| For the Cassie from the Amazon Sario Rip, see Cassie |
| For the Cassie who was a slaveowner, see Cassie |
| For the Cassie from Back to Before, see Cassie |
| For the Cassie from the simulated dream, see Cassie |
- "In my world, making hard choices is part of the deal. Sometimes I'm right, sometimes I'm wrong. Sometimes I just can't tell, even when the mission is over and we've all come out alive, at least."
- ―Cassie
Cassie is a founding member of the Animorphs, an author and a state diplomat and official. She was instrumental in helping the Animorphs acquire their various animal morphs and played a key role in ending the Andalite-Yeerk War, being responsible for handing the morphing cube over to the Yeerk Empire. Following the war, she became an author and worked alongside the President of the United States.
Biography
Early Life
Cassie was born in 1984[3] to Michelle and Walter.[6] Cassie lived on her family's farm land[4] in California,[2] with the land bordering a national forest. The farm was owned by her family since the American Civil War.[4] Cassie was raised around animals and taking care of them, helping her father Walter as he ran the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic out of their farm's barn to provide care for injured or sick non-pet type animals. Her mother Michelle worked as the head veterinarian at the local zoo-amusement park called The Gardens, which granted Cassie free access to the park.[7]
Pre-Animorph Life
- "You're wearing Wal-Mart overalls with bird poop on the cuffs. You have no makeup on and there's dirt under your fingernails... that is just dirt, isn't it?"
"Probably dirt. Possibly manure."
"Yeah, well, you compensate for your Old MacDonald clothing sense by being pretty, very smart, very cool, and the most completely real person I've ever met." - ―Rachel and Cassie
Cassie was known to attend school with no make up with dirt and manure underneath her fingernails,[8] along with mismatched clothing with poop stains on it, resulting in the boys at school not paying her mind.[9] Cassie was also best friends with Rachel, a girl her age who had a reputation of being beautiful and fashionably dressed. Cassie developed a crush on Rachel's cousin Jake, whom she found to be cute, smart, funny and modest, while also remarking that he had a big physicality that made him look older than he was. They often sat next to each other on the bus as well during classes or assemblies, although they initially didn't talk much.[8] In 1996, when she was twelve,[10] Cassie's friendship with Jake was strong enough for her to invite him to her family's Thanksgiving. Jake then visited the farm a couple of times; during one of his visits, Cassie was trying to force a pill down a badger's throat, which Jake took a picture of and put next to his computer in his room.[4]
Becoming an Animorph
Night at the Mall
- "You guys going home? You shouldn't go through the construction site by yourselves. I mean, being girls and all."
"Are you going to come and protect us, you big, strong m-a-a-a-n? You think we're helpless just because—"
"I'd appreciate it if they did walk with us. I know you're not afraid of anything, Rachel, but I guess I am." - ―Jake, Rachel and Cassie
One Friday in 1997,[11] when she was thirteen,[12] Cassie was invited to the mall after school with Rachel as she went shopping. Cassie was confused when Rachel compared the sale prices and pairing of sweaters and jeans from different stores. Cassie then noticed Jake at the mall and asked Rachel not to look. Rachel joked if Cassie was worried that her looking would convey to Jake that Cassie wanted his big, strong arms wrapping around her while they pressed their lips together. Cassie noted that Jake was standing next to his best friend Marco, whom Cassie had never really spoken to before or know very well, along with Tobias, a kid whom Cassie knew had latched onto Jake after he had saved him from bullies.[8]
As they reached the exit, Cassie noticed that Tobias was a little uncomfortable hanging out with Jake and Marco. Greeting them, Jake then asked the girls if they were intending to use the abandoned construction site across the mall as a shortcut home, warning them that it was dangerous for them since they were girls. Offended, Rachel mocked Jake and asked if he was a "big, strong man" who would protect them. As she began berating him for thinking girls were helpless, Cassie interrupted her, stating that she was afraid and would appreciate the boys walking home with them. The five thirteen year olds then left the mall and headed towards the construction site.[7] However, unbeknownst to Cassie, a cosmic figure known as the Ellimist had arranged for her, along with Tobias and Marco, to be walking home through the construction site that night.[8]
Gaining Morphing Powers
Cassie meeting Elfangor
- "We had been walking home from the mall at night. Walking through a big abandoned construction site, when the Andalite ship had appeared above us. It landed, and out came the Andalite prince, fatally wounded in a battle with the Yeerks somewhere in space. He was the one who had warned us of the Yeerks — the parasite species that inhabited the brains of other creatures and enslaved them, making them Controllers. It was the Andalite who had warned us, and who, in desperation, had given us the great and terrible weapon — the power to morph."
- ―Cassie
Walking silently through the abandoned construction site, Cassie noticed as Tobias stopped walking and told them to look up. Following his indication, Cassie looked up and noticed a spaceship, exclaiming out loud that it was a flying saucer. As the ship landed in front of them, Rachel recommended that they should try and communicate with whomever was on board; when Jake wondered whether they would know English, Cassie joked that the aliens on Star Trek spoke English. Cassie witnessed as a blue alien exited from the spaceship and greeted them before collapsing onto the ground. Cassie exclaimed as she witnessed a massive burn on the right side of the alien's body and told Jake to take off his shirt so they could use to bandage the wound. However, the alien refused, citing that the wound was fatal and that he was dying. The alien then informed the five teenagers that there were other aliens on Earth who had come to destroy humans.
The alien explained that the other aliens were known as Yeerks and transmitted an image of a green-gray slug into their minds. He explained that the Yeerks were a parasitic species that take over bodies to use as hosts, after which they become known as Controllers. The alien, revealing himself to be a member of a species called an Andalite, added that it would take a year if not more for the Andalite forces to come to Earth, and urged the teenagers to warn humanity of the Yeerk threat. When Marco remakred that no one would believe them, the Andalite suddenly exclaimed that they should go into his ship and retrieve a blue box. Looking around at each other, the kids decided that Jake should be the one to do it. Noting that Jake was afraid, Cassie smiled at him as she stated him that he should go and that he wasn't scared, knowing that this remark would prompt Jake to put on a brave face and go.
As Jake returned with the blue box, the Andalite informed them that he could use the box to grant them the ability to morph — by touching an animal and concentrating, they could acquire that creature's DNA and transform their bodies into that of the animal's. As the Andalite asked if they wished to accept this power, Cassie immediately responded that she would. Rachel then noticed something in the sky and wondered what it was, and the Andalite notified them that those were the Yeerks. The Andalite urged them to decide quickly, and Cassie asked Jake what he thought. Jake agreed, citing they had no choice. All five of them then pressed their hands against the box, and Cassie felt a tingle run through her as she received the morphing ability.
The Andalite warned them that they should not stay in morph for more than two hours or else they would be trapped before yelling at them to run since Visser Three was coming. Hiding behind a low wall, Cassie witnessed as the Blade ship and Bug fighters landed. She screamed upong seeing tall, bladed creatures emerging from the Blade ship, although Jake quickly covered her mouth with his hand. The dying Andalite used his thought-speak to mentally communicate with them, informing them that these were Hork-Bajir-Controllers and that the giant centipede-like creatures that were also emerging were known as Taxxons. The five kids then tried to remain silent as one of the Hork-Bajir-Controllers positioned himself near their hiding spot. They then noticed an Andalite emerging from the Blade ship, which the dying Andalite explained was Visser Three — the only Andalite-Controller to exist.
