Animorphs: Galactic War
5: The Infiltration
Chelrak Command Ship: over the Yeerk homeworld
Slaar watched in satisfaction as his fleet began its final bombardment. Not that there was much down there left to hit. Most of the surface was now an irradiated wasteland. His expression then hardened slightly. There was still one unresolved point: a small shuttle that had taken off from the surface just before the bombardment and had slipped through his fleet. He shoved this aside. Izlyr and his destroyer had been sent after it. It wouldn't be a problem for much longer.
"Good! With any luck, the Andalite homeworld will soon look as pleasing as this!"
The Tailstrike
Since leaving the Predator homeworld, the Tailstrike had been on long range patrol. With the fall of the Yeerks, the Andalite fleet was now on high alert for any sign of Chelrak movement.
War-Prince, we are detecting a ship heading for us.
What type of ship? Galuit asked, instantly on alert.
It's a Yeerk transport, War-Prince. It appears to be pushing its engines to the limit.
Aximili, bring your friends up to the bridge. We have a situation here.
Understood, Ax replied.
The Animorphs and Ax piled into the bridge two minutes later.
What is it, War-Prince? Ax asked.
A Yeerk transport ship, Galuit said. It's running at over double its normal speed.
"Transport ship? What's that doing out here alone?" Jake was confused.
Should we transmit an order to surrender, War-Prince?
Galuit was just about to reply when another officer spoke.
War-Prince, I have a transmission from the Yeerk!
Let's hear it, Galuit ordered.
"…Andalite ship, we require urgent assistance!"
Assistance? Ax was incredulous.
"Andalite ship, we are offering our surrender but we need help! We are under pursuit!"
"Pursuit?" Marco didn't like the sound of that.
War-Prince, a jump point is opening behind them!
What is it? Galuit asked.
A Chelrak destroyer! Its weapons are fully powered!
Can the transport elude the destroyer on its own?
No. Its engines are overloaded. It must have used up everything it had just to get here. What should we do?
Galuit was minded to leave them there. He had no love for the Yeerks. However, he knew the Yeerks could have a lot of information. Whatever or whoever was on that transport had to be important if the Chelraks had sent a destroyer after it.
Raise shields! We're going in!
We're actually going to help Yeerks, War-Prince? Ax asked in amazement.
They could have important information. That's all I'm interested in getting, Galuit said. We can toss them out of an airlock once we're done with them!
"Mind if we help out with that?" Tom asked with an evil grin.
Galuit smiled. Let's save them first. Send a transmission to the destroyer. Tell them to leave that transport where it is and leave immediately!
Message sent, a bridge officer reported. War-Prince, I find it extremely unlikely that the Chelraks will…
A gold ion pulse hit the Tailstrike before he could finish.
Our shields are still functioning, War-Prince! The modifications work perfectly!
Excellent! Galuit said. Now let's see how the Chelraks perform in a fair fight!
Chelrak destroyer
Commander Izlyr had thought that stopping the transport would be an easy job. However, he hadn't counted on an Andalite Dome Ship turning up and he certainly hadn't counted on his ion cannon being useless!
"I can't explain it, Commander! We scored a direct hit but their shields are still up!" a lieutenant was saying.
"How is that possible?!" Izlyr snarled as blue shredder fire from the Tailstrike smashed into his shields.
"Shields are down to 75%! They're launching fighters too! Should I launch the Raptors?"
Izlyr shook his head. "We must return and inform the Emperor of this! Initiate Zero-Space jump!"
"What about the Yeerks?"
"Forget them! The Andalites will just be the ones to kill them instead! Now initiate jump."
The Tailstrike
There was a great cheer on the Tailstrike's bridge as the Chelraks retreated into Zero-Space.
I can't believe they ran! Alloran said.
At least we know the Predator technology works. The High Command will be pleased to hear that, Galuit smiled.
"What about the transport?" Jake asked.
We'll soon find out who or what is on it. It's being towed into the docking bay as we speak, Galuit said.
The Tailstrike: docking bay
Armed Andalites surrounded the transport as it was pulled into the docking bay. No one was taking any chances with the Yeerks this time, not after what happened with Prince Seerow. Ax was the first aboard. He found two human controllers at the helm; one was dead and the other barely still alive. The transport had taken more damage than they thought.
