Chapter 21: The Hope
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I could hear sounds, but they weren't making sense to me at first. I could smell things, but I couldn't quite comprehend.
I tried to open my eyes, seeing a strange orange glow all around me, before my eyes closed of their own accord.
Then I felt the pain... and slowly, the pain intensified, bringing everything else back into focus.
My eyes snapped open, gasping and trying to move, feeling like I'd broken almost every bone. Blood was oozing from everywhere.
Around me, the area I was in, was on fire. It took me a moment to realise I was still in the fighter, although now everything in it was upside down. I could barely make out the bright blue sky, from large chunks that were missing from the hull of the ship above me. Wires were sparking a little further off.
The smoke was invading my nose, making me cough, still finding I couldn't really move.
That's when I heard the shouts of the others somewhere outside, barely audible over the sounds of the fire. Good, they'd all made it out...
At least, I'd hoped.
I heard something snap, and something thudded not far from me.
I managed to focus enough to shift back to myself, standing up and looking around the debris and fires that were surrounding me. I instantly started coughing, inhaling the smoke and trying to look for a way out.
"Jade!" Came the voice, now right outside it seemed.
"H-here!" I managed to get out through the coughing, then seeing a figure pop up over the open gaps above me.
"Hang on, we'll get you out" Jake said, and I nodded, coughing more. I just hoped it was soon, otherwise I was going to have some lung damage from all the smoke.
Suddenly what looked like a strange makeshift rope appeared, and I grabbed it, feeling the boys start to pull me up.
As soon as I reached the top, Jake grabbed my hand, helping me pull myself out of the hole, then shimmy down the side of the hull, Marco and Tobias taking an arm each and helping me to the ground.
"Thanks guys" I realised they'd made the "rope" with their morphing shirts. Now all three looked a little cold, and bare. I took note of Tobias being human, but I could only guess it had something to do with the shirts, or helping look for me.
"We're glad you're all right" Tobias patted my shoulder, and I turned to Marco, pulling him for a hug and hearing him let out a shocked sound.
I tried to think of something to say, but nothing came out. So instead, I just hugged him, feeling him return the hug. I didn't have to tell him though.
He knew.
A sound from above us made us all look up, and I caught a glimpse of a black streak, flying through the air.
"Hey, its them!" Marco looked almost relieved, jumping a little away from me, and turning to run after the black streak. Tobias tapped me on the shoulder, then ran after him. I could already see the pattern of feathers beginning to emerge on his skin.
I looked over at Jake, who seemed solemn at that moment. Almost sad.
He looked after the other two boys, then at me.
I knew it wasn't the best time, or the best place to ask, but I had to know.
"Jake, in that fight...why did you walk away?"
"Huh?" He looked confused.
"Why did you just walk away, when Donnie was in trouble? He could have been killed"
"I..." He sighed "I don't know. I was angry-"
"So... its okay to let someone die, someone completely innocent in all this, just cause you're mad at me?"
"I wasn't mad! I was...I was hurt you'd betrayed me"
I walked up to him, standing a foot or two away and looking right up at him. He blinked.
"Jake, I'm sorry"
"Uh-"
"No, don't. I'm sorry you feel that way. I really do. But I felt like that when you left... when you weren't there for me when I was recovering. And no matter what... neither of us can go back. This is where we are now. This... is where I am"
Before he could stop me, I took his hands, squeezing them gently.
"I am sorry I put you through this hurt. And there is nothing I can say to change that. But just know, no matter what, I still consider you my friend, and I'll still fight beside you, whenever you need me. Bad day or Yeerk problem, I'm here"
Tears brimmed in his eyes, and he sighed, letting go of my hands, then bring me in for a hug.
"I'm sorry too. I'm so sorry"
"It's okay Jake" I hugged him back, finally feeling like the turmoil was starting to lift between us.
"Just know... well, ditto to all you said" I felt tears prick my own eyelids.
"HEY! GUYS!" We both let go, seeing Marco coming towards us. He gave us a weird look, before pointing in a different direction, more to the right of where we were.
"Ax says he saw a crashed fighter over that way, and it's not Yeerk"
Jake and I looked at each other, both of us blurting the same thing.
