The Plague

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond continued to watch the female as she looked around, breath hitching in his throat as she turned towards them. The breath caught in his trachea was soon expelled with much relief. It appeared the female meant no harm. He mustered up all of his energy to stand, but failed, remaining on his knees. He glanced at the male, who struggled to get up as well, and also failing as well. He shook his head, managing a raspy "I don't know". He coughed and wheezed, flecks of blood hitting his fist. The girl looked nervous. Perhaps she was what had caused the commotion outside? Had she run into one of "them".

As if in answer to his question, a loud bang could be heard, coupled with distorted cries of frustration. Something scrabbled angrily against the door, only being held back by the form of the frightened female. Raymond once again put his energy into the hopeless effort of standing, at last managing to stand again, albeit uneasily. He took a single step, looking to help this girl, the only thing he felt he could protect in this desolate town. As his first foot fell, an immense wave of pain overtook his damaged body, landing himself once again upon the floor. The pain continued, unbearable in its presence. He shook and spasmed on the ground, eyes rolling back in their sockets, blood slowly trickling out of his mouth. His muscles clenched and unclenched, siezed and relaxed. He was surely dying now. Perhaps this was payment, payment for being unable to save his uncle, to be with his family when they needed it most. He was dying...

Admin Posts : 191 Join date : 2010-03-20

William hadn't exactly noticed that he had stopped breathing completely until he tried to get to his feet once more. Something in his mind was telling him that he'd be better off standing rather than sitting down, just in case these two were not who he thought they were. But they gave off no sign of being something else. Both were just as scared, lost, and confused as he was. His palms pressed against the wall behind him as he forced himself up onto his feet with a grunt. He leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes to regain his composure, surprised that he wasn't hurting in any way from the slam into the wall earlier. He left a hole, shouldn't he have been injured from that in some way? Slowly, he opened his eyes, hoping that by now they would have adjusted to the darkness so he could get a better view of the two strangers before him. Everything was clear. He glanced down at the woman, and then to the man he had run into. Both frightened. He was just about to help her up, until something had slammed against the front doors, causing him to jump as well as the other two.

There was no fast heart beat in his chest, no breath was released from his lungs. As startled as he was, he jolted towards the door, the same time the girl had and helped her get the wooden stopped in place. He leaned against both doors as she backed away, hopes to helping keeping them shut. The growls growing louder, vibrating the frames. "I'm not staying in this spot!" he exclaimed to the two of them. It was best they both took off down the hall now, rather than to wait for what was behind the door to burst through. At least it would give them all a chance to stay alive longer. "There has to be an office or something in here..." he said, pressing his back against the doors and looking to the others. If they were to run now, he'd surely not be too far behind them.

Subject: Re: The Plague Mon May 24, 2010 8:54 pm

Frightened was an understatement, her eyes were wide as she leapt away from the door, jaw agape as she watched the familiar looking man aiding to keep the doors shut. A quick glance was given to the convulsing male on the ground, in her panic she didn't register that he may have been in trouble, though the warning was somewhere in the back of her mind.
Despite the racket the beast behind the door was making, Elizabeth had gone silent in her thoughts, only to jolt back into awareness when William spoke, that was when she recalled who he was. A fisher boy, down at the docks. She'd ventured down there one day with a book to get away from her parents and their annoying talk of college and marriage.
She'd worn a one piece swimsuit, a piece of floral material tied around her waist as she'd pulled up a seat on the rocks by the water, sometimes looking up every now and again to investigate how the world down here worked, taking particular notice of this gentleman who she now recognized in a different environment. A dangerous one at that. Closing her mouth she looked behind her, into the dark library she had become so accustomed to over the summers. Her family owned the building, therefore she knew the layout of the building rather well.

"There is," she answered softly, reaching her hand out to grab William's wrist, the other gripping the collar of Raymond's shirt to drag him with ease towards the office in particular. She stumbled every so often as the toes of her shoes clipped the hem of her dress, certain that William was capable of following, she picked up Raymond, to throw him over her shoulder. His fate didn't seem very promising but it seemed hardly respectful to leave him for that thing outside to snack on- if it even got through.
Not accustomed to this sudden overwhelming strength, she walked at a brisk pace through the maze of shelves and behind the counter where librarians would stand to serve those who- like herself- would take out books to pass the boring hours of summer.
A hand gripped the handle, jiggling it gently only to find out it was locked. Cursing in her head, she gave a futile attempt to twist the handle again, this time hearing a soft crunch as the lock gave way, opening to let the trio in. And without hesitation Elizabeth lay Raymond out on the ground, rolling him onto his side in a quick attempt to put into the recovery position. Though if it were a seizure, like hell she was putting her fingers in his mouth.

"What's wrong with him?" she asked in a tone that suggested she was on the verge of hysteria. Looking over to the door where she hoped William would have started barricading the entry. Thankfully, there were no windows to the room, it was in the middle of the building, but not near a wall, there was another door on the opposite end that led to some more rooms, though Elizabeth wasn't to sure of what was down that passage.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond lay there, body shaking with pain and fear, his very heart stopping, feeling each impending beat within his chest. He lay, unaware of anything anymore, even of the girl who managed to sling him over her shoulder with absolute ease. He was reaching what he felt to be the final stages of his convulsions as she set him down, in what appeared to be an office. Raymond had been a minor epileptic. However, over the past few years, he had been seizure free. Before that, the episodes were caused by severely bright flashes of light, or extreme panic/fear. And now seemed an appropriate time, for Raymond was the most scared he had ever been in his 15 year old life. The seizing was surely partly due to his epileptic tendencies, though something at the back of his mind knew it was something else.

