Skyline Gang

Chapter 31

Sorry this took a while to come out. I had an essay to complete that was more important for university. Not to mention I had some writers block.

No pulling. No being sucked into an abyss. Dude opened his eyes, meeting the darkness. He expected it to be cold like Dawn was. However, it was neither cold nor warm. Just neutral. The rides and stalls stood out perfectly against the black. Their lights were dim, their colours still bright. Dude hesitantly stepped one foot out. He half expected to have the limb suspended in mid air. Instead, he felt solid ground right under it. The moment he put his foot down, it was like he had stepped in smoke. The black around his trainer dispersed, revealing a light grey pavement. He felt the others look over his shoulder, looking down at his foot. Seeing that it was safe, he carefully took another step. The blackness cleared even more. The concrete joined the first patch, almost making the start of a make shift path. One by one, they all stepped outside. The more they walked forward, the faster the darkness faded away. It even started to part above them. For the first time in days, they finally saw daylight. It shined down on them, kissing their skin. It was so comforting to no longer bath in artificial light. And the air...it had never smelled and tasted so sweet. And a little salty. Were they by the sea?

"A theme park? We were at a theme park the entire time?" Pip asked, blinking harshly to get used to the sunlight.

"It makes sense when you think about the rides and the interior of the building." Bud stated, readjusting his visor so it was protecting his eyes.

"Then where did all these statues come from?" Candi stammered. Once everyone had adjusted to the light, it was like another stab of terror. All around them were statues. Countless. They were all different ranges in age and gender. Some of them were wearing summer clothing. Others were wearing what seemed to be uniforms. With all the differences that could be seen, there was one thing made crystal clear. These statues were frozen by fear. Their faces all held the same, twisted, wide eyed expression. Some looked like they were running. Some were holding tightly to their loved ones. Others were crouching down by rides and stalls in a futile attempt to hide. There were even a couple of what looked to be service dogs, which seemed to be frozen mid bark in order to protect their owners. Bags, toys, a couple of phones and discarded food and drink were scattered around each statue. It was deathly silent. Not even the call of a bird or nearby traffic (if there was a road) passed through the barrier. No one could speak for a long time as they saw this. The statues weren't visible to them while they were trapped inside. Even with the darkness, they still might have seen at least a couple of them thanks to the lights from each ride that appeared. As they watched the scenery, they all thought the same thing. Were these statues real people once?

After what felt like forever, the silence was finally broken.

"Well, one thing's for certain." Sprout sheepishly grinned, walking a little.

"What's that, Sprout?" Pip asked, hands on her hips.

"They're all STONED to see us! Whoa!" Sprout grinned as he started walking backwards. He then slipped on a discarded bottle of stale water, landing flat on his back.

"Serves you right for making such a morbid joke." Bud scolded, wagging a disapproving finger at the joker. Sprout grumbled, sitting up. He can see why his friends weren't happy at him. Heck, he wasn't happy at himself. Bad joke and at the worst possible time. It was just fortunate that he was in the company of his friends, not strangers. Next time, he'll pick a better time and place to do such a thing.

"Sprout!" Dude suddenly exclaimed, his disapproval snapped into shock. He pointed harshly at where Sprout's hand was. Turned out that when he tripped over, his hand landed on a foot of a statue. Around his hand was a soft green glow. It started to expand into a ring. As it grew in size, the stone started to melt away. Sprout yelped a little, jumping back. He continued to watch the stone melt away, flesh and clothing becoming present. Everyone held their breath as a little boy became flesh and blood right before their eyes. He stumbled a little. He rubbed his eyes, as if he woke up from a nap. He looked around, trembling at the sight of the statues. He then looked at the group of teenagers and dog, and finally looked at Sprout.

"Hi!" Sprout smiled widely. The boy didn't respond coherently. He instead let out a loud wail, tiny fists reaching for his eyes as tears fell. Sprout panicked a little. He shoved his hands in his pockets, scrambling for ideas to help clam the boy down. "No it's okay. See!"

The boy sniffled, looking back at Sprout. Sprout had pulled his hands out his pockets, holding three juggling balls. He tossed each one up in the air, juggling them. The boy watched, tears still in his eyes. For about ten seconds, Sprout kept juggling. He then tossed all three of the juggling balls high in the air. He grinned loudly, striking a small pose. His face twisted into a cringe as the props fell smack one his head, one by one. Sprout swayed a little before falling flat on his back. His friends snickered and giggled at his act. The boy let out the loudest laugh of them all. That was all that Sprout needed to hear. He sat up, an accomplished grin spread across his face. He sat patiently as the boy continued to laugh a little. Then he almost fell back again as the boy wrapped his arms around him. He was still crying, trembling terrible from his emotions. Sprout gently patted his back, even rubbing a small circle on that spot. He whispered comforting words to the boy, soothing the troubled soul he carefully held.

"How did you do that?" Mimi asked, still in disbelief about what was happening.

"I don't know." Sprout grunted as he got up, still holding onto the boy. He held the kid in a way so then he wouldn't see the statues around them anymore. "Just tripped over, touched this little guy by accident and here we are."

"I wonder..." Bud mused, walking toward another statue. It was of a woman. He glanced at her for a moment. He took in her position. She was reaching out, fingers stretched as far as they could go. They were aimed towards where Sprout and the boy were. Taking a chance, Bud placed his hand on the woman's back. Underneath his hand, was a soft red glow. It expanded into a ring, dissolving the stone. Bud stepped back a little, watching as the same trick was working for him. Once the stone was gone, the woman stumbling, finally having control of her flesh and blood body. Bud immediately helped to steady her, preventing her from collapsing. The woman, overcoming her ordeal, glanced at the one helping her.

"Who are you?" She asked, breathless. The boy stopped trembling. He pulled back from Sprout a little, whipping his head around. Sprout shifted him a little, making sure that he wouldn't hurt himself.

"Mummy!" He shouted, reaching his hand out to her. The woman heard the boy calling out. She burst into tears at the sight of him, rapidly stepping towards Sprout. He smiled consolingly as he carefully reunited mother and son. The woman held the boy tightly as if she would die if she let him go. Dude glanced around, putting the pieces together instantly.

"Everyone! Start touching every statue you see!" He ordered, running to one side of the park. Everyone else caught on as well. They spread out through out the park, more ground to cover. They all approached each statue, touching one or two at a time. Even Rainbow seemed to have the magic touch as he booped his nose on a statue, especially any service dogs that he could find.

"Don't stop for them to fully regenerate." Bud called out, more and more people gathering around as they came back to life. "Keep moving. One touch is all it takes." Everyone took to the advice instantly. Their work had started speeding up now. They might not know what happened to these people or who they were, but one thing was for certain. They were all victims of Dawn. Now that she was gone, they can be free at last. Their time as cold stone was over, never to be frozen again. Dawn won't be able to harm them anymore. In a matter of minutes, there was not one statue in sight. All these stranger, young and old, guest and seemingly employee of this place now formed a ring around the group. The teens shifted in their feet, feeling uncomfortable. Rainbow huddled close, giving all the comfort he can. There were some mummers from the crowd. Stares of wonder and confusion trained right on them. After a while, a voice came from the crowd, speaking to the teenagers. They finally asked a question:

"Who are all of you?"