Epicurius posted:

Chapter 11

Is Ax right? Is compassion more dangerous than cruelty?

quote:

I stared upward, trying to glimpse the stars through the thick canopy of trees. My birthplace was somewhere out there. I had come to believe I would never see it again. I closed my main eyes, trying to remember it in detail. Trying to remember the faces of my family and friends.

But their faces kept fading away and changing into other faces.

Jake. Rachel. Tobias. Cassie. Marco.

The humans amazed me with their resilience, their ingenuity, and their bravery. They delighted me with their humor, their passions, and their capacity for play. Their food.

But they truly sickened me with their self-indulgence and their childishness.

But then, I reminded myself, they are children. And so am I.

If I were at home, I would still be a cadet in the Andalite Military Academy. I would spend most of my time in my parents’ scoop.

But I had been thrust into the midst of this raging war on Earth.

I had seen more battles, death, and destruction than many seasoned soldiers in our Andalite fleet.

I felt my throat tighten and constrict. My hearts ached with a pain I could not describe. I wondered if I were dying.

I felt not sadness. I felt pity. For myself. For us all. We were children no longer. And we never would be again.

“What do you think Elfangor would say?” It was if Cassie had looked into my mind and read the question there.

Elfangor! Why did you have to die and leave me here? I do not know what to do.

Either path led me to betrayal.

Elfangor was a great hero. A war prince. A member of the Andalite military. Brave. When necessary, ruthless.

The Yeerks had to be stopped. The Andalite high command knew that. Their plans might be unspoken. But they were clear. Annihilation of the planet. It would be clean. It would be final. It would be over.

But … but Elfangor had broken the most fundamental law of our planet. He had broken the Law of Seerow’s Kindness. He had given morphing technology to another species.

To humans.

Why?

To give them a chance?

No. The Elfangor I knew was not sentimental. He would not compromise the safety of the home planet and the galaxy to save one species.

Elfangor knew what every other Andalite knew. That the Yeerk menace had started with an old fool’s sentimental impulse. His inability to understand that his enemy’s goals and aspirations were not his own.

Seerow had let loose a plague of Yeerks upon the galaxy. The rest is history. A sad, violent, destructive history of conquest and war. Planets ravaged and ruined. One species after another enslaved. Countless dead.

All triggered by an act of kindness. Yes. The Cassies of the world were infinitely more dangerous than the Rachels.

My brother had known this. So what had possessed him to give these human youths the power to change the future of the galaxy?

What would he tell me to do now?

I heard a flutter of wings. Then, the long quiet sound of studied stillness.

Tobias.

He had settled on a branch. He said nothing for a long time. Then, finally, <Well?>

<Well, what?> I asked.

<What did you decide?>

I was startled. But I tried to pretend I was not. <About what?>

Tobias ruffled his feathers placidly. <I followed you last night. I don’t know who you were talking to. Or what you were saying. But I’m guessing you were talking to the Andalite home planet. Am I right?>

I could not lie to my true shorm. <Yes.>

<They’re going to fry us, aren’t they?>

quote:

My eye stalks waved in spite of my determination to stay calm. <What makes you think that?>

<It’s what makes sense for them to do now that the Yeerks are concentrated on Earth. I guess the question is, are you going to help them do it?>

<I do not know. I do not know what is the right thing to do.>

<There’s a lot of that going around,> Tobias said.

<Do you hate Cassie?> I asked suddenly.

<I don’t hate anybody,> Tobias said calmly. <It’s strange, but right now, I don’t even hate the Yeerks. It’s like, they’re trying to survive. And we’re trying to survive. I’m not really sure why it has to be an either-or thing.>

<You would consider a symbiotic truce?>

<No. But we probably wouldn’t have to do that. Don’t you see? What do the Yeerks need? Bodies. If they can morph bodies from their slug state then … they don’t have to keep taking other people’s bodies as hosts. See? They’d have to deal with the two-hour time limit still. And they’d still have to feed on Kandrona. But …>

So. Tobias and Cassie had been thinking similar thoughts.

<But the Yeerks would want to acquire humans. Other sentient creatures, as well. Not just cats and dogs.>

<Yeah?>

<But we have always said it is wrong. Especially without first receiving the person’s permission. I cannot imagine a Yeerk asking permission to acquire a human’s DNA. And I cannot imagine many humans who would freely give their DNA to a Yeerk.>

Tobias adjusted his wings and appeared to tighten his talons on the branch. <Maybe you’re right.

