[IC] Chapter 1: The City has Fallen

"I'm coming with you, Katerina. Maybe you're right. Maybe the other side of the city is ok."

Dan was also thinking that maybe there would be a working cell tower along their route. Or even a few, and maybe, just maybe this really was an isolated event. But the drone seemed to suggest otherwise and that sent chills down his spine.

Rubbing his hand over his hair, he noticed particles of ash flutter down gently to the ground. It was surreal, all of this was, and he realized his head must be covered in ash and dust. He hadn't noticed.

"Come on," he said to Konstantos, "Let's follow Katerina." Maeve he didn't care about. Self-preservation had kicked in. That and the thoughts of saving his family.

"Yeah. Sure. You said it yourself, the cell towers are shot. No reception. No information. Does this sound like it is a local thing to you?"

Maeve sighs, then hesitates for a moment, then moves backward close to the group of acquaintances. Although everything in her screams to just run towards the flames, she moves and hopes the red dot will disappear as she gains distance. Desperately she looks at the wreckage all around her.

"The Severnians have been gathereing troops at the borders. The president told us this might happen. What do you think this is then, hey? We're at f*** ing war!" The distraught woman tastes a bitterness in her mouth again. She looks at the others, standing there wide eyed - ready to flee. What about the people they were leaving behind, without even trying to help? What about Lena?

"Look. You don't know me very well. But you know Lena. She might be alive in there, as might be others. She is a good person. So are you.
You don't know me very well, but let me tell you - I don't ask for help - ever.
But now - I'm asking."

Her voice gets smaller, breaks at times. She feels like everything is dissolving around her.
"What if it was your family? Please help me help those people over there. Help me save them - maybe save Lena. I need to know if she's alright, or if ..."

She looks at the floor. gathers air twice then continues in a calmer fashion:
"I can help you. I'll come with you, fight alongside you, help you get to your families - but now - please help me get to mine. We have to stick together, if we want to survive this." Maeve looks at each of them. "The time will come - you'll be the one who needs help - please don't just turn a blind eye now. We can attack this thing, we can distract it or hide and wait it out. But if you walk away now, you might save your skin, but you doom everybody else and you hand over the key to these murderers."

I will help you Maeve but be calm. Let’s just all move to different parts of the street either alone or as pairs. Then we can slowly walk to your bar. It only gets our attention when we are in a group. Katerina whispered carefully under her voice.

Katerina addressed the drone. Ye-yes sir. We are going. With that she began to move over to the side of the street as calmly as she could, wincing at every footstep has the click of her heel she felt drew her more attention.

"Ah fuck," Konstantos says abruptly, and he wrenches out his hammer and hurls it at the drone.

Dan only has a flashlight which may prove to be very important later, bandages, and some canned food. He grabs a can and flings it at the drone. Being the athlete of sorts that he is who stays in shape at the gym, his reflexes kick in as he prays that his aim is strong and true.

Maeve remembers getting her wisdom tooth pulled out. The feeling immediately afterwards has been somewhat similar to what she's feeling right now. Like the world has been packed in cotton or put inside of a snow globe. The world is muted. The world moves slowly.
Maeve blinks.
A part of her shocked brain signals for her to get away frantically, but it does not quite reach the rest. She looks at the beeping, blinking thing. What has just happened? Has she been shot? Has this been the plan? What about...
Away, she has to get away.
Confusedly and awkwardly she tries to bring distance between her and the bleepy blinky murdery thing. Maeve snickers. There is a warm wetness on her cheek. She has to get away before she falls apart. Cover. She has to find cover before...

Katerina felt the slump of an injured Maeve drop on top of her. Seeing that she had not quite made it, Katerina attempted to pull Maeve further in to the hole with her and shield her from that mechanical monster.

Seeing the bomb crater is full of Meave and Katerina, Konstantos runs away from the drone and dives for cover behind some rubble. He knows these things often are designed to spray up a cone of shrapnel when they're disabled, in order to dissuade people tinkering with them. At a horizontal distance and behind a ruined wall, he should be safe.

At first, Dan is thrilled to see that his shot actually hit home but when he sees the red blinking lights his fight or flight response kicks in, and being the athlete he is he can move unexpectedly fast. At least that's what he is hoping when he sprints towards anything that could potentially shield him from whatever the drone plans to do from its new position on the ground. Maybe it has a self-destruct explosive device on board.

"Aghh! help! I think I'm hit with something. Debris from the drone. Help!"

Dan crawls out from cover and limps over to the group as he clutches his bleeding leg, gritting his teeth in obvious pain. "I need help. Who knows first aid?

"I know a bit about first aid," Konstantos says - but his voice sounds doubtful. He looks at Dan's leg in the flickering orange light of the burning buildings. "Do you feel anything jammed into your leg? It's looking like a nasty gash, but if you don't have anything embedded in it, we can wrap it to stop the bleeding. Not too tight, not a torniquet, just a pad with pressure." He looks around. "Do any of us have any spare cloth?"