PS238 Room 8

The news hadn't been good, even a good batch of ice cream didn't help that they were going to have to hold a funeral for Ambriel. He hadn't even gotten a chance to talk to Harold before the security for school came back online and started shuffling the resident students off to bed. Tyler lay in bed staring up to the bottom of the bunk above him in his dorm room, a sick pit in his stomach. What if he'd gotten here sooner with Harold? Would they've been able to help her?

It took him only a few minutes to fall asleep, even after all of the worries zipping around like pinballs inside of his head...

-----

He hadn't had that dream again during the night, but he still felt completely exhausted. Tyler barely made out the words about the memorial service that was going to be held today during the gym class for her... He got all of his things together, including the social studies homework he'd had to do for a second time and got ready for the transport service to take him a quarter of a mile from school to be dropped off by the 'bus'. The walk there in the morning wasn't so bad, just a short distance compared to the ground he'd been able to cover yesterday. He'd have to thank Corporal Shephard for the training sometime, when he wasn't so dog tired.

Coming up around the corner he nearly ran into the crazy kid from the fundamentalist family, screaming bloody murder and running right for the buses.

"IT'S THE RAPTURE! AN' I GOT LEFT BEHIND!! SOMEBODY HELP!!!"

When Tyler looked around that corner there was no one there...no signs of trouble... "What in the world?..."

The next thing he knew he was falling from way too high above the park's pond.

*GAG* *SPUTTER* "Ack!" Oh gross, he'd gotten duckweed up his nose swimming to the shore. Another kid, just as soaked looked down at him, trying to wring out his clothes.

"Hey."

"Uh...hey."

"You're the sixth one."

"The sixth one what?"

The other kid, still wringing out his jersey pointed to a group of four other kids, and from the looks of things, Jenny Adams aka the American Eagle, was among that group. Oh this was not good, not good on so many levels as the possibilities started making a very unhappy picture.

"We thought we'd wait to see if anyone else showed up and then walk back to school." The kid went on, wringing out a jersey sleeve. Squiish. "Y'know, so there's more of us telling the same weird story. I don't know if they'll believe us anyhow."

KER-SPLASH!! KA-SPLOOSH!!

"Whoa, double header."

"I hope this isn't what I think it is..."

Kathy's plan had been a big success, with help from Vera and Zachary.

Even better the new 'pirate swords' and extra space on the bus were definitely helping in keeping all the Rainmaker students happy. Vern had healed The Revenant, but not without the vigilante passing out from the pain of meta-accelerated healing forcing itself over natural healing already in progress. Ty- Moon Shadow's stomach dropped into ice when the Flea said he'd heard the guys in suits coming back through a couple of dragonflies.

And the only superheroes he knew the phone number of to call for help were... The Earth Defense League. Where his parents 'worked'.

"I didn't think superheroes used cellphones."

"I didn't think they rode in buses, either, before today."

This was probably a bad idea...

Then again, it was probably one of his better ones as the two men in flying suits got smart by taking out one of the bus tires.

April 14th
Original Rainmaker Site, exact location unknown, Iowa.
3:30 pm

Minutes later, after the children went in with Doctor Irons, the high-end family car pulled up to park by remote. Seconds later, Tyler got out, hiding behind the car door to peer up at the abandoned and heavily damaged former institution warily...

"I'm here."
.
.
.

"So... now what?"

April 14th
Excelsior Public School, Kansas
10:35 am

As soon as the rain had stopped it was time to hang the flag back up again, and repeat the entire process.

It wasn't much better the second time around, and Tyler wondered for a moment if he could do this on his own. Then he could get out of social studies without Zodon pestering him.

"Back up it goes. I hope it doesn't rain again."

