Showdown at the Market Place

Chapter 12 in which Sarah and her companions experience their most intense battle yet..

True to what we decided on, the boys and I pulled out and equipped the spoils that Thorton had set aside for emergency purposes,  and pretty soon, we were carrying out the big guns.
The people around us as we passed looked freaked and worried, which I naturally assured them that they need not worry..to no avail.
Cuz they still looked freaked and worried.

Past the reaches of the market, we kept on walking, entering the outskirts.
The freaks had one thing right; it was a wasteland.
Rather desolate and colorless, the only thing you could see was the market behind us, a wall of mountains far ahead, the white rainy canvas of sky above us, and the ground covered in gravel surrounding everything.

Eventually, we came quite a ways from everywhere, coming across two things. One, a post made of dark wood, buried into the ground to our left, with a sign reading..

N O W   L E A V I N G  T H E  M A R K E T   . . 
 P L E A S E  T U R N  B A C K . . 
U N C H A R T E D  T E R R I T O R Y  A H E A D

We all came to a stop. Stopped to stare directly at the second thing.
The second thing being a near 7 ft. pillar of muscles and rage, with arms the size of logs, and fading dark hair atop a bulbous head.
His skin color? Didn't even look like he HAD color.
In fact, he looked almost dead.
The assassin was turned, facing the mountains ahead, and was staring at everything in front of him, scanning left to right over and over.
His fists were curled and ready to hit something . . his body was vigorously heaving uncomfortably in a rhythm I could only guess was breathing.

My heart was throbbing. And not in a good way.
Not in a fearful way..I wasn't afraid.
But....I couldn't believe how big he freaking was.
WHY was he so big? >:( And strong?

So yeah, I gulped..and I worked up my senses and stepped forward, nodding at his back. "So.........yo." 
And like that, his head ceased it's movement. He stared straight ahead.
He took deep soundless breaths. Glaring at the others, who both nodded and urged me to go on, I looked back, and cleared my throat.
"Yo...'xcuse me!" I waved to get his attention, which naturally I was ignored, but hey. "Mr. Assassin?" 
. . . And slowly . . rather quicker than I expected.  . his head turned.
I half-smiled, "We'd like to talk to you."

At this, the brute abruptly started turning his whole body around, now revealing to me his front side. His face was atrocious.
It was broad and almost swollen looking, his eyes barely visible due to the way his bones were structured around them. The front sides of his hair were burnt right off.. a massive scar ran from the top of his skull allllll the way down across his left eye (ya know, from his perspective), down to his chin. It was gnarly. What was worse was that the more I looked at him, the more I saw that his eyes had no color. At least, not in the traditional sense.
They were almost the shade of normal flesh.
His clothes, bruh, his clothes..they were so tight, they looked like they almost conformed to his skin. Think spandex. But worse.
Equipped to him were large heavy duty gloves that squeaked as he squeezed them tight. And lastly, he had enormous thick black boots, and a very grumpy frown that was rather alarming. He was angry before we even did anything.

 I raised my brows and cleared my throat, resting my shotgun against my shoulder as I took two steps forward. The brute was now facing us, staring intently with his disturbingly lifeless eyes, as if he were studying us. This caused Bane to step up next to me, making me glance over at him, and I saw that his body was tensing, his fists squeezing tightly..
He knew that something was about to go down, and he apparently didn't want me to be front and center, taking the brunt of it.
Jim moved to my right, peeking at the assassin so he could watch from a closer position. My eyes returned to the assassin and I felt my chest tighten. An impulse in me wanted to be snarky, but another was on serious high alert. ". . . Look, I won't play around with you. I'm tired of this place and I wanna leave, so, we know it's you that's trying to assassinate Thorton. You killed his security, so there's already hot water in your future for that one. Don't make it worse, man. Turn yourself in now while you still can. If you don't, we'll-" "You are the ones."
!!!
I jerked my head back in shock as Bane and Jim's heads turned to me.
"--w--what?"
His chin lifted and he stepped forward, his body almost rising in size.
"You are the ones they search for...the enemy they spoke of.."
Much to my dismay, he started approaching me and the boys.
And his stride was massively powerful. In five of my steps, he took one.
The distance between us was shrinking by the second.
For a second, I wanted to run. Or at least step back and bow out of the fight. But I snuffed it out, and like a true Demens, I stepped up closer to him, pulling my gun out of it's holster and pointing it in his direction.
"Final warning, GOLIATH. Give up now or we WILL take you down."
But the brute was undeterred.
He kept coming.
"You are the enemy........you must be destroyed..."
Oh boy..ten more strides and he had entered a ten foot distance from us, and before I could even breathe or blink, Bane had lunged out and sped towards the assassin, in an instant throwing his arm out with a powerful punch packed into it. My heart skipped a beat as he swung it right at the brute's face.....and his fist was caught with such complete and utter ease, it hurt. Bane looked as the assassin held his fist in his palm and suddenly started to squeeze it..I widened my eyes as I heard his bones start to crackle and his voice drizzle in pain, to which he quickly brought his other arm in and shot it at the brute's face. His horribly emotionless face was turned for a fraction of a second before turning back to Bane...
He was completely unfazed.
But with HIS other arm, he punched Bane in the face, then ripped the grenade launcher strapped to his back and tossed it several yards away from them both, completely out of reach. We needed that. Badly.
My heart skipped and I swung my head at Moriarty, "Jim, go get it, NOW!" 

