Play@YSDC

"Much obliged," Tony says cheerfully,and helps himself to the refreshments. He's never one to say no to a free meal.

"Good news, everyone! Mr. Foo and I just spoke to the air force. It was a little touch and go, but I managed to get them to send help to us; should be here in about 40 minutes or so. All we have to do is sit tight till then! I can't stay long unfortunately, I'm helping Mr. Foo collect information for our boys in blue. But thought I should let you all know help's on the way!" He neglects to mention all the nukes going off.

9:59 AM
In the private room-

Mr. and Ms. Foo,"There is that," replied [b]Mr. Foo[/b] as he continued to monitor the control panel. "The military here is better than in China, that's for sure, but that doesn't mean we can trust them. Under the circumstances, they may decide to take whatever they want regardless of things like private property. This room is not the most secure, it's true. The upstairs rooms would be better, but moving the equipment would not be easy or quick, and there would be no using it while it is being moved and reinstalled. Perhaps the Air Force will want to do that when they arrive."

In the kitchen-
"That's wonderful news!" said Cathy, brightening at last.

"Cool!" said Bobby. "I bet they'll have all sorts of awesome guns!"

Tony beams with pride; it was rare his family did anything but complain, so he happily soaks up the indirect praise. He also notes that maybe they should have put Bobby in therapy after all, but supposed he was dealing with this awful day in his own way.

"I'm heading back now. Just try and wait. Help is on the way." He heads back to the Foo's.

10:00 AM
In the kitchen-
"Maybe the military will let me have a gun," said Bobby.

"No," said Cathy flatly. Then she paused, barely hearing something.

"No fair! Scotty got to use one!"

In spite of his distraction due to his game, Scotty's ears perked up when he heard something out back. Ellen also noticed. "Shh," she hissed. "There's someone walking around out there." She pointed to the barricaded back door.

OOC,[b]Ellen[/b]'s Listen roll (51% skill) in the kitchen: [dice]0[/dice] [b]Cathy[/b]'s Listen roll (60% skill) in the kitchen: [dice]1[/dice] [b]Bobby[/b]'s Listen roll (25% base skill) in the kitchen: [dice]2[/dice] [b]Scotty[/b]'s Listen roll (25% base skill) in the kitchen: [dice]3[/dice]

In the private room-
Tony returned to find the Foos talking to each other in Chinese.

Mr. and Ms. Foo,"That's a good idea," said [b]Mr. Foo[/b]. "We'd have to temporarily move one of our barricades so those doing this can get outside, as there's no access to the balcony from within. The upstairs rooms accessible from the balcony will have plenty of furniture to use for barricading the stairs, but there are four stairways. We shouldn't barricade all of them, as we may need one open in case the military wants to move this stuff upstairs when they arrive, but we wouldn't finish barricading three of them by then anyway. They may have their own ideas about defense too."

Tony enters the room again. "Any updates, chief?" He asks Mr. Foo.

Mrs Foo looks up, "Ah, Mr Latham, we get ready for military; we make stronghold upstairs; barricade steps. You help, Latham family all help. We go now, chop chop."

10:01 AM
In the kitchen-
Gulping, Ellen put a finger to her lips and slipped out of the room.

In the private room-
"We were discussing how best to defend this place," said Mr. Foo. "The motel has four stairways leading to the balcony, from which the upstairs rooms are accessible. They cannot be accessed from within the motel, so we'd have to move one of the barricades to let people out to go work on barricading the stairs. We need to leave one stairway open for now so that people and equipment can be moved upstairs, but there's not going to be enough time to block them all before the Air Force gets here anyway. Perhaps you and your family can help. The furniture in the motel rooms can be used to make barricades. I can give you the room keys."

Ellen arrived at the entrance to the room. "Mr. Foo, we heard someone moving around behind the motel!" she hissed. "I think it's...one of them..."

"Really?" Tony looks reluctant. "Not that I'm opposed, but I thought I was needed here, in case Mr.Foo needed to take a break. But if you really think it will help, I guess we can try it-- though it might be easier to try and destroy some of the stairs to prevent these people from getting to the second floor."

He would have said more, but Ellen's entry makes his eyes widen. "We should stay inside. If we're very quiet, maybe they'll leave."

In the kitchen-

Cathy/Bobby/Scotty,"No, I ain't one of them," called a young man's voice from the other side of the door. "It's [b]Mitchell[/b] from the garage. Please let me in!"

In the private room-
"Unfortunately, the stairs are made of concrete," said Mr. Foo. "We cannot destroy them, only block them."

OOC,Everyone in the private room, please roll Listen. The base skill is 25%. If you succeed, you may open and read the spoiler button above.

Mrs Foo listens.

Listen,base[dice]0[/dice]

10:02 AM
In the kitchen-

Cathy/Bobby/Scotty,"Hold on, we have to move the barricade!" [b]Cathy[/b] called. "Come on, [b]Bobby[/b], lend a hand." The two of them moved the furniture, and finally they opened the door to reveal a young man in overalls. They stepped aside. "Come on in," said [b]Cathy[/b].

In the private room-
Ellen nodded. Nobody made a sound.

OOC,[b]Mr. Foo[/b]'s Listen roll (58% skill) in the private room: [dice]0[/dice] [b]Ellen[/b]'s Listen roll (51% skill) in the private room: [dice]1[/dice]

Tony stays silent, hoping his family are safe. One loud sound could attract the attention of the thing,and who knew how many friends it had.

10:03 AM
In the kitchen-

Mitchell/Cathy/Bobby/Scotty,[b]Mitchell[/b] stepped into the kitchen, closing the door behind him, and [b]Cathy[/b] and [b]Bobby[/b] moved the barricade back into place. "I'm [b]Cathy Lathan[/b]," the woman said. "These are my sons, [b]Bobby[/b] and [b]Scotty[/b]." She indicated each in turn. "Hey," said [b]Bobby[/b]. [b]Scotty[/b] didn't react. He was too busy playing Zelda on his Nintendo Switch.

In the private room-
Ellen shivered nervously and waited silently. All seemed silent outside the room too.

"Hi. I'm Mitchell. I work in the garage for Boss Earl." Mitchell replies. "I don't know what's going on out there but from what I can tell, we need to stay undercover and make sure that any glass windows are covered.

He moves closer to Cathy and speaks softly so the boys don't overhear.
"That girl Jenny just came back from where the meteor landed and she said it was full of alien bats that kill you with their stingers."

Tony really wants to go check on his family, but he knows any movement now could jeopardize all their safety. He inches closer to the door but remains in the room for now.

10:04 AM
In the kitchen-
Cathy's eyes went wide. "I'll go find my husband, Ellen, and the Foos and let them know," she said. "I'll be right back." She headed out through the lobby.

"Do you have a gun?" Bobby asked Mitchell. "If you do, can I see it?"

In the motel lobby-
Cathy went over to the open door to the private room.

In the private room-
Cathy stepped into the doorway. "It wasn't one of them," she told them. "It was Mitchell, from the garage. I let him in. He said Jenny came back from looking at the meteor, and that it was full of alien bats that kill you with their stingers. I don't know if it's true or not."

"Has he seen Charlie?" asked Ellen.

"I don't know. You should probably ask him yourself."

Tony lets out a breath of relief. "Good to know. Well, except for the alien bats. The natural ones are creepy enough." He looks at the Foos. "Hey, maybe we can get him to help us fortify the place."