A silent figure crept through the backstreets of an apparently deserted town. When he stepped out of the shadows, the muddy and slightly blood stained shirt was evident. The dark hair was a wild mess, smeared in dirt. His face was streaked in mud and dust. It was Marco.
Marco glanced around in horrid amazement of what had happened to his town in just days. He remembered back, as though years had passed, when in reality it was only two days ago. Tobias had come flying in a panic to Jake. Ax had been taken by the Yeerks, while he had been feeding. The Yeerks had ambushed Ax, surprising him, and quickly stunned him before dragging him off.
The moment the Yeerk had crawled into Ax's head, the Animorphs were exposed. Visser Three went into a mad rage, learning that he had been harrassed and beaten by merely human children. He attacked the houses in the open, turning the secret war into the public eye. Many had been killed during the rampage to find the Animorphs.
Jake had called everyone, telling them to get away as fast as possible. Marco had taken off for the woods for shelter. For the past two days, he had heard the noises of his home and others being destoyed. Only now had he felt it was safe to come back.
Now as he stood in the shadows of his town, he could only gaze in horror at what had happened. He had come back to search for the others, see if they were still around.
Marco carefully creeped through the debris filled streets. As he glanced around, trying to see if he could reconginze anything, he tripped and fell over something large on the ground. He fell hard and the wind was knocked out of him. He sat gasping a moment, trying to get his breath back.
He glanced at his hand. He had skinned it when he had fallen and blood began to seep out. He ripped a small section of his shirt near the bottom, where it wasn't quite as dirty. Then he wrapped the material around his hand and tied it.
After checking to make sure that the knot was tight, he carefully crawled to his feet. He straightened up and brushed the dust of his pants and shirt. Only then did he glance to see what he had tripped over.
He stumbled back in terror. He had fallen over the body of a person. They had been left lying out in the street to die. The eyes were fixed in an expression of fear.
Marco gasped and started scrambling away. He didn't care where he went. He wanted away from that horrible sight. After running for a while he stopped and leaned against a building for support. He bent over, not sure if he was going to be sick.
This wasn't war anymore. This was slaughter. Marco closed his eyes. How could have this happened? Why did it happen?
Marco snapped his head up as he heard a hauntingly familiar voice. He strained his ears to understand clearly. A sense of recognization swept over him. And yet, it was so different. Marco quickly jumped around the side of the building. The people were headed his way.
"....have all been found?" An angry sounding voice asked. Marco's eyes opened in amazment. Could it be? Yet something held him back from jumping into the open.
A familiar person suddenly stepped into Marco's range of view. Her long blonde hair was tied back neatly, and it shimmered in the occasional sun that would come out of the clouds. Cold blue eyes brought out her face, accenting the other beauty that shone from her. She wore a professional looking short, silk, blue shirt along with some black pants. Rachel.
Another person came into view. Marco didn't recognize this one. "Visser 12, the leader of the small renegade human group has been destoyed, along with the bird and the other female of the group. Only one is still missing." He shook slightly, as if dreading what would come next.
Eyes that were no longer Rachel's darkened with rage that Marco only remembered being in Visser Three. "Well." Her voice was dangerously silky. "In that case, I would suggest that you find him. Marco, I believe his name is. And fast, if you are looking out for your better health." Her steel blue eyes penetrated the small shield that the man had put up around him. He fell to his knees.
"Oh, yes, my Visser. He will be found as quickly as possible." The man trembled in fear.
"Try to bring him back alive if possible. Morph-capable bodies are rather valuable. But if it is not an option, kill him." Her words pentrated through Marco. This couldn't be right! Jake, Cassie and Tobias couldn't be dead. They couldn't! And Rachel and Ax controllers? His mind flipped the possibilties over and over, but came to the same conclusion. Rachel.....or Visser 12 was telling the truth.
Marco had his back pressed tightly against the brick wall of the building behind him. He couldn't afford to make a noise. If they suspected anything, he was as good as dead, or worse. He closed his eyes and begged silently for them to leave. His panic began to affect him. His breathing got heavier and more labored. He felt sweat begin to form on his forehead.
Marco felt his footing on the piece of wood he was standing on lose grip. He struggled silently, trying not to move. His right leg suddenly gave out and hit a stone, knocking it down the paved alley. He got ready to run. Surely they had heard it.
