2004 - Saving Terra

[Winters]

For some reason or another, it seemed as if Madison was keeping a very calm mind through the whole incident. At least while Vega and her partner were in control of things. They were both using some military like tactics, and encouraged her to help, and Madison had the confidence to do so.

The undead came from behind them, but remained a good distance away, so she hopefully wouldnt have to shoot. Yet still, Madison had her gun out, and was mentally preparing herself. Shed shot on e before, plenty of times, in the range, but not at anyone. If these would even still be considered people. The closer they got, the less they seemed like monsters, and more like just people who were angry. Lost and angry, with only one thing on their mind.

After reaching the doorway, it was evident the door was locked, because Sam and the BSA agent both struggled to get the door open. One of the infected came closer, and Madison knew he had to do something. She raised her gun slowly, and waited for him to get closer. The closer he was, the easier it would be to hit him, but the scarier the sound was and she risked locking up. But with everything she had inside, Madison closed one eye, and pulled the trigger, only to hear a click.

Not a second after that, Vega turned around and threw a handful of lead in their direction, managing to put down several of them just in time for Sam to get the door open, and wave them inside. Madison was fiddling with the handgun, trying to take the safety off. She assumed it was the safety, and that it wasnt broken, anyways, but thered be no way to tell unless one of the two looked at it.

[JDrew25]

"Come on in, safer on this side of the door!"

Sam ushered the two her way, firing her weapon several times behind them as they made their way through. They had to be able to close the door, and they couldn't do that with so many of them close enough to try and pry it open. As she slammed the door nearly on Vega's heels, she pressed her body against the door until she heard it latch. Locking it again, she leaned heavily on it and switched mags, nodding to them and blowing some stray hairs from her face.

"Madison, let me see your weapon. Good instincts back there, waiting until they got closer. No point in wasting bullets right?"

Once the woman handed over the pistol, she holstered her own and checked the breach. Failure to fire, wonderful. She pulled the slide back, ejecting the dud round and put the safety back on, handing the weapon back to Madison.

"There we go, safety is on so be sure to take it off soon. Better luck with the next bullet, right?"

[Winters]

Of course that wouldve happened, being the first time using her gun on the job. Madison was thankful that Sam noticed, because with her own head spinning from everything going on, it was a little hard to explain that she wasnt able to kill the people that came toward her, trying to bite her. She knew they werent alive, but in her own mind, they were still people, and it made it even harder for her to even point a loaded gun at them. "Thanks... What now?" She questioned, hearing a louder thud on the door.

Now removing his back from against the frame, Vega felt the lock was secure enough to keep out a group of people. The undead would be just the same. They would eventually lose interest in them, but when that happened, it meant they were busy trying to kill somebody else. But since they were save, even just for the moment, Vega was going to make the most of it. "This airport isnt even that big, only two departures and arrivals. When they set it up as an FOB, they wouldve has less traffic of people than usual, but still at least a hundred, maybe a hundred twenty, by the logs."

What was going through Vegas head couldnt have been the best course of action, and just because he wasnt scared, didnt make it a goo idea. But he did have an idea, and would be able to execute it so long as Sam and Madison cooperated. If they were on board, it would be doable, especially with the ammunition they had. Vega checked his over again, almost letting the women know he was prepared to shoot again soon. "I say we get the doors to the outside open, and then kill them all. Sooner, rather than later, before they have a chance to infect the closest town a few miles from here."

[JDrew25]

"Did you see the layout of the complex before we got here? There has to be an armory somewhere. Some place we can stock up on better weapons than what we're carrying. The plane if anything else right? You guys were loaded for bear."

Sam checked the magazine on her pistol and then slapped it back home. They needed to get the gates open, clear out the infected, and make sure nothing got out that could cause another epidemic.

Another Raccoon City. That was the last thing she wanted anyone else to experience. It was up to them to make sure it didn't happen, and make sure those that were still alive in the facility stayed that way.

"Alright, safety off, and stay behind me. Vega, you lead the way. We've got to clear this building, then get to the main gates and make sure the situation is contained. No more deaths. We're going to stop this here and now."

