OUTBREAK: ZERO is a semi post-apocalyptic pandemic roleplay set in the fictional city of Lethford, USA. Current season: Winter, 20/21.
March 2020. The world is in pandemonium as one month ago, GHNv-20 was confirmed, five months after the beginning of norovirus season. The number of the infected are in the higher hundred thousands, and the death toll is at an estimated 250,000, with about seventy percent of the rest of the population experiencing mild to moderate illnesses connected to the S. pyogenes bacteria.
The fear of the unknown has caused mass hysteria and panic.
In an attempt to provide a semblance of safety and control, military personnel patrol the streets, even here in Lethford City, and the police force is trying to keep up with the rising street violence, assault, and theft.
Welcome to OUTBREAK: zero. Will you survive?
HAYANA
SITE OWNER + HEAD ADMINISTRATOR
Hi! I'm Haya. I'm pretty much your girl for everything! If you have any questions regarding our plot, membergroups, etc. don't hesitate to ask me. I'm also in charge of coding, graphics, anything skin related, and advertising/affiliates.
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CODING
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ADDI
ADMINISTRATOR
Hey! I'm Addi. Hit me up if you need help with anything. I'm always for plotting so don't be shy. I like coffee, booze, and working out. I'm back from a long hiatus the dead so if you need anything, best ask the others until I get back into the groove of things!
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FINNLEY
GLOBAL MODERATOR
Hi hello! My name is Finnley, or Finn, call whichever and I'll be there for you (yes like the FRIENDS theme song). I am in charge of the claims and helping with miscellaneous things. Let me know if you have any questions!
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OPEN MODERATOR POSITION
outbreak
/ˈaʊtbreɪk/ zero /ˈzɪərəʊ/
a sudden occurrence of something unwelcome, such as war or disease. number, no quantity or number; nought; the figure 0.
Ten. The number of people she had seen already today with symptoms varying from dehydration to sepsis. The number of hours she still had left on her shift. The age of the last person she had diagnosed. Ten. Adelaide washed her hands, scrubbing the antibacterial lather into her skin, under her nails and up to her elbows. It wasn't anything she had to think about. Her body knew the motions, allowing her mind to wander. She thought back to the schedule for the day, unsure which doctor was over her.
At the beginning of her residency, the schedule was strict and rarely changed. One doctor was over her and the five others who were in her group. They took turns with patients, always carefully watched and instructed by the doctor above them. It was challenging of course, but engaging and steady. After the virus though, hospitals became overran. Any and all available doctors were needed, and the reigns on residents slowly began to loosen. There were days when the most contact she had with the doctor above her was a brief five minute check in at the end of her shift. She assumed they were being monitored when they could, but for the most part she was on her own.
Adelaide walked out of the washing room, turning to the side to prevent a nurse from bumping into her. The hospital stayed so crowded that it was often impossible to walk through without bumping into at least one person. She walked along the crowded hallway, her feet following a path she had walked more times than she could count. When she came to a double door she pushed it open and stepped outside of the hospital, outside of the critical care unit. The fresh air greeted her from the area where the ambulances pull in, a few benches outside. It was away from the hospital's main entrance and rarely were there more than a handful of people out there at any time.
She blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust to the brightness of sunshine. She hated the fluorescent lighting of the hospital but that seemed like such a minor thing to complain about. Adelaide walked to the nearest bench and glanced at her watch before sitting down. Five minutes. She had five minutes until she needed to be back inside. It wasn't much, but it would have to do.
She closed her eyes, leaning her head back on the bench so it was resting on the side of the building, the sunshine warming her face. One deep breath in and one deep breath out. She tried to let her thoughts from the morning go. She tried to imagine that the world wasn't going to hell, that she might wake up and find this was all a dream.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Mick pushed the brake so hard he almost flung himself towards the steering wheel as the ambulance came to a halt in front of the emergency room. Good thing patients were tightly secured to the stretcher. He flung open the door, jumping out and jogging to the rear to open the doors. They rolled the patient out of the ambulance, rushing him towards the emergency room entrance where a team of doctors and nurses were awaiting them. "Vital signs were stable. Blunt head trauma. Patient lost consciousness about five minutes ago. His neighbor found him stumbling around outside of the apartment building. The police are currently investigating but they suspect an attempted robbery." he summorized as quick as he could while they rolled him towards the free space of the room.
After they transfered the guy to a hospital bed Mick grabbed the assessment sheet and ticked off all the important informations. Adding some notes here and there he glanced around the emergency room. Just like always these days it was packed with people - patients waiting for their treatments of results, relatives or legal guardians waiting for them to discharge. The air was full of nervousness and suspension - and the smell of sanitizer and blood.
