"Don't leave no wizard standing!" Minty yells over the gunfire.

[[they'll hit 'em some zombies and if there's a pistol shot left over it can go arbitarily into the cloud, since that's in their way.]]

"Outta my way!" Carter snarls as he runs for the back door. The guy with the funny accent was blocking his path -- or at least, he had been when last Carter could see -- so he prepared himself to shove and shove hard.

What he didn't reckon on, though, were all the debris on the floor from the fight. He tripped. Over what, he didin't know, but it landed him right at Maddox's boots. His fancy pistol when skittering off somewhere into the flashy lights.

"Oh fuck." Carter muttered.

((OOC: Darius Carter tries to book it. He has to get past Maddox, though, so he needs to Push. The light cloud won't hinder this, but Maddox's Deflection power will.

11:08, Today: Darius Carter rolled -1,-1 using d4-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,1.  Push. Well, that's a Critical Failure. Not only is Maddox not pushed, Carter is going to be knocked Prone. And he loses his gun in the process.

Carter's Card: JD))

---

Nic is down, so Logan gets his actual turn.

Wild Bill had already made his move, and his part if the plan involved covering the rear window. It looked like he'd have backup with Belle - not that he needed it, but apparently in this town it never hurt to have too much in your favor. As soon as he could, he scrambled toward the rear window, taking a peek in.

---

A run roll if needed:

18:34, Yesterday: Logan West rolled 3 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3.


10:45, Today: Logan West drew the single card: 9C using the Deadlands system.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:46, Fri 06 Jan 2017.

The hadcases take down one of the headless zombies, and another staggers back, stunned by the hail of bullets.

Logan, meanwhile, hops the barricade and follows along behind Belle and Wild Bill as they make their way toward the rear.

((OOC: Another House Puppet is down, and the remaining one is Shaken. The downed one takes an injury to the guts, and loses a die on Agility.

Meanwhile, I handwave Logan leaping over the street barrier. Still, the saloon is to big to be circumnavigated quickly, so there's no window for him to look into as yet. He's right behind Belle and Wild Bill.))

---

Von Steinhof is up! Reminder, he's currently inside the obscure area, so -6 to all sight-based actions.

21:58, Today: Freiherr von Steinhof rolled 3 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3.  another blue chip.
21:57, Today: Freiherr von Steinhof rolled 1 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1.  blue chip on top.
21:57, Today: Freiherr von Steinhof rolled -3,1 using d8-4,d6-4, rerolling max with rolls of 1,5.  Notice, Alertness.

Total of 5.

Moving full pace.



Leopold ran a hand through his hair. This was... quite interesting. He pondered if Sebastian would be done by now - and if the scoundrel would hold up his bargain.
Well, there was nothing to be done about that now.
Part of him wanted to run, arms flailing and shrieking out of fear. But he was, after all, an officer of His Imperial Majesty. There were certain expectations on how an officer would conduct himself in the face of danger.

It didn't quite occur to him that nobody was able to see him right now, but he carefull, with his back up right, one hand folded behind him, he did his best to get his bearings and left, as quickly as could be permitted to still be called walking the Haunted Saloon.


22:04, Today: Freiherr von Steinhof drew the single card: QH using the Deadlands system.  Initiative.

Mr. Sebastian, meanwhile, continues setting the charges.

"There. Let's see how you enjoy this." he says, lighting a match and touching it to the fuse. Then he hopped into a nearby shadow, letting the darkness swallow him and carry him away.

The fuse burned down...

---

{{BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!}}



Outside in the street, Belle, Logan, and Wild Bill saw a ball of flame bloom from the rear of the Bella Union, shattering wood and sending burning planks high into the noontime sky. The explosion rocked the foundation of the saloon, and inside wood began to creek ominously.

---

Freiherr von Stienhof emerged from the light cloud just as the explosion rocked the building, sending him to his knees. The hardcases running around the room also pitched, and Zeke found himself rolling to avoid being skewered by a beam. James Wilder also found himself thrown to the floor.

What remained was a room on fire.



"Come on, a-ta-shay!" came a shout from the hole in the wall. Jackie Wells waved at him frantically. "Git out of there! The place is gonna come down!"

---

Maddox felt himself picked up and tossed by a giant's hand and slammed into a wall, dazing him a moment. He tried to clear his eyes, but that strange light show was still sparking around him. Worse, his ears were ringing somewhat fierce. He had no idea which way was up. But he seemed to still be alive, so that was a bonus.

---

Matt Broaddale hadn't had much luck trying to retrace his steps. He'd made it as far as the theater when he heard a sudden, ungodly loud noise from further up the street...

((OOC: Since everyone is trying to run anyhow, I'm going to fast forward a little. Mr. Sebastian finishes his work, then uses his Teleport ability to get out of the area.

