TITLE: "Adventures in Clubbing"

AUTHOR: Doctor Strangelove (strangelove317@hotmail.com)
RATING: PG-13
SPOILERS: Um, I don't know. No particular spoilers. Visser Three is still Visser Three.
FEEDBACK: I'd love it.
DISCLAIMER: K. A. Applegate owns the Animorphs.

"Adventures in Clubbing"

Written by: Doctor Strangelove

My name is Tom Berenson. When some people tell their story, the keep their name hidden. It doesn't really matter if you know who I am. Because it'll probably be too late.

You see, I'm not exactly alone in my body. An alien lives in me too. Now before you go calling the local nut house, allow me to explain. You see, there are these things called Yeerks. They look like slugs, only bigger. And they're aliens.

You know how in movies, aliens always come to Earth, guns blazin' and bombs going off and everything? The Yeerks aren't like that. Oh, they're here to enslave us all right, but they're much more subtle.

They creep into your brain through your ear and basically they become you. They have your thoughts, your memories, everything about you. They're the universe's greatest actors; they're better at being you than you are. And you're still there. You're still alive, seeing through your eyes, hearing through your ears, feeling with your hands. You're just not in control.

Someone else is blinking your eyes, someone else is chewing your food, doing your homework, talking to your friends, kissing your girlfriend. All of that, it's not you anymore. You're just on the inside, looking out as your life passes by. As your friends and family are enslaved too. Sound like a horrible life? It is. Trust me.

That's my life.

About two years ago or so I was just happy being on the sophomore basketball team. It was great. I was popular, I was doing reasonably well in school. And I was in love. Sixteen and in love, is there a better thing in the world?

His name was Jason. Yeah, his name. You see, I'm gay. Back when I was still the one living my life that thought freaked the hell out of me. When I was in eighth grade I was just surfing the internet, looking for some stuff on school, when I sorta stumbled upon a website. Now, I'm not gonna go into detail on what was there, but suffice it to say, it wasn't the sort of thing I wanted anyone to walk in on.

What really freaked me out was how turned on I was by the stuff there. Way more than any girl had ever gotten me. So I panicked and logged off. Except, after that I kept going back. By the time I was a freshman in high school, I'd pretty much figured out what my sexual orientation was.

It bothered me. A lot. I didn't want to be gay. I just wanted to be like everybody else. Play basketball and video games with my friends and my little brother. God, Jake would probably have a heart attack if he knew. He looks up to me. Well, at least he used to. After I got infested with the Yeerk, I kinda changed and I don't think he liked it. So, save myself some pain and humiliation I kept it hidden and pretended to be straight. Figured it might just be a phase.

But then during my sophomore year of high school, I met Jason. Jason Montoya was a new kid at our school. He was Hispanic in ancestry, but had always lived in America. He was a little shorter than me, dark black hair, and an incredible smile. It wasn't really love at first sight or anything like that, but we bonded pretty quickly. We became instant friends and started spending a lot of time together.

Then, after one of out championship games, I went over to Jason's house. His parents were out of town and we were gonna spend the night playing basketball and video games and watching the scrambled porn channels on TV.

Okay, so it was about 2 AM, we had just gotten finished playing Mortal Kombat (I whooped Jason's ass, thank you very much). Jason was pretty upset that I won, or actually he was just pretending. So he knocked me to the ground and then we started play wrestling. Which kinda lead into a little bit of making out.

Not a lot, just some quick kisses. It ended pretty soon and we started talking. Jason said he'd known he was gay for a while, but was trying to ignore it and maybe it'd go away. I'd thought the same thing. We talked some more and Jason put his hand on my leg. I looked down at it and then we started to make out some more. Only this time it was a lot more serious and involved a little less clothing.

Jason and I bonded some more that night, if you know what I mean. I was kind of freaked out, but also very happy about it. My first time. I didn't think to much about it, and Jason and I fell asleep in each other's arms. I know that sounds really sappy and sissy romantic, but it's what happened.

A little while later I work up when I felt something on my ear. It was the Yeerk. I screamed and looked up at Jason. He was very calm and cold as he held me down with one hand and with the other helped the Yeerk go into my ear. All of a sudden, his body jerked and he screamed "NO!". Then his face went back to normal and I sorta passed out.

I woke up a little while later all alone in Jason's bed. All at once I knew something was wrong. I tried turning over, but couldn't. I couldn't move anything. That's when I felt Sonra. Sonra was the first Yeerk I had. He was an asshole. I hated him, as much as I've ever hated anyone. Not just because he had enslaved me. There was more. You see, along with the Yeerk seeing all of your mind, you can see some of the Yeerk's. Sonra had been Jason's Yeerk.

I could feel all that pain that Sonra had inflicted on Jason. Because he was showing it to me. Taunting me. Showing me that the first person I fell in love with, was the one who made me a slave in my own body. I would've cried if I could. Hey, it was a tough thing to go through. Let's see how you handle it.

But I never blamed Jason. You see, every few days the Yeerk had to return to the Yeerk pool to get Kandrona rays. Well, one of the times I was down there, Jason was too. His new Yeerk showed up the same day mine did, and we were both put in the cages at the same time. Involuntary Controllers are put in cages. Voluntary ones are treated pretty nicely. Assholes.

