The Newcomers: A Separate Species #2
[A/N: Back again! Thought I'd never finish this fic . . . never mind. Anyway, e-mail me at Anigirl@columnist.com or IM me at AniFan121788! Check out my webpage and my column! In addition, I wanna say, to you Geocities lovers, ANGELFIRE ROCKS! ~ahem~ Now we can get back to the story . . . =) Also, I recommend you read the first one or else you wont understand anything because I am NOT explaining anything . . . also, don't flame me because I changed "Ann" to "Anne," but I did that because I liked it, who cares on how it's spelled, maybe you do, maybe I don't, maybe I'm terribly bored and need to do something to excite my life (j/k, I'm actually real busy) and maybe I did it in honor of Anne Shirley. ~ahem~]
[A/N: Also, there's a list of people I wanna thank. If you want to see if you're thanked, scroll down because I'm sure you want to read the fic as soon as possible. :) (yeah right)]
[A/N: ~audiences groan and roll eyes~ Okay, fine, fine, but I just wanted to say that I turned this into a trilogy, not a series. The Newcomers trilogy. Thank you. ~audiences now sigh with relief~ :)]
What is twisted can not be
Straightened;
What is lacking can not be
Counted.
For with much wisdom
Comes much sorrow;
The more knowledge, the
More grief.
--Ecclesiastes 1:15, 1:18
Chapter One
Aurelia
Our planet was in agony. You could see it. You could feel it. A war was going on, between the Yeerks and us. A war of hatred. They had blown part of Her away, and they would pay for it.
Have you ever seen something, so beautiful yet twisted, beyond words to describe it? That's what out planet looked like. A beautiful, twisted masterpiece, with part of it blown away, yet somehow more beautiful than before.
We were landing on a nearby dock where the warriors out fighting would return. Normally, it would've been taboo to land there, but now, who cared? Who noticed?
Suddenly a hologram of the computerized guard appeared before us. At that I felt a pang of homesickness . . . this was just like the old days . . . except now it wasn't the old days anymore. "Password," it said.
"Ecclesiastes," I replied. The book of Ecclesiastes is sacred to us . . . the very first thing we learn in school is to memorize it.
Our species had a name. Besides referring to us as "Her children," our "scientific" name was Horrificus. And how true, how very true, that name suited us.
"Ecclesiastes?" asked Marco. "Isn't that a book in the Bible?"
"Yep," Aolani replied, "except we don't acknowledge the rest of the Bible here."
For a while, we just wandered around our stricken home world. You could hear an occasional sniffle from Cassie . . . I guess she was a nature person. I wondered what we were going to do, until -
"Hello! Aolani! Aurelia!" cried a very familiar voice.
"Sapphire!" I cried.
"Who're they?" asked Rachel.
Three young girls appeared before us, each more beautiful than the last.
"They are the Gemstone sisters," I replied, "this is Citrine, Sapphire, and Peridot. A few of our close friends."
"Citrine is a gemstone?" asked Marco, "it sounds like citric acid. And what about Peridot?"
"Shut up," Anne hissed. Citrine, who was known for her terrible temper (like Aolani) was looking murderous.
Jake cleared his throat and immediately resumed his leader-like position, out of what seemed like a shocked stupor.
"Hi, we're the Animorphs. That's Ax, an Andalite, and, er, well, where shall we go?"
Sapphire giggled.
Jake looked highly affronted.
"Is Gemstone their last name?" asked Marco. I bit my lip, knowing Anne was trying not to explode. I knew Citrine would do that for her.
"No," Citrine said, in an unusually calm voice, (this signified she was ready to explode) "no. We do not belong to such silly nonsense such as "clans" or families. All we are held together are by bonds. And even these break except for the ones that connect you to your Partner."
Then she exploded.
Even Aolani, who had an even more ferocious temper, cringed. I don't want to mention what she said. Nevertheless, all Citrine was saying was true; it was a mortal insult to us to have a last name. Why? It just was . . . the basic fact of what was good and what was bad implanted in your brain ever since you were a child. The idea that robbery was bad, murder is bad, courtesy is good, being polite was good, it wasn't polite either to walk around nude . . . that sort of stuff. And having a last name was a sort of insult to us too.
