Chapter 10
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Even with Donnie's comfort and support, I was still a mess of emotions. I went from panicked, to relieved, to upset, to angry, to confused, to hurt...
And from the look on Ithiell's face, he was going through the same kind of emotions.
"Jade, can you stop pacing?" He finally said "It's distracting me"
"I can't help it" I muttered, still pacing around the fighter, knowing Leo and Donnie were watching me, but I didn't care.
It was keeping me sane on this long trip. I knew it was only a few hours, but it felt like forever.
Home... was it really all gone?
Everyone I had known growing up in that small town...
"JADE!" Ithiell snapped, turning away from the consoles to glare at me.
"What?! What the hell do you want me to do?! Just stand around quietly?!" I snapped back, going up to him and standing right in his face.
"Well you can do something other than thump around behind me!" He retorted, and I saw his wings start to flare, but I didn't back down.
"LIKE WHAT?!" I screamed in his face.
"Okay, enough you two" Suddenly Leo was between us, pushing us apart and making us look up at him "Going at each others throats wont help anyone"
"Well, if she'd stop pacing, I wouldn't have to yell"
"If you'd stop snapping, I wouldn't have to pace"
"BOTH OF YOU!" Leo suddenly roared "ENOUGH"
I looked up at Leo, who's stern face half brought me back to reality, and I looked over at Ithiell. His eyes suddenly portrayed such sadness...
"Oh Ithiell" I felt tears spring to my eyes as I moved around Leo to hug him, and he hugged back.
"I'm sorry Jade. I'm just... this is the hardest moment of..."
"I know same. And Leo's right"
"We just need to get through the next hour or so without biting each others heads off"
I snorted, pulling away from him and smiling "Wouldn't Robert be proud"
He smiled a little, turning back to the controls and shaking his head "And wouldn't Amanda be surprised we're going off our heads at one another"
"We'd never hear the end of it" I said, tears springing to my eyes, moving away before Ithiell could see my face. I leaned against a wall, trying to calm myself as Leo sidled up beside Ithiell, starting to talk about something or other.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying not to let out a sob as tears streamed down my cheeks, feeling a presence in front of me. I managed to look up as Donnie wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close and kissing the top of my head.
With his warmth so close, I lost all my resolve, letting out a sob as tears ran down my face. I felt a pain in my heart as I cried into his chest, hearing him try and calm me, whispering comforting words into my hair.
"Jade, are you okay?" I heard Ithiell ask, and my response was a strange hiccup.
"Jade, come on, remember what we promised" I felt his claw on my arm, and I fought to get some control again, hiccuping again before finally being able to respond properly.
"I...I know... no giving... I'll be... just give me..."
I felt him pat my shoulder again, and I managed to look in his direction as he walked back to the console, seeing Leo put a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm so glad you guys came" I half whispered to Donnie, feeling him kiss my hair again.
"Well, you needed backup"
I moved away from Donnie, looking up as he smiled sweetly at me, wiping the last of my tears away with his thumb.
It clicked then, that Leo must have known we'd need more than just "backup". He'd chosen to come along himself, because he knew Ithiell responded to him the best out of everyone, being a fellow leader. And Donnie... well, with Donnie it was kind of obvious.
"We can get through this" Donnie cupped my cheek in his hand, and I leaned into his touch, my hands on his elbow.
"I think it's just the waiting that's getting to me... well, us" Ithiell said, and I hummed in agreement.
"I know, but that's why we're here. We got your back brother" I saw Leo put an arm over Ithiell's shoulders, and Ithiell laughed a little.
"Thank you... brother" He responded, seeing him look up at Leo, then back at Donnie and me.
It occurred to me then... we all were pretty much one big family now. I considered the other turtles like my other brothers, Splinter like a father figure... Kristiana and Serah like sisters...
The thought made me smile, and I caught Ithiell's eyes. He was thinking the same thing.
"We're family, and family sticks together" Donnie gently nudged me, and I took his hand, leading him over to stand on the other side of Ithiell, the four of us now lined up.
"Whatever happens... we're here, okay?" Leo looked at me and Ithiell, and we both nodded.
It felt good to have "back up".
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I'd hoped for so long that it wasn't true, that they hadn't blown up my old home town. That maybe... just maybe...
But all those hopes were gone as we walked through the destroyed town, over rubble that used to be buildings, and houses...