[Winters]

Vega raised up his MP5, feeling for another magazine with ease for when he needed to reload. Madison surprisingly had her gun at the ready, and toggled the safety just as Sam ordered. All three of them ran through the hallway, which was heading back out to the side doors. Only a small group of undead were in their path, they shouldnt have much trouble getting to the helicopter now. There was definitely enough ammunition to clear the entire place, but this wouldnt be possible without them separating, otherwise they wouldnt be able to prevent strays from leaving sight and losing sight of them. Then it would only be a matter of time before the virus made its way into the town.

But all of this was being recorded by security cameras around the base, and it was being streamed directly back to the pair. "Looks like everything worked out. Arcian Griffin is cooperating so far by leaving the test zone, and the others are the only ones that will survive. This branch failed, clearly. Lack of cooperation will do that, especially with Americans." The blonde man exclaimed, fixing his sunglasses. His partner beside him noticed him changing the feeds a little too quickly, knowing that if there was any part of the excercise leading to a fault, he would have caught it. But there was one thing he felt the need to point out. "Sir, what should we do about Griffin? Hes not on the feed. How will we know he isnt coming for us right now?," the man question. "Im hoping he does. We have a lot to talk about. But for now, we watch. See how they score."

[JDrew25]

"Alright, let's get the helicopter ready, pray there is a living crew, and start getting the survivors out of here. We need to call in the military, this is way beyond a simple cleanup. Once we get everyone to safety we can start locking the place down, try to contain them."

Sam saw a lone zombie wander into their path. Raising her pistol she shot it in head and kept going. She didn't want to look and see if it was someone she would recognize, or if they still looked human. She knew the image would haunt her dreams if she did. She was already bringing enough nightmares with her.

[Winters]

Despite things being out of their control, the only threat they had to worry about was the virus spreading. The infected were easy enough to deal with, and they had xperience fighting them, save for Madison, who was the rookie. Between taking shots at the odd staggering undead that drizzled their way, Vega was still trying to figure out where Griffin went, and why he had left them. Somehow he knew that the two TerrSave agents wondered the same thing, but didnt question it right now, and didnt aim to find out until after al of this was over and done with.

Sam still wanted to rescue people, while Vega wanted to start clearing immediately, which would put them at the crossroads they might have been looking for. One they got to the lobby, large windows gave them a view of the outside, and he could see how many they had to kill to reach the helo. It wasnt much, thankfully, but others surrounding the base would make things signifigantly more complicated if they got closer. So after stepping forward away from the pair, Vega fired a small burst into a cluster, and then called out his plan. "Ill draw them away from the fences and the runway, you get to the chopper and take it back over to the other side. By then I should have the majority of them on me and away from anyone still alive. If they even are still alive in there, theyll see the chopper, and follow it."

Vega only hoped that Sam knew how to fly. It really wasnt all that challenging, and the choppers they uses were very lightweight. She would catch on quick. She had to if they were going to make this happen. With that, Vega charged off yelling, drawing the infected away from the landing pad. A small amount got caught on crates and plastic barriers, but the bulk of them followed him, and he could feel his heart begin to race a little faster when he seen all of the faces staring hungerly at him all at once.

Madison hoped they could just fly out of here, away from all of this, because this really wasnt part of their job. They were suppose to clean things up, maybe give medical attention, not evacuate an entire building with a helecopter. She was convinced that nobody else couldnt possible have even made it this long, but she did, and she was just as if not more useless than most of them. Hey, Sam? Maybe we should just get out of here... Ya know, fly away, she voiced in her head, repeating it over and over again several different ways, trying to make it so she didnt seem like a coward. But thats what she was, a coward, and that couldnt stand if she was going to actually make this first assignment something she could feel she accomplished when she got back home.

"I hope you know how to fly one of these, because sure as hell dont..." Madison spoke, trailing off as she seen two of the infected people shambling toward her. One of them tripped over a body on the ground, and the other extended its arms. Madison pointed the gun unsteadily, and waited until it was close enough to where she wouldnt have to aim before pulling the trigger. It was a good idea in her mind, and it even worked because she scored a headshot, but the blood splttered all over her. Nothing in the textbooks prepard her for that. But she kept calm, and trusted that Sam knew what she was doing rescuing these people.