Ax sent a message to the bridge. I've found one survivor, War-Prince. He's badly wounded.
We'll take him to the medical bay then, Aximili, Galuit said. Continue your search.
I can not proceed further, War-Prince. The cargo hold has an encryption lock on it.
Very well. Move the controller to the medical bay and meet us there.
Chelrak Command Ship
"THEY DID WHAT!" Slaar was not happy with the latest turn of events.
"It would seem the Andalites have developed a countermeasure to our ion pulse cannons. We have lost our initial advantage over them," Izlyr reported as calmly as he could.
"And what of the Yeerks?" Slaar asked.
"They are probably dead by now, Emperor. The Andalites were about to seize them when we retreated."
Slaar grunted in satisfaction. Still, the loss of the ion cannon advantage was a blow. It meant he would have to bring out their other weapons sooner than he'd wanted to.
"Set course for the Keldorian system! Maximum speed!"
The Tailstrike: medical bay
I'm afraid the human host did not survive, War-Prince.
You did your best, Doctor. What of the Yeerk itself? Galuit asked.
It's in the containment unit over there, the doctor pointed to a transparent container which had wires leading to and from it and which housed the Yeerk. We're feeding it Kandrona rays. It should be able to talk soon. We've set up the equipment so it can talk to us directly.
"What now?" Marco asked.
"We get to have a little fun with our friend in the tank, that's what now!" Tom said with force. He had a nasty expression on his face.
"Tom, he's not the one who infested you!" Cassie said.
He's no different from all the rest! Alloran did not sound any more forgiving. I'm looking forward to making him bleed!
If you wish to destroy me, there is nothing I can do to stop you. But the Chelraks will gain a victory if you do!
"Who said…" Rachel looked around in shock. Then she caught on. "The Yeerk!"
Yes. I am Estro 272 of the Garm Surtur pool, or at least I was. My compatriots and I may be the last Yeerks alive now.
What do you mean? Galuit asked suspiciously. He had saved the Yeerk transport in order to get information. Now that he was facing a Yeerk, however, his feelings were getting the better of him.
Our homeworld has been destroyed by the Chelraks. It is now a nuclear wasteland. If you wish to finish their work for them, then be my guest. Estro sounded like he was ready to give up on life.
"Compatriots? How many of you are there?" Jake broke in.
They're in the cargo hold. All are in Kandrona feeders. All twenty of them.
"Twenty? That's all?" Cassie was amazed and somewhat saddened.
We knew our race was finished when the Chelraks started attacking us. We'd always known a day like this would come so we were preparing a fleet of shuttles secretly for an evacuation. But the Chelraks attacked us before we were fully ready and only my ship was able to escape.
Who is we? Ax asked.
We were part of a group that did not share the rest of our race's vision. We did not like being what we are. All we wanted at first was a better way of life, but we soon turned into nothing but an insane race of invaders.
"You were part of the Peace Movement?" Cassie asked.
You know of us? How is that possible?
"Does the name Aftran sound familiar?" Jake asked.
Alloran suddenly broke in. What difference does all of this make? Soon he'll be nothing but a memory anyway!
"You're just going to kill him?" Cassie asked.
What else would we do with them? Galuit snapped. Because of this filth my wife and children are dead, along with countless other Andalites and other innocent beings! The idea of helping them turns my stomach!
"I know you value life, Cassie," Tom said. "But this is going too far! You expect us to trust them and let them go? I'd do better putting a rattlesnake down my pants and trust it not to bite me!"
Rachel then spoke up. "He's right, Cassie. The Andalites trusted them all those years ago and what did they get for their trouble? We can't make the same mistake again."
Estro could sense the tide was turning against him. What if I had information? Before they destroyed us we managed to learn a lot about the Chelraks and their operations. They are stronger than you think. We could be of help!
Galuit was unimpressed. It alters nothing, Yeerk! I swore to extinguish the Yeerk menace from the galaxy and I intend to do just that. We trusted you once and you betrayed us! It will not happen again!
With that he walked out and Ax and Alloran quickly followed him. The others soon followed suit.