I looked over to where the old ice skating rink used to be, only seeing a part of the wall, and a door, still standing. Everything else was destroyed. Parts of cars were scattered everywhere, old toys, papers flying around in the wind...
The more we walked, the more I started to wonder if maybe Jake was right. If I hadn't... if I hadn't made so many mistakes...
"This place really took a hit" Leo muttered, and Ithiell hummed in agreement.
Everything I'd known... every street, every person...
Gone.
My legs suddenly collapsed under me, and I ended up on my knees, unable to go any further as my eyes took in all the devastation around me. Part of me just wanted to cry, but I think my shock stopped me. I just sat back on my legs, staring as the boys kept walking.
Leo was the first to notice I wasn't beside them, looking around a little confused before looking behind him and seeing me there. He frowned as he came back to me, putting his hands under my arms and pulling me back up onto my feet.
"Come on Jade, we have to keep moving"
"Leo... it's all gone" The words fell from my mouth before I could stop them.
"We don't know that for sure" He pushed me forward gently, keeping me moving by resting a hand on my shoulder as we walked.
"Well, as far as I can tell, the Yeerks obliterated this place, then left" Donnie was doing something with his little blue screen as he walked beside Ithiell, who probably looked about as good as I felt.
"I should have been here with them. I should have... I could have saved them" Ithiell's voice broke.
"Ithiell, don't-" Donnie put a hand on his shoulder, seeing Ithiell stop, his hands now balled into fists.
"I... I just..."
"Ithiell, if you had been here, we'd have lost you too" Donnie squeezed his shoulder a little, and after a few tense seconds Ithiell relaxed a little.
"You're... right. Come on, let's keep going"
We all started to move forwards again, Leo letting go as I moved of my own accord, looking ahead of us and seeing a street sign, which had somehow managed to stay upright, in spite of all the destruction around it.
"Would you look at that. The town gets blown up, and a street-" I stopped what I was saying, reading the name of the street and instantly running towards it, looking down to the demolished buildings on this street. I surprised myself by leaping over and dodging around the rubble on the street, going towards a house I knew all too well.
"Jade, wait up!" I heard Donnie yell, but I couldn't stop, not now.
I saw the half destroyed houses, my eyes fixated on one that I'd been at so many times... it held so many memories...
"Jade!" Ithiell now, but I ignored him, reaching the house and bursting through the half standing door.
Inside I could see the destroyed walls, what was left of burnt and destroyed appliances and couches in the loungeroom, seeing part of the kitchen, the bottom half of the fridge, other random bits and pieces in other rooms, and the stairs...
"Jade, stop!" Leo cried as I felt his fingers brush my arm, but I dove towards those stairs before he could get to me, going up them as fast as my legs would carry me.
I went for her dad's room, the door swinging open as I almost fell down into the big hole, my shirt being grabbed and dragged back to safety.
"Jade, seriously!" Leo was a little annoyed, but I ignored him, going towards Matt's room, opening and seeing only rubble. I went to move in, but Leo pulled me back, just as the others got there.
"I need to know! I need to..." I yanked myself from his grasp again, moving around the destroyed room, over the burnt things, surprised to find nothing really there. Nothing I was looking for anyway.
"Jade, please stop" Ithiell's pleading voice followed me as I moved to Connor's room, half throwing open the door-
CRUNCH!
I stopped dead in my tracks, panic rising as my eyes slowly moved down to see what I had stepped on.
"Oh!" I jumped back as quickly as I could, slamming back into one of the turtles, my hands shaking uncontrollably as I moved them to cover my mouth, feeling nauseous as I stared-
"Dont look" A hand was suddenly covering my eyes, but it was too late. I had seen what was left body that I'd stepped on, my foot seeming to have crushed part of the arm bones. The image itself was now burned into my brain.
It was the body of a female, and she had blonde hair...
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Leo's hand was on my back as I dry heaved outside, tears falling freely from my eyes. Donnie and Ithiell were still upstairs. I wanted to see if Ithiell was all right, but my body wasn't giving me any respite. Every time my mind went back to that room...
"Well, we got good news, and we got bad" Ithiell's voice was suddenly behind me, and I felt his hand on my shoulder as I gasped for breath, seeing Donnie now kneeling in front of me.
"Jade, it's not Amanda"
I was about to look up at him and ask for him to say that again, but my stomach heaved again, and he had to move back a little as my body once again tried to get everything left out of my stomach.
