A/N – Hey, what's up? The reviews are a little nicer than I expected, but some of you are still wondering why I'm doing this. Well, let me go into Marco-mode: hahaha! You're reading through slitted fingers! Some of you are leaving disappointed reviews…but you're still reading, nonetheless! I am a literary genius! LOL..anyway…I promised you'd have an overall satisfaction when this is through, and I meant it. Things can't get better before they get worse, right? Keep reading, and enjoy!

Chapter 24

Tobias

When I came to, Jake and I were on large beds in a high-tech room. Tall, thin Taruffs bustled around us, taking all sorts of technical data from the electrodes stuck to our foreheads. I sat up, wincing from the stiffness in my spine, and tore the wires off of my head. That started a couple of the Taruffs hooting and grunting at me, but Amni'bel waved them to leave me alone, which they reluctantly did.

"What happened?" I asked Amni'bel, since Jake seemed to be asleep. A flash of terror hit me – how long had I been in morph? I immediately focused on demorphing and started to shrink, much to my relief. I waited until I was fully Red-tailed hawk again to speak. (What happened?) I asked again.

"Jamei is dead," Amni'bel said mournfully. "The real Jamei. The imposter, Teneel, still lives. We have our most skilled hunters on her trail. She will die before the sun has set on this day," Amni'bel promised, and I almost laughed. She actually believed herself. I didn't bother telling her that Teneel could be anything, not just anywhere.

(How's Jake?) I asked, suddenly concerned. I knew how it was to lose someone you loved. I loved Cassie, but not in the way that Jake did. I ached for her, but at the same time I felt ashamed. I didn't feel a fraction as bad about losing Cassie as I had about losing Rachel. I hated to admit that, but I'd stopped lying to myself a long time ago.

"The medics say physically, he's in perfect condition. Extremely healthy. Mentally, though – well, he's gone somewhere else. He won't eat or drink and will barely respond to questions," Amni'bel said sadly. "The shamen and medics don't know how to repair mental damage to a human."

I didn't answer, just began to morph to human once again. I was tired, but that was going to have to wait. Cassie was gone – nothing was going to change that. We couldn't afford to have Jake act like this. Not now.

Fully human again, I walked over to where he gazed into empty space with glassy eyes. "Jake, it's Tobias. Anybody home?" He nodded ever so slightly, but didn't respond. "What are you doing?" I asked him. No response.

I was mad. I was emotional. I did something that I'm not particularly proud of – I hit him. Not a full-out punch, but somewhere in between that and a slap. He grabbed his face in surprise and sat up quickly, his expression a mask of outrage and sorrow. "You bastard, what the -" he started.

"Good, you're back," I cut him off coldly. "Shut up and listen to me. Cassie is gone, Jake. You're alive. I'm alive. As far as we know, all the others are alive. You have a duty to them, a responsibility to keep them alive. Locking up and punking out isn't the way to win this thing. So stop being an idiot, or I'll hit you again. What do you think Cassie would want you to do?"

He'd started to respond to the first part of my statement, and closed his mouth as he considered the last part. "I don't know what she'd want," he said. "I don't know."

Amni'bel, who I'd forgotten was watching the whole thing, said, "Why don't you ask her?"

I turned to her in open surprise. I didn't say anything, though – I didn't know if she was baiting us for a cruel joke or what. Jake spoke slowly. "What do you mean, ask her? Is she alive?"

Amni'bel shook her head. "I am sorry – I forget that you are not familiar with our ways. No, Prince Jake. Cassie is gone, but her spirit remains. We have captured her brain waves and thought processes in a Kalim Jewel. Through a process called Abu-jar, our shamen can summon her spirit to talk to you for a brief time. It will be an emotional event for you, I am certain. Some family members of fallen warriors choose not to invoke the Abu-jar. They feel it is better to let the soul rest and keep the memory of their loved one sacred."

Jake seemed at a loss for words, so I picked up his slack. "How long will she be able to talk with us? Will it really be Cassie, or just a representation?" The only thing worse I could think of for Jake to never see Cassie again would be for him to speak to a cruel apparition, an imitation of the girl he loved.

"It will be as if she never left. She will have all of her memories, even up until her own death. She will understand what is happening. As for how long she will remain, no one can say. It depends on how strongly her spirit wants to stay."

"I want to do it," Jake said. "I have to know if she hates me," he choked a little. "I have to know what she wants me to do to make things right."

I put my hand on Jake's shoulder, and I knew that all the time I'd spent hating him was just stupid. He was my friend – even before we knew anything about the Yeerks, he was my friend when I needed one. I was just some dork who got beat up a lot. All he would have had to do was keep on walking, and I'd have never known who he was. He stood up for me when I wouldn't even stand up for myself. My friend Jake always did what he thought was right, and in some ways, a lot of ways, I knew that made him better than me. Whatever the cost, he did what he thought was right, and I knew deep down that was the only reason we weren't dead and Earth wasn't a Yeerk haven. None of us could afford to have him falter now.

