IC- Zombie Apocalypse Chapter 2- The Quick and the Undead
- Thread starter Mr. Handy
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On the roof of the diner -
"A pleasure, if it had been under other circumstances..." Luke replies to Erica "Not taking the rifle back 'til you've got yourself another gun. I'm keeping the M14 because it shoots faster and has a bigger magazine. I doubt there are a lot of people here who are a better shot than I am, so I'd wager these are the best hands for this gun to be in... Except the airforce sniper guys, but they brought their own toys."
To prove that his own words weren't simply meant to brag, he scores two impales (22dmg, 14 dmg), 2 normal kills (10dmg, 13dmg) and a miss.
On the north road -
"Thayer! Get your shit wired straight and stop for fucks sake!" Cole yells seeing that there is no way he can catch up with him at this pace. Now almost out of breath, he is slowing his pace because he doesn't want his aim hampered by heavy breathing once he stops.
OCC - does Cole see any 'runners' (fastmoving zombies)
"A pleasure, if it had been under other circumstances..." Luke replies to Erica "Not taking the rifle back 'til you've got yourself another gun. I'm keeping the M14 because it shoots faster and has a bigger magazine. I doubt there are a lot of people here who are a better shot than I am, so I'd wager these are the best hands for this gun to be in... Except the airforce sniper guys, but they brought their own toys."
To prove that his own words weren't simply meant to brag, he scores two impales (22dmg, 14 dmg), 2 normal kills (10dmg, 13dmg) and a miss.
On the north road -
"Thayer! Get your shit wired straight and stop for fucks sake!" Cole yells seeing that there is no way he can catch up with him at this pace. Now almost out of breath, he is slowing his pace because he doesn't want his aim hampered by heavy breathing once he stops.
OCC - does Cole see any 'runners' (fastmoving zombies)
Motel Balcony
"Hah!" Shouted Hockey. He keys his loudspeaker, stairing down the targets. "Soft Targets aquisitioned! Engaging!" He saw three targets, leading the pack by a miniscule ammount, and squeezed the trigger, trying to land three shots on each target. Hockey squeezes the trigger, sending nine rounds down range. Landing 6 .223 rounds on targets. (Two on first, Three on second, one on third) . Most notably, scoring two headshots; [http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=933963] Hockey saw the rounds light [/url] and noticed a critical hit
ooc ( 4 more rounds?)
"Hah!" Shouted Hockey. He keys his loudspeaker, stairing down the targets. "Soft Targets aquisitioned! Engaging!" He saw three targets, leading the pack by a miniscule ammount, and squeezed the trigger, trying to land three shots on each target. Hockey squeezes the trigger, sending nine rounds down range. Landing 6 .223 rounds on targets. (Two on first, Three on second, one on third) . Most notably, scoring two headshots; [http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=933963] Hockey saw the rounds light [/url] and noticed a critical hit
ooc ( 4 more rounds?)
Fearlessfred
First time out of the vault
On the Roof-
Black contiues to fire raining down death on anything in his sights until on the fourth shot his gun jams. However his first three shots cause major damage the first destroying a creatures head the second was more devastating the third also dropped the target. "Three down!" He starts working on the jam.
Black contiues to fire raining down death on anything in his sights until on the fourth shot his gun jams. However his first three shots cause major damage the first destroying a creatures head the second was more devastating the third also dropped the target. "Three down!" He starts working on the jam.
OOC- Total zombies killed so far: 46/90 (counting the ones Luke and Black killed, but not yet any killed by Hockey)
Actually, Hockey has enough time to fire all 85 bullets still in the belt at the start of this round. Just go ahead and group them into however many bursts you want and fire one burst at each target. You've already fired 3 bursts of 3, or 9 bullets, so that leaves 76. Each burst gets its own to hit roll, and a roll of 99 or 100 will cause a jam. You did this correctly for the three bursts you've fired so far, and all three were hits. In fact, the roll of 18 for the second burst counts as an impale since the effective skill is 90%, so the first bullet to hit from that burst does double damage.
When you roll 1d8 for hit locations, you should roll it once per bullet that hits, not once per burst. Each bullet can hit separately. Thayer's rolls a few rounds back show how this is done, and also what to do in the event of an impale. You've only rolled three hit locations, so those are for the first three bullets out of the six that have hit so far. Then you should roll damage for each of those bullets. This is always 2d8 per bullet, except when there is an impale, in which case the first bullet in that burst does 4d8. It is never 3d8 or 1d8. Since two bullets hit from the first burst, they should each do 2d8 to the same target, the first to the head (location 1) and the second to the stomach (location 4). The second burst had all three bullets hit. The first one hits an arm (location 6) and does 4d8 damage due to the impale. The next two need new hit locations rolled and each do 2d8 damage, as does the one bullet in the third burst.
As you know, it takes 10 or more damage to the head to guarantee a kill. Any total of 40 or more damage to any locations on the same zombie will also guarantee a kill for a walker, which all of these are.
Here are some examples of burst fire by Thayer earlier: http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?u=Airman+Bruce+Thayer
His last burst was an impale, so the first bullet did 4d8 damage. I subtracted five in this case because he was shooting Alanen, who had a Kevlar helmet on. The zombies you're shooting don't have body armor.
In the event of a jam, stop firing - this ends whichever of the five rounds you are currently on. You may attempt to unjam it by making a roll against your unmodified Machine Gun skill, in this case 80%. Failure costs you one of your five combat rounds, but you may use another to try again unless you've used up all five. If you succeed, roll 1d6 to see how many combat rounds it takes to clear the jam. This may spill over after the next update if the roll is high enough. You can fire up to 20 bullets per round, so losing time clearing a jam means you won't be able to fire as many.
Black has one combat round remaining, so he may use it to start trying to clear the jam. He would roll against his Rifle skill of 92%. If he fails, that's it for him until after the next update. If he succeeds, roll 1d6 to see how many rounds clearing the jam takes, which probably will spill over. If he's unlucky enough to roll a 6, he will lose the one round he has left and the five he's due to get after the next update. Alternatively, you can wait to make the roll until after the next update. That's what I'm doing for Duran, who has an extra two rounds remaining (so he'll get a total of 7).
If this is too much work, you can just let me know how you want to group the bursts and I can make the rolls for you.
Actually, Hockey has enough time to fire all 85 bullets still in the belt at the start of this round. Just go ahead and group them into however many bursts you want and fire one burst at each target. You've already fired 3 bursts of 3, or 9 bullets, so that leaves 76. Each burst gets its own to hit roll, and a roll of 99 or 100 will cause a jam. You did this correctly for the three bursts you've fired so far, and all three were hits. In fact, the roll of 18 for the second burst counts as an impale since the effective skill is 90%, so the first bullet to hit from that burst does double damage.
When you roll 1d8 for hit locations, you should roll it once per bullet that hits, not once per burst. Each bullet can hit separately. Thayer's rolls a few rounds back show how this is done, and also what to do in the event of an impale. You've only rolled three hit locations, so those are for the first three bullets out of the six that have hit so far. Then you should roll damage for each of those bullets. This is always 2d8 per bullet, except when there is an impale, in which case the first bullet in that burst does 4d8. It is never 3d8 or 1d8. Since two bullets hit from the first burst, they should each do 2d8 to the same target, the first to the head (location 1) and the second to the stomach (location 4). The second burst had all three bullets hit. The first one hits an arm (location 6) and does 4d8 damage due to the impale. The next two need new hit locations rolled and each do 2d8 damage, as does the one bullet in the third burst.
As you know, it takes 10 or more damage to the head to guarantee a kill. Any total of 40 or more damage to any locations on the same zombie will also guarantee a kill for a walker, which all of these are.
Here are some examples of burst fire by Thayer earlier: http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?u=Airman+Bruce+Thayer
His last burst was an impale, so the first bullet did 4d8 damage. I subtracted five in this case because he was shooting Alanen, who had a Kevlar helmet on. The zombies you're shooting don't have body armor.
In the event of a jam, stop firing - this ends whichever of the five rounds you are currently on. You may attempt to unjam it by making a roll against your unmodified Machine Gun skill, in this case 80%. Failure costs you one of your five combat rounds, but you may use another to try again unless you've used up all five. If you succeed, roll 1d6 to see how many combat rounds it takes to clear the jam. This may spill over after the next update if the roll is high enough. You can fire up to 20 bullets per round, so losing time clearing a jam means you won't be able to fire as many.
Black has one combat round remaining, so he may use it to start trying to clear the jam. He would roll against his Rifle skill of 92%. If he fails, that's it for him until after the next update. If he succeeds, roll 1d6 to see how many rounds clearing the jam takes, which probably will spill over. If he's unlucky enough to roll a 6, he will lose the one round he has left and the five he's due to get after the next update. Alternatively, you can wait to make the roll until after the next update. That's what I'm doing for Duran, who has an extra two rounds remaining (so he'll get a total of 7).
If this is too much work, you can just let me know how you want to group the bursts and I can make the rolls for you.
Steve-the-Zombie-Killer
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
OCC- Sorry about the delay. My computer was giving me trouble yesterday evening when I wished to post.
In the underground hallway:
Jim saw that it was going to take sometime before the door was open so he holsterd his weapon and then sat down on the ground. He looked up at Robert and said, "Tell me a little bit about yourself sir."
Outside the garage then inside the garage:
Alice walked into the garage and then sat on the ground waiting for something to do. "If anyone needs anything let me know. Otherwise I am going to take a short nap." After saying this she leaned her head against the garage wall and fell asleep.
In the Comm Room:
Lewis grabbed some of the equipment that had been unplugged and put it onto a stack to be carried away. Then turning back he noticed that he still had the guns from Ortega whom he saw sitting in the corner. He went over to him and squatting down said, "Son it will be allright." He then handed over to Ortega his M16A2 with the grenade launcher and then standing up went back to packing.
Southwest corner of the motel, ground level:
McCain noticed that he was sitting on the ground. Getting up he checked to see that he had all his weapons and then followed Captain Lereux upstairs.
Northwest corner of the balcony:
Coming up to Captain Lereux, McCain said, "Captain I am sorry for going crazy back there. I know that there will most likly be discipline involved later on and I am ready for that if you wish to place me under arrest. But for now I am ready to take charge once again." McCain then got back on his radio and said, "THis is McCain. I am back in action. I want position reports for everyone under my command ASAP!" Seeing Captain Lereux firing at the creatures he grabbed his M-4 off his shoulder and took aim also. McCain squeezed the trigger at the head of one of the creatures. However he just missed the creature. "Damm", he muttered as he took aim once more.
In the underground hallway:
Jim saw that it was going to take sometime before the door was open so he holsterd his weapon and then sat down on the ground. He looked up at Robert and said, "Tell me a little bit about yourself sir."
Outside the garage then inside the garage:
Alice walked into the garage and then sat on the ground waiting for something to do. "If anyone needs anything let me know. Otherwise I am going to take a short nap." After saying this she leaned her head against the garage wall and fell asleep.