He jumped at my yelling, swiveling his head to the direction it was thrown in and didn't respond for a short few minutes until he finally nodded and ran the best he could to retrieve it, without looking desperate.
I stepped forward toward the two in front of me.
But before I could jump in to help, the assassin quickly grabbed Bane by the skull and with one swift motion, he spun my companion around and hurled him yards away, Bane rolling and tumbling in an utterly violent and painful manner, before landing on his backside with an incomplete jerk.
I didn't realize I was still coming, though, watching my companion get tossed like a ragdoll, who we all relied on as the toughest and strongest.

As I opened my eyes, I saw that the brute had turned to me...
once again, he was approaching me. Quickly, I cocked my shotgun, as we came a short distance from one another, and bam! 
 The first shot flew right into his abdomen..and he jerked back, stopping for only a few seconds. His head fell to the bullet hole...or what used to be one. I, meanwhile, had been knocked back a few feet and I held on to my insides as the impact from shooting had thrown me off balance and made my innards jiggle like jello. And yes, my ears rang, cuz hot dang, that was LOUD. So as I held my weapon with one hand, I held my ear with the other, wincing painfully. Shooting a shotgun is a much more juttering experience when you don't have the right preparations.
But life got stupid when the brute looked up at me and his hands that hurried to his wound fell back to his sides and within only a few seconds, he was coming at me again, albeit with a quicker pace.
My heart dropped as my eyes widened and mouth fell.
Even after being hit by a shotgun shell, he was still unfazed.
His hands curled into fists, "You can not penetrate me. . you can not disorient me. . the outside of my body is a hard shell. . one of which you will never crack. . even with all your strength. . my body is armor. . you, mortal girl, will never stop me." 
GEEZE AND CRACKERS, HE WAS RIGHT THERE.
By lightning fast instinct, I fought off my shock and began a shooting spree, despite everything he just told me. . and excuse you, I am no mortal, I IDENTIFY AS IMMORTAL, THANK YOU.

My bullets, one after the other, kept flying and flying, one by one coming into gnarly impact with his body. Holes scattered all about his skin and clothes. I kept reloading and shooting, delivering at least 15 bullets, that all had done absolutely nothing but keep him at bay for a few moments.
The power behind the gun eventually dulled for me and I wasn't thrown back as far as I had been. I went to shoot again, as he came a mere nine feet from me, when..... click.
Crap.
Suddenly, I found myself scrambling. I dove my hands into my pockets and searched frantically with my fingers for any ammo, my heart racing like a horse, but to my horror, I had nothing left.
Before my brain could react, the end of my gun was grabbed, causing my eyes to dart up, and next thing I know, cold rock hard metal had come into contact with my head, knocking it back so hard, I shouted and staggered back, hands lunging for my head as an excruciating pain throbbed in my skull. All I could do was squeeze my eyes shut and clench my teeth so tightly, they grinded. Unfortunately, I was given no time to recover at all..
I felt a hand instantly grab my throat and perform a powerful constriction as if it were a snake, which made my eyes pop open and zoom right onto the one responsible. As if it couldn't get worse, he lifted me by the throat, any oxygen I had stored at ground below being sucked right out.
I couldn't breathe. At all.
Grabbing at his arm, trying to fight him off, kicking my legs aimlessly, I struggled to even choke. But he just stared right at me with cold dead eyes, as he kept squeezing and squeezing.

 Just as I felt my throat about to rupture, a gunshot echoed in the air and in my ears a fraction of a second before the bullet suddenly slammed into the back of old Goliath's head. He was knocked so hard, his grip released and I fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air.
I raised my head up at the assassin to see that he had recovered way too quickly and was rotating, revealing a nasty bullet hole in the back of his head. But much to our surprise, as he had turned, Bane had leapt out from no where and sucker-punched the bully right in the face.
IDK if you've ever been punched in the face by Bane, cuz I personally have not had this experience, but they ARE powerful, and they ARE violent.
My boy packs in a lot for each one he plants on you, with usually very little signs of wear to the point where HE almost looks like a robot sometimes.
The man is a ferocious fighter, so he can do an awful lot of damage..
Which made this ordeal we were facing so incredible.
The assassin was like a machine. He displayed no signs of pain or exhaustion. Even being shot practically everywhere, he was rolling right on to the next attacks. He wasn't even wincing at the level of hurt my boy was bringing on him. Bane performed a massive beat-down, punching powerfully several times with the same arm with all the force he could draw from his muscles, driving back the assassin several yards.
He kept on punching him, delivering enough blows to kill a man..still, Goliath wasn't in any bad shape at all..he even knocked in a couple of hits himself..but Bane learned to block his attacks fairly well and maneuvered around him, landing more chaotic punishment on him, distracting him long enough for me to draw out my other weapons.

This time, I pulled out a metal staff and was about to hurry off to help Bane when I saw that Jim was running back to me, grenade launcher in hand. "It's about time!" I snarked, before turning my attention back to the assassin..who was currently trying to kill Bane.
"Hey, ya big ogre!" 
His head turned to us. I smirked and waved tauntingly at him.
"I don't scare easily, punk. And I ain't finished with you yet." 
At this, he moved from Bane, who was chasing after him and grabbing him to no effect, as the brute got closer, taking my bait.
I held the staff tightly with one hand and readied myself, staring my opponent down intently.
"Jim, when I tell you, you launch a grenade."
He shot his head at me with an open mouth and a confused face, and I nodded my head without looking, expecting him to do as I say.
1 . . 2 . . 3
As he grew closer, I lunged myself at him..at just a few feet, I collapsed to the ground and let myself slide right between his legs, skidding against the rocks. Then with one motion, I sprung up and aggressively slammed the staff against the back of his skull. He jolted at this, seeming to be just a little disoriented, giving me enough time to motion for Bane to move as I ran a good distance away.
"JIM, NOW!" 
duck, cover, and wah

