Then the man lowered what is now believed to be a semi-automatic rifle, pointing it at Seeger as she stood up.

'Crawling over each other'

Panic was setting in as a realization swept through the theater that the gunman was real -- and he was planning on killing people.

Whatever was in the canister that landed in the middle of the theater was beginning to burn the eyes of the patrons.

Some in the theater thought it was a smoke bomb, while others believed it was tear gas.

At first, Seeger didn't know what to do. The gunman was three feet away, pointing a gun at her face.

There wasn't time to make a reasoned decision. You either live or die, she told herself.

Seeger dived into the row, pushing her body underneath the seats next to her friend as she heard gunshots around her.

She quietly tried to calm her friend and those around her as hot shell casings bounced on the floor and hit her in the face, burning her forehead.

In a nearby row, Goose was on the floor, using the seats for cover, when she realized she had to move if she was going to survive.

"We started pushing each other and crawling over each other," she said.

The first 911 calls came into the Aurora Police Department at about 12:39 a.m. They were followed by dozens, perhaps hundreds more.

The voice of a dispatcher crackled over the radio to police units: "They're saying someone is shooting in the auditorium." Moments later, she added: "There is at least one person shot, but they're saying there's hundreds of people just running around."

'Shot in the face'

People were pushing and shoving one another to try to get out of the tight rows of seats and down the aisles to safety.

Goose peered over the row of seats toward the gunman, who was now making his way toward the steps in the stadium-seating theater.

The gunman, witnesses would say later, walked slowly as he randomly fired at people. He shot at those who stood up and tried to flee, some said. He shot at people as they sat in their seat, said others.

She pulled out her phone to call 911 but then hid it after it lit up, fearing the gunman might see it and open fire in her direction.

Goose saw people, including a friend, run toward the hallway that served as one of the main entrances and exits for the theater. Some were wounded.

It was 12:40 a.m. when police first arrived at the theater, with one officer radioing: "I've got people running out of the theater who were shot."

Another said: "Got a victim who was shot in the face."

Then the dispatcher orders "all available units to respond to the theater."

'Play dead'

Seeger pulled herself out from under the seats and peered over the seats to see the gunman walking up the steps toward the back of theater.

For a moment, the shooting stops. Seeger said it appeared he ran out of ammunition and was either reloading or getting another gun.