joro3: Yeah, they disgust me… and jeez I don't need the paperwork to fill out from YOU having a mental breakdown! Keep it together ;) And ehh… I dunno. We'll see though(:
Nzbeach: I'M SORRY. But it has to:P Thanks though(:
aBrokenJar: Thank you(: And I like them as friends too! The ending was my favorite part ;) And I'm glad that my writing gave you that effect!
WonderMelon: No… just, no… you have major issues.
The Maximum Ride: Did you know I absolutely LOVE your reviews?(: THANK YOU SO MUCH. And sorry, but it has to end! And no, probably no sequel because of what's going to happen at the end! I might figure something out though(:
IfIHadYouIWould: Thanks(:
So I started writing this in civics today (ahem… nzbeach) and I got to almost the end of the page, but now I realize how little it actually was… anyhow enjoy!
"So all you have to do is picture where you want me to take you and we'll teleport right there," Nine says to Sarah. She had called her parents earlier and explained part of the situation, just not the "my-boyfriend-is-going-to-fight-aliens-in-Germany" part. She and Sam would be staying there until we came back from Germany, well… if, but I put the thought out of my mind. Sarah nods at Nine like she's in a trance as he explains the teleportation process to her and Sam. Her eyes stare holes into the carpet and I feel that all too familiar sense of dread in my stomach.
"And that's all there is to it," Nine concludes. Sarah finally looks up and our eyes lock. Nine notices this and nods subtly to me while walking off to speak with Five and Marina. This is probably awkward for those three since Six and I would be saying our goodbyes to the people we love.
"Hey," Sam says with a weak voice. I turn to him and notice the pain clear written all over his face.
"Hey, Sam," I say. I pull him into an embrace and stand there for a few seconds hugging my best friend. My right hand man. My brother. "You keep her safe, alright? Both of you stay safe."
"I will, John. We'll stay safe," Sam says. He glances over his shoulder and leans forward though. "Don't let Six kill herself. All of you stay safe or… I'll come over there and kick your ass." I grin at him and hug him once more. "Good luck, John. Get a couple Mogs for me, alright?"
"You know I will," I say. Then, Six comes up and grabs Sam's hand. I nod at him and turn towards the person who for the one time in my life, I'm dreading to see.
I cough and walk up to Sarah. I take her hand in mine and lead her to the opposite side of the room where it's quieter and no one will hear us talk. Six and Sam are already on the other side of the room hugging each other tightly. Immediately my throat constricts knowing that I'll be doing the same thing momentarily.
"John… please don't tell me goodbye. I really don't want to hear you say goodbye," Sarah pleads quietly. I instantly pull her close to my chest and lay my face on top of her hair taking in the scent that I'll soon be taken from. I kiss the top of her head and rub slow circles on the small of her back, but I know nothing is making it easier for either of us.
"I'm not saying goodbye, Sarah. Think of it as my final exam for training. Then I can go into retirement," I say trying to lighten the mood. Sarah lets out a short laugh through her stifled sobs which makes me pull her even closer. "It's okay to cry," I whisper, "I won't let anyone see it." With that having been said, I feel my shoulder quickly start to dampen. I hush her soothingly and gently rock her back and forth.
"You better come back to me Number Four," Sarah says into my body. I can feel my throat getting dry. Sarah rarely calls me Four unless she's in an extreme type of mood whether it be anger, love, or, like this, sadness. I release her and cup her face in my hands. I brush away the last tears on her cheeks with my thumbs as well as a couple strands of hair clinging to her face.
"You know, I seem to remember telling you that I'd never lie to you the first night we kissed. Do you remember that?" I ask gently. Sarah nods with a sad smile and grabs onto one of my hands slowly kissing it. "Well, then you know I'll keep my promises. All of them. There's not a damn thing that's going to stand in my way, alright?" Sarah nods again and wraps her arms around me once more.
"John…" Marina warns me with a gentle tone in her voice. I nod at her knowing that it's time to go, but also asking her to give me a minute. She backs away and goes to get Six as well.
