Rachel

"I vote we keep on fighting," I said instantly. "I know I acted like a complete jerk and I'm sorry for that."

((I agree with Rachel,)) Tobias said. ((We need to keep fighting no matter what.))

I smiled at him, he just gave me a piercing glare, but I knew it was a sign of affection.

"I never thought I'd say this," Marco said, smiling at me. "But 'let's do it.'"

I laughed. "Way to go in stealing my stereotype."

He laughed.

"Alright, Ax?" Jake asked, looking like he was anywhere but here.

((I do whatever you do Prince Jake,)) Ax replied.

Jake didn't even tell him not to call him Prince. He just looked at his bruised knuckles again. What was going on with him?

"Cassie?" I asked, seeing how Jake was occupied.

"I don't know," she said, softly. "I was kind of enjoying having no responsibility. But I suppose I have to agree with you. Plus, I'm always going to have this power that nobody else has and I need to put it to good use."

That's when Jake jerked involuntary. He looked at Cassie as if looking at her for the first time. He had no expression that told us exactly what he was thinking or feeling, but I knew something was up.

((How about you Jake?)) Tobias asked, he like me had seen Jake's sudden uncontrolled movement.

"Huh?" he said, looking distracted again.

"Do you want to continue?" Marco asked loudly as if he was talking to an old man.

"Um…" Jake had definitely something on his mind.

"Alright, spit it out Jake," I snapped. "What's wrong?"

That got Jake out of his daydreaming.

"Alright, I haven't been completely truthful with you guys," he sighed and started pacing again. That was a bad sign.

"What haven't you been truthful about?" I asked cautiously.

((If this is about that guy down the beach…)) Tobias started but Jake cut in.

"No, it's not about that," Jake said. And then stopped pacing and looked at all of us, with the exception of Cassie, straight in the eye. "I can't morph." Then he started pacing again.

"What?" I spluttered. "How did this happen? How could it happen?"

"I don't know!" he said frustrated. "One day I can morph, the next, it's like I never even touched the blue box."

"Maybe Crayak did something," Marco suggested, wide eyed. "I mean he's had something against you since…you know."

"Since I was a human controller or when I personally destroyed his one weapon against the Iskroot," Jake said, dismissively. "This is not Crayak. He'd be breaking the rules."
((Prince Jake,)) Ax interrupted. ((If I may offer my knowledge…))

"Of course, Ax," Jake said hurriedly as he stopped pacing and looked at Ax.

Am I correct in thinking that from the beginning of this war, you have loathed it?

Jake gaped at him. I gaped at Jake. Cassie gaped at Jake. Marco just gaped.

((Prince Jake?)) Ax persisted.

"Well, I wouldn't call it loathing…" Jake said uncomfortably. "But yeah, I don't exactly like being an Animorph."

((Am I also correct in believing that lately you have let the pressure and stress get to you,)) Ax continued, as if he was some therapist examining Jake.

"What?" Jake snapped.

"That's true Jake," Marco said, thoughtfully. "I mean it's understandable and all, but you have been pretty upset, angry, stressed, worried…"

"Thankyou, Marco," Jake said, angrily.

((Combine the stress you normally deal with for a leader,)) Tobias said, getting into it. ((With the stress and other emotions you've been dealing with lately and you have a serious emotional bomb.))

"Are you done examining me?" Jake snapped. "What is your point Ax?"

((My point, Prince Jake,)) Ax said, ((is that your emotions won't let you morph until they have been settled. It is all due to stress. I have seen it a number of times among the tired, worn out Andalite warriors. They have become so tired of war and the ability to morph that their body refuses to give them that opportunity until they have calmed down.))

"So what your saying is Jake is too stressed out and tired of the war so he can't morph?" I translated, slowly.

((Precisely.))

"So just calm down, Jake," Marco said. "Nothing to it. Just think happy thoughts."

Jake gave him a glare.

"Maybe not," Marco said.

"Ax, is there a simpler way to get my morphing ability back?" Jake asked.

((Not that I know of Prince Jake,)) Ax said. ((But don't worry, you're morphing ability will come back with all the animals you have acquired.))

"How long will that take?" Jake asked.

((That depends on you Prince Jake. You need to let go of everything and you will be all well again.))

Jake looked like he'd been kicked in the stomach.

"Well, it looks like I'm out," he said, with a fake cheerfulness.

"We can't do this without you," I said.

"Well, you're going to have to," Jake said. "What do you want me to do? Run in there with a sword in one hand and a gun in the other?"

"Just try and calm down, alright," Marco snapped. "You're not doing yourself any favours."

"How am I not doing myself any favours?" Jake laughed. "This is perfect. I've wanted to get out of this freak show for ages, but I had an agenda. Now I don't and I have the perfect excuse to leave."

"You're just going to leave us?" Cassie whispered. I had almost forgotten she was there. "That's selfish Jake."

"Oh, look whose talking," Jake spat. I was surprised. I knew Jake and Cassie were starting to drift apart, but this was getting out of control. And for what? What was the argument really about? "Don't talk to me about being selfish. If I remember you were the one that left."

"I came back," she said, not whispering anymore. "I came back and I stayed."

"You gave yourself up to a Yeerk," Jake said. "You betrayed us! I'm not the one who's selfish. I can't morph anymore. That's it for me. I'm not classified as an Animorph anymore."

"So is that what you really think of me?" Cassie said. "That I betrayed you? Along with a hypocrite and whatever else you've been thinking of me."