"Man, let's get out of here." his partner said as he finished signing the paperwork. "Yeah." Mick nodded and took of his gloves ready to throw them away. As he walked out of the building he spotted a coffee truck next to the entrance. After everythung that happened Mick's body consisted of 80% coffee instead of water. It's what kept him running. A nice hot cup of black bitter nectar and he was ready for some more emergencies. He jogged over, ordered two cups and walked back."Want some coffee?" Mick asked his partner offering him the second cup in his right hand. "Nah, give me ten minutes I need to run an errand real quick. I'll be back in a bit!" he said before running off. "Well... more for me." he mumbled as he took a sip taking a glance around the area.
Spotting a familiar blonde sitting on a bench nearby a smirk played around his lips, long strides carrying him over. "Long day hm?" Since he didn't have anything else to do with the second coffee he held it in front of her face. "Coffee?" he casually asked, looking down at her with a simple smile.
Adelaide's mind went from daydreaming back to reality. She made a mental note to check her first patient's platelet levels. Another mental note to remind herself to water the plants in her apartment. She couldn't remember the last time she had done it, so it was a good guess that it might be too late. She didn't care either way. There was too much going on in the world for her to care about foliage. She began to wonder if she should give them away, pending they were still alive of course, after all, it wasn't their fault they got saddled with a workaholic. The last thing she needed was being a plant murderer on her conscience.
"Long day hm?"
Adelaide opened her eyes, a small smile on her lips, "Always." She watched as Mick made his way over. His easygoing smile looked out of place around the chaotic environment they were in. Ambulances racing in and out, stretchers being hauled here and there, people shouting. When he offered her the coffee she grinned, "Thanks." She took the cup from him, sliding over so he had room to sit. Taking a sip of the warm liquid she grinned over at him, "You're my hero." Before the world went to hell she used to prefer lattes with milk or cream frothed and steamed of course, with deliciously paired sugary syrup. The idea of black coffee used to make her cringe. Then the grocery stores began limiting food and drink. Milk slowly became harder to come by and the hospital stopped providing it altogether. So black coffee it was. Now she relished the strong flavor without all of the sugar and mess.
She looked over at him, "How's your day going?" It seemed like such a weird thing to say to people. How are you? How are things going? It was like being in a war and casually asking how the weather was. She crossed her legs, sitting sideways on the bench facing him, "See any good movies lately?" She smirked, taking another sip of the coffee. Before she had a chance to set her cup down though screeching tires caught her attention.
She turned and watched as a car came speeding to the CCU entrance, grinding to a halt, the tires turning the pavement black. Without pausing, Adelaide dropped the coffee and began sprinting to the car. It wasn't uncommon to have normal civilians use the wrong entrance. Often it was in the worst of cases, the kind where it truly was life or death and every second mattered. She was halfway to the car when the driver piled out, running to the passenger side and pulling someone out. She was just a few feet from them when she noticed the driver had a gun in his hand. Adelaide froze on the spot as the driver screamed for help and began pointing the gun.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
"You’re welcome." he said as she made some space on the bench for him to sit down. "I’m everyone’s hero." he told her with a little laugh before taking a sip of his coffee. "And don’t worry I prefer standing." Usually working as a paramedic meant to wait a lot - hence patience is the key. There used to be days with a lot of emergencies and days without any. He and his partner usually moved out about three times a shift which was pretty ordinary with most cases being smaller accidents like someone falling off a ladder during construction work on their homes or drunk people passing out or hurting themselves. But now ever since the spread of the virus nothing has been ordinary anymore. They had to move out at least ten to fifteen times a shift - working more than usual with the lack of paramedics in the city. A lot of people left - afraid of getting infected, a lot of people died after getting infected. However, that was the risk everyone had to take because they chose a job where pandemics made you work in the frontline.
When she asked him about his day he could only shrug. "The usual chaos. How about yours? Being a busy bee just like always?" he jokingly said, knowing that the two of them were quite busy these days. He took another large sip of coffee before it has a chance to cool down. There’s nothing worse than cold coffee unless it is iced on purpose. But hot coffee turning luke warm? Blegh. Not even a deadly virus could change that fact. "Movies? No. Someone cut our internet cable and it’s just too difficult to find a technician to replace it."