"Sarah, we'll be able to talk if we concentrate hard enough so just remember that. I love you so much," I say to her.
"I love you too. Stay safe for me, John," Sarah says. I nod and let out a deep breath. In a flash, our lips crash together and we share the last kiss until I return. Until the world is safe. Until we can live together in peace. But only if I survive. At last we break apart and because I can't fight the pain, I lean my forehead against hers and look at the ground.
"Stay safe, Sarah," I whisper. With that I squeeze her hand gently one last time and walk away not wanting to have to go through anymore pain. I feel a hand grab mine though and it whips me back.
As soon as my body turns, I feel harsh lips pressed to mine. Sarah's hands entwine themselves in my hair and simply pull at my head forwards. My hands roughly hold her face and press it against mine. Now, explain to me how the hell I'm supposed to live without this for at least two weeks? I savor my last few moments with her, but I feel a hand on my shoulder and break away.
"We need to go," Nine says.
"I'm so sorry," I whisper to her.
"I forgive you. I love you, John," Sarah says.
"I love you too," I say. I kiss her forehead quickly and drop her hand allowing Nine to whisk her and Sam back to Paradise. After a few seconds of silence, there's a sound like wind, and then silence again. As tempted as I am to turn around, I know that they're both gone. I grip the edge of the sofa hard and lean over it. I feel like I'm going to vomit. I clench my jaw and eyes together trying to get a hold of myself. I feel a warm hand on top of mine, almost like Sarah's, but I know it's only Six.
"They're safe," Nine says as he pops back into the room. He was gone maybe a minute or two at the most meaning he probably just dropped them off, said goodbye, and left without even making sure they were out of harm's way.
"Alright, let's go. I'll take Marina and Five first?" Nine suggests. No one objects, but I hear a sigh and shuffling. Then, I hear the whoosh from Nine's teleportation again.
"We'll see them again," Six says in a tone I've never heard her use before. Her voice seemed… broken. It's so un-Six like and it kind of frightens me. There's another pop and Nine appears in front of me panting a little.
"Jesus, I'm glad you too are the last of the lot. This is killing me! Alright, grab hold of me, each of you," Nine instructs. I take hold of his arm not caring how awkward it may seem and just imagine the specific location that Marina had told us to think of. All of a sudden, my legs are whipped from under me and my breath is sucked away. The whole room blurs away from me and I shut my eyes to keep from getting dizzy. The urge to vomit doubles, and I almost do, except that soon my feet hit ground again and I slowly open my eyes.
Six, Nine, Five, and Marina are standing in front of me by a large wooden shed. We seem to be beside a large brick building in a dirt path in the middle of the country. I glance around and notice that we're actually on an abandon farm due to the overgrowth of vegetation and the state of the buildings. Down the dirt path, there's a large field of grass, but then a main road seems to cut through it all.
"What are we gonna do? Hijack a lawn mower?" Five asks. He actually gets a snicker out of me and small grins from the rest of us.
"Nope. We're gonna hijack that," Nine says and nods to the main road. I hear the roar of an engine and turn to get a better look. A glossy black freaking Lamborghini was speeding down the road! I mean, what the hell? In the middle of the country in Germany?
"Damn," I breathe. Nine flashes a grin over his shoulder before disappearing. The car swerves for a second, continues on, and then finally skids to a stop. We take that as the invitation to run, so we do so. When we get there, Nine has on a pair of black sunglasses and is lounging in the front seat. I grin at him and pile in the back with Marina and Six. As soon as Five shuts the door, Nine speeds off causing me to fall back into my seat.
"Where are we going?" Nine asks.
"About 30 kilometers away from the base. That should be enough space between both of us if we keep a low profile. I can think of where to go. Can you teleport the whole car?" Six asks. Nine re-grips the steering wheel and slows down.
"We'll find out. Hold on," Nine says. Then, we're gone.
We hit the pavement right behind the building I remember hiding at when I escaped the base. The car lurches forward as well as bouncing up, but Nine slams on the breaks before we hit anything. I bite my tongue in the process and taste the metallic crimson blood begin to flow out of my tongue.
