Her smile instantly faded. A spike of absolute, complete fear was pierced into the very core of Tellion's essence. Her body froze. Her throat tightened. And the tremors of that terror coursed all through her body.
The Sharing. The invasion forces' front group to find and acquire new hosts. Now they had set their diabolical sights on Susan's, now her younger sister. She knew that the ultimate end result was of Ellaine having one of her kind seeping their way into her ear canal, spreading out across her young and innocent brain, layering their control tendrils all through the folds of her brain, and ultimately making this sweet and innocent child a prisoner in her own body.
Tellion instantly lost her pace and almost fell over from what she had been told by Ellaine. Her younger sister caught her before she could fall.
"Hey, Suzie. Are you ok? You just lost your balance there. " Ellaine asked, helping to keep Tellion up.
She didn't answer her. Her mind instantly took a life of its own as she immediately began looking around at her surroundings. They were still a bit of a distance away from the group they had been assigned to, enough that no one noticed what was happing between the two of them. She looked around with a stern, intense purpose. Nearby, she spotted a small restroom. Without a word said, she firmly grasped Ellaine's hand and dragged her over to the secluded area.
"Hey, Suzie, what are you…"
"Shut up!" Tellion snapped, dragging Ellaine into the restroom assigned for females of the human species.
Tellion hurled Ellaine inside, slamming the door behind her once they were inside the small building. She instantly turned the small lock to prevent anyone else from coming in. Ellaine looked at her with a mixture of confusion and worry as Tellion pushed past her and moved towards the stalls at the far end of the bathroom.
"Suzie, what are you doing?" Ellaine asked nervously.
Tellion ignored her, marching over to the first stall and slamming her hand into the door to push it open. Empty. She moved to the next one and hit it with equal ferocity. Empty.
"Suzie, what…" Ellaine asked again.
Again, Tellion said nothing. She went to the final stall door and kicked it in with such force that the door smashed into the tiled wall with a loud bang. Out of the corner of her eyes, Tellion saw Ellaine jump from the viciousness of Tellion's actions. The stall was empty. They were both completely alone inside the building. Good. That was exactly what Tellion needed. She turned to Ellaine and walked over to her without a word said.
She could see by the way 'her' younger sister's body tensed up that she clearly understood that the situation was serious. Tellion pushed past her and pressed her ear to the crack between the door and the wall, making sure that no one was waiting outside to overhear what was about to be said.
"Suzie…" Ellaine whispered.
The concern was all too apparent in her voice. She clearly knew that something was wrong now. And Tellion made no attempt to hide it from her. The situation was far too serious to try and play ignorance to her.
"Ellaine…" Tellion said in what was perhapse the most serious voice she had ever given to her little sister since entering this life. "What…do you know about The Sharing?"
"What does that…" Ellaine asked with hesitation.
Tellion whirled to face her, her expression full of absolute seriousness. "What do you know about The Sharing?!"
Ellaine jumped back slightly from Tellion's unexpected ferocity. Even at the space between them, she could see the fear in Ellaine's eyes from her unexpected viciousness. This was a side of her that the young girl had never seen. She continued to retreat from Tellion even as she slowly approached her. It was as if they were no longer sisters, but something far more sinister.
"I…I don't know anything about it." Ellaine answered. "Bianca has just been talking about it for the last few weeks, saying that it changed her life. They're supposed to be a group that doesn't judge anyone based on race, or religion, or gender views. They're all about humanity seeing themselves as one people, so that the world can be united as one in peace. She's found a new purpose and it's made her life better."
"Is she a full member of that group?" Tellion asked.
"What does that have…" Ellaine began to ask.
"Is she a full member?!" Tellion screamed the question to Ellaine, which caused her to jump back.
Tellion hated having to be like this, but she needed to know the answers. Now. Ellaine's lips trembled at the demand, but she finally answered.
"Y…yes. She went through the final trials last month." Ellaine squeeked out. "It wasn't anything special, she said, just a formal proclamation that she wanted to help the world become one with each other."
Tellion growled in response to what she heard. Dammit! This whole time, that child that she had been interacting with, wasn't really a child. It was one of her kind, wrapped around that innocent little girl's brain and controlling her like a sadistic puppet master. Just like, to Tellion's disgust, she was to Susan's dead brain. And now that slug was setting its sights on Ellaine to put another slug like her into Susan's little sister's brain.
No. That was not going to happen. Not while Tellion was still drawing breath.
"Ellaine…" Tellion whispered in a voice that was full of seriousness, and warning. "I need you to listen to me."
"Suzie, what's going on? What…"
"Just listen to me!" Tellion snapped at her.
She walked over to Ellaine without a word. The tension that exploded in the small confines of the build were enough to rattle its foundations. Tellion grasped Ellaine's hands and looked her straight in the eyes.
"Ellaine," Tellion said in a low, serious voice. "that group Bianca joined, The Sharing, they're not what they seem to be."
"What are you talking about Suzie?" Ellaine countered. "They're just some community…"
"That's not what they are!" Tellion snapped. "That's just what they want the world to see them as!"
