Chapter 5
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The goverment issued car turned into the parking space beside the sidewalk under a cloudy Los Angeles sky. Bill looked at the sign above the door. "The Magic Box? Counselor, this scenario just keeps gettin' better by the minute."
Pam replied getting out of the car, "I'm not so sure about that, Bill."
"Watch this place turn out to be full of magic wands, top hats and playing cards." Bill said as he met up with Pam and entered the building.
Bill's eyes opened wide upon entering. They were met with rows of filled book shelves, trinkets and statues on tables and other odd entities. Bill examined a statue on a nearby shelf. He picked it up examining it closely.
"That is a statue of Kokopeli, the fertility god." said a voice behind the counter.
Bill quickly looked up toward the counter then toward the statue in a fast motion. He hurriedly placed the statue back on the shelf then made a wiping motion with his hands on his pants legs.
Pam called, "Bill, come look at this." He walked over. "This book is the first volume of a group called The Books of Ascension." she said reading a page in the book she was holding.
"Books of Ascension??" Bill sighed. "Counselor, this horror movie prop shop is really killing me here. Let's get what we need and get outta here."
"You're probably right." Pam said returning the book to its shelf.
As they walked up to the counter, they were met by a woman with black hair under a bandana. She wore silver ringed earrings. "Greetings! I am Hulda Wynter. The owner of this shop. I hope you have found all that you need."
Pam looked at Bill who returned the look rolling his eyes. "Not exactly, we're looking for gem stones."
"Gemstones, I have stones of all kinds and sizes." Hulda replied.
"That's great to hear. We're looking for the Silver Jade Dragon Stone. We were given your name by a fellow practitioner of your trade, Edith." Pam replied.
Hulda stood back having a worried look on her face. "I know Edith, but I cannot give you that stone. I can give you any other stone you like, but not that one."
"Hulda, we specifically need that stone." Pam said urgently.
"You do not know what that stone can do. It is a very powerful stone if used with enough of a power source." Hulda said warning them of the consequences.
"The stone is powerful enough to trap a very naughty evil spirit that escaped a not so powerful prison." Bill added starting to get tired of the run around.
"Even if that is the case, I cannot simply hand over the stone." Hulda stated.
"Yes you can, Helga." Bill answered. "..and you will, otherwise I will have them shut down this place so fast your crystal ball will crack into a million pieces." He showed her his badge. "Got it?"
Hulda sighed, "Yes, one moment." Hulda headed to the back of the store.
"Bill, she's on our side. Remember?" Pam quietly said to Bill.
"Davidson, sometimes ya gotta give folks a push or you're gonna get nowhere real fast." Bill said.
Hulda returned to the counter and placed a large green stone wrapped in a silver designed dragon. The head of the dragon covered the top of the green stone holding it in place.
Pam examined it. "So this is it."
"Okay. So now that we have it. How do we use it, Ms. Wynter?" Bill asked.
Bill, Pam and Hulda appeared in the shop surrounded by wavy lines. A brick wall appeared on the outside of the wavy lines. Their voices couldn't be heard.
"What is this? X-Ray Vision?" a female voice laughed. "Ralph" was concentrating on a holograph that Sheila was experiencing for the first time. "This is better than network television!" The holograph showed Bill picking up a green and silver object. "Billy Boy, what ARE you planning?" Bill and Pam walked out of the shop as the holograph ended.
"I'm tired of these games, Maxwell. Time to extract the thorn in my side."
Bill put the bagged silver jade dragon stone in the trunk car while Pam got in the driver's side car. He got in the car.
"Now what?" Pam said as she started the ignition.
"We drive around till I get one of those holographs." Bill replied.
"That seems flawed." Pam commented.
"We could go back to Ralph's house. I could put on one of his shirts and put his briefcase on my head, but since I'm a size larger all we would have from it is Ralph being mad at me for ruining one of his shirts and me feeling like a dope with a briefcase on my head. Your call, Counselor." Bill said.
"We'll drive." Pam said.
Soon as Pam said that, the car slowed down as if the brakes were pressed.
"Hi Honey, stop the car." a sinister female voice said outside Pam's window. "Ralph" held onto the car till it stopped. He opened the door and pulled Pam out. "Sorry Bill. Pam and I need to talk about our relationship."
