Hey folks, sorry about the long delay. Busy, busy, busy. Slightly smaller chapter than normal. I'm establishing atmosphere, people!
Thanks to those who are still diligently reviewing. You guys rock! Luv ya!
Joe: there should be enough Dr Blight in this chapter to keep you happy (for a little while at least!)
Ches: Thanks again for little Lin... she's so cute!
Angel of Eternity: if you're reading this, I promise to read your fic soon! I've been hearing that the latest chapters are a little on the dark side and I must admit that I'm kinda drawn to this genre! Sounds intriguing...
Disclaimer: I don't own Captain Planet: namely, the cartoon, comics, action figures, lunch boxes, stickers, badges, and other various paraphernalia associated with Ted Turner's company. Have you noticed that eBay is virtually devoid of Linka action figures? This is slightly unsettling ...
Alternate Destination
Chapter Seventeen
"Whoa! What the hell?"
Looten Plunder was lurched forward out of his chair as the Boeing 747 hit an air pocket and suddenly dropped without warning. The eco-villain gripped the arm-rests and held on for dear life, aware that two sleeping women in the next row had been thrown to the floor as a result of their violent descent. He glanced up when the seatbelt sign chimed several times above his head, although with unusual foresight, Plunder had thought to fasten the safety device before his sleep had been so rudely interrupted. The communication system clicked on and a calm voice issued forth from the speakers.
"Ladies and gentleman, we are currently experiencing severe turbulence. The seatbelt sign has been switched on for your safely and wellbeing, and we recommend that you remain in your seats for the duration of this flight. We thank you for your assistance."
Little late for that, you moron.
His fractured mood was now as dark and stormy as the strange weather patterns outside. He stretched his stiff legs and sat back, watching as some of his fellow passengers picked themselves up of the floor and collapsed back into their seats again.
Plunder turned and checked on Barbara. She was still fast asleep beside the window, her scarred features hidden and resting against a small, white pillow.
Bloody typical… she slept though the whole thing.
Feelingrestless and a little bored,Plunder poked her twice between the ribs and waited for a reaction. The scientist stirred slightly and mumbled something, before repositioning herself and becoming still once again. Plunder sighed. He envied her ability to sleep on planes: he spent a great deal of time and money on flights, and it was impossible for him to even doze fitfully.
He returned his attention to the half open window that Blight was propped against. Swirling, dark clouds were just visible behind her head, circulating at a frightening rate. Strangely, no rain was present; although the clouds would flash and rumble at semi-regular intervals, lighting up the night sky before plunging it into darkness just as quickly.
"Weird," he breathed, mesmerized by the unusual phenomenon. Other passengers were also peering out at the weather, a little unnerved by the display at hand. Plunder ears suddenly pricked up. He leaned forward and listened as two businessmen chatted in low, hushed voices.
"It's downright unnatural, man!"
"Tell me about it," said the second man, glancing across the aisle as another streak of lightning momentarily filled the cabin with light. "The clouds are moving way too fast."
"Well, in the queue for the bathroom earlier, someone told me that New York is already dark and without power!"
"Blackout, you reckon?"
"That explains the power, but they're saying that the sun started to set at about midday!"
"No way!"
"Are you sure about all this?" Plunder's voice intruded into the conversation. The two men turned around and eyed him suspiciously, but the eco-villain didn't seem to notice. "New York is without power and sunlight?"
"Where the hell have you been, man?" exclaimed one of the men. "It's not just New York….most of the U.S. is totally dark….. and a little freaked out."
Plunder sat back and pursed his lips, contemplating the new information.
Zarm?
The eco-villain gazed at the TV monitor without really seeing it. He wondered (not for the first time since departing) if Zarm was indeed concocting a new plan from whatever realm the spirit was inhabiting at the present moment.
Why didn't he... it... consult us, first?
This random thought troubled Plunder more deeply than he had expected. He was someone who expected an element of control over a situation. He needed to be kept in the loop, particularly in regards to his business activities.
Now impatient to hear some plausible theories from the scientist herself, he reached over and shoved Dr Blight as hard as he could. Her head struck the window flap with a loud crack. Blight's mouth sprung open in pain as she struggled to sit up.
"Ow! What in the name of hell are you..."
