The Liberation Chronicles

by L'Angel

The continuation to The After-Earth Chronicles. The Animorphs must try and liberate Earth.

3. Part Three: The Return

The Liberation Chronicles #3: The Return

Dedication: For "J." 3 XXOO

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Animorphs, of course. Do I look like K.A. Applegate?

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

1. Thank you to Kat and Tobiasrulz, for being wonderful editors and giving me feedback.
2. Thank you to the Wanderer for the Yeerk peace movement idea, and for reminding me that I had some free Hork-Bajir and Chee to take care of. (Sorry 'bout the dangling preposition, as my English teacher would say.)
3. Please read #2 first, or if you really don't want to read it, read the last chapter so you know where I'm starting from on this one.
4. Thank you for reading. J ^i^

Chapter One – Tobias

The silence after Marco said the word "Earth" was almost tangible.

We stared at one another in shock. We had all thought about it, maybe even some of us had talked about it. But it had never seemed like a serious possibility. For one thing, it had never been done – a planet lost to the Yeerks had never been regained. Even though we had the technology, the sheer numbers were still against us.

And now it looked like it might become a reality.

And we had been chosen to do the job. Or at least get the ball rolling.

"This is purely reconnaissance," Marco said. "We going to go in a small vessel and scope out the situation. No battles if we can at all avoid it."

"Why us?" Cassie asked. She didn't look happy, and no wonder. Of all of us, she had hated the fight the most.

"Because we're the most familiar with Earth," Marco said. "This has never been done before, and they really need all the info they can get their hands on in order for it to work. Also, it'd be easier for us because we have the most Earth morphs."

"How long have you known about this?" Jake asked. He and Ax were War-Princes, more highly ranked than Marco and Rachel. Cassie and I had no real military ranking, except for honorary status as warriors given to us shortly after we came to the Andalite home world. I knew he and Ax were surprised they hadn't been told.

"It's been in the workings for months," he replied. "I worked on developing the tech for our ship. It's small as they go, but there are a lot of great gadgets crammed into it." He looked like a kid on Christmas morning, or maybe more like an artist thinking about his masterpiece. In any case, his eyes were shining at the thought of the ship we'd be taking home.

Home.

I finally said it. "We're going home, you guys."

The others looked shocked, like it had finally registered. Even Cassie's gloomy face slowly brightened into a smile at the thought.

But then Ax, the ever-present voice of reason, said, Do not become too elated at this prospect. The Yeerks have been in control of your planet for years. You do not know what has occurred in your absence.

I stopped smiling. Ax was right. The Yeerks had probably destroyed everything that had made Earth one of the most beautiful planets in the galaxy – at least according to Ax, who had seen a lot more worlds than I had.

But it was still hard to imagine. And Earth was Earth. Home was home.

Rachel exchanged a glance and a huge grin with me. I knew we were both looking ahead, far into the future, imagining a scenario that, in all probability, would not occur.

In it, we were on Earth with Sara, living the life we should have been able to live. And no doubt we were both thinking of the children we wanted, Sara's brothers and sisters that we'd been afraid to bring into a life so torn by war.

Four bedrooms suburban split-level, dog in the yard, station wagon in the driveway, white picket fence in front, swing set in back. Blessed chaos inside.

Normal.

Suddenly, Marco broke my train of thought. "Cassie, Tobias, you two have a choice. The rest of us have to go where we're ordered, but technically you're allowed to stay home."

"I'm going," I said instantly. Sara, Julie, and Tom had the right to grow up in a normal setting without having to worry about parents who were fighting a galactic war.

Cassie sighed, and looked at us. "Oh, you know I'm in," she grumbled. "Did I ever actually sit anything out?"

Jake smiled uncertainly. "The Animorphs are back then?" he asked, looking each of us in the eyes.

Rachel grinned maniacally. "Let's do it."

Right on cue, Marco jumped in. "Oh, God, we're doomed."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Later that day, Cassie, Jake, Rachel, and I walked to the kids' school to pick them up. Jake jogged over to pick up Tom from the "daycare" scoop while the rest of us went to collect the older two.

"Hi, Mom!" Julie yelled, waving frantically. Sara was on the other side of the school yard, talking to a young female Andalite. She said good-bye quickly and ran over.

"Why're you all here?" she asked suspiciously.

"And hello to you, too," Cassie said. "How was school?"

"Fine," she and Julie replied in unison. Jake came back, Tom perched on his shoulders. He suddenly grimaced as Tom grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked.

"Ow!" he cried.

"Bah!" Tom said gleefully.

"Tommy, don't hurt Daddy," Cassie admonished. Tom grinned a gummy smile at her and pulled again.

"Ouch," Jake said ruefully. He reached up and removed Tom from his shoulders, settling him on his hip. He ran a hand through his abused hair. "Ready?" he asked us as we left the school grounds.

"Yup," Rachel said in a falsely cheerful tone.

"Ready for what?" Sara asked, now certain that things were not as happy as they seemed.

"Well, we're going to go for a little walk. We have to talk to you about something," I said.

Sara stared at us. "You're going back," she stated in a tone that was somehow flat and accusatory at the same time. A side affect of them having been raised around Andalites was that our kids were somewhat precocious by human standards. Add to that their human perception and temper, and you have a dangerous combination, at least when it comes to parenting.

"No!" Julie cried, whipping around to look at Sara. "You're wrong! Daddy, tell her she's wrong. You're not going back!" When Jake just looked at her, a guilty, torn expression on his face, she yelled again, "No!"

"Sweetie, we have to," Cassie said quietly, kneeling down and cupping her daughter's chin in her hands.

But Julie pounced on it. "We?" she repeated coldly, glaring at her parents.

Sara looked at me, almost scared. "Dad? Who's going?"

"We all are, sweetheart," I said.

"But I thought you said I could never go with you," Sara said to Rachel.

"You can't, darling," Rachel said.

"You're leaving me?" she said, tears filling her eyes. "No! Daddy, you said you'd never leave me! You said Mom had to go away because of her job, but that you'd never leave me!"

"Sara - " I said, trying not to let my feelings be hurt.

"You lied to me! And I'm never trusting you again. Go away! I don't care!" She pulled away as Rachel tried to reach for her, and ran ahead, disappearing over the hill. Rachel started to follow, but I stopped her. Sara would be safe, she knew the way home, and she needed to cool off.

Julie had started to cry, too. "Mommy," she sobbed out. "Don't go. Don't go. Please!" she begged in a gulping, almost gagging sob. Tom, seeing his big sister's tears, began to whimper. His lower lip trembled and he gripped his father's neck tightly.

