Reality Bites [M - IC]

[G]

Rated M for adult themes including but not limited to violence, blood, gore, naughty words, general mayhem and maybe even a little romance; if anybody survives long enough.
OOC. (http://role-player.net/forum/showthread.php?t=71396)


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February 2nd, 2015.
Surfers' Paradise, New South Wales, Australia.

9:00am.

The sun had well and truly risen on another beautiful, sweltering hot day on Australia's east coast. The holiday season drawing toward its end, the streets weren't as busy as they had been for the previous weeks, but there was still a decent amount of foot traffic around the many venues the cities central business district boasted. The tourists stood out instantly from the more relaxed locals, their tans fake or their skin red; underestimating the sun. Across the road, the beaches were already filling, the milling crowds of people broken up by the bright umbrellas and deck-chairs of the lifeguards, rescue-boards or rafts dug into the sand beside them. The surfers were further out, bobbing specks among the waves.

Several blocks back from the beach students were beginning to stream from buses into classrooms in the cities only public highschool; younger pupils escorted across the street to the primary school adjacent. The university was further out, a large mass of buildings with field and sports' pitch behind, among the residential areas.

It seemed a normal Monday; well, any normal day for Angelica at least, who, when she emerged from the cocoon she had created from her sheets during the night (which wouldn't be long, considering the steadily growing heat) planned to sit down at her computer with a bowl of coco-pops and a strong, sweet coffee and defeat that mutant bitch who'd killed her three times yesterday before she could discover the truth about her fathers' disappearance! The blanket-engulfed lump on the bed stirred, as though the sleeping blonde was dreaming of her inevitable victory.

-

On one of the large white buses that was delivering the students to their places of study, the overweight bus driver was turning up the radio, presumably to drown out the self-righteous babble of a university student a few seats behind him. The attempt failed, though, and the tinny voice of the presenter, talking about several accidents that had occurred in the area recently was overtaken by the girls' virulent speech.

"And not only that, but they also contain palm oil! So you're basically directly responsible for the deaths of up to five thousand orangutans every year!"

Isobel stared at the older girl with wide-eyed, nervous fascination as she finished her speech, grabbed the snack-packet of Doritos from Izzy's equally stunned classmate (whom she'd been lecturing) and marched up the isle, tossing it dramatically into the small waste-basket behind the drivers seat. The thirteen year old chanced a reassuring smile at the boy, who between the mouthful he'd just gotten and the realisation that his chips were gone, looked as though he might cry. As she alighted the bus Izzy glanced up at the girl through the window; she was glaring obstinately out the window, a frown on her face as though still upset at the incident. The younger girl shook her head, wondering why she would get so worked up over a snack...

"Hey, Sissy! What are you frowning over? Gonna cry about it?!" The bus pulled away, moving on to the University, and Izzy sighed as she turned to face the owner of the smug voice.

"Shut up, Ciara!" she responded to the young blonde before her, who was smiling as though very pleased with her initial remark. She just laughed at Izzy's retaliation, lifting a hand to brush through her hair as she turned to walk away.

Great comeback, Izzy, the brunette chided herself as she continued toward the school. She couldn't help but glance back at the welcoming, warm brown brick fence of the primary school. The highschool was surrounded by the tall, blue steel bars that had become the norm in recent years, and Izzy had to admit they were fitting. She was imprisoned here for six whole years! And a week in, she could already tell highschool was going to suck. With this thought, Izzy glanced at the retreating back of Ciara, and sighed.

Another day in Paradise.

[BabyRedFox]

The sweltering sunlight reflected off of the vanity mirror and awoke Raymond unpleasantly. He turned over and blinked.
Ugh, Monday, already? He thought, rolling over. He glanced at his clock: 7:25. It was time to make breakfast for the girls. His wife, Stella, was already gone, off to her new job interview. She was so excited last night, Raymond and her were hopeful that she would get this one. She'd been going to a lot of interviews lately, and they were thinking that she'd finally found her perfect fit.

Raymond groggily padded to the kitchen and opened the fridge. He always made a special breakfast on Mondays for his daughters, Chelsy and Letty. Even though they were in kindergarten, where their education consisted mostly of coloring in letters and eating Goldfish crackers, even they dreaded Mondays. Raymond rummaged tiredly through the fridge and found the Pillsbury cinnamon buns. He smiled, since these were a family favorite. He placed them neatly on a tray, and popped them in the oven, made himself a cup of coffee and sat at the dining room table, watching the morning sun flicker in through the windows where it settled warm on the countertop.
Ten minutes later, Chelsy and Letty burst into the kitchen.
"Thinnamon bunth!" Letty declared gleefully. Raymond chuckled lightly.
"Seems like you girls can smell 'em a mile away!" he said.
The girls gigged as they took their seats at the dining room table.

Maybe Mondays weren't all that bad after all.

After breakfast, Raymond got the girls dressed and drove them to school. He still had a bunch of time before work, since he did the night shift at "Sallie's Bar and Grille". He didn't want to show it in front of Chelsy and Letty, but he really was worried about the 'money situation.' His wife was still working at the QuickCheck down the street and he made only just enough at Sallie's. But he was confident in his wife, she would get this accounting job; it's what she had wanted to do ever since they had gotten married.

Arriving back at the house, Raymond opened up his laptop and checked his email. Just the usual ads and things, and his buddy David was scheduling the next Dungeons and Dragons get-together for the following Friday night. Raymond smiled as he typed a reply that ended with:

P.S. You better not kill of ANOTHER one of my clerics ;)

[Naraness]

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6:30 AM..

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

The sharp noises grated on the boy's ears, making him cringe and curl up tighter under the blankets. Oh man, I probably should've have stayed up so late last night." Thoughts of regret spun around his mind as he forced his head up to look around the room. His laptop laid on the bedside table a few inches from his fingertips, just out of reach. The screen was still on, displaying a slightly reddened scene of a pixilated Minecraft tunnel. The screen showed the words 'You have died.' Apparently, he had fallen asleep and been killed by a zombie, or some other hostile mob.

His tired eyes flicked over to the alarm clock. The red LEDs burned brightly in the dark room. Without another thought, his fingertips slipped around to the back of the clock and switched the alarm off. His head sunk to the pillow, his arm draped limply over the table, and the teenager fell back asleep.


..9:00 AM

"Hiroyuki Sean Elm!"

More frightening than the sound of any alarm clock was the sound of his mother's voice. Hiro was startled awake as his mother hurried in, her eyes aflame. "Why aren't you up yet?! You told me 'no more of this!'" The full-blooded Japanese woman's eyes were burning with stress and disappointment. She threw her hands up. "Fourteen years, I've raised you. You never had problems getting up for school before your father bought you that darn computer!" She grabbed his arm, yanking him to his feet. Hiro stumbled, his dark hair splayed messily across his face and sticking up at odd angles.

"Sorry, mom..." Hiro cringed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I swear I didn't mean to."

The moment the words left his lips, his mother pointed at the laptop on the table, innocently propped up and still displaying the proof of his own decision to stay up late. "You didn't mean to, huh?" She rolled her eyes, setting her hands on her hips. Hiro could tell she'd just gotten up by the way her salt-and-pepper hair was uncombed and still in it's overnight braid. "Well you're lucky we live two miles from the school. I have to get to a meeting in ten minutes.. You missed the bus, so you can ride your bike. Get your things, brush your hair, and get your butt to school."

Hiro nodded swiftly, his limp black hair flopping back and forth as he did so.

A smile cracked at his mother's lips. She reached out, putting a hand behind his head. With a tired sigh, she pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Be safe, pay attention today. Your lunch is packed on the counter. I love you, and I'll have quinoa ready for dinner tonight, alright?" Hiro's eyes alit as he heard this, and he nodded again with vigor. "Alright then, get dressed and get out of here." She ruffled his hair, messing it up even further. Grinning, Hiroyuki ducked and evaded her, heading towards the closet. His mother stepped towards the door, pointing a finger at him to enunciate the point on her lips. "And for God's sake, comb your hair."

Hiro laughed, turning away as she shut the door with a smile. As quickly as he could, he got dressed in the first pair of clothes he could find. His backpack was leaned up on the wall, right where he'd left it when he came home on Friday night. Only his homework had been touched, which was all over his messy desk nearby. Hiroyuki grabbed all the papers he needed, stuffing them into the backpack with a slight crumple. He ran his fingers through his hair, grabbed the bag, and hurried out the door. On the way through the kitchen he snatched the Ziploc bag holding his PB&J lunch.

"Hey, hey, hey, you need to eat something." His mom chided, coming over with a piece of toast she'd buttered up.

"Okay, thanks mom!" Hiro grabbed the dainty breakfast and popped it in his mouth, running out the door. "Bye!" He called, just about tripped as he went down the steps. Just inside the front yard gate was his two-speed bike. With toast in one hand, the backpack over his shoulder, and a stupid grin on his face, he started peddling towards his school; already five minutes late.



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9:02

Jen smiled brightly as she swung through the back door of her local Starbucks café. In Summers past, she might have gone there to get an ultra-whipped, all natural, coconut milk Frappuccino, but not now. She'd been working in this coffee shop for the past two years of her life, and she'd really never been happier. It was a simple job. It paid enough that she could go to college, and she liked the people there. Jenny knew all of her customers by name, and even knew what most of their favorite drinks were. Because of that, she was tipped well and she rarely had to work other jobs to make up for tuition and her little shopping splurges.

"Jenny!" The redhead at the counter smile, looking over at her.

"Hi, Anna." Jen smiled, her blonde curls bouncing behind her as she came in with a spring in her step. "How are things? I see the mornings are as busy as ever." Her eyes flicked over the coffee shop, humming with chatter, as she dropped her purse by the back door and grabbed her apron.

"Well, you know. It's all espressos and smoothies nowadays. George should be here to let me off my shift any minute." Anna looked at her with a sly grin tucked under her plum-colored lips. Jen blushed, shrugging. "You liiiike him." Anna teased, poking her friend with a perfectly manicured finger. "Admit it. You blush whenever he's here. Lucky you, you get to share a shift with him now that I'm the official midnight-to-morning gal." A yawn stretched her mouth, proving that she'd been up for several hours already.

Jen laughed softly, washing her hands in the large, brushed-steel sink nearby. "Fine, you've got me. But don't tell him!" She giggled, wiping her hands. "It's just a crush, yeesh."

Anna smirked. "Knew it." She smacked the blonde with a dish rag, swaying back out to the thrall of customers in the front.

Jennifer just chuckled, smiling at her feet.

[Dr. Insano]

11:30 AM

The tapping away at the keyboard had filled the apartment bedroom all night. Dark circles were already formed around a young man's face indicating that he hasn't slept in a while. With a last press of the ENTER key the man leaned back in his chair and pulled out his phone and started dialing.
"Mr. Smith?....Yeah, it's Niko.....that Niko....yeah, it's all done, just gotta get it sent by email....um, maybe 47 hours....ok sir, I appreciate it....yes, you should have the file within the hour. All I have to do is compile it....ok, you too sir....CLICK"

Hitting the button at the top left corner of the screen Niko began compiling the code he's just wrote. He was commissioned by his boss to make a program that would, in theory, protect their databases from outside influence and could only be accessed by an internal computer. Little did he know there were already programs out there that did that, but an extra $300 never hurt to be in his wallet. Looking at his calendar Neko smiled.
"No classes today, don't have to go not work until Wednesday, it seems I've earned myself a little me-time."

Grabbing his headset and sending the email he clicked the icon on his desktop that loaded up the MMO, King and Gods. Sleep was for the week, a few hours playing wouldn't hurt anyone. Besides, school didn't start until noon tomorrow anyways and he earned himself a little R&R. Booting up TeamSpeak and loading his character he got ready to play.
"Alright, you guys here?"

[Dire Hoef]

“I thought you said you had everything under control? Why are representatives of small companies knocking down my front door asking as to where their money went? You’re not pulling out on me are you Bearnard?”

“Of course not. I just rerouted their money to their secondary banking account. Each company has a secondary banking account and so I decided to pull a little trick on them and told them that their money was in their primary banking account when really it is in their secondary banking account.”

“So… Let me get this straight,” there was long and frustrated sigh, “You thought it was good idea to simply reroute the money to their secondary account when you told them it was in their primary account? You’re going to get this company killed you know that right?”

“Don’t worry Kyle. I have this under control.”

“You say that every time,” there was another long and frustrated sigh.

“But have you seen any of the work I have done? I’ve written up numerous reports about the cancelation offer for our company’s newest generation of workers. More workers mean more money, but there is a giant downside to that. These workers are supposedly loose-cannons and will work on their own accord. So that’s why I decided to write up those reports.”

“However the reports are not helping that situation let alone this one,” there was a distinct series of coughs that caught Bearnard by the balls.

“You alright there Kyle?”

“Y-Yeah,” there was a pause, “I’m fine… Just a little cold is all…”

“Yeah, yeah,” Bearnard looked over at the city passing by, “You make sure you’re clean before I arrive alright?”

“Alright,” there was another pause, “I’ll kick out these representatives so that we can prepare for the company meeting on what to do next with the market that seems to be crashing.”

“Fine. Bearnard out,” he hung up.