Mick’s head instantly turned towards the noise coming from a car speeding towards the hospital. His eyebrows furrowed as confusion hit. His ambulance was parked nearby and if the car wouldn’t come to a stop in time it would most likely crash into it. He was just about to go for a sprint towards the cars when it came to a sudden halt. Watching someone get out of the driver’s seat and helping someone get out of the passenger seat he didn’t think much of the situation. People driving injured individuals to the hospital instead of calling an ambulance were the worst.
But then he noticed the dark metal object in his hand - a gun.
His eyes dashed towards Adelaide who had already made her way towards the car. Mick carefully made his way over to her, stepping in front of her to shield her from possible danger. "Hey. Hey man. Don't worry we will help you. But you need to put your gun down." he said slowly, making sure not to make any sudden movements. Holding up his hands to show they were empty he took a step forward. "Stop! Right there. Don’t come any closer or I will shoot." the guy yelled at him, furiously waving around with the gun. "Alright. Alright. If you want us to help you, you really shouldn't threaten us with a gun. If you kill all of these people here? There won't be anyone left to help you."
Working as paramedic in a big city with gang crimes being the most prominent this situation wasn’t necessarily new to him. But usually there weren’t many others around. He had to think and act wisely. Any wrong decision could be the end not only for him also for others. "How about you tell us what the issue is? Is s/he hurt? Or infected?"
As Mick said he was everyone's hero Adelaide laughed lightly, "And modest too." She grinned, sipping the liquid. She didn't know too much about him but she could picture him being apart of the cool crowd. He had good looks, he was quick with the jokes. If she had to put a wager on it, she'd put him in the popular jock group. It was funny to think about things like that now. Even though it was only a handful of years ago for her, it felt like ages. Like watching a movie from a foreign era.
Her attention turned from the past and things that didn't matter any more to the present again. When he asked her about her day she nodded. "Same. I had a guy come in with a nail gun injury. Dr. Ramirez was going to let me assist but we had a sepsis on the verge of crashing so I missed out." She wondered if people who weren't in the medical field would think she was a psychopath. She didn't wish ill will onto anyone of course. She was a doctor, she healed. However if someone injured themselves in a very unique way she couldn't help but think a part of that was interesting.
When Mick told her about their cable being cut she frowned, "Oh that sucks. Well if you want to crash the doctor's lounge you're more than welcome. My shift ends at midnight but I doubt anyone would say anything to you, even if I wasn't there." That was unfortunately true. She had gone in there a few times over the past week and the most she saw were two surgeons, a heart doctor and a pediatrician resident there. The surgeons were passed out asleep and the other two were engrossed in their laptops. No one cared very much about rules at the moment. At least not when it came to a worldwide pandemic.
When the car had come screaming to a halt she hadn't realized Mick had taken off running with her. Though she obviously hadn't been paying attention to much until the person driving had begun waving a gun around. After it was clear though, there wasn't anything else she could focus on at the moment except the gun. She hadn't been trained for this. She didn't know what the procedure was. There hadn't been a chapter on lunatic with a gun in her study book.
Mick stepped in front of her and the inside of her head was saying that she shouldn't let him do that. She obviously didn't want her friend shot, but her body was momentarily frozen. She couldn't make her feet move, it was like in the movies when you see a deer caught in headlights. As much as you could scream 'run stupid deer' at the screen, you couldn't make the animal move. She currently was now that dumb animal.
She listened as Mick spoke to the guy, his voice otherworldly calm. Adelaide's eyes moved from the gunman to the other man he was all but supporting up. He was pale, his eyes weren't focusing. When Mick asked about him, the man spoke, his words angry. "He was shot. The damn police can't get supplies to people but they don't have a problem shooting them." She swallowed hard. The man pointed the gun at Mick, "Do your job!"
Adelaide held her hands up, imitating Mick's. She tried to sound calm, her voice wavering, "I'm a doctor. I can help." She took a step forward, keeping her eyes on the man with the gun. "Your friend needs to lie down, I need to see where he was shot, I can't help him if I can't see what's going on." She could see the blood now, seeping through the man's jeans and shirt. It was either a hip or gut wound. One a higher chance of survival than the other. She made it less than a foot away, her hands still raised. "Can I look at your friend while my friend gets some supplies from inside?" She didn't know if it would work, but it was worth a try. If Mick could get inside he could call the police, they could maybe even evacuate the area. There were also tranquilizers inside, lots of things to knock out the man with the gun. That was all pending on if the gunman realized what she was trying to do or not.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Mick listened to Adelaide's suggestion of him going inside the hospital to get supplies. He understood her intention. It was then that he spotted his partner hiding behind a car parked further away from the scene. He tried not to make it obvious and kept his eyes on the man in front of him but at least there was one more chance of someone being able to call the police if he couldn't.