"I don't want to. But I have to. Someday you'll understand." I knew the frustration Cassie felt. There was no way to explain our reasons for leaving to our kids. They knew we fought the Yeerks, and maybe a little bit of why. They knew we were different from the Andalites and came from a distant planet that had been taken over by the Yeerks. They had heard our stories about our lives as Animorphs - or at least as much as we wished them to know. There were some things we would never tell them, things we didn't even like to think about.

But "someday" wasn't soon enough for us. And our kids were furious - or Sara and Julie were. Tom was too little to know what was going on, but he knew his sister was upset.

We reached Ax's scoop with two hysterical kids in tow. Rachel ducked inside and immediately asked, "Is Sara here?"

Marco, with a surprised glance at Julie and Tom, said, "No, Rachel. She's not. I thought she was with you."

"She was," I said ruefully.

Suddenly, the long-range terrestrial thought speak communicator (or, as we would have called it on Earth, the "telephone") beeped. Rachel sprinted across the room, shoved Ax, who'd been about to answer it, aside, grabbed the receiver, and hit the special translator that would turn her spoken speech into thought speech. "Hello?" she said worriedly.

After a moment, she sighed in relief and said, "Okay, thanks, Salia. Is this okay with you?" Another pause, and then, "Okay, just call and we'll come get her." She hung up and said, "Our little runaway bunny's at Salia's."

"Thank God," I said. I had known she was fine – there was very little trouble for her to get into between the school and Ax's scoop – but Earth habits die hard.

"Yes, well," she answered. "What I meant was, she's at Salia's and refuses to come home."

Chapter Two - Rachel

Two hours passed. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and went over to Salia's myself.

"Don't go, Rachel," Tobias said. "She just needs time to adjust to the news."

I ignored him and went anyway. He just sighed. He's used to me never listening.

"Hello?" I said, standing at the entrance to Salia's scoop.

Oh, hello, Rachel, Salia said, smiling. Wordlessly, Sara got up from where she'd been sitting on the floor and stalked over to the wall, her back to me.

Sara and I were just talking, Salia said, as if my daughter wasn't ignoring me.

"Really?" I said, deciding to play along. "What about?"

About how difficult it is to have a parent who is often absent. My father was in the military, so I am very familiar with that situation. But, she added. I also accompanied him on several assignments, which I found to be even more difficult.

"See?" Sara cried, spinning to face me. "She got to go with her father. Why can't I come with you?"

"It's just too dangerous," I said desperately. "Besides, you heard what Salia said. That was even harder."

"I don't care. I want to be with you," she replied, tears filling her eyes again.

"Oh, sweetie." I knelt down and put my arms around her, vaguely aware that Salia had discreetly wandered outside. Sara buried her face in my shoulder.

"I'm going to miss you so much," she sobbed. "And . . . Daddy . . . And I'm going to worry about you . . ."

"Sara, listen to me," I said, pushing her back slightly so I could look into her eyes. "Listen. I already promised Daddy something, but I'm going to promise to you, too."

"A double promise," she said, smiling a little through her tears.

"A double promise," I agreed. "So I can't EVER break it."

"What?"

"This assignment is my last," I told her. Her eyes lit up.

"Really?" she whispered incredulously.

I nodded. "I have to go away one more time. But then I'm never leaving you again."

She threw herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck so tightly I finally had to say, "Don't strangle me, hon." She let go and I said, "You ready to go home now?"

"Yup," she said cheerfully, using the hand not gripping mine to wipe the last tears from her cheeks.

"Thanks, Salia," I said as we left.

It was my pleasure, she replied, with a smile at Sara.

"So where're you going this time?" Sara asked as we walked back.

I hesitated. "Home."

"But you're already home."

"Sorry. I meant, we're going to Earth."

"Oh." The word meant almost nothing to her, I realized, and I wondered if it ever would mean anything.

Chapter Three – Aximili

That evening, I raced across the fields to where I was to meet Salia. I was late and when I finally got to the stream I was breathing hard.

I almost thought you had forgotten me, she said, removing her hoof from the stream. I stumbled over to her and placed my own hoof in with an ungraceful splash.

Forget you? Never, I said. She smiled but did not approach to stroke my face.

Rachel has been recalled, she stated.

Yes, I said. We all have. All six of us.

Her eyes widened. Cassie and Tobias as well?

Yes. We are being sent to Earth.

What about the children?

I shrugged in a human fashion. I am not certain.

Now she did move closer. She encircled my waist with one arm, laid her head on my chest, and stroked my face. I thought Earth had been taken.

It has.

She stiffened. Then to what purpose are you being sent?

We are to gather information. We wish to reclaim Earth.

She was silent for a long moment. Then she whispered, This will be dangerous, correct?

I nodded. There was no point in lying. Yes, very dangerous. We will be in enemy territory.

She was silent for a long time. I love you, she murmured.

I love you, too, I replied. I held her close, trying to memorize the way her fur felt, the way her hand on my face made me feel, the way she smelled, the way her voice sounded in my head. I love you, I told her again after several minutes of silence. She didn't reply, simply tightened her grip on my waist.

Marry me, I whispered.

What? she gasped. I stared at her, almost as shocked as she was.

Marry me, I repeated.

Now? she asked, dazed.

No, I said after a moment of thought. I depart for Space Dock Three tomorrow morning, and we leave tomorrow afternoon. There is not sufficient time. But after I return – marry me, Salia. Be my wife.

Yes, she finally said. Yes.

We did not go running then, but stood there, listening to the stream and the sound of each other's breathing. It was a bittersweet silence, because even at this wonderful moment, there was the ever-present thought that I might not return. Neither of us voiced it, of course, but it was there, lurking in the background.

At last I had to leave. There was much to be done in preparation for our departure.

Aximili, come home to me, she begged softly before I left.

I will come home to you, my love. And then we shall be one, as husband and wife. She smiled, though it was a pained expression, and stroked my face for the last time.

Good-bye, I said, reluctantly releasing her.

Good-bye.

When I returned to my scoop, I found the children playing outside.

"Hi, Ax," Julie replied cheerfully as Sara waved. Tom looked up, and I saw that he was covered with mud.

Julie, I doubt your mother will be pleased to discover your brother is absolutely filthy, I said, suppressing a smile.

She shrugged. "I don't think she'll notice. They're fighting about something."

Your mother and father? I asked in surprise. Unlike Rachel and Tobias, who had a rather stormy relationship at times, Cassie and Prince Jake rarely fought. Or, if they did, they never made it apparent to anyone.

"Yeah. And Rachel and Tobias, too."

