The Adventures of Adawhen (Redux)

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abraxas1954	The Adventures of Adawhen (Redux)	Lead	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 02:08 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Tags : None The Adventures of Adawhen (Redux) by Goony123 Copyright © 2005 GoonyCorp™ All Rights Reserved Last Edited By: abraxas1954 07/27/09 03:25 PM. Edited 2 times.
abraxas1954	Memo to ABC - Mar 11, 2005 10:11 AM	#1	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 02:13 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Memo: To: Steven M. Bornstein President, ABC Television Mr Bornstein, I am writing to express my concerns with the recent state of the Lost Board. We at GoonyCorp™have invested quite heavily in the success of this board, and will not stand by idly while it falls into disrepair. It is understood that your board programmers are working to maintain multiple boards. However, we must insist that you re-allocate staff to concentrate your efforts on the Lost Board. Perhaps you could move people from the Desperate Houswives or Jimmy Kimmel boards. Specifically, the loss of so many threads has caught our attention. As you know, we have been strong financial backers of "The Adventures of Adawhen" since its inception. To find that you have lost this extremely popular series is disturbing, to say the least. Our staff will work to restore all of the missing episodes, and will oversee production on all future episodes. We will, of course, bill you at industry standard rates for this service. GoonyCorp™would like to quickly put this matter behind us and resume our mutually beneficial relationship with ABC Television. I am quite certain you share that opinion. We will be in touch. Sincerely, Goony President & CEO GoonyCorp™
abraxas1954	Chapter 1 - Mar 11, 2005 10:11 AM	#2	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 02:15 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Adawhen knew she got lucky this time. Next time might not work out the same. So she and Hugo moved again; seems like they were always moving. She found a job in Omaha, hauling garbage. Deep down she felt it was wrong; she was an environmentalist and wanted so desperately to drive the recycling truck. But they would have expected that. So here she was collecting trash to pile up in the landfill. Hugo had been her sole companion ever since she had found him scared and alone seven months ago. This large, childlike man, who told her he was about twenty-six. It was Hugo they wanted, not her. More specifically they wanted the map he had tattooed on the inside of his right thigh. She knew that map well. Ethan Rom, the sinister assassin from PURGATORY, the evil organization bent on the destruction of logical thought everywhere, had made threats against them. He had not known where they were, but he was getting close. That's when Adawhen knew she had to get out. It was Thursday morning. As they made their last pickup on Cavanaugh Street, banging down the metal cans as loudly as possible, they way they were taught at the Mumford Academy of Garbage Collection (Adawhen was class valedictorian), Hugo brought up lunch. He had not been feeling well ever since he had eaten both of the lunches she had packed this morning, and now stood by the side of the truck retching violently. God she admired this man. When he was done, Hugo asked, "Dude, wanna try that new Middle-Eastern Sushi bar?" "You mean, Captain Falafels?" She asked. "I've been dying to go there."
abraxas1954	Chapter 2 - Mar 11, 2005 10:12 AM	#3	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:02 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	As they entered the restaurant, which was located on top of the towering Marlon Perkins building in downtown Omaha, Adawhen felt her skin begin to prickle. She knew there was something special about this place. And then she saw him. The fry cook, with his olive skin, swarthy good looks and unkempt, jet black greasy hair, was the man Adawhen was destined to be with. She went to him, longing for him desperately, and kissed him. "Hey, watch it lady." He said. "My babagnoush is burning." "Yes, yes", She said, "give me your burning babaganoush." Little did she know, but Adawhen was allergic to babaganoush. After she had her fill, Hugo began looking at her in that quizzical way only he can. "Dude, what's with your face?", he asked. Hugo was suffering from a rare disorder, which prevented him from remembering other people's names. Dude worked just fine. She jumped up and ran to look in the rest room mirror. "Gasp!" The babaganoush had turned her skin purple! She went back to her seat, hoping nobody would notice her, in all her plum-like glory. The fry-cook came back with the check. "I see you liked my babaganoush", he said. "My name is Sayid, and I know your friend, Hurley, here." Hugo began shaking his head side to side. "Ix-nay on the Urley-hay, Dude." "His name is Hugo," Adawhen said. "No, he and I spent some time together, stranded on an island. We escaped, with the help of a wonderful man named Flysail. I know your friend as Hurley." "Wait, you know Flysail?! Where is he? Is he ok?" Excitement flowed through her as tears flowed down her cheeks. She had not heard from Flysail since he took off to rescue his true love, Claire, whose flight had mysteriously vanished over a year ago. "I do not know where he is. We worked together to rebuild a new plane from the wreckage of the old one. Flysail had just seen 'Flight of the Phoenix' before setting out to rescue Claire. Sadly, upon takeoff, a crazed French woman, named Danielle, managed to grab Claire and pull her from the plane. Flysail jumped out after her. We had no landing gear, so I could not go back for them. Only Hurley and I managed to escape. I have now spent my days here, at Captain Falafels, and my nights walking the streets of Omaha, searching for my true love, Nadia. I received word that she has taken up with some seedy people in a city beginning with the letter 'O'. If I cannot find her here, I will move on to Ontario. But those Canadians scare me." Adawhen was crushed. She was destined to be with this man. It was she who should be his true love, not this Nadia! Adawhen got up from the table, her grass skirt swishing against Sayid's leg. It was Thursday; she always wore her halter top and grass skirt on Thursdays. "Listen buster," she said, "you might as well forget about Nadia, 'cause I may be a mean old woman, but get ready I'm gonna rock your world." "I have no idea what you are talking about." He said. Just then the window of the restaurant crashed inward, and a cable wrapped itself around Sayid's leg and dragged him out of the building. Adawhen, thinking quickly, grabbed his arm and tried to hold on, but lost her grip only to find herself dangling from the ledge beneath the window. She saw the cable pull Sayid up into the helicopter, could hear the cold, braying laughter from inside the chopper, and felt her heart sink as she realized that her past had once again come back to haunt her. As she hung there, fourteen stories above the hard concrete of Omaha's sidewalks, she felt the cold, unforgiving Nebraska wind whipping through her grass skirt, could feel the eyes of the hundreds of onlookers staring up at her from below, and had only one thought: "God, why did I pick today, of all days, to go commando?"
abraxas1954	Chapter 3 - Mar 11, 2005 10:13 AM	#4	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:03 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Bella and Adawhen had been close once. As children growing up on Pago-pago, they were inseparable. But adolescence changed all that. Bella grew jealous. Adawhen was always smarter, prettier and had nicer pom-poms. They were members of the Pago-pago High School cheerleading squad. Bella wanted pom-poms as nice as Adawhen's. She wanted everything Adawhen had. This jealousy tore the two friends apart. Bella moved away to raise show donkeys. "You may have nicer pom-poms, but you'll never have an * as nice as mine!" were her parting words. Bella had been in Omaha, at the annual Omaha * Show and Auction. She just happened to be eating at Captain Falafels on that fateful day and saw Adawhen with the handsome fry cook. "She can't have him. I'll make him mine!" thought Bella. She rushed outside to her awaiting helicopter, launched the cable through the window and snagged her prize. She laughed as she watched her nemesis clinging helplessly to the ledge below. Adawhen could not hold on much longer. The pigeons were pecking at her fingers, which were slipping quickly. As the last of her strength gave out, Adawhen felt herself plunging to her doom. Meanwhile, back at Captain Falafels, Hurley, or Hugo as Adawhen had known him, finished the last of his carp kabob, licked his fingers and hurried down to the street, but not before calling back "Dudes, this place is awesome!" Adawhen, who knew a little something about birds, did what anyone in her situation would do. She knew that these were no ordinary pigeons. These were descendants of the hunting pigeons bred by the Omaha Indians hundreds of years ago. They were extra strong, the result of combining pigeons with bald eagles; their hardened, razor sharp talons and super strength were used by the Indians to hunt buffalo. Now Adawhen, with lightning quick speed, grabbed two of the pigeons on her way down. She plunged their talons into the brick of the building, slowing her descent. Chunks of brick and mortar flew everywhere as she scraped ever slower towards the sidewalk below. When she reached the ground she heard a raucous cheer from the crowd. The now purple, dusty and sweaty woman in the grass skirt hurried back to her trash truck and the awaiting Hurley, not even noticing as several men stuffed crumpled bills into her waistband. She had to hurry if she had any chance of rescuing Sayid. She spit a feather out of her mouth. She pushed down hard simultaneously on the horn and accelerator as the garbage truck made its hasty escape from the throngs that were milling about, discussing the strange purple woman who had appeared from above. Adawhen could still see the helicopter, hovering above the Omaha skyline, with the silhouette of her little Iraqi man dangling below. "Hugo, er Hurley, take the wheel!", Adawhen commanded, as she moved hastily to the back of the cabin. There she changed out of her grass skirt and halter top into a more appropriate outfit she picked up at the army surplus store, complete with Reebok Swiss Army running shoes with the new ComphortSole technology. They were all the rage in Detroit. Adawhen recognized that laughter. She knew who she was dealing with. She was ready for anything.
