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[The Illuminati]

 

Sanctuary

 

Chapter One, Part I

Ominous Winds

“Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” - Matthew 9:37-38

1

| WEST SANCTUARY
| Monday, 5:30 AM

It was an early summer morning, certainly much earlier than Sanctuary's sheriff and deputies were used to reporting for duty. The outside air was still cold and wet, and the sun itself seemed uninterested in getting out of bed -- leaving the sky mostly dark ahead of them. Behind them, the eastern sky was a wet canvas of orange-, red-, and purple colors. Looking at the thick clouds reflected in her rearview mirror, the sheriff wondered if it would likely rain today.

"Go home Sammy," her deputy shouted after quickly rolling down the passenger side window. "You're drunk!!" She was entirely to chipper to have just rolled out of bed.

"Sammy K," she continued in a more conversational tone once her window was rolled back up. "Hard to believe there was a time when the whole of Sanctuary would have died for that guy. Now, we can't even get him a bed in town to sleep on..."

Samuel 'Sammy' Kineas. Once upon a time, he used to be the star quarterback for the Milton Peters High School over on Central Street, but that was ages ago. 'The Red Rabbit', they used to call him -- mostly because of how his long, red hair stuck out from under his helmet, but also for his preference for 'hopping' over opposing tacklers. He used to be so young, and so strong, and so handsome...

Glancing once more into her rearview mirror, the sheriff could hardly believe the change. The man was mostly skin and bones now, clothes filthy with stains. How long had he been homeless now, living near the far edge of the woods all alone? In the poor morning light, 'Sammy' was little more than a shadow of a man -- a walking scarecrow. He appeared to be shambling back to town, away from her crime scene.

"...they say he got in with the wrong crowd. Started betting on his own games -- he used to play for the town football team, see. Don't know if you knew that. Won big, lost bigger. I think they say, once he couldn't pay off his debts, the guys down at the casino cracked his legs and that pretty much ended his career. A real waste, y'know? Could'da put Sanctuary on the map..."

 
| Monday, 5:45 AM

The drive out to West Sanctuary, had cost them a half-hour easy. Add to that the time it took for them to get cleaned and dressed, and you can begin to imagine just how early in the morning they'd been called out from under their covers. Luckily for the sheriff, the deputy sitting across from her, Sonaida Donald, lived right along the way. Otherwise she would have first had to head in the opposite direction, to pick-up the second closest deputy, before driving all the way back out to West Sanctuary.

Deputy Donald was young, enthusiastic, and entirely too preppy. At least she had a good head on her shoulders, and kept the sheriff mostly up-to-date on all the local gossip -- whether the sheriff wanted her to, or not. Right now, they were both replaying the call from the night staff over in their heads. Apparently, a woman had called to complan about a smell. A deputy was dispatched to investigate, and it had all gone to hell from there. Pulling onto the gravel driveway, the sheriff finally realized just how bad things really were.

 
| EAST QUARTER
| Monday, 9:00 AM

"Just exactly what the hell, is going on here?!" the chief of staff cursed under his breathe, and not for the first time, as he made his way down one of the hospital's many hallways.

Abbot Medical Center, named after Doctor 'Abby' Abbot, the current chief of staff, was drowning in the sick and coughing -- a few had even died. Practically every available room was filled with people running a high fever. They were actually having to turn people away now, because there just wasn't anymore space in the building. But why? Why all of a sudden.

Just a few days ago, Friday maybe, Doctor Abby could have looked down at his new, still-shiny floors, and admired his reflection. Today he could barely take a step without tripping over someone's leg. No, they weren't just in the available rooms, they had completely filled the waiting area as well as lined all of the hallways. It was as if some sort of epidemic had come to visit Sanctuary.

"Filthy vermin," he hissed again. Call it inbred, but he hated seeing sick people in his new hospital. He just wanted to -- POW!! GEE-TI-EFF-OH OUT OF MY HOSPITAL!! -- scream. Or however the young people say it. His only interest in pop-hop was in how far it could get him with the younger nurses, after that...

"Doctor Abby?!" Speak the name of the Devil... "Have you ever seen anything like this? What do we do?!"

"Now Brittany, don't panic." Abby said smoothly as he placed his left hand firmly against the small of her back, all very fatherly-like. "Remember your training."

To this Brittany nodded her young head vigorously in response, keeping her eyes locked on Abby's for emotional support. Despite this, Abby still let his eyes drift down her top, and steal a peak at her twenty-year-ish cleavage.

"Now, what we are going to do, is call the sheriff's office and let them know what's happening here. Yes? Then they can go get on the radio, and spread the word. Whatever 'this' is, it's best we keep it all in one place. So, just let the sheriff know to make an announcement that people should come to the hospital if they're feeling sick. Okay?" With another nod of her head, the young nurse was off down the hallway.

'Speak the Devil's name, and he shall make himself known.' Abby thought to himself as he watched the woman move off towards the receptionist. She had such nice skin. Sometimes, he just wanted to wear it...

"Chief Abbot?" A familiar voice came from behind him. "Sir, did I overhear you correctly? We barely have enough room as it is. How..?"

"Please, Julia, call me Doctor Abby -- or 'Ol Abby -- we're all family here. Yes? And don't you worry about all these bodies, I know exactly where to put them."

 
| PHILIPSBURG
| Monday, 8:15 AM

"And, what the hell, are you doing in here, you little 'Freak'?!" Startled, Teyemthohisa 'Ty' Wise looked up into the girl's bathroom mirror and saw three faces staring back at her -- Margaret 'Greta' Greer and the Stevenson twins, London and Paris.

"What. Are you deaf, too? This is the senior's bathroom. If you want a piss, walk down to your side of the school and tinkle there." Greta continued, hate and disgust in her eyes. The twins seemed more amused by the twelve year old than annoyed.

Just then, the bell that signalled the start of second period, rang out in the background. Grabbing her schoolbag, Ty pushed past the three older girls and into the hallway. With Ty gone, the twins made their way over to the mirror, while Greta watched the swinging door as if expecting the little girl to come back inside.

"Tss! Someone remind me again why we have to share air with a bunch of little brats? Especially her, little freak dressed all in black..."

"Aren't you being just a little overdramatic?" London asked, while reapplying her lipstick. "Do you know her, or something?" Paris chimed in behind her sister.

"No. But I know the type. Just saying, if she hates life that much, then she should finish her mom's botched abortion." The twins knew that was a bit mean, but it didn't stop the laughter that ripped from their combined lungs.

Their laughter put a smile on Greta's face, but she still glared at them from the corner of her eye. She hated that the sisters had each other -- a perfect little copy of yourself. Looking at herself in the mirror, as she applied her blood-red lipstick, Greta wondered what it would be like if one of the girls were to suddenly die... Outside, Ty heard everything Greta said as the final bell rang. If she didn't hurry, she'd be late for class.

 
| Monday, 7:15 AM
 
It was only fifteen minutes before school was set to begin, but already it felt like Nurse Corra had spent a lifetime mining coal in some deep-dark pit. From the moment she'd arrived and opened the doors to the nurse's office, the children swarmed with complaints of flu and high temperatures. Many had to be sent back home -- others, to the hospital. The rest were given some medicine, and permission to return back to class.
 
Corra couldn't understand what was happening, flu season had long since past. Was it an outbreak of something else? Food poisoning perhaps? Whatever the cause, she'd have to call Abbot Medical Center and confer with them -- no matter how much she hated having to do so. Hopefully, it would be a quick affair and this -- whatever this was -- would turn out to be nothing of note.

 
| CUL-DE-SAC
| Monday, 9:30 AM

She was just... Standing there. The other mothers just couldn't understand it. Why? Why was Lorraine just standing there. Staring. The school bus had come, and gone, hours ago. Had she really just been standing there since that morning, since putting her son on the school bus?

The other housewives were only now noticing it because, after seeing their own children off, they had gone back inside to sleep, or tidy up, or whatever. Now most of them were coming back outside to either tend to their lawns, or go shopping -- or at least they meant to. Now, they just stood there whispering to each other. Wondering outloud who should go and talk to Lori to see if she was alright, or not.

 
| SOUTH END
| Monday, 10:00 AM

Samuel Todd watched the people slowly drift into his supermarket. They were like busy little bees. BUZZ BUZZ!! Buzzing around his honeycomb. The weekend was over now, and it was time to get back to work -- except he didn't want to. He was finding it harder, and harder to in fact. To show up for work.

