#2 The Other
By: Boo
(Hey everyone. Some people said a few things were too much like MegaMorphs 1. Some said that it was too cliche for them. Well here's cliche for you. I'm taking a wide left turn away from what I planned to write and sort of winging it from here. No plan. Except for a few ideas. Believe me, it'll make sense. So there. UGH. [sorry kid of poed at someone here right now])
Chapter One
Unknown
My head was pounding, throbbing. I sat up uneasily. Slowly my eyes opened. They were hurt by the blinding sunlight. After I finished adjusting to the sun I looked myself over. The collar of my soft yellow tank-top was rimmed with blood.
I crawled over to a puddle, still somewhat light leaded. I could make out my reflection. There was blood on the side of my face, and a nasty cut. I washed the side of my face and hands in the water.
I couldn't remember a thing. Who was I? Where was I? What happened?
On the ground farther away I could see a girl, she was blonde and tall. She was laying on the ground, still.
I balanced myself and stood on my two shaky legs. Once I mastered standing again, and recovered from the blow I'd taken I called to the girl.
"Hey! Hey Blondie!" I called over to her.
She had sat up and was looking at the ground. The moment I called her she looked over at me. "'Excuse me?"
"Yeah you. Can you do me a favor, what happened?"
She stood and walked over to me, hands on her hips. "Back up; Cassie you have enough sense to not call me Blondie. Had you been anyone else, I could've killed you."
"God, what's your problem. Where are we?"
"I don't know Cassie."
I made a face, "Cassie? I hardly think so."
She nodded looking at me as if I had lost my mind, "What d'you mean, 'I hardly think so?'"
I shook my head. "I hope my name isn't Cassie. Although, if you say so." I paused. "I don't even know you."
She grabbed my wrist pulling me in the direction of a group of guys, "Come on, that's really not funny Cass. I think Marco's starting to rub off on you."
I pulled my wrist away and pushed her to the ground. "Marco? Whatever. Leave me alone. I don't need you. I can find my own way. Just step off."
She looked as if she didn't know whether to kill me or cry. "What d'you mean step off? Hell, I'm really gonna step off. Push me again and Cassie or not I'll kick your dumb ass."
What did she think she was getting at. I was in no mood to play around with her. Or take any crap. From anyone. She stood again and more forcefully grabbed my arm and began to pull. I could have easily escaped her grasp but for the fun of it went along for the ride.
"You guys?" she said to the boys, "We have a problem."
I twisted my arm and got away from her grasp, but didn't run. "Jesus. What is your problem. Can't you leave me alone?" I asked her. The other four stared at me. "What? What do you want. What're you staring at?"
The shortest boy started to laugh, "Cassie, you're really funny you know that? But let's stop the little game. Believe it or not, I'm trying to stay serious while you play you're little punk game."
I pushed him down hard and put my face in his. "I'm not playing a punk game. You jack ass. I'm leaving."
I turned and began to run. To my right there was a dirt road. To the left were thick, dense woods. Ahead was a river, that lead to a cliff. And a waterfall. And a big river. I veered right. I knew those people were probably standing there, wondering for a moment and then coming after me. But I knew, I'm small they probably thought that I'm too small to be strong. But they're wrong.
If one gets too close or bothers me too much, I'll knock them off a cliff. Show them whose boss.
Chapter Two
Cassie
I moaned in my sleep. I was on a bed. A mattress actually that was on the ground of a wooden shack. There was a single lightbulb in the room I was in. A window was on the farthest side away. On the floor in the corner, there were piles of news papers, scattered everywhere.
At the foot of the mattress there was a folded quilt, gray and white. Outside I could hear birds chirping and the other assorted sounds of the woods. I heard a woodpecker in the distance. It remedied me of when I was little. I used to love that show. Woody Woodpecker. He was a rascal.
I stood, putting my bare feet on the floor. Someone had taken off my shoes, cleaned the blood off me, except my shirt.
I walked down a little cramped hallway, a single picture hung up, pinned to the wall. It was a crayon drawing on the inside of a popcorn bag. It was a picture of a bear, a bird and a dog or wolf or something. A little girl and a older woman.
In one other room there was a second mattress and blankets on the floor. And a doll, a Barbie. There was a pink brush on the mattress as well as a 20 piece jigsaw puzzle and a bag of marbles, the marbles spilling out.
The last room was a kitchen. It had a table and three chairs, settings at two. Two books were on the table. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens and Frankenstein by Mary Shelly. Frankenstein was open and flipped upside down to save the place. There was water boiling on the stove and two squeezed oranges on the counter.