"Well, er, where is your home?" asked Cassie awkwardly after a moment of icy silence.
"Our world is subterranean, simian creatures."
"Um, excuse, me, but we're, like, almost exactly the same creatures as you."
pointed out Rachel.
Citrine eyed her. "Yes, but you're DNA is 99.9% ape-similar, no? We have none at all." And of course there was the other part of us. That we would never tell.
I glanced at Rachel helplessly. Citrine was Citrine.
That was why all the boys like her.
We entered the concealed entrance to our world, underneath the surface.
Half of it was still blown away. Including my house.
I envied Citrine, Peridot, and Sapphire, for their home was on the other side of the home world. They were so lucky. Their homes had remained untouched. It still looked magnificent, the last time I had seen it. We reached the Gemstone sisters' home. Their parents were dead, killed by the Yeerks.
We were to sleep in their room, the living room, and the guest room.
In our world, parents are about an eighth as close to us as the parents on earth are close to their children. We weren't a very loving species.
And that was that.
Chapter Two
Marco
The Gemstone sisters lived in a mansion. It was light brown, made from amber with dark brown tiles made of bronze on the roof. The windows, made with diamond, were edged with silver, and the doors were made out of copper. A knocker, made of gold, hung on the double-doors.
Rachel and Cassie were to sleep in their parents' room. Jake, Ax, Tobias, and I would sleep in the living room. Aolani and Aurelia would sleep in the guest room. That had been their room ever since the war with the Yeerks had started.
That was where they usually slept.
I was tired. And uncertain. The flash had made us all feel a bit shaken.
After a dinner of things I couldn't recognize, we went to sleep. I thought tomorrow would be an uneventful day.
How wrong I was.
-----------------
I woke up early again. Looking out of the window, I noticed they had no dawn. All throughout the day, the sky, always tinged with silver, changed colors. Night was the cold colors, but still sufficient enough to see with. Day were the warm colors, extremely bright.
Right now I was watching the sky turn from purple to orange.
I got up and walked over to the guest room. When I opened the door, I seemed to burst into a crystal garden.
Crystals, of all shapes and sizes, of every color imaginable, hung on different lengths from the ceiling. It was glittering brightly. I felt as if I was going blind.
One side gave you the feeling of being warm. The other side froze you. And that was the side that Aolani slept.
She wasn't sleeping. Her dark eyes were wide open and her hair was spread apart. She looked especially beautiful with her long eyelashes casting shadows on her cheeks. Anne was looking out of the window at the "dawn."
I sat down next to Aolani and twined a strand of her hair around my finger.
"Marco," she whispered, "what're you doing up so early?"
"I woke up and I couldn't fall asleep. So I decided to visit you."
She sat up. "You sound like I'm ill or something." She was going to get mad.
"No, no, just relax. I just wanted to see you, okay? Don't get mad at me."
She smiled weakly. "I'm not."
I took her hand in mind, but she didn't notice. "What's wrong?"
She turned and looked at me fiercely in the eye. "I can feel it. Today we're going to fight."
"Fight who?"
"The Yeerks."
Chapter Three
Aurelia
I was awake, like Aolani, gazing up at the crystals above me. I lay still, overhearing their conversation. I too could feel it. But it was not my job to fight. My job was to take care of Her. I was not a soldier.
As soon as Anne had been born, it had been decreed that she would be a great fighter. But it had also been decreed that she would die early, in her first battle, too. Not before becoming a heroine, though. That was why I was so afraid of a war coming up.
Marco was staring at Aolani. "Why're you fighting the Yeerks?"
She spoke dully, in a monotone. "We are going to fight for our honor and pride. We have to avenge Her destruction. Or we will die in the making." So she knew she was going to die. But Marco didn't.
"What does it have to do with you?"