Cassie watched as Visser Three greeted the Andalite as Prince Elfangor before morphing into a monstrous creature with multiple ringed teeth. Cassie whispered in horror as she realized what was about to happen, prompting Rachel to tell her not to look as she put an arm around her shoulder for comfort. As the Visser lifted Elfangor, Jake picked up a pipe to rush into action, and Cassie quickly silenced Jake by telling him that Elfangor wouldn't want Jake to die for him. Cassie then watched as Visser Three dropped Elfangor in his mouth and was forced to hear Elfangor's mental screams as he was being ripped apart. She then watched with tears streaming down her face as the Visser ate Elfangor and heard Elfangor's mental screams as he was being ripped apart before he died. Marco then threw up, prompting the nearby Hork-Bajir-Controller to look in their direction. The five teenagers then bolted and ran their separate ways as the Yeerks began pursuing them. Cassie successfully managed to escape from the construction site and ran back home.[7]
Testing Morphing Powers
The next morning, a Saturday, Cassie decided to test out the morphing ability by acquiring one of the horses on her farm. Finding herself nude when she demorphed, Cassie tried incorporating clothing into the process by wearing a coat, although it got shredded. She eventually managed to incorporate a skintight outfit into the morphing, allowing her to demorph with clothes. She was soon contacted by Jake, who informed her that he and Tobias had morphed and wished to have a meeting with the others at her farm. As Rachel arrived, Cassie continued to practice her morphing and found herself able to control specific aspects of the morphing process.
Cassie galloped across the farm as a horse as Tobias, Marco and eventually Jake arrived. As she began demorphing, she controlled it to make herself equally half-human and half-horse, similar to a centaur. However, before she could finish demorphing, a police cruiser suddenly pulled into the farm. Cassie's horse instincts caused to her panic, and she demanded to know if she should morph back into horse or to finish demorphing. Jake ordered her to demorph as the others shielded her from view, allowing her to become human again without being caught. The police officer then approached them and stared at Cassie for a while before asking them if they knew anything about kids being at the construction site. When they claimed they did not know anything, the man told Jake to join The Sharing before driving off.
Cassie then relished how amazing it was to run as a horse and explained that tight clothing could be morphed with practice. Rachel then advised them that they should be careful when morphing, prompting Marco to state that it wouldn't be a problem since they were not to morph anymore. However, Cassie stated that she did not wish to stop morphing and she believed she could use the power to communicate with animals and save endangered species, as Tobias added that humanity may now be endangered. As the group argued on what their next decisions were, Cassie suggested that they should take some to think before finalizing their decision, thus bringing an end to the immediate argument. The teenagers then went their separate ways.[7]
Investigating the Yeerks
- "You know, back in the old days — I mean, the real, real old days — the Africans, the early Europeans, the Native Americans... they all believed animals had spirits. And they would call on those spirits to protect them from evil. They would ask the spirit of the fox for his cunning. They'd ask the spirit of the eagle for his sight. They would ask the lion for his strength. I guess what we're doing is sort of basic. Even though it was Andalite technology that made it possible. We're still just scared little humans, trying to borrow the mind-of the fox, and the eyes of the eagle... or the hawk. And the strength of the lion. Just like thousands of years ago, we're calling on the animals to help protect us from evil."
- ―Cassie
Later that day, Cassie was invited by Jake to join him and the others as they attended a bonfire that The Sharing was holding at the beach. After an hour, they regrouped, with Cassie remarking that the full members' behavior was abnormal and that they were observing the others like a dog watching a bone. In order to spy on the full members meeting, Cassie watched as Jake morphed into Homer, his golden retriever, and scratched his head before he set off. However, Cassie soon began to worry about Jake and decided to sneak into the meeting herself, although she was caught by a Controller, who happened to be the same policeman who had come to her farm earlier. Cassie informed him that she was just looking for the shells, and though the man scrutinized her for a while, he allowed her to leave.
Jake then caught up with her and the pair returned to the others, where Jake demorphed and informed them that his brother Tom and their assistant principal Chapman were being controlled by the Yeerks. After Jake reiterated that the Yeerks were hunting for the kids who fled from the abandoned construction site, Marco's insisted that they forgot what they learned and resume their normal lives; however, Jake refused and declared that he would fight the Yeerks in order to free his brother, with Cassie, Rachel and Tobias agreeing to join him. As the group split up to return home, Jake asked Cassie if she had any useful animals at the clinic that he could use to spy on Chapman. After pondering through the list of patients, Cassie notified him that there was a green anole lizard at the barn who was not a patient who might be suitable. The duo then returned to her barn where Cassie managed to trap the lizard, allowing Jake to acquire it.
On Monday, Cassie met up with the others after school at the mall's food court, where she learned that the Yeerks needed to feed every three days by absorbing Kandrona rays at a Yeerk Pool. Jake then informed them that he had discovered an entrance to the Yeerk pool in the janitor's closet at their school, and that he would be heading to the pool later that night in order to rescue Tom. With the others deciding to accompany him on his mission, Cassie remarked how humans in the olden days would look upon the spirits and powers of the animals to help them, and how they were doing a similar thing by using animals to save Earth. Adding that Mother Earth had tricks up her sleeves when it came to animals, the newly-formed team decided to go to The Gardens, to acquire more dangerous morphs. Cassie informed them that while she could get in for free, she could give the others her mother's employee discount. As they prepared to leave, Marco dubbed the five of them as the Animorphs,[7] a portmanteau for "animal morphers."[13]
Upon arriving at The Gardens, Cassie led the other four into the employees' hallway, which contained the doors leading to all of the other enclosures. She guided them to the enclosure belonging to Big Jim, a Silverback gorilla, and assisted Marco in acquiring it. An employee who recognized Cassie then saw them, prompting them to return back to the hallway. At a crossroads, Rachel decided to head towards the dolphin tank, although Cassie remarked that they would have no need for dolphin morphs. Marco, however, began walking down the path leading to the more dangerous animals, citing their need for firepower. As a security guard spotted them, Cassie ran down the pathway with Rachel and Tobias while Jake followed Marco; since the security guard chose to pursue the two boys instead, they were able to escape without worry. Returning back to the public space, the three stuck together and headed towards the African elephants, with Rachel deciding to acquire one of them. Both Cassie and Tobias elected not to acquire any additional morphs and thus the three returned to the main entrance, where Jake and Marco soon met up with them. The five of them then left The Gardens and took the bus back to their respective homes, planning to meet up at the school in a few hours.[7]
Kidnapped by Police
- "It had been the suspicious Controller policeman who had grabbed her. He was the only Controller to know her name, where she lived, and that she had been spying on The Sharing. Cassie said we didn't have to worry about him anymore. She didn't want to talk about what had happened to him."
- ―Jake
Cassie left her house to tend to the animals outside when she was abducted by the police, specifically the policeman-Controller who had visited her farm on Saturday and had also caught her sneaking into the private Sharing meeting. She was then taken to her school, where the cop dragged her forcibly into the janitor's closet and through the secret passageway leading to the Yeerk Pool, a gigantic subterranean cavern underneath half their city with multiple entry and exit points. The Yeerks had a pier for infestation and another for reinfestation, along with cages where they kept involuntary host bodies. Cassie was then brought onto the infestation pier and transferred over to the custody of two Hork-Bajir-Controllers, who held her hands as they brought her to the pier's edge.
Screaming as she was unable to free herself, Tobias, who had been flying above in his red-tailed hawk morph, dive-bombed into one of the Hork-Bajir-Controllers and removed both of his eyes, causing him to let go of Cassie. Cassie managed to extricate herself from the grip of the second Hork-Bajir and ran as Jake, in his Siberian tiger morph, took out the second Hork-Bajir. Cassie then yelled at the others on the infestation pier to start running, causing a crowd to form near the exits. Having been ordered by Jake to morph, Cassie ran into the crowd and used it as cover to turn into a horse. She then led the hosts, including some freed from their cages by the other Animorphs, towards the stairs, where she used her horsepower to sail above the gathering Taxxons. Heading for the stairs, she indicated for two women to ride on her back.