abraxas1954	Chapter 4 - Mar 11, 2005 10:13 AM	#5	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:04 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hurley had a very strong work ethic. While he knew the urgency of the precarious situation his friend, Sayid was in, he could not shirk his duties. The dumpster behind the Marlon Perkins building had not yet been emptied. It was their last stop for the day, so he took a right, down the alley. The mechanical growls of the truck's hydraulic arms lifting the dumpster brought Adawhen hurrying back to the front seat. After some heated words, they were back in pursuit of Sayid and his abductor, Bella. Adawhen pushed Hurley over to the passenger seat and took control of the truck. The helicopter was no longer visible, and the duo frantically scanned the sky. Adawhen continued in the direction they last saw Sayid. She knew time was of the essence if she was to rescue her dear little Iraqi. She thought of Sayid, longingly. She felt an aching in her loins. Adawhen, with her left hand on the steering wheel, reached between her legs with her right hand. She pushed down on the spring that had popped loose from the seat cushion and snapped it back into place. There, that was better. The aching went away. Meanwhile, Bella and her prize were landing at the secluded donkey ranch that she owned on the outskirts of the city. She shot a quick glance over at her donkeys, a smile gracing her lips as she saw her prized show donkey, Kerry. Of all the donkeys, Kerry had set the standard for being an *. Bella knew she would win the $6,000 prize money at the Omaha * Show. Bella quickly lashed Sayid's hands behind him. As they walked toward the compound, where she intended to tie him to a bed spring and torture him into submission, Sayid said, "I should warn you, I was a member of the Iraqi Republican Guard." "Oh, you mean the elite fighting unit that surrendered en mass without a shot during the first Gulf War?", she retorted. "Yes, that was us." They continued on in silence. Adawhen's heart sank as the realization that she had lost Sayid took hold of her. She only knew him for a few moments, but it seemed like a lifetime to her. Adawhen wiped away a tear. She and Hurley drove the streets of Omaha the rest of the day and on into the night, stopping only for gas and Snickers bars. As they drove on, with eyelids and hearts growing heavier, the seeds of a plan began to germinate in her mind. She would get Sayid back, and rid herself of Bella's jealousy once and for all. Sayid winced as Bella moved closer. She had tied him down to the bed, and began the session of pain by commanding him to pledge his devotion to her. He would not submit, so Bella had set to work. She stabbed him in the shoulder with the sharpened end of a two-by-four. Sayid shouted out once in pain before spitting at her, "That's all you've got, splinters?" His bravado now taking control of him, Sayid taunted her, saying, "Where I come from, we truly know how to torture someone. We used real pain, like bamboo shoots under the fingernails. You just don't have what it takes." "Unfortunatley for both of us, you are wrong," replied Bella. She had an outcropping of bamboo growing outside of her donkey barn, interfering with the animals' play area. Bella had spent thousands of dollars trying to eradicate the bamboo, but to no avail. Now she had a use for it. The first glints of sunrise through the windshield brought Adawhen and Hurley out of their slumber. The dashboard was littered with Snickers wrappers from the night before. Hurley opened the passenger side door of the garbage truck, stretched his arms and back and walked to the rear of the truck. Adawhen reached for the cell phone and made a call, putting into place the first steps of her plan to rescue Sayid. Hurley came back to the truck's cabin and asked, "Who ya talkin' to, Dude?" Adawhen, who knew a little something about Omaha's social calendar, was aware of the annual Omaha * Show, and deduced that it was the one event that would draw Bella out of hiding. She said, "Come on Hurley, we've got a donkey to tend to." Sayid lay motionless on the bed, his arms and legs securely bound to the frame. His only thought was of escape. If he could get Bella to trust him, he could possibly overpower her and make his way to freedom. Bella was no longer in the room. She left hours ago, eager to escape the heavily accented ramblings of the little Iraqi man. He had told her in depth of his devotion to the mysterious Nadia. As soon as Sayid saw the sharpened bamboo shoots, he told her that Adawhen meant nothing to her, that his heart was given to Nadia. Bella derived enough satisfaction from these words to postpone the pain she had meant to inflict upon him. She was crazed with her bitterness towards Adawhen, and seized upon any hope for Adawhen's unhappiness. She still did not trust this man, but listened intently as he told her of his time in Tikrit with his childhood friend, Nadia. They had met again when he was a soldier, on different sides of the conflict. It was his job to torture her, to punish her for her views; but Sayid could not let this happen. He grew fond of her, grew to love her. He welcomed every opportunity to visit with her, so hear her voice, look into her brown eyes, gaze upon her eyebrow and her large, cavernous nose. After about two hours of this, Bella excused herself and went out to feed the donkeys. Saturday was the show, and she needed her prized * to be in top shape. Adawhen and Hurley drove quickly down the dirt roads that led out from Omaha. They soon found themselves at the Jedediah Wonkstacker Home for Derelict Donkeys. Here they took in donkeys, mules and pack horses which had been abandoned by their owners. Their motto was: "Beasts of burden are no burden, at Wonkstackers". Although she had not devoted much time to the subject, Adawhen did audit a class on donkey husbandry during her years at Oxford. The proprietor, Jedediah, was waiting for them. Adawhen set quickly to work, culling the best and brightest of the abandoned animals from the group. She narrowed the choices down to two, who she nicknamed "Boone" and "Sawyer". While studying American literature at the Community College of Luxemburg, Adawhen was especially taken by the adventures of both Daniel Boone and Tom Sawyer, and had always wanted to name a pet after each of them. The deciding factor would be the obstacle course which Hurley had created from some of the lager pieces of garbage in the back of the truck. It was a tough race, both donkeys neck-and-neck to the end. But when they approached the final wall Boone suddenly veered off course to root through another donkey's haystack. Sawyer easily scaled the six foot wall and Adawhen smiled in satisfaction. They had twenty-four hours to get this beast in shape for the show. And they were going to need every one of them
abraxas1954	Chapter 5 - Mar 11, 2005 10:14 AM	#6	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:13 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hurley drove quickly towards to large, domed building in the center of Omaha. The O-Dome, as it was called, was built four years ago, mainly as a result of the tremendous popularity of the annual Omaha A Show and Auction. It had quickly become a global phenomenon, second only to the Super Bowl in television viewership. Omaha was now a city to be reckoned with because of it's aes. Hurley arrived at the dome a little after 3:00 on Friday afternoon. Adawhen had sent him to enter their donkey, Sawyer, in the competition. After she had selected Sawyer from the group of wayward donkeys at the Jedediah Wonkstacker Home for Derelict Donkeys, Adawhen set to work getting him ready for the show. She knew grooming would certainly be a key factor, so she borrowed a Flowbee from Jedediah and gave Sawyer a professional quality cut in a matter of minutes. She spent most of the rest of the day putting Sawyer through his paces; practicing his braying, teaching him to walk with his head up and shoulders back, running through the steeplechase course and working on their tapdancing routine. She had chosen "Putting on the Ritz", the Peter Boyle/Gene Wilder version, not the Taco version. Adawhen didn't need to win; she just needed to get close to Bella. She needed to get Sayid back. She needed to make things right. As she brushed the dust off of Sawyer's rump for the sixteenth time, Adawhen noticed a shiny bottle laying in one of the trash heaps used for the steeplechase. She picked up the bottle, admiring it's antiquity, and pulled out the stopper. Immediately, a stream of pink smoke arose from the bottle and assumed the shape of a man wearing a turban. "I am the genie of the bottle," he said. "I will grant you your heart's desire." Adawhen stared in disbelief. "What?!" she shot back. "I am an intelligent, well educated mean old purple woman. I am firmly grounded in reality! Do not even think of insulting my intelligence with such a cheap plot device. Get your sorry self back in that bottle and out of my sight!" And with that she stuffed the surprised, funny looking man back into the bottle and tossed it away. The bottle was later found by Jedediah, who would be forever accompanied by a tiny classical musician. Apparently when Adawhen stuffed the genie back into the bottle, she damaged his hearing, and the genie thought Jedediah had wished for a twelve inch pianist. As Hurley made his way through the crowds of people, admiring their ases, he strained to look for the registration desk. He saw the sign on the opposite side of the Astroturf field and headed for it. Hurley was the type of person who stood out in a crowd; and, unfortunately this time was no different. Peter Jennings had dreamed of covering a major sporting competition since he graduated from finishing school. He wanted the Olympics, but Costas had beat him to it. So Jennings settled for the anchor seat at ABC news. With the Omaha A Show being covered on ABC this year, he made sure he would be there. With Brokaw and Rathers out of the picture, he could afford to leave his post for awhile. But Jennings wasn't just the evening anchor for ABC news. He was also the head of P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y., the evil organization bent on the destruction of logical thought everywhere. P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y. stood for Anagrams Don't Really Mean Anything. It made no sense, and that's how he liked it. Now, as Jennings looked around the O-Dome, his heart jumped. Did he really see who he thought he saw? He did, he did, he did see the large man called Hurley. Jennings couldn't believe this stroke of luck! After Ethan Rom had lost track of Hurley, Jennings had begun to despair. Now, he had reason to smile again. The map was within his reach. Jennings quickly dialed a number on his cell phone. "Ram", came the female voice on the other end. "I found him", Said Jennings. "Be at the O-Dome in fifteen minutes." Hurley turned from the counter after having successfully registering Adwhen and Sawyer and paying the eleven dollar registration fee. He accidentally stepped on the foot of the woman in line behind him. "Sorry, Dude", he said. "Hey watch it! I think you broke my toe!" yelled Bella, as Hurley indifferently walked away, not hearing her over the sounds of Willie Nelson coming through the earphones of his MP-3 player. Bella limped to the counter, plunked down her eleven dollars and began filling out the form. Kerry would wear the number 52. She hurried in order to get home to check on Sayid and to get some ice for her toe. She, didn't notice the figure in black that brushed by her, following the big man who had stepped on her foot.
abraxas1954	Chapter 6 - Mar 11, 2005 10:14 AM	#7	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:29 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hurley did not know he was being followed. He used to be more careful, back when he and Adawhen were aware that Ethan Rom had been after him. Rom had wanted the map that Hurley had tattooed on the inside of his right thigh. Hurley didn't know why he had the map, what it was or how it got there. Four years ago, while touring the U.S. with 'Up With People', he had met a woman in a bar, got to talking and all he remembered after that was waking up in a bathtub of icewater with a note attached to him that told him to call for an ambulance. The paramedics told him he was fine, both kidneys were still there, but it was at that time that he noticed the map. Hurley soon tired of trying to solve the mystery, eventually just accepting it as a part of him. About four months after his escape from the island, he and Adawhen began receiving threatening messages. At first they thought it was a joke; but after checking with the authorities, Hurley and Adawhen packed up and relocated to Omaha, presumably leaving the threat behind. The messages from Rom always said the same thing: "Give us the map. We must find Alex." Hurley had looked at Adawhen and said, "Dude, who the hell is Alex?" The dark, sinister figure following Hurley kept close; but it was too crowded in the O-Dome to risk anything alone. This would require backup. Ram stayed back a little, allowing Hurley to climb into the huge, blue refuse truck, and followed him back to Wonkstacker's. Ram picked up the cell phone and hit 6 on the speed dial. "Jennings," came the reply. "We've got a problem", said Ram. "They are staying at Wonkstacker's." Ever since the black market trading of donkey fur had hit U.S. soil, places like Wonkstacker's had put up heavy security to protect their livestock from poachers. Wonkstacker's was well known as being heavily fortified. Several raids had been attempted, unsuccessfully; the last battle was so fierce it was known as Donkey D-Day. Jennings was silent for a moment, then said, "We don't have a chance of getting him at Wonkstacker's. Homeland Security is covering things at the A Show tomorrow. Get two hundred of your best men and pick him up during the half-time show. Don't fail me. You know what happened to Rom." Ram winced. The memory of seeing her counterpart starring in The Bachelor was enough to send panic through her. ABC was getting ready to launch The Bachelorette, and she was not going to fail. Hurley pulled the trash truck up alongside the main barn. He saw Adawhen and the donkey, Sawyer practicing their dance routine. "Dude, how did you get the little donkey dude to sing 'Puttin on the Ritz'?" Adawhen laughed. "Well, I know a little something about equine vocal chords and if you mix vinegar, tomato juice and the flower from a forsythia bush, it will temporarily cause the beast's neck muscles to contract and reshape the vocal chords to very closely resemble those of a human. The rest was just a matter of coaching." "Dude, you amaze me. I didn't even know an a had vocal chords." "It's getting late" said Adawhen. "We should all get some rest." By the time Bella got back to her ranch, the swelling in her foot had begun to go down. She limped into the room where Sayid lay, bound helplessly on the bed. "Did you miss me?" she asked. "No", came the reply. "I have spent my hours alone thinking about my Nadia. It is she that I miss, not someone like you. How can you keep me like this? What harm have I caused you?" Bella sighed. "Sayid, I am truly sorry for the injustice I have done to you. It's just that I saw you there, kissing Adawhen, and my old jealousy flared up. I mean you no harm. Understand, it's nothing personal. But I can't let Adawhen have you." "Please, I am begging you. Let me go. I care nothing for that purple woman. I am only seeking my Nadia." Bella began weeping. "Oh,, Sayid. Your devotion to Nadia is remarkable. I will set you free. Tomorrow, when I leave for the show I will give you a ride back to the city." She undid the ropes that bound him and gently began massaging the raw skin on his wrists. Sayid looked into her eyes and felt drawn to Bella in a way he did not expect. "I will go with you tomorrow and help you show your a**," he said, as Bella moved to his ankles.
