*All dragons copyrighted to Poseidon Simons

Chapter 4

Jack's Power...

"No! I won't let them mess with me again! Letting it happen once was too much! I CAN'T let it happen again!" Jack thought as he ran. Anthros passed by him in a blur, becoming more indistinct as he gained speed, "NEVER!!!! DO YOU HEAR ME?!!!!!!! NEVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Soon, he didn't even notice the anthros. Buildings were the only things he was able to see. He started to feel his energy drain from him, coming with a headache. He slowed down and ducked into an alley, gasping and panting for breath in the safe darkness he hid in. Jack glanced back at the street, gasping for breath and watching to make sure Johnny and Trent weren't following him. He was about to leave when he heard someone cough. He stopped and looked down the alley, "Hello? Is someone there?"

There was a gasp, then lots of racket for a reply. Jack slowly started to aproach whatever was making the sounds.

"Hello? Will someone please answer me?"

More loud banging and crashing. The sunlight that filtered into the alley caught on some almost see-through wings, and Jack gasped when he saw the woman laying on the ground. She had a huge wound in her side which was still bleeding, though slowly. She stopped thrashing on the ground when he came close.

"Are you okay?"

She shook her head.

Jack carefully picked her up in his arms, watching in worry as she fainted in his grasp. He waled out of the allly, "Excuse me, where's the hospital from here?" Jack asked the first anthro that came by.

The dark-green dragoness glanced at the woman in his arms and pointed up the street.

He thanked her and started running. They bandaged her up and let her rest in a bed. Jack waited patiently outside her room for her to wake up. The doctor came out and closed the door, "We've run into a problem, sir."

"What is it? Can I help?"

"She's lost too much blood. If she's going to survive, she needs to get blood from an outside source."

"What's the problem, then? Can't you find someone to help?"

"Mr. Tyne, she has blood type O. I don't know of any patients besides her who have that blood type."

"Mr. who? He called me Mr. Tyne..." Jack pushed the thought away for later, "Check mine."

"Mr. Tyne, I'm positive you don't have the correct blood type to help her."

"Just check it, damn you! I won't let her die if I can!"

The doctor cringed under Jack's stern tone of voice, "Y--yes sir. Come with me." Jack followed the doctor to a small check-up room, "I'll need some of your blood, Mr. Tyne."

Jack winced a little as he was stuck with a needle, "Please let it be right! Don't let her die, I can't let that happen either. Please the right type!"

"Mr. Tyne, would you please go and wait with her? I'll be there in a few minutes to tell you the test results." Jack nodded and got up. He was about to sit down right when a nurse ran up to him. She was gasping for breath and could barely speak. In the end she just pointed back the way he'd come. He nodded and walked with her back to the doctor. He was still staring at two test tubes full of blood, "Mr. Tyne..."

"Yes?"

"You have the right type of blood...will you come with me please?.."

Jack walked through many hallways, still following the doctor. He noticed that other anthros seemed to stare at him as he passed, "Where are we going?" He asked as they walked.

"To a new room that's clean. The one they put your anthro in will need to be cleaned when we move her."

"Then why move her?"

"We need to have as many insturments at hand as possible. That room is just for people in a coma. Here we are..." The docter opened a room with two beds. There was a curtain between the beds. One was huge, while the other seemed to be about the normal size, "Would you please lay down, Mr. Tyne?"

Jack sat down on the larger bed and looked around. It wouldn't be so bad...In fact, the setting to the room felt familiar. He wasn't sure why, "Then again, I haven't been sure of anything since I met Johnny." The doctor wheeled in the girl he'd brought in, who was still in her coma. With the help of two nurses, the doctor was able to set her down on the other bed. Jack could see their silouettes working on her through the curtain. The doctor cam into his portion of the room holding a tube. Jack held out an arm, wincing as he was stuck with a needle yet again. As the blood passed through the tube, he could feel his strength start to go. The doctor smiled and patted him on the shoulder, then left to check on the girl. A nurse came in and sat down by him, "Will she be alright?"