"Rtaia"
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We all ran, too tired to shift and morph, towards where Marco had pointed. Tobias flew above us, and I soon started to see smoke billowing up from the trees.
"Oh no" I muttered, trying to push my tired body faster, but finding it was no use.
A final push through the trees, and we came across the crashed fighter. Ithiell's pride and joy...
It was in pieces across the ground, almost in the same way as ours had been. I could see the nose end of it laying not far, the main body of the fighter exposed to the air.
Rtaia was no where to be found.
"Rtaia!" I tried to yell, going over and avoiding snapping wires as I looked inside the burning wreckage.
Nothing. Thankfully, no body either.
"Rtaia!" The boys all started calling out, and Tobias was surveying the area from above. I saw the bug fighter the others were in swoop past, going to what I guessed land on a clear patch of ground.
"Rtaia!" I felt panic rise in my chest, like it had done alot lately, wondering where she was, and where she could have gone. Or if her body had just been thrown...
I shook the thought, wondering if I should take to the sky.
(Guys, here!) Tobias tipped his wings, heading to the left of us, and we followed.
Soon we came to a slightly clearer patch of grass, all of us probably expecting the worst.
What we saw I think shocked all of us.
"Oh, hello" Rtaia's voice came loud and clear, looking at us with probably same expression we had on. She was sitting down, cross legged it seemed, eating what looked like fruit. I could see she had a few scrapes and bruises, as well as a bandage around her midsection. Other than that, she looked fine.
"Rtaia! What happened to you!" I dove over, landing on my knees in front of her, hearing the other two boys follow, then stand just behind me.
"Oh dear, this is quite embarrassing" She put her fruit into a small grey box. It was then I noticed other similar style boxes, all different sizes, next to her.
She had been able to salvage some of her things.
"Rtaia?"
"I was outside the Blade ship, when the large bay opened below the ship, and people started falling out"
(Yeah, we did that. Well... me) Tobias admitted as he landed beside me.
"I pulled my ship closer, opening the hatch to see if perhaps you needed aid"
"Waiiit, you can do that in space?" Marco raised an eyebrow. She nodded.
"The shields allow for the hatch to to opened in that atmosphere, but only for moments as-"
"Well..." I scratched the back of my head "I didn't even know that could happen"
"There has never been any need to, until this moment. But then something quite strange happened"
We all looked at her, as she scratched her head. A very human thing to do.
"A woman, with dark hair, fell through the hatch opening"
"Uh... "I think everyone else was thinking the same thing at this point. I saw Marco's eyes widen.
"Rtaia, do you know if it was the Visser?" I looked straight into her eyes. She looked back at me blankly.
"I do not know. All I do know is she tried to take control of the fighter, then damaged my instruments when I would not let her. Which caused us to fall into the earths atmosphere-"
"Do you remember her eyes, he skin colour... anything?" Marco was beside me, leaning towards Rtaia, to the point where even she had to back up a little. He was way too close.
"No, I do not. She acted quickly, I did not have a chance to see"
Marco looked frustrated, getting up and walking away. I looked at the others.
"Could it be possible?"
Jake shrugged, and Tobias...well, Tobias still had his birdy glare going on.
(She was the last one I saw fly past me, so-)
"I guess we won't know until we...if we...run into her again" Jake admitted, looking at me. I felt a lump form in my throat, a slight fear running through me, but I shook it off.
No...this meant...if it was what I think it meant...
"Hey guys!" A familiar voice made me look up, and we saw the turtles and the other Animorphs coming towards us. Donnie was waving, just in case we hadn't seen him. He was a little hard to miss with all his instruments...
I stood up, and it seemed like he saw me, relief flooding his face. And when I saw him shift his glasses again...
My feet were moving, and he smiled, coming to me and meeting me in the middle, where I jumped up, wrapping my arms around his neck, feeling him take my weight. His arms went securely around my waist, pulling me close as our lips met in the sweetest kiss I could imagine.
We pulled apart, and I pressed my face into his shoulder.
