Chapter Text
Author's note: This takes place three years after book #54 by K.A. Applegate. Sorry the first chapter is so long, just wanted to fit all that stuff into one chapter. Also, Marco's second flashback is from Megamorphs #4, so if you didn't read Megamorphs #4, it won't make any sense. Tobias's second flashback is from book #33, and his third is from book #54,(and I am assuming you read 54). Enjoy my first Anific!
Chapter One *Tobias*
My name is Tobias. Now you expect I'm going to be all like, I can't tell you where I live, my last name, yada, yada, yada. But I'm not, because all of that stuff doesn't even matter anymore. I can tell you the full story. I can tell you everything. No more secrecy. And if you haven't read the books by KA Applegate, why are you even reading this? Well, I'm gonna assume that you've read the other books before. AND IF YOU HAVEN'T READ #54, GO BACK NOW! MAJOR SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T!!!!!
I guess I'll start from the very beginning. When we first started the second war, on the other planet. Though it lasted only about two years or so, it was still almost just as terrible as the first.
We had to live in the spacecraft which we flew in to get to the planet. Jake and Marco had to live on water and this plant that looked like a turnip with blue fuzz clumps stiking out. It grew on a vine, and as Marco put it, "It tastes like an orange that's been soaking in pickle juice for a decade or so!" The andalites called it a jumblyt. I never tried it, considering hawks don't eat plants. Yet their food was still better than mine was...
I was offered meat from a creature about the size of a mouse, but the characteristics of the creature itself was horrifying, and basically nothing resembling a mouse. It was bright red, looking almost radioactive! It had no teeth, but three white tounges each about three inches. The tail looked like the tail of a rat's, but shorter. It had six stubby legs, and made a gurgling noise. Its one eye was small, and seemed to bulge out of the forehead. At least I think it was a forehead. Its was called a nerthi.
For the first three days, I refused to eat. The creature seemed ugly, and I didn't even know if my hawk stomach could digest the thing! Finally, I caved in and tasted it. Pitch black blood oozed out, and it almost made me change my mind. I'm sorry, but I can't describe what I felt tasting it. It was what I imagine was like dying and going to hell. I must have went unconcious, because I remember waking up again.
My first reaction was pure hawk. I raked my talons on Jake's head, then hit what I thought was outside, but actually a window. That's all that I needed to surface back up again, and gain control of the hawk's instinct. I must have apoligized at least a thousand times to Jake. I must not have raked hard though, for he only lost a few hairs. No blood, no bleeding, no bandages, a million apoligies.
After that, I morphed to human and ate the turnip thing whenever I got hungry.
Another reason the war only lasted a year and a half, was some information we found out about Ax-man. What we thought was Ax, was only a mere holagram!
Jake had yelled. I was so busy raking the eyes of infested Hork-Bajir, that I barely heard him. Shoot downward...rake!...come back up and repeat. Hello? Hello Tobias? Didn't you hear what Jake just yelled! It was all in the back of my mind. The thought pushed its way towards the front of my hawk brain, and I immediatly left the screaming Hork-Bajir clutching at their eyes, and headed towards Jake. The orange and black tiger was easy to spot in all of the blackness, and thanks to amazing hawk vision I could see Marco in gorilla morph.
I yelled in thought-speech. He didn't move.
He still didn't move. Relization came upon me, finally figuring out the truth. Too late though. Marco's gorilla cinder-block fist tried to grab Ax's back. It went straight through. Marco stuttered, and froze.
I yelled to them.
Red beams came out of the walls in all directions. The holigraphic Ax was set so that if it sensed motion, the trap would spring. TSEEW! Red dracon beams flashed in every direction. I heard Marco scream. A beam had completly sliced off his right hand! Jake lay unconcious on the floor a with a bloody gash on his left side. His right hind leg was severed, and lying on the floor.
The yeerks hadn't bothered to set the trap twice I think, because it never went off again. All I could think about was Jake and Marco, so I didn't even notice, until I tried to fly, that my tail feathers had been singed badly. So, instead of flying, I fell to the ground near Jake's unconcous tiger body.
I heard pounding feet in the hall nearby. The seemingly lifeless body stirred a bit.
I cut him off there.
I heard Marco yell. Jake stumbled on his three feet, and ran back to the spacecraft. Marco knuckle walked, and knocked a couple of controllers down.
I yelled. I couldn't fly with the condition my tail feathers were in. He gently picked me up in his left hand since the right one was somewhere in a bloody heap on the floor, and we reached the spacecraft. Jake was already demorphed to human. He was human, and alive and whole.
