The Rescuer Ch. 03

The accident during Wednesday's fully powered main rehearsal had shocked them all, and two of the four men that had been hurt still weren't getting around very well.

So when Drake suggested that they replace the entire first string team of actors?

The chance to actually be part of something like this was probably never going to be offered to him again! The last month of finally trying to openly date Lynette had been such a misery! His college crush had always put him off from announcing anything official. No guy had ever been deemed good enough by her relentlessly over controlling mother. During the long years of college, all the other men had simply given up.

The sexual and emotional tension between them had steadily grown even more intense, after they had graduated and passed the bar this spring.

But even while Lynette slyly sexually teased him relentlessly, at school, in the library, and at her teaching assistant office? And when she kept 'accidentally' showing up at Avery's law office whenever he had meetings there? It had pushed even his well known level of patience and understanding past its limits.

Both of them getting their law degrees was supposed to have been the beginning of their long awaited freedom, to really explore their sexual compatibility! But months past their mutually hard won achievements, Lynette still refused to break free from her mother's harsh control, and begin determining her own destiny!

So with no end in sight to the maternal tyranny, why not do something as crazy as this!

Why not risk his own life to prove a point? Perhaps it was just Drake's undue influence, that Lynette's mother had always accused him of being too subservient to? In his own mind, his boss' well known odd behaviors had always served more as an amusing warning, rather than a role model for himself!

But if that cruel maternal bitch thought him of being so weak and scared... why not show her and her daughter... that he was his own man!

The well controlled and predictable lightning still raged high above him, but the rogue overload they needed to trip the city's breakers was being elusive. Alastair knew that his sense of time, especially when the special effects were active, had been horribly distorted during the stressful practices all week.

But because he'd just had plenty of seconds to reflect on what was important in his life, he now finally understood enough why the other men were laughing, and gleefully and loudly join in!

Almost as if the generated energies had been waiting for that signal from him, the strange almost evil whining from before rumbled again deep within the earth, as if it was deliberately seeking out happiness.

Like some bizarre creature from a big budget science fiction film, the whine suddenly switched to a roar! The connection between the array above him, and the enormously dangerous power somehow crawling into the basement beneath him, snapped into full life.

The laughing around him stopped, as the friendly fan of flames winked out, and the single angry vengeful blue bolt of destruction lashed out towards the rooftop again. This time it was so different! Staring right up at it, he could feel all the hair stand up on his hands, face, neck and head.

Bits of metal seemed to go molten on the antique copper flashing of the rain gutter, and droplets pattered down dozens of feet away from the corner. No precious musical instruments had been left behind this time, as the unending connection sought to destroy as much of the building as it could.

Perhaps exactly like the fires that had incinerated so many structures on this very spot over the last hundred years.

His ears seemed to stop working, as if the numbness he felt there had other causes, than just the continuous crackling boom of thunder over his head.

The ground shook one last time and a huge car-sized chunk of masonry crumbled off the cornice of the auxiliary building... to completely flatten a poor chair... and then absolute darkness and silence ruled the entire garden again.

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Everett couldn't believe how long the single vicious lightning strike had lasted!

But the moment it was over, an even larger part of the city's power grid went dark again. Soft blue lights came to life in the grass, almost like fire flies headed towards the still burning pyres. They illuminated five distinctive pathways across the lawn, and towards the warehouse door the throne-like chair had originally emerged from.

Twelve men in those heavy special robe-like suits burst out of the warehouse, while two more remained behind to hold open the tricky heavy door.

Alastair was the nearest actor, and two men threw a heavy electrically insulating blanket over him, and wrapped him up tight as they helped him hobble away from the stage.

The smallest man was also taken away just as easily, but each of the twins had to be physically carried off the stage after being covered up. One of the rescuer's had the pair of legs, while two others each had an arm. They struggled to stay properly within the safety bounds of the blue lights, as they almost careened away in their haste.

The huge man who had actually been struck by the creature's flailing arms the hardest to get off stage, but for much different reasons.

The far flung arc thru the air, that should have crippled him, hadn't even hurt him at all? He just brushed off any help after two blankets were thrown over his body. His shoulders were broad enough to require one blanket all to themselves. Not even deigning to duck, the man casually walked away unaided.

He was seemingly completely uninjured from his long unsuccessful fight, with the make believe, but still very dangerous monster.

Once they were certain he was ok, the two hooded figures sent to fetch him hurried off the still dangerous stage, and waited for him at the still smoking and smouldering edge. The crowd nearest the returning hero clapped and cheered, as did all the students pressed up against the windows of the second and third floors.

Only when he had proudly removed himself from the field of battle, did he let his understandably nervous helpers rush him into the safety of the warehouse. The British ex-pat repeated his loud yells for silence again, and as all of their ears continued to recover from the loud thunder, even without his hearing aid turned up Everett could clearly hear the frantic shouting echoing from deep underground.