"Sorry Cassie," Jake said as he left last. "It's not my call. Even if it were I don't think I could convince anyone to spare them."
Cassie was soon left alone with Estro. "Sorry, I tried," she eventually said.
It's all right, Estro replied. In a way I suppose we deserve this anyway.
Cassie sighed. She knew that Jake was right. Even if she could have convinced the rest of the Animorphs there was no way she could ever convince the Andalites. They wanted the Yeerks gone, period. They wouldn't settle for anything less. Then she remembered what they'd done with Aftran…
"I've got it!"
She ran out the door leaving a confused Estro behind.
The Dome
You want to do what? Galuit asked in amazement.
"We've done it before," Cassie said. "Aftran morphed a whale and trapped herself. Why can't we do the same for this lot?"
"There aren't any whales around here, Cassie!" Marco said.
"I know that! It doesn't have to be a whale morph, does it? They trap themselves in a morph and everyone wins. The Yeerks get a better life and we're rid of the Yeerk menace and we get whatever information they have on the Chelraks. It's better than killing them, isn't it?"
Galuit's expression hadn't changed but he was beginning to like the idea. Do you think they'll accept the offer?
What alternative do they have? Tobias asked.
Good point, Galuit conceded. Fine. We'll risk it. I just hope whatever they have is worth this!
The Keldorian system
Keldoria was mostly a temperate forest world. 80% of its surface was covered in trees. Despite this, it was devoid of sentient life and therefore made a perfect place for the Chelraks to hide a base on.
Slaar smiled as he walked into the base. Even if the base were discovered somehow, it would not be taken easily. Unlike the Yeerks Slaar didn't believe in relying on stealth. A purple-skinned Chelrak was waiting for him just inside the entrance.
"Welcome Emperor! This is an unexpected pleasure."
"I'm not here for pleasure, Science Leader. The Andalites have neutralised our ion cannon. We'll be needing some new advantages."
The Science Leader sighed. "The neutronium warheads will be ready on time, Emperor. Progress elsewhere has been slower. However that should change with the new test subjects you brought me."
"Excellent! When can we see some of the results?"
"It'll depend on the subjects and the materials we've got, but I'm confident I'll be ready in about three more days."
Slaar nodded in approval. "Are you certain this procedure of yours will work?"
The Science Leader grinned in reply. "Trust me, Emperor. Soon you'll have the deadliest army of foot soldiers ever designed. They'll also be expendable and, best of all, they won't even be of our race!"
The Tailstrike
Estro and the other Yeerks had been all too eager to accept Cassie's offer. In the end they decided on human morph and acquired the Animorphs and their parents. Ax taught them how to perform Frolis manoeuvres so they didn't end up with 'twins'. The Andalites then had the Yeerks locked up for well over two hours; Galuit wasn't in the mood to take any chances.
Finally Estro was released and was brought to Galuit and the Animorphs in the Dome. He had acquired Jake's dad and Marco's dad and was now a mix of the two.
"The Chelraks are a lot stronger than you think," Estro was saying. "We think they have more weapons that they haven't used yet. Weapons that could tip the balance in their favour."
What makes you think that? Alloran asked suspiciously.
"In the last days of the war, Yeerk intelligence was desperately trying to find an edge over the Chelraks," Estro replied calmly. "They failed. But they did manage to hack into their computers and uncover a lot of their secrets. We found out that they've got a lot of hidden bases, many of which are engaged in weapons research."
"What kind?" Cassie asked worriedly.
"All kinds. New energy weapons, neutronium bombs, bio and chemical weapons. You name it; they're researching it. One such base is on the Keldorian system and I happen to know that something big is being developed there. We couldn't get details of what it is, just the location unfortunately."
Keldoria? Galuit wondered aloud. We'll take the ship there and check it.
"No, you shouldn't!" Estro warned. "The Chelraks have a heavy defence system in place. They have ground disruptor batteries and a planetary missile base there and once they discover you're in orbit they'll send every destroyer in their fleet!"
"So what do we do?" Rachel asked impatiently.
"Send a small force there in a shuttle. Their scanners aren't perfect; a small ship should be able to land undetected."
Galuit nodded. Take him back to the others.
