disclaimer:i do not own Animorphs nor Crayak-the voice that was speaking to Loren.

she wanted... what did she want? was it new shoes? pants? she saw the calendar of 1997. how 'bout a new calendar? she looked around the room-it was filled with everyday things. was this her room? she only remembered she was born in 2003 and was 13 years old. she remembered her name started with an L, but that was it. who was she? where was she?

"come on you guys! we don't have all day!" a girl shouted. footsteps came nearer.

'L' quickly ran under the bed.

thump!

just great.'L' thought rubbing her head. she had bumped her head on the frame of the bed.

wait Lyzah. i heard something from inside your room, a boy said.

"it's probably nothing Tobias." Lyzah suggested. she opened the door. "see Tobias? no one's here,"

if no one's here, then why is there a foot sticking out of the bottom of your bed? Tobias stated.

'L' quickly noticed her foot wasn't hidden and pulled it into the shadows.

"what foot?" Lyzah wondered, looking in her room. "Tobias, there's not a foot there-you must be imaging things."

i guess i am, Tobias replied as the others entered the room.

"what's the meeting about?" Marco asked grabbing a chair.

"well..." Lyzah started.

"go on," Jake replied.

Lyzah started searching for something.

"what are you looking for?" Cassie inquired.

"someone else is here." Lyzah answered.

"of course there's someone else here-they'll be us!" Marco stated.

"someone else." Lyzah repeated. "eight are in here."

"what do you mean eight? last time i checked, there are only seven of us," Rachel quoted.

"another with the morphing power." Lyzah said. "a female. related to all of us somehow,"

'L' froze. they know i'm here!

that is impossible. there are only the other half-Andalites and the Chee who know us. and the half-Andalites don't have the power to morph. Ax replied.

"she knows she's found. she doesn't even know her name or how she got here." Lyzah said.

'L' cowered there. she was found and Lyzah was getting closer to her.

"she's scared." Lyzah checked her closet.

"can you tell us something about her besides that she's scared?" Jake wondered.

"she has blond hair, a height between Tobias' and Rachel's, blue-brown eyes, and-well, that's all i can tell right now," Lyzah answered.

'L' grew even more scared each time Lyzah spoke. she knows what i look like!

"how about her name?" Cassie inquired.

"um..." Lyzah was silent for a few minutes. "it's Loren something. can't tell her last name though."

Loren.

Flash!

Loren was walking through an abandon site with her cousins Anily and Teague. a Hork-Bajir jumped in front of her and...

Flash!

"Loren. my name is Loren." Loren whispered.

i heard someone. Tobias stated.

Lyzah nodded. "she isn't afraid anymore. i know where she is hiding now," she crawled under the bed and helped Loren out.

Loren removed the dust from her clothes and got up.

"Lyzah's right-you're half Bird-Boy and half Xena." Marco joked.

who's Bird-Boy and Xena? Loren wondered.

as if she heard Loren's thoughts, Lyzah answered. "Bird-Boy is my twin Tobias, who is the hawk and, Xena is Rachel-the one who is about to pound Marco to pieces."

who's Marco and who is everyone else? Loren thought.

to answer her thoughts, they did something like a name call.

Flash!

Loren, Anily, Teague, Jared, Casjar, Elfangor, and the Animorphs-the older Animorphs- were in the woods wearing spandex of all things. they stopped and started...

Flash!

"oh god! what happened to her?!" Cassie said.

they gathered near Loren. she was standing one minute-the next, thump! lying down on the floor.

"Anily, Teague, Jared, Casjar, Elfangor..." Loren muttered. she was talking but, her eyes were closed and, Tobias couldn't hear her heart beat.

"why is she muttering about Elfangor and Lyzah?" Jake said.

Lyzah shock her head. "she's not talking about me or Ax's brother. she's talking about a different Anily and Elfangor-ones from a different time and different parents. that Anily and Elfangor were born in the same year and were born only a few months apart."

