[IC] Gut Instincts

[BizarreLolli]

Airi pants as she leans back against the headstone thanking Mr. Andrews for having such huge headstone. Closing her eyes and listening to her heartbeat willing herself to calm down otherwise nothing going to happen but more mistakes. This morning she had woke up happy, having decided today the day she going to start anew, she had broke up with her boyfriend who never hit her but always seemed to make her feel less then special; she had packed up all her stuff, put them in storage, and dusted off her '79 Harley Davidson, her grandfather had given to her on her 18th birthday. She had packed a backpack full of water, snacks, change of clothes, and a map with a route outlined to all the national parks where she can take all the pictures she wants. She wants to open up her own little shop with framed photos, take pictures for any occasion, and maybe even try to get a book published.

Her morning had been great, no texts from her ex boyfriend, got a awesome cup of coffee at the local cafe, and even got a free bagel for buying her 50th cup there. Mid morning everything had went down hill, a massive black truck(kind for muddy with wheels taller then her) had blasted through the main street running over anyone outside, after the truck stalled out after being slammed into a building the man had got out with a sniper rifle. She watched everyone scream and run for cover, bodies leaping into the air as the bullet hit them in the back, people in the stores ducked for cover but you could hear screams as he calmly walked into the stores with and axe he had strapped to his back. When he started making his way to the cafe she had ran out the back door with everyone esle, but instead of turning towards the alley with everyone she jumped into the dumpster curling into a ball and covering her ears trying to force the screams out of her head. She stayed in that dumpster rest of the day and into the night, she peeked out once but after hearing laughter down the street she stayed another two days telling herself each day someone will come, someone called the cops, and even almost jumped out when she heard sirens and someone screaming for help, then screaming in horror and she realized the mad man in the cop car. The dumpster was becoming her home but as the heat beat down each day, she felt herself getting dehydrated and made her way out through the dark of the night ending up in the graveyard to weak to keep running but too scared to stop; having seen the town shows no signs of the massacre, she can only think that he cleaned up the street moving everyone into buildings.

[Optimist]

(ooc- sorry about the formatting)

With the night, Thomas came out of hiding. Was

unsure where the killer was, but knew that he had

wiped out most of the small town. Tom had been

hiding in a service station, behind the counter. He

had, like everyone else, flattened to the ground and

gone to ground, when the shooting started.

The day had started normally enough. Thomas had

arrived at his teaching position at the local school

with time to spare. He had taught sixth grade,

since graduating university two years before.

Thomas was a lean young man, with the musculature of

a lifetime martial artist. He had shaggy blonde

hair, which came down over his forehead and a clean

shaven, slender face. He wore spectacles with

half-frames.

When he had was halfway through a lecture on human

biology when a big truck had torn down Main Street,

passed the school. Seconds later he had heard

screams and gunshots. He had locked his classroom

door, hidden his students in the coat cupboard and

listened for the all clear. Six hours later, there

was still no all clear. He had called the other

teachers into the hallway, and volunteered to go to

the police station for news. It was only three

doors down.

Tom had ventured down mainstreet, and seen the

carnage. Bodies were all over the sidewalk and

street. He was about to head toward the police

station, when a shot rang out, missing him by a

hair's breath. He had ran for the nearest building,

a small gas station, and hidden inside, behind the

counter, along with the dead body of a clerk.

He survived on bottles of water and the snack foods

in the gas station, but was to scared to go back out

on the street. Finally, after 48 hours, he took a

bottle of water, and a broom handle to use as a

staff, and ventured outside, hoping that the killer

was gone.

As he walked out onto Main Street, in the evening,

no one shot at him. He headed to the police

station and found everyone dead and the weapons

locker raided. He wondered if it was just one

killer who had done all of this, or if it was a

terrorist attack.

Heading back out, he passed by the church and took a

shortcut through the cemetary. There he heard

crying, and found a young woman laying against a

gravestone.

"Hey! Don't be afraid! I'm Tom."

[BizarreLolli]

Airi bolts to her feet ready to flee, as a shot rings through the air she dives to the ground curling into a ball behind Mr. Andrews headstone. She covers her ears waiting for another shot but as her breathing slows her mind clears and she realizes that the shot had only echoed being the mad man was across town and she safe for now. She slowly moves her hands to her sides and stares up at her new companion, wondering where he came from then her mind screams at her what if its a trick and he with the mad man, cause there no way only one man would be attacking a whole town by himself. She feels her breathing pick up and forces herself to stay calm, pushing through her thoughts telling herself you saw only one man in the truck, only one man walk into stores, and this guy in front of you doesn't look crazy. "I'm Airi. I was...I saw....where are the cops?" She knew living in a small town meant a small sheriff department but surely they would still be trained to handle this and if they couldn't would they call in the state cops, "I hid in a dumpster behind the cafe but I got thirsty...I thought maybe I could make it somewhere else" if she keeps talking then her mind shuts up and wont be screaming insane ideas at her.

[Optimist]

Tom sunk down to the ground next to her, sitting on his haunches. "There sheriff's department was already hit. I am thinking that cellular service has been blocked somehow, and the phone lines have been cut. Otherwise the state police would already be here." He handed his water bottle to the girl. "Here, drink some of this slowly. If your dehydrating yourself, it is almost as dangerous as a bullet.

He looked at her seriously. "Look miss. We can't stay here. It's to exposed and I am afraid that the killer or killers are still around. Come with me and we will return to the school. We need to get a vehicle and get to the next town to tell the authorities what is happening."

Across town, a man in a black ski mask was going door to door, to each house, kicking down the doors and searching them. When he found anyone hiding. He shot them. So far, in the tiny town, he was half way through the houses. Some had tried to fight back, using civilian firearms, but he was carrying an AK47 assault rifle and a sniper rifle and won every fight he came across.

