Chapter 6b: Jordan (Reg and Preston)

[HoneyDog]

Whatever colour remained drains from Jordan’s face. “Egyptian?” he stammers. “He must be one of them! Don’t you see? Hollingsworth has nothing to do with the deaths of those men. Oh God, it’s begun!”

Suddenly there is a crash and a scream from below. The men can hear footsteps on the stairs…

[Mr. Handy]

"Out the window," whispers Reg to Dr. Jordan. He grabs a chair and tries to wedge it under the door handle to delay whoever is coming from entering the room, then silently takes up a position leaning against the wall beside the door, drawing his knife.

[HoneyDog]

Jordan kneels on the floor, cowering in terror.

OOC,It’s too high to jump.

Reg,Roll Luck.

[Mr. Handy]

Reg moves quickly and is able to get the chair in place in time.

OOC,Luck roll (55% stat) trying to block the door: [dice]0[/dice]

[HoneyDog]

Something suddenly slams against the door with a might crash, almost taking it off its hinges. The wood buckles and cracks. The pounding continues, and the companions can hear it splintering. It is only a matter of time before the door gives way.

Almost as suddenly as it started, the crashing stops. A voice can be heard on the other side, in thickly accented English.

“Jordan. Do you have the scrolls? If you have the scrolls we spare your life.”

Jordan recoils in terror, backing up against a desk. “It’s them” he stammers in terror. Turning, he opens a drawer in the desk and brings out a sheaf of papers. “I have them!” he shouts.

[Mr. Handy]

"Do not let them in," whispers Reg to Jordan. "They will not let you see them and live, not when their necks are at risk for several murders. They intend to kill you anyway, but we can take them by surprise if they don't know you're not alone."

[HoneyDog]

The door shudders again and the frame cracks. One of the panels falls and the companions can see a figure beyond. It has the body of a man, but its face is that of a snarling canine with large ears.

Jordan screams and drool comes from his mouth. “Jackals!” he cries. “Anubis!” The scrolls drop from his hand and he faints to the floor.

OOC,Roll SAN! If you fail, roll 1d8 for loss.

[Mr. Handy]

Reg recoils in horror at the sight of the creature breaking through the door, but he steels himself, certain that it can be killed the same as any man or beast. He grips his knife, intent on stabbing the thing to death.

OOC,Sanity roll (current level 55) for seeing the jackal: [dice]0[/dice] Sanity loss for seeing the jackal: [dice]1[/dice] Are we in combat now? When can I attack?

[HoneyDog]

OOC,We'll have to wait for Preston's reaction.

[Rooter]

Dr. Francis Preston

Spoiler:

SAN 75[dice]0[/dice]SAN loss[dice]1[/dice]

"Good lord!" Terrified, Preston drops beside the fainted Dr. Jordan, grabs the revolver he'd noticed earlier from the man's pocket and points it at the apparition.

[HoneyDog]

The creature bursts into the room. It appears to be a man wearing a mask. It looks like more are behind him.

OOC,The heroes can attack first. Reg followed by Preston. Be careful not to hit Reg!

[Mr. Handy]

Reg lunges at the jackal-headed man, channeling all of his rage into a powerful swing, cutting deep into him!

OOC,Knife roll (60% skill) attacking the intruder: [dice]0[/dice] Damage to intruder from fighting knife: [dice]1[/dice]+[dice]2[/dice] Nice! That's 9 damage. Readied firearms should go before melee, so [b]Dr. Preston[/b]'s first shot should go off before I close with the enemy, which I hope will ensure it doesn't hit me.

[Rooter]

Dr. Francis Preston

Spoiler:

Handgun 20%[dice]0[/dice]

Preston fires at the intruders but, being a physician rather than a soldier, his shot goes awry. Still he hopes the blast will serve as warning. "Halt and surrender yourselves!"

[HoneyDog]

Reg’s knife rips into the man and black-coloured blood oozes out. However, he makes no sound and the wound doesn’t even seem to affect him. He turns to Reg and swings a fist.

Fist/Punch,Fist/Punch 65: [url=http://orokos.com/roll/600798]Fist[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]55[/b] Damage: [url=http://orokos.com/roll/600799]Fist damage[/url]: [u]1d3+1d4[/u] [b]4[/b]

It connects solidly and Reg goes down to his knees, winded.

Meanwhile, another jackal-masked man has entered and is heading straight for Preston. There are two more figures behind him.

Preston,Preston can shoot again before the man attacks. His weapon is .32 S&W caliber with a DB of 1d8.

[Rooter]

Spoiler:

Handgun 40%[dice]0[/dice]

Dr. Francis Preston

Panicked, Preston fires again point blank at the approaching intruder, this time finding his mark.

[HoneyDog]

Wruter,If Preston tries to sprint out of the main door he'll run straight into the people who are entering the room. There are other doors, probably leading to a bedroom and bathroom. You'll have to edit your post.

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Do I get a chance to try to parry the attack on me, either with my knife (fighting knives have crossguards and can parry) or with my bare hands? At point blank range, which we are, your skill is actually doubled to 40%. Also, depending on the type of revolver, you may be able to fire more than one shot per round.

[HoneyDog]

OOC,Sorry, the sanity loss combined with the sight of stabbing the man but with no effect robs you of the chance to parry. You can attack again though.

[Mr. Handy]

Reeling from the pain, Reg realizes that although his opponent does not seem to feel pain himself, he is bleeding heavily. If he bleeds, he thinks, I can kill him. With all of his strength, he drives his blade between his foe's ribs and into his heart!

OOC,Knife roll (60% skill) attacking the creature again: [dice]0[/dice] Damage to creature from fighting knife: [dice]1[/dice]+[dice]2[/dice] Wow! :o 12 more damage!

[HoneyDog]

Reg’s assailant goes limp and he collapses, but his weight has pinned Reg to the floor. He is trapped! he watches helplessly as events unfold...