"Turbulence," Plunder replied with the smooth confidence he was so well known for. He filled Blight in on the earlier conversation as she listened with narrowed eyes, rubbing her head. Plunder watched her expectantly as she processed the information for a moment.
"So… they're saying that the sun began to set halfway though the day…and hasn't risen again since?" she queried in a gravelly voice, her finely-plucked eyebrows raised in surprise. Plunder nodded in reply.
"There are a couple of possibilities," she mused, although her face had acquired an ashen-gray tone as the dire implications of what Zarm may have achieved hit home. "But even I wouldn't be stupid enough to……"
"What?"
Blight shook her head and swallowed, before proceeding. "It I was to make an educated guess, Zarm has interfered with the Earth's rotation," she said, her voice faltering on the last syllable.
"Is that bad?" Plunder asked innocently. Blight stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded by both his response and his limited grasp of scientific matters.
"Is that bad?" she repeated with a sarcastic edge to her throaty voice. "Geez, you're a regular buffoon, you know that?" Blight shook her head, extremely perturbed by the whole situation that was gradually unfolding. Unable to cope with Plunder's blank stare for any longer, she lent forward in her seat.
Look," she said, grabbing a coffee cup and a set of headphones. She raised the headphones and held them in font of her body. "This is the sun. This…" she continued, shaking the cup, "...is the Earth. The earth circumnavigates the sun and constantly rotates around on its axis." To prove her point, Blight spun the cup around as it moved around the headphones. "That's how we get night and day."
"Okay, I get that," Plunder said, watching the display and understanding the basic nature of it. "You're saying that we're still moving around the sun, but we've stopped spinning, basically."
"Yeah…." she said, dumbfounded.
"Doesn't sound too bad," Plunder surmised, "Just a whole lotta' night time for us!"
"NO, YOU STUPID IDIOT!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and incurring nervous glances from those around them. "We can't live without the sun!"
"Ah, you're supposed to be wearing your seatbelt….."
Blight wasn't listening. "What the hell is Zarm playing at? This'll kill us all," she thundered.
"Now, we don't know for sure that……"
Red faced and furious, Dr Blight turned and grabbed Plunder by the collar, pulling him forward until they were face to face. Through gritted teeth, she related the only plausible outcome of Zarm's plans.
"We will all freeze to death within a couple of months…… unless you're in the Southern Hemisphere, in which case you'll need a sunscreen protection factor of about 10 000 or more," she seethed, before releasing her grip and pushing him back into the seat.
"Sit down, doctor…you're scaring the children," he muttered, aware that Blight's frightened ramblings had drawn the attention of two burly flight attendants. He was certainly a little surprised when she actually complied with his request. She moaned, before burying her head in her hands and letting loose a chorus of harsh sobs.
"I'm too young to die, Looty! Do you know how much effort goes into this body?" she whined, shaking her head in abject horror. "This wasn't part of the plan."
He patted her back in a comforting manner, then reclined his seat backwards and closed his eyes. Regardless of his calm outward composure, he was extremely concerned. Barbara Blight was rarely wrong, and if her predictions were true…
Plunder shuddered to think about it.
Looks like our alliance with Zarm has gone out the window, he mused darkly. As another streak of lightning illuminated the cabin, Plunder realized with mounting horror that Zarm's attempt to replace the previous Spirit of Earth must have failed.
Zarm can't rule us…so He'll destroy us, instead.
Plunder sat in silence, contemplating their next move. The original plan had been to find the Planeteers and forcibly take the rings from them: although that was before Zarm had apparently short-circuited.
"We still need to find those brats," Blight said from beside him, a disgusted look on her face. "As much as I hate to admit it, they're the only ones that can stop this."
"Damn," Plunder admitted with a wry grin. "I was really looking forward to the cat-fight between you and Blondie. "
Barbara Blight didn't respond. Instead, she glared out the window, the reflection of her scars doing nothing to ease the unsettling thoughts passing through her mind.
Don't you worry about that, Looten. I'll deal with Blondie afterwards.
"Haven't we already passed this shop?" Linka asked nervously, clinging to Wheelers arm as he guided them through the darkened streets using his ring.