Jim launched the grenade and a whirl occurred before a massive explosion took place. I had to cover my eyes from the blast with one hand as the fire rose high from the ground and the light blinded me.
After a few moments, I squinted at what was left of the explosion as the fire and smoke cleared.... when I gasped as a hand grabbed my face and jerked me in. Yelling as the brute brought me up, his other hand reached in to grab at my throat, but Bane jumped in and threw him off of me, at which point he threw his arms around his heck from behind and started to choke him. Jim ran to me and helped me hurry back up, where I pulled out a grenade from my pocket and stared back and forth at it and them.
"The grenade did NOTHING to him." Jim stressed, out of breath.
"We've given this bloke enough damage to kill 20 men."
He got up closer to me, trying to get my attention, as he stared straight at my unresponsive face.
"Let's just go back to the ship and get out of here. We can't kill him. It's hopeless."
As delightfully Irish and adorably panicked as he was sounding, I shook my head at him in rejection, denying such a plan any light of day.
My eyes stayed on the grenade as I had a revelation.
"If we can't kill him from the outside..we'll have to do it on the inside."
He lowered his brows and looked at me quite perplexed like.
"What?" 
His eyes fell down at the grenade. And the wheels turned in his brain as he realized what I was getting at and his head lifted back to me as I looked at him. His face turned to one of understanding.
"You're going to get that inside of him." I nodded. "And if I fail...if he kills me..I want you and Bane to do everything you can to get the job done. Run back to the market and get Joker and the others to help you. You do NOT let him live."

He didn't respond at all, just stare at me, his brown eyes devoid of emotion. It was hard to remember that he was a sociopath when he flirted with me like constant. But when it came down to the moments where sheer emotion was required to be shown, he lacked it. And he could offer me no words of comfort or even insist that I give him the grenade instead..
There was nothing. He was empty.

Then his eyes moved from me to Bane and the brute and widened, which caused me to look, and we both witnessed Bane suddenly being snatched and thrown over the assassin's shoulder.
Bane heaved and tried to get back up..but what came next made me cry out and my heart stop..the assassin suddenly took hold of his arm from above and crushed it, breaking it.
"BANE!!!!" I screamed, about to lunge forward, just as Bane screamed in horrendous agony. Something you'd never expect to hear from our serious and quiet companion. Before he could finish his work on my friend, I sped forward, pulling my handguns out, and ran with all the rage I could muster. "GET AWAY FROM HIM, YOU HIDEOUS FREAK!!!" 

Just as he turned, I began shooting bullet after bullet like a wild monkey.
He staggered at the power coming at him, but in a flash, he charged right at me, the whole thing happening so fast, I didn't even realize what had happened as he came at tremendous speed and swatted my head and in a vicious hurl, I was thrown SEVERAL feet away, where I violently tumbled and tumbled and landed mercilessly on my stomach.

Pain devoured me as every inch of me hurt and throbbed and winced, coughing weakly. Thankfully, my guns were still in my hands and I had to act quickly, so I fought through the pain and moved my head back to the assassin..but to my shock, he was already on top of me.

He knocked the gun right out of my hand, punched the one that held the other, making me yelp as my whole arm went numb..
but it was nothing compared to what he did when I tried to hurry up, and he knocked me back down, punched me hard in the face, and he lifted his leg up above mine.....to my horror.....he brought it down with inhuman force on top of mine. My bones snapped.
I sent out such a horrifying shrill, the deafening sounds of my own screams making everything go mute.
This, dear readers, was the worst pain I had ever experienced in all my nineteen years. Let alone the most vicious thing that's ever happened to me. Excruciating pain that didn't even seem real overrode whatever else he had done to my body. I felt it run up my leg and into the rest of me.
I was blinded by red hot tears swelling up into my eyes, making them boil as my ears blared, body trembled, and brain feel like it was about to erupt.
As if it couldn't get worse, it did.

He grabbed my hair and yanked me up by it, making me squeeze my eyes shut and struggle to stop him. To no avail.
And he cut off my breathing once again.
This was one of those moments where you wonder if this is it..
this is the end..this is how I die.
Until a Bane suddenly shoots from the ground at your assailant, and your assailant irritatedly lets you go.

I flopped back to the ground as the assassin started back to Bane, who was shooting with his functioning right arm, his left dangling at his side.
I had to do something or he'd be killed.
So I struggled to get up, Jim rushing to my side.
I climbed up against him, not able to stand, and when I tried...I let out a horrified gasp. My leg wasn't responding to my commands.
I couldn't feel it.
He had broken it.
SON OF A BLIMP HAD BROKEN MY DOG JAMMING LEG,
IT WAS SO FREAKING ON.

I let go of Jim and fell back to the ground, flinching at the pain it caused me. I still had something to do.
"What are you doing?!" Moriarty exclaimed, as he tried to pull on me.
"Let's get out of here!" But I thrashed my head,
"NO. I'm not leaving Bane."
"He's going to kill you, forget the masked buffoon!" 
"I am NOT leaving him! I am NOT running! And I am most certainly NOT living with a freaking broken leg!! Forget that crap!" 
I snatched the grenade launcher and stuffed in another grenade, albeit with some struggle. "If I'm going out, I'm going out fighting."
"UGH, you're so Viking, it physically pains me!!" 
"RUN, Jim. Run and tell the others."
He jerked his head back. His eyes moved from me to the assassin, and for once, I could see genuine panic and confliction.
".....But..."
"JIM, for God's sake, GO! You're a runner, RUN!!" 