I turned my stalk eyes toward the scoop. I suppose I had better see what is wrong.

The girls didn't reply. As I neared the scoop, I could hear Cassie's voice. "Over my DEAD BODY!" she was yelling.

"Honey, please, be reasonable," Prince Jake replied. I ducked inside and saw Rachel and Tobias standing off to one side, observing Cassie and Prince Jake, who were standing approximately ten feet apart. Prince Jake had a desperate expression upon his face, while Cassie stood with her arms crossed angrily.

"Reasonable? Reasonable?" she replied hotly, glaring at him. I doubt she had even noticed me.

What happened? I asked Tobias in private thought speech.

He approached me and whispered, "We were trying to figure out what to do with the kids. The army offered to place them in temporary foster care while we're gone. Cassie, obviously, objects."

"I'm not thrilled with it either," Rachel added quietly. "But there doesn't seem to be any other solution."

"Cassie, what are we going to do?" Prince Jake asked.

"I don't know. All I know is that my kids are NOT going to be put with strangers. They're suffering enough for this stupid war. That is not an option."

"Sweetie, foster care here isn't like how it was on Earth. They'll be with a good family –"

"I don't care if they're put with the freakin' Cleavers! My kids will not be raised by strangers!"

"Okay," Prince Jake said, obviously sensing that his wife was not going to concede on this point. "Okay. But they have to stay with someone."

"Not a stranger," she replied adamantly.

Allow me to care for them, a voice suddenly said.

"What?" Cassie asked in confusion, turning toward the entrance. I turned as well, though I recognized the voice.

Salia stepped into the scoop. I will take care of them. It is a logical solution. I live very nearby, I could even watch Aximili's property while you are absent.

"But, Salia," Prince Jake said. "Are you sure you know what you're getting into?"

I realize it is no small responsibility, she replied. But I would like to do this. It would help you, even in a small way.

"This is a very generous offer," Cassie said. "But – "

But what? You object to leaving your children in military foster care, which I more than agree with. I know what it is like to have parents who are often away. I am in school, but no later than you normally work, Cassie. Please, I ask you to consider this.

Marco and I said nothing. This was a matter between our friends and Salia. But I was surprised, to say the least. She had not mentioned anything earlier . . . though I realized that we had been thinking of other things. My admiration and love for her increased, something I had not thought possible. Someday, this wonderful, beautiful person would be my wife. My wife, I thought in amazement.

"Are you sure?" Tobias asked her seriously.

Absolutely, she replied.

Prince Jake looked at Cassie. She nodded vigorously. Tobias and Rachel indicated their consent as well.

Salia smiled. Thank you, she said.

"No, thank you," Cassie replied in obvious relief. "I feel so much better knowing that the kids are going to be with someone we trust while we're gone."

There was a heavy silence after that, with the same unpleasant thought in everyone's mind. Finally Prince Jake said, "Salia, if something were to happen to us . . . that none of us return – "

I will take care of them for as long as it is needed, Salia said, interrupting him.

"But what I was going to say was that we couldn't ask you to do that," Prince Jake said. "It's one thing temporarily, but if something happened and it had to be permanent, that's just asking too much."

Nonsense, she answered.

"Are you sure?" Tobias asked again.

As far as I can see, they are three beautiful, well-behaved children. I would be honored.

"Thank you so much," Cassie said. She appeared close to tears.

"Hey, everything's going to be okay," Prince Jake told her gently.

"How do you know that? I'm scared," she said frankly. "I'm scared that I am never going to – " She suddenly lowered her voice with a glance outside. "I'm scared I am never going to see my children again. And I don't see how you guys can't be."

"Cassie!" Rachel gasped, sounding offended. "How can you say that?"

"I'm sorry," she apologized, quickly realizing her mistake. "I really didn't mean that. I just – I'm so worried."

The children will be fine, Salia assured her.

"Yes, I know," Cassie said, blinking away her tears. She took one of Salia's hands and squeezed it. "Thank you so much," she said once more.

But I knew that Salia's assurances, though well-meaning, were not helpful. We all recognized the danger of the coming mission and the possibility that some, or all, of us might not return. For Cassie, Prince Jake, Tobias, and Rachel, that would mean never seeing their children again, never seeing them mature and become the adults their parents wanted them to be. For me, that would mean I would never marry Salia. That was a notion I refused to entertain, because it frightened me in a way that not even the idea of dying did. I was a warrior – I had come to terms with my own mortality and the possibility of dying before my time years before. But I did not think I could ever come to terms with not being able to spend the rest of my life with Salia.

I will return to you, my love, I vowed in private thought speak. She looked at me with her stalk eyes, and I saw fear in them. I knew that her offer to care for my friends' children was as much a way for her to feel as though she was somehow near me as it was a desire to help us.

But in reality, in a very short time, I would be very, very far away.

Chapter Four – Cassie

We left the next day, after nearly an hour of tearful good-byes with the children. We boarded the Lift, and left them behind, Salia clasping Tom's hand while he wailed for me.

I stood on the platform and sobbed. We were all a mess, Rachel with her head buried in Tobias's chest, Jake with his arm around me, wiping the tears from his own eyes. Marco was dry-eyed but swallowing hard, and Ax even looked emotionally wrenched.

"Well," Marco finally said after fifteen minutes of silence. "Everyone okay?"

There was a chorus of shaky "yeah's" that none of us really meant.

"So, Marco," Jake said, trying to get us to stop thinking about everything we were leaving behind. "You mind filling us in some more on what to expect?"

"Well, I really hate to spoil the surprise," he said. "But let's just say that our ship is like nothing you've ever seen before. It makes the Dome ships look like a lumbering elephant compared to a cheetah. It's got the best of everything: cloaking devices, weapons, sensory systems. You name it, it's got it."

Impressive, Ax remarked.

"It's the fastest ship in the Andalite fleet. And it's designed for us."

"Meaning?" I asked.

He grinned. "You'll see."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

We did see, about ten minutes after we arrived at Space Dock Three. We were immediately whisked away from the bustling Lift platform and taken to a part of the base I'd never seen before, behind about seven locked doors and hallways with red signs proclaiming that they were for Authorized Personnel Only. At last, we were escorted down a long hallway that branched off the main one until we reached a small loading dock.

A ship was waiting for us. It wasn't very big, about halfway between the huge Dome ships and the small fighters used by the warriors in battles. It was sleek and streamlined, with Shredders mounted on the underside of the belly of the ship, and on either side of the main cockpit, which was held up and over the main part of the ship, in the classic Andalite-style imitation of their own tail blades.