I don’t know. Look, Ax, it’s a whole new world. We’re having to make all this up as we go along. There aren’t any rules falling out of the sky telling us what and what not to do.>

<What exactly do you mean?>

<Too hard to explain right now,> Tobias said. <I just mean that we don’t really have any timetested rules for dealing with these issues. Like the morality of acquiring someone’s DNA. So we have to see what works and what doesn’t. We can’t afford to get so locked into one idea that we defend it to the death, without really knowing if that idea works - in the real world.>

Tobias was silent for a moment, then flapped away.

My hearts raced. New possibilities were unfolding. New solutions.

Maybe Elfangor had seen something. A possibility that had seemed impossible because we Andalites had been so indoctrinated by our own military thinking. Us versus the enemy. No compromise.

We had decided long ago that morphing was proprietary. Too dangerous to share. But maybe Cassie had been right after all. Maybe the way to real peace was in giving choices to other species. On the other hand, maybe it depended on the species.

Humans.

Yeerks.

If each were freed from the fight for survival, would they use the morphing technology for good or for evil?

The high command had ordered me to stop the attack on the Yeerk pool. It would be simple to do. Just tip off the Yeerks and the mission would abort before it could begin.

But if I assisted the mission, it would delay the ability of the high command to begin quarantine measures.

What would Elfangor do?

I no longer needed to wonder.

He had done it already.

He had given the morphing cube to the humans. And then he had died.

I, too, would place my faith in the humans.

My faith, if not my trust.

And if I died …

Well, then, I hoped I would die as nobly as my brother.

I knew that I should check in with high command. But now that my decision had been made, I did not.

I was willing to disobey a direct order. And I was willing to die.

But I was not willing to deceive the Andalites. To tell them I was going to do one thing, and then do another.

I know it’s a fine distinction, but I was learning to rationalize. To defend what was indefensible.

It was a very human course of action.

Epicurius posted:

Chapter 13

quote:

We were children no longer. And we never would be again.

quote:

The following night, I led six human adults through the woods. Loren, Tobias’s mother, had received the ability to morph, but chose not to use it unless we expressly asked for her help in a battle situation.

It was a wise decision.

Tobias flew overhead thought-speaking directions to me. The adults made as little noise as possible considering they were carrying a collection of battered metal camping equipment. Jake, Rachel, Marco, and Cassie were in various bird of prey morphs, flying overhead at different levels.

The auxiliary Animorphs were with us, too. James and his two lieutenants, Craig and Erica, were in charge of leading the group of seventeen. I did not know who was on the ground and who was in the air.

If the mission went wrong, their instructions were to melt away and save themselves. In this way at least some members of the resistance would live to fight another day.

Toby and several free Hork-Bajir traveled silently and gracefully through the trees.

We were a small, motley army stealing through the night on our way to a work site of National Guardsmen.

According to Tobias, four large covered trucks were parked along the highway where a group of what he estimated to be approximately ten National Guardsmen were repairing a broken water line.

They worked at night, of course, so as not to disrupt the heavier daytime traffic. We wanted the trucks.

“How much further?” Rachel’s mother demanded angrily.

“Shhhh!” Eva cautioned.

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Naomi went on. She had been complaining incessantly since we left base camp.

“We all agreed to be part of this mission,” Loren pointed out reasonably. “Let’s just keep going and hope for the best.”

Rachel’s mother came to a stop. Reluctantly, I ordered the others to stop as well. “Hope for the best?” she repeated. “That’s all you have to offer? Am I the only one of you people worried about our kids?”

I could not help myself from retorting. <You do not need to be afraid on behalf of Rachel,> I told her. <Rachel is the one who frightens others.>

“And that’s supposed to make me feel better?” her mother demanded shrilly. “To know that my oldest, my first child, my little girl, has become some kind of monster? Some kind of bloodthirsty freak?”

<Don’t let her suck you into an argument, Ax,> Tobias said privately. <You’ll never win. You’re about one-fourth of a mile away from the work site. Keep heading east toward the road.>

<I am afraid I must respectfully ask you to remain silent,> I said to Naomi. Her mouth dropped open in surprise but she spoke no more. <Please follow me.> I turned and pressed on, leading the small group of human adults east through the thick woods. Finally, we reached the road.

Several yards away, we saw a work crew of National Guardsmen. Flares and barricades lined the road for about a mile in either direction. And best of all, there were the four covered trucks.