Her words, her ferocity, it silenced Ellaine before she could say anything else. Tellion knew that she had a very short time to present her words to Ellaine correctly before the absolute importance was lost in the moment.
"Ellaine, that organization, The Sharing, it's dangerous." Tellion warned her.
Ellaine's response was a nervous laugh. Tellion knew that Ellaine was tettering on the edge of a reality that she couldn't comprehend as a true reality. Tellion couldn't blame her. Ellaine's entire life had been lived in comfortable innocence, never knowing true fear or danger. And that was all too apparent in her bewildered and innocent eyes.
"Suzie, this is nuts. Bianca said…"
Tellion slammed her opened palm into the wall just next to Ellaine's head, cutting off her words instant.
"Bianca!" Tellion spat. She took a moment to collect herself, before speaking to Ellaine again. "Ellaine, Bianca…isn't the same anymore."
Ellaine looked in her eyes with so much confusion.
"What do you mean? She's my…"
"She's not the same person that you knew!" Tellion snapped. "She's one of them now!"
"One of what?" Ellaine demanded. "You're not making any sense Suzie!"
Tellion took a deep breath before she dared to speak her next words to Ellaine. "I told you, Ellaine. That group that Bianca joined, they're dangerous."
She could see from the look on Ellaine's face that she wasn't taking any of this seriously. She started to move towards the door.
"Suzie, this is just crazy…"
Tellion's response was to harshly grab Ellaine shoulders, startling the poor girl half to death.
"I'm not joking!" Tellion snapped. "The Sharing, everything that it says and does, it's a complete lie!"
Fear was very apparent in Ellaine's eyes with what she was hearing. So was disbelief, and doubt.
"So…what are they?"
"They're…" Tellion her voice and thoughts trailing off.
What could she do? Tell Ellaine the truth? That the Sharing was nothing more than a front group for a secret invasion of her entire planet by a race of parasitic alien slugs. That every single person that became a full member had a slug forcibly, and sometimes to Tellion's disgust, willingly, placed inside their head that then controlled that person like a sadistic puppet master, making them prisoners inside their own bodies. And the even harsher truth to devolve to Ellaine was, that the person who was speaking to wasn't really her older sister, but was instead one of those same parasitic alien slugs that was controlling every action that Susan was doing, and that her older sister was truly dead.
Even if by some crazy chance Ellaine would choose to believe it all, she would still be placed in inconceivable danger. Even more than the danger she was already unknowingly in. Tellion had to warn Ellaine without disclosing the full truth, for both their sakes.
"They're a sadistic group of extremists." Tellion answered. "They lure vulnerable people like Bianca into their fold, slowly gaining their trust and loyalty before making them full members like themselves. They are cunning and ruthless against anyone that stands in their way."
"Wh…what do they want?" Ellaine stammered.
"To control the entire world, starting with this city."
Again, Ellaine gave a nervous laugh.
"Suzie, this is just nuts. How could they possibly do this?"
"I already told you." Tellion said. "They're plan is to start off small, and slowly build their base of power up first in this city, one victim at a time. They will then spread their influence outward."
"How do you even know any of this?" Ellaine stammered.
"I found out about them by accident, and they tried to kill me." Tellion told her.
That wasn't an entire lie. She already knew of the Sharing from her time in the Imperial forces, and Callisum had tried to kill her to keep her from escaping. But Ellaine didn't need to know those finer details.
"What…" Ellaine said, her eyes now widening with fear.
"That accident I had, it was no accident Ellaine." Tellion told her. "They just made it look like an accident, to cover up their attempts to keep me silent."
"But you don't remember anything from the crash, you told me so!" Ellaine protested.
Tellion sighed, shutting her eyes hard before looking at Ellaine again.
"I don't. But they never expected me to live through that. I found out about it through a lot of chance encounters and sloppy work on their part." Tellion gave Ellaine a look that spoke of nothing but true conviction. "I only just discovered what they had done to me."
Fear was now all too evident in Ellaine's eyes as she heard something that was almost impossible to believe.
"Susie…why didn't you tell me?" Ellaine asked, her voice trembling with fright. "Why didn't you try to tell someone? What about dad? He's still got all kinds of contacts in the police force. You could have told him about…"
"It won't do any good!" Tellion snapped at Ellaine. "I told you, they have agents everywhere! Police, judges, government officials, community leaders…The Sharing has its hold over every part of this city and its infrastructure. There's no one that can be trusted…"
"Wha…" Elliane stammered, her voice faltering from the terror that was taking hold over her. "What can we do?"
Tellion looked Ellaine with absolute seriousness.
"There's nothing that 'we' are going to do." she told her little sister. "YOU are going to go about your life like nothing is wrong. You're going to pretend that this conversation never happened. And you're not going to speak to anyone about anything concerning The Sharing."
Ellaine was struggling to breathe as she heard these words.
"But…what about Bianca?"
Tellion gritted her teeth.