"Never. Again," I say in an irritated tone.
"I second that notion," John groans. I had been sitting on him due to the lack of seats in this damn car, so I'm pretty sure I crushed his, well… hopefully he can still have kids.
"Sorry," I say. John puts up and hand, but doubles over in pain as I move off of him out of the car.
"I'll be okay," he grunts. I snicker at him and offer him my hand which he takes gratefully. "Thanks," John says. I nod in appreciation and turn towards the others.
"Alright, now where the hell do we put this thing?" I ask.
"Where do you want it?" Nine asks me. An evil smile appears on my face.
"Can you get it on the roof over there? If we all get inside it'll be easier to teleport and we'll have something to drive in," I suggest. Nine nods and places his hand on the car. In a flash, they both disappear, but almost as quickly as he vanished, Nine's back.
"Alright… I need some food…" Nine pants.
"Well, let's get checked in first. Then we can go eat somewhere and go over our attack plans," Marina says. "But, where are we exactly?"
"Villingen-Schwenningen. We're 32 kilometers from their base which is ironically, in the Black Forest," I say.
"Cliché much?" Five says. For once, we all laugh and begin to walk out of the parking lot we were in. Everyone looks around in awe at the many buildings, people walking on the sidewalks, and cars zooming down the road. Everyone was used to small towns, not huge ones.
"I thought we needed to stay somewhere populated this time. They don't know that we're coming. They probably think we're running away after the whole San Diego fiasco so I figured we should just blend in with all the people. Come with me," I say and begin to walk in the all too familiar path. I hadn't been here since I escaped and it's bringing back bad, bad memories. It's making me second guess myself for doing this. To be honest, I'm not ready to die. Maybe I was before I met John, but now… now I have a life to look forward to; I have someone to look forward to; I can't let that be taken away.
We weave in and out through the crowd knowing that the others are right behind me and stop at the fancy double doors. They slide automatically open and I walk into the main lobby. The same lobby I was in where they looked at me like I was crazy for requesting a room all by myself.
"Hello, welcome to the Central Hotel. How may I help you?" the old man with a thick German accent asks me. I slide him the card I had gotten three years ago and as he looks at it, he raises his eyebrows in surprise. "Ms. Maren Elizabeth? As in, the one who rents out the penthouse to others? Welcome! It's been too long! Here are your keys. Have a nice time." I say thank you and walk to the elevator.
"Wait, did he say penthouse? How many rooms are there?" John asks.
"Enough," I say simply. Well that shut him up. When we get in the elevator I slide my card into the key hole and it immediately brings us to the top floor. As the doors open, I see that nothing has changed: the same white walls and ceiling; the same navy rugs; the same open feel to the room; even the same smell to the room. "Welcome home," I say to nobody at all. "I get the room on the far left closest to the balcony. I don't care what other ones you guys take. Stairs lead to the roof where the car is."
I walk into my room and notice that they haven't taken the stupid connecting door out. Whatever. This'll be the last time I'll ever use this place anyhow. I throw my bags on the bed, but go over and swing the connecting door open.
"Okay, this door stays locked at all-" I begin to say, but notice who's there. "Oh, hey. Never mind."
"Okay. Six?" John asks. I turn to him with raised eyebrows asking him to continue. "If you need to talk… I'm right here," John says softly. I smile at him and walk into his arms, hugging him like a giant teddy bear.
"Thanks, John," I say and give him a small kiss on the cheek before receding into my own room. I unpack my things and lay down on my bed thinking about what's about to unfold over the next couple days or weeks.
First of all, we need to check out the base. I haven't been there in over three years, so I know there has to be some adjustments. Next, we need to set up some surveillance. We need to be tracking the Mogadorians' movements so we can strike at the perfect time. Then, we need to figure out an attack plan. Everything will require precise timing and strategy is we're supposed to try and beat them. Finally, we have to execute the plan. The final step will be the hardest and obviously the most dangerous. It's the final step to Earth's life or death, and possibly the final action I'll ever do.
"Hey," I hear. Sam's voice startles me, but I quickly recover and just feel myself unravel with the sound of his voice. "Six?"