Marco demorphed, and I morphed to human to get rid of damage. , the andalites that had come with us to the planet demanded the full story all the time. They never came to fight themselves. They let us do their dirty work.
"It was a hologram!" I heard Jake yell. "It wasn't the real Ax! Er, um, I mean... Prince Aximili." We were all in a panic trying to figure everything out.
I heard an andalite cadet yell. A holographic image appeared in blue and tan. I was the first to react.
"Ax-man!"
He responded with simply just
"Where are you?! We have been trying to find you here in this hellhole for a year at least!", Jake demanded.
Marco tapped his shoulder. "Uh, Jake buddy? If the machine says MESSAGE FROM ANDALITE HOME PLANET where can we guess he's at?" Marco sarcastically asked him.
Jake's shoulders relaxed then he suddenly slapped his forehead. "You're on the andalite home planet," he said.
"Are you safe yet?" Marco anxoiusly asked him.
He had a tone to him that I had recignized. A tone of slight anger. Could he possibly be angry that we had not been there to fight with him? His eyes were a darker color, narrowed into vertical slits. He looked pretty ticked... The others (including the andalites) didn't seem to notice anything that I did. Maybe it was just all in my head.
The words were out before I could stop them. "Ax-man, you know if we could've, we'd be there. We all thought you were here, so...well here we are. We tried to find you! We fought, and put our lives at risk once again to safe you from this place!" Idiot. I said to myself. Like that's gonna help at all!
Yet, surprisingly, Ax's eyes softened. He smiled that way he has of lifting the corners of his eyes up.
"Don't call me prince." Jake of course.
An andalite asked interrupting all of our thoughts.
"Yes." He replied to the cadet. Home. The thought of earth seemed like heaven.
"Prince Aximilli, we have to go now. We are traveling back to earth right now, but when we can, we'll send some more cinnabons over to your home planet. Take care." His holigram disapeared. We have to call him Prince Aximilli when other andalites are around. It is only proper. Though he obviously didn't make us call him that when we were alone. And the cinnabons, I was serious about. Every week, when possible, a shipmant of good tasting things from earth got sent off to the andalite home world.
The andalite finished. We left. No hesitation. There was no reason to be on the planet anymore. Delay would've just been silly.
The flight back home was as smooth as it could get I guess. Considering how smooth was possible flying through Z-space with andalites, it went well...except for one night...the dream...
"No don't hurt her! Please no!" I watched in human morph helplessly as a Hork-Bajir aimed a dracon beam at Rachel's head. Another was restraining me from attempting to rip them limb by limb. I couldn't do much damage as a human, but I would still try. "Oh god no! Don't hurt her! NOOOOO! Torture me instead! Let her go! Please no! Rachel!" She yelled and cursed words I didn't even know she knew. "You filthy slugs! Lemme go!" She yelled. "God Rachel don't die now!" Suddenly, she was free of the dracon beam. The Hork-Bajir sizzled and dissapeared. I ran up and tried to hug her. "ZAP!" "Ow!" A force feild surrounded her, not allowing me to touch her. "You're too late Tobias." She said it in a calm scary tone. "What? But. But. But." "I'm dead Tobias. You're too late." I fell to my knees. They had failed me and I'd given way, buckling underneath me. "You can't leave me Rachel!" I was on the ground sobbing hystaricly. "Too late Tobias. I'm already gone." She turned to ashes and dissapeard slowly. The wind lifted her away. "NOOOOO! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!"
"Tobias! Man, get a grip!" I woke up numbly. I looked down. Talons, feathers, hawk. A nightmare! I looked back up only to see Jake looking at me very concerned.
"It was Rachel again, wasn't it." He said it like he knew 100% that he was right. I looked away. I couldn't take it anymore!
I cut myself off there. What. Was. I. Doing! Eesh, man I was losing it! I was about to say more, so good thing I cut myself off there. I can't beleive I said that. Then I spotted a bigger problem. Jake wore a look of disgust of himself, and he looked like I litterally punched him in the gut.
"Well, what did you expect me to do? It stopped the yeerk invasion, and it did cost a life, but we saved millions, or maybe billions...trillions of lives by doing it." He didn't yell, he just said it in a calm, strict, offended sorta way.
It wasn't true. I still hated him for it. But what was he supposed to do instead? Maybe I was just being rediculous or unreasonable.
"Uh, yeah. You ok? It sounded like some nightmare you were having," he said.
I figured he'd laugh.