Five minutes of leisure driving later, Bearnard Sgèin turned left on Saint Clare to find that the skyscraper containing his friend's company was standing tall and proud amongst the others who seem to look towards the building with unrelenting intent. Bearnard came up to the curb and parallel parked his vehicle in-between a BMW and a Volkswagen. He sighed as he turned the vehicle off and stepped out of his vehicle only to be greeted by a coughing pedestrian. “Hey watch it you fucking idiot,” said Bearnard [aggressively] who pushed the pedestrian out the way. The pedestrian stumbled over several feet before shaking his head and walking on. Bearnard fixed his sports-coat and tie before walking into the lobby of the building Kyle was supposed to meet him in. He had only recently arrived in Australia a couple nights ago. He had spent most of the year in Norway figuring out the market there, but Kyle had called him to Australia in order to seal a few deals and return to Norway to fix the market-place.

Bearnard looked over at the woman manning the front desk. His swift movements came forth to the woman with his eyes lying upon her’s, “Floor 32. Bearnard.” “I’ll notify Mr. Cesar about your arrival,” said the woman before gesturing gently towards the elevator. “Thank you,” nodded Bearnard before moving to the elevator and pressing the “32” button on the elevator floor module. The doors closed, but another individual had slipped through and pressed the “29” button on the elevator floor module. Bearnard looked at the individual with a confused look before shaking his head with a frustrated look upon his face.

Three long minutes later, Bearnard finally reached the 32nd floor of the building leaving the individual behind. Stepping onto the floor he walked down the hallway in a brisk leisure as though he seemed comfortable in his strides, but at the same time he was trying to achieve punctuality. Bearnard came to a set of brown [wonderfully crafted] wooden doors with silver-ish doorknobs that seemed to be crafted by God himself. Bearnard settled a hand upon the right door knob when he heard a set of voices speaking in a frantic tone within the room. Bearnard knew he was going to like this venture.

Bearnard stepped into the room to find five people standing around a masterfully crafted desk and yelling at the man sitting at the desk. ‘Dammit Kyle,’ thought Bearnard as he gently walked over and settled his briefcase on the coffee table in the middle of the room. The thud of the briefcase was so loud that it caught the attention of all six people. “Now then,” said Bearnard as he leaned back on the couch, “Let’s get down to business shall we?”

[Heir of Void]

The interior of the lobby was dark and vacant of life, with the smell of cheap popcorn, detergent and sweat dominated all other senses while one was completely engulfed by the lightless emptiness that marked the theatre after closing hours. Collin navigated the path from the tech booth to a door that would be marked "backstage" (if it weren't so dark) on pure muscle memory. Some would say that the young tech knew the place like the back of her own hand, but they'd be wrong. She knew the layout like she knew vision as a sense itself, and the fact that she did made her all the more annoyed that she'd been in this job for so long. Sighing to herself in frustration, McCarrin gently pushed open the door and made her way to the staff lockers.

Last night had been the matinee showing, and some of the major lighting effects had finally gone bust after being overused for so long without replacement. The theatre itself wasn't exactly rolling in dough, and it had been some time since the last annual patron fee collection, so it often fell to people like Collin to patch things up as best they could. Another thing about the "Turnhat Theatre" was that the owners both didn't believe in overtime pay, and ran a monopoly on cheap professional performances. As such, it wasn't out of the norm for the young woman to supplement her income by using less legal means.

Petty cons, lifting wallets and spare objects from patrons' coats as they meandered inside, pawning "lost" phones and jewelry- she wasn't above any of it. The rich bastards could do without a fifth zPhone that they only used for business calls. This place -No, scratch that. This whole city- was a tourist trap after all, and not expecting a few strings attached to that kind of title might as well be declaring fiscal forfeit and open range on their pocketbooks.....and Collin just happened to be in the market for a little more of a paycheck.

Her eyes burning as she flipped on the fluorescent lighting, the bulbs flickering hesitantly but eventually deciding to stay on. Her locker received nothing but a brief pat down, shedding a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, before once again fading into the back of Collin's mind as the tech went to the roof to light up. The sunlight was deadly, and served as a herald of how she spent way too much time and effort on this gaudy trash heap. She resolved to make it up to herself within the next couple of days, following a penny-pinching or two.

McCarrin took a last, long drag and then flicked the remaining lit butt into the crowd below, before stepping quickly back into the darkness to pick up her things.

[MidKnight]

09:00 AM

"Mom, I'll be fine, it's only a temporary job....I know it's risky....mom, I said don't worry...but I gotta go, I'm about to clock in...okay love you too mom, bye." Trey finished his conversation with his mother and gives a soft sigh as he took his time card and placed it under the time clock and heard the sound of a stamp pressing on his card.

He was running a little late today because of his own alarm clock didn't set off and he rushed the best he can. He managed to dress himself proper with his uniform before taking off from his small apartment. When he arrived, he found the others guards who were already clocked in drinking coffee, but he himself had a Red bull in one hand and his lunch in the other.

The late shift was yawning when they see their relievers. "Long night fellows?" One of the day shift guards asked. "Yeah...nothing special went on." There was another yawn, hearing the sounds of yawning tempted to make himself yawn as well. But he avoided them by taking a sip from his Red bull and placed his lunch in the fridge in the lounge. He noticed the board with every Security officer's name on it and each one labeled which post to be in. He took a look a the board and saw his post was in the lobby lounge. He groans a bit and one of the others heard him. "Whats wrong?" They asked, "I don't like the lounge, I prefer walking around in recreation areas." He heard a laugh and then felt a pat on his back. "Hey don't worry, it takes time to get use to it."

He grabbed a flashlight on the table and a radio that was plugged in for charging like the rest and placed it on his waist belt buckle. He looked around the day shift guards were already leaving to their post. Trey quickly drinks the rest of his energy drink and dumped the can in the trash. He walked out rather quickly, then be late once more. He found the lobby area and found the desk to be behind in. Though he was not the only guard behind the desk, another was his friend who sitting down and tapped on a clipboard with a pencil. "A little late aren't you?"

Trey sighs as he sat down and pushed his tie down behind the desk and pushed the seat further in as he looked at the computer and down to his own paperwork. "Yeah sorry about that, I over slept." He shrugged and started writing down on the clip board of his time arrival. "So...anything new?" He would asked, making conversation to pass the time as the lobby was a little slow.

[G]

February 2nd, 2015.
10:00 am.

Raymond's House - Raymond.

Raymonds' email was suspiciously absent of replies; it didn't usually take his online buddies so long to respond, eager as they always were for their next adventure. The familiar two-tone beep that alerted him to a new instant message came eventually though; when he opened it, he would see a message from one of his contacts.

Hey Ray! Get online already, and help me out here - I've been K.O'd by this bitch of a boss like seven times, and she's all that's standing between me and level thirty-five! I need backup! Don't leave me hangin', buddy! -Hammer.

The man would know instantly what MMORPG she was talking about - his online friend had been obsessed with her new find; 'Kings and Gods,' for months, and had been over the moon when she'd convinced him to try it out. She was no doubt already equipped, headset on, and hassling the two other members of the party she'd created to help her out, too.

-

Online - Neko and Hammer.

"Here!"Hammer's response to Neko's greeting was almost instant - she was already up and online. Grinning at her friends' arrival, though he couldn't see it, she didn't waste a second before launching into a tirade about the boss-creature she was having so much trouble with.

"And I've already IM'd Ray, and between us and Elton.. Elton? You still there buddy?"

"I'm here - let's do this!" The excitable voice was instantly recognisable- Hammer didn't think she knew anyone who got so excited over gaming, not even herself; and that was saying something, considering she did very little else.

"Just give me a sec guys, my mum's bringing me some breakfast. MUM!" The pretty blonde winced as Elton's voice rose to a shout, obviously forgetting that his microphone was still so close to his mouth. There was a pause, then a second, more questioning call. "Mum? Oh, there you are. I thought you were bringing me... mum? Are you okay?"

A long pause this time.

"What's going on, buddy? Your mum alright? Let's do this!" Hammer prompted, impatient for the fun to begin.

"Just give me a second peeps. She looks sick, or something. Mum? What are you... jesus, Mum! She just fucking bit me! Jesus fucking christ..."

Through the tinny speakers both users wore over their ears, there was the sound of a scuffle. A loud thump, a garbled cry... then static.

"Okay... what the fuck just happened? Elton? Neko? If this is a prank, it's not funny."

-

Paradise High School - Izzy and Hiro.

Izzy was trying to pay attention. Really she was! But maths had never been her favourite subject, and the boy sitting right behind her was talking loudly to his friends, his voice drilling into her ears and drowning out the teachers' explanation of... whatever the heck it was he was scrawling on the board. When were they ever gonna use this stuff, anyway?!

"And then he bit me!" Ciara and her gaggle of girlfriends all gasped on queue, looking appropriately horrified and disgusted as the teen held out his arm, looking strangely triumphant; obviously having another reason to be the centre of attention was higher on his list of priorities than being bitten by a homeless man on the way to school that morning. Obviously he hadn't had a chance to sink his teeth in, before the young boy had made his escape, but though the bite was shallow it looked nasty, the skin beginning to take on a nasty shade of grey around the room.
"Keep that away from me!" Ciara wrinkled her nose, "disgusting!" As she turned her head away, her friends followed suit, and the boy looked rather forlorn.

He looks sort of sick.. he should probably go to the nurse. Issy thought, having been unable to resist turning to follow the conversation. But she wasn't the type to say something, and even less so when a sharp word from the teacher called her attention to the front again. Intent on her studies - or at least, not getting into trouble - she didn't witness the increasing paleness of the boys' face, or the moment when he drooped, his head falling to rest against the desk.

-

The City Street - Jen, Bearnard, McCarrin and Trey.

The radio blared loudly in the lobby of the hotel, and for anyone paying attention, the news was becoming increasingly worrying. Was it normal, for their to be so many accidents in just one morning? Sure, the revelry and recklessness that came part and parcel with a tourist town might mean an increased rate of accidents, and even fatalities - but even for a place like this, it seemed a little above the norm.

As if to accentuate that very point, the wail of an ambulance began outside, it's siren growing steadily louder as it raced down the main street of the city, where many of the shops and business were located. It didn't get far, though - though nothing seemed to hinder the vehicle, it swerved suddenly, and with a screech of tires and the smell of burning rubber, it began to careen out of control, scattering the crowds on the sidewalk before it came to a violent halt as it collided with the window of a coffee shop. The shattering of glass and crunch of metal against brick could be heard at least a block away, amid the shocked screams of those who had been lucky enough not to be caught in the vans' warpath. Several had not shared the luck of the masses; a man lay in the street, his legs twisted in a way that made it clear they were broken, twitching violently. Behind him, two more bodies were motionless; one a young woman still in the heels and svelte, black dress she'd worn to a nightclub the evening before, the other an elderly gentleman, the remains of his bike twisted around him where he lay.

The siren continued its wail, though the sound was distorted; speakers or mechanism had been partially broken in the crash. The windshield was shattered, darkened from the inside with an ominous shade of red. Some brave souls edged closer, attempting to make out anyone alive still in the wreckage - things looked grim for the driver, but perhaps someone in the back? As if on queue, there was a thump at the closed door; just one at first. Then again, and again - a violent hammering that caused the onlookers to pause. No one ran to open it, yet, though some seemed as though they might at any second.

[Dire Hoef]

The unexpected turned to the expected…

“What the hell,” said Kyle under his breath as he slowly turned around to the sight below; thirty-two stories below. Silence crept its way into the throats of the representatives. No one, absolutely no one, made a single move. All eyes, in this room, were on the ambulance as spectators would come closer and closer to the wreckage. Bearnard stared at the representatives before his eyes wandered towards Kyle who then caught his gazed as gestured towards the window. Bearnard was suspicious as to the distorted sound the ambulance, but nothing would of prepare him for the sight that he would indulge in. Bearnard slowly closed his briefcase; his eyes on Kyle as the expression slowly changed from horror to awestruck. Bearnard's slow and cautious footsteps were the only sounds that were present in the room as everyone kept their eye on the coming storm. ‘What the hell is going,’ thought Bearnard as he came over to the windows that overlooked the streets below; the scene of the coming storm. Kyle glanced at Bearnard, but Bearnard didn’t notice. Bearnard settled his hand on the window with his eyes trained on the ambulance. Kyle stood up; a few eyes lingered on him. Kyle stepped towards Bearnard and settled a hand on his shoulder, “Hey… Are… Are you alright?” Voices echoed in Bearnard’s mind, as though they were the voices of the future. They were calling to him; death they said. Other synonyms for death echoed in his mind – fading in and out. Before long the voices had dissipated. This caused Bearnard to return to reality.

“Yeah,” Bearnard paused, “I’m fine… I just got caught up in the moment is all…” These words were hardly soothing to the tension that was in air. It was as though the air itself was swaying with ferocity and decay. None of the representatives made a move to speak – all of their eyes were trained on the ambulance as everyone in the room could feel that the atmosphere was starting to change in gradual succession. Perhaps it would soon become rapid, but no one can say for sure. “Do you have any idea of what’s going on,” Kyle asked, “Those poor people...” A female representative covered her mouth as she finally let her eyes wander the scene and noticed the crude commodities that were left from the runaway ambulance. Bearnard couldn’t bear to look at the death of these innocent bystanders, but something had crept at him – urging him almost. Was it death? Or was it the thought of death? He didn’t know, but he was tempted to go down there and examine the scene – for himself. However the only thing that was keeping him from bracing impact was the fact that… He was scared… He, just like everyone else in the room and on the street below, was scared. He didn’t know what to do or how to think. His thoughts were only surrounded on death and pestilence. Why pestilence? Why was decay on his mind? He didn’t know. He didn’t want to know. Bearnard’s right eye was the first eye to spot something off about Kyle. He was pale. More pale than yesterday. Why was he so pale? Why did he still have strength to stand? Bearnard couldn’t answer these questions either. However Bearnard said nothing of it as his eyes returned to the scene below.