<Okay, Dad,> Marco said. <Show time.>

Marco’s father stumbled forward onto the road. The others followed several feet behind, canteens clanking against flashlights and tin eating utensils.

Startled, the National Guard commander looked up at the group of bedraggled adults.

“Hello! Hello!” Peter called. “Thank god. We thought we’d never find anybody.”

The commander cautiously approached Marco’s father. Two other Guardsmen stopped their work and stood protectively at the ready. “Sir? Is there a problem?”

Marco’s father gestured toward the other adults. “We’ve been lost in the woods for two days. Night before last, a bear came into our campsite in the middle of the night. We grabbed what we could and ran. And, er, we got lost.”

Marco’s father did indeed look as if he had been lost in the woods for several days. He was gaunt. His clothes were filthy and torn. His face was dirty and unshaven.

Marco’s mother looked even worse than her husband. She wore an old cap pulled low over her forehead. Her face and hands were smudged with the charcoal from a burnt stick. A human-Controller would have had difficulty recognizing the host body of the former Visser One, but it was always possible that some of the National Guardsmen could be Yeerks.

Rachel’s mother looked angry and tired. Very much like a woman who was unaccustomed to doing without a morning shower and other amenities of what Rachel called “the yuppie lifestyle.”

Cassie’s parents were also dressed in appropriately worn clothing. Each wore a small backpack.

And Tobias’s mother hung in the rear, eyes lowered, trying to appear frail and timid. Loren was rather delicate in size and stature. But she had successfully survived far too many ordeals ever to be called timid. In my opinion, my brother Elfangor had married a very brave woman.

I stayed back in the woods, watching, communicating with the other Animorphs. <The approach has been made,> I said. <I do not think these particular Guardsmen are Yeerks. They are surprised at the sudden appearance of a group of lost campers. But they do not seem afraid or suspicious.>

The commander in charge signaled for some of his men to stop work and come forward. “Is anybody sick?” he asked Marco’s father. “Any signs of dehydration? When was the last time any of you ate?”

Marco’s father put his hand to his chest. “I’m having some pains here.” Immediately, Peter was escorted by three National Guardsmen to the truck at the front of the convoy. There they made him sit on the ground. One took his pulse. Another offered him water.

Moments later, the third Guardsman had found places in the three trucks for the five other adults. The commander of the group got on the radio and reported back to the base that he and three of his crew would be bringing in six lost campers, one of whom was having chest pains.

And while this was taking place, Hork-Bajir, under the supervision of Jolphimee-Celpik, were quietly dropping from the trees. When the convoy headed off for the base, the Hork-Bajir would silently disable the remaining seven National Guardsmen at work on the water main. Just in case one was a Yeerk determined to get word to his superiors about a suspicious group of lost campers.

Jolphimee-Celpik would see that the Guardsmen came to no harm and were safely released when our mission was completed.

Rachel, Jake, Cassie, and Marco landed unseen and quietly demorphed then remorphed.

<It is all going according to plan,> I told Tobias and the others.

“As soon as we get back to base, we’ll get you to a doctor,” the commander told Marco’s father. “Let’s move out!”

Moments later, three trucks were rumbling back to the base. The commander and his three Guardsmen had no idea that in addition to six human adults they were also transporting four other creatures. And being followed through the roadside treetops by seven-foot-tall aliens.
I
morphed to harrier and followed the convoy.

<So far so good.> Tobias. <James, are you guys still with us?>

<AII seventeen of us. I just took another count.>

<Good,> I said. <I am in harrier morph about half a mile below you, Tobias. Rachel, Jake, and Cassie are traveling as fleas on Marco.>

<Where is Marco, anyway?>

I could see him, but just barely.

He was the gorilla hitching a ride on the back of the last truck.

quote:

Just as we had hoped. The commander had called ahead to explain the emergency situation so the small convoy was not required to stop at the base entrance. The guards waved the trucks right through without a search.

Now we had to hope the Hork-Bajir had been able to drop onto the base from the surrounding trees. We had to hope that James and his team were close by.

The first truck, the one carrying Marco’s father, veered to the right toward the medical station.

The other two trucks pulled into a small yard full of other military and civilian vehicles. The driver of the second truck got out and walked around to the back.

I could not see his face, but I heard his muffled gasp of surprise as a huge bladed creature grabbed him and pulled him away from the truck. Another muffled gasp, followed by a soft thud as the Guardsman was knocked out, lowered to the ground, and dragged off.

