Play@YSDC

Z-Day - 2:22 PM Central Time - Airfield 10 miles SW of Kearney, Nebraska
On the tower roof-
As Private Simone Dawkins had watched through her scope, she had heard Alvarez's voice come over his radio: "Corporal and company, be aware that there has been sighted a black man near the northwest corner of the hangar. It looks like he is hiding from something or someone. Just thought you all might wish to know that. This is Alvarez, out."

She had glanced over to the hangar, but could not see the northwest corner due to the building obstructing her view. She had gone back to watching the warehouse again and replied on the radio: "Dawkins here. I can't see that location from up here. The hangar itself is blocking my view."

Gardner's voice came on next: "This is Gardner. I'm heading outside now, and I'll keep an eye out for him. It's probably the doc. Thanks for the heads up."

Flynn had unlocked the warehouse doors, removing the padlock and chain that were securing the handles, while Alvarez had gotten the flatbed truck started. The big State Trooper had opened the doors and stood outside next to the co-pilot.

Dawkins had heard the sound of the helicopter's engine starting up as the co-pilot went into the warehouse, but the trooper remained outside. A moment later, the chopper shut down again. Then she had heard Gardner's voice over the radio: "Flynn, Alvarez, you guys have been gone a long time. Is there any problem?"

"Yes sir," Alvarez had replied over the radio, "uh Bob is inside the warehouse moving the fuel as per ordered but Bo refuses to go inside to help so it will take a bit longer than we thought to get the fuel back to the truck. I figure 10 minutes more. We will get there, I know that you want these civilians on their way safely."

"I'm at the chopper," Gardner had answered, "and I've captured the girls. If you can't get Bo to go inside willingly, tell him we've got them and I'll kill one of them if he doesn't cooperate. Also let him know that Dawkins has his head in her crosshairs, and she'll kill him too."

At that point, Dawkins had taken careful aim at the State Trooper's head, awaiting whatever would come next. Bob had then rolled a barrel of fuel outside and gone back in while Bo loaded it on the truck. After that, Alvarez had pointed his rifle at Bo. The trooper looked up at the roof of the tower, straight into her eyes. He slowly backed into the warehouse, so that he was now out of her line of sight. She couldn't see much of what was going on due to both men being inside the warehouse and the truck blocking her vision, but there was some kind of standoff.

Just now it seemed to have been settled, as the doors slid shut. Flynn looped the chain through the handles while Alvarez got in the truck and drove back towards the helipad.

(Simone Dawkins, if you wish to have a look around now, please specify in which direction you're looking and make a Spot Hidden roll. Because you are wearing a Kevlar helmet, this roll has a -5% penalty. Since your skill is 75%, this means you have a 70% chance. If you succeed I'll let you know what, if anything, you see.)

At the helipad-
Alvarez pulled up near the helicopter in the flatbed truck. Corporal Anthony Gardner stood next to it with his pistol drawn and pointed at the three women. Erica Spears had removed her flight helmet and jacket, and was wearing an olive green tank top beneath it. Stephanie Bridges had taken off her lab coat, and she had on a black sleeveless V-neck blouse under that. She had obviously been crying recently, and her cheeks were still damp. Both of them had their arms duct taped behind their backs. Dr. Hausmann was not similarly bound, though of course she had her broken arm in a sling.

"Good job," said Gardner when Alvarez stopped the truck. "Help me unload the fuel barrel and then hook it up to the pump. I've already searched the women." He scanned the cab. "How come Flynn didn't come back with you?"

"Sir, Flynn stayed back to guard the man. I am afriad that the only way they would get into the warehouse is if we pretended to lock the door. They intend to capture this helicpopter. I think Flynn is still on our side but I am not sure. You need to be prepared. They may be on thier way back here now. I say once they show up shoot one of the women, maybe the good doctor here since they say the fate of the world depends on her and that should stop them from doing anything else. So what do you want me to do sir?"

Dawkins quickly sweeps her scope away from the warehouse, glad the confrontation seems to have been resolved. She focuses in on the chopper again, half expecting to see Gardner acosting one, if not all of the women aboard.
'Keep it together, Gardner,' Dawkins muttered to herself, 'Keep it together so we can get the hell out of here.'
Dawkins then glances back over her shoulder towards the hanger, and the location of the mysterious black man.

