A/N: Okay guys, this is it. I started this on April 26, 2012, and I'm finishing it today. February 6, 2014. But don't worry, dear, sweet readers. This is not the end. There are two more stories for you to look forward to! Next is Gracebeast, and then Gracewar. Then once those two are finished, I'll post a bonus story called Gracepup, and I think you can guess what that will be about. Maybe over the course of these stories, I'll post the Lost Stories, which will be like the deleted scenes for the series. So... lots to look forward to. It'll be an adventure.
Gracepunk
Andrew slowly opened his eyes. Wherever he was, it was dark and cold. There wasn't a single part of his body that didn't hurt. Even his toes hurt.
With a small groan, he held up his bandaged hands. Even in the dark, he could see that they were blistered and bloody. Reaching up, he felt that his forehead was also bandaged, and he noticed that his hair was a lot shorter. It didn't hang down in front of his eyes anymore, but it stood straight up in the front.
Just as his eyes were adjusting to the light, the door opened, and light flooded in and blinded him. He grimaced, holding his hands in front of his eyes.
"Sorry," said a voice. The door was closed and the bright lights were replaced with the soft light of a single candle.
Andrew cracked his eyes open and saw Christopher standing there holding a candle in his right hand. He set the candle down on the bedside table before sitting down in the chair next to the bed. Andrew noticed that his left hand was heavily bandaged.
"W-what happened...?" asked Andrew, his voice rough.
"You stopped the Gracebeasts," said Christopher. "That's what happened."
"Yeah... okay, but... w-what happened to me...?" asked Andrew, glancing down and seeing that his shoulder, arms, and chest were bandaged as well. The bandage around his chest was pretty bloodstained.
"Well, your Grace backlashed on you and pretty much destroyed the entire building," said Christopher nonchalantly.
Andrew's eyes widened. "D-did anybody get hurt?" he asked frantically.
"Oh yeah, everybody who wasn't in the room with us spontaneously combusted. We saw their skeletons when we were escaping," said Christopher. "None of us got hurt... from the fire, that is..."
Andrew glanced down at Christopher's bandaged hand. He remembered Felix stepping on it and crushing it.
"How's your hand?" he asked quickly.
Christopher glanced down at his hand and almost seemed surprised, like he had forgotten about it. "Oh," he said, "I lost the two fingers on the end, but I can still use it."
"I'm sorry," said Andrew quietly.
Christopher shook his head. "It wasn't your fault, so don't apologize."
"Right..." said Andrew. "Did... did anyone else get hurt?"
"Not really," said Christopher. "Well, not physically. I mean, Ben and James are nervous wrecks, Josh keeps having panic attacks, and I don't think Caleb has slept through the night yet. But we'll all be okay..."
Andrew nodded guiltily. "W-what happened to the Gracebeasts...?" he asked.
"Most of them are dead," he said. "Or... most of the Gracebeasts that were in the Factory are dead. I know a few of them escaped, probably to go meet up with the rest of the Gracebeasts down in the Shadow Lands."
"The Shadow Lands...?"
"The war zone," explained Christopher. "There are at least another thousand Gracebeasts hiding out down there, and probably three times as many drones... but that's a problem for later."
Andrew looked up at the ceiling. "The Gracebeasts that escaped... was one of them..."
"My nephew? Yeah," he said. "I think he escaped. Jen saw another Gracebeast pull him out."
"So... he's..."
"Your brother," said Christopher. "Warren Sparks."
Andrew looked over at him. "Why didn't my mom tell me about you?" he asked.
"Probably to keep you safe," said Christopher. "Back then, I was a spy for the Gracebeasts. Of course, my involvement with them is what led to Warren's kidnapping and Aidan's death... They were two years older than you."
"... Were you the one that called my mom and warned her about the bombs...?" asked Andrew.
Christopher nodded, and his face twisted into a pained expression. "If I had just found out a day sooner, they wouldn't have had time to sabotage the car... I can't... I still can't protect anyone..." He stared down at his hands.
Slowly, Andrew reached out a trembling hand and put it on Christopher's shoulder. Christopher looked up at him.
"It's not your fault," said Andrew. "You did the best you could. If you hadn't done anything, I think we all would have died."
Christopher smiled a bit. "Thanks kid," he said quietly.
Andrew chuckled a bit. "This is kind of weird," he said, pulling his hand back under his blanket. "I've never seen you act like an actual human before."
Christopher's smile widened, and he rolled his eyes. "Eh, shut up and go back to sleep," he said, his voice still carrying no hostility.
Andrew smiled, and Christopher stood up, taking the candle with him.
"Get some rest," he said as Andrew closed his eyes and drifted off. "You'll need it..."
Then he closed the door, and left Andrew to rest.
To Be Continued...
A/N:SCREAMING! Aw man, what a sweet ending! And thank you all for coming on this wild ride with me! I hope you'll stick around for the next few. Until then... see ya next time, where the adventure continues in Gracebeast...
Qille out.