In the Comm Room:
Lewis grabbed some of the equipment that had been unplugged and put it onto a stack to be carried away. Then turning back he noticed that he still had the guns from Ortega whom he saw sitting in the corner. He went over to him and squatting down said, "Son it will be allright." He then handed over to Ortega his M16A2 with the grenade launcher and then standing up went back to packing.
Southwest corner of the motel, ground level:
McCain noticed that he was sitting on the ground. Getting up he checked to see that he had all his weapons and then followed Captain Lereux upstairs.
Northwest corner of the balcony:
Coming up to Captain Lereux, McCain said, "Captain I am sorry for going crazy back there. I know that there will most likly be discipline involved later on and I am ready for that if you wish to place me under arrest. But for now I am ready to take charge once again." McCain then got back on his radio and said, "THis is McCain. I am back in action. I want position reports for everyone under my command ASAP!" Seeing Captain Lereux firing at the creatures he grabbed his M-4 off his shoulder and took aim also. McCain squeezed the trigger at the head of one of the creatures. However he just missed the creature. "Damm", he muttered as he took aim once more.
Fearlessfred
First time out of the vault
OOC- Stompie still hasn't gotten back to me for a while on whether he wants to fire additional shots, so I'll just proceed with the update now.
Total zombies killed (including this round so far): 59/90
Wounded zombies:
6 damage to head
10 damage to left arm, 13 to right leg, 10 to abdomen (7/40 HP)
11 damage to abdomen, 10 to right leg, 8 to lower chest (11/40 HP)
12 damage to left leg, 8 to upper chest, 3 to left leg (17/40 HP)
19 damage to abdomen (21/40 HP)
Phillips was firing at half skill this round, but I forgot to adjust it in the note on Invisible Castle.
IC-
On the motel's balcony-
"Arrest you?" said Captain Lereux as he took aim. "Right now I need every man I can get. Discipline can wait, and you'll have to take a number as far as that's concerned. With Alanen gone, I'd like you to take personal command of Fire Team 2 - assuming we can get it back together." He noticed that the snipers' guns had fallen silent and spoke into the radio. "Sergeant McCain is once more in charge of our defenses. Sergeant Black, why have you and your partner stopped shooting?"
The captain opened up on the approaching creatures, but they were too far away and all of his shots missed.
Phillips fired five shots and only hit once, but it was good enough for a kill.
Hockey saw one of the creatures he had shot fall, riddled with bullets and never to rise again. Another one took a round to the head and went down hard, but amazingly it was still moving.
Duran fumbled with his weapon, but it remained jammed. He tried again and this time he had more success, though it took him quite a while.
(Hockey and McCain each may fire for five combat rounds. At this point the zombies are close enough that neither of them has a range penalty, just -5% for headshots. If Hockey uses the SAW, he may fire all of the ammo remaining in his belt in four combat rounds. Reloading with the new belt will take up one round, as would switching to his rifle.)
On the roof of the motel-
"Sir," replied Bobby Sheen over the radio as he worked to clear his weapon, "our rifles have jammed."
"Both of them?" came the captain's reply.
"Yes, sir. Awful timing, I know." He failed to unjam his M-24 and nearly damaged it in the attempt. Shaking his head, he got it on the second try after a lot of effort.
Black also unjammed his sniper rifle and took aim once again.
(Black has enough time left to fire three shots now. Sheen has borrowed one combat round from his next set of shots.)
In the comm room-
Ortega took the rifle back and clutched it like a security blanket. He looked wildly from side to side.
"Sounds like everything's Foxtrot Uniform out there," said Malanowski. "Maybe we ought to head upstairs soon."
Lt. Malone nodded. "Once we get word from the captain, we'll go up to the balcony until the attack is repulsed. In the meantime, let's get as much done as we can."
Mikhalin began unplugging wires from the main unit, a massive monstrosity well over two feet bigger than her and weighing at least three hundred pounds. "This one's going to be the worst to move upstairs when the time comes," she said.
On the north road-
Thayer did stop, though Cole wasn't sure whether his words had had any effect on him. Thayer pointed his M-16 at the mob that was all too close, grinding his teeth and seething with rage. "Die, you cocksucking sons of bitches!" he roared, as he cut loose on full auto. He sprayed lead across five random targets. Astoundingly, all but two of the bullets found their marks. Four of the creatures went down with severed legs, but three of those crawled onwards. The other, which Hockey had wounded earlier, lay unmoving. One was brutally gutshot, but it picked itself up and continued undaunted.
Thayer gaped in awe as the seemingly unstoppable enemy came ever closer. His already numb mind snapped further.
(Thayer only lost 2 Sanity this time, since he had lost 8 before. He has lost the maximum amount of Sanity possible for seeing zombies. However, since he only started with 50 he has now lost 20% and has gone indefinitely insane.
Cole, roll Sanity. If you stay sane, you have five combat rounds before the zombies reach Thayer and get to attack him. They are a little too far away to reach Cole in that time provided he gets no closer. It would take him one round to reach Thayer, and another to get back out of range. Since Fast Talk bypasses reason, Cole could use it on him, even without getting closer. Each attempt takes one round. If he wishes to try to grapple Thayer he will have to move up to him. Each attempt takes one round, and since it's from behind he gets no opportunity to avoid it. Once he is grappled, Cole may drag him out of range by passing a Resistance roll of his STR of 16 vs. Thayer's SIZ of 15, which is a 55% chance. Each attempt takes one round. Success pulls him out of the zombies' range. Failure means both of them go nowhere. If Cole knocked Thayer out he could carry him out of range, but would have to roll STR x 4 since Thayer is a big guy. Each attempt would also take one round, though other options are probably better.
Cole may also spend some of his actions attacking the zombies, with no range penalties. The M203 is currently loaded, but takes 2 rounds to reload. I'll say his skill is 75% just like his Rifle skill, though Grenade Launcher is actually a separate skill. He may also throw hand grenades every other round using his Throw skill. If they hit, the 40mm grenades fired by the M203 will affect 1d10 zombies at the full damage level of 3d6, 4 times this number at 2d6, and 9 times the number of the original 1d10 roll at 1d6. The hand grenades affect 4d10 zombies at 4d6 damage, four times this number at 3d6, and the rest if any at 2d6. Each zombie affected has a random primary hit location on 1d8, with 1 being the head. If you use grenades and you'd prefer I can make these rolls.)
Outside the garage-
Baldwin opened up on the ghouls, landing hits with four out of five shots. The first shot was perfect and took one of their heads off. The other three hits were all lethal as well.
"Whoa!" said Jenny. "Way to go! I'd be lucky to hit even once at this range." She aimed the Ruger Mini 14 uneasily. Wallace recognized it as his own weapon.
Samantha also fired five shots and hit with all but one. One zombie dropped after getting hit twice, and two others were blown away with one shot each.
In the garage-
Alice could not fall asleep with the sounds of gunfire just outside and the commotion of the men repairing the truck. Michael looked at her incredulously as he stood near the door. "You what?" he said. "Miss, we've got dozens of walking corpses incoming and you want to take a nap? You've got a rifle, so either go out there and use it or bloody well give it to someone who will!
"There are worse things than those out there, too. I saw one of the meteorites up close, and they are not natural. When that young Marine went up to it, it cracked open and a whole swarm of mosquito-like creatures from outer space came out and attacked us!"
"Oh, no," gasped Jenny from outside. "Alex...is he..."
"I'm afraid so, miss. One of them stung him and injected him with some kind of poison. Him, the Italian bird, and that whole family, all slaughtered. Then they turned into those..."
"Zombies?" said Mitchell.
"Don't say the zed word. But, yeah, that's what they are, all right. I have no clue what those mosquito things are, but they are not of this world."
"That's what Stephanie said!" said Jenny. "You should talk to her. I can't believe Alex is gone. I never even got to talk to him. I'd hoped..." Jenny began to weep, wondering if she would ever find someone. It was too soon for her to be able to tell if she had been falling in love with Alex, but now she would never have the chance to find out. She nearly lost it, but barely held on. She remembered Stephanie's courage when they had been up on the motel's roof, and resolved to carry on too.
(If Alice goes outside, she may take four shots with her rifle without a range penalty.)
On the roof of the diner-
Beth began to fire at long range as the mob of zombies got closer, but all five of her shots missed.
"Nice," said Erica to Luke, already lining up her next shot. "As much as I'd love to get my hands on an M-14, you're better off with it. But I'll still need a rifle, preferably with a scope. I won't be staying here long, and I need to be able to pick them off before they even get close to me or my passengers." She slapped in a fresh clip and fired four times. The first shot was slightly off, but the other three were accurate. It took her two shots to finish one of them off, but her third killed another outright.
Willie missed twice, then reloaded and managed to hit two of the creatures in the head. He badly wounded one and slew another.
(Luke may fire four times, since he must reload at some point.)
In the warehouse-
Mr. Foo tried again, but Kerry just stared blankly at him.
"We don't have all day," said Azadeh. "More of those creatures are coming. We need to find out whatever we can quickly."
"Very well," said Mr. Foo. "Kerry, I need you to go back in time. Back to when you were in the van."
Kerry shook her head. "No..." she muttered, "no..."
"It will be all right. You are safe. I'm here with you to protect you. I need you to remember what happened after you were put in the van."
Kerry gulped, then continued speaking. "Debbie and I have been in the van for a long time. We can't see anything with our blindfolds on. Some of the roads are very bumpy. Finally the van stops, and the men open the doors and pull us out. They're taking off our blindfolds."
"Describe your surroundings."
"We're in an outdoor area with a fence around it and trees beyond that. It's dark and cold. There are buildings there, and cages with people in them, and several more men surround us, including Horst."
"How many men are there?"
"I don't know. Twenty or so, I guess. No, let me go!" She squirmed and flailed her arms.
"Kerry, what's happening?"
"They're ripping our clothes off!" She crossed her arms over her chest. "Stop it! Stop touching me!" She swallowed. "Now they're dragging us over to two of the empty cages. They just put us inside and locked my cage." She shivered. "It's so cold. Now Horst is going over to Debbie's cage. Leave her alone, you pig! She's trying to fight him, but he's too strong. He's beating her up pretty bad. Now he's taking off his belt and whipping her with it. Oh, I can't look...but I have to. He's pulling down his pants now. You monster! Take me instead!" Kerry clutched at invisible bars. "Oh, God, he's raping her! Debbie, no!" She started to sob and buried her face in her hands. "There's nothing I can do..."
"We're going to move forward a little. It's over, Kerry. Horst is done and he's leaving Debbie's cage."
"He locks her cage. Then he comes over to mine. His eyes are so full of hate. He's unlocking the door. I try to rush him, but he grabs me and slams me against the back of the cage. Get off! Help!" Kerry flinched as if struck, then turns her head aside. "He stinks so much...now the belt's coming off. No! NO!" Kerry let out a hoarse, piercing shriek as she recoiled, then blinked and looked around, tears streaming down her cheeks and terror in her eyes.
