CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: Have a much calmer, happier, and more humorous chapter to make up for that last one.
Sorry I haven't been updating as frequently; I've been very stressed out and don't have a lot of time, and I honestly just need to sleep for a week and drink about three gallons of water and just explode a little.
XDragon WingsX: I said I wouldn't kill Perry. The others are no guarantee.
KUG: Thanks. I'm not very religious these days (for a multitude of reasons) but I've always thought that even if you aren't religious, if someone say's they'll pray for you, rather than yell at them about how you don't believe you should let them pray, because what they're saying is that they'll talk to the highest power they know to make you feel better. That was long and rambly and probably made no sense I'm sorry.
Privateandcadet: It's all good, but thanks. Besides, holding back tears just makes it worse.
Bhava: Hon, I don't know what chapter you mean when you say "this isn't clear." I don't want to be mean, but I'm very frustrated today, and you aren't being clear with what you want me to explain.
I don't own Phineas and Ferb.
GENERAL POV
Mandy sighed wearily as she picked the spaceship up off of the grass field that was somewhere in the middle of Ohio, after letting about thirty people get off the ship.
She glanced back at Coltrane, Katie, and Lacie, who were staying with her until they got everyone home. "How many more people?" she asked, trying to hold back her yawn.
Coltrane consulted the list in front of him. "The last two dozen are being dropped off in Pittsburgh and West Virginia, and then after we double check to make sure there are no more live aliens on the ship, we swing back to London and find Mr. Flynn-Fletcher."
Mandy nodded and swung the spacecraft to the right, rubbing her forehead with one hand. Lacie stepped up behind her and tilted her head, her pink hair, now back in pigtails, swinging. "You want someone to take over?" she asked in concern.
Mandy chuckled. "No. I just figured out how this darn thing works. I'm not going through that again."
Everybody winced as they remembered the awkward starts and stops, much like being in the car with a first time driver, except in the air in an alien spaceship with an extra 400 some people in their care.
"Well, if you need someone to take over," Lacie pestered, "we can try."
Mandy nodded gratefully and glanced back again. "No one has a cellphone, right?" she asked, keeping one eye on the map in front of her.
They all shook their heads and the girl chewed her lip, turning fully back to the controls as the city of Pittsburgh loomed ahead. She set down the ship in the middle of Heinz Field, probably scaring half the city to death, and grabbed for the intercom. "Pittsburgh people, go. West Virginia, be ready to set down in New River Gorge in about fifteen minutes."
A moment later, the light signaling the closing of an outer door blinked and Mandy hit the gas, taking off before authorities could figure out who in the world, or who out of it, had dared to land in one of Pittsburgh's most famous landmarks.
The teenager was relieved that the spacecraft travelled nearly two hundred miles faster than an airplane; though it was a bit touchy and terrifying at first, it made for drop-offs that were much faster and more efficient.
She peered through the windshield and veered left slightly, smiling as the gorge came into view. "West Virginia people, get ready," she called over the intercom.
She settled down literally in the gorge, making it so that the doors opened up onto dry land, and waited for the light to blink at her. She picked the craft up again and set it to hover, glancing back at Coltrane. "Would someone, or two someone's, go check the ship to make sure everything seems okay?"
Coltrane and Lacie each grabbed a gun and darted from the room. Charlotte looked up from a notebook, where she was scribbling down the events of the last several days. "What are we going to do with the human bodies?" the girl asked softly, tilting her head.
Mandy winced, wishing that an 8 year old didn't have to ask those types of questions. At the moment, the few humans that had died when they fought against the aliens, including Django, Roger, and about seven or eight others, were stored in one of the cold rooms. Every single elderly person and child had made it out alive, thanks to how quickly they had been pushed into the sewing room, and those who had died, save for Roger and Django, were all in their twenties and thirties, both men and women.
"We…when we get back to Danville, we'll give them a real funeral," Mandy finally answered, her heart heavy. She knew that Django didn't have family left, but she had seen the pain on Candace's face at the boy's death. And Roger had a brother and parents still alive.
The girl shuddered and focused her mind on Thaddeus. For now, her brother was her number one priority, and something about Candace's expression when she had given Mandy the good news had seemed off. The girl was mildly concerned about her brother, but she knew that if he actually had died, Candace wouldn't have lied about it.
The girls glanced up as Lacie and Coltrane stepped back into the room, guns relaxed. "We checked every room," Lacie said, setting the gun down on the floor and settling into a chair. "And every closet. Not an alien in sight."
Coltrane confirmed this and Mandy nodded, setting a course for London. "We're going to make a quick stop in Maine," the teen said, glancing back. "We need to check the news, see if anything has been said about Danville."
The others nodded immediately and they sat in silence for about twenty minutes, Charlotte's scratching pens the only sound other than the whir of the motors.
Mandy set the spaceship down in a large field at the edge of Lincoln, Maine, hitting the camouflage button. "Two people need to stay here and guard the ship."
"I'll stay here," Lacie volunteered.
Charlotte glanced up. "Can I come?" she asked brightly.
Mandy hesitated. "Charlotte, I'd rather you stay here with Lacie. It's probably safer, and you're a good fighter."
Charlotte sighed and nodded and Mandy beckoned to Coltrane, grabbing what little money the group had managed to pool from the other passengers and setting off, double checking to make sure their clothes weren't covered in blood.