I think some part of him hurt from that, but he didn't show it.
Instead, he sucked in a deep breath, and took off.
In truth...I wanted Jim to run. I counted on Jim to run.
Cuz Bane and I were already scroogled.
I didn't wanna watch someone else I cared about get torn to pieces.
So I swallowed hard and shimmied my body a few inches forward, readying to aim. Unfortunately,  I realized that Goliath had reached Bane and was currently punching him several times in the mask.
My heart hurt at every impact Bane was experiencing, hearing the sounds bust out from the mask as the tunes had been disconnected.
I grit my teeth to sawdust.
"LEAVE HIM ALONE, YOU TRASH"
With a weak arm, I switched to my handgun, and I aimed at him..since the grenade launcher would also kill Bane in the process and that's something I could never do ever..I swallowed and began shooting him.

Once again, his attention was drawn to me and he dropped Bane's head that flopped lifelessly against the ground, his body laying completely still against the gravel ground, making my chest tighten in panic.
If I was to take out this guy, I'd definitely have to deliver everything I had to him. So I once again went for the grenade launcher and stared him down as he came walking up to me like a machine.
Zero emotion on his face or in his eyes.
I went to pull the trigger, fully knowing I myself was too close to the blast.

He put his hand out to grab me. . that's when bullets flew at his head and we swiveled our heads at an unexpected sight.
Jim was returning, and he was emptying the mag in his gun on the assassin, shooting every bullet he had stored. Which caused the assassin to grit his teeth in irritation and speed towards the Irish bug.
He was done with us.
Jim tried to hurry backwards as he changed mags, but the brute soon reached him, soon causing him to look on in panic, and a sharp pain shot up my spine and I clenched the gravel beneath me as the assassin swatted Jim with a powerful blow, knocking him into the ground so hard, it almost felt like I  had been punched.
"JIM!!!"
 I was helpless, laying there. It made me swell up with bitter tears as I was forced to watch the assassin do his work.
I tried to crawl, roll, do something, but I was too slow, my legs dragging behind me. Moriarty was already being grabbed by the face and having it squeezed as the assassin tried to grab hold of him, my Irish companion trying to fight him off desperately. My eyes quickly returned to Bane, to see if he had recovered.....he laid there on the ground, motionless, his head turned to the side, facing away from me.
I was on my own.

So I did the only thing I could do.
I pulled my gun back out and shot. The assassin's muscles tensed.
He had had it with me.
He swung his head around to look at me, and with one swift motion, snapped Jim's whole body, breaking his back.
I found myself screaming in fury, as my companion fell backwards, completely limp.

Me being the last one resisting, the assassin came at me, looking quite determined to finish me off. There was no one else to help me or jump in at the last second. There was only me.
Out of ammo for my handguns, I turned to the grenade launcher.
There, I backed up some to give me space. I was surprisingly gaining enough strength to do this, something I was not able to do before.
As he came closer, I began my assault on the titan.
Baiting him right to me.

This time, as the grenade launched, I could feel the impact.
He stood for only a few seconds after the explosion passed, and started coming again.
I shot out another one, crawling backwards to give myself more room, but he kept recovering and closing in on me.
I shot yet another one, but just as it approached him, he sprinted and jumped high into the air, the grenade bouncing off his arm and blowing up high into the sky. . he finally came down on me.
He snagged the launcher right out of my hand and threw it, falling on top of me, ready to snuff me out. And he was about to. Without a doubt.
As I laid there on my back and watched as he reached in for my skull, only one thought crossed my mind, flashing like an alarm.
And lucky me, he made a fatal mistake..he opened his mouth to speak.
"Today, you d-"
Shove
I jammed the grenade right into his mouth.
A grenade without a pin.
"Sayonara, sucker."

And with one final smirk from me and a gratifying panicked expression come from his broad hideous face, I brought my leg up and kicked in the grenade with all the force I could muster, and his head snapped backwards, swallowing the grenade in the process.
He landed on his backside a few feet away..here, I rushed and snatched my handguns that laid a short distance from me.
As he stood back up, I began shooting with everything I had.
Bringing him further and further back as fast as I could.
By the billionth bullet, he was pushed into an open space, with all three me, Jim and Bane far from his reach, and I dropped my guns as we heard a beeping sound coming from inside him and he shot his head at it, then me. I hurriedly swung my body around and crawled like a caterpillar with all the energy of a chihuahua, and the unnatural strength built in me allowed me to leap several feet away. As soon as I hit the ground, I covered the back of my head, just in time for one final, deafening explosion. The blast traveled from behind me and vibrated against the ground. . After a few long minutes . . silence.

I laid there on my stomach, still covering my head, for the longest time.
Until I finally realized...no one was coming after me......I was safe.
I dared to roll back around and peer into the smoke and fire left from the explosion. Then my head turned to every direction.
The assassin....he was gone.
Actually gone.
At this, I sighed in victorious relief and let my body fall back.
All I could do was lay there..catch my breath...my muscles relaxing...
My eyes moved to the boys, hoping to see them rise and walk toward me, just as triumphant...... "Bane? BANE.....Jim.....JIM?" 
 .....but they weren't moving...they were still laying there...my heart sunk.
My leg was broken...I couldn't move...I couldn't run to help them or run to get help...I was stuck there.....staring at the sky...the boys were gone..
My head was in so much pain, I couldn't hold it any longer..
It fell..my breathing decreased...and decreased...my eyes became heavy and began to flutter..my heartbeat slowed...
Everything...became...blurred...
A figure appeared above me at the last second, but only in the form of a blob...and I..faded..everything stopped...I was gone...I was dying.