"I am a soldier, Marco. I must fight. I am no longer a trainee, but one of the army."
Marco sounded alarmed. "The army?"
She nodded gravely. "Yes. The army."
"But you can't fight! You're too young!"
Fatal mistake.
Anne's eyes blazed as she got off her bed and stood up, glaring down at Marco who had at last realized his mistake. But, alas, it was too late for him.
She spoke in a steel, calm voice, not unlike the one Citrine had used.
"Do you rally think, just because how old I am, that I cannot fight? You earthlings are weak. Weak. The only race we admired were the Spartans of Ancient Greece. They were true soldiers. But the one thing that demotes them is the fact that they did not let women become soldiers.
"I can fight just as well as an 18 year-old. Even better. I have fought ever since I was a child, among the best of them. I have battle scars to prove them too. When we were small, our biological parents left us. We were among the street children, Aurelia and I. Aurelia was never a fighting type, so I had to defend both of us. Do you think that, now, I cannot fight? Do you really think so? I would fight your tiger morph, your grizzly bear morph, your wolf morph, your gorilla morph, and your Andalite, all pitted against me, and I would win. Do you understand that, you fool, you weakling? Do you? You don't know what life was like for us. I fought well-nourished children, 10 to 1 odds, while I was starving. Do you really think I cannot defend myself? I could kill you blindfolded!"
All the while her voice had been growing louder and louder, until she was finally shouting at the top of her lungs in exasperation and anger at Marco.
Even I, who was her twin, cringed. She had never been that mad before. Never. Either that or I had been knocked out by her rage.
She sat down again, at the foot of her "bed". Marco scooted down next to her again, and put his hand around her waist. She glared at him. "What?!" she barked.
"But why do you talk as if we're different? We're almost exactly the same, right? I mean, once, a long time ago, you were still on earth."
He was pushing his luck. And he had forgotten what Citrine had retorted to Rachel and Citrine's outburst towards him.
She glared at him and stood up. Uh-oh, I thought.
"We could never be together!" Oh NO, I thought. Now Marco would be heartbroken. "We are completely different, Marco. Although outside we look similar, inside we are different. Inside, we live as the Xiangtsdu species lived, long ago. We could never, never be together. Did you think that, moron? Did you?
"We have been apart for trillions of years! Do you really want to bet, fool, do you? I could show you millions of differences, each more prominent than the rest. Idiot, how could you possibly say that? Do you not know - "
And then, what I dreaded the most, happened. A piercing, high-pitch shriek resonated in my ears.
Aolani looked at me sadly. Then, letting out a shriek of her own, she disappeared. You couldn't've told that she had stood there a second ago.
Chapter Four
Aolani
It had sounded finally. The war-cry, which was to call all warriors to the Army base.
The war would begin.
I appeared again at the Base. I was not the first one.
Citrine was there.
I wasn't sure whether or not I'd been fair to Marco. But that was me. When my temper rises, I say things that I normally would keep to myself. But the problem is, whatever I say, I mean it.
Go figure.
I was still supposed to have one more year of training. But I excelled at my classes, and since they needed as many full-fledged warriors as possible, I was promoted.
My mind kept switching from reality to whatever.
I knew I was going to die today. I knew it. But I also knew that in doing so, I would save Her. And I was willing to do so.
Thinking back to what Marco had said about the similarities, I looked down at my own outstretched hand and wondered. Of course we were related. We had always known that. But we were a mix of two species, two. That set us apart.
Even though we could, we never communicated with other species and planets, and never responded to messages they sent us.
There was a barrier between us and the rest of the universe.
I looked down again at my hand, tracing the veins with one hand. Mine were different from other hands on my own planet. I was a unique being in a unique species.
Does that make sense?
I remembered again what I had said about fighting.
Our biological parents had abandoned us when we were toddlers. Tiny, weak, helpless beings. Luckily, someone took us in and cared for us. But then, when we were about 5, they send us out again.
And then I became what I am now.