"Excuse me, Linka but I know this place like the back... hey, watch it!" he snapped, glaring at a group of young teenagers who pushed past them, knocking Linka to the ground. "You alright, babe?" he asked, grasping her around the waist and heaving her back onto her feet. She stumbled slightly, then leaned in close to him again as a pair of men darted past with metal crow bars in their hands.
"Da," she said, before the sound of breaking glass made them stop and turn. "Boshe moy..." she breathed, alarmed at the chaos that had erupted since 'night' had fallen upon the streets of central New York. The teenagers had thrown a metal garbage can through the glass shop front of an electronics store, and were busy passing stereos and computers through the shattered window.
Frightened pedestrians hurried from the scene, not willing to remain in the streets when the looting was steadily increasing.
"Mob mentality," Wheeler muttered, angry at the needless destruction caused by the over-excited morons. "FIRE!" he yelled, sending a streak of flames towards their feet. Two of the teens closest to Wheeler immediately struck up a painful parody of a dance, before dropping their equipment and bolting from the scene. The rest followed with various paraphernalia loaded within their greedy little arms.
"Why hasn't Ma-Ti beamed us?" Wheeler yelled, straining to be heard above a car alarm that was blasting the notes of 'la-coo-ca-ra-cha' at a deafening level. In any other situation, Wheeler would have found the situation hilarious. Instead, the young man felt a sense of impending danger, as if the previous events were only the beginning of what was to come. "Where the hell are they?"
They had returned to check the restaurant from the night before, as well as all their favorite hangouts from the old days, but the search had turned up no sign of the other three Planeteers. With their choices dwindling rapidly, they stopped at an intersection.
"Shall we keep looking for them?" Linka asked, pushing her thick hair behind her ears and gazing up at Wheeler with a worried expression. Wheeler went to reply, but was distracted by two new-model BMW's, racing towards them at a frightening pace. Wheeler pulled Linka away from road, but the cars mounted the adjacent sidewalk instead. As one car made a sharp, right hand turn and screeched away into the darkness, the other collided with the side of a bank and flipped onto it's side, coming to rest in the center of the intersection.
"Shit," he exclaimed, gripping Linka's shoulders and watching in disbelief as two shadowy figures crawled out of the twisted metal and limped away. "You have gotta be kiddin' me!"
A cry sounded from behind them as Linka turned and glimpsed two men trying to wrestle the purse out of a young girl's hands.
"HEY!" she yelled, disengaging herself from Wheelers grasp and starting towards the shadowy trio. "Get away from her... WIND!"
A concentrated gust of wind shot towards the unsuspecting thieves, knocking them to the ground. The pair scrambled away empty-handed, seemingly no older than 18.
"You should return to your home," Linka said, returning the purse to the frightened girl. "It is not safe out here."
"Are you a new Planeteer?" the girl gasped, rounding on Linka with surprise but not recognizing her. "Have you all come back cuz' of what's happening?"
Unsure of what to say, Linka merely nodded, the events of the day beginning to catch up with her. The young girl clasped her hand to her mouth and muttered something that sounded like "Oh my God," before glimpsing Wheelers approaching figure. "Oh my God... that's... that's..." Without finishing her sentence, she turned and fled, her jacket and hood flapping behind her.
"You scared her away, Wheeler," Linka said, a small smile warming her features.
"Yeah, I tend to have that effect on people," he agreed, casting his eyes back to the wrecked BMW for a moment. "I think we should go back to the hotel and wait for 'em." Relieved beyond words, Linka nodded and allowed him to grasp her hand and lead her back towards the Chelsea B&B.
They walked in silence, Linka's attention alternating between the menacing figures darting in and out of the shadows, and the comforting contact of Wheeler's hand entwined with her own. Regardless of the strange events at hand, Linka felt safe in the American's company. He radiated a quiet, authoritative confidence that differed considerably from the Wheeler she had once known. The bravado was gone, as was the reckless behavior that he had too often exhibited while on missions.
She giggled, recalling an incident with Dr Blight several years ago.
"What?" Wheeler demanded, squeezing her hand lightly as they crossed a deserted street.
"I am just thinking about the the old days... do you remember when we raided Dr Blight's lab and you called her a dried-up, wrinkled old prune?" Wheeler groaned as the image popped into his head.