"I thought I'd lost you"
"No" I mumbled "I still owe you a few saves. So I ain't goin anywhere"
Someone cleared their throat, and we both turned to look at Leo, who was still holding Ithiell.
I dropped out of his arms, going over to check Ithiell's pulse, but Rtaia was already there.
"We need to get him somewhere that I can work on him" She looked worried "Although it might already be too late"
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Ithiell had been holding on by a hair. A sliver. Nothing more.
Rtaia did what she could for him, but he was still unconscious. And at this point, he could go either way.
He was sitting on the knifes edge, and we didn't know which way he'd fall.
Minutes turned into hours, hours turned into days, days...
Days turned into weeks. All of which seemed to drag on, with what seemed no end.
We took rotating shifts, sitting beside him. His injuries were healing, but, like me, he just wouldn't wake up.
The Animorphs went back home, and Rtaia found a way to contact Amanda and Robert, letting them know what was happening. Robert walked off, and Amanda...
Amanda was devastated. She demanded that Rtaia bring her back to New York, to be with him. She wanted to be here in case...
"How is she?" Donnie asked quietly, shaking me out of my stupor to look at up him. I'd been standing by the door, wondering whether or not to go in to her.
"Still asleep it looks like" I felt his chest press against my back as he peeked around the door, to where Amanda had fallen asleep on the chair, her upper half collapsed on the bed beside Ithiell. His eyes were still closed, and I could see the steady rise and fall of his chest.
"Is that what love looks like?" He wondered. I smiled, nodding and leaning forward on the door frame again, looking in on her. Her blonde hair was a mess...
"Yeah. You really do find love in strange places"
His hand touched my shoulder, squeezing it lightly, I looked up at him.
"Go. She... they...need you"
I smiled, leaning up and kissing his cheek, then turning to enter the room.
Love and emotions were strange, and really was found in the strangest places. And I think I was starting to actually fall for my own strange little mutant.
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I heard a shuffling, then a grunt, which woke me with a start. I hadn't even know I was falling asleep...
I sucked in a quick breath, opening my eyes, looking over to the bed Ithiell was in, expecting to find him still laying flat, unmoving.
What I found was Ithiell, sitting straight up in the bed, looking at his hands.
"Ithiell" I dove over, almost tripping on the chair I'd been on, managing to catch myself on the bed a little, finally righting myself and leaning my arms on the bed beside him.
"Jade?" He looked confused. I sat down next to him.
"You've been out for weeks. We... we managed to get you out, get you away from... from them"
As I told him, I was looking for signs of torture, signs of anything that I had been through.
"I see that. I thought you might find me missing" He looked at me, catching my stare.
Sadly I couldn't hide my worry fast enough, and Ithiell knew me better than anyone. He smiled reassuringly.
"They didn't torture me"
My jaw dropped.
"They stuck me to a table, stuck tubes in... Visser One spouted her usual 'haha, I'm superior and you're dead' speech, then they left me to drain"
"But... you were so badly-"
He shook his head "No, that was when I fought back. They had clock me on the head pretty hard to get me down" His hand went to the back of his head, rubbing it like he had just been hit.
"But...I...Ithiell" I couldn't say any more, relief flooding through me as I threw my arms him, hugging him as tight as I dare. Tears started streaming down my cheeks, and I let out a sob, unable to stop them.
"It's okay Jade, I'm okay" He patted my back in reassurance.
"Hey, I heard- oh, guys! He's awake!" Came the yell. I heard the others start coming in.
"Ithiell!" Amanda was suddenly there, and I moved to let her get to Ithiell. She started to cry, then hugged him, kissing his face, then hugging him tight again. I couldn't help but smile, going over and putting a hand on her back to let her know I was there for her. She moved, then grabbed my arm and pulled me into this strange group hug we were all now having.
"Don't you guys ever leave me again!" She demanded in a heavy sob. In spite of myself, I couldn't help but laugh. Ithiell was only awake for a few moments, and already she was giving orders.
It suddenly dawned on me then. The worst... for the moment... had passed.
Ithiell was okay, and although Amanda was an emotional mess, I knew she'd be okay too.
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What do you guys think? Good? Hopeful? Bad?
Constructive Criticism appreciated :D