I know that I have no feelings. That me, myself, my heart, is dead. I feel no love except for loyalty and a tie to Aurelia.
That's all.
Perhaps if we hadn't been street children, I would have had some emotion. But we were. We were what the hands of the community had molded us into. And it effected me the most. It molded me, my clay of life, into something wild, and ferocious, and morose. I was the enemy of my kind. I also grew to hate adults. It was if we were something they ate and threw up. In and out. Softened by civilization, then thrust out into the open again. And I grew to hate all Horrificus, except for a few friends and Aura.
And all I have just said? That was what we were.
I was the stealer, the fighter, and the one who sacrificed everything. In doing that, I gave up myself.
So who cared if I died this instant? I would not think anyone would. Perhaps Aura would be in grief, but Marco would forget me. Eventually. And all my old friend had probably forgotten my existence.
I was a monster. A monster trapped in a fair body. Ironic. But who was to care for that? I was even more grotesque in mind now than I ever had been. If creatures looked like they were on the inside, I would have been so hideous that you couldn't bear to look at me.
At least I realized it.
I, the ferocious, wild, and morose being, would die. I would never care for anyone, and no one would ever care for me. The thought saddened me, but I brushed it aside. I knew that alone, out there, in the world, no one would take responsibility for my actions. I can not commit a crime, then walk away and have someone else be punished for me. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't. I had an early taste of how cruel the society is to the poor, miserable ones. The strong would survive. The weak would die. You must oppress the weaker and obey the stronger. That is the way of life.
Each and everyone, fighting each other, to see who would win the struggle to survive, who would die in the making.
Like a wolf pack.
The strongest run in the front. The young and the old run in the back. They are the ones getting eaten. They are the ones that will die first.
Have you ever heard of a bird pushing his/her sibling out of the nest? That is to insure that it will get all the food, will be the one to grow up, to be the well-nourished one.
Perhaps you think that is a tragedy. Perhaps you think that nature is not that ferocious.
You fool. You imbecile.
Stay out in the wild for a week without any equipment. Let's see how gentle you think nature is now.
I think that you will realize how soft and easy to push around you are. You can not depend on anyone for your life. That shows you have lost the fight, the struggle, to win over all.
You are responsible for you. No one else will take responsibility for your actions. It's harsh, cruel, and brutal out there. You will die, you will be crushed, the way you are now.
Take it from me. I learned it the hard way.
And you see the living result right over here.
Perhaps I should've been crushed. Perhaps I should've died.
But there was something there, something metal-like, that kept me alive.
Perhaps that is why I am unique.
Perhaps.
To hell with that.
Citrine came over. "Hey," she said.
"Hello," I replied, "they called you too?" I did not in particularly like Citrine; we were constantly grating against each other, two hard beings, both unwilling to yield to the other's pressure. After all, two suns can not share the same universe.
Citrine took that comment exactly as I had thought she would've. She narrowed her eyes and said, "Don't think that just because you're prophesied to be a great warrior that no one else can fight too. But then again, you are moronic. So why am I telling you this and wasting my breath on you?"
"Ah," I said, not in the mood to come up with a snappy retort, "but it is also prophesied that I will die, too. And after that, you can take my place." I turned around and walked towards another corner of the room.
Looking back at my hand, I wondered what I was. Who was I really? Just an outer shell, made up of nothing inside? Yeah, you could see the blood pulsating through the veins, but that was all mechanical. Who was I, down deep inside? Who was I? I couldn't even predict what I was going to do next. I hadn't the faintest inkling of who I was. And come to think of it, I hadn't realized it until now.
I blinked.
"Calling all soldiers to the Commander! All trainees to the Sergeant!" the intercom announced. I walked over slowly to the Commander, barely noticing that everyone was separating to let me through. I heard, faintly, soft whispers being said, and points in my direction. But I didn't care.
"Ah, Aolani," said the Commander, bending down toward me. She was actually a very nice lady, with long golden curls and deep-set black eyes like the rest of us, but when it was war-time, she would torture you with her commands. "Aolani, my dear," she said again, "what position would you like to take?"
