IC- Zombie Apocalypse Chapter 2- The Quick and the Undead

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west side of motel, ground level:
McCain safed his weapon and went up to the wounded and dead sadly shaking his head at seeing what was left of Cole. He did not have First Aid training however so he got on his radio and said, "I need someone with medical skills down here ASAP to help out. I also need two people to come down and finish building the barricade and rope ladder. Ortega, you are to continue guarding the helicopter and not to let any civilians near it. If anyone comes near it that is not millitary you are to order them away. If they refuse to stop then shoot to kill. DO YOU UNDERSTAND your orders? I will try to get you an extra guard there as soon as I can but we are running out of men here" McCain then turned and began walking a patrol near the grass keeping his eye on the field in case anything came out from there again.

In the Communication Room:
Lewis continue to set up the comm gear.

On the stairs leading to the warehouse:
Alice finished walking down the steps.

In the cell block:
Jim walked across the hall to cell # 5. He opened the view slot and looked inside then not seeing anything unlocked the cell and did a quick search of it. He did not find anything and left making sure to lock the cell after himself. "Cell #5 looks clear to me," he said and then began walking to cell # 6 preparing to look in that cell.
 
On the roof of the motel-

Black slowly stands up "Damn it! Somebody give me a sitrep asap."

At the helicopter-

Ramirez asks over the radio to Lereux
"Sir permision to inform the civilians of the delevlopments."

On the east side of the diner-

"You sure you can't get down here for the moment?"
Joe calls up to Azadeh.
 
On the west side of the motel-
After McCain turned his back and started walking west towards the grass, Cole began to twitch. Then his eyes opened, red and full of malice. Phillips was too distraught to notice, though he was starting to calm down and recover his wits. Malanowski was also lost in his own world and failed to see.

(McCain, roll Sanity. If you lose more than 3 points, treat it as 3. You have one chance to act before Cole does. There is no time for precision aim and thus you cannot aim for the head. If you move instead of shooting, you can make two Dodge rolls and one Parry just in case you're attacked, but all of those rolls are at -10% due to your armor. Your Parry skill is simply your Rifle skill, and can only be used to block a Bite, not a Grapple.

If you shoot, you are at point blank range and can double your skill, so you will only miss on a malfunction. You may fire either the rifle or the shotgun. If you hit with a burst from the rifle, roll 1d3 to see how many bullets hit, but unless all 3 hit you may accidentally hit someone else. If you fire a single shot, this won't happen provided you hit. If you use the shotgun, you're close enough to do 4d6 damage.

Keep in mind that Cole is still wearing his armor and helmet, which will reduce damage depending on location. Roll 1d20 for each bullet (or shell) that hits. Any hit on the abdomen or chest (7-14) will be reduced by 8 damage. Any hit on the head (19-20) will be reduced by 5 damage. Cole took 6 damage to the head before he died, so 4 or more points of damage that gets through his helmet will finish him off.)

On the motel balcony-
"I'm coming, Sarge," called Duran. He was about to start down the steps when he spotted Cole's movement. "Look out! Cole's infected!" He kept his cool and quickly raised his rifle, getting off a shot at Cole as he sat up. He barely hit, seriously wounding his left leg. Below, Malanowski turned to look, but did not appear any more disturbed than usual.

(Hockey, roll Sanity. If you stay sane, you also have one chance to act before Cole attacks someone, though you are not close enough to be a target. You may only use the rifle, since that's what you're holding, but this shot is not point blank and any miss could hit the wrong person. There is no time for precision aim, so use your regular skill unless you fire a burst. If you do, you get a +20% bonus and roll 1d3 to see how many bullets hit. Again, if all 3 of them don't hit, then any stray rounds could hit someone else. If you fire a single shot, you can't hit the wrong person as long as you don't miss. As above, each bullet hits a random location rolled on 1d20.)

On the motel stairs-
Alerted by the warning from above, Lt. Elizabeth Malone turned her MP-5 on Cole and opened fire, narrowly missing. Fortunately, all of her bullets harmlessly struck the ground and not any of the others this time. Her eyes were cold and emotionless, and she did not seem affected any further.

On the motel's roof-
"Dammit!" shouted Thayer. "Cole's dead...I can't believe it." He got up and headed for the ladder. "A bunch of infected coyotes came out of the grass, Sarge," he told Sam Black. "We got most of them, but a couple got through. Cole's down and Phillips is badly wounded. McCain and the others took the rest of the coyotes out." He started climbing down the ladder when Duran shouted his warning.

Bobby Sheen looked out over the edge of the roof. "We can't get a line of sight on him from up here," he said. "He must be underneath the balcony, near the bottom of the stairs."

In the upstairs comm room-
"I'd better get down there," said Zorie Spooner. She headed for the door just as Duran called out and the shooting started anew.

"Don't go out yet!" said Captain Lereux. "You'd better stay here with us until we're sure it's safe."

Zorie nodded and continued helping Lewis and Mikhalin set up the communications gear.

Lereux got back on the radio. "Ramirez, you can tell the civilians we've been attacked by infected humans and coyotes, and that we've repulsed the attack. Don't let on that we've taken casualties, though. I don't want them to panic, or to think we can't protect them, and I don't want them getting any funny ideas about trying anything with the helicopter. You and Lt. Blanco stay with Ortega for now. One of our men got infected, and they're putting him down now."

In the diner-
Robert and Beth made their way through the ruined diner to the garage.

In the garage-
"Thanks," said Mitchell. "Good luck to you too."

"Let's get this show on the road," said Erica Spears. She and Bo led the way outside.

"Hey, Stephanie," said David, "can I have a kiss goodbye?"

"Oh, I don't think so," said Stephanie.

"How 'bout a hug then?"

"Goodbye, David." Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann walked outside, followed by Bob.

David's eyes tracked her. "I hate to see her go, but I sure like watching her leave. That doctor is cute too...not to mention that lady pilot." Samantha also walked outside. "She's pretty fine too."

"Dude, give it a rest," said Jimmy.

Robert and Beth entered the garage.

On the roof of the diner-
"I'm afraid that's out of the question," said Azadeh. "Like Luke said, I can't risk climbing down that rope in my condition."

On the east side of the diner-
"Well, how did you get up there in the first place?" called Kimberly.

