Rachel

My name is Rachel.

His name is Visser One, the Andalite-Controller looking down at me.

Looking down at me? Where am I? The last thing I remember is Tobias... Tobias looking at me with those beautiful eyes of his... Sad eyes, filled with tears... before...

Before I died.

I had died, hadn't I?

((You fight well, human.))

I remembered those words. I remembered the polar bear's blow. I remembered something else too, faintly... The Ellimist? Did he have something to do with this?

((It seems the Yeerks shall be victorious after all, Rachel.))

I was suspended underwater, in some sort of tank. The blue water shimmered around me. I was on my back, looking up towards the surface. Visser One's stalk eyes peered down at me menacingly. Suddenly, I was alive with rage, with hatred. I wanted to leap out of the water and take him down, kill him for what he'd done to me, to my friends. To Elfangor. Kill him for this stupid war. I could feel the anger bubbling inside me as the visser smiled in a way only an Andalite can, with his eyes. It infuriated me even more, seeing him so calm. He knew he had total control over me. I could not move.

Couldn't move? Oh, no! Was I a Controller? Had a Yeerk been put in my head?

Get it out of me! Get it out of me! Get out of me, you filthy slug!!

((No, we have not taken your mind...yet.)) The visser replied, as if reading my thoughts. ((Your friends fought bravely, and well. They managed to suspend the war for quite some time. They even managed to force me from my host. I was to live out the rest of my days as a Yeerk. I'll give you Animorphs some credit for that accomplishment...)) Through the water, I was barely able to make out the faint clicking noise of his hooves as he paced before the tank. ((You died on the Blade Ship, Rachel. But you died in vain.))

No, no. This can't be happening. This is all a dream. It has to be. Tobias...

((The Blade Ship escaped. With the escafil device. In the years since that day, the traitorous Yeerks aboard the ship have managed to keep you in a state of suspension, delaying the process of decay. They wished to revive you, Rachel. And as much as I would have loved to find your corpse when I reclaimed my vessel, I was even more thrilled to discover that I could, in fact, oversee your infestation myself. It will be quite the revenge, don't you think?)) His thought-speak laugh echoed in my mind, taunting me. I cursed him inside. This was all too awful to bear. I'd rather die than be a Controller.

((You'd probably like to know what happened to your friends, yes?)) Again, he smiled that Andalite smile. Only looks can be deceiving. It wasn't really an Andalite smile. It was the smile of pure evil. ((Alright. I'll indulge you. It's the least I can do...))

((Cassie is quite safe, at home on Earth...for now. The others, I'm afraid... Their fate was not a pleasant one. They attempted to attack this ship. A very brave attempt, indeed. But you more than anyone should know how foolishness and bravery go hand in hand... They're dead now. Every last one of them.))

No... Tobias. He has to be lying. They're alive, somehow. I know it.

Tobias... I love you.. You remember that, don't you?

I tried my hardest to move. To kick. To scream. Anything. But I was frozen in the pool. Again, the thought-speak laughter boomed through my head.

((I have made a deal with The One. I have regained my rightful form. And I shall have my revenge. Soon, Earth and the rest of the galaxy will belong to the Yeerks. The compromise you naive humans made with my species is over. Those who betrayed me have paid their price. The Yeerk Empire is now stronger than ever. Only those with strong wills and an even stronger hatred for your kind are left. There is no more Council of Thirteen. There is no Emperor. There is only The One. And soon, you too shall see his vision. You shall have a part to play in shaping this galaxy, making things the way they were meant to be... You Animorphs are finished, Rachel. It is time to say goodbye.))

Suddenly, I heard a humming sound to my left. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a circular, metal plate in the side of the pool slide open. Out swam a grotesque, gray slug-like creature. The sight of it filled me with rage, anguish, disgust, and an overwhelming sadness all at once. I knew what it was.

It was the end of my freedom. It was a Yeerk.