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Ezekiel stood very still from his spot behind the cold stone pillar, barely daring to breathe. He could see his team, Cassandra, Stone, and Baird hiding behind a pile of rubble to his left. Cassandra was desperately trying to piece back together the broken artifact Jenkins had given them as loud footsteps shook the floor of the marble tomb, stone crashing against stone. Ezekiel peered carefully around the pillar and saw the giant stone warrior lumber closer and closer to his teammates.
Stone had a steady hand on Cassandra's shoulder as her shaking hands struggled to put together what was essentially a bunch of gravel and dust. Baird was holding her gun close, ready to protect her librarians no matter the cost.
If Ezekiel tried, he could probably escape while the giant was distracted. He could slip out and lay low for a few years, living off of his stockpile of stolen goods until everything blew over. Their chances weren't looking too good right now. This was his last chance to bail.
But when did Ezekiel Jones ever back down from a challenge? Nah, not today. Not yet, at least. If Cassandra needed more time to finish fixing the artifact than that was what she was going to get.
“ Hey, big and ugly!” He shouted, jumping out from behind the pillar. “ Come and get me!”
The giant's feet scraped against the floor as he whipped around to face Ezekiel. It's glowing red eyes staring him down with a bloodlust. Ezekiel gulped.
“ So it's librarians that you want, huh? Well, I'm right here!” He shouted, grabbing a broken piece of a metal pipe from the ground and waving it around. It felt eerily familiar in his grasp and he shifted it onto his shoulder, giving it a practice swing.
The giant stone bastard let out a loud screech and pulled out a stone sword that was ten times the size of Ezekiel's whole body. He could feel himself pale, his resolve wavering as the creature raised the weapon above his head.
“ Ezekiel, no!” Cassandra shouted from the background, her head popping up over the rubble. He shot her a cocky smile.
“ Fix the artifact, I'll handle this jerk!” He shouted back, his voice filled with feigned confidence. It was now or never.
With one loud swoosh the sword came down on him and he bolted to the side, stumbling from the resulting shock wave. The giant quickly recovered and raised his weapon for another blow but Ezekiel was quicker, sprinting just out of reach as the sword swung down, hitting the floor with a deafening boom.
His ears rang as he watched the sword raise up again for a third blow. He took a deep breath and started running again. The blade came down right above him and he barely managed to dive out of the way, the Shockwave knocking him back a few feet. He scrambled back up and rubbed at the new bruises forming over his right shoulder. That was going to hurt tomorrow.
“ Missed me!” He shouted, his breath burning in his lungs. The giant let out another screech and the doors of the tomb swung open. Hundreds of smaller stone warriors started pouring in, welding weapons and chanting something in a language he didn't understand. Oh crap.
Memories flooded into his mind, memories of the rage people from the loop. Memories of Baird teaching him how to swing his bat in just the right way as to shatter someone's skull. He could feel the familiar rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins as he held his weapon higher. He had done this before, he could do it again. Except for this time, there was no respawn point.
No pressure.
Jumping out of the way of the giant's next hit he swung the pole in into one of the oncoming enemies heads. It landed with a crack and the warrior crumbled into dust. More and more hordes were approaching but he held his ground, remembering everything Baird had taught him. She might not remember teaching it to him but he sure as hell did and he was going to make it count. With renewed vigor he swung at the warriors, each one falling apart with a satisfying crack. The metal pole felt like an extension of his arm and it was almost reliving to feel the weight in his hands. It wasn't as good as his trusty bat but it got the job done.
Behind him he could hear Cassandra shout and he felt a rush of fear. Had one of them gotten to her before Baird could stop it? Was he going to go back there and see her lifeless body torn to shreds like he had so many times before? Except for this time, there would be no redo. She would be dead. Forever.
His moment of panic gave the giant warrior a chance to strike and it kicked him in the chest, sending his body tumbling across the floor. His weapon fell from his grip and clattered into the crowd as he collided with the wall. For a second his vision went white and he gasped in pain, writhing on the cold stone floor. With all the strength he could muster he managed to open his eyes. Once his eyes were open he wished he had just kept them closed.