"Leave her alone, Sheila!" Bill yelled.
"If you want to join our discussion, find us." He said as he picked Pam up and flew off.
"SHEILA!" Bill yelled as he tried to reach for Pam through the opened car window. He got out of the car as he watched them fly off.
"Could this day get any worse?" Bill asked himself. Rain started to fall just as thunder cracked. Bill lowered his head in defeat as he stood motionless.
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"Ralph" crash landed with Pam on one of Los Angeles' tall buildings' rooftop. He got up and pulled her up as well. "I hope you're all right. I wouldn't want to have you injured just yet. It spoils the big finale."
"I'm FINE, thank you." Pam said jerking from him. "What big finale are you talking about?"
"Ralph" kneeled in front of her. "Your finale. When I finally get rid of you and Maxwell." the female voice said in an evil way just as lightning cracked in the distance. "Good weather for it, too." he laughed as the rain fell around him.
"Why are you doing this??" Pam demanded.
"Why? So I can have insurance on not having to go back to that.. that prison I was in!" He stood up and started pacing. "Didn't your boyfriend tell you that I wanted out of that place? It was rough in the beginning, but I took control of Maxwell. I didn't want to go back, but HE.." He pounds his chest. "..forced me back in."
"Rightfully, so. Sheila, you had your chance here among the living. You obviously blew that when you ripped off Mrs. Burrows." Pam stated.
He looked at her and kneeled toward her.
"Pam, we're supposed to help people in need. Save lives. Help those who are weak. Sheila was wanting to be rescued." Ralph said in his normal voice.
"Ralph said that you tried to convince him using Bill's normal voice as well." Pam said unphased as she heard Ralph's own voice.
"You're useless." he said chuckling with the female voice. "Ralph" stood up and looked at a wall. A holograph appeared, Bill was putting on gloves and then put the silver jade dragon stone in his coat and zipped it up. The holograph faded out.
"I want to know what that object is that Billy has with him." he said looking at Pam. She turned the other way in silence. "Ralph" smirked, "Fine, it doesn't matter. I've got the suit." He looks at himself in the suit. "This costume is amazing. All the strength I have with it. The powers I now have."
"One problem. Just like Ralph, you haven't figured out how to use it correctly." Pam said.
"It's working fine for my needs at the moment. I'm not concerned." He said.
"You should be VERY concerned." Bill said standing in the rain at the entrance to the roof. "It's time to put the jammies back in the box, let Ralph have his body back and for you to iron your white sheet, Sheila." he said as he pulled out his gun.
"Ralph" grinned, "The gang's all here. Time for the fun to begin!"
"Bill, she's gonna try to kill us!" Pam yelled.
"Try is right, Counselor. She won't succeed." Bill said defiantly.
"For an FBI Agent, you are an idiot." he said. "Don't you remember, I HAVE THE SUIT!" yelled "Ralph" as he outstretched his arms.
"So what, I've got the gun." Bill said as he ran off disappearing behind the fans, vents and storage areas on the roof "Ralph" turned his focus from Pam to Bill.
"I can crush that gun with my bare hands, Maxwell." he said as he started to walk towards where Bill ran off to hide.
Bill rose from behind an air duct, "Not with the bullseye on that suit!" He fired a shot from his gun. "Ralph" stopped in his tracks and put his arms in front of his head blocking the shot. Bill ran for more cover.
"You're delaying the inevitable!" "Ralph" said tiring of searching for Bill.
"So are you!" Bill said firing another shot. "Ralph" put his arm in front of his face deflecting another bullet. "Give up!" Bill said as he ran.
Becoming furious "Ralph" shouted, "NEVER!"
"Fine, have it your way." Bill said as he ran out into the clearing.
"Ralph" spotted him, "You're not getting away this time!" He ripped off the top of an air duct and threw it like a frisbee hitting Bill in the leg. Bill collapsed, holding his leg. His gun fell out of his hand and slid a few feet away from him. Bill tried to reach for the gun, but "Ralph" grabbed it before he could.
"Little boys shouldn't play with guns." He said crushing it in his hand.