On the tower roof-
Simone Dawkins saw Alvarez get out of the truck and speak to Gardner briefly while they unloaded the fuel barrel and hooked it up to the fuel pump.

"This is Gardner," came the corporal's voice over the radio. "We're fueling up the chopper now, and we'll be taking off in approximately twenty minutes. Dawkins, keep your eyes to the east."

Below, she could see Gardner take the pilot by the arm and march her at gunpoint towards the tower. Soon the building blocked her view of them. She could detect no movement anywhere near the hangar. The runways and open ground further west were also empty.

(You may roll Spot Hidden again this round after specifying a direction to look.)

At the helicopter-
"The only way?" said Gardner skeptically as he and Alvarez unloaded the fuel barrel and hooked it up to the chopper's fuel pump. "Threatening to kill a hostage wasn't enough? That's bad news about Flynn being unreliable. I never trusted him anyway, and I'm one step ahead. I've got us another pilot, just in case." He grabbed Erica Spears by the arm. "The fuel will pump automatically until the barrel's empty. I want you to take the other two women in the truck and put them in Warehouse 2. Then call Flynn over and have him help you bring a second barrel out. Then lock the women in - for real this time." He took out his duct tape and taped shut the mouths of Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann, who had horrified looks on their faces. "Can't have them blabbing about our plans, now can we? Once they're locked up, find out for sure which side Flynn is on. If it's not ours, kill him. If the men try anything, you can kill the doctor like you said, but keep the blonde alive just in case. Kill the men too if they don't surrender. After that's taken care of, bring the barrel back and switch the pump when the first one's empty. I'll take care of our lady pilot personally. If I have to kill a hostage, Kathryn is expendable - as much of a shame as that would be. Be careful what you say on the radio, since Flynn will hear it too." He spoke into his radio: "This is Gardner. We're fueling up the chopper now, and we'll be taking off in approximately twenty minutes. Dawkins, keep your eyes to the east."

With that, Gardner took Erica by the arm and marched her back to the tower and through the front entrance.

Alvarez watched Gardner walk off then said, "Ladies do not worry. I am on you and Bo's side. I will need to take you over to the warehouse however so that I do not get shot. Once there I will try and distract Dawkins and Flynn if he is on their side and all of us will make a run back for the chopper. But I need to get to Omaha to see my girl and one of the men, I cannot remember which one, offered me his seat so its up to you. If you have a problem with me going with you and helping you now please tell me via shaking your head and I will do what Gardner told me and lock you away. But if I can get out of here with you then nod your head. Well which one is it?" Alveraz then marched them to the truck and pushed them inside the cab. As he got in he looked at them and said, "Well?"

"Roger, that" Dawkins replied into her radio as she swung her rifle and attention to the east. "You expecting trouble from the warehouse, Sir?" She didn't like that Gardner was leading another female to the tower where he could be alone with her. She'd this happen before. Sure, it was in a past, far removed from where she is today, but she'd seen it before and it didn't end well.
Dawkins is sharply aware that gardner must be expecting trouble from the east as she scans the area around the warehouses.
After scanning the area to the east, Dawkins looks up from her scope and scans the area around and to the north of the hanger with her binoculars.

On the tower roof-
Dawkins heard Flynn speak on the radio: "20 minutes? Okay, any other instruction?"

Gardner spoke over the airwaves next: "Quite possibly, Dawkins. Can't be too careful. Flynn, I've sent Alvarez over to Warehouse 2 to get another barrel of fuel and lock up a couple of the girls. Go over and help him when he gets there."

Peering through her scope, Dawkins could see a small group of people in the distance to the east. There were nine of them, and while they were still over a mile away, they were approaching very quickly. They had various wounds and were obviously like the infected people that had attacked before. She also noticed that the doors to Warehouse 1 were slightly open, though the chain was still looped through the handles.