"Don't worry about Bianca, I'll deal with her."
"But Suzie…she's…"
"She's not your friend anymore!" Tellion snarled. "I told you. She's one of them now! All she cares about now is making you one of them!"
"How do you know that?" Ellaine snapped. "I know her! She would never get caught up in something like this! If I could just talk to her…"
"No!" Tellion shouted into Ellaine's face. "Don't you ever talk to her about anything concerning The Sharing! If she even thinks for a second that you suspect something is wrong…she'll…"
"What?" Ellaine stammered, her voice on the edge of breaking apart. "What would she do?"
Tellion brought her face just inches from Ellaine, so that their gaze was dead center in each other's eyes.
"She'll either pull you into their fold." Tellion warned. "Or…she'll kill you."
Ellaine's mouth dropped in shock. The breathe that was in her chest wheezed out with absolute dread.
"Bianca would never hurt me…" Ellaine protested, moving to get out of Tellion's harsh gaze, and towards the locked latch of the door.
Tellion grasped Ellaine and slapped her lightly across the face. The shock of the attack stunned both Ellaine, and Tellion.
"She will do anything that they tell her to do now!" Tellion snapped at her. "She may sound and act like the person you've always known, but the second you're alone with her among The Sharing, the mask will drop and you'll see just how much The Sharing warps someone's mind! To the point where they'll do anything for The Sharing. Even kill! No matter who that target is, even if it's 'they're' best friend!"
Tellion was so consumed with her warnings to Susan's little sister that it was only in that next moment that she fully realized that Ellaine was crying.
"This…" she stuttered, "this can't be real…Bianca…"
Remorse and guilt instantly flooded her thoughts, and Tellion instinctively pulled Ellaine close to her in a protective embrace. Something triggered in that instant, and her little sister began to weep into her shoulder. Tellion just held her tight.
"It's ok." she assured Ellaine, gently patting her back. "Let it all out. Don't hold anything back."
And she didn't. For the next few minutes, Tellion just let Ellaine cry into her shoulder as the whole of the situation overwhelmed the helpless girl. Once her cries began to subside, Tellion pulled her away to look at her bloodshot eyes.
"Now you have to do something harder than you ever were prepared for. You have to shed your feelings, Ellaine. You have to let them drain from you just like your tears did. Just like Bianca and The Sharing mask their true intentions, you now have to mask yourself from them. Don't ever let her or anyone else associated with that group even suspect that you know something's wrong with them."
Ellaine gulped, wiping her eyes.
"I'll…I'll try."
"Trying is not good enough!" Tellion warned her. "You have to become a perfect deceiver, a liar just like them. You have to carry on like nothing has ever happened."
"But I'm supposed to just go back to Bianca and pretend that I'm suddenly not interested in The Sharing? How can I do that?"
"Make something up. Tell her you and I have plans. After that, come up with a reasonable excuse to take up your afternoons and weekends."
Ellaine's eyes wandered about aimlessly as she thought of what Tellion had told her. Then a spark ignited in her gaze.
"Well…I thought about trying out for the school volleyball team."
"Then join it! Use that as your explanation. Whatever you have to Ellaine. But no matter what Bianca says or promises you, never, EVER, go to any of those meetings with her. Never put yourself in a situation where you'll be alone with her."
"But if she keeps asking me to join, what am I supposed to do then?" Ellaine asked with fear in her voice.
"Don't worry about Bianca," Tellion told Ellaine. "I'll deal with her."
"Suzie, you can't hurt her, she's still my friend!"
Tellion folded her arms and looked sternly at Ellaine. "I'll do whatever I have to in order to keep you safe!"
"But you said that The Sharing is dangerous! What can you…"
"They're not invincible Ellaine! They have enemies."
"Like who?"
"There are…" Tellion thought of the Chee, and the Andalite resistance. "People that know about their plans, people that have infiltrated their ranks to spy on them."
"What kind of people?" Ellaine asked, the tone of her voice was full of a wanton search for hope.
Tellion sighed. "Ellaine, you need to stop asking me these questions. The less you know, the safer it will be for you. All you need to know right now is that The Sharing won't win in the end, I fully believe that. But you need to stay away from them."
"And Bianca?"
"I'll do my best to keep her safe." Tellion lied. "But I won't risk your safety to protect her. Bianca has already made her choice."
But she really didn't. Tellion thought with great remorse. That young girl was just as much a victim in all of this as the thousands, no millions, of other subjugated hosts of the Yeerk Empire. But even then, that didn't do anything to dissuade Tellion from wanting to keep Ellaine safe from her people's clutches.
Tellion gently placed her hand on Elliane's shoulder and gently squeezed it. "Ellaine," she said to her. "you're stronger than you could ever imagine. I know you can do this. You just have to be brave."
"I don't know if I can." Ellaine said, looking at the door, and the untold challenges that awaited her beyond its surface. "I'm not like you."
"You are." Tellion told her. "Being brave is not being without fear. It's facing that fear, accepting it, and finding the strength to overcome it. And you are strong enough to do that."