abraxas1954	Chapter 7 - Mar 11, 2005 10:15 AM	#8	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:31 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Morning came quickly for Adawhen. She appeared nervous, and Hurley went over to relax her. "Dude, don't sweat the competition. You have a great a and I have no doubt about you winning." "Thanks. But I don't care about the competition. I'm just getting a little scared about confronting Bella. It's been so long, and I don't even know where to begin. Imagine that, me not knowing what to say." She laughed a little. "Well, let's get Sawyer on the truck and get this party started." The show was surreal. The glitz and glamour were more than Bella had expected, and far more than Sayid could have ever imagined. They were startled outside of the O-Dome, when two protesters from PETA threw buckets of red paint on Angelina Jolie as she arrived wearing a Halston dress trimmed with donkey fur. The protesters were quickly led away by authorities, but the crowd had been successfully rattled. Once inside, Bella's eyes widened. There were so many people! Lights flashed and reporters scurried for positions to cover the largest sporting event to ever hit the heartland. The competitors were lined up backstage for the opening ceremony and donkey parade. Bella's heart skipped a beat when she saw a familiar purple figure staring at her from a few rows back. "So", she thought, "she has come to take this from me, too." "Sayid", Bellla said out loud, "I can't let her beat me." Adawhen saw Bella. She wondered where her beautiful little Iraqi was. Had Bella brought him here, or did she have him locked up somewhere, a prisoner of their old feud? As she stared over at her old friend, Bella stepped to her right and Adawhen caught a quick glimpse of long, wavy, jet black hair. Adawhen's heart leaped and waves of relief rushed across her face. He was here! Sayid was ok! He was… talking casually to Bella. Her excitement faded. What was happening? Sayid was hers; how could he be there with Bella, unrestrained? Adawhen struggled to make sense of it. The music started. The crowed rushed to their feet, straining to watch as the proud donkey competitors marched out in unison, heads held high. Adawhen felt herself being pushed along, and her confusion was drowned out. Ram watched from her perch high above, in the O-Dome rafters. She had a transceiver, which allowed her to communicate to the unit commanders of the two hundred P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y. agents carefully situated throughout the crowd. "Is the explosive in place?" she asked. "Affirmative" was the reply. "Where is the target?" "We have him in sight, section 104, row 2, seat 8. Pretty good seat. I sat in the same section last year for the Harlem Globetrotters." "You saw the Globetrotters? My kid's been bugging me to take him." "Will you two please focus on the mission?" came Ram's tart response. The competition was tough, but the donkeys showed tremendous sportsmanship; even clapping as one a, a gray one, got back up after a bad fall from the uneven bars. Sawyer held his own quite well, but after only a day of training, even under Adawen's guidance, he was in fourteenth place going into halftime. Bella was doing considerably better. Her a, Kerry, was a true champion, with obviously considerable training and grooming under the guidance of an expert. Bella had good reason to be proud. The last challenge before the half was the swimsuit competition, which Kerry walked out of in first place. He was beginning to sweat under the heat of the lights. Bella took out a towel and wiped her a. Adawhen had tried unsuccessfully throughout the day to get close to Bella so that she could talk to her. When halftime came she found her opportunity. The competitors had all gathered backstage to re-groom. The donkeys had to get ready for the halftime finale, when they all joined Celine Dion on stage for the show stopper, "Aes On Parade". Adwhen saw Bella seated by herself, near the exit. "Congratulations, you're a really shows well", she offered. Bella's eyes glared back at Adawhen. "What are you doing here? Come to try and ruin the rest of my life? Well you can see it's not going to happen this time!" Adawhen's eyes filled with tears. "Aw, honey. Please don't start like that. I didn't come to compete with you. I've never tried to compete with you. "This", she waved her hand, "this is just the only way I could think of to talk with you." "We have nothing to say. Oh, and your 'boyfriend', I'd give him back, but he doesn't want you." Her harsh words stung Adawhen, but she didn't let on. "Bella, dear, please listen to me. We don't have to compete, we're more alike than you could imagine." Bella looked into Adawhen's eyes and could see her sincerity. Even with a lifetime of jealousy between them, Bella truly missed Adawhen's companionship. "Ok, I'll listen." "Bella, we aren't just friends who grew up together on Pago-Pago. I guess nobody ever told you about our dark secret. I didn't find out myself until I was eighteen, and by then it was too late. My mother told me one evening, after I came home crying from my senior prom. My date had made some very cruel remarks and it hurt me. You and I weren't just friends… we're family." Bella's eyes widened. "Didn't you ever wonder that we were born on the same day, at the same time? Bella, we were born together, physically joined together. Bella, we are Siamese twins!" Bella gasped, choking back tears. "We're sisters?!" "Well, no, not sisters. We're cousins." "Siamese cousins? How the hell is that possible?" "Our mothers were sisters. Siamese twin sisters. They were joined at the uterus. After we were born, the doctors were able to successfully separate them." "But, what, how, who? Ada, help me." "Yes, search your feelings Bella. I am your cousin!. Our parents decided to separate us as well. We shared… well we shared a cheek." "We were joined at the face?" "Not that cheek, dear. When we were separated, our parents had to decide which of us would be complete, and which of us had to give up a cheek. Bella, you are a complete woman, I unwittingly made the sacrifice for you." "So, you're...?" "That's right, Bella. I'm half-a**ed. It was hard for my parents. They knew kids would be cruel. I would be the butt of so many jokes. They bought the cattle farm and we moved there. They thought the dairy air would be good for me. Of course, I grew up not knowing that there was anything wrong with me. That is, until you and I began drifting apart. I started researching our history, and determined to excel at everything. I overcompensated for my physical handicap." "Oh, Adawhen", tears were flowing freely from both women's eyes by now. The years of hatred and jealousy were forgotten. The two dear friends, cousins, had reunited at last, and hugged each other as if to make up for their lifetime apart. Adawhen was the first to break off their embrace. "Bella, honey. You have a show to win." Flashbulbs popped throughout the darkness of the O-Dome as the donkeys and their owners paraded proudly up on the stage and Celine Dion launched into the special song, written just for this occasion. The donkeys quickly lined up in formation, dancing around Celine as if she was just one of them. The crowd was on its feet. Ram gave the order. The explosion ripped out violently from the center of the stage. Celine, who had been standing directly on top of where the C-4 had been placed, disappeared in a blinding flash. The poor animals unfortunate enough to have been standing close to her were blown from the platform, killed instantly. At first the crowd cheered, believing this was just part of the band's pyrotechnics. As bits of donkey began raining down on the front rows, the cheers turned to screams, and the excitement instantly turned to panic.
abraxas1954	Chapter 8 - Mar 11, 2005 10:16 AM	#9	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 03:32 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The auditorium became thick with smoke and screaming. The two hundred P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y. operatives swarmed into position. Their prey, the large, friendly man in the second row of section 104 had been temporarily blinded by the flash of light and now struggled to make out anything in the thick smoke. As he tipped back his cup to down the remainder of his beer, hands grabbed at him from both sides. "Dudes! Definitely not cool!" he shouted as the beer sloshed onto the front of his shirt. Hurley pushed the gropers aside easily but was again assailed from all directions. He shoved back, again freeing himself with relative ease, and began making his way out of the aisle. His only thought was to get back to Adawhen and make sure she was alright. Adawhen was at the far north corner of the stage when the explosion hit. The force knocked her to the floor, and it took several moments for her to regain her bearings. She knew a little something about military operations and immediately recognized the smell of C4 and could quickly make out the enemy. They were moving about in the classic Helsinki maneuver. Plus they were wearing baseball caps embroidered with the letters "P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y.". Adawhen could see them heading towards Hurley, scores of them. It dawned on her. They had gotten sloppy and Rom's people had found them again. Her friend was in dire trouble. Adawhen sprang into action, pushing and shoving her way through the throngs of frightened spectators and panicked farm animals. She could see Hurley, could see the fear and anger in his eyes as he fought back bravely against the tide of grabbing and punching; he picked up one of his attackers, held him briefly over his head, and then launched the flailing man back into a pile of his comrades, knocking them all down. The big man gallantly strode over the bodies on the floor which had created an opening for him. He spun suddenly, moving with a nimbleness that belied his girth, his wavy black locks whipping around. Adawhen struggled to reach her friend, but the crowd kept pushing back on her. She could not get through. Then she saw something that brought hope back to her tired, purple body. It was Sawyer, her donkey. He was confused, scared, and braying loudly; but he was holding his own against the pressing throngs. Adawhen made her way over to Sawyer, gave him a quick, reassuring hug, and mounted up. He put his head down and pushed onward. "Hurley!!" cried Adawhen, hoping to be heard above the screaming, "hold on babe. I'm coming for you. You boys better back off, because I am now one pissed-off, mean, old, purple, half-aed woman!" What happened next is the stuff of legend. Witnesses say they saw flames shoot from the eyes of the fierce, purple woman on the donkey. As Adawhen reached the outer rim of the circle of would be assassins, she looked around for any weapon available. Bits of exploded donkey littered the ground. Adawhen reached down and her hand closed firmly around a jaw-bone. She got off her a and began swinging that jawbone as if that motion was the only thing that would keep the world spinning. It connected, hard, on the backs of the first few combatants. Their neighbors saw this and turned their attention to Adawhen. She was possessed, bringing down that jawbone again and again, felling her enemy and making her way to her besieged friend. Hurley fought on like a true warrior, sloughing off attack after attack. But even the big man was beginning to tire. Through a break in his attackers he saw a flash of purple, and saw bits of flesh and blood go flying through the air. He began to feel queasy. But another onslaught brought him back to his senses. He fought with renewed inspiration, knowing that Adawhen was near. Suddenly the two friends came face to face. Hurley and Adawhen paused, breathing heavily. They surveyed the damage, found themselves standing amid a sea of black clad bodies, turned and smiled at each other. "Dude", Hurley gasped, "that was a Jedi moment!" Sayid reacted quickly once the explosion hit; his soldier's training taking over. He was near Bella, and saw her fall. He ran to her, and covered her body with his to protect her from the flying debris. As the smoke began to settle, he moved back and cupped her face in his hand. "Bella, are you harmed?" he inquired. Bella coughed twice and replied that she was fine. She immediately became concerned about the surviving donkeys, getting up and herding them to the south side of the auditorium. Sayid helped her with this, not able to see what was happening on the other side of the stage. Some of the other donkey owners came over to help, and to try and find their aes in the smoke. As Sayid carried a small, limp body over to Bella, he noticed several armed men dressed in black running quickly towards the north end, and he followed them. Bella saw one of the black clad men standing on the back of Kerry in order to see what was happening. She strode over, punched him hard and yelled "Get off my a!" Bella knelt down to comfort her little friend, who was shaken, but not injured. Ram surveyed the chaos from her perch, overhead. She had not figured on the strange, purple woman coming to assist Hurley. Ram attached herself to the end of the rope and rappelled down, quietly and quickly like a spider. Adawhen and Hurley paused briefly to catch their breath, the enormity of the situation slowly dawning on them. "Dude, someone just blew up Celine Dion!" the big man exclaimed. They turned to go look for Bella and Sayid, just in time to see one last, lone figure in black descend in front of them. Adawhen watched in horror as Ram raised up her hand and fired, point blank, into Hurley's chest. Then everything went black as the gun was turned on her.