"The Elfangor," Marco introduced proudly, gesturing toward our ship.

"Fitting," Rachel said, staring at the ship.

"It's amazing," Jake said.

Marco shrugged nonchalantly. "From the outside, it's really not that special. It's just new. Come with me and I'll show you the really amazing stuff."

"Gee," Rachel whispered to me as we followed Marco along the dock to the gangway. "Marco gets to take his baby with us." I stifled a giggle, the first urge I'd had to laugh since we'd gotten news of our assignment.

But once we got inside, I knew why he was so worked up. I wasn't big into computers, and definitely not into weapons technology, but even I could tell the gadgets crammed into the Elfangor were major – if only by the fact that Rachel, Ax, and Jake's eyes got as big as saucers when Marco described them in detail.

But what Marco had meant when he said it was "designed for us" was that the quarters were custom made for us. There were four main quarters, one built for an Andalite, two designed to be shared by two humans, and one for a single human. In the cockpit were five chairs for humans, and one Andalite station. The main belly of the ship contained an expanse of Andalite grass and trees with a stream running across it for Ax, and a human-type kitchen equipped with everything we could have wanted – or, at least, expected considering our circumstances. Finally, Marco gestured for me to follow him into a stark white room with two human hospital beds and an Andalite shift-table. The sick-bay, I realized. My job.

"I hope we don't need this," he said, "but I made sure we had everything you might want."

I checked the cabinets over and found that he was right. There was everything from low-grade pain-killers and fever-reducers (the Andalite equivalent of Tylenol), to heavy-duty antibiotics, to supplies for setting broken bones and surgery. "I hope we don't need it either," I said. "But it's perfect."

"Great," Marco said with a smile. "Well, let's get settled. We're scheduled to pull out in three hours."

Two hours, fifty-nine minutes later we were gathered in the main cockpit. As co-captains, Ax and Jake were placed slightly above the rest of us. Marco manned the computer console. Rachel, as the best shot among our group, sat at the weapons station, though she wouldn't need it yet. Tobias and I were given chairs in the center of the room, so we could see out the large front windows, but, I thought, also be out of the way.

Fifty seconds remaining, Ax informed us, adjusting his shoulder strap. I did the same, and nervously gripped the arms of my seat. A low rumble vibrated through the ship as the engines fired. I heard Jake mutter something through his communicator to the base and the noise and vibrations increased to a roar that drowned all other noise. Ten seconds, Ax said, his thought speak breaking through the din.

Moments later, I was pushed back into my seat by a surprisingly gentle force as we pulled out of our docking space and into the atmosphere. "Houston," Marco intoned as soon as we had left the base behind and could quiet the engines slightly, "we have lift off."

"Ha. Ha," Rachel replied sarcastically, watching the planet grow smaller and smaller through the back window.

"How long will it take to reach Earth?" I asked.

"Please don't start asking, 'Are we there yet?' already," Marco pleaded in a mock-serious tone.

I laughed, but said, "Seriously."

"Seriously? Without Rapid Tunnel Z-Space Travel, about three months. Using it all the way, about two weeks. We're going to use a combination, because I want to conserve some energy. About a month."

I nodded and left the others to make my way down to the quarters Marco had assigned Jake and me. Inside were two lamps, two dressers, and a large double bed, with a bathroom designed for humans adjoined. I took my bag, slung it onto the bed, and quickly unpacked my four military uniforms, various personal items, and, finally, a hologram of my children. I set it up opposite the bed, but couldn't look at it because I knew I'd start crying again. I was already farther away from them than I had ever been before in their lives.

I finally gave up trying to hold off the tears. I did not want to be here, I had no place being here. I was done with this war. I had done my part and now I wanted to be able to raise my children in peace.

Which is what I told Jake later that night as he held me in our bed. "But that's why you agreed to come," he told me, kissing my forehead softly.

"Why?" I asked, confused.

"You want to be able to raise our children peacefully. To do that, we have to end the war. And this is the first step to doing that."

"I hate this war," I told him harshly, sitting up and looking down at him. "I'm twenty-four, Jake. We've been fighting for eleven years now. That's too long."

"Yes, it is," he agreed.

I stared into the dark corners of our room. "Do you ever think we'll make peace?" I asked, thinking of an unlikely friend from a long time ago, a Yeerk named Aftran, who had saved Ax's life once, and taught me that Yeerks were not all evil.

"Maybe," he said, but his tone told me he doubted it. "But if you believe that eleven years is a long time to fight a war, think of how long the Andalites have been fighting, of how many people they've lost. Peace, if it's even possible, won't be easy."

"You're saying there's a lot to forgive," I said softly.

"Yes, and as long as Yeerks like Visser Three are in power, it will be next to impossible."

I laid back down and snuggled into the crook of his arm. He pulled me closer. "But not impossible?"

"Nothing," he whispered, kissing me gently, "is impossible."

Chapter Five – Tobias

The days passed by slowly. We were in Z-space, which made for fast, if extremely dull, travel. We spent about a third of the time in RTZST, and the rest in normal Z-space mode.

We were bored. But we all knew that in a short time, we would be wishing for boredom.

One night, about a week after we left, I got out of bed and went into the kitchen. I opened the fridge and took out something I never thought I'd eat again: chocolate syrup. Somehow, Marco had gotten hold of some from a Skrit Na trader.

"How in the world did you do that?" I asked had asked incredulously when I saw it. I hadn't had chocolate in over seven years, since before the end of the war on Earth.

He shrugged. "One of the Skrit Na traders stopped by one day and had a whole carton full of it. Said he got it from a Yeerk outpost."

"Why would the Yeerks have chocolate?" Rachel asked, even as she poured a healthy dose of it into some frenlin milk.

"Because . . . it's chocolate?" Cassie suggested. "It tastes good?"

Rachel shrugged. "Don't know. Don't really care either. Jeez, this is good," she added, stirring her glass with a spoon.

"Do you realize," Jake said thoughfully, "that our kids have never had chocolate?"

There was a stunned silence. "I'd never thought of that," I said. "Wow. A childhood without chocolate."

"So that's why we're doing this then," Marco joked. "We're risking life and limb so our kids can taste a Hershey's bar."

"Yes," Cassie said vehemently. "We're doing this so our kids can be normal."

Needless to say, we'd all been drinking a lot of chocolate milk.

But it was middle of the night, so I sat alone in the relative darkness, with a only a faint glow from the white landscape of Z-space shedding any light into the room. I don't mind being alone; in fact, I like it – I suppose that's something left over from my days as a nothlit. I think best when I'm by myself.

Hello, Tobias, I suddenly heard. Ax.