"It's okay, Kerry. You're safe. Horst is dead and he can't hurt you any more." Mr. Foo seemed unaffected. He had heard - and seen - similar atrocities in China in the 1940's. His wife had seen some horrible things too, and she also remained steady. Ellen shuddered a little, but quickly recovered. Rosie clearly felt sympathy, but was also steadfast.
Azadeh, however, winced and shut her eyes momentarily, affected a little.
(Bob, roll Sanity. Failure costs 1d2 Sanity points.)
In the reception area-
The people in the room heard the scream from upstairs. "What was that?" asked Stephanie, a worried look crossing her face.
Bo backed towards the gate. "Bob!" he called. "What's going on up there?" He lowered his voice. "I don't hear gunfire, at least."
In the kitchen-
"It's not going to boil if you keep watching it," said Zorie, drawing a blood sample from Dr. Hausmann.
"That's a myth," said Dr. Hausmann. "The presence or absence of an observer does not affect the chemical reaction."
"She was just kidding," said Sally as she turned. Just then, the kettle began to whistle. She restrained a laugh, turned back to it, and shut off the burner.
"Let's see what we can do about your arm now," said Angela Blanco. "Zorie, watch Kimberly and let me know if her condition changes. Sally, bring the water over and assist me."
"I'll need anesthetic," said Dr. Hausmann. "I had some painkillers earlier, but I think they're already wearing off."
Kimberly went into her pharmaceutical kit, but she was too stressed out by recent events to think straight.
"Leave that to me," said Dr. Blanco, She measured the proper dosage of the anesthetic and injected Dr. Hausmann. When her patient laid herself back on the table and closed her eyes, she got to work on her arm and began resetting the bone, repairing some of the damage.
In the hallway-
"Well," said Robert, "I've done a lot of travelling and never really found a place to settle down. After a graduated from college I went all around the country going from job to job. I just got into law school at Boalt Hall in California. My buddy Duke and I decided to take a road trip out there and take the scenic route, since we had time before my first semester started and it was much more interesting than a plane ride. We were making our way through the Midwest when we saw that freaky meteor shower last night, and then all this happened. What about yourself? I gather you're with that doctor and her assistant, but you don't seem to be getting along with her lately."
Lynne licked her lips and tried the lock again, then frowned. "They sure made this lock tough," she said. "I nearly jammed the lock up good that time. Whatever's behind this door better be worth it."
Total zombies killed (including this round so far): 59/90
Wounded zombies:
6 damage to head
10 damage to left arm, 13 to right leg, 10 to abdomen (7/40 HP)
11 damage to abdomen, 10 to right leg, 8 to lower chest (11/40 HP)
12 damage to left leg, 8 to upper chest, 3 to left leg (17/40 HP)
19 damage to abdomen (21/40 HP)
Phillips was firing at half skill this round, but I forgot to adjust it in the note on Invisible Castle.
IC-
On the motel's balcony-
"Arrest you?" said Captain Lereux as he took aim. "Right now I need every man I can get. Discipline can wait, and you'll have to take a number as far as that's concerned. With Alanen gone, I'd like you to take personal command of Fire Team 2 - assuming we can get it back together." He noticed that the snipers' guns had fallen silent and spoke into the radio. "Sergeant McCain is once more in charge of our defenses. Sergeant Black, why have you and your partner stopped shooting?"
The captain opened up on the approaching creatures, but they were too far away and all of his shots missed.
Phillips fired five shots and only hit once, but it was good enough for a kill.
Hockey saw one of the creatures he had shot fall, riddled with bullets and never to rise again. Another one took a round to the head and went down hard, but amazingly it was still moving.
Duran fumbled with his weapon, but it remained jammed. He tried again and this time he had more success, though it took him quite a while.
(Hockey and McCain each may fire for five combat rounds. At this point the zombies are close enough that neither of them has a range penalty, just -5% for headshots. If Hockey uses the SAW, he may fire all of the ammo remaining in his belt in four combat rounds. Reloading with the new belt will take up one round, as would switching to his rifle.)
On the roof of the motel-
"Sir," replied Bobby Sheen over the radio as he worked to clear his weapon, "our rifles have jammed."
"Both of them?" came the captain's reply.
"Yes, sir. Awful timing, I know." He failed to unjam his M-24 and nearly damaged it in the attempt. Shaking his head, he got it on the second try after a lot of effort.
Black also unjammed his sniper rifle and took aim once again.
(Black has enough time left to fire three shots now. Sheen has borrowed one combat round from his next set of shots.)
In the comm room-
Ortega took the rifle back and clutched it like a security blanket. He looked wildly from side to side.
"Sounds like everything's Foxtrot Uniform out there," said Malanowski. "Maybe we ought to head upstairs soon."
Lt. Malone nodded. "Once we get word from the captain, we'll go up to the balcony until the attack is repulsed. In the meantime, let's get as much done as we can."
Mikhalin began unplugging wires from the main unit, a massive monstrosity well over two feet bigger than her and weighing at least three hundred pounds. "This one's going to be the worst to move upstairs when the time comes," she said.
On the north road-
Thayer did stop, though Cole wasn't sure whether his words had had any effect on him. Thayer pointed his M-16 at the mob that was all too close, grinding his teeth and seething with rage. "Die, you cocksucking sons of bitches!" he roared, as he cut loose on full auto. He sprayed lead across five random targets. Astoundingly, all but two of the bullets found their marks. Four of the creatures went down with severed legs, but three of those crawled onwards. The other, which Hockey had wounded earlier, lay unmoving. One was brutally gutshot, but it picked itself up and continued undaunted.
Thayer gaped in awe as the seemingly unstoppable enemy came ever closer. His already numb mind snapped further.
(Thayer only lost 2 Sanity this time, since he had lost 8 before. He has lost the maximum amount of Sanity possible for seeing zombies. However, since he only started with 50 he has now lost 20% and has gone indefinitely insane.
Cole, roll Sanity. If you stay sane, you have five combat rounds before the zombies reach Thayer and get to attack him. They are a little too far away to reach Cole in that time provided he gets no closer. It would take him one round to reach Thayer, and another to get back out of range. Since Fast Talk bypasses reason, Cole could use it on him, even without getting closer. Each attempt takes one round. If he wishes to try to grapple Thayer he will have to move up to him. Each attempt takes one round, and since it's from behind he gets no opportunity to avoid it. Once he is grappled, Cole may drag him out of range by passing a Resistance roll of his STR of 16 vs. Thayer's SIZ of 15, which is a 55% chance. Each attempt takes one round. Success pulls him out of the zombies' range. Failure means both of them go nowhere. If Cole knocked Thayer out he could carry him out of range, but would have to roll STR x 4 since Thayer is a big guy. Each attempt would also take one round, though other options are probably better.
Cole may also spend some of his actions attacking the zombies, with no range penalties. The M203 is currently loaded, but takes 2 rounds to reload. I'll say his skill is 75% just like his Rifle skill, though Grenade Launcher is actually a separate skill. He may also throw hand grenades every other round using his Throw skill. If they hit, the 40mm grenades fired by the M203 will affect 1d10 zombies at the full damage level of 3d6, 4 times this number at 2d6, and 9 times the number of the original 1d10 roll at 1d6. The hand grenades affect 4d10 zombies at 4d6 damage, four times this number at 3d6, and the rest if any at 2d6. Each zombie affected has a random primary hit location on 1d8, with 1 being the head. If you use grenades and you'd prefer I can make these rolls.)
Outside the garage-
Baldwin opened up on the ghouls, landing hits with four out of five shots. The first shot was perfect and took one of their heads off. The other three hits were all lethal as well.
"Whoa!" said Jenny. "Way to go! I'd be lucky to hit even once at this range." She aimed the Ruger Mini 14 uneasily. Wallace recognized it as his own weapon.
Samantha also fired five shots and hit with all but one. One zombie dropped after getting hit twice, and two others were blown away with one shot each.
In the garage-
Alice could not fall asleep with the sounds of gunfire just outside and the commotion of the men repairing the truck. Michael looked at her incredulously as he stood near the door. "You what?" he said. "Miss, we've got dozens of walking corpses incoming and you want to take a nap? You've got a rifle, so either go out there and use it or bloody well give it to someone who will!
"There are worse things than those out there, too. I saw one of the meteorites up close, and they are not natural. When that young Marine went up to it, it cracked open and a whole swarm of mosquito-like creatures from outer space came out and attacked us!"
"Oh, no," gasped Jenny from outside. "Alex...is he..."
"I'm afraid so, miss. One of them stung him and injected him with some kind of poison. Him, the Italian bird, and that whole family, all slaughtered. Then they turned into those..."
"Zombies?" said Mitchell.
"Don't say the zed word. But, yeah, that's what they are, all right. I have no clue what those mosquito things are, but they are not of this world."
"That's what Stephanie said!" said Jenny. "You should talk to her. I can't believe Alex is gone. I never even got to talk to him. I'd hoped..." Jenny began to weep, wondering if she would ever find someone. It was too soon for her to be able to tell if she had been falling in love with Alex, but now she would never have the chance to find out. She nearly lost it, but barely held on. She remembered Stephanie's courage when they had been up on the motel's roof, and resolved to carry on too.
(If Alice goes outside, she may take four shots with her rifle without a range penalty.)
On the roof of the diner-
Beth began to fire at long range as the mob of zombies got closer, but all five of her shots missed.
"Nice," said Erica to Luke, already lining up her next shot. "As much as I'd love to get my hands on an M-14, you're better off with it. But I'll still need a rifle, preferably with a scope. I won't be staying here long, and I need to be able to pick them off before they even get close to me or my passengers." She slapped in a fresh clip and fired four times. The first shot was slightly off, but the other three were accurate. It took her two shots to finish one of them off, but her third killed another outright.
Willie missed twice, then reloaded and managed to hit two of the creatures in the head. He badly wounded one and slew another.
(Luke may fire four times, since he must reload at some point.)
In the warehouse-
Mr. Foo tried again, but Kerry just stared blankly at him.
"We don't have all day," said Azadeh. "More of those creatures are coming. We need to find out whatever we can quickly."
"Very well," said Mr. Foo. "Kerry, I need you to go back in time. Back to when you were in the van."
Kerry shook her head. "No..." she muttered, "no..."
"It will be all right. You are safe. I'm here with you to protect you. I need you to remember what happened after you were put in the van."
Kerry gulped, then continued speaking. "Debbie and I have been in the van for a long time. We can't see anything with our blindfolds on. Some of the roads are very bumpy. Finally the van stops, and the men open the doors and pull us out. They're taking off our blindfolds."
"Describe your surroundings."
"We're in an outdoor area with a fence around it and trees beyond that. It's dark and cold. There are buildings there, and cages with people in them, and several more men surround us, including Horst."
"How many men are there?"
