Juan

"That's the plan," Vivian says, eyeing Chuck carefully. If Chuck picks up on anything from either of them, he gives no indication of it, falling into place behind Juan.

The vehicles thin out as they get away from the parking lot, though they still see a few parked on the side of the road or brazenly on the school's unkempt lawn. There's not much to see on the school itself; the makeshift reinforcements make it hard to see through the windows, and there's no one and nothing visible outside. A lone soccer ball lies in the overgrown grass fields, possibly unmoved for weeks.

Walking the perimeter of the school property, Juan turns a corner and sees figures. About 150 feet down the street, he sees an overturned truck. It looks like it was driving, took a turn too fast and crashed. Milling around the truck are a half dozen standing figures. From the distance, it's impossible to be sure, but their languid body language seems to suggest they're walkers.

Chris K

As instructed, Chris K's team splits further into two lines, with one on each side of the hall. Classrooms are located on both sides of the hall, and a peek inside each shows desks pushed to the side of the room to make room for goods such as lumber or machine parts. Most doors have handwritten signs with a name and a list of goods, or at least a one-word description of that room's specialty.

Occasionally, items have been left out in the hallway itself, usually on an abandoned dolly or the like. Most are easy to identify - engines, tires, and so on - but some are more specialized or mysterious, such as unlabeled metal gas cylinders up against the wall. They are so unassuming that the group ignores the first one, just outside the entrance lobby, but when they pass a second in a hall corner, Thomas taps on it curiously with his hammer. It rings hollow, and he can do nothing but look over at Chris K and shrug.

Finally, the group reaches the library. Thomas pauses at the entrance, waiting for the rest of the group to catch up. The door is already open. Inside, Chris K can see tables laden with various supplies and bookshelves still stocked with children's reading material, plus useless computer equipment pushed into a far corner. At first glance, he doesn't see any walkers, but there's a lot of visual cover in there.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 37):

He hissed at the others to get thier attention. He steps back around the corner, so he can look at the walkers without exposing most of his body. "About six, around the truck. We could handle them nice and quiet, but we need to make sure there is not a bigger group about 1st."

Chris looks at the doors to see if they open in or out, or both ways. He motions in Thomas and Clyde, and Mason

Keeping his voice low he says"Ok. Same as before, one of you on each side," he points at Thomas and Clyde "I'll make some noise to attract out any walkers in there. As they come through the doors they're yours. Melee only. Watch out for each other - as in don't hit each other. Also watch me - I'll let you know how many are coming. ok?"

He turns to Mason

"Mason,  I want your guys to act as back up to Clyde and Thomas, if they need help - help them - though I will too obviously. But your team also needs to watch our backs in case the noise attracts walkers from outside the hall. How you divide them up is up to you. Hand to hand weapons by preference." Looking at all three he says "That seem ok to you?"

Juan

Chuck narrows his eyes, then peeks around the corner. "We can take out six quiet enough. Just hard to sneak up on the middle of the street without 'em seeing us."

He turns back, evaluates the group for a moment, and then points to the back half. "Y'all circle around and make sure there ain't a bigger group just around the corner. If it's safe, get on the other side of 'em and get their attention. We'll come up from behind and take 'em out." Turning, he indicates Juan, Vivian, and Gloria with his finger. "You three are with me."

The others move to and behind the buildings on the other side of the street and pass out of sight. For the next several minutes, Juan sees and hears nothing from them, but notices Chuck getting more and more agitated, waiting impatiently for some sort of signal. Finally, Juan sees one of the men step out from behind a building at the other end of the street, waving his arms. The distance is far enough that it takes several seconds for one of the walkers to notice, but once it starts moving, the others catch on quickly, turning to shuffle towards the figure.

"Now," Chuck whispers, turning the corner and quietly skulking towards the walkers.

Chris K

"On my way," says Thomas quietly. He and Clyde takes up positions on either side of the library entrance: a single door of standard width, obviously designed to accommodate people entering and exiting single-file. It opens outward, and is propped open with a hinged piece of metal similar to a kickstand screwed to the bottom of the door.