"i'm not supposed to be here..." Loren stated.

"now what's she talking about?" Rachel asked.

"different year..." Loren replied. "not supposed to be in this year..."

Ax, how can she be in this year when she's not from this year? Tobias wondered.

she could be in a Sario Rip or- Ax started.

"Ellimist. it's the Ellimist who did this..." Loren finished.

"okay. this is starting to freak me out. Tobias, do you hear her heart, because i thought you said you couldn't," Jake said.

and i still can't. i never could. she never had a heart beat. Tobias answered.

"this is starting to sound like the show 'Moonlight' and vampires didn't have a heart beat in their version." Lyzah stated.

"so you're saying she's a vampire." Marco joked.

"in another universe where the Animorphs are just a book series, someone wrote a fanfic where Rachel became an owl Nothlit, Tobias was human again and could morph, and everyone else except Ax were stuck in vampire bodies because of a disease. and there was a girl name Joey who could become invisible, Ellimist brought back to life and she became a Controller like two vampires named Falcon, Erica, and Jake while the rest of you were asleep." Lyzah countered. "and no-i'm saying she's really dead but Ellimist let her live. she died somehow and was brought back into our time. i don't think she belongs here though,"

"because i don't... i died and my cousins know it... Anily, Teague, Jared, Casjar, and Elfangor-they all know it... i'm dead..." Loren replied.

"do you remember how you died?" Cassie wondered.

"no... but Anily and the others do... Anily and Teague were with me when i died..." Loren said.

"Tobias, any heart beat now?" Rachel inquired.

none. i still haven't heard a single beat from her, Tobias answered. Loren, do you have an idea who your parents are?

"i think they are Tobias and Rachel but, i'm not a 100 sure..." Loren whispered.

impossible. Tobias and Rachel have not married yet. Ax stated.

before Loren could reply, Lyzah spoke. "Loren, what year were you born in?"

"why does it matter what year she was born in?" Marco inquired. "it's not like she's from the-"

"future... i was born in the future... the year 2003..." Loren interrupted.

"how did you die Loren? can you remember that?" Lyzah said. "if you do, maybe we can stop that from happening,"

Loren nodded. "i do now... 2015... Visser Three... he was supposed to be dead... he died from lack of Kandronas... was in a Hork-Bajir body and jumped in front of me... Anily and Teague tried to stop me but, it was to late... he sliced me good... there was no hope to save me..." her speech was slowing, the pauses in between growing longer. "he killed me right in front of them and was about to get them when i died... they killed him as Anda-" she stopped speaking.

"Loren! come on! stay with me Loren!" Lyzah yelled. she dropped next to her and searched for a pulse.

there won't be a pulse, Lyzah. she never had one, Ax stated.

no, wait. i hear a pulse now! Tobias quoted.

Lyzah held Loren's wrist. "there's a pulse! she's-"

"fading!" Marco interrupted. "she's disappearing!"

"oh man! what's happening Ax?!" Rachel demanded.

i do not know, Ax admitted.

"Loren! can you hear us?! answer us Loren!" Lyzah, Marco, Jake, Cassie, and Rachel repeated.

Loren! don't go on us Loren! Tobias yelled.

voices. non-important voices. nothing important. meaningless. ignore them Loren. forget them. they mean nothing at all. touch the light Loren, do it. they only want to keep you away from your family. a demanding voice told Loren as she faded slowly.

no! they are my family! they are my family from the past! i can't die on them like i did to my family in the future!Loren countered. she started to appear again.

they are not your family! they are useless people! touch the light!

no!

Loren faded for a few seconds then started appearing again, over and over again. fade, appear. fade, appear.

give up Loren! i will win! you will touch the light! the voice ordered.

never! i can beat you! i won't touch it! Loren screamed.

Loren! stay will us Loren!

