Animorphs: Galactic War
3: The Face of the Enemy
Dome Ship docking bay
Galuit and Ax sheepishly entered the docking bay, still trying to figure out how to tell their guests that they were no longer in Earth orbit. In the end they didn't have to as the Animorphs had already figured it out.
I'm afraid we have some bad news… Galuit began.
We got attacked and you had to move the ship, right? Marco said. It was more a statement than a question.
I'm afraid so, Galuit replied. But it was either that or be destroyed. I hope you approve of the choice I made.
"Just great!" Rachel's mom muttered. "I had a dinner date tonight too!"
"Well, you've certainly got a good excuse for missing it!" Marco quipped.
"Who attacked us? Yeerks?" Jake asked.
We don't know. Their ships were unknown to us. Galuit replied. Aximili, I suggest we move to the dome. We'll be more comfortable there.
"Can't we just go home?" Cassie's mom sighed.
I'm afraid not. The ship was damaged in the attack and I can not risk going back if our attackers are still there. We'll be dropping out of Zero-Space soon at the planet you call Saturn. We'll complete our repairs and then we'll try going back then.
There was no arguing with Galuit over that. Everyone knew he would not risk his ship's safety to just to drop off a few humans. Everyone grudgingly followed Ax to the dome.
There were gasps of disbelief as they walked into the dome. It was exactly the same as the one that Ax had been rescued from, only it was even bigger.
Home at last! Alloran sighed and started to run for the lake in the centre.
Just then a message sounded through the ship. War-Prince Galuit, please report to the bridge. ETA to normal space: two minutes.
I'll return in a moment. Prince Jake, would you accompany me to the bridge?
Jake agreed quickly as Galuit was looking hard at him and it didn't seem advisable to refuse.
"I'll catch up with you in a few," Jake said and followed Galuit out.
I'll be blunt, Galuit said. I don't think there's much chance of us going back to Earth for a while. Not while we have an unknown enemy stalking us.
Jake nodded. He'd been expecting as much. "How's the damage?"
It's not too severe. Once we drop out of Zero-Space it should be a simple matter to repair all of it.
Soon they reached the bridge.
Thirty seconds to normal space, War-Prince, one of the bridge officers reported.
Excellent. We'll make repairs and then send a warning to the rest of the fleet. It seems we have a new enemy.
Galuit noticed that Jake was staring wide-eyed at the viewscreen as the white of Zero-Space gave way to normal space again and Saturn came into view.
Your first time in space, Prince Jake? Galuit chuckled.
"Second actually. But I was on a Yeerk ship then and didn't have much time for sightseeing!"
Jake resumed staring out at Saturn. The rings, its moons, three large triangular ships…OH SHIT!
"Uh, War-Prince, Galuit…uh,"
What's wrong? Galuit asked. Then he noticed the ships. Red alert! All hands to battle-stations!
Command Ship of the opposing fleet
On the alien ships the activity was more calm and controlled.
"Target their engines and power systems only!" the Emperor ordered. "I only want them disabled. If they stop breathing, so does the gunner who fires the killing shot! Understood?"
"They're in range, Emperor," reported a lieutenant.
"Excellent! Fire pulse cannons!"
Dome Ship Bridge
Aximili, bring the others to the bridge! They'll probably be safer here! Galuit ordered.
Understood, Ax replied from the dome.
War-Prince, we're being fired upon!
Gold energy beams were fired from the alien ships. All struck the Dome Ship head on but seemed to do little damage.
Another warrior suddenly looked panic-stricken. War-Prince! Our shields have failed completely!
WHAT! Galuit did not have time to react as green bolts flew into the Dome Ship.
"Jake! What's happening?!" Cassie said and she and all the others stumbled into the bridge.
"We're in trouble, that's what's happening!" Jake replied as another wave of disruptor fire hit the ship.
Damage report! Galuit snarled.
Main power's out! Switching to auxiliaries!
War-Prince! Our engines are hit! We're dead in space!
Galuit cursed. The battle had lasted less than three minutes and they had lost miserably.
Do we have enough power for the shredders? Alloran asked.
Only a few shots. Not enough against their shields, another officer said grimly.
War-Prince! There's a transmission coming in from the lead ship!
That got everyone's attention. Put it on! Do it! While there's still time, Galuit ordered.
The viewscreen flickered to life again. Everyone, human and Andalite, stared in shock.
The figure on the screen stood on two legs like a human, but that was where the similarities ended. He was reptilian with flame-red skin, at least the organic side of him was. His right arm was metal and the right side of his face was covered in cybernetic parts and enhancers.
Galuit gaped in shock. Slaar? Is that really you?!
"Galuit?" the reptile seemed just as surprised. He then seemed to grin unpleasantly. "How ironic! Of all the Andalite ships to attack I end up attacking yours!"