And then, his movement ceased. He was a still form on the floor. He had gone completely still, all life and heat abandoning him. Fingers and skin became frostbite cold, and all blood had evacuated his body, giving his once healthy tawny skin a ghostly white hue. He felt his very heart, the strongest part of his being, stop. Yet, he was aware of all this. He felt it all. That he must be dead. And yet, he wasn't. He was still concious, still all too aware of his condition. His previously dancing eyes snapped open wide, the irises brighter, a startling change from his once cinnamon orbs to eerie, almost red ones. He sat ip slowly, coughing little flecks of blood, then wiping his shockingly cold hand across his face. His throat no longer felt raw, the burning in his chest having completely vanished, leaving only a cold emptiness. He scarcely even felt the need to draw a breath. His body felt much better, and as dead as it clearly was, he felt much more alive than he had been before. Fatigued still wracked his body from fear, grief, and panic though.

It was after several moments of pondering before Raymond finally realized the company he was in. He glanced at the male, who appeared to be the same as the one who had been in the hall with him. He glanced at the girl, recognizing her from the very library that they sat in now. He remembered her, kindly handing out books to all in the facility, including him, on the many desperate days he had come here to escape his plagued family. "What do we do now?"

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William didn't hesitate when the girl had grabbed his wrist and dragged him along with her. It was a surprise that her tugging had even pulled him away from the door so easily. But he followed, wanting to get away from whatever was out there just as much as the other two. Everything became a slight blur with the movements they both made, the girl was moving fast. Once she had let go of his wrist, he had continued to keep up with her... until she managed to sling the other over her shoulder effortlessly. William stopped in his tracks, watching in awe, but she kept going. Was he really seeing this? The girl moved for the office, while he took another good look around. So dark. It wasn't until then, that he realized the silence. Whatever was at the door had ceased it's demanding of wanting to be inside with them. William froze, listening closely for anything. Any sign that it may still be there, or any other sign that it had given up and left them alone. There was nothing.

His shoulders slumped forward before he began to head towards the office, as though he was a little upset that the thing had vanished without much of a fight. Why? He didn't know. William stepped through the open door, closing it slowly careful not to slam it to make much noise. But if anything, the creature already knew that they were there. And more than likely knew where they were. William leaned his back against the wooden door, sliding down it to the floor. His knees bent up to rest his forearms along them. He glanced over at the boy who was now laying on the floor, his head tilting to the side as he watched him convulse.. then cease. William thought he had died right then and there, he was just about to get to his feet when the boy quickly sat up. His eyes widened and he pushed his back firmly against the door, nearly sliding away from him.

"I have no clue what to do now. We're stuck in here for the time being... Whatever was at the front door is gone now." he answered the boy as he leaned his head back against the door, resuming the position he was in a few minutes ago. His eyes danced around the room, the dark not being much of a nuisance anymore to him. It was like his eyes had permanently adjusted to it. He glanced up at the girl, whom seemed to know her way around here quite easily. "How are we going to get out of here, anyhow? I mean.. I wouldn't want to go back out in that direction," he began, raising his hand up with his thumb out pointing to the door that he was leaning against, "There's a busted window in there. I'm sure anyone or anything can get back in here if they really wanted to."

Subject: Re: The Plague Tue May 25, 2010 7:49 pm

Elizabeth watched as the male seemed to stop moving, breathing and she couldn't see the tell tale beat by his neck that indicated a pulse under neath. She sure as hell wasn't going to touch him to see if there was a pulse, he seemed to be dead anyway. With a small sigh she rocked backwards, off her knees and onto her rump to press against the wall, positioned in a similar way to William, only her arms wrapped around the thick skirt of her dress to pull her legs into her chest, chin resting on her knees. Every small movement she made caused the thick material to rustle, a noise that was louder than it should be in the dead silence of the room.
She watched the body of Raymond as William started to move, why she didn't know. To move the body from her sight? That would have been a gentleman-ly thing to do, given she was a lady of innocence, a dead body would ruin such angelic eyes, right?

It didn't look like she would have a chance to find out what William was doing, as the boy sat up she jolted and hit her head on the wall, leaving a small dint in the wood. A fist rose to her parting lips, shoving it as best she could into her mouth to muffle her scream, and it worked. Making more a choking gasp, she just looked at him, what on earth was going on?! Slowly she pulled her hand from her lips looking down to see two small punctures between her knuckles; with a confused expression she looked to William as he spoke. Blinking slowly as if she didn't comprehend what he was asking of her, she looked around the room, no skylight, no windows, just that door. "Uh.."
Looking back to William, she ran her hand through her blonde curls that were quickly tangling. Her teeth bit down on her lower lip softly, though she felt a small tear of the soft tissue.

"Um. Well, no." she looked back to the door, then at the one William was sitting against. "We can't go out there... my guess is that door." lifting her hand she pointed to the one at the opposite end of the office before shifting her weight to lay down, an arm outstretched as she rested her head on it.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond noticed the pair's reactions. Startled. Frightened. Though he felt at first confused by this, he soon realized how reasonable their reactions were. He had seemingly just awoken from the dead. He himself was unsure of how to take this. He knew not how he was still alive, nor how to feel about it. Move on with it, he supposed. Don't dwell on it. He shouldn't question his good fortune. All that mattered was that he was still alive. He turned to nod at the male's response, then looked at the girl again. He drew a shaky breath as she shoved her fist into her mouth, glad she had caught herself in the expression of pain. A curious glance was given to the dent her skull had seemed to cause.

