Author's note: I apologize for the long delay. I had to do some major rewriting to make this chapter look good, and it was not easy. Hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 12

X X X

"Hello, am I speaking to a Father Vittorio?" Mary spoke into the phone.

"Yes, Ma'am." a voice responded, "How can I help you?"

"This is Sergeant Mary Summers of the JakobVille Police Department. We'd like to have a word with you, about a certain friend of yours."

X X X

"He really gave you that much for that ruby, huh?" Julie asked Zeke; who was counting up a wad of cash as they made their way towards the docks.

"Yep." Zeke replied, "I just showed it to him and he got so fascinated that he offered to 'buy it at a high price.' So I said, 'Okay, it's yours.' And then he was all like, 'Heheheheh... thank you!'"

"I... see..."

Julie took a brief moment to ponder how to comment on Zeke's story, then suddenly stopped walking.

"Wait!" she said.

"What's up?"

"Listen... you smell something?"

Zeke took a whif of the air, as he pocketed his money.

"As a matter of fact, Dr. Stantz, I do." he replied, "In fact... it smells like... Oh, you've gotta be kidding me!"

He and Julie stared in the direction that the smell was coming from. Sure enough...

"More toxic waste?!" Julie cried.

Zeke sighed.

"Well, that's just great!" he blustered, "First zombies, then evil toys, what's it gonna create next? Humanoid carnivorous fish monsters that walk on two legs and..."

That's when Zeke finally noticed Julie staring behind him, in shock.

"Let me guess... that thing I just described is coming up behind me, isn't it?"

Julie nodded frantically.

"That figures."

Zeke dove forward, just in time to avoid a swipe attack from said fish monster's razor sharp claws. As he hastily turned around and got back on his feet, he and Julie watched as the green scaly fish-like creature roared at them and came towards them with one hand menacingly raised in the air. Instinctively, the teens raised their water guns and began spraying. At first, the holy water didn't appear to have much effect. But then the creature suddenly shrieked in pain and exploded into several dead fish; which plopped down at the teens' feet. They stared for a moment, then looked at each other.

"That's it." Julie said, "I'm never eating sushi again."

"I hear that. Could sure go for a burger though."

'Am I surprised?' Julie thought, rolling her eyes as she and Zeke moved on.

X X X

"And everyone over there is safe?" Harry asked.

"So he says." Mary responded on the other line, "And when I brought up that friend of his- and the teens- he asked that I send them to him."

"Zeke and Julie?"

"Yeah. Apparently, he has something for them and there's another certain survivor over there who knows them."

"Hmm... okay then. As soon as they come back, I'll see about sending them to the church."

X X X

After the survivors in the cabin passed through the door, Julie promptly deactivated it.

"That's two more down," she said, "only three to go."

"So far, so good." Zeke replied, before glancing out a nearby window.

Julie put Lil' Sparky away and shook her gun.

"Err... I think we have a problem though." she added.

"Heh... you can say that again. Look."

Julie looked out the window and cringed, as she observed several more green scaly monsters attempting to force their way into the other nearby cabins.

"Now would probably be a very good time to reload." Zeke told her.

Julie gulped.

"Uhh... yeah..." she said, "well, I hate to say this, but... we're kinda... all out."

"What? Wait... you mean... those last two vials..."

"'Fraid so."

Sighing, Zeke grabbed his radio.

"Houston, this is Dallas. We've got a problem here."

Zeke waited a moment, but got no response.

"Houston, come in." he tried again, "Do you copy?"

Still nothing.

"I guess we should've seen this coming." he said, clipping the radio back onto his belt.

"You know what that means." Julie responded with a sigh, "Time to scrounge up whatever we can find, to fight the monsters with."

"I'll check this closet."

Julie went to search the other side of the cabin, as Zeke opened the closet door. Then he suddenly cried out in shock.

"What's wrong?" Julie asked, as she came running to him, "You see a ghost in there or something?"

"No... even worse."

Julie looked inside the closet. Among some coats and a few other useless items, were two inflatable clown dolls. Julie gave Zeke a funny look.

"You're not honestly STILL scared of Oozo, are you?"

"Well... no... I uh..."

Zeke didn't have time to finish, before he and Julie were startled by the loud roar from another fish creature that had burst into the cabin. As the creature came closer and closer, the teens began frantically scanning the room for any kind of item to defend themselves with. Finally, Zeke noticed a large fast food soda cup on an end table. In a desperate move, he grabbed it, removed the lid, and splashed the liquid into the monster's face. But to the teen's surprise, the soda did more than just temporarily blind the monster; who roared in agony and collapsed into a pile of dead fish.

"Huh... so apparently, soda kills them too." Zeke mused.

Julie thought about that, then snapped her fingers.

"Zeke! There's a soda machine right outside!"

"That's right..."

Zeke took out the money he'd made that day, removed his glasses, and leafed through the bills.

"Dang... you got change for a twenty, Julie?"

Julie took out her wallet and counted up eight one dollar bills inside.

"Nevermind." Zeke said, handing a twenty to her, "Just keep it."

Shrugging, Julie gladly took the twenty and handed him her ones, then stuffed the twenty into her wallet and pocketed it. As she followed Zeke outside and he began to feed the soda machine, Julie suddenly had another thought.

