IC-OMAHA-Another Fine Mess(Everyone else)

[Mr. Handy]

In the lobby-
"Yes, thank you both," said Kate.

"I want to help too," said Stephanie. "I owe it to her."

"Stephanie, nein!" said Dr. Hausmann. "It's too dangerous!"

"She's right," said Liz. "Your job is saving the world. Theirs is saving Erica."

"But how can I leave her behind, especially after all she's been through for us? We had to leave Kathryn behind at the airfield too..."

"But there were others who went to rescue her," said Dr. Hausmann. "You are needed here."

"Thank you, Stephanie, but they are right," said Kate. "if you want to help, go on in to the security office. Kyle was beaten almost to death, and he could use some medical attention."

"Well...okay." Stephanie and Dr. Hausmann entered the security office.

"What about my son?!" demanded Emily, but Kate had already left down the north hall with Rachel, Jerry, and Donald. Declan tagged along with them. Emily took hold of Tiny's leash and barged into the security office.

"Let's go to my office," said Michelle, heading down the west hall. "Everyone who's hurt should join us there. Emilio, if you find Keith, bring him my way!" Dr. Smith, Dr. Somerville, Dr. Saunders, and Dr. Singh helped John Lee after her.

In the security office-
Stephanie gasped when she saw the carnage that the teenagers had left in the cells. Kyle's injuries were bad enough, but they were nothing compared to the brutal blow that had slain Chuck Lubachek. She had seen a lot worse today and had an extremely strong mind, so it didn't shake her up too much. Dr. Hausmann also managed to keep it together. Even Emily didn't go completely to pieces when she saw her son lying dead, though she was filled with rage. "Those bastards!" she shouted. "I'll kill them all!" Tiny was not at all disturbed. He trotted over and relieved himself on the body, as if glad his master was dead.

In the east hall, ground floor-
Emilio made his way back down the east hall. The door to the east stairwell was directly ahead of him.

OOC,[b]Emilio[/b], roll Listen if you enter the stairwell.

In the north stairwell, ground floor-
"How could Darnell do this?" asked LaTanya, distraught.

"It can't be true," said Coach Moore, reassuring her. "He's a good kid."

"I'm going outside to try to head them off," said Principal Adler.

"I'll come with you," offered Miguel.

"All right, but the rest of you get to the cafeteria. Stay together. Sharon, you're in charge until I get back." With that, he pushed open the fire exit, which had been left propped open. Miguel went outside with him.

Everyone else in the stairwell left through the hall door.

In the north hall, ground floor-
Rachel, Jerry, Donald, Kate, and Declan entered the hall from the lobby as Sharon Kaplan led a large group of students and teachers in from the stairwell. Both sets of double doors leading to the auditorium still had the metal bars through the handles.

"Oh, good, you're all right," said Kate. "Darnell and his friends murdered Chuck Lubachek and beat Kyle to within an inch of his life. Then they bludgeoned Erica unconscious, took her hostage, and escaped. Have you seen them?"

"Adam Donnelly spotted them from the roof," said Sharon. "They went out into the construction site near the north end of the school. My guess is they left through the gym. He also saw Keith Stewart exit through the east stairwell. Principal Adler and Miguel Garcia went outside to try to intercept them."

OOC,Everyone in the north hall, or who enters the north hall this turn, roll Spot Hidden.

On the roof-
Adam hurried over to the east side of the roof.

Adam Donnelly,[b]Adam[/b] got there in time to see [b]Roy[/b] stuffing [b]Erica[/b] into the trunk of the 1965 Mustang and the teens piling into the car. [b]Keith[/b] climbed in with them, apparently of his own free will.

[ImpInTraining]

Donald didn't see anything out of the ordinary. "Damn it, I just fixed the gym door," he exclaimed. He turned in the direction of the most direct route toward the construction site and started heading that direction.

[Tabs]

[OOC, Spot Hidden 25% (1d100=64)]


Rachel follows Donald. "We're going to be too late!"

OOC,How long did that post take you, Mr. Handy? - Dedication to pbp!

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Thanks! It took about an hour and a half. If you think that's a lot, you should see the posts I wrote in the first two chapters, where all of the characters were together. Those typically took three hours or so each. It's become a lot faster since the characters got split up starting in Chapter 3. It was the auditorium doors [b]Donald[/b] fixed, not the gym door.