Raymond listened for sounds that would give away their pursuer, but his ears only caught silence. The other boy was right. It had appeared to have left. Though, he couldn't be too sure. The attacker could return whenever he, or she, or it wanted. The girl who helped around the library spoke. Raymond glanced at the door she had regarded. It seemed to be their best bet. Raymond got to his feet, looking down at the two of them with a glance that suggested a memory, maybe recognition.

He placed a stone cold hand on the doorknob. It felt old and dusty beneath his palms. A thin layer of dirt and grime covered the handle and the entryway. Looking at the two of them, snippets of information became clear in his mind. He remembered both of them. The girl from the library of course...what was her name? Something with an "E"? And the boy...the boy from the docks. He remembered passing by dozens of times going to and from the market for his family. More than once had he considered speaking to him.
Raymond lived in a rather less fortunate part of town, never being able to afford anything other than the cheap food they fed themselves. Not many children his own age lived around, all being too young, or too old to bother with him. This distinction caused years of loneliness for him, and a lack of social skills to develop. The only person he recognized to be around his age was the fisher boy, and Raymond couldn't work past his shyness to ask for a name. The same went for the girl he was with now.

Raymond paused before fully gripping the doorknob. He swung open the door, motioning for them to go first, and he would follow. He swallowed. "Well..what are your names?"

Admin Posts : 191 Join date : 2010-03-20

William managed to get to his feet as the girl laid down along the floor. He scanned the room slowly before finding the other door that the girl was talking about. "Hmm.." a hand rose up, he pressed his palm to his left eye as he rubbed it. Blurred vision again. He shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of it, surely enough it went away. Glancing around once more, he looked to the girl, then to the boy as he took a few steps towards the other door.

"My name is William.." he replied and continued towards the door. Lifting both hands up, he pressed them against the door before leaning his forehead against the wood and closed his eyes. Everything became blank. His chest felt so empty, skin.. frozen. Something didn't feel right. Coughing a few times, William leaned his forehead against the door even more, not even aware that he had already made dent in the wood just from leaning on it. The saliva filled his mouth, making it even more awkward. He wasn't going to puke, or cough. There was a scent that he caught wind of. That's when he felt his teeth... The fangs that popped out somehow. William opened his eyes, staring at the wood pattern on the door a moment before wincing. He brought his hand to the door knob, fingers curling around it tightly. All it took was one good push instead of turning it to open it, and the door was open. It had been locked from the other side.

He stood there in the door way, staring off into what should have been total darkness to him. But it wasn't. There were no lights on, no power. But he could see and it gave him chills. Whatever was behind them, that chased them into this room.. was now on the other side. Waiting. William could feel it.

Subject: Re: The Plague Fri Jul 09, 2010 3:44 am

Her eyes flicked from Raymond to William, unaware that she wasn't breathing, unaware that she wasn't uncomfortable because of lack of oxygen. Her arms unwound from her legs as she shifted back to her knees, hands pressing against the ratty carpet, feeling grot under her palms. Her face pinched in disgust but she didn't move, only crawled forward towards the two male's as they stood at the door.
She shifted her body against to sit on her hip, one hand against the carpet, the other in her lap. Her eyes were trained on William, who looked like he was changing before her very eyes. She was blacked out when she had gone through the transition, she couldn't recall the strangeness as her body shifted from life to death. She was oblivious to what she now was, unaware that residing in her mouth was a duel set of sharp canines, ready to tear through any living being.

"Elizabeth," she replied to the question, eyes never leaving the back of William as he seemed to squabble with himself mentally. "My name is Elizabeth."
Her arm reached out, she was just over an arms length behind the two, her fingers lightly brushed William's calf, when he swung the door open.
"Hey, are you ok--" her words stopped short as a crusty breath of air swept through the opening of the door, blowing her hair slightly and brushing past her cheeks, into her nostrils. Instantly she jumped to her feet, coming up behind the pair. Her eyes bore into the darkness, looking.
She then twisted her body to point to the other door.

"Maybe we should just run through there.. I don't want to go down that," her head popped over Williams shoulder to see better down the dark corridor. "It's too dark.. and there's so many cobwebs," she played up her girly ways to get what she wanted. The truth was if this monster was on the other side of the door they'd come through, she'd be the first to run through this door. But something didn't sit well.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond nodded as he recieved both of their names, now able to get a definite memory of seeing both of them. William down by the docks and Elizabeth here, in the library, before the entire city had been abandoned. "My name is Raymond..." He said softly, though his voice did not sounds normal. It sounded raspier, and after he had finished his sentence, he found he didn't need to draw breath afterwards. He ran a tongue over his teeth, surprised to find a pair that seemed longer than he could remember happening, as well as sharper. It was a queer situation indeed.

He turned to look down the....well, there really wasn't anything to look down. The passageway (if he could call it that, for Raymond could hardly see anything) that William had revealed was completely pitch black, completely unknown. He knew they didn't have much of a choice, but something about that darkness didn't sit quite right with him. He felt as if they were being lured in. He got the strangest notion that if he stepped through that doorway, it would shut behind him, the dead bolt would click into place, and he would trapped in that impossible darkness, never to be seen again.
He swallowed taking a step back. If the monster was on the other side of the door they had come through, wouldn't this be the best option? But still......

"Well...what do we do? Do we go down there, or go back and take our chances with that...thing?"

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Their words had gone in one ear and out the other as he stood there in the door way. The door that he had just managed to push open, effortlessly, was creaking on it's hinges, before it fell to the floor with a loud thud. The sound echoed through the corridor before him, it was almost as though he could see the ripples of sound float down the hall after the door fell. He stood there, watching it before it faded off into the distance. It was a short corridor, but at it's end was an opening into another room. The building that was connected to the library. He couldn't remember what it was.. or if the thing was even still in business. It could be empty, or full.. of anything. Or something.

