Play@YSDC

Renwick suddenly freezes and angles his head as though trying to catch something on the wind.

OOC,[color=#FF4000][url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3933167/]1d100=13[/url] Success if no penalties[/color]

"Hsst" he says to Santiago and reaches out for his arm

Renwick,He hears the rushing of water--it is the swollen stream nearby. Also he overhears orders in Japanese. [color=#0000FF][ooc: Not very exciting! I was hoping Tatsuo would be able to translate.][/color]

[ooc: Let's see what Santiago rolls and does as a result.]

ooc,Listen (25) [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3935287/]1d100=78[/url] Luck (65) [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3935293/]1d100=74[/url]

"Okay, let's meet at the trees if we have to flee." He feels the touch on his arm, Santiago stops crawling and turns to Renwick, "What is it? I can't hear anything in this rain, my ears must be blocked up with mud."

Renwick says quietly; - "I think they are coming now ... I can hear something ... probably orders in Japanese, but have no idea what is being said - we need to get a move on. There is also the sounds of a swollen stream which I presume feeds the mill. Might that be a better course to lead the civilians here than the road? We will have to see when we get there." Pausing to recollect his thoughts he continues thoughtfully. "Peking should be to the right if we don't get turned around getting to the mill - is it much further Santiago?"

Arashi scowls at Li and Mae.

I owe him nothing! And don't think I haven't noticed you eying up my Tatsuo like a piece of ginger beef.

She shivers noticeably: is it her thin, wet evening dress? or is it a shudder at the vile old woman and her insinuation?

"I don't like ginger," answers Mae.


The rose-tinted searchlight beams sweep the millet field, one brushes against the guests and then swiftly locks on to them; the second does the same, together they are like hornets feeding on distressed insects. Several rifle shot reports "crack," Mario Giovanni clutches his belly:

"The dirty rats!" He keels over and plants his face in mud. A woman screams, high pitched, loud and seemingly endless.

Somebody yells: "RUN!"

The water mill looms 30 yards ahead, illuminated by the searchlight beams.

"It's now or never then!" Renwick shouts to Santiago.

"Shall we attempt to carry this man to safety Santiago or leave him for dead - stomach wounds seldom end up in anything but a long painful death anyway?"

Arashi grins devilishly at Mae... She liked her alot.

Then hearing Renwick she says.

Leave him! Better he dies now!!!

Tatsuo cannot handle his shame any longer. He pushes his mother aside ( All be it a gentle shove rather than a push of any description.) and lifts the wounded man up into the air as though he were a feathered pillow. He rests the wounded man on the fat of his shoulder and looks down to Renwick for some direction and forces a "Hai" from his belly.

Seeing the Sumo wrestler lift the injured man as though he was a newborn babe, Renwick claps the Japanese man on the opposite shoulder and nods appreciatively before gesturing towards the road indicating the need for haste.

OOC,Did I make anything out from the orders from the Japanese Officers that I could pass onto Tatsuo in case he can (hopefully) translate some of it

[ooc: Good thinking. Renwick heard the command "Kanji" and "Hiragana."]

DSIGFUSS,Attack!

[/color]

Arashi grins devilishly at Mae

Mae takes a step backward, unsure of the old woman, and almost as frightened of her as she is of the soldiers.

Several rifle shot reports "crack,"

Taking Li by the hand, together they sprint away towards the mill.

Somebody yells: "RUN!"

The guests (those who are not player characters), almost to a man, bolt in panic; slipping, cursing, crying, sliding . . .



Some guests flee, Admiral Kolchak stands his ground--up to his ankles in gluey sod--and bellows: "No one is to be left behind!"

[ooc: Barring speech, let's wait for Mr. Handy.]

Santiago watches the huge sumo lift the wounded man as easy as lifting a doll. "Flee Kolchak, lead the others away!' He calls. "Come on Renwick, now's our chance! We must lead these soldiers a merry dance through the fields!"

