IC-GOLD/SWORD-A New Day(Sally/Zoe/Katarina/Julie/Claire/etc)

[Mr. Handy]

Z-Day + 1 - 6:30 AM Mountain Time - Warren Air Force Base, west of Cheyenne, Wyoming
In the secure room-
The four women who had entered Warren Air Force Base through the secret tunnel had spent the night in the secure room in the basement of the Security Center and had just finished breakfast. Sally the nurse had survived the previous day against incredible odds. First the truck stop where she had spent the morning had been attacked by both zombies and skinheads. Then she and several others had explored and been trapped in a secret facility beneath the truck stop. All of them were now dead - all but her. A horrifying slimy monster had shattered her leg, knocking her out, and she would have died there if someone else hadn't come back to rescue her. She and her fellow survivors had fled deeper underground, into strange tunnels somehow carved into the earth. They had managed to find a way through some caves to the surface, only to be attacked again, this time by an enormous burrowing worm-like creature that destroyed the car they had found. Sally had rolled out of the vehicle right before it struck, and that had saved her life. Everyone else had been slaughtered. The last act of Rosie the waitress had been to throw her a flashlight she needed to survive in the one place she could find shelter - back in the caves. She had fled, her broken leg slowing her down, only barely making it inside ahead of the monster. Then she had gotten lost and fallen into a pit containing zombies that had also fallen in and been trapped. As she desperately tried to escape, one of them managed to grab her, and it was only with the greatest of luck that she had broken free and climbed out before they could finish her. She had no choice but to go through the one place she had never wanted to see: the skinheads' compound.

Sally had met a girl named Kerry Pierce who had been locked up in the facility beneath the truck stop. She had been abducted and held captive by the skinheads along with other women. She had managed to escape through the underground tunnels only to run afoul of Hammond and Earl, the skinheads' allies. Sneaking through the underground part of their base, Sally encountered the skinheads' cruel leader, Mutt. Alone, Sally had no choice but to pretend to join these sick, vicious men. Had they known her true intentions, she would have joined the captives and been subjected to the same horrible abuse. She befriended one of the skinheads, a doctor named Nathan Hill who was known as Doc. He was different from the other skinheads, and he fell in love with her. Together they did what they could for her injuries and tried to protect the captive women, who included Katarina and Zoe. The skinheads destroyed the gigantic worm that had pursued her with explosives, but later an even bigger one attacked and they were all forced to flee. The four surviving enslaved women were locked in the back of a panel van driven by three of the skinheads: Deadeye, Nitro, and Ghost. Sally had ridden in a pickup truck with Doc and Mutt.

They stopped for the night at a ranger station, which was manned by park rangers Dan Aldrich and Julie St. James. The skinheads had left most of the women locked in the van but had allowed Katarina to come inside with them. Sally warned the rangers of the peril they faced and the women being kept prisoner. The girls locked in the van managed to escape, and the skinheads chased after them, leaving Sally, Katarina, and Doc with the rangers. The rangers went to try to find the women first and protect them. They had apparently gotten the upper hand and captured two of the skinheads, but the tables quickly turned. Mutt, now aware of their treachery, gunned down Doc and demanded that Sally and Katarina surrender. Knowing that doing so would mean rape and torture, the women fought back. Sally gave Katarina a grenade she had found under the truck stop, which she used to kill Mutt. Unfortunately, Nitro and Deadeye had survived and taken one of the girls, Lara Voronova, hostage. They escaped with her in the van in spite of Sally and Katarina's best efforts to stop them. They rejoined the rangers, Zoe, and Raquel, the other freed captive. Then the earth began to shake, a sure sign that one of the burrowing creatures was on its way. They fled the ranger station in the pickup truck, but they were unable to track down the van and instead headed west into Wyoming. They ended up going to Warren Air Force Base, following instructions that Doc had given before he died, and entered by way of a secret tunnel that the skinheads' confederates in the Air Force used to smuggle out weapons to a warehouse they owned. However, Dan and Raquel had been bitten, and they remained behind in the warehouse, knowing they were doomed.

Sally,[b]Sally[/b]'s health had also been declining since yesterday due to something she had discovered growing inside her. Her fever was getting worse, and she had been experiencing stomach cramps with increasing frequency. One of them struck at that moment. She had not slept well.

Zoe Gallagher was still getting used to her newfound freedom. The terrors of the day before were still fresh in her mind. She had managed to escape from her cell to try to save fellow captive Mei Ling, only to be recaptured and chloroformed. She had expected to awaken tied up, but while she had been out Mei Ling had nearly killed her captor and been killed herself. Zoe hid from the other skinheads searching for her, but they managed to find her. She had been certain that they would gang rape her, but instead Jeff, Mutt's brother, wanted to have her first and sent the others to eat dinner. Zoe stalled for time as long as she was able. In the end, she thought she would have to submit to the inevitable, but her friends Alicia, Raquel, and Lara had managed to escape on their own and arrived at the last second to rescue her. Alicia was injured dropping into the room from a vent in the ceiling, and then Jeff seized her. Zoe grabbed Jeff's rifle, which he had put down, but Jeff used Alicia as a hostage. Zoe opened fire and wounded Jeff, but a stray bullet killed Alicia. Lara shot Jeff in the head with his own pistol, killing him instantly.