"What do you think?" Jake asked as soon as Estro had left.
I don't trust Yeerks as a whole but what he said tallied with our own intelligence reports. We've detected Chelrak activity around the Keldorian system. It has to be checked out.
"And you want us to do it, right?" Rachel asked eagerly.
Galuit grinned. Correct. Prince Jake, take your team and infiltrate that base. Find out what the Chelraks are developing there, what they plan to do with it and, if you can, destroy it.
Docking bay of the Tailstrike
The Animorphs and Ax boarded their transport ten minutes later. Actually it was more like a modified fighter and the pilot was none other than Alloran himself.
"When do we go?" Tom asked.
As soon as our last passenger gets here, Alloran said.
"Other passenger?" Ryan asked.
"He means me," Estro said as he walked in. "I have to guide you down to the surface. I just hope they haven't upgraded the defences!"
Jake sighed. "Fine. Are we going now?"
We'll go as soon as we drop out of Zero-space.
Two minutes later they were launched out of the Tailstrike into space.
"How important is this place we're going to?" Jake asked.
"Important enough," Estro replied. "The main reason I mentioned it is that Saavek works there."
"Who's he?" Jake asked.
"One of the Chelraks' best scientists. The Emperor recently appointed him Science Leader on Keldoria. He's also one of the most ruthless and amoral scientists I've ever known. I've no idea what he's doing now but I've no doubt that destroying his work will hurt the Chelraks. That good enough for you?"
Jake shrugged and settled down for the rest of the journey.
The Keldorian system
"I thought you said getting down here would be difficult!" Rachel snapped.
They had landed in the trees a safe distance from the Chelrak base.
"It may have looked easy but it wasn't," Estro replied calmly. "If I hadn't flown us in every Chelrak on this planet would know we're here."
The base is in that direction, Alloran said, taking Jake aside. I'll be staying with the ship and making sure Estro doesn't run out on us.
"Fine," Jake said. Unlike Cassie he didn't fully trust Estro. "We'll be back soon, I hope."
The base was twenty minutes walk away. Or, at least, the cliff hanging over it was.
"It looks more like a missile silo than a science base," Marco said.
Chelrak military bases are usually built underground, Ax said. At least they were when we were allies.
Tobias flew up and landed nearby. It's them all right. There's guards everywhere. Getting in won't be easy, especially if they're looking for Andalites in morph.
"How about trying the ventilation shafts?" Cassie suggested. "I mean they've got to breathe, right?"
"Good idea. Let's fly down and see if there is one first," Jake said.
Be careful, Tobias warned. I doubt if there are any birds of prey on this planet. If the guards see us…
We get the idea, Tobias, Rachel said.
It didn't take long to figure out that Tobias was right. Several patrols of Chelrak guards were clustered around the base.
Sheesh! These guys aren't taking any chances, are they? Justin said as he flew down.
Yeah. They make me seem like a trusting guy, Marco quipped.
Eventually they found the ventilation system on the roof. It was just about big enough for a human to fit into. Ax stayed in bird morph as he certainly couldn't fit as an Andalite.
"Uh, guys, we have a problem," Tom said. There was a fork in the shaft up ahead. "Which way do we go?"
"Should we split up?" Ryan asked.
"Is that wise? We don't know where anything is in this base. If we get lost we might not be able to get out again," Cassie said.
"We're going to have that problem whether we split up or not," Jake said. "We might as well split up. We'll get more ground covered."
"Who's going where then, Fearless Leader?" Marco asked.
"Rachel, Tom, Cassie, Tobias and Marco go left. Everyone else right, ok?"
"Fine. Good luck, midget," Tom said as the group split up.
Main lab
Science Leader Saavek was not having a good day. Firstly the Emperor had come in on unannounced visit and ordered an accelerated schedule and, to top it off, he had just learned that some of the test subjects had escaped.
"Sound the alert and find them or the Emperor will have our heads!"
Saavek then turned his attention to his notes. Even if the guards couldn't get the escapees back he would still have enough to work with. He hoped there wouldn't be any more surprises that day.
Elsewhere in the base
Rachel and her group had become totally lost. All the shaft passages looked the same and it seemed they were going round and round in circles until Rachel discovered an exit. She dropped down to the floor only to find it was an equipment storeroom.