"Sure Tobias, but I don't think he would laugh. At least not about this," he said with total sincerity. I dug my talons back into my perch, and fell back to sleep...more or less.
That was it. The war, or at least the major highlights of it. From my perspective, knowing Rachel was there, and alive, whole, beautiful in my eyes, it would have made it a billion times better.
Chapter 2 *Tobias*
The Rachel (and by Rachel I mean the ship, 'cause in case you forgot, that's what it was called.) landed smoothly in a large parking lot. I recognized it. It was the mall parking lot. Seeing it again brought back a lot of painful memories.
Ax-man was stuffing cinnabons in his mouth. We were all laughing, or trying hard not to laugh. Then he grabbed a few ciggarettes out of an ashtray, and tried to devour them too. Rachel and Cassie were grabbing them back from him, and Jake wore a look that a parent would wear if their two year old had just spelled cat, d-o-g. His head was slightly shaking in an amused sort of way, then rolled his eyes and smiled. Marco and I were still attempting not to laugh. A few snickers escaped though.
Rachel dragged Cassie (seriously almost dragged her) into one of Rachel's favorite stores. Cassie shot a look at Jake that could only be "save me!" He looked at her and shrugged, which could only mean, "Sorry, but when Rachel wants to shop, there's no stopping her." Rachel picked out a dark blue dress which was honestly very nice. It flattered Cassie's shape, and skin color. Rachel was shoving it at her and yelling, "Cassie PLEASE try it on! It looks so nice!" Cassie shook her head no. "Where would I ever wear the thing?" The guys, including me, were all once again trying not to laugh. Then I spotted Ax looking at the ciggarettes again, and we had to haul him outta there.
Then the last normal day of my life.
I watched as Marco and Jake were walking out of the store with those video game booths or something. Jake spotted me and waved. "Hey Tobias." "Hi Jake." Marco rolled his eyes. He looked at me like I'm some sorta mega dweeb or something. "So, like maybe I'll walk home with you guys?" I said. I said it sorta like it was a question though. Like I was half expecting Marco to jump in and say, 'Uh, no.' Instead they let me stay with them. I trailed a little behind them, not quite sure if I belonged. Soon, we spotted Cassie and Rachel. Rachel is Jake's couson, and I get the impression Jake sorta likes Cassie. As in really likes. I had talked to Rachel a few times, but not much. I never really knew what to say. Jake said the wrong thing right then. "You shouldn't be walking through the construction site by yourselves, being girls and all." I could tell he regreted it as soon as the words were out of his mouth. "Oh, you think you're gonna come protect us you big strong MAAAN?" Rachel said sarcastically to him. Never mistake Rachel for some little whimp. "You think we're so helpless just because-" "Actually Rachel, I'd kind of like it if they did walk with us. Maybe you're not scared of anything, but I guess I am." That was Cassie. She has the amazing ability to stop arguments and fights. We could go the safe way, which is the long way home. Or we could take the short cut through the construction site and hope there wasn't any ax murderers. We took the short cut, but we didn't find any kidnappers. We found Prince Elfangor instead. My dad, though I didn't know at the time.
I snapped out of my flashbacks, and into reality.
There were SO many people there. In the parking lot I mean. Even with my hawk vision, I couldn't see the end of the crowd. That's how long it was. Oh, my god! The president of the United States! At our mall parking lot! Cool! I looked at Jake and Marco. It seemed to impress them, but not as much. Oh yeah, they've seen the president before. In fact, they've seen him a number of times. I quickly began to morph to human. I figured it would be better to appear in human in this situation.
"Jake Berenson and Marco Miller?" he called their names. He called out the andalite's names too. The crowd yelled and chanted their names. I suddenly grew angry. I almost yelled Hey, what about Tobias? I stopped the morph. I turned back to hawk once again. Nobody thinks about a hawk. That's all I am to them. A hawk. Nothing more. I'm an Animorph too! They stepped out of the ship, and were greeted by like a million people. I think I even spotted a guy selling hot dogs.
I must have been acting rediculous. I didn't want pity. I just wanted to be treated equeally! Little did I know, they had no idea I was even on the spacecraft. They thought I was still in my meadow. Nobody had told them I was going to fight the war with them. They didn't even know I was there. I know now that they would've welcomed me if they knew that I was there.
I shot off of my perch just as everybody had gotten out of the ship. "Tobias, wait!" I heard Jake yell. I didn't aknowledge him. Marco tried to grab me, but I hauled my little feathered butt outta there! Marco tried to run after me, but was stopped by people shoving and pushing to get closer, and big men in dark suits holding them back. Security I bet. I saw Cassie watching sadly as I flew away.
