Chapter 6: We Must Remember the 'Fallen' Ones


The family had almost completed the dam, which was already higher then all of them if they stacked on top of each other. The secondary dam around the farm was halfway done, and Arlo made sure that there was another area for others to be in, if anyone else did come over. The river was still dried up, with barely any signs of water coming back into it, and to make things worse, the well that was used for extra water was only half way filled up, due to the fact that there was also little rain. Clouds rolled by, not causing any storms that could damage the built up areas. However, thick fog had started to build up around the area; an unusual sight to see.

Arlo was just delivering a log piece over to Libby as his mother called him, instinctively, he raced down, with the log that Libby was about to reach falling off. It didn't really matter if she was complaining, for this was probably the forth time since they started the project. Back on the farm, Arlo met his mother, where she too was gathering wood to send over to buck.

"Ah, there you are, things have been looking great with the dam, and honestly, I'm surprised that we did it in this time. Buck, here's the wood. Anyways, I have something to tell you that the others can't know about, come with me." Arlo followed his mother to the inside of the farm, so no one could listen in. He was curious at just what had to be kept secret from his brother and sister.

"Every since the family tree has started, we have had a special tradition. When someone endures an extraordinary task, they are chosen to come up with a new way of showing that they are something bigger than who they are. Your father was the last one to be be chosen, and he showed it by, well, that mark on the silo. But you, you have definitely done something extraordinary, so it's your turn to come up with a new way of showing that you are bigger, it can be anything you want. You just have to figure out what to come up with." As she walked away, Arlo was still confused, and followed.

"Wait, what? So like, since I've done something that no one else has done, by tradition I have to find a new way of showing that your bigger than what you are?"

"That's basically it, yes. Let me know by then end of the day if you know." Arlo was only beginning to understand what he had to do, he had until the end of the day to come up with something new. And to make things worse, he had to make sure Buck or Libby couldn't see him doing whatever he was going to do, a pretty hard thing to do. So, Arlo went to see where they were; still at the dam, he had enough time to at least think of something. But, as hours went by, he was finding it more and more difficult to think of something new, mainly because of the fact that someone might have already done it. Afternoon, and his hopes were starting to fade, so he went to the only one who could understand him.

"So Libby, have you ever tried to come up with, like, an idea for something?" Arlo questioned, it took about a second before Libby answered. "There was only one time I felt like that Arlo, and that was when I was thinking what I could do to make my mark. I didn't know what to do, as Buck had already cleared the farm. But then I saw a bird poke it's head into the ground trying to find a worm, and I realized that I could plough the cleared area. So I guess if you're trying to come up with and idea, then just look around and take inspiration. Anyways, got to get back to work on the dam, you joining?" Libby asked, Arlo nodded, explaining that he needed to finish another area of the dam.

For Arlo, Libby's answer felt like the right thing to do, but he needed Buck's advice to see what he would do. Unfortunately for Arlo, there wasn't much of a good answer from him, so he only had one piece of advice. But, an advice is better than no advice, so for about a couple more hours he looked at pretty much everything. The inside of the farm didn't shed any light on anything, the cornfield gave no ideas, the dam they were making gave no inspiration, it seemed that there was nothing that could give Arlo the spark to make something new.

That was, until near the evening, where he was at the front of the farm, and to the left of the corn field, he had his attention caught out of no where by something he never saw before. It's body was tiny, like the light-bugs, but it also had large, almost transparent wings that flapped effortlessly. Moving swiftly past him with such speed that he couldn't describe, Arlo followed the strange insect, and to his amazement, it didn't follow a straight path like normal creatures would do. Instead from time to time the insect went slightly to the left, or to the right, or just went in a completely different direction. But it was going in a certain direction Arlo couldn't see; being so focused on the thing.

That was, until he realized that he was going slightly upwards, a hill in other words. He noticed that it landed on the one tree that was on this hill he was on, and Arlo almost jumped when he noticed something he had not seen in a while. It was three small logs that were placed right next to each other, with a bunch of stones and pebbles around them to keep the logs from falling over, on the other side, the pebbles extended from the base of where all the others were. And on top of the stones, there was a single bunch of white-ish blue flowers that just rested there. Looking it as a whole, he knew from the very first glance what it was, but just looking at it still gave him a shiver.

It was his father's grave.

The more he looked, the more he felt a grave like this just wasn't enough. His father surely deserved something more, though his father would probably say it was good enough. Arlo always thought it just didn't fit, as his father meant so much to him. Thinking about what would be better than this, Arlo came up with a brilliant idea, it was however a daunting task. He wanted his father to be remembered for as long as possible, so why not make a replica of his father? That way, he'll be remembered for as long as the replica will last, which to Arlo was forever. By the end of the day, he and the others went over to the farm, but with his mother stopping him just before he got inside.

