Scene: Espresso Train 96 4/01/10

First topic message reminder :

The train left at 9:06am on a Thursay morning. The company, Espresso. While it was mocked for a while, the service was always found impeccable and perfect. Earning the company the highest transportation scores in the U.S. and Mexico. Train #96 was no different.

While it may be that you sit in a coach class, it feels like a business class on any other train. And the tickets were priced appropriately for coach. Splendor. The car, number three behind the engine was clean as clean can be. You'd surmise they even cleaned the clean.

While the station was busy as morning commuters made thier way to and fro, and other cars seem to be stacking people in; most of them seem to skip car number three. They ignored you as they either went from two to four, or vise versa. But who cares. More air for you. Less crying kids. And believe me, some of them were packed with families choc full of kids.

The only other residents in your car seem to be yourselves isa man in a beige jacket, slacks and a white fisherman's hat. Since he has sat down, he has been flipping a quarter over and over between his thumb. When passed by other passengers, he makes no acknowledgement that they exist. Makes no movements to comfort himself further. His eyes are obscured by mirrored shades, and his mouth bears no expression. He niether sighs or breathes loudly.

Across from the potential hit-man/drug dealer looking fellow is another wonder of natural mien. He sports a red scruffy beard, a balding head full of wisps of left over red hair and sheavy ide burns long enough to get lost in. He wears a denim vest over a beat up leather jacket. His belly hangs out over his faded jeans, complete with leather chaps. You'd put him in his fifties if you really cared to do so. He has his tray open and a new Dell laptop opened up. He seems to be watching a DVD with Golden Girls of all things. He gives out a loud bellowing gaffaw at anything Betty White seems to do.

Finally there is what you can only describe as a young girl here. While not prestine, she is well kept (Refer to picture of Sarah Darling in the NPC section). She is quiet and demur, and seemingly nervous about where she is. In her light brown hair she wears a bow. Her clothes seem old style, but very fancy. She glances around from time to time as if expecting the train to leave at just that instant.

(Wits+ Composure to notice any other odd details of the scene).

The train rolls out of the station at 9:06am and begins a non-stop from Columbia to Amherst, a city on the western edge of South Carolina bordering Georgia. The train is quiet, and calm...

Lucas looks over at the man with the gun. "You got any spares of that thing, amigo?"
He moves to the middle of the car.

Celina sighs and draws a Browning 9mm from a holster under her leather jacket. She moves to the center of the train.

"Get that weapon up, buddy. It looks like we have company." she says, looking at the man with the gun drawn. "Do either of you two have any weapons training?"

Her voice is firm but calm, neither overly nice nor hostile. Her gun is in a teacup grip, and her eyes are moving around the interior, going over all the points of entry.

Ayla backs against the wall, avoiding the windows. Her eyes are wide as saucers, and for a moment it looks like the girl might faint. When the other woman draws a gun, she seems somewhat reassured, with two of passengers now having guns. “I know my way around a strap.” The teenager responds when the older woman asks her question.

After the thumping along the sides and top of the train gets a little less intense, the screaming from the forward and rear cars begin. Some of it sounds human, others equate more along the lines of a bestial screech. These are sometimes broken by slamming thumps or wet splattering sounds. Those are broken by gutteral growls and snapping of what sounds like large jaws.

The Biker slides down to the floor in his own filth. He has completely come undone by the situation. The little girl continues to shudder on the opposite end of the train, hidden in the drop steps near one of the exits of the train.


Everyone at this point should make a Composure + Resolve roll. Failure means you are shaken up by what is going on and are going to loose initiative bonus among other things. You are almost too scared to act. Each success will cancel the other dice pool penalties due to the situation. Even successes will still gnaw at the character at this grim situation.

It is Intelligence + Resolve to look through a window to another car and get a clearer picture of what is going on (if you are able to act).

Looking outside is okay, though a little fuzzy due to the condition of the windows. There are trees outside. The moon appears to be the source of light (it is almost a full moon). It is rising apparently, but seems kind of wavey and distorted. Its light is both erie and intense in this place.

