{Location: Crystal Pass}(Seliel's POV)
I'm running as fast as I can, Marci's thigh isn't looking so good. A hole the size of my fist is gushing blood, she's whimpering as the sword has to stay in there until I get to the clinic. Which is in sight a head now. "Almost there." I try opening the white door while holding Marci. Who's deathly pale now. Crap. I can't open the door. "I'm gonna set you down for a sec," I place her next to the door and punch the glass. Nothing. I try again, this time with a bloody fist and broken glass as the result.
"I thought you had keys," Marci attempts a smile in this stage.
"Not the time." I pull open the door and pick her back up as she winces in pain. I set her on the closets exam table. "Marci, don't panic. I'm gonna save you." I promise as I rush around for supplies.
"What can I help with?" Victor peaks in. Something of a smirk is on his face, "S.Q."
I glance as I lick my lips, "Stay out of my way."
Victor backs up to the waiting room as the table paper is bloody now.
I start by ripping apart the cloth near the area where the wound is. I pull out the sword and lean it on the wall. I reach behind me, I've seen my Mom do this a hundred times but...no time for buts. Marci needs my help, "This is going to sting." I pour a lot onto a towel.
I press it to her thigh, "OWW!" She almost lurches up and holds herself down.
"Sorry."
"And I thought the sword hurt." Marci chuckles under her breath.
"It won't hurt for long." I rummage around for an ace bandage. Come on, come on, where is it?
"Seliel," Marci whimpers, "If I don't make it.."
"No. I won't lose you. I refuse." My lips quiver and my eyes water. I grab the only available ace bandage and cloth. "You're not done here."
"Seliel, I didn't say when I said if." Marci stares at the ceiling as Victor comes back anyway. He pulls out the heart monitor and places the reader on her wrist, "If I don't make it. Please, just smile for me a little."
"We can smile together." I put more pressure on her thigh. I won't lose her. I won't. I won't let it happen again, "Don't talk like that."
Beep. Beep. The machine is showing slower and slower beeps. No. No. NO!
Marci swallows as her blinkers get slower, "There's a bright side to everything. That how we see in the darkness. There is always something positive." She now coughs a little.
"Marci," I grip her hand and keep putting pressure on. She's gonna live. She has to. She has to live, "Hold on please."
"You just have to look." Marci keeps talking.
Beep.......beep.......beeep.
It's taking longer now.
No.
This can't happen.
Not again.
Marci's blood won't stop coming out, even I know a hit like that is fatal. Marci whimpers, "Stay positive. Not everything sucks."
I'm crying buckets. No. "Marci."
"I'll be ok. I'm just a sidekick. You're the hero, Seliel." She gives me one more faint smile, "But heroes don't always have to be so brooding."
Beep. Beep. BEEEEP.
The machine screams as Marci stares at the ceiling and doesn't blink.
My hand is shaky as I lower her eyes for her. Victor takes the heart monitor off. He lets loose small tears.
No. Not Marci. I shouldn't have left her. I shouldn't have taught her anything. And now she's dead because of me.
Victor opens his mouth through my hazy vision, "Seliel. I-... I saw the police arrest Nom. He'll-"
I let go of Marci and push him back. I slam him on the wall, a point on my armor against his Adam's apple, "This is your fault. You distracted me. I could have helped her. I could have taken that hit instead of her. But no, you had to tell me that you meant nothing to anyone!"
Victor doesn't say anything. Just hardens his face.
"Say something!" I scream as I let him go, "Tell me this isn't real. Tell me that Marci isn't dead. TELL ME I COULD HAVE STOPPED IT!"
Victor looks at his shoe laces, "I may be a good liar, Seliel, but no one could tell a lie like that."
There's a waterfall flowing off my face. He won't even try. He never tries. "Go away please."
And just like that he gets up and leaves.
Not a word.
I fall onto the floor, my helmet under me, collecting my tears. This can't be happening.
I can't take this. This part of me, the Phantom ninja, it's killing me.
I pull my armor off as quick as I can. I take off as much to my undershirt and shorts.
I can't do this anymore. I needed Marci. I needed my Mom.
And so did the Phantom Ninja.
Not anymore. I can't risk a third life.
The Phantom Ninja is no more.
{Location: Crystal Pass Police station}[Four months later]
"Quartzstone!" Commissioner Ben slams a large pile of paperwork near my head. "If I catch you sleeping again-" He's not too threatening. Just a tall build, dark skin and an obvious donut sprinkle mustache.
"Sorry." I bolt up, hitting my knees against the tiny table called a desk, "It won't happen again." I know he's only being hard on me because I essentially by-passed the training to be a volunteer but geez, this guy's a jerk.
"MM-mm." He raises an eyebrow over his light brown eyes. "Just start putting these files on the internet thingie." He turns around to grab a pot of coffee.
I sigh and check my surroundings, the station is small. At most we could squeeze thirty people in here not counting the fairly large rusty cells. The walls are a peeling white coat of paint with a long blue strip about half way to the ceiling. I look back down at the monster of paperwork below me. I rub my head, this is a lot. I'm gonna be here forever. Then a woman officer leans on the corner of the table, "You know I could help." I read her nameplate, AJ Meyers. Let's see, light brown hair tucked in a bun, fairish skin and dark blue eyes. "I've got next to nothing to do."