"Loren! stay with us Loren!"

touch it!

never! i won't!

yes you will!

no i won't!

face it Loren. i will make you touch it. you will stay dead forever!

no! i won't! i will stay alive! i will stay in flesh! i won't stay dead!

you will stay dead!

i will be alive!

dead!

alive!

DEAD!

NEVER!

NOW!

ALIVE!

LEAVE THEM!

NO!

YES!

STAY!

DIE!

LIVE!

"Loren!" Lyzah shock Loren. "stay with us girl! don't die!"

TOUCH IT!

NEVER!

FACE IT! YOU'RE DEAD!

I HAVE A HEART BEAT! I'M ALIVE!

TOUCH IT! NOW!

I WON'T! I'LL STAY ALIVE!

Loren, can you hear me? stay with us! Tobias pleaded.

DEAD!

ALIVE! ALIVE!

DEATH!

LIVE!

LEAVE!

STAY!

YOU WILL DIE!

NEVER!

DIE!

why do you want me to die? why can't you let me live? Loren asked.

YOU WILL DIE HUMAN! Crayak replied not answering her question.

why? why die? why not live?

WHY SHOULD I TELL A WEAK HUMAN?!

fine. but i will live!

DIE! YOU WILL DIE! YOU CANNOT WIN!

watch me! Loren stopped fading completely. she only reappeared, not disappear. she won.

"i'm alive," Loren whispered in disbelief. "i don't believe this, i won." she fainted.

one hour later

"hey Sleeping Beauty." Marco joked. "nice of you to wake up now,"

Loren sat up straight. she looked at the mirror on Lyzah's desk. her eyes were a bright green.

"i thought your eyes were a mix of blue and brown," Rachel stated sitting next to Loren.

"they are." Loren replied looking at Rachel. her eyes changed back to her normal color.

"whoa. didn't see that coming," a human Tobias quoted.

"they become green if i fainted," Loren explained.

"uh huh." Lyzah asked. "so, how do we get you back to the future and notdie?"

"um..." Loren said. "if i remember what happened, i wouldn't die or, i decide not to set foot in the site,"

"so how do we even get you back?" Jake wondered.

"yeah. we don't exactly have a Time Matrix with us," Cassie stated.

perhaps i should remind everyone that we do have a Time Matrix in our hands, Ax quoted.

"i forgot about that," Lyzah said. "i have been calling the future but, no one ever answers anymore. i forgot i even had it."

"oh yeah. the Time Window," Marco replied. he slapped himself on the head.

"i think i know why they don't answer-my death. Anily and Teague were there so they don't really want to talk about it i guess," Loren muttered. "but if we just bring me back to the current time then, they'll think Ellimist is tricking them-they will think i'm a ghost."

"how 'bout we send you to before you died with the memories of what happened?" Rachel suggested. she really didn't want her future daughter to die again.

"but that could also mean that Visser Three is still there and is going to try to kill us and our children," Tobias stated.

"so what are we going to do?" Cassie asked. "we can't let her stay in our time or else-you know."

"so far, the only other way i can think of is if Ellimist does it." Jake said. "he could alter that part so Visser Three doesn't come back and that Loren doesn't get killed."

"but why would Elli-" Loren started. a blue light consumed her.

"Loren!" everyone yelled-minus Ax and Lyzah.

"she's okay. Ellimist brought her back," Lyzah said calmly. "now, as i was saying before this happened."

"what are you talking about?" everyone else but Ax asked her.

Lyzah shook her head. "never mind that."

the night Loren had 'died'

they trio of girls walked home.

"should we go through the site tonight?" Teague wondered. "i mean, if we take the long way home, we'll be late."

Loren shuddered at the thought. "i think i would rather go the long way-better being grounded than dead."

Anily and Teague stared at her. Loren always wanted to go through the site and hope that a dieing Andalite would tell them there was another Yeerk invasion on Earth like what happened with their parents.

but, anyway, they walked the long safe way home.

i wonder what made me say that. Loren thought as they arrived at their homes.