abraxas1954	Chapter 9 - Mar 11, 2005 10:16 AM	#10	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:10 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Adawhen was dreaming. She felt the soft, yet firm pressure of his lips on hers, the feel of his strong hands on her chest and the rhythmical pumping of his body on hers. She knew it was a dream; she could not see him, could hear nothing, but relished every second of this intimacy. His lips pressed on hers again. She could feel a tingling as blood rushed to her face. Her ears at first heard just a whisper, then the rushing of hundreds of sounds at once. "Hurry, she's turning purple!" she heard someone say. Confusion began to set in as Adawhen stirred from her dream. "That is good", she heard a heavily accented reply, "she is getting her color back." Adawhen's eyes opened and she struggled to focus. She smiled at the handsome face, inches from hers. Then she remembered. "Hurley!" she screamed as she pushed the Iraqi off of her and sat up. "Sayid, where is Hurley? I saw…" her voice trailed off as she remembered her last waking vision: her dear friend Hurley being shot in the chest at point blank range. Tears formed. "Adawhen, please rest. I believe Hurley will be alright. But for how long I cannot say", came Sayid's reassuring reply. "You were both shot with a Taser gun, which rendered you unconscious. When I reached you, however, your heart had stopped. The charge must have been too strong for you. So I performed CPR." "But Tasers can only fire one charge without being reset", countered Adawhen, "How could she have shot us both?" "It must have been the dual charge Taser gun, specially designed and sold only with the Mitsubishi Montero Urban Assault package. That may help us track whoever took Hurley. Please tell us what happened." Adawhen stood up and walked towards the destruction that was once the stage in the center of the O-Dome floor. "First I need to verify something." She searched the wreckage as a puzzled Sayid looked on. She saw a lock of blond hair and exclaimed, "Yes, I knew it!" and picked up the decapitated head of Celine Dion. Sayid choked. Adawhen quickly tucked the severed head into the saddle bag her donkey, Sawyer, was wearing. "Let's get Bella and get out of here. We need to act fast, the CSI - Omaha team will be here soon" Although he had only known Adawhen for a short time, and would normally have reported a cranium theft to the police, Sayid kept silent and led the demanding purple woman to the south end of the stage where Bella tended to the wounded donkeys. It did not take much to convince Bella to leave and take them back to her ranch. Adawhen did not want to risk returning to Wonkstacker's. So she led them out and they loaded the donkeys into the back of Adawhen's garbage truck. Sayid confronted Adawhen as they drove, "Please, dear lady, explain to me why you stole Celine Dion's head." Adawhen instructed Sayid to reach into the saddle bag, which she had removed from Sawyer, and pull the head out. Bella thought she would faint. Sayid braced himself and retrieved the severed head, having to tug slightly to untangle the blond hair from the clasp on the bag. He grew even more confused as he stared at the jumble of wires dangling from Celine's neck. Adawhen explained, "After Hurley and I had defeated our attackers, we were ambushed by the woman who shot us. At first I thought she looked familiar, but it didn't register since I had also just seen her get killed. We were attacked by Celine Dion. She must be an agent of P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y. The critics were right all along. Her stage presence really was stiff and mechanical. Celine the performer was a robot. It must have been a cover for her real identity as a criminal mastermind. I'm hoping that there is some clue in the electronics inside that head which will lead us to their hideout. And to Hurley." Ram laughed, in that evil way that only French Canadians can. The big man strapped down in the back of the Montero began to awaken. "Dude, you look like that chick from Titanic", he insisted. She laughed again and pressed 6 on her speed dial. "I have him. And I gave you quite a story for your precious six o'clock news report." "Yes, but you were sloppy", came Jennings' reply. "Make sure you and your passenger disappear."
abraxas1954	Chapter 10 - Mar 11, 2005 10:17 AM	#11	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:11 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Adawhen drove the garbage truck at breakneck speed through the crowded Omaha streets. She flipped the switch to kick in the nitrous-oxide system which she had installed just this past Sunday, in between transcribing the entire Whirlpool Appliance owner's manual library into Mayan hieroglyphs and delivering the key-note address at the Mensa Conference on the Understanding of Everything. They arrived at Bella's ranch within minutes. The vehicle and its occupants were ushered through the main gates by two porters wearing matching uniforms of forest green jackets over crisply starched and pleated black slacks. Their black shoes were shined to perfection. The main house, to which Bella directed Adawhen, was a Tudor style, approximately 15,000 square feet, if Adawhen was anything of an estimator. Approximately a quarter mile south, along the main drive, was another building, also Tudor style, about half the size. Bella explained, "That's the guest house. There is a heated pool in the basement there, along with a small exercise room. But considering the circumstances, I'd like for you two to stay in the main house with me." They walked through the double doors leading to the three-story marble foyer as four young men came up from the east side to tend to the donkeys. Adawhen looked around and said, "Did I mention we're related?" Hurley struggled against the straps that bound his wrists and ankles to the cold, steel table. Another strap went across his waist. He was flat on his back, looking up at a bank of bright lights, like in an operating room. He was cold, and couldn't tell what, if anything, he was wearing. They had injected him with something while he was in the truck. The next thing Hurley remembered was the cold table. "Ah, you have awakened", came a familiar voice. The woman who had been driving the truck leaned forward, her blond hair brushing against his cheek. He wished he could remember her name. "Dude, what do you want from me?" Hurley asked, with just a hint of fear in his voice. She rubbed his shoulder. "These scars, they are from bullets, no. You were shot three times. How long ago?" "Dude, when you start telling me why I'm here, I'll start answering some of your questions." "You know me, yes? I am very famous. Everyone loves my music. But that is not important now. What is important is the map. You have it on your right thigh. Where did you get it?" Hurley did not know, but he wasn't going to give anything away yet. "It's a birthmark. You like it?" "Do not toy with me. I will have the map. The rest of you does not necessarily need to come with it. But I do not wish to harm one such as yourself." Hurley felt the sweat puddling beneath him on the cold metal table. Adawhen and Sayid sat at the considerable table in the kitchen. Bella had supplied them with a reasonably complete kit of screwdrivers, pliers and assorted blades before leaving to head to the stables. They had found the tiny ridge along the hairline above the left ear and Sayid was working on getting the robotic head of Celine Dion opened up. There were no noticeable catches, and he did not wish to damage the delicate electronics inside. This was their only clue to find their friend. "You have been with Hurley for quite some time now. Have you any idea why anyone would concoct such an elaborate scheme to kidnap him?" Sayid asked. Adawhen paused before replying. Although she wanted Sayid, and would share anything with him, Hurley's life was at stake and she was afraid to share too much. One look into Sayid's reassuring brown eyes was enough to break her composure. Adawhen began sobbing. "I found him about seven months ago. I was a teacher. He came into my class and asked if anyone knew anything about third century Iberian philosophy. I knew he was in trouble. I let him stay with me. Shortly after that, we began receiving mysterious, threatening messages. They came from someone named Ethan Rom" "Rom?! I know this name." Sayid interrupted, "I am sorry. Please go on." "Well, Rom was intent on getting between Hurley's thighs." Sayid raised an eyebrow. "Hurley has a map on the inside of his right thigh. Rom wanted the map. He worked for P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y., and they need this map for something. Hurley does not know how the map got there." "I wish I could see this map," said Sayid. "Well, I'm pretty familiar with it. Perhaps I can draw it for you while you work on that head." Sayid raised his eyebrow again and turned his attention back to his task. The long silence was abruptly broken by a slight cracking sound, and Adawhen saw the back of the robot's head lift slowly from the front. Sayid muttered in satisfaction, "Let us now find out what is in Celine Dion's head." Adawhen said nothing until she had completed the sketch. She looked up at Sayid and said, "This may not be exact, but it's a pretty close copy." Sayid paled as he stared down at the page. He looked at Adawhen with fear in his eyes and said, "This is the island from which we escaped. Rom was there. He was on the island with us. Somehow he followed us. Adawhen, please. We must not go back there."
