The Face Issue#5: What Goes Down...Must Be Replaced - Episode 16
Rage was flowing through the beastly form of famous renowned actress, Kaitlyn Grimm, and her targets were set upon myself, possibly her next massacre victim. Zandross, still laughing maniacally, finally noticed my aching state.
“Kill him, Miss Grimm. Kill them all. I don’t need test subjects anymore. They’ve seen too much,” he said in his evil, discourteous voice.
With this consent, Kaitlyn rushed for me with unimaginable velocity, and I once again, had to think quickly with my brilliant mind. I knew I couldn’t fight head on. That would be like Tim Higher trying to fight a mountain with his bare hands. Only, this mountain was moving at a very rapid rate. I began to panic as she raced toward me, but I remembered I had my taser mode cell with me. I decided to put it to good use and turn it on. “Hope this works,” I said hopefully to myself. I turned the taser meter to High and pointed at the oncoming target. “Alright, here goes nothing!”
But before I could press anything, the cell beeped and I took a look at the screen. There was a warning message: “Warning, extremely high voltage. Veryzon Wireless is not responsible for paralysis or death by electrocution. Questions or Complaints? Call 1-800-Veryzon-Taser.”
Unfortunately, the reading took quite a while to finish, and Kaitlyn was in extremely close proximity of me. Fumbling, I quickly struggled to press ‘ok’ and send the electricity flying. Within inches Kaitlyn soared, and finally the bolt I had much hoped for irradiated its way to the very form of Kaitlyn Grimm. She cried in agony as the electrons enveloped her body. “It works!” I yelled in triumph, watching as the electricity sapped the strength of the young actress. Then again, I heard another beeping noise from my cell. I looked at the screen in dismal silence, as it read ‘Low Battery.’ “That last charge must’ve drained the power!” I said, panicking. Soon thereafter, the bolt faded, and my cell turned off completely.
However, due to the high voltage, swarms of electric rays still sped across Kaitlyn. I had to use my intelligent mind to think quickly once again. I looked around, then up to the ceiling to find a small crate hanging from the ceiling by a rope. “That’s it!” I cried. I searched for Bradley’s lifeless body and found his katana resting next to it. Quickly I darted for it and held it firmly in my grasp. Like a spear, I threw it to the rope, hoping with my uncanny accuracy and trust in television, that things would go right for me. I was right. They did, and so perfectly that I could feel a tear well up in my duct.
The katana sliced the rope in two, and the crate came rushing down over Kaitlyn. However, I underestimated its size, for it looked to be no bigger than a human’s head. I was fortunate, though, because the crate landed on Kaitlyn’s head, obstructing her vision, while the electric bolts from the high-voltage taser seemed to be melting away. Kaitlyn struggled to remove the tiny crate, for it seemed to be stuck. She began dancing around like a monkey with too much sugar. This, I thought, was the perfect chance to strike again. Searching around once more, I found another make-shift weapon. Quickly I ran toward a canister filled with haz-mat. With all my strength I tried to lift the cylindrical jug into the air. But alas, my power failed me, for the liquid inside of it was too dense. I then proceeded to run toward an empty canister tipped on its side. After much difficulty, I was able to raise it above my head.
With a shower of vigor I lunged the canister toward the dancing Miss Grimm with tremendous force. I watched in humility as the canister dropped two feet from my own. I tried to retain my dignity, and swallowed my pride with a strenuous gulp. Slowly the can rolled toward Kaitlyn, who was flailing her limbs around in an awkward manner. Luckily, Kaitlyn could not see the rolling cylinder as it rolled toward her at 2 miles per hour.
The canister had crept up behind her legs like a stealthy spider and caught her off balance. Soon Kaitlyn was in mid-fall with her headwear still tightly fastened. She collapsed onto the ground with a great thud. I frantically searched for some way to subdue her, while she fumbled to return to her normal state. Suddenly, out of nowhere, and magically up-to-speed about my current situation, Tim woke up and whispered to me, with arm outstretched. “Use…the…for……use…the…for…” He tried to direct me. I replied, “Use the force, Tim?” I wondered in disbelief. Tim then regained composure as his usual cynical self, “No you fool, use the for…klift!” It was a smashing idea.
To my left was a large forklift, holding about six canisters, in rows of three. Quickly I climbed into the vehicle, and tried to start the engine. Nothing worked, and there was no key. I pounded the contraption in frustration. Being the master technician that he was, Tim found a way. He threw a small rock at the vehicle, and the lights flickered. The forklift had activated and it had automatically began driving itself.
“Wuh-oh!” I said in concern. Yes, the forklift was heading straight for Tim’s weakened self, aiming to crush. “Tim, get outta the way!” I yelled to the paralyzed form of my friend. “Make it stop you fool! Make it stop!” he yelled back. Frantically pushing buttons, I failed to do so. “I can’t! You gotta move!” I replied. Slightly annoyed, yet fearing for his life, Tim used every ounce of strength he could muster to crawl himself to safety.