"I climbed the rope," answered Azadeh. "I probably shouldn't have, but they moved the ladder over to the garage. I certainly shouldn't take the chance again."

"How about if we just get that ladder back here?"

"That could work."

"Okay, we'll go get it." Kimberly moved to the northeast corner of the diner and looked around it, and she saw Willie coming. "Willie! Can you go back and borrow that ladder for us?"

"Okay," he said. "I need to get up there myself anyway, and it'll sure be easier." He turned back.

Outside the garage-
As the helicopter group left the garage and started towards the helicopter, Lt. Blanco held up her hand. "Hold it," she said. "Don't come any closer. I've got orders to keep everyone away from the helo."

Erica grumbled. "You can't take my helicopter! Damn, I knew this might happen. Why did I fly it back here?"

"What?!" cried Stephanie. "Oh, no, no, no! You can't do that!" She turned to Bo, looking like she was about to cry. "Can she do that?"

"I'd hope not," he said, "but I'm not too familiar with the laws involved."

"We have to get to Omaha!" insisted Dr. Hausmann. "There have been too many delays already!"

"I'm sorry," said Lt. Blanco. "If it were up to me, I'd let you go, but it's out of my hands. The captain gave quite specific orders."

Samantha came out and met Willie as he returned. "Kimberly wants to borrow the ladder over on the other side of the diner," he told her.

Samantha nodded. "All right," she said. "I'll help you carry it. She can bring it back when she's done."

On the roof of the garage-
"Just make sure you bring it back!" Baldwin called down. "I don't like the idea of being stuck up here." He observed the exchange near the chopper.

In the reception area-
"I'll go look in the warehouse for something to use," said Kerry. She followed Sally upstairs.

In the warehouse-
Alice entered the warehouse, where Michael stood watch at the top of the stairs. She also noticed an open crate with a crowbar leaning against it as she walked across the room. Looking inside, she could see quite a few hand grenades. This had to be the crate she'd been told about earlier.

Sally came up from downstairs and walked past Michael. "I need to go back upstairs to get some gasoline and a tarp," she said. "We're going to burn that body so no more rats can eat it."

"Okay," he said. "While you're there, see if you can find someone to relieve me. I'd like to see what's down there."

"Sure."

Kerry entered the warehouse after Sally and started examining the crates. She quickly found one that said it contained mahogany canes with faux ivory handles. She retrieved the crowbar and pried the lid open. "Perfect!" she said.

In the cell block-
"Sally said she's going up to the garage to get the gas and the tarp," said Jenny as she walked by. She headed out the door at the far end and into the shower room.

Jim Kerr slid open the panel to cell 6 and looked inside. It appeared just as empty as the last one.

Randall and Duke stood in front of the next cell over, number 4. As they stood guard over the body, they saw a rat wriggle out of the hole, and then another. Both rats looked normal. They're eyes were not red, and they did not attack.

In the prisoners' common area-
Mr. Foo took out a small set of tools and began to work on the lock. He had it open in short order. "I've still got it," he said.

Ellen smiled at him. She and Gary held their shotguns trained on the doorway while Mr. Foo readied his MP-5 and carefully opened the door. They needn't have worried, as there was nothing hostile on the other side. The three of them entered.

In the hatch chamber-
The room beyond the door was circular. A smaller door was at the opposite end of the room. In the center of the room was an open hatch, much like one that might be found on a submarine. There was a glass window in the hatch with what appeared to be an impact from a bullet, but the glass was unbroken. On the hatch itself, in large letters, was the word "QUARANTINE" and below that "By order of the Department of Defense."

"Should that be open?" asked Gary.

"Probably not," said Mr. Foo. "When Hammond and Earl opened it to get Kerry out, they must have left it that way." He moved up to the hatch and inspected it more closely. Beside the hatch was a small panel with yellow and black stripes. On it were two buttons, one red and one green. Just below the hatch was a gray metal platform clearly marked "LIFT" and "ENTRANCE TO LAB." There was also a ladder leading down, the top of it just visible above the surface of the lift. Mr. Foo looked at the hatch's lock. "It seems the hatch is designed to lock from above, but it cannot be opened from below. It's not designed to keep people out, but rather to keep them in. That mark on the glass suggests it was put to such use once, and quite effectively. The glass must be bulletproof."

Gary moved towards the other door. "The generator must be through there," he said.
 
West side of motel, ground level:
McCain snapped around when he heard the warning and he saw Cole moving with his evil red eyes. He gulped quickly but did not go insane or anything close to it. McCain brought up his shotgun and pointed it at Cole knowing that he would not miss unless the gun misfired. He fired the gun and saw the shell hit Cole. The shell hit Cole on the right leg but it may have sheared the entire leg off or at least it looked that way to McCain. He prepared to back away for safety keeping the gun pointed at Cole.

In the Upstairs Communication Room:
Lewis heard the noise outside but decided that his best bet would be to continue setting up the communication gear which he continued to do.

In the Warehouse:
Alice walked over to the crate and picked up 3 grenades which she then proceded to place carefully in her pocket making sure that there was no way the pins could be pulled. Walking over to Michael at the door she asked, "Would it be okay if I was allowed to go down and explore the complex?"

In the cell block:
Jim looked inside cell 6 then seeing nothing used his key to open the cell. He did a careful search of the cell and did not find anything of interest in the cell. Walking back outside he locked the cell door once again and said, "I find nothing in cell 6". He then walked over to cell 7 and peered inside the cell using the spyhole.
 
On the roof of the diner -

"What is this all about?" Luke grunts from the roof while scanning the area "We got other problems to handle..."


In the garage -

Bob walks out of the garage towards the chopper, drawing the 1911 to be able to react if some zombie surged from the grass.
 
On the motel's roof-

"Shit, Sheen watch the grass and if you see any movement inform me and open fire." Black shouts after
Thayer "Hold here untill they are both confurmed dead. The dead where you don't get up and start eating your friends dead."

Outside the garage-

Ramirez direcs his coment at Bo "I'm sorry but we've been attacked by infected humans and coyotes,
the last one is being terminated as we speak."
 
On the west side of the motel-
Even with both of Cole's legs crippled, he was able to drag himself fairly quickly with his strong arms the short distance between him and Malanowski. He managed to seize him, and Malanowski could not get out of the way, but he was able to break the hold.