(At the current range, Dawkins would be rolling against 1/4 skill if she were to shoot at the zombies. There is an additional -5% penalty for aiming at the head, which applies after quartering your skill. Since that skill is 75%, 1/4 of that is 18.75, which is further reduced to 13.75 due to the penalty. This means you'd need a 13 or less to hit, and would only impale on a 1 or 2. Since there is no combat aside from shooting at zombies from a safe distance, there are currently five combat rounds per major update. The M-24 has a 1/2 rate of fire, so you'd only get to shoot 3 times if you wish to. If you do shoot, you won't be able to watch anything else. After the next update, the zombies will be closer and your skill will only be halved.

Also, roll Listen, again with a -5% penalty due to your helmet.)

At the helicopter-
Alvarez also heard the exchange over the radio.

Stephanie's thoughts and heart raced with this strange change of fortune. She nodded vigorously as she climbed into the truck and sat down in the middle of the cab. Dr. Hausmann nodded too, placing her laptop on Stephanie's lap and then climbing in beside her. She closed the door with her good hand and took her computer back.

Stephanie turned her head towards the tower entrance. "Mm-mm-mmh!" she said, her voice muffled by the duct tape over her mouth but her urgency apparent.

(Alvarez, roll Listen, again with a -5% penalty due to your helmet.)

Alvarez, as he was climbing into the truck, paused to listen and see if he heard anything. In amazament he realized he did hear something and stopped to think about it. He then climbed into the cab and started the truck up. Making sure that Dawkins could not see him from where she was he reached over and undid part of the tape on Stephene's mouth. "What were you trying to say now?", he asked.

"We've got nine infected inbound! Moving from the east to our position. Distance is approximatly one mile and closing quickly." Dawkins barks into the radio. "I have a clear line of fire, but it's a long shot. Please advise."
(OOC: Can Dawkins estimate the time it will take for the infected to reach the warehouses which are the first structures to the east? Also, do all of us have indavidual channels to each other or is all communication through a shared channel?)
Dawkins peers back down at the ajar warehose door, looking to see if it's locked. From her vantage point she has a clear view of the door and chain holding it together.
'I don't like this shit one bit' she mutters to herself. 'We need to get the hell out of here and fast'
(OOC: How many people does the chopper hold?)
Despite her helmet, Dawkins is able to detect a sound, carried on the wind.

(The zombies will arrive at the warehouses in about six minutes, or thirty combat rounds. The warehouses are 50 yards east of the tower. You can fire your rifle every other round, which gives you 15 shots minus rounds spent reloading or doing other things. You've spent one round looking at the chain, leaving you four more combat rounds before the next update, allowing you to fire twice if you wish. This is only a minor update, not a major one, so the clock doesn't advance yet. For these first four rounds, you are at 1/4 skill and have a 13% chance to hit a zombie's head. For the twelve rounds following that, you are at 1/2 skill. Since your skill is 75%, half of it is 37.5%, and there is a -5% penalty for aiming at the head, you will have a 32% chance to hit at that point. During the last thirteen rounds you will be at full skill, and your chance to hit will be 75-5=70%. Each hit causes 2d6+4 damage (4d6+8 on an impale, a roll of 1/5 of your effective skill or less), and while it does take 10 points to the head to kill a zombie, simply wounding a fast zombie's head will slow it down and allow you to pick it off at your leisure.

There is only one shared channel between the National Guard people, so anything you say to one can be heard by all. There are other frequencies available, but unless you've prearranged to have the person you're talking to tuned to a specific frequency at a particular time - and you haven't - you have no way to use this to hold a private conversation.

The helicopter holds at most five people.)

On the tower roof-
Dawkins could hear the sound of a car engine being started in the distance to the north, beyond the hangars. The vehicle began moving eastwards. As she focused in on the chain around the warehouse doors, she could see that it was not in fact locked.

"Your call, Dawkins," answered Gardner on the radio. "You may fire when ready. Alvarez and Flynn, since you're heading out to the warehouses anyway, once you're done at Warehouse 2 I want you both to head to the east side of the warehouses if there are any left and shoot the infected as they come. If they get too close, fall back to the truck and use it to lead them away so Dawkins can safely kill them."

At the helicopter-
Alvarez could also hear the car engine starting up to the north and the vehicle moving off to the east. In addition, he could clearly make out the word that Stephanie had spoken through her gag: "Erica!"