Unfortunately, his moving was at a snail’s pace, and the forklift was slowly inching its way toward him. “Nooooo! I can’t die! I need to meet more girls!” Tim cried in despair. Rising to the occasion, Tim heroically picked up a pebble that was nearby. “Die, forklift!” He screamed, as he launched the pebble with all his might to the front of it. The pebble struck gold, for the forklift had come to a stop…right in front of a cowering Tim.
However, due to the unforeseen change in inertia, the canisters tipped forward because of Newton’s Law of motion, and fell toward their target. I watched as Tim screamed comically, “Nooooooooo!” He tried to shield his face with his hands…thinking that would help. The large metal cylinders toppled over Tim, resonating sounds of clashing metal, and caused him to fall into yet another unconscious state out of many in the story.
Meanwhile, the pebble Tim threw had produced an unusual, yet positive side effect. After bouncing off the clanging metal of the forklift, the pebble had proceeded to ricochet into the direction of Kaitlyn Grimm, who unknowingly became its target. After a nice brush through the air, the pebble collided into Kaitlyn’s crate, breaking it, and continued to strike her forehead. And like Goliath conquered by David’s sling, the giant fell, producing a vociferous thud that reverberated throughout the factory walls. I peered in hope at the downfallen Kaitlyn. It was official, the famous renowned actress had finally been defeated.
The Face Issue#5: What Goes Down...Must Be Replaced - Episode 17
Four badly wounded, unconscious persons lay before me, one seemingly crushed under a pile of metal cans. I scraped around the shards of wood that were scattered upon the ground while clutching my badly bruised left arm. My featureless mask had taken a beating, and developed a tattered rip in the middle of the lower vicinity that revealed my blood stained chin. I breathed heavily in silence, recuperating from the ensuing battle. However, I knew it wasn’t over, and Zandross had to be stopped. I’d have expected to see him by now, his mischievously cackling face, those blood red eyes, and that dark, black cape swirled around his very evil essence. But he wasn’t.
I took the available time to check my friends’ pulses. Yes, still beating. I then continued to examine the canisters with Tim trapped beneath. I rolled them away with the little remaining strength I had to find that Tim was still there, lying in a manner where his arms created a mini-field goal, yet still unconscious, and mouth gaping open. Finally I slowly trudged myself down toward the downtrodden actress, and through examining her pulse, found that she too was alive. However it was far too early to tell if she was still under the influence of the chemically altered potion. Just then, a sudden sound startled me. In quick reaction, I turned around to see the approacher.
Expecting to view the sadistic expressions of Zandross’ face, instead I found a frustratingly furious actress’ boyfriend looking with sharp eyes at the lifeless body. “Get away from her!” the man yelled in agonizing anger. He proceeded to rush toward me at an immense speed, and knock his fist against my already ailing face. I tumbled backward, and lay my hands on the ground for support, struggling for breath. The man looked down at the actress, with tears in his tear ducts, taking hold of her hand. “I’m sorry, Kaitlyn. This is all my fault,” he apologized. The unconscious young woman seemed to have reverted back to her original, human-like state. He held her to himself in solemn atonement, whispering comforting words into her ears.
Regaining some strength, and lung capacity of air, I began to try to explain to the man the situation. “I apologize for this mess, er…sir. It shouldn’t have come to this,” I said.
The man looked back at me with angry eyes. “You’re darn right it shouldn’t have, scoundrel! Look at what you did to her!”
Trying to keep the conversation to a peaceful level, I tried further to defend my side. “Look, I had to do what I had to do. She could’ve killed us all. Zandross is a twisted maniac. He should be locked up in an asylum for all this. And I intend to do just that,” I replied, attempting to shift the blame to the real culprit. Differences aside, the man began to realize how right I was. “You’re right,” he agreed. “He should be imprisoned for the rest of his life.”
I then asked, “Then you agree. You agree that we should let by-gone’s be by-gone’s and turn in Zandross ourselves?” I walked closer to the couple. In a fervent, clear-thought tone, the actress’ boyfriend humbly replied, “By all means necessary.” This was good to hear. An enemy had become an ally, only, I didn’t know who he really was. After that moment, the answer was clear.
“By the way,” the man said. “My name’s Joshua.” Relieved at the preceding compromise, I proceeded to reach out and help the former mob member and the unconscious actress up.
“Alright then!” I said. As Joshua raised his hand, something out of the darkness crept up to us like a speeding bullet. Out of nowhere, a knife came hurling toward our very presence and struck the man’s hand, causing him to withdraw. He cried out in agonizing pain. We both looked into the darkness searching for the cause, but found nothing. However, within a few seconds we heard it. It was the loud, screeching cackle of Zandross himself who had been concealed beneath the blanket of shadows all this time.
“Bua-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! It is pleasant to see you two have become friends, and even more so, that you, you my young former associate, have committed treason. For now, I will have no trouble with witnesses once you all are disposed of.” And with a flick of time, Zandross had turned on his former accomplices, like a black widow on her own husband. “So it seems that Kaitlyn did not work out well. No matter, I still have a much more formidable and I must say loyal trustee in the midst.” At the very breadth that Zandross paused in speech, I could faintly hear a rustle of chains.