William's head tilted to the side, allowing himself to blink a few times before he realized that the other two were trying to talk to him. He caught the ass end Raymond's question and turned to look at both of them. First, he looked at the girl. Elizabeth. That was her name, he had caught on to that much. He then looked to Raymond a moment before snapping out of his daze. He couldn't honestly see another way out. No way of escaping what was ahead of them. His lips parted to speak, but he felt tongue tied in every way. Nothing came out, like he was hesitating. William then turned back around and took a step into the corridor, walking across the door that had fallen in his path. "We have no choice, to be honest..." he mumbled as he stepped further into the darkness. The opening wasn't very far from him, the doorway to it seemed to grow bigger and bigger as he continued to walk. His steps were silent.

"Follow if you'd like.. but either way, we have no choice."

Subject: Re: The Plague Tue Jul 20, 2010 6:43 am

She watched the pair debate, and seeing as William was deemed a sort of leader to the group, they would be listening to him, and that meant going down that corridor. It didn't sit well with Raymond, and William knew something was there, Elizabeth? Yeah like bloody hell she'd be going down there without throwing her weight around a little. Backing up until her body was pressed flat against the original door of the room, she shook her head frantically, a scowl setting on her face though it was hidden behind those bouncing, thick ringlets that quivered around her face with the motion of her head.
"No." she said firmly, a knee bending to lift her leg before slamming back against the ratty, old carpet, creating a dull thump from the sole of expensive fashionable shoes. "No way, no how. You'll have to drag me by my hair if you really want me to go down there," exaggerating her point, she huffed, her arms crossing across the tightly strung bodice of her expensive dress - the dress she was meant to meet a potential suitor in hours ago - and glared at the males in front of her.
You could say she was sizing them up, seeing how far she could go to get her way. The truth was, she didn't want to stay in this room, it was dusty and smelt of piss, but she didn't want to go down there, it wreaked of more than just urine, but scents she didn't want to know were, not to mention the cobwebs...
She realized, as she thought of all this, that her eyes had wandered from the pair to look down the darkness, her facial expression had dropped from its stone set glare to reluctance, quickly she straightened herself and resumed glaring.
She meant what she said, she would wait and see if either of them grabbed her and threw her over their shoulder, or left her to fester in this God forsaken room. Elizabeth felt her gaze shifting from Raymond, to William, then back again, before finally settling on William, certain he'd be the one to attempt at shooting her back down.
For a girl who had always been 'in line', and 'Daddy's Little Angel', she relished this rebellion, it was amazing, she had a mental image of burning corsets and bras on the front lawn - which then caused a small smirk form on her lips, probably indicating to the boys that she was being a purposeful annoyance.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond sighed, looking at Elizabeth with a somewhat distressed look. He knew she meant it. That they would have to drag her if they were to make her go with them. But, Raymond doubted he could do it. He didn't want to force her into anything, and didn't feel like he could bring himself to do it. He wasn't assertive enough for it. Besides, even if he had wanted to, Elizabeth would most likely beat him to a pulp before he got the chance. He scratched his head and looked down the passageway again, the corridor lightening up slightly. He scrunched his nose up. It stank to high Heaven. To be honest, he wasn't so excited about going down there either. But then, what choice did he have? He looked from Elizabeth to William. He shot William a pleading look, one that begged Please make her listen.

As one who had been confined to taking care of his family, Raymond hadn't gotten the chance to interact with people outside of them very much. He didn't know how to talk to William, and much less did he know about handling girls like Elizabeth. Even before the Fever had broken out, his family had needed constant attention. He looked to the girl again. "Please Elizabeth. We don't have any other choice do we?"

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William stopped in his tracks as he listened to Elizabeth throw a tantrum. How old were they? He stood there a moment in the corridor facing the darkness that he was set out to enter. A frown washed over his face before he turned around to face Elizabeth. He stared at her, taking a few steps forward. William lifted his arms up and pressed his palms against the corridor walls, reaching them without even having to stretch his arms too far. That's how narrow the corridor really was. His head tilted to the left as he eyed the girl, then to the right as he glanced over at Marcus, whom was giving him a pleading look. "You have a choice here. Either we stick together, or we split up into the unknown..." he stated softly before stepping forward again, back into the room with the other two. He returned his gaze back to Elizabeth. "So what's it going to be?" he asked, stepping forward again. He was closing in on her. He didn't want to make this difficult for either of them. But his senses were telling him that they needed to go in that direction.

Senses? Like a blind man, everything seemed to be enhanced. Smelling things that he'd never smelt before, seeing things even more clear than any average person could. But no heart beat, no inflating and deflating lungs. William's upper lip twitched a second before he shook the thoughts from his head. His hands rubbed against the fabric of his torn and dirty slacks as though there was something on his hands that just wouldn't rub off. "We need to go... we can't stay in here. It's not safe. You know it's not safe." he pointed out to the girl before turning back around and moving for the corridor again. He wouldn't stop this time. He was going for it and no words would make him turn back around. There was nothing left for him in this town. He knew that now. Perhaps running away... far enough away, things would be different. These feelings would fade. "I'm going..." he mumbled, stepping back into the corridor and making his way into the darkness.