"No. No one’s leaving!" the man yelled, waving around his gun. He glanced around nervously - his eyes darting back and forth. "There has to be another way! Fix him here! Now! FIX HIM."
"Okay. Okay. We can’t help him here on the street." Mick said, trying to calm him down. "We need medical supplies in order to help you. If you don't want us to go into the building then how about we put him into the ambulance? There are things we can use. If we don’t he will die." he said as a thousand thoughts ran through his mind.
"Let me get the stretcher and we will both put him on." Maybe just maybe if they were in a secluded space there could be the tiniest of a chance. With his hands still up in the air he slowly and carefully moved towards the ambulance. His eyes were focused on the man’s face as he tried to read him. He could see drops of sweat on his forehead - a sign of nervousness. A confident guy with a gun would be much better than having an anxious man waving around with a gun because their behavior was unpredictable.
Mick opened the the rear doors with one hand while keeping his other up. He then reached for the stretcher and pulled it down making sure not to let it slip out too fast as it was heavier than it looked. His muscles tensed as he pulled it out of the vehicle. "Let me help you. You won’t be able to do it by yourself." he said as he walked towards the gunman and his friend. The gunman hesitated for a moment before he let Mick take his injured friend by the shoulder. The both of them heaved him onto the stretcher. As soon as it was done the gunman quickly returned to pointing the gun at Mick. The paramedic raised one hand while keeping the other on the stretcher. "Okay. Now I will push him into the ambulance. You can sit down inside there." he explained as he put his other hand on the stretcher and started pushing it back inside the ambulance.
"Keep the doors open and no one moves! You understand?" the gunman shouted, pointing the gun at the people standing outside. Mick followed him inside the vehicle and started rummaging inside the drawers to get out the basics for treating a gun shot wound. "I will need some help. My partner isn’t here so let the doctor do her job." he said even though he really didn’t want Adelaide to join them. But he had no other option. "And keep the gun on me. You don't want to accidentally shoot her in the middle of pulling the bullet out."
Adelaide involuntarily jumped as the gunman yelled that no one was leaving, effectively shutting down her idea. The man began screaming at them again and Adelaide shut her eyes closed, mentally talking herself down from panic. She knew she had to stay calm, she had to keep what little nerves she had intact because if she didn't there was no telling what this man would do if she didn't. If she couldn't do her job, if she couldn't focus, there might be more than one gunshot victim she had to deal with.
When Mick began talking, Adelaide opened her eyes, nodding along very slowly to what he was saying. She didn't know how he could be so calm. The only thing she had dealt with that was unpleasant was dealing with a rude patient. That was nothing like the hell she currently found herself in. When Mick mentioned ambulance Adelaide tried not to show too much of a reaction. It was smart. So smart. If it worked there odds of escaping this just might increase.
Adelaide tried keeping her breathing steady and low as she watched Mick get the stretcher. She watched as the two loaded the injured man onto the stretcher. She didn't dare move a step. The man was breathing quickly, pointing the gun at anything that moved. She hoped someone had seen what was going on and cleared the area. If not, the next thing that made a sudden move might end up at the end of the man's weapon. When Mick told the guy to let her through she glanced at the man. One nod from him was all she needed. She kept her hands up as she slowly made her way to the ambulance, her hands shaking as she pulled onto the bar and climbed inside.
When Mick told the man to keep his gun on him, the gunman yelled back, "How about you worry more about saving my friend's life instead of saving your little girlfriend's?" Adelaide moved closer to the man on the stretcher, trying to ignore the man outside. She quickly glanced over the situation, forcing her mind to get to work. She watched as Mick grabbed the bandage shears and cut through the man's shirt, exposing the wound. Blood was covering the man's chest in varying shades of red. When she first saw the guy she had thought it was a hip injury, now, unfortunately for him, she knew that theory had been wrong.
She grabbed the nearest box of gloves and put them on. She opened the potable water container and poured some on the man's chest and stomach so she could see where the wound was coming from. "Here. upper right umbilical." She swore under her breath, grabbing a roll of gauze and applying pressure to the area. The man didn't yell out in pain, instead he emitted something between a grunt and murmur. She shook her head, her words quiet, "He's not going to make it unless we get him inside. He's lost too much blood." The wound had soaked through the gauze already. As she nodded her head at the roll of gauze, the patient's breathing got louder, his chest rising and falling slowly. "I need more gauze. Do you have any chest seals? If we don't get this wound closed he could puncture a lung. I think the-" Her words were cut off by the sound of a gunshot outside. Adelaide shut her eyes closed. "Less talking and more saving. You think I don't see those cops around the corner?" Adelaide froze again, her eyes wide. She met Mick's, trying to keep her voice low, the fear making her speech ramble, "Mick, he's not going to make it. We can't. I can't. He's..."
