mystic
RPG character: Rhiannon Nerice supervisor
Posts: 600
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Post by mystic on Aug 15, 2006 16:32:15 GMT 1
After what seemed hours to Rhia she had finally encircled two spaces where you could find dulse - that special kind of algae. It was sure that it only grew in littoral zones of the sea or large lakes... As there was no big lake nearby it only had to be the sea. After searching again it had turned out that the dulse could be found a) in the old sewerage system of the city which ended in the sea and b) directly at the coast where there were some rotten buildings. Next thing she did was calling Luke, but his phone was turned off. Quickly she went to inform Sam. On her way a plan enformed in her head. Without knocking she burst into her office.
"Look, Sam. There are two areas where he could be." She showed her co-worker on the plan at the wall. "First one's the old sewerage system here and second one's the coastal area where you find some old rotten buildings. Maybe these two areas are connected, too...but I think..." she paused a second.
"...we should go alone. Paperwork doesn't bring us further and if we are too many, we will be noticed too soon. We can leave a note they will find later on, where we say we've found a trace and they shouldn't do anything until sunrise." She quickly glanced at her watch. It was 9 pm.
"What do you say, Sam? I think we should deal with the sewerage system first..." She looked anxious at her co-worker.
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scorpii
RPG Moderator
You KNOW the world is all mine.
Posts: 1,584
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Post by scorpii on Aug 15, 2006 19:24:06 GMT 1
'Great idea' Sam said, as she saw Rhia glancing at her watch. 'It's getting dark outside so we won't be noticed as soon. And...' She paused as she realised it. The handwriting. 'That system will indeed be a great start. I remember an article in the day before yesterday's newspaper about that system. And since we think he was kept in a tunnel, I do think it is that system.' Then she sighed. 'Hibiscus' she whispered. 'It was Lizzy Hibiscus who had written that article. And it was her handwriting on the box. Come on' Sam wrote this and where they were going on a note for Luke and the others. She grabbed her coat and followed Rhia outside. 'Let's take my car. It won't catch as much attention as your CSI SUVs. It's that old Mercedes over there.'
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briguy4588
RPG Moderator
RPG: Brian Shefkowitz
Posts: 617
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Post by briguy4588 on Aug 15, 2006 19:59:33 GMT 1
Brian was wrenched from his reverie by the faint sound of wheels braking on the driveway above him. His oxygen-deprived brain realized, however, that someone had come looking for him. But were they good or bad?
He'd find out soon enough. He kept his mouth to the hole he had shot in the wall for air. It was dusty, and every now and then some nerve gas slipped into a breath, but it was keeping him alive. Barely.
In a short amount of time, he heard footsteps walking rapidly to the trap door. He blinked, and the nerve gas stung his eyes. If these people were good, they'd be walking through his house much more carefully. If they were bad, they'd move rapidly to check on him and then be on their way. These were bad people.
The trapdoor opened, and there was a loud obscenity followed by coughing coming from up above. A few minutes later, and two men, dressed in the same black tactical outfits, but with gask masks this time, dropped down into Brian's prison. Brian's mind, in it's weakened state, gave him one clear message: Hurt these evil people. Brian continued to draw in ragged breaths from the wall. He waited patiently as one man unlocked the chain that shackled Brian's ankle to the floor...
Brian sucked in a big gulp of stale air, and whipped his chained leg around. The motion made him dizzy, but the chain struck one man in the head, taking him down instantly. The other man pulled out a gun and began firing shots. Unfortunately, they were smart enough to use silencers this time. Two shots struck the wall, and one hit Brian in the leg.
Brian roared in agony, felt the nerve gas slowly eating away at his throat, eyes, brain...
"Knock it off, a**hole!" The gunman yelled, his voice slightly muffled by the gas mask. The gunman hand cuffed Brian, who was back to writhing in agony on the bloodstained ground. Brian wormed his way back to the hole in the wall, and began sucking at the meager supply of air there.
Meanwhile, the gunman began wafting the fumes out of the basement and dragged another tank from the van into the room and set it up like before -- it would slowly release the gas until Brian suffocated at the deadline.
