[EVENT POST] I FEEL STUPID, AND CONTAGIOUS.

[dishearten]

CHARACTERS: Open to all!
DATE: 3/11-3/12, ICly
WARNINGS: Zombie attacks? Violence? Shopping???
SUMMARY: Lockdown at the mall! Grab your CDs and your soft pretzel, it's about to get bad.

LET'S GO TO THE MALL LOCKDOWN Business has been rough for Woodhurst Shopping Center ever since riots and unrest about the Bristol Virus have shunned most to their homes. Perhaps ill-advisedly, in attempts to draw a few more customers back into the polished halls of the grandest shopping experience Woodhurst has to offer, a weekend of big sales, great bargains, and fun family activities was widely advertised in the Woodhurst Watch. There was even a scheduled public concert, performed by the University Choir. The turnout was smaller than hoped, yet the air was quite optimistic. Shoppers enjoyed the day of activities and fun, and the sense of security was bolstered by the increased security detail. There was even some members of the press on hand to document this return to normality in a troubled time. Everything was going well, until a scene broke out in the food court. Security tried to quietly remove members of the choir that suddenly seemed to snap, plowing into one of the food stands and starting to feed on raw meat. However, a good handful of them escaped instant confinement, and while many of the visitors fled the mall as soon as they could, soon Police Detail arrived and put the entire building on lockdown. Nobody in and nobody out until the situation was resolved. 18:00 TO 23:00 HOURS Anyone unlucky enough to be trapped in the mall is left to their own devices, with very little knowledge to go on. This includes many civilians, as well as a small number of Audentes agents. This also includes a small number of infected, more than just the university choir. There's a voice over the loudspeaker imploring people to hide in stores, barricade doors, and stay put until help arrives. The majority of the infected seem to linger in the Food Court especially. Bad news for anyone trapped and starting to get hungry as the hours pass by, without any obvious assistance from the outside. The members of ALASTAIR have a choice, help protect or just do their best to avoid the infected themselves. Characters can get into the Security Office for a camera feed on what is happening in the mall, and potentially use it as a base of operations to work from. 00:00 TO 02:00 HOURS It becomes apparent that the number of infected in the mall are somehow increasing, despite the lockdown. It means that those that have squirreled away into stores and outlets are growing less and less safe as infected numbers multiply and they begin attacking barricades. To make matters worse, anyone that hasn't found cover will find the infected extremely reactive, and willing to give chase around the mall. The security feed indicates the infected seem to be coming in from the Parking Garage. Investigation will reveal a sewer outlet on the bottom floor. Characters will have to decide whether they should utilize the tunnel as a means of escape, or if sealing it off would ultimately leave the remaining hours of lockdown a little less violent. 04:00 TO 09:00 HOURS It's been an agonizing 12 hours, and with surprisingly little aide from the outside. With time to make preparations and put plans in place, now it's time to end this lockdown once and for all. Audentes is tasked with neutralizing the remaining infected as well as escorting any remaining civilians to safety, by any means they decide on. It is up to Audentes to decide how the end of this event plays out, be it removing or otherwise drawing away the lingering infected, or putting them down once and for all. There are plenty of civilians that have been bitten and attacked, leaving the question in the air as to whether they are infected as well. What should be done with those that could be bringing the virus back to their families? The team is going to have to decide on the answer to that.

Comments

[nextlineis]

[Joseph startles a little at the sound of her stomach. He can't really argue against her reason for being out here though. There's no telling how long they're going to be trapped in this mall, and it'd be a good idea get something in people's stomachs to tide them over at least for a little while.]

You mind having some help then?

[keystaff]

Of course not. You should come if you're hungry too. We can carry that much more back together with both of us!

[So Sakura has no reason to disagree. Welcoming his offer to help and join her, even. She's usually this way, welcoming the help and not necessarily immediately assuming the others want to come to keep an eye on her in the middle of these missions and trouble she finds herself in.]

Where did you want to start?

[nextlineis]

We should probably steer clear of the food court.

[Some of the groups that were clumping together there might have dispersed by now, but there's no sense in chancing that with a kid with him. Besides, who's to say the food there's ready to eat anyway? So where to look then?]

You know, I bet some of the bigger stores have their own employee areas. Someone musta brought their lunch and left it behind when all this was going on, yeah?

