Tunnelers Entries 0105 through 0805

0105 — Timberland owned by the Howells-Rush Logging Company. Enough space to ride an ATV between the trees, though the especially damp and uneven ground makes this difficult. An abandoned Tunneler campsite contains a tent with two pickaxes, a saw, one pair of oilskin overalls, a stick-and-poke tattoo kit, a box of luminescent chalk, an Omnivore Worm in a lead box, and a large amount of cheap supermarket brand sodas. A piece of paper, contained in a zipper-sealed plastic bag to protect from the rain, is pinned to a nearby tree: “this camp belongs to TEDDY ‘DRILLIONAIRE’ WINTERS shout outs to my boys PROFESSORPLUM2 and LINDATHESHOVELMAMA iou both a beer”
Teddy Winters (he/him, 25, DRILLIONAIRE on the forums and chatrooms) has gone to investigate Harlowe House.

0205 — Timberland owned by the Howells-Rush Logging Company. Enough space to ride an ATV between the trees, though the especially damp and uneven ground makes this difficult. A manmade drain pours excess water from Lake Dundarave into the forest, creating the swampy surroundings of Castle Lake Creek. An abundance of small animal life around the water: a family of beavers is present, and coyotes, rats and mice, elk, and owls are a common sight.

0305 — The Brent Rush Memorial Park, an area of public hiking trails and campsites donated and maintained by the Howells-Rush logging company. A popular family destination on weekends, and a popular after school hangout for the more well-off teens who live nearby. City-appointed caretakers Colin (he/him, 45) and Lydia (she/her, 46) Baker maintain an on-site cabin where they spend much of their time, cleaning the trails and plotting to put a stop to the drunken orgies they imagine are happening in the woods. They own an ATV (keys always on Colin’s person) and keep three Remington 700 .22 rifles in a gun case in the cabin, requiring two keys to unlock — they have never once needed to fire them.
The teen’s parties are typically much tamer than they fear.

0405 — An entirely residential area, dotted with patches of trees, and home to the well-off residents of Dundarave. Houses have large yards with “rustic” art displayed in them. Everyone here knows each other, and non-residents are quickly noticed and draw suspicion if not vouched for by another member of the community.
Molly Howell (31, she/her) is an enthusiastic inheritor of the Howells-Rush logging fortune, and is pursuing business ventures of her own with the family money, playing the local housing market.
The Finch household consists of Laurel (she/her, 36), her mother Sandra (she/her, 70), and her son Lucas (he/him, 17). None of them feel the call of the soil, but Sandra’s long deceased husband Herbert did, and the basement of the house is a sprawling maze. Laurel and Sandra ignore it so long as it doesn’t flood, but Lucas occasionally ventures down to satisfy mundane curiosity. He has grown fearful of things he hears in the dark, and swears that new passages seem to open. A Harvest Cherubim living deep inside hopes to lure him to his doom.
Kenneth (he/him, 39) and Delilah (she/her, 40) Carpenter play host to a tunneler. Ellie Soule (she/her or he/him, 29, ESoule on the forums) has charmed his way into their life while hunting for a nearby tunnel that calls to her. Ellie secretly performs sexual favors for both of her hosts, both of whom are dissatisfied with heterosexual domesticity but incapable of admitting that to the other.
Bill Pike (he/him, 52) is divorced and has filled his riverfront yard with boats. If you want to buy or sell a boat, Bill’s name will inevitably come up.

0505 — A mixture of businesses and residences of all types. The slightly nicer gas station is here. Where the Lower Dundarave River passes through the town it is common to see fishermen on the bridges.
Bradley’s Pizza is constantly busy, churning out slightly undercooked pies with uneven toppings that locals swear are the best pizza you can find, just nothing like it anywhere else. If you want to meet someone local in a public place, there’s a strong chance they will suggest Bradley’s.
The Dundarave Public School is always undergoing some form of maintenance.
The Pioneer’s Respite is a slightly more well-to-do hotel, catering to those visiting from out of town on business. A few Tunnelers with greater means have rented rooms here: Linda Harms (she/her, 57, LindaTheShovelMama on the forums) cannot do much digging herself on account of being wheelchair bound but is enthusiastic about sourcing hard to find supplies in return for information, pictures, and stories. Anton Clemenson (he/they, 42, professorplum2 on the forums) is trying to look for answers about the Dundarave video in the stories of the local Salish tribe. He has made a number of false connections, but does have a robust collection of local historical information, including the location of the Harlowe House mine.
Teddy Teague (he/him, 16) holds band practice on saturday nights, filling the neighborhood with harsh noises as he and a rotating group of compatriots try to figure out how industrial music works. Teddy is gay and has a crush on all the other boys in his band, but has not worked up the courage to tell them. Instead he frets over the Coil records his older brother (long moved away) sends home as gifts, and the Nine Inch Nails and Slipknot CDs he occasionally buys with his allowance, while trying to work up courage to venture out to the local goth hangouts.

0605 — State forest. Dense and hard to see through, with minimal room to operate vehicles outside of sparse trails. A single paved public road from town seems well maintained for how little it is used. Cell towers rise from the woodland, their lights blinking sleepily. Go too deep into the woods here at night, and when you return to the road the Bright Eyed Man (he/him, 46) will be waiting. He is a CIA occultist driving an unidentifiable black car, and he will offer you a ride home. It is hard to refuse. He interrogates his passengers on what they think of the cell towers, asking leading questions that imply he believes they are UFO related, and though he never stops driving, the road outside seems to stretch on for as long as the conversation takes. Concealed in the car, a MAC-10 Machine Pistol. Concealed on his person, a garotte.

0705 — This rocky and remote field is a favorite hangout of older teens and younger adults looking to party. Typically a more redneck crowd, but recently more of the alt and goth kids have been showing up, as their other typical hangouts have become less welcoming. The heavily graffiti’d standing stones that serve as the party’s centerpiece are a place of power.

0805 — It is mostly called The Resort, though its proper name is The Mossy Getaway Camp Ground And Spa. A health retreat for the very wealthy, frequented by people who don’t want to be bothered. Private vans take care of transporting guests and delivering food from town. The owner and manager Grant “Grandad” Colhoun (he/him, 58) always wears a Ruger Old Army revolver with a carving of his mother’s face on its grip, and is enthusiastic about showing it off. He delights in acting the part of an overenthused good ol boy bumpkin, while being an occultist, drug dealer, and pimp. Buys cocaine and heroin from Natalia and Aaron Grieves, but would prefer to replace them with a runner of his own.