Standing in front of him was the massive stone warrior, its hand reaching out for him as its eyes cast an ominous red glow across his face. This was it. He was going to die. The giant hand wrapped around his chest and lifted him up into the air. He couldn't help but scream out in pain as his newly broken bones protested to the movement. With one quick movement he was raised up to the giant's face, its glowing eyes staring into his soul.
“ Hey mate, don't you think you should take me out to dinner first?” He quipped half heartedly. His head spun with pain as the creature started to squeeze him in its fist. He screamed, feeling his bones cracking as its grip continued to tighten.
Then with a powerful gust of wind the giant let out a strangled scream and crumbled into dust. Ezekiel shouted as the fist around him disappeared and he started to fall. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the impact, but Instead of hitting hard marble he landed directly on top of Jake. They both tumbled to the ground and Ezekiel groaned.
“ Ezekiel, are you okay?” Cassandra asked, rushing over to him. He just grunted, his muscles aching like he had just been put through a blender. Apparently Jake had a problem with that because the next thing he knew the cowboy was pulling him up and off of him, holding his shoulders with a steady grip.
“ That was crazy! What were you thinking? You almost got yourself killed!” Jake asked but he just shrugged and then he winced. Yeah, moving was not a good idea.
“ We should get him back to the annex. We have no idea what kind of internal damage that thing could have done to him. Stone, can you help him to the door?” Baird said in her usual authoritative tone and he smirked. No matter what was going on, he could always count on Baird to be a mother hen. That was one of the things he liked about her the most, she didn't know when to stop caring.
“ Jenkins might be able to help, he has a whole section of the library dedicated to healing artifacts.” Cassandra stated, holding the artifact Jenkins had given her tightly in her hands. She had somehow managed to piece it back together and imprison the warriors inside. Just in time too, one more minute and he would have been an Ezekiel smoothie.
Jake put an arm under his shoulder and heaved him up to stand but his legs almost immediately gave out. He cried out in pain and gritted his teeth as Jake rushed to hold him upright.
“ Coulda given me a warning.” He grumbled, his head swimming.
“ Sorry, sorry,” Jake apologized as Baird slipped under his other arm. “ Better?”
“ Yeah,” He admitted, slumping into Jake's side. “ Let's go, a few broken bones is not going to stop Ezekiel Jones.”
“ As soon as Jenkins gives you the all clear, I'm taking you home.” Baird said, helping him forwards. “ No more missions until you're healed.”
“ Aww, you do care.” He said, his legs wobbling dangerously with every step. If he had known any better he would have been embarrassed but at least she wasn't insisting on carrying him.
“ Do you ever stop?” Jake asked incredulously. He just laughed and then he gritted his teeth again. He really had to stop doing that.
“ Jenkins,” Cassandra said, pulling out the communicator.
“ Yes miss Cillian?” Jenkins responded, his face flashing on screen.
“ We need a door, we found out what the disturbance was and got it under control but Ezekiel is hurt pretty badly. ” She said, sounding worried.
“ Alright, I'll send one to your location.” Jenkins said and disappeared off screen. In about thirty seconds the door to the annex appeared and he hobbled Inside, Baird and Jake supporting most of his weight. Cassandra walked in after them, clutching the artifact to her chest. As soon as they were all inside the door closed and Ezekiel let out a long shaky breath.
“ Set him down, carefully.” Jenkins instructed, Pointing to the same white cot he had used back when he was changed into a werewolf. Ah, good times.
The others helped him onto the cot as Jenkins grabbed a cup of dark, thick liquid. He scowled. Jenkin’s remedies weren't exactly known for being palatable, honestly most of them tasted like straight rat poison, but somehow they always worked. If Jenkin’s weird wizard medicine could heal him from lycanthropy then it could probably help with this.
Ezekiel laid down in the cot, ignoring the sinking feeling that he was going to have to drink whatever disgusting slop Jenkins was mixing in that cup.
“ Don't tell me, it's some sort of magic slime, isn't it?" He guessed, his nose wrinkling.