"I don't know Suzie…"
Tellion grasped Ellaine's face in her hands and looked her in the eyes. "Ellaine, you can do this, I believe in you."
There was a long moment of silence between them, as if Ellaine was searching to find that courage that Tellion told her she possessed. Then, as if a revelation overcame her, Ellaine took a deep breath, and her face hardened.
"Ok, Suzie. I'm ready."
Tellion smiled encouragingly at her. "I know you are."
With that said, Tellion unlocked the door and they exited the bathroom. Tellion took Ellaine over to a snack stand and purchased them each an ice cream cone. Her action was partially to help Ellaine cope with the stunning revelation she had just brought upon her. The main reason, though, was to give them an excuse for being away from the group for so long.
Tellion was fearful of Ellaine and her ability to keep what they had said a secret when they returned to the others, and Bianca. But after a very tense minute, Tellion saw Ellaine interacting with her 'former' friend, abet somewhat nervously, it helped to put her worries at ease. She gave Bianca her excuse for not going with her to The Sharing, and strangely enough, Bianca somewhat readily accepted her reasons. But deep down, she knew that there was no room for letting her guard down. Even though Ellaine successfully pulled off a reasonable excuse to satisfy the Yeerk in Bianca's head of not coming to The Sharing, she would undoubtedly try again and again until Ellaine relented to go to a meeting. Tellion was going to have to put a stop to that, for good.
Deep down in the very essence of everything that she was, Tellion didn't truly know what she was capable of. The only thing that she knew for certain was that she had come to love Ellaine as if she was truly her little sister. And she wasn't going to stand by and see her befall the fate of so many countless other beings that were enslaved by the Yeerk Empire.
With two new morphs acquired, and a battle form securely scouted, Tellion's reasons for coming to the Gardens were firmly satisfied. She focused all her attention to Ellaine. Gabriella made pointless small talk with her through the rest of the trip, and Tellion interacted with her when she needed to, but beyond that she kept a close proximity to Ellaine and Bianca. Tellion was a bit surprised that once Ellaine gave a credible excuse for not going to The Sharing, Bianca never brought up the subject again. She didn't even question Ellaine's reasons. She just continued to act like she had been doing the entire day prior to Tellion discovering that she was a controller. That was a bit odd, Tellion thought. Infesters were supposed to be specially trained to lure in potential hosts, and overcome any objections to that end. But here, this Yeerk didn't appear to be all that invested in securing a new host. Perhaps they were new to this assignment. Ellaine had said that Bianca had only just become a full member of The Sharing a month ago, so it was possible that this Yeerk was still new to their position and wasn't very good at it. Regardless of the reasons, Tellion wasn't going to take the chance of this Yeerk enslaving her little sister. She was going to protect Ellaine, no matter what she had to do.
The trip to the Gardens finally came to an end and she rode the bus back to the school sitting next to Gabriella. Tellion was a bit worried that she might be a controller too, but with the way she kept on talking about endless and pointless daily life, and never once bringing up The Sharing, Tellion was almost a hundred percent sure by the time they got back to the school that she wasn't infested. Not yet anyway. Feigning a desire to keep in touch, Tellion got Gabriella and Bianca's home address, along with a phone number. As they all began to part ways, Tellion gave Ellaine an encouraging squeeze on her shoulder and an empowering look that she could carry on with keeping her newfound knowledge of The Sharing a secret, and the promise of a phone call later that night to talk about their afternoon 'get together' tomorrow. Once Ellaine, Bianca, and the rest of the children returned to school, Tellion gave a friendly parting ways conversation with Gabriella and returned home. She hated having to leave Ellaine alone with Bianca, but deep down she knew that it was impossible for her to watch over Ellaine all the time. Her little sister was just going to have to remain strong on her own.
When she got home, Tellion made the difficult call to check in on Mark. He sounded tired, and very emotionally drained. Tellion hated to hear him sound like that, because she knew that some of how he was feeling was because of her. He said that he was dealing with other, less serious patients, but the boy still was in critical condition. Mark explained to her that the situation wasn't looking very good for him, and his family was starting to come to the understanding that he may very well die. Tellion apologized to Mark for her not being there, but promised him that she would come by the next day to speak to the boy's mother. Mark thanked her for committing to that, but also told her that he didn't know if the boy would last that long. Hearing his words, the sadness in them, cut Tellion so deeply. Oh how she so wished to tell Mark the truth of why she was doing what she was doing. None of her actions were for selfish reasons, it was just the timing of everything was so horribly placed. Everything was because she loved him more than he could possibly imagine.
After their talk, Tellion had a very long, and very emotionally torn time to contemplate her actions. Perhapse more than she had ever been since taking over Susan's life. Minutes passed by like hours. Hours felt like days. Tellion had nothing left to do except sit back and worry. Worry about Ellaine and the Yeerk Empire's interest in enslaving her. The unknown injured boy and his weary and desperate family. The fate of the morphing cube and the Andalite resistance. The Visser's plot to enslave the leaders of many of powerful nations of Earth. And her uselessness among it all.
