The Thunder Rolls

Within about five minutes, a 4x4 truck came roaring down the muddy and rutted road, sometimes sliding from the slick mud. Coming to a halt, it stopped in front of Lucy's car. Techno climbed out of the driver's side and Sebastian hopped down from the passanger side. Realizing that it was them, Lucy got out of her own car and walked up to them. Techno threw a towel at the shivering super heorine. Lucy took it and wrapped it around her bare shoulders, since she had worn a halter top for muggy spring night. "Next time, try to dress appropriately for the weather," Techno threw at her as he walked back towards the rear tires of Lucy's car. Lucy just rolled her eyes and walked up to the truck, where Sebastian stood holding the passenger door open. He grinned at her and offered his hand. Lucy took it and hopped up into the cab of the truck. Sebastian shut the door and walked over to where Techno was at. Lucy turned on the heat in the truck (which was still running), trying to knock the chill from her bones. In a few minutes, the men took the keys out of the ignition of Lucy's car and locked the doors to it. Walking back up to the truck, they both climbed in. Lucy scooted towards the middle of the seat as both men shut their doors. "Well, we're not going to get that out tonight," Techno told her as he started to drive away. "We'll get a tow truck in the morning to get it out." As they drove back to the mansion, the clouds began to reform and the thunder began to rumble.

"...and in other news, a tool shed at Crook Ranch was burned down last night when struck by lightning during the thunderstorms that moved through the area. Firefighters attempted to put out the blaze, but were held back when softball sized hail fell when they arrived. No amount was estimated for the damage. Crook Ranch has been uninhabited since 1975." Jessica then turned the TV off and tossed the remote onto her bed. She was sitting at her desk, reading the paper from that day. It, too, had a front page story of the blaze at Crook Ranch. Sighing, she laid the paper down and leaned back into her chair, closing her eyes. Just as she started to relax, there was a knock at her door. "It's open!" she called out, her eyes still closed. "Tis me, Sally!" she heard her fair-haired friend say. Sitting up, Jessica opened her eyes and grinned at her friend. "What's up?" she asked Sally. "Gee, JED...I would think you would know better by now to NOT ask me that question," Sally said, leaning up against the doorjam of the open doorway. Jessica rolled her eyes and Sally laughed. "Well, what I came up here to ask you about was lunch. Everyone wants something different, so we're thinking about going to the mall since it's Saturday and all." Jessica grinned. "You know," she began, standing up out of her chair, "an Orange Julius sounds awful good for a meal!" Sally giggled and said, "Ok, then. Well...We're leaving in the van here in about ten minutes, so get your butt downstairs!" With that, Sally walked out of the room and down the hall. Shoving her chair against her desk, she took her purse off the hook that was on the back of her door and slipped on her Nikes. Jessica walked out of her room and shut the door, then walked down the hall and down the stairs to where her friends were.

Once the entire gang had arrived at the mall, they all headed straight for the food court. Jessica, of course, went to the Orange Julius automatically. "I'll take the largest Orange Julius you got!" she said, licking her lips in antici...pation. In a few minutes, she walked over to where Sebastian was sitting, a monsterous cup in her hand. "Holy shit, woman! Think you got enough?" Sebastian asked her, a smile in his eyes. Jessica just stuck her tongue out at him. "I like my Orange Julius," she said before taking a giant slurp of the drink through a straw. They sat there in silence, Jessica slurping on her Orange Julius and Sebastian eating his tacos. Soon, they heard thunder begin to rumble again. Looking up at the skylights in the tall ceiling of the mall, Jessica noticed that the sky was getting filled with dark clouds once again. Lightning flashed angrily, it's firey tongues reaching out in the sky. Frowning, Jessica looked at her watch. "It's not even afternoon yet," she mumbled. Looking at Sebastian, he continued to eat his second-to-last taco. Finishing a bite, he said, "I didn't know that it was supposed to storm today." Tonya, who was walking by the two on her way to dump her tray, paused and tensed. "Oh SHIT!" she said in a low voice. As soon as she said this, sirens began to wail. Jessica's eyes grew wide as she shouted out, "EVERYONE TAKE COVER! TORNADO!!!"

"This is fucked up!" Dee said, sitting down on the cement floor of the shelter. "This came on too suddenly," Jessica muttered. Tonya, who stood next to her, said quietly, "Yeah, it did." "Hey, over here! This dude's got a radio!" Poopsie called at all of them. They walked over to a high school kid that was trying to get in a signal on a transister radio. Finally, through all the crackling, a signal was found. "...if you live anywhere near the Tequila Heights Mall, TAKE SHELTER NOW!" they heard a man shout over the radio. It sounded as though he were talking through a cell phone. "This storm formed in the southwest corner of town and then intensified once it moved over by the mall. That's when the funnel cloud dropped and formed a tornado that is still on the ground!" "Shit, this is going to be bad," Techno said, running his hand over his face. "Wait a second," they heard again on the radio. "The tornado has just disapated! That's correct, folks...There is no longer a tornado on the ground! In fact, the clouds are beginning to clear and the sun is coming out. However, it is a mess in the area by the mall, so if you don't live in that area, I suggest that you stay out of it for there is severe damage to the mall. Jim, back to you guys in the studio..." the kid shut the transister off. "I guess that we'd better go up and see what's happened," Jessica said. Leading the way, she opened the door and climbed up the stairs to the doorway that lead into the mall.