It's good you're still alive! Galuit said. Suddenly he remembered what had just occurred. What's the meaning of this attack?
"I would have thought I had made my intent obvious, old friend!" Slaar's tone indicated he considered Galuit anything but a friend. "One usually fires at one's enemy in war!"
War? We were allies! Why should we be at war? Galuit said, stunned.
"Allies?!" Slaar spat in contempt. "What kind of allies were you? We could have made worthy allies but you abandoned us and left us to face the Yeerks alone!"
I never wanted to withdraw! I opposed the Council's decision to leave your system, Galuit replied. So did most of the military. But we were overruled.
Slaar didn't seem to hear him as he ranted on. "You robbed us of our only hope! We could have stood together and defeated the Yeerks. Instead you tossed us away like yesterday's trash! Now my homeworld is a burnt cinder floating in space! On that day I swore I would not rest until you and the Yeerks were repaid in kind for the agony we suffered!"
Slaar, if it's me you want I'll come over to your ship. Spare my crew!
"Spare me your worthless offerings, Galuit. My quarrel is with your Council and your people. Your life and all those on your ship mean nothing to me. I will not destroy you today, however. I need you to deliver a message for me, that's why I only disabled you. I am sending a datafile to your computer, which should answer most of your questions. Since you are undoubtedly recording this conversation too, I may as well be blunt. We are at war now! You and your people will soon learn the cost of betrayal, and it will be a heavy price!"
"Emperor, we must withdraw now if we are to rendezvous with the rest of the fleet on time," another reptile said. This one had purple skin and also had cybernetic enhancements.
"Very well," Slaar said. "I'll let you live for today, Galuit, so you can take that message to your people. The next time we meet, however, I will show no mercy!"
With that, they cut the communication and their ships began to move away.
The Dome
Repairs to the Dome Ship were almost complete. Galuit realised that repairs to the morale and spirit of the crew and their guests would take a lot longer. He had read through the datafile that Slaar had sent him and now he was trying to answer a barrage of questions from the Animorphs while they recovered inside the Dome.
"Who were those guys? You knew them, didn't you?" Marco asked first.
Yes, to my shame. And that of every other Andalite! Galuit said bitterly. We were allies once. They are the Chelrak race. We came to their aid when the Yeerks were threatening their homeworld about five years ago.
"I take it things didn't go well," Jake guessed.
Alloran took up the narrative. Yes. And it's all our fault. Or at least the Council's fault. I thought they would have learnt a lesson from the Hork-Bajir affair as I did. It seems they were more stupid than I thought.
"What happened?" Rachel asked, sounding impatient.
The Chelraks were slightly more advanced than your race, Galuit quickly went on. But they hadn't yet achieved Zero-Space capability or developed weapons advanced enough to fight the Yeerks alone. We knew they would probably not withstand a Yeerk invasion. Therefore Elfangor and most of the other Princes, myself included, advised sending several fleets to fight alongside the Chelraks and destroy the Yeerk ambitions there. I could barely believe it when the request was turned down!
Still being Visser 3 at that time I heard this story through Yeerk intelligence later, Alloran put in. Neither I nor the Yeerks could believe the Council's stupidity. They were still clinging rigidly to that 'Seerow's Kindness' trash! They refused to share technology and, in the end, decided that the area wasn't worth fighting for and ordered a withdraw!
"That's nothing less than criminal!" Tom spoke up.
I know! Galuit sighed. So did Elfangor and most of the other princes. We let the Council know in the strongest terms what we thought of their decision. But it was all to no avail. We did consider refusing the Council's orders, but it was felt that would destroy our unity. We couldn't afford a civil war whilst we were fighting the Yeerks.
"So why aren't there any Chelrak controllers?" Ryan asked. "Did something go wrong for the Yeerks too?"
That's putting it mildly, Alloran said without a trace of humour. What the Yeerks thought was their greatest moment turned out to be a disaster. They underestimated the fanatical nature of the Chelraks. Visser 12 headed the invasion. He landed his force on the Chelrak world just in time to be annihilated! The Chelraks had placed neutronium weapons all over the surface and once the Yeerks landed…
"Neutronium weapons?" Cassie asked in confusion.
A terrible weapon of mass destruction, Ax revealed. They're like your atomic weapons only they're much more powerful. They're made of nuclear material mixed in with anti-matter and degenerate gravitic material.
"Oh my God!" Marco's dad broke in. "Nuclear and anti-matter explosion mixed with gravitic implosion!? That would produce the power of at least twenty nuclear weapons!" He looked at the amazed expressions everyone was giving him. "I didn't just do computer science, you know!"
"Shall we hear the rest of the story?" Jake said, exasperated.
The Chelrak homeworld is now a ball of nuclear fire floating in space, Alloran added sadly. The Yeerks and I assumed the Chelraks had been destroyed along with their planet. It would seem we were wrong.