Hunting, it was just... It was who he was. WHAT he was. It was literally in him, like his soul. In his blood. Hunting was the only real thing about him. And this? Coming to work? Putting on a fake smile for everyone? This was the lie. All a lie. Lie. Lie. Lie!! He wanted to be real. Todd wanted to hunt..!

Suddenly, there is a scream. His heart races at the sound. It's high pitched, and gutteral -- primal. It speaks to him. Calls him to action while others gasped, stared, or pointed in shock. Todd strode forward almost giddy with excitement. The scream could only mean that something good had happened.

 
"It's Mrs. Anne -- Anne Mabley! She just... I think she died?" Todd ignored the shocked teenager, and pressed through the stunned crowd surrounding the body. Checking her pulse, he quickly confirmed that the older woman had indeed passed away.

"S-she just started coughing, and her eyes were all red-like. Like the veins popped in her eyes, or something..? What do we do. Do we call the sheriff?" It was then that Todd finally noticed just how many of the people around him, were coughing and had blood-shot eyes.

 
| WEST SANCTUARY
| Monday, 5:50 AM

Loren 'Lori' McAllister had her private practice set up in West Sanctuary, down on St. Ann. She was a pretty girl, blonde with glasses, athletic, and sociable. Every morning she bought her breakfast at Samuel Todd's supermarket -- supporting the community, she liked to call it -- and ate it at the cafe across from the high school, which was owned by her ex-boyfriend. Café du Monde, or something. A nice little place, with outdoor tables, and everything. Supposedly, Lori only ate there just to piss him off -- silently daring him to have her arrested for trespassing. Bad breakup?

From there, she went to work at her office as a therapist -- and then went back home at night. This time however, that hadn't happened. The smell, the one the sheriff could still smell, it was her. Lori was dead. Butchered, to be honest. Her blood spashed around the office, and used to draw numbers on the walls. The same numbers, over and over. 21041982 According to the CSI on the scene, she'd been dead for days at least. Maybe as early as Friday afternoon. How had no one reported her missing before now? How was the sheriff going to do?

Edited by Luther-Morgan, 16 December 2014 - 03:02 PM.

[Yaomo]

Monday, 8:20 AM

 

What a wonderful morning. Teyemthohisa hadn't really minded the senior girls' teasing, acting so superior completely oblivious to their own vulnerability. They didn't even know that they were still alive only because the younger girl had chosen not to end their wasteful existences. But now a completely different problem presented itself to her. A classroom with over half of the students missing. A panicked teacher who was talking to someones equally panicked parents on the phone. And still present students who were doing just the same as Ty was right now, considering skipping classes, some of them for the first time in their life.

 

There was something eerie about this whole situation. So many kids simply don't get sick at the same time. Sure, there had been times when half the class was missing, particularly many were gone when that horrid stomach flu had knocked them out. But those times, the cause was known, and all the missing students hadn't gotten sick on the same day. This time, they'd all arrived to the first class on time, many coughing or looking rather pale. And one by one, they'd ended up being sent or taken to the school nurse.

 

In the end, Ty decided to just sit down. She'd never skipped a day of school before, and she wouldn't let today be the first. Please, teacher, just tell us to go home, the girl pleaded wordlessly, slumping down over her desk. Her ears on stalks, trying to pick up any noise at all out of the ordinary. Even when closing her eyes, she could still hear her remaining classmates clearly, where they sat, what they were doing. All too quiet for the lively lot they used to be. The uneasiness in the room could nearly even be smelt, just the same as the lingering scent of those who had left. I just hope I don't get sick too. That would suck.

[Officer Judy Hopps]

Swings

10:01 Hrs.

Sometimes, Madeline truly despised working the swing shift. Sitting in an uncomfortable truck in the middle of the bitter night's cold certainly didn't hold any appeal. Yet it was the morning that she got off work that always seemed to be the worst. Outside of a select few, she actually felt gravely uncomfortable around children, and it was in the wee hours of the morning that they seemed to be most prevalent as they flocked to school. It could be more tolerable at home perhaps, but home itself was millions of light years away. It was interesting to think, that so many of the humans around her thought the idea of an Alien was impossible. The very thought of there being another sentient race in the universe unbelievable.

Yet here she was. An Alien that walked so easily among them.

Adjusting her sunglasses, the awkward hum of a Human Car's engine came to a grinding halt once she pulled into place for her parking spot of choice. Deftly removing the key, the Combat-Boot laden woman lifted herself from the car and onto the pavement. Where, almost far too ominously, the Supermarket seemed to loom overhead. She was here to pick up a few things, namely Groceries, some supplies for the next baking sale, and anything else she might find that fit her fancy. Little did she know that things were going to take a rather peculiar turn.

With a pleasant chime, the door slid open, and her camouflage hat came off her crown to comfortably fit into her pocket. Naturally, the pocket opposite to her holstered sidearm. Deftly picking up a hand-basket, Madeline strode her way smoothly throughout the store, picking up fresh fruits and items of the like for consumption later. If anything, she had to give humans credit. They certainly knew how to eat, it were almost as if the tastes of certain foods could even govern over them. With a slight, pleasant nod to Samuel Todd, the Alien continued on her way, yet in this aspect she discerned the idea that perhaps something Italian for dinner might be nice.

As her fingertips dusted over the rows of various pasta and sauces, she heard the scream.

Her feet acted almost instinctually, rushing over to where the scream had come from as she moved forward in its direction. With her hand on the button of her holster, her firearm was only a split second away from being drawn.

Edited by Feisty-Pants, 28 June 2014 - 12:35 AM.

[Crouching Bacon]

[Monday. 6:15 AM]

 

A YouPhone rattled against the nightstand with a ring that would have put the furies to shame.

 

"...damn it."

 

Richard Titus groped about in the darkness, eyes still half-shut. The man's hands pushed the heavy blanket away and moved to the edge of the bed, stopping short as a warm hand snaked around his waist. Another arm draped itself on his wide, yet muscled shoulders.

 

"Leaving already, Rick?"

 

"Don't tempt me."

 

Rick smiled at his captors. Whatever their names were, they sure knew what they were doing last night.

 

He reluctantly let the hazy memories slip past his mind and refocused his attentions towards reading the message on his phone.

 

• School needs medical assistance, ASAP. Head on over there. Report on the situation later. – Reilley

 

"Sorry darlings. Dr. Titus has work to do."

 

With that, the medicine man arose and prepared to take a cold, invigorating shower.

 

[Monday. 7:00 AM]

 

"Looks like someone forgot to give the kids some vitamins this morning."

 

A strange flu just hit the town, filling the hospital and the school clinic with sick children. Rick fiddled with the radio knob. Nearly all the stations were talking about the same thing, so he fed the mahcine a CD. Caustic beats boomed from the stereos and Rick bobbed his head to the beat.

 

With a firm step on the pedal, the Porsche roared, zooming past the cars in one deft maneuver that nearly resulted in a full-on collision with two minivans. A few drivers honked their horns and flipped Rick off.

 

He laughed at them as they fell behind.

 

"I've got lives to save, assholes."

 

[Monday. 7:15 AM]

 

The wheels bounced ever so slightly as Rick stepped out of the car. Superior suspension systems and bitching engine power made for a powerful, yet smooth ride. The Porsche was parked in the spot where an ambulance would normally be.

 

"I wonder if I should have just called in sick too..."

 

Any paramedic worth his degree would know that sickness isn't just a disease. It was also a feeling and Rick felt it in his gut– a heavy, suffocating air that makes you want to reach for an oxygen tank.

 

"Nevermind. Better get this over with."

 

He put on his white doctor's coat and walked towards the school entrance. Just as he reached the doors, a few groups of children and their parents passed him by. The kids looked too sick to enjoy their day off from school and the parents were probably getting sick at the thought of racking up hospital bills.

 

"Excuse me–" he stopped to ask, but they were either too distracted or worried to pay attention to Rick.

 

No matter. Walking briskly now, he made his way to the school clinic. He's been here a few times, fixing fractures and other sport-related injuries.

 

Rick pushed the door open. In the clinic was a harried nurse surrounded by sniveling children. He knew who she was; who hasn't heard of Corra Jackson? Perfectly respectable woman, disrespected by the most unrespectable doctor in the area.

 

He cleared his throat and started checking on the children while addressing her. Taking out a beeping thermometer from one girl's mouth, the temperature on the display made him frown. Forty-one degrees celsius was more than just a minor infection.