The same scenario was played out behind the other truck. The Hork-Bajir had indeed arrived.

The commander and one soldier were with Marco’s father. The other two soldiers from the work site were safely out of the way.

Then Naomi and Walter calmly walked around to the driver’s side of each of the two trucks and got behind the wheel.

<Okay,> I heard Marco say. <It’s a big base. If you were a thousand-pound bomb, where would you be?>

<There are twelve warehouses along the southern perimeter of the base,> Tobias said. <Just like on the map Marco downloaded. And I see four more trucks in a motor pool along the western perimeter.>

<We’ll check out the motor pool.> James. <Disable any guards. And be ready for you guys to pick up more transports if you need them.>

<Be careful and try not to hurt anybody,> Jake said. <A lot of these Guardsmen are probably innocent.>

<Got it,> James said.

<Okay.> Marco. <I personally am ready to knock down a few doors.>

The two trucks rumbled toward the warehouses.

There was surprisingly little activity on the base. One man and two women coming out of what might have been the mess hall glanced curiously at us but made no move to investigate. But then, it was late. Most of the Guardsmen, those who had not been part of the road crew, were probably in their barracks.

<We’re demorphing,> Rachel said. <I have to tell you, Marco. You stink. Even to the flea you’re stinky.>

<You know, Rachel,> he replied, <you ->

<Come on, you two,> I heard Jake say. <Just remorph to firepower as fast as you can. You, too, Ax. I’m going tiger.>

The two trucks pulled around behind the last warehouse. From my vantage point, it seemed the guards in front of Warehouse L took no particular notice.

<Two guards in front of Warehouse A,> Tobias said. <Looks like two guards in front of each of the twelve warehouses.>

<We start the search at A, work our way to L,> Jake called. <But I want all guards incapacitated at the same time, before we start. Does everybody hear me?>

<I’ll send Tuan and a few others to help,> James replied.

<Good. Ax, you, Rachel, and Marco take Warehouse A. Tuan, you back them up. As soon as you’ve knocked out the guards, every team do the same, knock out their guards.>

Jake proceeded to assign teams to Warehouses C through L.

<Let’s go, Ax-man.> Rachel.

I landed in the shadows and began to demorph. <I will make the approach. It will be a good way of finding out if the guards are uninfested humans or human-Controllers.>

When I was fully Andalite, I walked from the narrow alley between Warehouse A and a smaller building.

The two guards posted in front of the warehouse did not look as if they were expecting trouble.

One was noisily chewing gum and cleaning his nails with a toothpick. The other was glancing through a newspaper.

I walked forward. <Excuse me. Is this warehouse locked?>

freebooter posted:

Does the national Guard actually do, like, infrastructure maintenance? Shouldn't that be the water utility's job?

(I only learned a little while ago that the "National Guard" is actually 50 different state-controlled militias, which drives me nuts)

quote:

The two soldiers looked up.

One of them gasped and gaped. The gum fell from his mouth.

The second one stepped back. “What in the …” But as he studied me, his face lit up with delight. He held out his hand, palm up, as if I were a dog or horse. “I’ve never seen anything like this.” His voice was low and coaxing. “Hey there, fella. Hey!”

<Hay is for horses,> I retorted. <I am not a horse, though in some aspects I closely resemble one.>

I heard Marco roar with laughter. I did not think the situation particularly humorous.

The second guard dropped his gun and backed up into the first guard. The first guard struggled to keep his balance and reached for his radio.

Now I knew they were not Yeerks.

By now, a Yeerk would have identified me as “Andalite scum” and tried to kill me.

The soldier with the radio pressed a button. But before he could proceed any further, a hairy hand snatched the radio from him. The guard found himself face-to-face with a huge gorilla. He froze. The second guard dove for his gun. But a large owl swooped down, grabbed the gun in its
talons, and flew off.

<We mean you no harm. Now, would you open this warehouse, please?> I asked.

The two guards glanced at each other. The next second they attempted to run. Marco grabbed the first guard and neatly brought him down.

A bobcat jumped gracefully from the roof of the warehouse. It landed on the back of the second guard. The guard fell forward onto his stomach. Tuan stepped calmly from the guard’s back.

<Thanks, dude,> Marco said.

<No problem.>

Tuan slinked away.

With my tail blade I severed the chain that locked the doors of Warehouse A.

