Disclaimer: I do not own Animorphs, it belongs to K.A. Applegate, and whoever else. You know the deal.

Six

Huh? It was another dream. Great. Back in the real world, I had probably fallen over, and hit my head. Great.

I was in that place again. The place with all the lines. But this time, there were others there. Ellimist, in a human guise, was here. And an elfin lady. But I seemed to be the only one that noticed her.

The biggest surprise was that she was there. I had seen so many pictures of her, but nothing was like the real thing. She was more beautiful than anybody had ever said she was. Her long blond hair flowing behind her, Rachel Berenson was talking with Ellimist.

The Ellimist was talking. "I did not cause you to be one of the six. You are . . . you were . . . a happy accident. An unwitting contribution from the human race to its own survival."

They were both silent for a while. Until Rachel spoke. "You said I could ask one more question."

"Yes."

"I can't ask if we win, I can't ask if it will all turn out okay."

"I don't know those answers."

"Okay, then answer me this, Ellimist. Did I . . . did I make a difference? My life, and my . . . my death . . . was I worth it? Did my life really matter?"

"Yes," he said. "You were brave. You were strong. You were good. You mattered."

"Yeah. Okay, then. Okay then."

I watched her timeline, as it faded, and began curling away.

But suddenly, it stopped, as the elfin woman finally spoke. "Oh, how touching, Toomin. I think I may need a tissue."

Ellimist spun around, and faced the woman.

"You." Wow, he didn't sound like he particularly liked her.

"Long time, so see, hey Toomin? Well, not really. What, a couple of million years? Wow, time flies when you're immortal being, doesn't it?" She burst out laughing in a beautifully soft voice. "Just kidding, Toomin. Whoa, lighten up, will you? Now, I believe we had a deal, did we not?"

The Ellimist began to change, almost like a smooth morph. He changed from his human guise, to what I believe is called a Ketran. How did I know that? This place was filling my head with stuff.

"Yes, One, I believe we did. A game. Although it may have to wait. I am still completing my game with Crayak.

The woman, One, let out an exasperated sigh. "Are you serious? It's been so long!"

Ellimist gave her a hard look. "Yes, and it is nowhere near complete, Father."

"Toomin! You know I hate that name. I am no longer that useless sponge."

"No, now you're a dangerous sponge. You still absorb innocent creatures. And I no longer care what you prefer to be named, you filthy beast."

Ouch.

"Well," she said, ignoring his comment. "How much longer do you think this silly game will continue?"

"As I said, it is nowhere near completed. This game is quite complex, involving quite a few species. Although this one stage, if played correctly, is almost complete. My Animorphs have almost defeated Crayaks Yeerks. I just have to watch my step carefully."

"Your Animorphs?" the One smiled. "My Toomin. Is that sentimentality speaking? Have you gotten attached to your pawns? I see there is still a little of that Ketran I once knew in there somewhere."

"You never knew me One. You took me, and my friends, killed them all, killed Aguella. But I defeated you, One, and I escaped with Aguellas data. And that had taught me not to ever become attached. So no, these pawns are the same as any others to me."

The One distorted her beautiful face, and looked truly evil. "And yet, I got little Aguella back. I got her, and you, and your others, from that black hole. And she is with me again."

"You have her form, and that is all."

"Fine, Toomin. I've lost interested with this little argument anyway. I don't care about your Aguella, or your Animorphs. I care only about my game. I refuse to wait any longer. Wrap up this stage, and I'll be back. I can take care of Crayak, and put your game on hold. I'll be back very soon."

Ellimist began to protest. "Shut it, Toomin. I'm taking this human with me, to make sure you come through on our deal. If you truly are sentimental about them, as I suspect you are, you won't do anything stupid."

She reached out and grabbed Rachels shimmering, curling, timeline with a single hand, and pulled it somewhere inside of her.

"See you soon, Toomin." she said, blowing a kiss and shimmering out.