I was being given first priority. Usually the most experienced had first priority. And what was I? A fresh soldier, right out of the Academy. So why was I given first priority?
My brain was sluggish. It felt as if I was drugged. But I was still able to think. There were 5 major positions. The single role in front, the inspiration soldier, who usually got killed, right in front of the rest. Then there were three groups, First Division, Second Division, and Backup Division, our "army". The last role, in the back, was the "watch". I was thinking, but I already knew what I was supposed to choose. Not supposed to, but prophesied to.
I looked straight into the Commander's piercing eyes and said, "I'd like to be the inspirational soldier."
There were gasps. Usually the reckless and wild chose the position; the ones with nothing to lose and everything to gain. And what was I again? I didn't know.
Chapter Five
Aolani
"Alright," said the Commander, "you may have the position." She said it rather slowly and gave no hint of shock or surprise. "If that's what you want."
"I want it."
"Alright," she said yet again. Then she turned to the other ones. I could see Citrine glaring at me. She was burning holes on the back of my neck.
Years ago, there had still been something of me left.
Now there's nothing of me left.
So much for that.
I wish I was normal. That I wasn't unique.
But then again, my heart can't let me wish, can I?
Ha ha. Stupid question.
The Commander was "rehearsing", I guess you could say. She jerked me forward and placed me in the front. The very front.
Unarmed.
That was the job of the inspirational soldier. They fight bare-handed and are supposed to give the rest of us shame for losing with weapons. Supposed to. If I had been in any of the divisions, I wouldn't have looked at the inspirational soldier. I'd just be fighting for revenge.
But then that's me.
Who knows about anyone else?
I bit my lip as I headed towards the VERY front. The trainees were all in the very back, even behind the watch. As I passed Citrine, she spat at me.
I ignored her.
There was something wrong with me today. My brain was not thinking normally. I didn't respond as I normally would; Perhaps I was drugged.
At least I wasn't the bugle blower. They are not even soldiers, but young ones, usually orphans, that are dragged out to blow the signals. Every time a war is over, they engrave his/her name on a huge stone wall. Why? They die, of course. Do you really think that you can survive hiding behind a bush unarmed?
Of course not.
My thoughts were not sluggish anymore. Instead they had become acute; very acute. There was something wrong . . . perhaps I was going insane. But that was absurd! If this would make me insane, then I would've gone insane when I had been a little street child fighting others because of the sheer joy of it. The pump of adrenaline was worth any cuts and bruises received later . . .
"Aolani!" came the sharp bark, jerking me out of my thoughts.
"Yes, Commander?"
"We prepare to go to battle. Remember, we will -" she droned on and on into her little "pep talk". I barely listened. But I was giddy with excitement. Clutching my knife, the only weapon I was to have, we marched out slowly to the war front preparations dock.
Chapter Six
Jake
I plodded down the hallway, after waking up and discovering Marco gone. I figured he had gone to the twins' room and went, feeling a slight resentment of all the time and energy that was lavished on Aolani and Marco basically ignoring me.
I pushed open the door and went into what seemed a crystal explosion. Crystals of every shape and size hung from about the room. But what fixed my attention the most was the fact that Marco was huddled on the bed with Aura comforting him. In my mind I unconsciously acknowledged the fact that Anne wasn't there. And Marco . . . Marco. He was crying.
No, I don't mean all that "boohoo" sort, but just one tear running down and the crying person doesn't acknowledge it at all.
"Marco!" I said, leaning against the doorway in shock. Marco glanced up, saw me, and quickly turned away. Aurelia got up and shut the door behind us.
"Uh, excuse me, but may I ask, why the hell is my best friend crying?" I demanded. I had a suspicion that Aolani had made Marco become "upset."
I was right.
"Marco offended Anne, okay? So, knowing Anne, she flew into a terrible rage and said something real heartbreaking to Marco. And now, Marco is real san xin."
"Uh, excuse me? What the heck does 'san xin' mean?"