Marco and I entered the warehouse.

Marco snorted in disgust.

The warehouse was filled with boxes stacked all the way to the ceiling. On the side of each box was written the word “SPAM” in large black letters.

<What is SPAM?> I asked.

Marco shrugged. <That’s what a lot of people would like to know. Come on. This place is just full of provisions. Let’s move to the next warehouses
We left Warehouse A and carefully approached Warehouse B, our next assignment. We did not have to speak to the guards. Toby and another Hork-Bajir had captured and restrained them along with the guards from several other warehouses.

It was dark inside the warehouses. But we did not want to turn on the lights for fear of arousing even more suspicion among the conscious Guardsmen on the base. So the adults used flashlights, carefully avoiding shining them near the small windows. Rachel used the owl’s night vision to assist the searches. Cassie relied upon the wolf’s superior sense of smell to guide her steps.

Our entire retinue was now spread out over the twelve warehouses, hurriedly searching for the munitions that Marco and his father had assured us were stored on the base.

Suddenly I began to feel nervous. There were so many of us. So many different species. So many different levels of experience.

The original Animorphs were used to a small team and tightly controlled missions. Unless the missions got out of control, which they had an unnerving tendency to do.

Still, I was worried. So many things could go wrong ….

<Here! Here they are! Warehouse J,> James shouted.

Within moments those members of our larger team not on lookout duty had assembled at Warehouse J.

The munitions were packed in approximately twenty-five, six-foot-long crates. On each crate were printed warnings and admonishments such as “Handle With Care” and “Do Not Open Without Authorization.”

<How many crates can we load in two or three trucks and still have room for us?> Cassie asked.

Jake spoke. <I don’t know. Probably ten, total? All the new Animorphs will have to travel as birds or fleas on birds. The core group needs to be with the trucks. And the Hork-Bajir will have to squeeze in somehow. It’ll be tight. But we have to do this. Come on. Let’s load.>

Jake called to Tobias to have the two trucks brought around to Warehouse J. When the trucks arrived, Toby signaled to two Hork-Bajir. They took up positions on each end of the first crate and grabbed the edges with their large, clawlike hands. Then they hoisted the crate off the floor. And a shrieking alarm pierced the night.

quote:

<Come on, come on, come on!> Jake called. <I’m demorphing in case I have to talk us out of trouble. Ax, go human. Marco, Rachel, and Cassie, stay in your morphs for now. But hang back. Don’t get nasty unless you absolutely have to. James, you guys stay in morph and stay out of sight.>

I began to morph.

Toby’s Hork-Bajir stepped up the pace of their loading.

CLUMPclumpclumpclump.

The steady thud of military boots somewhere on base. Twenty, thirty, maybe more National

Guardsmen gathering for a showdown.

Shouts.

More alarms.

“The Guardsmen are heading for the gates, Prince Jake,” I said. “They will attempt to stop and engage us there.”

“Hurry! Hurry!” Rachel’s mother, from the driver’s seat of one of the trucks.

<Yeah, we get it, Mom!> Rachel snapped back.

“Where are you going?” Jake yelled. Marco, still in gorilla morph, stopped and turned to face Jake.

<To get my dad!>

“Stop right now or I’ll get Toby to stop you!”

Marco laughed disbelievingly. <You’ll do what?>

Jake stared stonily. “Get back here. Now!” he ordered.

<I’m going to get my dad,> Marco repeated.

Jake shook his head. “Nobody leaves this fight now. This is it! The real deal. Maybe the last one. We came in together. We’re going out together. I’m not risking having to leave one of my team behind. Get it?”

Marco stood, hesitant. Uncertain.

I watched, holding my breath. Jake was Marco’s best friend. But it was Marco’s father who would be stranded on base, possibly at the mercy of the Yeerks. Would Marco acknowledge Jake’s authority? Would this mission hold together?

“For god’s sake, Marco,” Rachel’s mother shouted. “Let’s get loaded and get out of here. Your dad will be fine. Come on!”

For once, a bossy and impatient adult was exactly what was needed.

Marco loped back toward the trucks.

At the gate to the base a battalion of soldiers and vehicles was continuing to gather.

We would have to outrun them. And we would have to outrun them with trucks that were loaded with explosives.

The last of the crates had been loaded. We were ready.

“Rachel, Cassie, Marco, demorph!” Jake ordered now. “Get in the trucks. Tobias, stay in the air, okay?”