 

"Excuse me, Miss Jackson. The hospital sent me here."

 

This was going to be a long day. Teamwork was to be essential if these children would be mobilized and taken care of properly.

 

"The name's Rick Titus, ma'am. Local paramedic."

 

Rick put on his brightest smile and went to work, distracting a few of the weepier kids and giving the nurse more space to administer medication.

Edited by Captain Sciutto, 02 February 2014 - 06:38 AM.

[I-Am-X]

Monday, 5:32 am

 

"Damnit..." Riyon muttered to herself as she made a turn. Not how I wanted to start my day. Cold, wet, sky still pretty dark and worse of all, I'm stuck with-

 

 

"Go home Sammy," her deputy shouted, at a man on the side of the road, after quickly rolling down the passenger side window as they stopped at a red light. "You're drunk!!" She was entirely to chipper to have just rolled out of bed, yet Riyon was here rubbing her eyes trying to wake up as the light turned green and they were moving again. I wonder if it's going to rain again. Supposed to get up in the high 90's if not hotter...

 

"Sammy K," the deputy, Sonaida Donald, continued in a more conversational tone once her window was rolled back up. "Hard to believe there was a time when the whole of Sanctuary would have died for that guy. Now, we can't even get him a bed in town to sleep on..." as 'Sona' rambled on, Riyon couldn't help but think of the past.

 

Samuel 'Sammy' Kineas.... Back when I first joined the department, he used to be the star quarterback for the Milton Peters High School over on Central Street, seems like forever ago... remember pulling him over after a game for a DUI, most shit-faced I've ever seen someone. heh'

The Red Rabbit', as they used to call him -- mostly because of how his long, red hair stuck out from under his helmet, but also for his preference for 'hopping' over opposing tacklers. He used to be so young, and so strong, and so handsome...

 

Glancing once more into her rearview mirror, the sheriff could hardly believe the change. The man was mostly skin and bones now, clothes filthy with stains. How long had he been homeless now, living near the far edge of the woods all alone? In the poor morning light, 'Sammy' was little more than a shadow of a man -- a walking scarecrow. He appeared to be shambling back to town, away from her crime scene. Such a pathetic sight he is...

 

Snapping back to reality, as they turned onto the main road, Sona continued. "...they say he got in with the wrong crowd. Started betting on his own games -- he used to play for the town football team, see. Don't know if you knew that." the sheriff nodded that she knew and continued driving as Sona carried on, "Won big, lost bigger. I think they say, once he couldn't pay off his debts, the guys down at the casino cracked his legs and that pretty much ended his career. A real waste, y'know? Could'da put Sanctuary on the map..."

 

"Should'da, would'da, could'da." Riyon replied with a yawn. "The guy had it all and could've made the NFL but like the typical child of this generation, threw it all away by thinking he was untouchable. He was one of those types that that thought as long as they were able play a game real well, that nothing would ever go wrong for them and were set for life. Bit off more than he could chew and paid dearly for it. It's why football players annoy me, the majority of them are completely brain dead."

 

5:50 am

 

If you counted the time it took to get ready with the amount it took to get this far, the drive easily clocked in at 30+ minutes. "You know, it's lucky that you live along the way, just thinking about how much I'd have to drive this early in the morning if I had to go to the one next closest..." she groaned, as it was made quite clear that she wanted to go back to bed. While Sona had a good head on her shoulders, the young deputy was one of those types that really annoyed her. The preppy, never shutting up variety. The gossip queen of Sanctuary. But still, she'd occassionally have some good intel that has proved quite useful at times. I just wish it was more than a fourth of the time...

 

Shaking her head, Nows not the time to be thinking about that... Riyon reminded herself as she replayed the call, that they recieved last night from the night crew, in her head. A deputy was dispatched to investigate but it went to hell from there. A 'smell', huh?

 

As they pulled into the driveway, they realized just how bad things were.... It was a smell alright, the smell of a rotten corpse... As Sona froze, not able handle the state the corpse was in, she walked out of the house for fresh air as she buried her head in her shirt. Riyon stayed back to check the corpse before walking out and rejoining Sona. "You know Sona, sooner or later you're going to have to get used to this kind of thing." reaching for the flask in her pocket, she took a sip, as Sona started at the ground, before continuing.

 

"Anyways, according to the night crew, the call was by a young woman complaining about a smell. Well, we've found our smell along with a matching corpse to go with it, along with a floor stained with blood... But there was no one else in the house, now, first impression would be that she was indeed our young caller but given the state of the body it had to have been longer. And if she has been dead for a longer period, who called into the station? Better off, who did it and why" as Riyon started rubbing her face and begin thinking.

 

"Well, the call came from this house, so someone had to have done it.....but anyways....what happened to the officer that was dispatched here?" Sona asked. "Hmm, knowing him...he's probably-" interupting her was a loud crashing sound coming from the 2nd floor. "Could it be...The Ki-" sona begin to say before noticing Riyon getting increasingly irritated. "That.....no shame...." running back into the house, Riyon charged upstairs, with Sona and followed the noise to a room down the hall on the far left to see the back of a man rifling through an underwear drawer and starting to sniff the panties.

 

No mistakening it...It's... Just as the man was about to put the panties on his head, Riyon leaped at him and kicked him on side the head, sending him flying into the wall. The man, twitching on the ground before trying to get up...."What.....the hell....That hurt!" he whined. "You disgusting Gorilla, have you no fucking shame?!"

 

Finally up, "Go--rilla? GORILLA?! WHO ARE YOU CALLING..."  he begin to yell before freezing in terror as he opened his eyes, while somehow remaining a tight hold on a wad of panties, in both hands surprisingly enough, as he heard the sound of guns locking and loading. Turning white..."Sh-sh-sheriff.....I-I-I I can explain, honestly! Don't kill me Riyon!" Riyon lowered her pistols as 'Gorilla' tried to plead his case. This dumbass panty sniffer was Vincent Dryar, better known to the police, well to Riyon, as "Gorilla" is supposedly a deputy who has been with the department since graduating from High school almost 2 years ago. Despite what he was just doing, he was quite the popular figure in school and around the town as the star of the kendo team and was quite popular with the ladies, despite what he lacked upstairs. And here he is, about to become an ex-deputy...

 

"I-I came here to follow up on the 'smell' complaint but then I found a body and a pool of blood! It wasn't me I swear! I'm Innocent!" He laughed nervously. Riyon, not amused, began gripping the gun tighter before Vincent jumped back and started sweating. "I thought while I waited for you to come, I'd come up and look for e-ev-evidence! Yeah! That's it!" With a pause...."....So thats why... you're looking through her...." Riyon, growing more irritated....as he slowly tried to stick the panties in his pocket.

 

"It ju-just happened to be the first place I looked, I had no idea! It was a Coi-" Before he could finish, a bullet whizzed by his face, just missing by an inch as Gorilla screamed while dropping the panties all over the floor. Hearing the gun shot, Sona hurried to the room. "I-I-I-I'M SORRRRRRY!!!! Please forgive meee!" He sobbed as began kowtowing at an absurdely fast pace, as Sona looked on stupified.

 

"Of all the times....At a crime..." with a deep breathe, she put her hand on her face and ordered him to get up as Sona shot him a dirty. "Ugh, we don't have time for this shit right now.....Sona go call the hospital to see if they can get somebody down here..."

 

This is going to be a long day, so much for getting back to sleep...

Edited by I-Am-X, 02 February 2014 - 08:31 AM.

[Faye]

Emily K. Scarlet

 

| Monday, 7:15 AM

 

It was a rough day at work, today. It has just been less than half an hour since the school opened, but there were already swarms of sick students visiting the sick bay today. Miss Jackson, the senior school nurse who had served at least three years before K even entered the school, was having a hard time handling all the students. Most of them were sent home or to the hospital as a result.

 

As for K, her task were not to take care of medications and all those other stuffs. She was still considered a junior, and was yet to be allowed to treat the children on her own. Instead, she was tasked to ask the children about how they are feeling, what they had eaten for dinner last night and breakfast this morning, and to try and determine the cause of the outbreak all the while trying to keep the feverish students calm as they wait for their turn to get examined by the senior nurse.

 

Having done her job, K swiftly headed back to the sick bay to inform Miss Jackson of her findings.