((He didn't mean it Cassie,)) Tobias said quickly.

"No, he did," Cassie said. "Are you going to stick up for him now?" She asked looking at Marco. "Are you going to say that he's just emotional?"

"Emotional?" Jake demanded, looking at Marco. "I'm not emotional."

"Hey, I didn't say that," Marco defended, putting up his hands. "She's twisting it around."

"Oh, so now I'm a liar?" Cassie was practically hysterical.

"I never called you that," Marco said. "Why are you acting like this?"

((Look, guys, it's been a long day,)) Tobias said, breaking up the argument. ((Maybe we should end it.))

"No," I said, straight away. "I need to know Jake. Are you apart of the Animorphs?"

He looked at me and not for the first time did I see a tired old man staring back at me.

"What do you want me to do, Rachel?" he sighed. "I can't morph. I can't fight the Yeerks. I'm not like you guys anymore. There's nothing I can do."

((We're trying to help you here, Jake,)) Tobias said. ((Just try to calm down.))

"That's very easy for you to say, isn't it?" Jake snapped.

"You still haven't answered my question, Jake," I said. "Do you still want to be an Animorph?"

"I'll tell you what," he said. "If I get my morphing power back, I'll join up again. But if I don't, that's it for me."

((Will you even try to get your power back?)) Tobias argued. ((It's not like your going to wake up one morning and find out you have them back.))

"Well what do you want me to do?" Jake snapped. "It's all about stress, that's what Ax said. So I take a few weeks off and maybe that will help."

"Ax also said, that you have to want your morphing powers," Marco pointed out.

"You want me to tell you that I love this war?" Jake snapped, furiously. "You want me to tell you that it's the best thing to happen to me? Well it's not going to happen. Tobias, you and Rachel love the war, you both need it. Ax thinks he has a duty. Marco has a purpose. I don't even want to think why Cassie's in this war. You all have some purpose. I don't."

"That's crap," I said. "We all have one purpose. That purpose is to save this world."

"When will you learn that this planet is doomed," Jake said. "Do you really think we have even a slight chance of winning this fight? We're just a fly annoying a frog to the Yeerks. We're through."

"That's what you think," I said quietly. "Marco was right, you are emotional. That's why you're not thinking straight."

"I never said he was emotional," Marco shouted, angrily.

"I'm not emotional, Rachel," Jake said, softly. "I'm the only person here that can see this war for what it truly is. A war not worth fighting. Can't any of you see that we have no hope? We're done for. That's it."

He said this as if he was merely talking about the weather.

"You don't believe that," I said.

"Don't I?" he answered. "Open your eyes Rachel. We are four kids, a bird and an Andalite against thousands of Yeerks with human, Hork-Bajir and Taxxon hosts. Not to mention that psychopath of a Visser. We are out numbered. The Andalites are never coming, no one's coming to save us. We are doomed."

"That doesn't mean we have to give up hope," I said, stubbornly.

"Why are you in this war, Rachel?" Jake asked me suddenly. "Tell me why you are still fighting."

"To save this planet," I said simply.

"No, that's Ax's excuse," Jake said. "Actually he doesn't even want to save this planet. He wants to stop the Yeerks before they reach the Andalite home world. Marco's in this war to save his mum. Tobias is in this war because it was a promise to Elfangor. Like I said before I don't even want to think about why Cassie's in this war. But why are you?"

"I…" and then I stopped. Why was I in this war? Saving the planet wasn't exactly my ground reason. Neither was saving my family. That was Jake's reason, not mine. Then it hit me. The war was what I was and Jake knew that. He knew what I was like, more than I knew myself. He just wanted me to admit it. Well, that wasn't going to happen.

"Like I said, Jake, I'm in this war to save the planet," I said.

"Alright, Rachel, if you say so," he said, turning away.

"We all know why you're in this war," I said. "For Tom, right? Why does that have to stop here? Just because Tom's dead doesn't mean you have to stop fighting. You can fight for him. Get the Yeerks back for what they did."

All I could see of Jake was the side of his face. His hair was covering his eyes, so the only thing I could see was his mouth and nose. His mouth became a thin line and there were creases around them as if he was grimacing.

"I'm not you Rachel," he said simply. "I don't fight to get back at someone. That's not me."

"No, that's not you," I agreed, walking towards him. If I did this right I could get him back on our side and then maybe his morphing will be back. "But you can make it you. You can make yourself hard and ruthless. Look what the Yeerks did to you, Jake…"

"Don't listen to her Jake," Marco cut in, staring at me, icily. "She's trying to make you like her."

"So what if I am?" I shot at him.

"That's low, Rachel," he spat. "If he turns out to be as ruthless as you, we're all screwed."

"Didn't I make it clear I was out," Jake said. "I can't morph anymore or has that escaped your attention?"

((Prince Jake, you have to calm down if you want your morphing powers back,)) Ax said quickly.

((I say we end this here,)) Tobias said finally. ((If we put too much pressure on Jake, he's never going to get his morphing power back.))

"Would that be such a bad thing?" Cassie muttered.

"What is wrong with you?" Marco exploded. "Why have you all of a sudden turned into Ms. I-don't-give-a-damn-about-Jake-anymore?"

"Hey, Marco, I never asked her to care for me in the first place," Jake said hurriedly.

"You haven't answered my question," Marco said, turning to Cassie. "And don't give me that crap about him saying you are a hypocrite."

"I don't know, alright?" Cassie shouted. I looked at her. Something was definitely going on.