According to this file they sent us, some of them managed to escape the planet before the explosion, Galuit went on. Somehow they managed to steal some basic ship designs from us, which gave them Zero-Space capability. However, they didn't get the entire design and they tried to make the ships run on nuclear reactors: something our ships were not designed to do. They were also hastily put together, so the ships ended up being far from safe. By the time they reached another habitable planet, half of them were dying from radiation poisoning and many more were partially affected. I suspect that is why they now have cybernetic implants.
Those unstable ships can not be the ones they are using now, surely? Ax asked.
No, I would think not, Galuit replied. Not surprisingly, the file doesn't mention the location of their new homeworld or where they got their new ships and weapons. I can only assume that either they found them abandoned on the world they landed on or they were given to them by another race. The cause isn't that important. All that matters is the result, which is not good!
"What happens now?" Cassie's mom asked.
What happens now is that we have another war on our hands! As to your future plans, well that I leave to you. Unlike the Yeerks, the Chelraks are not your enemies. Yet. Galuit said. If you wish to return home I will try to arrange it. If you wish to help in this war I would appreciate it, as would the Andalite people, but you are free to decline.
With that, Galuit and Alloran left to help with the repairs.
The Animorphs huddled together again with their parents and friends.
"What do we do now?" Rachel asked.
"Simple, we're all going home!" her mom said with an air of finality.
You can, but I'm not! Tobias said, flying down from the derrishoul tree he had been perching in. The Andalites are my people too. No matter what you guys decide, I'm staying with them.
Cassie nodded. "I can understand that, Tobias. But what can we do this time? What do any of us know about space or anything that's out here? How can we fight these Chelraks? Maybe we should go home."
"We do and we'll be making the biggest mistake ever!" Rachel said fiercely.
"What makes you say that?" Marco asked.
"Simple. The Chelraks. They've been through hell and now they're out to punish someone, anyone, for what they've been through. They've got all these weapons and a real bad temper. They may be fighting the Andalites and Yeerks now but…"
Jake suddenly caught on. "If they're so eager for a fight and to cause damage, who's to say they'll stop when they've finished with the Andalites?"
"The next target could be anyone, even us!" Cassie realised in horror.
You're probably right, Ax added. The Chelraks were a democracy when we first encountered them. But I remember that Slaar was being addressed as…
"Emperor!" Ryan said.
Yes. It would seem they have become a military empire. There is only one way that I know of that empires grow by,Ax added ominously. I believe that if we do not stop the Chelraks, no one in the galaxy will be safe.
Sensing the tide was turning against her, Rachel's mom broke in. "Wait a minute! You're just kids! You can't…"
"No Mom, we're not," Rachel flatly contradicted her. "We haven't been since the day we met Elfangor in the construction site. Since then we've fought Hork-Bajir, Taxxons, Visser 3, Predators, acid-bleeding aliens. Need I go on? The kid in me is dead, Mom! And I don't walk out on friends. How can we live with ourselves if we walk out on the Andalites like they did on the Chelraks? Would we be any better? I don't know what I can do up here but I'm going to do something. Come on, Tobias!"
With that, she and Tobias went out of the door and headed for the bridge.
Marco and Ryan looked at each other. They nodded and started to follow.
"Sorry folks," Marco said. "We're a posse. Where one goes we all go. Besides I've got to make sure that nut Xena gets back in one piece!"
Cassie spoke up. "Sorry mom, I can't walk out on them."
Jake sighed. "What kind of a leader would I be if I ran away? Ok, let's go."
"I can't believe this! We could force you back, you know!" Rachel's mom still wasn't through.
Jake's tone turned icy. "Could you really?" He morphed to tiger. I don't think so somehow! He demorphed and spoke again. "If you want to go back, that's fine. We'll come home once we win. But you know they're right. We can't walk away from this! And in case you'd forgotten, our government wants to carve us up! Whatever you decide to do I'm staying!"
Marco broke in. "It's like Spider-Man said. 'With great power comes great responsibility'. We'll see you later, I guess."
With that, the Animorphs all walked out leaving a stunned group of relatives behind.
"Oh hell! Wait up, midget!" Tom dashed after Jake.
"Hey wait for me!" Justin then ran after Tom.
"Our kids sure have grown up, haven't they?" Jake's dad said.
Everyone nodded. They'd just been through two years of war with the Yeerks and various other enemies and now they were charging headlong into another one.
"They're right, you know," Marco's mom said. "I guess we'll be staying here then."
"Are you serious!" Cassie's mom didn't sound happy.
"Well, there's nothing to stop you going back. But even if you do, your daughter won't go, will she?" Everyone knew she was right. "All we can do is help and try and make sure they come back alive!"
They all nodded.
Ax smiled. I'll inform the War-Prince of your decision.
