Chapter Two
MoonShine Story-Line
The phone rang in the presidential office. A dark skin hand picked it up and put it to aging ears.
"Mr. President, RHS is under a major school shooter protocol!", the person over the phone yelled. "Multiple shooters. We fear mass casualties before the local authorities can reach the scene and properly respond". The president swore under his breath. Jacob Smith had been in a lot of tight corners during his four year run as president, but never did he truly have to make decisions with the weight of hundreds of children's survival on the line. It was truly the first time he felt his stomach drop on what had been a relatively quiet presidency.
He hung up the phone. He was at his desk surrounded by his cabin. He filled them in of their situation. He trusted these cabin members more than anyone else and they had bailed him out with their wisdom multiple times not only in his presidential career, but also his political career as a whole.
"So thoughts?", he asked his staff. "Please be swift, lives depend on this". They all looked at on another. The same thought had crossed all their minds. This thought was one that they had spoke to the president before, but ultimately had always been overruled, but now, it seemed the president had no other options.
"I think it's time Jacob". Vice President Matthew Powers spoke to Jacob Blackwell with a heavy stern voice, indicating there was no way around this outcome this time. The two large black men stared in one another's eyes. "It may be time to go with the MoonShine Experiment". President Jacob swore to himself yet again. He conceded.
"Fine, be swift". The President's staff went into a frenzy making the proper calls and taking the proper precautions to bring about the MoonShine Experiment.
As they all ran around making calls and what not, the president hand his hands folded and looked down at them, feeling helpless.
"It'll be ok sir", Misty Mahommes, Secretary of State reassured her president. It's out of our hands now.
His only response was, "God speed".
A military helicopter flew out of the military base closest to Orange Park, Florida. Inside, military personal was dressed for warm and combat. Five soldiers who were suppose to be some of the most elite black ops in the military. There was one other soldier. He had the usual black steel toe military boots, he had black camo fatigue pants, his shirt was sleeveless white with a pale yellow moon on the middle of it. A yellow bandana was tied over his face as well with holes cut out for him to see.
"Approaching hot zone in 5", the pilot said. The soldiers gripped their weaponry. "And..GO!". The bottom of the helicopter opened up and wind rushed into the helicopter. The noise of the rampaging wind and the rotating propellers of the helicopter stole anything anyone else wanted to say. The elite five soldiers jumped out, parachutes on their back.
The oddly dressed soldier stood up slowly, but with full confidence. Even with what seemed like whirlwind winds blowing inside the carrier and the helicopter's flight that caused balance to be all, but impossible to find, he found it. He took heavy balanced steps toward the opening.
'Good luck MoonShine sir", the pilot said. MoonShine looked back, gave the pilot a thumbs up, and with no parachute on his back, jumped. The pilot screamed to try and get his attention, to try and prevent him from jumping, but he realized too late…MoonShine was airborne and heading to the ground quickly.
MoonShine quickly caught up to his comrades. They were all calm as the ground rushed toward them. You never quite get used to the feeling of free falling. A weightlessness. Complete freedom. No worries at the peak. A breathlessness, but as you get closer to the earth, it returns.
The group pulled their parachutes out. MoonShine proceeded to fall and sped past them. Right before MoonShine would've hit the ground, he suddenly stopped, just levitating slightly off the ground. Then slowly the soles of his boots hit the grass. He looked around at the football field he landed on. He glanced behind him and saw what was fences and woods. He looked ahead of him and saw multiple school buildings.
"I've touched down with no problems", MoonShine spoke into an ear piece.
"Please move swiftly", President Blackwell responded. "Lives are at stake".
"Copy". MoonShine took off running into a school building.
The secretary of state picked up a remote and pressed a button on it. A wall in the president's office opened up revealing a giant monitor. On that monitor bouncing video feed of what was a high school campus. Gun fire echoed through the speakers as well as the ruffling of clothing as the hidden camera and mic hit body and clothing.
"Alright Mr. President", the Secretary said, "this will allow us to observe everything MoonShine is seeing and experiencing as it occurs live".
"Very good. We'll need to be swift". The presidential cabin looked on feeling helpless, just hoping that this venture would not deemed to have been useless.
MoonShine ran up to the door and pressed his back flat against the wall that held it. He peaked inside and saw nothing but an empty hall way.
"Probably in the classrooms", he whispered to himself. He cracked the door as quietly as he could without making noise. He just opened in ajar, then slipped in and just as quietly closed the door behind him. Now that he was inside, he could hear the faints cries, the faint shushing, he could smell the newborn death. He cautiously walked down the hall. On his right came the first class.
What he peaked in to see almost made him throw up. In the corner, a teacher's face was met with such abuse, probably from bullets, that it was unidentifiable. There were other bodies that were laid out, riddled with bullets. It seemed there were only three persons left alive in the classroom.