Phillips finally came to his senses. Weakly, he drew his pistol with his right hand.

(McCain may fire again, still at point blank range and using the same rules as last round. Any hit that causes at least 1 damage after armor will finish him off.)

On the motel stairs-
Lt. Malone's magazine went dry, so she swapped it out for a fresh one. Then she blinked, as if truly aware of her surroundings for the first time in a while.

On the motel balcony-
Hockey did not freak out when he saw Cole, but for some reason he hesitated to fire. Whether it was out of fear of hitting his comrades or reluctance to shoot at Cole only he knew.

Duran squeezed off a second shot, landing a solid hit, gravely wounding his arm. Yet Cole kept moving.

(Hockey has another chance to fire. The same rules that applied last round still apply.)

On the motel's roof-
Thayer climbed back up the ladder and onto the roof.

"Roger that, Sarge," said Bobby Sheen. He scanned the field through his scope again. "There's no movement in the field itself, but I can only see about a mile out through the grass. I can see a couple miles down the highway, and there are some more coyotes and infected humans prowling through the wrecked vehicles off in the distance. They're well out of range, though."

In the upstairs comm room-
Captain Lereux and Zorie Spooner continued helping Mikhalin and Lewis reassemble the apparatus, moving components into place and hooking up wires and cables.

In the garage-
Robert and Beth walked through the garage and out through the open door while the mechanics kept working on the truck.

Outside the garage-
Samantha and Willie picked up the ladder and carried it around the north side of the diner.

Bob emerged from the garage and caught up with the rest of his group, which was stopped about ten yards from the helicopter. There were no zombies in sight. He could still hear the gunfire coming from the other side of the motel, but he couldn't see what was being fired at with the building in his way.

"I hope everyone's okay," said Stephanie.

"That's an awful lot of lead that's been flying around," said Bo. "Are you sure everything's under control over there?"

Stephanie looked imploringly at Lt. Blanco. "Isn't there anything you can do? I know you don't believe us, but the fate of the world is at stake. Whether or not we reach Omaha quickly matters more than anything that happens here, but if you really want to hold the motel you'll let us go so the three of you can go back there." She looked at Ortega. "Don't you want to help your friends?"

"Yeah," added Erica. "You can help bolster the motel's defenses if you're not busy trying to keep me from taking off in my own helicopter."

"Look," said Lt. Blanco. "I really wish I could do what you're asking, but I have my orders. Until the captain modifies them, my hands are tied."

Robert and Beth emerged from the garage. "All that shooting," said Beth. "What's going on?" She looked up. "How are we supposed to get up on the roof?"

On the roof of the garage-
Baldwin kept watching from the rooftop. "They're borrowing the ladder so more people can get up on the east side," he called down, "but they'll bring it back. The motel's being attacked, but they said they're mopping up now."

On the east side of the diner-
Kimberly looked at Joe, then back up to the roof. She didn't want Azadeh to have the advantage of being up there if things went south. "We've got time before those creatures get here," she said. "Samantha said they won't arrive for over 20 minutes. This is a private matter we wish to discuss, and it'll only take a few minutes. We'll be done well before they come into range."

In the warehouse-
"Nobody's stopping you," Michael told Alice. "I'd like to explore it myself. If you find someone down there willing to take my place here, I'd appreciate it if you'd send them up."

Alice went past Michael and down the stairs. Kerry finished prying the lid off of the crate and gathered four canes, then followed her. Sally headed up the stairs leading to the surface.

In the reception area-
Lynne ejected the clip from her M1911 and replaced it with a full one. She looked up as Alice entered through the gate.

In the cell block-
Jim Kerr slid open the narrow panel and looked inside cell 7, where his eyes met with a shocking sight. There was a dead body lying in the cell, a very old one by the look of it. The flesh was very badly decayed, but he could still tell that the deceased was male. The corpse wore the uniform of an airman in the U.S. Air Force. It was hard for Jim to tell more from this distance without opening the cell and going inside. There were also half a dozen rats in the cell. Some of them were chewing on the rancid flesh.

(Jim Kerr, roll Sanity. Failure costs 1d3 Sanity points. Then roll Spot Hidden to see what you can detect before deciding whether or not to open the door.)

Max stood beside Jim and looked up at him questioningly.

"Two rats just came into this cell through the hole," Randall said, turning to call to Jim across the hall. When he turned back, they had already reached Debbie's body and started taking a few experimental nibbles. "Not again!" He raised his rifle.

In the prisoners' common area-
"Mr. Foo?" called Jenny, wandering in from the shower room.

In the hatch chamber-
"We're in here, Miss Cooper!" Mr. Foo shouted back. He went over to the far door and put his ear to it. "I can't hear a thing."

"Let me try," said Ellen Cody. She listened at the door too. "There's a kind of humming sound, but nothing else."

"Forgive me. My hearing isn't what it used to be."

"That's all right, no harm done."

"Humming?" said Gary. "That's got to be the generator." He and Ellen covered the door while Mr. Foo tried it. When he found it unlocked, he slowly opened it.

In the generator room-
On the other side was a large room with no other exits, with a massive generator at the back. "Oh, baby! Look at this beauty. They don't build them like this any more." He went inside and inspected the antique generator, running his hands over its surface as if it were a woman. "This unit's diesel powered, so we'll have no problem keeping her fed. There's even enough hose in here to run back upstairs and connect to the gas pumps. Now we just need to find some spare electrical cables." He opened an old locker and looked inside. "Jackpot! This will do nicely. Now I just need to splice it in."

Gary looked over the maze of cables connected to the generator. "Well, it looks like these lines run through the floor, both back to the prison complex and to the lab beneath us, but I can't quite find a place to run a new line."

"Perhaps I can be of assistance," said Mr. Foo, entering the room and making his way to the generator. With his help, they were able to connect the extra cabling.
 
Outside the garage -

Bob sees the situation with no obvious way out... Human stupidity... They would all die from it. Ironic really.

Bob let out a sharp whistle, signalling Luke on the roof an pointing at the motel. The hunter would realise what is going on.

Bob pulled his 9mm with his left hand and walked up to the group around the chopper.

"Put your gun on safe and aim it well away from everyone. No word of this on the radio." Bob commands, with each pistol aimed at one soldier "I don't want to die here and I think neither do you, but you've taken away our choices."