"Say, Zeke... seeing as how neither of us have ever liked Oozo the Clown, maybe we ought to use him as fishing bait."

"Fishing bait?!" Zeke retorted, as he pulled a soda can out of the machine, "Julie, this is no time for... oh, wait... I see what you mean!"

Once again, Zeke and Julie looked at each other and smiled.

X X X

As the monsters continued growling and vainly scratching at the cabin doors, they suddenly stopped upon hearing a distinct voice nearby.

"Say, Zeke," it called, "why didn't the skeleton cross the road?"

"I don't know, why?"

"Cause he didn't have the guts!"

Immediately after Julie said that punchline, she and Zeke switched on two Oozo the Clown dolls and quickly raced out of sight. Like moths to a flame, the scaly creatures raced towards the two laughing clown dolls, ready to tear them apart.

"Here they come. Get ready." Julie instructed Zeke, as she began shaking up two soda cans.

Zeke couldn't help but snicker.

"Didn't have the guts, that's pretty good!"

"Zeke, focus!"

He cleared his throat and quickly assisted in preparing their 'grenades.'

"Sorry, sorry."

Before long, there were several green scaly monstrosities surrounding the clowns with their claws at the ready.

"Now!" Julie shouted, popping one of the cans open.

She and Zeke began popping and tossing the cans toward the creatures; who began to cry out in pain as the liquid drenched them. Finally, as the noises ceased, Zeke and Julie cautiously came out to have a look. The area was now littered with dead fish, empty soda cans, and plastic clown shreds; all strewn about in a sea of brown sugary liquid. Zeke and Julie took a moment to survey the carnage, then slapped a triumphant high-five.

"Now to finish the job and get outta here!" Julie said, pulling out Lil' Sparky and turning him on.

Zeke nodded in response and went after her, as she followed the radar. Then he suddenly stopped, and lifted his glasses to stare at another grisly sight.

"Oh no..."

"What's wrong?" Julie asked.

"I think we may be too late to save one of them."

Julie looked and was dismayed to see an unoccupied inner tube floating in the lake, stained with what looked like blood. She sighed and shrugged at Zeke.

"What can I say? We can't save everybody."

Soon after she said that, a voice nearby asked, "Hey, are they gone?"

Zeke and Julie turned to look as a small boy and girl in swimsuits approached them.

"What, those green monsters?" Zeke responded, "Yeah, we've taken care of them."

"Are you kids okay?" Julie asked.

"Yeah, we're fine." the boy responded, "Uh... have you seen our dad? He was with us in the water, but we lost him when we ran from those monsters."

"Uh... he wasn't out there in an inner tube, was he?" Julie asked.

"Yeah, you saw him?"

"Where is he?" the little girl asked, "Where's Daddy?"

Zeke and Julie looked at each other for a moment, then Zeke sighed and knelt down to the kids' eye level.

"Look, uh..." he said, taking off his glasses, "I'm sorry to tell you this, but..."

"Hey, there he is!" the boy shouted, pointing behind Zeke.

Zeke and Julie turned in amazement, as the kids ran up to a middle-aged man in red shorts and a white shirt; who approached them.

"Kids!" he shouted, hugging them, "Thank goodness you're alright!"

"Umm... you okay, mister?" Zeke asked, noticing a red stain on the man's shirt.

"Me? Oh yeah, I'm fine, all things considered. Sure has been a crazy day though. One minute we're all just chilling in the water, then the next thing we know, we're scurrying to get away from this green... mutant... thing... that's trying to kill us. Made me spill my punch all over myself too."

"So... that stain on your inner tube... was your drink?" Julie queried.

"What'd you think it was?"

Julie and Zeke glanced at each other, then both turned back and replied, "Nothing." After looking around in awkward silence for a moment, Julie activated the door.

"Head through that door." she said, "It'll take you to the Fort Wilhelm Military base."

The man and his kids stared in amazement.

"Cool!" the kids cried.

"You two are working for the Military?" the man asked, "I didn't think they hired teenagers to test their new inventions."

"Yeah... that's kind of a new thing." Zeke told him, "Don't know how much longer it's gonna last."

"Whatever. Come on, kids."

With that, the man and his kids walked through the door.

"That must've been some pretty thick punch he was drinking, if it looked that much like blood." Zeke muttered to Julie; who nodded.

"Come in, Dallas." Harry's voice on Zeke's radio said, "This is Houston. Give me a Sitrep."

"And NOW that thing's working." Julie commented, as Zeke picked up the radio.

"This is Dallas." he responded, "Well, the good news is that everyone here has been accounted for. Bad news is, we seem to have used up the last of our holy water."

"Is that right? Well, I may have some good news for you then. Come see me in my office as soon as you can."

"Way ahead of ya, Houston. Dallas out."

True to their word, Zeke and Julie wasted no time promptly walking through the door.

"Dethtroyed?! Impothible!" (Destroyed?! Impossible!) Dr. Tongue shouted, "How could thith happem?!" (How could this happen?!)

Dr. Weisman shrugged in response.

"I don't know, Doctor. But evidently, those two are an even bigger danger to your... our... plans than we thought."

Dr. Tongue gave that statement a moment's thought, then looked back at the operating table and smiled.

"Or... perhapth they may be the key to thith thity'th undoing!" (Or... perhaps they may be the key to this city's undoing!)

X X X

To be Continued