I need to roll to see if the explosions actually do enough damage to injure the Saloon.

22:43, Today: Mr. Roger Sebastian Whateley rolled 26,41 using 4d10+10,4d10+10, rerolling max with rolls of 5,6,3,2,3,6,6,(10+6)16.  Explosions!

Yes. Yes, that'll do it. I also roll to see if the remains are on fire, counting the area as Very Flammable. I roll a chance for each explosion.

22:46, Today: Mr. Roger Sebastian Whateley rolled 6,1 using d6,d6.  Fuego!

Yup, that's a fire.

From here on out, I'm dropping out of combat rounds. Feel free to post normally.))

---

Combat Over

"Well that can't be good," Broaddale muttered as he rushed toward the Bella Union, shouting at any Union soldiers or townsfolk nearby to start a bucket line. Hopefully this wasn't some remnant of the crazy events of the past days.

Matt skid to a halt near what used to be the front of the Bella, taking in the carnage with a horrified look on his face.

"IS ANYONE IN THERE?!" he shouted into the blaze.

[ooc: Who's out front of the flaming building?]

Leopold shook his head and slowly rose back to his feet. Incredibly, there was a seemingly undisturbed bottle of bourbon standing on the floor next to him. There was nothing no table nearby,  so it was hard to say where it had come from.
He grabbed the bottle, looked around for a not-broken glass and found a tin cup from one of the dice tables.
He shrugged, and poured himself a drink while walking towards Jackie.
"Yes, yes, I am coming."

OOC: I believe Katy still is.

At the sound that came from the Saloon, Katy turned away from the interior and dropped to a knee, placing her left hand on top of her hat as she did. Once it seemed the explosion had left her well enough, she looked for the folks that had so recently been with her by the Saloon. "Logan! Jackie!"

Still feeling extremely sick and slightly deaf, Maddox tries to follow the wall to...somewhere that's not on fire.

With everyone more or less out of the way, the thugs break into a run - one to check his friend's body, the big guy taking on the till and the little ratty one grabbing any unspoilt liquor she can get whilst the leader reloads.

[[they're just going to raid the till and get out as fast as possible in the background, carrying Ted if he proves not quite dead.]]

Zek stood, the smoke and burning ash filling his lungs...to no real effect. He stood over the body of Nicodemus, and threw the corpse over his shoulder. Walking through the fire and other burning wreckage, he took a shot glass from his pocket. Looking through it like a monocle, and strapping it to his head via a sling it was attached to.

"Come on, Maddox. We gotta go..." He growled, moving over to the gunslinger and dragging him to a patch of earth revealed by shattered floorboards. Never releasing the dead man he had over his shoulder, its weight not seeming to slow him.

"What the-?" Maddox says, flailing a bit and re-holstering his gun since he'd rather not shoot at people he can't see. "Well if you can *caff* *heff* see the way out, lead on, I suppose..." the bounty hunter trails off into coughing.

((OOC: The people that Matt would see first are probably Belle, Logan, and someone who looks an awful lot like the late Wild Bill Hickok.

Katy and Jackie are still on the other side of the barricade between the crater in the middle of the street and the rest of town, though they are outside. Von Steinhof is moving to meet them. Wilder is still inside.

Zeke would notice that Nic's body is oddly light, and looking through the glass reveals that it's hollow, a simulacra of some kind that is already starting to disintegrate.))

"Damn it all to hell!" Zek growled. He cast aside the body, but now realized one of Nic's tricks. Next time he saw the sidewinder, he would know how to look for him. There may be no trace leading to Nic's real location now, but to keep another of his fake bodies going there would be something to track via the hunting grounds. Hopefully when Zeke killed this body it hurt the sorcerer enough.

He lead Maddox to one of the now many ruined floor sections which revealed dirt, and dragged the man down into the earth itself, and then outside of the burning building.

(OOC:
16:02, Today: Ezekiel Starkweather rolled 9,9 using 1d12-1,1d6-1, rerolling max with rolls of 10,(6+4)10.  Spirit roll for burrowing with passenger.)

Maddox jerks in alarm, trying to break free, but they're out before his brain can really process what just happened.

[[21:44, Today: Maddox rolled 6,8 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,(6+2)8.  Aaagh aaagh aaagh the ground the ground! (Guts roll for Doubting Thomas being Burrowed with.]]

Zeke can almost see the Welshman's cast-iron rationalisation kicking in as he staggers to a standing halt, coughs a couple more times and shakes the dirt off himself. "Cellars. Good thinking, thanks," he says vaguely, then blinks and refocuses.

"Damn! Have we lost Carter in there? Wilder was set to let him go free to run about the hinterland raping and murdering with his bandit friends, that lamb's willy."