"This is our chopped and we have to leave. You have your job, but we have ours." he continues calmly "You can try to stop us, and we'll exterminate eachother, or you can let us go with OUR chopper and we might live to see another day."


On the diner's roof -

Luke hears the sharp whistle and looks over the ledge at the chopper. Bob's gestures are pretty clear and the group around the chopper was clearly trouble. He realised the USAF boys weren't going to let the chopper leave and that the crew would have to strongarm their way out.

The problem was clear... The other civilians on the ground could easily threathen the outnumbered soldiers, but the spinning up of the chopper would alert the soldiers at the motel.

"No time now." Luke says over the ledge to the people down, arguing to bring Azadeh down "Trouble inbound, from both sides. USAF has seized the chopper and we're not going to stand for it."

"Azadeh, keep an eye on the field so nothing sneaks up on us, I'll intimidate the snipers at the hotel. And try not to be too exposed from the back..." he said.

Luke turned around and aimed at the roof of the hotel. As soon as they heard the chopper spin up, it was sure someone would check it. Hopefully, he'd provide some deterent for the snipers not to line up a shot. The .50 cal posed the greastest threat, but even a normal rifle would mean trouble. Hopefully, no one would force him to take the shot.
 
On the Roof of the Motel-

"Both of you continue scanning the area and check your ammo.
We can't be caught unprepared again."
At this Black reloads the 50. cal but pockets the four remaining rounds.
He also pick's up his previously discarded helment.

Outside the garage-

"Bob, put the guns down now and no one needs to get hurt."
 
West side of motel, ground level:
McCain grinned as he brought up his shotgun once again saying, "Cole i have wanted to do this for a long fucking time!" He fired at Cole and he saw the shell hit Cole. The shell appeared to do massive damage to Cole's leg and this time it appeared to kill Cole. McCain kept the shotgun pointed at Cole just in case.

In the upstairs communication room:
Lewis grunted as he moved the gear into position and then he got onto the floor and crawled underneath connecting wires.

In the reception area:
Alice stopped when she saw Lynne and asked, "where is everybody at?"

In the cell block:
Jim stared at the rotting corpse and gulped trying to keep his stomach under control. He managed to do so however. Looking away to get some air he decided that before he entered this cell he would try to see if he saw anything from outside. He peered into the cell through the spy hole again and but he did not see anything out of the ordinary. He thought for a minute if he should go in or not. He decided what the hell and used the key to open the door.
 
On the motel stairs-
Lt. Malone jogged back upstairs when she saw Cole fall and stop moving. "Malone here," she reported over the radio. "Cole's down for good." She knocked on the door of the comm room near the top of the stairs. "Sir, it's me."

In the upstairs comm room-
Zorie Spooner opened the door and let Lt. Malone in. "I'm here, sir," said the lieutenant, saluting. "What's the situation?"

"I need you to help us finish reassembling this equipment," said Captain Lereux.

"Yes, sir." Lt. Malone took over for Zorie.

"I'd like to go down and see to the wounded," said Zorie. "If that's okay, Captain?"

Lereux nodded. "Just make sure you stick with the SF troopers for protection," he said, "and get back up here at the first sign of trouble."

Zorie nodded and left the room, shutting the door behind her.

"I estimate we'll complete the task in a little over ten more minutes, ma'am," said Alexandria Mikhalin. "What happened out there?"

"Cole was killed," Malone said. "Phillips is seriously wounded and no doubt infected. Not sure if Malanowski is infected or not. It would've been a lot worse if I hadn't been there. Now we've lost both fire team leaders and we're going to lose our medic, and we haven't even been here an hour. We can't afford to keep taking casualties like this."

On the motel balcony-
Zorie Spooner emerged from the motel room and headed down the stairs, close behind Duran. "Stay behind me, ma'am," he told her.

On the west side of the motel-
Cole lay motionless after the second shell struck him in the leg. Most of his limbs were destroyed, but his eyes still burned red with hatred.

Malanowski rolled around on the ground, still wailing.

Duran reached the bottom of the stairs and cautiously approached Cole. "Man, this is creeping me out," he said. He pointed the barrel of his M-16 at Cole's head and fired, easily hitting and blowing out his brains. Cole's eyes went dark. "Good riddance." Duran turned and covered Phillips. "Okay, Ms. Spooner, you're clear."

Phillips holstered his pistol and took out his medical bag with his right arm, which was less badly injured. He tried to bandage his left arm, but was too weak to make any progress. He slumped over. "Might as well put a couple of those in my head too," he moaned. "Stick a fork in me 'cause I am done."

"Don't talk like that, Steve," said Zorie. She knelt beside him while Duran kept him covered.

On the motel's roof-
"Yes, Sergeant," said Bobby Sheen. He checked his ammo supply. "I've got over 200 rounds for my M-24, which should last me a while. There's also another hundred in that crate below for each of us. When Thayer does go down, he should get our extra magazines for when he comes back up here. I've also got 60 rounds for my sidearm, four grenades, and my LAW." He kept watch over the field to the west. "Still no movement in the grass."

Sam Black removed the magazine with three rounds remaining and reloaded his Barrett with a full one containing 11, plus one remained in the chamber. He had a total of 125 rounds left for it on his person, in addition to 24 bullets for his .44 Magnum, 90 rounds for the M-4, two grenades, and one LAW.

Bruce Thayer remained on the eastern edge of the roof and looked eastward. "Can I go down now, Sergeant?" he asked. "Sergeant McCain asked for a couple of guys to go down there and help him out, and they said it's clear on the radio. My ammo supply is about the same. 200 rounds for my rifle, 60 for my automatic, four grenades, and two LAWs." He put a hand above his eyes to shield them from the midday sun. "Hey! Something's going on at the chopper!"

Outside the garage-
"Oh my God," said Stephanie. She was the only one there without a weapon drawn, but at least that made her less of a target. "Please Dr. Blanco," she begged, "just do what he says. I don't want anyone to get hurt, and I'm sure you don't either. You said you wished you could help us, and now you have the perfect excuse. There isn't anything you could do, and if you tried there'd be a bloodbath."

"Okay," said Lt. Blanco, slowly lowering her sidearm and pointing it down. "We're backing off. Mr. Ramirez, Airman Ortega, stand down and cooperate." She stepped backwards, away from the helicopter.