However, the gunfire had drawn the other skinheads, and they recaptured the girls. Mutt was going to torture Lara in revenge for his brother's death, but Katarina distracted him and lured him away. Zoe was tied up, but she managed to wriggle free of her bonds and get her hands on a tear gas grenade, which she used to try to incapacitate Mutt, but she botched the throw and ended up disabling herself, after which Zoe was handcuffed. When the giant worm attacked, the surviving skinheads took the women back up to the surface and made off with them. When the van stopped, the skinheads took Katarina away. Zoe managed to pick the lock and led Raquel and Lara to freedom. They found an abandoned house, but the skinheads tracked them down. Lara fled, but Zoe and Raquel were caught again. Ghost stayed behind to guard his captives while the others hunted for Lara. He took Zoe to an upstairs bedroom. In desperation, she tried to fling herself through a window rather than be violated again, but he grabbed her and threw her down on the bed. She fought back madly, but he overpowered her and she was helpless to stop him. Again she was miraculously saved, this time by Dan, who burst in and shot Ghost dead. Lara had found the rangers and brought them back. They all fled from the house before the other skinheads returned, only to run into a zombie and be forced to flee back to the house, where the skinheads had captured Julie. The zombie pursuing them distracted them long enough for Dan to get the drop on them, and the scumbags were wounded and captured. When Dan went out back to check on things, Zoe and Lara took advantage of the situation to try to kill their rapists. That was when everything went south. Deadeye grabbed the gun from Lara and took her hostage, and he and Nitro escaped with her.

Katarina Iliescu had been through the same sort of hell, but she was proving to be very resilient and resourceful. She and Sally had become instant friends and had helped each other survive. When Mutt had taken her to his bedroom at the compound, she had managed to talk him into taking her upstairs to buy some time, where she did what little she could to protect the other girls, keeping Mutt busy so that he wouldn't torture her best friend Lara. She was able to manipulate the men while still keeping their trust, so that they brought her into the ranger station instead of leaving her locked in the van. Despair had nearly overwhelmed her after Mutt killed Doc and had her and Sally trapped, but she found the long-buried courage to fight back and killed him, saving herself and her new friend from his cruel vengeance. Though she had come close, she had failed to save Lara too. But now she had the chance to do something. After they had gained entry to the base, she had smoothed things over with the guards and then convinced the base's security chief, Lt. Colonel Smedley, to mount a mission to capture Deadeye and Nitro and rescue Lara by telling him that they would know who the traitors helping the skinheads smuggle weapons out of the base were. She longed to kill the brutes, but at least this way she had a chance to rescue Lara. She didn't like thinking about what they had done to the poor girl overnight, but she had to hope that they had kept her alive. Mutt was the one who had wanted her dead.

Julie St. James had had her share of terror and heartbreak. She had been frightened to death when the skinheads had gotten the drop on her back at the abandoned house, terrified at the prospect of being abducted and raped. Luckily, Dan had saved her from that fate. Zoe, in a fit of madness, had held her at gunpoint and made her drop her weapon so that Lara could kill the prisoners. The skinheads turned the tables and kidnapped Lara, and they might have taken her too had Zoe not rushed over and put her own gun in Julie's hands. Dan had protected the remaining women on their journey to Warren Air Force Base at the cost of his own life. He had been so heroic, and before she had to leave him he had confessed his love for her. If only she had known earlier...but it was too late now. Now she was getting ready to go with Katarina on this crazy mission to save Lara, placing herself in terrible peril again.

The women had just finished eating breakfast when there was a knock on the door. Julie opened it and saw Airman Carolyn Wagner, one of the MPs who had found them after they had entered the base. Three other women in orange Racal suits stood behind her. "Good morning, ladies," said Carolyn. "The medical staff want to examine you now. They've already checked me out and given me a clean bill of health."

"I'm Captain Claire Kelleher," said the orange-suited woman in the middle. "I'm a doctor. These are my nurses, Lt. Sara Evans and Lt. Barbara Ellison." She indicated the other two each in turn. "We need to give each of you a physical and psychological examination before you can be cleared to leave quarantine and be assigned your duties."

[Laraqua]

Katarina grips the collar of her shirt, hugging herself against the horrible memories that the mere thought of being naked with strangers would provoke. She'd become inured to being forced naked by men but now to be forced to undergo an examination by women seemed almost unthinkable. Her cheeks burned with shame. She didn't want to go with them. Every inch of her being begged to remain in quarantine and avoid confronting these sterile women in their strange suits rather than be picked over by idle medical fingers but she was loathe to be apart from Sally. "E-exam?"