"Hey, Ax-man," I said, turning away from where I'd been staring out the window. "Wow. Déjà vu."

Excuse me?

"Oh, human expression. It's when you get a feeling like you've been somewhere before."

I do not understand.

I shook my head. "I was just thinking about when I was a nothlit on Earth and you and I used to talk at night."

Oh. I see. Pardon me for asking, but what are you doing awake at this hour? Are the engines disturbing your sleep?

I laughed. "No, not the engines. Rachel's snoring. You?"

I am simply restless.

"You want some chocolate?"

No, thank you.

Suddenly I was worried. I'd known Ax for over ten years, and he'd never turned down chocolate. "Are you feeling okay?" I asked, only half-joking. "You're not sick, are you?"

No, Tobias. I am not ill. But . . . may I tell you something?

"Of course," I said in surprise. Ax and I were shorm, as the Andalites said. Next to Rachel, he knew me better than anyone. But he was surprisingly hesitant.

When we return . . . he began, and paused. I waited patiently, knowing he would tell me eventually. I am in love with Salia, he finally stated bluntly.

I stared at him in shock. "Salia?" I repeated.

He nodded. We are to be married upon our return.

"That's great!" I said, keeping my voice low so as not to wake the others. "That's fantastic, Ax." I gave him a hug. "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

He shrugged. I am not certain. I wanted this to be something between her and myself. I am sorry. As shorm, we should not have secrets.

"Hey, don't sweat it," I said. "This is great."

Please do not tell the others, he said, suddenly looking worried. I almost laughed, he looked so young all of the sudden. Like an awkward teenager, not a War-Prince.

"Oh, sure," I said understandingly. "No problem." I knew what it was like to want to keep a romance to myself. Rachel and I had kept ours "secret" for years – or as secret as we could in our nosy little group. "But you know what this means."

Ax looked at me strangely. No.

I sighed. "It means Jake won our bet."

Bet?

"Yeah. He bet me that you would get hauled up to the altar before Marco. I said you were too much of a workaholic to meet anyone, and even though Marco was surrounded by females of a whole different species, he'd still be hooked before you."

He smiled, but he was serious as he said, If I had not come home, and if Salia had not been so kind to me during my time of grief, you most likely would have won that bet. I believe that my re-acquaintance with Salia was my mother's last gift to me.

"Well, I'll keep my mouth shut. But you do realize that Cassie's already got this figured out, right? You know how she is."

I am sure she knows, he agreed. But I would still appreciate it if you did not confirm her suspicions for some time.

"Like I said, no problem. And while we're bearing our souls, I have something to tell you, too."

What?

I grinned. "After this mission is over, Rachel and I want to have another baby."

That is wonderful, he said, smiling. There will certainly be much to celebrate when we return to the home world.

"Yeah," I agreed, trying to ignore the tiny, pessimistic voice in my head that said, "If we return."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Another two weeks passed. By now, we all had horrible cases of cabin-fever and were starting to grate on each other's nerves. Rachel and Ax, who since our years on Earth had developed a mutual respect for each other, reverted to sniping at one another over tiny issues. Marco and Rachel were worse, spending the majority of their time together taking shots at each other's expense. Cassie spent most of her time organizing, reorganizing, and re-reorganizing the infirmary, alphabetizing the antibiotics and whatnot, to the point that I was worried she wouldn't know where stuff was in a crisis. Jake brooded. I stared out the windows, and for the first time in a long while, dreamt of flying.

In other words, away from everyone and everything that made up our "grown-up" lives, we went back to being "idiot teenagers with a death wish." It was rather pathetic.

"How do you stand it?" I asked Rachel one night as I was counting the tiles on our bathroom floor for the second time.

"Stand what?"

"Being on one of these ships for months at a time! I'm bored out of my skull!"

She was sprawled on our bed, looking like she was bored to the point of not wanting to do anything. "Well, there's usually more to do than this. I'm Ax's T.O. He and I run the ship. But now there's only six of us, so there's not a whole lot to run."

"Yeah, no kidding. We're turning into a bad soap opera."

Her only answer was a long sigh.

Chapter Six – Tobias

Another week. Rachel and Marco stopped talking to each other. Cassie started biting her nails. I took up pacing. Jake and Ax spent long hours at the computer console on the main bridge looking over communications from the homeworld. We were the most nervous group of people I'd met in a long time. I could only remember one time when I'd been so completely out of it: when Rachel was in labor with Sara. Okay, maybe I wasn't quite as out of it as I was then, but it was close. If we made it to Earth without killing each other, I thought, it would be a small miracle.

Needless to say, there was a collective sigh of relief when Jake announced, "We're out of Z-space tomorrow."

"Thank God," Cassie breathed.

"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "So what's the plan?"

We will initiate the cloaking device before we exit Z-space. It is above anything the Yeerks have the ability to detect –

"It should be," Marco interjected. "It took forever to design."

"And I suppose you had some sort of hand in it?" Rachel snapped impatiently.

He glared at her. "As a matter of fact – "

We will exit Z-space, Ax said, cutting them off before they could get into it again, fairly close to Earth. Then we shall scan the planet for signs of any Yeerk-free life.

"Specifically," Jake said, "the free Hork-Bajir colony." I instantly understood. The small group of free Hork-Bajir that had gone to live in the mountains near our city had been under some sort of special Ellimist protection. If anything had survived unscathed, it would be them. We all knew it was a long shot, but none of us wanted to think about Jara Hamee, Ket Helpack, and especially their child, Toby Hamee, being found. "From there, we have two plans. The first one is to set up our base within the colony and work from there, getting info from the Hork-Bajir and checking out the situation. The second, if the colony has been . . . terminated, is to work from here, in orbit above the planet."

The bored expressions were changing to nervous/and or scared ones. "Any questions?" Jake asked.

No one answered. Cassie quickly excused herself, an odd expression on her face, and Jake followed her, looking worried. I had a feeling all was not well in paradise. Ax called Marco over to look at something, while Rachel joined me in staring out the large front window of the bridge.

"I'll be glad to get this whole thing started," she said.

"Me too. The sooner we start, the sooner we get home," I agreed.

"And," she added, moving closer and whispering in my ear, "the sooner we can get started on our next . . . project."

I smiled and glanced at Ax and Marco, who were concentrating on a computer print out. "My turn to pick the name," I whispered back.

"Any ideas?"

"Loren for a girl. Alan for a boy," I answered thoughtfully. Loren – my mother, and Alan – Elfangor's name from his time on Earth.

"I like them," Rachel said, her arms encircling my neck.

"Like what?" Marco asked.