"Yeah... Cap was out at the time, wasn't he!"
"Da."
He frowned, trying to shake the clouds fogging up this distant memory. "She... she chased me, didn't she? Chased me through the building for about half an hour, trying to whack me with M.A.L.'s keyboard in her hand! What were you guys looking for, again?"
"We were looking for DNA samples. She was trying breed embryos with an abnormal cell structure."
"Batty ol' Bab's... wonder what she's up to, now?"
"Plotting her next move, I guess," Linka sighed, "I doubt that she will ever forgive me for crashing her computer."
Wheeler exhaled and squeezed her hand again. She smiled up at at him and winked, before foolishly realizing that he probably couldn't see her face. Her nerve-endings tingled pleasantly nonetheless as they crossed another intersection and moved into more familiar territory. They passed the subway entrance but the station remained eerily silent, devoid of the usual passenger traffic and screeching brakes. Their pace quickened (only after noticing two cars over-turned beside a small cafe and loud voices emanating from within the premises). With a quick look over his shoulder, the American gently guided Linka inside the B&B, closing and locking the door behind them.
"Gi has a key, doesn't she?" he asked, his hand still resting on the locking mechanism. She nodded and he removed it, leading the way up the stairs.
"Do you think they are okay?" Linka asked, her voice rising at least an octave on the last word. The Russian gasped in pain as she stubbed her toe on something sharp. Debris was littered all over the carpet: her Birkenstock's crunched loudly, and Linka instinctively knew that it was probably broken glass.
Wheeler didn't seem to hear the question. Upon reaching the room, he thumped on the door twice and announced himself before entering. The American opened the door and peeked inside cautiously, not wishing to incur the surprised wrath of an earthquake or flash flood. He immediately glimpsed the shadowy outline of Gi's figure, crouched in the corner.
"You guys all right?"
"It's alright, they're back," Gi said, jumping to her feet and beckoning him inside. "Is Linka with ... oh, there you are."
Linka waved and closed the door behind her, before noticing Ma-Ti's horizontal form on the bed. "Boshe moy... what happened to Ma-Ti," she breathed. Upon closer inspection, she could see a large cut above his right eye, illuminated in the glow of Wheelers ring.
"I am afraid that we ran into some trouble at Time Square," Kwame explained, having emerged from the bathroom looking distinctly worse for wear. He dusted a large amount of white particles from his shirt and hair, although Wheeler couldn't possibly imagine what it was. "Ma-Ti was hit by a glass bottle."
"Ouch."
Linka collapsed onto her bed and was soon joined by Gi, who seemed to be in much better shape than the boys. The two groups briefly explained their seperate adventures, before Wheeler announced (or rather, complained) that he was still hungry.
The others groaned, although Wheeler was quick to defend himself. " Aw, c'mon! At least you guys were able to have burgers in Times Square! We didn't get to eat!"
Gi snorted. She crossed the room to the mini bar and retrieved a snickers bar from the fridge, before throwing it to the American. "That's not our fault. We waited for you guys for ages..." Gi's eyes narrowed with suspicion as she observed her two friends. "Where did the two of you run off to, anyway?"
"Are there any more chocolate bars?" Linka asked quietly, turning a distinct shade of red as she purposely changed the subject.
"Yeah," Gi replied with a laugh, making a mental note to quiz her friend about the last few hours. "All right, onto more serious matters."
"Cap?" Wheeler asked, almost reluctantly. His guess incurred a nod of agreement from Kwame.
"Yes," the African said, fixing Linka with an apologetic smile. "We have no choice, I'm afraid."
Linka nodded, swallowing the bile which had suddenly crept to the back of her throat and was now threatening to purge itself in one, overwhelmingly violent reflex. She began to tune out to the voices discussing the events of the past few hours. Her mind could only focus on her imminent departure from this time, and she was frightened beyond belief. She seemed unaware of Wheeler's clouded gaze, as if he, too, was aware of the consequences of averting this most recent disaster.
The Russian stood and moved towards the mini bar, her unsettled stomach desperate for something to quell the hunger pangs. She returned to the bed and removed the top of the wrapper from her milk chocolate Hershey's Bar. Breaking small pieces of and placing them into her mouth, she listened quietly as Kwame outlined a few possibilities.
