A Scarlet Christmas Carol
Chapter 2: A Technical Haunting
By Teala373
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Duke slammed down the phone, cutting off Pilar in the middle of her excuse why Scarlet wouldn't talk to him. From his hotel room, he had a fairly good view of the redhead's room, and he saw that she was awake. He had half a mind to go bang on her door and demand that she see him. Come hell or high water, he was going to get his old Scarlet back. She was too special to lose and try as he might, he couldn't stand living without her.
The first few months after Joe disbanded were the worst. The team had been a family and were allowed quite of bit of leisure and luxury that the military would otherwise squash. They were alone and left to govern themselves on the secluded, top secret base. The base had originally been constructed to house two units, but when Joe alone proved to be enough, the extra space was used to have as many recreational rooms as there were dormitories. The foose table and air hockey room, the poker room, the music room, the dance hall, the Playstation room, the pool table room, Dusty's mini art gallery, Cover Girl's dressing room... their off time had been the best of times. He remembered a stuffed Cobra uniform hanging from the rafters of the mess hall with 'Snake Barbeque' painted across the chest and hysterical mocks of Cobra Commander and Serpentor plastering the walls of one of the meeting rooms. Scarlet and Lady Jaye had stenciled a border in Flint's office to look like his sports car and Duke proudly displayed the annual team roster pictures where they all made funny faces for the camera. Scoop's home videos of the Joes' sports events and other hilarious moments had filled a shelf in the TV lounge. Homemade trophies from rowdy games decorated many rooms and 'Scarlet's DoJoe' was painted across the entrance to a room filled with some memorable martial arts lessons. Cover Girl's tank had purple trim on the interior and her stylized logo stamped on the outside. A stolen Hiss Tank was repainted to look like the Mystery Machine and Hawk had lost count of the numerous phone pranks he received or how many times Ace made him laugh with his Colonel Sharp impressions. And there had been other good times, too - good times with Scarlet...
Duke had liked Scarlet from Day 1. How could he not? She was absolutely amazing. He couldn't help but to use his rank in order to pair them both together in nearly every assignment. As the memories came flooding back, he leaned against the cold window pane. A dark shadow passed over the moon as the stars began to glitter angrily. It had been a long time since he had seen a night like this. He stared at the sky for a long time, all the while wondering about Scarlet...
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A series of beeps accompanied the chiming bells of the clock as the hour of one rolled around. Scarlet's eyelids fluttered open at the sounds. She looked around, taking a minute to realize where she was.
"What the hell happened?" she muttered as she groggily struggled to get up off the floor of the sitting room. She couldn't understand how she had ended up on the floor. "That had to have been just a dream... it couldn't have been real..."
Attempting to walk back to her bedroom, Scarlet noticed that the coffee table housed her laptop - a laptop that was out, open, and on. Puzzled, since she couldn't remember unpacking it, Scarlet plopped down on the sofa in front of it. As she reached for the power button, she noticed the picture displayed on the screen. It was 'year 3' of the G.I. Joe team. She paused to stare at it, tears threatening to linger in her eyes. They were all so happy then...
Suddenly, the image began to change and distort. Scarlet jumped back from the computer, as though it had become hot. The words 'you are not alone' began to scroll across the screen. She slammed the laptop and stood from the couch. She yanked the cord from the wall and swiftly headed towards the door, desperately needing to find anyone to stay with.
It was something out of a bad movie. The doors were locked and wouldn't open. The telephone was dead. Her cell phone wouldn't work. The lights went on and off and on and off and then off for good. She began to panic, especially when the radio went on and then off, then the TV, and then all electronically devices. She was about to go out of her mind with fright when everything suddenly shut off. The only sound was her harsh, frightened breathing. She fell to the couch, clutching her chest, desperately trying to regain her senses. And then there was a light. It was her laptop.
"Impossible!" she cried. "I - I closed it... unplugged it..."
The screen went blue and a white prompt appeared, soon followed by words.
Scarlet, I am surprised at you. You were never scared of anything in your whole life. Of course, it was a riot to see you flip out over flashing lights.
Scarlet glared angrily at the words. "This is either a really bad dream or a seriously tripped-out stalker!"