 

"Miss Jackson, these kids do not eat anything weird these past twelve hours, and they all seemed to be eating all sorts of different food too. I don't think this is a case of food poisoning," she said to her senior as she walked into the room, her gaze still fixated on the karte in her hands. "Rather, I am afraid this is a case of.. Oh," she paused as she shifted her gaze upwards and found the paramedic from the local hospital instead of her senior.

 

"Rick, was it? What are you doing here? Miss Jackson did not inform me that you will be visiting," she then continued as she inched backwards slowly while eyeing the man warily. It's not that he seemed sinister or anything. It's more to the fact that K believed that too kind people (like Rick here) are always hiding something sinister behind their smiling face. One can never be to careful, can they?

[Crouching Bacon]

[Monday. 7:20 AM]

 

Wrestling with a few of the livelier children, Rick was too distracted to properly notice another person enter the clinic. Everything was drowned out by the noise of whiny students who really can't be blamed for being whiny.

 

"I don't think this is a case of food poisoning. Rather, I am afraid this is a case of..."

 

"...that voice... That must be–"

 

He put the kids down and faced the nurse. K looked up at him, eyes wary and guarded, like some startled animal.

 

"Rick is it? What are you doing here? Miss Jackson did not inform me you will be visiting."

 

Her overly formal greeting, if you could call it that, almost tempted Rick to tease her. But now may not be the time and place for that. Judging by her demeanor, it wouldn't be too farfetched to assume that his presence was not welcome here.

 

"Well, consider it a pleasant surprise. It lightens my heart to see you here, Nurse K." replied Rick, mimicking her formality. "As you were saying? This disease must have been airborne to have spread this quickly. However, pathology is not my expertise, so please forgive me if I make an inaccurate diagnosis."

 

Carefully, Rick took an ice bag and placed it on a boy's head. He was one of the sicker ones, too tired to even speak.

 

"There may even be kids out there who are already infected but haven't had the symptoms manifest yet."

 

The thought of a large-scale outbreak made Rick's head ache. Tons of unpaid overtime seemed apparent. He's going to have to apologize to Joe if these kids don't stop getting too sick.

 

"Say, has any of the teachers gotten sick? Maybe that can help us narrow down the possible pathogens or toxins. Kids have weaker immune systems anyways."

Edited by Captain Sciutto, 02 February 2014 - 09:16 AM.

[Diabolical Rhapsody]

[Monday 03:15 AM]

 

The familiar smell of tobacco covered the room of the fireman as he was busy working on a little trinket he wanted to gift Joe. A Comanche chieftain, he thought it would make a great addition to the decor at the "River's". As he stared carefully through the tabletop magnifier and worked his steady hands to paint a kaleidoscopic pattern of Red, White and Blue on the headdress that adorned the Chieftain. He was in the final stages of completing it. Another 4-5 days would complete it. It had taken him nearly 4 months on this piece as he had painstakingly crafted a scene he thought will go well with Joe.

 

He had finished up the tent, the fire, the wife and child and the chief's horse in an elaborate setting of a picture he had made his reference. There was no way he could do the sunset but he thought that Joe will overlook that fact. It had been nearly half an hour since he had woken up from his usual visions. It had rendered him incapable of long continuous sleep. He slept in batches, some being as little as 15 minutes to as long as 3 hours before being woken up by recurring visions. although his past had yet to catch up with him but his mind replayed his earlier life at every given opportunity.

 

The cigar hung loosely from his jaw as he took periodic drags and an old set played 'Looney Tunes' across the room on mute, the silent image of Bugs chewing on to his iconic carrot and a mischief painted on his features. Silence was an irreplaceable part of him. Even his work required very little change from it. After working for an hour sleep again knocked on his mind and he excused himself for a short nap again, dousing the cigar at the glass of the ash tray.

 

[Monday 06:45 AM]

 

Ben woke to the alarm this time, reaching out to his clock to turn it off. He took his still unfinished cigar and lit it up. Making his way downstairs and into the kitchen only to be greeted by a waft of milder tobacco in the room. Ally was up as well, he wondered what made her rise up so early. Ever since he moved in with her six years ago she has liked to sleep a bit late. Growing into an elder sister over the years, she usually got up by the time Ben had shower and was ready to leave. This meant that something was on, maybe Billy was on her mind again, it was once a quarter yearly occurring she would cry herself to sleep and will have nightmares. Ben checked the calender, the anniversary was still quite far. He walked up to the kitchen table and gently rubbed her back.

 

"Something's on your mind, Ally?" he asked her gently as he moved on to the fridge and took out the egg box.

 

"Nah, nothing. Just couldn't sleep. Somehow the air today seem unsettling, maybe mindless wanderings of my mind." she said in a low voice, taking a drag of the Camel she held.

 

"Oh" Ben started, "But you aren't old, I think men will still give an arm and leg to go out with you." he remarked with a grin. Ally raised an eyebrow and chuckled. Taking out nine eggs and placing them on the slab. He placed the box back in the fridge and took out orange juice, then pouring it in a glass he kept it in front of her.

 

"Drink this, maybe you are just feeling low."he said to her.

 

"Didn't you ever think of finding someone again?" he asked her changing the topic. By now he had begun making scrambled eggs for breakfast.

 

"Nah, you think I should." she questioned with a grin then continued "Never had the urge." she said with a sigh. 

 

"Well apart from Maddie, you don't seem to have friends too. Does that also happen with urge?" he asked as he poured the contents in two plates. Placing it on the table.

 

"Well most of the ladies here are gossipmongers, I hate that kind. Our interests don't match." she explained as she crushed the cigarette on the tray.

 

"Well what about you? I never see you bring women nor do I know if you have any friend." she asked.

 

Ben put out his cigar and took a sip of orange juice, "well same reason as yours" he smiled.

 

"Well a bull like you doesn't have any urge! That's the most hilarious thing I have heard." she laughed. 

 

"No I meant our interests don't match." he cleared.

 

"Who the hell cares man! just nail someone already. Don't waste your youth away" she said with a grin.

 

"Well you are hardly an authority on relations" he patted her playfully. "Now eat up and let me know if you need something. I'll be heading to the supermarket for some supplies before heading to the station." he said finishing eating his breakfast. Getting up he put his plate in the sink and leaned on the slab waiting for her answer.

 

"Get some greens if you can, a few packs of cigarettes and some moulding clay." she said thoughtfully. "ah! and a few moulds for cakes if you see any new ones. We'll try some this Sunday." she added. 

 

"Will do." he said exiting the kitchen as he made his way upstairs.

 

[Monday 10:02 AM]

 

He was running a bit late, searching for the right fishtails had taken a lot more time than he had expected. Plus the supermarket was out of red acrylics. He was finally rechecking the list for every item as he heard a scream - high pitched and guttural, it was not the usual scream of a wailing child it was one of panic. He strode towards the destination as he saw a crowd gather, making way to the commotion. He saw Sam check the pulse of the geriatric confirming the horror filled explanation of the lady's fate.

 

The description was a bit interesting as similar symptoms began appearing on the ones gathered as well. People began coughing wildly as their eyes became blood-shot, Ras looked at Todd who was trying to make sense of the situation. He went towards the counter and picked up the phone dialing for the station.

 

After a few rings there was someone on the line and Ras said calmly, "Emergency at the supermarket. Send help ASAP, a lady is dead due to some weird flu, I fear this is something unseen as more peeps seem to be afflicted with this weird disease." finishing his instructions he placed the phone back and walked towards Sam.

 

Edited by Diabolical Rhapsodii, 03 February 2014 - 08:11 AM.

[Führer Itulhu]

Kevin Willson, Otaku delinquent 

[6:30AM]

 

Hot, hot, hot everything around Kevin was so damn hot, Kevin was exhausted from already being up for more than an hour because he wanted to see what was wrong with his car and the workshop was still closed up so all the heat was being trapped in the workshop which cased the tired Kev to complain about the heat which would lead to more unfortunate accidents.

"damn it somethings wrong with the radiator again, damn it i know whats wrong... i have to take the radiator cap off" Kevin was complaining talking to himself as he sluggishly started twisting the radiator cap. BIG MISTAKE, maybe it was because he was so tired but Kev had forgotten to use any form of protection, even cardboard to surround it would have sufficed as protection... but alas it was forgotten and Kevin would pay in pain.

 

The radiator cap blew off and flew off into the other side of the workshop while burning hot coolant burst out the radiator, maybe it was due to years of practicing kendo that helped him avoid major injury by falling back... he only avoided fatal injury though, the burning hot coolant rained down from above and burnt Kevin all over.