"I don't know. Twenty or so, I guess. No, let me go!" She squirmed and flailed her arms.
"Kerry, what's happening?"
"They're ripping our clothes off!" She crossed her arms over her chest. "Stop it! Stop touching me!" She swallowed. "Now they're dragging us over to two of the empty cages. They just put us inside and locked my cage." She shivered. "It's so cold. Now Horst is going over to Debbie's cage. Leave her alone, you pig! She's trying to fight him, but he's too strong. He's beating her up pretty bad. Now he's taking off his belt and whipping her with it. Oh, I can't look...but I have to. He's pulling down his pants now. You monster! Take me instead!" Kerry clutched at invisible bars. "Oh, God, he's raping her! Debbie, no!" She started to sob and buried her face in her hands. "There's nothing I can do..."
"We're going to move forward a little. It's over, Kerry. Horst is done and he's leaving Debbie's cage."
"He locks her cage. Then he comes over to mine. His eyes are so full of hate. He's unlocking the door. I try to rush him, but he grabs me and slams me against the back of the cage. Get off! Help!" Kerry flinched as if struck, then turns her head aside. "He stinks so much...now the belt's coming off. No! NO!" Kerry let out a hoarse, piercing shriek as she recoiled, then blinked and looked around, tears streaming down her cheeks and terror in her eyes.
"It's okay, Kerry. You're safe. Horst is dead and he can't hurt you any more." Mr. Foo seemed unaffected. He had heard - and seen - similar atrocities in China in the 1940's. His wife had seen some horrible things too, and she also remained steady. Ellen shuddered a little, but quickly recovered. Rosie clearly felt sympathy, but was also steadfast.
Azadeh, however, winced and shut her eyes momentarily, affected a little.
(Bob, roll Sanity. Failure costs 1d2 Sanity points.)
In the reception area-
The people in the room heard the scream from upstairs. "What was that?" asked Stephanie, a worried look crossing her face.
Bo backed towards the gate. "Bob!" he called. "What's going on up there?" He lowered his voice. "I don't hear gunfire, at least."
In the kitchen-
"It's not going to boil if you keep watching it," said Zorie, drawing a blood sample from Dr. Hausmann.
"That's a myth," said Dr. Hausmann. "The presence or absence of an observer does not affect the chemical reaction."
"She was just kidding," said Sally as she turned. Just then, the kettle began to whistle. She restrained a laugh, turned back to it, and shut off the burner.
"Let's see what we can do about your arm now," said Angela Blanco. "Zorie, watch Kimberly and let me know if her condition changes. Sally, bring the water over and assist me."
"I'll need anesthetic," said Dr. Hausmann. "I had some painkillers earlier, but I think they're already wearing off."
Kimberly went into her pharmaceutical kit, but she was too stressed out by recent events to think straight.
"Leave that to me," said Dr. Blanco, She measured the proper dosage of the anesthetic and injected Dr. Hausmann. When her patient laid herself back on the table and closed her eyes, she got to work on her arm and began resetting the bone, repairing some of the damage.
In the hallway-
"Well," said Robert, "I've done a lot of travelling and never really found a place to settle down. After a graduated from college I went all around the country going from job to job. I just got into law school at Boalt Hall in California. My buddy Duke and I decided to take a road trip out there and take the scenic route, since we had time before my first semester started and it was much more interesting than a plane ride. We were making our way through the Midwest when we saw that freaky meteor shower last night, and then all this happened. What about yourself? I gather you're with that doctor and her assistant, but you don't seem to be getting along with her lately."
Lynne licked her lips and tried the lock again, then frowned. "They sure made this lock tough," she said. "I nearly jammed the lock up good that time. Whatever's behind this door better be worth it."
Steve-the-Zombie-Killer
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
OCC-What does Lewis spot and Alice rolled a 1 on the D100 and she only needed a 50 or less to hit. So does that do double damage?
Northwest Corner of hotel balcony:
McCain nodded and getting on his radio said, "I want those snipers to fire right away. Cpl Cole get your ass back into the defensive line and get your buddy also. You have 2 minutes to get back here or you will be doing KP for the rest of your time in the service. Is that understood!! Fire Team 2 I am now your offical commander. I want an update from all of you."
McCain then sighted down his M-4 aiming at the head of one of the zombies. He smiled as he saw the bullet fly true and hit. However the zombie took the damage and kept on coming. "Damm it," McCain muttered as he sighted down the rifle again.
In the Comm Room:
Lewis stopped disconnecting the wires and looked around the room and into the hallway trying to see if there was a cart or something that would make it eaiser to move the gear upstairs. He thought he spotted something that would help. "I found something to help us I believe. Let me check it out more."
In the Garage:
Getting up Alice walked over to Michael and said, "Listen, the millitary came here to "help" us and they seem to have it well in hand. So don't tell me what the fuck to do. You got that?" She then walked outside the garage.
Outside the Garage:
Alice paused in the sunlight and then looking down the road at the zombies she smiled and raised her rifle which she had secretly nicknamed "Wyatt". "Come on Wyatt show me what you got." Alice took aim and fired once missing. "Damm it, come on Wyatt do your duty." Alice took aim a second time and this time saw the bullet stike true.
In the underground hallway:
Jim looked up and said, "You know we can shoot the lock off or try and kick the door down if you want." He then turned and looking at Robert said, "Sean and I were good buddies and I was hanging at his place in Cheyenne for the weekend. You know we were drinking, playing his Nintendo Wi, trying to pick up chicks at various bars. Of course the fun had to be ruined when he got called to duty. Since I still had some time off I came along. I saw him die which still hurts ya know? Then suddenly Dr. Nazi had to think I was working for her and made me guard her. I don't mind doing that but if I am going to guard someone I need to know why. She refused to tell me but she told everyone else. So I said to hell with it I would go down here and do something useful."
Northwest Corner of hotel balcony:
McCain nodded and getting on his radio said, "I want those snipers to fire right away. Cpl Cole get your ass back into the defensive line and get your buddy also. You have 2 minutes to get back here or you will be doing KP for the rest of your time in the service. Is that understood!! Fire Team 2 I am now your offical commander. I want an update from all of you."
McCain then sighted down his M-4 aiming at the head of one of the zombies. He smiled as he saw the bullet fly true and hit. However the zombie took the damage and kept on coming. "Damm it," McCain muttered as he sighted down the rifle again.
In the Comm Room:
Lewis stopped disconnecting the wires and looked around the room and into the hallway trying to see if there was a cart or something that would make it eaiser to move the gear upstairs. He thought he spotted something that would help. "I found something to help us I believe. Let me check it out more."
In the Garage:
Getting up Alice walked over to Michael and said, "Listen, the millitary came here to "help" us and they seem to have it well in hand. So don't tell me what the fuck to do. You got that?" She then walked outside the garage.
Outside the Garage:
Alice paused in the sunlight and then looking down the road at the zombies she smiled and raised her rifle which she had secretly nicknamed "Wyatt". "Come on Wyatt show me what you got." Alice took aim and fired once missing. "Damm it, come on Wyatt do your duty." Alice took aim a second time and this time saw the bullet stike true.
In the underground hallway:
Jim looked up and said, "You know we can shoot the lock off or try and kick the door down if you want." He then turned and looking at Robert said, "Sean and I were good buddies and I was hanging at his place in Cheyenne for the weekend. You know we were drinking, playing his Nintendo Wi, trying to pick up chicks at various bars. Of course the fun had to be ruined when he got called to duty. Since I still had some time off I came along. I saw him die which still hurts ya know? Then suddenly Dr. Nazi had to think I was working for her and made me guard her. I don't mind doing that but if I am going to guard someone I need to know why. She refused to tell me but she told everyone else. So I said to hell with it I would go down here and do something useful."
OOC- McCain gets four more shots this round, so feel free to roll them. Remember that since he's aiming for the head there is a -5% penalty, so his chance to hit is 67% instead of 72%. Likewise, Alice's chance to hit is 45%. The Winchester M1894 carbine does 2d6+4 damage, not 1d10, and a roll of 1 (actually, a roll of 9 or less in her case or 13 or less for McCain) is an impale that causes double damage, or 4d6+8. Unfortunately, the weapon's malfunction number is 99, so your roll of 99 causes it to jam. Alice can try to clear the jam by making an unmodified Rifle roll (50% skill). Mechanical Repair could be used as well, but her skill there is lower. Each failure costs 1 round. If you succeed, roll 1d6 to see how many rounds it will take to clear the jam (borrowing actions from her next turn). I'll be generous and allow that roll of 1 to take place before the 99, so go ahead and roll double damage (it's an guaranteed kill in this case). The fourth roll would have been a hit too, but the jam means that Alice doesn't get to fire that time. Instead, she can use her last action to begin unjamming the weapon. The zombies are still too far away to hit with the .38 revolver, especially since she has no points in Handgun.
McCain's first shot caused 5 damage. If you like, that could be used to finish off the zombie that has taken 6 damage to the head. Don't forget to roll his next four shots.
Total zombies killed so far: 60/90 (including the one Alice killed, but not yet including any by McCain)
IC-
In the motel-
Lewis found a long, wheeled dolly in the motel hallway, which had been used by guests to transport luggage between their cars and their rooms on the ground floor. It wouldn't be able to go up the stairs to the upper floor, but it could be used to move something heavy right up to the foot of the stairway.
Outside the garage-
"Hey, that's my rifle," said Wallace. "Where did you get it?"
"Oh," said Jenny. "I switched with Samantha earlier. Do you want it back?" When he nodded, she gave him the rifle and her extra clips of ammunition. "Here, I'm sure you're a better shot than I am. I'd better get inside." She ducked into the garage.
In the garage-
"Well in hand?" said Michael to himself. "It's total bedlam out there!" He looked at Jenny with concern as she brushed past him. "Are you okay?"
"Uh huh," she said. "It's just...poor Alex. When you told me what happened to him I felt like someone walked over my grave. I almost went to see the meteorite. That could have been me." She trembled a bit. "How can we stop those flying things?"
"They may have stopped themselves. On my way to Brownson from the north, I came across a whole bunch of dead ones. Could be Earth germs that killed them, like in War of the Worlds."
"I sure hope so. Everything I've heard about them gives me the willies."
"You mentioned someone named Stephanie knows about them too?"
"Yeah, you should meet her. She's so cool. She's smart as a whip, really brave, and a great shot. She's a scientist who got stuck here when that chopper out in the parking lot broke down."
"Ah, she must be waiting for the one I rode in on. Where can I find her?"
"I think she went downstairs," said Mitchell. He told him the way. "I don't suppose either of you can help us with this?"
"Sorry, I don't know the first thing about fixing lorries, but it's a good thing you chaps are on the job. We'll need that petrol on the road. My peashooter won't be much help in this fight, so there's little point in me sticking around here. Joe, can you cover the door and close it once everyone's inside?"
In the underground hallway-
Duke and Randall left the office and returned to the hall.