"I'm fine." I lick my lips. It's barely been four months since Marci died. In a strange way, I like being more alone now. And as nice as AJ is, I don't want a third death on my conscious.
"Seriously," She takes the top half of the stack and sits next to me, "I don't mind."
"Thanks." I half smile. I then give full focus to my work. This is so boring, all I'm doing is putting the physical file on an electric on, and because the budget demands that we can't have a scanner here I am.
"So," AJ is already half way through her stack as the clock hits 6:00, "Some of the guys and I are heading to CJ's. Wanna come?"
"No." I barely glance at her as I try and take this opportunity to catch up.
"Come on. You seem nice, I'm nice and it seems like you could use some friends at the station."
"I'm ok." I don't think I am. I feel like there's a big hole in my heart. I couldn't save Mom or Marci. If it could happen a third time, it's better to prevent it now.
"Please," AJ smirks as she slowly pulls away my stack, "I know you're smart enough to not turn down a fun time."
"I don't want to come." I keep my eyes on my screen as I start to mess up words as I write.
AJ sighs, "Why now?" She pauses, "You got a hot date or something?"
This is getting annoying, "It's none of your business."
She snickers, "So it is a guy. Who?" She smirks as some officers leave and some come in for the night shift.
"There is no guy." I struggle to not recall the last celebrity crush I had. How Marci also had similar feelings. I get out of my chair and look for my purse.
"You sure?" AJ gets up too only to put her hands on her hips.
"Positive."
"So why can't you come hang out with my and my pals?"
Shoot. I forgot the original battle I was fighting. I stay quiet as I check my purse.
Then AJ's mood shifts, "Is this about the Black girl?" She gets my attention as I stare her head on, "I can understand how that might make you more anti-social but there was nothing you could have done."
I harden my face, not letting tears out, "There's a difference between understanding it and experiencing it. Just leave me alone." I pull my purse over my shoulders and bolt outside.
Outside fall is just coming in but the air is still warm. I turn right as soon as I pass the glass doors. I make my way towards town, a small floral stand is brightly painted yellow.
"Seliel!" Lily beams a smile at me. I almost missed her with how her apron, skin and light blonde hair blend into the stand, "Back for more white roses and daisies?"
"Yeah." After Marci passed, her Mom and Brother left for New Ninjago city. I guess the grief was too much. I pull out my wallet and a few dollars, "I guess I should stock up before winter."
"We also sell artificial flowers," Lily begins to pull flowers out and assemble them in a bouquet, "I know from personal experiences that trying to keep flowers longer than their ment to is bad."
"I suppose." I place the money on the counter, take the flowers and head to the cemetery. Not much is here, maybe 50 headstones at most, surrounded by a small white picket fence and a few large bushes. I walk down a cement path in the middle and turn left a few rows from the back. I sit down the newest one.
I can barely look at the text on the stone despite me helping to pick it out, 'Here lies Marci Laura Black. Of all things she wanted in life was a smile.' I pull off the paper around the flowers and place it by the stone, "Hey. I miss you." I let tears slip down my face. Small flashes of all it all went down come by, "The Edward H. Nom vs Crystal Pass trial is over. He's going away for a very long time. I guess there is some justus in the world."
The wind sweeps by and plays with my loose hair. I shiver a little from the goose bumps on my skin but it feels like there's someone else here. I sniff, "I'm sorry. I've tried to smile. I've tried to not be sad but if there's one thing I can't do is keep being the Phantom ninja." What a fool I was. And for what? A failed attempt at heroics. "I wish you were here."
Then someone touches my shoulder. I flinch, pull back two feet and ball my fists. Then I sigh heavily. "Really AJ?" I drop my stance, "I didn't know that stalking was part of police duties."
She rolls her eyes as some fog comes in, "This is all off duty. And besides, I'm curious, and I love solving mysteries." She smirks, "And now I'm investigating the case of Seliel A. Quarzstone." She steps closer and poke my shoulders, "A.K.A the Phantom Ninja."
I pull back from her next poke, "I'm not. Not anymore at least."
"But you were." She smiles wide as her hands draw to her hips, "And I wouldn't be here without you." She looks down a little, "I had no idea what I wanted to do, then when rumours about a person working in the night. I thought, that's it. That's what I want to do." She smiles warmly as something pulls at my heart.
"I hope you go about it better than I did." I sigh as the temperature drops more, "I love being the Phantom Ninja, but the loss-"
AJ pulls back and steadied her hand on her gun, "Out of curiosity, are the rumors of you being telepathic true?"
"No." What kind of rumor is that? That just stupid.
"Then who's doing that?" AJ nods for me to get behind her. I'd rather be on her side of the gun, I jump behind her to see the flowers I just put down assemble in mid-air, making the sentence, 'I'm here.'
I ball my fistes again, what freck show just entered? "Please let this be a dream."
Then the impossible happens. A green see through figure of a young woman stands above the grave. Her once purple cloths are now dark green with her skin being light green. On her right thigh is a gaping hole with dried blood. She looks at me, she mouths something.
This isn't really.
Ghosts don't exist right?
But there she is. I lick my lips but stay behind AJ, "Marci?"