"Nothing," Rachel and I chorused, and grinned at each other. I linked my arm around her waist and smiled innocently.

"Don't even want to know," Marco said, giving us a disgusted look and turning back to his print out.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next morning I woke up and looked outside to see something other than white blankness for the first time in a month – black, with thousands of far-off stars visible, and one much larger one, not so far away. Earth's sun.

"Where are we?" I asked when Rachel came in. She'd hadn't been in bed when I awoke. In fact, her side of the bed didn't look like it'd been slept in at all.

She yawned and lay down. "We're about even with Neptune," she mumbled, her face buried in the pillows.

"You were up all night," I said, sitting next to her on the bed.

"Yeah. Ax and Jake, too. We're gonna try to catch some sleep. Marco's keeping an eye on things."

"Everything look okay?"

"So far so good. No sign of the Yeerks yet, but they don't have much interest in the other planets."

"Can you see Earth?"

"No. Not even with the visual magnification tech. Too far away." She yawned again. "I'm going to sleep," she said, stripping her uniform off.

"Okay. Good morning then." I kissed her forehead and left, jogging up the stairs to the bridge.

"Hey, Tobias," Marco said from his chair by the computer console.

"Good morning," I said. "How much longer until we reach Earth?"

He checked an instrument. "Forty-two hours and thirty-six minutes until we enter Earth's orbit."

"Long time," I remarked, staring transfixed at the field of stars visible outside.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Rachel asleep?"

"Dead to the world," I replied. "That girl can go forever without any sleep but when she sleeps she sleeps. Right now you could go shout in her ear and she wouldn't move."

"Think I should try?" Marco asked with a sly grin.

"Do you value your life?"

"I'll take that as a no."

I nodded. "The only person who can wake Rachel up without getting her pissed is Sara."

I sat in Rachel's usual station, the one nearest Marco, and put my feet up on the shallow counter that ran around the whole edge of the bridge. "So what are the odds of Plan A working?" I asked after a few moments of listening to Marco tinkering with various navigation and communication devices. Plan A was the one that depended on the Hork-Bajir colony still being alive.

He sighed. "Truthfully? Not good. That's the optimistic plan. Even with Ellimist protection, the chances of the Hork-Bajir surviving for seven years on a planet under Yeerk domination are almost none."

"What about the Chee?"

"Good question," Marco said, swiveling his chair around to look at me. "We'd expected to see them as the Yeerks' latest and best death machines. But we never did. There are no records of a Chee ever being used in battle."

"Maybe they couldn't figure out how to program them?" I suggested.

He shrugged. "Maybe." But what was left unspoken was that even that didn't bode well for our android friends.

I was at loose ends for the rest of the morning, wandering between Cassie in the sick bay and Marco in the bridge. Cassie was busying herself making sure everything was in order should we need it. Marco was just keeping an eye on things. I was bored, anxious, and feeling useless.

Which is how I felt for the next forty-two hours. By then, I was beginning to wonder why I'd come. Cassie had her medical knowledge; Marco, his computer knowledge. Ax, Rachel, and Jake were the military backbone of our group. Me? I hadn't the faintest idea what my job was.

It was the middle of the night according to ships time when we entered Earth's orbit. "Tobias," Rachel hissed in the dark. "Wake up. You have to see this."

"See what?" I asked groggily, sitting up. She was kneeling next to me on the bed, her eyes wide and shining despite the lack of sleep she'd been getting.

"That," she replied in awe, staring out the window of our quarters. I turned and followed her gaze – and felt my heart leap into my mouth.

Earth. Our beautiful, blue planet. We were home.

Only it wasn't as pretty as it had been. There was a faint brown mist covering the atmosphere, and the water wasn't as blue as I remembered it being the last time I saw it from space – on the Andalite ship that had rescued us. The land didn't look as green, either, more brown and dead. And there were several places that looked as though they were bleeding from the erosion that was washing the precious topsoil into the sea. But in any shape, it was Earth.

"Get dressed," Rachel said, sliding off the bed, "and come up to the bridge."

"Okay," I replied, finally tearing my eyes away from the planet. The rotation of the ship was causing it to slid away anyhow. Rachel left, calling something to Ax as she ran up the stairs.

I pulled on my clothes and ran after her. The others were already there, seated in their respective stations. "What's up?" I asked as I sat down beside Cassie.

"It's daylight at home," Marco replied. "We're trying to get a visual on the Hork-Bajir valley."

I nodded and watched as the viewing screen turned from black to white, and back to black again with some white lines. Finally it cleared again and a picture formed.

"I hope the coordinates are right," Marco said, spinning in his chair to watch with the rest of us.

Trees. Green and untouched by the filthy hands of the Yeerks, which was encouraging. But we didn't see any Hork-Bajir.

Suddenly there was a flash in the trees, a branch bending under the weight of something large. It leapt to the next tree and paused, seeming to look straight at the viewing screen.

"Toby Hamee!" I gasped, shocked and delighted. Toby is a Hork-Bajir seer and the first Hork-Bajir born into freedom in years. Most Hork-Bajir look alike to humans, but Toby's different. She's got a gaze that makes you feel like you're under a microscope. There's no mistaking her.

"Follow her, Marco," Jake ordered.

He nodded and as Toby moved through the trees, so did the viewing screen. Suddenly, she swung off a branch and landed on the ground. Marco brought the focus off her, and moved it to show us a more general picture.

There was a stunned silence.

Milling around in the valley were approximately 150 Hork-Bajir, mostly young ones. They were obviously all free and well.

"Looks like Plan A's a go," Rachel finally managed.

And then we saw a familiar figure in the midst of the Hork-Bajir. A silver and white dog walking on its hind legs.

"A Chee?" Cassie gasped.

"How?" Marco stuttered, staring at the screen.

And how many? Ax added.

Jake shook his head in amazement. "I don't know. I cannot imagine how the Yeerks missed 150 free Hork-Bajir and Chee."

"The Ellimist," I replied, suddenly sure of it.

Rachel nodded. "Non-interference my ass."

Yes, Ax agreed. He certainly holds no qualms about bending his own rules to help his cause.

"Well, I'm not going to argue," Jake said. "In this case, we're his cause, and I'd sure rather have him with us than against us."

I suppose so, Ax said dubiously. But I hope we will not be forced to deal with him directly on this assignment. He complicates certain issues. And that is not something we need.

"True," Marco said.

We watched the Hork-Bajir and Chee for a few more moments, still amazed that they had been able to survive for so long. Marco finally broke the silence by saying, "I don't see any more Chee."