Mason surveys the door for a moment before answering Chris K. "I think more than three people on that door would get in each other's way. I want...you..." he says, pointing at Fran.

"Fran," Lauren says.

"Fran, stay there and help them. The rest of us will watch the hallway. Just fall back and call for us if you get overwhelmed. We're a lot faster than they are."

In reply to Snicker (msg # 40):

Juan nodded to Chuck, and proceeded to move in step with the other man. Despite Juan's size, he was very agile and moved with the grace of a big cat.

As a result he was utterly silent as he moved towards the small group of the dead. He did not have to get too close, as his throwing knives have him even more reach than decent length of the chain.

ooc-16:05, Today: Juan rolled 27 using 2d10+7.  Stealth. possible crit.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:10, Sat 17 Nov 2018.

Chris waited for everyone to get into position. As he waited, he slung his M4 behind him and got out his nightstick and bowie knife. When he thought everyone was ready, he glanced round, catching sight of CLyde, Thomas, Fran and Mason, and nodding at each in turn.

Once he was sure they were ready, he started tapping the knife against the night stick. Quietly at first

tap tap tap tap

then a pause and a listen

then tap tap tap tap tap, again a pause and a listen

He carried on at the same volume 4 times, and if nothing was heard, started again tapping a little louder, for four times. He kept this cycle up until he thought he could hear something. He kept looking at the others as well, in case they heard something

ooc
not sure how many listen rolls I need to do. Heres a bunch.

10:58, Today: Chris K rolled 8 using 2d10.  Listen1 . Forgot bonus this should be 13

10:59, Today: Chris K rolled 16 using 2d10+5.  Listen 2.

10:59, Today: Chris K rolled 10 using 2d10+5.  listen 3.

10:59, Today: Chris K rolled 15 using 2d10+5.  listen 4.

Juan

Juan's uncanny stealth makes him all the more aware of the noise the others are making. Gloria, Vivian, and Chuck, though careful, still produce the occasional scuff or kicked errant piece of gravel as they approach the truck. Fortunately, none of these walkers seem particularly attentive, and Juan gets within throwing range without being noticed.

Gloria and Chuck must get closer with their melee weapons, as they have no way to silently kill an enemy at range, while Vivian hangs close to Juan, her pistol held at low ready. She glances over at him just as the furthest walker, shuffling towards the far-off distraction, finally starts to groan. The others quickly follow suit, the sound growing in volume.

Chris K

The others match Chris K's gaze, with Thomas, Fran, and Mason returning his nod. Once Chris K starts tapping his weapons together, they are primed for action. The first taps are so quiet, it's hard to tell if they even reach the back of the library, and they garner no response. The second, louder, set get no response either.

This goes on for several more rounds. Clyde is the first to get bored, leaning against the wall with his chin on his hand and his elbow on a crouched knee. Fran and Thomas get bored about the same time, the former resting her crowbar on the ground and the later getting restless and fidgety. Mason takes on a relaxed watchfulness, like a hunter in a canopy. By this time, it's clear that if there's anything in the library, it can definitely hear Chris K and has given no response. It'll be difficult for him to get any louder without switching up his noisemaking technique, and if he does so, it won't be a question of whether he's audible in the library but whether he's audible throughout the entire school.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 43):

Juan picks the closest dead thing to Vivan and him, throwing a dagger with a fair degree of silence and a great deal of accuracy. The weapon lodged into the back of the creatures skull, causing it to collapse like a puppet with cut strings.

Ooc: 01:35, Today: Juan rolled 17 using 2d10+7.  Throw dagger. Nice and quiet...

After a while even Chris gets bored.

He turns to Mason and says "Seems clear to me. You guys keep station around the door please"

Turning to the others he says "Ok, lets go in and check it out. Fran youre with us, please, behind Clyde. Watch out for anything under the tables. Remember, what we're after is food and water, so lets concentrate on that."

