Date: Mon, 5 Dec 1994 23:26:00 +0200 Reply-To: Highlander TV show stories Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Marina Bailey Organization: CDS OnLine BBS, Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA Subject: Difference is Excuse Enough, Part 2 DIFFERENCE IS EXCUSE ENOUGH, Part 2 of 2 "If they let him out I'm going to kill him." It was a statement, Richie could hear it. "Now, wait a minute..." Jonathan grabbed Richie by the shirt. "If he gets out I'm going to kill him, I swear!" "That won't bring Scott back!" Richie yelled at him, aware of a gathering crowd outside the police station. "No, it won't. But it'll be justice and you know it." "It'll be revenge!" retorted Richie. "And you know that." Jonathan suddenly seemed to calm down, but in reality he had just become more determined. He let go of Richie and walked off in silence. "He *will* kill him, Mac, I know it." "I can't blame him, but we have to stop him." "How? The guy's still in jail, at least for now. But when he gets out Jonathan'll be waiting. And he will do it." "Well," Duncan reached for his jacket, "we'd better find him, then." "I think he'll go back to where Scott was murdered." "Yeah, you're probably right. Let's go." They found Jonathan sitting on the sidewalk where he and Scott had been attacked. He didn't show any surprise when their Quickenings collided; it was as if he'd expected this. Duncan sat down next to him. "You know that killing him would be wrong." "I know that killing him would make me feel better, and let Scott rest easier." "You also know it's wrong," Duncan persisted. Jonathan looked down, but Duncan said sharply, "Look at me!" Jonathan did. "Now, you listen," said MacLeod. "He's a mortal. He has a limited life, and no matter what he's done, you cannot dispense justice like this. Let the justice system decide." "When we get to trail, which could take years. And do you think the jury will care when they find out why Scott and I were attacked? Some of them will think he performed a public service, and you know that." "We'll make sure that doesn't happen." "Sure you will." Richie was standing on the sidewalk, trying rather unsuccessfully to melt into the wall. He didn't want to be here in this place, or rather he didn't want to be seen here. Duncan didn't have patience for that. "We'll help, won't we, Richie?" "Uh... yeah, sure." Duncan looked back at Jonathan. "Can we wait and see what happens when he's arraigned? Please?" "All right." "Good. Let's go back to the dojo, okay?" "Okay." Later, when MacLeod and Richie were alone, Richie gave his opinion. "If he gets off, Mac, Jonathan will kill him." "I know." "Well, what can we do?" "Other than tying him up or taking his head, not much, since talking doesn't seem to help." "You really do understand, don't you, Mac?" "Of course I do. It happened to me." "Tessa," observed Richie. "And... others. Only that time, it was an Immortal who killed them. And I took his head. It isn't fair to take the head of a mortal. The mortals have their code of justice and we have ours." "But Jonathan isn't a mortal." "No, but the person he wants to avenge was, and so are the guilty ones." "I understand, Mac, but it won't make any difference to him." Richie was right, of course. Two days later the phone rang, and the police informed Jonathan that the culprit had refused to name his accomplices, and that he had been given bail. Jonathan grabbed his sword - he didn't have a gun - and rushed from the dojo. He had to go past Richie, however, and Richie rushed out after him, just as Duncan drove up. "Mac!" "I thought I saw you..." began Duncan. "He took my motorcycle! I think the cops must have called." "And let me guess, the guy's out." "Must be." They screeched off down the road, Duncan asking Richie if he knew where Jonathan was headed. "We know the attacker's name, so I guess finding out his address wouldn't have been too hard." "Do you know?" "Yeah." Duncan and Richie were right - for Jonathan, finding out the teenager's address had been easy. So would justice be, this time. The teen was sitting in his living room when there was a sharp crack and the door was smashed open. And into the room came an averge looking guy with a not-so-average-looking sword. He jumped up. "Uh..." was all he managed to get out before Jonathan grabbed him by the throat and smashed him up against the wall. "Where're the others ?" Jonathan asked. "Wh...what othe... others?" "The other murderers!" Jonathan squeezed tighter. "You killed Scott, and you're going to die!" "No, please..." Jonathan held his sword to the guy's neck. "Now, you call up your friends and get them here." The teen had no choice. He dialled the number. "Ross? How soon can you get here? And bring Mark." When Duncan and Richie rushed into the house, Jonathan was holding all three teens. Their faces were full of abject terror; they looked as if they knew Jonathan was going to kill them. "Don't come any closer, Mac," said Jonathan. Duncan walked forward, pulling out his sword. Richie stood in the background, still hiding his. "You know this is wrong," said Duncan for what felt like the twentieth time. But he'd say it fifty times, or until Jonathan listened. "They killed him!" Jonathan's voice cracked. "They killed him, and you want me to let them get away with it!" The teenagers were too frightened to say anything; they merely stared at the three Immortals in silence. Jonathan lifted his sword, but Duncan leaped across the room and parried it. "No!" "Please, Mac." "No. We're going to have a little talk with these three first before you decide to kill them." He looked at the first teenager. "What's your name?" "Uh... Kevin." "Why'd you do it, Kevin?" "Look, we... we were just trying... we... we didn't like them, so..." "Them who?" "Them. You." "I don't know what you're talking about." Duncan got that goofy grin on his face; the one he *always* got on his face when someone was behaving in a stupid fashion and was about to be shown up. He turned to Richie. "Do you know what he's talking about, Richie?" "Haven't a clue," replied Richie, playing along. "Gee... 