"Oh my God," Jessica said, standing in the open doorway at the top of the stairs. Sebastian, who was right behind her, peered over her shoulder from a few steps below her. Sighing, he shouted down the stairs, "It's a mess up here! Keep everyone down there!" The two couldn't believe their eyes. Where there had once stood a foodcourt was now just a pile of debris. Concrete and steel, glass and wood lay all around. They could see the daylight and the outside world as the walls of the court were in total ruin. Glass that had blown out from store windows in different corridors of the mall lay all over the floor. Shruberies and vegitation that had been stripped off of the ground from outside now rested on top of the glass and debris piles. "I hope that everyone in this building made it to the shelter," Sebastian said quietly as he and Jessica began to walk over the glass. Stunned, Jessica walked over towards what used to be the entrance of the foodcourt and called out, "Is anybody alive!!!" Silence was the only answer she recieved. By now, Techno, Tonya, and Zarbon had made their way to the scene. "God almighty," Techno whispered, his eyes wide as he took in the sight. "I see a shoe!" Sebastian called out. He began digging through a pile of concrete and steel. Techno rushed over by him and began to help remove debris to find what lied beneath. "Oh shit," Techno said, throwing a piece of concrete block to the side. Tonya and Jessica looked at what Techno was looking at. They looked upon the face of the star of Tequila Heights' high school baseball team. Techno checked for a pulse, but shook his head. The death toll had started.

Twelve hours later, the entire gang shuffled through the front door of MacMickle Mansion. They had spent their time helping out in the rescue efforts. Sadly, a total of fifteen bodies had been found so far. Everyone was tired and dirty from all the removing of debris. "Well, who's got rounds tonight?" Techno stated, his voice monotone as he plopped into a kitchen table chair. "I'll go," Jessica and Tonya said at the same time. Techno nodded. "Then you guys better get out there. But only go out there for a few hours." Walking up the stairs together, Jessica and Tonya were barely able to keep their eyes open. Jessica yawned once they reached to long hallway at the top of the stairs. "I'm gonna go check out Crook Ranch tonight. It's not supposed to rain, but I'll park my car right off the side of the highway that runs by its main road," she said, looking at Tonya. Tonya just nodded. "I might be out there later to check it out with you," she said before heading to her room. Jessica went into her own room and began to change for the night's rounds.

About half an hour later, Lucy was parking her VW on the side of the road. Techno had borrowed a friend's tow truck earlier that morning to tow it out of the mud. Locking the door of the vintage car, Lucy began walking down the road towards Crook Ranch. Once she neared the old place, she could still smell the charred wood of the tool shed that had burned down the night before. Walking carefully towards the rest of the buildings, she leaned against a huge cottonwood tree. Lucy turned her head and narrowed her eyes as she saw a light move through the house. Hiding out of site behind the tree, she peered around the trunk. The light moved towards the side porch and Lucy watched as a figure moved down the porch steps and to the barn. Silently, Lucy whipped out her cell phone and dialed up Techno. It rang once...twice...three times...Finally, someone picked up on the other end. "'Lo?" she heard Sebastian mumble on the other end. "Dammit, where's Techno!" she whispered into the phone. "Hold on," she heard Sebastian mumble. There was some noise on the other end when Techno came on and said, "What." "We've got someone out here at Crook Ranch," she continued to whisper. "Ah, shit," she heard Techno mutter. Then there came the sound of some keys being punched. "Alright, well...Tonya's about 15 minutes away from there, so I'll call her and have her get her ass over there right away. Don't do anything stupid!" And with that, the line went dead. Sticking the phone back in her jacket pocket, she sat there for a few moments before she saw the figure come back from the barn with a pail of...something, and then head back into the house. Walking quietly, Lucy went over and peered through one of the windows of the falling-apart house. Inside, she saw a young man that was no more than 30-years-old pouring a whitish-bluish liquid into a machine. The man then sat the bucket down on the floorboards. Punching a couple of buttons, the machine sputtered and came to live. It made an eerie sound, like the sound of the wind whipping through the Kansas praries during a...And soon, snow began flying out of the maching, whirling around, whiting out the window that she was peering through. However, in about a minute, the snow cleared and she saw the man, now in a parka, standing in a foot of snow that covered the floor. He grinned evily and began to chuckle a menacing laugh. She watched him, though, as the man paused and then tensed. He began to turn around to face the window when all of a sudden, Lucy felt a pair of hands go around her mouth and spin her around. "It's only me, I'm just keeping you from screaming," she heard Tygress say. Breathing a silent sigh of relief, Lucy followed Ty to behind the cottonwood that Lucy was behind earlier. "What the hell is going on in there?" Ty asked her, watching as the man began shoveling snow out of the window. "I dunno," Lucy spoke just at a whisper. "All I know is that...that MACHINE in there created all that snow!" Suddenly, she jumped as she felt her cellphone vibrate in her pocket. Reaching in, she turned it on. "Yeah?" "It's getting late and I want you girls to get out of there now. There's some more storms that are going to move through in a bit. Get back here ASAP," she heard Techno said. "Alright, Ty and I are on our way then," she replied, turning off the phone. "More storms are on the way, so we need to get out of here," she whispered to Ty, who nodded. "Want me to fly you to your car?" Ty asked as they carefully crept away from the abandoned ranch. Lucy thought about that for a moment and then nodded her head in a reply. Ty then picked Lucy up and flew her to the Bug on the side of the road.