Subject: Re: The Plague Sun Jul 25, 2010 12:28 am

She had been expecting a more physical reaction from either of them, her face set into a stern glower at William. But he was right. She had no other option if she wanted to survive this... whatever it was. A quick huff was exerted from her plush lips, faced with a two options. 1, rot in here forever or 2, listen to the two males and follow. William would leave her here if she kept her princess act up, and Raymond would too, as she was certain he would follow William.
Her glare slipped when he reasoned with her, though she stayed flat against the door like a caged animal, splitting up sounded horrifying, she was scared enough as it was, being alone would do her no good. She didn't realize how catty she was acting, her head went backwards when he stepped closer, fearful he would use his belt for further reasoning. At this thought something ugly and evil brewed in her chest, something sinister.
But he didn't come closer, nor did his belt leave his pants. A silent exhale passes her lips however he hadn't finished. Her head bowed in self misery as he continued to speak. She knew damn well he was right, yet she still felt like a kicked puppy.
In the most un-lady like thing she could do, she lifted her arm and ran the back of her purple, velvet sleeve over her nose with a sniff, and a huff. Blue eyes resting on Raymond for.. something. Help? Courage? Who knew. Then her eyes flicked to William's disappearing back. It was now or never, waiting any longer would only see to her being stranded.
"I-I'm coming." she admitted surrender, her hands gathering the skirt of her dress, she didn't want the hem to drag in whatever God awful excrement was covering that floor. Holding her skirts close to herself to expose petticoats beneath it, she rushed forward, not wanting to be at the rear of the procession.
However she stayed a good length back from William, out of submission.

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Raymond smiled gratefully as William spoke, his blunt, brutally honest words actually seeming to reach Elizabeth's ears. She seemed to take them to heart, for she rushed on ahead, though following a bit of a distance behind William in a manner most obsequious. Raymond breathed in deeply, mustering up his own courage and following, staying close behind Elizabeth as if to reassure her of his presence. He didn't like being at the back any more than she did. He filed in quietly, walking lightly, though even the smallest sound of footsteps was made apparent to him. He cringed with every footfall, worried that whatever else was here (if they weren't the only ones) could hear him.

He coughed, clamming up immediately afterwards, scaring himself. He walked on. His face wrinkled up in disgust as he waved away an abundance of cobwebs. "How far do you think until we reach the edge of town?"

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William continued on down the corridor, knowing that the other two would follow him without another word. Their foot steps behind him sounded as though someone was tapping their nails along his skull. The ache was unbearable but he didn't say a word. Fingers twitched as his arms swayed at his sides, as soon as Raymond had coughed, William stopped walking a moment. An ear perked up as he turned his head slightly, he knew it was him. William felt some sort of growl in his chest but he choked it back and continued on, stopping at the end of the corridor where it opened up.

The darkness seemed as though it had lifted, as if they were coming down the hall with well lit candles. William remained there, staring off into the next room with caution. Closing his eyes, he tried to listen. Tried to listen for any signs of another being in the room. But he heard nothing. He stepped out of the corridor and into the room to get a better look around. It looked as though there were clothing racks surrounding them. These old buildings were all connected together in a row along the streets. Now that it was dark it, it seemed safer to just travel through them one by one. But as they had encountered before, it wasn't as safe as he had hoped it would be.

The room had a stale smell to it. Like it had been abandoned for years and the dust had collected all over the shelves and clothes. To his left was the front doors of the shop, two tall windows on both sides of it that had small displays. The writing on the windows read: Seline's Dress Shop, but backwards to him. He remembered this store, along with the Pharmacy that was attached to it. That would be the next room they entered. William took a few more steps into the room, stopping in between two tall clothing racks that held lengthy dresses. Peeking around those racks, he glanced left and right to make sure it was clear before turning around to face the other two. "C'mon.." he said softly, backing up out from between the two racks with ease. It was quiet enough, there was no signs of any other people or 'things' being in here. No sign of anything ever being in here before them for that matter. Safe enough. Turning back around, William searched for another door, the one that would lead to the Pharmacy. But there was no door. Seems that not all of the buildings were connected like he though they were. There was a break in between some of the buildings, and they found one. Running his fingers through his hair, he made his way towards the front sales desk, not wanting to venture any closer to the windows of the store before he figured out where it was that they were heading. He could see just fine out the windows from where he stood.

Across the street was another shop, a small hardware shop. The one his uncle always went to. In fact, that may have been the only hardware shop that existed in this small town. To it's right, was another clothing store. One for men. There were suits lined up in the front windows. Down from that, was an actual book store, not a library. The windows there looked as though they were tinted. William moved closer to the windows, staying as far into the shadows as he could, to look the rest of the way down the line of stores. A vacant shop was next, it's door sitting wide open. He stood there a moment just staring at the windows, as if he were watching the television. Another moment of silence had passed before William let out a small gasp from the back of his throat. His jaw had dropped to gape open as his eyes widened. He backed away from the windows, looking back at the other two. It was time to go, but they damn sure couldn't go out those front doors. There had to be another way around this.

Subject: Re: The Plague Mon Aug 02, 2010 7:05 am

Elizabeth ducked awkwardly with her luggage of heavy dress skirts, to avoid the mass of cobwebs hanging over head, a disgusted expression painting her features, yet in her disgust she stayed silent. Her ears picked up the coughing before it had begun though she didn't realize they actually weren't meant to stay quiet, it was her fear that had her shut up. Thinking nothing of the sudden piercing of the heavy silence, she continued to walk... right into the lumbering, and unwavering frame of William, a soft 'oomf' sound permitted from her lips upon the impact. Her hands went up to press against his back to brace herself, thus dropping her skirts, the hems falling to the concrete beneath them with a soft whisper as the material kissed the cold ground. Instantly after the impact, she stumbled back a step or two, blonde curls bouncing and quivering around her heart shaped face. Eyebrows pinched towards each other, irritated by the sudden stop, however she bit her tongue - quite literally - to hold her insults and remarks back. 'If you have nothing nice to say, say nothing.' was what her mother had often recited. Odd that she would be thinking of her mother in this moment, the last place she had seen the woman was in the sun room, her throat torn clean out, precious blood.. crimson.. rich.. dripping an opaque line down porcelain skin, an expression of fright and terror on dead features.
Quickly, Elizabeth shook her head, furious and ravenous, her mouth watering. Swallowing loudly, she only now realized she had continued down the corridor, rushing to pick her skirts but they were already soiled.