Erica stood with her rifle ready, while Bo held his shotgun. He positioned himself in front of Stephanie so that his body shielded hers from any potential incoming fire from the west. Dr. Hausmann held Bo's Beretta in her good hand as she stood behind Erica, her medical bag slung over her shoulder.

Robert and Beth stood in shock at the entrance to the garage. "There's a standoff over the helicopter," Robert said to Wallace. "The military's trying to seize it, and it looks like things could get ugly. Be ready."

"Maybe we should just get out of here," said Beth, clutching Robert's arm nervously.

On the roof of the garage-
Baldwin gripped his rifle tightly as he looked at the scene to the west, but he failed to notice the activity on the motel roof across the road.

On the roof of the diner-
"I'm on it," said Azadeh as Luke jogged across the crumbling roof towards the west. "I'm afraid our talk will have to wait," she called down. She lay prone on the sleeping bag and pointed her rifle to the east, where the oncoming horde was about 1 3/4 miles away.

(Luke, roll Spot Hidden to see if you notice that Thayer has seen something.)

On the east side of the diner-
Willie and Samantha arrived from around the northeast corner and leaned the ladder up against the wall. "What's up?" asked Samantha.

"The air force seized the helo," said Kimberly. "Looks like trouble. You two have the rifles, so you should get up on the roof." She glanced at Joe Barring. "You coming?" Then she took off around the north side of the T-Bone.

In the garage-
"Great," muttered David. "This is all we need."

"Just keep working, you two," Mitchell told him and Jimmy. "We don't need to borrow trouble. We've got enough as it is."

In the diner-
Sally reached the top of the stairs and headed for the garage.

In the warehouse-
Michael shook his head as Alice went past him. What an odd duck, he thought. Then he regretted it. She's probably distraught from everything that's been happening. That must be why she was acting out earlier. Can't blame her really; I haven't held up so well either.

In the reception area-
"Down the hall behind me," said Lynne, motioning to the corridor entrance. "There's a bunch of them in the cell block, and Gary went with Mr. Foo and Ellen to find the generator. Just keep going straight back, and you can't miss them."

Kerry came through the gate with the canes in her arms. "Found 'em," she said. She gave two of them to Lynne, then one to Mrs. Foo. "Here. I figure you could use one of these too."

Mrs. Foo bowed her head in thanks and accepted the cane. "Thank you, Missy Kerry. That very thoughtful of you."

"You're welcome. I'm keeping this one for myself. I don't need help walking, but it's also good for smashing stuff."

In the cell block-
Jim Kerr opened the door of cell 7 and was able to get a better look at its contents. The rats were just ordinary rats; they ignored him and went about their ratty business. The dead man appeared to have been dead for a very long time, probably decades. What little flesh remained on his bones was being consumed by the rats. There was a hole in his skull, and from his law enforcement experience he could tell that it was probably a large caliber gunshot wound.

(Jim Kerr, roll Spot Hidden and then indicate which cell you want to search next unless there's something else you want to do.)

Back at cell 4, Randall fired at one of the rats feeding on the corpse. The bullet struck home, blowing through its gut and slaying it. The second rat stopped eating and bolted for the hole.

(Duke, you have one chance to fire at the rat if you wish before it escapes. Jim Kerr cannot get there in time, though he could shoot at one of the rats in cell 7 if he wants.)

At the sound of the gunshot, the rats in cell 7 squeaked and scurried around. Three of them darted between Jim's legs and out into the cell block.

In the prisoners' common area-
Jenny Cooper walked through the door and into the hatch chamber.

In the generator room-
"Thanks," said Gary. He and Mr. Foo also hooked up the fuel line while they were there. The two of them carried the lines back towards the hatch chamber. "We're good to go, but this baby's going to need some tender loving care to keep her running properly. She needs a good greasing, first of all. Not right away, necessarily, but sometime within the next few days. She'll also need continual maintenance."

In the hatch chamber-
Jenny entered and rejoined Ellen just as Gary and Mr. Foo returned from the generator room. "Sally's going to get the tarp and the gasoline from the garage," she said. She examined the lift. "I'd like to see this lab. Are we going down there soon?"
 
On the roof of the Motel-

"Shit!" Black quickly puts on his helment, drops to the ground and looks out towards the chopper.
"This is not good Sheen get your scope on them, Thayer get down there now!"
He quickly sends over the radio
"Sir we got a problem over at the heli."

Outside the garage-

"Very well," he begins to move aside in spanish he adds to Bob
"I just hope your foolishness will not kill anyone else."

On the east side of the diner-

Joe quickly follows Kimberly
 
At the chopper -

"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. Thomas Jefferson." Bob quotes.

"The military seizes something they have no right to, the american civilians rise up." Bob replies unphased "That is the way it has always been and shall always be. Each action has an equal and opposing counterreaction."

"Erica, start the chopper. We need to get out of here, fast. Hopefully they're not stupid enough to fire on the chopper..."


On the roof -

Luke spots as Thayer sees them. He very briefly shakes his head and hand in an obvious 'no' sign to the soldier.

"We've been spotted." Luke yells down to the chopper, keeping his eyes fixed on the roof through his scope "Let a soldier get on the radio and tell them that if anyone takes aim over the ledge, he'll be greeted with a 7.62x51mm FMJ round to the face... Tell them we are taking back what is rightfully ours. MAKE IT QUICK!"

"Don't tempt me, you've seen my skill before... I will not miss at this range..." he adds
"And then we'll all be royally screwed."
 
In the upstairs communication room:
Lewis slid out from under one of the desks long enough to grab some nearby tools then went back underneath to continue setting up the gear.

Southwest corner of motel, ground level:
McCain got on his radio and said, "I need a couple of people to finish this barricade and the zip line. The rest of the squad, except those under orders to guard the helicpopter, are to fall back to the balcony. By the way, Ortega, what is the situation at the helicopter? Have any civilians approached and tried to get in?" McCain then headed upstairs and went up to Captian Lereux. "Sir do you want to know the current situation?"

In the reception area:
Alice nodded and walked down the hallway.

In the cell block:
Jim Kerr looked around the cell to see if he saw anything of interest. He did not and walked out of the cell. He went to cell #8 and opened the spy hole to look inside.
 