When the girls got back, Ty filled Techno in on what happened at Crook Ranch while Lucy headed upstairs to her room. Once in her room, Jessica went and turned on the shower in her bathroom. In a few minutes, she let the hot water wash away all the grime and dirt from the long day. She put shampoo in her hand and started to wash her hair when she heard a bang on her bathroom door. "Who is it?" she yelled out. "Me, Sebastian," she heard a muffled voice reply. "I'll be out in a bit!" she called back to him, rinsing her hair out. Within a few moments, she turned off the water and grabbed a couple of towels. Wrapping the smaller towel around her hair and the large towel around her body, she opened the door of the bathroom. Sebastian stood there, leaning the wall of the small hallway that lead to her room. Since it was late, he wore nothing more than a pair of black basketball shorts. He smiled ruefully before pulling Jessica in close for a hug. Jessica leaned into his chest, feeling safe for the first time since that day's tornado. She could smell the clean, soapy smell of his body when she laid her head against his chest. Finally, he released her, grinning. "I've needed that all day," he said quietly. Jessica just gave him a special smile that she saved only for him and walked into her room, Sebastian in tow. "Have you slept yet tonight?" Jessica asked him as she reached into a dresser drawer and pulled out a bottle of lotion. Sitting down on the edge of her bed, Jessica shook the lotion bottle. "No, not yet...I was waiting for you to get back home before I went to sleep," Sebastian replied. He moved over to her, taking the bottle of lotion from her hand. Jessica grinned as he put some lotion on her shoulders, arms, and back. And when he began to massage the lotion into her skin, her eyes closed. "You have no idea as to just how good that feels," she told Sebastian before sighing. She heard him chuckle, then they sat there for a few minutes in silence. "There, all done," he said, giving her shoulder a quick kiss. Jessica turned around and grinned. She put her arm around his neck and then pulled him close, touching her lips to his. After she broke the kiss, she whispered, "Thank you." Jessica walked over to her dresser, putting back the bottle of lotion and grabbing a flannel nightshirt from a different drawer of the dresser. She walked into her closet, shutting the door for privacy. But in less than a minute, she walked out, all ready to sleep for that night. "Care to...tuck me in?" Jessica asked Sebastian, her eyebrows wiggling. Sebastian laughed, and replied, "Sure." With that, she hopped up into her bed, snuggling underneath the quilt and sheet. "It's been such a long day," she said, leaning back against a nice cool pillow. Sitting on the edge of the bed again, Sebastian took hold of her hand, giving it a tight squeeze. "Yeah, it has been. T and I are going to go back out to the mall tomorrow morning after breakfast to help out," he said, sighing. "I've been a cop for a few years now, Jess," he began, "but I've never seen such a horrible way to die than what I saw today." Jessica sat up and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close to her. Suddenly, she pulled away and scooted over. "Do you want to stay here tonight?" she asked him, love reflecting in her eyes. Sebastian drew a hand threw his jet black hair and nodded. Crawling in, Sebastian gathered Jessica in his arms, holding her close. Jessica then clapped twice and the lights shut off. "I dunno what I would've done had I lost you, Jess. I love you so much," Sebastian whispered in the dark. She put a hand to his face and felt hot tears falling down his cheek. Snuggling in closer to him, she whispered back, "I love you too, Sebastian." And together, they cried before falling into a much needed sleep.

Jessica woke up the next morning only to find herself alone. Stretching, she rolled over and found a piece of paper laying next to her. She picked it up and read what it said. "I'm out with T at the mall. Will be back for dinner. I love you! Sebastian." She rolled back over, but heard a shriek outside of her window. "What in the hell?" she muttered to herself as she got up and kneeled on her couch, looking at the window. Looking down, she snickered at what she saw. Getting up, she quickly threw on some clothes and ran downstairs in flipflops. Jessica ran out the door and stood at the corner of her house by her window. Trying to supress a laugh, she cleared her throat. Then she laughed at the sight in front of her. Tonya was straddling Zarbon in a mud puddle. She was missing her shirt, but luckily she had a sports bra on. And poor Zarbon had his hands handcuffed together, his shirt missing too and his belt buckle undone. Tonya turned beat red. "You know, there is room in the mansion for that," Jessica said, grinning. "It's not what you think it is," Tonya said, standing up. She ran over to by a tree and put on her shirt, which had been lying under it. Jessica just raised her eyebrows and looked back and forth from Tonya to Zarbon. "This is too kinky for me to witness," Jessica said before turning around and walking back into the mansion. "You've got it all wrong!" she heard Tonya call at her just before she entered the mansion. Jessica just chuckled and went into the kitchen.

There, she grabbed a pear and a knife. Standing over the garbage disposal in the sink, she sliced the pear in half and cored it. As she stood there, she noticed the big thermometer that sat outside the kitchen window. She saw it read 85 degrees already. "In March?" Jessica thought out loud. Then, to her surprise, she saw it go up five more degrees to 90. Perplexed, Jessica grabbed the phone and dialed time-and-temp. What she heard was surprising---it was 95 degrees outside! The temperatue had just raised ten degrees in two minutes! Starting to sweat, Jessica went into the hall and turned the A/C on. Soon, a wet Tonya and Zarbon walked into the kitchen. "Why is it so hot out there?" Tonya asked Jessica as she walked back into the kitchen. "I dunno," Jessica said, still confused. "But the temperature just went up ten degrees in two minutes!" Tonya chirrped, cocking her head to one side like only she can. Walking back over to look out the kitchen window, Jessica gasped. Her eyes wide, she looked back over at her friends and said, "The thermometer reads 102 now."