"We could shoot the lock," said Robert, "but I'm worried about the ricochet hitting one of us. Best to save that for a last resort, I think. Kicking the door down might take longer than picking the lock, since it looks pretty tough. Whatever's in there must have been important, or they wouldn't have secured it so well. If it makes you feel any better, the doctor didn't tell me what she's working on either, but it sounds pretty important. I hope nothing happens to her because you're not there to protect her."
McCain's first shot caused 5 damage. If you like, that could be used to finish off the zombie that has taken 6 damage to the head. Don't forget to roll his next four shots.
Total zombies killed so far: 60/90 (including the one Alice killed, but not yet including any by McCain)
IC-
In the motel-
Lewis found a long, wheeled dolly in the motel hallway, which had been used by guests to transport luggage between their cars and their rooms on the ground floor. It wouldn't be able to go up the stairs to the upper floor, but it could be used to move something heavy right up to the foot of the stairway.
Outside the garage-
"Hey, that's my rifle," said Wallace. "Where did you get it?"
"Oh," said Jenny. "I switched with Samantha earlier. Do you want it back?" When he nodded, she gave him the rifle and her extra clips of ammunition. "Here, I'm sure you're a better shot than I am. I'd better get inside." She ducked into the garage.
In the garage-
"Well in hand?" said Michael to himself. "It's total bedlam out there!" He looked at Jenny with concern as she brushed past him. "Are you okay?"
"Uh huh," she said. "It's just...poor Alex. When you told me what happened to him I felt like someone walked over my grave. I almost went to see the meteorite. That could have been me." She trembled a bit. "How can we stop those flying things?"
"They may have stopped themselves. On my way to Brownson from the north, I came across a whole bunch of dead ones. Could be Earth germs that killed them, like in War of the Worlds."
"I sure hope so. Everything I've heard about them gives me the willies."
"You mentioned someone named Stephanie knows about them too?"
"Yeah, you should meet her. She's so cool. She's smart as a whip, really brave, and a great shot. She's a scientist who got stuck here when that chopper out in the parking lot broke down."
"Ah, she must be waiting for the one I rode in on. Where can I find her?"
"I think she went downstairs," said Mitchell. He told him the way. "I don't suppose either of you can help us with this?"
"Sorry, I don't know the first thing about fixing lorries, but it's a good thing you chaps are on the job. We'll need that petrol on the road. My peashooter won't be much help in this fight, so there's little point in me sticking around here. Joe, can you cover the door and close it once everyone's inside?"
In the underground hallway-
Duke and Randall left the office and returned to the hall.
"We could shoot the lock," said Robert, "but I'm worried about the ricochet hitting one of us. Best to save that for a last resort, I think. Kicking the door down might take longer than picking the lock, since it looks pretty tough. Whatever's in there must have been important, or they wouldn't have secured it so well. If it makes you feel any better, the doctor didn't tell me what she's working on either, but it sounds pretty important. I hope nothing happens to her because you're not there to protect her."
OCC - couldn't reach invis castle, so rolled by hand. dunno if it was the site or a dns prob.
Luke's rolls:
19, 6+3+4=13dmg
33, 1+6+4=11dmg
81, miss
34, 3+4+4=11dmg
Bob's roll:
san 18: success
Cole's rolls:
san 60: success
fast talk 39: success
M203 46: hit with area effect:
7 zombies - 12 dmg (locations 6, 5, 7, 8, 7, 7, 2)
4x7=28 zombies - 10 dmg (locations 1, 8, 2, 5, 3, 7, 7, 7, 2, 1, 6, 7, 5, 3, 1, 2, 2, 4, 1, 4, 6, 7, 1, 8, 1, 2, 3, 1, 4)
9x7=63 zombies - 1 dmg (but we don't have that many, me thinks)
rifle 83, miss
rifle 61, 10dmg
rifle 46, 6dmg
IC -
On the roof of the diner -
Luke quickly jams in a new mag while the last round is still chambered, thereby saving him a little time by not having to chamber the round by hand.
"I'm sure we can dig something up... Before the day is over, we'll have more guns than people to man them anyway." he remarks coldly, but without spite or grief.
He then kills 3 zombies with headshots and misses once.
In the warehouse -
Bob feels rage boiling up, but he is not mentally affected by the girl's story. If Horst had been there however, things might have been different...
"It's ok, Mr Foo is trying to help the captive girl." he answers Bo.
On the north road -
Luckily, Cole keeps his head screwed on right. He probably just has too much to worry about to have time to actually take a really good look at the zombies.
"Sergeant, with all due respect, SHUT THE FUCK UP." Cole says angrily into his mic "You're not helping..."
"Thayer! Reform on me! Tactical retreat with 10 meters interval. MOVE OUT!" Cole orders hoping that the often rehearsed orders will jolt his companion into complying (fast talk) "And keep your head down, grenade incoming."
Cole goes down to a crouch and flips up the M203 sights. He fires and even before the grenade lands, he's already aiming down the bore of his rifle again.
"Big guns!" he yells as he sees the grenade hit right smack in the middle of the zombie group "HOO YEAH!"
A little too exited, his first follow-up shot misses, but his 2 other shots strike home (10dmg & 6 dmg headies). It would be hard to miss anyway, with a swarm of zombies in front of you...
OCC - tactical retreat with 10m interval = if Thayer retreats, he'll halt 10 meters behind Cole and fire. after that Cole will retreat and halt 10 meters behind Thayer and fire. etc etc etc.
Luke's rolls:
19, 6+3+4=13dmg
33, 1+6+4=11dmg
81, miss
34, 3+4+4=11dmg
Bob's roll:
san 18: success
Cole's rolls:
san 60: success
fast talk 39: success
M203 46: hit with area effect:
7 zombies - 12 dmg (locations 6, 5, 7, 8, 7, 7, 2)
4x7=28 zombies - 10 dmg (locations 1, 8, 2, 5, 3, 7, 7, 7, 2, 1, 6, 7, 5, 3, 1, 2, 2, 4, 1, 4, 6, 7, 1, 8, 1, 2, 3, 1, 4)
9x7=63 zombies - 1 dmg (but we don't have that many, me thinks)
rifle 83, miss
rifle 61, 10dmg
rifle 46, 6dmg
IC -
On the roof of the diner -
Luke quickly jams in a new mag while the last round is still chambered, thereby saving him a little time by not having to chamber the round by hand.
"I'm sure we can dig something up... Before the day is over, we'll have more guns than people to man them anyway." he remarks coldly, but without spite or grief.
He then kills 3 zombies with headshots and misses once.
In the warehouse -
Bob feels rage boiling up, but he is not mentally affected by the girl's story. If Horst had been there however, things might have been different...
"It's ok, Mr Foo is trying to help the captive girl." he answers Bo.
On the north road -
Luckily, Cole keeps his head screwed on right. He probably just has too much to worry about to have time to actually take a really good look at the zombies.
"Sergeant, with all due respect, SHUT THE FUCK UP." Cole says angrily into his mic "You're not helping..."
"Thayer! Reform on me! Tactical retreat with 10 meters interval. MOVE OUT!" Cole orders hoping that the often rehearsed orders will jolt his companion into complying (fast talk) "And keep your head down, grenade incoming."
Cole goes down to a crouch and flips up the M203 sights. He fires and even before the grenade lands, he's already aiming down the bore of his rifle again.
"Big guns!" he yells as he sees the grenade hit right smack in the middle of the zombie group "HOO YEAH!"
A little too exited, his first follow-up shot misses, but his 2 other shots strike home (10dmg & 6 dmg headies). It would be hard to miss anyway, with a swarm of zombies in front of you...
OCC - tactical retreat with 10m interval = if Thayer retreats, he'll halt 10 meters behind Cole and fire. after that Cole will retreat and halt 10 meters behind Thayer and fire. etc etc etc.
Steve-the-Zombie-Killer
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
Occ- Alice got a 100 on trying to unjam her gun. Did she accidently make the gun go off and if so did she get shot in the process? Please let me know!
Hotel Balcony:
McCain got on his radio, "Cpl Cole get the fuck back here ASAP. Also you are on KP tonight if you don't get killed in the meantime."
As he said this he continued looking down his site and saw that his shot had killed the zombie it had just taken a few seconds to die. He aimed again and fired hitting the zombie in the side of the head. However the second zombie did not go down! He aimed at that zombie one more time and fired hitting the zombie again in the head. This time the head exploded in gore and the zombie dropped like a rock.
McCain smiled and then took aim at another zombie. He fired but the bullet went far to the outside of the pack. "Damm" He took aim one more time at the zombie he had just missed and fired but again missed. He cursed then got ready to fire again.
Outside the garage:
Alice saw the second bullet hit the target and the zombie's head went all over the place! "Ha eat your own brains bastard!" She fired a third time but the rifle jammed. "Damm it Wyatt not now!" But she failed to do it and in fact was lucky not to have shot herself she was so bad.
In Comm Room and just outside it:
Lewis saw a dolly that had been used to transport suitcases when the hotel had been operating. He wheeled it back to the doorway. "Hey i found an old dolly that we can use to get the stuff to the stairs at least. Then we will have to lug it up staris but at least we will not get tired getting it that far. Maybe then we could drag it upstairs and use it to wheel the stuff from there."
In the underground hallway:
Jim Kerr stared at Robert for a brief second and then said, " well if she does get hurt, its her own fault. I am not a slave. She wants help she tells me everything. Otherwise how can I help her?"
Hotel Balcony:
McCain got on his radio, "Cpl Cole get the fuck back here ASAP. Also you are on KP tonight if you don't get killed in the meantime."
As he said this he continued looking down his site and saw that his shot had killed the zombie it had just taken a few seconds to die. He aimed again and fired hitting the zombie in the side of the head. However the second zombie did not go down! He aimed at that zombie one more time and fired hitting the zombie again in the head. This time the head exploded in gore and the zombie dropped like a rock.
McCain smiled and then took aim at another zombie. He fired but the bullet went far to the outside of the pack. "Damm" He took aim one more time at the zombie he had just missed and fired but again missed. He cursed then got ready to fire again.
Outside the garage:
Alice saw the second bullet hit the target and the zombie's head went all over the place! "Ha eat your own brains bastard!" She fired a third time but the rifle jammed. "Damm it Wyatt not now!" But she failed to do it and in fact was lucky not to have shot herself she was so bad.
In Comm Room and just outside it:
Lewis saw a dolly that had been used to transport suitcases when the hotel had been operating. He wheeled it back to the doorway. "Hey i found an old dolly that we can use to get the stuff to the stairs at least. Then we will have to lug it up staris but at least we will not get tired getting it that far. Maybe then we could drag it upstairs and use it to wheel the stuff from there."
In the underground hallway:
Jim Kerr stared at Robert for a brief second and then said, " well if she does get hurt, its her own fault. I am not a slave. She wants help she tells me everything. Otherwise how can I help her?"