[Sonic]

Ray had received the email at the most inopportune time—in the bathroom with his shorts down and the latest issue of Playboy magazine laying on his lap.

The message was from Hammer: “Hey Ray! Get online already, and help me out here - I've been K.O'd by this bitch of a boss like seven times, and she's all that's standing between me and level thirty-five! I need backup! Don't leave me hangin', buddy!” -Hammer.

Ray had never met Hammer in real life, but he imagined her as a blonde with big tits and an even bigger ass—the Marilyn Munroe of the 21st century. This was why Ray loved helping Hamer. If you help a woman, then naturally they’ll sleep with you. Hamlet was right when he said, “Frailty!—thy name is woman!”

He smirked, and logged into Kings and Gods—obviously that was the game she was talking about—and sent Hammer an email.

“Anything for you, love. I’ll protect you with my life.”

Women loved protective men. It was all part of their human nature.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Jordan, his mother was lain prostrated upon the floor, her eyes looking upwards exultantly, like Christ looking towards God for forgiveness. Like someone looking back on their life.

[CryoLilly]

Kiira woke up to the sun streaming through the open blinds in a room that wasn't her's. She rolled over groggily, patting down the pile of clothes next to the bed to find her phone. Bringing the screen close to her face, she stared at the time. 8:45. Shit, she thought, then noticed the battery level, 40%. Then, for the first time, she noticed the other girl laying in bed beside her, and some hazy memories started to come back to her from the night before. Then the headache hit her like a truck. Sitting up, she pressed her hands to the side of her head, trying to suppress the feeling of her skull splitting open. She searched around for water, and failing to find any, decided to pull her clothes on and head out. She never liked the mornings, that was when everything had to be real. As she opened the door, she heard the girl, still sleeping, cough and begin to stir. Quietly, she slipped out and closed the door.

She sat outside and pulled on her boots, not wanting to wake the other, she'd carried them out of the house. Rubbing her eyes in the sun, she undid the top two buttons on her shirt, considering how warm the day was, and she loosened her tie so that it was hanging slightly off kilter. Standing up, she stretched in the morning sun. If she hadn't been so damn hungover, it'd have been a nice morning, with the sun just beginning to warm up. She started walking along the street, in the general direction of home, generally just trying to get to her own bed, and hopefully to get back to writing. She passed right by a starbucks, and ducked in. Thank god there's a short line. she thought, waiting behind the other two people. It was about 9 now, she still had a long day ahead of her.

"Large black coffee." she said as she moved up to the counter, eyes down. She pulled out her wallet and dropped a ten on the table. "Keep the change," she said looking up at the barista. Then she walked over to where they'd give her the coffee, massaging her temples. Then she sat at an empty table in the corner of the store, head down, nursing her coffee. She looked around at the people rushing in and out of the store. Then she noticed a familiar face.
"Kiira!" Oh god, he'd noticed her too. One of the people who she studied with, or more accurately, who she tried to leave behind when she stopped going to school.
"Jason." she said, gritting her teeth and nodding curtly as he sat down. "Not really in the mood for chit-chat."
"Just give me a minute, we thought you went missing, we thought you might have died or something!" he said.
"Ever given a consideration that I wanted you to think that?" she said. "Please, leave, I stopped going to school for a reason, but I don't have to tell you why."
"Hey, it's just good to see you again. Anything I can say to our friends in school?"
"Just don't mention you saw me. It's easier like that."
"Are you still working on that stupid writing project?"

Kiira's head snapped around, staring him down. "Leave. Now."

[Naraness]

http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/HiroyukiElm_zpsuode3bjw.png


The tardy bell was ringing just as Hiro slid into class, hoping not to be noticed. He chose a seat in the back and gently dropped his backpack at his feet. Thinking he'd gotten away with being late, he smiled and got his books out. Math wasn't exactly his favorite subject, but it was definitely in the top three. His dad was a wonderful teacher, and he'd helped Hiro through every mathematical hiccup he'd ever come across. His mom tried her best to help too, but... Well, she wasn't so great when it came to that stuff. On the other hand, she made a killer PB&J. The teenage boy already felt hungry for lunch.

"Late again, Mr. Elm?" The teacher, Mrs. Anderson, chided with a kind smile. Hiro smiled back, a blush rising to the tips of his ears. "Alright, let's get started, everyone."

With that, the boy grinned, happy as ever. It seemed that some of his teachers just couldn't be mad at him, and boy was he thankful! Or else he'd have been given detention for being late several times already. But what he lacked in promptness, he made up for by paying attention. His eyes were glued on the teacher and her chalkboard as class began. Hiro swiftly pulled out his notebook, and his pencil scratched at the paper, jotting down his every thought and note. He even went as far as to follow along with the teacher as she demonstrated math problems, and attempted to complete them before she did. Success came sparsely, but it was so sweet when it did!

In fact, Hiro was so caught up in the lesson that he didn't even notice the gaggle of girls gossiping a few seats away. Somewhere in his subconscious he knew that there was a younger boy among them, showing them something that made them recoil and murmur in concern. Hiro figured that someone had snuck a bug into the room again... I wish they'd shush so I can concentrate. A sigh escaped his lips and the corner of his mouth creased with a slight frown.

The voices soon quieted down, and the class returned to respectfully listening (Or at least, quietly not paying attention) to the teacher. Hiro was left once again with his thoughts, the notepad, and the increasingly repetitive math problems.

A soft thud awoke him from his thoughts, and he glanced over at the boy who had been garnering attention before. His head had sunk to the desk, and he was motionless. "Um... Mrs. Anderson?" Hiro hesitantly raised his hand. "I think... Billy fell asleep." It was strange, though. As he watched the boy, he couldn't see the rise and fall of his shoulders, as one would expect from a sleeping teenager. He didn't look like he was breathing. Hiro blinked a few times. Surely Billy just didn't look like he was breathing. He was probably fine. At least, that's what Hiro would have thought, if not for witnessing the terrible paleness that had overtaken his face. "I don't think he's okay." Concern spilled from Hiro's mouth.



http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/JennyWhite_zpste9dmarh.png

She was about ten minutes into her shift when the sirens started wailing down the street. It wasn't uncommon to hear such a thing in the city, but Jen always got the chills when she heard the dreadful sound of emergency vehicles. It meant that someone was hurt, or somewhere there was distress... It reminded her that all was not right in the world.

"Large black coffee."

The customer's order snapped her out of her thoughts. Jen immediately smiled brightly, her eyes focusing on the woman standing across the counter from her. She had short blonde hair and grayish eyes, all in all a very pretty combination. She reminded Jen of her friend Alyssa, who had moved to the States. "Venti coffee, no creamer or sweetener coming up." Jenny smiled again, getting a cup out. "Can I get a name for that..?" But the girl had already continued on, leaving a ten dollar bill behind. Jen quickly deposited the bill into the cash register, printing out a receipt.

Anna had already left and George was yet to arrive for work, so Jenny was a little hard pressed for time with only on other employee in the cafe. "Abby, come take over the register for me, I need to get to the drinks." With that, she slid over to the little kitchen area, swiftly fulfilling the most recent order and moving to the counter where the blonde was waiting. "Here you are, ma'am. Would you like your receipt..?" It was then that she noticed the woman was engaged in an argument with a man who had come to greet her. Huh, not too friendly? She frowned slightly. She waited, concerned, glancing out the window. The sirens had gotten incredibly loud, and she realized why. They'd stopped just twenty yards past the Starbucks entrance at the foot of a tall skyscraper. There was an awful scene there, and she looked away at the sight of blood and debris all over the road.

"Oh. my." Jen whispered, a sick feeling settling in her stomach.

[BabyRedFox]

Raymond was perplexed, why weren't they responding? Usually his friends responded right away, especially when it came to gaming. He got up from the dining room table and took a look at the newspaper. There it was, circled with a red marker. The accounting job that Stella was applying for. Oh, he did hope that she would get this job. He got himself a glass of lemonade from the fridge, when all of a sudden, his computer gave a little beep. It was an IM from his friend Hammer from the internet.

Hey Ray! Get online already, and help me out here - I've been K.O'd by this bitch of a boss like seven times, and she's all that's standing between me and level thirty-five! I need backup! Don't leave me hangin', buddy! -Hammer.

Raymond chuckled lightly to himself. Nothing to calm his nerves like a good video game. He clicked on his headset and logged on.

"Hey, Hammer, I'm on. Just took the girls to school. Alright, where are you? I'll teleport to you, just let me know where you are. Ooh, are you on the demon mage in Gerüdian Field? I'm on my way."

He moved his character to the field where the boss was. Man, high level! This was going to be nasty. His character was a sorcerer, so he readied his magic missile and his bark skin spells. He rushed into the action just as Hammer was starting to say something about her mom, but he was too focused to listen. Just that second, the phone rang.

"Hold up, guys, I have to take this. Just leave my character, I'll respawn when I get back."

Raymond got up from the chair and picked up the phone; it was Stella, she was crying frantically.

"Raymond! It's Stella, I was on my way to the office; I need you to come pick me up; th-there was just an accident, th-there's blood everywhere, I-I can't get a cab right now, I need you to come a-and get me, I'm near the Starbucks-"

Raymond said to her reassuringly, "Don't worry, hon, I'm on my way. Just calm down, sweetheart, I'm coming right away, I'll be there as fast as I can, ok?"

"Ok, please hurry, I'm going into the Starbucks to wait, but just...hurry up, okay?"

"Of course, I'm walking out the door right now."

Without saying goodbye to his online friends, Raymond quickly dressed in a collared shirt and jeans and got in his car to pick up his wife. All the while, he was worried about her. His thoughts also drifted to his daughters, Chelsy and Letty. Their school was near that area, he knew the teacher well, that if anything were to happen, his children would be safe. He decided he might pick them up anyway, if it was all as bad as his wife had made it seem.

When he arrived at the scene, he saw immediately what his wife meant. Blood, bodies. It was horrific. He parked his car a block away at the greeting card store and made his way toward the scene. As soon as the Starbucks where his wife was waiting, surely scared to death, an official stopped him.

"I'm sorry sir, this area is restricted at the moment."

"My wife is over there, I need to get to the coffee shop!" Raymond yelled above the noise of the sirens. His love, scared to death, waiting for him, so close, and all he wanted to do was wrap his arms around her and tell her it was all going to be okay.

[Naraness]

http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/JennyWhite_zpste9dmarh.png

"What in the world?" It had only been a few moments since she noticed the terrible scene outside, when law enforcement entered the building and informed everyone that the café was on lockdown. Jen's mouth dropped open in shock. "But, why?" She asked, putting the coffee down and coming out from behind the counter. The customers were beginning to panic, and she heard a few fragile items shatter on the ground. Officers urged everyone to stay calm, and ensured her that things would be under control soon.

Already, she could see family members trying to get to each other through the glass. Jenny's fingers started trembling. She didn't know what to do. What could possibly be happening that they couldn't leave the coffee shop? Was this more than just a car crash? Was it terrorism? Was there a gas leak? Was there a possibility that they could all be killed? That's nonsense, Jen. She assured herself. The police have it under control, everything will be fine. It's probably just protocol Yeah, protocol.

"E-everyone, it'll be okay." She spoke up. "Come on now, there's nothing to worry about. Please, sit down. Can I get anything for anyone? Coffee does help to calm nerves... Hehe. Muffin, maybe?" She tried to smile, tried to be bright, but she was scared. The customers ignored her and continue on, their voices growing louder in worry and concern. Near the window there was a woman, trying desperately to get to a person Jenny could only assume was her husband. Her heartstrings tugged. Could she do anything to help? It wasn't likely. But still, she decided to try. Moving towards the window, her hands trembled visibly. What could she possibly say or do to make this any better? It was then that she remembered the back door. Maybe the police hadn't covered it yet.

Jen hesitated, then gently placed her hand on the woman's shoulder. She spoke softly, so the other customers wouldn't hear her. "Ma'am, I can get you out through the back door if you'd like. We'll need to be quiet though, so the others don't rush out and hurt one another." Jen swallowed. Was it right to do this? What if there was a reason they should stay inside? Maybe it really was safer in here.

[MidKnight]

Trey was sitting in his chair when he heard the commotion of guests quickly moving towards the windows and looked towards a certain direction. He looked towards his radio. He grabbed it and turned it on to hear anything new going on. When he did, he heard the other guards calling in and making responsive notions. Some of them were saying something a crash collision and people were injured. Trey stood up and looked towards where the commotion was and looked to his partner. "What do you think? Should we help?" He asked. His partner stood up as well and looked towards the windows where everyone was standing. "It's not in our position to say." He said.

Trey looked at him then back to the window. He steps away from the desk to get a closer look towards where everyone was looking to. When he saw the wreckage, he was a little shocked to see what damage it has done. He was breathing slowly and felt his heart beating quick and blood pumping faster then usual. He looked to his partner and called out to him. "Hey! I'm going to go and help them out!" His partner tried to stop him, but it was too late. Trey had already left the building with his radio still attached to him and was in the streets heading towards the accident.