"She stepped on a dead body, give her a little" Leo told his brother, feeling his warm hand rubbing my back a little.
The boys stayed near me, helping me, until finally I was able to at least sit back, using Leo to lean back on and wiping my mouth with the sleeve of my shirt, taking in deep breaths and seeing Donnie looking at me, seemingly pained at seeing me like this.
"It's... not Amanda?"
Donnie shook his head, trying to smile a little "No, it's not her. And Ithiell and I looked all throughout the house. Besides... that girl... there was no one in this house"
"Okay... so whats the bad news?" I asked, seeing Ithiell come around and sit in front of me as well.
"Donnie was able to pick up some unusual readings in her brain. Looks like.. well, looks like she'd been Yeerked"
I sighed, leaning forward and closing my eyes.
"So that just leaves more questions. One, does this mean that some of the town was Yeerked? And two, what the hell was she doing in Amanda's house"
"Robert's house is over that way" Ithiell pointed "I suggest we look through there as well"
We all went to get up, but I tipped sideways a little, finding Ithiell catching me.
"One of the boys should carry you for a little, until you feel okay" He said, and I frowned at him. I didn't like the thought of being babied.
"I'm all right, honest" I went to move forward, instead seeing the ground come up to greet me.
"Uh, no you're not" Donnie swept me up in his arms, one arm under my leg the other on my back, and he turned as Leo and Ithiell started walking.
Thankfully, there were no bodies in Robert's house, and we... well, they, all stood in a weird kind of semi-circle in the middle of the ruined street.
It was only then that Donnie let me get down, and I stood beside them, Donnie's hand on my back just in case I tipped again.
"I'm fine, really"
Donnie just frowned down at me, and I shrugged. I really was feeling alot better, which was strange after everything that had just happened.
"So... where to now?" Leo asked, turning to Ithiell, who sighed and covered his face with a claw.
"Hey, Ithiell"
Now they were all looking at me.
"Have you noticed something?"
"Uh..." He shrugged, sharing a look with Leo and Donnie, who looked just as confused.
"If this town was taken out so suddenly... where are all the uh... where are all the bodies?"
I think little lights flashed in all their brains, because they all looked around, eyes wide, then back at me.
"I didn't even notice" Ithiell scratched his head, looking confused now.
"Could they have escaped?"
"Not possible, the impact would have-" Donnie continued to talk about the force of the blast hitting the earth, but finding Ithiell had grabbed my arm, and I looked at him.
"Jade?"
"Ithiell?"
"You know what else I just noticed?" He was looking past me, and I followed his gaze, confused for a second, looking back at him as he looked at me.
"What?"
"Something else is still standing?" He indicated I look behind me, and I did, and it finally hit me.
"The woods! They're still standing!" I almost jumped for joy, turning myself around and starting to run towards them, Ithiell hot on my heels.
"Hey! Stop running off!" Leo yelled, knowing the two would follow us.
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We moved through the trees, both of us running on pure adrenaline now. The woods were still standing, by some miracle. So, if they had managed to get out before the impact, Ithiell and I both knew where they'd head first.
"Are you guys sure about this?" Leo asked as he and Donnie fought to keep up with us. They didn't know these woods as well as Ithiell and I did. We knew this path like the back of our hands.
"Yes, definitely. I can't believe I didn't see this from the sky before! I think I was just so focused on the town..." Ithiell was talking quickly, almost reminding me of Donnie when he got excited about something. Those two...
"How far in is this cave" I heard Donnie ask, sounding like he was out of breath. I turned back to look at him, seeing the exertion on his face, leaning against a tree as we climbed the small hill.
"Not too much further" I stopped then, moving down and holding my hand out for him to take. When his hand encircled mine, I helped him up next to me, and we climbed the hill together. Leo and Ithiell soon got ahead of us, but I could see even Leo was starting to sound out of breath.
"Told you I was fine" I winked at Donnie, and he shook his head, leaning against a tree a little before he kept moving.
"Jade!" Ithiell cried, and I looked at Donnie, seeing him nod before I let go of his hand, flying up that hill as fast as I could and past Leo, to where Ithiell was standing at the edge of the old cave he called home for years.
And he was smiling.
He pulled me up the last part as I reached the cave, looking inside and seeing what he'd found.
Two camping bags, rolled out, with what looked like bits and pieces strewn through the cave, as well as what looked like a recently put out fire.