In the security office-
"Oh my God," said Stephanie, kneeling beside Kyle. "What happened?"

"Darnell and Roy damn near killed me," moaned Kyle. "Roy did a lot worse to the other guy. I warned everyone about them, but nobody listened."

Stephanie bandaged the worst of his injuries, but there was a limit to how much she could help. Dr. Hausmann took out her doctor's bag and treated him further, again with little to show for it. "I can handle it from here, Stephanie," she said. "This is going to take a while."

Emily stormed out as fast as her injuries allowed, taking Tiny with her.

In the lobby-
"Where has Emilio got off to now?" asked Emily, looking around. Tiny just barked, unable to answer her. A large group of people entered the lobby from the north.

In the east hall, ground floor-
Emilio pushed on through the door into the stairwell.

In the east stairwell, ground floor-
Emilio entered the stairwell. The fire exit heading back outside was just ahead of him. He could hear very well what was going on outside.

Emilio Montoya,[b]Emilio[/b] heard a familiar sound coming from outside: the Mustang being driven away from where he had left it. It was then that he realized that in the aftermath of the crash and being knocked unconscious, he had neglected to take the keys with him and had left them in the ignition. It had never even occurred to him that someone could take it.

In the north hall, ground floor-
"What about my brother?" asked Lisa. "Is he all right?"

"Yes, but I'm afraid he joined Darnell," said Kate. She didn't notice anything either, but Jerry noticed a trail of blood leading down the hall from the lobby. It led directly to the gym doors, which Donald and Rachel had just gone through to reach the construction site. Both of them followed, as did Declan.

"I'm coming too," said LaTanya. "Maybe I can talk some sense into Darnell."

"Darnell and Roy might listen to me too," said Ron Moore. Both of them went into the gym. Kelly went with them too, tears rolling down her cheeks. Lisa also tagged along.

The rest of the crowd moved south, into the lobby.

In the gym-
Donald. Rachel, Kate, Jerry, Declan, LaTanya, Ron Moore, Lisa, and Kelly entered the gym and began to cross it on their way to the east door, which led out to the construction site.

In the west hall, ground floor-
Michelle, the doctors, and John Lee entered Michelle's office.

On the roof-

Adam Donnelly,[b]Adam[/b] was helpeless to do anything but watch as the car with [b]Erica[/b] in the trunk drove through a big hole in the south side of the fence and turned right, heading west away from the school.

In the rear parking lot-
Principal Adler and Miguel raced around the northeast corner of the school, into the construction site.

In the construction area-

Principal Lawrence Adler and Miguel Garcia,[b]Adler[/b] and [b]Miguel[/b] rounded the corner in time to see the Mustang that had been stopped southeast of the school being driven away and through a big hole in the south side of the fence, where it turned right and was soon blocked from view by the building. [b]Miguel[/b] had his gun out, but the car was too far away for him to get a good shot off.

[ImpInTraining]

ooc,Whoops yeah. Oh well, maybe he fixed that door yesterday before all hell broke loose.

Donald opens the door in the gym and looks around for signs of others or a place where he can get a higher vantage point.

[Mr. Handy]

In the gym-
Peeking out the door, Donald saw Principal Adler and Miguel running through the construction area to the south. The principal had his bat, and Miguel had his pistol drawn. The only nearby vantage points that were high up were the roof of the school, which he could only access from the north stairwell (assuming nobody lowered the fire escape ladder at one of the other stairwells) and the roof of his small shack, some distance away beyond the garden - and to get up there, he'd need to climb.

OOC,With the door open, everyone in the gym should feel free to make a Listen roll, whether or not you go outside.

[ImpInTraining]

Failed the listen roll,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2390162/]Listen (29%) (1d100=83)[/url]

Donald noticed that the door he had just opened could use some greasing. He pointed to the distance, "Look, there!" indicating the principal and Miguel's location and immediately took chase.

[Tabs]

[OOC, Listen 27% (1d100=35)]

Rachel hurries after Donald: "Be cautious, sir!"

[Dave Syrinx]

"Puta!", Emilio swears and swings the door open. He runs out and tries to catch a glimpse of who is stealing his ride. He gets the shotgun in ready mode, pumping a shell in the chamber.

[kabukiman]

Jerry:
-What's the plan? We cannot simply appear. They are too angerous and could kill Erica

Michiko
-Is anyone else going outside? Not to rescue Erica-san but to see the damage in the city.