Brian knew one thing the man didn't, however: These tanks had faulty valves. The man didn't know that the valve had litterally shot off the previous tank. Brian did. So when Brian was sure the man wasn't watching, he grabbed the dead man's sidearm and whispered a prayer, concealing the gun until the right moment.
A breath. A heartbeat. Pain.
Brian turned around, and cocked the gun.
A breath, a heartbeat, pain.
The man whipped around at the metallic click.
Breath, heartbeat, heartbeat, pain.
Brian's aim was dead-on -- he chalked that up to God answering his prayer. Only God knows how hard it is to shoot while handcuffed.
Pain!
The bullet struck the tank right where the valve attatches to it. The weakened metal burst, and sent the valve flying through the air with another enormous BANG! The valve penetrated the gunman's head from the back, traveled forward, and stopped with the tip just poking out of his forhead. The man dropped to the ground, a small trickle of blood leaking out from the valve's tip.
Gas expanded the room.
Heartbeat, pain, heartbeat.
Brian kicked the tank over.
Heartbeat, heartbeat, pain, pain pain!
Brian jumped up on the tank, and then jumped up through the trapdoor, landing in a bare room of the house. He passed out from the pain shock before noticing the twelve black duffel bags packed with explosives all around the room.
A breath. A heartbeat. Pain.
Blood from the gunshot wound began to pool underneath his body.
A weak breath. A weak heartbeat. Numbness.
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mystic
RPG character: Rhiannon Nerice supervisor
Posts: 600
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Post by mystic on Aug 15, 2006 20:29:45 GMT 1
Rhia climbed in and enfolded a map. Then something crossed her mind.
"Look!" she cried out and pointed at a spot near the sea. "These are houses that were used for desalinating the sea water years ago...after the hurricane, you remember? When there was a lack of drinking water these desalination plants were built. It'd be an ideal location. Nobody would go there, nobody would even notice if there was someone."
Rhia's eyes were glittering with hope. "But let's go through a tunnel...it's much more inconspicuously. And they don't see us...too soon!" she added thoughfully.
"Got your gun ready?" she looked at Sam as they drove around a corner where you could see a dead end and entry to the canalisation. Nobody would stop them finding their colleague no. She had already broken a thousand rules...
Hang those rules. Our friend's in danger...and everyone wants us to do paperwork, to "investigate"...
A grin spread on her face as she exited the car. Now, there was no going back...
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scorpii
RPG Moderator
You KNOW the world is all mine.
Posts: 1,584
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Post by scorpii on Aug 15, 2006 20:45:24 GMT 1
'Oh yes I have' Sam whispered, grabbing her Glock 19 from her holster. She was a lab tech, but she did know how to fire a gun. A nice spare time hobby: shooting. Since five years she knew how to fire a gun and she was, well, good at it. Rhia opened the entry of the system and both got in, gun at the ready. 'Shall we find him? Or just some trace evidence?' Sam asked. 'I hope we will find him' They moved through the tunnel to the buildings. 'There are houses above us, right? Oh damn, then we have to be carefull. Come on' Finally they reached an exit, an entry to the buildings. Sam opened the entry to let them both in. A sound. Metallic. 'Rhia? These buildings, to be exact, this building, has a house built next to it, and this has been rebuilt as a house. So maybe...- Never mind. Come on' Then they heard a sound again. Muffled this time. 'Brian?' Sam shouted.
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briguy4588
RPG Moderator
RPG: Brian Shefkowitz
Posts: 617
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Post by briguy4588 on Aug 15, 2006 20:52:24 GMT 1
Brian opened one eye slowly. It was red and swollen. He was greeted with a digital clock, the red numbers counting down. He thought he heard voices. But then again, maybe he hadn't. He sank back into unconsciousness, grateful for the repreive from the intense pain he was in.
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scorpii
RPG Moderator
You KNOW the world is all mine.
