Chapter 2: One Foot in the Grave
-"Helter skelter, now, give me shelter. My brain is twisting again. I could be dreaming this. No, I'm screaming this. No more, no."-
Tommy Oliver watched as the five minute warning bell sent the students of Angel Grove High School into action. Conversations were abandoned, books quickly gathered, and teens hastened to their first period classes. He should be following their example. Instead he remained standing beside his locker, scanning the faces of the dissipating crowd. His girlfriend Kimberly was supposed to have met him here ten minutes ago. Now, class was about to start and she was no where in sight. She had never blown him off before and he considered it a near impossibility that she had simply forgotten.
"Hey Tommy, what's up?" Jason Scott, a black haired boy sporting a red shirt and black jeans stopped before his best friend's locker.
He noted that Tommy had given the same careful consideration to the day's wardrobe as he had. Blue jeans and a simple white shirt with a brown jacket thrown over it all, his long brown hair pulled into a quick pony tail Jason had simply intended to give a quick greeting before hurrying to his class, but the look on his friend's face made him pause. He looked distracted…almost worried.
"I was supposed to meet Kim here, but she never showed. Looks like she might not be in school today."
His tone was causal, but Jason would not dismiss the concern he had noted in his friend so easily.
"Maybe she's not feeling well." Jason suggested. "Let's go to her place after school and see if she's alright.
"Yeah." Tommy agreed.
A last hopeful glance was given to the hallways before he decided at last to abandon his post. He shoved his books into his bag, then he and Jason sprinted towards their classes.
Xx
Trini Kwan sipped her smoothie as her eyes wandered distractedly towards the door of the gym and juice bar. Today was Wednesday. Wednesday was the day that Jason and Tommy taught a karate class for elementary school kids. Wednesdays also meant that the whole group gathered at the juice bar. She, Billy, Zack and Kimberly would spend the time studying or conversing until the class was finished and Tommy and Jason could join them. Zack had told her earlier that he'd made plans today and wouldn't be able to join them. As for the others…school was now an hour over and Billy was the only one to have made an appearance. He was engrossed in his math book while hers sat in front of her, open but neglected.
She'd had nightmares last night. She couldn't recall them and didn't really want to try. Whatever had haunted her dreams had been enough to force her to wake with a jolt and leave a lingering sense of unease about surrendering herself to sleep again that night. The combination of concern and fatigue made focusing on the math impossible.
Children dressed in their martial arts attire started to file onto the exercise mat and Trini glanced at the clock. Two minutes until class started and the teachers were still no where in sight. Confident that their mentors would arrive soon the children started their warm up stretches.
"They're late today." Trini remarked.
Billy glanced to the clock to confirm her statement and a mild look of surprise stole over him.
"Most unusual."
In her opinion, Billy always managed to sound like a college professor. He had the most extensive vocabulary of anyone she had ever met, sometimes making use of words that she and her friends were not even aware existed. It wasn't that he was trying to make anyone feel inferior, or even that he felt superior himself. Rather it seemed that there was an innocent ignorance about him. He simply didn't always remember that he was not on the same intellectual level as everyone else.
He had been so intent on his math work that he had lost track of time. Now he shared his friend's concern. Sometimes one of the two did not show up, but they always made certain that the other would cover the class. For both Jason and Tommy to be missing was troubling.
"I guess I'll have to cover for them." Trini said, getting up from her seat.
"I'll see if I can find them." Billy offered.
He closed his math book and started to gather both of their things as Trini started towards the students. She made it half way across the room before Jason entered the juice bar. Rather than quell her troubled thoughts, his appearance intensified them. Jason was there alone, and his worried expression spoke volumes.
"What's going on?" She asked as she hurried over to him.
Jason waited for Billy to join them before pulling both of his friends into a corner. They waited impatiently as Jason struggled to put his thoughts in order.
"Kimberly…" He let the word hang for a moment. "She…she was hurt. Badly. She's in a coma and they don't know if she's going to survive. Tommy's with her at the hospital."
"What?" Trini gasped in disbelief. "Was it…"
"We don't know." Jason answered the unspoken question. Was it Lord Zedd?"
"Give me a minute." He said and went over to address his karate class.
Trini and Billy waited in uncomfortable silence as Jason dismissed the class for the day. Trini alternated between looking at Billy and the floor. She and her friends carried a much heavier burden that anyone else their age. After all they were charged with the task of defending the world. Still, Trini had never thought that something like this would happen. She always managed to keep her two worlds separate. Her worries were normally confined to the battlefield and disappeared with her suit.
Jason rejoined them and the trio headed out of the gym, towards the hospital.