[CryoLilly]

The sirens broke Kiira out of her conversation, and she looked outside at the growing chaos. The carnage in the street was partly masked by the people milling around, and she stood quickly, chair clattering backwards. She ran a hand through her hair and she walked towards the windows at the front of the building. Something sounded wrong about the siren. She placed her fingers on the glass, staring out intently, it seemed a bit unreal, maybe it had to do with her still present headache and the odd sounding siren coming from the wreck of the ambulance, but it almost felt like a dream, or like she was watching a movie taking place on the other side of the glass. But this was not just a movie, and whatever was going on, she wasn't safe in a theatre or on her couch. Whatever took place, she would be involved.

As she realized that, she felt a need to get out. It was an almost claustrophobic feeling. She just had to get out of the building, into the open air, into the sun, and hopefully home, away from whatever was happening. She moved towards the door, but the police burst in, telling them that they couldn't leave. She approached the officer who had said such. "Why the hell can't I leave? A stupid car crash is no reason to keep a whole coffee shop cooped up inside. I have places to be, people to get away from." she said, indignant.

The officer just looked at her and frowned. "I'm sorry miss, but we can't let you leave at the moment." His deadpan tone just annoyed Kiira even more, but she realized that she wouldn't be able to get out of the coffee shop, at least not through the front. The barista looked like she was trying to help out, but it didn't seem like she had the lung power to overcome the chaos that was now beginning to grow within the shop. Everyone looked about as happy as she was to be stuck there, no matter if they weren't going to leave, if they were told they weren't allowed to, it would certainly rile some of them, and it was. She felt a bit bad for the other girl, but she wasn't going to speak up, better if there was a bit of chaos in the shop, it'd be easier to get out. Hopefully.

She went back over towards the window looking out to see what would happen outside. Then she noticed the same barista from before talking softly to a woman who seemed to desperately want to leave. She couldn't quite tell what was said, but she might have heard the phrase "back door." It was worth a shot. She'd see where they went, and if they headed towards the back of the shop, she'd try to follow discretely. Not wanting to draw attention to herself, she turned back to look outside, keeping the pair in the corner of her eye.

[G]

Paradise High School - Izzy and Hiro

"I don't think he's okay..."

The concerned statement pulled Izzy's attention from the front of the class (let's face it, it hadn't been all that concreted there anyway) to turn again to the back of the room, first at the source of the voice - a boy her age who she remembered was named Hiro, though she didn't know him well enough to know any more than that - and then to the subject of his ashen-faced expression. The full-of-himself boy who'd just a moment ago been boisterously, and proudly showing off that morning's battle wound was slumped on his desk, motionless.

"Asleep in class again, Billy Baron!" The teachers' initial reaction was stern as she strode over to rap her knuckles sharply on the desk beside the boys down-turned face, clearly not sharing Hiro's concern.

"Billy?" The woman frowned, then reached out a hand to grasp the boys' shoulder, giving it a light shake. When he made no response, her expression paled to match Hiro's own, and she shook him a little more firmly.

A raspy, muffled breath came then from the otherwise motionless boy, and Mrs. Anderson's relief was evident, though the worry didn't disappear from her face. "Ciara, call the nurse. No, don't gather over here!" she halted several students who had stood up from their chairs, approaching the distraction with interest, "we don't know if it's contagious, whatever is wrong with him. Did anyone know he was ill? He seemed fine when he came in this morning..."

The last words were a statement to herself, it seemed. Ciara, obviously reluctant to leave for the sickbay without first finding out what the gossip was, approached the teacher, an eager-to-help expression on her face.

"A homeless man bit him on the way to school this morning. I saw it on his arm," she pointed, "maybe he's got some kind of weird STI or something." Her fan club giggled, though it was clear some of their hearts weren't in it.

"Bit him! That should definitely have been disinfecte... ARGH!"

Everything happened in a few short seconds - Mrs. Anderson reached out to turn over Billy's arm, where the bite was revealed to have grown septic in the short time since the students had seen it last - the skin was black and appeared almost rotten, and the wound itself was a bitter, angry red. At the same time, Billy had shot upright, lunging upwards to fix his teeth on the teachers' exposed collarbone, gnawing hungrily into the soft skin. Ciara screamed and stumbled backward, falling over the chair behind her to sprawl on the floor. For a moment, it seemed certain that the struggling maths' teacher would be able to fight her student off, but her unwillingness to actually physically hurt him teamed with her absolute shock at the situation caused her to panic instead, and blood was streaming down the front of her sundress thick and fast, the colour draining from her face. The class had erupted into a panic, the general line of thought seeming to be - run! Though some pupils, Izzy included, still sat motionless in their seats, staring at the scene like deer into headlights.

The teacher collapsed, and Billy went down with her, still latched on with his teeth to her neck. The boy looked up, cheeks stuffed with Mrs. Anderson, to peer around the room, then descended for another bite.

-


The City Street - Jen, Bearnard, Mcarrin, Trey, Kiira and Raymond


As some officers were quickly moving to secure the area, two more were approaching the wrecked ambulance. They moved cautiously but quickly; the battering from inside the closed back doors was growing more frantic, and it seemed only evident to assume someone was gravely injured inside. It didn't seem to have occured to either of them that the ambulance doors would surely easily unlock from within, but perhaps they had thought of that, and simply assumed the injured person was panicked, unable to think reasonably.

They were at least partially right.

As Trey ran toward the scene, he would have a clear view of what happened as the first officer reached the van, his arm outstretched to open the left hand door. No sooner than the latch was freed, both doors burst open with incredible force, and the man was knocked backward as a figure from within - a lean woman in a flimsy hospital gown - leapt from the back and atop him, tearing at his vest in a futile attack - the Kevlar was too strong for her hands to break through. The officer's partner, close behind, panicked, scrabbling for his taser. Lifting the weapon, he shot it at the enraged patient, heedless of the fact that his friend, in such proximity, would surely feel the current too. But though both shook and trembled with the force of the electricity, only the officer went limp; perhaps it was a blessing, for the woman leaned down to latch her mouth over his face, tearing away the mans' nose and part of his cheek with an animalistic strength far greater than she should have possessed. The remaining policeman took several steps backward, unconsciously dropping the weapon he held before cowardice and shock got the better of him, and he turned tail and fled through the crowd.

On the street beyond, three formerly motionless figures began to stir where they lay.

[MidKnight]

When Trey had seen the attacks. The scene of their throats being ripped off and blood poured everywhere. Trey was frightened and was startled at what was happening. He started to move slowly back to the building and grabbing his radio. "Lock....lock down the building." He managed to say into the radio. "Lock it down!" He hollered and started to run back to the building and spotted the other guard. "What's going on?" He asked, Trey simply pushed him back inside and closed the door behind him. Grabbing the keys off of his fellow co-worker and locked the glass doors. His partner was asking questions which seemed to be ignored for quite a bit. "What's going on out there? What's happening?!"

Trey finally gathered his bearings and grabbed his flash light from behind the desk and hoisted to his side. "I don't know man, all I seen was some a police officer's nose getting ripped off and there's blood everywhere." He looked towards the elevator which made a beep sound and seen his superior walked out. "What' going on?! Who called 'Lock down'??" He demanded. Trey raised his hand. "Sir...there are people out there....eating each other....I called it so they won't come in here and maybe until help arrives?" Trey was still shaken up and couldn't look at his superior. Who shook his head and walked towards the glass. "I don't see anyone eating each other out there."

[Dire Hoef]

A flurry of emotions swirled and blew within the room causing mass hysteria and panic amongst the business associates…

Bearnard stepped back a few steps staring down at the developing scene in awe inspiring fear. ‘What the hell is going on,’ Bearnard thought as he was taken aback by the patient’s ferocity and animalistic behavior. It was unsettling to the eyes and most likely unsettling to the stomach, because Bearnard could hear one of the business associates regurgitate their brunch or their breakfast in the background. It was most certainly not a good sound to hear in a life-threatening situation where you have cannibalistic humans feasting on their brethren. It was very unsettling to Bearnard that such a behavior existed in Australia. Why did he come here when there was a chance this sort of situation could occur without notice? Was that the inevitability of fate? Bearnard didn’t care for the answer, but the questions did plague his mind as he quickly exchanged eye contact to the cannibalistic human to the three bodies that were left obscure from the tire tracks of the ambulance. Bearnard assumed those were the individuals who were rendered helpless due to the path of the ambulance. Bearnard didn’t like those odds. These people were sick to the most extreme degree. Humans feasting on humans? What a preposterous thing to think of. However the reality was feasting right before them, and Bearnard didn’t like what he was seeing. Bearnard wanted to do something about it, but knew if he did anything it would result in some further complications that will derail the matter at hand.

“Bearnard,” Kyle paused as he coughed up some saliva, “What the hell is going on man? Why are those people eating other people?” Bearnard took a gander at Kyle as he started to notice that Kyle was weak in the legs – physically speaking. “I don’t know Kyle,” Bearnard turned his body [partially] towards Kyle, but his eyes were on the scene below, “Why don’t you sit… Down…” Bearnard’s eyes slowly trailed from the scene below to Kyle who was having trouble keeping his balance and nearly fell onto the window. Bearnard caught him, reluctantly, and helped him to his swivel chair where Kyle leaned his head back – as though he were in agonizing pain. “Did I tell you,” Kyle paused fitting in a cough or two, “I was sick…” “Well obviously,” said Bearnard [finally taking his eyes away from the scene], “Aren’t you always sick?” Kyle gave a sickly chuckle before looking at the scene below from his chair, “That may be true but this time,” A brutal series of coughs came into effect, “It’s different.” “What do you mean different,” asked Bearnard in confusion, “Are you alright?” “Yeah,” another brutal series of coughs that were coming in and it led to the point where blood was present, “I’m fine. I can live.” Bearnard shook his head when he felt the bite mark on the man’s shoulder [when putting his hand there]. Bearnard pulled his hand away immediately after touching him and before long Kyle had passed out having his head hange low before falling out the chair and onto the polished floor with a thud. The business associates were frightened to death – some screamed and others stared on in eager silence. Bearnard knelt to help Kyle up and put him back in the chair, but something stopped him. Something caught his eye that caused him to back away. His body was slowly stirring with intervals of gyration getting more and more exotic and hectic the longer it went on. Bearnard backed away slowly with fear covering his expression. “The hell,” muttered Bearnard as the intervals slowly ceased with heavy, decayed, breathing coming from Kyle. Bearnard wasn’t sure what was happening to Kyle but Bearnard didn’t want to stick around to find out. Bearnard returned to his brief case picking it up and walking out of the office with brisk motion – leaving the associates there. It was certainly [both] a bad move and good move. However he didn’t care nor did he want to care.

[Naraness]

http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/HiroyukiElm_zpsuode3bjw.png

"Holy mother of Doritos!" Hiro leapt out of his seat faster than he thought possible. Somehow he wound up halfway across the room, yet his eyes stayed locked on the terrible, nightmarish thing in front of him. If he wasn't mistaken, Billy was eating Mrs. Anderson. There was blood everywhere. His mind was in a whirl, refusing to accept the reality in front of his very eyes. "Oh God." His body shook violently. All around the room, students were either running for their lives or frozen in place; apparently unable to take in what they were seeing just as he was. After a terrifying two seconds, Hiroyuki forced himself to act. "Don't just stand there!" He screamed, the words coming out much more girlishly than he anticipated. "Get up, RUN!" He reached for the nearest student, a girl wearing pigtails whose name he couldn't remember at the moment.

Hiro literally pulled her from her seat, hoping to wake her from her daze. "Go, go!" He shouted, pulling her towards the door. Hiro looked back, thinking to try and help the others. But the fear inside of him was too much. He couldn't do it. He looked at the red scene of death behind him, and knew that there was no way he would take another step back into the room. His life depended on getting away from Billy before he was done gnawing on Mrs. Anderson. That thought propelled him through the heavy door, taking his classmate with him.

"What's going on?" One of the other teachers called, hurrying towards them. "Please, everyone, calm down-"

"No, you don't understand!" Hiro shouted. "Billy, he, he, he turned into a zombie! He's eating Mrs. Anderson!" The words flew out of his mouth before he could think about the validity of his statement. Zombies didn't exist. They were a part of fantasy and movies. Surely there was some logical explanation for this. It had to be some rare virus from South America or something. It couldn't be zombies. "I swear, I'm not joking this time! We need to call the police!" Hiro got as far away from the door as he could. He continually glanced behind him and down the other hallways with his eyes as wide as dollar coins. He was terrified that more diseased people would jump out at him and sink their teeth into his flesh. It occurred to him that he was still holding onto the girl he'd pulled from her seat, and he released the death grip he had on her arm.

"S-sorry. We-we have to get out." He squeaked, eyes searching for an escape route. For some reason, he now felt responsible for his classmate as well.



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For reasons she couldn't understand, the hysterical woman had not responded. Jenny swallowed the growing lump in her throat. Her eyes flicked up, to the street outside the shop. Her eyes flew open when she saw that the victims of the crash were standing up, shuffling like maniac cripples. Screams pierced her ears when those living corpses attacked the police officers, having been immune to the tasers. Her eyes locked onto a police officer's gun, which had fallen onto the street when he was attacked. Something told her that she might need that pistol in order to survive this nightmare.