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
"He’s not gonna let us take him inside." he told her, lowering his voice. He already knew where this was going. The guy wouldn’t be able to make it no matter how much they tried. Nevertheless, they had to at least pretend. Mick quickly grabbed an IV catheter, wrapping a tourniquet around the man’s upper arm, looking for a good vein. Once he found one he smoothly put in the needle followed by the catheter. Taking out one of the saline solutions he connected the transfusion to the IV and pinned it on a hook. The sudden sound of a shot fired took him by surprise and he froze for a moment, his eyes glancing at the gunman outside. He really wanted to punch that guy in the face for being stupid like that. "You need to calm down. I know this is probably nothing you’re used to but just do me a favor and take some deep breaths. There is no way he will make it. I know it's gonna be hard but you need to give up on him." he said, his eyes darting between the gunman and Adelaide. After making sure she steadied her breathing he moved towards the rear of the car to open one of the drawers to take out a chest seal. If this would have happened a year ago he wouldn’t even have remembered where they were because gunshot wounds were super rare back then - nowadays it was common… too common.
Just as he was about to take out a seal another shot was fired and hit the cabinet next to him. "What are you doing?! Are you trying to fool me?! I ain’t an idiot!" the gunman yelled, his right index finger placed on the trigger, ready to fire another round. He really had to hold back to tell him that he was indeed an idiot. Because if he wasn’t he would have been giving his friend an actual chance of surviving by letting them transfer him to the emergency room with actual supplies and operation rooms. Mick exhaled before turning his head towards the man, his eyes momentarily pausing on the hole in the cabinet. Well, his supervisor won’t be too happy about it. But that issue he was going to solve later - hopefully. "Hey man. We are trying to save your friend over here but if you are keeping thi-" he stopped as the gunman suddenly fell to the ground, a puddle of blood gathering beneath his left foot. Mick blinked in surprise unsure of what had happened just now. The gunman howled in pain, his free hand desperately grabbing his injured leg. A sniper, he thought. The gunman mentioned the police around the corner. Maybe the SWAT was already positioned around the building.
A little spark of hope ignited inside him but then watched the gunman dragging himself into the ambulance before Mick could do anything - the gun now pointed directly at the two medics. He instinctively raised his hands in defense. "Hey… let me take a look at your wound." he suggested but was quickly stopped by the man’s scream. "NO! Close the doors! Close the doors now!" he yelled at Mick, his spit scattering around his face and the ambulance. Mental note: sanitize the ambulance later. “Okay.” Mick simply replied and slowly moved towards the door to close them. Now that the four of them were stuck in this small and quiet space everything seemed more surreal than ever. Had he ever encountered a gang member threatening him and his partner with a gun? Yes. Being stuck in the middle of a shoot out? Yes. Being stuck inside the ambulance with an armed person? No.
"I need to get something from where you are sitting, alright?" he told the gunman, glancing at Adelaide on his side. He slowly moved between the stretcher and the gunman, one hand trying to signal her to move to the other side so he would be somewhat shielding her. "Hey Adelaide, do me a favor. Duck on the count of three." he said carefully, his blue eyes fixed on the gunman. "What are you doing?!" the gunman asked, his voice shaking slightly. "One... two..." "THREE-"
Adelaide's hand was pressing hard on the wound. The blood was coming out slower. A bad sign, a very, very bad sign. She could hear the labored breathing, the pulsing of her own heartbeat in her ears as the realization hit. They wouldn't be able to save him. He was going to die and then they would have to face whatever consequence the man outside with the gun was going to deal. The man firing off a shot had made her scream. The adrenaline was pumping through her veins, she could feel her hands shaking. If she wasn't careful she could go into shock. Medically she knew what she needed to do, but physically her body was betraying her.
When Mick told her to take some deep breaths her widened eyes met his. She nodded, forcing herself to breath. "Okay. Okay." One. Two. Three. In and out. It was something so simple, something the human body did without command or thought. Yet in moments like this, the first thing that betrays you. She didn't understand why of all things adrenaline would attack the lungs yet here she was, forcing herself to remember to breathe.