Bill crawled away from "Ralph". He looked over at Pam. "Counselor, get outta here!" She stood and ran into the building.
"Ralph" looked over at Pam escaping. Sighing he said "I wanted her to watch this part!" Thunder cracked in the sky as "Ralph" advanced towards Bill. "So, how would you like for it all to end? Asphyxiation? A nasty bump on the head? Maybe you'd like to fall thirty stories to your doom."
"It'd be nice if dames like you would come up with new material. Falling to my death was tried already." Bill said pulling out the silver jade dragon stone.
"Fine, you get a bump on the head." He said. "I'll use that statue you have to do it with." He said looking at the object.
"This is goverment property." Bill said backing up against the huge framing of an antenna. "Stealing from Uncle Sam is a federal offense!" He said trying to look for an escape route.
"Ralph" swiped the object from Bill. "He won't charge me. I'm DEAD!"
"Then do me a favor." Bill said holding the antenna base as he pulled himself up to his feet. "PLAY dead!" He said as he ripped a cord out of its socket from the antenna causing sparks to shoot out of it. Bill lunged towards "Ralph" with the wire still shooting sparks from it.
"Hahahahaha. You missed." laughed "Ralph" moving out of the way. The cord slipped out of his hand and he fell forward.
"I thought you were tougher than this, Billy." he said as he leaned against the antenna holding the silver jade dragon stone. "You've resorted to cheap tricks and badly designed souvenir items."
"Yeah. Well, it's like you said. You have the suit. Not me." Bill said turning over to face "Ralph". "You're tougher, but I'm smarter."
"Smarter?? You're a piece of work, Maxwell." He stood up. "Now, you're gonna be a dead piece."
Ralph grabbed the antenna base and started pulling it, bending it towards where Bill was lying. "See how strong this suit makes me? I'm using just one hand." He said holding the silver jade dragon stone under his other arm.
"Don't bother flaunting. You're not gonna impress me." Bill said looking at Ralph, then towards the sky.
"I guess not. It's hard to impress a dead man, anyways." said "Ralph" as he was slowly bending the antenna off its hinges.
Just then a lightning bolt shot down at the antenna, electrocuting it, "Ralph" and everything around it. Bill covered his eyes from the blinding light. When the light faded "Ralph" examined himself then looked at Bill.
"How did you survive that lightning strike??" he asked surprised.
"Insulated shoes and rubber gloves!" Bill said taking off his gloves, tossing them to the side. "I'm smarter, remember?" Bill said sarcastically.
"Not for lo.. lo... long.." he started to feel faint. "Ralph" fell to his knees.
"What's the matter, Sheila? Popeye run out of spinach?" Bill said sitting up.
"Ralph" looked up noticing the silver jade dragon stone was starting to glow bright. "Wha.. What have yo... you do.. done... done to me... me??" he asked.
Bill took the stone as it continued to glow brighter and moved it away from where "Ralph" could reach it. "Nothing, other than called the spirit cops to cart you away to your new prison cell inside this big chunk of rock."
"No... NO! Yo.. You can't do thi.. this to me!" he said.
"It's too late, Sheila. I already have. Time to say bye-bye!" Bill said as he enjoyed watching Sheila suffer.
"NOOOOooooooooo..." moaned "Ralph" with the female voice. All of a sudden the bright glow from the green rock stopped. Ralph collapsed and lay motionless in the hard pouring rain.
"Ralph? Ralph??" Bill said checking on him trying to get Ralph to respond. "Come on, kid. It's over, we won. Now wake up." he said sitting over him checking Ralph's vitals.
"Bill.." Ralph said faintly in his own voice. Bill made a sigh of relief.
"Good to have ya back, kid." Bill said.
"Pam, is she okay?" Ralph asked opening his eyes.
"She's just fine. She's inside probably laughing at us getting soaking wet out here. Come on, let's get you outta this weather." Bill said helping Ralph sit up.
"I'll be fine, the suit is protecting me." Ralph said.
"Okay, then let's get ME outta this weather." Bill said as they helped each other up from the wet concrete of the roof top.
"Works for me." Ralph said as they headed to the roof top entrance to go home.
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