It's a cloudy, warm day on the playground.
Oh, little town in U.S.A
It would be a great day for playing, except no one's there.
The time has come to see
All the things you think you are
They're inside having class, right now, everyone else except for him.
But where were you when it all came down on me...
And one other person, the one he's running from.
Once upon a time at the foot of a great mountain, there was a town where the people known as Happyfolk lived.
All Tyler can feel is dread, dread and lost hope that the other guy chasing him would relearn what he knew before.
Their very existence a mystery to the rest of the world, obscured as it was by great clouds.
There isn't any sound as Charles Brigman teleports in front of his path, grinning and reaching out to grab him.
Here they played out their peaceful lives, innocent of the litany of excess and violence that was growing in the world below
It's a bare and thin twist, he can feel the air as the bigger boy only just missed grabbing onto him.
To live in harmony with the spirit of the mountain called Monkey was enough.
For what purpose, he doesn't know, all he knows is that he has to get away. To warn someone, the cops, Buzz Aldren, Will Smith, The Earth Defense League, ANYONE...
Then one day Strangefolk arrived in the town.
"You know, I have to thank you for this, Ty-de-bowl.." The voice came from farther away, and then someplace else nearby. "Thanks to you I found someone who's made me even better at this.."
They came in camouflaged, hidden behind dark glasses, and no one noticed them; they only saw shadows. You see, without the truth of the eyes, the Happyfolk were blind.
...Who could he mean... Tyler didn't have time to think, Charles spoke again close by. It registered too late that the bully's voice was too close by as the hand grabbed his arm and pulled it back hard, twisting and hurting it. There was no one there to scream to for help.
Falling out of aeroplanes and hiding out in holes
Waiting for the sunset to come, people going home
"In fact...I think he'd like to see you again..."
Jump out from behind them, and shoot them in the head
He didn't have time to get free, the teleportation happened in an instant and he was thrown down onto a rocky solid ground hard enough to jar the air out of him. And painted on the ground in front of him was the familiar four-square grid...
Now everybody dancing the dance of the dead
= Hello there dear boy...a pleasure to meet you again= Came the metallic voice just on the other side of the grid.
The daaaance of the dead
No.
The daaaance of the dead
No, he knew that voice, he knew who it belonged to now, after his talks with the Rainmaker Students. After finding out about Lyle's history report. Tyler looked up from the ground into the aged face of the man, the origional Rainmaker project. His mouth felt dry as he tried talking to him. "Harold? It's me.."
In time, the Strangefolk found their way into the higher reaches of the mountain, and it was there that they found the caves of unimaginable sincerity and beauty..
Harold Nelson's face was completely blank and staring at him passively, as if Tyler wasn't really..No. It was more like Harold wasn't really there, like the kid Tyler had travelled through time with was gone. = He won't hear you lad, really, Harold's gotten to be very good at hearing only what I tell him to..= The metal head, cradled in one of the man's arm chuckled. = It wasn't that hard to find our way back here, with no government officials looking for us anymore. I must say, though, I was most surprised at what else your school contained...=
By chance, they stumbled upon the place where all good souls come to rest.
He wanted to run away, but where could he run to, there was nothing but that void surrounding the rock of challenge. Charles reappeared to the other side of Dr. Irons' head, grinning. = Our young friend, Mr. Brigman here was most helpful in getting us inside, once Harold properly helped him along. =
The Strangefolk, they coveted the jewels in these caves above all things, and soon they began to mine the mountain, it's rich seam fueling the chaos of their own world.
= But enough with pleasantries... Mr. Powers. =
Meanwhile, down in the town, the Happyfolk slept restlessly, their dreams invaded by shadowy figures digging away at their souls.
No.
Every day, people would wake and stare at the mountain.
Harold's freehand came up, a new glow surrounding it.
Why was it bringing darkness into their lives?
"No!" Tyler put up his hands to try and futily try and block the energy. "NO!!"
And as the Strangefolk mined deeper and deeper into the mountain, holes began to appear, bringing with them a cold and bitter wind that chilled the very soul of the Monkey.
= Oh but yes my dear boy, I must make you an asset to my group... You won't have to worry, as long as you do what I want you to...you'll have no worries at all...=
For the first time, the Happyfolk felt fearful for, they knew that soon the Monkey would stir from its deep sleep.
He felt that fire and pressure inside of his entire skeleton, pressing hardest inside of his head, like that halloween all over again, except amplified by Harold's power. "NO! STOP, PLEASE YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!!!" He felt himself screaming.
Then there came a sound.
= HAROLD! STOP! STOP THIS INSTA- The voice was cut off as a much stronger, burning light broke from the youngest child present there, and Tyler could hear their screaming in his head as everything ripped loose...
Distant first, it grew into castrophany so immense it could be heard far away in s-sP-SP-SPACE-CE-Ce-e...
He could hear all the worlds connected to the rock of challenge, he could hear the other hims in the distance and the sound of two voices laughing. The lords of Order and Chaos
There were no screams. There was no time. The mountain called Monkey had spoken. There was only fire. And then, nothing.
Tylers started screaming.
"From what I see of your mind...you may be the most powerful Tyler of us all..."

---------------

He woke up screaming.
Hush little baby, don't say a word
And nevermind that noise you heard
It took him a moment to realize he was in his room at Milliways.
It's just the beast under your bed,
in your closet, in your heeaaad

A few minutes later, the room was empty, plush autobot, lightsaber and pet raptor taken downstairs. The bed was a mess of tangled sheets. There would be no more sleep in here tonight.