Nobody else noticed as a red tailed hawk found a beautiful thermal, and soared high up into the clouds.
It felt like a miracle to be up there once again, in the human atmosphere. Riding a warm July thermal. Flying, and flying, and flying, not caring about where I was going. I just needed to get away. I wanted to forget everything. I flew as fast as I could, the fastest I ever flew. It felt as if I was a rocket shooting at warp speed through the sky. I wanted to fly as if my mind would just leave me. I flew felt like I was flying at like warp factor nine, dodging trees left and right. Tree! Tree! Treetreetreetreetree! I was giddy! It was a rush!
I don't know if I did it on purpose...wait, well not on purpose exactly. Maybe it was just an accident. Or possibly, I was doing it subcounciously, without fully knowing what I was doing. Whatever. How I got there doesn't matter.
I was in my meadow. My territory.
Chapter 3 *Cassie*
Jake and Marco were surrounded by people. Everywhere I looked, all I saw was people. I was thankful I wasn't claustraphobic. Not the place to be if I was. Of course, being an Animorph, I had the privalige of not being rediculiously squished. Everybody let me through, until I was up front, and could practically touch Marco, Jake, and the andalites.
Then I saw Tobias. He shot out of the ship like a bullet. I guess he felt very unwelcome. That was terrible, considering all he's given up. Much more than anybody else. Well, except for Rachel...Tobias really let the war get to him. He had a lousy life as a normal human, and a pretty lousy life as a hawk. He almost fully given in to the hawk. The only thing stopping him, the only thing tying him to humanity was Rachel; but now he lost that too.
Jake looked past me, over my head, then lowered his gaze. He spotted me, and gave a little half wave. I returned the same slightly odd, oquward wave. I think Jake got the impression that I was going out with that guy I have to work with. For the animals and all. It wasn't true of course. He was just a really close friend. A guyfriend, not a boyfriend. I was twenty-six, and single.
Doesn't really matter much right then though. Marco motioned for me to come up to the little gray platform the ship was landed on, and they and the Andalites were also standing on it. I slightly shook my head no. I don't do well with the crowds, and besides. This was their moment. Not mine.
Marco must have been thinking Well, if she won't come up, then I'll come down. Jake saw him, then took a swing at Marco's shirt collar. Missed! Marco took a little hop down, and told me all about Ax. I almost fainted from relief. I had prayed so hard that they would all be safe. Thank god they were, but I figured that Marco and Jake would have had to rescue Ax. I guess the andalite fleet took care of that.
"So it was all a waste?",I quietly asked.
He responed with, "I guess. I haven't really thought of it like that. I guess I'm in denial that it was all for nothing." I glanced back up at Jake. He was talking to Barak Obama, the first African American president. Jake was explaining to him and the whole entire crowd (with the help of a very powerful microphone) about their trip, and what had been discovered. The andalites jumped in occasionally to add in anything he missed.
I saw Jake shooting glances at my fingers. Looking for a ring I guess. Ugh, great. I held up my hands, and wiggled my fingers. No ring. He sort of blushed, because I don't think he was trying to let me see that. I almost laughed, but stopped myself. He thought it may have offended me, but of course it didn't. It was strange that he was making a huge speech, standing next to the president, and he was worried about wether or not I was engaged or married. I wasn't even dating! Though, I found it somewhat sweet at the same time. I looked at Marco, who was rolling his eyes dramatically, making a point of it. He stepped back onto the platform, and helped Jake with his speech.
It was a HUGE victory. Even though the end result of their war turned out very different than everybody expected. Thank GOD that everybody was safe, and that was all I cared about at the time. Maybe after everything calmed down, I'll invite Jake over to my house. Just to catch up.
Chapter 4 *Tobias*
My territory. Well, I assumed that it would already have another dominant bird of prey. An eagle, falcon, whatever. I let loose a "TSEER!" just to make sure. If any other bird was living there, it would have responded, and I would be able to clearly see it.
No response
Still no response.
, I called out in thought speech. I flew past the trees, until I found my favorite perch. I fluttered down, and landed, grasping my talons tightly onto the branch.
I was back in my meadow. I could just keep living like I had before the second war. I could easily do that. It was like nothing changed at all. I could continue to be Tobias the red tailed hawk. Easy. Simple.
Five seconds later, life got a lot more confusing.
Suddenly, a red tail flew literally right into my face! "Ah! Hey! Watch it!", I yelled. That was stupid. Of course, it couldn't understand me. Or so I thought, because right then the hawk smiled at me.