Half an hour later, Lucy parked her car about half a mile from the abandoned ranch. She began walking, the scorching sun beating down on her fair skin. "Dammit, I forgot sunscreen," she cursed out loud. Luckily, shade trees soon branched over the road and she was in the shade, even though that wasn't much cooler. She was passing a field when she saw a shiny object out in the middle of it. Crawling through the barbed-wire fence, Lucy carefully ventured towards the object. Once she neared it, Lucy realized that it was another machine. Looking around, she noticed nothing else around her but the burning sun and the wind that whipped through the dead grasses. After inspecting the gadget, she flipped out her cellphone and dialed up the mansion. "Did you find anything?" she heard Ty ask on the other end. "Yeah, there's some sort of machine out there. I'm going to look at it more and then I'll call you back." With that, Lucy shut off the phone and shoved it back into her butt pocket. Noticing a big blue button on the underside of the thing, which stood about three feet tall, she punched it. It made a sputtering noise and then whirred as all of a sudden, everything began to get cooler. She noticed a temperature gauge on it falling from 120 degrees to about 75 degrees. And it then felt like only a warm spring day out. "Wow, it feels better now," she muttered. Just as she was about to pull out her cellphone again, she felt a hand spin her around.

Soon, she was looking into crystal blue eyes. "What are you doing?" the man asked her. It was the same man who she had seen inside the farm house last night. "I, um...I..." Lucy stammered for words. "Answer me!" the man said, taking her by the shoulders. Grinning cheesily, Lucy replied, "Would you believe me if I just said that I was turning on the A/C?" The man just snorted and let go of her. "Go. Now. I don't want to have to harm you, so go." "Harm me?" Lucy said, raising her eyebrows. She walked back over to the man, who was now tinkering with the machine. He stood up, grease all over his hands. Wiping the grease off on a rag, he walked over to her. "Miss Diamond," he said, a British accent thick, "I don't want a pretty flower like you to get in harm's way. So go." With that, he steered her around and gave her a gentle shove towards the road. "Now, wait a second," Lucy said, turning back around. The man groaned. "So you've caused this heat wave...Did you cause the tornado that went through the mall?" Lucy asked him. Sighing, the man turned and looked at her, his eyes crystaline from within. He looked away. "I didn't mean for it to go over the mall...I was just trying to see if I could do it," he said. He then looked at her again. "Now, Miss Diamond...If you don't leave on your own accord, you'll regret it. So go." "Now, just hold on again," Lucy interrupted him. The man groaned again, "Do you ever stop bloody talking?!?" "Well, I want to know what your name is, first," Lucy said, putting her hands on her hips. "Sir Henry Raleigh," he said, turning back to the machine. "So, Sir Raleigh, how do you know my name?" she asked him, her eyes narrowing some. "I've read about you and your friends fighting crime," he said, his eyes not moving from what he was doing. "Hmm, I see," Lucy mused, her brow furrowing into a frown. "Well, Sir Henry Raleigh...Do know that if I ever catch you doing anything to hurt anyone on purpose, I will hunt you down," Lucy said to him in a tight voice. With that, the Sir Raleigh chuckled. He stood up and grabbed Lucy by the shoulders again. Pulling her close to him, he glanced up and down her body. "You're a fine young woman, Miss Diamond," he hissed. He glanced over her again, sending chills down her spine. Looking her dead in the eye, his British voice said, "Don't threaten me unless you know how to protect yourself from the weather. They don't call me the Weather Man for nothing." Holding on to her with one strong hand still, he ran his other hand along her ribs. She shoved him away from her and glared. "I'll be keeping my eyes on you, Weather Man," Lucy said, backing up slowly. "And I will you, my dear," he said, chuckling as he turned back to his machine. Quickly, Lucy sprinted across the field and back to her car. Starting up the '69 VW, she sped down the road and back to the mansion.

Lucy walked into the Cave and plopped herself down on one of the chairs at the table. Ty ran over to her. "Why didn't you call back?" her friend asked her. Lucy just looked at Ty. "Is it possible for a super heroine to be sexually harassed?" Lucy asked, her eyes unreadable. "Umm, yeaaaah," Ty said. She then looked quick at Lucy. "Why?" "Well, then...I was just sexually harassed!" "WHAT?!?" Ty asked, surprise showing on her face. Lucy then proceeded to tell Tygress what had happened after her phone call. "I'm going to keep an eye on him," Lucy said after completing her story. "You better be careful, Lucy...If he was placing his hands on you then, you never know what could happen later on," Ty said, obvious concern in her voice. "Dude, I want to kick his ass!" Ty continued. Lucy frowned at her friend. "No, don't. It wasn't that big of a deal, and besides, I can handle him." "Well, fine. For now. But if he tries anything again, I'm gonna go after him!" Ty stated. Lucy just nodded. She started to get up out of her chair. But because she had so much skin exposed, she had to peel herself from the pleather of the seat. "YEEEEEEEOOOOOOOW!" she cried out, rubbing her now red skin. Ty laughed at her as she went up the stairs and into the mansion.