Stephanie winced when the duct tape came off, but brushed the sudden pain aside. "We have to save Erica now, there's no time for the warehouse!" she said hurriedly. "Don't you realize what he's going to do to her?"

"Roger that, sir. I estimate we have about 6 minutes before these rotbags each the tower. I'll try and slow them down, but I suggest we get this bird fueled up and airborn as fast as we can. With all do respect, I don't think we have time to dilly dally in the tower, sir" she replies with stern and cold emphysis on the last sentence.
Taking aim at the first of the infected, Dawkins relaxes her breathing and lets loose with several rounds
(OOC: I made a mistake with invisible castle. I rolled 4 times because I had saw that I had 4 rounds to act, but I did not factor in reloading. I only get 2 shots this round. The rolls are posted here. Would you like me to reroll or do you want to take the first two for for my 1/4 skill shots, and the second 4 for my shots next round? Otherwise, I can reroll my two shots for this round and reroll for the next round)

Dawkins first shot missed, but with the barrel now warmed up, her second shot struck home from nearly a mile away. Her targets head disappeared in a mist of blood and gore

Alvarez quickly thought about it. "Okay, we can go save Erica now." He looked at both of them and said, "I hope I can trust you!" He then got out of the truck and said on the radio to Dawkins, "Dawkins, I am taking the girls with me. I need to go get some more ammo inside the tower. I will leave them outside the tower in your sightline. Shoot to wound if they try to run." He then winked at both girls and said, "Don't run and you should be fine but I am going to need to make this look good so I am putting the tape back on your mouth. Remember I am on your side. I will go get Erica and kill that sob myself if I need to!" He pulled the girls out of the truck and walked back toward the tower entrance.

West of the tower-
Stephanie nodded again. Her smile was invisible behind the duct tape covering her mouth, but her eyes clearly sparkled. Just a couple of minutes ago everything had seemed so dark, but now she had genuine hope. She and Dr. Hausmann did as they were told, standing where Alvarez had instructed them while he went inside the tower. Dr. Hausmann held onto her computer tightly.

In the tower lobby-
Alvarez crossed the empty lobby and soon reached the central stairwell and elevator shaft. The indicator light above the elevator doors showed that it was on the fourth floor.

Suddenly, the fire alarm began to ring.

On the tower roof-
Simone Dawkins also heard the fire alarm go off. The eight remaining creatures were now within a mile and closing fast.

(You've already scored two hits, and the second was an impale. Go ahead and roll damage. The first one does 2d6+4. The second does 4d6+8, which is a guaranteed kill, so that roll is optional. You also get a third shot in the fifth combat round this update.)

Alvarez heard the alarm and cringed. He then went running up the nearby stairs with his M-4 at the ready.

On the stairs-
Alvarez raced up the stairs, approaching the landing on the second floor.

(Alvarez, make a Listen roll at half skill since it's hard to hear anything over the alarm. You also have a -5% penalty to the roll due to your helmet, which is applied after your skill is halved. Thus, you will only succeed on a 7 or less.)

Dakwins cleanly, yet quickly, slid the bold back on her M24, ejecting the spent round and chambered another. This round too hit it's mark but did not down the approaching zombie. Again she deftly ejected the spent casing and fired a fourth time, this round taking the target cleanly in the head. With a fluidity that startles even herself, she racks another round into her finely crafted rifle, takes aim, and fires at wildly approaching infected. One shot, one kill.
" What the fuck is going on down there?" she barks into the radio upon hearing the fire alarm go off. "Do we have a fire in the tower? Cause it really doesn't make my job any easier to have my firing platform burning under me. I've taken 3 targets down and injured another, but we still have 5 very pissed off corpses closing on us rapidly."
'This is not good' Dawkins thinks to herself. 'That letcherous pig, Gardner, is going to get us all killed and Alvarez and Flynn seem to be up to something' Dawkins grumbles, recalling the unlicked warhouse below.

Alvarez continued to go upstairs. He tried to listen but he did not hear a thing. However he did slow up a bit and took the stairs at a jog instead of a run.

On the stairs-
Gardner spoke on the radio as Alvarez approached the second floor: "Sounds like Kathryn is trying to fly the coop. I'm on my way to check the fire escape now. Flynn, let me know if you see her from your position. Alvarez, cover the stairs to make sure she doesn't get out that way. Take her alive if you can."