Aura looked straight at me in the eye, not afraid. "It means 'terribly sad', sort of. Do you want to go in there to see him?"
"Uh, okay." She opened the door and I went in, slightly stunned.
Marco was in there, looking out the window. For the first time, I noticed their sunrise. It was beautiful. Cassie would love it, I thought. But I had to talk to Marco. I was, after all, his best friend.
But as soon as I looked him in the eye, I knew he had shut to all responses and probably wouldn't tell me anything.
"Hey, Marco, are you okay?"
Marco looked at me.
"I'm fine."
Then Aurelia came back in. "Marco," she said, with the air of one sheltering a great delight, "would you like to see Aolani?"
Chapter Seven
Rachel
I woke up, finding Cassie was also awake. She was gazing out our window.
"That sunrise is really beautiful," I said, yawning. I stretched and tugged her arm. "What're we going to do today?"
Then Marco and Jake came bursting in.
"How strange," I remarked. "Monkey Marco finally taking the lead."
He ignored me.
"We're going to go see Aolani."
"What?" asked Cassie, "isn't she still here?"
"No." replied Marco. Something hardened in his voice. "She's a soldier. We're going to go see her."
Cassie turned to me. "There's your answer," she replied.
After we woke everyone up, ate a breakfast of some very strange but tasty food, Peridot announced she would be our guide.
Citrine glared at Marco.
Sapphire, the oldest, after shooting a nasty look at her, said, "Farewell, my dears." She waved her hand at Peridot.
Peridot smiled her amazing Peridot-patented smile, and in a flash of light, I felt my body's atoms disintegrate.
Have you ever felt like your body was floating in mid-air and the world around you seems so marvelously light? Well, that's nothing close to what disintegrating feels like.
When we materialized again, I felt awfully dizzy. I put a hand to my forehead. "Oh man," I said, "I feel like I'm seasick."
"Have you ever seen Malibu Barbie throw up?" Marco asked, more to me than the others.
"Shut up."
"Are you okay?" asked Tobias, putting one hand over mine.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He didn't take his hand away.
Marco whistled.
I rolled my eyes and took a better look at the place we were in.
The whole thing seemed to be made of marble. Looking closely, I could see that it was actually made up of a different type of mineral, which I could not identify.
"Stay together," instructed Peridot. Suddenly a sort of glow enveloped us. I tried to walk away, but I couldn't. We were sort of "glued" together.
"Aolani!" came a sharp cry. Peridot shot a warning look at Marco.
A girl, who seemed to stand out from all else, turned and looked. It didn't seem to be Aolani, because this was the face of a weak, tired, starved girl, yet still clinging to the last shred of hope. Unlike the cold, iron mask she usually wore.
Then I saw something else. Or rather, someone else.
There was a boy, with brown-black hair and silver-hued black eyes. But they weren't just any eyes . . . little specks of gold danced around like fireflies, every imaginable color was reflected in them, playing their part, yet still letting the viewer see the main color was silver and black. They were wide and alert, with a demure look to them that only enhanced his appearance. And the rest of his "appearance" wasn't so bad-looking either. One other prominent feature was his height. He must've been six-feet tall, yet young as anyone else. And just looking at him made the onlooker feel a thousand times more joyous. They looked perfect together.
Marco was sort of stunned, seeing him, but Peridot was smiling that impish grin of hers.
"A lovely sight to see, ain't it? Simply delightful, seeing those two together again. Mind you, they were sweethearts before the invasion." She shuddered. "Things have changed a bunch since then."
This called my attention to fix on Peridot. Although she was just as slim and supple as all the Gemstone sisters, her voice was a different matter. Loud and jovial, it boomed out over the crowd. The rest were . . . quieter. Yet no one seemed to take notice of her.
{How has it affected you?} asked Ax. I had forgotten that he was there, so intent on observing the others.
She raised her head. "Our other sisters, Emerald, Garnet, Ruby, and Diamond, were tortured to death."
There was a momentarily silence.