abraxas1954	Chapter 11 - Mar 11, 2005 10:17 AM	#12	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:12 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Peter Jennings was in an unusually good mood as his handlers primped and pampered him, readying for the six o'clock news. As eyeliner was applied over the two layers of pancake on his eyelids, he smiled, thinking about how his plans were now falling into place. He was about to bring his mother country out from under the shadow of the beast. For two centuries, The United States of America had been the world's golden child, as Canada took a back seat, feigning friendship and peacefulness. But Jennings had worked tirelessly for decades on his plan to raise Canada to greatness. Soon he would roll out the new ad campaign on ABC: "Canada, the Other America", which would do for the Great White North what his beta campaign had done for pork. He had operatives in position throughout the United States' pop culture. Most of their musicians, comedians, writers and actors had come from Canada. And now he was about to go live and tell the world how the greatest Canadian performer of all time, Celine Dion, had been killed in a terrorist attack on US soil. The sympathy factor would be huge. Adawhen watched as Sayid manipulated the electronics inside of the robot Celine head. She was still puzzling over his fear of the island that was the apparent subject of the map on Hurley's thigh. Sayid was a trained soldier. What would make him so afraid? Other questions occurred to her, but she held off asking them as Sayid continued his delicate work. It was imperative that they find a clue which would lead them to Ram's hideout and hopefully to Hurley; if he was still alive. Why had only Sayid and Hurley made it off the island? Why hadn't Sayid tried to rescue the other survivors? What had happened to her friend, Flysail? Adawhen grew impatient, wanting answers. Bella came into the kitchen and clicked on the fifty-two inch plasma screen with surround-sound speakers on the wall over the toaster. "…are calling this a tragedy for all of humanity, not just Canada. Ms. Dion had recently announced a world tour to support her latest album, 'Look at Me!' Mourners have already begun lining up outside of Canadian embassies throughout the world to show their respects" came the reassuring voice of Peter Jennings, reverberating through the kitchen. "Police are looking for two suspects, described as a Middle-Eastern looking man, suspected to have ties to al-Qaeda, and an oddly purple woman, who was seen earlier this week flashing a crowd of onlookers as she rappelled down the Marlon Perkins building in downtown Omaha, abusing two pigeons in the process. The pair are said to be armed and extremely dangerous and traveling in a blue Omaha Sanitation truck. There are unconfirmed reports that the duo has a hostage, described only as a large man about twenty-six years old. And now, turning our attention to the economy…" Bella snapped off the set. "You two are fugitives! What are we gonna do?" Bella asked. "Relax!" snapped Adawhen. "As long as we are here, nobody will find us. We do need to get rid of the truck, though. Do you have a room in one of your outbuildings?" "Yes, the building just past the donkey barn, it is well hidden by the bamboo outgrowth." Sayid gave Bella a chilling look. "Well, we need to work fast. We need to save Hurley, discover P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y.'s plot, and stop them, all while clearing our names of the devastation at the show. I also need to get a new grass skirt before Thursday." "I have discovered a clue. There is a chip here that looks like it was specially made. It has a symbol on it of an eye, with the word "Isleco" below. I have not heard of this company. Have either of you?" he asked. Adawhen jumped in. "I haven't either, but I think I know who can help us." Chrisser buttoned up her uniform, readying herself for the afternoon roll call. Being a cop meant everything to her. She was following in her family's proud tradition of community service. Chrisser had been on the force for three years now, walking a beat in the Omaha projects, and being promoted to sergeant faster than any of her classmates from the academy. As much as she loved being a cop, though, Chrisser hated purple people. She had seen the early reports from the A** Show attack that there was a purple person involved. Earlier this week, Chrisser had just missed apprehending a purple woman for indecent exposure and cruelty to animals. She would get the purple perpetrator this time, though. Chrisser was determined, and angry, and devoid of humor. "I'll get that old bat", she mused as she headed into roll call.
abraxas1954	Chapter 12 - Mar 11, 2005 10:17 AM	#13	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:13 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The sweat poured out of Hurley as his body contorted endlessly, screams filling the air. His hands hurt worst of all. It was as is knives were being forced into the muscles of his thumbs. He had been locked in this room for almost an entire day with nothing to do but play the newest game, Halo VI: Attack of the Emps, on the Playstation left here for him by his abductors. He was tiring of it, but couldn't bring himself to stop. After Ram threatened him while he was strapped on the table, Hurley thought it would be best if he cooperated with them. He told her what he knew about how he came to have the map tattooed on his leg, and that he really didn't know how or why it was put there, or who did it. This seemed to please Ram and she had immediately called someone to relay the information. Hurley heard her say, "the fool knows nothing" and he now meant to prove her wrong. The speaker phone could be heard ringing under the sounds of the conversation in the kitchen. Adawhen had dialed her most trusted confidante, Plato, to try and gain his insight into the mysterious Isleco logo on the chip found in Celine Dion's robot head. "Hello." "Plato, hey it's Ada!" "Oy, Ada! Got me a bit beamered, broat me ootay the bog." "Tone it down a bit, dear, we have some non-Scotts on the line with us." "Sorry. Here I am rabbitting like a bloody sprog." Bella and Sayid exchanged confused looks. "Listen, Plato, we're in a bind. We have a computer chip with a logo on it that we need to identify. I know you are pretty good with computers, even though all it ever means to me is blah blah blah. The chip has a picture of an eye on it with the word 'Isleco' under the eye. Have you ever heard of this company?" They could hear the soft sounds of a keyboard clacking away on the other end. "Barry! Just copped some info fer ya. The name's registered to an shipping company with an Omaha address. Sounds a wee bit stroppy to me." "Right", said Adawhen, "Not too many ports in Omaha. Plato, this may get nasty, and I don't want to get you too involved. Just, please stay where I can reach you if needed." "Right." After they got the address from him, the trio piled into Bella's Lamborghini. It was a two seater, so Sayid sat on Adawhen's lap. The police were looking for them now, so they had to abandon the garbage truck. Sergeant Chrisser walked quickly to her patrol unit. She was determined to be the one to catch the terrorists responsible for the death of the music world's greatest talent. Tears still poured out her eyes as she mounted her Segway scooter and launched herself onto the Omaha streets. The city had replaced most of it's fleet of patrol cars with Segways about a year ago. At first, Chrisser was reluctant to use the unusual looking device. But after trying it out she embraced this new mode of transportation and now looked upon it as her partner. She loved the feeling she got, standing upright on the platform that rode about six inches off the ground. The extra height allowed her to look down on the citizens she was sworn to protect. She reveled in the curious looks and finger pointing as onlookers tried to figure out how she could balance herself on those two wheels while gliding effortlessly through the crowds. The snickering and cat-calling fell on deaf ears as she rode by, head held high. She was Sergeant Chrisser. This was her city. These were her people. And they needed her protection. As they bulleted through the city streets, toward the address that Adawhen hoped would lead them to Hurley, she asked Sayid the first of many questions which had been nagging her. "Sayid, how is it that only you and Hurley managed to get off the island?" "Well, dear lady, your friend Flysail was quite ingenious. He managed to create another plane out of the wreckage of ours. But, of course, the new plane was much smaller. It could only hold six people. Certainly Flysail, Claire and the baby got the first three seats. We drew straws and I got the fourth seat." "What about Hurley? How did he get on?" "This is difficult to say. You see, he was voted on by the other survivors. Unfortunately Hurley had become a bit of a liability." "Hurley is not a liability!" snapped Adawhen. "Please, do not get me wrong. Everyone truly loved Hurley. However, certain incidents created some ill feelings, and we felt it was best he left on the plane." "What sort of incidents?" "Well, there was the golf course. I mean, we were trying to construct shelters and find food, and all he wanted to do was play golf. It was only a two hole course! Then there was the census. This was a very important undertaking and Hurley spent two days interviewing the survivors, getting names and important information. Just asking the people for this information rubbed some the wrong way. They felt it was intrusive." "Well it sounds like they should have appreciated him for his work." "Yes, they would have. But when at last he turned in the results to the me and Jack and the other leaders of the group, it turned out that we had forty-six survivors named 'Dude'." "Oh." "The last straw, of course, came when Locke determined that the boar population was rapidly declining. And then, when we finally took off, Danielle, a crazed French woman who lived on the island, stowed away on the plane and managed to pull Claire and the baby out. Flysail jumped out to save them and I then piloted the craft back to America." "Why didn't you get the authorities to go rescue the surviviors?' "I tried several times. But look at me. When I walk into a police station to tell them I have information on a plane crash, I don't get a very warm welcome. I've had to escape four times already." "Lookout!" screamed Bella, as she downshifted and swerved left and then right to avoid colliding with the uniformed officer crossing the street directly in their path. -Brax
abraxas1954	Chapter 13 - Mar 11, 2005 10:19 AM	#14	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:14 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	The Lamborghini fishtailed as Bella struggled to bring it back under control. She couldn't understand what happened; she had a straight shot down the road and then there was someone walking into her path. Not exactly walking, more like rolling. It didn't matter because she couldn't stop the car now, no matter what she did. She turned the wheel sharply to the right. Too late! Bella overcorrected and the car spun wildly, its rear bumper smacking hard against the rolling person in her path. Two more spins and the Lamborghini slid underneath the trailer of an eighteen wheeler, its roof scraping solidly into the underside of the trailer. They were stuck! "Bella! Get us out of here!" Adawhen commanded. "I'm trying, dammit! Stop shouting at me!" Sayid looked back to see the injured police officer getting up from the roadside, limping back to the Segway Its internal gyroscope had righted it and now the Segway was spiraling across the center lane of the roadway. Sayid rolled down the window and could hear the officer calling on his radio. "Officer down! Repeat officer down. Request backup at the intersection of Hanover and 39th Avenue." Sayid turned to Bella and calmly said, "I suggest we relocate as quickly as you are able." The car suddenly lurched forward and they slowly began to make their way onward along Hanover Street. Away from the warehouse. Chrisser heard the call for assistance. She was only a block away, writing a ticket for jaywalking. She turned to the offender and hissed, "This is your lucky day, scumbag. Duty calls. But if I ever catch you breaking the law in my town again, you'll do hard time." Like a cat she leapt onto her trusty Segway and headed off in search of her downed comrade. She flipped the key to "open environment", allowing the craft to reach its top speed of 12.5 miles per hour. Chrisser threw off her helmet and let the wind whip through her hair. She arrived at the intersection two minutes later. A crowd had gathered. Two other officers were tending to the wounded cop and Chrisser pushed her way through to hear his story. "…was a yellow Lamborghini. I pulled out to ticket the driver, but she lost control and smacked into me. Sergeant Chrisser, thank god you're here. She had passengers. They fit the descriptions of the suspects who pulled off the O-Dome massacre. Please, Chrisser, you've got to catch them. Those bastards killed six donkeys. Seven if you count Celine." "Where did they go?" A bystander spoke up. "I saw them. They was trying to hide 'neath a big delivery truck. One of them that says G.O.D. on the side. 