"No way out here, guys. I'm coming back up." She started to climb back to the shaft entrance.
"HALT!"
Rachel whirled round to find herself facing two Chelrak guards with disruptor rifles.
One reached for a communicator. "We've found one of the escapees! She's in the storage room on level 5!"
Rachel backed up against the wall.
"You gave us a good chase," the other guard sneered. "But it's time to come back home!"
Neither guard noticed a speck behind them that was rapidly growing. As soon as Marco had demorphed from his fly form he started to morph again.
"Let's go." The guards advanced on Rachel.
Hey!
Both guards turned around to see a large gorilla. Before they could react, Marco grabbed them and slammed their heads together. Both dropped like stones.
"Thanks Marco!" Rachel said.
Good job I came out to watch your back, Xena! Marco said as he demorphed. He quickly grabbed the guards' rifles. "We'd better go before their back-up comes."
The others breathed a sigh of relief as they climbed back into the shaft.
That was close! Tobias said.
"You're telling me!" Rachel said. "We'd best move."
As they crawled down the shaft a sudden thought struck Rachel. "Those guards, they called me an escapee…"
"What is it?" Cassie asked.
"Something's wrong. Those guards weren't surprised to see me. They called me an escapee," Rachel said.
"Escapee? That would mean that…" Tom's voice trailed off.
"There's other humans here?" Cassie asked.
Marco's eyes widened. "We've got to find Jake and the others!"
Near the main lab
Jake and his party were in the ventilation shafts overlooking the main lab and were spying on Saavek, who was berating two guards for allowing the prisoners to escape.
"How come they've got different skin colours?" Justin asked quietly. Saavek was purple-skinned while the guards were red.
The Chelraks use a caste system, Ax explained. The green-skinned are agricultural, industrial and manual workers, the purple are the scientific and intellectual elite and the red…
"…are the warriors?" Ryan finished.
Correct, Ax said.
"Let's just listen in, ok?" Jake ordered.
Saavek's mood was rapidly getting worse. "Bring what's left in! We can't wait any longer!"
With that, several other Chelraks wheeled in what looked like ten large transparent chemical storage tanks.
Saavek smiled. "Good. We should still have enough to satisfy the Emperor. Let's get the power on-line."
With that, all the Chelraks left.
"What's in those things?" Ryan asked. The tanks were full of thick liquid and large forms were floating in each one.
"Let's go and look," Jake said.
"All of them quietly climbed down from the shaft.
"Ax, watch the door!" Jake ordered as they moved toward the tanks.
"Holy shit!" Justin said as he got close.
"Hey watch your…" Ryan started to say. Then he looked at the tanks. "Holy shit!"
"What is it?" Jake asked. He looked at the tanks and gaped in shock.
There was a human floating in each tank. There was a ten-year-old boy in one; a middle-aged man in another and all seemed to be either asleep or dead.
"What the hell is this?!" Ryan asked in shock.
"Are they dead?" Justin added.
I don't think so, Ax said. It looks like a crude form of suspended animation.
"Where did they come from? What are they going to be used for?" Ryan asked.
"It's a safe bet this is the big thing that Estro was talking about," Jake said. "The question is what do we do now?"
They're coming back! Ax said.
They quickly climbed back into the shaft as Saavek and several other Chelrak scientists came in with two guards.
"We'll start with this one first," Saavek said, pointing to a nearby tank.
The guards went over and started to wheel it toward a door at the back of the lab.
Saavek smiled. "If this goes well, we'll have the makings of a brand new army! An army born of my creation! The Emperor will be pleased!"
Saavek and the others followed the guards and the tank out into the next room.
"We've got to find the others now!" Jake said, starting to crawl back the way they'd come.
"What's this mean?" Justin asked.
"If he's planning on making soldiers out of humans or something, guess what? Earth's their next target!" Jake said.
"Oh shit!" Ryan said. "We've got to stop this!"
Easier said than done! Jake felt another headache coming on. It was just the nine of them against the entire base garrison and whatever reinforcements they could summon.
What did we ever do to deserve this?!
TO BE CONTINUED…