She watched as he moved to where they kept the chest seals. It was pointless, completely pointless. The man had only minutes but at least if she could get a seal on his wound the pressure might ease up on his lungs. The chance of survival was low, but it was all they had right now. As another gunshot echoed through the ambulance cabin, Adelaide jumped, gripping onto the side of the stretcher. When Mick yelled at the guy she turned her attention back to the man on the stretcher. His chest had stopped rising and falling, she grabbed his wrist to check his pulse.
She was only somewhat aware that things had gotten slightly quiet outside but before she could turn her head from the dying man on the stretcher the ambulance door was blocked by the gunman entering. Adelaide raised her hands, copying Mick. She was going to die. She could almost see how this would all play out. The man would see his friend was dead, his rage would be turned on them, and she would die in the back of an ambulance with nothing of importance to her name. It was a pretty crappy way to leave the world.
Mick asked about the man's wounds and Adelaide tried to slowly angle herself from the man on the stretcher, hoping to shield his face from the gunman. His friend was gone. His pulse stopping two minutes ago. She silently began praying that the man wouldn't see. That maybe, just maybe he'd be too preoccupied with his own wound to ask about his friend's.
When Mick began speaking to the shooter, motioning ever so slightly to her she complied. Adelaide moved slowly, her hands up in surrender. When Mick began counting down her eyes widened again. Before she could think though he had counted to three and she had ducked. The ambulance breaking out in the noise of scuffling and yelling.
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Mick honestly hesitated a mili second before shouting out the number three. Was this a good decision? Would it turn out alright? Would it be okay? Those seconds to count down were the longest he ever experienced. Should he rethink? Make another plan? But would there be time for it? No. There wasn’t any time left. Not even a second. If the gunman would find out about his friend he would go on a shooting rampage - even with his injured leg. The leg injury might take him down soon but he would still have enough time and bullet rounds for a handful of innocent people.
As soon as the he had counted down he elbowed the gunman in the face, hitting his cheek and the side of the nose. The gunman howled in pain and surprise. Mick proceeded to quickly push his arm with the gun towards the ceiling of the car. BANG. Maybe he should consider forcing him to release as many bullets as he could but no… that would be too dangerous. One could accidentally hit him. One could hit Adelaide. One could bounce off. He slammed his own body against him, still trying his best to make sure the gun was pointed anywhere but near them. The gunman managed to wrestle against him and Mick was pushed against the ambulance doors. He tried to push the gunman against the stretcher but he was stronger than expected. Mental note to himself: work out more.
Mick struggled to keep the gun pointed away from him. He glanced around to see if there was anything for him to use. Ambulances were stocked with medical equipment but nothing to use as weapon. The AED would take too long to charge. Adelaide wouldn’t know where to find the scalpels or scissors and he definitely didn’t want to put her into any more danger. He grasped the wrist of the gunman tight before he kicked him in the stomach with his knee. His free hand was searching for the handle to open the door. It took longer than he wanted it to but he finally managed to get a hold of the handle and he pushed it, grabbing the gunman with both hands now and thrusting himself backwards against the door. The ambulance shook and the doors swung open.
As the two of them tumbled out of the ambulance another shot was accidentally released. Mick could feel a slight sting in his left arm before it turned into a burning sensation but the adrenaline rushing through his veins kept the pain at bay. He managed to wrestle the gunman to the ground making him lose grip on the gun.
Click. Click. Click.
The sound of multiple guns being cocked pulled him out of the adrenaline rush induced trance. While making sure the gunman was pushed tight to the ground so he won’t be able to move Mick raised his head only to see the remarkable sight of a bunch of police officers standing around them in a crescent. "We got this." one of them said and Mick nodded, the heaviest sigh of relief leaving his lips. He let go of the gunman, letting himself roll sideways to lie on his back for a moment before an officer reached down with his hand to help him get up. "Thanks." Mick said, grabbed the hand and moved to stand up. His heart was still beating like crazy, he could barely catch his breath.
Mick turned around to face the ambulance and looked at Adelaide. "You okay?" he asked, hoping that nothing had happened because of his dumbass move.
Adelaide ducked when she was instructed to duck. There was a moment of grunting and scuffling before a shot was fired inside the ambulance. The loud bang was jarring to her senses. A high pitched ringing noise overriding every other sound. She looked over in time to see Mick wrestling to get control of the shooter. As they fought to gain traction, the stretcher was shoved into her, the high-pitched noise slowly fading from her eardrums. She had never felt so useless before in her entire life. She was normally the first one to take charge, the first to offer suggestions to problems, and often the first one to solve those problems. She had never been put into a situation that she wasn't able to help with or fix in some way.