'Guaranteed Overnight Delivery', hee-hee. Helluva slogan." Chrisser grabbed the man's lapel. "Where did they go?" She glared. "Oh, uh, yeah. Truck took off with them stuck underneath it. Dangdest thing I ever saw. They headed that way, down Hanover, back the way they was coming." Chrisser sprinted for her Segway. "I want a full-on pursuit. Call dispatch and get every uniform on wheels on this." She headed down Hanover and the chase was on. "Bella, turn down this street. We need to go the other way." "Adawhen, I'm not doing anything. The car stalled out when we stopped." "Then how are we moving?" Adwhen asked. Sayid leaned his head out the window and looked up. "I could tell you. But I don't think you will believe me." Bella strained her head out the driver's window, realized there predicament and tried to turn the car to get it out from under the truck. It wouldn't budge, they were helpless. As they rolled on to wherever the truck was destined, Bella had a desperate plan. "Adawhen, Sayid, follow me." The door was stuck, so she climbed out the window. The asphalt, uncomfortably close now, rushed past as the truck rolled down the street at the ten mile-per-hour speed limit. Bella grabbed the lip of the truck's trailer and pulled herself up and out of the car. She hung there, careful not to scrape her knees on the road, and shimmied towards the cab of the truck. One by one, Adawhen and Sayid followed. Bella had almost reached the cab when she heard something strike the metal above her head. Adawhen called out, "Hurry Bella, they're shooting at us!" Bella yelled back, "Who's 'they'?" and then saw the fifteen or so police swarming towards them on their Segways, weapons drawn. The lead officer, hair billowing in the twelve mile-per-hour wind, aimed her gun again and fired. Chrisser cursed herself as her second shot also missed its mark. She holstered her weapon and concentrated on catching up to the rig. At twelve and a half miles-per hour, she was closing fast. She watched her quarry, dangling from the side of the truck, G.O.D. standing above them in huge, bold letters. "How appropriate", she thought. She watched as the purple one and the one who looked like a terrorist struggled to get to safety. Chrisser urged her steed to go faster. She was almost there. Bella reached the front of the trailer at last. With the remainder of her strength, she swung her left leg forward and rested it on the rear of the cab. She hung there briefly, hanging precariously between the two parts of the truck. If the driver was to make any turns now, she would surely fall. Bella grunted as she pushed off and swung around to land hard on the cab. She knew Adawhen would be able to get herself and Sayid to safety, so Bella turned her attention to gaining control of the truck. With a move she learned as a cheerleader, she flipped up onto her hands and somersaulted her legs around into the open window of the cabin, landing perfectly in the lap of the startled driver. "Hey little lady. Are you my birthday.." was all he got out before Bella knocked him unconscious with a forearm to his jaw. She opened the door to let her friends in, sliding over and simultaneously pushing the unconscious driver into the back of the cabin. Adawhen took the wheel. She swerved left, cutting off the lead cop, who had almost pulled even with the cab. Then she straightened the wheel and pushed down on the accelerator, and the diesel engine slowly roared. Sayid was scurrying to look back out each side of the truck. "They are all around us", he said. Adawhen swerved left again, then right, trying to swat the Segways off as if they were flies on a donkey. "Hold on", she called. Adawhen downshifted and made a sharp right. Three of the Segways smacked into the broad side of the trailer. She upshifted and gunned the engine, getting the truck up to fifteen miles-per-hour, before slowing again to make another sharp right. She was now heading towards the warehouse again, only this time she was heading into oncoming traffic on a one way street. Adawhen was unaware that, at the last turn, one of the officers had managed to grab the trailers loading platform and boarded the vehicle. Chrisser did not give up easily. -Brax
abraxas1954	Chapter 14 - Mar 11, 2005 10:19 AM	#15	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:15 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Chrisser climbed the ladder on the back of the trailer. She had been a cop long enough to know that she couldn't take all three of the suspects by herself. So she decided to stay put, laying flat on the roof of the truck. She glanced back over her shoulder and saw to her dismay the distance between her and pursuing officers was growing rapidly. She was on her own now. "Ok, I think we are safe for now. Let's get to the warehouse fast so we can save Hurley." Sayid breathed easier as he watched the police fade into the distance. Adawhen risked taking her eyes off the road for a moment as she gazed upon her Iraqi obsession. She held the wheel with her left hand and put her right on Sayid's neck, massaging gently. "Don't worry sweetheart. We'll get Hurley back alright. Then you and I can concentrate on you and I." Sayid shifted uncomfortably. "Adawhen, please. While you are by far the most beautiful and intelligent mean, old purple half-a** I have ever known, and someone I could see myself falling in love with if the circumstances were different, my hear belongs to someone else. I have devoted myself to my dear, sweet Nadia." "Here we go again", muttered Bella, leaning her head against the window glass. "I met her when we were children. Then we were reunited during the war. We spent many hours talking, and sometimes not talking. Our love grew, as no love has grown before. Then, when I thought we had a chance to stay together forever, she was taken from me. Or rather, I pushed her away. I can still feel the warmth of her skin, still smell the sweetness of her perfume, still picture the line of her eyebrow. I will never give up until I find my Nadia again. And for that reason I must deny my feelings for you, Adawhen." Adawhen began to feel tears welling up in her eyes. She reached into her pocket for a handkerchief. As she did, a paper fell out. Sayid picked it up. It was a photograph. Bella saw it and snatched it out of Sayid's hand. She looked at the picture, her eyes locked with the eyes of the man staring back at her. God he was handsome. No, more than handsome. He was perfect. Bella managed to compose herself long enough to ask Adawhen about the picture. "Oh, yes" Adawhen said wistfully, "I almost forgot I had that picture in there. I take it everywhere. That's my friend Goony. Mmm, he sure is fine. Broke my heart the day I found out he has a Mrs. Goony. But we're still close. In fact he sent me a box of veils just last week." Bella handed the picture back to Adawhen, the image forever locked in her memory. "Ok, we're here", said Adawhen, as she pulled the truck to a halt in front of a long, two story building. It was rather non-descript, the walls were brick, slightly littered with graffiti. There was a row of windows across the top floor, although the grime on them indicated that they hadn't let light into the building in years. Aside from a loading bay at the south end, the only entrance appeared to be the single door in the center of the building. They saw the now familiar eye logo painted on the rusty door, also dulled by years of grime. "Ok, now what?" asked Bella. "Please, leave that to me", said Sayid, as he climbed out, grabbed a clipboard from the dashboard and strode toward the door. Adawhen and Bella looked at each other and then followed him. Chrisser carefully peered over the edge of the truck, straining to see what was happening. "This must be their hideout", she thought, watching the little terrorist walking towards the entrance. She ducked back as the other two, the purple woman and the other one, with the smaller pom-poms, trailed after him. "He must be the ringleader", she deduced. Sayid knocked loudly on the door. After a moment it opened outward with a rusty squeak. A burly man in black coveralls confronted them, filling the doorway. "What do want?" he demanded. "I have a delivery. I need someone to sign for it." Sayid held the clipboard forward. The burly man looked at them suspiciously, then shifted his gaze back to the truck. "Please mister, this is my last delivery of the day. This is the secret headquarters of P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y., isn't it?" Again, the man looked suspiciously at Sayid, as he took the clipboard and signed it. "Yeah, this is P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y., I wasn't told we were getting anything from G.O.D., though." Sayid smiled as he took the clipboard back, and then quickly swung it down hard on the other man's head. While his opponent recovered from his daze, Sayid brought the heel of his hand up into the bridge of his nose, sending him backwards and down for good. Sayid turned to a stunned Bella and Adawhen and asked, "Shall we go in?" Ram opened the door of Hurley's room, strode across the floor and snapped of the television. "Dude, not good! I was in the middle of a game." "Quiet!" she scolded. "We are leaving. Get your shoes back on and be ready to leave in three minutes." She turned to leave the room. "Hey. When are we coming back? I've got tickets to the game tonight." "You should be concerned with if, not when." And she left. Hurley's mouth was suddenly very dry. -Brax
abraxas1954	Chapter 15 - Mar 11, 2005 10:20 AM	#16	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:16 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Jennings closed the door and walked to where Ram was busy packing various electronic devices into a metal Halibuton case. The inside of the case was lined with foam cushioning, cut out to the exact size and shape of each device. "Everything ready?" he asked. "Yes, he does not know where the tattoo came from, so he suspects nothing. I have called Benson. The plane is fully loaded and waiting for us. I'm moving Hurley to the Montero in a few minutes." "Excellent. Soon, we will have a Tim Horton's on every U.S. street corner, the maple leaf will fly over the White House, and children everywhere will want to be like Gretzky. And you and I", he said, pulling her close, his lips just brushing hers, "will retire in sunny Florida, just like all Canadians have dreamed of for the past two hundred years." "Ok, what now?" Adawhen whispered. "Why do you ask me, this was your idea." Sayid replied. "I'm asking you, because you just took out the freakin' guard and led us into this place!" Adawhen screamed out a whisper. "Hey you two, cut it out" Bella cut in, "We go find Hurley. That's the plan. Follow me." She pulled the fire axe of the wall next to the door they just came through and handed it to Adahhen. "Here, you may need this." As their eyes adjusted to the dimness of the warehouse, they saw that the main room was empty of people, but seemed at one time to have been both a manufacturing area and a laboratory. At the near end of the room, mechanical arms hung lifeless over dust covered conveyor belts. 50-60 large cardboard boxes were stacked along the opposite wall, labeled and waiting to be carried away somewhere. At the other end of the room were tables with various glass vials and beakers all filled with a yellowish liquid. This area was free of dust and seemed to have been used recently. There were four doors along the wall. Bella led them towards the doors. When they were within fifteen feet of the doors, the one on the far left opened suddenly, startling the trio. Adawhen and Bella ducked quickly under the closest table, and then froze as they saw Sayid continuing to walk towards the open door. "Who the hell are you?" demanded the second man in black coveralls they had seen that day, as he leveled his pistol at Sayid's chest. "I am here to set up for the luncheon. The kind man at the front let me in. He sent me back here to get you while he kept an eye on my untrustworthy companions. Please, come with me, I will lead you to them." As they walked past Adawhen's hiding place, she lunged upwards and brought the flat side of the axe head down on the skull of the man in black. He crumpled. "Will you stop doing that!" she hissed at Sayid. "What? I am simply using the advantages we have." "What advantages are you talking about?" "When you look like me, people in this country only approach you in two ways. People with nothing to fear see me as a terrorist, and eye me with suspicion. Others choose to see me as an ignorant foreigner, good for menial duties and not worth paying attention to. It is this second group that I rely on to populate this building. And I will use that to overcome them." "Ok, fine. It worked so far. But I'm asking you as a purple person who doesn't want to be seen in this building at all, please let's rely on stealth going forward." Before he could reply, the door closest to them opened. Out came a woman who's stunned expression upon seeing them matched the expression of the head that Bella now held by the hair in her right hand. Behind her was a man who's face was familiar, but none of the three could place it in the context of this setting. And then appeared the smiling face of their friend, Hurley. "Dudes! Hey, where have you been?" "Hurley!", shouted Sayid, who sprang forward and gave the big man a welcoming hug. Sayid then proceeded to lift Hurley's shirt and tickle his rather large belly. "Dude, cut it out", Hurley giggled, "I mean it! Not cool! Definitely not cool!" Two guards appeared from behind and pulled Sayid off of Hurley. "Please, forgive me. I was so excited to see you that I forgot my manners." Adawhen and Bella gave each other a nervous glance which seemed to say both "What is up with Sayid?" and "Ok, what do we do now?" simultaneously. "Hey, Dude, I could really use your help right now." Hurley said to Adawhen. "It's ok hon, we're gonna get you out of here somehow" she assured him. "Oh, yeah, that too. But I'm stuck big time. These guys had me playing HaloVI: Attack of the Emps, and I can't get past the fifth level." Adawhen, who knew a little something about video games, was happy to help. "Oh, Hurley. That is a real challenge. I tested that game before it was launched. You need to get the key off of the third Emp you shoot on level three in order to open the chest on level five with the…" "Will you two shut up!" Adawhen was now able to place the face of the man next to Hurley. "PETER FREAKIN' JENNINGS!!! What is this, some sort of twisted Canadian plot or something?" Ram stepped forward and raised her gun.