It was a stroke of luck to step into a dress store, the finest in the town to be exact. It took all she had to hold back a squeal of delight as she rushed to the dress she had been drooling over for a good month now. The price tag made no difference to whether she could own it now, the whole town was dead or worse. Without hesitation, she slipped the red dress of raw silk from the half mannequin, fingers tracing the swirling pattern of gold thread with adoring eyes. With the beautiful dress hugged noisily to her, she too went over to the sales counter, pressing the 'No Sale' button on the till to allow the draw, filled to the brim with crisp notes, to snap open with a dull 'ding', fist fulls of green was shoved down her cleavage, her expression indifferent as she sucked the store dry of every last cent. Did it matter? It wasn't like anyone here had any use for it, nor was the owner of this shop even breathing. It was completely fine in her eyes, what good was money to a dead person?

Her lips curved sharply as she came to the shelf of fascinators, black lace and tulle sprouting from hair pins large balls of silvers and purples, sometimes reds tied into the middle. Her eyes landed on the most expensive one - naturally - that held a large golden circle in its heart, black lace rising from beneath it like grass creeping out of bitumen, her free hand snatched out and took it, moving her hand straight to her hair to slide the barrette clip into her hair, nearest her right eye, black lace lightly concealing her eye.
Content with her findings, she gave the shop one last glance, looking at everything in case there was something else she wanted, and there was. A dress of green, she made her way over to it, her fingers brushing to soft satin, it was the most revealing dress she had seen, something her mother would never let her wear - there she went again, thinking about mummy dear. Lips parted to mouth 'I want it,' to no one in particular.

Her eyes shot up to look at William, by the windows, when he made a noise, quickly flicking them to look at Raymond for an answer as to what William had seen?
Elizabeth was much to caught up in the marvels of colourful material and shiney silk to give a flying rats ass to William's Fright-O-Meter, so she went back to admiring this ravishing delight before her.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond continued to follow behind silently, vaguely taking notice that they had entered a connected section of shops.
He stopped, looking around the shop slowly. They were in a clothing shop, though it seemed to primarily selll woman's clothing and accessories. He rolled his eyes as Elizabeth flocked from one dress to another. "Really? At a time like this?" He looked at her incredulously. He would've been a little irritated, but he was far too tired to be anything but just that. Tired. Exhausted. He just wanted to get out of this place, so he could rest without worry of being devoured by some strange monster.

Raymond simply shook his head as he caught sight of Elizabeth pillaging the sales counter of money. He supposed he should have been appalled, but at this point, what did it matter? If they escaped, they would need funds. Besides...a dead person couldn't spend anything. He looked down at his own clothes. Soiled with sweat, dirt, and blood...perhaps even urine, though he couldn't tell. What did it matter? With all that had happened, it wouldn't have surprised him.

He looked out the window that William peered out through. Suddenly, William went stiff. What had he seen. Raymond squinted, but he could see nothing from where he was. He looked from William to Elizabeth, meeting her questioning look. He shrugged, mouthing "I don't know". He moved up next to William, brow furrowed. "What do you see?"

Admin Posts : 191 Join date : 2010-03-20

William stood, nearly frozen, at the sight he had just witnessed. Completely ignoring the other two around him. Finally, he had moved further away from the windows and back into the shadows. One of those "things" had torn a part another being and tossed their remains into the street as if they were being picky about their meal.

He shook his head, bringing both hands up to rub his temples as though there was a silent headache that lingered. They had to get out of there, and fast, but the only other way was to go back down the corridor to the library and retreat there. William hesitated a moment where he stood, then moved to the windows again to take another look. The remains of what he saw thrown out before, were now gone. The blood remained. His head tilted slightly before he turned to face the other two. He watched Elizabeth raid the cash register for all it's money, and Raymond, who stood in William's wake after he had moved from the windows before. The look upon William's face was surely readable. "We need to find another way out of here.." he whispered softly. Fear washed over him more and more each second, knowing one of those "things" was just across the street. Waiting, perhaps. Waiting on others to come out of their hiding places. "There's no other way out of this shop, except for the way we came in, and clearly the doors before us.." he finished, glancing back over to the open corridor.

His eyes searched the shop for anything that could be used as a weapon. He then spotted the few brooms and mops in the back right hand corner and went for those. Lifting a broom up, he nodded with satisfaction before thrusting the broom down and lifting his knee up to meet the wood at the end of the handle where the broom met the wood. A low snap rang out for a moment. He lifted the wood up to check the tip, which was now pointed where it had broken against his knee. He leaned it up against the wall and went to work with the other ones. It was exactly quiet for those few minutes. Collecting the three broken sticks, he turned to face the other two, holding two of them outwards for them to take. Granted.. it wasn't the most perfect weapon to keep them alive, but it was good enough for the time being. At least until they could get across the street to the hardware shop for any other materials to use. He waited on them...

Subject: Re: The Plague Tue Aug 10, 2010 4:23 am

It seemed that William was going to leave them in the dark as to what the issue at hand was. A second glance was given to his distraught features before Elizabeth began removing the green fabric from the half mannequin, now weighed down with too much material. What a dilemma. While Raymond stayed stationary, and William fussed over whatever was at the window, with two dresses slung over her arms she stepped back over to the counter where a collection of shopping bags were piled up under the cash register. Taking one, she peeled the sides apart, folded the dresses crisp and neatly, before sliding them with great precision into the bag.