Sheathing his knife, Chris moves up behind Thomas and follows him in.

Juan

Juan's dagger flies true, sinking into the back of the rear walker's head. It drops without a sound, but doesn't land the same way, audibly thudding on the road. The other walkers don't seem to notice, possibly due to their moaning. Gloria, sneaking up behind another, grabs its shoulder and then sinks her combat knife into the side of its head. She guides it down, giving it a gentler landing than Juan's kill. Chuck secures a kill as well, but not quite as gracefully; his hatchet lands in the walker's skull, but doesn't kill it immediately, and it thuds against the side of the truck as it falls down before he finishes it off with his boot.

The remaining three walkers finally notice the commotion and turn around to face the group, still moaning. Gloria and Chuck ready their weapons and take a cautious step back as the walkers approach, while Vivian raises her pistol and gives Juan an aside glance.

Chris K

Thomas goes ahead as soon as Chris K is finished talking, entering before Chris K can even move up. Fran gives Chris K a salute sloppy enough to earn an ass-reaming from any self-respecting drill sergeant, then waits for him, then Clyde to enter the library ahead of her. There is plenty of visual cover in the library, but everyone is careful and, as per Chris K's instructions, is careful to check under tables. Nothing gives any indication of an incoming attack.

Once inside, Chris K smells the familiar scent of rotting meat, though much fainter than would indicate an entire corpse in the room. As he gets closer to the tables, he sees why: scattered among the goods being sold is - or was - fresh food, mostly game like rabbits or venison but a few fruits and root vegetables as well. It's all spoiled by now, but the air is dry enough in the library that the decomposition process is going slowly and the smell is manageable.

The majority of tables, however, hold preserved food - mostly canned goods, but also preserves, jerky, and even one table full of MREs. There's also tables selling bottled water, sodas, and alcoholic drinks. The ratio is tilted in favour of food over water, but there's still enough here that even the entire group, including Chuck's team, probably can't carry it back in one trip. Without an in-depth audit, it's hard to tell how long it'll last, but at least it should keep Malcolm's community going for the next several days.

There's also other goods, if Chris K is interested, such as salt, spices, and other things that stretch the definition of "food" but are being sold in the library anyway. Of course, there's all the children's books and computers that one could ever want, and a few sundry things that the sellers themselves must have been using - some weapons, trading supplies, and so on. There's even another metal gas cylinder on the far end of the room.

Other than the people Chris K came here with, there is no one in the room, alive or dead. Fran pokes through some canned food, while Clyde inspects the drinks. Thomas, energetic and curious, does a round of all the tables and then starts rummaging through the sellers' abandoned personal effects, apparently looking for a surprise.

Chris looks around and once happy its clear, tells the guys

"Ok - lets start loading up with as much food and water as we can now. MREs and things like that first. But keep your eyes and ears open for any trouble."

He heads back to the door and calls the rest of Mason's team over "All clear in here, theres plenty of food and drink so lets load up with that, and check for any weapon or ammo. Mason, can you tell one of your guys to round up those outside, and get them to come in and load up please"

Chris head back in and loads up with MRE and snack foods, and water - about 2/3 liquid the rest food.

Once thats done he'll head over and check out the gas cylinder, keeping an eye ot for any guns which might have ammo compatible with his M4.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 46):

Seeing the others turn about and head for them, Jaun lets the chain lead itself out with one hand. Then he throws another dagger at any of them heading for Viv, just in case. It goes right into ones forehead, dropping it like the other one.

(OOC:
04:10, Today: Juan rolled 19 using 2d10+7.  Thrown dagger.

Juan

With Gloria and Chuck in striking range, none of the walkers have any interest in Vivian, nor would they have much chance of reaching her from their position. Nonetheless, it's only a second before Gloria catches an opportune second to grab the closest walker to her and push it against a truck, plunging the knife into its skull, and Chuck performs a much cleaner kill on the one nearest him, so Juan has an obvious target. When his knife penetrates its skull, the groaning stops, leaving the group in silence.

