Rachel
Three weeks ago
I flew away from the scene where my best friend lay dead. That sick creep! How could anyone be that twisted to completely remove somebody's skin? I circled back around when I realized Tobias hadn't followed my suit.
He was couched over the spot where she lay. I quickly landed and demorphed. Then I turned to face the scene. I could see it all clearly now. Cassie was lying on her stomach with her wrists tightly bound to the tree. A thick puddle of blood pooled out beneath her body.
I covered my mouth with a cupped hand. She was dead. She had to be. No one could survive this type of torture! But Tobias, being the optimist of the group, turned her face up to check her internal organs.
I looked away and threw up.
Her front looked the same as her back: skin-less. We could see inside of her body. I saw her stomach, her lungs, and her very veins. The one thing neither of us saw was her heart.
A neat, circular cut had been made directly over the spot where her heart should have been. The muscle itself had been removed from her chest. Her once beautiful face was now contorted by a mask of pain. Blood still flowed out of her eye sockets and it looked as though her very lips had been ripped apart.
Tobias placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.
"I'm gonna try to find Ax." He said. "Maybe he's still alive." With that, he demorphed and took off from the ground in the direction of the forest.
Now that he couldn't see me, I fell to the ground and began to sob. My best friend was dead. My cousin was dead. There were only four Animorphs still alive. That is, if Ax was even still living.
I got up and lay down next to Cassie, wishing I could die. But I couldn't, at least not yet. There was still work to be done and a war to be won. I wiped the tears from my face when I saw Tobias soaring back.
((It's alright, Rach. Ax is back at the valley safe and sound.)) Was what he didn't say. What he actually said in reality was, ((Gather Toby's people and meet me by the large willow tree. And hurry. You need to see this.)) Then he took off in the direction he came.
I looked down at my best friend. I hated to leave her like this, but I promised her that I would be back. And I would. I morphed to bird and took off.
The valley soon came into sight. I flew faster. Tobias had told me to hurry, so I was. I spotted Toby sitting around a warm campfire with her Hork-Bajir friends and Marco. I saw Marco looked up and wave.
((I see you, pee brain.)) I said shortly. Marco obviously looked taken aback when I landed on one of the fallen logs around the fire, careful staying clear from the flames. He searched the skies around me.
"Where are Tobias, Ax and Cassie?" Toby asked me. I looked at her sadly, or what I thought was sad. I wasn't exactly sure if birds could make facial expressions. I pushed that thought to the back of my mind. I could always ask Cassie-.
Oh, that's right. Cassie's dead.
I sighed. ((Tobias is still looking for Ax, Ax is still missing, and Cassie is…)) I trailed off. I couldn't say it. Marco looked at me expectantly. He had never seen Xena hesitate. I knew that he felt something was wrong but couldn't exactly place his finger on it.I decided to help him out.
((Cassie…Cassie is d-dead.)) I finished sadly. Marco and Toby gasped.
"Rachel, how did this happen?" Toby asked me. I began to explain, then cut myself off as I remembered why I was here in the first place.
((It's not important. Well, actually, it is. But not right now! Listen, Toby, Tobias needs you to gather your people and meet him by the large willow tree just outside the forest. He also says to hurry. I-I think it's about Ax.))
A/N: sorry to leave you guys hanging! It's just that I've gotta go pretty soon, and I don't know what else should happen from Rachel's POV…… anyways, I will update by next week!
With love,
Xxtgxx
AKW- does this chapter answer your question? If not… let me know!
David was still out there. Which means, as long as he was alive, we could never be safe. I wrapped my arms around myself and vowed that I would kill him. I would kill him for all that he had done. No matter what, I would not let him escape.
Not again. Not this time.