~ ~ ~

A blinding flash occurred. .
My eyes reversingly fluttered back open to a cloudy blue sky above.
There was no pain...no injuries..I felt my leg shift, so it was functioning.
I swallowed as I started to move my whole body, feeling completely relaxed and cleansed..you know how when you're in your right mind and living and walking around, you always seem to have something wrong with you. Even if there's nothing wrong wrong and you're a perfectly healthy individual, you can just tell when you're walking or sitting or standing or breathing, there's a discomfort inside of you. A clear sign that you are alive. If you breathe the wrong way, you especially feel it.
I couldn't feel anything.

As I sat up and inspected myself, clothed in one of my skull t-shirts and black khakis, scanning my now bare hands and slick looking combat boots,
I felt completely cured of any pain or discomfort whatsoever.
It didn't feel like I even HAD a body, it was so surreal.
I didn't have to put any effort into breathing. No effort put into thinking.

As I rose up to stand, I looked around me.
I was no longer in the market place, nor the outskirts.
Not even the planet itself.
I was standing on a gravel ground, but in front of a building that looked like it housed a garage of some kind. The building was neighbored next to others. . I turned my head and saw that I was a short distance from train tracks that laid behind me. Beyond it, there appeared to be a town, or a small city. Very modern and Earth-y, the lot of it. Turning back and looking up, I saw the sky above...a beautiful clear blue, with translucent clouds moving slowly in the air, and a radiant golden sun shining down upon the world. I moved my head down at the ground to avoid going blind, where I silently began pondering on where I was.
Where were the boys? Where was the T.A.R.D.I.S.??
Was I....dead?
If so, this was certainly a strange heaven.

That's when I heard a noise that drew my attention to my left.
Upon seeing what my eyes laid on, my heart suddenly filled with tremendous pure joy that I just can't explain. I have no idea why, but it happened. And I instantly smiled. "Why am I smiling?"
I said as I smiled.
Though with those first spoken words, my voice echoed in the air and my eyes darted around me. It sounded like I was in a tunnel.
I looked back at the thing I was staring and smiling at and eventually gravitated to it. I told myself I probably shouldn't, but the object of my interest was pulling me right in. I couldn't help it.
I came closer and closer to it until I was just a few feet from it, then I stopped. My head cocked to the side like a curious puppy.

A young man was working on a truck, it's hood propped up for him to tinker with it.. he stood just a couple of inches above me..
he was thin, but not too thin.. his skin was pale, his hair blackened. . he wore a sleeveless grey shirt and baggy worn-out jeans, topped with converse shoes and black wristbands. I went around him and looked closer at him...I was already suspecting who he was..but now I came into full realization.
With short shaggy black hair that came over his bright emerald green eyes, I knew who he was.
Mystery Boy.
"H..." I swallowed and got an inch closer.
"..hello?" 
I waited for a response. .but he said nothing.
He didn't even acknowledge me. "-hello???" 
. . . Nothing. He kept tinkering.
"Say something.." . . . .nope.
My spirit tried to sag, but I was still wanting to be happy.
My eyes caught sight of a necklace glinting in the light as he moved, that was black instead of silver, attached to a simple black lace.
It read Philippians 4:13

My mind flickered to the memory of that scripture..
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me..
My eyes turned back to him, "Dude, can you hear me? Hello??" 
"He can't hear you."
I nearly jumped out of my skin, my eyes flashing to the one now standing behind MB.
It was a man.
He had on a blindingly white cloak, the top of his face covered by the hood..and he was facing me.
"-But I can."
Cue another swallow. ".......am I dead??" 
His head tilted, "No...that's not really in your future..not quite yet."
I left MB's side and approached the man.
I tried to see his face, but no matter what angle I stood in, his eyes were shrouded. I breathed calmly and circled around him slowly.
He didn't move, just stood there.. as I looked at his hands behind his back, I could see clear signs of scars..I went back around.
"...Well, where am I?" 
His head tilted again. "Let's just say...a brief resting place..somewhere to clear your head..."
It was my turn to tilt my head. "Am I dying?" 
"No...just temporarily unconscious..be at peace..I only wanted to take this time to talk with you...to show you.."
My brows lifted, worriedly. "..am I in trouble?"
"Not at all."
I lowered my head, "But I've been...ya know..to the boys.."
"..You're on dangerous ground..but I wouldn't have placed you in this situation if it was not my will for you to be placed in it..all will be revealed in time...you need not worry about your companions.."

Well, that's a relief.. if he said so..
I curled my lips back and shifted. "I don't know what to do...there are things happening beyond my control..and me, I'm not....special...."
My head sunk. His turned to Mystery Boy. MB was standing there, just working on his truck in the same spot. That's when he turned and pulled out a rag to wipe his hands with. I watched him too, mesmerized.
"...Is he..." I didn't bother finishing that sentence.
"..Do you like him?"
I nodded slowly as I watched him dab his hands and look away to stare at the sun above us.
"He's someone who is going to enter your life very soon..someone who will become very important to you..more important than any other man you'll come across..."
MB's eyes sparkled as he took a deep breath.
"..I know him..I've seen him before.."
My eyes returned to the man. "You've been showing him to me for years now. He's always protecting me."
He nodded. Here, I purposely took a deep, chilled breath and pushed back the strands of hair that the wind was gently blowing.
"This is a dream, isn't it?"
Our eyes turned to MB as we abruptly heard a man shout at him from the garage and he nodded in compliance.
My eyes bulged. "Wait..this place is REAL?"
He looked back, "As I said. I'm showing you. I caused your consciousness to briefly leave your body to reveal to you the truth..this boy.."
"But why? Why is he so important to everything? Why does he keep popping up everywhere? How does he fit in?"
"He fits in in more ways than you know..just trust in me..you will find out, in time..the two of you will meet..just keep watching for my signs.."