Gloria bends over, catching her breath, and wipes off her blade on a corpse's shirt. Chuck puts his hands on his hips and nods.

"Where'd you learn to throw knives like that?" Vivian asks, thumbing the safety on her pistol and tucking it into her jacket pocket.

"Good work, good work," Chuck says. He waves his hand above his head, motioning in the direction of the group that split off, then rubs his palms together. "Y'all did good. Glad to see you can follow instructions. And we did it clean. You hear that? Silence."

Chuck goes quiet, as do Gloria and Vivian. For a second, the air is completely silent. Then, Juan hears a faint crash and ringing from the school.

Chris K

Mason looks over at Lauren and Leslie in a calculating manner, then looks back at Chris K. "It's dangerous to go alone and I don't know them well. I'll go."

Mason heads for the exit while Lauren and Leslie enter the room. Inside, there's plenty of food and water to go around, so Chris K has no trouble filling his back. Weapons are a bit more varied, with surprisingly few rifles; presumably, the people here were armed to defend themselves from living thieves rather than the walking dead, and had carried handguns for a speedy draw or shotguns to avoid overpenetration.

By the time Chris K is walking towards the canister, Thomas and Fran are already investigating, while the others are still gathering food and water.

"See this?" Thomas asks Fran, pointing to the scraps of something on the gas canister's surface. "Think that was the label. Someone must have scraped it off with a knife or something. Why'd they do that?"

Fran shrugs, watching Thomas work, and the electrician continues unabated. He looks up at the top of the canister, where the nozzle has been affixed with some sort of device. "And what the hell is this, anyway? Whatever it is, it's amateur work. Looks ready to pop right off."

Reaching out, he grabs at the device, squinting. "What the - is this a timer? It looks jammed, but - "

Without warning, the device comes off the canister in Thomas's hand, and the canister immediately starts jetting pressurized gas. Thomas and Fran immediately recoil, covering their faces, with Thomas screaming at the top of his lungs. A second later, Chris K - about fifteen feet from the canister, feels an intense burning sensation hit his eyes and throat.

Fran stumbles back blindly, eventually crashing into a table, sending both it, its contents, and herself to the ground. Thomas hits one of the cheap school bookshelves. It wobbles, and in an attempt to escape the gas he pushes against it, sending it crashing against the next one, then the next one, and so on, toppling them like dominoes until the last one hits the window and smashes the glass. At the same time, the device in his hand starts screeching extremely loudly, sounding like a car or fire alarm.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:33, Sat 24 Nov 2018.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 49):

"Had a lot of time as a kid throwing rocks between not going to school and avoiding cops. Then when I finally went to school I was the pitcher on the baseball team." He said as he proceeded to grab the knives from his target's remains. He was about to go into detail when the ringing started.

He quickly headed to the school to see what was happening. There was no way the mindles creatures in the building where organized enough to activate the alarm on purpose...

Chris covers his mouth and yells "Everyone out - Now!" already moving towards the exit as fast as he can.

He shuts his right eye so only has one eye, but as soon as he gets outside the hall, he get some water from his pack and starts rinsing out both eyes.

He starts shouting "Fran! Thomas! Move towards my voice" and repeats it as much as he can, assuming his throat doesn't give out, though he stays clear of the door way as much as he can, hoping the others get out too

Juan

"Hold it!" Chuck orders when Juan starts moving. "We're down half our team. We don't go 'til I say we go."

He turns and waves his hand over his head, trying to signal the men that had circled around to the far end of the road. They're coming, but it'll take a minute. Meanwhile, the ringing from the school continues. It sounds like a fire alarm, which could theoretically still be running off battery power if the school invested in its safety systems. While a fire would be bad news if Chris K's team is still inside the building, the fact that Juan can hear it from this distance implies it could easily signal walkers in the area.