[ryansommer]

"It's just a 'check up,' Katarina." Sally said as she stood and approached the women. "Hi, I am Sally and I too am a nurse. If you want to check me out first and clear me, I could then assist with the others or at least comfort them by explaining what you are doing as you do it?"

[Laraqua]

Katarina shudders. Check ups were never pleasant at the best of times and she knew enough to know they'd need to search them very thoroughly for signs of infection. Still, she attempts a fragile smile and squares her shoulders. If Sarah could be strong, so could she. "I ready."

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,I think you mean [b]Sally[/b]. ;) Looks like you mixed her up either with Sarah Carpenter from Ash or [b]Lt. Sara Evans[/b], both of whom are also nurses. You're all wearing camouflage trousers and white tank tops that were provided for you, so you don't actually have collars, but you could hold your shoulder straps.

In the secure room-
Captain Claire Kelleher closed the door for privacy. "Sure, we'll examine you first," she said. "Pleased to meet you, Sally. Here, have a seat on the bed and take your clothes off. We can do the exams here." She checked Sally's vitals and looked at her broken leg, unsure what to make of it.

Lt. Sara Evans assisted her ably. She put a hand on Sally's forehead and then recoiled. "My God, you're burning up!" she exclaimed. "How long have you had this fever? Any other symptoms? Have you been bitten or had any physical contact with the infected. How did you break your leg?"

Lt. Barbara Ellison smiled at Katarina. "It's okay," she said, her voice soothing. "It's not going to hurt. We are going to have to draw a little blood, but we can do it painlessly. I know you've been through a terrible ordeal, but you're safe now. You don't have to be afraid any more. If you like, we'll examine your friends first so that you can see that it's all right."

"I'm Julie St. James," said the park ranger. "I'm willing to go next." She began to disrobe.

Barbara began examining her and taking her readings. "You look to be in great shape, Julie," she said.

"What can I say? I work out."

[Laraqua]

Katarina blushed. "It okay." She smiled at them gratefully. "Thank you."

[ryansommer]

"I have not been bitten" Sally said. "My leg was broken by some sort of slime monster a while back. It did not break the skin though and I have not been bitten by anything else. I've only started not feeling well lately but I figured it was my body reacting to the trauma I've encountered over the last day and my lack of rest. Do you have an x-ray machine handy?"

[Mr. Handy]

In the secure room-
"A slime monster?" said Claire Kelleher. "That's probably the culprit then. If you'd been bitten, you'd have been dead already. Though the brass still thinks what's going on is some kind of contagious disease, we've seen the truth for ourselves. I didn't believe it at first either, but I learned the hard way. The 'infected' are actually reanimated corpses, and their bite transmits a toxin, not a pathogen. This slime monster may be something else, though. We've seen crazy giant mosquito-like things, but this is a new one. I'm afraid we're going to have to keep you isolated, Sally. That means we'll need to take you to the quarantine clinic. We have X-Ray machines there, so we'll be able to X-Ray your leg. We had closed it down after everyone was cleared to leave quarantine, but we need to reopen it." She spoke into a hands-free radio built into her suit's helmet. "Lt. Colonel Carmichael, this is Captain Claire Kelleher. We need the quarantine clinic reopened, sir. One of the women has been exposed to something unknown."

Captain Claire Kelleher,"Understood, Captain," replied [b]Carmichael[/b]. "I'll arrange it."

Claire and Sara finished examining Sally and drew a sample of her blood. They found that her stomach was sensitive, and it caused her pain when they applied pressure. "On the bright side," said Sara, "you seem very solid mentally. You're the most together person I've met since this started, and that includes me."

Barbara completed her examination of Julie. "Well, you get a clean bill of health," she said. She approached Katarina. "Are you ready to go next?"

[ryansommer]

"I understand. The safety of everyone here is just as important to me as well" Sally said.

[Laraqua]

Katarina looks deeply concerned about what they were saying about Sally. "You be okay?" Then she realizes Barbara is talking to her. "Um, yes?"

[Mr. Handy]

In the secure room-
Claire nodded to Zoe. "Your turn, ma'am," she said. She and Sara began to look her over.

"The name's Zoe Gallagher," she said, frowning. "At least this beats being pawed by perverts."

Barbara started to examine Katarina. "What's your name?" she asked. "I'm Barbara."

[Laraqua]

"Katarina," she says shyly, biting her knuckle.

[Laraqua]

"Katarina," she says shyly, biting her knuckle.

[ryansommer]

"I think I will be okay" Sally says as convincingly as she can

[Mr. Handy]

In the secure room-
"They briefed us before we came here," said Barbara, giving Zoe a sympathetic look. "We know what happened to you-"

"No you don't!" snapped Zoe. "You haven't been through it."

