Fifth Floor, Administration Office

[Laraqua]

He succeeds in removing the engraving, revealing a 2ft x 2ft safe with a hooked embedded in each corner. Engraved into its surface are the words: Nomina si nescis, perit et cognitio rerum.

[TheKingInYellow]

"Ah ha!" Aiden exclaims at his discovery. The actual value of the find quickly sinks in however and he realizes that having found a wall safe does little to help his situation. He does pen down the inscription in his notebook, however.

"Now then, ... Now what?"

(OOC: Does the office door have a pane of glass in it, or is it all solid material?)

[Laraqua]

The door appears to be quite solid and judging from when he opened it, it is unusually thick as well. There's a glass window, on the other hand, though this is the fifth floor. The only other options are using the Intercom, which appears to connect to various different offices and departments down here, or the telephone. Either that, or examine the bookcase for a good book to wile away the time.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan ponders over the options he has. Perhaps trying the intercom would be a good idea, but it seems futile in his nervous state. Instead, he flips open his cell phone and checks his contact list; whatever number he has on hand for the hospital he will call on the office phone while he reads the number from his cellular.

[Laraqua]

He has both this office's phone number, and the ground floor reception desk phone number.

[TheKingInYellow]

"Well, no sense in calling myself." He tries the reception desk's number.

[Laraqua]

There is a click as someone answers the phone. He can vaguely hear some people in the background but nobody speaks into the phone.

[TheKingInYellow]

"Hello?... Hello? Is anybody there?" He'll wait for a reply and repeat it as a yell if he doesn't get a response.

[Laraqua]

A woman's voice, breathy, responds in a low and terrified voice. "Hello?" A moment later, a man's voice says the same query.

Then the woman speaks again: "Yes? Can you hear me? Where are you?"

[TheKingInYellow]

"Hello? Yes, I can hear you! Are you okay? This is Aidan O'Connell, with Child Welfare... Uhm... I'm trapped in the Dr. Dullard's office... Is there anyway someone could let me out? This chemical spill has me a worried."

[Laraqua]

"Hello," says a man's voice. "Is there someone else there?"

[TheKingInYellow]

"Someone else? Here? No... It's just me, in the Administration Office. Dr. Dullard stepped out a minute ago and seems to have locked the door behind him and hasn't come back. With this chemical incident, I'm a bit on edge. You wouldn't be able to get someone to let me out, would you?"

[Laraqua]

The man and woman babble simultaneously.

The man says: "Listen dude, you need to stay where you are. And seal yourself in, make sure the gas can't get through the gaps in the door. This.. er gas, its dangerous you hear me!"

The woman says: "Wait, there is someone else, there's me! My name's Jill and I'm in the Children's Ward ... or, well the Nurse's Station next to the ward. I'm getting a heater because the little ones are cold. I, let me move the heater to the Ward and then I'll come find you, Mr. O'Connell. Who else is on the line?"

The other man then speaks again. "My names Leroy, theres four of us sealed in the dispencery on the first floor. But don't come down here! We heard people outside screaming. And on the ground floor.." He stops and lowers his voice to a whisper. "I saw the darkness come in through the front door, it killed everybody. Don't let it touch you!

[TheKingInYellow]

"Jesus... I'm on the fifth floor, and there's a window in this office. Please, someone let me out!" He starts to panic, wonder if he could could break down the door himself, but he's never been much of an athlete. "Jill is it? Please, could I trouble you to let me out? ... But knock first... If I don't answer, then it's too late for me."

Aidan eyes the bookcase while he's talking. Perhaps it's big enough the cover the office window with?

[Laraqua]

Jill speaks before Aidan has finished, seeming not to have heard him yet, almost as though the phone is not sending and receiving the messages as quickly as it normally should. "Actually, I think the gas, or darkness, or whatever, has passed through. I went through the hallway to get here and mostly it's just cold. But it does look like some horrible stuff happened as the gas passed through."

The bookcake looks large enough to block out most of the window.

Jill pauses, as though listening, though no words are heard on the line. Perhaps a delay in Aidan's speech? Then she replies: "Yes, I'll come for you. Just ... just stay calm. Leroy? I think the worst is over. You might want to take stock of resources. Maybe we can pool what we have. I might need some help taking care of these kids. I'm going to move this heater into their ward, and then I'll come get you, Aidan."

[TheKingInYellow]

"Yes, of course, tend to the children first. I will do what I can here for now..." He hangs up the telephone, feeling equally relieved that the gas may have passed and disturbed that there might be a hospital full of victims because of it. But there isn't much he can do for now. At the very least he can try to block off the window, just in case. He stands to one side of the book case and tries to push it towards the window.

[Laraqua]

It moves easily enough, revealing a scrap of paper hidden beneath it, a series of images drawn upon it that look somewhat like starsigns and roman numerals mixed together. There is a central point of a man drawn in the center and an outstretched arm is drawn beneath and between each symbol, floating free.

IV III IX II
--> <-- -->

Written on the back of the scrap of paper is a line of gibberish that makes his head pound and his vision blur. It seems best not to concentrate too strongly on that.

[TheKingInYellow]

"Oh... My..." Aidan stuffs the scrap into his back pocket. "I hope the gas hasn't gotten to me... Damnit." His worry starts to flare up again, it may be too late for him already and Jill was coming to let a corpse out of the office.

No, no sense in thinking you're dead already. The gas has already gone, remember?

Aidan sits down on the floor, his back against the desk. He rubs his temples and tries to recompose himself. What about Sean? He hadn't even thought about the boy since the news of the biohazard. Was he alright? Well, Jill said she was going to the Children's Ward, he could ask her when she arrived and go there himself.

I wonder why I haven't heard any sirens? No police or ambulances? Is the whole city holed-up inside for this thing?

[Laraqua]

Minutes tick by.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan waits uncomfortably. Isn't Jill coming? How long has it been?...

He realizes that he doesn't really know how much time it has been, for all he knows, it could been only a minute since he was on the phone. He tries to steel himself against further panic, but despite his best rationalizations all he can do is sit and sweat it out.