In the upstairs comm room-
Captain Lereux opened the door when Sergeant McCain spoke from the other side. "Yes, Sergeant," he said as he got back to work on hooking up the communications gear, "I'd very much like a sitrep." He spoke into his throat microphone. "Sergeant Black, what kind of problem? Lt. Blanco, what is going on over there?"

On the west side of the motel-
"We both know I'm done for," Steve Phillips said to Zorie Spooner. "I'm going to turn into one of them...things, just like Cole did. Everybody who gets bitten turns."

"Kimberly didn't," said Zorie. She began binding the wound on his left arm.

"Kimberly's probably immune, you said. She wasn't showing any symptoms. I...I'm burning up."

She felt his forehead. "You do seem to have a fever. I'm not giving up on you, though. Maybe we can find a cure for this, and Kimberly could be the key."

"In a couple of hours? 'Cause that's about how long I've got, isn't it?"

"That's what Stephanie Bridges said. I'm not going to give up on you. While there's life, there's hope."

He shook his head. "It'd take a miracle, and I've just about exhausted my share of them." Zorie began to cry, and fumbled with the bandages as she tried to apply them to his wound. "Here, let me help." But his efforts were no better. "Forget it, you might as well shoot me now."

"No!"

Igor Malanowski stopped wailing and looked around in confusion. "Oh, man," he moaned.

"Can you help me with him?" Zorie Spooner asked. Malanowski nodded, and she looked at Duran. "You can go help with the ladder and the barricade. I think he's got it covered."

"Yes, ma'am," said Duran. He stepped over Cole's motionless body and peered into the motel room he had emerged from. "Hey, it looks like he managed to finish the ladder. I'll go bring it upstairs." He collected the rope ladder, jogged up the stairs to the balcony, and put it down. "Here's the rope ladder, Sarge," he told McCain. "We can tie the end to the balcony here and let it hang down so people can get up and down while we're working on the barricade. After that's done we can always move it to the east side." He turned around and headed back downstairs.

On the motel's roof-
"On my way," said Thayer as he quickly descended the ladder.

Bobby Sheen rushed over to the east side of the roof, lugging his rifle. He put it down and looked around. "Holy crap, Sarge! This is bad. They're holding the doc and the others at gunpoint, and a couple of those guys with rifles on the other roof are aiming at us!" He quickly dropped to a prone position.

At the helicopter-
"Let's go, people!" called Erica Spears. She and Bo led the way to the helicopter at a quick run while Lt. Blanco, Javier Ramirez, and Manuel Ortega stood aside. "Everyone aboard, fast!" She glanced at Lt. Blanco. "Get on the horn and call off the dogs!" Then she opened up the door, reached inside, and started the motor.

"Sir!" said Lt. Blanco into the radio. "Blanco here. They got the drop on us. They said to tell you that they're taking back what's theirs, and if anyone takes aim over the edge he'll get a 7.62x51mm FMJ round to the face! Sir, they mean it."

"So do I," replied Captain Lereux. "I can't let them take that helicopter, and they committed the first hostile act."

"Sir, I think they perceived us seizing their helicopter as a hostile act."

"It's our helicopter now, and we do not negotiate with terrorists. They can't take off if there's no pilot. You tell them that anyone who gets in the pilot's seat of that helo will be shot, and anyone who fires on any of our people will be terminated with extreme prejudice!"

Lt. Blanco passed on the captain's message while Bo opened the chopper's rear door. "I'll slide across," he said. "If any bullets penetrate from the other side, they'll hit me first." He climbed into the bench seat and moved over to the right. Stephanie got in next and sat in the middle, leaning against Bo with a frightened look on her face. Dr. Hausmann got in third, and Erica closed the rear door behind her.

Outside the garage-
Beth ran for her pickup truck, which was parked near the garage. "Wait!" called Robert, running after her. "Where are you going?"

"I'm getting out of here," she said. "I don't want to be caught in the crossfire!" She unlocked the doors with her remote and got into the driver's seat. "I suggest you come with, but make up your mind fast!"

Robert hesitated outside the front passenger door. "But my buddy Duke is down there! I don't want to leave him here."

"There's no time to go back for him now!" She started up the engine.

"Well, at least he's not alone. I can't let you go off by yourself and get killed." Robert threw open the door and jumped into the shotgun seat.

Kimberly came around the northwest corner of the diner, with Joe Barring not far behind.

On the motel's roof-
"Sergeant Black!" shouted Captain Lereux over the airwaves. "You and Airman Sheen are to be ready. They said they'll open fire if anyone takes aim over the edge of the roof, so don't aim yet. But you are to shoot to kill anyone who gets in the pilot's seat of that chopper, is that understood? I know you're both good enough to do this without taking much time to aim. You won't be able to go for a head shot, but any hit from that Barrett should be good enough. Otherwise, you are to fire only if any of our people are fired upon. Take care to avoid damaging the helicopter to the point where it cannot fly."

"This doesn't sit right with me, Sarge," said Airman Sheen. "We're supposed to protect civilians, not shoot them." He looked thoughtful for a second. "You know, we could always miss, if you know what I'm saying."

On the roof of the garage-
Baldwin looked up at Luke's warning. He still couldn't see what the snipers were doing, but he took aim at them anyway. "Just like the man," he muttered, "always stepping on the little guys. Those cracker asses better not shoot, that's all I can say."

On the east side of the diner-
Samantha scaled the ladder to the roof while Willie held it from below.

On the roof of the diner-
Samantha climbed onto the roof and readied her rifle, while Azadeh lay watching the horde to the east. "They're still well out of range," she said. "Now that the others are here, shouldn't I aim to the west?"

In the garage-
"Maybe you should shut the garage door, Wallace," said Jimmy. "The last thing we need is a grenade bouncing in here or something. Hell, even a bullet would suck."

Sally walked in from the diner's interior. "Hey, do you know where I can find a jerry can with some gas and a tarp?" she asked. "We're going to burn that body of the thing we found downstairs so the rats can't eat it. They can turn into them too."

"First dogs, now rats," said Mitchell. "Just great." He told her where to find what she needed. "What are going to do about the hundreds of them lying around up here, though? We've also got a situation outside. Air Force tried to take the chopper, and we've got us a standoff. This could get real bad."

"Yeah," said David. "You should stay up here for now. Some of us might need your...attentions."