'us'..." mused Duncan. "You know what we mean!" said the second one. "Ah. The voice of wisdom. Who're you?" "None of your business. In my opinion you people get what's coming to you." Duncan's cavalier way of dealing with the situation had made Ross a little bolder. "Hmmm... want to kill me?" asked Duncan. "No!" protested Kevin. "No? But you killed Scott." "Who?" "The guy you left in pieces on the sidewalk," chipped in Richie. Kevin tried to get up, but Duncan shoved him back into his seat. "Don't move until I'm finished talking to you!" he snapped. "Now, let me get this straight. You don't want to kill me?" Kevin looked at the floor. "No." "But you killed Scott." "I'm sorry!" the teen yelled. "We were just... we didn't think he'd die, we..." "We wanted to teach you people a lesson," said the third teen. "Dying is a pretty hard lesson," said Duncan. By now Jonathan had lowered his sword as he looked at the three boys on the sofa. He saw different things in each: in Kevin, regret; in Ross, arrogance; and in Mark, uncertainty. And he realised that Duncan was right: they didn't deserve to die, not like this. They were young and stupid. They thought they could just hurt those who were different and ignore the consequences. But the consequences had come back to haunt them. The consequence of that act of violence had almost been death for all three of them. "I'm sorry!" burst out Kevin. "We didn't mean to kill him!" The others didn't say anything, but MacLeod could see what they were thinking: Ross, that 'they' didn't deserve mercy, and Mark that it had all gone wrong. Duncan turned to Jonathan. "You see?" Jonathan looked at the three. He _did_ see. "They don't know any better," he said. "Maybe they do now," said Duncan. He looked at Ross. "Some never will. But they're young, and ignorant. And after this, maybe not as ignorant as before." Richie came forward. "Let's get outta here, it smells." Jonathan nodded. The three Immortals left the house, not looking back. Jonathan was packing, and Duncan was leaning against the wall, grinning. "So... where are you going?" "I don't know." "Your training isn't finished yet." "I'll keep it up, I promise." "What about the trial?" "I'll be back for that, now that Kevin has identified his friends." "What if they get off?" "I'll be a good witness. They won't..." Jonathan was about to stop there and make his exit, but he stopped, knowing Duncan needed to hear more than that. And he needed to say it, too. "But if they do... I can live with it. They'll have to live with themselves, knowing they killed someone." Duncan smiled; the way a teacher smiles when a pupil has grasped the lesson. But something else bothered Jonathan. "Why didn't you say anything, when... when those boys called you one of 'them'?" "Nothing they could ever say would do anything to me," Duncan said. "When I became Immortal, a clansman - another Immortal - found me, and taught me what I needed to know to survive. He also told me something... people who are different are feared. Our clan threw him out, they threw me out. It doesn't matter what the differences are, Jonathan. To some people, any difference is excuse enough." "I guess," mused Jonathan, as Richie came in, and, catching the last part of the conversation, asked, "So, Mac, what do we do?" "We can hide our differences, we can show people what they are so they lose their fear, we can revel in being different, or we can find others of our kind. I've tried all of those through the centuries. Each has worked sometimes and not worked other times. You have to decide for yourself." "Yeah." Jonathan picked up his things and looked at the other two Immortals. "I'll see you around." "Don't lose your head," said Richie. "That was some speech, Mac," commented Richie when Jonathan had left. "Have you really tried all those things - hiding what you were, finding other Immortals, that kind of thing?" "Of course. Often more than one at a time." "And do you revel in being different?" Duncan looked at Richie with the sadness back in his eyes. "All I ever wanted was a normal life. I still do. But some Immortals don't. We are what we are, and we do what we do, even if it means taking the heads of others of our kind." Duncan would have continued, but Richie got the point, so he interrupted. "And in the end, there can be only one." "Whenever the end is," Duncan agreed. Then he lost his look of reflection and got up. "Feel like sparring?" "You mean, you feel like torturing me." "Whatever." They dashed for their swords and rushed into the elevator. To be different again, to be Immortal. To survive. THE END ********************************************************************** Comments to: tmar@cds.Alt.ZA \\ "David, are you telling me that this creature cannot die?" // //"If the damage were catastrophic, maybe. But I have seen lacerations\\ \\ close in seconds, bullet wounds heal. I don't even have a scar." // // "That's incredible. It's almost immortal." \\ \\===========Marina Bailey====================tmar@cds.Alt.ZA=========// .. Non-Trekkies of the world-- GET A FUTURE!! --- Blue Wave/RA v2.12 [NR] =========================================================================