Gloria and Vivian glance at each other. Vivian starts moving towards the school first, followed by Gloria.

"What did I just say?" protests Chuck. "Just wait one goddamned minute!"

Chris K

Chris K's eyes continue to burn after he leaves the room, but flushing his eyes with water reduces it to a tolerable stinging sensation, slightly more severe in his left eye than his right. The ringing is so loud that Chris K can barely hear his own order to get out, and he can't be sure anyone else did. Nonetheless, some of them get the message.

Clyde blurts something that Chris K can't hear, but is obviously "Shit!" before vaulting over a table to flee the room. Leslie is slower, frozen staring at the jetting canister, before she turns her head away in pain as the gas reaches her. This jolts her back to consciousness and she turns for the door as well, covering her face. Both are closer to the exit and get out before Chris K.

Lauren shouts something in Fran's direction, then takes a deep breath and moves towards the other woman. Fran and Thomas get to their feet, but clearly can't see their surroundings, both flailing their arms in front of them in an attempt to get their bearings. Thomas has dropped the device, but it's still incredibly loud even from the library's entrance, and he and Fran definitely can't hear Chris K at their respective ranges.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:33, Wed 28 Nov 2018.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 52):

Juan moved with Vivian, despite his orders. If it came down to choosing between her and almost anyone else, he would always pick her. The idea she might get hurt, or worse, was something that could not be allowed. Besides, somebody had to shut off that damn sound, it would be a dinner bell to anything that might hear it.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:50, Tue 27 Nov 2018.

Chris hands water to Clyde and Leslie "Rinse your eyes" he yells above the noise.

"We need to get the others out and stop that noise. Any ideas?" He yells "ANd what the fuck is that stuff? and why rig it up?" He shakes his head

He quickly scans the nearest tables to see if there is anything like goggles or a mask he could use to protect his eyes, and tries to make out how the others are doing.

ooc

08:55, Today: Chris K rolled 18 using 2d10+5.  looking for useful stuff +5.

Juan

"Get the fuck back here!" Chuck roars angrily, but to no avail. Juan, Vivian, and Gloria leave him behind as they cross the schoolyard. Vivian is the slowest of the three, but Juan and Gloria both match her speed.

The ringing is loudest as Juan passes a particular wing of the school, but any exterior doors there have been chained and padlocked shut. Clearly, someone only wanted one way in or out of the building. As he nears the only open entrance he's seen, Juan runs almost directly into Mason, who is alone.

"Where's Chuck?" he asks quickly, looking over Juan, Gloria, and Vivian. "Rest of the team's inside. Don't know what they did, but it'll bring a horde."

Chris K

"I don't know, fucking mustard gas!" Clyde appears to have avoided most of the gas's caustic effects, but splashes water on his eyes anyway before passing it to Leslie. "Someone must've wanted to kill all these people and take their stuff!"

"We've got to smash that thing!" Leslie splashes water on her eyes, then grinds it in with the heel of her palm. "We just - how are we gonna get to it?"

Lauren has managed to pull Fran halfway to the door, but by now she's visibly suffering too. The two of them run into a table, almost knocking it over, clearly unable to see where they're going. Thomas is making almost no progress at all, and is coughing so hard and fast that he can't get a breath in. He stumbles and looks ready to fall.

The tables themselves are devoted to food and water, nothing useful for protecting one's eyes except to flush them out after exposure, but it's possible the abandoned bags have something.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 55):

"Can you tell me what room they are in? Is there a window or soemthing we could take out?"


Running through the narrow halls of the school sounded like a bad idea, but if they could open the window of the room Chris and the other where in at least they could escape. The fact they where not here with Mason was a bad sign.

Juan readied his chain. Even if the window in question was on the second floor, he could climb there with the weapon. Or just use it to batter down a boarded up window as the case may be.

As for finding the room in question, all he need do was listen for the ringing...

ooc-can Jaun make a perception roll to figure our where ringing is coming from while still outside?