<You got it, Jake.>

“Good,” Jake said. “Remember. We’re not going to fight if we can at all help it. We’re going to run our butts off.”

The Hork-Bajir jumped into the trucks on top of the crates.

Rachel climbed in next to her mother. I squeezed in next to Rachel and slammed the door shut. In the cargo area, Loren and Eva perched precariously.
Marco, Cassie, and Jake jammed themselves into the second truck with Michelle. Cassie’s dad took the wheel.

“GO!” Jake shouted.

The small convoy drove slowly but steadily toward the front gate. We did not want to have to knock through a fence. To do so might cause an explosion.
And we had to hope we could get through the open gate without killing innocent National Guardsmen.

But the soldiers were waiting. Of course. Three rows of soldiers. Armed. Rifles at the ready. Our truck was in the lead. When Rachel’s mother saw the barricade of soldiers she automatically slowed down. “What now?” she said. “What now!”

“Ram them,” Rachel instructed coldly.

“No!”

“Ram them!” Rachel placed her foot over her mother’s on the gas pedal. The truck accelerated.

“Stop it! Rachel! Stop it!” Naomi screamed. “We’ll kill them!”

A soldier, obviously a captain, stepped out in front of the troops and held up his hand.

It was a simple gesture. No gun. No threat. Just a request to stop.

Rachel pressed her foot down even harder on her mother’s. Naomi yelped.

It was up to me to take control.

“Rachel!” I shouted. “I am ordering you to stop! You must obey my command!”

“Shut up, Ax!” Rachel grabbed the steering wheel with her left hand.

Naomi shoved Rachel toward me, grabbed her daughter’s hand on the wheel, desperately tried to regain control of the truck.

But Rachel was too strong. Too determined.

We were going to crash right into the National Guard officer. We were going to kill him.

So I used my strong human arms and grabbed Rachel’s hands pulling them from the wheel. It certainly took her by surprise. Her hand slipped from the steering wheel. Her foot from the gas pedal.

With a dreadful screech the truck came to a stop. Not ten feet from the captain.

Epicurius posted:

Sorry I keep doing this, but more chapters tomorrow.

Kazzah posted:

Man, this one's just Animorphs:

OctaviusBeaver posted:

It's a shame the show ended so early. I would have loved to see Nickelodeon's take on this.

feetnotes posted:

Hope you're doing okay, Epicurius. You've done a lot for us these last couple years, wishing you rest and recovery.

Tree Bucket posted:

Tree Bucket posted:

dungeon cousin posted:

The Animorphs have been crossing lines they haven't before so I started wondering if they would consider morphing into Yeerks. It could be useful for hard to gather scarce intel and infiltrating Yeerk bases. It might have also been useful a bit earlier to show important persons that there are body-jacking slug invading Earth. At his point though it might be hard to find a person with access to sensitive information who hasn't been infested. Also it would probably be hard for the Animorphs to endear themselves to a person they temporarily infested. And of course, the only one of them with a Yeerk morph is Cassie so that may be a non-starter.

Tree Bucket posted:

Tree Bucket posted:

Zonko_T.M. posted:

As a yeerk you can just rip the information out of their head, but you'd need to make sure you get out of the host and demorph, so I think you'd need at least one other person making sure the host doesn't just squish you midway.
Plus I imagine the experience would be pretty traumatic for most humans-morphed-as-yeerks, violating someone's self like that isn't going to leave you feeling good about yourself.

Capfalcon posted:

That's a bit redundant, isn't it? If you're gonna be violating bodily autonomy like that, it's easier and honestly less morally questionable to just mug the person of interest, acquire them, then stuff them in a broom closet while you go do your covert ops.

Tree Bucket posted:

dungeon cousin posted:

Yeah. I had started thinking about this because of how much effort their search for the bombs on the base was taking. Like maybe the head of the base knew exactly where they are and how could they get that info.

quote:

Rachel turned on me furiously. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Jake gave you an order,” I lied.

“What order?” she demanded.

“An order to stop,” Naomi said, glancing at me. “I heard it, too.”

For a split second Rachel looked stricken. Then the look of fury returned to her face and she slammed her palm on the dashboard.

I turned and looked behind me. The other truck behind us had also been forced to stop.


Jake climbed out of the second truck and walked past us, toward the captain.

The captain, seeing only a boy, visibly relaxed.

This told me that the captain was not a Yeerk. He saw a young human. Not a threat. If he were a Yeerk he would have a detailed description of Jake and be on the lookout for him.

