Heroes
The war is over. The Yeerks didn't win. But then, in my eyes, no one ever
did win, really. Sure the Yeerks were all killed. And, sure, all the
species enslaved by them were set free. But killing an entire species never
really seemed like a win to me. I am Cassie Leigh Mennert. I live in a
small apartment in Anderson, West Virginia. I am 27 years old. And the war
is over. The only good part I can see about the end of the war is that I can
tell you who I am. And the worst part about telling you who I am is that I
now realize who I am is not my full name, or where I love. Who I am, is an
animorph, one of only two who survived the final conflict.
The animorphs, a group of teenagers and one Andalite, saving the world from
the yeerks. I'm sure you've heard all about us by now. It was all over the
news last year, when the last of the yeerks were destroyed, brave Jake,
leader of children, only a child himself, dying for the human race. Brave
Aximili Esggarouth Isthill, an Andalite, stuck in an alien world, dying to
protect his human prince. Brave Marco, whose mother was Visser One, dying
to protect his family. Brave Tobias, stuck inside the body of a hawk, dying
to save a race he no longer belonged to. Tragic, all of it. The news
forgot to mention the survivors. Brave Rachel finally lost it living the
rest of her days in the asylum? Brave Cassie, dirt poor, barely scraping by
as a waitress? No wonder the news never mentioned us.
The news of course, was full of shit. Jake, Ax, Tobias, and Marco all died
tragically, but then they were my best friends, my identity, to me, even
being squished under a rogue bug fighter is tragic. An accident. After we
had won, that's one consolation, they knew we had won, we'd killed the last
of the yeerks, only to have five us die squashed flat by some humans playing
with an old bugfighter. What a disgrace. I suppose I should be happy that
we won, happy that earth thinks of the animorphs as heroes, but I never
thought of heroes as wiping out entire civilizations. Or working as
waitresses or dying by accident, or living in insane asylums.
By now, you're probably wondering what the point of this is, and I have to
admit, I wonder too. I just felt that it was necessary to get the rest of
the story out, maybe. Maybe I'm jealous of my friends, of the ones I love,
who died and received all the fame, and didn't have to continue living. I
don't know anymore, why I continue. Perhaps it's out of a duty to Rachel..
.. but she lives in a padded room...perhaps......
Rachel read the last sentence on the page, tears running down her otherwise
blank face. She let out a long piercing wail, and clasped the paper to her
heart. Cassie, too, was dead. She had been allowed the luxury of suicide.
Rachel sat, quietly, staring at the woman who had given her the paper.
"I'm sorry...I didn't know who else to give it to...I thought maybe it would
help..."
Rachel simply stared blankly, arms around her knees, and allowed the paper
to fall out of her now limp hands.
The war is over. The Yeerks didn't win. But then, in my eyes, no one ever
did win, really. Sure the Yeerks were all killed. And, sure, all the
species enslaved by them were set free. But killing an entire species never
really seemed like a win to me. I am Cassie Leigh Mennert. I live in a
small apartment in Anderson, West Virginia. I am 27 years old. And the war
is over. The only good part I can see about the end of the war is that I can
tell you who I am. And the worst part about telling you who I am is that I
now realize who I am is not my full name, or where I love. Who I am, is an
animorph, one of only two who survived the final conflict.
The animorphs, a group of teenagers and one Andalite, saving the world from
the yeerks. I'm sure you've heard all about us by now. It was all over the
news last year, when the last of the yeerks were destroyed, brave Jake,
leader of children, only a child himself, dying for the human race. Brave
Aximili Esggarouth Isthill, an Andalite, stuck in an alien world, dying to
protect his human prince. Brave Marco, whose mother was Visser One, dying
to protect his family. Brave Tobias, stuck inside the body of a hawk, dying
to save a race he no longer belonged to. Tragic, all of it. The news
forgot to mention the survivors. Brave Rachel finally lost it living the
rest of her days in the asylum? Brave Cassie, dirt poor, barely scraping by
as a waitress? No wonder the news never mentioned us.
The news of course, was full of shit. Jake, Ax, Tobias, and Marco all died
tragically, but then they were my best friends, my identity, to me, even
being squished under a rogue bug fighter is tragic. An accident. After we
had won, that's one consolation, they knew we had won, we'd killed the last
of the yeerks, only to have five us die squashed flat by some humans playing
with an old bugfighter. What a disgrace. I suppose I should be happy that
we won, happy that earth thinks of the animorphs as heroes, but I never
thought of heroes as wiping out entire civilizations. Or working as
waitresses or dying by accident, or living in insane asylums.
By now, you're probably wondering what the point of this is, and I have to
admit, I wonder too. I just felt that it was necessary to get the rest of
the story out, maybe. Maybe I'm jealous of my friends, of the ones I love,
who died and received all the fame, and didn't have to continue living. I
don't know anymore, why I continue. Perhaps it's out of a duty to Rachel..
.. but she lives in a padded room...perhaps......
Rachel read the last sentence on the page, tears running down her otherwise
blank face. She let out a long piercing wail, and clasped the paper to her
heart. Cassie, too, was dead. She had been allowed the luxury of suicide.
Rachel sat, quietly, staring at the woman who had given her the paper.
"I'm sorry...I didn't know who else to give it to...I thought maybe it would
help..."
Rachel simply stared blankly, arms around her knees, and allowed the paper
to fall out of her now limp hands.