Jessica was sitting up in her room that evening, reading a book for school. The TV was on in the background, turned to Headline News. All of a sudden, Techno came over the PA sytem, "If anyone is in the house, turn it to the Weather Channel on a TV. This is important!" Setting down her book, Jessica grabbed the remote and turned it to the news channel. "This is very unusual for this time of year, a blizzard such as this. And the fact that it's an isolated area makes it even more bizzare," the meterologist was saying while pointing at a radar image. "That's funny," Jessica mumbled. She got up and looked outside her window. To the northwest, dark clouds filled the sky and were moving rapidly toward Tequila Heights. "What in the..." she got out before snow struck the window at a tremendous force. "Holy crap!" She ran out of her room and downstairs to the Cave. Apparently, everyone else in the house had the same idea because she either met them on her way down or they were in the Cave when she got down there. "I wish the fucking weather would make up its MIND!" Dee exclaimed, plopping down in a chair. "Let me see the radar again, Techno," Jessica said. He brought it up on a monitor and she took a few moments to study it. A grim look on her face, she knew why it was blizzarding. "The son-of-a-bitch is at it! Dammit, I KNEW he'd do something like this!" she said. "What?" Sally asked, giving Jessica a weird look. "You mean...you didn't tell them?" Tonya said quietly to Jessica. "Say anything about what?" Sebastian asked, a frown on his face. Sighing, Jessica then told them the story of that day. Everyone, even Techno, was shocked as she described the sexual harassment. "I'll kill the bastard!" Sebastian said, his eyes turning cold and hard. "No, no, no...Look, guys. It's not that big of a deal. He didn't touch me in an area that is private and he's not that big anyway," she said, her eyes turning up to give Sebastian a pleading look. He looked down at her and slipped an arm around her waist. "But if he was able to keep a grip on you, Jess, he's gotta be fairly strong," Sebastian pointed out. "I just wasn't prepared for that," she said, looking at all her friends, who were beginning to get angry at what had happened to her. "Well, we'll talk about it more tomorrow," Techno broke in, standing up. "Let's all get to bed early and get up early to figure out what to do. There's no need for rounds tonight since it's already snowed about a foot." Everyone agreed to this. On their way out of the Cave, Dee asked, "Can I sleep in anyone's room tonight? I don't like the idea of being in a glass room with this going on." "You can sleep in one of the spare rooms," Tonya said to her friend. They started up the stairs. But as Jessica walked past Techno, he placed a hand on her arm to stop her. Looking hard at her, he said, "If that guy does that again to you, he'll answer to me." Jessica nodded and smiled a thank you, and then walked up the stairs and to her room.

Lucy grabbed the keys to the 4x4 truck and hopped in the Cab. She started up the engine and slowly backed out into the snowy driveway. "I'll be alright if I go slow," she said out loud. It took her a while, but she finally got to Crook Ranch. Out there, the snow was two feet deep in places. Turning off the ignition, she climbed out of the cab. Luckily, it appeared as though a path had been cleared in the snow. Yet, the cold seemed to seep right through her moccasin boots and her fur-trimmed dress. Taking a deep breath, Lucy walked up to the porch of the house and rapped on the door. Creaking floorboards could be heard as the door opened and light spilled into the darkness. "Why, if it isn't Lucy Diamond?" the Weather Man said, opening the door further. Just as a smile crossed his face, Lucy shoved him against a wall. "I told you that I'd be keeping an eye on you, you freak," she growled. However, he suddenly took her by the wrist and pinned her arm behind her back. Taking his other arm, he wrapped it around her waist from behind. He then leaned in and took a deep breath. "I am going to use this weather bullshit to get what I want, Lucy," he said, his British voice hissing in her ear. "And that is the power to do whatever I bloody well please." Lucy struggled, but his arm wrapped even tighter around her, his hand high up on her ribs, close to her breast. She finally stood still as he chuckled. "And, right now, my dear, YOU are what I please," he whispered, his lips barely touching her ear.

"I'm going to make that bastard FISH BAIT!" Ty exclaimed. They had all made it back to The Cave. However, Lucy hadn't spoken one word yet. "As long as I can rip off his balls, I don't care what all you do to him," Patti scowled, pacing back and forth by the staircase. Techno sighed and turned around in his chair to face Lucy. Sebastian was by her side, having not let go of her hand since they had come back. "Sebastian...Why don't you take her upstairs for tonight? She needs to be put to bed," Techno said. He frowned as two tears fell down Lucy's cheeks. "C'mon, hun," Sebastian said quietly. He pulled Lucy to her feet. His arm went around her, keeping her from collapsing. Once the two disappeared up the stairs, Abra spoke, "I think that we need to let her skip rounds for a couple of nights...Or, at least, till she's feeling better." Shani nodded. "I think you're right, Abra," Shani said, her periwinkle eyes showing concern. "Until then, we'll try and find this creep," Techno said, turning back around to his control board.

Jessica woke up the next morning around 10:00. Suddenly, thoughts of the night before filled her head. She sat straight up and screamed. In a matter of seconds, Sebastian came rushing through the open doorway. After giving one quick glance, he reached for her and pulled her into his arms. Jessica began to sob against his chest. "It's ok, Jessica, it's ok..." Sebastian continued to whisper into her hair. "Is she ok?" Sebastian hear Tonya ask from the doorway. By then, Jessica's sobs had subsided to mere whimpers. Tonya watched as Sebastian tried to put her friend at arm's length. But Jessica clung to Sebastian, her fingers griping his shirt with a death grip. "Don't let me go," she cried out as the tears still came forth. Holding her close again, Sebastian said quietly, "It's ok, I'm not going to, Jess." Sighing, he pulled her tighter to him and glanced at Tonya. "I think it's gonna take a while before she gets her spunk back," he said softly. Tonya just nodded and softly walked back down the hallway.