Then it began to change.
What the? Hawks can't smile, and if they could, why would they? They don't feel happiness. Only the sadness of losing the kill, or the nice feeling of a full belly.
It came to me. After all these years of the puppet games, he came back to mess with us even more. The being that could have saved Rachel, despite his little war with Crayak.
The Ellimist.
Suddenly, I wasn't in my territory any more. I was surrounded by light blue mist. It swirled around me, but I had no idea if it was a wall, the air, or what. I stood on the air, with no floor. Or maybe it was the floor. If it was, then the floor looked just like the walls, or air, or whatever. It was very scary just seeing myself sort of float there without my wings. There was nothing under my feet, and no wing to fly with in case I suddenly fell down through the air...or floor, I'm still fuzzy about the whole thing.
Then I wasn't alone anymore. Jake, Cassie, and Marco were there too, looking as confused and scared as I felt. I had no idea why he pulled us there, but I had a feeling I was about to find out, wether I liked it or not.
Marco was the first one of us to say anything. "WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH US?!", he yelled.
, I shouted at him.
The Ellimist appeared in his old man costume. "You have sacrafised so much, yet in comparison, so little.", he spoke.
"What do you mean by that!", Jake yelled. "You didn't save Rachel. Your stupid petty war with Crayak could wait. You always stuck your little finger in the time stream, but you never jumped in the whole way. I don't care what you say, I think you're a frod! That's right, frodfrodfrodfrod, you -" Jake called the Ellimist a few choice words that I would not like to repeat, then gave him the finger for added measure.
The Ellimist didn't seem to care about what Jake had just said. But look at all that I did do. I helped you save a small sample of the Hork-Bajir race. When Jake gave in to Crayak, and you were pulled into a different time line, but I changed it, and now you are back where you should be. And Tobias...has his morphing ability regained."
Cassie looked down at her feet, and I could see she was near tears. Marco made a point of looking around at the swirling blue mist around him. And Jake shut his eyes tightly, and bit his lip so hard it bled slightly. I was the only one that still dared look the Ellimist in the eye. What he said was true, he did help us with all those things. Though, I could never forgive him. The only thing that tied me to humanity instead of letting the hawk instinct just take over me was Rachel.
, I began.
Chapter 6 *Jake*
, I heard Tobias begin. But that's all I heard him say. He fell to the ground in a tangle of feathers. Cassie gasped, then tried to pick him up to help him, but she gained a dazed look in her eyes, then fell to the clear ground too, nearly directly on top of Tobias. Marco slumped into a sitting position, then shut his eyes and and his chest folded over his legs, his head craned over his knees. He looked very uncomfortable.
"Guys! Cassie!", I yelled. The next thing I knew I was sprawled on the invisable floor.
FLASH! "You're it!", Rachel yelped to me. I was off and running towards her. "No tagbacks!", she called behind her shoulder. I switched my course. It was her birthday party. She was turning eight years old. We hadn't known about the yeerks yet. We were just having fun being little kids. My biggest concern at the time was weather or not she was going to like her present. I had gotten her a t-shirt that said, 'Move Over Tinkerbell!' I got her a denim skirt to go with it. All my cousons were there, Jamie, Cassidy, and Simon. My cousons Jordan and Sara were there too, being Rachel's sisters. Cassie was there too, since they had been friends since preschool. I caught up to Simon. "You're it!" I yelled. "Present time!", I heard Aunt Niomi shout. She was trying to be heard above the variously loud kids. The noise got louder. Rachel climbed onto a chair inside the kitchen, and my cousons, her sisters, Cassie, and many of her friends with names I didn't know, all crowded around her. Her mom handed her a present, with purple wrapping that I recignized. My present to her. She unfolded the card and read it out loud, then looked at me and smiled. She ripped the wrapping paper, and lifted the lid that read the name of the store. Her face lit up when she saw the outfit. "Thanks Jake!", she yelled. She gave me a quick hug, and I was no longer scared.
FLASH! I was eleven years old. It had snowed 13 inches, and school was canceled for the day. No yeerks yet, so we weren't going to spend a school day off on some crazy mission. I was in my backyard, and I had invited Rachel over. Marco was doing something with his dad, so I decided to call Rachel. We were on opposite sides of the yard, and were engaged in a major snowball war. I was packing the snow into a huge wall. Twice it had crumbled partially, then I realized how unsturdy the base was, so I built it back up. When I was finishing up, it was at least four feet high, and two yards wide. It took me about two and a half hours to make it. Rachel on the other hand, had a sturdier wall that was problobly three yards wide, but only three quarters of the height of mine. She had her back turned the other way, and I nailed her hard with a snowball. I laughed, and almost fell face first into the freezing white snow. She spun around. "That's it, this is war!", she yelped. Soon, the air was filled with snowballs flying back and forth.