"We should summon Captain Planet as soon as possible. Then we need to try and find out where Plunder and his people are."
Gi nodded in the darkness. "I can ring the airline and find out about any reservations they...," she volunteered, before realizing that she was stuck in a town devoid of electricity. "Oh wait... no, I can't."
"Let's just wait for Ma-Ti to wake up first, guys. Can't team-beam without the monkey man," Wheeler said, although his voice was now uncharacteristically flat and weary. He sounded tired to Linka, although she really couldn't blame him: it had been a most eventful day.
Kwame and Gi eventually settled themselves down into comfortable positions and talked in low voices, although Wheeler remained where he was. He stood beside the bay window, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets and head angled towards the carpet, deep in thought. Linka gazed at his shadowy figure for a long while, thankful for the darkened room. She broke off another piece of chocolate and popped it into her mouth, relishing the taste. She briefly wondered if they would be charged for the items they had eaten from the mini bar, then chuckled lightly, surprised that the random thought had even entered her mind and sparked her curiosity.
"What?" Wheeler asked from his position by the wall.
She recounted her thought and Wheeler responded with an semi-disgusted groan. "Geez, Linka... glad to see that your priorities are in order..."
"I do not know why I wonder about this!"
"I can think of a couple of reasons," he muttered under his breath, but was smiling nonetheless. "You're such a knuckle-head."
Linka responded with a few choice Russian words of her own, but Wheeler moved towards her bed with lightning speed and pounced without warning, throwing himself across her lap. She let out a high-pitched squeal of surprise as his weight settled on her outstretched legs. Now resting comfortably on his stomach, Wheeler folded his hands under his chin and watched the shadowy branches outside batter against the window; twisted marionettes in the breeze, battling for their undivided attention.
The Russian kept her focus centered wholly on Wheeler, however. Her heart was still racing from his spontaneous action- she'd been totally unprepared for it. Her thoughts soon calmed as she placed a gentle hand on his head and stroked his hair, a pleasant tide of affection washing over her and warming her heart. She trailed her fingers downwards until they settled on his neck, not quite comprehending the effect her touch was causing on the American.
She lent over him and lowered her face until her lips were a mere inch from his ear, her breath tingling his skin in an overwhelming seductive, yet completely innocent manner. She felt compelled to admit a certain truth that her fiercely- independent nature had struggled with since waking on Hope Island.
"You are my rock, Wheeler. You always have been," she breathed, low enough to ensure that only he heard the intended message. He repositioned himself slightly, propping himself up by the elbows, but he seemed to continue staring at the window and failed to respond to it.
For one brief, frightening moment, Linka though that perhaps her use of English had failed her at the worst possible moment, or that she'd substituted an inappropriate word... this habit occurred on a regular basis, after all.
Is it rock? Boulder? Was I meant to say stone? Boshe moy, he is probably trying to work out what I said!
"Did I say it right?" she whispered, her face burning with a combination of fear, alarm and dreadful anticipation. Sensing her uncertainty, Wheeler swung his legs around and laid beside her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly. She shuffled down to accommodate him, his face now nestling within the crook of her arm.
They laid there for about an hour, silent and savoring each others company and their close proximity. Wheeler closed his eyes and blocked out the whispering coming from the other side of the room, as well as the sound of Ma-Ti snoring from the other bed. His fingers found a bare patch of soft skin, where her shirt had ridden up and he tickled her there, his touch light enough to make her squirm. For some reason, he half-expected her to slap his hand away but she didn't. Instead, she shuffled in closer to him and molded her soft curves to his own body, desperate for his warmth. As Ma-Ti stirred restlessly and began to throw off the shackles of sleep, Wheeler couldn't help but think that this was indeed the calm before the storm. He desperately wanted to sleep, snuggled up with the gorgeous girl beside him. The need for sleep was much more than physical exhaustion... after Ma-Ti had beamed him, he had left his medication behind and it was clearly taking it's toll.
Doc's gonna kill me.
He sighed and buried his face in the delicate curve of Linka's neck, effectively blocking out the harsh reality of his life since leaving the Planeteers.
He'd tell them all... when the time was right .
Did that get your attention?
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