In the warehouse-
Michael kept standing watch. Bored, he started to hum "Roll Out the Barrel."

In the reception area-
Lynne stood up with Rosie's help and began to hobble around the room, using her two canes as crutches.
Kerry took a few practice swings at the air with her cane, while Mrs. Foo watched Alice walk away down the hall.

In the cell block-
"Dammit!" shouted Randall as the second rat escaped into the hole. "I hope that little bugger doesn't cause us trouble later." Then one of the rats that had come out of cell 7 slipped between his legs and went straight for the body. "No!"

The other two rats that had escaped from the cell ran past him and down the hall towards the guard room. The last three rats remained trapped in cell 7 after Jim Kerr locked the door. He peered into cell 8, which looked empty. Max followed him across the hall, wagging his tail. The sight of the rats and the dead man had disturbed him a little, and he was glad to be away from them.

In the guard room-
Alice passed through the hallway and out the door at the other end, finding herself in the guard room. The opposite door led into the cell block, from which she could hear voices. A couple of rats came scurrying out of the door, squeaking in fright.

In the hatch chamber-
"I'll take it from here," said Gary. He took the other line from Mr. Foo and headed back into the common area.

"I still think it's a bad idea for you two to go down there," said Mr. Foo. "In any case, there aren't enough people yet to give it a try. The lift looks like it can hold six people at a time. I wouldn't want to try exploring the lab with any fewer than that."
 
On the motel's roof-

Black turns to Sheen
"If I know what your saying your suggesting we disobey a direct order.
I don't like it but it is our duty to make sure that they do not take off.
These people are no long civilians they are terrorists.
We do not have to like our orders just fallow them and belive me
I don't like them." Black checks his rifle "I see no choice but to shoot."

At the helicopter-

"I hope they don't regret this" Ramirez comments to Manuel and Lt. Blanco
 
On the roof -

"As long as someone keeps the zombies covered, it's fine with me. I just don't want them crawling up on us by surprise out of the long grass." Luke replies to Azadeh "And be carefull, you cant take another hit... So get some cover somewhere."

"Get to cover!" he then yells to no one in particular, but at least again warning the people around him.

He tries to keep track of the soldier that he knows has the .50 cal. Afterall, there is no hiding from the .50 cal. Even iron-reinforced concrete walls couldn't provide cover against it.


At the chopper -

"Don't let them fire. No one has to die. We have a mission issued by the US Government, not unlike you. We have the US Constitution backing us up, and you are breaching the Uniform Code of Military Justice." Bob pleads to the soldiers before he runs to the chopper to aid with the flightcheck in the copilot seat.
 
In the communication room:
Lewis ignored what was going on and fiddled with one of the wires trying to conect it while wiping sweat off his brow with his other hand. "Boy it is hot in here, can someone turn on the AC or the equipment may overheat?"

On the southwest corner of the motel, balcony level:
McCain gave the siterep as he knew it and then grabbing his radio mike said, "Snipers, shoot the terrorists! If that chopper gets off the ground without any shot fired at it you will face the consequences. Shoot to kill that is an order!"

In the guard room:
Alice saw the rats and screamed in fright running into the cell block where she saw Jim Keer.

Cell Block:
Jim paused to look at Alice and then petted Max and opened the door to cell #8. He did a careful search of the cell and while he thought he may have found something a careful look showed he had not. He stepped out of the cell locking it behind him and went over to cell #9 to look inside the spy hole.
 
On the west side of the motel-
"I'll get his arms," said Zorie Spooner to Malanowski, "and you get his legs. Be careful not to touch his wounds, just in case." She spoke into the radio as the two of them lifted the wounded medic. "We're bringing Phillips upstairs!"

"Negative on that!" replied Lereux. "He's infected, and I can't allow him to be brought up here so he can infect others. I hate to say it, but it may be best just to put him out of his misery."

"We can't do that, Captain! That's murder! Besides, uh, we can observe the progress of the infection firsthand. We can't just throw away the chance to study it!"

"Okay, but we're not taking any chances. You can use one of the downstairs motel rooms. Take Malanowski with you, since he could be infected too, and have him stand guard. The instant Phillips starts to turn, he is to pull the trigger."

"All right." Zorie and Malanowski carried Phillips into the room that Cole had been using. The medic moaned as they placed him on the bed.

Duran came back downstairs as Thayer came around the corner from the south side of the motel. "Let's get to work on the barricade," said Duran. "At least Cole already brought all the furniture we'll need outside. Should take the two of us about ten minutes."

Thayer nodded sullenly and moved to help him.

On the motel balcony-
Hockey resumed his position on the northwest corner overlooking the field. He shouldered his M-16 and took up his SAW once more.

In the upstairs comm room-
"Good thinking, Nate," said Alexandria Mikhalin. She found the thermostat and turned on the air conditioning. A cool breeze started flowing through the room, and the people inside stopped sweating as much. "There we go." She resumed hooking up peripherals to the main unit.

"Sir," said Lt. Malone as she worked, "aren't your orders to the snipers a bit risky?"

"Last time I checked, Lieutenant, I was the commanding officer," said Lereux. "We need that helicopter."

"Yes...sir. I appreciate that. But we've taken too many casualties already. If this turns into a firefight we'll win it, but not without taking more. Frankly, sir, we can't afford to lose even one more man. They'll target the snipers first, and if we lose them we're sunk."

The captain glared at his subordinate. "Are you questioning my judgment?"

"Sir, as your executive officer it's my job to advise you. All I'm saying is that this course of action is rather rash and could be costly. This will not end well. Maybe there's another way."

"Have you got a better idea?" He paused, and she didn't reply. "Then we do it my way."

"Understood, sir. I just want my objections noted on the record."

"So noted."

On the motel's roof-
"I don't like them either, Sarge," said Bobby Sheen, "but I understand." Then he hears Bob's shout. "You know, he's right about the UCMJ. We not only have the right to disobey an unlawful order, we have the duty. We're in kind of a gray area here, though, and if she gets in and we hold our fire we'll be in Dutch with the CO - not to mention McCain. Whatever you decide, I'll follow your lead."

At the helicopter-
Ortega nodded to Ramirez. Lt. Blanco just looked on helplessly, the situation completely out of her control.

