"How bout that..." Joe thought as he examined the flight schedule. Seattle was cancelled. Everything was cancelled. The crowd busied themselves with the television screens detailing some kind of epidemic. He thought maybe he'd grab a cup of coffee while he waited, then he saw the prices. Four dollars for a small black coffee? No thank you.

A voice came over the loudspeaker. Every head turned to look. "This area is now under military lockdown. Please remain calm." Joe remembered the News. Rioting, it looked like. Maybe some sort of terrorist thing. Either way, he was stuck. Not good. He had work the next day. An aissistant manager is an important organ in the beast of designer retail, and JC Penney is no exception. But, it was outside of his control, so he just sat and waited. 

Just waiting.

A squad of soldiers entered the terminal. Army, maybe. They wore the uniforms. But the guns weren't right. Instead of the M4A1 standard carbine, they bore what looked like M240 light machine guns. Those weren't for peacekeeping, they were for suppressive fire. Joe stood up suddenly, understand what was happening. He forced his way through the crowd toward the restrooms. As soon as he entered, he shut the door, and bolted it. It didn't matter if he would get in trouble later, he was at least safe for now. He checked his carry-on bag for anything that could be used as a weapon. He found his baton, a 21-inch piece of segmented steel. A flick of his wrist, and it was ready. A stall door swung open. It was a woman. 

"Shit. This is... the women's room." She gave him a disgusted look, and sped past him, unlocking the door before reuniting with the mob outside. Someone screamed, so Joe slammed the door shut again, and spun the bolt back into place. He sat on the floor on the other side of the restroom, facing the door, just waiting.