Their escape efforts were impeded when Visser Three arrived and morphed into a giant fire-breathing monster with eight heads. As Cassie tried to escape, the Visser spat a fireball at the second woman riding Cassie, causing her to fall off and scream as she tried to extinguish the flame. Cassie witnessed as Visser Three spread fire in multiple directions, causing many of the freed hosts to be burned or recaptured, although she was able to run up the stairs with the one remaining woman on her back. Successfully escaping with this one woman, along with Jake, Rachel and Marco, they returned to their school's hallway. With the freed woman departing their company, Cassie informed them of her abduction and added that they did not need to worry about the policeman Controller anymore, refusing to elaborate on how the cop had died. Cassie then returned home[7] and was later informed that Tobias, who had managed to escape, had eclipsed the two-hour time limit and was now trapped as a red-tailed hawk.[14]
Early Adventures
Chapman Investigation
Cassie explains to Jake why she cannot fly with her osprey wings
- "People? And I use the term loosely. We need to decide what we're doing next."
"I want to decide what we're not doing next. I should be spending more time with my dad. You know, he's still messed up over my mom...."
"Don't ever let any of this get in the way of spending time with your dad. He needs you. We need you, too, Marco, but your dad comes first. There isn't much point in doing any of this if we forget why we're doing it." - ―Jake, Marco and Cassie
Cassie taught Jake, Rachel and Marco how to incorporate skintight clothing such as bike shorts, leggings and leotards into the morphing process so that they wouldn't be nude when they demorphed. A little over a week after their trip to the Yeerk pool, the four morph-capable Animorphs acquired bird-of-prey morphs, with Cassie and Marco acquiring the same osprey. The four then walked to a run-down church near a beach by some cliffs and made their way to the abandoned bell tower. Stripping off their outer clothing, with Cassie putting down a watch on the ground, the Animorphs morphed into their raptor morphs for the first time and joined Tobias in the sky. While enjoying the experience of flying, the Animorphs were shot at by drunk teenagers, prompting the Animorphs to attack the teens and disarm them of their rifle. Cassie then brought up that they were close to the two-hour limit and the group flew back to the church's bell tower, where Cassie glanced at the watch and notified the team that it had been an hour and a half. As they all demorphed, Cassie controlled the process so that she was fully human except for her arms, which were giant osprey wings, giving her the appearance of an angel. The Animorphs then marveled at her skill before she reverted the wings to her human arms in mere seconds. When Jake brought up how he felt resuming his human form after having been a bird, Cassie made a comment about how it sucked to turn human again and return to their normal lives before biting her tongue and casting an apologetic look at Tobias.
Cassie crying as she recalls bad memories
As the group walked home, they discussed potential Hollywood careers they could've had using their powers. The Animorphs then walked past the abandoned construction site, which triggered painful memories for Cassie, who stopped walking and started to cry. Rachel then approached Cassie and asked if she was okay, which Cassie denied, bringing brought up the screams she heard at the Yeerk pool and the feeling of watching people become enslaved. She then assured Jake that they would save Tom someday and put her arm around his waist; Jake then began stroking her head before quickly pulling away due to embarrassment, which Cassie chalked up to boys her age being iffy about showing their feelings. Marco inquired why they would keep fighting and risking their lives, and Cassie responded that they were doing it for freedom, to which Marco had no retort. Jake then decided that Rachel should use her friendship with Melissa Chapman in order to get close to Chapman himself.
The next night, after school, Cassie, Jake and Marco were invited to Rachel's house, where Rachel informed them that Melissa was not open to hanging out with her; she also revealed that she had been harassed by a grown man while walking home, who tried to get her into his car before chasing her. When Rachel disclosed that she had partially morphed into an elephant to scare him away, Marco yelled at Rachel for risking their identities by publicly morphing. Jake, who like Marco did not register the true danger Rachel was in, also believed that Rachel had committed a mistake. While Cassie did not yell at Rachel, she added that Rachel should never have put herself in such a dangerous position to begin with. Moving on from the incident, Jake then discussed what their next strategy to get close to Chapman would be since they couldn't use Melissa directly, to which Rachel divulged that Melissa had a pet cat that she could morph.
One night, the Animorphs traveled to the street where the Chapmans resided, bringing a cat carrier with them. Cassie wondered how they were going to get the cat, named Fluffer McKitty, to come to them, adding that they couldn't loiter for too long without gaining attention. Tobias then offered to look for the cat, while Cassie warned Rachel to remain in cat-character to avoid rousing suspicion. Tobias then led them to the lawn where Fluffer was. As Jake and Marco waited, Rachel and Cassie crossed onto the lawn, where Cassie groaned upon realizing that Fluffer was an unneutered male cat that was prowling at night in hunting mode, adding that they should've worn gloves. When Fluffer scratched Rachel and jumped up into a tree, Rachel asked Tobias to bring her a mouse, although when he delivered one to Rachel, Cassie correctly pointed out that it was a shrew. Cassie watches as Rachel acquired and morphed into the shrew, which resulted in her succumbing to its instincts. Rachel was eventually regain control, and when Fluffer pounced down, Cassie aided Jake and Marco, who had caught the cat, into forcing him into the cat carrier. When Rachel acquired Fluffer, Cassie remarked that Rachel now had four different animal DNA in her body and wondered whether morphing had a limit. As Rachel was feeling unwell due to her experience as a shrew, the group decided to postpone their infiltration mission for another night.
A few nights later, the Animorphs regrouped outside Chapman's house, where Tobias informed the group that the real Fluffer was nowhere near the house. Cassie told Rachel that they could postpone the mission once more if she was still feeling off, although Rachel assured her that she was fine. As Rachel morphed into the cat, fur emerged from her body first, which Cassie greatly admired as she found it to be a pleasing look. When Rachel completed the morph, Cassie noticed her becoming aggressive at the sight of Tobias and thus warned Tobias to keep his distance. Cassie then asked what the cat morph was like and upon learning that it was very confident, Cassie warned Rachel that the mixture of her innate personality and the cat's attitude could result in her being too cocky. She then assured Rachel that the rest of them would be waiting outside during the infiltration just in case. An hour later, the team noticed that Fluffer was trying to return home and tried to capture him, to no avail. The group waited outside until Rachel eventually rejoined them, with only ten minutes left on her morphing clock. Jake uttered that he hoped Rachel at least learned something useful, and Rachel divulged that Chapman had a way to communicate directly with Visser Three and that the Yeerks still believed them to Andalites.
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The next day at school, Cassie was informed by Jake that they were having a meeting at the church tower and flew there after school. When Marco mentioned that he did not want to discuss their next steps since he wanted to spend more time with his dad, who had become depressed following the death of Marco's mother, Cassie noticed that both Jake and Rachel were about to criticize him. Cassie then stated that Marco should spend time with his father and that his father needed Marco more than the Animorphs did; she then looked at Jake and Rachel and reminded them that they shouldn't forget the reason for why they fight. Rachel then informed the group that she wanted to go back inside the Chapman Residence so that she could learn the location of the Kandrona, as destroying it would strike a significant blow to the Yeerks. Cassie became suspicious that Rachel was hiding something from her first visit, and was privately informed by Tobias, via his thought-speak, that Rachel wasn't being entirely truthful. Cassie then reiterated a sentiment shared by Jake that Rachel shouldn't go back alone, to which Rachel flippantly mentioned someone morphing into a flea and riding on her back. Jake then agreed to let Rachel return before the Animorphs disbanded for the day, planning to meet up outside the Chapman house later that night.
Since Rachel was hiding details from them, the Animorphs decided to take Rachel's carefree suggestion to heart. Along with Marco, Cassie aided Jake in acquiring, morphing and testing out a flea morph. That night, as it was dark and stormy, Cassie donned a raincoat and joined Jake, Marco and Tobias down the street of Chapman's house before Rachel was to join them. Jake then morphed into a flea and was picked up by Cassie. When Rachel arrived and morphed into the cat, Cassie told her to be careful before placing her hand on the cat's back, transferring Jake to Rachel's fur. Cassie and Marco then continued waiting outside with Tobias. A while later, they discovered that Rachel (and by extnesion Jake) had been captured by "Chapman" and were being driven somewhere. Cassie joined Tobias and Marco in flying to the construction site, where they started up some earthmovers to serve as a distraction and even managed to destroy one of the Bug fighters. With Jake and Rachel successfully escaping, the remaining Animorphs fled as well.