"She should be, thanks to you." The nurse blushed, "Umm...Mr. Tyne, is she your fiance?"

Jack realized what she was implying, "What do I say? I can't let this anthro think that I'm in love, but I don't want her to think she has a chance, either!" He glanced over at the silouette of the girl, "No...I found her on the ground. Anyone would've helped her out if they'd seen her." He tried hard not to swallow, "That didn't work. Now she'll probably think she has a chance...why am I so worried about that?"

The nurse gasped a little, then smiled and got up.

Jack shifted a little, "Wait. Could you check on her? It would mean a lot to me." He sighed and settled in his bed, "There. Maybe she thinks I have a crush on the girl. She won't try anything."

The nurse's smile dropped as she walked over to the other side of the room, "Mr. Tyne, would you like to see her?"

"Please?"

The curtain slid away, revealing the fairy dragon sleeping in her hospital bed. There was a huge bandage that wrapped completely around her waist, hiding the bloody wound he'd seen on her. Jack sighed in relief, then settled down further into his bed. The sheets were all so warm that he fell asleep. He gasped awake when the morning sun hit him. The tubes that had been in him the previous day were all gone, and the fairy dragon was breathing deeply, just as he'd left her. He sat up in his bed, reeling when dizzyness made the room spin. Jack was able to stay upright by holding onto the bed, but only just barely. He twisted until his legs were on the edge of the bed, then slowly tried to stand up. His legs felt like jelly underneath him, causing him to collapse right by his bed. He grabbed the edge and pulled himself back onto it, "Why am I so weak?" He remembered all of the blood that had been taken from him and sighed, "I guess I'm stuck here for a while then. I wish I could walk over to her and see what she looks like..." There was a small tray of cookies by his bed, "Well, that was nice of them." He took one and ate it. The nurse from the day before walked in.

"Mr. Tyne?"

Jack looked up, "Hmm?"

"You have some visitors..."

Johnny walked in, followed by Kim and Maik. Jack thought he saw another anthro almost come in that had tan scales, "Trent, I saw you."

Trent peeked inside, "Hi..."

Jack straightened as much as he could on the bed, "Look, about yesterday...I'm sorry for how I acted."

Johnny forced a smile, "It's okay, Jack. Mind if we ask why you did that?"

Jack shuddered, "A memory that still hasn't come all the way back yet."

Trent carefully put a hand on his shoulder, "What was it?"

The nurse walked out, letting Jack fully relax, "I--I think someone messed with my mind a while ago...it didn't turn out too good.

Trent frowned, "We noticed. I won't do it to you, if that makes you feel any better."

"Thanks...umm, Johnny, could you help me up?"

"Sure." Johnny got Jack to his feet, then slowly let go. Jack wobbled and started falling, only to be caught by Johnny again, "What happened to you anyway?"

"I found her..." Jack pointed to the other bed, "I had to give up some of my blood yesterday, but the doctor says I saved her life. She's done nothing but sleep since."

Kim walked over to the bed, "Oh my...Jack, where did you find this poor girl?"

"In an alley with a huge cut in her side. That's why she has the bandage around her stomach."

"Jack, did you see all of her wound?"

"I think so...why?"

"Johnny, bring him over here." Johnny and Trent helped him walk over to Kim. All three gasped when they saw the cast around her leg.

"That explains why she never got up." Jack grabbed hold of a nearby end table to keep himself up right, and ended up sitting on it, "Though I'd still like to ask her why she never said anything..."

The fairy dragon blinked her eyes open, staring right into Jack's. Jack didn't really hear them, but he managed to register the fact that Kim had pushed both Johnny and Trent out, then closed the door. The fairy dragon glanced at the door, then smiled.

Jack smiled back, but wasn't able to keep smiling from a sudden headache, "Rrrggghhh...why do I keep getting these headaches?!"