“I’ll gladly introduce you to him. You see, he’s not very apt on speech, he usually likes to roar and yell and scream in savage, bloodthirsty tones.” I wasn’t exactly sure what Zandross was talking about at this point. But the good fellow that he was, he enlightened me. “Maybe you’ve heard of him, he’s actually one of my most powerful associates…besides myself of course. He can crush brick with his bare hands…a “smashing” trait if I do say so myself. Unfortunately, he has experienced the unbridled side effect of having his face abnormally disfigured in more hideous ways than one. Yes, ‘tis one nasty side effect of the potion in its early stages. Regrettably for you, this just channels his rage into undying fury. Well, now that you know a bit about your next opponent, I may as well introduce you to him.”
As the gigantic footsteps beheld the very floor, I could feel the earth quaking in its very wake. Chains rattled as the footsteps crept closer, and shards of glass and wood could be seen dancing at the very vibration. “Joshua! Get out of here! Get out of here, now!” I had realized it was that giant ape-like of a man who I had seen holding Kaitlyn hostage on Elm Street that fateful night. “Wha?” Joshua asked in astonishment, carrying Kaitlyn in his arms. “Didn’t you hear me!? GET OUT OF HERE, NOW!” I yelled cautiously towards him.
At that very moment, out of the depths of the fiery shadows, a gargantuanly large giant beheld us in his presence, one much similar to Goliath himself. He was at least eight-feet tall in stature, with kong-like fists of fury. Attached to his wrists were large cuffs chained together, large enough to fit around a bowling ball. As his hideously, deformed countenance emblazed its fury upon our eyes, the massive monster roared. The heavy howl pierced our sensitive eardrums, drumming them ferociously, with the vibrations within seeming to transfer themselves down our very spines. The ground shook even more than it did before. It was if a T-Rex had come to claim its dinner.
The piercing cry had forced Joshua and I to cover our ears in order to try and shield the blasts from breaking us. But as the deafening bellow began to fade, we heard the voice of yet another. It was Zandross, with his familiar maniacal cackle, only this time; when mixed with the spine-chilling growl of the obnoxious monster, seemed ever more excrutiating. After his laughter came to an end, he began, “Gentleman! I give you test subject number one…the ever evasive Elias!” After showcasing the wild animal with a series of hand motions, he disappeared into the darkness, cackling his shrill, deep, resonant laugh that we had become so used to, but never were able to cope with.
The sonorous rumbles continued further as Elias displayed his beast-like strength. With the smallest effort, and the spread of his arms, the chained cuffs snapped in two like a twig being stepped on. He proceeded to circle around us in a wolf-like status, like one does before devouring its feast. As he circled around us he bashed cans and crates cracking them into pieces with a mere flick of the fist. Shards of splintered wood and glass found themselves flying about without direction. Even canisters full of hazardous materials were sent airborne about the facility. He finally came to a stop in front of me. He displayed his horribly mutilated teeth that were sharper than a case full of knives and scowled. He roared in front of my face, exhaling a putrid, decaying form of gas that made my eyes crackle in redness as water welled up in each tear duct…even with my mask covering. The blast was so powerful, that I had to plant my feet and struggle against the overpowering wind. I looked over to my right to see that Joshua and Kaitlyn were still there. “LEAVE YOU FOOL!” I yelled. I didn’t know how I would get out of this myself, but I had to trust my instincts. To my dismay, however, Joshua wasn’t budging. He seemed to be shell-shocked. Only a powerful blow would relieve him from his trance, and that blow would come soon enough.
In one swift motion, Elias had lifted his gargantuan mass of a foot off the floor and pounded it upon the ground with immense force. From the impact formed an increasingly powerful shockwave that immediately impelled me to lose my balance and fall backwards. Once again, the wind had been knocked out of me, and I struggled for breath. I looked on the ground to see if Joshua and Kaitlyn were all right. They were, and Joshua was finally released from his trance. He realized the immediate danger and fled for his and Kaitlyn’s life. I breathed a sigh of relief, but could not rest any longer. For whose foot was overtop of me like a 200-pound block of cement, was none other than Elias’. Taking evasive action, I quickly rolled to the side, narrowly averting being crushed to my doom. But like every stomp Elias took, a blast of vibration heralded its way across the floor.
The wave had pushed me back away from Elias, as I tumbled over and over against the glass-ridden ground of the chemical factory. I landed face down, breathless and thoroughly fatigued. There was nothing I could do. I tried to move my arms, but they were lifeless…I was too worn out. This was it. Elias would crush not only me, but my friends as well. As I closed my eyes and waited for that fateful and final step, a clashing sound disturbed the peace. Something had caused Elias to halt, and I didn’t know what it was. With all my strength, I managed to wiggle myself so that my head was facing upward.
Before me I could faintly see a woman, a young woman who was floating atop a spinning whirlwind, with yet two small cyclones forming at her fists. Glass splattered to the ground as she had come through the ceiling, but there was another with her. It was a familiar face, one that I had seen before…from the costume shop. The familiar figure was engulfed in a blue aura that was also recognizable to me. As a river of memories flowed through my mind, I figured out who the shaded blue character was. It was Qualbay from the Costume Shop, and he had come with help.