Even with the power to morph like the Andalites, Tellion was still so lost and seemingly unable to help those who needed her help. At least that's how she felt. Still, she was sure if the Andalites could successfully recover the morphing cube, then surely they would be able to find a way to stop Visser Three's plan. And since she couldn't do anything about that particular situation right now, she needed to focus on the things that she could do something about. The first was acquiring her much needed battle morph. The second was ensuring that Ellaine would be safe from infestation. After that, Tellion would try to figure out what she could do to help save this world. Using Gabriella's address, Tellion untilized the primitive human computers at her disposal to map out exactly where she, and Bianca, lived in the city.
Once the sun had set, and the world had fallen into darkness, Tellion made her move. Although she now had a much more powerful flying morph, Tellion chose to use the crow morph to travel to the gardens. She was familiar with this morph, and couldn't afford the risk of having to figure out a new form in her very limited time window. Everything that she planned, it all had to be done in this one single night.
Changing into the crow, Tellion took flight and flew through the cold night sky over to the Gardens. Gliding over the bright and busy streets of the city was unsettlingly comfortable for her, it gave Tellion time to dwell on her thoughts, and everything that she was trying to save this night. After some time, she found herself drifting high above the Gardens. Remembering how she had traveled earlier that day, Tellion retraced her steps from above until she found herself circling over Tezcatlipoca's enclosure. And her timing couldn't have been more perfect. As she was passing overhead, she saw that the staff of the Gardens were feeding the majestic cat. Tellion glided[Ma1] onto a perch at the top of the enclosure and watched as the black furred cat almost joyously devoured the large hunk of meat that had been given to him. As Tezcatlipoca carried on with his nightly feast, Tellion morphed back into Susan and waited in silence.
He was a magnificent creature, and one that Tellion truly wanted to become one with. She lay upon the rocks at the top of his enclosure for what felt like half the night, watching as the creature finished his dinner, then quietly paced around the enclosure until the food in his stomach settled and he lazily stretched himself out across the ground under the large tree in his personal enclave. Tellion didn't move, she barely dared to breathe as she watched the massive cat fall upon the ground and slowly shut his eyes. Even after that happened, Tellion waited several minutes until she was sure that Tezcatlipoca was resting peacefully upon a full stomach. Then she made her move. Climbing down the rocks with what little grace she was capable of in her human body, Tellion silently approached the now resting big cat. If she was trying to convince herself that she wasn't afraid, Tellion knew that she was doing a terrible job at it. Her heart was hammering inside her chest so loudly that she was almost certain that it would awake the resting creature. Every part of her human body was screaming to flee before Tezcatlipoca awoke and tore her to pieces with ease.
Yet she couldn't turn back now. She needed him. She needed to become him. So that she would finally have the strength and power to protect those that she loved. Without him, Tellion might as well just let Tezcatlipoca brutally slaughter her right then and there. Because sooner or later, the war was going to force her onto the front lines. It was an inevitability that Tellion knew with absolute certainty. It was already closing in around her carefully built life with Ellaine being threatened.
With legs wobbling from sheer terror of the danger she was placing herself in, Tellion closed the last bit of distance between her and the deadly creature. Kneeling close to him, Tellion held her breath as she felt that any exhale for give away the fear deep within her and awaken Tezcatlipoca. With a trembling hand, Tellion nervously pressed her fingers against his hindquarters.
Once the physical connection had been made, Tellion focused on Tezcatlipoca. On how powerful he was. Of how nothing in this natural world would dare to threaten him. And soon her as well.
The tingling feeling of the Andalite morphing technology ignited in her finger tips as they pressed into his dark furred hind quarters. Tezcatlipoca stured slightly from her touch, his head lifting slightly from her contact of his body and stared at her with his bright yellow eyes, almost causing Tellion's heart to stop. But as the tingling sensation rolled up her arm as she acquired him, he lowered his head and his eyes shut once more. After a very long and tense period of time, Tellion wearily released the terrified breath that was threatening to make her lungs explode, she sensed that she had acquired Tezcatlipoca's DNA and her mission was finished. Tellion quietly and cautiously retreated from the large resting cat and silently climbed back up to the top of the enclosure. Once there, she called upon the crow morph once again. After she had shifted back down into the smaller bird, Tellion took flight. As she flapped her wings and gained altitude, she set her bearings. Only she wasn't heading home. No, she had somewhere else far more important to go to.
Gabriella and Bianca's home. She had to end that Yeerk's interest in enslaving her little sister, tonight. By whatever means necessary. As she followed along the path that she had mapped out from its base of Ellaine's school, Tellion wasn't sure what she was truly thinking or feeling as she drew closer and closer to her final destination. Before any kind of cohesive plan or acceptance of what she would be willing to do, Tellion glided into a small circling pattern above the home.