(Alvarez is moving to this thread: Chance Encounter. Stop reading this thread at this point.

Everyone else remains in the current thread.)

On the tower roof-
Dawkins watched with satisfaction as two more of her targets went down and the wounded one began to lag well behind. Only five continued at full speed. She also heard Gardner's response on the radio.

(At this point you must reload your rifle before you shoot again, as you've fired five shots. After that you have enough time to shoot twice. Both times are at half skill, so with the -5% penalty your effective skill is again 32%.)

West of the tower-
Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann remained where they were, watching Alvarez disappear into the stairwell. Stephanie knew they weren't out of the woods yet, but at least there was now a ray of hope in the darkness. Please let Erica hold out until Alvarez can rescue her! she thought. That could have been me up there...

Dawkins curses under her breath. 'Things are getting rapidly out of control down there. That dumb fuck Gardner had to let his pecker do his thinking and now things were going sideways, fast.' she thought as she reloaded the magazine on the one companion she had always been able to count on: her M24.
Dawkins scanned the area near there warehouses where Alvarex left the women, and where Flynn was with the male prisoners. Dawkins then shouldered her rilfe and said "Here we go, girl. Let's restore some order to this chaos" as she took aim once again.
The first shot sails wide as does her second shot. The situation downstairs is affecting her concentration. 'Damn you, Gardner!' she mutters again to herself as she works the bolt action on her rifle. 'Rapidly out of control.......' her thoughts trail off.

On the tower roof-
"Okay, I heard you," replied Flynn on the radio.

"Fire escape was clear," Gardner reported on the radio. "Alvarez, guard the stairs at the second floor landing and make sure she doesn't get past you." He paused. "Ah, good, you've found her, Alvarez! Bring her upstairs so she can shut off that goddamn fire alarm."

Dawkins looked around while she was reloading her rifle, but saw nothing she hadn't expected to see. Flynn still stood in front of the slightly open doors to Warehouse 1, but nobody tried to come out. Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann still stood where Alvarez had told them to stand on the west side of the tower. She resumed shooting, but the incessant fire alarm and the stress of the situation ended her killing streak. The five fast hostiles were now a little over half a mile from the warehouses, and the one she had wounded was lagging further behind them.

(Dawkins, you get two more shots now. The first is at half skill, so you need a 32 or less again. By the time you make your second shot, they're close enough that you get to use your full skill. There's still the -5% penalty for aiming at the head, so this gives you a 70% chance.)

West of the tower-
Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann stood frozen in place, wondering about the significance of the fire alarm and worried about their friends. Alvarez said one of the men gave up his seat for him, thought Stephanie. Was it Bo? I'd hate to leave him here, but if there's no other way...

Taking a deep breath and steading herself, Dawkins took aim and fired at the closest of the 5 infected rushing the arifield. With the ringing of the fire alarm in her ears, the shot missed its mark. She racked another round into the chamber and fired and missed again.
Her heart raced. Her breathing quickened and palms grew moist with sweat. 'They're getting so close,' she thought, her mind racing. 'Too close. Where the fuck are Alvarez and Flynn? Shouldn't they diverting them away from the air field? Of course they should be, but instead they are running all over the god damn place trying to round a couple fluzies because Gardner couldn't keep his dick in his pants!' Dawkins seethed with rage. 'Gardner was supposed to be in charge. Was supposed to be leading the four of us to safety. Instead, things looked worse than they had in a long time and it was all Gardners fault.' The next time she saw Gardner she was going to kick him in the balls. Twice.

(OOC: Am I the only one on this thread still, or are the other girls here as well? We seem to be at a stand still on this thread and Dawkins is chomping at the bit for the chance to shoot more zeds.)

(Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann are still in this thread, but you're the only player in this one. However, there are several other players in the other Over threads. I'm sorry it's been a while since the last update, but many players in Over haven't posted during the last few days and I wanted to wait in order to give them a chance. All the Over threads need to stay in sync, as events in different threads may influence the course of events.)

On the tower roof-
Dawkins watched in frustration as her two most recent shots both missed and the enemy got closer. The five uninjured ones were now less than half a mile from the warehouses and closing rapidly.

