We were on a mission later that week, I was leading as usual. The Yeerks
were rebuilding the Yeerk Pool to infest more hosts. It was nearly finished
by the time we found out, Visser One was maintaining a low profile for
the time being. We followed the subway down into the vast cavern hidden
beneath the city. My dad said that they had blown it up using over a dozen
thousand-pound bombs which caused a giant sinkhole in the middle of town.
A lot of innocent people died that day. Now and then we'd step over a skeleton
or two that was left behind by the rescue crew. As we got closer we could
hear screams. But when I actually saw the faces I felt my heart sink with
dread. Visser One had anyone, from small children to elderly people, being
turned into hosts. There were even Hork-Bajir.
"My mother's there!" Darrax said.
Darrax is a Hork-Bajir with the ability to morph, his mother Toby was
the very first Hork-Bajir to be made a Controller. When our parents were
our age they had freed all of the Hork-Bajir from the Yeerks and sent them
to live in a hidden valley. Now the process was starting all over again.
And his army consisted of Hork-Bajir, Iguadons, Tyrants, and Human-Controllers.
There were even a few Andalites. Needless to say we were now severely outnumbered.
I scanned the area and found her standing on a platform next to David overlooking
the pool. Visser One.
"You guys get those people free. I'll get Stacey," I said.
"Jason you're crazy!" Cheyenne told me. "You can't take them both on,
especially Visser One. She'll kill you without even giving it a second
thought."
"You have a better idea?!"
I began morphing to lion and Cheyenne morphed to wolf. I was planning
to take Stacey prisoner and find a way to get Visser One out of her head.
It was stupid for me to believe that I could actually free her. When my
dad was fighting this war they only had to wait three days for the Yeerk
to die of Kandrona starvation. Now, thanks to some chemical devised by
Visser One, the Yeerks are practically immortal. Cheyenne and I crept out
to the edge of the sludgy pond near the infestation dock. Stacey now had
her back to us. I gathered strength in my hind legs and leaped.
"ROOOAAR!" I bellowed as I knocked her to the ground.
"Animorphs!" Visser One shouted. "Get them!"
Hork-Bajir, Iguadons, and humans attacked in swarms from every direction. Darrax and Ketara had made their way to the cages holding the free hosts and cut the locks off. Free humans and Hork-Bajir ran for the entrance. A band of Iguadon soldiers blocked their path and started to drag them back to the pier. Visser One rolled onto his back and glared at me with my sister's stolen eyes. Those eyes were once sweet and innocent, now they were nothing more than pure evil and hatred.
"Aww, is my baby bwother twying to save me?" she asked in a childish voice.
I'm not your brother,> I snarled. I want Stacey! I want my life back!>
"It sounds like you've got issues. Is your Prozac not helping?"
How do you know about that?!>
"Flies aren't totally blind," she said.
I remembered a fly in my bedroom earlier. Could it have been Visser One in morph? I bit down on her shoulder and pulled her along on the cavern floor. I didn't see her swing until it was too late. A bladed forearm lashed out and cut me from the top of the head down to my snout. I was blinded in my right eye but continued on my way until she morphed the body she created using Darrax and Ketara's DNA. The upper body was Hork-Bajir while the lower body was a mix of both. She had four legs ending with the clawed Hork-Bajir feet and blades on all four of her bent back knees. Her tail had the four stegosaurus-like Hork-Bajir blades and the Andalite blade on the tip. Andalite stalk eyes scanned the Yeerk pool around us. Her Tyrant morph. She slashed me again with the blades on her arms. I was bleeding severely and needed to demorph.
It's the end for you human,> Visser One laughed.
As she reared up to stomp me with her Tyrannosaur feet a tiger tackled her from behind.
Leave my brother alone you sideshow freak!> Nicole said.
This is some family reunion you two have set up. Sorry, but it's about to become a funeral.>
Visser One lashed out again and again. Most of the blows hit their targets while the rest barely missed. We had to take her down before we became too weak to stand. Nicole jumped and clamped her jaws down on one arm and I grabbed the other. We forgot all about that tail of hers. It arched up over her head and sliced one of Nicole's ears off. She screamed in pain but kept her grip. Michael was in jaguar morph and bit down onto her tail. The three of us carried Stacey towards the entrance.
You honestly think you can save her?> Visser One asked.
We'll try,> Michael said.
Then I guess you're not worried about your Hork-Bajir friend back there?>
I looked and saw Darrax standing next to his mother, her wrist blades pressed against his throat. Toby was a Controller and didn't care about who she killed as long as the visser was satisfied. We had no choice but to release our prisoner. Visser One stood and looked over at Toby, then gave a nod of her head. Toby raised her arm and brought it down on Darrax's chest. Her blades pierced his heart and he collapsed. Then I remembered that Hork-Bajir have two hearts, meaning that Darrax would survive unless the Yeerk inside Toby's brain knew that also. Cheyenne attacked Toby from behind as I ran to Darrax's aide. He was still breathing, which was a good sign.
Darrax? Are you okay?> I asked.
"I'm fine. We must go," he told me.
But Stacey->
"We'll have to try again later! If we don't leave now there won't be a next time!"
I wanted to argue but knew there was no point in doing so. Darrax got to his feet and together we ran with the others towards the surface. I was very mad that I had failed to rescue my sister and that had drove me deeper into the void of depression. I sat in my room that night looking at a picture of what used to be my family. Dad had his arm around Mom, I stood between Nicole and Stacey with my arms around their shoulders. Tears rolled down my cheeks as those memories came flooding back all at once. I looked at myself in the bathroom mirror, I hardly recognized the face staring back at me. It looked old and tired, full of sadness and no more will. I made up my mind right then, I couldn't stand the pain any longer. I took out the bottle of pills and choked down a hand full of asprin, Valium and Zanex. Then placed a razor blade against the soft flesh of my wrist and cut. Blood poured from the severed veins as I repeated the action on the other arm.
I sat in the tub, getting weaker as I watched my life flow down the
drain. I faded in and out of consciousness as the pills counteracted with
each other. I gave in to the darkness that was beckoning for me to embrace
it and passed out.