“ It's an ancient recipe that was passed down by the Aztec tribe, capable of soothing wounds and healing broken bones faster than the splint. It was one of the best herbal remedies available in that region, that was until Hornado Cortez came along.” Jenkins said, turning towards him. Ezekiel gulped.
“ Don't tell me the great Ezekiel Jones is afraid of a little medicine.” Jake teased and Ezekiel considered getting up out of bed to show him just how unafraid he was but he stopped as Baird put a steady hand on his shoulder.
“ That's enough soldier, you've done enough for one day.” She said and he froze, his eyes glossing over.
She had said similar things to him during the loop. No matter how many times he had to relive the same day, Baird was always the one making sure he took the time to breathe. Sometimes it was easy to forget just how endless the time loop really was. Without Baird and the others to ground him he probably would have gone insane. He blinked a few times, shaking himself back to reality.
“ Aw, I can handle a little medicine, come on, give it to me.” He urged, pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind. Jenkins held out the cup and Baird helped him sit up. His head spun for a solid ten seconds before he managed to get his bearings and reach for the cup. It was heavy in his hand and he grimaced as the dark liquid sloshed dangerously. Well, bottoms up.
Squeezing his eyes shut he tilted his head back and drank it down as fast as he could without choking. It tasted like the inside of someone's compost bin and was the texture of molasses. Swallowing down as much as he could he sat the cup down and stuck out his tongue.
“ Ugh! What was in that?” He asked, coughing as the horrible taste attacked his taste buds.
“ Actually it's a mixture of-”
“ Nevermind, don't tell me.” He said, looking down at the empty cup with disdain. “ There's no way something that tastes that bad is good for you.”
“ I can assure you that it is.” Jenkins said and Ezekiel shook his head in disbelief.
Baird rolled her eyes and handed him a water bottle. He took it gratefully and chugged, hoping to wash away some of the dirt flavor from his mouth. Jenkins took a roll of bandages from the table and pulled up his shirt. He grit his teeth as Jenkins wrapped the bandages around his shoulder. It was already purple, he didn't want to think about what it would look like in the morning.
Jenkins also wrapped the bandages tightly around his chest and then took out a small glass vile from his coat pocket. Ezekiel watched as Jenkins sprinkled a few droplets of the clear liquid onto his bandages.
“ Alright,” Baird said, her voice commanding yet gentle. “ Is he good to go?”
“ Yes, he should be healed within a few days, but it is crucial that he gets enough rest and doesn't do anything that puts too much strain on his wounds.” Jenkins stated, giving him a hard look. He batted his eyes and tried to look innocent.
“ Hear that Jones? Looks like you've got a week of bedrest ahead of you.” Baird said, giving him a gentle pat on the back. He groaned.
“ Booooring. . .” He said, flopping back down onto the bed. His sore ribs protested and he sucked air through his teeth. That was a bad idea.
“ I thought being lazy was like, your thing. Isn't that good news?” Jake asked, giving him a skeptical look. Ezekiel glared at him.
“ Only when it's on my terms, mate. This is unfair imprisonment.” He announced, staring up at the ceiling.
Honestly, He wasn't sure he could handle a week in his apartment alone, all the missions and library drama were the only things keeping the painful memories at bay. Seeing his team every day was living, breathing proof that they were alive. That he hadn't killed them. Whenever he was alone, it all seemed so much more. . . real.
He had gone from a fun loving young adult to a war hardened, ptsd ridden, mess and nothing felt the same. His body was still technically twenty three years old but in his head he was so much older.
Lying to them about remembering the loop had been a last ditch effort to keep things the same, to hopefully let things go back to normal, but the more time he spent thinking about it the more he realized that the world he lived in might still be the same but he was totally different.
He couldn't play video games anymore. Actually, he had donated his whole collection. They weren't worth the flashbacks and violent panic attacks that they caused him. Something in him just couldn't go back to normal, he was just different now and he was the only one who knew it.
“ Hey, are you okay?” Cassandra asked, leaning down to look him in the eyes. He blinked. “ You kind of spaced out there.”