 

"YOU DAMN MORON" Kevins father suddenly appeared with a booming voice directed at his son, "go and take a cold shower and put some burn cream on i'll finish this off you idiotic son" Mr Willson told his son off while helping him up and taking over fixing the car.

 

"ow ow ow, ok ok i'll go, arg it hurts... i'll probably be late for school today... not that I care... at least there wont be any fights before at least one lesson now" Kev mumbled as he walked off into the house that was behind the workshop.

 

[9:10AM]

 

Kevin was running down the street at full bolt, he had no time to take notice of anything around him, almost getting hit by a few cars along the way Kev had to run all the way to school seem as his car hadn't been completely fixed yet... Kev knew that was mostly a lie but his father was probably making this punishment.

Though Kevin finally arrived at school... it was strange, people where already leaving school with pale looks on their faces. Oh well it didn't matter to Kev as long as this meant he could sneak into class without being noticed, but as he walked the halls he noticed that most students looked sick in some way.

"what the hell is going on, owch" Kevin clutched his cheek that had a burn mark over it and gave off his natural glare to someone he bumped into which sent them running off.

"guess i should go to the nurses office to get some more cream...and to see if everyone is so damn pale" Kevin decided to head to the nurse. Kev eventually arrived at the nurses office to find the door wide open and the office full of sick students...

 

"what the hell is going on here?" most would tremble in their shoes as Kev gave off a look that would make it seem as if he was ready to kill at any moment.

[Rainblergh]

~Monday 07:18 AM~

 

"Arggghh, fine, fine I'll get up just stop flapping about Archie, it's getting quite old honestly." Lux cried out sluggishly getting out of bed and questioning her sanity to why she was talking to a bird, then yet again the bird was a better talking companion than the rest of the ignorant fools back at school. 

 

Getting ready took her no more than seven minutes, and it was a lot of help that the school was close to home. Exiting the house the same deadly aura that she could never get used to appeared, almost as if something was ready to pounce and kill, but it was fairly weak compared to her usual 'If you value your life shut up and don't bother me' one that would leak out subconsciously. But that deadly aura wasn't the only mysterious thing during the mornings...

 

Without a minute to spare she managed to get to her classroom on time, only to find it half empty and the students that were there, looking like they'll become vicious zombies any second now. The professor just like always didn't care about anything and continued his lecture. Suddenly the person next to me started coughing and coughing and coughing, When will he shut up already it's making this morning more annoying then usual and I'm barely able to stop myself from punching him in the face as it is. As he was about to cough again blood spattered from his blood struck eyes on to the girl in front of him. AAAAA's and OH MY GOD's were heard throughout the whole class. I'm just glad I was sitting next to him and not in front, this is the only clean hoodie I could find in that pile of used up stinky clothes.

 

~Monday 08:10 AM~

 

After the whole dead student thing our class was sent to do a checkup at the nurse's office to see if any of us were also infected with this strange eye popping disease. One by one were given some strange pills and transported to the town hospital for further treatment. 

 

Awaiting my turn I looked trough the hallway only to see the rulers of idiocy and all arrogance bullying a small girl in black that was standing there unaffected by their lack of non intelligent comebacks, *Smirk* Well hang in there a little longer Miss Loli they'll run out of stupid comebacks soon enough, but till then I better go to the nurse they're calling me.

 

As I sat down on the uncomfortable chair, nurse K asked me a few questions and doctor Richard was going to examine me, but as soon as he reached out to me, I shifted back in fear. Well fudge I guess my androphobia is acting up.

 

"I'm sorry Doctor Titus but could you get someone else to examine me?" I pleaded.

 

He looked at me like I was crazy to even talk back to him during this whole situation, he was clearly pissed off even before I asked anything. Seeing me nurse K immediately knew what was going on because she was the only other person than my father that knew about my androphobia. She quickly rushed over to me and told Doctor Titus that she'll examine me instead. He looked fairy surprised at nurse K, yet she looked determined.

Rick then exchanged positions with nurse K and went to question the other students like she was doing before.

 

My heart was still pumping hard and my vision was hazy, almost the same as if you were playing a game and your character was low on HP. Thankfully it got better over time and I was back to my usual self.

Edited by RainbowDepression, 02 February 2014 - 04:05 PM.

[Unbelievably Majestic]

Luca Remas

[7:00 am]

It was early morning in the Suburbs. The sun was still low in the sky. The chill of night was still in the air. And Luca's house was silent. Even Grandma wasn't awake yet. You could tell because the house always felt slightly ominous when she was awake. Especially at night. It was a very strange phenomenon, though Luca had long since gotten used to it.

Quiet music started to flow into the air, spreading like a mist over to Luca in his bedroom. A bedroom that was really more of a mattress in the corner of the kitchen. He'd stacked some boxes around it to give the illusion of walls at least. For a while he kept his eyes closed. Just relaxing and enjoying the song. Sunday morning. He let out a little sleepy chuckle. The perfect song to wake you up on a Monday. It get's rid of that Monday morning feeling by putting you in a Sunday mood. He got out of bed, made a cup of tea, then sat down with a bowl of cereal and a couple of songs. He wondered why some people don't like mornings.

As he got dressed he noticed a tender spot on his arm. It looked like he'd been bitten in his sleep again. It happened often. But lately it was getting more frequent. His grandma had said she'd deal with it, but she didn't seem to have done anything. Some of the bites were in the same place making them hurt twice as much if he hit it on something. Those ones almost looked like he'd been poked with a needle. He decided he'd have to look into getting some bug repellant or something. He was really starting to get annoyed by it.

He finished getting ready, packed his satchel, grabbed his camera and started to head out. He lingered for a moment in front of the basement door as he passed. Did he have the time? Surely it wouldn't hurt to go down for a few minutes? He looked out the window. One of the local mothers was standing there, probably waving her kid off, so the bus had just left. He still had plenty of time, right? Yeah. Of course he did. He decided to take a quick detour into his basement before biking to school.

[9:30 am]

"Gosh darn it! I'm so late!"

Luca came up out of the basement, carefully closing the door behind him. There was no point rushing at this point. An extra five minutes wasn't going to change the fact the he was already two hours late. He left the front door unlocked as he left, one of Grandma's weird rules. He drew a few looks from people who knew he was supposed to be at school. Though not for long. Everyone was much more preoccupied watching someone else. A woman standing across the street. Was it the same woman he saw earlier? Had she been there the whole time? "Wonderful." He muttered at nobody. Not a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

He dropped his bike and walked towards her. He wasn't there anymore. He couldn't hear people talking or pointing out that someone was going over to her. He was in his own world. A world full of cameras, angles, colours and lighting. It was the perfect moment for a photo. All he needed to do was take it. He stopped a short distance away with his camera. After a bit of circling around her, and switching between tiptoes and crouching, he finally took the photo with a satisfyingly large flash. A wide smile spread over his face. Today was going really well, apart from the being late to school thing. And being late led to this photo, so he was glad he got distracted by the basement. "Ermm... D... Don't mind me..." He said to the lady, feeling like she was watching him.

Edited by Unbelievably Majestic, 02 February 2014 - 05:25 PM.

[Faye]

Emily K. Scarlet

 

| Monday, 7:25 AM

 

"... I was about to say it's a severe case of allergic reaction to some reagents we had yet to identify," K answered in reply to Rick's theory about the outbreak. She had toned her guess down, of course, in order not to freak the kids out. She could not say that she feared that their water source is polluted with an unknown pathogen, and that it was indeed highly contagious. "But since you are the doctor, I believe your assessment will be more accurate than mine," she continued while keeping her distance with the smiling paramedic.

 

"Oh, about your query," she added as she ushered the healthy children out of the room before they contracted the disease by accident. "There are no report of teachers or parents getting sick as of yet," she continued while trying to keep her cheerful face around the students that were still eavesdropping on the two's conversation. "And I sure hope it will stay that way. If the pathogen is potent enough to fell the adults, there will be little hope for these poor kids.."

 

"Well, anyway.. Would you please come with me for a second, Rick? I need to talk to you about something," she finally added as she broke out of her musing. She signaled the paramedic to leave the room and follow her to a rather deserted storage room just by the end of the corridor. As they reached the empty room, K quickly grabbed Rick's collar (while tiptoeing, no less) and hissed angrily at the paramedic.

