A/N: Wow, I'm sorry this took so long, but I found myself stuck in a rut towards the end of the story. If you find the whole thing about security cameras and secret rooms in the Sharing confusing, I apologise because it somehow twisted itself into something harder to explain than what I had visualised. Nevertheless, hope the rest still makes sense! Everything's coming to a head - who can save the day?

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

::Rachel::

With the faint voice of fight, Rachel, fight at the back of my head, I could feel a resurgence of energy in my veins. That was all I needed. Rachel the warrior princess never backed down from a little pain. She could see through this.

No, I could see through this.

I focused hard on the mouse in my mind. The mouse that Cassie and I had morphed for her stupid science project when Cassie couldn't figure out why the mouse wouldn't get to the food. Those good old days when morphing was used for something as simple and innocent as that.

As I felt the transformations within me, at the same time, there was a slow, but gradually increasing tension around my skin. Then suddenly, an excruciating pain burst out from nowhere and enveloped me entirely. I gasped – breaking concentration – and ended up twitching so much that I fell to my side again. Gritting my teeth, I tried to focus on becoming a mouse again, but then my skin began to shudder and my head was spinning.

Fight, Rachel, fight!

But it was useless; the more I tried to concentrate, the more my skin felt like it was on fire. I blinked and saw more than double the –

The screen... Tobias...

"Tobias..."

And then everything went black.

-.-.-.-.-.-

My head was hurting.

It was throbbing. I winced, blinked a few times, then moaned as I struggled to sit back up again. The bonds felt tighter than ever and my whole body was so sensitive, much less exhausted.

Then I noticed it.

The screen before me had switched off.

"Tobias?" I whispered.

What – what had happened? Where did he go?

A chill ran down my spine. What did David do to him?

"Let him go!" I shrieked. "You bastard, you get down here AT ONCE!"

The anger had tipped me over; I couldn't care less. I thought hard about the mouse again and focused, gasping as the pain overtook me once again. But this time, it was more bearable. I felt a layer of numbness blocking it, because all I could think of was Tobias, don't take Tobias, don't hurt him, don't...

I was shrinking. I couldn't feel nor see it, but when the wires loosened up, I had to have shrunk. The pain shot through my limbs, but I gathered all my energy to shiver out of my bonds, only to trip over them and fall flat on my face. But I scrambled up soon after, focused on morphing back fully to human, and lunged for the door.

"OPEN UP!" I screamed, banging hard on the door. "OPEN UP, YOU FILTHY CREEP! THIS IS BETWEEN YOU AND ME! DON'T YOU DARE TAKE IT OUT ON –"

The door opened so fast that it hit me in the face and I was sent flying back with a howl.

I could barely make out who was in front of me when huge arms were grabbing at me and hauling me off the floor. In my grogginess, I could only hear faint sounds and see blurred visions.

"Where... who..." I whispered, feeling all the earlier power seep out of me. I tried to move, to struggle, but there was no use. Before I knew it, I had blacked out once again.

-.-.-.-.-.-

SPLASH!

I was rudely awakened with a torrent of icy cold water. I yelped and shivered, clutching at my wet clothes all at once. Something was pressed against my head, but I was more concerned about trying to dry myself.

"Don't move," came a menacing voice.

My teeth chattered.

"Look who's here, Magri."

I couldn't see. The water was still flowing down my face and weighing down my eyelids. I could only feel the bitter sting of cold seeping through my pores and infiltrating my body with vengeance.

"Speechless? Do you think you could be easily granted access into one of our most secure places in The Sharing without me knowing what you are doing?"

"The room was made accessible for Visser One and her trusted allies," came a hissing deep voice, quite unlike the mocking one of the first. "You could have never –"

I couldn't really make out what he was saying next, because the next voice I had stunned me completely.

‹RACHEL! RACHEL, WAKE UP!›

I tried to open my eyes, but they were too heavy.

‹Rachel, I'm the cockroach! Over – well, in the middle of everything!›

I struggled to open my eyes and the first thing I could make out was a blob on the floor. I assumed the blob was talking to me.

"You..." I murmured, but my mouth felt numb.