My curiosity got the better of me and I slowly started to approach Mystery Boy. It was weird being right in front of someone who couldn't even see you. The closer I got to him, the happier I became.
Soon, I was just mere inches from him. I stared at him, completely entranced.
"...He really is handsome..."
The man came behind me. "You need to trust him..he is going to have a great part in your life..you will need him by your side..his loyalty will be strong for you, as I promised..but you mustn't give up on him. Not once. No matter what happens, no matter what he does, says or how things may appear..always keep him close."
I lowered my head at all this. "..Why are you telling me all this??"
That's when he laid a hand on my shoulder, and I glanced up at him.
A feeling of pure tranquility ran up and down inside of me.
A tremendous peace that could only come from one person.
"..You ARE special..all my children are special..in the future, you will come to have a connection with others as I have a connection with you. But be warned..you will go through many trials..face many dangers that you will have to conquer..just know..I will always be with you..always.."

Tears began to swell up in my eyes.
". . I.. I don't know if I can..I don't know if I can do it..I'm not......I'm not strong enough.."
He only chuckled, "You're stronger than you think."
At that, he came in all the way and took hold of both sides of my head.
"I know things may not make sense now..which is why all I can tell you is..have faith. It's the greatest gift I gave to you..keep having faith..no matter what.."
Gently, he pressed his forehead against mine, that gave me a feeling of security and reassurance..
"I love you, Sarah."

I only had a few more moments to watch him and MB, and to nod my head as a comply..
and suddenly, I was spinning. round and round and round, my body leaving the ground, being lifted high into the air. The blinding light returned and my consciousness briefly left me.
The only sound echoing in the air being a strong heartbeat..and soon, a blaring ring came into the ambience, as if my ears were still acting up.
The sound of a voice came in and slowly, the blinding light faded and faded, allowing blurry faint images to filter through my developing perspective.
I could feel my heart beat..my blood rush..my lungs acquiring oxygen..it was all a wild flash as if coming out from under water, for I gained back my sense..
The images that were above me cleared up into focus..my eyes opened wide to the one standing above me. I blinked a few times to wake myself up completely, adjusting back to reality.
I knew, now, where I was, and who I was. Including who the person was that was gently shaking my shoulder and whispering "Sarah" over and over.
My hearing cleared, my eyes opened all the way, I was breathing and alive.
I proceeded to sit up... "Thorton"
My voice was low and scratchy, so I cleared my throat.
He smiled a smile of relief. "You're alright, thank God."
Thank God, indeed.

I looked around me as I saw I was in a large tan-colored room of a tent, me laying in a hospital bed.
A medical table with a bunch of tools laying on a white cloth was beside me, and all around were other beds and tables, with various bottles of medicine scattered about.
"How'd I get here??" I muttered aloud. "I was, like..forever away from the market."
Thorton sniffed and nodded his head, "I sent Joker and a few others out to get you. Good thing I did."
I darted my eyes at him in alarm, then briefly lunged forward, "THE BOYS!"
"They're alright! Relax.." He calmed my worrying nerves as he laid me back against the cushion of the bed. My breathing slowed down as I did so. "..but..they were.."
"They merely lost consciousness, same as you. With that level of pain you all endured, I'm not surprised. Your injuries were rather severe."
"Injuries...that jerk broke my--"
As I said this, I looked down, and my eyes widened as my mouth fell open, "MY LEG!"
"Ah, yes..it was broken..we took care of that."
I was wiggling it to make sure and sure enough, it responded to my commands once again.
I shot my head at him and gestured aggressively at this. "HOW?"
He chuckled.
I sighed and eyed him suspiciously. "..how long have I been here?"
"mm, at least an hour."
????????
"Thorton...bones don't just heal themselves, child. Broken bones are broken bones."
He chuckled once again, and I wanted to punch him, and he leaned against the side of the bed.
"You're right, they don't.." He folded his arms and nodded his head.

"I took the liberty of assigning my personal doctor to aid you three. Moriarty had a broken back, Bane had a broken arm with heavy damage done to his mask, and you had a broken leg. Among other injuries, of course..we managed to repair Bane's mask, so you don't have to worry about that. Your conditions were quite critical, actually. Your hearts were very faint when you arrived."
"Hearsay." "Well, he did the job.." "Who is this doctor you speak of??"
"He's a specialist." "I'd say." "I found him on a distant planet and decided to employ him. He was known as a healing man, able to perform amazing miracles. As you can imagine, I don't use him for just any form of injury. His power is limited..that he supplies into small bottles..so I only acquire his help when absolutely necessary." He pat my panted kneecap, sternly.
"He was surprised how quickly you were able to heal.."

