IC-SWORD-Damsel in Distress(Dan/Julie/Zoe/Raquel/Lara)

[Mr. Handy]

Dan Aldrich,[b]In the upstairs hall-[/b] As [b]Dan[/b] reached the door, he heard a sudden smacking sound on the other side. [spoiler]Sorry I forgot to mention this before. Using the rifle as a club does 1d8+db damage if you hit.[/spoiler]

[Voodoo]

Dan stands in front of the door and takes a deep breath before throwing it open and quickly moving into the room.

[Mr. Handy]

Outside the house-
Julie and Lara waited impatiently as the seconds ticked by. It had now been three minutes.

OOC,[b]Julie[/b], I didn't get a post for you. Even if your character is just waiting, you should still post describing your inaction. That way I know that you're doing nothing so that I don't have to wait to see if you're going to post or not before I update.

In the child's bedroom-
Raquel waited quietly, daring to hope for the first time. She dried her tears with her arm.

In the master bedroom-
When Dan opened the door, he took in a very disturbing sight. The room on the other side was a bedroom, with a window at the back of the room and one on either side. Against the wall not far from the door, several feet to the right, was a bed, and on top of the bed were two people struggling. Ghost was on top, his belt unbuckled and his fly unzipped. Beneath him he had Zoe pinned with his left arm. The blonde girl was in her late teens. She did not appear to be physically hurt, but she was still in a dire situation. Her hands were cuffed together in front of her, and she wore a red strapless dress, its skirt hiked up almost to her waist.

"I never knew you liked it rough, Zoe," said Ghost as the door swung open. Had Dan been a moment later, there was no doubt in his mind that Ghost would have forced himself on the poor girl. Zoe recognized Dan as the male ranger that she had seen when she had escaped from the van, and he had a rifle in his hands. She felt relief wash over her, but she knew that she wasn't rescued yet...

Ghost turned his head when he heard the door open and saw Dan. With lightning reactions, he drew a pistol from his belt holster with his right hand. He also had an AK-47 strapped to his back.

OOC,We're in a combat round now. [b]Dan[/b], you may go first only if you fire the rifle. If you do, you're at point blank range. You still need to roll in case of an impale or a Malfunction. If you want to do something else, such as make a hand-to-hand attack, let me know and [b]Ghost[/b] will get a chance to act. [b]Zoe[/b], you'll have to wait for your action until after [b]Ghost[/b] goes.

[Voodoo]

Realizing that he has lost any chance for stealth Dan raises his rifle and fires at Ghost.

damage,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2440721/]10[/url], [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2440723/]7[/url]

[Mr. Handy]

In the master bedroom-
Ghost took the round in his thigh. It ripped apart his femoral artery before punching through the back of his stomach and embedding itself in the wall. Blood spurted out from the wound, splattering Zoe in a red fountain. Ghost had obviously been killed instantly and never even knew what hit him. His lifeless body pitched forward, collapsing on top of her.

"What was that shot?" crackled Mutt's voice from the radio on Ghost's belt.

OOC,[b]Dan[/b], roll Sanity for killing [b]Ghost[/b]. Sanity loss is 0/1d4. [b]Zoe[/b], roll Sanity as well for getting covered in gore and having a corpse fall on you. Your Sanity loss is only 0/1d3. [b]Dan[/b], you may speak, but you may not otherwise act this round - firing the rifle was your action. [b]Zoe[/b], you may now act. If you want to try to get [b]Ghost[/b] off of you, you'll need to roll your STR against his SIZ of 13 on the Resistance Table, which gives you a 50% chance. Also, both of you roll Listen.

Outside the house-
Lara gasped when she heard the gunshot ring out above. She left Julie's side and ran into the house's open front door.

OOC,[b]Julie[/b], you are free to act too. Also, give me a Listen roll. You heard the shot; this is for something else. Since it's not listed on your character sheet, the base skill is 25%.

[Voodoo]

Dan was visibly shaken by the brutality of what he had just done. Killing those monsters was one thing but killing humans was far more disturbing it seemed. In a hushed tone Dan asks Zoe, "Are you ok? Did he hurt you?"

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,[b]Dan[/b], please roll Listen as well. You probably pulled up the post above before I edited that in.

[Voodoo]

Listen,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2440754/]24[/url]

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Thanks. I'll let you know what you heard in my next update. By the way, I made one more edit, this one to the description of what you saw when you entered. [b]Ghost[/b]'s AK-47 does not have a bayonet.

[zhirinovsky]

Listen,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2441125/]93[/url]

After hearing the gunshot, Julie quietly calls after Lara, "Lara, wait!". Julie runs into the house.

[Tabs]

[ooc: Sanity 37%; Sanity loss (if applicable); STR vs SIZ 50%; Listen 40% (1d100=47, 1d3=3, 1d100=71, 1d100=84)]

Dan asks Zoe, "Are you ok? Did he hurt you?"

"You have no idea what I've been through," Zoe mumbles. She struggles against Ghost's corpse, but, has little effect upon it. Eyes flickering, she appears to faint.

[Mr. Handy]

In the living room-
The lights in the living room were on, revealing a sofa, coffee table, and TV. As she entered, Julie could see stairs leading up along the left wall. An open door was in the left wall of the living room, beneath the stairs. Light came from within. Another open door through which more light streamed was in the back wall of the living room, and a closed door was in the right wall.

Lara gasped again when she heard something. "Bozhemoi!" she said, running up the stairs. "He's coming back!"