"... of course the damn fitting has melted to the ground line... why do you think we brought the bloody sledgehammers... have at it... no.. don't wait for them to disconnect the other end... we don't have time for that... "

A single rhythmic ring of metal on tortured metal began to thunder up from the hidden basement room, just slightly off center of the stage. Other muted shouts rang out, announcing one successful step in their plan or another, but the hammer still rang out with worrying delay. A higher pitched strident voice kept yelling out the time, urging everyone to hurry, but the original deep voice continued speaking the loudest.

"... why did you even bring that little thing... now this... this is a hammer!... don't worry... we are either going to be dead... or heroes... there won't be any half measures if another surge comes thru while we're down here... protective suits or not... hammer and tongs... hammer and tongs... now go for it... "

What Everett had only assumed to be heavy blows quickly got dispelled from his mind. Over and over, the original hammer struck, only to be put to shame by a thunderous smash of what had to be a truly monstrous weapon. The twin perfectly timed alternating strikes still seemed destined to fail, until the lighter strikes suddenly stopped, and the higher pitched voice yelled out even more encouragement.

"Kick it's ass, Chief!"

The constant rain of just the heavier solo blows more than doubled in pace, until an oddly hollow sounding clang was greeted by ragged cheering down below.

"... no... grab that broken entire broken cable and take it with us... I don't want to leave anything like a conduit left in this room... those two wheelbarrows... dump all that dry cement mix down that hole... there ya go... now throw one of those special blankets over that mess... you there... start tossing those extra bags of mix over here on top of it... bury that damn thing as deep as you can... now pull all the slack out of our new line... cover it up with blankets too... the lines and the fittings... now start getting out of here... all of you... I'm going to check that damned cracked wall one more time... good... everyone out of the basement... including the crew in the sheltered creature control room... out... OUT!... "

Shapes and shadows began moving all around behind the still burning pyres and the frozen monster. An old basement stairwell had to be underneath the exact center of the supposedly innocuous and mundane lawn. Perhaps that, more than the statue of the monster, had been what the reveal tent had really been guarding all along. There was just no telling how much equipment for the show had been stashed down there, or had been driven up in the huge trucks that must still be lined up two or three deep out on the back street.

A crack of mottled light broke thru the smoke and fog still covering most of the stage area. The huge middle door, of the five that had been set into the museum complex's back wall, began to shift. It had never been opened up so far tonight, and it swung slowly wider and wider. People all clad in that special gear poured out of the ground.

One small man, shunning the protective garments completely, paused at the top of the stairs to urge the last of his crew to hurry.

The higher pitched voice proved to belong to a tall handsome red headed woman, also without gear, shouted that everything was clear. She barely managed to drag their leader thru the enormous outer door, just as it swung back shut with a huge thud! The engines of the generator trucks, that they had all just seen outside on the street roared to full life, as the contrarian voice still trying to get thru the static over the speakers barely managed a few words.

"... -ree... two... one... hit it!... hit them all!... "

Whatever power was left in the storage cells of all the effects truck let loose... and a new sun seemed to explode to life... the center of which was the Artist's amazing indestructible creation!

Every arm burst into incandescence, and at the globe like heart, the brilliant red eyes shone out in actual beams of malevolence.

The heavy steel of the grounding tower actually rocked from side to side, each time the orb of elemental energy reached it's limit, and the thickest bolts yet made it shiver in place! All the odd shadows fled the garden again, as if they were afraid of the light, driven almost from memory that they could have ever existed at all!

Dozens of nearby audience members seemed torn between using their hands to cover up either their ears or eyes. The roaring sound seemed endless, until all the arms went dark, and only one last heavy continuous bolt began arcing straight up from the body itself.

The flash grew so intense it was impossible to look at, and the thunder shook the very air in their chests, as the last incredibly powerful and cruel bolt detonated and vanished into oblivion!

The darkness seemed absolute... as even more lights from the surrounding city blocks winked out... and the afterimages burned into the backs of their eyes slowly began to fade.

Everett knew that his own heart was pounding way too hard in his chest. When his hand automatically reached for the pills in his breast pocket, his kindly old friend was still quick enough to intercept it. The pills weren't there anyway, and the comfort and warmth he received from the concerned touch was a much better cure for his troubled health.

The long silence wasn't interrupted by cheers this time... and everyone was mercifully left to their own thoughts... and the sense that the previous finale had been spoiled by the student's too eager and untimely interruption began to fade from their memories.

Another full minute of stunned silence passed when that same deep heavily accented feminine voice called out into the still ozone filled air.

"Wait for it! Any second now! Don't be stupid! Hold in place! Here it comes! Can't you guys hear it?"

Whatever the woman was sensing seemed beyond the ability of almost every single audience member to discern, so few of them were nodding knowledgably. Eventually an odd warping sound began to surround the entire museum complex, and the golden lights above their heads sprang back to full life all at once. Only a few strings and the odd bulb failed to add to the welcome glow.

The cascading sense of normalcy slowly continued, as block after block of street lights began flickering back on. When the huge middle door to the street cautiously swung open again, an actual physical struggle seemed to be delaying any of the expected figures from reemerging.

"... what's this all about... I've got to get down there... to make sure everything's ok... "

The soft heavily accented feminine voice turned hard as flint. The unintelligible mutterings it expressed must have worked, because the sounds of the struggle abruptly ended. A few seconds later the speakers quietly came back to life, crystal clear this time, and without even the slightest trace of static.