A couple of evenings later, everyone had gathered in the den. Except for Jessica, who still barely talked. She was upstairs in her room. "And she hasn't said a thing to you yet?" Techno asked Sebastian from across the room. Sebastian sighed. He looked haggard and worn-out, for he had stayed up for the past 48-hours, keeping a constant watch next to Jessica's bed. He made sure that she was fed and used the facilities. And whenever she woke up, he held her close to him, until she fell back asleep. He sighed again. "No, nothing." "I wonder what all that son-of-a-bitch did to her," Dee said, plopping herself down on a couch, chocolate bar in hand. "What he did to me, I will make sure he never does again," a voice said from the dark hallway. Suddenly, Jessica walked into the room, showered and dressed. Her eyes held a spark of anger in them. She sat down next to a stunned Sebastian. She broke the silence that had filled the room and said, "Do you know what his next move is, Techno?" "Umm, well...I'm...not...sure. Let me...go downstairs and find out," he replied, a puzzled look on his face. Standing up, he headed out of the room, turned on a light in the hallway, and proceeded to head to the Cave. "Sebastian, I'm going to go grab my jacket and a hat upstairs. I want to go for a drive before rounds. I'll meet you in the garage," Jessica said. She then stood up, kissed Sebastian on the cheek, and headed out of the room and towards the staircase. Sebastian rubbed the spot on his cheek where her lips had been. "I think that she just finally smelled the chocolate," Dee said, a goofy grin on her face.

Sebastian's black Mustang rolled over the gravel road as he and Jessica drove out to their secret spot. It was in that spot where they could talk without interruption...that, and they could "talk" without interruption too. Making a left turn, the gravel road turned into a dirt path, barely wide enough to drive a car on. "Looks like someone beat us," Sebastian muttered. "Wait...I know that truck!" Jessica said quitely as the car approached the teal-green truck that sat by the river bank. Sebastian turned on his high-beam headlights. As soon as he did this, they watched as a familiar face popped up over the gate of the truck. "TONYA?!?" Jessica exclaimed. She got out and walked over to the bed of the pickup. Zarbon was stretched out in it, his wrists strapped to one of the sides. "This isn't what you think it is," Tonya said, climing out of the truck. "We were just fishing!" The heard Sebastian chuckle. He had stepped out of the car and was now leaning against the hood. "Fishing, eh?" he said, a knowing grin covering his face. "Fishing for something other than trout, I'd say," Jessica muttered, walking back to the car. Sebastian laughed as both he and Jessica climbed back into the car. "What did she mean?" Zarbon asked, struggling against the ties that bound him to the truck. But that was all that Jessica and Sebastian heard before they drove off to find someplace else.

In a few moments, Sebastian had found a different place along the Ford River that would offer he and Jessica privacy to talk. Sighing, Jessica laid her head on Sebastian's shoulder. "I wanted to tell you what happened to me first," she said after a few moments. She sat up and looked into Sebastian's eyes. "He almost raped me, Sebastian. His hands felt me up all over and...what was worse was the look in his eyes. He looked at me like I was his most favorite dish in the world and he was just starting to get a fork in it." She continued on, going into detail what Sir Raleigh had done to her. After she got done telling Sebastian what all had happened, she saw the anger flash in his eyes. "Sebastian, look at me," she said. She took his hand as he looked into her eyes. "What's going to be best is to get him put in jail. And it will have to be me and the rest of the girls to do that. You have to PROMISE me that you won't do anything, ok?" she asked him, her hazel eyes filling up with tears. "Jess, but he HURT YOU!" Sebastian's voice was choking back tears now too. "Yes, he did...But I need to you to just love me right now. The girls and I, with the aide of Techno, can handle this bastard," she said, her hand tightening around his. "Now...PROMISE ME, Sebastian." With that, Sebastian reached his arms around her, pulling her close. "I promise, Jess. And I love you."

"...and she didn't believe me!" Tonya said to her blonde haired friend. They were in the garden, admiring the handy work of Daniel. Sally said nothing, but just sniffed an early-blooming flower that was a soft shade of blue. "Well, gee, Tonya," Sally said after some time. "What do you expect her to think? You know that she's a pervert, just like you." Sally snickered and began to walk back towards the house. "It was just fishing!" Tonya called out, scampering along to follow Sally. "Yeah, right!" the two girls heard Jessica say out loud. She walked out of the garage and towards her friends. Sally giggled as Jessica came up and placed her arm around Tonya's shoulders. "Is there something that you need to tell us, Tonya?" Jessica asked, a teasing tone in her voice. "What about you, JED?" Tonya asked back, her eyes flashing in humor. Jessica turned a shade of red and backed away. "I have no idea what you mean." Sally giggled again as Tonya then put her arm around Jessica's shoulders and said, "Is there something that you need to tell us, JED?" "Hey..we just talked!" Jessica exclaimed. "Uh-huh," Sally spoke up, a knowing grin on her face. "Just 'talked', eh?" Jessica rolled her eyes, but smiled. "I can't get anywhere with you guys," she said. Just at that moment, thunder clapped above them. All three girls looked up and saw the sky being filled with dark, menacing clouds. "Um, we better get inside, ladies," Jessica said, starting to walk to the mansion. However, halfway to the door, large hailstones started to fall from above. "SHIT!" Tonya yelped as she began to sprint towards the mansion. Sally and Jessica joined her in the run. Luckily, they all got inside, escaping injury. Jessica's eyes narrowed as they watched the large ice stones pelt down all of the early flowers. "Oh, man. Daniel is NOT going to be happy," Tonya said, peering over Jessica's shoulder. The three stood there for several minutes. Finally, though, the hail stopped falling and the sky cleared up, revealing the bright March sun. "It's gotta be his work..." Jessica muttered, her mouth creasing into a frown. They heard footsteps and saw that it was Techno who entered the kitchen. "The bastard's at it again," he said, plopping down in a chair. Jessica looked at Techno and nodded. "I knew it was," she said, her words filled with the tone of pure hatred. Sally and Tonya both looked at her, slightly shocked at the sound of her voice. "Let's go downstairs and see what we can dig up," Techno said. He stood up and ran a hand over his face, which he hadn't shaved in what looked like a few days. "I can't wait to feed him to the fish," Tonya said, an grin appearing across her face.