[BizarreLolli]

She sips at the water, as she stares up at him screaming in her mind *you are lying* with each word he says; she stares at the ground not wanting to move from her spot, so far its safe and why would a mad man come looking in a graveyard. Airi battles with her thoughts over what to do, before slowly standing up handing back the water "How are we suppose to move?" her heart starts to beat faster as she thinks over moving through the town, not knowing if turning a corner will place her face to face with the mad man.

Wiping at the tears, going through another mental battle with herself about not being able to stay in one spot too long because she could start making mistakes by getting to comfortable. Nodding to herself deciding this is her best option and besides least she knows she not going crazy now with Tom around, "Should we only move at night or just keep moving until we get to the school?"

[Optimist]

He thought for a moment before speaking. "We should definitely move at night only. If we move carefully and slowly, we should still get to the school before morning." He offered his hand and helped her stand. "Come on and try to avoid any streetlights and such." Soon the two of them were headed out of the graveyard looking around for any sign of an enemy. So far no one had taken a shot at them, from out of the darkness, but Tom was tense. He felt that it might come at any minute, killing him or the girl he had found in the graveyard. "Keep going," he whispered as they neared the gas station he had hide in

Suddenly, across the street, he saw a shadow moving. Without saying a word, he clamped a hand over the girl's mouth and pulled her to the ground. "Keep still," he hissed. "There's something or someone out there."

[BizarreLolli]

Airi feels the tears falling down her cheeks, and the scream stuck in her throat she wants to run for the nearest hiding spot but Tom isn't letting her move. Her eyes widen at the noise, she jerks her body trying to get free and run for it. She knows she silently begging to be let go, but also that it be stupid right now if she ran; her heartbeat picks up as a soft whistle drift towards their ears, crying she tries to force the noise out of her head but she knows the song, everyone knows the song, her mother use to sing this song all the time saying it could brighten anyone day and now it's striking fear into her very soul, 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow.' The tears move more freely now as she just gives up resting her head on the ground, thinking maybe she should give up and let him see her then she wont have to hide like this listening to a mad man whistling a tune as if he just taking a walk.

What sounds like a truck door slamming brings the whistling to stop and in its place a deep laugh, as the shadow turns around and slowly makes it way towards the noise, she cant help the thoughts of the poor soul trying to escape only to lose their life as soon as the mad man finds them. She giggles thinking that it will be her soon and she wasting her time trying to survive, mentality slapping herself she forces herself to focus on the fact that he has moved on and they can now move on their way.

[Optimist]

Silently, the duo moved past the gas station, headed toward the school. "That was a close one," hissed Tom. "Let's keep moving." Soon they were past the gas station and headed down the street. "We've got to steal school bus, move the children onto it, and get out of town. I don't think the killer, or... killers, have gotten around to searching the school yet."

Tom was terribly concerned about the students, stuck in the school this whole time. He knew they would have food and water, because of the cafeteria, but how long would they be safe for.

The darkness was well upon them, as they approached the school. They crept across the abandoned playground, waiting for another sound of the killer. In the distance, another shot ran out, though they did not know what the cause was. Tom could only hope that it was the killer being killed, and not another victim losing his or her life.

[BizarreLolli]

Airi hugs herself thinking thoughts of the bus and getting out of here, and the hot shower she going to stand under at whatever hotel the police hook her up with. She wonders just how long it would take to get out of town, find the state police headquarters, and then for them to believe their story and come down to capture the mad man. She thinks of the children and hopes they aren't too scared but then again considering how she is feeling herself, they are probably ten times worst; knowing she is probably insane or selfish for thinking this but at least if the kids are freaked she can use helping them as a way to distract herself from the problem at hand. " How many kids are there?"

She jumps at the shot and lets out the breath she has become accustom to holding in for 30 seconds before letting it go, she had started the habit back at the dumpster every time she would hear a shot or footsteps moving around the alleyway or even the main street. "I hope we can get out of this town soon"

[Optimist]

Tom shrugged. "The truth is that there are probably more kids than we could get out in one bus load. Maybe it would be better to concentrate on getting out of town ourselves and returning with help?" As a teacher he hated to take that attitude, but he sensed his companion's fear and realized that the task of rescuing all of the children might be beyond their capabilities.

They sneaked around the edge of the gas station and it was then that he saw an old pickup truck with the keys still in the lock, as if someone had meant to escape and had not been able to, though he did not see any bodies around. Maybe it was a trap? His heart thudded inside of his chest.

[BizarreLolli]

Airi grabs his arm, "Don't...he could be watching it waiting on us." She didn't want to get in a car, he got people that way..."Lets just hide at the school with the kids, someone bound to come around...a town just cant disappear right." All she could think is that maybe its one of those trucks that some high school owns and to impress his friends he changed it to make a loud noise every time you start it up, shaking she stares into shadows waiting for something to jump out at them or feel a pain of bullet ripping through her before she gone from the world. Shaking she hugs herself taking breaths while thinking the last shot they heard was on the other side of town, there no way he could be over here so quickly without them having heard a car.

[Optimist]

Thomas pulled her into his arms for a moment. "Calm down. We're O.K. We'll do what you say and go hide at the school. Maybe once your safely there, I can leave and try to go get help. What ever is blocking my cell phone can't keep blocking it forever. There must be a radius. If I can just get outside the radius, I can call the state police." His cell phone still had a bit of a charge left; enough to call a few numbers before it died.

[BizarreLolli]

Airi takes a breath "maybe we shouldn't go to school...what if we drawhis attention" rubbing her head she mentally debates with herself on what should happen. Smiling she looks up at him "and this week had started so great....okay I don't want to be alone again so if we are going to search for servicd then lets get moving staying still is freaking me out....like any second I'm going to get shot"