Confused for a moment, Arlo said "Oh, I've got an idea. But you'll have to wait for tomorrow for me to show you." Ida smiled gracefully at him, before they both went inside. The moon rose up, but only about a quarter of it was shining, with the sun setting soon after, the golden glow of the sky faded into the purple plain of the night sky. Stars glimmered as the sky as one or two streaks of light shone for mere seconds before fading, and the moon was bright enough to make dim shadows inside the little farm hut.

Day came by pretty much usual, but with less clouds. Buck stood up as he endured the light, when he noticed Libby gesturing over to something. "What is it Libby?", to which she responded slowly "Over there, where Arlo and momma are, I wonder what they're up to." She said with a couple of yawns in between. Buck looked around the corner to find Arlo and their mother talking about something, but they were far enough so that Libby and Buck couldn't hear them. "C'mon, we got to finish the dam, I'm sure it's something not important." Libby suggested, to which Buck reluctantly followed her to the dam.

"So, what is this idea of yours?" Ida asked, Arlo was slightly restless, but he was wary enough to see Buck and Libby look at them, before walking away. "Well momma, I thought, well, it's better to explain by showing really." Arlo walked to a nearby bush slightly higher than Arlo, and moved the bush to the right so that what he wanted to show was visible. It was a statue of Arlo made out of sticks and logs, with leaves covering it to give it a green look, it's shape was highly similar to that of Arlo, apart form certain twigs and laves sticking out, it was made clear that he had spent a few ours in the morning making it, which was probably why he was tired.

Looking back to his mother, he was pleased to find that she looked pleased with it. "It's beautiful Arlo, I like the idea. There's just one more thing you need to do." Her final sentence confused Arlo, he had just done the task, and was now set another one? "What is it?" Arlo questioned, to which Ida responded with "You need to make a small speech about why or how you chose the idea. I'll get Libby and Buck over so you can explain." She walked off, which put pressure on Arlo, but then he had another idea.

The three walked over to where Arlo was, with his siblings being slightly confused as to what was going on, until they noticed the statue. Arlo could see they were impressed by it. But they all needed an explanation, so he said "At first, I had no idea what to make, that is, until I came across poppa's grave. I think it's best to explain in song."

"Papa, he was gone tryna make me shine
Mama keeps us warm when there is no sunshine
I was busy building up a reputation
Did a lot of things out of desperation
Back up on my feet, got the motivation
Now I found my feet and a good vibration

Search for you, love of creation
When I'm feeling down in this place, just replace them
Keep a vision on the one you've been chasing
When the time comes I'll run to the action
I've been laced with the powers of creation
So when the Sun sets, you bet I must face them
Remember when I was running 'cross the nation
I was living for the here and now

They can't catch me
I'll be gone by the time they come
They can't catch me
The war is already won
Even though the terrors have sold their shuns
I must remember the fallen ones
Remember the fallen ones

Raised in the capital of Port-au-Home
Born with my siblings to get a free roam
Papa used to run to the wiser ages
When I got to the older stages
A teen under pressure, had to blend in
Before the venture I would run to him

Thanks for you, love of creation
When we're feeling down in this place, just replace them
Keep a vision on the one you've been chasing
When the time comes we'll run to the action
We've been laced with the powers of creation
So when the Sun sets, you bet we must face them
Remember when I was running 'cross the nation
We were living for the here and now

They can't catch us
We'll be gone by the time they come
They can't catch us
The war is already won
Even though the terrors have sold their shuns
We must remember the fallen ones
Remember the fallen ones"

"After i got the inspiration, well, I couldn't wait to start it, so here it is. What do ya' think?" When he finished, they all came to him in a form of a group hug, a sign that they loved his idea. But the next day would bring more trouble than hopes.


A/N: So, I bet a lot of you weren't expecting a song to be in this chapter, I know it may seem odd, as there weren't any songs in the movie, but I'm going to have some more songs in the story (not too many though). In other news, stuff has happened outside, I've completed school and got a new laptop, and both of these will make it easier for me to write more/better chapters. Anyways, I hope you liked the chapter, or even enjoying the story so far! To the new people here, I'll be uploading a chapter every Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (Unless I'm busy). I'll see you next chapter!

Edit: I edited the last part of the chapter as I was rushed the first time. Also I paragraphed the song so it looks better.

Songs used: Can't Catch Me - Avicii (Re-worded)

Disclaimer: Arlie, Ben, Chris, Jess, Mike, Sandra, Rick, and Jake are the only characters owned by me. Every other character is owned by Disney(Pixar) and its film 'The Good Dinosaur'.

Next Chapter title: Weird Names