"You're right, we haven't. But I can understand what you're feeling. My specialty is helping survivors of sexual assault. You're not alone, Zoe."

"You've obviously been through hell," said Claire. "I know you're hurting, and we're here to give you all of the help and support you need."

"I just want something to do," said Zoe, "so I don't have to think about it."

"I think that can be arranged," said Sara, finishing her examination. "You're in good health, considering what you've been through. We were told you're a skilled mechanic. How would you like to join a ground crew?"

"I'm best with cars and trucks," said Zoe, "but I can learn how to maintain aircraft too."

"Glad to hear it."

Barbara turned back to Katarina. "Hey, it's okay," she said. "You're holding up nicely, both physically and mentally. That's a lot more than I can say about most people I've examined. You're also very brave to volunteer to go on this mission to find your friend. She's very lucky to have a friend like you."

"I think we're done here," said Claire. "You should say your goodbyes now. Once you're ready, Ms. Iliescu and Ms. Saint James will go to prepare for their mission, Ms. Gallagher will leave for one of the hangars to join the ground crew, and we'll take Sally here to the quarantine clinic."

[ryansommer]

Sally approaches each of her friends and gives them a big hug: "Don't worry. I'll see you all soon. We are in good hands here." With that, she turns to Clair. "I'm ready when you are"

[Laraqua]

Katarina eyes Sally a little suspiciously and warily before returning the hug. She doesn't want to get stuck in Quarantine, too, no matter how much she likes Sally! Then again, heading out into Hell to find her friend... Well, maybe one little hug wouldn't hurt considering all the options were terrible. "I find you later! Okay?" Katarina's eyes tear up as she suddenly realises how much she doubts that she'll ever see Sally again. Even if she came back, what if Sally were dead? What if the sickness took her too?

[Mr. Handy]

In the secure room-
"Maybe you should avoid physical contact," Claire said to Sally, clearly having similar thoughts. "Of course, you all spent the entire night in this room together, and none of the rest of you seem to be showing the same symptoms. I've already cleared you three for duty, and two of you are going off-base anyway."

Zoe hugged Katarina. She was the only one who truly understood what Zoe had endured - other than Lara. "Take care of yourself, Katarina. And when you find Lara...tell her I'm sorry."

"I'll look out for her," said Julie. She too hugged Zoe. "Thank you for saving me from those creeps. If you hadn't handed me that gun, I'm sure they would have made off with me too."

"I shouldn't have made you drop your gun in the first place. I'm sorry, Julie, I would never have shot you. I just wanted those animals dead so bad..."

"It's okay, I forgive you. Take care of yourself. Things may not ever be the same, but they will get better."

Zoe clenched her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't see how. Not after what they did to me. Not after I killed Alicia. I'm all broken inside."

"You will heal," said Barbara. "It will take time, but you will."

Zoe looked away, then turned to Sally. "Sally, I hope you get better soon."

Julie nodded. "We owe everything to you, Sally. If you hadn't been there to warn us..."

Sara and Barbara helped Sally into the hall, folllowed by Claire leading Zoe, Katarina, and Julie.

In the hallway-
Airman Carolyn Wagner was no longer there, but Lt. Wyatt was waiting for them along with a few SF troopers. "Good morning, ladies," she said. "I hope you've slept well. Sally, we have a vehicle ready to transport you and the medical staff to the quarantine clinic. The rest of you, there's a Hummer waiting to take you to the hangar. There Zoe will be introduced to the ground crew, and Katarina and Julie will be equipped for their mission. The helicopter takes off at 0715 hours - that's less than half an hour from now."

[Laraqua]

Katarina gives Sally a long look during all of this as she's quite certain this will be the last time they see each other. Her eyes well up with tears but she wills herself not to shed them. She'll simply go along with the others, but she'll never take her eyes off of Sally until she's out of sight. During all of this, she hugs Zoe's arm (if Zoe lets her) as she knows she's about to lose Zoe next.

[Mr. Handy]

In the hallway-
Everyone went back through the building and out the front entrance. Zoe allowed Katarina to lean on her and hug her. Parked outside were a medical Stryker and a Humvee with two Security Forces troopers in the front seats. The medical staff helped Sally into the back of the Stryker before climbing in with her, while Zoe, Katarina, and Julie got into the back of the Hummer. Both vehicles headed off in different directions.

OOC,[b]Sally[/b], [b]Sara[/b], [b]Barbara[/b], and [b]Claire[/b] are moving to the thread linked below.

Isolation

OOC,[b]Zoe[/b] is moving to the thread linked below. Do not read the post above the one in the link.

Broken Wings

OOC,[b]Katarina[/b] and [b]Julie[/b] are moving to the thread linked below.

Mental Healing