"It looks like there are two innocents and one hostile", Moonshine whispered into his mic. "Permission to engage as I see fit". Seconds passed that seemed like an eternity. Moonshine stood on standby, just observing the on-goings in that class as he waited for a response. The person he viewed as hostile was in camo cargo shorts, a camo sweater, and had shades. A hunting rifle was slang over his back and he held a pistol in his hands. The two students on their knees in front of him seemed to cry and whimper as they held a staring contest down the barrel of that loaded gun. MoonShine grew more and more impatient as he awaited confirmation on his request or further orders.
"Engage authorized and confirmed" a voice answered in his earpiece finally. "Operate as you see fit until this situation is at an end".
"Understood". MoonShine immediately moved into action. He opened the door swiftly. The shooter glanced up just as swiftly, wildly bewildered by the sudden intrusion. The two survivors, almost instinctively ducked down and out of the way of trouble. MoonShine started toward the shooter, but once the shooter gathered himself, he moved without hesitation. Not even a second thought to be processed as he raised his arm, gun in hand, and started firing at MoonShine.
And that's when he realized his true predicament. The impossible happened and he just couldn't fathom it. The bullets that for all intents and purposes, should've flown straight into the path that MoonShine was running, did no such thing. Immediately after leaving the barrel, they flew directly into the ground at the shooter's feet. He looked at the gun startled and confused. MoonShine however, did not slow his charge. Maneuvering through desk and deceased bodies he was only a few steps away from the assailant. The shooter went again to raise the gun in one last ditch effort, but found he couldn't. All of a sudden the gun seemed to weigh a ton. He struggled as much as he could to try and lift it, but could not bring it any higher than slightly below his waist.
The shooter now looked at MoonShine with fear and that fear grew when he saw that MoonShine's eyes were lit up. Before his brain could try and put two and two together, MoonShine hit the shooter with a quick, but powerful gut check with his right arm. Blood and spit were coughed onto the floor as he staggered back. As he stumbled backwards he felt the weight in both his shoulders increase. Almost as if an invisible force pulled on them with all their might. Both Moonshine and the shooter heard tears and immediately knew that the shooter's shoulder muscles were done and that he wouldn't be able to lift anything from that point on.
Moonshine followed his gut check with a left flying knee to the face that caused the opposition to stumble into the chalk board. Before any recovery was made, a right side kick to the chest followed that put the shooter through the board and into the wall. He dropped unconscious, leaving a mini crater in his wake. MoonShine turned to the now free hostages. It was two Hispanic teens, one male and the other female.
"You guys ok", MoonShine inquired. They both nodded nervously. "Are there anymore shooters in the building?" They looked at each other then towards MoonShine.
"We don't know" the male said.
Then it was heard, the sound of a gun being cocked. MoonShine turned swiftly. Another shooter stood in the doorway, dressed very similarly to the one MoonShine just disposed off.
Rookie mistake. Can't believe I made such a rookie mistake. Never have your back to the door.
The shooters eyes fell upon his fallen comrade.
"What did you do to Greg?", he asked sternly.
"I got some questions for you too, so you won't have the luxury of napping afterwards", MoonShine threatened.
"You got some nerve bitch". The shooter raised his gun. MoonShine raised his hands in a surrendering fashion.
"Ok ok lets no be hasty". Then a blinding light flashed, the origin seeming to be MoonShine's palms. The shooter screamed in pain, trying to shield his already blinded eyes. The teens covered their faces as well. Even all those in the presidential office had to look away from the screen.
Heavy footsteps sounded as someone ran in the classroom. Before the shooter could recover, he was quickly disarmed of his desert eagle. MoonShine did a stomping side kick to the shooter's knee and there was a loud snap followed by a scream. Then the light dimmed.
With the room lighting back to normal the teens looked toward where they heard the loud snap, like a tree branch under the wheels of a riding bike. They immediately saw that the shooter would be in no position to move. His distal femur looked so grotesque, even under the cover of his camo pants. The cloth around the knee area was darkened and spreading, signaling a bone puncturing of the epidermis. He held this area, rolling on the ground back and forth in pain. MoonShine grabbed the new born cripple by his collar and picked him up.
"Now you little shit", MoonShine spoke in a low tone, so low that the children he rescued had to strain their ears to hear him. "How many other shooters are there and who would orcestrate all of this?"
"Three shooters" was the answer he got as the shooter struggled through the pain. "Jake set all this up. Said that the days of us being invisible and getting bullied were over"
"And where are the other three?"
"At this time they should be in the gym now. Me and Greg had this building cause the science and art room are near each other and we had these classes first period". MoonShine deemed this all the information he'd need from the shooter. A quick et decisive throat strike from MoonShine completely shattered the shooter's windpipe and Adam's Apple, then he dropped him to leave him writhing in the pain of suffocation. MoonShine pointed the teens in the direction he thought his squad would've landed. They were only there to gather survivors. MoonShine quickly but thoroughly searched the building and did the same to all the survivors he found in the building. His heart was heavy and his stomach sick. Kids bloodied, kids scared, kids scarred, kids ill prepared for the troubles that today would bring them. MoonShine felt so bad for these kids. He didn't understand how anyone could do such things. But he pushed all these thoughts to the back of his mind. He had three other people he had to make pay first.