FLASH! Another battle. Another slaughter. Another fight. I stared at my couson through wonderful tiger eyes. A grizzley bear just tearing apart the enemy. She seemed not to care about the lives she was damaging. Did she actually enjoy the war? Did she long for the thrill rush of hurting the enemy? She seemed like a huge brown monster with fur, just trying to kill. How long until she goes off the deep end? I knew the kind of darkness that was growing inside her. There was always a warrior inside of her, just fighting for a way out. My beautiful couson, turned into a killing machine. I couldn't think like that, it wouldn't do me any good. I had to try to ignore the fact. No time to worry about that right now though, it wouldn't help me at all. There was a hork-bajir trying to rip open my back. I could worry later.
FLASH!
Too many painful memories. Too many sweet ones, and too many terribly sad ones. All about my couson Rachel. I was having all these flashbacks, and all I could do was wonder why.
Chapter 7 *Marco*
FLASH! "You know, you really should go out with me." I was in sixth grade, before the yeerks, and Tobias hadn't been coming to our school yet. I was in the school hallway, and was late to class. I didn't care, but I bet Rachel did. She had an expression that could only mean 'What, do you think I'm some kind of idiot?'. Lots of girls would love to go out with me. I've heard plenty of girls call me cute, wether or not it was to my face, or I just happened to overhear a conversation. Of course, I never actually eavesdropped on people's conversations before. Rachel didn't seem to have a reply to my question. "Is it because I am roughly two feet shorter than you are?" I questioned her. "Marco, if we were the last two people on planet earth, I still wouldn't ever go out with you.", she replied. Rachel isn't exactly modest, yet she doesn't brag. She knows she's pretty, but she would definetly rather be Xena, warrior princess. I was about to say something else too, but was interrupted by Rachel. "I have to get to class.", she spoke. Without another word, she had walked briskly into Mrs. Walker's bioligy class. I didn't even have time to get another word in. Sighing, I slightly kicked the locker that I was standing by. Not only had I past up a chance to go out with Rachel, but I really didn't feel like going to algebra.
Suddenly, a strange memory entered my head. I did not know this memory, at least not from this time. Could it be from...another time line?
FLASH! "Mom!", I shreaked. I ran after her. Could she possibly still be alive? Rachel ran after me, wether or not it was because she thought I was insane, or something else. I don't know, but she ran after me. We raced down the steps, to the first floor. "There!", I hollared pointing at her. We pounded after her, yet she had about a hundred foot lead. She shoved some man aside, and took the revolving door, in effort to escape us. We reached the revolving door, and I jumped into the section after the one she was standing in. Suddenly, she spun the door around fast, and my hands got squished between the doors. Blood seeped through my interlocked fingers. Why would my mom purposely hurt me? "Hey, you ok?", she shouted. I responed, "After her! Stay on her!" She kept running after my mom. I scrambled to my feet, and I was soon up and running once again. I couldn't find her. Rachel stopped and looked around. "She has a wig.", I gasped panting. We saw a brunette lady clumped together with people going up the steps, doing exactly the opposite of what she shoulf have been doing. We chased her outside, then she ran into the street. Despite, the traffic we still ran after her. We reached the end of the street, and our surroundings held a dumpster, and a stack of bottles. I crept toward the dumpster. Our of nowhere, my mom appeard and nailed Rachel in the side of the head with a glass bottle. Hard. Her eyes rolled in different directions, and tears blurred her vision. Rachel kicked the side of my mom ,and she was down on her butt. Suddenly, very large hands held me tightly. Hands of a man. Hands of a very large man. Rachel picked up a bottle with jagged edges and nailed the man restraining me. I broke free. We ran. We ran and ran and ran.
FLASH!
Why were all the memories surfacing again? She was dead after all. Dead!