I lowered my head. "So the boys....they're okay.."
"They've recovered beautifully, yes. Doctor says to take it easy and get plenty of rest tonight. You should all be 100% in the morning."
"..thank you." My eyes lifted back up to him. He smiled, touched by the gratitude.
"I really should be thanking YOU. Taking on the assassin."
"Oh, that bad word....he's dead, right?"
"From what the others told me, there were traces of explosions and..other things..why...did you.."
I looked away. "Then I killed him.."
"WHAT? Wow..really?!" "..With a grenade."
His face was one of pure pride. "How??"
"I kind've stuffed it down his throat. It was the only way to stop him. We tried everything, Thorton. We emptied all the bullets we had. Shot him with grenade launchers..put a beat-down on him...nothing could stop him. It was next to pointless, fighting him. The boys took the major damage, long enough for me to get my chance...when he talked to me, he slipped out his weakness. He could only be killed from the inside. The outside of his body was like armor. So..." I shrugged.
He nodded intelligently, clearing his throat. "Well, it was a good thing you did."
He turned and grabbed a stack of papers sitting on a nearby table.
"This guy was bad news. This was sent to me while you were out there, battling him. THIS is why I sent Joker and my men out there.." He showed me a sketch of one individual. It was the assassin..

"Turns out HE wasn't really a he....so to speak. He wasn't human. He didn't HAVE an identity."
I jerked my head up at him, "Ya think?!"
"He was a genetic mutation..a WEAPONIZED genetic mutation. They were designing it to be the perfect weapon." "Who say what?" "...That's classified......."
mmmm, government conspiracy, pft.
Ain't nobody got time fo' that.
"Well..the experiment wound up becoming..self aware. And he decided to become his own master. He killed everyone at that base and escaped via a ship he stole from a pilot. He was the only one of his kind." "So did he always look like that, or??" "Actually, no. He was originally a pile of sludge to begin with. He wound up molding himself like clay into humanoid form while on the run. He attacked others along the way, and became quite wanted.."
"So that's all he was? Sentient sludge??"
He laughed at my sarcasm.
"So he gained a consciousness and decided to turn against his creators...isn't that the way it always goes?" With that, I spun around, swinging my legs over the bed, and I stood up, testing out to see how strengthened my muscles were.

"So lemme guess..being a wanted pile of sludge, he hitched rides with various people, arrived here, took out your security, tries to get to you, but WE got in his way."
I went around the bed, walking with a leg that was as good as new.
"Still doesn't explain why he was hellbent after you."
"Because I was the one selected to find him."
I gave him a look.
"I got a call last night from my authorities to take the lead in tracking him down. I accepted and was going to depart in the morning." "He must have heard that call, then."
"Exactly. He must have hacked into the radio waves somehow and decided it best to take me out by surprise. It was a good thing you got here today..or else I never would have stood a chance."
I smiled, "Good thing, indeed. I'm thankful that things turned out. It was my honor ensuring your safety, sir."
He had enough of standing there, as did I, so he walked and I followed.
"But this still doesn't explain how he..."
I stopped myself. His head turned to me, "How he what?"
I turned mine at him. "..How...he...knew me." I handed him the stack back.
"He recognized me.." His face was one of perplexity and he seemed to be pondering hard on that exact question. "..I don't know..."
Well, that was enough of that.
"How about the circus peeps? Where are they?"
"Oh, they fled the scene as soon as you returned from their place. Strange, since they just got here.."
"They knew me, too.."
"Well..it doesn't surprise me. You and your companions seem to have a knack for crashing parties."
This made me snicker. Heck yes, we do. ;)
"Which reminds me! You have some friends waiting for you."
He hurried ahead of me, walking through a tent curtain, and I lit up instantly as I darted off after him.

..

On the other side, my boys were sitting all around the tent entrance and sipping on icy cold water.
Master was sprawled out on the couch, with his eyes closed as he smiled peacefully, seeming to be in tip-top shape...Moriarty was sitting in a chair, his legs properly crossed, casually sipping from his glass, waving his fingers like a composer as classical music played from a record player.
Bane was standing next to him, his arms crossed, his head pointed to the floor, appearing to be enjoying the music, in his own way...Joker sat on a bar stool, infront of Brian, who was behind the counter, serving refreshments. Lastly was what I assumed to be the good doctor, who wore a fedora and fancy little checkered outfit, holding a cane and pocket watch, that made him look like an English professor. He shifted his glasses after putting his watch away and held his chin, thoughtfully, his noticeably middle-aged face displaying clear signs of intrigue as he listened to the music.

Thorton and I stepped into the room unnoticed and glanced at one another with a half smile, as they were completely oblivious. I turned my head and cleared my throat.
"Well, you lot are proving to be a bunch of old men."
Instantly, all eyes whipped to us and a wave of happiness passed over me as I saw that my companions looked RELIEVED. o.o
However, Joker didn't show this for very long, so he soon rolled his eyes and stood up,
"Aw great, she pulled through."
I approached him and playfully punched his shoulder for his snarkiness.
"Dang right, I pulled through. I'm too stubborn for death."
Master, Jim and Bane all got up and flocked to me, inspecting me up and down.
"You're alive, what a surprise!" Jim hugged my side and I wasn't even fighting it.
"Which means our date is back on!"
"It is NOT a--oh, never mind." I rolled my eyes at this.
"Date, what date??" Master crinkled his face, as I gave Jim a side hug back.
He pointed, accusingly. "What are you two hiding?"
"Pay him no mind." I said as I came up to him and threw an arm around his neck, bringing him in..to give him a noogie.
He gave me a face, "What a joy to have you back with us."
"Aw, Harry, c'mon. You know you missed me."
I checked his head, inspecting his face carefully, finally giving it a nod of approval.
"You're looking well! How d'ya feel?"
"Violated." He shoved my arm away. pft.
"Yeah, you're better.."

