The Elwood City Bombing
Elwood City was a usually safe city to live in. Crime rates were usually low, and the city never suffered terrorist attacks. Until now.
Elwood City High was holding a race for charity. Arthur, Robert, Buster, Richard, Luke, Francine, and Sue Ellen were the students volunteering for the race. The winner would get fifty-thousand dollars sent to their favorite charity. Sue Ellen was determined to win to feed starving kids in Africa, Francine wanted to win the money for an athletic charity, Robert wanted the check to go to a puppy rescue foundation, Richard, Arthur, and Buster just wanted to run, and Luke could care less either way.
Principal Warner announced the beginning of the race, and stated the runners would get breaks between laps, and that any cheaters would be disqualified, of course.
"On your mark!" The runners got into a crouching position, ready to pounce. "Get set!" Principal Warner raised his starter's pistol, and, firing it, shouted, "GO!"
The students rushed into action with Buster taking the lead. Robert followed right behind, repeating to himself, "Run like Flash. Run like Flash."
Unbeknownst to the city, a small group of terrorists, calling themselves Rising Terror, planned to set of a bomb at the event.
The leader of said group was Rattles Ciccone, a bully at Elwood City High. The bomb was set to go off as soon as the first person finished the first lap. Buster was the unfortunate person to fit the description, and as his legs hit the pavement just beyond the finish line, an explosion erupted.
Robert skidded to a stop, as tons of people dispersed scared. Robert caught a man looking on at the scene. He wore a leather jacket, and a black hood, a black bandana, and finally black leather pants. When he turned around, the letters "RT" were painted on the back in red.
Richard knocked past Robert at his fallen brother. Buster was miraculously alive, but when everyone saw his legs, they took a step back. Buster had lived, and probably inadvertently saved one of them, but at the cost of his legs. His legs were blown off during the explosion, and Luke wasted no time in calling an ambulance.
Meanwhile, other bombs went off throughout the city, with millions getting injured or worse. The city declared it a massive tragedy, while many shouted out why.
At the hospital, Richard flipped through the channels on Buster's TV. When the TV began to flash, he jumped out of his seat. It was a message from Rising Terror.
Their leader, who had his entire face covered, and his voice altered, said, "We are Rising Terror. Elwood City has gotten nothing but a small taste of what is to come. Your city is no longer safe, and starting tonight, anarchy will reign. People will fall. And no one can stop us." The TV showed a building from a window's perspective, and the leader of Rising Terror said, "See that building? That is Elwood General,"
Richard's heart stopped. They were at Elwood City General Hospital.
"That is the first place to go. At midnight, I will blow it to smithereens." The leader announced. "And look at the time. It's eleven thirty. Either start evacuating, or people will die."
The broad cast ended. After a full evacuation, and a bomb sweep, the police found nothing. At midnight, an explosion went off, but not at Elwood General. Instead, the bombs were really at another hospital across town.
Richard followed as a few officers ran to a TV inside the building. Rattles was on.
"I bet you think you've saved lives. You haven't. Actually, Elwood General wasn't the target. Elwood City Children's Hospital was. You can call us heartless, you can call us monsters, but we are here to knock Elwood City off it's high horse. You are no longer safe! You know who we are, but you'll never see us coming."
Everyone was in shock. Dozens of sick children, brutally massacred. The police would not wait for Rising Terror to strike again. An extensive search proved successful, as Rattles and his gang were found, and charged with murder, and brutal acts of violence. Rattles would be away for a long time, if not life.
In the following days and weeks, people mourned over the poor people who lost their lives, and loved ones during the tragedy.
Meanwhile, doctors attempted to give Buster the gift of walking once more. One of the doctors, mentioned a special prosthetic, that would not only allow Buster to walk, but he would be able to run faster than before. It wouldn't cost Bitzi anything, and the legs would be wired up with Buster's brain, giving him full feeling in his legs, and absolutely control over them.
Buster was eager to try it, and Bitzi eventually agreed. Even though Buster got off extremely fortunate, many people had not gotten the same chance. Therefore, the day of the race would always be a tragedy to the city. Plus, it showed, that no city was safe to live in, and that was unsettling.
A/N: Theme 018 Tragedy. Feel free to complete the themes yourself, they can be found on my profile. If you do a themed one-shot from the list, please give credit to DarkAngelSnapeLover, and me, TheUltimateCombo. Oh and, I want to mention, Buster just lost his legs, like everything south of the knees. That's not his whole leg, but still. Anyway, REVIEW!