She wasn't going to wait on the woman any longer. Jen pushed through the crowd of customers and made her way to the back rooms. Determination was strong in her mind, but fear was trying to break away at her courage and cause it to crumble. Thinking ahead, she grabbed a few of the bagels and water bottles from the shop and stuffed them into her purse. Who knew if she'd be able to get home, or get to a store? When people got panicked like this, sometimes entire streets were locked down. She could be stuck in her car for hours, or worse... Everyone could die. Please, Jen, don't be so rash. She begged herself.

Swiftly, the barista grabbed her keys. Her vision was swimming with fear, but she tried to steady her heartbeat with a few deep breaths. Before she could let herself freeze with fear, she barged out the back door and ran to her car which was tucked away in the alley beside the shop. Her eyes searched, hoping that none of those raging flesh-eaters would come near her. Coming to the side of her blue sedan, Jenny fumbled with her keys, looking for the unlock button. For some reason, her terror made this simple action seem impossible. "Come on, come on." She whispered, pressing the button with her thumbnail. A chirp came from her car, and Jen frantically opened the door, throwing herself inside. "Okay, okay, Jen calm down." She said to herself. "You have to calm down." But how could she?

Alright, think. Jenny shut the door, locking the car. I can't go up the main street. It'll be all backed up. But if I want that gun... Jen shook her head, sticking the key in the ignition. It's not worth it. Someone else probably grabbed it. I'll get myself killed. She looked around, glancing the other way down the alley. Maybe if she went down to the back streets, there wouldn't be as much traffic. Okay, just drive. Jen started the car, and the wheels started rolling.

[G]

The City Streets - Raymond, Trey, Collin.


The officer holding Raymond back quickly forgot about his duties as his collegue was torn apart, his eyes wide and frightened at this new kind of danger - robberies and even murders he had faced, but this? Ray took the opportunity to slip past him, his gaze shooting from the horrific scene before him to his wife, now frantically battering against the glass, crying out to her husband. The wiser move would have been to run in the opposite direction, but his love for the woman he'd raised his children with compelled him forward; he couldn't heave her, not here...

The crazed patient looked up from her position over the now dead officer, blood forming a crimson mask over the lower half of her face. The noise of fists on glass had caught her attention, it seemed, and as Raymond reached it, calling out to Stella through the sealed window, promising her he would get them out of this mess, she drew closer to the distracted man. Perhaps he should have noticed the subtle changes in his wife's expression, the way her cries began to urge him to save himself, rather than her... but so focused was he on a way to reach her that he remained unaware of the impending danger until it was upon him, and the woman was sinking her teeth into his shoulder, fingers curled like claws to scrape down his defenseless back. Why was she so strong? Too strong - her nails tore through his thin shirt, leaving deep, bleeding furrows in the skin beneath. He cried out in agony, and those watching within drew back from the window, horrified. Even Stella... his last sight was of her falling to her knees, tears streaming down her face.

The other waking corpses were turning their attention to the screaming crowd as chaos erupted in the street; most had seen the carnage now, and were panicking, fleeing; heedless of who they might knock down or push aside in their attempts to save their own lives. The man who had been tangled in the bicycle was slowest to rise, and to move; his leg was obviously broken, though it seemed no hindrance to him in terms of pain. He simply dragged the limb behind him, stumbling frequently but continuing on his relentless path after the fleeing security guard. Even as Trey's superior was speaking his disbelief, the mangled rider, his bike helmet still in place atop his gravel-grazed face, reached the glass doors of the Paradise hotel and began to scratch against the surface, the thin pane all that separated him from the self-important man who stood on the other side.

Panicked citizens were spreading along the main street now, hammering against close-by buildings, screaming for entry and protection. One of these - The Turnhat Theatre. Herd mentality meant where one person chose to plead entrance, others quickly followed, and the shadowy interior of the building was soon ringing with the desperate cries for help from those outside.



-

The backstreets - Jen, River.


River Moonbeam had her headphones securely over her ears, her curly hair spiralling around them, as she strode down the lane that led toward the city centre. So what if it was wrong of her to walk out on a lecture?! She wasn't going to sit there and be berated by some holier-than-thou teacher about dietary requirements and nutrition! What would he know, anyway?! Just because he had a degree, he knew better than she did?! She had google, and that was enough for her to know she was right.

"Wikipedia isn't a credible source," she said aloud, her tone mocking. "What would he know... hey! Watch it!"

The young womans' indignant tone might have been slightly unjustified - she had just walked out into the road, without caring to look where she was going. But River had never been one to take on blame, and she was already justifying her own annoyance with the way the young driver had been clearly distracted - the look on her face was not that of a zen driver. But hang on, she looked familiar... River would never admit she bought her coffee from Starbucks, seeing as how they were a multinational corporation, and all that... but nowhere else made her double-shot, soy latte the right way.

"You're the Barista from the coffee shop in town, right? You could have killed me!" she spoke loudly and dramatically, even more so than usual as the music blaring from her headphones limited her awareness of her own volume (and drowned the sounds of chaos in the streets beyond to a dull, background noise) as she approached the drivers' side window, hands on hips.



-

The Office on the 32'nd Floor - Bearnard.


"Hey wait, Bearnard!" one of the suited mans' collegues called after his retreating back. He didn't have time to say more. A single cry of pain echoed from the room as the man closest to Kyle knelt to do what Bearnard had first intended, and was dragged to the floor for his trouble, Kyle's face left splattered with red as he tore through the mans' jugular in a swift motion, then rose to his feet, hungry eyes fixed on the scrambling team of executives. He leapt toward a second, bringing him to the ground as the weight of his body crashed down on top of him, and tore at the mans' suit, exposing his rotund belly to bite enthusiastically into it. Bearnard would not have made it too far before more screams rang out - those who had fallen victim to the ambulance's warpath had taken some time to rise, but it seemed those who became meals rose more quickly, and the first of Kyle's victims did not take long to join him in the onslaught. Those who remained fought each other for the exit, but the surging bodies only created more of a barricade, and in the end, only two broke free. The dead did not take long to catch up.


-

Sunshine High School - Izzy and Hiro


Izzy was jerked from her transfixed state as she was torn from her chair by a surprisingly strong grip, unable to do much to protest (nor feeling much desire to) as she was ushered outside. She stayed silent throughout Hiro's frantic requests to the newly arrived teacher, who seemed skeptical of his story - she had not yet seen the horror within the classroom.

As Hiro turned to speak to her, his eyes shining with fear, Izzy gulped. The man who'd called for order was still standing over them, looking stern; for a moment she worried about the trouble they were about to get into, before her young mind grasped how foolish a thought that was, considering the trouble they were already in.

Before he could berate them, his attention was called horribly back to the classroom as a girlish scream tortured their ears, then cut off, as suddenly as it had started.

"What in the world..." the male teacher started to step toward the open door, and Izzy let out a little squeak of distress; her racing mind was catching up to her eyes, and she realised who the scream must belong to.

"Don't go in there!" she tried to warn him, but her voice was barely a whisper as it escaped her trembling lips. "It's too late..."

She was right - a small figure had appeared at the door, her long blond hair dyed with streaks of bright red. A gaping wound had been torn at her throat, the blood coagulated faster than should have been possible.

"Ciara. My god, what's happened?" Before the teacher could finish expressing his concern, she had stepped toward him, latching her teeth onto the closest body part she could reach - his outstretched arm. Reacting, the taller, stronger adult flung her off with a horrified yell, and the young girl's body flew backward to come into sharp contact with the doorframe.

"Ciara? What have I done?" He sounded both horrified and confused as he approached the fallen child, his free hand closed over his arm in a feeble attempt to stop the bleeding. "She just bit me, I couldn't stop myself! Ciara?"

"Don't..." Izzy tried again, taking a few steps backward. "Stop..."

But her words were falling on deaf ears, and she looked back at Hiro instead, her pupils dilated in her terror. "You're right. We have to go!"

With a shudder, she turned her back on the teacher, and her former bully, and toward the nearest exit route - a fire escape door marked 'Alarmed - do not exit.'

"Through here!" As she pushed it open, the promise on the sign rang true - throughout the school, bells began to toll, mixing sharp tones with the sounds of general panic. Beyond the door, there was a short stretch of grass that ran alongside the building, bordered by the black fence that ringed the school. It was designed to keep out 'intruders' - would their supposed protection now be their doom?

"Th... there's a side gate, right? Which way?" the girls' heart was pounding, panicking. She didn't want to die! And certainly not to be eaten!

[CryoLilly]

Kiira felt frozen as she stared out across the carnage in the street. She noticed the barista leave without taking the woman she had been talking to, but couldn't tear her eyes away from the scene before her. A man came forward, seeming to cry out towards the woman who the barista had left, and then, the woman, or was she even a woman anymore, attacked him. Her eyes widened in fear and confusion as she bit into his flesh. Only then did she realize that the other people from the ambulance, who had seemed dead moments before were starting to follow in the woman's footsteps, attacking and biting into everyone around them. She tilted her head to the side, confused. They didn't seem to actually eat the people they bit, just taking one bite and moving on.

She stumbled backwards and pushed her way through the crowd, trying to get to the back of the shop. She snuck behind the counter, noticing some food in the open, she grabbed a muffin to eat, since she hadn't had breakfast, and a bottle of water. It wasn't like they'd miss it. Hell, she'd be willing to come back and pay some other time. Taking a bite out of the muffin, she went through the "employees only door" and found an exit. She put the water in her purse and ate the muffin quickly as she could, then she ran out the door, looking left and right to make sure that nobody was around. It was empty, so she started walking briskly along the alleyway, away from the main street where just now people were dying left and right, and possibly rising too.

I can't fucking believe it. She thought to herself, Zombies. It had to be Zombies. The most annoying and overused trope in bad writing since bad writing itself. She shook her head. That wasn't right, there was no way that it was actually zombies. They weren't real, they didn't even make sense! The flavor of it was all wrong. Being super strong, and fast, and immune to pain couldn't happen. Unless maybe there was a parasite or something that could control the brain, and somehow it traveled through saliva or something, like and STD, and it just overrode all of the brain functions, but to do that the human had to die. But then, they'd just have to wait it out. At some point, the flesh would rot and then there would be no muscle to control, right?

Damn, she just hoped it wasn't zombies. Hoped those people weren't actually dead, just somehow going crazy after a near death experience or something. They just had to find the cure to whatever they had right? It was going to be fine. I hate having a writer's brain... she thought, as she realized that she was overthinking it. She stopped in the street and took a drink of water, laughing to herself. It was all so damn strange. She ran a hand through her hair, taking another small sip of water. Then she capped the bottle and put it back in her purse, starting back along the alleyway, trying to travel in the general direction of home, though avoiding most main streets.

[Dire Hoef]

“The screams… Oh God the screams… Why did I have to hear such a thing!? Why was I forced into a world I didn’t understand!? Why was the world falling apart around me and for what purpose would that bring!? The stock market was in shambles and I couldn’t save the company… We were already in debt as it is, and if we had delved any more money into our stocks then we would have seen the crash of the market. The company would have single-handedly destroyed the world if it invested anymore of its hard earned money… Then again… Anything is possible in this zombie-infested world…”

Bearnard stopped – mid-stride. The silence was shaken by the shrill of a thousand deaths. A thousand deaths only scaled down to a handful. His eyes wandered the hall in madness and insanity before moving over his shoulder towards the luxurious double doors of Kyle’s once stainless officer. He could see the blood spill through the bottom of the door. Bearnard’s eyes were filled with horror and disbelief as the seemingly innocent bystanders of the living were sentenced to death via zombification. Bearnard stepped back a step before falling down upon his posturer. His undying fear gripping his responsive abilities to handle the situation. Bearnard looked around for a moment hearing nothing else but those gut-wrenching screams. Had he froze up before he left the room he would have surely been zombie meat by now. Luckily he was smart enough to get out of the situation before it even happened, but it required that he leave his friend’s side in the means of survival. Bearnard, however, didn’t waste another moment and before long already up and moving towards the elevator with two associates at his side. The dead were on his heels and the briefcase was no help to him. He turned his upper body back some degrees before throwing a briefcase at one of the oncoming infected. The creature grunted with an unsavory moan crashing to the ground seconds later. Bearnard had stunned his first zombie, but what came next wasn’t all that surprising. He and the two other associates ran for the elevator seeing the doors slowly open to reveal emptiness. The two made it in with Bearnard lacking in speed. He tripped here and there before stumbling into the elevator with his back on the back wall. He looked at the other two as he sighed heavily. The doors of the elevator closing on the creatures.

“What the hell is going on Bearnard,” asked a female associate as she kept her back to an elevator wall, “Were those… Zombies!?” “This isn’t a movie is it,” asked the other associate who also a female. Bearnard was stunned with fear before gathering himself with a slap to the right cheek with his right hand, “I don’t know,” he paused for a moment as he slid down the [back] elevator wall. His moment of rest was here, but the fear was still present in his eyes and breathing. He held his chest tightly for a moment before slamming his fist upon the elevator floor, “And I don’t fucking care… We need to stay alive anyway… I don’t want to end up like Kyle and the others.” One of the female associates came to Bearnard’s side and consoled him, but it was futile. Bearnard pushed the woman away from him, “I don’t want to get sick and end up like Kyle… Don’t. Touch me.” The female associate stepped back and returned to her wall. The rest of the elevator ride was in silence.