“ I'm fine.” He said, just a little too fast. “ Just thinking about all the cool adventures I'm going to miss out on. I mean, what are you guys going to do without your master thief?”
“ Aw, don't worry. You'll be better in no time!” Cassandra said, her voice chipper as always and he couldn't help but smile.
“ Yeah, no time.” He said, mostly to himself. He really hoped she was right.
“ Come on Jones, I'll drive you home.” Baird said, hoisting him up to stand. He winced at the movement but it surprisingly didn't hurt as much as he had expected. Must have been Jenkins horrible slime working its magic.
With some of the pain gone he was able to support more of his weight. Baird held him steady as she led him out towards the front door.
“ Get some rest!” Cassandra called out and he waved her goodbye with his free hand.
“ Call us if you need anything.” Jake said, thumping him lightly on the shoulder.
“ I fought off a bunch of evil statues single handedly, I can handle some bedrest.” He said, grinning impishly as Baird led him outside.
He shivered at the cool fall air, leaning further into Baird’s side. The trees were all different shades of red and orange, their leaves softly fluttering to the ground around him. This had used to be his least favorite time of year, dry leaves were loud and made sneaking into places more difficult, but it was really starting to grow on him.
Baird led him to her car and helped him inside. He wasn't in nearly as much pain as before but he felt weak. All the fighting had really taken it out of him and the slop that Jenkins gave him had made him drowsy. Baird climbed into the driver's seat and started the car, the engine roaring to life.
“ This is pretty nice.” He commented with a yawn, blinking sleepily.
“ Thanks, Flynn helped me pick it out.” She said, her voice softening at the mention of Flynn. “ I had some extra money lying around and decided it was time for a change.”
“ Good to know.” He said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
“ Don't even think about it.” She said, giving him a harsh look.
He watched as she pulled away from the annex and then onto the road towards his apartment. Luckily he didn't live far, just a few miles away. His friends would only be a few miles away. Something about that made him feel a little better, knowing that he wasn't going to be completely Isolated. They drove in silence for a few minutes and he almost drifted asleep until Baird cleared her throat, catching his attention.
“ What you did back there was brave, you know.” Baired said, her voice thick with pride. He choked, his throat closing at the sudden compliment. “ I've never seen you fight like that, with so much passion. Actually. . . now that I think about it, you've been acting differently for a few weeks. What's up with that?”
“ Oh yeah- I've been taking lessons,” He lied, stumbling over his words. “ Just thought it would be a good idea, given all the Eldridge beings we fight on a daily basis.”
“ Lessons? From who?” She asked, eyeing him carefully. Oh no, she was on to him.
“ Pshh, you know, just some awesome guy I met a while ago. He's really great at. . . Punching.”
“ Jones, That was bad, even for you.” She stated, looking over at him with a serious expression. “ What's really going on?”
“ Nothing,” He said, glancing anxiously out the window. “ I just thought I should get better at protecting myself. Is that such a crime?”
“ No,” Baird admitted. “ but last I checked you were much more focused on the next bank you could rob than learning self defense. What happened to all that talk about the great Ezekiel Jones?”
“ I'm still great,” He said, placing a defensive hand on his chest. “ I never stopped being great. I'm Ezekiel Jones!” He shouted, glaring at her.
Baird sighed heavily, her eyes focused on the road in front of her. Recovering from his outburst he shrunk down a little in his seat.
“ Sorry, I'm just . . . Tired.” He admitted, resting his head against the window. The glass was shockingly cool against his skin and he closed his eyes.
“ You know it's my job as guardian to keep you safe.” She said after a minute of silence. He nodded.
“ Yeah?”
“ I know the way you fight and what I saw today was not it. You were more focused but also reckless. Ezekiel, If something is going on I need to know.” She said, glancing over at him. He could see a flash of worry cross her face and he looked away, feeling a little bit guilty.
“ You really noticed that?” He asked, with a half hearted chuckle. “ Cassie was right, you really are a momma bear.”
“ You're avoiding the answer.” She said and he sighed in defeat.