[keystaff]

That's the obvious place but....you're right. That is where they seem to have gathered. But ah, I hadn't thought of that. Their lunches. That's true. Or some of them might have snacks next to the check outs?

[Since there might be more restricted access to the employee areas where they would keep and eat their lunches on their breaks. So it might help to consider other options as well.]

[nextlineis]

That's a good idea!

[Having never worked a day in his life -- at least not in the paid sense -- and not really giving the average worker much thought beyond common courtesy as Granny Erina would prefer, Joseph hadn't really considered the possibility that the employees would bring some snacks with them while they were working.]

You lead the way then, yeah? [He grins.] Consider me your sidekick!

[He figures the best chance of making sure that she really does let him help her out is to let it be her idea, her lead.]

[keystaff]

Sidekick? Um, okay then.

[Okay, she knows the idea of a sidekick. She's just never thought of herself as having one. Or more. Even if Kero could potentially be considered one, or perhaps even Syaoran.

Still, she does lead the way, pausing at some of the stores to check near the check outs initially.]

There's chocolate bars and gum at least. But we could keep going. We should try find something more....

[nextlineis]

It's a good start, [Joseph agrees. Chocolate tastes good and everything, but it's not very filling, and gum only works for so long. But that may very well be the bar they need to shoot for.]

[keystaff]

It's something. We can grab these and keep looking.

[These would be better than not having anything to eat, though of course something fresh would be preferable, like fruit. For now they would just have to make do with whatever they found though, so Sakura pockets some of the snacks, shoving what doesn't fit into her backpack.]

[nextlineis]

[Joseph plucks one of the boxes off the shelf in on the check-out lanes and uses that to carry any of the other bars of chocolate he finds in other check-outs.]

Don't wander too far out of my sight, alright? I can't be a very good sidekick if you go wandering off on your own.

[keystaff]

Ah, I won't! We need to stick together and help each other out with things like this!

[She gives a nod, looking determined at the same time as she hears her stomach responding to the sight and smell of food, even snacks like the chocolate bars. There's plenty here, enough for all that she'd counted in their little group staying barricaded in that one particular store at least. And then some. Maybe she could go around to other shops too along the way?

So long as it wasn't that much more dangerous in doing so? But she does look rather sheepish, almost flailing a little as she covers her stomach, as if that would quiet it.]

[nextlineis]

[Joseph raises an eyebrow slightly when he hears that stomach growl. He holds out a chocolate bar to her with a smile.]

Don't worry, I won't tell anyone.

[keystaff]

Um...o-okay then.

[There's more than enough for everyone to have at least one chocolate bar. She shouldn't feel so hesitant in having one herself to keep her going during the search for food for them all. So Sakura sheepishly takes the offered chocolate, opening it and giving a soft hum of appreciation as she takes a bite.]

Thanks!

[nextlineis]

[He shakes his head a little.]

You gotta keep your strength up.

[keystaff]

Y-yes. We do, to keep looking. This is a start but...

[She'd like more. Something more substantial if possible. Sakura nibbles at the chocolate appreciatively, it slightly, slowly started to make her stomach subside from it's protesting at not being fed.]

[nextlineis]

Yeah, let's head on to the employees only area.

[He points toward the back of the store.]

[keystaff]

You don't think that might be locked?

[She assumes so, so that customers wouldn't get in and have access to the staff's personal effects. But there might be the chance it might be open. That they might find some lunches.]

[nextlineis]

[He shrugs a shoulder.]

Might be, but I bet we can get it open.

[keystaff]

You think so? How? I don't want to break the door down or anything? But I guess we can at least have a look. I guess the staff rooms would be out the back of the store?

[She points, gesturing for him to follow as she heads in that direction, back down the aisles and away from the entrance and checkout.]

[nextlineis]

[Joseph tags along behind her, keeping watchful for any signs of movement that would indicate the infected are around among the clothing racks and mannequins. Fortunately all seems quiet so far.]

Nah, trying to break it down would draw too much attention. We might be able to find another way in, but we won't know until we get there.

[keystaff]

Another way? But um, okay. I guess it'd be in the back somewhere....

[Sakura leads, glancing around in hoping to spot a door, a sign or something to indicate the staff area. Which she does. It's a door, locked though through a keypad. Her lips purse and she frowns.]

Um. If we guess the code?