Sliding up to Kolchak in the slimy mud, Renwick outlines the plan he and Santiago have hatched to lead the soldiers away with "Santiago will head in the opposite direction of the party whilst I head straight on into more fields making as much noise and tracks as we can whilst you try to cover the trail left by the civilians. The big sumo wrestler fellah looks capable enough to take the lead in my opinion. By the way, what do 'Kanji' and 'Hiragana' mean? well my friend, this is it!" grasping the Russian's arm in a vice like grip he continues "Me and Santiago will catch up to with you further on down the road if God wills it."

Tatsuo grimaces at Renwick.

It means attack Renwick-san.. We must move now!

Mrs. Kolchak says to Renwick: "But your brave sacrifice--"

"'Sacrifice'?" interrupts Admiral Kolchak.

"--will be in vain if something is not done about those searchlights--we are like rabbits caught in a car headlamp! The Japs can see us and will know what the doctor and the señor are up to."

"Madame is correct. I shall double round and take the lights out as soon as I can get a fix." Santiago hefts the rifle he took from the soldier, "Then you really can run; good luck gentlemen!" He nods to his friends and then looks around for the nearest cover where he can still get a line on the search lights. He keeps low and crawls away.

spot hidden if necessary,65% [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3942871/]1d100=83[/url]

Elisabeth sprints for the mill, helping Posie and Mingzhu along. Her father follows close behind. "Quickly, to the mill and get behind it!" she says. "It's the only cover around!"

Santiago drops to the earth and finds that he is in shadow of the deep furrow; also, when he wriggles forwards to take a fix on the searchlights he becomes caked in mud.

[ooc: okay, 2 searchlights, 5 bullets, Santiago has 65% Rifle skill.]


Admiral Kolchak scrambles away towards the mill, hand in hand with his wife. He calls over his shoulder to Dr. Renwick: "God wills it: we shall meet again!"

Dr. Renwick, and the camouflaged Santiago, are left alone.




"I can't keep up!" cries a despairing Posie. Elisabeth, with Mingzhu's help, lift the little girl and propel her forwards. They overtake Tatsuo who is labouring through the field, weighted down by the prone Mario Giovanni.

Another volley of rifle shots . . .

Elisabeth reaches the water mill. Li, who is stood beside an open wood-screen door, frantically waves the three inside.



[ooc: The entrance, described above, is on the far right-hand side of the photograph; the photograph shows the back of the water mill and the stream.]

Santiago tries to keep the rifle out of the mud as he shimmies round to get the first searchlight lined up. He checks the chambers and is glad to see there are five bullets left but is worried about using a totally unknown rifle. He hopes it shoots true. "They'll be after us soon as I shoot so get ready to run whatever happens." He says to Renwick. "I'll try to get them both quickly one after the other as we have no time, but it'll be tricky in this rain."
He aims just above on the first lamp that glows brightly through the murk, holds his breath and pulls the trigger.

rifle,65% [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3944318/]1d100=51, 1d100=32[/url] If he hits it, he aims immediately on the second one. If not, he'll keeping firing on the first until his bullets run out.

Tatsuo puts the man he had been carrying down and huffs looking back wild eyed for his mother..

ooc- Arashi would have been running behind Tatsuo.

Elisabeth helps Mingzhu carry Posie inside and then out of the line of fire. Samuel is not far behind them. "Quick, bring the wounded man inside!" she calls. "I may be able to keep him alive until the doctor gets here!" If he gets here... she thinks morbidly, then shakes the thought from her mind.

Santiago shoots well and his aim is true: both searchlights are extinguished, the millet field is plunged back into darkness.

[ooc: Santiago and Renwick, move to topic "Millet Field"]

Tatsuo puts the man he had been carrying down and huffs looking back wild eyed for his mother..

The big man is only ten yards from the entrance of the water mill. Mario Giovanni's body is very limp, like a rag doll, and Tatsuo's gi [robe] is drenched with blood and rain. As he places the Italian on to the earth Arashi catches up with her son; and behind her are the two professors, Pavlov and Eichelstein.

Inside the water mill Elisabeth finds Mae talking to a tiny man who is sat upon a kang--a raised brick platform, that has embers shoveled beneath. He is the most pathetic specimen of humanity she has ever seen.

"This," says Mae, "is Shaosu."