Amni'bel nodded respectfully. "This way, please." She led us out of the sick bay and down a dark, creepy hallway. The other hallways in the palace were grand spectacles of beauty decorated with precious gems and minerals. This particular walkway didn't even belong in the same building. The masonry and stonework was sloppy. It was dank, and foul water dripped from unseen leaks. Poorly lit, one had to stare at their feet so they wouldn't trip on a protruding cobblestone. I resisted the urge to demorph. Cassie would want to see me as a human, if she was going to be able to see at all.

We entered a doorless room that glowed with a blood-red light. Several fist-sized crystals were the source of the light and glowed as if they were bioluminescent. The smallest Taruff I'd seen so far approached us skittishly, which made him even odder to me – I'd have not thought that any Taruff had a skittish bone in their body. He wore a simple, sleeveless robe, but his arms were entwined with intricate metals and gems, a fascinating display of a mix between simple luxury and technology. "Princess, who would you like to see today?" he asked humbly.

"We have come for the human, Cassie," she replied. "Activate her crystal and give us privacy."

The Taruff shaman bowed and scurried to find the crystal Amni'bel had requested. Jake swallowed hard, and I tightened my grip on his shoulder. I wanted to reassure him that I was there for him. The shaman returned with a glowing crystal, but instead of red, its glow was more purplish. Who'd have known different species souls weren't the same color? The shaman looked right at Jake. "This may be hard. You will speak to her bare essence. Her emotions and thoughts will be very clear. The souls released here are not capable of deceit." Jake nodded his understanding.

He set the jewel on an ornate, golden pillar that held it upright. He activated the computer interfaces on his arms, and the jewels set into the metal began to glow themselves. The crystal seemed to glow brighter as the gems on his arms dimmed, as if it was absorbing the smaller jewels' energy. He chanted, and all the while Cassie's crystal glowed brighter and brighter. I was about to cover my eyes to protect them from the searing light when everything seemed to dim. There was a tunnel effect, not so different from zero-space, that connected me to the crystal. I could dimly see a similar tunnel between the jewel and Jake. The shaman backed away silently, and Jake said tentatively, "Cassie?"

(Jake? Where am I?) Cassie's voice echoed through the tunnel.

"It's me, Cassie. Amni'bel said…she said you'd already know. That you're…" Jake hesitated.

(I'm dead?) Cassie asked. She didn't sound overly surprised or upset. (Oh. Well, I suppose everything will work out, then. Jamei has her proof we're willing to die for them.)

"It wasn't the real Jamei," Jake told her. "It was Teneel, an Andalite on Crayak's team."

Cassie seemed to sigh. (Oh, Jake. I know you'll want to kill her to avenge me,) she said, sounding disappointed.

Jake shot me a questioning look. "Shouldn't I?" he asked.

(Of course not. If you have to kill her, let it be out of necessity. Killing in anger would make you no better than a member of Crayak's team.)

Jake looked more shocked than when I'd socked him earlier. "I guess you're right." He looked down at his feet. "Cassie, how am I supposed to go on without you?" he asked, his tone so sad I almost started crying. I'd never seen him like this. Never.

(It probably won't be easy,) Cassie said. The shaman had been right – there was no wheels-within-wheels logic to what Cassie was saying. She was being direct, blunt even. Not like the Cassie I knew…but probably what Cassie would have sounded like without concern and love altering things between what she felt and what she actually said. (You said it yourself, though. Even if every one of us die, if Crayak loses, it would still be worth it.)

"What should I do?" he asked miserably. "What would you do if you were in my shoes?"

(Win,) she said flatly. (If you don't, every sentient being in the universe is going to feel like you do right now, if not worse. Win at all costs. You don't have any other choice. I'm going to go now.)

"Cassie – no, not yet," Jake pleaded. "I need you."

(Keep me in your heart. There, I'll always be with you. Don't forget what I said,) she reminded him, her voice along with the perceived tunnels fading fast. (Win, Jake. You're good at that. You have to do it one more time. Win.)

She was gone. The crystal was as dull as the bricks that made up the walls around us. The shaman walked from behind a booth that looked weirdly like something you'd see at a carnival, and he was weilding a small blowtorch-looking instrument. He measured carefully, pressed it to the crystal that had contained Cassie, and pressed a button.

A small whine filled the air, and the crystal shattered. Pieces flew across the room and smashed against the walls. A single shard, the size of the smallest joint of your little finger, remained on the pedestal. The shaman spoke as he wound a tiny cage around it with copper wire. "This is the core of the crystal, called an Abu-ommni. In your language, it might mean 'emotional bloodstain,' but the true meaning is lost in translation. It was formed when Cassie's soul left our world. This is all that remains. It is far smaller than usual," he said with detatched interest as he worked.

