~6~
Title: Oh So Quiet (Pt. 6)
Pairing: C/Z
Rating: R for heavy violence
Synopsis: VERY short interjection into events following the "clean up" at Herrington High.
The Mack truck carrying the Queen didn’t get far past the gates when leaving two days after going in; the crowds had grown to an enormous amount of people at this point, and most were demanding to see the ‘monster’ that had taken over their town, their bodies and minds. The lack of understanding what had honestly gone on within them had led to this; officials were not willing to explain anything to anyone. It was being treated as any conspiracy would be. Government intervention had stirred the entire town into ‘us against them’ mentality, being led by many anarchist minded people who wanted the truth. Herrington may have been a small, ass-backwards midwestern town, but not everyone within it followed like most of the sheep.
To their credit, most sought out a peaceful way to find out; protests were held in the center of town near the City Hall, attracting attention from the media even more. The refusal by officials to meet with them caused more troublesome people to enter the scene and rustle things in a more negative fashion. This wasn’t to be Los Angeles, but they vowed to get within its range anyways. Those staying home to avoid the worst of these protests and near-riots were treated to watching it on TV, watching attention-seeking individuals fight for a spot nearest to the cameras, not minding their actions of breaking windows in shops and government buildings to be caught on tape.
It was Terry Goodman, one of the leaders of the more reasonable protest groups that had formed crowds around Herrington High, all of them carrying signs instead of yelling. Trouble was, it led the cameras to them, which in turn carried the belligerent groups their way. No one knew how Terry had found out where the Queen had been, but he did; no matter how quiet he’d tried to be about it, the more anxious and bitter-minded folk discovered the facts, somehow.
When the police and officials began getting attacked, they had no choice but to fight back. With the Mack truck stalled within the throngs of people clamoring to get a better look or outright attacking it, rubber bullets and gas were sent out indiscriminately. Many fell and were trampled by those fighting to escape, or even rushing at the officers still. The news groups retreated to a safer distance, still covering the chaos and sending it all out to those at home, watching in shock at their little town imploding. If one looked closely enough at their screen, they might have seen Terry and his fiancee Sarah Townsend lying together on the ground being trod upon by many feet, killing them.
One of those residents was very, very glad they’d headed out of town for a melancholy dinner of French toast, as their usual diner was only a block away from the chaos reigning. Even if it’d been hours before the worst of it had started, it made him crawl upstairs to be with his lover as thanks.