Jake signaled to the humans to step out of the trucks. They did, and so did I.

“Son! What is going on?” the captain demanded.

“Sir, do you believe in sentient life on other planets?” Jake asked. “Aliens?”

“Is this some kind of a joke?” the captain demanded. “You’re in a lot of trouble, young man.”

“Sir. Please answer the question. I have two trucks loaded with bombs. It’s important that you answer my question.”

The captain signaled to his men. They began to fan out and surrounded our convoy. Their weapons were held at the ready.

“Son, I don’t believe in flying saucers. I don’t believe in little green men. And I don’t know what this is all about. But I do know that kids and bombs are not a good combination. If this is a school prank, it’s a doozy, but …”

“Ax,” Jake said. “Would you come here, please.”

I got out of the truck and walked forward to take my place at his side.

“Sir, did you see the governor on television recently?” Jake asked the captain. “Did you hear her speech about the Yeerk invasion?”

“Of course. But I received word from my major that it was hoax. A very sophisticated hoax. The governor was sent away to a rehab center. Something about drugs or losing her mind. Lieutenant Colonel Larsen is being court-marshaled for his association with the governor. Several troops from area bases have been deployed into the city to prevent panic from breaking out.”

“Captain, I’m asking you to tell your people not to shoot. You’re about to see something disturbing but not dangerous.”

The captain considered for a moment before answering. “Okay, son,” he said finally. “I’m not sure why I’m giving you my word but I am.” The captain turned to his troops and gave the order to hold fire.

“Ax?” Jake said.

I began to demorph.

As I have said, morphing is not pretty and it is not graceful. To the uninitiated it is undoubtedly frightening.

SCHLUUP!

I felt my human face began to tighten. My human lips turned inward and began to seal over.

My human nose receded and was replaced by the distinctive slitted Andalite nose.

CREEEEEEK!

Human shoulders, chest, and arms shrunk and remolded into the narrower, more delicate Andalite shoulders, chest, and arms.

Strong Andalite hindquarters erupted in one smooth motion. My admirable Andalite tail and tail blade followed.

With an audible tinkling sound, my skin was covered with attractive blue-and-tan fur.

Though my eyes were neither fully human nor Andalite, I could see the expression on the captain’s face. He looked appalled. I heard him call for a doctor.

“No! No doctors. He’s fine,” Jake said.

“He’s dying,” the captain cried hoarsely.

“No, sir, he’s not,” Jake replied. “He’s only demorphing.”

quote:

Chapter 20

I finished demorphing and saw myself surrounded by faces that displayed a range of human emotion. Fascination. Horror. Exaltation. Terror. Even joy.

“They’re here!” one soldier cried. “They really are here!”

“Martians?” another guy asked.

“That stuff that’s been on the Internet lately. Do you suppose it’s true?” a woman whispered.

At that point, Jake gave the signal and the Hork-Bajir came clumping out of the trucks.

The soldiers fell back. I heard clicking and clattering as they shot the bolts of their guns and took aim.

“Remember, sir!” Jake said loudly. “You are not in any danger.”

“Hold your fire!” the captain shouted. But his voice shook. He turned to Jake. “I thought it had to be a hoax,” he said. “I mean, in a million years … “

“Captain, let me explain that just as not all humans are bad, not all aliens are bad, either. The Yeerks are the ones infesting Earth. The Andalites and the Hork-Bajir are our allies.”

Jake motioned toward me.

“Captain, may I introduce Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill. He’s an Andalite. And he’s been part of the Earth resistance since the start. His brother, War Prince Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul, died fighting to
protect Earth from the Yeerks.”

The captain nodded. When I held out my hand he hesitated. Then we each stepped forward and shook. Briefly. His hand was much stronger than mine. I resisted the impulse to cringe.

“Toby?” Jake called. With as much grace as a Hork-Bajir can muster, Toby stepped forward from the shadows. Involuntarily, the captain stepped back.

“Toby is the leader of a group of free Hork-Bajir, also valuable members of the resistance. Together we’ve been fighting the Yeerks. When we’re lucky, freeing more of Toby’s people. And maybe someday her home planet.”

“It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Toby said.

The captain nodded. Murmured something about aliens speaking more perfect English than most of his troops.