A few days later, Cassie reconvened with the other Animorphs, by which point Rachel had disclosed to the rest of the team that Chapman had become a voluntary host to ensure Melissa's freedom. Cassie asked how Melissa was, and Rachel revealed that she typed and sent a cryptic letter to Melissa to lift her spirits, an action Cassie was proud of. Tobias then affirmed that the Animorphs would keep fighting until the Andalites arrived.[14]
Truck Ship Operation
- "I halfway feel like we've done enough. You know? We attacked the Yeerk pool. We barely got out alive. We infiltrated Chapman's house and Rachel was captured. Again, we barely got out alive. I guess the question is, how many risks are we going to take? How many more times are we going to barely escape? [...] I mean, as far as I'm concerned, I can't just do nothing while people are enslaved by the Yeerks. Maybe it's just me... The thing is, I have these powers. I can't just do nothing."
- ―Cassie to the Animorphs
On a Saturday, Cassie saw a live commercial for Dealin' Dan Hawke's Used Cars on television where a red-tailed hawk freed another captive red-tailed hawk while an elephant stomped on the cars. Immediately realizing that it was Tobias and Rachel, Cassie, along with Jake and Marco, made their way to Rachel's house and waited in Rachel's room until she got home. As Rachel returned home and entered her room as Tobias flew in through the open window, Marco yelled at them for their carelessness and stupidity while Jake made the two promise not to do something like that again as Cassie mediated the arguments. With the argument quickly turning jovial, Cassie informed the others that she had to leave to do chores as everyone then departed, although not before Cassie and Jake secretly brushed their hands against each other.
The next day, the Animorphs convened at the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic, where Tobias notified them that he had seen an invisible Yeerk ship coming to and from the mountains. As the group pondered their next course of action, Cassie mentioned that she halfway felt like they had done enough already, citing the amount of times they nearly died, although not before adding that she still felt she needed to continue since she could not turn a blind eye while she had powers. As the team began an argument about their respective involvement, Tobias stated that he was going to the mountains the next morning regardless of what everyone else did. Rachel, Jake and Cassie agreed to come with him, although Marco pointed out the next day (a Monday) was a school day and that if they skipped school to attack the Yeerks, Chapman might suspect them. The Animorphs then decided to go to the mountains after school the next day.
On Monday, the Animorphs regrouped at the clinic. Deciding not to fly out to the mountains as their assortment of raptor forms could be spotted by bird-watchers, it was decided that they would travel there with wolf morphs; there was a pair of wolves at the barn, with Jake acquiring the male while the other three acquired the female. As Cassie's farm bordered the national forest, they entered the forest on foot and walked a good ways in before morphing into the wolf, after which they ran through the forest at twenty miles an hour. Tobias, who had been performing reconnaissance, informed them that there was a nearby lake surrounded with Park Ranger Controllers armed with automatic weapons alongside Hork-Bajir-Controllers. They then decided to walk to the lake in order to witness the situation for themselves; there, they marveled at the sight of the uncloaked disturbance that Tobias had seen, which was revealed to be a giant spaceship. Noticing that the giant ship had oxygen intake and was currently draining water for the lake, the Animorphs realized that the ship, which they dubbed a Truck ship, was carrying oxygen and water to orbit, most likely to the Pool ship.
Deciding to retreat, they returned to the forest, where they accidentally entered the territory of a rival wolf pack that had just killed a rabbit. The rival pack believed the Animorphs were encroaching on their territory to steal their kill, and Jake was forced to stand his ground as Cassie remarked that looking weak might cause the other pack to attack them. Tobias then swooped down and snatched the rabbit, redirecting the wolf pack's attention which allowed the other Animorphs to escape. As they ran through the woods, Tobias screamed at them via thought-speak to demorph, telling them that they had no time left in morph. Cassie then began demorphing and had already fully resumed her human form by the time the others could even start. She then coached the others, who were struggling, and held Jake's hands while telling him to come back to her. As Jake, Rachel and Marco demorphed, she hugged Jake before feeling embarrassed, prompting her to then hug Rachel and Marco as well. The four then rejoiced over not being trapped in morph, which caused Tobias to fly away, much to their regret.
The next day after school, the Animorphs gathered for a meeting inside Jake's room, with his house being safe since Tom would be away at a Sharing meeting. Cassie informed them that she could not stay long as she had homework as well as an obligation to help her father release a great horned owl back into the wild. As the team discussed the Truck ship, Rachel brought up the idea of destroying the ship, stating that perhaps the Yeerks might leave Earth if they ran out of air and water, although Cassie pointed out that they did not know how many other Truck ships the Yeerks possessed. Marco then brought up the idea of turning off the Truck ship's cloaking technology while it was flying above the city, thereby allowing everyone to see it. Jake and Rachel became excited at the prospect of the rest of the world discovering the invasion and letting the authorities handle it. Jake then announced that they would be using fish morphs to enter the Truck ship through its water pipes in order to uncloak the ship. With a plan set, Rachel and Cassie left Jake's home. Cassie was soon informed that Tobias had tried to hurt himself at the mall but had managed to escape. However, as Tobias did not return to Jake's attic or seek out the other Animorphs, Cassie began to think that Tobias had died. However, a few days later, she learned that Tobias had moved to his own meadow to live as a true red-tailed hawk who hunted prey, a lifestyle that he would be embracing from now on.
On Saturday morning, Cassie and the other Animorphs gathered and solidified their plan: they would morph into wolves and travel to the lake, where they would then start fishing. Once they acquired a fish, they would practice the morph before retreating to a nearby bear cave that Tobias reported was empty. Then, when the Truck ship arrived, they would slowly make their way to the edge of the lake, morph into fish and swim towards the Truck ship, where they would then get sucked up into the ship. Rachel fashioned a tan-colored nylon pouch, which contained a watch, a fishing line, some fishing hooks and a lighter, and tied it to Tobias' leg. At the lake, the four human Animorphs spent hours trying to catch a fish; while Cassie was patient, the other three were frustrated and outraged at their failures. Cassie eventually caught a trout, which she and the others acquired.
Just then, Tobias informed them that the Park Ranger Controllers were arriving and the four of them ran into the cave to hide. They were shortly joined by Tobias, who notified them that Visser Three had arrived on the site, along with additional reinforcements. As they debated on whether to terminate their mission, since they could no longer walk to the water's edge without being spotted, Cassie suggested that they morph into fish while in the cave; since trout could survive outside of water for a few minutes and was small enough for a red-tailed hawk to carry, they could morph in the cave and be flown into the water by Tobias.
Cassie in the lake in trout morph
Once Tobias deposited them all into the lake, they swam towards the Truck ship and were sucked in by the water pipes, where they found themselves in a water tank with a grate above them. Jake and Cassie then demorphed and tried to open the grate but were unable to. Realizing that they were now trapped within the water tank, the four agreed that they did not want to be taken alive and thus decided that when the Truck ship docked with the Pool ship, they would assume battle morphs and go down fighting. However, Rachel, still in trout morph, quickly thought-spoke with Tobias, relaying their predicament to him. Since the Animorphs did not want to risk being taken alive, she asked him if there was anything he could do to destroy the Truck ship, as it would kill them in the process.
As the four of them treaded water in the water tank, Tobias had seized a Dracon beam and destroyed the Truck ship's controls, causing it to lose altitude. The careening Truck ship then hit a Bug fighter, which collided into the water tank and exploded, destroying the tank. As the water poured out like a waterfall, the four Animorphs fell out of the hole and began hurtling towards the ground. Cassie then rapid-morphed into an osprey as the other three also rapid-morphed into their respective raptors. They regrouped with Tobias in the air and the five flew into the woods as the Truck ship slammed into the ground, creating a concussive shockwave. The Yeerks then destroyed the grounded Truck ship to eliminate evidence as the Animorphs escaped and returned home.[1]
Andalite Rescue Mission
Distress Call Dreams
Cassie is chased by a fox
- "I know this sounds crazy, but... but it's like someone is sending out a distress signal. Like they are calling for help."