Posts: 1,584
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Post by scorpii on Aug 16, 2006 10:17:47 GMT 1
Rhia and Sam moved quickly through the house/building, finding nothing but empty rooms. Until they entered a room, through another hidden door as many in the building, filled with - something - that hurt their eyes and throats. Coughing they found two tanks without valves, and two men lying on the floor, one with a hole in his head. 'Oh my gosh' Sam tried to whisper, wishing that none of those men was Brian. She and Rhia moved through the room, searching for stuff. Cos their eyes hurt, they kept them half shut so it wouldn't hurt as much. But they didn't see as much either. Until Sam tripped over -something-: a loose tile. While she got up again, she thought she saw something in the ceiling. 'What is that?' She asked. Both her and Rhia looked at the hole, a trap door, in the ceiling.
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mystic
RPG character: Rhiannon Nerice supervisor
Posts: 600
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Post by mystic on Aug 16, 2006 15:55:09 GMT 1
Suddenly Rhia noticed a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye. She spun around, gun drown. One of the two "dead" man was still alive and he had tried to grab the gun lying beside him. Quickly she kicked it out of reach. Then she kneeled down next to him. He was breathing heavy. His eye was swollen and he was shot in the knee as well as in his shoulder. Coldly she pressed the gun at his temple.
"What did you do to him?" she questioned, her voice shaking with fury. The man on the floor only grinned nastily. "Did we take away your little friend...? What a crybaby..." the man answered. Rhia tried not to let herself being provocated by him and pressed the gun harder at his head. The man didn't give a sound. "Where is he?" she went on, but the men only grinned at her. Rhia smiled back, let go of her gun with one hand and punched him very hard in the face. The man's smile was wiped away for a short moment. "You're too late anyway, baby..." he whispered. "What do you mean?" Rhia forced herself not to scream at him. When he didn't answer she pressed her hand as hard as possible at his still bleeding wound at his shoulder. The man's face turned white out of pain. "If you say one word, I'll kill you. Where is he?" her voice was cold as ice. The man nodded at the trap door. "The poison will have given him the rest by now. It's too late for him, baby..."
But Rhia hadn't heard the last words. She had jumped up and started towards the trap door. Poison! Brian must be very lucky to be still alive... She motioned Sam to follow as she pushed the door open after taking a deep breath.
When Sam started towards this trap door, Rhia held her back by the arm.
"We've gotta be
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scorpii
RPG Moderator
You KNOW the world is all mine.
Posts: 1,584
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Post by scorpii on Aug 16, 2006 19:11:14 GMT 1
'What? Careful?' Sam asked. 'For what? We gotta save him!'
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briguy4588
RPG Moderator
RPG: Brian Shefkowitz
Posts: 617
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Post by briguy4588 on Aug 16, 2006 19:58:35 GMT 1
This time Brian definitely heard voices. He opened his eye again, and the familiar pain returned in a wave, washing over his body, threatening to knock him out again.
Brian opened his mouth to shout, but all that came out was a hoarse croak and a trickle of blood.
He was suddenly aware of a wetness around his legs. He was lying in a dark pool of his own blood!
"Rh.. Rhia..." he croaked, more blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. "Rhia, it's a trap, they've booby trapped the door with C-4. Go get the bomb squad and an ambulance!"
His poor throat couldn't take any more, and a painful cough wracked his body, sending more blood flying out of his mouth. He was leaking like a sieve in a room packed with enough plastic explosive to level the neighborhood.
But he began to cry in joy. His friends were here. He'd be ok. Still crying, he faded from consciousness again, hoping they heard his warning.
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scorpii
RPG Moderator
You KNOW the world is all mine.
Posts: 1,584
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Post by scorpii on Aug 16, 2006 20:15:59 GMT 1
Sam and Rhia looked up when they heard a whisper. '...trap...booby trapped...door...C-4. ...the bomb..ambulance!"
Scared, they looked at eachother. 'Oh my god' Sam whispered. Rhia grabbed her cell phone to call the bomb squad while Sam called an ambulance.
After she hung up, she sighed. 'Oh my god. Let he please be okay' she whispered. It was almost too much for her. She couldn't just sit here and wait. Would he be okay? What if... what if he died in these seconds that looked like centuries? NO NO NO she did not have to think like that! They had found him now. They had. Was he okay? He could still whisper. Was he okay?
'Brian!' She shouted. 'Brian! We have called the squad! And an ambulance! Please, hold on! Oh please, I hope you're okay...' her voice faded. Let him be okay. Please, let him be okay...