"No," I said. "Do you think only one of them got away?"

"Maybe," Cassie said sadly.

"Well, let's not just sit here," Jake said. "Let's go."

We started to descend, slowly, into the atmosphere. Marco, Jake, Rachel, and Ax shouted computer jargon and meaningless military babble back and forth, while Cassie gripped her seat, white-knucked, and I resisted the urge to cover my ears against the roar of the engines. Suddenly, the front windshield was filled with individual trees, where only moments before there had only been a blurred expanse of green, and the gentle glide we'd been in while entering the atmosphere turned into the roller coaster ride from hell.

"Pull up!" Jake shouted. "We need a clearing!"

"There's one about two hundred yards ahead that's just big enough!" Marco yelled back, the viewing screen showing the meadow he was talking about.

"For heaven's sake then, pull up or we're not going to make it!" Cassie cried.

Perhaps it would have been wise to locate the clearing before attempting to land, Ax remarked calmly, even as Marco tried to keep us from scraping the tree tops.

"No, DUH!" Marco snapped harshly.

"Real mature, Marco!" Rachel shot.

"Oh, I see! You're going to pick a fight now?!" he asked angrily, not taking his eyes off the windshield.

"Everyone, SHUT UP!!!" Jake roared. Ax, who was at the navigational controls, said nothing.

"There's the clearing!" Marco yelled after about two seconds of silence.

"Boosters off," Rachel announced. "Engines one through six at half power." I felt us come to almost a stop, hovering over the meadow, and slowly begin to drop. "Engines one and two, off . . . engines three and four, off . . . engines five and six – " there was a slight bump as we touched down – "off."

There was a heavy silence.

"Good landing," Jake finally said.

"Yeah, right." Marco suddenly laughed, an almost hysterical snicker. One by one, the rest of us joined in, until all six of us, even Ax, were giggling like idiots. It was a "almost got killed" kind of laugh, a nervous release of tension – but after a month of thinking about it, this was the moment we'd been waiting for. None of us liked the thought of coming so close only to crash at the last moment.

When we had recovered, Ax asked, What is our position in relation to the Hork-Bajir colony?

"They're about two hundred fifty yards to the northwest," Marco replied.

Are you certain we were not detected while entering the atmosphere?

Marco nodded. "We had the cloaking up the whole way. They don't have any idea we're here."

We sat there staring out the window at the familiar forest, the only protected part of our home, and at the ugly, greenish-brown sky beyond – the result of Yeerk activity. "Are we ready?" Cassie asked quietly.

Rachel smiled. "Let's do it."

Chapter Seven – Cassie

I stepped off the gangway leading from the main hatch of our ship, setting foot on Earth soil for the first time in seven years – and was immediately seized by a fit of coughing as I inhaled a lungful of smoky air. Around me, the others were having the same reaction, as they gasped and choked on the pollution-laden air.

I suspect, Ax said, breathing asthmatically, that Earth has become a planet used primarily for Yeerk industry.

I was horrified. "I can't believe anything survived in this."

"Maybe you get used to it after awhile," Marco said dubiously. But we were starting to cough less, though now my eyes were itching, burning, and watering. And we thought we were screwing up the environment, I thought ironically.

"This way," Jake coughed, pointing. We followed him, picking our way through the underbrush, which I now realized was not as healthy as it had been. The trees were not as thick, there were fewer flowers, and much of the grass was dead. I also saw signs of the Hork-Bajir – trees with strips of bark removed, mostly midway to high up on the trunks. But I knew that the Hork-Bajir had actually been genetically engineered by a now-dead species called the Arn to care for trees, not destroy them. If the foliage was dying, it was not due to the Hork-Bajir.

"They probably heard us land," Rachel said.

Marco shook his head. "The cloaking tech masks the noise of the engines."

Ax looked surprised. I was not aware of that. Very impressive.

"I told you. The newest and the best." Rachel opened her mouth, probably to make another barbed remark about Marco's ego, but shut it after a split second. I hoped that she and Marco would quit bickering now that we were out of our ship. The last thing we needed was internal disagreement.

We fell silent, and I realized with a jolt that the forest was too quiet. There were none of the usual sounds: no birds, or rustling of leaves under an animal's paws. It was eerily still. My eyes filled with tears I recognized that even Ellimist protection had not been able to spare most of Earth's creatures. We might succeed in liberating the human race, but we would never be able bring back species that were already extinct. It was a sobering realization. I had somehow imagined that if we did succeed in freeing the humans and defeating the Yeerks, everything would go back to the way it had been before. But it would never be that way again. Earth would always bear the scars of its time under Yeerk rule.

Jake saw me struggling not to cry, and put his arm around me. "I know," he whispered in a choked voice, gazing around at the lifeless forest. "But they'll pay for it."

I didn't answer. I didn't want revenge, not really. I never had, in fact, not since knowing Aftran. I wanted to raise my children in peace. I wanted a husband who could stay home. I wanted a life free of war. And revenge was not the way to go about obtaining any of those things.

We slowly made our way through the dense part of the forest linking the clearing where we'd landed to the Hork-Bajir valley. At the edge, we paused.

The scene before us made my heart skip a beat. It was busy, hectic, with many Hork-Bajir going about their daily lives, stripping bark and caring for their children. It could almost have been a scene from an 18^th century human painting, except that instead of humans there were Hork-Bajir – most species aren't that fundamentally different once you get past the structural differences. It was a lively, joyful, peaceful scene, and it made me think that maybe, just maybe, we would succeed. Like if this colony had been able to survive this long, perhaps our mission wasn't completely impossible.

Suddenly we heard a cry of alarm. A small Hork-Bajir nearby had spotted us, and was calling for help at the top of his lungs.

"Wait!" I cried. But the poor Hork-Bajir child was terrified, and ran away immediately. Within seconds, he was replaced by about ten adults, who surrounded us, and glared at us from under their bladed foreheads. Hork-Bajir are probably the nicest, most peaceful creatures you'll ever meet, but they are walking weapons, with blades from head to toe, and you don't want to tick one off. At the moment, we were surrounded by ten Hork-Bajir who would never want to hurt a fly, but would kill us all for the sake of their colony.

"Hold on," Jake said as one stepped forward. He held his hands out to show he had no weapons, but none of the Hork-Bajir appeared convinced.

"Yeerk!" the Hork-Bajir accused simply. Hork-Bajir are not one of the brightest species – except for their seers, who rival Andalites in intelligence.

"No," Tobias said carefully, the way you might talk to a four-year-old with a loaded gun. "Not Yeerk. Animorph."