"Thank...you...Mr. Tyne." Jack looked up when he heard her voice. She was waving her hands around, making them form odd shapes as she spoke, "I...owe you...my...life."

Jack gave her a confused look, "Why do you keep waving your hands around like that? What're you doing?"

There was a shocked look on the girl's face, "He doesn't understand sign-language! I can't thank him!!!!!!!!!" She started crying.

"Whoa whoa whoa, wait a minute. Why would I need to understand sign-language when you're talking normally like everybody else?"

She waved her hands around again, "What?"

"See, like that. You're talking just fine."

"What...are you...talking about?" She said as she moved her hands in strange ways.

"And how are you doing that without moving your lips?"

"Moving my lips?! What IS he talking about?"

"I can hear you just fine. Are you saying you haven't spoken a word?"

She shook her head.

"But--but then--how am I hearing you? I know I'm hearing your voice...umm...what's your name?" She started waving her hands around again. Jack put his hands on top of hers, "Without the hand signals."

"How am I supposed to tell him my name if he won't let me?.."

"Easy, just say it."

"What the--how did he answer that?!!!!"

"You're practically shouting. Now what's your name?"

"But--but how can he--" She sighed, "I could tell him if he let go of my hands, but how am I supposed to ask him to do that?"

Jack let go of her hands, "There. I did as you wanted, now can I please know your name?"

She waved her hands around again, "It's...Ania."

Jack sighed then, "Look. I still don't understand why you're waving like that, Ania. I heard your voice easily."

"But I haven't said anything!!!!"

"Then what do you call it, think...ing? GOD!!!!! I remember something!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Johnny!"

"Wait, what's he mean? Is he--is he hearing my thoughts?"

Jack turned back to her, "YES!!!!!! That's it exactly!" He was about ready to laugh with joy. This had to mean something. How many could do what he just remembered he could do? He grabbed the edge of the bed and leaned down to hug Ania, "THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!" He let go of her and propped himself back on the end table as Johnny came back in.

"What is it, Jack?"

"Johnny, I can hear thoughts!"

"Then that's why you kept thinking I was talking to you?"

"Exactly, Ania. I heard what you were thinking!!!!!"

Trent was by him and checking his forehead, "No fever...he's not delirious. He means it!"

Johnny looked at him, "So, you can hear what we're thinking?"

"Yeah!"

"Okay, then tell me. What's my son's name?"

"It's Maik."

Johnny stared at him, wide-eyed, "He--he really can..."

Kim put a hand on Johnny's shoulder, "What do you mean?"

"I 'asked' him what the name of our son was. He heard me think it and answered, Kim!"

Jack was staring out the window, "I can hear thoughts...Wait, I can hear the thoughts of animals too! I can talk back to them!!!!!!!!" even though he was weak, he tried to stand up. When it failed miserably, Johnny helped him back up. Jack was crying from being so happy, "Johnny, I just remembered. I can hear the thoughts of animals too! I can talk back to them!"

"What the--then that makes three!"

"Hmm?"

"You, Player, and another anthro that I never met can all talk to animals. Damn it! I wish we had pets around here...wait! Kim, has Maik ever seen the zoo here?"

"No..."

"Jack, c'mon. We're going to the zoo to test out this claim of yours." Johnny started to reach for Jack's arm.

Jack pulled it away, "Not without Ania. I want to make sure she'll be alright. I think she should come with us."

He glanced down at Ania, who was smiling at him in an odd way, "Mr. Tyne, thank you."

Jack's confused look came back, "Umm, Johnny, why does everyone keep calling me Mr. Tyne?"

Johnny sighed, "I was wondering when this would happen. Listen Jack. You look exactly like the most popular movie star on Little island. If you were the same size as us, or shorter, you would be mistaken for him even more so."

"So I'm not this Tyne guy?"

"No. Sorry Jack."

"Oh well. It's good to meet you, Jack."

"You too Ania."