Own nothing do I.
Reed pulled to a stop on the road just outside the ice house. He walked slowly up the drive, even as every fiber of his being was telling him to run. That that was the only way to save Johnny. But he had to be on the watch for traps.
Finally, they were in front of the building. Just as they were about to go inside and start their needle-in-a-haystack hunt for Johnny, a computer that none of them had noticed prior to that moment crackled to life. The three friends raced over to it, hoping for some kind of clue.
On the screen was Johnny. To Reed's eyes, he didn't look injured, though he did look cold. Too cold. "Johnny!" he cried, hoping the younger man could hear him.
He could. Johnny opened his eyes and stared blankly at the screen. He seemed unable to place the faces at first, but after a few seconds, he uttered a soft. "B-Ben, Re-reed." He looked at his sister, and she could see the bluish tinge to his lips. "S-s-sorry, s-sis"
Susan's face turned invisible. She didn't want the boys to see her tears.
Ben Grimm swore under his breath and took a disk out of his pocket. He put it into the drive under the monitor, tapping a few of the keys. "How bad off are you, Kid? And do you know how much time we have?"
Johnny screwed up his eyes, as if that would help his thinking. "T-there's a c-c-countd-down. Thr-ree and a h-h-half ho-hours." Suddenly, Johnny screamed bloody murder.
Do you understand the words bloody murder?
Believe me, you don't.
Susan, Ben, and Reed watched helplessly as Johnny twisted and turned on the floor, screaming in pain. Susan could only imagine how hurt Johnny must be, with his body already so tense from the cold. And what was doing this to him?
A voice filled the room that Johnny was in, and the monitor picked it up. "Not good, little Johnny. No telling secrets. They shouldn't know how long they have. Or you have. For that-" the voice paused for effect. "I'm taking away an hour from your overall time. Two and a half hours. Got that, Reed?"
Reed gulped. He didn't want to think about what would happen if he couldn't find Johnny inside the massive building in time. "What are you doing to him, Doom?" Reed demanded.
The voice chuckled. "Just some electro-shock therapy. You should now, Reed. You invented it." The voice was cut off, leaving the three with the picture of Johnny lying motionless on the ground.
Ben tapped a few more keys, finishing the program he had started. It showed all of Johnny's vitals. Blood pressure, heart beat, temperature, ect.. "No way." Ben muttered.
Reed looked at the chart on the side of the screen and let out a low hiss. He still couldn't get over the fact that it was his electro-shock therapy that had been used on Johnny, but this was more important.
Johnny was alive. That was the good news. Bad news-his temperature was seventy degrees below the normal 205◦F. And it was dropping fast.
"Ben, Sue, get in there. You have to get him out of that room." Reed demanded, not taking his eyes off the monitor. "I need to stay here. Make sure Johnny doesn't go under."
Ben nodded and took off. Susan stayed still for a second, looking at the monitor. "Get up, Johnnycake, don't let him get to you."
Then she was gone, following Ben into the building, wondering how what was supposed to be the best day of her life had turned into her worst nightmare.
Review?