After nearly five minutes of clambering out of the field, the two started down the road and came across the town of Lincoln, in all of its former paper mill glory. "Excuse me, sir," Mandy said to a passing man on the street. "But where can I find a library, or a computer or something?"
The man studied her for a moment and then pointed down the street. "Straight down the street, then hang a right at the elementary school. Library will be on your left."
They thanked the man and hurried down the road, finding the library easily and stepping into the cool, somewhat musty room. Coltrane pointed towards the back where he could see computers and Mandy slipped into a chair as they reached the area, wiggling the mouse and sighing in relief as the computer flickered to life. She frowned, her eyes scanning the screen. "It says you need a library card to log on."
Coltrane disappeared and came back a moment later with a little slip of paper in his hand. Mandy raised an eyebrow and the boy grinned. "Went to the reference desk and asked if they had a guest pass we could use," he explained.
Mandy snorted and typed the number into the computer, pulling up Firefox the second the page loaded. She typed "Danville, California" into the Google search bar and her jaw dropped as the page filled with dozens of articles, most written within the last two days or so.
Danville, CA Has Fallen from the Technological Map
No News for the Fourth Day in a Row from Danville, California
Residents in England May Have a Lead on the Lack of Information from Danville, CA
Travelers Unable to Enter Danville, CA for Unknown Reasons
President has Spoken Out About Lack of News from Danville, CA: Says the Government has No Idea What is Going On
Emergency Fund Started for the Residents of Danville, California
What's Going on in Danville?
Mandy and Coltrane looked at each other and slowly read through each of the articles. The majority were the same: Danville had fallen completely in communication, local residents hadn't been heard from in days, people couldn't get into the city, many suspected foul play, etc.
The one that stuck out to the two the most was the one in which a reporter interviewed Reginald Fletcher on the third day of Danville's absence, after hearing he had contacted Scotland Yard. He hadn't said much, only that he knew the city was in trouble.
"But when US military forces found themselves physically unable to enter the city," Coltrane read over Mandy's shoulder, "all operations were halted and an emergency fund was begun."
Mandy took over, reading a quote from the president. "Whatever is happening in Danville right now, our prayers and thoughts are with the citizens there. We are doing our best to help you and, in the chance that anything severe has happened, this country and others are ready to stand behind you."
They sat back for a moment, each one unable to believe the amount of attention their tiny town was getting. As Mandy hit the back button, Coltrane pointed to a new article that had popped up within the last five minutes.
Was Danville Attacked by Aliens?
"By Bridgette Oshinomi," Mandy murmured. She frowned and looked up at Coltrane. "Who's that?"
Coltrane snorted. "The woman who covered Phineas and Ferb's new toy last summer," he muttered in irritation. "One of our main reporters. Click on it."
She did so, and the two read the article in silence.
Was Danville attacked by aliens? I say yes. After all, I was one of the ones kidnapped and given the misfortune of being stuck as a slave on their ship.
For nearly five days, we were worked to the bone making weaponry and soldier outfits and parachutes, until a young Candace Flynn appeared on the ship. In a matter of 48 hours we were fighting back and escaping to different parts of the United States.
Now, citizens of Danville are advised not to return home until they are given the okay. Many are dead. More are injured, both mentally and physically.
I? I would like to thank everyone who helped each other escape from these creatures. We truly learned a sense of community in this ordeal, and I thank the world for worrying.
"She's going to lose her job," Coltrane muttered instantly.
Mandy shrugged and pointed to the screen, refreshing it continuously as more and more articles and social media posts and blogs started popping up under the phrase "Danville California."
"Maybe not. Look."
We were kidnapped by aliens!
Danville was invaded by aliens who enslaved the citizens and kept us on their ship!
Save Danville, Bring Down the Aliens!
I'm the only one left alive in my family after the aliens attacked Danville.
Are there still aliens in Danville?
My city was attacked by aliens; what did you do this week?
Is anyone in the actual city of Danville still alive?
Aliens in Danville: A Short Story
Mandy shook her head in disbelief and shut off the computer. "We're going to be known as the crackpot county of America for the rest of our lives," she declared.
Coltrane snorted and the two waved to the librarian as they left and started walking back towards the spaceship. "We know it happened," he said with a shrug. "And Bridgette was right, it did bring our community together a lot."
Mandy nodded and rubbed her arm. "I'm still wondering about the one headline: Is anyone in Danville still alive? You know, besides Candace and her brothers and them."
Coltrane gave her a helpless shrug and stepped into the field with a slight scowl as his foot landed in mud. "We don't know. We can only hope so. Obviously there were more than 400 people living in Danville, and I'd hate to think that everyone who wasn't captured was killed."
Mandy winced and glanced up as the spaceship flickered into view, Charlotte waving from the window. She smiled and waved back.
Coltrane sighed and punched the access code that they had found taped under the computer console into the keypad by the door, stepping back as the door swung open. "Think of it this way: whoever is left? They're there. And that's all that matters. We have no idea how many secret shelters are around the city, how many nooks and crannies people fit themselves into. It's getting late," he finished, glancing at his watch. "Almost nine at night."
He waited for Mandy to climb inside and then punched the code in again to seal the door shut. He turned back to Mandy and shrugged as they walked back to the control room.
"All we can do at this point is hope that Phineas and Ferb can stop them."
I won't be updating for several days due to Easter break, so Happy Easter and please review.