Setting the bag flat on the counter, she adjusted the crumbled notes in the bodice of her tightly pulled dress, pushing corners of notes peeking out back in, moving annoyingly placed notes with an expression of concentration, before wiggling her bosom with her hands, satisfied with the location of each of the many green notes. Her hand stretched out to grab the shopping bag as she looked over to the sudden life William had shown, the soft snap of wood piercing her ear drums like a cat's yowl.
Elizabeth watched on as he continued to process on two more cleaning instruments, slowly understanding what his aim was.

"Uh.." she opened her mouth to speak as he went to snap the third 'weapon', waiting till the breakage was audible before continuing. "You realize... William," she began slowly, glancing towards Raymond, to see if he either followed, or knew what she was about to say. Closing her lips, she looked around at all the metal bars from the racks of dresses, the wrought-iron of the mannequin stands, finally returning her gaze to the one trying to hand her a meek broom stick.
"We need to open out minds," a grin perked her lips upwards. Leaving the bag on the counter, she stepped over to the first mannequin she had raided, hands gripped the half of the 'hips', then twisted it, jiggled it a bit, put her foot on the bottom of the stand and pulled the half body up wards, off the metal spear. By now she was aware that sound was a big no no, so rather than drop the heavy item to the floor, she gingerly placed it right way up on the floorboards, straightened up, and ran her finger over the sharp end. "And to think, I'm the girl." She turned to face to two boys once again, a smug grin plastered to her lips.

Tipping her head to the side, she looked to the other raided mannequin, then to the three lined up in the shop window. "Take a pick. They're lighter than I thought they would be."

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

He jumped a tad as William moved and spoke, unprepared for the sudden action, as he had been standing still as a statue moments before. Raymond continued to peer out the window, trying to catch sight of what had petrified William. He backed away, stomach twisting in digust as the remains of some "thing" was tossed carelessly into the streets. He didn't stay to see what happened next. He instead turned to look at the other two. The piercing SNAP of wood struck his eardrum, gaze turning to William. He nodded, taking one of the jagged broomsticks, understanding what William wanted him to do. He poked the tip of the makeshift weapon with his finger, making sure the jagged wood was sharp enough.

Raymond was contemplating how this could serve as a weapon, when his attention was drawn to a series of thudding noises. He came to see Elizabeth, removing the metal pole that held up the mannequins, running a finger over its sharp end. He smiled, seeing her point, yet at the same time wondering how she had managed to do that. He shrugged, setting down the broken broomstick and doing the same to a different mannequin. Much to his surprise, it was also far lighter than he had anticipated. He waited for William to do the same, waiting for him to make the call on what they should do next.

Admin Posts : 191 Join date : 2010-03-20

William stood there, holding two of the wooden poles in his hands after Raymond had taken one from him. He stared blankly at Elizabeth as she proceeded to take apart the mannequins to use the metal poles instead. How did she manage such a task? His fingers curled tightly around the wood that he held in his hands, wincing slightly at a sudden pain in his chest. It was almost as if his lungs were spasming from lack of oxygen. Shaking it off at hopes that neither of the two had seen it, he set one of the wooden poles against the wall, taking the other and holding it as he had before to slam it down against his knee. Immediately it snapped in half, leaving two sharp tipped stakes in his hands. He stared down at them a moment and nodded as he pushed both of them through his belt loops. He carried on to the next stick, doing the same before looking up at Elizabeth. His head tilted to the side as he began to open his mouth, but quickly his gaze turned to the direction of the front windows.

For a second, he thought he had seen something move past them. It was too fast if there had been something, but the sudden feeling of being watched washed over him. His body went ridged as he stood there. Again, as he watched, the movement flew by the glass. It was a shadow. He quickly glanced over to Raymond, and then to Elizabeth before crouching low to the floor. Whatever it was knew that they were there. He placed the wooden stakes on the floor on both sides of him as quietly as he could before moving to reach out for one of the metal poles Elizabeth had already broken off. He moved back to the spot he was just in, keeping his eyes on the windows a moment longer before he glanced down the corridor. He kept the wooden stakes there for Elizabeth if she chose to use them. A scent blew through the open air way and hit his nose. It smelled of death and blood.

William wouldn't chance anything, there was no way to speak to either one of them without being heard. So he moved towards the corridor at hopes that they would follow. There was a broken window in the library from earlier, and he was going to use it to get out of here. The sun was going to rise soon, and hopefully if they could survive until then, they would be a lot safer than this. His steps were silent as he walked down the corridor, holding the metal pole towards his chest and gripping it tightly though it were something so sacred to him. A weapon. Thoughts rushed through his mind, flashbacks and thinking ahead. This was no plague. This was a massacre at it's finest. The virus was just a cover up for whatever monster stepped foot on these grounds. It was wiping everyone out, leaving few survivors to possibly toy and play with. Clever. But perhaps the three of them were somewhat smarter, and hopefully one step ahead of this thing. Reaching the fallen door to the small room they had originally trapped themselves in, he peeked his head into the room to look around. The other door was still closed, so he guessed that was a good thing. A part of him was relieved by it, but at the same time, he had no idea what lie before them on the other side of that door. He was ready, but wasn't so sure about the other two...