[JDrew25]

"I have no idea how to fly one of these things. I don't even know what buttons to push to start it up. I think we are going to have to wait until Vega gets back, or find...where is Griffin? Dammit don't tell me we lost him!"

Sam mentally kicked herself for allowing them to get separated. They needed to find someone that knew how to fly. Surely one of the pilots must still be alive somewhere?

"Alright, we are going to see if we can find anyone alive that can fly. If not we are going to have to find another way out of here."

[Winters]

"The BSAA doesnt even have any jurisdiction there, are you sure thats where they were headed? ..... I told you before, my name is Special Agent Edward Barnaby, FBI co- ..... Excuse me? On what authority? ..... Why would you even suggest that? ..... This is rediculous, you need to get them out of there, something is- ..... Hello? Hello?! God dammit!" The phone clicked, hanging up the call. Quickly as it ended, Edward had been already prepared to leave, having a full tank and a bag packed for just an occasion. The BSAA and TerraSave wouldnt of any use to them if somebody on the inside was already pulling strings to make something like this happen, and off of american soil at that. But the FBI allowed him working outside of the USA because he wasnt actually a full FBI agent, just coordinating with them. Within an hour, Edward was on a plane, and ready to do whatever needed to be done to make sure everything was well documented and official.

---

"A helicopter? Come now, thats too easy." The man in black flipped a switch, and adjusted his eyes on the camera positioned on the inside of the building. In an instamnt, all of them went dark, and kicked into night vision. He knew it would make things more interesting, and to ensure the test subjects wouldnt just evacuate and tell anybody. They werent going to leave, especially not once they realized what was actually going on, that all of this wasnt just an accident. But the base had no signifigant foothold in the BSAA, so if things got too out of control, they would be dealt with.

---

All of the infected at this point had been away from the building, so Madison and Sam had to make a run for the inside. Vega was doing his job, now TerraSave had to do theirs. Making due wit the resources you had available to you same second nature to most people in this line of work, and without a doubt to Sam. But as soon as the lights all cut off and a loud popping sound echoed the empty lobby, they both knew something bad happened. "The powers out, sh*t! Theres less than a half hour of daylight left, Sam, we need to make a decision and stick with it." She blurted out, not caring about the noise. To compliment that, gunfire could be heard coming from outside, and the flashes reflecting around the building showed Vega gunning down the infected. He mustve had an idea, because he definitely wouldnt have enough bullets. But at least they knew most of the theat wasnt inside where they were.

[JDrew25]

"We need to find either a pilot or another way off of the base. Come on, we have thirty minute of daylight, let's use it."

If they couldn't find anyone that would be able to fly than they were going to need to find another place to hold up until help came. Either a place with access to food and water, or some place they could get all of the remaining survivors to quickly. A working radio, more ammunition and a few working vehicles would be a plus as well.

"Come on let's get back to the group we found, and see what our options are."

[Winters]

With Sam definitely knowing what to do, Madison had time to calm down once again. The hallway the were walking down seemed all clear. There would have been a lot of echo from the lack of people, so any sound, no matter how small, would have been heard by now. Faint rays of sunlight shown through the skylight, but most of the sections didnt even have windows for safety reasons, so they had to stick to the outside ring unless they wanted to use a flashlight. She brought one with her, always having a smaller one in her pocket meant no matter where she was, she had some way to see in the dark. Power outages were common back home, so it was natural instinct to have one with her.

Madison decided she was calm enough, and began opening doors, immediately shining the light inside to see what she could see. If she seen anything, or more importantly heard anything, she would close it in hopes that the infected didnt know how to open them. From what little she knew, they couldnt, but wasnt going to take any chances. By now a handful of the doors had faint banging coming from the other side, and the only way left to go was the main doors leading into the wester side. That was where all of the people used to be, so there was no telling how many were left now. It would either have been clear, or still full of them. But it was their only safe route now.

With the barrel of her gun pointed directly in front of her, Madison tried for the door, only to find it was locked. Judging from the glass panels, there hadnt been anything or anyone on the other side, thankfully. But something about the power being out prevented them from opening the door. Almost seconds after turning off the flashlight and looking at Sam, who stood behind her, there was a crash from the glass. "Come on, you two can fit through." Vega spoke. At first, Madison was fightened, but when she seen who was there, she was thankful. "What about the infected? You didnt kill them all, did you?", Madison question. "I lured them into a hanger and shut the gates. Might still be a few hanging around, but if were careful, we should be good. Now get on the other wise of the door, I heard people talking further in."