Techno and Jessica walked down the stairs, into the Cave. Techno sat down in his chair in front of the control panel. "Let's see here..." Jessica heard him muble as he typed in a few things on a keyboard. After a few seconds, monitors came alive. One showed The Weather Channel, another showed CNN, and yet another had a radar from NOAA on it. Techno then typed in a few more things and they watched as a thirty-minute radar loop was played on the third monitor. "Well, would you look at that!" Jessica exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. Techno just grimly nodded as they watched a small, isolate storm pop up on the radar just southwest of Tequila Heights, move over the town, and then disappate as soon as it got east of town. "He's up to his tricks," she said, sighing deeply. "Well, I've been thinking about what needs to be done. So, I'm gonna call..." Jessica interrupted him. "Oh my God. Techno. Turn up the volume on CNN." Her voice was filled with shock. Techno hit a key on the keyboard and sound filled the Cave. "We're not completely sure yet," the reporter said, "but we believe that only 5 United Nations members are still being held captive. The man who is holding them at capture is reportedly not using any weapons to keep the members there. But, instead, his method has something to do with the weather. We have to take a quick commercial break, but we'll be right back with coverage on this situation in Geneva, Switzerland." "Holy shit!" Techno said, breaking a moment of silence. He rolled his chair over and got on the PA system. "Get down to the Cave---NOW!" he shouted into it.

Within minutes, everyone arrived down the stairs. It was late afternoon, so classes were over for that day. "What's going on?" Tonya asked, walking over to where Jessica and Techno sat, their eyes glued to the monitor. "Just watch," Techno said sharply, his gaze not moving from the screen. Everyone looked up at the monitor as a man appeared on the screen from inside a meeting hall in Geneva. Jessica's eyes grew wide with shock---and then narrowed in hatred. "It's him," she whispered. Sebastian frowned and put his arms around her waist from behind. "Good evening, my fellow humans," began the Weather Man, "My name is Sir Henry Raleigh. I am a meterologist, born in Manchester, England. Today, I have taken control of this summit here in Geneva so that I may be sell my newest method of defense---the Weather'o'Matic 4000. With it, I can create any type of weather scenerio, anywhere in the world. I was hoping to sell this to the highest bidder, but instead, I was turned away. So, until I recieve a bid of no less than $200 billion, I will not only keep these members of the UN until I deem fit, but I will also unleash the power of my creation upon the Earth. All nations in the world are allowed to bid---and they have only 48 hours to do so before cities like New York, London, Paris, Rome, Moscow, and Beijing are destroyed. Until then." He then walked off camera and the screen went blank. "I think that he's PMSing," Dee spoke. "Oh, shut up!" Techno growled at Dee. "This isn't the time or place to say stupid comments like that!" "Well, if I had $200 billion, I'd buy that fucking thing to destroy YOU!" she shot at him. "We've got to go to Geneva," Jessica said, interrupting the two. "Within 48 hours, too," Sally added, brushing back blonde hair from her face. Techno listened, gave one last glare at Dee, and then turned back around to the control panel. "I'll arrange everything. Be ready to leave within an hour." "I guess that means we'd better pack...and fast," Poopsie said. With that, she disappeared, teleporting herself to her room. Jessica took Sebastian's hand and lead the way up the stairs. Her friends followed, each heading to their respective rooms to hurridly pack.

Jessica threw her cold-weather outfits into the open suitcase that sat on her bed. Sebastian was in her room with her, sitting on the couch, watching as she hurried this way and that, packing her suitcase. Neither of them said anything. Finally, Jessica threw one last pair of toe socks into her suitcase. She shut it, zipped it up, and set it on the hardwood floor. "You going to the airport with us to say goodbye?" Jessica finally said, breaking the silence. "Probably not...You guys need to get over there and it's a long flight," he said, standing up. Sebastian walked over to her, at arms distance. Jessica looked up at him, her eyes shimmering from tears. Sighing, Sebastian reached for Jessica, pulling her close against his muscular body. "You guys will get him, Jess," he said quietly, holding her even closer. Jessica sniffled, cleared her throat, and looked up into the face of the man she loved. "You're damn right we will," she said, a wobbly grin on her face. "I'm going to miss you, Sebastian Lewis. And I love you. Always." Sebastian leaned down, kissing her softly. "I love you too," he murmered against her lips before pulling her in for a closer kiss.

About 4 hours later, the girls arrived in Washington, where they switched onto a special Concord flight to Paris. Time passed, and they tried to catch as much sleep as possible while on the Concord, since it had such comfortable seats. It was already 8:00 in the morning when they arrived at Geneva. After they finally claimed their luggage, Tonya pulled out the piece of that Techno had handed to her. "Marcus Darling," she read out loud. "What kind of name is that?" asked Dee, who was double checking to see if Harold the Chicken had survived the flight inside her suitcase. "That is my name," they heard a man with an Australian accent say. The girls looked up. In front of them stood Marcus. He was nearly six-feet-tall, with semi-long curly red hair. His face was sprinkled with freckles, helping to add warmth that his cool blue-eyes brought about him. "You ladies must be exhausted. T said that I was to put you up at one of the nicer hotels in Geneva, so I reserved you the Emperor's Suite at the Royale downtown." His voice was calm and mellow, surrounding the ladies with a soft peace. "Well, um...Ok. We have our luggage, so let's go," Sally spoke up, pulling out the handle on her rolling suitcase.