[Mr. Handy]

In the security office-
"All right, Brigetta," said Stephanie. "Anything else I can do?"

"Yes," said Dr. Hausmann. "Go get yourself something to eat, and ask them to send us some dinner as well."

Stephanie nodded. "Take care."

"Thank you," moaned Kyle as she left.

In the lobby-
Emily dragged Tiny down the hall to the east, looking for Emilio.

Sharon Kaplan was leading the group of faculty and students that had entered from the north hall.

"I think Officer Kate Wheeler was going to go out into the city, Michiko," she said, "but in light of what's happened she's going to be busy trying to save Erica. You should come to the cafeteria with us. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes, and we can discuss our plans further while we eat." She led her group down the east hall.

Stephanie emerged from the security office and smiled when she saw Michiko. "Hi," she said.

In the gym-
"They've already gone out," Kate told Jerry, "so we might as well follow them. I don't actually have a plan." She hurried outside after Donald and Rachel.

"And if we don't save her," said Kelly, "they could do something even worse to her." Though afraid, the need to do something drove her on and she went outside with Kate. Declan, LaTanya, Ron Moore, and Lisa went after them, leaving Jerry the only one in the gym.

In the nurse's office-
"Lie down here," said Michelle Marquez, helping John Lee onto a cot. She surveyed his injuries from the car crash, but they were beyond her ability. "I'm no doctor. I'd better leave this to the professionals."

"Not much I can do either," said Dr. Helene Saunders. "I'm a Ph.D, not a medical doctor. I'll go up to the roof to relieve Adam so he can grab a bite to eat." She left the office.

Dr. Bernard Smith tried his best, but it wasn't quite good enough.

"Watch and learn," said Dr. Edward Singh, getting to work and managing to help somewhat. "My talents are wasted here. We should be back in the lab."

"No, we should be eating supper," said Dr. Liz Somerville, "but this is more important right now." She joined her colleague in expertly treating the young man. "You're going to be all right," she added with a reassuring grin.

John Lee managed to smile back. "I feel better already," he said. "It's great to have a pretty doctor like you looking after me. My name is John Lee. I'm from Cheyenne."

"I'm Dr. Liz Somerville, from the CDC."

"You're a medical doctor?" asked Michelle. "I thought you were a Ph.D."

"I'm both, actually."

On the roof-
Adam called down to the people emerging from the school: "Those kids all got into that Mustang and drove away, heading west! They locked Erica in the trunk. Keith Stewart got in the car with them, apparently of his own free will."

Southeast of the school-
As Emilio emerged, he heard the faint, familiar noise of the Mustang's engine in the distance to the west, though it was not visible. After a few seconds, he could no longer hear it either. Principal Adler and Miguel came running up to join him, out of breath.

In the construction area-
Rachel also heard the car's engine as it zoomed away, and from what Adam had just said it sounded like they were too late. Donald and the others also emerged into the construction area.

[Dave Syrinx]

Southeast of the school-

Letting the shotgun point to the ground, Emilio greets the principal and the Miguel kid. "Where did your bud Keith go, Garcia?" To Adler he asks about the reason for him and Emily to be there, "We came here to get Chuck Lubacheck out of holding. How could you let some kids go whack him? And what the hell is happening?" Emilio reflects on what to do next while waiting for the replies. His feet almost start walking down the stairs of their own when he hears the voice from the roof declaring what went down. So that´s what that Keith was doing at the shop, looking for the wheels... What a serendipity for him and his mates that yours truly is a sucker and leaves the keys in the ignition!

Two steps down the stairs Montoya repeats, "So, what lead up to this? We take care of the monsters and end up worse off, after?!" Had the principal responded while Emilio had lost himself in his thoughts? He starts to feel all the bruises act up and realizes that he´s quite battered up. The cold steel in his grip feels oddly invigorating. He spins back and enters the school again. Intent on finding Emily again to rally some souls to get even.

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,[b]Emilio[/b] was told that [b]Chuck Lubachek[/b] was being held in the security office, as he was with [b]Emily[/b] when [b]Kate[/b] told her (she also told her that she didn't want to go inside). [b]Emily[/b] went in regardless, and while [b]Emilio[/b] didn't see what was in there, he did hear her shouting from within the office.