The fuel pump made an odd sound as it slurped up the last of the fuel from the bottom of the barrel. Erica Spears shut the pump down, disconnected it, and stowed it away. The rotors began to pick up speed, and the helicopter was now almost ready to launch. She stood nervously near the door to the pilot's seat, hesitating to get in. "I sure hope they're bluffing," she says.

In the garage-
Wallace stepped outside. "I'd better shut that door before the lead starts flying," he said. Sally nodded, filling a jerry can with diesel fuel and then rolling up a tarp. The mechanics kept working on the tanker.

Outside the garage-
Wallace pulled the garage door shut, sealing off the garage.

"Hey there," said Kimberly. "Get ready. I think it's about to hit the fan." She moved back around the northwest corner of the garage and flattened herself against the wall right next to it, her SPAS-12 ready for action.

Beth shifted her truck into gear and floored the accelerator before Robert even closed the door. He quickly pulled it shut and fastened his seatbelt as she pulled out north on the dirt road. "Where are we going?" he asked.

"Away," she said.

"We're going to need a better plan than that. There's a whole bunch of those creatures coming from the east, and the PMS compound is to the north. Let's head west." He pointed up ahead. "There, that's the intersection with Route 30. Turn left there."

"Okay, then what?"

"Well, Warren AFB is a ways to the west. It's the only safe place I know of. We should be able to get there well before it gets dark."

"Getting onto the base won't be easy. They're as likely to shoot us as not, especially considering their actions here."

"I know, but what other choice have we got? I'm sure we can talk our way in. Hey, one look at your pretty face and they'll have to let us in."

Beth glanced at him, quirking her eyebrow. "Are you flirting with me?"

"Is it working?"

She faced forward again, saying nothing, but a smile crept across her lips.

On the roof of the garage-
Baldwin watched the snipers, taking aim at them. "Aw, hell," he muttered. "That one's got a Barrett. They haven't taken aim yet, at least. Which one do you want me to target?" he called back to Luke.

On the east side of the diner-
After Samantha emerged onto the roof, Willie climbed up.

On the roof of the diner-
"Willie, watch the grass to the east," said Azadeh, rising from the sleeping bag, her muscles still aching. Willie took her place, and Azadeh moved behind the concrete chimney, leaning around a corner to aim at the snipers on the roof opposite. Samantha joined her and aimed around the other corner.

In the warehouse-
Michael paced back and forth at the top of the stairs.

In the reception area-
"Okay," said Lynne, "that's enough for now." She sat back down behind the desk and leaned her canes against it, then began absently cleaning her .45 automatic. Rosie patted her on the shoulder.

A couple of rats scurried in from the hallway, and Kerry yelped. She swiped at one of them with her cane, missing badly. The rats darted past her.

"It okay," said Mrs. Foo. "They just normal rats."

In the cell block-
"Just killing some more ordinary rats!" called Duke, firing his M-14 at the rat that had just slipped into the cell. To his chagrin, the rifle jammed. "Dammit all to hell!"

Randall also fired, but not before the rat managed to tear off a chunk of Debbie's flesh with its teeth. He managed to hit and severely wound it, blowing off its forepaw, and the critter stopped moving. He turned to Alice as she came in. "Those were just regular rats," he said, "they won't hurt you. It's when they eat the dead that they cause trouble. One of them got away earlier, through that hole."

Jim Kerr looked through the narrow rectangular panel into cell 9. Another ancient corpse wearing an airman's uniform was inside, but this one had a belt tied around its neck and to a ceiling fixture. dangling with its feet several inches above the floor. Three rats tried to nip at the dead man's heels, but he was just out of reach.

(Jim Kerr, roll Sanity again. Failure costs 1d3 Sanity points. You may also roll Spot Hidden.)

In the prisoners' common area-
Gary made his way back through the common area with the electrical and fuel lines. He unrolled them behind him as he headed into the shower room.

In the hatch chamber-
"I wish they hadn't kicked us out of the motel," said Ellen.

"Yes," said Mr. Foo, "so do I, but there's nothing we could have done about that. We have to make the best of things here. We're all going to have to leave once that tanker is repaired anyway."

"In the meantime," said Jenny, "at least we can look around this place. You know, even if the two of us don't go down there, we're going to need someone who can pick a lock, and I don't see anyone else who can do it."

"True, but we'll also need someone to stand guard over the hatch while others are down there. We don't want anything nasty coming back up, and if things get bad down there whoever it is might need to seal the hatch - even if there are people still trapped down there alive. I could do it if I have to, and that's one more reason I don't want either of you two down there."

"Oh." Jenny lowered her head.
 
In the communication room:
As Lewis continued to work he moved himself over to the ac vent and let it run on his sweaty head. "Ahh that feels goood!" He heard the argument between Lt. Malone and Captain Lereux and said, "If a grunt had an opinion sir, which I belive I do because it could be my guts the zombies are eating soon, I think Malone is right. These people may be the only chance we have to find a cure for the disease and even if you did not want to let them take the helicopeter back you could get them a truck or something, there are plenty here, and let them take that. Maybe even we could go along as an escort or something. I think that is a good idea, sir."

On the southwest corner of the motel, balcony level:
McCain got on his radio and said, "Snipers, those terrorists most likly have people ready to take you out also if you fire. I order Black to fire at the pilot if they try to take off and Sheen you fire at one of the snipers on the roof of the garage if they show signs of agression. I believe i saw someone up there and if we take him out the others may not be so eager to lose thier life for terriorism. But the point is that we cannot let them get away. There is no arguring this point. You are under millitary command and if you do not obey my last action will be to see you put up in front of a wall and shot since this is a time of war and if you do not obey you are a terrorist also. So shoot the damm pilot is that UNDERSTOOD!" "Troppers near helicopter, be prepared to move in and keep that helicopter on the ground. You are authorized to use deadly force as needed. DO NOT LET ME DOWN!"

In the cell block:
Alice sat down and begin to sing songs to herself. She called Max over to her but was not sure if he was going to come. Jim was startled at the corpse hanging in the cell. Again however he was able to keep from losing his cookies. Using the spy hole he looked around the cell to see if anything was in there. Again he did not find anything. Deciding that there was nothing of interest in the cell and not wanting to get too near the corpse, he closed the spy hole and walked over to cell #10 looking inside its spy hole.
 
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