Rachel swiveled her head towards the alley. "Did you hear something?" She asked the quivering man next to her.
"Um...yes...I mean no..." He began to stutter, scared to give the wrong answer to Visser 12.
Rachel gave a sound of disgust. "Stupid. Why do I even bother to ask you?" She lost any concern she had and turned around, headed in the same direction she had come from. Marco waited until he could not hear her footsteps any longer. He let out a sigh of relief. It was way to close.
He stuck his head out of the alley, searching to see if anyone was nearby. He could see no one. The streets were eerily empty. There was no movement anywhere, no people or animals.
Suddenly the man's words came flooding back to him. The leader of the small renegade human has been destroyed..." He had to be lying!
Marco turned quickly down the alley and began to full out run in the direction of Jake's house. As he ran, his feet hit the ground painfully hard, and his side began to ache. He ignored the pain. He had to get to Jake's house. The man had been lying. He had to have been.
Marco finally recognized the street that he was on. He slowed down, trying to keep himself from standing out. If he was running on the main streets, he would draw attention.
As he glanced from house to house, the destruction was unbelievable. Giant holes had been blown right through the middle of some of the homes. Even though the public now knew about the invasion, he feared it was too late, that the Yeerks were too strong for the human race to fight back successfully.
A house caught Marco's eye after a couple of minutes of slinking around the homes. He turned to look at it better. The pavement of the driveway had several large chunks blown out of it. The basketball hoop that had once hung above the garage now was hanging dangerously by only one nail. As Marco looked at the total damage of the house, he could see that the windows had been blown out, and the door had been blown in.
The complete shock of the house's condition had stopped him from going in. He took a breath and started up the mutilated driveway. He carefully made his way around the huge potholes. He felt a sudden wave of fear wash over him. What if what had been said was true? He shook his head. He couldn't think of that right now.
Marco reached the remains of the door and looked at the stillness of inside the house. The complete silence gave him chills. He stepped into the darkness of the house.
Inside, the damage was worse. Marco hardly recognized anything. As he made his way through the living room, or what he thought was the living room, he noticed he was shaking. He quickly pushed down his rising panic and started to where the stairwell was supposed to be.
When he looked up the stairs, he saw that all of the picture frames had fallen off the walls and the glass had shattered. He tentivly put his weight on the first step. It creaked uncertaintly. Step by step he went up, each step would let a groan as the wood bent.
At the top, he looked to the left where Jake's room would be. The doorway had been broken, and pieces of it lay on the floor. Marco lifted his hand to see it shaking uncontrolably. He quickly mustered all of his courage and made his way towards the door.
Dust lay everywhere, as if the house had been abandoned for months. Marco's footsteps seemed to echo on forever as he came closer to the door. As he reached it, it seemed to send out a coldness. He stepped in not ready for the worst.
He looked around in a terrible awe. The room had been completely obliverated. Everything was burned or had been ripped away from the walls. His eyes were torn away from the chaosity of the room when he noticed a fallen, still figure, lying on the floor, surrounded by the debris.
"Oh God.....no...." Marco said in a barely audible whisper. When he glanced again, it confirmed the person's identity. It was Jake. Tears began to blur Marco's vision. "No, this can't be happening..." He tried to tell himself, as if trying to wake himself up from a horrible nightmare.
The room seemed to start to close in on Marco, it felt like it was smothering him. He scrambled blindly out of the room, his anger and fear combining with shock of all that had happened. He ran down the stairs, and at the bottom tripped on some part of a chair that had been ripped apart. He fell to his knees, and began to sob. Everything that had happened from two days ago up to this horrendous discovery had finally caught up with Marco.
Tears began to fall freely down his face, as Marco lay on the carpeted floor. He did nothing to stop the tears. He no longer cared if he looked like a coward. Everything that he had once had in his life were gone. His town. His best friend. Rachel and Ax were now controllers set out to either catch him or kill him......and now he had nothing.
As he lay there, he noticed a smaller object laying on the floor near him. He reached over and picked it up. His breathing came in small gasps now, but he had stopped crying. He reached up and carefully wiped off the dust that covered it. When he saw the frame and the picture inside of it, he bit his bottom lip. Hard.
The picture was of him and Jake when they were playing basketball. Both had huge grins on their faces and it was obviously taken during better times.