 

"What the hell are you thinking, declaring such a grave statement in front of the kids? Do you want to cause a panic or something? Think of the kids, for heaven's sake! What do you think they would feel if you said that there are unknown pathogen or toxic floating in the air as we speak, and that they have lower immunity and therefore would be the first to succumb?" K verbally assaulted the young paramedic relentlessly as she pulled his face closer to hers.

 

OOC:

Spoiler

I'm sorry for not taking Rain's and Itano's posts into consideration while writing this one. I am trying to give p-chan a leeway to act.

She will be the one connecting the dots in the missing timeline, I suppose :3

[Liar]

| Monday, 8:21 AM

 

Connor Blake knew something fishy was going on. Half of the student population didn’t get sick on a whim. An epidemic of such scale today in modern times was unlikely to occur naturally. Something in his gut was telling him that some nefarious villain of unprecedented evil was behind all this. This was all the work of some mastermind’s machinations, and being not only a superhero but the student body president made it his duty—nay, his pleasure—to uncover this mystery and put a stop to the evildoer that threatened his school and town!

 

The door to Ty’s classroom burst opening, sending the door to fly backwards and move along the path of its hinges which made it bang against the wall loudly. Connor was at the door holding his video camera up in front of one eye, the blinking red light on its body revealing he was currently filming. “Teacher, by my duty as student body president, I am here to inform you that I will not be attending class. The school has need of my service to solve this plague of injustice that haunts our great school! Good day!”

 

A silent pause ensued.

 

Connor smiled, nodding to himself, believing he had made his point across. Obliviously, Connor did not realise that despite his position as student body president, it did not mean he could excuse himself from class under reason to investigate some plague that may or may not be real. Regardless, Connor tended to live in his own world, but he did mean well.

[Inumori]

[Monday. 4:29 A.M.] Forest.

 

Quiet. Extremely so. Joe regulated his breathing as he sat flat against a tree, covered in leaves and brush. So still, so patient. He'd been here at this spot at least an hour already, but he wasn't sure of the exact time. He didn't dare move an arm to check his watch. Worth it though. Bighorn Sheep. A ram, good size too. Gently now, as not to startle it... And release. An arrow let fly right into the beast's vital zone. It let out a weak "baa", but nothing more.

 

"Well that's a good start for the day" Joe spoke, almost ponderously, aloud.

 

Raising up from his position, Joe quickly brushed himself off before going to inspect his kill. His traps had earned him two wild chickens and a live kit fox that got itself stuck trying to get at a rabbit in the third. Joe had it in a cage in the truck. Wasn't sure what to do with the thing just yet. Maybe cook it, maybe let it heal and release it, maybe see if a pet would do Ty some good. Thing is, this was not normal. Being a good hunter is one thing, but this kind of haul for maximum three total hours of hunting was downright strange. Maybe it was his grandfather's superstitions taking hold, but Joe silently worried that he had used up all that day's luck already.

 

[Monday. 5:44 A.M.] River Hunting Cabin.

 

Kotamallo Blood-along-the-River, or Malcolm River as he later came to be known, built a cabin in the woods outside Sanctuary when he first moved to the area. After he married Joe's grandmother Elizabeth, the pair moved into town proper. The River Cabin stuck around though, and Joe's father Max eventually converted it into a hunting lodge when the number of hunters in the family grew to three. These days Joe uses the basement to clean and prepare his kills. Nothing goes to waste if he has anything to say about it. Guts, feathers, and bones get ground up into fertilizer and bagged. The good cuts get wrapped up and tossed in coolers full of ice for the drive back. The gas tank and generator were Joe's additions to place. Tradition is nice, but so are lights. Reinforced the doors and windows too after a black bear family decided to move in. Nice little place, if unpleasantly isolated and smelling of death.

 

Joe doesn't like to stay here too long though. Sitting on a musty old couch in the home his grandfather built and looking at photos of him and his dad have a habit of turning a man's mind to his legacy. Joe's the last River standing. Thirty-five, no wife, no kids. He thinks about what it means to him, bringing Ty out here. He thinks about Jessica, and what she means to him in general.

 

Then he goes ahead and remembers that there's a bar back in town with his name on it and the ice in the ice chest might be melting. So he packs up his truck, locks everything up, and drives on home.

 

[Monday. 6:04 A.M.] Roadside.

 

Joe pulled over to investigate a conspicuously familiar figure passed out on the side of the road.

 

"That you Sammy?" Joe asked as he kicked the homeless man awake. "Gonna burn up when the sun's done raisin' you idiot. The hell you doing way out here?"

 

An aggravated grumble was all Samuel Kineas could manage after being roused from his roadside slump.

 

Joe tossed a bottle of water at the mess that used to be the 'Red Rabbit' and spoke. "Drink up Sammy, then shuffle your crazy ass back into town you hear me?" And with that Joe climbed back into his truck and drove along the road the rest of the way home.

 

[Monday. 6:31 A.M.] Joe's House

 

When Joe finally got home everyone else was getting going. He unpacked the haul of meats and tossed a chicken into the fridge while the rest went to the freezer. The kit fox, cage and all, went into the basement with some food and water. Then he stripped off his hunting gear, took a shower, set an alarm, and went to sleep.

 

[Monday. 8:42 A.M.] Joe's House.

 

The ringing shocked Joe awake and he pawed at the alarm in a daze, not yet realizing it was the phone. It hung up before he was awake enough to answer it. The screen read "Missed Call. Jessie." It had been Jessica Wise, his neighbor and friend. And yes, the rumors are true, they do sleep together. He tried to call her back but it went to voicemail. It looked like she had left one on his phone too, but upon checking it the background noise was so loud he couldn't even hear her speak. As he got dressed a text came through.

 

"Emergency. Please get here."

 

Simple and clear. Joe rushed out to the car. His bow was still in the passenger seat and his magnum was in its shoulder holster dangling from the rear-view mirror. He strapped the gun on in case there was some kind of riot (which it damn well may have been considering the noise) and started driving out to the hospital.

 

On his trip there the roads were all but barren. He didn't even need to stop for the few traffic lights along the way. Where the hell is everyone?

 

[Monday. 9:08 A.M.] Hospital.

 

"Jesus Christ". Joe mumbled aloud. That explains the lack of traffic. And it did, as half the town was parked here. The mass of people flooding in to the hospital was astonishing. He wasted no time pushing through the E.R., stopping only to pick up a hospital mask on the way in. "Jessie!" He called out to her.

 

"Is that you Joe?" A familiar voice called out. "Oh thank God".

 

"Jessie! What in the hell is going on?!"

 

"We don't know! It's crazy in here. There's kids pouring in from the school too!"

 

"Ty?"

 

"She's not one of them. I heard they sent Ricky down there to help out but I haven't heard anything. How are you feeling? Are you okay?"

 

"I'm fine. Nothing's wrong with me so far".

 

"Please please please go get Ty. I'm so worried. Some of these children came in dead Joe. Folks are dropping like flies and we don't know why".

 

"I'm on it. Don't you go catching this thing yourself".

 

Joe made his way back out past the rows of bodies lined up on stretchers out to his car, grabbing a fistful of hospital masks on his way out and running across the parking lot to his truck. Keys in the ignition and off to the school.

Edited by Inumori, 03 February 2014 - 04:33 AM.

[Yaomo]

Monday, 8:22 AM

 

A loud bang nearly made Ty jump up on her feet, but she realized the missing danger just in time to just place herself sitting upright instead. Connor had just stormed in, shouting some gibberish that was probably about him defeating the flu that was going around, and hurt Ty's ears in the process. She should have known that it was a bad idea to listen too closely to anything when that brat wasn't in the classroom, sudden loud bangs are rather shocking when your ears are on stalks.

 

Well, Connor disappeared nearly the same moment he appeared, but peace failed to follow. The teacher had finally finished talking to an exhausting bunch of panicked parents and calmed them down the best she could in the current situation. Now, finally, she could take what few remained of the class to the nurse's office for checkups.

 

 

Monday, 9:12 AM

 

The hallway was too crowded for Ty's comfort in front of the nurse's office. Seems like the whole school's been called here. Nothing to do about it, the adults always insisted on creating the most ridiculously big crowds to ensure people's safety. As if crowds made anything any better. The waiting time was too long, it had already been nearly an hour since they left the classroom. Connor had of course not been there to follow when they left, neither would he stay when he passed them by on his new quest. It was bound to fail, this one, unless he suddenly discovered some very unlikely supernatural ability.