"Only this someone is in the water, or under the water, or something. [...] It's an Andalite. That's who is calling to us from the sea." - ―Tobias and Cassie to the other Animorphs
Cassie soon began to suffer from dreams of a voice calling to her from the ocean. Around this time, the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic began to have some of their birds eaten during the night. Struggling to sleep due to the dreams and wanting to solve the mystery of the birds, Cassie left her house around midnight and walk to the barn. Deciding to try and catch the animal that was sneaking in to eat the birds, Cassie pulled Magilla, a gray squirrel, out of its cage. Holding him in her hands, she fed him chestnuts as she acquired his DNA. She then morphed into the squirrel and was overwhelmed by its instincts. Just then, Tobias flew into the barn and noticed the squirrel. As Tobias swooped down on her, the other animals in the barn began making noises as a fox entered, scaring Tobias away. However, in an attempt to avoid Tobias, Cassie jumped onto the floor below, gaining the fox's attention. As the fox chased her, Cassie regained control of the morph and thought-spoke to Tobias, asking him to save her. Stunned that the squirrel he nearly killed was Cassie, Tobias swooped down and slashed the fox, prompting it to run away.
With the mystery solved, Cassie began demorphing when Tobias warned her that someone was approaching the barn, and Cassie's father Walter entered as Cassie was mostly human. Walter asked her what she was doing in the barn at midnight, and she replied that she couldn't sleep. He then told her to return to the house when he suddenly asked her to turn around. Cassie managed to morph away her squirrel tail before turning around for her father, who then stated that he needed more sleep as he thought he had seen her with a tail. As he left, Cassie brought up her dreams, and Tobias revealed that he too had the same dreams about the voice calling from the ocean.
After school, Cassie and the other Animorphs held a meeting inside Rachel's room as her house was empty at the time. There, Cassie took stock of Rachel's Post-its with inspiration battle quotes, such as one from Sun Tzu's The Art of War, which saddened her as she realized Rachel was changing into someone who was eager to fight. Cassie and Tobias then informed the others of their shared dreams. While Rachel and Marco were skeptical, Jake pulled out a video cassette and asked Rachel if they could use her VCR, and the team went downstairs to the living room. Jake then inserted the tape and showed them footage from last night's news that he had recorded, which showed a metal fragment that had washed up on the beach. Jake pointed out that the writing on the metal fragment was the same writing he had seen when he entered Elfangor's ship to retrieve the morphing cube and that he believed the fragment was a piece of an Andalite ship. Just then, both Cassie and Tobias fainted, with Jake catching Cassie before she could hit the floor. Cassie then experienced a stronger vision and recognized that the voice calling to her from the ocean was using thought-speech. As she and Tobias regained consciousness, Cassie mused that the voice sounded familiar, and Tobias mentioned that it reminded him of Elfangor's voice. The pair then concluded that it was an Andalite under the ocean who was sending out a distress signal. Although Cassie was hesistant to engage in a rescue mission as she was unsure whether the vision was an actual call for help or just a dream, the team headed to the beach to see if Cassie would experience another vision from being closer to the sea.
At the beach, Cassie and Rachel wondered why she and Tobias were the only ones on the team to receive the dreams; Jake theorized that the Andalite distress signal might only be accessible by those with morphing abilities, and Marco clarified that despite all of them being able to morph, he believed that it was only Cassie and Tobias receiving them because Cassie had a talent for morphing while Tobias was trapped in morph. Tobias, who had been flying above them, then informed them that a group from The Sharing was also on the beach with flashlights and that "Chapman" and "Tom" were with them; additionally, Tobias had eavesdropped on their conversation and learned that the metal fragment was indeed part of an Andalite ship and that Visser Three was also receiving the visions, which Marco believed was because he had an Andalite host body. Just then, the Controllers noticed the Animorphs' footprints and began to follow them. The four human Animorphs then ran towards the water; as it was nighttime, the Controllers could not see them clearly, although they could see their silhouettes, prompting one of the Controllers to shoot at them with a handgun. Jake then told everyone to get into the water and morph into trout, despite Cassie pointing out that trout was a freshwater fish and the ocean was saltwater. As she began rapidly morphing to trout, the Controllers arrived on the shore. Cassie, who still retained her human eyes and ears, listened as the Controllers found their outer clothing and remarked how they had been following human footprints but saw no humans in the ocean. "Tom" then wondered whether Visser Three was wrong and that the Andalite bandits were actually human, although "Chapman" responded that he wasn't going to disprove the Visser's beliefs. Cassie's eyes and ears then fully transformed. Despite the burning sensation they felt in their gills, they were able to survive in the saltwater long enough to swim to another shore, where they demorphed and returned home safely.
The Animorphs then resumed their regular lives for a bit, with Cassie helping her father rehab a golden eagle and prepare him for release. On a Wednesday, two days after nearly being shot at the beach, Jake rode his bike to Cassie's farm to see her, where Cassie felt a little self-conscious as she had been shoveling manure and cleaning the barn and was very smelly. Jake then helped her shovel some manure and informed her that the rest of the team was waiting on her to decide if they were still going through with the rescue operation. Cassie was taken aback by the notion that she had to decide, and Jake told her that it was her dream and that since Tobias couldn't aid them in an underwater mission, she would be the one to choose whether the rest of them would proceed or not. Not wanting to make a decision, Cassie asked Jake if he could do it for her; when he agreed, Cassie realized that if the mission went sideways, Jake would blame himself. While Cassie was still unsure whether her dream was real or not, Jake told her that he believed whatever she thought and that the other Animorphs were in support with her. Cassie stated that she did believe her dream was an actual vision and that she did want to help the Andalite sending out the distress signal. Jake declared that they would thus proceed with an underwater rescue operation but that they needed to get aquatic morphs at The Gardens. Cassie pointed out that The Gardens did have bottlenose dolphins they could acquire, although she felt that acquiring sentient creatures was immoral and was uncomfortable with the idea.[4]
Dolphin Experience
- "Dolphins are very intelligent. Not our kind of intelligence, but still, I guess they're one of the two or three smartest animals around."
"It will be strange morphing something so intelligent."
"Yes. How is doing this any different than what the Yeerks do?"
"Yeerks take over humans. Besides, they don't morph, they infest. We don't take over the actual animal, we just copy his DNA pattern, create a totally new animal, and then—"
"And then control the new animal."
"It's not the same." - ―Cassie and Rachel
After school on Thursday, Cassie took a city bus with Jake, Rachel and Marco to The Gardens so that they could acquire bottlenose dolphin morphs. While on the bus, Cassie noticed Marco looking solemnly out the window and complimented his hair, causing him to smile. Upon arriving at The Gardens, the group made their way to the dolphin tank, where Cassie spoke with Eileen, the dolphin trainer, and marveled at Joey, one of the dolphins. When Eileen left them with a bucket of fish to feed the dolphins, thereby allowing the Animorphs a chance to acquire the dolphins, Cassie expressed her discomfort with morphing into a sentient animal as she believed it made them no different than the Yeerks. Rachel rebutted that the Yeerks infested other creatures whereas the Animorphs merely absorb an animal's DNA and transform into a copy of it, to which Cassie replied that they then controlled the animal. Rachel merely responded that it wasn't the same and Cassie stated that it was something she had to think about. Cassie then placed her hands on Monica, the closest dolphin to her, and acquired her DNA. That night, she once again had a dream about the voice in the ocean, although she could tell the voice was no longer as clear, before having a dream about Monica where she wondered what her true name was and how long it had been since Monica had been taken from the sea.