Chris noted one of the bags behind the nearest stall seemed oddly shaped. Taking a gamble, he rushed in and grabbed it, rushing back out. Ripping it open, he found a gas mask.

He quickly rinsed off his face once more, telling the others "I'll get them out, you get ready to rinse off their faces. I'll stop the buzzer too".

Putting on the mask, he gives a thumbs up and then moves into the room towards the nearest person he can see, as he get near he shouts as loud as he can, knowing the mask will muffle his voice "STAY CALM! ILL LEAD YOU OUT!"

Juan

"I left them at the end of that wing," Mason says, pointing over Juan's shoulder. He's indicating the point where Juan had heard the ringing the loudest. "Windows are barred and doors are locked up tight. Amateur work but strong. One way in and out - if they missed an exit, so did we."

"Why aren't they with you?" Vivian asks.

"Don't know," Mason answers. "Sent me to get you. Alarm didn't start until I was at the door."

Chris K

After washing out Clyde and Leslie's eyes, there's not enough water left in the bottle to effectively rinse out Chris K's eyes, but fortunately they don't seem to need it.

"Uh," says Leslie lamely. "I just got food, I don't got any - "

"Here," Clyde interrupts, pulling more bottled water out of his pack and twisting off the cap.

Chris K rushes into the room. Closest to the entrance are Lauren and Fran, who almost made it to the exit before being overcome by the gas. The sclera of both their eyes are a vibrant pink, so thick with tears that they obviously can't see more than a blur even if the gas itself hasn't affected their vision. Both are coughing, and while Lauren is still trying to drag Fran forward, Fran is so overcome that she's struggling to stay upright. Thomas, near the back of the room, is conscious but on his hands and knees, barely dragging himself in a random direction as he coughs and wheezes uncontrollably.

All the while, the alarm continues screaming, making it hard to hear anything else. Combined with the gas mask muffling his voice, Chris K is probably unintelligible even within arm's reach.

In reply to Snicker (msg # 58):

"Fuck!" Juan growled. "There is soemthing wrong if they are not running outside by now. Vivian, you and the others stay out here and signal me if we need to get out in a hurry. Mason, come with me. I might need your help in navigating the place." He starts to move inside, making sure Mason is coming along.

Chris runs to the alarm and use his M4 butt to smash it until it stops ringing, then he grabs Thomas and tries to guide him out, dragging him out if he has to

Juan

"Fuck that," Vivian declares. "I'm going in with you."

"Yeah?" Gloria asks, looking at Vivian, then shrugs. "Okay. Fuck that."

The two women follow behind Juan and Mason. The latter does not object to their presence, whether out of agreement or just expedience. Far behind, Chuck and the others struggle to catch up. It only takes a minute for Juan to round the corner of the school and for the entrance to come into view, at which point Mason skids to a stop.

Through the entrance, the Juan can see several walkers walking past the door towards the source of the noise. Presumably, they were located on the other end of the school; the entrance doesn't provide much of a view, but from what little he can see, there are a lot of them. They haven't noticed Juan or the others yet, but they're going to make a lot of trouble for whoever's at the source of that ringing.

Chris K

Chris K leaves Lauren and Fran to zero in on the alarm. Obviously, it's not hard to find its source, despite the mask obscuring his vision. It wasn't designed to take this sort of brute force, and it comes apart after only a couple of blows. The deafening noise stops, leaving only the ringing in his ears behind.

Chris K definitely drags rather than guides Thomas out; he conscious, but all he can do is to be live weight rather than dead weight. As he pulls Thomas towards the door, Chris K sees Leslie enter the room and grab Lauren, guiding her towards the exit. Lauren is barely upright herself, and Fran seems to be almost as badly off as Thomas.

Finally, everyone gets out of the room at about the same time. Thomas, Lauren, and Leslie are all coughing with varying degrees of intensity, while Fran is doing something similar to coughing but without making any noise. Clyde looks overwhelmed for a moment, then descends on Thomas, pouring water into his eyes.