Neither. Try again. I'll give you best two out of three.
She was surprised to find the words on the screen matching the statement she had just muttered to herself. "Who are you? What the hell do you want?"
Tsk-tsk, Red! Is that anyway to greet one your old friends? Lady Jaye sent me to help you.
"No no no!" Scarlet screamed. "I'm still stuck in this lunatic nightmare! Damn it! I need to wake up!" She began to stand up when a familiar voice cut through the air.
"Aw, c'mon, Red! The fun's just beginning!"
Looking down to the screen, Scarlet nearly gasped as a familiar face flashed a shining grin at her.
"Breaker?"
"Glad to see you still remember me! We only spent hours pulling control room shifts - not to mention all the quality time we got over that whole 'Pit of Vipers' incident!"
Scarlet rubbed at her swollen eyes. "This can't be happening! Why am I having hallucinations about all my dead friends?"
Breaker's face became more serious. "This is real Scarlet. We're all worried about you - especially LJ. Like it or not, we're going to try and save you from a very bleak future that is right around the corner."
A red eyebrow arched upwards. "I, uh, appreciate the concern from the figments of my imagination, but I'm doing just fine, thanks."
She stood then, determined to get some real sleep, but she came face to face with an angry Lady Jaye.
"When are you going to understand that this isn't your wayward imagination?! This is real Scarlet! I'm not going to watch you self destruct any longer. You are coming with us and learning your lesson once and for all!"
Shocked at the angry force of the words, Scarlet reeled back, tripped over the coffee table, and fell right into the waiting arms of Breaker, who swiftly pulled her into her laptop screen. From that point on, Scarlet found herself in a whirlwind of blurry images.
"What the---"
"Next stop, Atlanta, Georgia!"
Scarlet looked at Breaker in surprise. "You're taking me home?"
"Yep - a home that you've seemed to forgotten about."
"I-I've been busy!"
"Riiiiiiiiight...."
"Breaker! I don't want to go home!"
"Sorry, Red, but I take my orders from LJ, and she says that you're first trip to the past is back to your hometown."
"Trip to the past?"
"Yep! Think of me as the Ghost of Christmas Past. I get to take you on a trip down memory lane."
The whirlwind soon stopped and Scarlet found herself in her old bedroom back home. It was decorated exactly the way she remembered it from when she was seven. Martial Arts awards hung on the walls, a pair of grass-stained jeans were tossed in the corner, and a young girl stood proudly in front of a large mirror practicing high kicks.
"Oh my... that's me!"
Breaker laughed. "Yep - there you are on Christmas Eve practicing your trademark moves. Looks like you were always a little firecracker!"
Before Scarlet could respond, the bedroom door opened and a beautiful woman stepped inside. "Shana, honey, time to get ready for dinner."
Scarlet's lower lip trembled as tears sprung to her eyes. "Mooom!" the choke sob warbled from her throat as she ran forward. But, like when she tried to hug Lady Jaye, she went right through her.
Breaker sighed sadly. "Sorry, Red, but we're just visiting. They can't hear or see us. It's like we're not here."
Scarlet hovered close to her mother, staring at her as though she were an angel. "She was always so beautiful..." she whispered, "I miss her so much..." Tear spilled down her face as she continued to gaze lovingly at her.
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Breaker sighed wearily as a very glum Scarlet stood by his side. He had taken Scarlet through several years of O'Hara Christmas memories, but his companion seemed more upset than inspired.
"Ya know, Red, the purpose of showing you these points in your past was supposed to cheer you up and make you remember happier times. They're supposed to make you want to run out and see your family again, not make you depressed!"
Scarlet chocked back a few more tears. "Can I just go home, now? I'll do whatever the hell it is that you people want me to do - just get me out of here!"
A gush of cold air announced Lady Jaye's presence as she materialized before Scarlet. "We are not 'you people' - we are your friends and we want to help you! Why can't you realize this? We want you to remember who the real Scarlet is and bring her back!"
"LJ..."
"Listen, Breaker has a few more places to take you. Maybe these places will help bring back your smile."
Before Scarlet could respond, both Lady Jaye and Breaker had disappeared. Looking around, Scarlet realized where she had been dropped off - her first Christmas on Joe Base.