abraxas1954	Chapter 16 - Mar 11, 2005 10:20 AM	#17	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:20 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Sayid and Bella moved quickly. Sayid was standing just two feet from Ram and knew he need to act before she pulled the trigger. He brought his left hand down hard across her outstretched forearm as the gun fired. The bullet ricocheted off the concrete floor and sideways, striking two of the beakers full of yellow liquid before embedding itself into the back of a lab stool. At the same time Bella swung the robot Celine's head like a mace, connecting hard against Ram's face. For a very brief moment the robot's lips connected with the real Celine's lips in a surreal kiss, giving Adawhen the impression that Celine was falling in love with herself all over again. The onlookers were stunned as her body crumpled to the floor in one direction and her head went in the other. Bella quickly checked to make sure she was still holding the Celine Dion robot head. Sayid was shocked into further silence as Ram rolled over, thick brown hair splayed out on the floor. A long remembered face staring back at him. He had found Nadia! Chrisser crept slowly along the back wall of the warehouse, crouched low behind the conveyor belts. She had snuck in with the stealth of a cat. Her prey was within reach now. All she had to do was wait for her opportunity to strike. She would get these fiends who killed her beloved Celine. Chrisser shook with anticipation as she thought of the moment when she would slap the handcuffs on those nasty purple wrists and throw that old bat into a cell. She was close now. A door opened and Chrisser slunk backwards. She watched as the little terrorist led the warehouse janitor down the aisle to be attacked violently by the purple woman. Chrisser drew her weapon. She was taking aim when the second door opened. Sayid could not move, could not speak. His Nadia was there, before him. His search was over. But how? What happened to Celine? Confusion crashed around his thoughts and he put his hand on the table to steady himself. "Nadia?" he wept. "So, you have not forgotten." Came the reply in a voice which lacked any compassion. "I wondered if we would meet again." "How? Who are... what happened?" was all Sayid could manage to get out. The others stared in disbelief as well. "You fool! I used you", she scoffed. "I needed a way out of the country and you provided it." "But we shared so much. I saved you. I killed my friend for you." The pain in Sayid's eyes was too much even for Jennings to bear. A tear escaped from his cold, black eye. "Hah! Your friend was nothing. Just as you are nothing. I escaped Iraq and fled to Canada. It was easy to do. I used many men, just like you. Then I created this stupid Celine Dion persona and hid in plain sight. Those stupid Americans bought it easily." Rage was quickly building within Adawhen and Bella. "We have the fat man, that's all we came for." Continued Ram/Celine/Nadia. "Hey, I'm a big guy! You don't have to get nasty." Ram picked up her gun. "Since you won't live to tell anyone, I'll satisfy your curiosity. We blew up the show and killed off Celine to throw off our trail. Nobody would suspect a dead person." Sayid crouched with his face in his hands, the folly of the last sixteen years eating away quickly at his heart. "I don't think anyone had Celine at the top of the suspect list anyhow." Countered Adawhen. Ram ignored her. "The map will lead us to …" The shot from Chrisser's gun stopped her mid-sentence. "Everyone FREEZE!" she shouted, leaping out from behind the table. The crowd turned their attention to the armed police officer stepping out from the shadows. "I've heard enough. I came here to arrest those responsible for the killing of Celine Dion, and that's what I aim to do. Everyone up against the wall with your legs spread", she commanded. "Excuse me", interjected Adawhen, "Minor point, but Celine isn't dead. Any chance you could just take out the bad guys?" "Quiet! One more word and you're going down, Tinkie-winkie." Bella saw Ram bringing her gun up as the cop was momentarily distracted. She knew they needed this officer as a witness, so she jumped into action. "Lookout!" She dove forward, placing her body between Ram and Chrisser. Ram's gun fired, striking Bella in the chest. She fired again. And again. The force of the shots shoved Bella backward, crashing into Officer Chrisser, causing her sidearm to fire. Chrisser tumbled back against the table, shattering the glass beakers and drenching Chrisser in the yellow liquid. Bella crumpled to the ground as Adawhen stared in horror. The bullet from Chrisser's gun struck Ram's outstretched hand, knocking away her gun which spun across the floor, stopping at Sayid's feet. Jennings directed the two guards to grab Hurley and they dragged him back through the door. Hurley screamed to Adawhen for help.
abraxas1954	Chapter 17 - Mar 11, 2005 10:22 AM	#18	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:24 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Ram turned and dove for the door, trying to make her escape with the others. It was locked. She pounded on the door with her fist and screamed. "Sorry, Canadians only!" came Jennings mocking reply. Adawhen reached down to help Sayid up. "Keep the gun on her", she choked out, "I'm going to see about Bella." Adawhen moved toward her cousin with tears in her eyes. "Oh, Bella. Sweetie, I'm so, so sorry." She cradled Bella's head in her lap. Adawhen slowly realized that something was missing. She looked down at Bella and started shaking when she could find no blood. She place two fingers on the side of Bella's throat. "Bella! Bella wake up." She stroked Bella's hair and then hugged her close as she heard a slight moan. "Ooh. Ow! Adawhen? Where's Sayid? What happened?" "Shh. Now you lay still. I think you'll be ok. I have to tend to something." Adawhen got up, saw that Officer Chrisser was helping herself up off the floor and walked over to Ram. "Now you look here. I am not normally a violent woman, but today you have given me plenty of excuses to forego my natural tendencies. Do you see this man? This fine, fine man who has devoted the last sixteen years of his life to finding you. He is a friend of mine, full of goodness. And what you did to him was evil, it was unnatural, it was, was…" for the first time that she could remember, Adawhen was at a loss for words. "He does not matter. He is a fool. All men are fools and I use them to get what I want. You think he is the only one that I have hurt? Hah! You are a fool, too." Sayid could take no more. He had the gun in his hand, but his memories still prevented him from shooting her. But still, he had enough. Sayid whipped the pistol around, crashing it across Ram's cheek. Again. And again. Ram went down hard. Chrisser moved around the table. She touched her forehead, which was bleeding from where it had been cut by a shard of glass. Other than that she was ok. She looked down at Bella, afraid she would find her dead. When she saw Bella's eyes looking up at her, Chrisser said, "You saved me. Why?" Bella coughed, then replied to her. "You were just doing your job. You shouldn't have to die for that. We were also trying to catch those responsible for the attack at the O-Dome. Adawhen and Sayid are fugitives, yet they did nothing wrong. I needed you to know that, and to live to tell others that." Chrisser felt a new understanding growing within her. "I will. I'll set things straight, to repay you." "Enough, Sayid. We've got to be able to see if she can tell us where they are taking Hurley." Adawhen shot a condemning glance over at the police officer. "She said 'the map will lead us to'. Lead us to where?" Adawhen and Sayid both gasped as Nadia rolled over to get up. "It can't be." Jennings and the two guards made their way through the maze of offices at the south end of the building, dragging the struggling Hurley behind them. He was strong, but not string enough to break free. They came to the Montero, parked just inside the loading dock. Jennings injected Hurley with something and the guards shoved him roughly into the back seat as the world slowly swirled to blackness around him. Jennings got behind the wheel as one of the guards hurried to open the bay door. He hurried back to the SUV and climbed in the seat next to Hurley, the other guard up front. Nadia began to stand, her head swimming from Sayid's blows. As the faces of her adversaries came into focus, she realized by their looks that something was wrong. She looked down to see her wig of long brown hair, and a large portion of her face, laying on the floor. Nadia reached up to pull the rest of the latex off. There, before Adawhen and Sayid, stood a dark haired man with bits of grey streaking through his thick mustache, and beady evil, black eyes staring out beneath his substantial brow. "I think that I don't need this disguise any more", Saddam Hussein said to them, as calmly as if he were in his living room. Sayid reacted first. He grabbed the ex-dictator by the lapel and shoved him against the wall. Leaning close, with murder in his eyes, Sayid spat at him. "You! You have destroyed my country, murdered my family, tortured my brothers. I will kill you!" Hussein was unmoved. "Take your hands off of me, little man." Adawhen pulled Sayid away, took the gun and pointed it at Hussein. "You owe us an explanation, now!" Hussein sighed. Chrisser helped Bella move closer as they strained to hear what had happened. "I am tired of living in exile. I will explain to you and you will help me back to my country, where I shall lead my people once again." "Well, he's still a nut-case. At least some things stay the same." Said Bella. "When the first President Bush attacked us in Kuwait, a criminal attack I must add, I knew it was just a matter of time before his army and the armies of his other criminal allies over-ran Iraq and usurped me. I had to get out of the country. So. I made this disguise, this Nadia. She was killed and I took her place. One of my look-alike bodyguards took my place and has been in power since then. I laughed when I saw the celebrations when he got captured. Nobody else knew this but my second lieutenant and I had him killed. I managed to get myself arrested and put into the prison to secure my cover. Manipulating this soldier", he pointed to Sayid, "was easy. Once he secured my escape, I went to Canada. I needed another disguise, so I invented the persona of Celine Dion, recorded a few albums and soon, nobody could suspect me. Not even Peter Jennings, the great reporter, who was so easily seduced. I was going to take over P.U.R.G.A.T.O.R.Y., once I got him out of the way. Now, it seems, my plans have been foiled." Sayid took a length of wire that was laying on the floor and used it to bind Saddam's hands behind his back. Much tighter than necessary. He then shoved Saddam to the ground. Adawhen, needing a break from this insanity, turned to Bella. "How did you survive being shot three times? My god, I thought we lost you." Bella smirked. "Well, ever since the attack on Wonkstackers, just about all donkey breeders started taking extra precautions." She unbuttoned her blouse and threw open her shirt. "It's the Victoria's Secret Kevlar Wonder-bra. It lifts separates and can stop a 0.38." Sayid marveled at the workmanship. He really marveled at it. They heard the sound of the bay door opening and the Montero driving off. "Hurley!" gasped Sayid. "We've got to go after him. Get to the truck, quickly!" "Um, I uh…" came a mumbled reply from Sergeant Chrisser. They stopped and looked at her. "I don't think that will be a good idea. I cut the ignition wires on the truck." "You what?!" Adawhen shot back. "Of all the stupid…" "Well, I thought you were the bad guys. I didn't want you escaping." "No matter", Sayid cut off Adawhen's response. "We would not be able to catch them anyhow. Let us concentrate on finding him again. We can jack up the truck and get the Lamborghini out. What do we do with this?" He pointed at Hussein. "Don't worry about him. I know just where he's going." Adawhen said. She looked at Chrisser. "What's happening to you?" Chrisser looked down at her hands and gasped. "Oh my god! No!!" Hussein laughed. "Yes, that was the unfortunate side effect of that particular experiment. The chemicals which spilled on you have turned you purple. The effects are permanent." She slumped to the ground, staring at her hands and weeping. "C'mon. She'll be ok. But we need to get moving." Adawhen urged her friends on. She opened the front door, yawning. It was her morning ritual to get the paper from the front porch and read it with her coffee, scanning for news from overseas. This morning was different. Instead of her paper she found a large sack with a big red bow on it. And a note. She read: We found this and thought you would know what to do with it. Please accept it as our way of saying thanks to you and your family for your sacrifice and courage. Happy Birthday. Armymom untied the bow and peeled back the top of the sack, uncovering the frightened, tied-up man inside. She knew everything would be alright now.