I turned to Bane and grinned before giving him a fistbump. "You ok, bro?"
My fingers lightly touched the bottom of his mask.
"Yes, thank you." Jim interrupted, sarcastically.
"You're flirting, of course you're okay."
Bane nodded his head, gratefully. "Healed. There's no pain in my arm and it's functioning. My mask has also been repaired. What about you, Miss Demens?"
"Me? I feel great." I did a shifty little dance, my boots squeaking under me.
"Good as new. Ready to head out and adventYAAHHHHH."
"Fascinating, so am I."
J was about to head out the entrance, when I snatched him by the back of his shirt and reeled him in, like a clown fish, I am so sorry. "Oh no, you don't. We ain't leaving yet. Not until we say goodbye."
He groaned.
"Quit your whining." Not wanting to waste any more time, I turned to the doctor and nodded at him as he stood up from his chair. "Glad to see you are well, miss." He said, sweetly.
"Thanks for everything you did, sir. I truly appreciate the help. Leg feels good as new!"
He smiled, "Wonderful. We are in dept to you for saving us. That creature not only would have killed Mr. Thorton, but the rest of this market, as well. You and your company are truly a blessing."
"HA!" Joker roared. Ha, indeed..

I gave the doctor one last smile, "Thank you, really..maybe we'll see eachother again one day."
"Ah, just a moment..if those are not the last injuries to come in your ventures..I suggest you take this."
He handed me a thin bottle of reddish liquid, that looked too pretty to use for anything.
I reluctantly took hold of it, giving him a look. He nodded, generously.
"It's what I use to regenerate others. To heal. It's extracted from me through an IV, which can only be done every 3 months. It's potent, so only use a few drops, placing them on the tongue. Any injury will be cured." "..But.." "Oh, I have more, trust me. Something tells me you'll need it. Keep it as a souvenir. Something to remember us by."
He smiled one last time, obviously not willing to allow me to argue, and proceeded to shake my hand.
"God speed, miss. God speed."
I shook his back, "Back at chya, man."

Next came Harvey and Brian, who ushered us all outside.
Our T.A.R.D.I.S. sat a short distance away. People were still everywhere.
I glared at Claud and all the the others I had brushings with. They noticed us all standing out in a group and I waved goodbye with a smile. They waved back.
There was no sign of that Derek fellow...so I could only assume, him being the biker, that he fled with the circus freaks. I prevented my mind from wondering about the lot....I had enough of mysteries for one day..I turned back to the government donkeys and saluted.
"This is goodbye, then. You two take care..and you call us if you need ANYTHING, ya hear?"
Harvey took my hand and shook it, gratefully. "Same to you, Miss Demens. And thank you..I'm eternally grateful for what you and your men did for me.."
I shook Brian's hand and stepped back, giving one last smirk of cockiness.
"Welp..be seeing ya guys! Stay safe!"
And honky dory, I skipped off with my eager companions, who gave their own salutes to the two as they passed.

ksdwkpdwii9s878UHJSASLKSAQ,Lls./a/
Harvey Thorton watched as the five walked away . . . he turned to his right-hand . .
"You see them, Brian? . . .  those five . . they're smart . . they're attractive  . . they're strong . . they're crazy . . they're just . . wrong."
He looked back and smiled.
"They're just what this adventure needs."
;l;dwskps
'l;[]sp
'ak

~ ~ ~

Skipping to a much later time in the evening. .
the boys clocked out early, not long after we left the planet and entered space, and had been passed out pretty much the rest of the time I was awake, me finishing up our latest chapter in my book.
After that, I played with my laptop. And well..I built this here site.
Didn't start converting the chapters to it yet, but..I made it..something I had been wanting to do for quite some time. But eventually, I grew bored of the computer and sat upright in bed, staring all around my room. ....then...my eyes moved to something in particular...
I think you know what..and curiosity played at my mind..
With the boys passed out, I had another chance to investigate..so I took it.

I opened my drawer, grabbed the marbles, sprung up and ran through my door to the living room.
I peeked at the hall to make sure no one had followed me..
looking all around the room to make sure I was alone...then let myself gaze at the objects in my hand.
I stuck the others atop the counter and turned my full attention on the one in my palm.
My eyebrows crinkled as I stared intensely. What WERE they??
I jiggled it..shook it..sucked my breath in and dropped it. But no dice.
It just laid there, rolling in circles, mocking me, being boring.
I was so aggravated. How dare it not work?!

I picked it back up and squeezed it..squeezed it so hard...but still, nothing happened.
I wanted to scream with all the energy in my body..and before I knew I had it, I had it.
I took my arm and threw it at the wall, with a shout of fury--but within this second of fury, I next had a second of panic as I yelled and threw myself back against the stools, for as the marble had made contact...a large window of energy busted out from it and grew into a hole the size of my body.
Beyond that hole was a brief glimpse of a world.. a live, moving world, within the border of that circle, pressed tight against the ship wall. It pulsed with an unearthly green and purple, electricity and energy, sparking and humming, making the entire room go dim in light as a blackish filter cast over everything.
My heart beat a million miles per minute for what felt like countless moments, but really..
the window was only there for a total of 3 seconds..
and then..just like that..it vanished.
Sucking right into itself.

It took longer than that opening for my body to respond again...I slowly emerged from the stools and cautiously approached the wall..my face was filled with shock...I swallowed hard as I came closer, and as I got to the spot, I knelt down. Looking at the dark spot and inspecting the atmosphere it developed in..my hand waved at a small faint cloud of sparkles. They made tiny bell noises as I touched them, similar to what occurred when I had waved my hands in space.

They were all different colors, those sparkles, and almost looked like energy glitter.
The spot also had generated warmth and still had the echo of low humming ricochet off the metal wall.
My mind slowly realized, and the idea appeared...the idea of what this thing was...
and I smirked.

It was a portal.