[Naraness]

http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/JennyWhite_zpste9dmarh.png

Jen's hands curled in frustration as the redheaded woman yelled at her, clearly blind to the world. How did she not see the chaos just fifty feet away? In an act of sheer desperation, the barista rolled down her window, reaching out swiftly. She yanked the earbuds from the girl's ears, knowing that she wouldn't listen to reason until she could hear. The screams were now filling the air, making every inch of her want to hurl. The blonde gestured blatantly towards the main street, as if to say 'Do you see now?'

"You have two choices, hun." There was no patience in Jen's normally kind voice. "Get away from me, or get in the car."



http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/HiroyukiElm_zpsuode3bjw.png

Hiro's eyes searched the school grounds. Panic flooded his veins. He looked at Issy for a moment, hoping she'd have an answer. The black fence surrounding the school now seemed like a prison gate. Why did they ever put that there? Hiroyuki ran his hands through his hair. They had to act fast, or the zombies (he might as well admit it, they were zombies.) would get them. "W-wait, there's a spot over behind the bushes." He lifted his hand, pointing to a cluster of hedges. "There's, there's a hole under the gate where first graders crawl under to get to the stream. You can probably fit." He knew this because at one point, he had been a first grader doing that very thing. "I'll climb over while you go under. Okay?"

He was already hurrying over to the spot, pushing through the green brush to see. Sure enough, there was a child-sized dip in the ground just beneath the bottom bar of the metal fence. The hole was a lot smaller than he remembered, but Issy would be able to fit. She seemed pretty petite for her age. "Come on, hurry." Hiro called, looking back to make sure his classmate was still there. "Once we get through, we'll.. We'll go somewhere safe. I don't know where yet." His mind was racing with possibilities, but the idea of death loomed over his head like a dark cloud. Chills ran down his arms at the thought of teeth digging into his flesh.

Fear spurred him on, and Hiro started climbing as fast as he could.

[MidKnight]

"Everyone! Get back now! Get away from the windows!"

Trey's Supervisor declared everyone to remain calm and head up the second level of building as he ordered the rest of his guards to secure and lock all doors of the building. Trey moved quick on his feet as he rushed to one of the doors to secure it and make sure the lock was in place. He had his radio on and including his flash light, just in case he had to use it to bash a couple of heads.

He still couldn't believe of what was going on, people eating people was straight cannibalism. But seeing them getting back up after becoming a meal of the day was even more surprising. Zombies kept popping in his head, hearing the words would be more frightening. As he reached the door on the east side of the building. He pushed the latches that locked the door completely. He grabbed his radio and heard the others calling in, reporting in their statues.

"East side door locked and secured!" Trey announced.

Trey knew little about the department he worked in, but knows where every exit door would be. As for weapons, he did not know if they exist within the building or not. He checked the lock and looked through the glass door and witnessed more horrifying events as more and more of the dead chased after the living and eating their flesh. He could feel his body shaken and the adrenaline was not helping. He slowly backed away from the glass door and returned to his post where the others were waiting for their next order.

When he returned, he could hear the others talking. "What about the people outside of the building? Can we help them?" Some of the Security Officers pleaded to help the citizens that are outside, and take in the wounded. But the Super Visor placed his intentions elsewhere. "Lock down is already in effect." He said bluntly and turned to face his men. "I want this building secured until help arrives."

Trey looked through the glass windows and seen people banging and pleaded to get inside. "Do we have any weapons other then flashlights?" He asked. His Superior gives a scoff laugh. "Like we have the means to carry lethal weapons." There was a sigh, "Everyone get to the second level and make sure all the doors are bolted shut and windows lock, and make sure everyone remains calm."

Trey didn't like the sound of becoming a coward and lock everyone out of the building. But his Superior had his reasons so he followed them. He went to one of the elevators and stepped inside with a few others. What this really happening? He asked himself.

[Heir of Void]

"Well that doesn't sound good."

Even through the thick walls and wooden doors of the lobby, the faint tenor of dozen of human screams could still strike a note in the deeper parts of Colin's instincts. It was a feeling of pure fear and terror, from the most primal memories. It told her to run, to hide, to do anything really. Instead, her curiosity got the better of her. The logical part of her mind decided that it would be better to get a grasp on the situation, and stake out the basics before taking flight over a chorus of screams, as chilling as they were. Tiptoeing quietly to the two sets of front double doors, she unlocked a pair of them and peered outside, down the street.

Turnhat Theatre occupied a strange niche in the city. It was sandwiched betwixt business offices and trendy cafes, nowhere near the regular entertainment district, with the next nearest theatre several miles away and nearer to the beach. In city travel, that several miles could take half an hour or more, especially in Surfer's Paradise. It was a fairly squat building compared to the towering giants of industry surrounding it, occupying only four stories and a roof. Normally, the traffic outside during commuter hours was hell, and the quiet grumbling of idle engines built up in to a cacophony, with only the occasional honk to pierce the collective susurrus of voices and machines. Today happened to be no normal commute.

Down the street less than a block away, an ambulance lay overturned, with several people on the ground beside it. Instead of running towards the crash, everyone seemed to be fleeing from the scene screaming bloody murder, trying to sprint as fast as their business skirts and designer slacks could carry them. Several cars were trying unsuccessfully to negotiate the fleeing waves of pedestrians, leaving several broken limbs in their wake and crumpled bodies lying tossed aside into the gutter. Not ten feet away, a man lay squirming on the ground with what looked like a twisted ankle. Needless to say, McCorrin quietly closed the door when he spotted her and tried calling out.

"Yeah, good luck with that," she whispered to herself, locking the door behind her. "If it's terrorists, who's gonna look in an empty damn theatre? Not a crazed suicide bomber, that's for sure."

The tech walked back to the staff door, grabbing a packet of m&m's from an "antique" snack cart they kept in the lobby. The management said it was there to set the mood and establish the history of the place, but considering most of it was refurbished the cart was really just another cheap gimmick.

She dumped a handful of the bright candies in her mouth before deciding the snack cart really wasn't so bad.

Hell, as soon as the police rolled in to take care of whatever crazy mess was outside, she could just blame the missing supplies on looters of opportunity....and maybe rob some coworkers while she was at it. Come to think of it, that clerk Brenda who ran tickets was always going on about shaving a little from the deposit boxes anyway...

[G]

The Backstreets - Kiira and Angelica


The young blonde had managed to escape notice on her trip down the quieter streets, the sounds of the chaos in the centre of the city gradually fading as she made her way further from the epicentre of the horror unfolding. It seemed the outbreak of madness had not yet enveloped the residential areas - or if it had, it remained mostly hidden from view for the time being. As the office buildings and shops gave way to neat, expensive looking suburban homes, the young woman might notice the eery silence of her surroundings. Even outside of the bustling main street, there was usually more life on the pavements around the area. Most of the children and teens were at school, and many of the adults working, but where were the rest?

One of the rest was still sitting in front of her computer screen, her pale skin illuminated in the blue-tinged glow it gave off. Tugging on her messy, slept-in braid with a puzzled expression, Hammer was repeating the question that had gone unanswered going on ten, twenty minutes now.

"What's going on? Where the fuck are you guys?"

But her headset gave no answer, just an idle crackle, and it was becoming more and more clear that she wasn't going to get one. They might have just taken a bathroom break, or be being lectured by their mother about the drudgery of an almost thirty year old who had little interest in anything other than video games, respectively. They might have gone to get a snack... Angelica tried to reason through the different scenarios of not one, but all of her online buddies dropping out of connection at once, without even pausing their gamescreens - their characters were still visible before her, running through their various 'idle' actions; scratching their head, flexing their overly muscled limbs, giving exaggerated yawns... and it wasn't like her friends, as avid gamers as she, to leave their well-trained fantasy personas out in the open, where anything might befall them.

She had a bad, twisting feeling in her gut. What had happened to Elton? He had sounded scared.

Trying to shrug off the awful feeling, she left the safety of her screen (logging out first) and made for the fridge. Coco pops would help...

"Are you fucking kidding me!" A time of crisis, and she'd run out of milk! This so wasn't happening.

Sighing, she headed for the door, not bothering to change out of the long blue pyjama pants and white singlet she'd worn to bed. The corner store was only a short walk, who really gave a...

"Oh, hello. Sorry!"

Upon leaving the front door, she'd almost run into a young woman her own age, her dirty blonde hair dishevelled and her eyes holding unmistakeable panic. Angelica squinted at Kiira, the feeling twisting further in her gut.

"Are you... are you alright?"



-

The Paradise Hotel - Trey


Even as Trey's superior was shouting orders, a second of the crazed undead had joined the bike-rider at the glass doors, then a third. Hammering together against the thin material, they were attracting others. All desperate to get at the milling, panicking people in the lobby. Under the fist of the first, a hairline crack appeared in the glass. It was not going to hold forever...



-


The Turnhat Theatre - Colin


The cries for help were quickly turning into screams, then snarls as one by one, those outside the theatre were picked off by the hungry dead. For a moment, those nearby seemed to quiet - while screams still rang out, they seemed further from the vicinity than before.

Then the momentary stillness was broken by the sound of shattering glass, as one of the large, rustic windows that stood either side of the Theatre's main door cascaded to the floor in a thousand tiny pieces.

"I saw you in here, you bitch! You didn't even try to help! Coward! Think you can... ARGH!" The abuse of the man who'd struggled from the road to the window and gained access with a heavy brick was cut off, replaced by agonised screams. Then the hollow, rasping breathing began, too loud and too much to be from only one source, and glass tinkled as feet were dragged over it. There was scuffling, and movement in the darkened theatre. How many could not be told, but one thing was certain; they were inside.


-

The Backstreets - Jenny and River


For possibly the first time in her life, River was shocked into silence. For a moment, she just stood there, mouth agape as she heard for the first time the sounds of chaos in the distance. She closed her lips, tightly. Opened them again, as if to speak. Then snapped them shut once more, and without another word, circled the car at a stiff, quick pace and opened the passenger door, taking a seat beside Jenny and closing it with a snap. Her hands were in her lap, and for several long seconds she just stared at them, then turned to gaze with a horrified expression out the window, in the direction of the screams.

Turning to look at Jenny, and ignoring the smarting in her ears where the headphones had been yanked painfully from them, she repeated the action of before, looking reminiscent of a fish as she opened and closed her mouth, unsure what to say.

"Are we.. under attack?" she asked, rather stupidly. It wasn't like River to not be absolutely certain she knew exactly what was going on, and exactly how it should be dealt with, and the feeling was unsettling.



Paradise High School - Izzy and Hiro


Izzy could only nod, frantically, feeling a rush of gratitude toward the boy who'd stayed to help her out of this mess. Behind them, footsteps scraped across the cement slab that marked the single stair from the emergency door to the outside, and she ran for the hole in the fence, too terrified to even look behind her. Just get out, Izzy, don't look, just get out!

Then she was wigging through, the bottom of the bars scraping painfully against her back as she manouvered through the gap more quickly than was wise. She was going to make it! She was out! She was...

"Ahh!"

As she felt cold fingers - deathly cold - wrap around her ankle, Izzy didn't think - she just reacted, kicking out wildly at whoever; or whatever; was trying to prevent her escape. She felt the heel of her shoe hit something soft, felt a horrible crunch beneath it - but there was no grunt or cry of pain, only an angry hiss. The fingers did not release their grip, and Izzy kicked again, and again, struggling to free herself. Then the hissing abruptly stopped, and the hand that held her fast loosened ever so slightly, a dull thump sounding behind her as something fell to the grass. She tugged again with her ankle, and her foot slipped from it's grasp, taking her shoe with it. Scrambling upright, she spun to behold a terrible sight; Ciara lay on her side, knees bent where she had knelt to take hold of Izzy's ankle. The gaping wound on her forehead could not have been merely from Izzy's blows; that must have come, the girl thought with a strange numb detachment - from her scuffle with the teacher, in the hallway. No, the damage Isobel had inflicted was clear - the other girls' nose was utterly devastated, little more than a hole in her face where Izzy's heel had struck it with adrenaline fueled force, over and over. Splinters of stark, white bone protruded from the hollows of her nostrils, the fractures of the what had been one of the childs' prominent features forced upward, and into her brain.

As the reality of what she had done began to sink in, Izzy felt herself begin to shake, uncontrollable tremors which started in her shoulders and radiated down her back, into her legs, until she lost her balance and sat down hard upon the grass.

"What... what did I..."

Then the girl burst into tears.

[Naraness]

http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/JennyWhite_zpste9dmarh.png

Jen looked at the redhead, who had taken a seat beside her. Sympathy wove itself into her heart. This girl was scared, that much was obvious. "Hey, it's gonna be okay." Jen lightly touched River's arm. "We're going to get out of here." Her first instinct was to floor the gas and race down the alleyway, but something told Jenny that quiet was more valuable than speed when they were this close to rabid killer people. So she let her car roll at a nice, steady pace until she reached the other end of the alley. Her eyes frequently flicked to the rear-view mirror, terrified that they would be followed. Upon one of these checks, she saw that the back door of the café had been discovered by customers in the shop, and people were flooding out. "Aw crud." Jen whispered. "Hold on to your seat."