[Dave Syrinx]

Handy:

Spoiler:

Edited my post accordingly. Must have skipped that last bit of the security office post. Works fine like this too.

[ImpInTraining]

Donald (not hearing the car's engine any) continues running forward to meet up with the principal.

[Tabs]

Rachel:
"Dammit!" She hunkers down and smacks the ground in frustration: "Erica will die for sure, and it's my fault."

"Anyone know where the punks have fled to?"

The excitement of the security office confrontation and the chase, is over, her adrenaline turns into lactic acid; Rachel lets herself flop backwards and lies looking up at the sky: "F_ck_n' hell."

[kabukiman]

Jerry:

-Wait for me, I'l go with you. With those punks outside and the threat of the zombies defeated, there isn't much to be done here.

Michiko:

-Very well, its' better that we recover for now.

[Mr. Handy]

In the security office-
Dr. Hausmann continued to treat Kyle's injuries, but she was a long way from finished.

In the lobby-
Stephanie nodded sadly in response to Michiko. "I know how you feel," she said as she walked with her into the east hall. "I wish I could do something more to help too, but we have already done plenty. It's just hard for me to take it easy when my friend Erica has been kidnapped - and for the second time today! We all owe so much to her. If it weren't for her, I never would have made it to Omaha."

Dr. Helene Saunders entered from the west hall.

In the east hall, ground floor-
Emily pulled Tiny through the door to the east stairwell while Vice Principal Kaplan led the large group through the broken double doors into the cafeteria. Stephanie and Michiko entered the hall, stepping around the body of Jacob Marley.

In the east stairwell, ground floor-
Emilio entered from the fire exit at the same time that Emily and Tiny came in from the hall. "There you are!" she said. "Those punks murdered my son! Which way did they go? We're going to track them down and kill them! Once Tiny gets their scent, they won't escape."

In the nurse's office-
"The CDC?" asked John. "What are you doing here? Some sort of school asembly?"

"No," said Liz, smiling as she soothed his injuries. "The CDC has set up a Crisis Response Center here at Brooks High to deal with the outbreak. Thanks to my friend Stephanie Bridges and Dr. Brigetta Hausmann, as well as several others who have helped, we've won an important victory here today. You know, they also came here from Cheyenne."

"There's no evidence that their signal actually accomplished anything," said Dr. Singh. "It is my research that will save us. We just needed the data they brought."

"I think you mean our research. And we know for certain that the EMP had an effect. So, Mr. Lee, you've come a long way. What brings you here from Cheyenne?"

"Well...it was a rough drive. Almost 450 miles, but I made it." He looked confused at the scientists' talk. "An EMP? So that was what disabled my car and all the lights - and all those...infected people."

"Oh, they're not infected. They're actually dead and reanimated. I know, it's hard to believe, but Stephanie figured it all out. Why did you come all this way? You must have had a reason for making such a difficult journey."

"I'd, ah, rather not talk about it. It's personal."

Southeast of the school-
"Come on," said Principal Adler, "we need some wheels if we're going to chase them!" Miguel followed him as he ran back north into the construction area.

On the roof-
"Very few cars will work!" Adam Donnelly shouted down from the roof. "All vehicles made after 1982 or so have electronic ignitions, and the EMP fried them. They won't start!"

In the construction area-
Jerry emerged from the gym in time to catch the conversation.

"Rachel, it's not your fault," said Kate. "I should have arrested Darnell before he did anything and nipped it in the bud. I thought I could handle this, but I never expected they'd be able to escape."

"It's not your fault, either," said the principal, rushing up to them. "It's those young delinquents who are responsible. We're going to need a classic vehicle to pursue them...the only thing that comes to mind is that old broken down school bus, but it'll take hours to fix. By then the trail will be cold. We'd be better off going on foot or by bike, but we need to figure out where they might have gone."

"I don't think they'll kill Erica," said Kelly. "At least...at least not right away."

OOC,[b]Donald[/b], [b]Jerry[/b], and [b]Rachel[/b], roll Idea.

[kabukiman]

Jerry was completly out of good ideas.
-They can't go very far, so we could follow them on foot.

[Dave Syrinx]

Meeting up with Emily and the others, Montoya holds the door open. "They went west, with the wheels... Maybe we should go back to the shop, Lubacheck? Time to make use of Chuck´s legacy..." He claps his jaw together and grinds his teeth.