The Animorphs had made their choice: they were going to war again.
Chelrak Command Ship: Andromeda Cluster
Emperor Slaar of the newly born Chelrak Imperium smiled as his fleets assembled. Things had gone well. The Yeerks were headed for defeat, caught as they were between his forces and the Andalites. When they were gone, it would be the Andalites' turn to suffer.
A message came from the bridge. "Emperor, your fleet commanders have arrived."
"Send them in!" Slaar replied eagerly.
Several other red-skinned Chelraks entered. Most had cyber-enhancements just as Slaar had.
"I know you're anxious to resume combat," Slaar said. "Therefore I will not keep you long. I trust you already know of my message to the Andalites?"
The commanders chuckled at that. "It was most impressive, Emperor," one replied. Slaar noticed that it was Izlyr, one of the more experienced commanders.
"True," Commander Tyranous broke in. "But was it not a little premature? After all, the Yeerks are not defeated yet. For all our power, we can not afford a war on two fronts!"
"Precisely," Slaar said. "We must hasten the Yeerks' downfall to prevent this while the Andalites recover from the shock of seeing us alive."
Izlyr spoke again. "According to our latest intelligence reports, the Hork-Bajir homeworld has been freed by the Andalites and they are advancing on the Nahara world."
"Excellent. So the Yeerks are down to their last few colonies," Slaar stated. "Then we will take the bulk of our forces and launch a full assault on the Yeerk homeworld itself and end it in one blow!"
The commanders' eyes widened in shock.
Tyranous spoke again. "Emperor, I do not believe we have sufficient forces to invade the Yeerk homeworld. Besides, won't the Yeerks have a large defence force there?"
Izlyr shook his head. "The Yeerks have thrown everything they have left at the Andalites. Even then our projections say they will still lose. We'll be just accelerating the process."
"I have no intention of invading the Yeerk homeworld," Slaar added. "However, I have every intention of flattening it! Izlyr, how many neutronium weapons do we still have?"
Izlyr grinned evilly. "More than enough, Emperor!"
"What would we want with that barren wasteland of a world anyway? Since they rendered our world useless to us, we'll make theirs useless to them as well! There's nothing better than revenge, is there?"
With that, the Chelraks left to return to their ships. The Yeerks had started this war. Now they would pay for it. With interest.
The Dome Ship
The Animorphs were deep in thought as they made their way toward the bridge.
"Do you think we were too hard on them back there?" Marco asked. He hadn't liked having to go against his parents much.
"It was necessary, Marco," Rachel said.
"Guys! Wait up!"
They waited as Tom and Justin caught up to them.
"If you're thinking of guilt-tripping us back, you can forget it," Jake warned them.
"No way, midget. You're right, we can't walk away. We want to go with you."
"And we want in!" Justin added.
"You want what?" Marco asked.
"To join you full-time, if you get my drift! If you're going to fight these Chelraks, you need all the help you can get!"
Jake stared at the two of them in disbelief. "You'd better be sure about this. Once you take the power there's no turning back!"
"We're sure," Justin said seriously.
"Aren't you a bit young for this, Justin?" Cassie asked in concern.
"Aren't you?" Justin shot back. "I'm in this whether anyone likes it or not. I've got do something or I'll go crazy!"
"That goes for me, too," Tom said.
Jake sighed. "Ok, we'll have to ask Galuit first. I'm not sure how he'll react to the idea of two more human morphers."
I'd react favourably.
Everyone turned to see him standing behind them.
Aximili told me what occurred in the dome. You shamed your parents into staying! My compliments! As to these two, the answer is yes. We will need all the weapons and help we can get. I'll have Aximili fetch his Escafil Device later.
"What about the Council?" Jake asked.
The Council can hang itself on Crangar's tail for all I care! I'm not afraid to challenge them this time. After all, it is their mess we are cleaning up. I shall remind them of that when I talk to them again. Assuming they have the time to talk to me, that is! Galuit laughed.
"What's so funny?" Marco asked.
I transmitted Slaar's datafile and his speech to the homeworld a few minutes ago. To the planetary information networks I might add! The Council is going to have a lot of awkward questions to answer when the news breaks!
"They're going to be in trouble!" Marco smiled.
"Yeah, there's no way they're going to wriggle out of this," Tom grinned. "This war's all their fault. You think they'll be forced out?"
I hope so, Galuit replied. But that is irrelevant for now. We have a new war to win.
"Yeah and the Chelraks make the Yeerks look like kindergarteners!" Ryan said.
"They haven't fought us yet!" Jake said.
"If we can beat slugs then we can beat cyber-lizards, right?" Rachel said, all fired up again.
"Right!!!" was the enthusiastic response.
The Animorphs and soon-to-be Animorphs headed for the bridge. One war was over. Another had begun…
TO BE CONTINUED…