Finally, we come to the last chapter of this story, but fear not! This is not the end! This is Part One of what will hopefully become a whole series of Animorphs Travels stories. I won't be doing every book in the Animorphs series, just the ones that are plot significant or fun to write. I will also be including some of my own original plot lines later on. I won't be posting Part Two right away, but keep your eyes peeled!

Thanks again to all my readers, especially the ones who were kind enough to review!

CHAPTER 16: The End of the Beginning

(MIKE'S POV)

We talked a little longer before the others realised that they should be heading home. Jake in particular couldn't afford to raise suspicions at home. As they left, I was both relieved and surprised that nobody had mentioned what had happened to Tobias the night before. Rachel has started to ask about him but Jake had simply said that he had already heard from Tobias, before Cassie quickly changed the subject. I was dying to know if Tobias had made it out in time, but at that moment I really didn't want to face the others when I found out.

As I looked out of my bedroom window into the trees surrounding my home, I spotted a Red-tailed Hawk perched on a branch. I opened the window and let the hawk fly in and land on my desk.

"How long have you been out there?" I asked.

--Pretty much the whole time,-- Tobias replied. --Jake told me when you guys were meeting and I decided to fly overhead for a while to make sure we weren't followed. Had a little trouble with that 'perception filter' you mentioned, but I still heard everything you told them, even though it was hard to believe at first.--

"I'm just full of surprises aren't I?" I grinned.

--Remember when we first met at the mall before this whole thing started?-- Tobias said. --The first thing you said to me was about science fiction. The next thing I know, my life is full of brain stealing slugs, people turning into animals and befriending a guy from another dimension.--

"A friend of mine once said: if God exists, then he's got an ironic sense of humour." I told him.

Tobias laughed.

--He's probably right.--

"Jake seemed pretty vague about what happened to you last night." I said.

--Don't you already know?-- He nodded at my copy of Animorphs #1: The Invasion that I had left on the desk.

"I know what was supposed to happen. I'm hoping it didn't turn out that way, for your sake." I said hopefully.

--I managed to stay hidden until I had the chance to escape, but it took too long Mike. More than two hours.--

"No… I'm so sorry…"

--It's not your fault Mike.--

"Of course it bloody is! I knew it was going to happen!" I yelled furiously. "I was brought here to save people, to make a difference. How useless am I?"

--Like you said,-- Tobias started. --It would have happened whether you were here or not, so you can't blame yourself. Maybe it was just meant to happen.--

"But I could have stopped it!" I insisted. "Why aren't you mad at me?"

--Because I know that you would have saved me if you could have. And I know that you can still help us make a difference.--

"I've been such a great help so far." I replied sarcastically.

--We rescued two people last night, I'd say we made a big difference to their lives.-- Tobias pointed out.

"Wait a second… two people?" I couldn't believe I hadn't realised it sooner. I quickly grabbed Animorphs #1: The Invasion and flicked to the end of the book, skimming the last few pages until I found what I was looking for. I laughed out loud with pure joy.

--What is it?-- Tobias asked, startled by my sudden reaction.

"In the book, you guys only saved one person last night, the woman that was riding on Cassie's back. Which means that the man we saved last night…"

--Is now free of the Yeerks because of what you did.-- Tobias finished. --Still think you can't make a difference?--

"I know that I can damn well try!" I shouted enthusiastically. "I'm going to keep on fighting, we are going to keep on fighting, and together we'll make the Yeerks sorry they ever left home!"

--That's more like it.-- I could almost 'hear' a smile in his voice. Like Elfangor, the brave soul who had given his life so that Earth could have a fighting chance against the Yeerks, Tobias had also made a supreme sacrifice. I wasn't going to let all that be for nothing.

It wasn't dark yet, but I looked up at the sky through my window, looking out at where I knew the stars would be that night. Somewhere out there, the Andalites were battling the Yeerk forces.

Don't worry guys, I thought with a smile. We've got this planet covered!