Author's Note: Do me a favor. Don't add me or my stories to your alerts if you're not going to review. It pisses me off to no end, because you're basically saying your time is more valuable than mine. Four different people have done it with this story already…it's a really crappy thing to do. To everyone taking the time, thank you from the bottom of my admittedly shallow heart. Enjoy!
Chapter 4
Rachel and I were the last to arrive at Ax's scoop, and I was relieved to see that Ax himself was still present. He would have gotten the message, too – I know if I were trapped on an alien planet and had the opportunity to join up with fellow humans, I'd jump at it. He looked extremely fidgety, for an Andalite – he couldn't stop his rear hoof from tapping, and his tail was almost unperceptively swishing back and forth. They waited for us to demorph, then Jake took control of the situation.
"Here's the deal. We've got two Princeless Andalite warriors up in our mountains. Their ship was shot down, presumably destroyed, and they're stuck. They say they're looking for a resistance to join. Does that about sum it up?" he asked Ax. He already had my version.
(Yes, Prince Jake. And I would very much like to find them before they are forced to move or they are discovered.) Even in thought speech, his impatience was easy to hear.
"Hold on, Ax. You say they don't have a Prince – what happened to him?" Marco asked. Marco was going to do his thing – do his best to poke holes in the story to see if it would hold water.
(They did not specify. I assume he was killed in the crash. What matters is that two of them survived.)
"Okay. I can almost buy that. Look, I just have one big problem with this whole 'calling all Andalites' message thing. See, Visser Three is in an Andalite body. He would have gotten this message too, with their location and everything," Marco pointed out. He didn't look happy about it.
(All the more reason to get them to safety before the Yeerks find them,) Ax insisted.
(Ax, do your people know Visser Three is here? Is it possible that these guys didn't know they were announcing their location to the Yeerks?) Tobias asked.
Ax hesitated. (It is possible, but unlikely. We have known that Visser Three is in charge of the subjugation of Earth for a while now. They may have simply decided to take the chance that he would be off-planet at the time of the message. One or both of them may be hurt. They may have taken the chance because they have no other choice.)
Marco shook his head a little sadly. "They may have decided to roll the dice, but we can't. We have to assume that Visser Three got the message and is on his way there." His eyes narrowed. "And there is always the possibility that this is a trap."
(Are you telling me that I can't tell the difference between my own people and some Yeerk impostor?) Ax asked heatedly. I noticed that his tail had gone rigid and his hands were curled into fists. I placed my hand gently on his shoulder.
"He's just being careful, Ax. You know we have to," I told him softly, and he relaxed a couple of hairs.
Rachel shrugged. "Trap or not, we have to check it out. If it is two Andalites, they were here to help us. We can't leave them hanging." Rachel has a very black-and-white way of seeing the world, especially when it comes to matters of the war we were fighting.
"What do you think, Jake?" I asked. He had been very quiet during the debate. All eyes turned to him to see what he would say.
"This is a tough one," he said honestly. "Of course, I want to check it out. But in the long run, we can afford to not have two more team members. We cannot afford to put our heads in a noose Visser Three set out for us." He thought it over. "We take it slow," he decided. "If this is a Yeerk trap, they'll expect us to rush into it. We spy on Chapman, Tom, and anyone else we can get access to. If we can get confirmation that this either is or isn't a trap, then we'll be able to move on that information."
"Why were they here in the first place?" Marco wondered out loud.
(Advance scouts?) Tobias guessed.
"Why would they send scouts when they already know what's going on?" Marco challenged. "This is sounding more and more fishy. I can't think of one reason the Andalites would have sent a three-man – or three-Andalite – crew here. Can you, Ax?" Ax didn't answer, which sealed the discussion for Marco.
"He's right, Ax. There's too many unknowns to just hurry in. We need to wait until we know more," Jake said.
(I cannot do that, Prince Jake. If my brothers are out there, I have to help them. I do not ask the rest of you to put yourselves at risk, but I am going,) Ax sounded desperate.
"No, Ax," Jake said forcefully. "You're too valuable to lose. Ifthere are really two Andalites in the mountains, we will help them. But we are not going to run into it without knowing it's not a trap. None of us are," he finished, and there was finality in his voice.
(I am not asking permission. I am telling you what I am going to do. Don't try to stop me, Prince Jake. Try to understand. I have an obligation to my people.)
Me and Marco exchanged a glance; this was getting out of hand.
Jake forced Ax to make eye contact, which was a tricky proposition when dealing with an Andalite. When he was sure he had Ax's full attention, he said, "You call me Prince. That doesn't just apply when it's convenient. I am giving you a direct order – you will not act on your own regarding this. You can't. Will you listen?"
Ax hesitated yet again. (Do your best to find out if this involves the Yeerks. And do it fast,) he finally said. (As I said, I have an obligation to my people, and that does not include standing by while they die on an alien planet.)
"Okay," Jake said, obviously relieved. "Tomorrow, we spy on all known controllers, and we'll move on any information we come across. I know how you feel, Ax. We'll do our best to get this done quickly and safely. We meet back here at first light." He started to morph, probably to leave before Ax could change his mind, and we all followed his lead.
(First light is only about six hours away, Ax,) Tobias encouraged. (If they are out there, they can hold on for six hours. They're warriors – they can take care of themselves.) Ax nodded stiffly.
As Rachel and I broke away from the others to begin our flight back to my house, I realized something that bothered me. Ax had never technically agreed to follow Jake's orders. Normally, I wouldn't have thought there was much chance of Ax disobeying Jake, especially when given a direct order – but this involved his people. I brought it to Rachel's attention.
(I doubt he'll go off on his own,) she said. (Although I halfway wish he would – that way, we'd have to follow him. Trap or no trap, it's something we have to at least check out.)
Something Ax had said was sticking in my head. (Do not try to stop me, Prince Jake,) he'd said. There was nothing I could do about it if Ax decided to go by himself, but it didn't stop me from worrying. How far would he go to rejoin members of his race? 'How far would you go, if you were in his shoes?' I asked myself. The answer was simple: as far as it took. I demorphed and climbed into bed with these troubling thoughts, and I prayed for dawn to come quickly.