 

Taking yet another restless look around, Ty suddenly noticed one of the senior boys, at least she thought he was a senior, approaching with a mean glare. Unlike the senior girls she'd met earlier this morning, that guy actually looked like he could defend himself. Though it was doubtful how often he needed to use his skills, with that unapproachable air of his. Instinct told Ty to step back, but instead she pretended not to notice the approaching menace. Blend in now, Ty. You know that's the best way to not get noticed. She would most definitely not feel at ease before she was way out in Uncle Joe's hunting grounds. This town was just too full of humans, vehicles, pollution, and now even a flu that looked like it could kill, if it hadn't already.

[Crouching Bacon]

Monday.

[7:25 AM]

Face to face against the wall, it's more than Rick ever hoped for and here they were, him and K. Alone in a storage room too.

"Well, isn't this nostalgic. I guess teenage dreams do come true."

With her warm fingers wrapped firmly around his neck, and those eyes... Those painfully cold eyes, now gazing at him with passionate fury–

"Shit! I want to kiss her, but at the rate her mouth's moving right now, she just might bite my tongue off."

Only in that brief hesitation did Rick realize that Nurse K's words were anything but amorous. He let that sink in for a second and closed his eyes, calmly readjusting his glasses and guiding her hand away from his neck.

"Look, K, I'm sorry if I didn't think twice before talking. It's just that most of the people I deal with in the ER are either unconscious or screaming in pain. Paramedics have to think fast and make those thoughts known, so that those around them can act quickly. I know it's no excuse for a bad habit, but please know that I meant no harm."

Though he was mentally kicking himself all the while as he did so, Rick moved away from the young nurse and adjusted his rumpled collar.

"What a waste. Still, it's too early for that. Maybe... no... definitely next time! Got to warm her up first though."

"Besides, I never said that children would be the first to succumb. I merely meant that children are more vulnerable to a wider range of diseases. Adults have more immunity and are less vulnerable to some diseases, which would make the pinpointing of the pathogen much easier since we have less to look for."

He walked towards the closet door and smiled at K. "It's alright. No need to apologize. The school is your territory and I would do well to learn how you do things around here. I promise, no more scaring the kids."

Without waiting for her to reply, he left the room and went back to the clinic. Hopefully Corra was still holding down the fort and holding on to her sanity.

[8:10 AM]

It was barely an hour and Rick was beginning to feel the fatigue. It was more mental than physical; unlike the ER, working in the school clinic was decidedly more tedious. Doing the same thing over and over again– Rick didn't like repetition.

He looked over at K. It seemed she was diagnosing another girl. This one was older than the other kids. Tired of dealing with grade schoolers, Rick wandered over and volunteered to give her an examination.

Rick barely even touched her when she started shrinking away from him. He knew enough to back off, but he took note of her presence. The blonde girl clearly showed signs of mental instability and held an irrational dislike for him. K took over, and that was that.

Out of the corner of his eye, he observed the girl. After a while, her condition seemed to improve, and Rick turned his attentions to other sicker children.

[9:10 AM]

The influx of patients was startling, to say the least. Though the ER had its share of emergencies as well, it was nothing compared to this. Soothing the children proved quite challenging; on more than a few occasions, Rick was tempted to share his whiskey with some of the students. Thankfully, he had enough sense to keep it to himself.

A wild boy suddenly appeared, his cheek marred with a burn. The boy's gaze was filled with crazed fury. Rick wondered whether delirium was a new symptom of the damned mystery flu.

"What the hell is going on here?" said the student.

Two minutes later, the door opened again. This time, it was a familiar face. The girl was Joe's kid, Ty. Rick knew his boss wouldn't be happy if he learned that the medics didn't do their job. Rick also knew that Ty wasn't particularly fond of him, so he tapped Nurse K lightly on the arm and discreetly directed her to take care of Ty.

He would take care of the boy himself. Rick carefully approached the kid, holding up a bottle of burn cream.

"Hey there. I'll need you to hold still for a moment. Let me put some ointment on the burn, then we can talk about what's going on, alright?"

Edited by Captain Sciutto, 04 February 2014 - 01:32 PM.

[nevernown]

Daniel Asher Ben-Joshua

 

[9:00]

Daniel walked into the store, he had woken up early, like everyday. Today though, the morning felt... wrong. The sun was hidden behind grey clouds, and a chilly breeze chased through the empty streets. The streets... Daniel looked outside the supermarket. His training had taught him to pay attention for details, and todays details felt wuite wrong. No people in the street. no shopping housewives in the supermarket.

And there was his gut telling him again, danger in the air.

 

He sighed, nothing seemed wrong as far as he could see. He put the uncomfortable feeling away, and reached for some tomatoes that were on sale that day.

 

Still, the quittness made him quite jumpy, resulting in him almost dropping one of the tomatoes on the floor when his cellphone rang.

He caught the tomato just in time, and looked at his cellphone. An SMS had come from the headquarters.

 

"Emergency situation occured, Chaplain Ben-Joshua is requested to stay on stand by"

 

His gut had been right, trouble was here.

He touched his pocket knife, a familiar gesture when alerted, and looked outside again. Nothing had changed, just... silence.

 

Besides, it didn't seem to be an imminent threat, just a request to standby, probably just some accident somewhere where he would later have to comfort people or so, he assumed.

 

He put the tomatoes in his basket, and walked towards the register.

 

[9:50]

Daniel stepped outside into the bleak weather.

"May God be with us this day as well." He muttered under his breath.

 

Then something else caught his interest.

On his way into the supermarket, he hadn't really payd attention to the other people in town, it was only after the morning business died that he had noticed the silence in the air. However, now that he was alerted, he paid more attention to his surroundings.

He noticed Mrs Anne, more because of her coughing than anything. Something about her cough worried him.

He made a mental note to check on her later, see if he could do something and walked to his motorbike to put away his groceries. All of a sudden, he heard someone scream behind him.

 

Daniel straight up dropped his groceries, turned around and rushed over to the spot that people herded around. The spot where Mrs. Anne had been moments before.

"It's Mrs. Anne -- Anne Mabley! She just... I think she died?"

he saw Todd, the store-owner kneel over by Mrs Anne, and confirm her death.

Dead, why dead? Certainly, a cough wouldn't make you drop dead?

 

"S-she just started coughing, and her eyes were all red-like. Like the veins popped in her eyes, or something..? What do we do. Do we call the sheriff?"

He heard Ras chime in some backup, and considered that aprt of action done.

"Todd," He adressed the shopkeeper, "can you please call the hospital, this is not your ordinairy fever."

 

At that moment he saw movement in the Supermarket,  a woman in uniform positioned herself in a line of sight with the commotion.

 

He shouted at her

"Quick, miss, help me get these people somewhere safe and confined. Whatever this is, we don't want it to spread."

He flashed a look around. "Who is the highest in rank here?"

Edited by nevernown, 04 February 2014 - 09:03 PM.

[Faye]

Emily K. Scarlet

 

| Monday, 7:25 AM

 

It infuriated K, the situation back then. It was almost apparent that Rick was not really paying attention to her words. He were preoccupied with something else. Something that does not even concern the kids at all. K was not sure what he was thinking, but his face showed that the kids were not even remotely one of his concerns at the moment.

 

But at least it seemed that the paramedic snapped back into reality on the second half of K's speech, which was quite a relief. After a short conversation, Rick promised not to scare the children any further, which is a good thing. The next thing that happened though, was not even remotely good. At all.

 

Just as K left the storage room a couple of minutes after Rick (just to make sure nobody got the wrong idea about their relationships), a panicked student rushed towards her. "K, this is bad!" said the male student as he gasped for air. "Eddie.. He.. He.." he continued deliriously, as if he had just seen a ghost. His face was pale, and he was hyperventilating; the clear symptoms of panic attack.

 

"Calm down Al," K replied gently as she pat the boy on his back. She would pat his head, as it was the more effective method. Too bad she was not tall enough and it would look awkward if she did try that. "What happened to Eddie?" she continued in the most soothing tone she could manage.

 

"Eddie, he.. HE DIED!"

 

The news froze K's blood. Who would ever imagine that the paramedic was right after all? And this would mean that.. Many more lives will be lost to the plague. She did not know which is worse, the fact that she could very well be amongst the rank of the fallen, or that many children would succumb before her.