Suddenly a peal of laughter broke through the silence, like bells. It reminded me of all joyous things, and Tobias tightened his grip on my hand.
I looked over at Anne again. She was smiling happily, gazing up at the boy. He had made her laugh. And I had never known her to laugh before.
I glanced at Aurelia. Her face betrayed multiple feelings: happiness for her sister, sorrow, yet jealousy occupied a large section. But I felt that "the boy" would be better for Aolani than Marco, although a fellow Animorph and the worst joker I had ever met, could ever be.
" 'is name," Per, as she had told us to call her that earlier, said, "is Xanthe, although Anne calls 'im Kenneth, but I can't imagine why. Per'aps it's more ordinary, although I think it's fine, believe me." She sounded as if she was the world's leading expert on names and how queer they sounded.
Then a sound resonated in our ears and all was quiet. But the sound; I could never describe it. It was like a great story told in a second. It told of tragedy and romance, sorrow and joyfulness, and it was unforgettable. It didn't seem right to use it for something to quiet a crowd. I looked back at Kenneth and Anne; so did Cassie, standing next to me. They were looking at each other with great sadness and Kenneth suddenly swept Aolani into his arms and kissed her. They seemed to be the main focus of the entire crowd, and instead of whooping, as I'm sure some obnoxious people would have done on Earth, they were crying.
"Do they all know them?" asked Jake.
Peridot nodded. "Aolani's famous all right, prophesied to be a great warrior, and Xanthe . . . once you meet him, you'd never forget him, believe me."
I was starting to feel that "believe me" was a common quote from Per.
"Whatever," I said.
Marco snorted, the first sound I had heard from him ever since he had shouted, "Aolani!"
Kenneth went to the back of the army, which was a magnificent sight. I wondered how the lot could fit into the whole building. A very pretty lady with golden tresses tied back into a ponytail ushered them out.
"You guys still fight on foot?" Tobias asked, wondering. "But the Yeerks have all sorts of different battle ships and such."
At this, Per swelled, not from anger, but pride. "You shall see," she said, "you shall see."
Chapter Eight
Cassie
Peridot waved her hand at us and then muttered, "Now, dears, you can see how they really are."
Suddenly I saw a transformed sight. Hundreds of soldiers, each with their own fighter. Yet I saw Aolani standing alone on top of some sort of flying disk, holding a knife. She would be an easy target for the Yeerks.
Per gasped.
"She - she has taken the spot of the inspirational soldier," she sighed in awe, "I have known Anne for years, but I would ne'er think that she would be ever so gutsy as to volunteer for that position. I see now, why she would be good as dead."
And then they were out of sight.
Peridot muttered to herself, "I'm a good knee-deep awe, I tell ya, a good knee-deep awe-sies."
Suddenly they shot off. I felt myself, in the glowing sphere, go shooting after them. We hovered above the battle. Inside, I cringed. Why? Because all of a sudden I realized how . . . how indifferent I had become to battles and wars. I felt no sympathy as Yeerks were gunned down by unseen soldiers. Of course, I shouldn't feel sorry for Yeerks, but shouldn't there be some small pang of sorrow for them, however small?
Suddenly Peridot's voice became urgent. "Let's go, people! We must leave here now!"
"But -" protested Aurelia.
"MOVE!" Peridot pushed Aurelia back into the glow and we disintegrated again.
We reintegrated in the Gemstone sisters' homes.
Chapter Nine
Marco
Numb. I felt numb. As if my body has continued to work without my mind. I. Felt. Numb.
Hey, chill, man, I told myself. It wasn't as if you'd really loved her or anything. She misleaded you, lied to you. So chill.
"Hey, man, are you okay?" asked Jake. "You're kinda quiet."
"No, I'm okay," I said, giving his shoulder a light punch. "Just need some thinking, that's all."
Jake glanced at me, whispered something to Cassie, then said, "Okay, if that's what you want."
"Uh-huh."
I went up to the twins' room, since no one was there, and Aurelia was supposedly talking with Rachel.