“There’s one more thing.” Jake proceeded to tell the captain the Animorphs’ story, beginning with Elfangor. “But now the Yeerks have gotten hold of the morphing techology,” he finished. “We’ve lost our major advantage. It’s a bad situation.”

The captain’s face expressed several contradictory emotions in rapid succession. Disbelief followed by belief. Horror followed by fascination. Finally, he spoke.

“What’s the current problem?” he asked.

Jake allowed a small smile to flit across his face. The captain was at least willing to listen further.

“There’s a Yeerk pool complex under our town,” he explained. “It extends for miles, into every surrounding neighborhood. It’s where the Yeerks have to go every three days to feed. There are entrances in every place from fast food restaurants to the mail. It’s the largest enemy concentration on the planet. Recently the Yeerks have gotten control of subway trains and six or seven lines of tracks. We figure they did some simple construction that now leads the tracks right into the pool complex. We’ve seen them herding people at gunpoint down into various subway stations and onto trains. From there, the people are shipped off for infestation.” Jake paused and looked intently at the captain. “We need your explosives to blow up the pool complex.”

“But I have no orders,” the captain protested. “I can’t allow you to leave this base with those explosives.”

That’s when Rachel’s mother stepped forward. “Captain Olston!”

“Naomi. What in the world are you doing here?” the captain said.

Rachel’s mother and the captain shook hands. “How are you, sir?”

The captain smiled weakly. “Under the circumstances, uh, fine. And still a soldier. Thanks to you.”

Rachel’s mom turned to the rest of us. “I represented Captain Olston’s oldest son when he was wrongfully accused of car theft.”

The captain smiled warmly. “You’ll never know how grateful my family is. If Robert had been convicted, I probably would have resigned in order to keep pressing his case. You saved my son’s future and my career.”

He cleared his throat and frowned. “But what’s your role in all of this? Why didn’t you come forward before?”

“I know it sounds insane, Captain Olston, but the Yeerk invasion is real. No matter what you’ve heard about the governor lying or being ill. She was telling the truth and now, obviously, she’s being punished for it.”

“I’m glad to hear the governor’s name cleared,” the captain said. “She’s the best person this state’s ever had in that office.”

“We’re the resistance, Captain,” Naomi went on. “And this … this kid,” she said, gesturing toward Jake, “my nephew, Jake, is in charge. So the person to speak to is him. I just thought I’d back him up a little.”

The captain frowned and turned back to Jake. “Son, no offense, but you’re younger than my own youngest boy. He’s a fine young man, but I could never in good conscience send him off to the city with a couple of trucks full of bombs. You don’t actually expect me to allow this, do you?”

Jake spoke firmly but with respect. “We’ll fight our way out of here if we have to, sir. And if we fight, we’ll win. But we don’t want to have to do that. What we really want is your help.”

Suddenly, there was a scuffle and a shout. A shot went wild and barely missed Jake’s head. Three soldiers wrestled a fourth soldier to the ground.

“Sir,” a soldier reported. “Private Grigsby took aim at the boy. He was about to kill him.”

Jake turned to the captain. “Grigsby’s a human-Controller. That means he’s got a Yeerk in his head. There may be more of them in your ranks.”

Captain Olston shook his head. “I’m having a hard time taking this all in. As I said, I received orders the other day that the Yeerk invasion story was a huge and elaborate multimedia hoax. I was told that certain troops were needed in the city to prevent panic. The major said that under no
circumstances was I to interfere.”

“Then your major is a Yeerk,” Jake said.

Captain Olston’s face turned ashen. “That means …”

“It means you have to act on your own authority,” Rachel’s mother said.

I watched Captain Olston’s face and thought I understood his feelings. It is the willingness to take orders from your superiors and then to obey them that keeps an army from becoming a mob.

“Sir,” Jake urged. “We don’t have a lot of time. There are Yeerks everywhere. We may have been spotted. There may be Yeerks among your own men who have already managed to get word to the city. We must move forward.”

Rachel’s mother, long Jake’s biggest critic, put her hand on Jake’s shoulder. “Listen to him, Captain Olston. He’s probably the one who’s going to wind up saving our lives. Maybe even the life of the planet.”

The captain stared at Jake, and then at me, for what seemed like a long time. Then he cleared his throat.

“What do you need, son?”

mind the walrus posted:

I like to imagine Jake not even flinching during the shot at his head, not out of badassery but just raw surprise, but it coming across as supremely badass.

quote:

The captain nodded. Murmured something about aliens speaking more perfect English than most of his troops.