In A Flash

Chapter One

Marty's Side of the Story

Tentatively, Marty touched the lit match to the almanac. The flame caught immediately, melting the plastic book cover. Marty turned away, briefly, as if he couldn't bear the reminder of the horrible 1985A that he had created by buying the book in the first place.

It made him sick to know that his own greediness had helped Biff rise to such power. What could he have he been thinking? Why didn't he listen to Doc? Why couldn't he have left well enough alone? He resolved then and there to never again let the quest for wealth dictate his actions. The almanac was proof that the fallout from such thinking wasn't worth the consequence.

As the flames warped and curled the almanac in the pail, Marty heaved a sigh of relief. Marty flipped the matchbook over in his hand, to give a last glance at his never-to-be-stepfather's empire before tossing the effigy of evil into the fire with the almanac. However, a peculiarity in the matchbook cover caught his eye. At first, Marty thought his eyes were playing tricks on him and drew the matchbook closer for a better look. His breath quickened and he watched agape as all traces of Biff's Pleasure Paradise vanished, leaving the words "Auto Detailing" in their wake.

Could it be? Marty yanked the newspaper article from his back pocket and shook it open. His breath caught in his throat and he watched with widening eyes as the headline changed from "George McFly Murdered" to "George McFly Honored".

Marty hurriedly scrambled to his feet. He yanked his walkie talkie from his pocket and turned it on. He couldn't wait to tell Doc the news.

"Doc! Doc, the newspaper changed! Doc, my father's alive!" he exclaimed joyfully. "That means that everything's back to normal, right?"

Before even giving his friend a chance to answer Marty rushed on. "That means Jennifer's okay and Einie's okay, right?" he asked yelling over the lightening. It was hard for Marty to even hear his own voice over the storm.

"That's right, Marty! It's the ripple effect!" Doc's voice exclaimed from the walkie talkie. "The future is back! Now, let's go home!"

It was over now. Marty couldn't describe the relief he felt now that he knew he would be returning to the 1985 that he had left. Marty couldn't wait to put this sorry mess of a weekend behind him. Hell, maybe he could even salvage some time at the lake with Jennifer after all. "Right, Doc! Let's get our asses back to the fut--"

A rogue bolt of lightning cut him short. The bolt cut a path between him and the DeLorean almost as if it had their names on it. Marty threw up his arm to shield his face from the sparks that hurled his way and he hurled himself out of the bolt's path as it whizzed by him into the tree that he had just been standing next to. Marty jumped to his feet and looked at the severed tree branch that now lay burning on the ground. He shakily regarded the near miss and radioed Doc to check on him.

"Doc! Doc, are you okay?" Marty called frantically.

Marty was relieved to hear his friend's voice. "That was a close one, Marty. I almost bought the farm."

"Well, be careful! You don't want to get struck by lightning!" Marty warned. He had no idea why he was saying such a thing, but the close call had left him with a bad feeling.

It was a twisted prophecy. No sooner had the words had left Marty's lips than he saw a bolt of lightning envelope Doc and the DeLorean. The unmistakable sonic boom of the DeLorean's temporal jump, coupled with utter surprise, knocked Marty off his feet for a second time.

In an instant, Marty was alone. There was an eerie silence in the air as the commotion from the lightning storm ceased. Marty stood up his blue eyes scanning the dark, murky sky and was astonished to see nothing there, but billowing wisps of smoke.

"Doc," he called into the darkness.

There was no reply. The cloudy sky remained still. Doc couldn't leave him here. He had to come back for him.

"Doc?" he said, his hope fading with every second. Futilely, he tried to reach Doc via the walkie talkie as though the device were a link to oblivion.

"Doc. Come in, Doc," he said softly, pressing the "Talk" button. He was greeted by dead air, but he pressed on. "Doc, do you read me? Do you read me, Doc? Come in. Doc!"

The walkie-talkie remained dead, but a fluttering sound from above answered his call. Marty watched as the formless object spiraled downward toward him and fell to the ground at his feet. Dread and panic seized him as he realized what it was.

It was the pennant rope that Doc had used to rescue him from Biff in the tunnel. He picked it up and as Marty viewed the burnt, frayed rope, he felt all of his hope ebb from him.

"Oh, no!" Tears formed in his eyes and a muted sob escaped his lips. What had become of his friend? Was he alive or dead? How would he get home? Fat tears started to spill onto his cheeks, mixing with the cold rain.

"He's gone. The Doc's gone!"

Marty stood in the road, horrified at the revelation. The lightning had swiped everything from him in a flash.