Anyway, Jason and I talked. He told me that he really did have feelings for me. That he really liked me. That he was incredibly sorry. That if we ever got out, he wanted to be with me again. For real. And we could be on the basketball team together and live together and do all sorts of other things. Hey, we were young and scared and in love. That night, Jason told me he loved me.

That's, of course, when things went wrong. See, the Yeerks aren't the only aliens around. There are also Andalites, weird blue centaur-like things. They can morph any animal, through some technology. They also fight the Yeerks. They're good guys, for the most part. They're also the ones who gave the Yeerks advanced technology to begin with, though.

Well, there are a couple of Andalite bandits on Earth, six of them, who fight the Yeerks. That night was the first time I'd seen them and I can only remember four. Elephant, gorilla, horse, and a tiger. I'll always remember the tiger.

The tiger broke me and Jason out of our cages. We were doing pretty good, nearly out. That's when Visser Three showed up.

Visser Three is one mean mofo. The only Yeerk with an Andalite host too. So, that night, he morphs some big ass monster and attacks the Andalites. Well, they end up losing the people they tried to save. I don't know if anyone got out. I didn't. Jason didn't either.

One the Hork-Bajir, one of the Yeerk's hosts, attacked the Andalites. His blade slash down and cut Jason across the stomach. He grabbed his middle and fell down. Tears welled up in his eyes as he tried to keep his insides from spilling out. He didn't do a very good job. Jason died that night.

I'll never blame him for me being infested. But I blame the Andalites. As much as they want to be the heroes and even if they do mean one day I get free, I'll always hate them. It's their fault Jason is dead. I'll never forgive them for that.

Well, about a year ago I get a new host. Esthrill-Six-Two-Nine of the Sket Nair pool. Or Visser Nine, as he's so kind to mention to absolutely everyone. Vissers are kinda like the Yeerk's politicians. They lower the number, the better. Visser Nine is a pretty good position.

But Esthrill wasn't always Visser Nine. That happened pretty soon though. You see, the Yeerks have an organization they call the Sharing. Boys and girls club kinda thing. Except evil. Well, back before I was infested, Jason and I had this idea for a Sharing kind of thing, except for gay youth.

Esthrill took my idea and mixed it with one of his own. A plan to make the ultimate warrior out of any race. Even the puny humans.

Esthrill had developed a plan that would mix some sort of steel the Yeerks got from an alien race called the Coo-Hatch, and infuse it with a host's skeleton system. To make them stronger than nearly anyone, and nearly invincible too. I was the guinea pig.

It worked. I now have some sort of metal in my bones and muscle. I can kick a gorilla's ass pretty damn easily. I can have a ton of machinery dropped on me and not even be hurt. But, Esthrill's technology has a downside. The Yeerk is stuck in the host for good.

He has a way they can still get Kandrona rays without leaving, as long as they're submerged in the Yeerk pool. So, now I don't have to worry about getting free. I'm trapped forever. Plus if the Council of Thirteen ever decides to abort this plan, there's a shut down system that will kill ever Controller with Project Esthrill (guess where he got that name) in them. It kills the host too.

But Esthrill is using this technology, plus the Sharing's new club for gay youth, to build himself an army of invincible human warriors. I'm not sure, but I know that he's got his mind on more than being Visser One.

Esthrill has some plan. I can't tell, he's hiding himself too well from me, but this guy isn't just working by himself. Something's going on with that guy. I just wish I knew what.

On top of that, Marco Jones, my little brother's best friend, just showed up at the club a few weeks ago. Esthrill thinks Marco has potential or something, so he's got me working the mojo on the kid. That's pretty fucked up. Seducing your brother's best friend. Especially because Marco reminds me a lot of Jason. They're similar looking, have the same sense of humor, and the same smile. God, it's weird.

So, I guess that's all really. That's my story. Eighteen year old guy trapped in the middle of a war that really has nothing to do with me. I war I won't survive. Either I'll be killed by the Andalites, or the Council of Thirteen. I don't think those guys plan on letting Esthrill live too long once he's used up his usefulness.

So, either way, I'm doomed. And I guess, maybe, that's the way it should be. If I'm gonna die, maybe it means I'll get to see Jason again pretty soon. That'd be nice.

To reviewers:
Jinako-Chan: I wonder what would've happened if Rachel was leader. That'd be a neat little AU fic. Damnit, now I have a new idea. I have too many of these. Um, I don't remember exactly what chapter we see Ax-man again, but the blue dude is gonna be gone for a while. Yeah, see, foreshadowing. Way back in Chapter 2. I actually wrote that and then thought up what was really going on. Backwards foreshadowing. Yeah, I really like the Marco and Tom/Jake thing. That's why I wrote it in the beginning. I might try to do another fic with some of that in it.
Lisa-Ann: Addictive you say? Like coccaine? Are you calling my fic cocaine? Are you? ARE YOU!? ...I'm very tired. Ignore me.
Aqua Rhapsody: I'm not gonna stop. Don't worry. This fic and the ones after it might take little hiatuses, but I'm never gonna stop. Until I get to the end. Then you kinda have to stop.
Freak Apple: Whoo-hoo! Oreos! *eats Oreos* I love it when people that don't like slash read my stuff anyway. It's nice. So are Oreos!
Son of Evil: *chews Oreos* God I love reviews. You people are awesome. I need to do something special for you all. I don't know what, but I'm gonna do something. You people are great! And I love the name too.
_angelofshad0ws_: Seriously, you people are awesome! Something you'd buy in the store? I don't know if it's that good, but thanks!