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Zap and Troy: The Legendary Journeys
folder
1 through F › Final Sacrifice, The
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
10
Views:
1,036
Reviews:
5
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
1 through F › Final Sacrifice, The
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
10
Views:
1,036
Reviews:
5
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own "The Final Sacrifice" or any of the characters depicted. I make no money from this or any of my writings
Chapter Two
It didn’t seem like it was going to be an unusual kind of day, but then again it didn’t seem that way the day Satoris first showed up demanding the map to the lost city. (And if he’d known for seven years that I had the map, why did he wait so long to try to take it? Just another thing about all this I’ll probably never understand.) I’d gone to school as usual, and was doing my homework in the kitchen and eating some cold Crazy Bread when someone started pounding on the front door.
Aunt Betty was working the night shift again. I didn’t think twice--frankly, I didn’t even think once; why would I, the cult was gone--before I answered the door. I’d been so absorbed in studying cellular mitosis that I hadn’t even noticed any sounds before the pounding started. So imagine my surprise to see Rowsdower in the flesh, after a year of only seeing him in dreams I refused to admit I’d had.
It wasn’t Rowsdower as I remembered him, though, and it certainly wasn’t Rowsdower as I’d dreamt him. This was a Rowsdower who’d had something bad happen to him, and recently. His clothes were dirty, of course, but that was normal for Rowsdower. His hair was a little grayer, but it took me a while to notice, because I only had eyes for his injuries. His eyes were both blackened, and so swollen I wasn’t sure how he’d been able to see the door. There were several cuts on his face, most of which were still bleeding. His denim jacket was torn near the shoulder on his left arm, and it looked like the shirt underneath had been torn too. I couldn’t tell for sure, but the brand of the Ziox seemed to be faintly visible on his arm.
It takes more time to tell what I saw than it did to actually see it. I opened the door, saw it was Rowsdower and that he was hurt, then he fell into my arms. A couple of seconds at most, but it was long enough that I could tell he was in some serious trouble.
“I need some help, kid. I don’t know how, but the cult is back, and they know about me. They know about you, too, and what we did.”
I should have begun to get scared then, but I was too shocked to see the face I had so often imagined while lying awake at night. “C’mon kid, help me inside and for Pete’s sake close the door.”
I dragged Rowsdower into the living room, got him settled on the davenport, then closed and locked the front door. Rowsdower seemed ok for a moment, so I took a second to get some bandages and medicine from the bathroom. On my way back, I closed all the curtains. It somehow felt safer that way.
I knelt next to the Davenport, and began to dress Rowsdower’s wounds. He hissed a little as I cleaned the cuts, but otherwise didn’t really seem to react. My heart was racing again, but I chalked it up to nothing more than fear. I let him rest for a few minutes, but my curiosity got the best of me.
“Rowsdower, what happened to you?”
“I told you Troy, the Ziox cult is back. I’ve been hearing the drums again for a few weeks, and somehow the brand has come back. It’s faint, but it’s definitely there.”
“Is that who did this to you? The Ziox?”
“Yeah. I don’t know how they found me, but they tracked me down today. Got me while I was sleeping in my truck. Tied me up, started beating up on me, asking me questions about some kind of artifact. ‘Course I didn’t know what they were talking about, but it never stopped them before. Anyway, while they were talking to their leader I somehow managed to untie myself and sneak out. I hope I lost them, but we may not have long. In fact, I’m kinda surprised they aren’t here already; they asked about you, too, and your father’s research.”
“Oh Rowsdower, are you hurt bad?”
“Nah, it looks worse than it feels. You did a good job patching me up. Thanks kid.”
I blushed.
“We don’t have a lot of time kid, but it’s been a rough day. I’m need to get a couple hours sleep, then we can figure out what to do. In the meantime, do you still have your father’s old papers?”
“Yeah, up in the attic.”
“Get them out. Maybe they can tell us something about what the cult wants this time.”
As I walked away, he called my name.
“Troy?”
I turned back. “Yes?”
“It’s nice to see you again. You look good.”
I turned back around and went upstairs, glad that he couldn’t see me blush again.
Aunt Betty was working the night shift again. I didn’t think twice--frankly, I didn’t even think once; why would I, the cult was gone--before I answered the door. I’d been so absorbed in studying cellular mitosis that I hadn’t even noticed any sounds before the pounding started. So imagine my surprise to see Rowsdower in the flesh, after a year of only seeing him in dreams I refused to admit I’d had.
It wasn’t Rowsdower as I remembered him, though, and it certainly wasn’t Rowsdower as I’d dreamt him. This was a Rowsdower who’d had something bad happen to him, and recently. His clothes were dirty, of course, but that was normal for Rowsdower. His hair was a little grayer, but it took me a while to notice, because I only had eyes for his injuries. His eyes were both blackened, and so swollen I wasn’t sure how he’d been able to see the door. There were several cuts on his face, most of which were still bleeding. His denim jacket was torn near the shoulder on his left arm, and it looked like the shirt underneath had been torn too. I couldn’t tell for sure, but the brand of the Ziox seemed to be faintly visible on his arm.
It takes more time to tell what I saw than it did to actually see it. I opened the door, saw it was Rowsdower and that he was hurt, then he fell into my arms. A couple of seconds at most, but it was long enough that I could tell he was in some serious trouble.
“I need some help, kid. I don’t know how, but the cult is back, and they know about me. They know about you, too, and what we did.”
I should have begun to get scared then, but I was too shocked to see the face I had so often imagined while lying awake at night. “C’mon kid, help me inside and for Pete’s sake close the door.”
I dragged Rowsdower into the living room, got him settled on the davenport, then closed and locked the front door. Rowsdower seemed ok for a moment, so I took a second to get some bandages and medicine from the bathroom. On my way back, I closed all the curtains. It somehow felt safer that way.
I knelt next to the Davenport, and began to dress Rowsdower’s wounds. He hissed a little as I cleaned the cuts, but otherwise didn’t really seem to react. My heart was racing again, but I chalked it up to nothing more than fear. I let him rest for a few minutes, but my curiosity got the best of me.
“Rowsdower, what happened to you?”
“I told you Troy, the Ziox cult is back. I’ve been hearing the drums again for a few weeks, and somehow the brand has come back. It’s faint, but it’s definitely there.”
“Is that who did this to you? The Ziox?”
“Yeah. I don’t know how they found me, but they tracked me down today. Got me while I was sleeping in my truck. Tied me up, started beating up on me, asking me questions about some kind of artifact. ‘Course I didn’t know what they were talking about, but it never stopped them before. Anyway, while they were talking to their leader I somehow managed to untie myself and sneak out. I hope I lost them, but we may not have long. In fact, I’m kinda surprised they aren’t here already; they asked about you, too, and your father’s research.”
“Oh Rowsdower, are you hurt bad?”
“Nah, it looks worse than it feels. You did a good job patching me up. Thanks kid.”
I blushed.
“We don’t have a lot of time kid, but it’s been a rough day. I’m need to get a couple hours sleep, then we can figure out what to do. In the meantime, do you still have your father’s old papers?”
“Yeah, up in the attic.”
“Get them out. Maybe they can tell us something about what the cult wants this time.”
As I walked away, he called my name.
“Troy?”
I turned back. “Yes?”
“It’s nice to see you again. You look good.”
I turned back around and went upstairs, glad that he couldn’t see me blush again.