Aurelia opened the door softly about ten seconds after I came in. Cassie followed.
"Whoa," I said, "major babe alert."
They both smiled and Cassie disappeared behind me. No, not disintegrating, but she seemed to . . . blend in with the surroundings.
Aurelia sat down next to me. Suddenly the surroundings blurred. I was crying. Again. Yet I felt no shame at all.
Aurelia was patting me on the back, but I couldn't feel it. While sobbing I managed to say something, although I didn't know what it was. My conscious mind had left, and my subconscious mind took over.
To my surprise, Aura's soft voice penetrated though my thoughts.
"I'm sorry, Marco," she was saying, "but we're not perfect. Us, as a species, are mad. We are constantly warring with each other, and this planet is mainly inhabited by children. Did you notice that? We have a life span of 35 years. And then, we are incinerated. Did Aolani tell you our parents abandoned us? True, but that was because they were running from the government, because their time had come. And now, now, they are probably dead, either from the Yeerks or the government.
"Not everyone is pretty. I recall our father was rather plain. In fact, I could bring you to the slums to see those that are grotesque, grim, gruesome, and macabre. We are not a very pretty species considering our history. Or our individual selves. If we can be counted as a species."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
Aura suddenly clamped her mouth shut. "I have said too much. And this is all I can tell you: each species, each and every one, has a terrible deed done in its history. Remember that."
"And?" I said, attempting to make her laugh.
She spoke very slowly. "We are like the Howlers. That is why they could not defeat us. Remember that, too."
She turned back to Cassie, motioning for her to come back out. I'd forgotten she had been there.
As they closed the door, I lay back on Aolani's bed and began to think.
Chapter Ten
Marco
Each species, each and every one, has a terrible deed done in its history. Remember that. We are like the Howlers. That is why they could not defeat us. Remember that, too. Those words . . . they kept circling in my mind, over and over again, while I tried to comprehend what they meant.
I already knew the "terrible deed" part, for had not Ax told us that? But these people, although seemingly perfect, were not. Anne and Aura were living proof of the cruelty and mistreatment of that. But what could be such a terrible deed? All those that I'd met seemed nice enough, yet . . . yet still, there was something, something . . . inhumane about them. But what? What could possibly be inhumane?
And then, We are like the Howlers. That is why they could not defeat us.
What could it mean? What could it possibly mean? I'd never morphed a Howler . . . it was Jake who had done it. He probably knew all. So I walked out of the room and went to ask him.
"Hey, Jake, man, do you still remember anything about the Howlers?"
"Why do you want to know about the Howlers?" he asked back.
"Dunno, just bored, y'know. But what do you remember?"
Jake gave me a long, searching look, then sighed and said, "They're manufactured in a factory. Killing is a game for them. They're all children, never reproduce or mature, and have wonderful eyes. Lets you see the vital organs in your opponent's body."
"Okay," I said, trying to remember all that. "Okay. I'll be leaving now." I trudged back up to the twins' room before he could say another word.
I had the ability to see clearly from point A to point B. And that wouldn't help me much right now. Right now I was trying to see all the tiny little details between point to point. And that wasn't helping me much at all. And everything Jake had just told me didn't seem to apply to the Horrificus.
I decided to drop the matter. What did Aolani matter to me anyway? But there was this little nagging voice, whispering in the corner of my head . . .
What is twisted can not be
Straightened;
What is lacking can not be
Counted.
For with much wisdom
Comes much sorrow;
The more knowledge, the
More grief.
--Ecclesiastes 1:15, 1:18
At last! The list of people to thank 'cuz they helped me with my indecision: Rhi Marzano, Brat Girl, StH_StarFox, Tobiasrulz, and ~Utahraptor~:). Also, The Newcomers Trilogy: A Shattered Soul (Book 3) and the final book of the Newcomers Trilogy will come out in about a month. E-mail any and all comments on this at anigirl@columnist.com or IM me at AniFan121788. Please, please, please, check out my webpage at http://anigirl.am.findhere.com!