Where April O'Neil goes, Sarah (Spike) Sanchez follows.
It's been that way since preschool, when Sarah helped haul April up after she had fallen.
It'd been that way since first grade, when April had lost her mother, and Spike (then Sarah) had comforted her. That's when Sarah had started getting protective of April.
It'd been like that since second grade, when Sarah's parents and two younger sisters had died in a car accident, and April sat with her, trying to ease the cold emptiness that filled Sarah. April had brought tissues to the funeral, where April had cried, and Sarah remained stone faced and dry-eyed. Stone faced and dry eyed is how she remained up through third grade and beyond. That's when she started going by Spike, and started taking junior sports.
By fourth grade, April's red hair, blue eyes, and pretty smile had set her up as one of the prettiest girls in class. Spike's light brown hair, blue-gray eyes, and solid frame had moved her to bottom level.
In fifth grade, Spike started taking martial arts classes, and about a million other things, while April did the drama club.
In sixth grade, Spike started working out, and April became 'popular.'
So it progressed. Spike became known as the toughest girl in school, and April was 'sweet.' No one understood why they hung out together.
Number one: April is loyal to her friends.
Number two: April is Spike's only friend.
Which is why, when April was fifteen and Spike was sixteen, Spike noticed when April didn't show up at their rendezvous point, and knew something was up.
~Where April Goes~
Spike Sanchez is on a mission. Grasping her Taser in her right hand, she slips through the shrubbery up towards an abandoned building. She takes note of the guards, counting carefully before noticing that these guards all look exactly the same, except for one man.
She frowns, pauses. She hears something.
A van comes hurtling up the driveway and slams into the side of the building. Spike's eyes widen as she dives.
There is an explosion.
But wait! Let's backtrack and explain for a minute.
~Where April Goes~
Spike's short, brawny (especially for a girl), form marches down the sidewalks of New York City, looking at her cell phone with a frown. "She's not picking up," she mutters darkly.
She pulls the sleeve of her sweatshirt up, checking her watch.
She dials again.
This time, April picks up, and she sounds hurried and frantic. "Spike? Thank goodness! I need help, my Dad and I have been taken by these weird guys. We're in a warehouse or something, uh...I don't know where. Get help!"
"April," Spike starts. "I-"
The line is cut off.
Spike stares at her phone with wide eyes. She hooks up to April's phone and tracks it, waiting for the results to load.
There.
The little blinking dot reveals April's location.
Spike starts running, weaving in between pedestrians, eyes half on the phone.
~Where April Goes~
That leads us back to here, with Spike creeping through the bushes, watching as a canister full of green liquid breaks and sloshes over the one man that looked different. She can't see well in the dark, but she can see enough.
His body starts changing, things sprouting, and changing color. Spike stares in horror before ripping her gaze away. She turns and runs, swiftly and silently, heading to the wall as the identical men check out the van.
Spike shakes her head.
This is too weird.
Spike stops near a tree and takes a breath, before swinging herself up and into the tree.
The plan is to drop down over the wall, and it seems to be working well so far.
She clambers out onto a branch before dropping on top of the wall and surveying the area she just cleared.
Oh April, what have you gotten yourself into?