At this point I will note that nothing has tried to intrude into car number #3.

Continue interacting. Your next few actions will determine what happens next.

2010-04-05 13:01:47 Timothy Hallekbeck rolls 6 dice to Comp + Resolve 6,9,6,8,10, 8,4 (4 successes)

2010-04-05 13:02:40 Timothy Hallekbeck rolls 5 dice to Int + Resolve 1,8,2,8,10, 5 (3 successes)

Pulls a small knife out of his boot and slides it across the floor to Lucas.
"Best I got right now"
Moves his gun into a ready position towards the ceiling, but keeps his eyes on the door just behind him as well.

2010-04-05 14:12:07 Ayla rolls 5 dice to Comp + Resolve 5,6,8,2,6 (1 success)

2010-04-05 14:13:21 Ayla rolls 4 dice to Int + Resolve 10,6,7,3,7 (1 success)

“We have to get out of here” Ayla says, shaking. The girls eyes flit from window to window, as if she expects one of those things to burst through at any moment. “This isn’t a gas, or any sort of drug. Something is happening out there. Something bad.”

Lucas rolls 7 dice to Resolve+Compusure (used willpower) 9,3,9,6,10, 3,3,7 (3 successes)

Lucas picks up the knife, and then walks over and grabs one of the fire extinguishers. The extinguisher is held and carried like it's going to be used like a club.

Lucas rolls 4 dice to Resolve+Intelligence 8,4,8,1 (2 successes)

He then moves up by Timothy to peer through the window, careful not to get in the line of fire.

“We have to go!” Ayla repeats, this time a little bit louder. “They are distracted right now, eating everyone else.” The girl reasons, panic slipping steadily into her voice. “But you heard that one up there a few minutes ago, walking on the roof. How much longer until they finish their grisly deeds in the other cars and come for us. If we make a run for it now, we might have a chance, but if we stay here we will be devoured, just like those people out there.”

She looks between the gun wielding man and woman. “How many bullets do you have between you? Twenty? Thirty? That won’t be enough to stop them, hell I don’t think a thousand rounds would. We have to get out of here, get somewhere safe. It can’t be that much further down the tracks until we get to town. Get to help.”

Whirls around and trains his gun on the rear door of the car and moves his finger to the trigger.
"We have an incoming hostile target. If it approaches the door I am going to open fire unless someone has an objection or better idea. I can see it killing people out there"

Frantic when she see’s the dark monster moving towards them, the girl begins to check the emergency exits, trying to find one she can open.

Resolve/Comp: 2 Successes
Resolve/Int: 1 Success

Celina rolls her shoulders and neck, settling herself into a firm shooting stance. Her finger is on the trigger guard, gun pointed at one of the exits.

"First- don't open those windows just yet. How close are they, and can you count any numbers? The metal is echoing so its hard to get a read." she asks, eyes flicking to the girl and man peering through the windows. Her voice remains calm, despite their surroundings.

Ayla stops going for the exits, but backs as far away as she can from the approching figure.

The thumping outside has pretty much ended. No more shadows are running through the odd nighttime landscape outside. All the noises seem to be coming from other parts of the train now.

...

It comes through the door from car four...



Aside from what you see in the above picture, this figure wears a bronze color metalic mask. The eyes slits are ebon and void. He holds in his hands a bottle, perhaps a large phial. The phial is glass and contains something very brightly blue-ish purple. At his sides are a rapier and a whip, as if he was playing at being Zorro or some such.

The whole appearance seems dream like. Even the process by which he opens the door is a stutter in time. One moment it is closed, the next the man is in the door with his vial of whatever.

Aims his gun carefully and then pulls the trigger, firing on the figure that has just walked through the door.

Ayla runs towards the back of the train, as far as she can get from the monster that just walked in. She begins frantically trying to open the door.

Combat rounds begin. I will need everyone to roll Initiative (d10 + Initiative Mod). There is a -2 Modifier on this roll due to the situation. Each success you had gotten on your Resolve + Composure will negate a -1 penalty.

See you in the thread: Combat Car Three