This was an awful feeling that gripped her for the first time ever in her life. She had no idea where anything was in the ambulance, she wasn't strong enough to help wrangle the guy, she had nothing she could knock the shooter over the head with, she couldn't disarm him. She was totally and effectively useless.
Adelaide did the only thing she could do and began opening drawer after drawer around her. She had no idea where anything was, but at least while Mick had the guy distracted she could search. Her hands were trembling as she moved aside equipment after equipment, finding nothing that could even remotely help. Adelaide saw Mick kick the guy from her peripheral vision and she finally, mercifully, found what she was looking for: a small bottle of Lorazepam with a pack of sealed needles beside it.
She grabbed the pack and opened one up, filling the syringe with the sedative medicine. She had just tapped the needle when the two went rolling out of the back of the ambulance. She began to move towards the exit, following after them, but as she made it to the opening, the sight of the policeman came into view. A wave of relief washed over her and she managed a grateful smile before she closed her eyes, leaning back against the inside of the ambulance. She heard one of the policemen say something to Mick that she couldn't hear. She didn't care. She was just thankful it was all over. She opened her eyes to the sight of the policemen putting the shooter in handcuffs. Her eyes went from him to Mick, who was heading her way.
She nodded at the question and pushed the plunger on the syringe down, angling the needle away from them. She couldn't talk yet. The adrenaline was leaving her, she could feel her muscles begin to shake. She couldn't think about it. If she thought about what actually just happened she was going to lose it. So she turned her attention to him, forcing herself to snap out of, to pretend that it was just a show she had seen someone else in, not herself. "You need to be checked out. Did you fracture anything?" She knew how hard he had hit the ground, there was a good chance he hurt himself in the process. She moved out of the van and put one hand on his shoulder and the other gently on his elbow, trying to slowly move his arm to assess any injuries. "Where are you hurting? You have blood on you, is that from him or you?" She let her mind go on cruise control, to do her job and disassociate from what had just happened. She felt her pocket for her penlight. "Do you feel dizzy at all?"
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
Mick tilted his head when Adelaide asked him if he was hurting somewhere. He actually wasn’t sure yet. He wasn’t really capable of associating and localizing any pain at the moment and if even he was feeling some he wasn’t really the type to have others worry about him. He glanced at the crowd forming next to them - a mix of officers, nurses, civilians and doctors. He wondered what this all looked like from the distance, what they were thinking of doing. Would they have done the same? Hm. Maybe. Maybe not. His mind drifted away for a moment as he continued watching a nurse supporting a woman who burst into tears. She tried to comfort her and make her move so she could be taken inside. The sound of police sirens turning on out of a sudden made him snap back to reality.
He looked back at Adelaide and smiled. “Nah, I’m good. Humans are very sturdy beings. Throwing yourself out of an ambulance is nothing.” If that was the truth he wasn’t really sure.
Once his heartbeat and pulse steadied and he was standing still for a moment his back and shoulder were aching but it wasn’t so bad. Mental note to put some ice packs on the area once he gets home. He looked at his shoulder and spotted the wet stain on the sleeve of his jacket. There was a slit as well… his chief won’t be happy once they returned to the station. Ambulance damaged inside and outside, uniform damaged and Mick would have to take some time off to go to the police station for a report. Oh great. He wasn’t looking forward to that moment later that day. “I think it’s mine.” he said with a little nervous laugh. He was feeling a lot of pain, now that the adrenaline completely wore off but he wasn’t feeling dizzy or like he was going to faint any second. He unzipped his jacket and slowly pulled his arm out of the sleeve. He couldn’t help but wince as the fabric slid over the wound. He looked at it once again now that it wasn’t hidden under his jacket.
His hand immediately covered it as it was still bleeding. Reflex. Put pressure on it. “Doesn’t look too bad. I might have gotten hit by the last bullet but it just grazed my arm.” he said with a smirk on his face. “Got that checked off my list.” he added jokingly and laughed a little but as he did so another wince escaped his lip. “Okay maybe not so great. You mind taking quick care of that?” he asked her, his feet dragging him to the ambulance and he sat down on the ramp. “Wow.” he exhaled, only now realizing that his whole body was shaking from the action. His free hand was balled into a fist to stop it from trembling so much. “I think... I need a party sized pizza and some beer later.” Later as in after his shift ended and he was done being lectured by his boss as well as finishing the reports for the day. If there wasn’t so much work left he would just pass it over to his partner but he doubted he would be able to take care of it all by himself.
