A/N: Short chapter for now! Thank you to anyone who still sticks by this story... I've been dragging the chapters out for far too long and I sincerely apologise for that - my RL has really eaten into fanfiction time quite badly. It does make understanding the story quite challenging, since you're likely to have forgotten what went on in the earlier chapters :( Nevertheless, I'm still plodding along and promise I will finish it (: Still quite a long way to go though, but the action is beginning to heat up already! Enjoy (:

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

::Ax::

‹You've got to be kidding me.›

‹No, Marco, I'm not kidding,› I replied gravely. ‹We must hurry.›

Marco and I flew towards the direction of Tobias's home. I feared that by the time we reached there, it would be too late. Why Cassie had decided to take the risk was beyond my understanding - at least, beyond my understanding of what I knew her to be.

This was a terrible game the masters of the universe were playing.

‹What's wrong with Cassie?› Marco raged. ‹She's supposed to be the most sensible one! What possessed her to go and find Loren?›

‹I have no answer. I had expected her to be doing surveillance like me, so I did not bother her when I saw her perch on the tree outside the house. And then I thought she had left. Little did I expect her to-›

‹It's not your fault, Ax-man. Cassie's landed us in hotter soup than I did.›

Marco had been reckless in making decisions on his own and he had been reprimanded for it. Yet, secretly, I appreciated his efforts. He had tried to find the logic of the situation, and the best option we had was to find out if Tobias had really been the son of my brother Elfangor and his wife Loren. It was true then - in this reality, Tobias was still Elfangor's son. However, it was clear that some things did not change, things that were further back in the past, such as Tobias's birth and Marco's mother being 'dead' and Tom being part of The Sharing. Some part of us was changed, however, and that seemed to be part of us since the beginning of our lives here. After all, why would I have a 'mother' on Earth, or assume human form as my dominant nature, if I had been born an Andalite?

I had a lot of thoughts about the 'mother' I had - the woman Jake had called 'Aunt Sal'. But that would be reserved for a later time. Right now, it was my brother who was occupying my mind.

Marco's actions had pointed out that Elfangor was the key to solving part of this mystery, and that was why Cassie had taken it upon herself to find out. So had I, to be honest. I had to admit that it was both thrilling and terrifying to think that my brother could possibly be alive, that his fate had been altered just like mine. Whether or not we were truly brothers in this reality did not matter to me; all I wanted to do was to see him once again.

My brother. Prince Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul. The finest Andalite warrior.

‹So did you manage to hear what Cassie was saying to Loren?›

‹It is rather disturbing, but Loren apparently still knows that my brother was an Andalite.›

‹What?›

‹Cassie, under the guise of a Sharing member, had asked Loren about her husband's status, to which Loren had said he was dead. But when Cassie let out that she knew he was an Andalite, Loren was shocked.›

‹Oh. My. God. What the hell was Cassie trying-›

‹That is not all. Loren tried to cover up, but Cassie questioned her further on allowing Tobias to mix with The Sharing when they are a Yeerk front. Loren then looked horrified.›

‹Do you mean to say...›

‹Loren does know of the Yeerks.›

‹Which means she didn't have that accident.›

‹Marco, that is actually a very important point. I have a conjecture that this reality that we are in is a result of a kithi maral.›

‹Kitty what?›

‹Kithi maral. It means an unexpected incident has occurred to change what was supposed to happen. Of course, this is all part of legend - even the Ellimist or Crayak should not be able to do this. Before this unexpected incident happened, everything was the same as what you have experienced in the old reality.›

‹Ookay... but that's not true. We have different personalities since birth. Jake confirmed that I am a humourless person since time immemorial. Which... sucks.›

‹I refer specifically to experiences, such as your mother's death. I am still not quite sure of the personality differences. But I'm concerned that Loren will be hunted down by the Yeerks now that she knows that 'Aria' is one of them.›

‹This is all still quite... hey wait, look!›

I slowed down. Northern harriers have extremely good eyesight, but for once I wished that it had failed me.

‹No shit,› said Marco. ‹Please tell me that isn't her.›

Below us, was Tobias's house. A vehicle with a visible red lamp above was parked outside, and there were two men clad in white carrying a white board with a cloth covered over the shape of a human body. I have seen such incidents on television before, and I believe it's always known as an 'emergency'. Although nothing really emerges out of anywhere, I know that this leads to the next scene, which is often the hospital.

‹Is Loren having an emergency?›

‹Loren's at the door,› said Marco, and I could tell that he was frightened. So was Loren, who was standing by the doorway, shaking. ‹That person - on the stretcher - I think it's-›

‹Don't go down, Marco.›

‹What?›

‹We already have Tobias and Cassie's covers blown. It is not wise to expose ourselves.›

‹Ax, do you know what this means? Cassie's been knocked out! She could be-›

Then, from behind Loren, there came an 'emergence' after all.

‹Visser Three!› I hissed. He was in the guise of Aria, and he/she put his/her hand on Loren's shoulder. I had an urge to swoop down and kill that beast immediately. But we could not take the risk. Already, one of us was down.

The men had put the board into the back of the van.

‹They're going to infest her!› hissed Marco.

‹We will follow it. Hopefully they will lead us to the Yeerk Pool.› I couldn't keep the disgust out of my voice as I uttered the last two words.

Marco hesitated. Then he said, ‹Okay, I'm staying on them. You go get the rest. We're definitely gonna need reinforcements.›

I held back as Marco flew ahead. Then I made a turn and headed towards Prince Jake's house. As I flew, the earlier scenes I had watched at Loren's house played back in my mind. Before Cassie had arrived, Loren had been at her desk reading a book. Beside her was a stack of big books, and they were a mix of subjects - design, business and generic human mental illnesses. There were also scattered sheets of half-designed papers, which seemed to be about an event - like a carnival. I cannot be sure; humans have strange ways of communications, including that of paper design. Nevertheless, Loren was working hard; occasionally, she pulled a piece of paper towards her and began sketching. It was then when the telephone rang, and it was Visser Three pretending to be Aria.

Following the conversation, Cassie had rung the doorbell.

It was all extremely confusing and complicated, but somehow, as I turned back and saw the last of Loren, her expression of terror had morphed into that of anger once the ambulance left – and it felt as if a little piece of the puzzle had clicked.

Elfangor, brother, give me the strength and courage to overcome this, and the wisdom to find the way out.