"She speaks," said the first voice, which now sounded disgusting. "So who is this human that you've been hiding all this while, Magri? Why is she so important that you had to smuggle her into Visser One's private section of this place?"

"How did you even – you morphed!" The other voice accused.

"I noticed you seem to be very concerned about her privacy. You never switch her screen on unless very necessary."

"...how long have you been following me?"

My vision was clearing up, and I had a good idea of where I was. Including what was being pointed at my head.

I stared at the cockroach incredulously.

‹This is going to be crazy, but Jake and I were here to try sussing David out. Turns out he's playing the role of a Controller – the one called Magri.›

I stiffened as I locked gazes with Magri. But he looked more shocked and agitated than threatening now. Also, he had a Dracon beam pointed at the cockroach.

"I also noticed you had the boy – the one who is Elfangor's son," said the first voice, whom I now realised belonged to Visser Three's human morph. "But my people report that he is no longer there. Where have you taken him to?"

I froze completely. But when I saw that Magri/David look positively shocked himself, I felt my heart start up again.

"No answers, Magri?"

"I am under Visser One's orders," snapped Magri/David.

"In that case, I now give you an order. Either you let me deal with that Andalite myself," said Visser Three, slyly. "Or I kill your girl."

Your girl? I stared at Magri/David in bewilderment.

"Visser Three, I am merely trying to make the Andalite surrender," said Magri/David, with clenched teeth.

"And you can do it better than I can? You're not even a sub-Visser yet," said Visser Three, sneeringly. "You are not Magri at all! You think you can just waltz in here and hoodwink even the highest rank of Vissers? Well, you can fool that nitwit of a Visser One, but you can't fool me by assuming a persona of a dimwitted Yeerk and expect me to believe he can rise in the ranks so fast!

‹Son of a bitch!› Marco responded tersely, though I figured he was reigning his desire to shout it out at Visser Three.

I turned my head – deliberately not looking at Marco – and mouthed, What is going on?

‹Look, here's the deal: David wants to trade me for security for his life. That ass thinks he knows the workings of this reality because he controls it and so he's trying to have the upper hand here, but we all know how David deals with upper hands and the truth is that I don't actually think he really has that much control as he thinks he has...›

Marco was babbling; he was scared. But there was no time. I scrunched up my face in hope that he would understand, but he was still babbling.

‹RACHEL!› A new voice burst in my head.

I let out an involuntary gasp; Marco as well. The rest of the Controllers immediately reacted with poised Dracon beams the moment I responded.

Tobias!

‹Thank God,› came the breathless voice.

I let out a wet, shuddery breath. He's alive. David didn't take him. He's alive!

‹Thank God too,› replied Marco, and he actually sounded very happy despite the predicament he was currently in.

‹Okay, this is a sucky situation, but Marco? Mind telling us what shit you've just landed us in?›

‹What do you mean, I landed you in, can't you see –›

‹Marco,› came another familiar voice, and I almost sighed out loud with relief. Jake. ‹Cut the story short.›

‹First things first, Magri is David the Devilish Asshole. Second thing, where the hell are you two?›

"I don't wait for traitors," said Visser Three, his eyes glinting.

‹Hello guys? Yoohoo?›

Magri had a straight face, but the way his lips were quivering at the end made me realise how scared David was. He had always been easily frightened; he just tried to act brave because he wanted to show how little of a pushover he was. But up against the Yeerks, he had no chance. Or did he...?

"Then I'll take my own orders," he said finally.

He was going to kill me. I knew it. My whole body shuddered involuntarily.

Visser Three stared at him. "And what does that mean?"

Magri/David knelt down and put the end of the Dracon beam right above Marco. But his eyes were on me.

My eyes widened.

‹Tobias! Jake! yelled Marco. ‹WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU TWO?›

"No..." I let out a ragged whisper. The arms on me were far too strong and I had no more energy in me to expend.

Magri/David looked triumphant and I realised why. Visser Three had noticed my horror at Marco's impending death, and was now eyeing me with utmost suspicion. Magri/David then aimed the gun.

‹HELP! RACHEL!› screamed Marco.

But I couldn't.