The time for stealth was over, and Jenny appropriately broke the speed limit. Not knowing where to go, she drove in the vague direction of her house, approaching a nearby school as she did. Where do I go? Where is safe? What is happening??? Thoughts swarmed her mind and flooded her with anxiety. Her heart raced like a thoroughbred. Alright, what do they do in the movies? They um... They... Dang it! I'm not Bruce Willis! I can't fight off a mob of infected maniacs singlehandedly! Her thoughts were so consuming that she almost didn't see a person stumbling into the road, blood dripping from his mouth down his shirt. "Holy-"

Blood splattered the roadway, and the hood of the car. The car jolted as her tires crunched flesh and bones, then left red tire tracks in her wake. Not knowing what else to do, Jen turned on the windshield wipers, clearing her vision. She slowed down for just a moment, turning to look behind her. The man's legs were plastered to the roadway. She expected him to be screaming in pain, trying to hold together his broken limbs. But instead his arms reached out towards them and there was a hunger in his lifeless eyes. "What are they?" Jenny whispered, horrified at the monster she had encountered.

To the left of the road was Paradise High School. Past the black wrought iron gates, people were running and screaming while others devoured the flesh of those they caught. The color in Jen's face had drained, and tears unwillingly formed in her eyes as she heard the desperate screams of children. Her knuckles had turned white as they gripped the steering wheel.



http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u550/Naraness/HiroyukiElm_zpsuode3bjw.png

Hiro saw it all. He saw the infected girl grab Isobel, saw her fight back. He tried to help, grabbed her hands, did his best to pull her away from Ciara (Or, what used to be Ciara.) But it was no good. Issy kicked with more power than he would've thought possible, and he watched as, with every strike, Ciara's once beautiful face became more and more mutilated. First her nose became deformed, then splinters of bone and cartilage appeared through her flesh. No matter what, it seemed that she felt no pain, just kept snapping her teeth and trying to lock them onto Issy's flesh. Finally, a blow hit home and the dead girl was truly dead. Hiro helped his friend through the fence and pulled her away from the mangled body just three feet away.

"No, Isobel, don't look-" But it was too late, she'd already turned and seen the horrible sight. Her limbs went weak as horror filled her, and she sat down abruptly. Hiro understood her trauma, but more than anything he knew that they needed to keep moving. There wasn't time for tears. Biting his lip, he shushed her gently and tried to help her to her feet. "It's okay, you did good. She was going to kill you." Hiro swallowed, looking around with panic. "Um, I, I know that it's hard right now but we need to go!" He urged her.

[Dire Hoef]

The lobby was silent. Dead silent. Papers, briefcases, bookbags, and other commodities littered the floor. It was as though a hurricane or a tornado blew through the place. Twas a mess it was.

"Bearnard look," said one of the female associates as she pointed towards a few lingering infected that were standing outside the shattered windows of the lobby. Her voice was hushed, but her tone was filled with fear.

Bearnard took a few steps away from the front of the lobby, "I see them," he said in a whisper, "We'll have to find another way out of here. The front is not the way to go."

"But what about your car," asked the same one with a raised brow, "Can't we just reach your car and ride on out of here?" Her voice was a little louder than a whisper, but it was hushed.

Bearnard let his eyes wander from the creatures of fiction to the white luxury vehicle parked, in silence, upon the edge of the sidewalk. Bearnard saw one of those creatures slowly waddle by as though it was preoccupied with something else entirely. He took the idea into consideration but even then his brain was telling him it was a bad idea. However his heart said otherwise. "Look," he took a minute to breathe before speaking out a plan that could save their lives, "All we need to do is reach my car correct? So the only way we need to do that is sneak pass those things, sneak into my car, and start it up as fast as we can before it's too late." He looked at the two women with a serious look, "Think you can manage that?"

The two women nodded.

"Good," he had another comment to add, but that would aggravate the situation even more. So he decided against it.

Moments of will gathering later Bearnard and the two female associates made their way to the front of the lobby where one of the windows was busted open to reveal an easy passage.

Then the impenetrable, impregnable, wall. A wall that cannot be shattered or destroyed - not without the necessary equipment. Bearnard shook off the fear as he carefully stepped on the shattered glass on both the inside and outside of the lobby.

His feet were light, but not as light as a feather. His eyes were trained on the infected that aimless walked in the direction of commotion. He was too focused to even break eye contact with the creature. His palms were sweaty and his fear was riding high. Could he really reach his car? He stepped towards the creature for about one or two steps before turning immediately to the left and reaching his luxury car.

He slipped out his keys. The jingle had caught him off guard and had scared the living hell out of him. What made the fear accelerate was the fact that one of the associates was a clumsy oaf and fell to the ground causing a loud thud. Both forms of sound were loud enough to immediately be detected by anyone in its vicinity.

His eyes immediately turned from the vehicle to the creature as he waited for a reaction out of it. His eyes wide and his mouth agape.

[CryoLilly]

Kiira stared at the girl who had burst out of a nearby house. She closed her eyes momentarily and took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves, or at least create an air of calm. She opened them again as the girl asked her if she was okay. She tried to smile kindly. "I'm fine, well, not hurt physically." she said. Then she looked around her, trying to see if anybody was around. "We should probably go somewhere else, is that your house? Can we go inside? I'm sorry I know you don't know me, and I don't know you but you don't look sick, and well I should probably tell you what's going on." Then she thought about what was actually happening. Oh my god, she thought, Am I just going insane? Will this girl even believe me? It was worth a shot.

"Look I know it sounds insane, like absolutely insane, but there is something that is happening with sick people here, something is happening that doesn't really make any sense. Can we please go somewhere more private, or at least safer." She glanced at what the other girl was wearing, "And maybe you can put on some better clothes because we may need to get around a lot, and me might not come back." Oh god, she sounded crazy. But what could she do, she was telling the truth, and to be honest, she didn't mind trusting in a complete stranger, not when everything was going to shit as it was.

[G]

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Rivers' mouth burst open in shock as splatters of red covered the windscreen, lurching forward in her seat when the car skidded to a stop; in the midst of everything happening, she had forgotten to put on her seatbelt.
"Ow!" the willowy girl let out a cry as her nose collided with the headboard, and her hand flew up to hold it, as though that would somehow still the shooting pain that ran up into her skull. When she pulled her fingers away, they, too, were stained in crimson.

"You broke by dose!" she said angrily, the words distorted by her blood-filled sinuses, though truthfully, it probably wasn't broken; though it was certainly bleeding. River had a penchant for being dramatic, especially when it came to her own anguish. "I cad't beliebe you broke by... Sissy?"

As she turned to look away from Jen, River had caught sight of the two youngsters on the outside of the gate. One of them, she recognised - it was that small, quiet girl who caught her bus. She hadn't spoken to the child, but she had often heard her referred to as such by the other kids; usually mockingly.

"I dow her!" she said to Jen, "she catches by bus... oh, god!"

It was the first time River was seeing with her own eyes the horror that was unfolding; and beyond the school fence, it was rampant. As she watched what was once a teacher chowing down on the remains of one of their charges, her heart hammered in her chest. The self-proclaimed activist knew she should do something... she opened the car door with a trembling hand, staring out at the horrifying scene before them.. but she couldn't will herself to move.

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With less vitality than the reanimated dead, Izzy allowed herself to be pulled to her feet by the anxious Hiro, continuing to let out low, sniffling sobs as she picked up a slow pace away from the fence, and the girl... it was impossible for Izzy to think of her as anything else, at that moment... that she'd killed. She'd killed her. The fact that Ciara would almost certainly have killed her, the fact that it had been blind luck and instinct that had let her commit the feat, did not alleviate the waves of guilt and shock that were washing over the child. She wondered, rather irrationally, if she would be arrested.

"Where do we go?" she mumbled to Hiro. The boy seemed to know what to do, or had done so far.

City Streets - Bearnard

Bearnards' associate writhed on the ground like an overlarge slug, her too-tight business skirt preventing an easy rise to her feet. She was too slow - far slower than the creature, who had, thankfully (for Bearnard, at any rate) focused solely on the loudest source of noise, and was heading directly for her. The other woman screamed, dashing over to tug at her friends' hand rather uselessly, shouting at her to get up as though screaming hysterically would give the woman some kind of renewed energy. Bearnard had two choices; he could stay, and try to save the women from the fast approaching dead, or pick up his keys and go.

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Angelica looked at the stranger like she was exactly that - absolutely insane.
"With sick people?" she repeated, unable to completely hide the tone of disbelief from her voice. But Angelica's curious nature was itching to know what the hell the girl was on about, even if the (smaller) more rational part of her was skeptical about letting someone who was quite possibly clinically mad into her home. For a moment, she just stood and looked at the other girl, silent in her internal struggle for a decision.

Even if the girl was crazy, which seemed fairly likely, it did sound like a good story. And it wasn't as though Hammer had anything planned that day.

"Okay." she said, "I'm Hammer, by the way. I suppose you should come in. At least have a glass of water, or something."

It really wouldn't be responsible of her to let the girl just wander off, if she was mad.

[MidKnight]

Trey noticed the people in the lobby still as the elevator doors had closed. "What about the people?" He asked aloud. "There are other elevators they can use or they're just stupid and rather stand there and get killed by...what ever the hell those things are." said one of the other guards.

Trey heard the static from his radio, and hears his superior speaking out loud. "Alright listen up! Lock the other doors that lead to the first floor, and lock down the elevators, I don't want those things to get up here and start killing everyone else, the ones in the lobby are s.o.l! I know it's not the right call, but we have to do this."

Trey was rather nervous as he heard the words spoken through a microphone. He takes a deep breath and when the elevator doors had open, everyone had rushed out and headed towards their destination. Trey followed one of the guards to an exit leading downstairs. "Trey! We gotta lock this door and pray no one forces it open." Trey looked at the door. "The door downstairs is locked too right?" Trey asked his partner. "Y-yeah." His partner stuttered. Trey felt something wrong, like he knew the guard was lying.

[Dire Hoef]

His body moved without hesitation. His muscles tightened with courage and fear as he made way for his keys.

It was useless trying to save a couple of women who were nothing more than clumsy oafs who didn't understand the meaning of silence. He didn't stop. He didn't want to stop. His eyes lashed from the infected beast to the keys as he reached for it with all his might. His eyes, quickly, glanced up to meet one of the women's. The look upon her frightened Bearnard to the point he backaway - with the keys held tightly in his hand. The expression of fear and hatred from both women stopped Bearnard mid-stride. He couldn't help them. He was beyond their help. They were goners, just like Kyle and the rest of the associates. He couldn't believe he would let two women die. But what choice did he had? His body acted on instinct! There was nothing more he could do for them. A perfect opportunity wasted in mere seconds.

His heroism was false, and it showed as he turned his back to the woman. "You bastard," one of the women as she pointed towards Bearnard. The other woman was already in full stride succumbing to the death of an infected predatory beast. The woman next to her would of scream in shock and horror as she would try to get away - quickly succumbing to it too. Bearnard did not stop nor did he wait for the woman for he knew, and understood, the punishments for waiting for dead women.

Bearnard shook his head as he came to his luxury car and unlocked the door slipping into the driver seat of the vehicle slamming the door behind him. He fumbled the keys - his hands shaking violently. His fear was beyond the level of comfort, and it was starting to get on his nerves. Until he dropped the keys inbetween the seat. His heart sank as he stared down inbetween the seat. He shook his head in denial, "No no no nO NO NO!!! NO!!!" He slammed the steering with his fist before gathering the dignity and strength to search for the keys. He didn't know how much noise he made but that didn't matter to him.

He was sweating profusely and he was panting. He had escaped the building, but even a greater challenge came. The escape car.

[Naraness]

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"God, sorry, hold on." Jen rifled through the glove compartment, trying to keep her eyes on the road at the same time. She couldn't understand a word that the woman was saying, so she just ignored her and grabbed fast food napkins, pushing them into her hands. "Here, clean yourself up." Jen returned her hands to the steering wheel, grimacing at the blood on her knuckles. I'm never going to survive this. I'm going to die and I'll drag this girl down with me. She gulped.

Through the senseless babble coming from her side, Jen recognized the need for attention. She looked where River was pointing, to two middle school children running away from the school gates. She yanked the car to the side of the road, putting it in park. "Stay here." She said firmly. Jen searched through the pocket inside her door until she found her umbrella, which she wielded as a weapon while stepping through the door. Her eyes searched the street for dangers as she waved the two children over to her. "Come on, get it the car!" Once upon a time, urging children into her car might have gotten her arrested for kidnapping. At this point, the law wasn't quite in place. Their survival could depend on her actions. Damn it, Jenny. You can't take the whole city with you in your five-seat sedan. Who was she kidding? She wasn't cut out for being a hero. But if I can save just three people, it's worth it. She realized, determination settling in her chest.

A scream pierced through the torrential sea of blood-curdling cries. Two other children, bloodied and infected, had made it through the fence and were chasing after the two living children. Jen hesitated for only a second before she launched forward. "Get to the car! Now!" There was a startling snap of authority in her voice as she put herself between them and danger. "Go!" She screamed, pushing them towards her car. Jen never took her eyes off of the two zombies. One of them launched for her, and she swung her umbrella with all the force she could muster. It connected sickeningly with the creature's face, snapping it's neck. It's body went limp but the creature continued snarling, paralyzed but very much alive.