Gardner's voice came over the radio again: "Nice work, Alvarez, I've got her. Go back down and take the other girls to the warehouse. The sooner you get that second barrel, the sooner we can get out of here."

(Dawkins, roll Listen. This roll is at half skill due to the fire alarm that's still ringing. You also have a -5% penalty from your helmet, and this is applied after your skill is halved. Since your skill is 65%, half of this is 32.5%. With the penalty, it becomes 27.5%. Because you must roll equal to or less than your skill, you need a 27 or less to succeed.

You only have one bullet left in the rifle, so you'll need to reload at some point. You will get two shots at full skill, minus only the 5% penalty for aiming at the head. After the next major update you will get three shots. At that point any remaining zombies that haven't at least been wounded will reach the warehouses. If you succeed at your Listen roll, you might want to wait until I tell you what you hear before you open fire in case it affects what you're going to do.)

West of the tower-
Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann remained standing in place.

(OCC: I just realized I got ahead of myself and forgot to post my listen roll. At any rate, I failed so I started shooting again. You should be able to look up the failure based on my character name in Invisible Castle. Sorry for the incovenience.)
With one bullet left in the magazine, Dawkins took aim and fired. Again, the shot missed.
"Son of a bitch" she cried before begining to reload. "Calm down, Dawkins." she said to no one but herself, "Slow deep breaths and clean trigger pulls."
Into her radio she asked, "What is our status down there? These bastards are not getting any happier and are getting much, much closer. In a few moments they will be at the warehouses and then to the chopper and the tower and we have not properly fueled the chopper."

(OOC: Just like the last time Dawkins reloaded, she would like to scan the area around the wareshouse where the prisoners are, as well as where the two female prisoners are. I'm going to assume that his is okay so I will go ahead and roll. If it is not okay, the just disregard the roll I post here)
While feeding frech rounds into the magazine of her rifle, Dawkins scans the area around the warehouse as well as the where the female prisoners are at the base of the tower to make sure none have made a break for it. Dawkins is acutely aware of her surroundings.

(The Spot Hidden roll is fine, and it's okay that the Listen roll link wasn't there.)

On the tower roof-
"Corporal, how are the things?" asked Flynn on the radio just after Dawkins spoke.

"Sarge, are you able to see me somehow cause I am wanting to speak to you person to person please," said Alvarez.

"I'm further up the stairwell, Alvarez," replied Gardner. "I couldn't see you, but I did manage to hear you over that deafening alarm. No time to talk now, but I'll see you after the enemy is dealt with and you've brought back the fuel. New plan: when you get down to the first floor, go out the back door, back up Flynn, and shoot those things before they arrive. I'm bringing our guests up to the roof so I can fire too. I think we can stop the infected before they do too much damage. The first barrel should be more than halfway loaded by now. If we have to we can take off without the second one, but we wouldn't have enough range to get all the way to Warren AFB."

As Dawkins reloaded, she saw that Flynn remained at his post and the warehouse doors had not budged. Neither had the two female scientists standing to the west of the tower. However, she caught sight of a Nebraska State Police cruiser moving south from the direction of the large hangar towards the tower. Sergeant Diane Ford was behind the wheel, Trooper Rick Brenner was riding in the shotgun seat, and Dr. Bernard Smith and Lucy Armstrong the mechanic were in the back seat. The car was only twenty yards from the base of the tower, after which point it would be out of her line of sight.

(You have one chance to shoot in the remainder of this round. There are five zombies left moving at full speed, and you will only have time for four shots in all before they reach the warehouses. The wounded one is still a ways off. This means that it is now impossible to hit all of them before they arrive, but if you're lucky you can get all but one.

You may use this shot to target a zombie, as normal. Alternatively, you may fire at the cruiser. If you do, you may target one of the people in the car - probably the driver would be most effective - or you may shoot at the tires or the engine block. Any of these shots will be at a -5% penalty. You may also try to shoot at the fuel tank, though this will have a -25% penalty. Diane will get a chance to see you if you aim at the car or anyone in it, and if she does she will get a Drive Auto roll as a "Dodge" to try to throw off your aim even if you do score a hit.

You are also free to speak on the radio while all this is going on, of course.)

