As Jason stepped up to the effigy, Billy stopped him an upraised hand.  Instead of letting him go through the same motions as the others, Billy picked a flaming piece of wood out of the fire and handed it to Jason, telling him something the others couldn't hear.<br/><br/>Without giving a visible reaction, Jason walked up to the effigy.  What happened next no one but him would ever know; a cacophonous rumble of thunder drowned out anything he might have said.  A few moments later, thunder boomed again as lightning struck just beyond the circle of firelight; suddenly it seemed like the whole football stadium was on fire.<br/><br/>Someone screamed, and lightning struck again.  There was chaos - everything seemed to happen on fast-forward.  The effigy was on fire, the flames climbing high into the night.  Billy was no where to be seen.  A bolt struck Jason and he tumbled to the ground, his clothing on fire.  Again and again lightning struck the football stadium, and then a final bolt of liquid energy struck the very center of the group of four, and everything went black.<br/><br/>By sheer chance, only Olivia happened to be looking at the effigy as the final bolt struck.  Only she saw that it had vanished.  In its place, tears and blood streaming down him face, was William Weir - struggling against the bonds that held him to the pole, but laughing in delight as he burned alive.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>END OF ACT I<br/><br/>((OOC: No one post in this thread, please.  I will have a new thread up for Act II momentarily.<br/><br/>...Also, just realized upon re-reading that this post is creepily reminiscent of my favorite verse of<em>American Pie</em>:<br/><br/>As I watched him take the stage/<br/>My hands were clenched in fists of rage/<br/>No angel born in hell/<br/>Could break that Satan spell/<br/>And as the flames climbed high into the night/<br/>To light the sacrificial rite/<br/>I saw Satan laughing with delight/<br/>The day the music died.<br/><br/>Yay, subconscious.  Except Billy isn't Satan, and Jason isn't dead.  As far as you know, anyway.  :P))