I could hear shouting from outside. "Mom! Mom she's awake!"
A girl ran inside, about eleven. "You're awake!"
I put a hand to my head, "Where am I?"
"The boonies."
"Oh."
An older woman walked into the cabin where I was standing. The eleven year old girl giggled wildly. "Hello. I'm Gladys, this is my daughter, Grace."
"What am I doing here?"
She wiped her hands on an apron as she walked to the counter and pressed some more oranges. "Grace'll take you for a walk and she can explain."'
Grace took my hand and led me outside. There were about ten yards that were cleared around the house, then dense woods.
"I'm Grace, who're you?"
"Cassie."
"I'm twelve."
"I'm older than you. I'm in high school." I paused. Grace was a pudgy little girl with a round face and flushed red cheeks. She was short, with short brown hair and brown eyes. She wore overalls and a white tee-shirt. No shoes.
"Wow, high school. We found you. I was in the woods looking for some wood to chop for the stove. I saw you on the ground and dragged you back home."'
"That would explain the dirt all over my back."
"Sorry. We cleaned you, you were a mess."
"I assume so."
"So more about high school. What's it like?"
I sighed and accepted the fact that the sixth grader would not give up until she got answers. I took the easy way out. "It's like your middle school with more homework."
She looked at the ground embarrassed. We entered the woods. "I don't go to school. Since it's only my mother and I, she needs me to help around the house. I went to school up to fourth grade. I stay home and help my mom make honey to sell to the store in town."
"In town?"
"Town is twenty miles away, and theirs no road. I don't normally go to town. I stay here. We have pens in back. There are sheep and a horse and pigs. And four chickens."
"Oh."
She looked at me, "So. In high school, did you have a lot of friends?"
"Yup. Rachel and Marco and Tobias and Jake." Where was Jake right now?"
"Did you have a boyfriend?"
"Yes." I sighed. "I need to find them. It's important."
"How important?"
If you only knew Grace. If you only knew.
Chapter Tree
Marco
I was completely stunned, Cassie just ran away from us. I mean, why, I don't know. But confusing.
Ax was standing there with me in the woods. He had demorphed. Escaped the deadly two-hour limit by a matter of seconds.
Jake had split us up. Little individual search groups. Ax with me, Rachel with Jake. Bird-Boy in the skies.
{Why would Cassie do this? This is not normal behavior for Cassie.}
From above Tobias called down to us. {You're right. Not normal. And I found her. By a cliff, go straight. There'll be a big boulder. Then go right for about three yards. A split tree. Straight ahead you'll find her. I've got to go tell Jake.}
We followed the directions perfectly. Ax left me to try to get to the other side of the gorge. I arrived at the split tree. Cassie was directly in front of me. "This is so totally James Bond. Or the Thomas Crown Affair. Without the sexy federal investigator." I moved forward and stepped on a twig.
CRACK!
She whipped around. "You."
I stepped forward. "Hey Cassie, under a bit of stress I see."
She shook her head, "It's not Cassie, It's Cishtu. I remember now. Thanks for asking."
I took another step forward. If I could pin her she couldn't hurt me. "Actually I didn't ask. So Cishtu, if you're you, where's Cassie?"
"Do you think I give a damn?"
I shrugged, "Probably not."
"Any way, I don't know who she is. But who ever she is I hope she falls off a cliff." She noticed my slow advancing. "What the hell are you doing? Stop where you are!"
I spread my arms open wide, "I just want a hug,"
She growled, "Take a step closer and believe me I'll hurl you over the fuckin' cliff."
"Hey, I'm not doing anything." All of a sudden I lunged, caught her by suprise. But her reflexes were quick. Quicker than I anticipated. She heaved me. Pushed more than heaved. At the last minute I grabbed the edge. Holding on for dear life. One hand slipped. "Oh my God!"
She bent down. "I warned you kid. Should've listened."
And she pryed my had off the cliff. I was falling right for the rocks, below the waterfall. No way I would survive.
Okay, not the best installment in my series. The most confusing definately. many questions will be answered in the next. probably tomarrow or saturday. please be gentle i am really trying with this. i know a few things are cliche and whatnot, but okay. and incase it was not made clear, which i think it was not, the Upanish, Cishtu, somehow became cassie. answered in the next one 'The Lost'.
Also answered, will marco survive his fall? (don't know, cant predict. sometimes i like marco, sometimes i dont.) and will Grace play a major role?
**heck yeah! i spent enough time giving her a long conversation and letting her get to know cassie. i wouldn't just waste all that, would i? possibly;-)