The next day, the Animorphs did not have school due to a teacher conference. They met at a river estuary in a park where Cassie had gone before with her father since as an estuary, the river flowed into the ocean. Finding a spot that was isolated enough for them to morph, the four morph-capable Animorphs morphed into dolphins and swam from the river to the ocean. There, they spent forty-five minutes frolicking before sensing a humpback whale being attacked by multiple tiger sharks via their echolocation. The four of them charged forward and attacked the sharks, with Cassie ramming into one of their gills, although Marco was nearly bitten in half. When the sharks left, Cassie urged Marco to demorph and the whale carried him to the surface. Cassie then spent ten minutes communicating with the humpback whale, dubbed a great one, who revealed how he'd been alive for eighty years and had witnessed men hunting his kind back when ships still used steam but that he had never witnessed dolphins turn into humans. The "great one" then telepathically showed Cassie a vision of an Andalite in an underwater glass structure with a grassy field that he spotted on the ocean floor. Marco then remorphed into a dolphin and the Animorphs returned to the river estuary.
On Saturday, the day after the shark incident, Cassie walked to Marco's apartment and knocked on the door. Marco then walked out into the breezeway and asked her why she was there, and Cassie began to apologize for Marco nearly dying the day before. Marco replied that it was no different than the usual Animorphs missions where he nearly died, and Cassie responded that it was different because every other time it had been someone else's idea to do the mission. Marco then pointed out that Cassie was only feeling guilty because she didn't like feeling responsible. Cassie began to talk about that how even at the barn, it was her father who handled putting down animals, not her, to which Marco told her that bad things happen and that she needed to get over it. Marco brought up that he had read about diving operations being conducted in their ocean, which he believed were Controllers. Cassie was apprehensive about making the decision to have the Animorphs resume their rescue operation, to which Marco pointed out that her inability to decide was a decision in itself. Cassie then remarked that Marco was quite smart despite his annoying and humorous persona before she left.
Cassie then made her way to Rachel's house, where she planned the mission with Rachel and Jake. Going over some maps with Jake, the pair determined where the Andalite's location most likely was. However, it was too far for the dolphin to get there in under two hours, prompting Rachel to suggest that they acquire and morph into seagulls in order to land on a container ship that would be traveling in that direction, after which they could jump off the ship and morph into dolphins. Sometime later, Tobias and Marco appeared and were filled in on the plan before everyone dispersed. As she began walking home, Cassie noticed Tobias flying above and that Jake was walking with her, despite him living in the opposite direction. She told Jake that she believed Tobias was feeling left out and that Jake should remind Tobias of all the times he's helped them out. She then remarked how dangerous their rescue mission was going to be, to which Jake nodded. Seized by a wave of emotion, Cassie took one of Jake's hands within both of hers and was about to confess her feelings before simply asking him to make sure he didn't get hurt. Jake then laughed and said that he was indestructible before leaving her to walk back towards his house. While Cassie was assured for a quick second, she glanced at Tobias up in the sky and was reminded of the consequences of a mission going sideways.[4]
Meeting Ax
- "What... what are you saying? What do you mean about making the planet barren?"
"The usual Yeerk pattern. Once a planet is under their control, they alter it to suit their own desires. They will leave enough plant and animal species to keep the host bodies fed — humans in the case of Earth — and the rest they eliminate." - ―Cassie and Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill
On Sunday, the Animorphs went to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic where seagulls were kept as patients and acquired them. Flying out of the barn, the four seagulls and Tobias flew towards the beach and across the ocean when they spotted a container ship called Newmar. The Animorphs all landed on the ship and found themselves a secluded spot away from the crew. Tobias then left them the watch before flying back to shore as the four human Animorphs demorphed. After an hour had passed, Jake announced that they were going to enter the ocean; since Marco did not know how to swim, Jake's plan was for him to morph into the dolphin on the deck so that the other three could pick him up and throw him into the water, although Rachel pointed out that Marco would weigh too much for them to support his weight. With the plan seemingly derailed, Cassie attempted to cancel the mission and return home, although Marco suggested that he could half-morph near the railing so that the others could then push him into the sea. Cassie was about to yell at him when she noticed that Marco had already started to morph, and helped Jake and Rachel push the half-morphed Marco into the ocean. They then jumped off the ship and into the sea themselves, where they morphed into dolphins as well. They noticed a helicopter dragging a sensor through the water and realized that the Controllers were very close. The four Animorphs then dove into the water and swam to the ocean floor before proceeding onward, where they came across a Dome ship. Jake noticed a hatch and opened it, and the four dolphins entered an airlock that then began to drain the water.
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Cassie meets Ax
Having demorphed back to human, the Animorphs opened the door to the Dome ship's interior when Cassie noticed an Andalite holding a weapon very similar to a Dracon beam. The Andalite then fired the weapon, rendering all four of the Animorphs unconscious. Coming to, the Andalite threatened to kill them if they moved, and placed his tail blade against Marco's head when Marco mentioned Visser Three. Cassie told the Andalite that she had come to rescue him as she had heard his call and theorized that it was an Andalite calling to her. The Andalite was stunned to discover that humans could hear his distress call and knew what Andalites were. Cassie explained that they had met an Andalite named Prince Elfangor who had informed them of the truth prior to being killed by Visser Three, the news of which affected the Andalite, who disclosed that Elfangor was his older brother. The Andalite then asked them how they fought the Yeerks and was further shocked when Cassie informed him that Elfangor had given them the power to morph.
The Andalite revealed that he was an adolescent, which demoralized Cassie as she had hoped the Andalite was going to be an adult who could take over for them. Cassie notified him that they were children as well and introduced her name and the names of the other Animorphs to the Andalite, who then stated that his name was Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill, which Marco shortened to 'Ax'. Ax then asked who their Prince was, and when Cassie, Rachel and Marco looked at Jake, Ax pledged his loyalty to "Prince Jake" and offered to fight alongside them until he could return to his own people. While giving them a tour of the Dome ship, Ax stated that the Andalites often carried pieces of their homeworld with them and that it angered the Yeerk Empire.
When Cassie asked for elaboration, Ax revealed that the Yeerk Empire often rendered any planet they colonized barren, similar to the Yeerk homeworld, and also killed all plant and animal species on the planet except for those vital for sustaining the local host population. Cassie became horrified at this revelation, which caused Ax to ponder if the Animorphs even knew whom they were fighting, adding that the Yeerks weren't just infesting bodies but also destroying life as they conquered the galaxy. Cassie asked Ax how long it would take for Andalite reinforcements to help them, and Ax responded that it would take a year or two. As Jake gaped at the thought of five kids being the only ones fighting the Yeerks on Earth, Cassie slipped in arm through Jake's arm.
Just then, the Animorphs noticed the silhouette of the Blade ship above them as sonar pings began to reverberate. They all ran to the airlock chamber and started to morph as water filled the chamber. They then exited the ship, with Ax in tiger shark morph, and swam away just as depth charges shattered the reinforced glass of the Dome ship. During their escape, they noticed that a group of Taxxons had been dropped from the Blade ship and were swimming towards them. Ax remarked that he had a feeling that the shark was capable of fighting, which Cassie affirmed, and the five of them decided to attack and kill the Taxxons. Cassie then propelled herself towards one of the Taxxons and rammed her beak into it, causing her to reel in disgust when it popped open. The others were able to make quick work of the remaining Taxxons and continued to swim to shore. They then continued to swim towards the shore, where Ax revealed that he had the mental ability to accurately keep track of their morphing time.