Xxx
The constant beep of the life support machines was the only sound in hospital room 1428. Tommy could not take his eyes from the prone form lying on the hospital bed in front of him. White bandages concealed the deep gashes cut into her shoulder, chest, and arm and she still looked pale from loss of blood.
Her parents had heard her scream during the night and went to her bedroom to investigate. They found their daughter in a blood soaked bed, barely alive. The Hart's security system had been activated all night and the police hadn't found any signs of an intruder. Everyone was baffled as to what might have happened. Everyone, of course, except for Tommy and his friends.
Until about fifteen minutes ago Kim's mother had been in the room with him. Her father had come to the hospital after work and for a time, the three of them silently shared in the same troubled thoughts. Mr. Hart had convinced his wife to go home long enough to pack a bag if she intended to stay at the hospital. Tommy had wanted so badly to provide answers to the questions circulating around the room. Who? Why? How?
That, of course, was impossible. To provide those answers would be to break his vow of secrecy. Not that they would be able to do anything with this knowledge anyway. The best thing Tommy could do was make a silent promise to her parents that this wrong would be avenged.
The door opened, distracting him from his thoughts. Trini and Billy hesitated at the doorway, their gazes fixed on their injured friend. Tommy acknowledged them with a slight nod.
"Visiting hours are going to be over soon." Trini said quietly.
"Yeah." Tommy replied, his voice distant. "Her mom's gonna stay with her."
The three looked at their injured friend in unbroken silence until the door opened again. Mrs. Hart entered, a duffel bag slung over her shoulder and a haggard expression on her face. She was followed by a doctor who addressed the teens.
"Sorry guys, visiting hours are over."
Tommy nodded and got up from his seat. He locked eyes with Mrs. Hart for a moment. He felt a wash of guilt when he thought about all the things he knew about Kim's life that her mother did not.
"I'll be by tomorrow…if that's okay." Tommy said. Mrs. Hart managed a sad smile and a slight nod.
"Of course, Tommy."
He returned the smile with one equally sad before joining his friends. The doctor had not wanted too many people in the room at a time, so Jason had waited for them in the lobby. They walked in silence until they were a few feet from the hospital.
"I called Zack." Jason said. Tommy gave another silent nod that was starting to become his standard response. "He wasn't home, so I left a message with his mom that we'd all meet at the juice bar after school before going to the hospital. I've got to cancel another class."
"What are we doing to do?" Trini whispered, looking to Jason.
Jason wished that he could answer truthfully. He didn't know. But, as the leader it was his job to provide something better than that. If not hope, then at least direction.
"We haven't gotten word of any monster…Tomorrow we'll see what we can find after we visit Kim."
They parted ways with few words exchanged, each lost in a similar string of thoughts.
Xxx
With great power comes great responsibility. Fate of the world stuff always comes before a social life. Such is the curse of a superhero. Superman was always forced to leave Lois Lane standing alone in the cold in order to save the world. Spider-man was never able to keep his dates with Mary Jane because there was always someone somewhere who needed help. Zack Taylor felt the pain of the fictional heroes as his attempts at wooing Angela always seemed to be curtailed by his own secrete duty towards the world.
Well, at least that's what he decided to believe when he saw his situation with her in a more optimistic light And being the optimistic kind of guy that he was, this was most often the case. Sometimes however, he let himself remember that she never did give him the time of day before these duties were entrusted to him, and later that his failed attempts to gain her favor never had much to do with his need to combat evil.
However it was undeniable that the first real date he'd ever had with Angela had been ruined by an attack. He had been forced to abandon her in the middle of a movie in order to do battle. Nearly half an hour later he returned in time to see the movie nearing it's end. He had a large tub of popcorn as excuse for his absence, but for some reason she would not believe that there had been a thirty minute line for the snack bar. She left him alone in the theater after overturning the popcorn on his head.
After much persistence and a few of his patented 'smooth moves' Zack had convinced Angela to give him another chance. There had been another incident concerning pearl earrings on her birthday…but luckily she had forgiven him for that one. Things had progressed slowly but smoothly from there.
He had taken her out after school. They went out to eat, to a movie, and finally on a stroll through the park. The charm and wit he poured on throughout the evening had been enough to earn him a 'goodnight' kiss after he walked her to her door.
His walk home was occasionally interrupted by the sudden twirls and dance moves his good mood inspired. Zack still couldn't believe that the date had gone so smoothly. He had taken her on a full date. He hadn't been forced to abandon her and the flowers he gave her never once tried to kill them. Zack thought that his good mood might last for a whole week…or a month…maybe forever. That was until he entered his house and his mother met him at the door with a pained expression and a terrible message from Jason.