On the north road -
"I guess that means no fried chicken for you tonight." Cole mumbles on the radio replying to McCain "I don't care if you courtmartial my ass, but I'm not going to leave my men behind."
"Now go back to brown nosing Lereux or cowering in a corner, but shut the fuck up if you can't do anything but threatening and let me do my friggin' job." he adds "I'm not bailing without Thayer."
"I guess that means no fried chicken for you tonight." Cole mumbles on the radio replying to McCain "I don't care if you courtmartial my ass, but I'm not going to leave my men behind."
"Now go back to brown nosing Lereux or cowering in a corner, but shut the fuck up if you can't do anything but threatening and let me do my friggin' job." he adds "I'm not bailing without Thayer."
Fearlessfred
First time out of the vault
On the Roof-
Black begins firing again all of his shots hiting. Three more of the infected personal hit the ground one without a head.
Black begins firing again all of his shots hiting. Three more of the infected personal hit the ground one without a head.
On the roof of the motel-
From their perch on the roof, the snipers could see Cole's grenade land in the midst of the mob and detonate to great effect, blowing many metal fragments through those nearest to it, sending limbs flying and finishing off two of them. The rest of them did not escape injury either, and most of them took heavy damage. One was slain outright by shrapnel through its head, and Cole took down two more with his rifle fire, one of which had taken a head wound from the grenade.
Bobby Sheen watched in amazement as the creatures continued their relentless advance. "They ain't human!" he said, though he felt no fear. He scored two head hits, one of them finishing off a badly wounded target and the other blowing the head off a second.
(Black, roll Sanity.)
On the motel balcony-
Hockey kept it together when he saw the mob keep coming after his corporal's grenade blew through them. He sprayed six of them with lead, hitting five with about half of the bullets. He blew off one's leg with a well-placed round, ending its existence, and caused severe damage to the others, downing two for good.
He raked the crowd again with several bursts, hitting six this time and connecting with all but two bullets, taking out four of them.
Hockey continued to mow down the remaining ghouls, again hitting six and hitting with most of his shots. Three were badly wounded, one that was barely moving stopped, another was terminated with a lucky shot, and another was shredded completely.
He emptied the rest of the belt and once more hit six of them with a little more than half of his bullets. The creatures were devastated. Only four of them had survived the onslaught, and all were wounded. Hockey then replaced the belt with his spare.
As Captain Lereux watched the carnage, he reeled from the impossible sight and trembled. He soon recovered, though. "Well done, Hockey!" he called, taking aim. He only hit once, though he had a near miss. The one hit, however, was lethal.
Duran stood his ground and continued firing, but his M4 jammed. "Again?!" he cried. "What's wrong with this thing?" He expertly cleared it a second time and still had time to fire once more, downing another target.
Phillips also remained stable and kept shooting. He missed his first two shots, but the other two hit and killed the last of the creatures. Then he reloaded his rifle.
Lereux got on the radio: "The enemy has been wiped out. The situation is under control. All personnel, go about your duties, but stay alert."
In the comm room-
"That dolly will help us move the equipment to the stairs faster," said Lt. Malone. "Good job. It'll help us move the peripherals as well as the primary unit. I wouldn't bother trying to get the dolly upstairs, though. We're using the door right near the top of the stairs, remember? It would take us longer to get the dolly up there than it would to move everything inside the room. It's the stairs that will be the tricky part." When the captain gave the all clear, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Let's keep working, then. We're almost halfway done taking this monster apart."
On the north road-
Thayer obeyed Cole's order automatically, without even thinking about it. He fell back towards the motel, moving past his corporal, and then stopped and took out a grenade. While Cole retreated, he prepared to throw it, but saw to his dismay that the enemy had already been slaughtered. "Damn," he muttered, putting the grenade away. "I wanted to kill some more." He reloaded his M-16 as he headed back to the motel.
Outside the garage-
Alice realized that "Wyatt's" firing mechanism had broken during her attempt to clear the jam.
Samantha fearlessly remained where she was as the zombies kept coming, as did Baldwin.
Wallace, though, was visibly shaken, but he bounced back quickly.
All of them breathed easier when they saw the last of the ghouls go down and stay there. "It's okay!" called Samantha. "The zombies are all dead. Uh, I mean for good." She took the opportunity to swap out her rifle's magazine for a full one, and Baldwin reloaded. Wallace slid a sixth bullet into his revolver.
(Alice does not roll Sanity, since she recently lost 10 points for seeing a zombie.)
In the garage-
"I think we're okay for now," said Michael, heading towards the trapdoor leading down to the shelter.
"I'll come with you," said Jenny. She followed him to the liquor closet and they started down the stairs.
On the roof of the diner-
"Now there's a comforting thought," said Erica as she stoically took aim at the creatures. Beth got a good look at them now that they had finally come into her range, and she felt a chill as she watched them getting blown to bits and still continue to move. When they finally went down under a hail of bullets from the motel, she felt reassured. Willie showed no reaction to them.
"I'd better head down," said Erica, moving towards the ladder and swapping out her clip. "The sooner I get that chopper refueled, the better."
Beth exchanged her M4's magazine.
(Luke, roll Sanity - probably just a formality.)
In the warehouse-
"It's over Kerry," said Mr. Foo, taking out his watch again. "Just relax," He put her under a third time. "I don't think I should put her through that again so soon, but at least we got a little useful intel on the PMS compound. Let me keep trying to reach her."
In the reception area-
"Okay, thanks, Bob!" answered Bo. He returned to his position at the entrance to the hallway.
"That poor woman," said Stephanie as she typed. She couldn't imagine what Kerry had gone through, but she knew it must have been terrible.
In the kitchen-
Dr. Hausmann lay asleep on the table while Dr. Blanco kept operating on her arm with Sally's assistance. She set a syringe aside. "This is a stimulant," she said, "in case we have to wake her in a hurry."
In the hallway-
"She's already been hurt badly from the look of her," said Robert. "I don't think she could survive another attack like that, and I don't like the thought of just leaving her defenseless. Besides, what she's working on does sound important. Once we find out what's behind this door and the rest of you are ready to go through the guard room, I'll go guard her. Duke and Lynne have been in there already, so they can guide you. Any luck yet?"
"I finally got it!" Lynne said, as the tumblers clicked into place. She opened the door while the others covered her, and her excitement quickly turned to disappointment. The room on the other side of the door was fairly small and lined with dusty shelves and racks, all of them empty. She cussed under her breath. "Gone! It's all gone!"
"This looks like it was the armory," said Robert. "I see gun racks, but I suppose it was too much to ask for them to have left the guns behind. Maybe we can still find something in here, though."
From their perch on the roof, the snipers could see Cole's grenade land in the midst of the mob and detonate to great effect, blowing many metal fragments through those nearest to it, sending limbs flying and finishing off two of them. The rest of them did not escape injury either, and most of them took heavy damage. One was slain outright by shrapnel through its head, and Cole took down two more with his rifle fire, one of which had taken a head wound from the grenade.
Bobby Sheen watched in amazement as the creatures continued their relentless advance. "They ain't human!" he said, though he felt no fear. He scored two head hits, one of them finishing off a badly wounded target and the other blowing the head off a second.
(Black, roll Sanity.)
On the motel balcony-
Hockey kept it together when he saw the mob keep coming after his corporal's grenade blew through them. He sprayed six of them with lead, hitting five with about half of the bullets. He blew off one's leg with a well-placed round, ending its existence, and caused severe damage to the others, downing two for good.
He raked the crowd again with several bursts, hitting six this time and connecting with all but two bullets, taking out four of them.
Hockey continued to mow down the remaining ghouls, again hitting six and hitting with most of his shots. Three were badly wounded, one that was barely moving stopped, another was terminated with a lucky shot, and another was shredded completely.
He emptied the rest of the belt and once more hit six of them with a little more than half of his bullets. The creatures were devastated. Only four of them had survived the onslaught, and all were wounded. Hockey then replaced the belt with his spare.
As Captain Lereux watched the carnage, he reeled from the impossible sight and trembled. He soon recovered, though. "Well done, Hockey!" he called, taking aim. He only hit once, though he had a near miss. The one hit, however, was lethal.
Duran stood his ground and continued firing, but his M4 jammed. "Again?!" he cried. "What's wrong with this thing?" He expertly cleared it a second time and still had time to fire once more, downing another target.
Phillips also remained stable and kept shooting. He missed his first two shots, but the other two hit and killed the last of the creatures. Then he reloaded his rifle.
Lereux got on the radio: "The enemy has been wiped out. The situation is under control. All personnel, go about your duties, but stay alert."
In the comm room-
"That dolly will help us move the equipment to the stairs faster," said Lt. Malone. "Good job. It'll help us move the peripherals as well as the primary unit. I wouldn't bother trying to get the dolly upstairs, though. We're using the door right near the top of the stairs, remember? It would take us longer to get the dolly up there than it would to move everything inside the room. It's the stairs that will be the tricky part." When the captain gave the all clear, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Let's keep working, then. We're almost halfway done taking this monster apart."
On the north road-
Thayer obeyed Cole's order automatically, without even thinking about it. He fell back towards the motel, moving past his corporal, and then stopped and took out a grenade. While Cole retreated, he prepared to throw it, but saw to his dismay that the enemy had already been slaughtered. "Damn," he muttered, putting the grenade away. "I wanted to kill some more." He reloaded his M-16 as he headed back to the motel.
Outside the garage-
Alice realized that "Wyatt's" firing mechanism had broken during her attempt to clear the jam.
Samantha fearlessly remained where she was as the zombies kept coming, as did Baldwin.
Wallace, though, was visibly shaken, but he bounced back quickly.
All of them breathed easier when they saw the last of the ghouls go down and stay there. "It's okay!" called Samantha. "The zombies are all dead. Uh, I mean for good." She took the opportunity to swap out her rifle's magazine for a full one, and Baldwin reloaded. Wallace slid a sixth bullet into his revolver.
(Alice does not roll Sanity, since she recently lost 10 points for seeing a zombie.)
In the garage-
"I think we're okay for now," said Michael, heading towards the trapdoor leading down to the shelter.
"I'll come with you," said Jenny. She followed him to the liquor closet and they started down the stairs.
On the roof of the diner-
"Now there's a comforting thought," said Erica as she stoically took aim at the creatures. Beth got a good look at them now that they had finally come into her range, and she felt a chill as she watched them getting blown to bits and still continue to move. When they finally went down under a hail of bullets from the motel, she felt reassured. Willie showed no reaction to them.
"I'd better head down," said Erica, moving towards the ladder and swapping out her clip. "The sooner I get that chopper refueled, the better."
Beth exchanged her M4's magazine.
(Luke, roll Sanity - probably just a formality.)
In the warehouse-
"It's over Kerry," said Mr. Foo, taking out his watch again. "Just relax," He put her under a third time. "I don't think I should put her through that again so soon, but at least we got a little useful intel on the PMS compound. Let me keep trying to reach her."
