may not."

One of the other members, whom you may remember introducing himself as Nick Lupe, stands up.

"Sometimes if I write myself little notes to remind myself how to act, it helps," he offers."

[Happytime]

Spencer had been listening for a while, and so far he wasn't satisfied. When he felt it was his turn, he stood up. "I uhh... I live in a place with a few people, so I keep my office in my basement. In case I sync I keep the door locked. It's not complicated or anything, but it's just worked. My girlfriend knows what's wrong but my brother and sister, well, I don't really know how to explain it to them. The media likes to play our problem off like some sort of civil disobedience..." After an awkward pause, Spencer sat back down, not sure what else to say.