The lights were still on, so it must not have been that late. As she circled around the house, she saw from her vantage point that the family was sitting around a table eating. Perfect timing. Tellion swung around to the other side of the house, and perhapse by some sort of cosmic chance, she saw that a window was opened slightly on the second floor. Tellion landed on the edge of the window sill and peered inside. The room was full of things that Tellion would guess that a girl of Bianca's age would have. Various trinkets and posters of young human males on the wall. This had to be her room. Tellion slipped through the window's opening that was just big enough for her small form to fit in.
Once inside, Tellion fluttered across the room and into the slightly opened closet. When she was safely tucked inside, she began to change back. After completely turning back to Susan, she closed the closet door just enough for her to be able to peek out into the room. Then she waited with all of her nerves firing off for 'Bianca' to return to her room. It was a long wait, well over an hour of standing in the dark with every second ticking by like weeks' worth of time to Tellion. Then she heard the faint sounds of feet approaching the room, then the door swung open and Bianca stepped inside. This was the part of what she was doing that terrified Tellion the most in that moment. If the Yeerk walked over to the closet and looked inside, there was no way that she wouldn't see Tellion. There would be no explaination for her being there, the Yeerk would know instantly that she was a threat. She would likely try to kill her on the spot, and then immediately alert its superiors about her family. And then Tellion would have no choice but to do...
…what she didn't know.
Because in this moment, Tellion truly didn't know what she was capable of doing to protect herself and those she loved.
But she didn't come to the closet. Instead she quietly locked the door and sat down in front of the mirror. She stared at herself for a long moment of complete silence, as if she were trying to see something deeper than the reflection that she was staring at.
"I enjoyed that meal." she said what appeared to be talking to herself. But being a Yeerk herself, Tellion knew that the Yeerk was speaking to the young girl that was a slave inside her own body. "Your mother doesn't cook often. And I enjoy what she makes better than those mass produced processed meals she picks up all the time."
The young girl made a face to herself. "I think Darrian was looking at you again. How do I know? Because he kept turning his attention away from us every time I looked back at him. Or when he thought I wasn't paying attention. I think he really likes you…"
The smile instantly faded and Bianca stared emotionless at her reflection. Another long pause.
"We've already talked about this. You know what my assignment is, what my superiors have charged me to do." Bianca made a frustrated face. "I've already done far more for you than I ever should have. I agreed to leave your family alone in return for your cooperation. Wasn't I fair to you today? I only attempted once to convince your friend Ellaine to coming to The Sharing, and when she said no, I left the issue alone. I even kept Trilad 6631 from pressing the matter. You understand that? Can you comprehend how much of a risk I put myself in today by doing that Bianca? I let you enjoy the rest of the day at the Gardens without having to worry about her, or Darrian."
Bianca growled at herself before standing up.
"I know you didn't really do any of it, but don't tell me that what we experienced today wasn't real just because I was in control. I thought…we both had fun today. You disagree! You think that I don't enjoy any of the recreational time that we spent together and I just like tormenting you. You want me to ground you tonight to prove it?"
Bianca walked over to the small sound system beside her bed and began fiddling with it.
"That's better." she said, surprisingly without an arrogant or condescending tone like so many other Yeerks Tellion was used to hearing when they were free to reveal themselves. It sounded…full of relief. "Is this the one you want tonight?"
A moment of silence as Tellion watched Bianca nod in approval. She then laid herself out across her bed, clutching the stuffed animal that was sitting on it close to her chest. But she wasn't going to sleep. Tellion watched on with absolute confusion. What the hell was this? What was this Yeerk doing?
Then she saw Bianca's body shudder. The tremors were a kind that Tellion instantly recognized, because she knew them with such intimacy that they were burned into her memory forever. Tellion's lungs nervously exhaled as she watched on in complete silence. Bianca sturred slightly, then weakly sat up.
No. Tellion thought. It can't be. It just can't be.
"Th…thank you." Bianca weakly whispered, as if she had said this many times before, blinking away a few tears that seemed to be welling up in her eyes.
She got up on her unsteady feet, but quickly got her balance. She then pressed something on the sound system, and music instantly filled the small room. Bianca let the beats carry on for several seconds before her body began to move in rhythm to them. She then began to dance around her room to the song.
But you know what, every single night she puts on one song and dances in her room to it. Echoed the voice of Gabriella in Tellion's mind.
It was only then that the full reality of it all struck Tellion.
Her Yeerk…had just given Bianca back control over her body, voluntarily! Just like she had done once with Tallaxia. The Yeerk had given Bianca back her freedom. This…was impossible…
A Yeerk wouldn't do this! They never…she was the only one to take such a bold and life altering action.
And yet the evidence was litterally dancing right in front of her eyes. Bianca's movements were very unsteady, but what she lacked in technique and rhythm she made up for with pure spirit. There was so much emotion on her face, so much joy contained in each of her movements. This…what was happening was the very last thing that she ever would have expected to find when she came here. And now Tellion felt herself becoming more confused than ever. What should she do? What could…
A light knocking on the door startled both her and Bianca.