"We've got a police cruiser inbound! 20 yards from the tower. It's full of armed folks from the hanger and I am guessing they are not coming over for lunch."
Not wanting to choose sides in the confrontation that was surely about to break out, Dawkins took aim and fired. The hit the infected cleanly in the center of it's head, reducing it to nothing.

On the tower roof-
On the radio, Alvarez sighed and said: ""Yes sir. I am going to go get that second barrel of fuel now."

Finally, Gardner replied: "You've got to stop them, Alvarez! Hold them off!"

The wounded hostile was still half a mile away, but the four remaining fast-movers were very close now, only a hundred yards from the warehouses. Dawkins could now see them clearly, and the sight was very disturbing. One of them had a knife sticking out of its chest, yet that did not hamper its movement in the slightest. Blood dripped from the mouth of another. A third had had large chunks of flesh torn from its side - apparently by human teeth.

(Dawkins, roll Sanity. The Sanity loss is 0/1d10, so you lose no Sanity if you succeed. If you fail, you will lose 1d10 points. In the event you lose 5 or more, you might go temporarily insane. If that happens, roll Idea. You want to fail that roll, because if it succeeds then you will go insane. As long as you remain sane, you may take your three shots. If you go nuts, I'll let you know what happens.)

The true horror of the torn and decaying bodies racing towards her reared up and crashed down on Dawkins like a terrible, cresting wave. However, the terror washed over her quickly and then ebbed back into the dark place where it had come. Dawkins set her jaw in defiance and took aim once again.
While she had held herself together mentally, she fell apart physically. Her trigger finger shook visibly as she stared through her scope at the running corpse with knife jutting from it's chest. They way it bounded up and down as it ran sickened her. She pulled the trigger once. Twice. Both shots missed their mark. Finally, the third shot struck home, but barely. The round spun the corpse like a top and then it tumbled to the dirt. It lay still for a moment, then slowly it began to rise. The shot was not enough to kill the damn thing.

On the tower roof-
The creature that Dawkins had wounded crawled onwards, though at a much slower pace. The three unharmed ones reached the warehouses and ran through the alley between the two southernmost buildings, making a beeline for the tower. The crawler was close to the warehouses, but lagging well behind.

(Dawkins, you have enough time to fire only one more shot before they reach the tower. You also have only one bullet left in your rifle. If you were to reload now, you'd miss your chance to shoot. Also, roll Spot Hidden.

Stephanie Bridges and Dr. Hausmann have moved to this thread, near the bottom of page 3: The Hangar.

Dawkins remains in the current thread.)

With one shot remaiming in the magazine of her M24, Dawkins took aim at the leading infected sprinting towards the tower. She would only get one shot before they made it to the tower. She couldn't take them all out, but perhaps she could trip up the trailing two beasts if she took down the leading runner.
She took aim at it's head, and fired. The crack of the rifle shot was immediatly followed by her targets head snapping back under the inpact of the round. It's head exploded and it tumbled to the ground in a flailing heap of arms, legs, and gore.
(OOC: Is there a chance that the sudden obstical in the path of the other two infected as they run down the narrow alley could cause them to trip and slow them down?)
"Look alive down there Alvarez, and Flynn. You've got two fast infected inbound and headed for the tower door just behind those civies that ran in there. I need to reload and they'll be there before I am able to fire again."
While reloading her magazine, Dawkins scans the area around the tower, the adrenaline coursing through her blood making her acutely aware of her suroundings.

(OOC: I knew it was a long shot, but shot of a grenade, it was the only thing I could think of to slow them down )
Despite being visually aware of her surroundings, the ringing of the fire alarm made Dawkins to an noises around her.

(A grenade might have worked, if the zombies had taken enough damage to their legs to slow them down or you got lucky with a head hit. The problem is that you can't specifically target the head, and it's possible that none of the zombies would have even been slowed down.)

On the tower roof-
The two remaining creatures continued their run towards the tower and quickly passed out of Dawkins's field of vision. When she finished shooting, she noticed that the doors to Warehouse 1 were wide open. There was no sign of Flynn or the men who had been inside.

(Dawkins is moving to this thread: Tower of Terror. You may read the earlier posts in that thread, but you are not required to.)