The second one growled and grasped her arm. "Let me go!" Jen shrieked, struggling to free herself. It snapped it's jaws at her, bloodshot eyes wide and unfeeling. The end of the umbrella was snapped, but Jen shoved it up against the zombie's face to keep it's teeth at bay. "Help me!" She shouted, looking back at the car at River.


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Hiro couldn't have been more thankful for someone else to take over the situation. He hurried Isobel into the car, closing the door quickly to ensure that she was safe and away from the approaching zombies. He then ran around to the other side of the car and hurried in, not thinking about the woman who was still outside.

[G]

The Paradise Hotel - Trey

As more and more lifeless hands pressed on the glass doors and windows in the lobby, cracks began to spiderweb along the glass. Those unfortunate enough to still be on the bottom floor rushed toward the elevators, hammering on the buttons as though repeatedly pressing them would speed their descent. Or start it, as the case may be. The panicked holiday makers must have either failed to hear, or to comprehend the order Trey's supervisor had given, but the staff had not. The elevators were unresponsive; someone had already closed them down.

The pressure built to breaking point, and with an ear-splitting crash, the glass shattered. The undead swarmed inside before the shards had even hit the ground, tearing at the closest warm bodies while people hindered one another in their panicked attempts to back up against solid walls and inpenatrable steel doors. As their screams began to ring out in chorus, the sound echoed through the lofty building.

Trey's partner tore his head left and right, sweat beading on his pale face as he searched for an escape route.

"Oh man, they're inside! We've got to get out of here! We can't keep going up! This place is a deathtrap!" Clearly, he was too panicked to make a clear-headed decision; it would be up to Trey to decide what they did next.

-

The City Streets - Bearnard

Seconds ticked past as Bearnard searched for his keys. Precious seconds. As the seconds turned into minutes, the beast behind the car finished with its feast; and gained two new, bloodthirsty companions. It had made short work of one of formerly pretty colleagues' face, one cheek almost entirely torn away to expose the manically grinding teeth within as she rose and turned her gaze on the vehicle. Her friend, considerably smaller now that the majority of her intestines had been torn from her stomach, rose with her, what was left of her insides trailing behind her as the three began a steady, slow stride toward her former coworkers car.
It was fortunate Bearnard had not left his windows unwound; and that they seemed to lack the ability to manouvre doorhandles. But the glass would not hold forever.

-

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River only watched with a half-stunned, half-vacant expression on her bloodied face as her new companion leapt into action, ushering the children toward the car. The girl seemed as out of focus as she was, allowing herself to be led by the boy to climb into the backseat.

As Jenny's umbrella met the first of the oncoming infected children, and her head flung backward at an unnatural angle, River jumped to her feet, inhaling in a sharp rush.

"Oh, god..." the child lay on the road, her neck still craned impossibly to the side, still snapping her mouth open and shut like a rabies-stricken animal. She couldn't tear her eyes from the child... the thing.

"Help me!" Jen's panicked cry ripped her from her reverie, and she looked up in horror at the struggle between her rescuer (for it was dawning on River now, what would have become of her had the other woman not picked her up) taking a few useless steps forward, her arm outstretched in a meager, empty movement. Her heart was racing. She wanted to turn and get back in the car, slam the door shut, bury her headphones in her ears and shut all of this out... but Jen's broken weapon would not hold the creature off for long, and it had caught hold of her shirt now, dragging her arm toward it's gaping mouth...

"No! THTOP!" River quickened her pace, running the short distance between them and, with lack of anything else to use, hefted the leather satchel (no, she'd never thought of the hypocrisy of a vegan owning leather) she had slung over over shoulder and swung it at the childs' head. The textbooks inside put some weight into the otherwise useless 'weapon,' and upon the dull thump of impact the youngster was thrown off balance, stumbling a few paces to the side, and releasing Jen in the process. River just stood there for a moment, horrified at what she had done. She was a pacifist, for gods' sake! But the creature left no time for second guessing, turning to snarl at the curly-haired brunette, surging forward again to strike at it's attacker.

"NO!" River screamed again, thrusting her hands into the childs' shoulders. The effect was similar to that in any situation where a larger, stronger adult shoved a small child; the kid was sent sprawling backwards, its head hitting the asphalt with a horrible crunch.

"Uuurgh."

A groan replaced a normal childs' cries of pain, and the thing sat up, making to scramble to its feet again.

"Jen..." River began to back away, reaching out to clutch at the Barista's arm. "Led'th go. Led'th go!"

[Naraness]

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Hiro pressed his hands against the glass, his almond-shaped eyes wide. Panicked breaths slipped through his lips, fogging the window in short bursts. Just beyond the safety of the car, he could see more and more of the infected students and teachers spilling onto school grounds. Luckily, no more of them had made it through the wrought iron fence. Hiro tried his hardest not to look directly at the blood and carnage just past it, but the screams drew his eyes against his will. The images he saw were seared into his mind; sure to haunt him for years to come.

A splatter of blood flicked against the window, making him jump. His eyes were drawn to the scene much closer to him- to the two women who were fighting a boy he knew from his English class. That, that can't really be James. It's not him anymore, it's just not. His mind couldn't come to terms with reality. Somewhere beyond the monster that was trying to kill them, he could still see the boy who cracked off jokes in the middle of class; who always carried an extra pencil in case someone forgot theirs. When the wild-haired woman knocked her attacker down, he felt a sense of victory mixed with anguish. His friend was dead. Though he still writhed and hungered, there was no life left in him. Hiro had never known such horror before, and it clung to his organs like a parasitic disease. He was numb, shell-shocked.

The snap of a car door barely brought him back to clarity.

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Jen nodded, her skin still crawling. She felt her rescuer (They were even, now) grasp her arm, and she instinctually held onto her as they raced back to the car.

Though it only took a second, fumbling for the car door felt like an eternity. Her heart jumped, and she leapt into the car the way she used to jump into bed as a child: fearing that something would reach out and grasp her ankles. Jen put the car in drive, and stomped on the gas pedal the moment River was inside. Her stomach twisted in fear as they sped down the street. She took a moment to look in the mirror, seeing that the zombie was slowly growing smaller as they got farther away. With that her eyes turned back to the road. It almost didn't surprise her when she had to dodge other cars and swerve around stumbling figures in the road.

"We have to get out of the main city." She realized aloud. "There are too many people here, we'll never make it." Jen swallowed, wracking her brain for answers. "Quick, um, what's your name..?" She asked River. "Never mind." She shook her head, veering around a crashed Toyota. "Grab the map in the door pocket and give me directions to the outskirts of the city on surface streets only. We can't take the highway- we'd be sitting ducks with this traffic."

She glanced back at the children. Jen wanted to say something supportive or kind. Her heart was near to bursting. But a thousand 'It'll be okay's would never make it go away. They both probably had family in this city who would likely be dead before nightfall. How dare she even think of telling them that it would be okay? "Buckle up." The words slipped through her mouth like a ghost of a whisper, but it was painfully loud in the otherwise quiet car.

[Dire Hoef]

The effects of his decision where nigh. Death was drawing near.

As he reached inbetween the seats to grab for his keys, distinct [and horrifying] clashes of flesh against glass clanked and banged at his left causing him to immediately look up from his current operations. His body jerked back at the sight of the associates - it had almost made him lose his breakfast. He held his mouth as he looked away from the undead pillage that was his associates. A few bystanders as well were clawing at the window as it began to crack with each flesh collision. He didn't like this situation at all, and he immediately got back into his usual operations and slipped the key in the ignition. His eyes glanced over towards the window to find that the cracks had worsen since he put the keys in the ignition. Time seemed to slow down as the flesh collisions worsen more and more with each interval of collision. However Bearnard was frozen in fear as he wondered his death would be at the hands of some grotesque creature with no real sense of direction.

His thoughts wondered almost indefinitely with no real means of stopping - even pushing them aside would mean having to facing the reality that was knocking down his car window. He didn't meet that reality, but the reality that he dreamt of was far more comfortable than what this hellish nightmare has wrought. Had his eyes deceived him? Could this be a dream? Could it be a illusion set by some magician? No. Impossible. This was the reality he was living in and it was about to come crashing down upon him. He gathered his barings and twisted his hand igniting the engine within the car before kicking the clutch back into drive and slamming his foot down on the gas-pedal. The moment was quick and unbroken.

[MidKnight]

Trey placed a hand on his fellow co-worker who seemed to be on the verge of being freaked out in a bad situation. He looked around and noticed most of the guards had returned to report most of the doors are locked and secured. They looked upon the freaked out man and they too began to worry of what is happening. Trey looked around once more and headed towards the window and noticed the outside area has gotten worse. Hearing the screams from below got his nervous system shaking worse. He tried his best to remain calm. He pondered what to do and realized he had done more walking around then most of the guards here had done. "I thought there was a emergency escape ladder in the back of the building?" Trey asked the others.

"Yeah, old ones, they still work, but last time there was a fire report was about ten years ago, and when this building use to have two floors, the ladder is still there as a tour display figure." One of the guards explained. Mark was his name, though he was more over weight then Trey was, along with a scruffy beard, broken shape nose, you can tell he was a bad few fights, short brown hair and tall too.

"Okay, we're going to use the ladder and we'll find a way out of here and then we'll get to a more safe place to be in." Trey wiped his mouth for a moment and noticed something was wrong. Where was their supervisor? Did he continued on without them? Did he slipped away? He doesn't know, but he does know there are more people on the first floor then he realized. Heads poked out from their rooms and looked at the security who stood around like a bunch of idiot monkeys who had reached a genius level. When one of the tenants had asked what is going on. Trey reply was simple. "I don't know." He admitted, and stood quiet as he tried to figure something about the ladder situation now there were more people then he thought there would be.

"What's the situation in the garage? I thought I saw SUV's down there?" Trey asked as he remembered about the garage with SUV's, vans, reliable transportation. "You mean the security trucks we use to drive on the beach for outside rooms? They got fuel, but the keys are locked in a secure box. The only one who has the keys is John." John was the name of his superior who seemed to have run off. John was clean shaved fellow, average built, almost the same height as Mark, hazel eyes, and buzz cut hair style like a Marine would be proud of. "What we gonna do?" Mark asked Trey who seemed like he had a plan. Trey did had a plan. It was simple, find John.

[Heir of Void]

At the sound of shattering glass, Colin bolted into action. There was no doubt it had been the theatre's lobby, with its flimsy plate-glass surrounding the door frame. While the openings were slim, they were easy enough to slip into and by the sound of the crunching glass, there were quite a few intruders. The door that led to the staff hallways was thick and sturdy, but lacked any sort of lock stronger than the common bolt built into the handle. While kicking down the door would be extremely difficult for a single man, several would be able to barrel down the firm aluminum plating.

The sound of the glass mangled underfoot, again and again, played through the lobby. The constant crackle induced a sort of panic in the techie, drawing her to stack pig irons as quietly as possible in front of the door. Somehow, she was able to move an entire set in front of the door without causing a clatter. Blame it on adrenaline. Each block weighed thirty pounds on its own of solid black cast iron, and they were typically used specifically to hold things down. A stack was formed by piling fifteen or so on top of each other on a rod structure designed to hold them in order to prevent daily foot injuries from plaguing the set.

It was a start, but if the invaders decided to investigate the back rooms for hostages Collin would need something more to hold them at bay. While she could try to reach the rear of the crafts section and pick up the soldering iron that metal shop monopolized all the time, that would mean having to leave the door behind and risk entry while she was away. A loud series of thumps told her that the intruders were making their way into the theatre proper, so whatever she planned to do, it would need to be done quickly.

"Fuckin' muppet," she hissed under her breath, cursing the dead asshole who ruined her hiding spot. Gliding down the hallway like a phantom, the tech had long ago mastered the art of moving silently during a performance. The layout of the theatre went something like this: on the ground, there were around nine-hundred seats divided into four partitions , along with two balconies each allowing an extra fifty seats. The stage rose up some eight feet above the ground but at distance enough to make it level with the eyes of the lowest row. The stage itself was deep, and connected on either side to two different workshops- Crafts and Decor, respectively- by a pull down metal folding door.

While the closing the folding door was out of the question, McCorrin knew that with the welding tool and soldering iron she'd be able to fix up the staff doors well enough to prevent unwanted entry. By fusing the main aluminum body to the steel frames, a few extra strips of scrap metal could turn them into unwavering walls. The process would be much more quiet than hammering planks or stacking up barricades too, but that was merely a side-benefit.

Pulling together the remaining strands of energy she had left, the tech gathered the materials and ferried them back into the hall, taking artistic privilege to gather a few other supplies as well. Risking a glance into the fairly empty audience, she could make out several figures in the far back moving at a very slow and gradual pace towards the front.

"More than enough time," Collin thought, picking up bundles of spare rope and a few extra canisters of compressed oxyacetylene. "There's no way they have my kind of night-vision anyway, and at that pace I have all the time in the world."

With the shop successfully plundered, Collin beat out a retreat to the staff hallway and stowed her trove of borrowed goods and set to work immediately. In no time at all, the access door to the shop was welded closed. For good measure, the tech added a few layers of duct tape on the edges before returning and doing the same to the lobby access-which had luckily remained untouched, the pig irons still in place but looking slightly jostled. A light, occasional thump was coming from the other side, but Collin was in no state of mind to question it. Her work was soon completed, and the faith she held in her own ability allowed her to drift off to a restful sleep on a bench in the staff lockers.