[JDrew25]

"Alright, let me get through first, and the Madison come after me. Vega, watch our six while we get through here."

Sam used her gun barrel to clear a few stray pieces of glass from the frame, and then began hoisting herself through, checking to see if anything was coming their way that looked dead and hungry. The coast appeared to be clear, so she continued getting through the small hole. Vega was right, he was never going to fit through the small holes. So that meant she and Madison were going to have to find the survivors and lead them to safety.

[Winters]

It happened to Madison as her brains self defense mechanism, turning a positive into a negative, then back into a positive is what she strives for. But her anxiety made it nearly impossible, even having a handle on the current situation. She knew pl of the people were dead, they had to be. Her and Sam were risking their lives for these people, when it wasn't really even their job. It was just back and forth in her own head, back and forth between whether or not they were doing the right thing. Not the moral thing, this was obviously the most morally acceptable thing they could do. Heroic, even, and Madison never had much of that in her life. Her dear was that it would get her killed trying to save people, and she wasn't ready to die for somebody else. There had to hear point where making sure they themselves got out alive meant more than saving the people others. It wasn't so selfish, was it? She thought to herself.

"Sam, I think we n-" Madison tried to finish her sentence, but a putrid smell entered her nostrils, making her almost choke. Pulling up her shirt to cover her face, she tried to breath again, this time with better luck, and without the smell. Wind filled the room, there had to have been a door open, something letting this much wind inside the building. At the end of the hallway, just as expected, the doors were open and locked against the side of the building. Sounds of groaning could be heard resonating past them, being takin with the wind just as the smell was. But there weren't any infected outside, and that's when Madison heard it behind her. Sam had to see what they were looking at, and it was a large group of the infected all piled up in a room. Where the smell was coming from. "Sam, we need to go..." she trailer, but not sure if Sam even heard her through the shirt. Speaking more clearly now, she finished. "They're dead, Sam. We gotta get out of here. Enough is enough. Vega will should have the chopper by now." She spoke quietly, hoping the infected in the next room didn't hear them. The side open door called to her, the wind almost telling them to just leave.

[JDrew25]

Sam cursed silently, looking at the dead in the room, wondering how many had been turned initially, and how many had come here and been attacked. Madison was right, they had to go. They had come to save these people, and she had failed. It was time to get themselves to safety, and then get any remaining survivors out before the infection spread any further.

"You're right. There's nothing we can do here. Not anymore."

She led them back to the door, and knelt, ready to boost the other woman through the broken window.

"You go first. I'll be right behind you."

[Winters]

Okay come on. One of these has gotta be right. Vega was busy at the helicopter, with the fuse panel completely stripped off of the body. There might have been some electromagnetic interference at the airfield, but he was thinking back to the time he spent working on the aircrafts during maintainence. One of the fuses controlled the startup, which could then be removed to allow for manual startup. Though he wasn't really sure it was even going to work, it was worth a shot. The only real chance they had at getting out of the area.

This time putting physical trust in her new partner, Madison was vaulted over the broken window, hearing glass crunch benieth her boots. She made sure not to grab the sides in dear of serious injur,you, they didn't need to deal with a deep cut on her hand at this stage of the plan. If they even had a plan. Sam must have had something, because otherwise, they would have needed to get their hands on a car. It wasn't like the movies, you couldn't just pop the dashboard and Hotwire them, they would've needed to get a set of keys. At this point, it would be next to impossible. Odds her against her, but still, she kept going in hopes there had been a plan.

That's when she heard an engine, and seeing the blades of one of the helecopters at the landing zone starting to spin, Madison knew that Vega had been ready. The pit in her stomach subsided almost completely, and a smile cracked on the corner of her face. "The chopper! Sam, look! Come on!" She blurted out, excited, but oblivious to how loud she actually was. Madison prepared to help Sam over, not sure how she was even going to manage, especially with the undead all turning to face her. The pit came back when Madison realized what she did.