Demons of Mars

When Jaqui Woke Up

When Jaqui woke up, she was with Darren. She was on the white couch. Darren was watching an episode of Friends,his arms around Jaqui.

"Good morning," he said, rubbing his hand up and down her arm.

"Yo," she grumbled in reply, stretching her arms out. She lay back down onto Darren's lap, watching Ross trying to control his monkey from humping everything. Oh, Friends, how you make no sense out of context.

"Follow me," Darren said, lightly holding onto Jaqui's hand. He lead her down the hallway, up the stairs, all the way to the forbidden third floor. "I feel like I should show you this."

"Won't Criss be upset?" She asked. Jaqu had seen Criss upset before, it wasn't pretty.

"She doesn't need to find out," Darren said and ran his finger down the door. It fell like rocks down a cliff. They walked through, and the passageway molded back into place. "Sit on that chair."

There was a single chair in the middle of the big room, a large screen in front of it. Jaqui sat in the large chair. The cushions were soft and cool against her skin. She was still wearing her sweater and a skirt from yesterday. She looked at the movie screen. "Are we watching a movie? Darren, is this a space date?"

"Well, something like that. You want to be like Criss and I, right? Well, step 1, watch this film. It will tell you everything you need to know," Darren explained, still fiddling with the movie projector. "This won't hurt at all."

Darren had put an IV in her arm, and without her realizing it, strapped her into the chair. "Now, make sure you stay awake for this."

Everything went hazy. Jaqui had tuned the movie out, her mind going else where. She remembered the day her life changed. The day her mother died.

***

"Mommy, Mommy!" A small six year old girl ran up to her mother. They were at an airport. Her mother lifted her daughter up, twirling her in the air.

"Guess who we're seeing today, Jaqui!" The mother smiled, putting the child on the ground.

"Daddy and Jay!"

"Very good. They miss you alot," the mother sat down on the bench, hugging her daughter.

After a couple of boring hours, flight 22A was finally ready to depart. The mother and daughter, along with other passengers, boarded the plane eagerly. Outside it had been snowing lightly, not enough to delay any flights. They strapped in to their seats, and the plane ride was calm.

When Jaqui woke up, she was falling. She was in the plane falling towards the earth at hundreds of miles per hour. Her mother held her tightly, using herself as a shield for the small 6 year old. Screaming, crying, shouts of "Everyonestay calm". It didn't help anything.

When Jaqui woke up, she was being tended to by two other people, a little older than her. "Who are you?" She asked, but they never responded. They were twins. One boy and a girl. Both had blue eyes and brown hair. When she satup,  everything hurt. She wanted to sleep again, but she needed to find her mother.

The determined six-year-old stood up, and walked through the snow. She didn't notice the coldness, or the cuts on her face. She didn't notice her broken arm, but she noticed her mom was gone. She turned around, and saw fire. The plane she had boarded earlier was in flames in the forest meters away. People lay in trees, some twisted and turned inhumanely, some looked as if they were sleeping.

"Mommy!" Jaqui ran up to her mother. Her mother's face looked peaceful, but her body didn't. Her stomach was ripped open, blood seeping through her shirt. Her forehead had a cut, and dried blood covered her face. "Mommy, wake up!"

She shook her mother's  shoulder lightly, not wanting to hurt her. Her face showed no pain, her body told another story. Jaqui, who had never experienced death before, decided to lay with her mother, not wanting her to wake up alone.

When Jaqui woke up, she was at home with her father and Jay. She ran down the hallway from her room to her parent's. No one was there, so she ran into the kitchen. There, she found her father at the counter drinking coffee.

"Daddy, where's Mommy?" she asked, and her father's face fell. He looked so sad, he only shook his head and walked away.

Jaqui ran towards Jay, to see if he knew. 'Of course he would,  he was the smartest person I had ever known!'Jaqui thought as she ran.

Jay said he didn't know where Mommy was, so they ran down to ask their grandmother who had been staying with them for the month. Her expression also turned sad, but instead of  leaving, she explained. She explained everything from A-Z about death, loss, and suffering. She explained how her own mother had died, how she coped with it, and how there will always be someone there to talk to about anything.

"You are never alone, children."

***

When Jaqui woke up, everything was a haze. Instead of bright colours, she saw everything in white and black. She floated, it seemed. Her legs didn't work. When Darren approached her, she put out her right arm, and he was pushed back against the wall. He transformed, with long black wings behind him. His eyes an inky black. He threw himself at her, and they began to fight. Jaqui was fighting with ease, while Darren was grunting in pain. Where am I? What am I doing?

Darren had been using expert moves on her. He didn't understand why she wasn't responding. She was simply blocking, taking no damage at all. Had he and Criss trained her too well? She did learn from the two best fighters, but she hadn't been learning for very long.

(unfinished chapter, i just really needed to get it published... sorry guys)