Cassie then noticed a large unknown aquatic creature following them that was making a specific noise and relayed the details to Ax, who confirmed that it was a mardrut, an animal that lived one of the moons of the Andalite homeworld. The group realized that the mardrut was Visser Three in morph and pushed their bodies to continue swimming for over thirty minutes, although the Visser, who confirmed his identity by thought-speaking to them, gained on them. Cassie noticed that Ax began to swim erratically as he had never heard Visser Three speak before and attempted to calm the panicking Andalite. Cassie then realized she could hear the humpback whale, the great one, in the vicinity and sent a plea for help. With the five of them unable to keep swimming, Rachel declared that it was time to turn around and fight; Ax chimed in that they couldn't win, to which Jake responded that he would rather die fighting than allow the Visser to kill them one by one in a chase. Believing that they were about to die, Cassie began to try and confess her feelings to Jake, and he indicated that he knew and that he felt the same. Just then, a group of wild whales, led by the great one, arrived and attacked the mardrut mercilessly, causing Visser Three to scream in rage and retreat.
As their morphing time was almost depleted, the group demorphed. Cassie informed the others that the great one would carry them to shore, so they all climbed on the whale's back as it ferried them back. Cassie then fell asleep on the whale. When she woke up, Jake was smiling at her and told her that they had successfully saved the Andalite because she had trusted her feelings about the distress call. He then brought up Cassie's discomfort of turning into a dolphin, and Cassie replied that while she still felt that it wasn't right, she now realized their mission to morph into animals and fight the Yeerks was not just to save humans but all life on Earth. The great one got as close as it could safely before the Animorphs and Ax were forced to disembark; they then remorphed into their aquatic morphs and swam back to the river estuary.
The group then demorphed and Ax watched in curiosity as they retrieved some outer clothing they had hidden there earlier. As they got dressed, Tobias landed on a tree branch above them and expressed shock that they actually rescued an Andalite. Cassie introduced Tobias and Ax to each other, and Tobias informed Ax that he was trapped in morph. Jake then wondered what they were going to do with Ax, as they had nowhere to keep him and he could not travel in town with them. Cassie offered to hide him on her farm, as it contained forests, meadows and woods that extended into the national forest. Marco chimed in that they still couldn't bring Ax to the farm in his Andalite state. Ax then declared that he needed to morph and approached Cassie.[4] Asking for permission,[15] Ax acquired Cassie, Marco, Jake and Rachel in succession. Cassie then watched as Ax began to blend the four acquired DNA strands into one unique strand. As Ax began to stand on two feet and his Andalite features started to disappear, Cassie realized that he would be nude once his fur disappeared and informed the others that they should give him some privacy, especially as the Animorphs were unsure whether Ax's custom human morph would be biologically male or female.
Jake then told Ax that he had an extra pair of boxers and a T-shirt and told him to get dressed. The Animorphs then turned around to find Ax holding up the shirt as his bottoms and wearing the boxers on his head like a hat. Jake then asked if his human morph was biologically male or female, and Ax replied that he had made it male since he himself was male. Jake then told Rachel and Cassie to turn around while he and Marco helped Ax get dressed properly. Ax struggled to walk on two legs and began to play with his words while verbally speaking, as it was his first time having a mouth. The Animorphs then walked Ax back to Cassie's farm, and Cassie asked Ax not to speak to any strangers on the way.
A few days later, Cassie left her house at nighttime and walked into the barn. Safe from prying eyes, she morphed into a seagull and flew to The Gardens, where she landed next to the dolphin tank. She demorphed and slowly climbed onto the tank where she then morphed into Monica. While she intended to somehow communicate what had transpired and wanted their retroactive permission for having morphed into a dolphin, her worries faded away as the dolphin mind emerged and she spent time playing with them instead.[4]
Further Missions
Cassie in 1997 (aged 13)
To be added
Zone 91 Mission
To be added
Troubled Morality
To be added
Battle for Leera
To be added
In the Time of Dinosaurs
To be added
Meeting Aftran 942
Quitting the Animorphs
To be added
Infested by a Yeerk
To be added
Trapped in Morph
To be added
Pacifist in a War
Over the course of the series, Cassie struggled with retaining her pacifist nature and violating other creatures' personal rights. Acting as the moral compass of the group, Cassie was the one who argued against acquiring other humans’ DNA without their permission. On one occasion, she was considering whether or not a buffalo who acquired the morphing technology was sentient or not.
Endgame
Realizing they are outnumbered, the Animorphs decided to use the Escafil Device to create new Animorphs, with Cassie offering to recruit handicapped children since there would not be a risk of the recruits being Controllers, due to the Yeerks deeming them as defective.
After the Yeerks find out the Animorphs’ intention, a fight ensues and Jake chases Tom’s Yeerk into the forest. As Tom flees with the morphing cube, Jake stalks him in tiger morph, preparing to kill him and retrieve the cube. Cassie, believing that Tom should escape with the cube for reasons she is unsure of, coupled with a desire to save Jake from crossing a personal line by killing his brother, attacked Jake, allowing Tom to flee with the cube.
Having romantic feelings throughout the series, Jake proposed to Cassie before the final battle against the Yeerks, although she suggests that he ask her again a year after the war ends, unsure of whether Jake can live a normal life post-war, should they survive.
Post-War
2000
- "We Animorphs and the newly minted Prince Aximili, with our prisoner, landed Ax's official liaison ship, a sleek Fast-Courier, right in the middle of the Mall in Washington. Not a mall, the Mall, a sort of open green space with the Capitol Building at one end, the Smithsonian Institution and various government buildings on both sides, and the obelisk of the Washington Monument at the far end. We called ahead, not wanting to terrify anyone. There were roughly a thousand cops and twice that many newspeople waiting for us. It was, as Marco said, a "shiver-my-spine moment." A sea of microphones and video cameras and flashbulbs. Ax and Jake, and to a lesser extent Marco and I, gave a sort of brief explanation of what had been happening, and where things stood now. Needless to say, it was kind of a big news day."
- ―Cassie
To be added
2001
- "Cassie was Undersecretary of the Interior for Resident Aliens. It paid less than I spend on corn chips, but hey, Cassie was seventeen, like me, and she was meeting with the President and spending most of her time with the free Hork-Bajir. [...] Anyway, Cassie was a government poo-bah, always racing around here and there in government jets and helicopters, making sure Toby and her people were good and just generally saving the world. Also taking college courses at night because she still wants to be a veterinarian like her mom and dad. That's Cassie for you: Save the rain forest, save some cow with a hernia — the girl just does not get the whole celebrity thing. I mean Wal-Mart practically begged her on hands and knees to take a million dollars to do ads for their jeans, and she said she didn't have time because there was some controversy over an access road into some forest somewhere."
- ―Marco
Like the other Animorphs, Cassie became instantly rich and famous from winning the Yeerk War.
At only seventeen years old, Cassie became an important activist, dealing with environmental issues and taking care of the free Hork-Bajir. She was saving the world by day and taking veterinary courses by night so that she would become a veterinarian like her parents.
2003
- "I wasn't just Cassie the Animorph anymore. I had been moved out of the Interior Department when the new President was elected. She had appointed me instead to the new position of Special Assistant to the President for Resident Aliens. I was nineteen and I was in the President's sub-cabinet. [...] I was Cassie the Animorph, always would be. I was in history books, after all. But I had a different life to lead now. I was going forward."
- ―Cassie
After the new President of the United States was elected, Cassie was given a spot in the President’s sub-cabinet and appointed to the new position of Special Assistant to the President for Resident Aliens. With her new boyfriend, Ronnie Chambers, she was scouting new areas for the Hork-Bajir to inhabit when Jake arrived to tell her about Ax being captured. Cassie offers to come but Jake declines, saying that her role is over, and that she is doing what she wanted to do the most.
Personality
- "An entire human race of Rachels — angry, merciless, aggressive, and equipped with Yeerk and Andalite technology. It was a terrifying specter. But perhaps... perhaps I had been wrong. Perhaps the real menace lay at the other end of the continuum — represented by Cassie. Humans who were softer. Kinder. Well-meaning. And, ironically, infinitely more dangerous."