In the reception area-
"Okay, thanks, Bob!" answered Bo. He returned to his position at the entrance to the hallway.
"That poor woman," said Stephanie as she typed. She couldn't imagine what Kerry had gone through, but she knew it must have been terrible.
In the kitchen-
Dr. Hausmann lay asleep on the table while Dr. Blanco kept operating on her arm with Sally's assistance. She set a syringe aside. "This is a stimulant," she said, "in case we have to wake her in a hurry."
In the hallway-
"She's already been hurt badly from the look of her," said Robert. "I don't think she could survive another attack like that, and I don't like the thought of just leaving her defenseless. Besides, what she's working on does sound important. Once we find out what's behind this door and the rest of you are ready to go through the guard room, I'll go guard her. Duke and Lynne have been in there already, so they can guide you. Any luck yet?"
"I finally got it!" Lynne said, as the tumblers clicked into place. She opened the door while the others covered her, and her excitement quickly turned to disappointment. The room on the other side of the door was fairly small and lined with dusty shelves and racks, all of them empty. She cussed under her breath. "Gone! It's all gone!"
"This looks like it was the armory," said Robert. "I see gun racks, but I suppose it was too much to ask for them to have left the guns behind. Maybe we can still find something in here, though."
On the roof of the diner -
"Didn't mean to rattle you, but we're probably facing more than we can handle. If we could work together with the USAF guys, we would have an easier time, but it's clear they don't trust us." Luke explains "The main problems are ammo, nightfall and sleep. Humans can't keep going, but these things can. We also can't see shit at night, unless if the moon is on our side. It's just a matter of time before we get surprised. Or a matter of time before we run out of ammo."
"Alternatively we can head down into the bunker system or whatever is underneath us, but how can we be sure that we can get back out?" Luke adds "I'd rather take my chances up here... Maybe head to my hunting cabin. Away from any big cities, away from even small villages... I'm pretty sure I could hold out a couple of years there, in my neck of the woods."
He then starts reloading the spent magazines and takes inventory of his remaining ammo.
San 99 (1d100=72)
On the north road -
"Jezus Thayer, next time you just chill out and we'll go bust some skulls together." Cole says "But no more running off solo, alright? And that's an order."
"Anyway, lets head back..." he adds "Time to have my ass chewed by McCain..."
Underneath the diner -
Bob starts to feel that he should be making himself more useful, however he's conflicted since he was asked to remain on guard here.
"Didn't mean to rattle you, but we're probably facing more than we can handle. If we could work together with the USAF guys, we would have an easier time, but it's clear they don't trust us." Luke explains "The main problems are ammo, nightfall and sleep. Humans can't keep going, but these things can. We also can't see shit at night, unless if the moon is on our side. It's just a matter of time before we get surprised. Or a matter of time before we run out of ammo."
"Alternatively we can head down into the bunker system or whatever is underneath us, but how can we be sure that we can get back out?" Luke adds "I'd rather take my chances up here... Maybe head to my hunting cabin. Away from any big cities, away from even small villages... I'm pretty sure I could hold out a couple of years there, in my neck of the woods."
He then starts reloading the spent magazines and takes inventory of his remaining ammo.
San 99 (1d100=72)
On the north road -
"Jezus Thayer, next time you just chill out and we'll go bust some skulls together." Cole says "But no more running off solo, alright? And that's an order."
"Anyway, lets head back..." he adds "Time to have my ass chewed by McCain..."
Underneath the diner -
Bob starts to feel that he should be making himself more useful, however he's conflicted since he was asked to remain on guard here.
Steve-the-Zombie-Killer
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
Northwest corner of hotel balcony:
McCain lowered his gun and made sure the safty was on. Then on his radio he said, "I want a status report from everyone ASAP. Cpl Cole I want your ass up here pronto! If your not here in 2 minutes consider yourself on report. IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!"
In the Comm Room:
Lewis continued to work. He had occuasion to look at Ortega in the corner but that was it. Otherwise he worked disconnecting and stacking and ditto and ect.
Outside the garage:
Alice sat on the ground and began to work on the gun to fix it. Through some miracle of modern science she figured out how to fix it! "Yes Wyatt yourgoing to get better." She then stood up and looked around. Seeing noone looking at her closly she kissed the rifle. She then walked into the garage and asked, "Does anyone knew how to use a chainsaw and if so can you show me"? "Also can I borrow some tools to fix my rifle?"
Underground hallway/small arsnel:
Jim got up and entered the room. He looked around and realized that there was probely nothing that could be found. But he checked anyway. Sure enough he found nothing. "There is nothing here. Lets go guys we have more places to look through in this complex."
McCain lowered his gun and made sure the safty was on. Then on his radio he said, "I want a status report from everyone ASAP. Cpl Cole I want your ass up here pronto! If your not here in 2 minutes consider yourself on report. IS THAT UNDERSTOOD!"
In the Comm Room:
Lewis continued to work. He had occuasion to look at Ortega in the corner but that was it. Otherwise he worked disconnecting and stacking and ditto and ect.
Outside the garage:
Alice sat on the ground and began to work on the gun to fix it. Through some miracle of modern science she figured out how to fix it! "Yes Wyatt yourgoing to get better." She then stood up and looked around. Seeing noone looking at her closly she kissed the rifle. She then walked into the garage and asked, "Does anyone knew how to use a chainsaw and if so can you show me"? "Also can I borrow some tools to fix my rifle?"
Underground hallway/small arsnel:
Jim got up and entered the room. He looked around and realized that there was probely nothing that could be found. But he checked anyway. Sure enough he found nothing. "There is nothing here. Lets go guys we have more places to look through in this complex."
Fearlessfred
First time out of the vault
On the roof-
What he saw was horrible but he had seen worse through out the day. "No maybe not but they can be killed and we have plenty of ammunation." Black replies.
What he saw was horrible but he had seen worse through out the day. "No maybe not but they can be killed and we have plenty of ammunation." Black replies.
On the roof of the motel-
"You're right, Sarge," said Bobby Sheen, sliding a fresh clip into his M-24. "This is Airman Sheen," he said into the radio. "Sergeant Black and I are fine up here."
On the motel balcony-
Captain Lereux swapped out his rifle's magazine as he went over to the ammo crate, and then he took Alanen's body armor. "Lieutenant Blanco," he said over the radio, "I need either you or your assistant back here at the motel. Our medic had physical contact with Corporal Alanen after he became infected, and he needs to be examined." He started to unbutton his shirt.
Duran exchanged magazines as well. "Hockey and I are good, Sarge," he said. "Any orders?"
Phillips also reloaded his weapon. "I'm okay," he said. "I'm a little shaken, but that's to be expected. I'm not showing any symptoms, but nobody should touch me, just in case."
In the comm room-
Lt. Malone reported in while she and the others continued disconnecting and packing up the communications equipment: "Malone here. We're okay inside, but Ortega's still not responding. We're about halfway done taking the gear apart. We should be ready to start moving things upstairs in five minutes."
On the north road-
Thayer led the way back to the motel. As he ran, he seemed to calm down some. "I...I don't know what came over me, Corporal," he said. "When I saw Alanen go down, I just...lost it. It felt kinda good, though." He reached the north side of the motel. Cole loaded his rifle with a fresh magazine and reloaded his M203 as he followed Thayer.
(Cole can also reach the north side of the motel this round.)
Outside the garage-
Baldwin ducked into the garage for a second and handed Joe Barring a box of 50 shotgun shells. "Here," he said. "I'll give the rest to Kimberly. First let me go get her laptop." He went back outside and headed for the parking lot. "Wallace, maybe you and Joe can finish moving the fuel outside. It'll probably take three people to move those barrels, though. If you can't find anyone else, I'll help when I get back."
"I'd help," said Samantha, "but I'm just not strong enough. Why don't I head back over to the east side?" She walked around the outside of the T-Bone to the north.
In the garage-
"There's some more tools over on that workbench over there," said Mitchell, pointing. "There are also some spare parts in that bin next to it if you need them. The bench also makes a good place to work. I'm sorry, but I don't know how to use a chainsaw myself."
"Me neither," said Jimmy. "I'd love to, though. Chainsaws are cool."
In the parking lot-
Baldwin found Kimberly's car from her description of it - or rather, what was left of it. Unfortunately, she had parked her car right next to Luke's truck. It had borne the brunt of the blast. Baldwin didn't even need the keys she had given him to open the trunk, as it had been blown wide open. The computer's case was shattered, and its innards were damaged beyond repair.
On the roof of the diner-
"Thanks," said Erica as she climbed down the ladder. "That sounds like good advice. I hope to be up in the air and on my way to Omaha before noon, though. There are a lot of people still alive there. I think it's best to stay with a large group when possible. Being by yourself isn't safe. We have to sleep sometime, and they don't. I'm heading over to the garage. I can't risk more of them showing up while we refuel the chopper, so I'll have to fly it back here." She walked around the north side of the diner, passing Samantha along the way.
"Anything in particular I should be doing?" asked Willie. "If not, I guess I'll just stay up here."
In the warehouse-
"Kerry," said Mr. Foo, "listen to me. You are not afraid any more. You have endured terrible things, but you are stronger for it. Your mind is whole again."
Kerry visibly relaxed. "I am not afraid any longer," she said, her voice still hoarse, but clear and determined.
"Good. Now, are you capable of remembering what happened to you?"
"I am, but I don't want to. I don't want to think about it any more."
"We need to know what you've seen and how you got from the PMS compound to here. There are a lot of things going on that you're not aware of yet. It's very important so that all of us can stay alive, and so that the PMS can be destroyed once and for all. I won't force you to remember if you don't want to, but I'd like you to try."
Kerry nodded. "I'll do it," she said. "I want to get those scumbags."
Michael and Jenny came down from upstairs. "Hey, Mr. Foo," said Jenny. "What's going on here?"
"Ah, Miss Cooper," he replied. "This young lady is Kerry Pierce. Hammond and Earl had locked her up in a cell down below, and she was just rescued about an hour ago."
"Gosh. Is she okay?"
"She's been through a terrible ordeal, but she will recover."
"If she needs counseling," said Michael, "I am a trained psychiatrist."
"That's good to know. I'm sure she'd appreciate your help."
"Have you seen Stephanie?" asked Jenny.
"She went down those stairs and through the gate," said Azadeh.
"Okay, thanks! Let's go, Michael."
In the reception area-
Stephanie kept working on the computer. She was making good progress, but there was much left to do. The helicopter ride would afford her the opportunity to get a lot more done, at least.
Bo continued keeping an eye on the hallway.
In the kitchen-
"Yes, sir," Lt. Blanco told Captain Lereux. "I'm in the middle of a delicate operation here, but I'll send Zorie Spooner back. Blanco out." She turned to her assistant. "Zorie, Airman Phillips needs to be examined. You'll have to go back to the motel. Sally, can you look after Kimberly? I can handle it from here."