"Give it up, dear older brother of mine! We have a surprise for you! The power company was able to tell where the extra electricity was coming from! They have given us the all clear! It CAN'T happen to us again! They've permanently pulled the ancient breaker feeding that extra rogue line! We just rushed a replacement antenna to that damn roof! All of our radios are back up and running! This last two weeks, you have stayed up late each night! Trying to work out what we were going to do, if the city refused to allow us the lightning effects! You worked out a totally different finale, and we practiced it twice each afternoon, after the end of each regular rehearsal! You could have given up! All the legal suits TOLD you to give it up! But the lightning effects worked! Safely! What if it had been YOU that had gotten hurt on Wednesday? Where would we all be tonight?"

A few shadows outlined by the foggy mist was all Everett could see. The small figure tried to step away and when the tall woman wouldn't let him escape, the short man's strong shoulders slumped.

"You have been at this for a full year! Planning this reveal night, during all of our other jobs and gigs! Gathering us all together! Teaching us how to work together as a team! Now it's time for us to do something for you! So don't you dare interfere! We won't let you! This next bit is safe as houses! Besides, it would take us a full hour to shut all the systems down individually! So WE are going to put on YOUR alternate finale for the audience! Just sit back and relax!"

The figure still being held tight by the much taller woman, tried to shrug off her hands again, but eventually had to give up.

"Don't worry about it, older brother! We have already started the final checks! In just a few more minutes, we can have your alternate ending countdown clock going! With no actors on the stage? And such a lovely venue and audience already in place? Why not see if all your hard work was correct? There's no reason to put artificial limits on any of the other effects! We don't need to try and protect the electrical safeguard webbing anymore! At the rehearsal warehouse, all of this other wonderful equipment was running just at twenty percent! Think man! This is your one and only chance! To see if this wonderful new technology, that YOU saved from the scrap pile, will really work together the way you've always wanted them to!"

The silence was deafening... as the entire audience and staff could see the shadowed shape of the smaller man finally break away and step out into view... and look around at the innovative stage he had helped create.

Except for the tumbled styrofoam blocks of the false wall at the back of the garden, everything for a second actorless finale was still in place. The huge curtain mural behind the few remaining stones was flapping in the light breeze. As the fake blocks had fallen down, Everett and the rest of the audience in the garden seats had seen the printed cloth illusion of the city skyline beyond, and had been utterly convinced the wall had been destroyed.

The students higher up in the warehouse, had an aerial view that spoiled that bit of fakery, possibly accounting for their too early cheering.

"Look, we even have twelve of the spare Nameless left, to give the monster a real fight this time! Those machines can all be back up, hanging on the circle rig, in less than two minutes! So face it, older brother of mine! This is happening! You can stand right there where you are, and get burned to a crisp! Or you can waste the opportunity and come back to the control truck! Or you can make your way up to the communication center in the exhibit hall and critique all of our work! Or you can accept this as a gift and slip in the side door, to go sit out there with the rest of the audience, that we are about to send back to their seats! Even the orchestra leader is getting his missing students together! Despite it all, they still want to play the second piece that they altered for this finale! Why waste all of their practice time and second efforts, too? So what will it be?"

The small figure seemed to be shaking with either exhaustion or emotion. He just couldn't seem to decide if he should try to stop this unexpected opportunity, to perform the second finale, that he himself had just saved.

"Listen to your younger brother! Just this once! Please? If you hadn't figured out how to disconnect that rogue line? And give the power company a chance to identify it? The entire event would already be over! We'd have had mass chaos! Dragging all the crowds out of here, between the uncontrollable lightning strikes! No more beer! No more wine! No more lovely champagne and fancy grub! That can all still happen, because of what you just did down in the basement! What else do you need to hear?"

Still the silent figure peered around the stage, the harsh shadows from the lights in the street outside the museum protecting the emotions on his face from becoming known.

"We'll save hours! If we do the second finale, there will be no need to even go to the auxiliary site and transfer off all the extra energy and fuel! We'll just use it all up here! Not even Thumper will need to go there! We'll actually be AHEAD of schedule for once! Please?"

A cover was removed off a clock mounted high up on the back wall of the garden. The bright white digital numbers were frozen at five minutes. At the Exhibit Hall, another identical clock flashed to life in the window. Then two more got revealed on the sides as well, one on the supposedly vacant fifth floor of the warehouse.

"You three big wigs, down there! A simple proper Roman thumbs up or thumbs down! You're the ones paying the most for tonight's excesses! Do you want everyone to enjoy the second finale? Just hold your right hands up high, for everyone to see!"

Sean needed no time to think about it. When his thumb went up, his students roared out their agreement. Malcolm still seemed a bit shaken, but even he managed to beat him to a decision as well, but only after a more ragged shout from his own staff. Everett felt the warm comforting hand of his friend, patting his thigh, and in the end that was all the reassurance he really needed.

Tonight had held so many bewildering surprises already, but he could welcome a few more, and he finally copied his other two friends.