In reply to Maddox (msg # 228):

"What Cellar?" Zek asked, confused. When Maddox spoke about Carter, Zek nodded. "With his magic, no doubt the no good son a rattler already skipped town. We just anit lucky enough for him to be crushed by a burning beam of wood. On the plus side that damn Saloon won't be hurting anyone else...and if Carter did use magic to escape I can track him."

Matt swiftly moved over to the trio in front of the burning building and put a hand on the badge at his hip, eyeing the group for injuries and lingering his gaze on the mustached, familiar man.

"U.S. Marshal Broaddale. Are you hurt? What happened? Is anyone inside?"

[OOC: I'd like to roll notice for injuries and to further investigate the dead ringer. 17:35, Today: Matthew Broaddale rolled 10,9 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (8+2)10,(6+3)9.  Notice Check for Matt]

The man who looked like Hickok frowned and looked at the remains of the Bella Union. "Fella by the name of Carter and some accomplices got into a shootout with the law, near as I can figure things." He says. "Carter was headed toward the back exit...we were comin' to head him off when the buildin' exploded. Ain't got a clue what in Tarnation that's about."

There don't seem to be too many serious injuries among the trio Matt's talking to.

((OOC: Waiting on Belle and Logan to make some introductions...))

Leopold, for all his trying, couldn't help but cough in the smoke of burning wood, liquor and... bodies.

He raised his tin cup in a salute to Katy and Jackie as he reached them. "The entertainment offered by Deadwood is quite heavy on the infrastructure."
He turned around watching the blaze, taking a sip.
"I hope that Mister Tolliver has a good insurance." Another sip, seemingly musing the point, then he looked around.
"Is everybody out? Have you seen James Wilder?"

Katy stood back up and turned to face the Bella Union to see Leopold exit. She nodded at his comment about entertainment in Deadwood. "It always like this round these parts?" As the Austrian turned around, Katy peered past him into the burning saloon.

When he questioned Wilder's whereabouts, Katy's eyes widened a little. "Lost sighta James, was he still inside?" Katy cupped a hand around her mouth. "James! James Wilder!" There was concern in her voice, and the ranger looked around to see if she could spot Wilder anywhere.

At the moment Belle looked less like a mechanic or a traveler and more like a rail enforcer.  She had her long black duster with matching gloves and Stetson on, with her hair trailing from its brim.  At her shoulder was a massive firearm, something that looked like a Gatling rifle, but far larger in bore size, and with only two barrels.  Around her chest was a bandoleer loaded with shiny steel railroad spikes and a shoulder bag on the other side to balance it out.

Belle blinked.  She had seen explosions, and a lot of them, several up close, and more than one intended to kill her.  She may have in fact caused any number of explosions.  This one wasn't her work at least.  However this all mean she recovered fairly quickly and answered the newly arrived Marshal's question without much delay.

"Well... I'm not entirely sure what happened here to be honest.  I am here by happenstance and it seemed the establishment was being robbed."

Belle looked back and forth between the Marshals, hoping they would figure out a hierarchy between themselves.

"Shall we get to the rescue of those trapped within?  I can go summon the soldiers, if nothing else."

Matt took in the deader and strangely-armed woman's explanation, then started at the shout coming from elsewhere near the building.

quote:

"Shall we get to the rescue of those trapped within? I can go summon the soldiers, if nothing else."

"May not be time!" he shouted as he dashed into the burning building, covering his mouth with his hat.


[ooc: Hopefully this doesn't get me killed]

Belle blinked again.

"Well... I like the mechanical advantage of his chain drive, but this fire does need to be dealt with quickly and the handful of us present aren't going to be effective.  Still, some current intervention does seem necessary.  Your thoughts Marshal?"

That was going to get confusing with Marshal West and Marshal Broaddale around, if they stood in the same space together for too long at least.

Logan had been about to introduce himself to the other man, but was somewhat lost in surveying the situation and the sudden explosion. It was unusual for two Marshals to be working the same territory, but not unheard of. From what he had seen, Deadwood could certainly use another lawman or two. By the time he had wrapped his head around what was happening, the other man seemed to be jumping into a burning building.

"I think some manner of intervention is certainly necessary, though with respect I'm not sure my fellow Marshal's approach isn't likely to just get him killed," he said. "Hope it doesn't. Seems like we could use another lawman or two in this place. I'm less concerned with this building burning down to rubble than I am about the surrounding buildings and any folks as might be inside. Well, except Darius Carter of course."

Tuning his senses to the task, he tried to pierce through the vale of smoke, fire, and sound to try and make out where any survivors were, and where the nearest points of risk were.

"May need to get some soldiers after all."

---

Notice: 8 (Looking for survivors inside the building)

12:28, Today: Logan West rolled 8,5 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+2)8,5.  Notice.