 

She, of course, did not let her panic show in her exterior. She is the nurse; she had the responsibility to provide mental stability to her patients. And thus, she took a deep breath, calmed herself down, and gripped the panicked boy's shoulder reassuringly. "Listen, Al. You are going to be fine. Miss Jackson and I will take care of the disease, ok? Can you trust me?" she then continued while keeping an eye contact with the kid, as if trying to hypnotize the boy to be brave. "Now, please gather your classmate and tell them to come to the school clinic, okay?"

 

"Everything is going to be fine," she muttered to herself repeatedly in her head. "Everything is going to be fine."

 

 

| Monday, 8:10 AM

 

Following her order, Al had directed his classmates to go to the school clinic. Amongst them was a student that K knows very well: Lux, the girl who always wears a headphone around her neck, as well as the owner of that adorable little owl that K simply admires. Seeing that she too, was a witness to Eddie's death, K walked towards her to try and dig for more info regarding the incident.

 

It was then that the meddlesome paramedic decided to ruin everything for her. Rick volunteered to examine Lux, possibly because her body is more matured than the younger girls around, and without even waiting for K to respond, he extended his arm towards the girl's shoulder. Needless to say, this triggered Lux's androphobia. Thankfully, Rick was tactful enough to read the anomaly and backed off without any real resistance.

 

Still, the mood was ruined and K did not manage to get all the information she needed. After all, her patient's mental stability is always the first priority for K. Witnessing death and a case of surfacing phobia was never good for the mind. Thus, after a short routine of checking Lux's blood tension and temperature, K let the child go. She did not want her to stick around and possibly contracted the disease that killed somebody less than an hour ago. Especially since she had yet to know if the pathogen was indeed airborne.

 

 

| Monday, 9:10 AM

 

Despite Miss Jackson's, Rick's, and K's hard work, the influx of patients did not seem to decrease. The multivitamin and antipyretics they had distributed earlier seemed to have failed in halting the disease's progression. More and more sick students poured into the clinic, and soon the room was turned into a picture of hell. Echoes of coughing filled the room, adding to the gloominess of the atmosphere. It was quite unbelievable that this was the same quiet and relaxing room that naughty students used to sleep and laze around when they wanted to skip a class or two just a couple of days ago.

 

Then, walking into the room as if he owned the place, was Kev. The card game maniac with scary face seemed to be bewildered by the amount of pale-looking students. But more importantly..

 

"Kev? What happened to you? That is quite a severe burn," K asked the boy as she rushed towards him to check up on his wounds. After seeing that the burns were already treated (even though some of the balm was already washed away by his sweat), K sighed in relief and started to joke around. "What is it this time, Mr. Duelist? Angry mobs chased you around with blazing torches on their hands?" she said with a chuckle. Stress-reliever at last!

 

Her repose did not last long, however, as the next batch of students arrived for the mandatory check-up Miss Jackson ordered an hour ago. As if seeing a ghost, Rick quickly shuffled behind K and nudged her towards a certain dark-haired girl in a black dress: Ty. Then, after making sure that K understood what he meant (which is for her to examine the girl he wanted to avoid at all cost), he innocently walked towards Kev, volunteering to put some ointments on his burns.

 

"Pft. Sneaky bastard. I hope Kev's shinai would deliver you some justice," K cursed inwardly as she struggled to stop her urge to stick her tongue out and mock the paramedic openly.

 

With her stress relieved somehow, K turned towards Ty and let out a beaming smile on the girl. "Hello Ty, how are you today?" she addressed the girl casually. Her conversation partner, however, did not seem to be keen to respond. Instead, she turned her face away and remained silent. It was most definitely that. Kev seemed to be able to instill fear on everyone's heart, even from the distance.

 

"Mm? What are you afraid of? that onii-chan over there do not bite, you know?" she continued in a playful tone. "Not without a reason, at least," she added with a mischievous smile. "Well, anyway, let us start the check-up, shall we? Do you feel anything unusual today, Ty? Nausea? Sore throat?"

Edited by fayrbrant, 05 February 2014 - 05:35 PM.

[Geo]

[MONDAY 8:00 AM]

 

The day was about to go great, Lorena was sure about it. She will go outside, take in the nice fresh air and say, "hello world!" Besides, she didn't want to feel off just because she happened to fall off her bed and wake up in such a rude manner. Lazily walking towards his wardrobe, she sorted out the outfit that she desired. It was a rather chic looking t-shirt and skirt that happened to have a good synergy when put on together. Covering the shirt with a brown peacoat, she picked up her essential side bag and other important items into her pockets.

 

"Alright, Lorena. It's time to go outside and have some fun!" She said to herself as she took grasp on the door knob.

 

"1...2...3!" She counted as she opened the door. A nice cool breeze flowed as it blew her hair in a very elegant manner. 

 

"Yeah, that's it... I feel like the world is in my favour!"

 

She cheerfully strolled to her awaiting car. It was a nice black car because she lacked the imagination to get it coloured. Besides, every car looks pretty cool in a nice black pearlescent coating. Going into the car, she started the engine. The radio buzzed as it tuned into a channel playing "What is Love" by Haddaway. It was a good song to listen to, and she kept the radio on for now. She decided that she should go and have a nice relaxing day at the park. The park had a nice atmosphere with all the joyful toddlers playing games and couples having some lovely time together.

 

"baby don't hurt me... don't hurt me... no more." The song had a very nice tune to begin with. It's mystically enchanting in some way or the other.

 

[MONDAY 9:00 AM]

 

Alright, Lorena got a little sidetracked while driving towards the park, but she managed to make it safe and soundly. The radio started playing some of the new hit songs, and she decided to switch the channel to the jazz radio. For some reason, the song of jazz had a nice calming effect on her while she listens.

 

She parked her car and started her stroll to the bench near by the playground. The sun was bright and happy and it brought a large smile on Lorena's face. All felt good until her head started aching once again, and it stopped abruptly by a voice.

 

"What a simply beautiful day for garbage... yeah baby..." A gruff voice said next to her. It was the garbage bin that was a foot away from her.

 

"Aww yeah baby, fill me up with your garbage," the nasty garbage bin said as someone dropped a tin can inside, "make me feel filthy!"

 

"The world is not in my favour anymore..." she spoked silently as she shifted uncomfortably farther from the garbage bin. "I don't like this curse I have..."

 

"WHAT IS THIS? IS THIS PAPER!?" The voiced yelled, "DON'T PUT THIS INSIDE OF ME, YOU FILTHY SWINE! GO PUT IT IN MY FRIEND, RECYCLING BIN!"

 

"What the absolute hell?"

 

She strolled to the other side of the park as her dim headache faded. It was going to be a long day for her, and she doesn't feel lucky.

Edited by Geo, 06 February 2014 - 12:17 AM.

[Führer Itulhu]

[9:10AM]

 

As always when Kev entered a room a sense of tension was always noticeable, and it felt as if no one would answer him in fear, that was until the familiar little nurse approached him.

"Kev? What happened to you? That is quite a severe burn,"

"What is it this time, Mr. Duelist? Angry mobs chased you around with blazing torches on their hands?"

Kevin was attacked with questions when K approached him, at first they where out of worry but the questions soon turned into light jokes.

"...Coolant....coolant everywhere, it was so bad i wish it was a mob with torches...at least i could fight back and give them a world of hurt for it" Kevin replied with a straight face, it would be hard to tell if he was joking or seriously thought that, "also don't call me that in public like that shorty.... stuff like that can cause complications for a lot of people, i don't like complications" Kevin continued to speak in a straight face which showed slight annoyance... or embarrassment, heck it could be sadness he shows so little emotion.

 

As Kevin was trying to talk to K he noticed another doctor who offered to help with his injuries, and as K walked away to help some girl it looked like she was resisting the urge to do something....Kevin had the feeling it whatever she resisted doing would suit her image of a little girl too well.

 

the other doctor then came closer to Kevin, and as he came closer Kevin's body stiffened

"Hey there. I'll need you to hold still for a moment. Let me put some ointment on the burn, then we can talk about what's going on, alright?"

his hand came closer, closer and as if the world was in slow motion the hand slowly came closer, this feeling... it was the same... the same as him, the same as that man, and as the doctor started applying some ointment Kevin clenched his fist that was hanging down his side, he clenched it so hard his nails dug into his hand and a touch of blood dripped down. It was the only way Kevin could resist throwing a punch there and then.

 

"um, thanks....can you tell me what the hells going on now? why the hell is everyone so sick?" Kevin started asking questions in order to distract himself from doing anything stupid.