This obviously caught the Hork-Bajir off guard. "Animorph?" he repeated in a way that told me the term was not unfamiliar, just unexpected. He turned to the Hork-Bajir on his right and barked something in their rough, guttural language. The leader turned back to us and stared at us, suspiciously, like he was daring us to try anything, while the one he'd said something to hurried off.

"We're not Yeerks," I said.

"You human. No humans have own head," he replied.

"We do," Rachel said.

"How we know that?"

Good question. We were quiet after that, while the Hork-Bajir stood there and stared at us until it made me squirm. They looked like they were waiting for something.

A few minutes later, we found out what.

"Do not harm them!" I heard someone cry. The Hork-Bajir who surrounded us parted at the sound of the voice, and a female stepped through.

Toby Hamee.

We stared at her for a moment. At last, Tobias said, "Hello, Toby."

"Tobias," she returned, and I heard the distrust in her voice. "Animorphs."

"We're back," Marco said awkwardly after another moment of staring at each other.

"Yes," she said in a low voice. "You are."

"Toby, we're not Controllers," Tobias said sounding desperate.

She looked at us. "I want to believe that," she said, sounding torn. She turned to a young Hork-Bajir who was trying to peek around her. "Dak, please bring Erek here."

"Erek?" I gasped. "He's here?"

"Yes," she said. "He is here. He has been living with us since . . . well, I shall allow him to tell you."

"Are there any other Chee with you?" Marco asked.

She gazed at us steadily. "No."

Suddenly, Erek pushed his way through the crowd of Hork-Bajir that had gathered. He saw us and stopped dead in his tracks. "Is it really you guys?" he asked in amazement.

"What's the matter, Erek?" Marco asked with a grin. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I feel like I have," he said. "We – we assumed you were all dead."

"Nope. Alive and kicking," Marco said glibly.

He shook his head, and stepped forward. One by one, he ran some sort of scanner over us. "Chee technology," he explained. "Yeerk detector."

"Yeerk detector?" Rachel and Marco repeated incredulously at the same time.

He nodded and said to Toby, "They're free."

She smiled her almost-scary Hork-Bajir smile. "I am glad to find you well. I am sorry your reception was not warmer. We have to be careful."

"No problem," Jake said. "We understand."

Toby turned to the same small Hork-Bajir and said something to him in a soft voice we couldn't understand. She then politely dismissed the other Hork-Bajir and led Erek and the rest of us away from the main part of the valley. We hiked up an incline to a series of caves. "I assume you will be needing to stay with us for some time?" she asked.

Thank you, Ax said, but our ship is located quite close to here.

"Ship? Then you come with the endorsement of the Andalite government?" she asked, leading us inside one of the caves for privacy.

"How did you know we'd been living with the Andalites?" I asked as we sat down and made ourselves as comfortable as possible on the hard stone floor.

"Well," Erek said, "you most certainly have not been living on Earth. The Andalites are the obvious choice."

"Oh. Well, yes," Jake admitted. "We were sent to find out the situation and report back."

"Are they considering trying to liberate the humans?" Erek asked.

Yes, Ax said. For that, we require information. Can you tell us how things stand?

Toby and Erek exchanged a glance. "You are the last five free humans," Toby finally stated bluntly. "Earth is completely under Yeerk control."

"What about the Chee?" I asked hesitantly.

"I am the last of the Chee," Erek replied. "We were found out and most of us were captured shortly after you disappeared. The Yeerks could not figure out how to reprogram us, so most of my fellow Chee were disassembled. They lie in storage, waiting for the time when Yeerk technology can unlock their secrets and they may be used as weapons." He shook his head. "I can imagine no worse fate for them."

"Oh, Erek," I whispered, swallowing against the lump in my throat. If it is possible for an android to look sad, Erek looked positively heart broken.

Suddenly, we heard rustling noises from beyond the cave entrance. I started up, alarmed, Rachel reached for her Shredder that wasn't there, and Ax swung his tail in an arc, like he was preparing for a fight. Toby and Erek looked calm, though. "Do not worry," she assured us. "You see, there is hope for your cause – though perhaps not how you think."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

She didn't answer, but looked toward the mouth of the cave. Two figures appeared: one, the small Hork-Bajir Toby had called "Dak" earlier – named, I assumed, after Dak Hamee, Toby's great-grandfather; the other, a tall blonde woman slightly younger than us. I glanced from her to Rachel and back again in shock. They looked like twins.

Rachel's eyes were rapidly filling with tears. "Jordan?" she managed.

"Rachel," her younger sister whispered, her own eyes shining.

Rachel scrambled to her feet and hugged her sister fiercely. "Oh my God," she whispered into her sister's hair. "You're alive."

"So are you," Jordan said in awe. "I thought for sure you were dead after we found out . . . about . . ."

"No . . . oh, I missed you so much. But – " Suddenly Rachel released her sister and turned to Erek. "I thought you said we were the last free humans."

"You are," Jordan said.

A look of horrified fury spread across Rachel's face as she realized. "You filthy slug!" she screamed.

"No!" Jordan shouted. "NO!! Rachel, listen!"

"Don't tell me "no"!! You're a Controller!"

"No, Rachel, wait!!" Jordan held her hand up to her ear and we watched in stunned silence as the Yeerk slowly slithered out of her ear. "You see?" she said, holding the gray Yeerk in her hand, gently. "I'm not her slave."

"She's like Aftran," I said softly.

Jordan nodded, gently stroking the Yeerk in her hand. "She holds Aftran in very high regard – and you, too, Cassie. She's Visser Forty-one. And the leader of the Yeerk peace movement."

"What about Mom?" Rachel asked. "And Dad? And . . . Sara?"

"They were all Controllers the last I saw of them. I don't know what's happened to them since."

"You're really okay?" Rachel asked, still sounding like she didn't believe it.

"Yes," Jordan said. "I really am. I have to put her back in now – she'll die of dehydration if I don't. But she'll let me talk when I want to, you have to believe that."

Rachel stared at the Yeerk for a long moment. She had never had to trust a Yeerk before, like I had. Every instinct screamed against it. But she slowly nodded, and Jordan held Visser Forty-one back up to her ear. A few minutes later, she blinked several times and said, "Thank you for trusting me."

"Do not thank me yet, Yeerk," Rachel replied. "Toby said you gave hope to our cause. How does a Yeerk bring hope to us?"

"Because I bring a message from the majority of the Yeerk Empire."

And what message would that be? Ax asked, sounding just as suspicious as Rachel.

Jordan/Visser Forty-one met my eyes for a long moment. Finally she said, in a voice barely above a whisper, "Peace."

To be continued . . .