Marco grabbed the back of the frame and opened it, then removed the picture. He looked at it one last time before folding it in half and putting it in his pocket.
Marco stood up then and started to morph. He had to go to Cassie's. There was still a chance....
Minutes later an osprey flew into the empty sky.
After a five minute flight, Marco saw what he thought may have been Cassie's farm. He quickly landed into the woods, away from any possible prying eyes. He landed himself on a fallen log and demorphed. He picked a picture up from the ground. When he had morphed, he realized the problem of not being able to take the picture. He had grabbed it with his talons.
Marco jumped off the log and landed on pine needle covered ground. He began to jog in the direction of Cassie's house.
Moments later, he arrived at the edge of the still, quiet forest. There were no noises. No birds chirping, no rustling of leaves. It was like it was dead. Nothing moved.
What Marco saw next stopped him in his tracks. The barn, Cassie's barn, was burned to the ground. Only several boards were left standing in the smoldering heap of ashes. And as he stared on in shock, he noticed cages still in the remaints of the barn. The Yeerks had let the animals burn to death.
Marco ran past the barn, not wanting to see the cages, or any of it. His pain and rage was overwhelming. As he ran up a small hill, Cassie house came into view. Or what was left of it.
He stopped at the top of the hill in utter shock. Almost the entire front of the house was blown off. Furniture that once resided in the house was littered on the lawn in pieces. Marco took several steps toward the house. His breath was ragged from running, and from rage that was boiling inside of him.
Marco stepped into the house. The inside looked like it had been ground zero for World War II. Everything was tossed around as if they were toys. Walls were broken down. It reminded him of Jake's house.
"Cassie! Oh, God Cassie, where are you?!" His voice was in a panic. he ran through the house. She had to be alive! He stuck his head in every room, looking for a sign of her. He ran down a carpeted hallway and looked in the last room on the right. The decor looked like something Cassie would have. Posters of animals, and nature magazines thrown about.
The room was torn apart. One of the walls had a large hole in it. Marco felt the fear creep into him. The room had the same eerie stillness of Jake's. He stepped inside, avoiding a bookshelf that had fallen. His eyes scanned the room, looking for any sign of life. He spotted some blankets that were in a heap over in a corner.
He felt his heart begin to pound harder. "Cassie?" He called out quietly. He made his way over to the heap of blankets, dodging over scattered debris.
When he reached the spot, he wanted to run. The fear that he felt now was like nothing he'd ever felt before. He forced his hand to pull back the blanket. When he brought it back, it was red with blood. A figure lay motionless in the bloodstained blanket.
Marco fell back. "Oh god, Cassie. Oh god...." He looked at his hand again. The blood seemed to scream at him. Cassie and Jake were dead. Tobias most likely was too. He was the only one left. He was alone.
He ran out of the house with a million nightmares on his heels. The images of Jake and Cassie were fresh in his mind, the look of arrogance on Rachel, or Visser 12's face when she had the news of Jake, Tobias and Cassie's deaths. It was too much. He couldn't handle all of this.
Marco started for the woods. It was the only place of safety for him any more. Once he entered the woods and had made it a fair amount of space from the farm, Marco fell to the ground. In a mix of emotions and faintness, he fell asleep right where he had fallen.
The next morning, Marco awoke to pain all over his body. Muscles he never knew he had hurt. Then the memory of the day before rushed into his mind. All the death he had witnessed yesterday, invaded his mind again.
"Jake, Cassie, Tobias, I'm all alone now. What am I going to do?" His voice was taken into the gentle breeze. Once again, the forest was deadly silent. No crickets, no birds, nothing.
Marco pulled himself to his feet. He wrapped his arms around himself. It was cool in the morning air, and all he had was his morphing suit. He knew that he needed to find some sort of shelter if he had any intentions of surviving out here in the forest. He knew that caves were rare in this area, so he doubted that he would have the luck of actually finding one.
After taking a quick glance around he headed deeper into the woods. He looked for anything that could serve as a windbreak, or some sort of protection from the elements.
He knew the day was wearing on because the sun got higher in the sky every time he looked up. He needed to find some sort of shelter fast.
A noise soon came into range, and he knew that it was some sort of stream. He hurried to it and knelt down to the cool, bubbling water. He hadn't had anything to drink for nearly 36 hours. As the water ran into his mouth, he felt a renewed strength. Then he stood up and looked for some shelter around the area of the brook.