The shocking news weighed heavily on his mind. He was awake for several hours after he should have been in bed, dwelling on the tragedy that had befallen his friend. The events that had seemed so important earlier now seemed foolish. Somehow he convinced himself that he should have been there to help. They were a team after all, and he'd had no idea she had even been wounded until the day after. Eventually his anguished musing was dulled as his mind started to drift away, his body demanding sleep. He surrendered.
Xx
The next day Zack was forced to stay late after school. By the time he was able to leave there was not a person in sight. No students staying after for clubs, no teachers, not even a janitor remained in the building. When he stepped outside the light was fading as late afternoon gave way to evening. No cars were left in the parking lot and no people loitered anywhere near the school. He was impatient to make it to the Juice bar before his friends left for the hospital without him. He ran through the streets a short distance before slowing to a jog and finally stopping all together. Fear whispered in the back of his mind and gripped his stomach with a nervous fluttering.
There were no cars on the roads. The stores were all open but deserted. No one was walking the streets. It was as if all the people of Angel Grove had vanished. He continued on towards the Juice bar, more because he couldn't think of any where else to go than any real hope of finding his friends. The silence was oppressive. Each small sound registered thunderous in his ears. The wind blowing, his shoes on the pavement, his own heart racing in his chest.
Zack hesitated before the familiar doors of Ernie's Gym and Juice bar, suddenly fearful of what he might find on the other side. Afraid of the nothing he knows will greet him. Still he felt compelled check. The same terrible silence prevailed inside a building normally filled with cheerful conversations and laughter. Zack paced slowly around the tables looking for some sign of life. An abandoned book bag or half eaten snack. He found bare tables with the chairs pushed neatly under them.
A loud sound cut through the silence like a knife making Zack jump. He spun towards it's source and saw Ernie behind the counter watching a sickly looking green and red mixture whirl in the blender. Ernie seemed not to notice him. Zack approached slowly, suddenly fearful of the man who had been a friend for so many years. It was not until he reached the counter that Ernie acknowledged his presence. He shut off the blender, smiled at Zack, then poured the foul looking concoction into a cup.
"Here ya go." Ernie said, sliding the cup over to Zack. It smelled like rotten garbage and decay.
"Ernie?" Zack asked hesitantly.
"What's up, Zack?" Ernie responded brightly.
"Ernie…didn't you notice? All the people…"
"What?"
"All the people…are gone."
"Well, that would explain why I haven't had any business today." Ernie reasoned with a disturbing calmness.
He pulled out an oversized knife and bunch of fruit then set about making another smoothie. He chopped an unpeeled banana in half then dropped it into the blender, still dirty from what was left of his last attempt at a drink.
"You're probably waiting for your friends, right?" He continued conversing as the knife sliced through strawberries.
"Uh…yeah." Zack responded.
"I'm sure they'll turn up." He said, unconcerned. He chopped the tops off of a few more strawberries and tossed them into the blender. Then he brought the knife down hard on his own fingers.
"ERNIE!" Zack leapt back, his eyes wide.
Three severed, one flew onto the floor from the force of the blow. Ernie held his injured hand over the blender, letting the blood mix with the fruit.
"…Ernie…" Zack stared in horror as Ernie picked up the two fingers left on the counter and dropped them into the mix. The rest of his sentence was drowned out as the blender started again.
"Why don't you play a video game or something while you wait?" Ernie suggested when the roar died down.
Zack stared in horror, torn between the desire to help his friend and the urge to run in fear. His mind screamed at him to flee. He knew that something was wrong here. This was not supposed to be happening. When Ernie poured the new mix of fruit and gore into a cup and took a long drink Zack decided to run.
He dodged around the tables, ignoring Ernie as he called out to him, asking if he wanted to try some. He reached the door and tried to tug it open, but it was stuck. He pulled and felt it come loose. There was noise behind him and he paused, just for a moment, to see what it was. Ernie was coming towards him, blood stained knife held in his uninjured hand. The other still spurting blood.
"Zack, come here. Let me show you something." He said, gesturing towards him with the knife.
One last desperate pull and the door opened. Zack raced through it and nearly barreled into the figure waiting for him on the other side. He leapt back, holding his arm up for protection as razor sharp claws slashed out and sliced through his arm, what would have been his chest if he had reacted a second later. Sick amused laughter mixed with a persistent buzzing sound. Then Zack's eyes flew open and he sat up in bed.
His breath came in unsteady gasps. Mechanically he reached over and shut off his alarm clock, then noticed that his left arm was soaking his sheets in blood from four deep cuts.