An hour later, the girls entered into the suite. "Holy cow!" Jessica exclaimed, dropping her carry-on bag onto the marble floor. The other girls stopped behind and beside her. There were oohs and ahhs coming from all of them. The floors were of solid marble, at least, in the sitting room they were. Plush, stiff couches and high-backed chairs stood on a rug in the center of the area. A glass dome topped off over the seats of the chairs and couches, letting in the bright sunlight. A glass chandlier hung gracefully above a large bear rug that laid in front of the marble-tiled fireplace, which had a fire going in it. Marcus came into the room, leading the way for the last bellboy who carried luggage. "Thank you," he said, handing the young man some cash. With that, he shut the two great doors and said, "Well, girls, this will be your home for now." The girls just ignored him and they ran collectively to one of the doors. Sally giggled and said, "You open it up, Tonya." Slowly, and with drama, Tonya opened up a door to reveal a huge bathroom. "Ooooooo!" all of the girls said at the same time. The bathroom had a large vanity, with three sinks on it's counter. A huge, whilpool bathtub stood in one corner. It was made of marble. And next to the toilet stood a little bowl with a handle and a spout. "What's that?" Jessica asked. "THAT is a badet," Sally said, giggling. "You wash off your ass with it!" Dee said, bursting out with laughter. Jessica giggled and they shut the door, moving over to another door. "You get this one, Poopsie," said Tonya. Unlike Tonya, Poopsie didn't use any drama but just flung the door open. "A BEDROOM!" Jessica cried out, giggling the whole time. It contained a four-poster, canopied king-sized bed, a comfy looking chair, and TV that came down from the ceiling, and had a walk-in closet too. Poopsie softly shut the door. She then looked at Jessica...who looked at Tonya...who looked at Sally...who looked at Dee...and they ran across the room's marble floor to another set of doors.

"Dee, your next to open a door," said Poopsie. Dee grinned a huge grin and slowly opened up a door. "It's just like the other bedroom!" she said, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "Well, you can open up the next door," Jessica said, urging her friend along. Dee grinned again and flung open the door. "DUDE!" she exclaimed. Inside the room were 5 laptop computers. "We got a Dell!" Sally said, giggling. The rest of the girls started giggling too. Marcus, who had been watching this whole scene in utter disbelief and annoyance, walked over to them. "Those will come in handy. You can contact your friends and family back in the States with those. T said to make sure that you had them," he said. "Now, I'm going to go do some things. I'll let you all freshen up and rest for a few hours. If you're hungry, just dial up room service and get what you please." Marcus walked over to the phone stand and wrote down a number on a piece of paper. "And if you need to get ahold of me, just have the hotel operator dial that number up for you." He walked over to the door and opened it. "Until later," he called over his shoulder, shutting the door behind him. "I wonder if there's any chocolate on the menu for room service," Dee stated, smiling. Jessica grinned her devilish grin and said, "Well, let's find out then!"

Fifteen minutes later, to the second, the girls walked through the entrance of the Royale. Marcus was standing, just like he said, in front of a limousine. All the girls carried a backpack on their backs. Inside the backpacks were their crime-fighting gear. They climbed inside the limo. It was a quiet ride to the location of the summit. As soon as they got there, they climbed out of the limo in a hurry. Marcus then handed a cellphone to Tonya, saying, "If you need me or need to be picked up, just hit the star and the nine and you will contact me." Tonya just nodded as Marcus shut the limo door. The vehicle drove away, leaving the girls by themselves. "Let's go find a place to change, shall we?" Poopsie asked the group a few seconds later. Quickly, the girls hurried to where the press was located. They showed their passes to security officers, who let them through. Soon, they got away from a group of reporters and found a restroom near the entrance of the building. The girls entered it, hurridly changing into their outfits. However, they kept their press buttons pinned firmly where they were visible. "How are we gonna get past that guard over there?" Shani asked, peering around to take in her surrounding. "Watch this," Patti said, strutting over to the officer.

She looked around, not seeing anything. But then she saw the 5 UN members, gagged and tied up in a corner. "Holy shit!" she whispered. Suddenly, a pair of strong hands slid around her bare stomach. "I'm going to finish the job this time, Miss Diamond," she heard the Weather Man's voice say right by her ear. "Over my dead body!" she muttered. Lucy then took the heel of her platform shoes and ground it into the foot of the man. "YEEEOOOW!" he yelped, releasing her from his grasp. Before he knew it, Ty ran in, claws unsheathed. He staggared backwards. And then they heard the sickening sound of flesh ripping. "Oh, God..." the Weather Man groaned. The rest of the group ran in, only to see the man impaled on his own creation, the Weather'o'Matic 4000. A sharp rod that had been on it now went through his back and out through his bellybutton. He reached down, dipping his hand in the blood that now poured out profusely from the blow. He then looked at the red stain on his hand, looked at Lucy and said, "I'll finish the job in the next life, Lucy Diamond." And with that, his chest stopped moving as he slipped from the world of the living. Abra and Ty ran over to the hostages, untying them and removing the gags from their mouths. Then, before they could get caught, the Others left the room. But not before Ty cut off Sir Henry Raleigh's ear. She grimaced, but said, "I said I was going to use him as fish bait."