In the child's bedroom-
Raquel flinched when she heard the shot. She didn't know who had shot whom, but either way, she knew she had to get out of there - especially given what she could hear through the open window. She tugged desperately at the metal radiator bar to which she was handcuffed, but it was no good.

In the master bedroom-
Zoe pushed at the dead body on top of her, but Ghost was just too heavy. Blood continued to gush from his wound and all over her legs and the bedsheets. The horror of her situation was finally catching up to her, and she felt dizzy and lightheaded. She had just been saved against all odds, but she wasn't out of the woods yet.

"It wasn't us," said Nitro's voice on the dead man's radio. "Everything's quiet here."

"Ghost, did you fire?" asked Mutt's voice. He paused. "Ghost? You there? Will you stop screwing Zoe for one second and answer me?"

Dan Aldrich,[b]Dan[/b] could hear the sound of a vehicle through the closed window on the right, which faced south. It sounded like it was getting closer.

OOC,If either of you wants to try to get [b]Ghost[/b]'s body off of [b]Zoe[/b], you need to roll on the Resistance Table for your STR against his SIZ of 13. Since you each have a STR of 13, this is a 50% chance. If you both work together, you will succeed automatically and do not need to roll. Anyone doing this cannot take other actions this turn (other than speaking).

[Voodoo]

Seeing Zoe struggling with Ghosts body Dan moves over to help her roll him off, "Do you know if Ghost has the keys to everyones cuffs?"

[Tabs]

[ooc: I think Zoe does know but Tabs has forgotten.]

Reviving she pushes Ghost away, "Uggh!

"Thank you, whoever you are, but, be careful: there are two more of them. They'll kill you if they get the chance."

[zhirinovsky]

Julie calls to Lara "Wait, will you? Don't get yourself killed!" At the thought of Dan being murdered, Julie drops the calm facade and cautiously, but quickly, heads up the stairs, gun in hand.

[Mr. Handy]

In the upstairs hall-
Lara heard Julie call out and stopped, leaning against the wall near the top of the stairs, just as the hall rounded a corner to the right. She stood panting for breath as Julie caught up with her. Around the corner, they could see that the hall had three doors. The first two doors were on the right, and they stood open. A child's bedroom was visible through the first door, and the light was on inside. The second door led to a darkened room that wasn't visible from here. The door at the far end of the hall was wide open. Beyond it was another bedroom, and to Julie's relief Dan was visible through the doorway.

"He's back, he's back," gasped Lara, her eyes filled with dread and panic, and her legs quivered, threatening to give way. "What do we do, Julie? What do we do?" She began to hyperventilate.

In the child's bedroom-
Raquel heard the two women coming upstairs. "Lara?" she asked, still tugging at the radiator uselessly. "Please, get me out of here!"

In the master bedroom-
Working together, Dan and Zoe rolled the corpse off of her, and it fell to the floor on the far side of the bed with a squelching sound - except for the leg, which had fallen off and remained on the bed. Zoe regained her feet. She was still drenched in Ghost's blood. At least it didn't show on her red dress. Both of them heard the women in the hall outside and Raquel's voice coming from the other bedroom.

"Nitro and Deadeye," said Mutt on the radio. "Get your asses over to that small house to the northwest. Doc and Sally, hold down the fort."

"On our way," replied Nitro.

"Roger that," said Doc a moment later.

Dan Aldrich,[b]Dan[/b] heard another sound over the commotion - the sound of a pickup truck's engine. It was coming from just outside the house. He heard the vehicle pull up, and then the sound of the engine stopped.

Zoe Gallagher,[b]Ghost[/b] did tell you that [b]Mutt[/b] has the handcuff keys, but that he does not. Of course, he could have been lying. While you cannot pick your own handcuffs' lock, you could possibly pick the lock on [b]Raquel[/b]'s cuffs once you find out about it and get over to her. There were more than two others; [b]Mutt[/b] just mentioned their names on the radio.

OOC,Anyone who wants to spend their action this turn searching the body should roll Spot Hidden. You'll still find some things even if you fail the roll. However, you won't be able to do other things this turn besides speaking and possibly taking what you find.

[Voodoo]

ooc- are there any lights on in the hallway near the stairs?

"Julie, Lara get in here and get down. I think Mutt is outside." Dan says towards the open door. Dan begins removing the AK-47 from Ghosts body. Looking to Zoe he whispers, "You're going to have to hang tight for a little while longer. I have to deal with Mutt before I can get you uncuffed."

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Yes, the hallway is lit, as are both bedrooms. You can grab the AK-47 and still do something else this turn. [b]Zoe[/b]'s hands are cuffed together, but she isn't cuffed to anything like [b]Raquel[/b] is.

Zoe Gallagher,Actually, you already know that [b]Raquel[/b] is cuffed in the other bedroom. You saw her in there on your way up. If you want, you can reach the other bedroom this turn, but you won't be able to try to pick the lock just yet.

[Tabs]

Zoe:
"All this gore!
"If we survive this, Mr Ranger, we'll have to introduce ourselves properly. Ghost was a bastard, it's a shame his death was so quick. I'll search Ghost and then try to lockpick Raquel's cuffs."


[ooc: Spot Hidden 41% (1d100=73)]

[zhirinovsky]

"OK" Julie agrees fervently, and heads into the bedroom, pushing Lara in with her. Upon seeing Ghost, Julie coils back in disgust, "Jesus! What the hell happened?"