Chapter 8 *Cassie*
FLASH! Twelve years old, at my house with Rachel. We were in my room, in our sleeping bags. It was about midnight, and we were determined to not fall asleep all night. Rachel had no problem with that, yet it was somewhat of a challange for me. I'm usually not one to stay up late. I had to keep talking, or I'd just flat out fall into a deep sleep. "So.", I said in effort to stay awake. Rachel waited for me to finish. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes then smiled coyly. "Who do you have a crush on? Oh, and don't say you don't have one, because I'd know you're lying.", I said with a huge grin on my face. Rachel smiled sheepishly, a blush creeping up her face. "Okay. Fine, you know me too well. So you know that sort of new kid at school...Tobias?" she admitted. I could honestly say that I was a little surprised. "Yeah. I know him. He's in my history and English classes.", I said keeping a straight face. Rachel obviously wanted to change the subject. She laughed suddenly. "I can't beleive that YOU are crushing on my couson.", she said. "Well, lemme just say that if I have anything to do with it, someday, you and I will be related. You'll be my couson inlaw.", I said giggling. Rachel giggled too. I stopped laughing. I nervously asked "You think he's okay with me being African American and all?" Rachel rolled her eyes. "Cassie Jake is nuts for you. He's one guy out of a million that doesn't look at things like that. He doesn't care about the way you look." I was releived at the very least. "Well, okay.", I said smiling.
FLASH! "Oh, and I want to go to the Gap so I can get those jeans on sale. Hmm, and American Eagle has that sweater, and I got a coupon for it. And Abracrombie and Finch has that dress... Hollister is having an everything 30% off sale. Those graphic tees at Old Navy are on sale too.", Rachel ran through the list in her head. Of course, she wanted me to come. I hated the mall, but I finally allowed Rachel to drag me from one store to the next. She grabbed my elbow, then pulled me into Gap. She immediatly found the jeans, and fished for her wallet inside her purse. A normal fourteen year old mall rat. She payed for the jeans, then we rushed up the stairs to American Eagle. "Rachel, you have this natural talent for spending.", I said rolling my eyes. She pulled me into American Eagle, found the sweater, then gave the coupon and her money to the girl at the counter. Almost exactly next door to American Eagle is Abracrombie and Finch. She rushed me in, and picked out a light pink sundress. Before I had time to say anything, she rushed into the changing room. I leaned against a rack of denim boot cut jeans and sighed. Shopping with Rachel was always a challange.
FLASH! The war again. My best friend gone into the dark side. Gone off the deep end. We were sitting in our desks beside each other, in math class. We were in the lowest ranked class since we couldn't keep our grades up with the war. "Hi Rachel.", I said. She grunted, then took her seat. Ms. Stevenson was blabbing on about how pi equeals 3.14, and something about calculing the diameter of a circle. I glanced over at Rachel. She was drawing something in her notebook. Something with blades... two feet... claws... a hork-bajir! That was stupid of her. Anybody in our class could be a controller, including our teacher. She must have finished her drawing, because she put the pencil down. Then she very suddenly picked it back up again, and started violently stabbing it with her pencil. A few other students glanced over at us, wondering what in the world Rachel was doing. My face grew red, and my forehead sweat, realizing that any one of them could have a slimy yeerk in their brain. Controlling their every movment. I quickly snatched up the pencil, and tore the page out of her notebook. I folded the paper, then stashed it into my overall's pocket. I dropped Rachel's pencil back onto her desk. Her blue eyes were narrowed into vertical slits, and she stared at her desk so intensly, that I thought she would drill a hole in it. Rachel turned her head slowly to face me, gave me the evil eye, then watched the teacher's notes on the whiteboard. What was to become of my best friend?
FLASH!
My best friend was gone forever. The memories would never leave me though. They were to haunt me for the rest of my life.
Chapter 9 *Tobias*
FLASH! I walked to my next class in sixth grade, when I was twelve years old. Oh, and by walked, I mean walked while looking everywhere very carefully. I didn't want to run into any trouble. Andy and Tap-tap didn't pound on me the day before, so I was overdue for an extra hard beating. Then I spotted her. I didn't even know her name yet. Then I saw a guy with dark eyes and dark hair change pace to walk beside her. My heart sank. She has a boyfriend. "Hi Rachel.", the boy said. So her name's Rachel. That's a nice name. Very pretty. "Hi cous.", she replied. My spirits lifted once again. So this kid was just a couson of her. Phew! I considered walking up to her and say hi, but my throat went dry. I felt like I couldn't get any words out. She glanced around the hallway, and her gaze stopped at me. We made eye contact, but only for about a second and a half. Her georgeous blue eyes darted back to the floor, and her cheeks turned slightly pink. I felt my face growing hot too. Was it possible she liked me? I tried to maintain a straight face, but inside I was grinning. That was the highlight of my day.