"Bianca, honey, are you in there dancing again?" Gabriella's muffled voice came from the other side.
Bianca instantly stopped dancing and rushed towards the door. Her mouth dropped in a clear attempt to cry out to her mother. Her desperate eyes shined with equally desperate hope.
"Mo…" her voice suddenly shut off even though her mouth was twisted into a desperate scream that refused to come forth.
Bianca only managed one full stride before her legs instantly gave out from under her and she collapsed to the floor. Tellion fought all of her instincts to rush out of the closet and go to Bianca. But there was nothing that she could do for her. Not now. Not while the Yeerk was still inside her head, wrapped around her brain. All she could do was watch on, completely unable to help the young girl as she wildly thrashed about on the floor as the Yeerk took control over her once more.
"Bianca, sweetie, what was that noise? Did you fall down? Are you alright?" Gabriella asked nervously from the other side.
When Bianca gave no answer as the Yeerk continued to rapidly regain dominion over its host, the doorknob rattled, followed instantly by a heavy pounding against the flimsy wooden frame.
"Honey, are you hurt? Open the door." When Bianca didn't answer as the Yeerk finally took full control over her body once again, the pounding on the door grew more intense. "Bianca! Open this door right now!"
The now once again controller Bianca wobbled to her feet and stumbled to the door, weakly opening it.
"Mom?"
Gabriella pushed herself inside the room and stared intensely at what she thought was her daughter.
"Honey, is everything alright? I heard…"
"I'm fine mom," the Yeerk lied. "I just fell down and hit my knee while I was dancing. It's nothing."
"Are you sure?" she said, placing a hand on her forehead. "You look very pale. Did you get too much sun today?"
Bianca rolled her eyes and grunted as she pulled her head away from Gabriella's hand. A very natural action a girl her age would do in such a situation. "I'm fine mom. I drank enough water like you asked me to, I put on plenty of sunscreen…I just banged my knee a little."
She turned and walked over to the sound system and turned it off.
"Do you need a bag of ice for the bump?"
"No!" she cried, making a tone that signaled frustration with 'her' mother's repeated questions.
Gabriella looked somewhat rejected by her apparent daughter's push away from her affection. She headed out the room, closing the door as she went. She stopped halfway and looked back at Bianca.
"Sweetie, I just want to make sure you're alright. I hardly ever see you anymore these days, and…well I just don't want you to forget that I'm still your mother. And I love you."
Gabriella didn't see it, but from her vantage point, Tellion saw Bianca's eyes lower in a look that she could only identify as…shame.
"I love you too, mom." the Yeerk said, its voice full of the emotion that clearly it didn't truly feel towards Gabriella.
Gabriella smiled and closed the door. Silence permiated throughout the room for some time. Then the Yeerk balled Bianca's hands into trembling fists and rested her head against them.
"Stop it." the Yeerk whispered to her slave. "Just…stop it."
She got up from the bed, locked the door, then dragged the chair at the desk in the corner of the room to the window and opened it completely. Sighing, the controller Bianca sat down, folded her arms, and rested her head on them as she stared out into the night sky.
"Bianca…stop crying. I hate it when you cry…" she said, her voice full of sadness.
A moment of silence passed, then she grunted.
"I'm a monster? You don't know anything about me. You just see me as this wretched creature that's lurking inside your head like some kind of filthy parasite. I've tried to be good to you Bianca, more than almost any other Yeerk would be willing, or even caring, to do for their hosts."
She made a faintly mocking chuckle. "You want me to leave you to prove myself? Do you even hear yourself? Do you honestly believe that things are as simple as that? What do you think is going to happen if I did that? That you would just…come back to your home, be with your family, hang out with Ellaine. Go on a date with Darrian…"
The controller Bianca sighed.
"Are you really naïve enough to believe that would happen? That the Imperial forces will just forget about you and your life will return to the way it was?"
She stared out into the gentle night.
"The only thing that would really happen would be another, far less kind, Yeerk will be put inside your head. Or they'll kill you."
The controller Bianca growled through clenched teeth.
"You stupid little girl! You don't even understand what you're saying! You're far too young to grasp the concept of that claim. Do you even comprehend just how precious this life you have is? Do you have any idea what a difference there has been between the life I've live and the one you've had? I was born in the cold, uncaring vacuum of space, high above this amazing world of yours. My parents died breaking into thousands of pieces, of which one of them was me. Most of my…siblings were complete strangers to me. Many of them died when the Andalites destroyed the planet based Kandrona Ray generator not long ago. I don't even know if any of them are still alive. My superiors won't even let me look into the assignment records to see if any of the few brothers and sisters that I knew of are still alive. Our society…they don't care about such things. We only exist to enslave others and destroy those that would oppose us. I never asked to be born into this wretched life! I never asked to be grated with the ability to think and feel just like you do, yet cursed with a body that will never know any of wonderful senses and free movement you take for granted unless I make another living being like you my slave. No one ever asked me what I wanted from my life, and I was never given the choice. YOU have no idea the wonderful life of peace and joy you've lived until just recently. And I have TRIED to let you have some of that back. I was even thinking of lying to my superiors that you have changed your mind over to being a voluntary host so that they don't throw you in a cage when I leave so. Just to give you more freedom than what I've dared to give you each night. And what you just did…this is how you repay my lienency?"