- ―Ax
Cassie is the most compassionate member of the Animorphs, Rachel's best friend, and was Jake's girlfriend. She is very kind and empathetic, often acting as the mediator of the group. Her perceptive and caring nature allows her to sense people's inner feelings and insecurities, leading her to act as team therapist at times. Though she is openly against most violence, Cassie's empathetic ability to read people means that she can be ruthless when she has to be. For instance, she came up with the plan to trap David in morph by playing to his ego.[16] Cassie has the reputation of being a "tree-hugger," due to her love for animals and lack of style. Her nature-loving personality isn't at all shallow though; Cassie has numerous moral struggles and questions about evolution, sentience in animals, the so-called "circle of life," and the morality of the Animorphs' fighting in the war at all. Though Cassie is willing fight when necessary, she desperately seeks a better way to win the war. True to her dream to find another way to win the war than outright destruction of the other side, it was Cassie who allowed the Yeerks to get the Andalite morphing cube, showing the Yeerks that there was another way to see, hear, eat, and experience the other senses they were denied in their natural Yeerk forms than through infestation.[17]
Relationships with the other Animorphs
Jake
- "Jake and I are closer than just friends. We care a lot about each other. Or at least we used to. Now everything was changing. Everybody was changing. I didn't know who was who anymore. Sometimes, I didn't even know what I felt."
- ―Cassie
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Jake and Cassie have crushes on each other right from the beginning of the series, and a romance slowly develops between them. They share their first kiss in The Attack, and in later books they both acknowledge the love they have for each other in their narratives, though they have not stated in outright. Towards the end of the war, their relationship deteriorates and Jake loses trust in Cassie after she allows the Yeerks to gain the power to morph.
Rachel
- "She'd been my best friend forever. Teased me about my clothes as I teased her about her obsessive shopping. How long ago had that been? [...] But the war had touched her. She'd changed, and she'd known she was changing. The war had revealed a hidden part of her soul. She alone, of all of us, she alone liked it. Loved it, even. She had enjoyed the fight. Sometimes I imagined her as a Viking. Or as a knight on a quest. That's what she was: a joyful warrior."
- ―Cassie
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Cassie and Rachel are best friends, despite being complete opposites. Their friendship becomes strained in later books, as Rachel becomes increasingly drawn to her warrior side and becomes impatient with Cassie's strong ethical convictions.
Tobias
- "Tobias is a nothlit. Someone who stayed in morph beyond the two-hour time limit and got trapped in that morph. None of us are one hundred percent sure it was an accident. Sometimes we think Tobias is happier as a hawk. That he let himself be trapped, on purpose. But none of us has come right out and asked him. At least, I haven't. And none of us has asked if given the same situation he'd do it again. Assuming Tobias chose his fate and wasn't just a victim of a really bad circumstance."
- ―Cassie
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While they don't interact as often, they are still good friends. He is the closest in attitude to her, and they generally side together on group votes. Cassie's house is physically close to Tobias' territory. In The Beginning it's mentioned that while Tobias has stopped talking to Jake and Marco (after Rachel's death), he still does keep in touch with Cassie.
Marco
- "I felt a wave of affection for Marco. We had never been the closest of the Animorphs — our connection went through Jake, it wasn't direct. But here we were, in some way the only two real survivors. We had even prospered. Each of us was far better off by most measures than we'd have been without the war."
- ―Cassie
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Although they are generally on good terms, Cassie and Marco are not close and don't spend much time together. There is some personality conflict between them, as Cassie's morality is diametrically opposed to Marco's ruthlessness. However, at the end Cassie notes that she and Marco are really the only "true survivors" of the war and together they agree to try and break Jake of his depression.
Ax
- "I didn't want to say the words. I didn't want to. But Ax was more than a friend. How many times had he risked his life to save mine? I couldn't count the number of times I'd been down and only his flashing tail had brought me out alive."
- ―Cassie
Cassie and Ax don't interact often, although she does comfort Ax after Estrid leaves him. When Ax becomes sick with yamphut, Cassie shows concern for him before she performs life-saving surgery on him.[18] Ax feels hatred for her after she allows Tom to take the Escafil Device and thus granting the Yeerks the power to morph, citing that Cassie is the most dangerous Animorph since she is most like Seerow. However, they end up back on terms later on.
Morphs
Book Morphs
Television Show Morphs
| Morph | Episode Acquired |
|---|---|
| Horse | My Name is Jake, Part 2 |
| Rabbit | The Message |
| Skunk | |
| Butterfly | |
| Cockroach | The Escape |
| Ferret | |
| Crocodile | The Reaction |
| Mouse (off-screen) | The Leader, Part 2 |
| White-headed Capuchin | Changes, Part 1 |
Books Narrated by Cassie
Trivia
- She is more talented at morphing than the others. Ax notes that Cassie could easily become a professional estreen, one who morphs as a form of art, due to her inherent skills.
- She has the unconscious ability to unravel any alternate/parallel universe/timeline.[19]
- All of the models for the Animorphs featured on the front and inside cover had been changed since the series began, mostly because the original kids had grown up and moved away to college (since book 41). Only Cassie's model (Biko) remained close enough to still model for Animorphs. And of course Ax, who is actually just a cardboard cutout.
- In keeping with her non-violent nature, Cassie is the only Animorph who lacks a unique battle morph; she typically assumes a wolf form when required to fight, which most of the team acquired while investigating Yeerk activity in the mountains.
- In 1999 three different Animorphs toys of Cassie were made.
- Her Transformers toy turned into a wolf.
- Taco Bell released a Cassie transforming toy that became an anteater.
- She was one of three Animorphs who combined all together in the Tri-Rex transformer toy to become a comparatively large Tyrannosaurus Rex.
- Cassie is the only original Animorph not to accompany the group on the mission to rescue Ax at the end of the series, and possibly the sole surviving original Animorph after the series' end.
- In the TV series, it's Cassie who's allergic to crocodile DNA, not Rachel. Also, unlike Rachel whom would transform into random animal several times when the allergic symptoms shows up, Cassie only suffer partial transformation on random parts of her body instead.
Gallery
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"Someone took a picture of me? Not cool. Do you see what I'm wearing? I'm Spandex-boy. Totally not cool."
The image gallery for Cassie may be viewed here |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Encounter
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Beginning
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Andalite Chronicles is said to take place in 1976 and states it is 21 years before Elfangor met the Animorphs, meaning the Animorphs met Elfangor in 1997. In #53, Jake states they were 13 when they met Elfangor, placing their year of birth c.1984
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 The Message
- ↑ In The Conspiracy, Cassie explicitly states that she is an only child. However, she mentions having a niece in The Weakness. An in-universe explanation may be that she is referring to a cousin's daughter as a niece.
- ↑ The Diversion
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 The Invasion
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Back to Before
- ↑ The Unknown
- ↑ In #4, Jake refers to having attended Cassie's Thanksgiving "last year." They became Animorphs at the age of 13 in 1997, placing the Thanksgiving dinner in 1996 when she was 12.
- ↑ The Andalite Chronicles is said to take place 10 years after the 1966 Yeerk exodus of The Hork-Bajir Chronicles and 21 years before Elfangor met the Animorphs. This places it in 1976, meaning the Animorphs met Elfangor in 1997.
- ↑ The Answer
- ↑ The Stranger
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 The Visitor
- ↑ When Ax decides to acquire the four human Animorphs, he does not share this idea with the others; instead, he puts his hand on Cassie's face and says "With your permission." However, before Cassie can realize what he is doing and can even consent, he begins to acquire her. The others realize he is acquiring her before Ax starts to acquire them without asking for permission. However, the rest of the series continues to treat it as if Ax had received everyone's consent before acquiring them.
- ↑ The Solution
- ↑ The Sacrifice
- ↑ The Sickness
- ↑ Back to Before
| Animorphs | ||
|---|---|---|
| Animorphs | Jake | Rachel | Tobias | Cassie | Marco | Ax | David | |
| Auxiliary Animorphs | James | Collette | Timmy | Kelly | Craig | Erica | Julio | Liam | Tricia | Jessie | Judy | Ray | |