He came upon a large tree that had tipped over from some sort of storm. The roots had been ripped out of the ground, making a large, protected hole in the ground. Marco took immediate advantage of this situation and fixed it up a small bit to make it a liveable spot for him to stay.
Marco decided to survey the land around the small stream. He started walking to the north, where ahead, he was sure there was some sort of clearing. As he walked, he just began to notice the painful cuts and scrapes on his feet. Each step he took made him wince in considerable pain.
He pushed his way further into the direction of the meadow. He could see a large open field now. He pushed away a branch and the field was revealed. It was a relativly large field full of grass and wildflowers. As he walked into it, the cushion of the grass comforted his throbbing feet.
Marco glanced down at three isolated daisies. He stood and thought a moment, then bent down and carefully picked the flowers. He then headed back into the woods. As he walked he looked for a patch of open ground.
Marco then stopped in front of a large oak tree. He looked skyward for a moment before beginning what he wanted to do. He gently laid down each flower, one by one. He placed the first one on the forest floor.
"Jake," He started, his voice was shaky. "What can I say? You've been my best friend forever, and you've always been there for me no matter what." He let a a bitter laugh. "I guess you can't anymore though. This seems so completely unreal. None of this should have happened. This wasn't supposed to happen. And...well...I guess I'm getting off subject so I'll make this quick. I'm going to miss you a lot, bud. More than you can imagine." Marco let out a short breath before setting the next flower on the ground next to the first.
"Cassie, you'd always been the moral one in our group. You said that killing was wrong, and always saw the other side of things. I'm trying hard to see like you did, but I'm having a tough time. All that I've been able to see lately is the rage that's been eating me alive." Marco bit his lip softly. "And I hope that maybe somehow I can begin to see things the way that you did. The way you had compassion for everything, and everyone." Then Marco smiled the smallest bit. "And you take good care of Jake, too." Marco aimed his eyes at the ground.
Finally Marco set the final flower by the oak. "Tobias, I never knew you all that well. Not like Rachel did. And, well, I've never been able to show you that I admire your bravery. Now I regret that I didn't while I still had a chance. You paid the worst price in this war, until now. And even though I always made fun of you and teased around, it was only because of my fear to show my admiration. But I guess it's too late now." Marco closed his eyes. "And I just want all three of you to know that I'll never forget anything that you've done for me." A single tear rolled down Marco's cheek. "I'll miss all of you."
Marco looked at the three flowers laying on the forest floor. He then bent over and picked up two twigs. He placed them next to the flowers in the shape of a small cross. He turned and left.
As the sun came out, it gently filtered through the treetops. A stray beam of light landed softly, putting a gentle glow on the small memorial of Marco's friends. The only memorial that was ever made.
Marco returned to the small lean-to type home that he had made. After giving a small memorial for his friends, he felt better. It was something that he had needed to do, to tell them the goodbye he hadn't before. Now he had to survive somehow out here in the wild. Long enough that he could free his two remaining friends. After all, he'd already lost three of them, he wasn't about to lose anymore.
As the dusk began to settle in, Marco did his best to curl into a small ball to use his body wamth. He could feel the drastic change in temperature as the sun went below the horizen. Through the trees, he could see the bright sunset of pinks and oranges. But the colors faded into the dark blues and purples of a night sky.
The night was a sleepless one for Marco. Perhaps if there would have been owls giving out their haunting call, or maybe crickets chirping quietly he would have been more restful. But there was nothing. No noises of the night that one would expect. Only occasionally would the wind blow and rattle the leaves in a way that gave Marco fearful chills. Most of the night was spent peering into the darkness, looking for the unknown enemy.
By the time the sky took on the pinkish hue of sunrise, Marco's eyes began to flutter shut. The sleepless night took it's toll, and while the sun began to rise, Marco slept.
When Marco opened his eyes once more, it was full daylight. The sun had warmed the earth a slight bit from the frigid temperatures of the past night. He uncurled himself from the position he had been in over the night. His legs were cramped up from staying so still all night. Marco stood up and stomped his feet, trying to get more feeling into them.
His mouth opened into a yawn and he stretched upwards. Finally he headed toward the brook for a morning drink of water.