Unless Tellion was mistaken, she swore that she saw the controller Bianca wipe her eyes briefly before getting back to her feet.
"You may not ever believe this Bianca, but I'm just as much a slave to the Empire as you are…"
She slowly dragged the chair back over to the desk and silently changed into her nightly attire. As she watched from her hiding spot, Tellion felt her thoughts melt into a confused mess. Another Yeerk…that desired a life like hers? How…could it be possible? No other Yeerk other than Aftran had ever thought of such things, and even she would have never dared to give back control to her host. This was not at all what Tellion expected to encounter when she had come here to do…she still didn't know what she was going to do. All Tellion truly knew in this moment was that what she had just witnessed was only going to make her next actions that much harder.
But no matter how hard they were…she had to do it. Ellaine and Tellion may not have had a true biological connection, but she was now just as much her sister to her as she had been with Susan.
She was going to keep her safe from the Imperial forces. No matter what she had to do. Or who she had to do it too.
Reluctantly affirming her course of action, Tellion waited in the closet in silence as the controller Bianca finished tidying up her room before lying in bed. Tellion waited in the darkness, listening carefully to the sound of her breathing, until she was sure that it had settled down into a steady rhythm.
She had entered that resting state. Bianca was likely drifting off to sleep, yet her unwilling Yeerk master was existing in a plain somewhere between awake and the dream world. The Yeerk was almost completely unaware of anything that was happening around them. It was time.
Tellion channeled her thoughts on Tezcatlipoca, of how powerful and frightening he had seemed when she had been right next to him. But also how majestic and graceful he had appeared at the same time. Then she felt the change coming over her. This was the very first time she had morphed something other than the crow, and she felt every realization of that. Her back shifted, stretching out and forcing her down on all fours. Her body suddenly expanded out, her muscles increasing expodentually in size as her spine stretched out from her rear, forming into a rapidly swinging tail. Long, dark claws erupted from the center of her fingernails, stretching outward and digging slightly into the wooden floor of the closet. Tellion's vision suddenly changed. The darkness of the room instantly became brighter, and her hearing became sharper as well. She could instantly hear the tv playing in the living room downstairs through the closed door, and the crickets chirping in the backyard…and the fait beating of Bianca's heart in the tiny room.
The hunger slammed deeply into Tellion's gut, and she realized how inviting Bianca's heartbeat was. Inviting her to dinner. Her young, tender flesh would likely taste so delectable, all she would have to do is leap out of the closet, ensnare her now powerful mouth full of deadly sharp fangs, and crunch down…
A low, dangerous growl came from the depths of her throat, filling the room outside. The controller Bianca stirred from her sleep, looking up curiously at the closet. Tellion barely put any effort into fighting the instinct to stalk out of the closet, letting her sleek black furred body glide sinisterly across the dark room. But even as much as she glided across the floor in the surrounding darkness, Tellion knew that her bright yellow eyes would give her away. And they did.
The controller Bianca gave a startled yelp as Tellion gracefully leapt onto the bed. The springs and framework creaked and groaned under the immense strain that her massive weight had added to it. The controller Bianca stared up at Tellion with complete bewilderment.
"Andalite…" she gasped.
Tellion was on top of her in an instant, her one of her powerful paw pressing down on Bianca's chest just under her small and vulnerable neck.
Silence…Tellion growled, taking a moment to collect her thoughts. Yeerk
She said the word with as much disgust that she could imagine an Andalite would say towards a Yeerk.
If you value your life, you will not speak until I tell you to. Do you understand?
The controller Bianca frantically nodded her head.
You're going to tell…us, Tellion thought it better to let the Yeerk think that she was in fact part of the Andalite resistance, everything that you know about The Sharing and its plans to infiltrate the local youth centers. But before all of that, you're going to tell me your name.
"My…my name…" she squeaked.
Yes. If you even think about telling your superiors about our little 'meeting', we'll utilize our spies in your ranks to leak out that you've been feeding information to us. I think you can imagine what that will mean for you. And don't even think of trying to lie to me, we'll verify your name before the next nightfall.
Tellion let her now terrifying feline face hang just above a terrified Bianca's. Now, Yeerk, give me your name.
The Yeerk was clearly hesitant. But staring what likely could have been its imminent death in the face, and feeling her claw tipped paw pressing into her chest, the Yeerk answered.
"It's…it's…Ish…Ishtareal. Ishtareal 2203."
Tellion felt as if she had instantly been stabbed into the very center of her being. So many…so few names she ever knew of…and this, this was one that for some reason she knew and remembered.
Ishtareal…Tellion stuttered inside her own mind that was swirled with a violent vortex of so many conflicting thoughts and feelings.
…my…
…my sister…
[Ma1]