By: J. Jennings
Chapter 1
My name is Jake Berenson. You may know me as Jake the Yeerk killer, or as leader of the Animorphs. Either way I'm just Jake. It has been over twenty years since the war with the Yeerks ended, twenty or more years since my cousin Rachel lost her life in battle. My last encounter with the Yeerks was three years after the war. Marco, Tobias and I, along with an Andalite nothlit named Menderash and two antiterror students named Jeanne Gerard and Sergeant Santorelli journeyed into space to save our comrade Ax, who was taken prisoner. It was a long time before we located the Blade ship, and by then it was too late. Ax had been converted into some mechanical monster the renegade Controllers called The One. I can still remember that day...
"Ram the Blade ship!" I odered.
"Captain that's suicide!" said Menderash.
"Do it anyway!"
Menderash powered up the engines and sent us barreling towards the Blade ship. As we drew closer they fired their weapons, but we were faster. We dodged effortlessly out of harm's way. This ship was amazing: both beautiful and dangerous, like Rachel, and so was named the Rachel. Menderash fired the Rachel's weapons at full power, hitting the Blade ship's right engine.
"Aim for the bridge," I said.
You'll kill Ax!> Tobias yelled.
"Ax is already dead."
"You don't know for sure Jake," Marco said.
I turned and glared fiercely at the two of them. "You both saw what I saw. There's no way of bringing him back. EVER!"
"Jake," it was Santorelli speaking, "I know you have lost more than your share of loved ones. But that is no reason to give up hope. Maybe we can save your friend, maybe not, but you won't know until you try."
That reached
a part of me I thought had died a long time ago. Maybe... just maybe we
could
save Ax. And
if not, at least I could say I tried. I gave my next set of orders.
"Take out the remaining engine and disable their Dracon cannons."
Two more shots fired and hit their targets without error. My crew awaited the instructions that would mean the destruction of the Blade ship and the death of Ax. No. Santorelli was right, I had lost more than my share of loved ones and I wasn't about to lose any more.
"Take us home," I told Menderash.
As he turned the Rachel towards Earth I turned on the communications and said a farewell message to the thing that was once Ax.
"If you can still hear me Ax, I want you to know that I will not give up until I have found a way to help you. I don't care how long it takes, believe me, I will find a way."
With those last words, and tears streaming down my cheeks, I returned home.