"Hey, Sam. I'm here," I think.
"Did you guys get in safe? How are you? Where are you?" Sam asks.
"Yeah, everyone's fine. We're at the Central Hotel in Villingen-Schwenningen. I'm… good," I think. I bite my lip in anticipation because I know he won't believe that I'm okay.
"Six… don't lie to me, please," I hear in response. I sigh and get up to change clothes.
"I'm just thinking about everything, Sam. I'm wondering what's going to happen," I think and start stripping off my clothes. I find some comfortable clothes in my bag and pull on a T-shirt and black athletic shorts. I pull my hair up into a bun and walk out into the kitchen to get a glass of water.
"See? I should've come with you so you wouldn't have to deal with all this alone," Sam says. I pull a glass out of the cabinet and push the water button on the fridge before filling the glass up.
"John's been pretty supportive. We're going through the same thing so he's easy to talk to. How is it at the Hart's?" I ask before yawning and returning to my room. I lay down on the bed, shut the lights off, and crawl under the covers before closing my eyes.
"Well good. And it's great. Her family is so nice and generous that I don't see how she could've ever left. When we got in her parents just about smothered both of us in hugs before setting me up in the spare bedroom. Don't tell John, but Sarah's taking it pretty hard. I'm assuming that they're talking right now, but she was a mess a little while ago." Damn it, he's probably the same way right now. He's just not showing it. I swallow the lump in my throat that had formed by washing it down with some water.
"Oh. Well… how are you, Sam? And don't lie to me," I think sternly at him.
"I'm not as bad as Sarah, but… yeah, I'm not okay. I've been thinking about what's going to happen too and I just can't stand the thought of you going up against at least forty Mogs," Sam thinks back. I let out a shaky breath and take another sip of water. Thank god he can't see me right now.
"I'm so sorry, Sam. I just… I could never let you come into battle knowing that it'd be my fault if you died or even got hurt. I can't live with that," I think. I yawn and snuggle into the blankets knowing that I'll most likely pass out soon.
"I know, I know I just… I want to be with you. When do you think you guys are going to go in?" Sam asks.
"I dunno. We need to scout the base out, set up some surveillance and make a plan before going in. Most likely in about two to three weeks. Listen, Sam, I'm dead. I gotta get some sleep, okay? I'll talk to you tomorrow. Goodnight. I love you," I think.
"I love you too."
I finish writing down the details of what she said before heading towards Sarah's room. I lightly knock on the door before entering.
"Hey, Sarah. You done talking to John?" I ask. She leans her head back upside down off of the bed and nods. I walk over and sit on the edge as she puts her head on my lap. "How's he doing?"
"He's okay. I can tell he's really stressed though. He misses both of us a lot, but he says he'd rather have to miss us then worry," Sarah says in a monotone sort of voice. We sit in silence for a few seconds before I realize why I came up to talk to her.
"Oh, Sarah, I forgot to tell you why I came up here. I got where they're staying and what their plans as far as time for battle go. What'd you manage to find out?" I ask.
"John was pretty tight-lipped about where they were so I wouldn't go find them, but I did find out that the Mog base in the Black Forest and that they were in the Penthouse of a really sweet hotel," Sarah says.
"They're in the Central Hotel in Villingen-Schwenningen. They plan to execute their plan within two to three weeks," I explain. Sarah nods and shuts her eyes.
"So when should we go?" Sarah asks.
"I say next week and we can lay low in a hotel far away from there. I'll check the ticket prices tonight. Airlines will be a hassle with my identity, but I'll make a new passport and I have a beard basically now so I should be okay. There's still reminisce of that crappy hair dye in me as well. Are you sure about this?" I ask.
"As sure as I'll ever be."
Mmmm… sorry it took me long to update. I've had some writer's block recently:P Yeah, shocker, I know. I'm ALWAYS writing, but I've had a long week. I hope you liked the ending with Sam's POV and little cliffhanger. It's pretty easy to figure out their plan, but if you don't then… you need to go back to second grade. As always, please review!