"Could it be them?" I asked him, not wanting to get my hopes up too high. After all, I couldn't see any personal items.
"Who else knows about this cave?"
"Ithiell, you know what I mean. Could be some unlucky campers"
He sighed "I know, but either way this is a good sign there is life.. there are people... nearby somewhere"
"Guys?" Leo and Donnie finally caught up to us, now looking inside the cave as well.
"People"
I nodded at Donnie, both the boys now looking beat. The woods here could be brutal if you didn't know how to-
"Jade" Ithiell tapped my shoulder, and I followed where he was pointing, looking down and seeing tracks moving around the cave, then up the left side and away.
"You guys should stay here, we know these woods and we'll be faster" I nodded to Ithiell, who looked at Leo.
"Hey, are you saying we slow you down?"
"You two should wait here, just in case whoever it is comes back" I smiled sadly at Donnie, who looked at me with one of his don't-go looks, which almost convinced me to stay.
"It's okay bub, I've got Ithiell with me" I went over to him, giving him a quick peck on the nose, before following Ithiell around to wherever the tracks led.
"We really shouldn't have-"
"They'll be okay" He responded as we slid down the side of the hill slightly, then both of us hit solid ground, half running as we followed the tracks.
"Please let it be them" I sighed, hearing Ithiell hum in agreement.
He suddenly stopped, and I slammed into him, hard, both of us almost hitting the ground as Ithiell windmilled his arms, then pushing us back behind a tree as best he could.
"Ithiell, what the-ooomph!" His hand clamped over my mouth, and he peeked out, indicating I do the same.
Not far off, I saw someone with what looked like a hood on, grunting in annoyance as they dragged something... or maybe someone. I couldn't be sure at this angle.
I looked back at Ithiell, my eyes probably wide as dinner plates.
'Serial killer?' I mouthed, and he shrugged. We heard a grunt, then the person groan a little, both of us chancing another peek out from behind the tree, seeing the figure turn to the right, grabbing what looked like a shovel.
With that he... or what I guessed was a he, started digging.
'Move back' Ithiell mouthed, and I nodded, both of us slowly getting to our feet, starting to move around and-
Snap!
The tiniest twig snapped under my foot, and I silently cursed myself, hearing the shoveling stop, looking around...
And seeing a gun in the persons hand.
"RUN!" I yelled at Ithiell, pushing him as a shot missed me by inches, both of us diving through the forest like our lives depended on it.
Another shot, and I could hear whoever it was following us, too afraid to stop or look back, or even tell this person we weren't the enemy.
"This way!" Ithiell grabbed my arm, jerking me left as we moved along a path that had a deep slope on each side, wondering how crazy Ithiell actually was.
This would get us shot for sure!
"Ah!" I yelped, ducking as another bullet whipped past my head "Ithiell!"
"Trust me" Was his response as we ran, now going down a slope as we did.
There was suddenly a high pitched whistle from behind us, wondering if it was the person, but then I heard a sharp whistle in response from what I guessed was ahead of us.
Finally, we were away from the damn slopes, and I heard Ithiell yelp something before I looked in front of me, seeing something heading straight for my head.
I don't know if it was dumb luck, or if my body had reacted in time, but I felt my foot slip, which caused the rest of me to tip backwards collapsing to the ground as I saw what I now saw was a shovel swing over me.
I scrambled up, throwing a blind kick at the person who was bringing the shovel back up, seeing the kick land in her gut, knocking her down with an oomph.
I saw this persons hood fall off...
"Oh my god" I heard Ithiell gasp, finally seeing the first figure catch up to us, but both Ithiell and I were now staring at the person in front of us.
"Amanda?" I couldn't believe what I was seeing, hoping it wasn't just my mind playing tricks.
I watched as everything seemed to go in slow motion. The other person pulled their hood off, revealing the familiar dark locks I thought I'd never see again.
"Robert!" Tears sprung to my eyes, seeing him smile at me, looking almost relieved.
"Ithiell!" Amanda cried out, and he went to her, helping her up and then holding her as close as he could.
"Amanda, I thought I'd lost you!" Ithiell's voice trembled, and I could see the pain on his face as tears streamed down his cheeks.
They were alive! They were both okay!
"Come here you" Came the voice, and suddenly the last person to hug me wrapped there arms around me and held me tightly.
I returned the hug, letting out a soft sob.
They were alive. And they were all right.
I had never been happier in my life.
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Constructive criticism appreciated!