"Sure," said Sally.
"I'm on my way," said Zorie. She left the kitchen and walked back down the hall, past Bo, and into the reception area.
In the armory-
"Just a minute," said Robert, pushing the door further open and poking around the armory. "Maybe we missed something. I can't imagine where, though."
Duke joined him in the search. "Hmm," he said. "I wonder..." He closed the door partway and looked behind it. "Hey, look at this!" He pulled a clipboard off of a hook in the wall that had been hidden by the door. A couple of pieces of old, yellow paper were on it.
"Nice. How'd you think of that?"
Duke shrugged. "Saw it in a movie once." He skimmed the first document. "This first one's an inventory list. It says the armory contains a dozen Winchester 12 gauge trench shotguns, a dozen Colt .45 M1911A1 automatic pistols, a dozen M-14 rifles, a dozen M-3 submachine guns, and about 300 rounds of ammo for each weapon. I guess these must be experimental, invisible weapons, 'cause I don't see any here." He flipped up the sheet of paper and looked at the one beneath it. "Ah, this explains what happened to them.
Duke read the memo out loud. "January 22, 1962
From the desk of Captain Robert Duffy:
All weapons and ammunition in the upper level are accounted for and packed for transport in accordance with the order to shut down the base. Weapons and ammo in the Deep Mole lab cannot be retrieved due to the quarantine. Further details are recorded in my personal log."
(Jim Kerr, roll Idea.)
"You're right, Sarge," said Bobby Sheen, sliding a fresh clip into his M-24. "This is Airman Sheen," he said into the radio. "Sergeant Black and I are fine up here."
On the motel balcony-
Captain Lereux swapped out his rifle's magazine as he went over to the ammo crate, and then he took Alanen's body armor. "Lieutenant Blanco," he said over the radio, "I need either you or your assistant back here at the motel. Our medic had physical contact with Corporal Alanen after he became infected, and he needs to be examined." He started to unbutton his shirt.
Duran exchanged magazines as well. "Hockey and I are good, Sarge," he said. "Any orders?"
Phillips also reloaded his weapon. "I'm okay," he said. "I'm a little shaken, but that's to be expected. I'm not showing any symptoms, but nobody should touch me, just in case."
In the comm room-
Lt. Malone reported in while she and the others continued disconnecting and packing up the communications equipment: "Malone here. We're okay inside, but Ortega's still not responding. We're about halfway done taking the gear apart. We should be ready to start moving things upstairs in five minutes."
On the north road-
Thayer led the way back to the motel. As he ran, he seemed to calm down some. "I...I don't know what came over me, Corporal," he said. "When I saw Alanen go down, I just...lost it. It felt kinda good, though." He reached the north side of the motel. Cole loaded his rifle with a fresh magazine and reloaded his M203 as he followed Thayer.
(Cole can also reach the north side of the motel this round.)
Outside the garage-
Baldwin ducked into the garage for a second and handed Joe Barring a box of 50 shotgun shells. "Here," he said. "I'll give the rest to Kimberly. First let me go get her laptop." He went back outside and headed for the parking lot. "Wallace, maybe you and Joe can finish moving the fuel outside. It'll probably take three people to move those barrels, though. If you can't find anyone else, I'll help when I get back."
"I'd help," said Samantha, "but I'm just not strong enough. Why don't I head back over to the east side?" She walked around the outside of the T-Bone to the north.
In the garage-
"There's some more tools over on that workbench over there," said Mitchell, pointing. "There are also some spare parts in that bin next to it if you need them. The bench also makes a good place to work. I'm sorry, but I don't know how to use a chainsaw myself."
"Me neither," said Jimmy. "I'd love to, though. Chainsaws are cool."
In the parking lot-
Baldwin found Kimberly's car from her description of it - or rather, what was left of it. Unfortunately, she had parked her car right next to Luke's truck. It had borne the brunt of the blast. Baldwin didn't even need the keys she had given him to open the trunk, as it had been blown wide open. The computer's case was shattered, and its innards were damaged beyond repair.
On the roof of the diner-
"Thanks," said Erica as she climbed down the ladder. "That sounds like good advice. I hope to be up in the air and on my way to Omaha before noon, though. There are a lot of people still alive there. I think it's best to stay with a large group when possible. Being by yourself isn't safe. We have to sleep sometime, and they don't. I'm heading over to the garage. I can't risk more of them showing up while we refuel the chopper, so I'll have to fly it back here." She walked around the north side of the diner, passing Samantha along the way.
"Anything in particular I should be doing?" asked Willie. "If not, I guess I'll just stay up here."
In the warehouse-
"Kerry," said Mr. Foo, "listen to me. You are not afraid any more. You have endured terrible things, but you are stronger for it. Your mind is whole again."
Kerry visibly relaxed. "I am not afraid any longer," she said, her voice still hoarse, but clear and determined.
"Good. Now, are you capable of remembering what happened to you?"
"I am, but I don't want to. I don't want to think about it any more."
"We need to know what you've seen and how you got from the PMS compound to here. There are a lot of things going on that you're not aware of yet. It's very important so that all of us can stay alive, and so that the PMS can be destroyed once and for all. I won't force you to remember if you don't want to, but I'd like you to try."
Kerry nodded. "I'll do it," she said. "I want to get those scumbags."
Michael and Jenny came down from upstairs. "Hey, Mr. Foo," said Jenny. "What's going on here?"
"Ah, Miss Cooper," he replied. "This young lady is Kerry Pierce. Hammond and Earl had locked her up in a cell down below, and she was just rescued about an hour ago."
"Gosh. Is she okay?"
"She's been through a terrible ordeal, but she will recover."
"If she needs counseling," said Michael, "I am a trained psychiatrist."
"That's good to know. I'm sure she'd appreciate your help."
"Have you seen Stephanie?" asked Jenny.
"She went down those stairs and through the gate," said Azadeh.
"Okay, thanks! Let's go, Michael."
In the reception area-
Stephanie kept working on the computer. She was making good progress, but there was much left to do. The helicopter ride would afford her the opportunity to get a lot more done, at least.
Bo continued keeping an eye on the hallway.
In the kitchen-
"Yes, sir," Lt. Blanco told Captain Lereux. "I'm in the middle of a delicate operation here, but I'll send Zorie Spooner back. Blanco out." She turned to her assistant. "Zorie, Airman Phillips needs to be examined. You'll have to go back to the motel. Sally, can you look after Kimberly? I can handle it from here."
"Sure," said Sally.
"I'm on my way," said Zorie. She left the kitchen and walked back down the hall, past Bo, and into the reception area.
In the armory-
"Just a minute," said Robert, pushing the door further open and poking around the armory. "Maybe we missed something. I can't imagine where, though."
Duke joined him in the search. "Hmm," he said. "I wonder..." He closed the door partway and looked behind it. "Hey, look at this!" He pulled a clipboard off of a hook in the wall that had been hidden by the door. A couple of pieces of old, yellow paper were on it.
"Nice. How'd you think of that?"
Duke shrugged. "Saw it in a movie once." He skimmed the first document. "This first one's an inventory list. It says the armory contains a dozen Winchester 12 gauge trench shotguns, a dozen Colt .45 M1911A1 automatic pistols, a dozen M-14 rifles, a dozen M-3 submachine guns, and about 300 rounds of ammo for each weapon. I guess these must be experimental, invisible weapons, 'cause I don't see any here." He flipped up the sheet of paper and looked at the one beneath it. "Ah, this explains what happened to them.
Duke read the memo out loud. "January 22, 1962
From the desk of Captain Robert Duffy:
All weapons and ammunition in the upper level are accounted for and packed for transport in accordance with the order to shut down the base. Weapons and ammo in the Deep Mole lab cannot be retrieved due to the quarantine. Further details are recorded in my personal log."
(Jim Kerr, roll Idea.)
Steve-the-Zombie-Killer
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
In the communication room:
Lewis heard the radio call and continued to pack up the gear. As he did he turned to Ortega and yelled, "Dude, get the fuck out of the way if your not going to help!"
In the Garage:
Alice nodded and sat down on the bench. She began fixing the gun.
In the Armory:
Jim rubbed his chin and thought as he heard the memo read. He suddenly got an idea! "Hey, the memo mentioned that Captain Duffy had a personal log. If it's still here, maybe it's somewhere in his office, which is probably the room across the hall from the armory" he said.
Hotel Balcony:
McCain got on his radio and said, "Snipers continue sweeping the area, everyone lock and load if you have not yet done so. I don't want anyone to be caught off guard during the next attack. Duran and Hockey continue to guard from the balcony, Philips get into a nearby room for isolation until your cleared. For now you are off duty. Communication room continue packing up. Try to move faster I want you up here before the next attack if at all possible. Ortega if your not going to help then get the hell out of the room. Thayer and Cole I have new orders for you. I want you to guard from the edge of the field. One of you is on patrol and the other is ready to relive every 5 minutes. I will be down to join you in a few minutes. Anyone have any questions? Over and out."
McCain then moved the radio mike from his face and walked up to Captian Lereux. "Captain a word with you? We don't have enough men here and there are many civilians out there that could help. They have been through this. These are the only man we are going to get and we have already lost 1 and Ortega may be next. Now I don't want to lose another man, not even Cole, and I think that this is the only thing that can work. What do you think?" As he talked McCain used all his powers of persuasion on the Captian.
He thought he saw the Captain begin to accept the idea.
Lewis heard the radio call and continued to pack up the gear. As he did he turned to Ortega and yelled, "Dude, get the fuck out of the way if your not going to help!"
In the Garage:
Alice nodded and sat down on the bench. She began fixing the gun.
In the Armory:
Jim rubbed his chin and thought as he heard the memo read. He suddenly got an idea! "Hey, the memo mentioned that Captain Duffy had a personal log. If it's still here, maybe it's somewhere in his office, which is probably the room across the hall from the armory" he said.
Hotel Balcony:
McCain got on his radio and said, "Snipers continue sweeping the area, everyone lock and load if you have not yet done so. I don't want anyone to be caught off guard during the next attack. Duran and Hockey continue to guard from the balcony, Philips get into a nearby room for isolation until your cleared. For now you are off duty. Communication room continue packing up. Try to move faster I want you up here before the next attack if at all possible. Ortega if your not going to help then get the hell out of the room. Thayer and Cole I have new orders for you. I want you to guard from the edge of the field. One of you is on patrol and the other is ready to relive every 5 minutes. I will be down to join you in a few minutes. Anyone have any questions? Over and out."
McCain then moved the radio mike from his face and walked up to Captian Lereux. "Captain a word with you? We don't have enough men here and there are many civilians out there that could help. They have been through this. These are the only man we are going to get and we have already lost 1 and Ortega may be next. Now I don't want to lose another man, not even Cole, and I think that this is the only thing that can work. What do you think?" As he talked McCain used all his powers of persuasion on the Captian.
He thought he saw the Captain begin to accept the idea.
- Status