“ I don't know what you want me to say!” He exclaimed, rubbing his temple in frustration. “Yes, what I did was stupid and it was reckless and there is no way I would have done something like that a few weeks ago but damn it, I just couldn't let that thing hurt you. I couldn't just watch and let it happen, not after-! . . .”
“ After the loop?” She asked and he nodded.
“ Yeah, not after what happened during the loop.” He finished, pressing his face back up against the glass so that he didn't have to look her in the eyes. The car was silent again and he slumped into the window, the tension eating at him.
“ You remember?”
“ Everything.” He admitted, “ I remember everything.”
“ How?” She asked and he grit his teeth.
“ I thought that it would be easier if you all just thought that I forgot.” He said, wishing that he could go back in time so that he didn't have to have this conversation. “I don't do well with expectations and with you guys all thinking I was some sort of selfless hero, I just wanted things to go back to normal.”
“ I'm guessing that didn't work out the way you had hoped.”
“ It did, for a while. Everything looked the same, the annex, Jenkins, all of you, but I had been gone for so long. I spent years trying to get us all out of that damn loop, saw all of you die over and over and there was nothing-” He shuddered, blinking tears out of his eyes. “ I tried everything to save you but no matter what I did it always ended with someone dying. After the first few hundred loops I started to lock you guys in the storage closet, just so that you were safe. I'm honestly glad you don't remember, I was a total mess.”
He hid his face in his hands and wiped the stray tears off of his face. His hands were shaking as he tried to hold back all of the feelings he had been bottling up since the loop. He couldn't let her see him break. Not now, not ever. She had already seen that once, during the loop, and there was no way he was going to let her see it again.
Baird silently pulled into the parking lot next to his apartment and parked next to the building. When they were safely parked, Baird got out of the car and walked over to the side door, opening it for him.
“ Come on Jones, let's get you home.” She said, offering him her hand. Usually he wouldn't have taken it but with the way his head was spinning and it kind of hurt to breathe he didn't really have much of a choice. He took her hand and let her help him up, his legs wobbling a little less than before. She gave him a pat on the back and led him towards his apartment.
“ You know, There's a story soldiers tell about World War II, Market Garden, Allied assault behind enemy lines.” She started and he immediately knew what she was going to say.
Part of him didn't want to hear it again, knew that it would hurt to remember the last time she had told it to him, but the other part needed it. He needed her to look at him in that wonderfully motherly way and make him feel safe again, so he just listened and tried to fight off another wave of tears.
“What happens is, these allied troops have to cross a river. First wave of soldiers get in their little pontoon boats, get halfway across the river, and the Germans just open up their machine guns and just cut them all down. None of them make it. These two colonels are watching the bodies floating in the river, and one of them says, "Those are the bravest men I've ever seen." The second colonel points to the second wave of soldiers getting in their little pontoon boats, getting ready to cross the same river, only they saw what happened to the first guys. They know what's coming. And that colonel says, "no. Those are the bravest men I've ever seen.”
“ I've lost count how many times you've told me that story.” He says, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. She pauses and looks down at him with that same, loving gaze that he remembered so well.
“ Then why'd you let me tell it?” She asked and he smiled.
“ I like the way you look at me when you tell it.”
She smiled back at him, a proud look on her face as she looped her arm around his shoulder.
“ Get some rest soldier,” She said as they walked up to his apartment. “ I'll hold down the fort.”
He laughed and then nodded, unlocking his apartment door.
“ Do me a favor?” He asked, “ Don't tell the others what happened today.”
“ They're going to find out anyway, sooner than later if you keep up this hero act.” She said and he knew she was right.
“ I'll tell them, when I'm ready.” He promised and she nodded.
“ Then as long as it doesn't put one of you at risk, your secret is safe with me.”
“ Thanks, mate.” He said, feeling the exhaustion start to sink in. “ Call me if anything happens?”
“ Of course, Goodnight Jones,” She waved, starting her way down the hall. He smiled and waved her goodbye.
Ezekiel Jones had never wanted to be a hero but with his friends by his side, he knew that there was no one else he would rather be.