Jake seemed to be lost in though. Not the way he'd been in sick bay, but more contemplative than anything. "What does that mean?" I asked him.

He tilted his head in the Taruff version of a smile. He threaded a thin cord through the top of the wire and held it up. In seconds, he'd created a beautiful piece of jewelry to embody Cassie's remains. "The size indicates her willingness to leave this mortal coil. She was truly at peace. She is comforted by the knowledge that Prince Jake will win the coming war. Her hope gives me hope." Without asking, he walked to Jake and placed the pendant around his neck.

Jake looked down where the crystal shard hung against his heart. He had tears in his eyes, but he actually smiled at me and Amni'bel. "Assemble as many Taruffs as you can. I want to address them myself as quickly as possible."

The Princess did her own Taruff smile. "Of course, Prince Jake. Imu will guide you to where you will be able to give your speech." The shaman, who was also apparently Imu, bowed and led the way out of the broken-down part of the palace. We wandered in a seemingly random fashion through the palace, but Imu seemed to know exactly where he was going. After perhaps fifteen minutes, we were led into a small antechamber. Jake armor, fully repaired and gleaming, hung on a rack along with his sword. I thought he'd balk at putting it on, but he walked straight to it and rested his hand on one of the shoulder plates. It hit me after a moment – Cassie'd made it for him. Her last gift to him.

I demorphed, but did so as quietly as possible and kept my eyes on Jake throughout the process. He removed the ratty, hastily made shirt the Taruffs in the medical bay had provided him. He tugged the armor on and secured the sword across his back. By this point, I was fully hawk. He turned to me and grinned. It was all teeth. His face was dirty. He was overdue for a haircut, and a couple stray locks of blond obscured some of his face. "How do I look?" he asked me.

(Like a hero,) I told him. I felt dorky, and a piece of my very human pride told me to shut up. I couldn't. I wanted him to see himself through my eyes. To me, he looked like the very essence of a warrior, of a hero, of a legend. Handsome and brave, he was the embodiment of all the stories I'd read about heroes in mythology and real history. (Like a real, live hero.)

"Good," he said. A couple of years ago, he'd have blushed and gotten an 'aw-shucks' look on his face at that kind of praise. Now, he just took it in stride. He knew he was going to have to live up to a lot. He knew he was going to have to be a hero. I silently applauded Cassie's inspiration. She'd turned him into the warrior he truly was. "The Taruffs are going to need a hero." He walked to the double doors set in the far wall, the only portal in or out of the chamber excluding the one we'd entered through. Sunlight flooded in the room when he swung them open, and Jake walked calmly out onto a huge stone balcony. I fluttered out beside him and perched on the rail.

I'd thought, at most, Amni'bel would be able to round up everyone in her village. It was a large village, perhaps fifty thousand Taruffs. Half of them were warriors. I'd expected most of them to show up, but she'd only had fifteen minutes to prepare.

I was taken aback at what I saw. Apparently, we were on the balcony that protruded front and center from the palace. As far as my keen hawk eyes could see, there was nothing but Taruff warriors. Guns, ceremonial swords and blades, and fighters sparkled in the midst of everyone – at least a million Taruffs were gathered around the palace.

Jake was unfazed. There was a voice amplifyer that looked a lot like a big microphone attatched to the rail. "Warriors of Xylen!" Jake yelled into it, raising his fist in an imitation of the Hork-Bajir's battle gesture. As far as I could see, every warrior mirrored the motion and roared. Jake waited for the unbelievable noise to abate before he spoke again. "I am an alien to you, and I am not your prince. I do not command you. I do not expect you to obey any orders from me. I ask only for your permission to fight along side of you! My only wish is to die beside you in honorable combat! Will you take advantage of our knowledge of the enemy and allow me the honor of joining you in this war?"

If the Taruffs had loved him before, there was no question about how they felt about him now. They'd respected him before this moment. Now, with only a few sentences, every Taruff present would be willing to die for Jake without a second thought. Their full-throated battle cries made that abundantly clear, and they started chanting. Jake shushed the crowd with a sharp gesture. "I will consult with your leaders in the war room shortly. We will tell them everything we know that might help you be victorious. They will then relay that information to all of you. Soon, the galaxy will have the pleasure that I've enjoyed recently – being introduced to the fiercest warriors to ever live!"

There was no silencing them now, and the sound of the roars almost physically pushed me off of the balcony railing. (They're yours, Jake. They're all yours. I would not like to be a Trunsk on my way to Xylen right now.)

He gave me a ferocious smile. "Bring 'em on," he said through gritted teeth. "They're gonna be sorry they ever heard of me." I'd never seen Jake like this. He was confident as usual, but instead of calmly projecting that confidence, he radiated it. He almost glowed. He was totally in his element. "Crayak's going down."