After taking a long drink, he lightly splashed some water on his face to wake him up completely. The cold water brought him competely alert. He stood up straight and began to look for some food.
He looked at anything that could serve as food. Several bushes had edible berries on them. He quickly gulped them down ravishingly. Even though he'd found a small ration of food, it wasn't nearly enough for him. He hadn't eaten in days and the berries didn't fulfill his appitite.
His stomach growled protesting the small amount of food. Marco sighed. How would he save his friends if he couldn't find any food? In desperation he began chewing on sprouts of grass. His face scrunched up in detest of the bitter flavor, but he realized he had little choice. He began to look for some food that he could store in his small lean-to style home he had made from the tipped over tree.
After a long search he brought back varied items, anywhere from roots to pine cones.
As Marco stared at his small food pile, a thought came to mind. His mind hated the thought, but he knew he needed some kind of protien. He walked out of his small home and went over to a rock. He lifted it up, revealing the underside. In the ground, there were small wriggling worms. Marco swallowed hard, then reached and grabbed one.
He shut his eyes and thrust the worm in his mouth. After chewing several times he swallowed. He felt his stomach lurch. I'm going to be sick... The thought went continualy through his head He put the rock down.
He physically shuddered. He had just eaten a worm! He scrunched up his face again. Unlike popular belief, it didn't taste like chicken.
As days went by, Marco adjusted to his new lifestyle. He began to wander further from his small lean-to in search of more food. Amazingly, he had almost become used to the taste of the worms and grasses he was forced to eat to survive. He was investigating a new area he'd never been to before, and he had all caution on full alert.
He padded silently through the forest, making mental notes of natural landmarks, as to not lose his way back to the lean-to that he now called home. In the new area, there were plenty of grasses and pine cones for him to gather. It gave him some reasurance that he could still make it out here.
As he looked around the surrounding forest, he heard a noise behind him that made him freeze. In the now silent forest, he'd become used to the silence. The noice rang out as loud as a bell to him. His head swiveled around, his eyes searching for the basis of the noise. It was silent once again.
He felt rising panic in him. He stood completely still. Minute after minute passed and no other noises followed. Marco felt himself relax. He began to walk again. As he went on his way, he heard a twig snap loudly behind him. Eyes wide, he spun frantically around.
He stopped to see a lone figure step out from behind some small shrubs. The blue eyes penetrated right through Marco. "Rachel..." He whispered almost to the wind.
Rachel's face twisted into a grin, that sent chills through Marco. "Long time no see." She sneered at him. Four Hork-Bajir stepped out alongside her, ready to attack. Rachel pulled out a hidden dracon beam and pointed it straight at Marco.
"Now why don't you come with us." Her voice threatened him.
Marco stood, wanting to run and fight at the same time. He turned his gaze cold. "No." The certainty of his answer surprised even Visser 12.
"I don't think that is the correct answer. Now believe me, I would love another morph-capable body, but the pleasure of killing you myself would be almost equal. Although I don't think you will find it all that enjoyable." She laughed at her own wit. The Hork-Bajir shuffled around. "I repeat myself once more. Come with us."
Marco stood straighter. "I would rather stick a hot poker in my eye. Do you actually think that I would just give myself up to you? Do you find me weak, Visser 12? Is that what Rachel is telling you? Don't underestimate me, Visser. That will be your downfall." Marco's words came out strong, yet inside he felt sick. Deathly sick. Was he pronouncing his own death sentence?
Visser Twelve raised an eyebrow, seemingly amused. "You are correct. I have underestimated your strength. But your fate will be the same. You will become our slave."
She raised her Dracon Beam and changed the setting. "The choice is yours. You will either come willingly, or forcably. Either way, you'll come. It's your choice." She calmly eyed out the distance from her weapon to where Marco stood. She looked up.
Marco felt a panic. What could he do? "Kill me." He whispered the words. Visser Twelve opened her eyes wider. "You heard me. Kill me." Marco trembled. He closed his eyes, waiting for the burning pain of a Dracon Beam. None came.
A/N: Sorry for ending it right here, but I would like to know if anyone wants me to continue this story. I've spent quite a bit of time on it, so if no one likes it, I don't want to continue it. I need people to tell me if they want me to continue. If you do, tell me if you'd want it continued in one story, or more as a series. Once again, sorry for stopping it here.