abraxas1954	Chapter 18 - Mar 11, 2005 10:23 AM	#19	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:28 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Adawhen, Sayid and Bella found themselves again in the kitchen of Bella's estate. After leaving Armymom's house, they rode on in silence. Adawhen had used the cell phone when they left the warehouse to get help for Sergeant Chrisser. Adawhen and Sayid slumped down at the table, as Bella prepared a pot of coffee. Something had been bothering Adawhen, but she had wanted to give Sayid some time before quizzing him. Now it was time. "Um, Sayid", she began, "you were acting a little strangely back there at the warehouse. What was that all about?" "You mean when I found out that my true love was really Saddam Hussein in disguise?" "No, dear. Somewhere between when Hurley came into the room and you found out that Celine Dion was really your true love who was really Saddam Hussein in disguise." "Oh, you mean the whole tickling Hurley's belly thing." "Bingo." Sayid smiled and put the robot Celine head on the table. "Notice anything different?" The two women looked at the head. "She looks more lifelike?" Bella asked. "Ah, she is missing an eye", noticed Adawhen. "Exactly", Sayid confirmed, "That eye is now firmly situated in the navel of our missing friend. While I was working I removed the eye and reconfigured it to be a transceiver, camera and homing device. All we need to do is triangulate the signal and we can locate Hurley." "Well, that's different." "I am also convinced that Peter Jennings intends to take Hurley back to the island from which he and I escaped. He will probably keep Hurley alive to utilize whatever information Hurley has about the island. I suggest we make preparation to go to the island ourselves. We will need transportation and provisions for survival." Sayid watched the two women for reaction. "Dude, will you stop poking me with that thing?" Hurley was in no mood to be stuck with another needle. "Every damn time you want to go somewhere it's like 'Hey, lets drug the fat guy', and I'm getting tired of it. My a** hurts. I mean it, put that thing aw…" Hurley went limp. Jennings directed his two henchmen to get Hurley loaded in the back of the cargo plane waiting for them on the tarmac of Omaha International Airport. The buzz of the four propellers caused Jennings to shout his orders louder than he normally did. Benson, who would be both pilot and navigator for this flight came around behind Jennings and told him they needed to get airborne. "We only have a small window of opportunity in which to land safely" he shouted above the engines' roar. Bella turned on the television to help them get their minds off of the insanity of the last 24 hours. They could hear the voiceover before the picture came onscreen. "This is the ABC Evening News with Peter Jennings. Sitting in for Peter Jennings tonight is Regis Philbin." Adawhen mused, "Guess Jennings is 'on assignment'." "Good evening and welcome to the news. Can you believe it? Me, doing the news. What will Gelman think of next? I mean c'mon! Anyway, it's great to be here and let's get to our top story. Of course I'm talking about Celine. What a travesty. She's been a guest on my show several times, Live with Regis and Kelly, you should watch it. She was just a wonderful, wonderful performer." He paused, shaking his head. Then he perked up and announced excitedly, "Anyway, we've got more news coming up but first we have today's trivia contest. Today's winner gets an all expenses paid trip aboard his own private airplane to any location he chooses in the Pacific Ocean. Also included are a cache of survival gear and food. This great prize is brought to you tonight by the fine folks at Oceanic Airlines, who boast a one hundred percent take-off ratio. So let's go to the phones. Who are we calling? Let's see. Ok we're looking for Bella in Omaha, Bella from Omaha, c'mon Bella!" The phone rang. "What? So I watch a little daytime tv. What do you think I do, chat on the internet all day?" snapped Bella defensively as she ran for the phone. "Hello?" "Hi Bella, this is Regis Philbin calling. We received your post card and you are today's lucky contestant in our trivia contest." "Regis Philbin?! Oh my god!" she screamed like a school girl. "Bella!" Adawhen stopped her, "We could use that prize." "Ok Bella" continued Regis, "Are you ready? Here goes, 'What is the name of the philosopher who wrote An Essay concerning Human Understanding?" Adawhen, who knew a little something about philosophy shouted at her "John Locke! John Locke!" "Um, John Locke?" answered Bella. "Ooh, sorry. The correct answer is Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Good try though. We have some lovely…" Adawhen grabbed the receiver, "It's Locke!" she shouted, "Locke, you damned fool!" The receiver went dead. Regis beamed from the television screen. "Well, things are a bit touchy at the Bella household, aren't they?" He mockingly adjusted his tie. "No, really Bella, we still love you and thanks for playing. We'll be right back after these messages." Click. Adawhen snapped off the set. "Bloody tosser!" she spat out. "I suggest we try to book a flight." Reminded Sayid.
abraxas1954	Chapter 19 - Mar 11, 2005 10:24 AM	#20	[-]
Posts: 2377 (07/27/09 04:29 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hurley's first sensation as he came out of his grogginess was the cold. It was dark, but he was sure that if he could see his breath would be visible. He hugged his arms around himself and shuddered as his eyes tried to adjust to the dim light provided by four small red bulbs, each set in a way as to make a large rectangle around him. He sat up. "Ouch!" he shouted as he hit his head on the low ceiling. He slowly became aware that he was somehow bouncing slightly up and down in a slight, irregular motion. As he shook the last cobwebs from his head, he realized that the underlying hum he was hearing came from outside, not inside his head. Hurley felt around and discovered that he was atop a pile of canvas bags. As his eyes adjusted further, he realized that he was in the cargo hold of an airplane. Hurley made out the outline of a hatch leading up into what he believed to be the main cabin of the plane. He pounded on the hatch. "Hey! Open up! C'mon, let me in! It's cold down here!" he shouted in vain. "Guys, I'm not kidding", he pounded again, "let me in. I'm cold, my a** hurts from where you keep sticking me, and I banged my head." Hurley paused. "I think I have a concussion! I'm gonna die down here." Still nothing. His eyes had adjusted fairly well to the dim light by now. He could see about fifteen large crates stacked and secured along the opposite wall. In the center of the cargo hold to the rear of the plane, Hurley could discern another hatch. The canvas bags, he discovered, held several parachutes. Hurley began to formulate a plan. Their plan was to get a flight to San Diego. From there, since flying to the island did not seem practical,, they intended to secure a boat to make their way to their friend's rescue. Sayid had managed to get the transceiver working and picked up the signal coming from the robotic eyeball he managed to place in Hurley's navel. By the time the three friends had arrived at Omaha International Airport, Sayid had determined that Hurley was about 80 miles out over the Pacific and heading in a southwesterly direction. They had to hurry. Adawhen had gone through the security checkpoint first. They each had a carry-on bag with a change of clothes and toiletries, to try and avoid suspicion. Adawhen had checked several bags at the curb containing what they hoped to be enough survival gear. They brought no weapons. Sayid and Bella were in separate queues to go through the metal detectors. Sayid watched as the man two in front of him went through. The guards pulled the man aside and had him take off his shoes and empty his pockets. Sayid began to tense, a small trickle of sweat ran down his left temple. He knew he was endangering the mission. He stood out like a sore thumb. These guards were trained to be suspicious of anyone looking like him. And he wasn't sure that he wasn't still on a watch list from the O-Dome incident. He moved forward. He was next. Bella tried to appear relaxed, but she too was nervous. Although she had nothing to hide, she just had a feeling that she was being watched; that she was under suspicion. She chatted with the woman behind her to try and relax herself. Through small talk she found out that the woman was a nun, on her way to her new assignment at a homeless shelter in San Diego. Like Bella, the nun was nervous about airplanes. It was Bella's turn to go through the detector. She held her breath slightly as she walked through. When no alarm sounded, she breathed a sigh of relief. Then tensed again as a guard motioned her to the side. "Ma'am, please stand with your arms extended out to the sides and your feet spread slightly", he commanded politely. He then proceed to move his hands across her arms and down her sides. He moved them up and down her pant legs and then stood to check the back of her shirt. Bella began to shake slightly, feeling violated. Sayid put his carry-on bag on the conveyor belt and was about to step through the detector. He was sweating obviously now, and he could feel the eyes of the guard on him. As he moved forward he heard a shout. "Code red, code red! All agents to checkpoint three!" The guard watching him reached for his gun. Sayid's hands automatically began moving to lace together behind his head, showing that he was not a threat. But the guard moved towards Bella's gate, and Sayid hurried through to watch what was happening, now fearing for Bella instead of himself. He could see two guards straddling someone who was lying prone, on the floor. He could hear a woman's voice alternating between shrieks and sobs, and he moved forward to try and assist Bella. The two guards stood up, dragging the woman up with them. Two other guards stood ready with their weapons drawn. Sayid relaxed, seeing that it was not Bella, but instead a rather frail and frightened looking woman of about seventy. She was crying as a guard snatched the silver crucifix and chain from her neck. "What is this?" the guard shouted at her. "Were you going to use this chain to attack the pilot? Maybe sharpen the end of the cross to a point and stab someone with it? Winslow, get this dirtbag over there for a strip-search and then throw the book at her!" The frightened woman just sobbed as they led her away. Bella came over to Sayid. "Thank goodness they stopped her", she said. "She had me believing she was a nun. Man, those terrorists will stop at nothing. Let's get down to the gate." Hurley pushed the crates as close as possible to the rear hatch. He had strapped a parachute to each of four water jugs he had located. The last 'chute was strapped to his own back. He knew the risk he took. Before embarking on his national tour with Up With People, Hurley was an accomplished aerial acrobat. He had taken up parachuting as a hobby when he was eight, and by the time he was seventeen he was national champion and turned his skills into a lucrative career on the air show circuit. After the stunt which found him suspended from the torch of the Statue of Liberty, Hurley had been banned from the sport. Not knowing his exact altitude was the biggest risk. But he relied on his skills to compensate for this. What he was most worried about was the condition of the parachute. He had never jumped with one he hadn't packed himself. Since the cargo hold was not pressurized, the hatch should open without impacting the flight. Hurley pushed up on the handle and swung the door outward. He then turned to push the crates out the opening. Benson called to Jennings, "Hey, get someone to the back. The rear hatch is open!" He had noticed the warning light on the instrument panel as soon as it came on. Jennings and the two guards jumped from their seats and headed toward the rear. The first guard started to pull on the handle to the cargo bay door. "Wait!" shouted Jennings. "If that outside door is open it'll de-pressurize the whole cabin. Grab hold of something!" The bay door opened and with a whoosh the cabin air was drawn to the back of the plane. When things had stabilized, the guard crawled through the opening. He saw Hurley crouched next to the open hatch at the rear and lunged for him. He managed to grab Hurley's ankle, just as the big man pushed himself through the hatch and into a free fall. The guard was pulled after him.

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The Adventures of Adawhen (Redux)

The Adventures of Adawhen (Redux)