Adelaide tilted her head to the side when he said humans were sturdy. Humans were most definitely not sturdy. Especially not when it pertained to the way they acted and thought. She'd patched up more broken bones, gashes, and missing appendages to know otherwise. People, especially the male variety, tended to act like they were invincible. They were never going to grow old, they were twice as strong as they actually were and of course, their balance was always impeccable. Reality tended to prove otherwise.
However, she wasn't chastising Mick, he had saved her life. He had acted out of bravery and not stupidity which made all the difference. She heard the noise of the crowd growing a little louder. She tried to not pay attention to the people around. She didn't want to look at anyone truthfully. She didn't want to be some sort of circus side-show that people gawked and took pictures of. She was sure this was going to make the news. After all, it wasn't every day a gunman hijacked the hospital. She pushed that little realization out of her mind for the moment.
After she mentioned the blood, she watched as he took stock of himself. She noticed his hands were shaking. Shock was still a possible threat at this point. He needed to sit down, let the blood circulate as much as possible without pressure. "Sit down for a minute." She watched as he winced while removing his jacket. The blood trickled down his arm and when he put his hand over it, she leaned into the ambulance to open the first drawer they had opened earlier. She put a few pumps of sanitizer on her hands before grabbing a pair of gloves, "Oh yeah? What checklist is that for? Hero 101?" She smirked at him before grabbing the saline and gently cleaning the area. It was a bad graze, she didn't think he'd need stitches, but it did need sutures, and it was going to leave one hell of an ache until it healed.
She continued working, keeping her eyes on the wound she spoke up again, "Thank you. I don't know how that might have ended if you hadn't done what you did." She met his eyes a second before going back to what she was doing, taking as much care as she could to not irritate the area. "I definitely need the name of your gym. I need to learn some of those ass-kicking moves." She grinned and opened the dermaclip suture box, applying them carefully. "Standard wound care. You feel a fever, you call immediately, you know the drill. Do you want a pain med. prescribed?" She took off her gloves and threw them in the ambulance's trash can.
When he mentioned pizza and beer she couldn't help but laugh. "That sounds like the best idea you've had yet." She sighed and checked her watch. "The amount of paperwork on this is going to be such a pain. I better get back and check in." She glanced towards the hospital's doors before turning back to him, " I mean it though, thank you."
[attr="class","dilyrics3"]Your lips feel warm to the touch You can bring me back to life On the outside you're ablaze and alive But
[attr="class","dilyric3"]you're dead inside
[attr="class","dibody3"]
He faked a gasp. “How did you know?” he replied to her Hero 101 question. “No, seriously, I already checked off everything on my Hero 101 checklist. This is the Advanced Hero 101 checklist.” he added nonchalantly and shrugged, but regretted this decision as soon as he moved. He pressed his lips together to keep himself from wincing once more. Mick had always seen people get shot, grazed, cut or stabbed but he would have never thought that a little, tiny graze like this - maybe it wasn’t as tiny as he thought - would cause so much pain.
“I’m not even sure if I should say you’re welcome.” he said, looking straight forward to a pair of officers questioning a nurse while taking notes. “I don’t want to know how it might have ended if everything I did went wrong.” he added quietly, swallowing hard at the thought of it. But as quickly as the thought came into mind he dismissed it with a cheeky grin. "I'm sure this would have turned out fine either way. Maybe if we waited just a little longer the police could have solved it on their own."
Mick nodded along without saying something when Adelaide started listing off the usual doctor talk. “Yeah, clean wound, change bandaging, check for infection. I know.” he said after letting her finish. However, when she asked him about the pain meds he pondered for a moment before shaking his head slightly. “Nah. I should have some ibuprofen lying around at home. I’m not a big fan of medication anyway, even though I’m the one giving it to some of our patients.” he answered and let out a faint laugh. Ironic.
“Definitely the safest idea I’ve had yet. Can’t go wrong with pizza and a drink.” Mick repeated after her and simply smiled at the blonde before he spotted his partner walking up to them. “Same. I’m not sure I’m allowed to go back to work now though, so the paperwork might have to wait. Lucky me. Hey-” he said and raised his good lower arm to shoulder height, motioning a little wave at his partner who was followed by another team. He watched them silently take out the deceased body of the gunman's friend or accomplice or whatever he was. Sadly he never had a chance to make it through this mess. “Guess we’re heading back to the station?” Mick guessed and slowly got back onto his feet. His partner nodded and went ahead to start the ambulance.
“Well, see you around and thanks for taking care of this.” he told her and nodded towards the bandaged arm. “Maybe we can grab some coffee and actually enjoy it without being disturbed by some crazy dude with a gun.” he added and this time laughed like usually, closing the ambulance doors with one arm and walking over to the front.