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mystic
RPG character: Rhiannon Nerice supervisor
Posts: 600
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Post by mystic on Aug 16, 2006 20:59:37 GMT 1
Rhia stopped short. Her hand had been few inches away from the door. Then a horrible thought crossed her mind.
He mustn't get unconcious...otherwise he'd breathe in the poison and die slowly...
"Brian!" she shouted through the door. "You have to stay awake! Do you understand me? You don't have to talk...just gimme a sign that you are listening to me. Brian! Listen, I'm gonna tell you about..." she stopped, but smiled. "...how great you've been. Look at you! You've given us the right clues, we only had to figured out. And you've done all the work here. Good work! Are you still listening?"
She heard a faint knock on the floor and exhaled a bit relaxing.
"Do you know? All of the lab have been searching for you. All your friends! And we...they miss you! You have to hold on, understand?"
A silent tear made her way across the cheek, which she wiped away furiously. She mustn't get sentimental now.
Another knock on the floor.
"Good boy!"
She smiled.
"Just keep on listening to me. Luke and Hamlet and everyone else did everything in their powers to find and save you. So, you won't disappoint them, right?"
She even tried to sound light-hearted and again there was a respond. In the distance Rhia could already hear the siren of the ambulance.
"Just a minute, okay? Promise me...you won't go!"
She quickly turned her head to Sam. "We still gotta be careful. I haven't seen the woman of the video around...maybe she will check on their guys. Keep your gun out...and maybe you go back, so that you can guide the paramedics back here..."
"Brian!" she then shouted. "Are you still listening?"
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briguy4588
RPG Moderator
RPG: Brian Shefkowitz
Posts: 617
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Post by briguy4588 on Aug 16, 2006 21:22:45 GMT 1
Brian pressed his face against the door. He could hardly believe that an inch of wood stood between him and salvation. He eyed the hinges, which were crawling with wires that led to the bombs, warily.
"I'm here, Rhia," he choked, more blood dribbling from his lips. "B-but I... I don't f-feel so... hot." He didn't have the strength to smile, though he wanted to.
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ivycolt
RPG Character: Zora Lockhart
Posts: 212
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Post by ivycolt on Aug 17, 2006 1:44:11 GMT 1
Zora pulled her SUV in behind the bomb squad and the paramedics that were on the site. She had followed them out when she heard the call. She hoped they were in time to save Brian and that the others were safe as well. Zora really admired the two women who had went alone to find their friend. Although she knew it wasn't the safest thing to do she knew it was the right thing to do.
The scene was new but already it was busy and to a casual observer it would look like chaos. Zora however knew that this chaos was organized. The bomb squad was going into the house as she watched wanting to run in herself. She knew though that until it was officially considered cleared she couldn't set foot inside.
To make herself useful however, Zora began searching the area she was allowed in to check for tire treads that didn't belong to the good guys. Maybe she could find something that would lead to the people responsible for this.
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briguy4588
RPG Moderator
RPG: Brian Shefkowitz
Posts: 617
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Post by briguy4588 on Aug 17, 2006 3:38:56 GMT 1
Mrs. Weedle couldn't believe it. Just a few hours after she had layed down to get some sleep, her neighborhood became a veritable circus of lights, sirens, and law enforcement personnel. She watched, jaw agape, as SWAT teams took up positions around the house, securing the permiter. There were two police and one medivac helicopters circling the house next door.
A bomb squad truck pulled up and a team got to work inside the house. Police cars kept showing up.
She heard a knock at her door. The aging woman ambled downstairs and opened the door, to see the policeman she had dealt with earlier that evening.
"You know," she snapped, "somehow 'I told you so' just doesn't quite cut it."
"Uh, yeah, sorry about that, Mrs. Weedle. Listen, we need to evacuate the neighborhood, so if you could just come with me, I'll shuttle you to the old park a few miles out. It's no longer safe here," the officer replied, sheepishly.
"Ya think?!" Mrs. Weedle shrieked, walking to the officer's car, as yet another bomb squad showed up.
****
Brian was only getting worse. He knew the slightest mistake would send the whole neighborhood to kingdom come, but he was worried about his loss of blood.
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