Subject: Re: The Plague Thu Aug 19, 2010 6:26 am

Her eyes were trained on William as he snapped the wood, was it a childish gesture? Was he pissed off at her for thinking of something better? A light shrug of her shoulders was given to answer her unspoken questions. It didn't matter, he didn't seem that immature. Absent mindedly, her fingers grazed over the sharp tip, with force that she was sure would severe the flesh, if she had been aware of what she was doing she would have been surprised that her finger was intact and not bleeding down the black metal.

It was a breath of air that swept her hair from her back with the tenderness of a lovers touch that had her muscles locking with fright, the indication that they were certainly not alone. She found her lower lip dropping, quivering some with a sudden overwhelming panic, she forgot how to move her legs, how to function. From the back of her throat, a small strangled noise of surprise tried to flee from the cavity of her mouth, only succeeding to the slightest degree, but in their confined space - the sound was much louder than they could afford. However she wasn't even sure the boys noticed - she didn't even realize the noise came from her. A sudden movement of darkness by the window snapped her mind back to awareness, but her body still refused to listen to her. Only her lips, rounding into one word, a word that wouldn't be spoken, doubtably seen as her companions would be focused on the movement. 'How?'
What really brought her back to herself was the sudden drop of William, at first Elizabeth thought that what rushed past her had grabbed William and made him disappear, but then she looked down and quickly followed. This dress was a death trap, every movement made the slightest noise, that noise would give away their position - though their position was already known - and she knew, watching William look down the corridor, that they would be destined to go back where they came from. If she followed they would be doomed if there was more than one, one or two she knew they could possibly ward off but what if it was an ambush? Faced with a few decisions, she bit her lip and tried to keep her emotions off her face, and most definatly out of her vocal's. She could either stay here and either die or stay on her own, that could possibly save the lives of her two... friends, they were friends now.
But the wimpier, less heroic option was to ditch the dress and go running around in her underdress. A thin, white material, that she didn't really want to be seen in. It would feel rather inappropriate, like being naked.
Death or public nudity? Well... weighing up her options, she'd rather live and... she was pretty sure the boys wouldn't mind the latter. She also didn't want to be a hero right now.

Her hand grappled down her back, tearing the buttons from the dress until the heavy, lethally noisy garment slackened, somehow she manage to slip her feet from her shoes without so much as a clatter. She was alone now, alone with the monster while she watched the boys retreating backs. Her lips curved into a twisted pout, pained and hurt at being left, something wet slid down her cheek but she didn't have time to acknowledge what it was. Her hand went to the empty space of the dusty ground from where her trusty metal pole had been when she dropped to the ground, and found it missing. At that moment her stomach dropped, in her head she shouted the worst swear word that she could think of right now, she felt as if her stomach was dropping further and further. 'No, no no no no no.' Her hand had been searching, and finding nothing. There had only been two and she had no time to break another one from the stand. Something wet rolled down her other cheek.

A beam of moonlight broke through the clouds and landed on two shards of wood, abandoning any thought of her pole that had conveniently gone missing when she needed it most, she leapt from the sagging dress and snatched the two bits of beautiful wood, very conscious of the time she had wasted, she could barely make out the two figures in the hall, bare feet were pressing against floor boards, so close to the opening of the corridor, sweet freedom from this confined space, she could taste it on her tongue. Her stomach had been so low before but now her heart was in her throat.
That's when she felt the fist connect with her ribs and sent her straight into the wall, a terrified scream tore the night apart before the world simply went black.

Posts : 63 Join date : 2010-03-25

Raymond gripped his iron spear tightly, sweat beading across his forehead and slicking his hands as the feeling of being watched washed over him. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and goose flesh burst across his arms. He needed no convincing when the time came to follow William into the corridor that they had entered from. He no longer wished to be here, now knowing that they were being exposed. It seemed a much safer bet that they would be better off going back the way they came. And so, he moved silently behind the older male, keeping his head down low so as to avoid the many swaying cobwebs that hung so carelessly from the ceiling. Rank, musty odors permeated his nostrils once more as he continued behind William, stopping behind him as he poked his head into the small room in which they had sought sanctuary. The tighter he gripped his weapon, the harder it became to hold it, nerves on edge, sweat lubricating his hands, adrenaline pumping through his system. They were being watched, followed....but by what? That was the question that puzzled all of them. What was lurking behind the facade that the Fever had created? What sort of sick, twisted monster toyed with these three young adolescents? How could they escape?

Raymond's myriad of questions was cut into and stopped short as a horrified scream pierced his ears, echoing throughout the corridor, reverberating and blasting through the hall to reach the two boys' eardrums. Upon hearing the noise of distress, he threw caution to the wind, racing back down the corridor, not even bothering to check if William followed. As he entered the store once more, the atmosphere seemed even darker and bleaker than before. The single, dimly flickering bulb that had inhabited the lamp on the counter had been shattered, shards of glass littering the ground. In fact, the room seemed almost pitch black, were it not for his apparently increasing eyesight. He could just make out the form of Elizabeth, sprawled across the floor, practically naked, her form was slightly bruised, seeming to have run into something. A large blotch of purple and black blossomed on her ribs. Why was she still in here? He had assumed that Elizabeth would have followed the two of them. Apparently not. Suddenly, he felt something rush past him, a frigid wind brushing past his face. He felt a fist connect with his jaw, sending him staggering back a few feet. He ignored the sting on his face. Another rush of wind. He swung out with his metal pole, feeling the bar of iron striking something solid, followed by the sound of a sickening crack, and something crumpling onto the floor. He breathed a sigh of relief, but was interrupted as he felt something slam into his spine. Raymond tumbled to the floor, his spear leaving his fingers and rolling across the floor. He turned over on his back, staring up at the silhouette of a person, bending over and breathing into his face, breath rancid with the smell of blood. Was there more than one?!