FLASH! ...A flash of gold, way down the beach. A graceful figure pushing over the dunes to meet us. Rachel! The others were involved in a game of frizbee that seemed to include a lot of splashing. I jumped up, and started to run towards her. She saw me and smiled. I slowed as I neared her, breathing hard. Suddenly I had my arms around her. I buried my face in her hair. She held me tightly. "Bad.", she said. "Yeah.", I whispered. "Real bad. I came close to, you know. Awfully close. I was so...I mean, I didn't..." I took a couple of shaky breaths. "I lost myself. Didn't know who I was. Not sure I do now." "Tobias," she said quietly, "I know who you are." A long long time while neither of us spoke. Neither of us moved. Then, she smiled. "Hey, it's nice and warm, but there are some killer thermals.", she said. I smiled. "Lets fly." "Yeah.", she agreed. "Right after I do this." She kissed me. "Okay, now lets fly.", she said and laughed her self mocking Rachel laugh. In a short time we were coasting on a thermal, high over the beach. Over the city. Over everything. Who am I? What am I? A bird. A boy. Something not quite human. Something more than human. The person Rachel loves. I discovered the answer to what I am, who I am, isn't something to be said in a single word or a single moment. It could take a lifetime to figure out who I am. For now, I'm willing to hang in there, floating on a thermal. Biding my time...
FLASH! ...Rachel lay there in suspended animation. She slowly demorphed back to human. I slowly morphed to human. I knew in my heart what would happen to her. What would happen next. The snake lay motionless in her mouth. Rachel was beautiful. She was my everything. She was something I couldn't live without. Rachel spit the dead Tom in snake morph out of her mouth. She was surrounded. I knew what would happen. I began to cry. Hawks can't cry. Humans can. I needed Rachel to see how much I cared, how much she meant to me. She saw us. Well, she saw the viewscreen of us. Her gaze stopped on me, and made a hole in my heart. I don't know how, but she knew why I morphed. I sobbed. I mourned. "I love you.", she said. She smiled her last smile. For me. Then the polar bear killed her with a single blow. Nobody moved. I cried, and cried. You may know what it's like losing a person you love. I doubt you know what it's like being there when the person you're in love with is killed by a sludgy yeerk in polar bear morph.
She's dead! Accept it? I can't
Chapter 10 *Tobias*
Finally after what felt like hours, the memories ended. Yet the pain did not go away. I discovered the Ellimist had made me human for the rest of his visit. Since I was human, I cried. I didn't care that Jake, Marco, and Cassie were there. I cried. I had no reason to feel embaressed. Everybody else was crying too. I wasn't a kid anymore. I was an adult. Didn't care, I still cried.
What did he do that for?! It was completely unnesesary. Marco decided to ask him after cursing a few times.
The Ellimist in old man form smiled, then slowly dissapeared. I cursed him. "I hate him! He's terrible! He is just as bad as Crayak!" I still cried.
I loved Rachel. I thought I'd never see her again.
We were all in my meadow. I wiped the salty water off of my face.
Chapter 11 *Rachel*
Heaven. Literally. Heaven. No anger. No worry. No pain. Soon, I wasn't there anymore. I was surrounded by blackness.
Huh? I was human again. Older than I was when I left earth. I knew in my head that I was twenty six. Don't ask me how, I just knew. All of the human emotions came rushing back to me. Anger, sadness, regret, guilt, and so much more. It was overwhelming.
The Ellimist. He looked like an old man, but looks can be deceiving. "Where am I!? What happened!?", I asked him. I counted in my head. I died at age nineteen. I was-oh my gosh. Dead for seven years.
The Ellimist answered my questions. "You are halfway between heaven and earth.", I looked around at the terrible darkness.
"Ellimist.", I said my voice quavering. "H-how are my f-friends. And Tobias. How are they?" In about a nanosecond, the Ellimist had showed me all that happened the past seven years. I shreaked. "They're misrable! How could you not help them!? And by the way, those flasbacks you made them have were VERY unessesary!" The only good thing that I could comprehend was that earth was safe.
"I am here to give you a choice.", he said. I stared at him blankly.
"Do you wish to return to earth?" He smiled. My head spun.
"But. Crayak." I spit out.
The Ellimist smiled. "Crayak lost. He could care less about wether or not you return to earth."
"Oh my god." I couldn't process it. Gaining my humanity back. Being a human again. Another chance at life. I gave my life up for humanity's future. It would be selfish to say yes if there was consiquences, only that there wasn't any. It wasn't even a question. Of cource he knew what I would say. There's only one answer when someone offers you something like that.
"You know my answer," I told him.
"Just say the word Rachel."
"Yes."