Daniel, main area, fifth floor

[Laraqua]

The door withstands the blow, bruising his upper arm. Then as he regains his composure, the door knob turns and it glides open. The floor grows substantially darker and colder, motes of ash floating on the nonexistent breeze, smears of grime forming gory patterns across the linoleum. The overhead lights flicker and go out as corroded metal blooms into rusting flowers across the edges of flueorescent lights, steel door handles and vending machines. The paint peels, the colours fade, and he feels a sudden bout of nauseas hit him, causing him to nearly double over. The world splits in two, each perspective spinning rapidly out of control.

A little girl who is also an old woman and a young maiden and a pregnant man stands before him on the twisted remains of hundreds of nurses, dressed in differently coloured and made uniforms. She flickers, her arm raising, his finger pointing, the pain in Daniel's belly intensifying.

And then he is on the floor in a puddle that tastes of rust, staring at the faded walls, but without the corpses littering his sight. The windows, the venetian blinds popped open, reveal only darkness outside unbroken by any light source. The fluorescent bulbs overhead remain on.

[waferthinninja]

Daniel gasps for breath. He skitters and slides in the puddle as he staggers to his feet. His mind full of fear he runs wild haired towards the door.

[Laraqua]

The door opens into a clean, well-lit office. A man stands at the threshold, regarding the terrible scene before him.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan blinks several times, finally starting to get some sense of the situation. He braces himself against the wall with his hand, his knees shakey from the shock. He can't even look at the carnage outside of the office, let alone the man standing amongst it, he looks somewhere, anywhere in the office, wiping the vomit from his face with the sleeve of his jacket.

"This is really happening, isn't it?" He asks in a weak, powerless voice.

[waferthinninja]

Daniel leaps towards the man, grabs him by the lapels and shouts "WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE?!?!". Then, overcome, he collapses to the floor clasping at his stomach.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan shuts the door behind the distraught man. He covers his eyes with his hands and leans his forehead against the closed door so he can sob pitifully.

How could something like this happen?

[Laraqua]

Daniel sees that the administrator's office was cramped and unappealing. It seemed that space was a necessity in this hospital so much so that even the high-ranking staff couldn't have any room to breathe. The office was decorated lushly, however, as though to make up for the space restraints. The large, unweildy desk was made of mahogany, the computer and printer appeared powerful.

The bookcases and filing cabinets all seem to be state-of-the-art. Even the telephone seems pricey. Unfortunately, the effect of all the classy and expensive furniture was merely to make the place feel smaller. The venetian blinds are drawn, a book case before them, but even so, it is easy to tell that it is dark outside.

The portrait of a smiling man against a backdrop of dark and shadowy figures seems to mock him from its position on the right hand wall. The figure is obviously a few decades old and that just seems to add to his condescending attitude. It seems there's no hiding from Dr. Dullard's ostentatious desires...

[Laraqua]

The door buckles as something rushes into it.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan drops to the floor, expecting the door to come crashing in. He covers his head and cowers on the ground, hoping that whatever's happening now it's going to be better than anything else that's happened so far.

[waferthinninja]

The crash at the door brings Daniel to his senses. "Quick, grab the other end" he urges the other man as he starts to lug the heavy desk across the room to barricade the door.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan does as he's told. This man's been out there, he probably knows the situation better. Clumsily he gets up and tries to push the door with what little might he can manage. As he's doing so, a thought occurs to him.

Could it be the nurse?

"Jill!" He calls out. "Jill! Is that you?"

[Laraqua]

A bizarre wail is his only response. The voice starts off sounding human but continues to rise in pitch until it is just below the upper limit of what humans are capable of hearing.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan doesn't need any more of a reply. He puts all his strength into pushing the desk, wanting to make damn sure that whatever's making that noise can't get in.

[Laraqua]

http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/30/ ... 0Ghost.mp3

The wood splinters again, revealing sharpened steel and the rough sound of masculine laughter.

[TheKingInYellow]

Looks like your link got cut off, I can't download the file.

"Jesus!" Exclaims Aidan, doing all in his ability to barricade the door.

What's going on? Riots? A terrorist attack?

"Who are they?" He begs to know. He thinks about the carnage outside the door and wonders if this might be the work of the attackers, if he will be next?

[waferthinninja]

Desperately pushing the desk as hard as he can against the door, Daniel attempts to put into words his experiences of the day so far. What spews out of his mouth is less than coherant though "Place has gone mad ... doctor tried to kill me if I didnt inject myself ... maybe he injected me? ... is this real... might be a hallucination... some dark cloud over the city - might be a chemical spill or something..." - he is clearly trying to rationalise what has happened to him and coming up short.

"um.. Daniel.. just um here with a stomach ulcer" he adds weakly, realising the man in the room is probably petrified by his behaviour.

[Laraqua]

The light goes out. The hammering at the door stops. It is immensely cold and a strong wind blows.

[TheKingInYellow]

Aidan collapses unto the floor, the sweat of exertion pouring down his forehead and the sweat of terror most everywhere else. Panting heavily, he assumes the danger is over and finally manages to address the other man's introduction.

"Aidan... *Pant* ... Child Protective Services... So *pant* what the hell is going on? Is all this... 'cause of the chemical spill?"

He opens up his cellphone, trying to use the screen backlighting as a flashlight to get an idea of what happened to the light.

[Laraqua]

Aidan, return to your old thread.

[Laraqua]

Daniel hears a voice come over the intercom: "Attention everyone! The water supply is contaminated. Do not drink or even touch tap water, or any standing water you come across. Use only water in bottles or other sealed containers. Do not go outside under any circumstances, and avoid all exits or places that are otherwise exposed to the outside. It is extremely dangerous out there, and there are small parasitical organisms that attack people and burrow into their flesh. Once that happens, they are transformed into something no longer human. These creatures are alive and have a pulse, and their mouths are full of fleshy fungal material. They will attempt to seize their victims and lock their mouths over the victims' mouths. If they succeed, the victim is rendered paralysed and helpless, and they will then try to force the fungus down the victims' throats. Keep your distance from them at all costs, and keep your mouths covered at all times! A surgical mask will work, but the fungus will eventually rip through it. Two masks will last longer. Towels could also be used. Do not go anywhere alone if at all possible. If you fall prey to one of these creatures, you will need someone else to get it off of you.

She takes a deep breath and then continues: "There are other strange creatures and phenomena as well. The dark cloud that has covered the hospital is raining down a strange black ash. Its effects are unknown, but you should minimize your exposure to it. It can be wiped off with moist towelettes, but again make sure that you do not use tap water. Metal objects have rusted due to the arrival of this cloud, and have apparently aged decades in rather short order. You may notice that your sense of time is distorted, and people may seem to vanish. You may also see apparitions or hear voices of people you know. On the second floor there was an unknown creature that produced a whistling sound. If it approaches you, run. It is possible to outrun and escape from it. This is Nurse Sarah Carpenter. Stay safe, everyone."