Closing the Trap


(Author's note; this is part 13. Part 1 is "The Only Way Out", and part 12 would be "Inescapable". Read. Review. Nothing more to say right now.)




Marco nodded, pleased with the group of prisoners, and told them to be careful.

"We'll be more suicidal than careful," one of them said. He was probably the one who would become the leader. "We'll get you your distraction - for whatever you think is so important - but then we'll probably get ourselves killed trying to get out."

Most of them nodded. The youngest, a boy of five or six, nodded the most. Marco thought if very sad that they would all end there. In the Yeerk base. Especially for someone that young.

No choice. It was impossible to bring them along. This gave them at least a chance to avoid infestation. That was all one could ask in the base. Going in or out was impossible. There was only one other way…

"You're on your own," he said. Then he left them and walked back to his own group.

Larynia and Ax had inched the slab of stone far enough to the side with their blades for Jake and Tobias to get their fingers in. The two of them were trying to lift the stone away so they could get into the tunnel under it.

Rachel was sitting on the side, playing with the electric rod she had stolen from a guard. Her face was blank.

Marco took one look at the hard work of lifting the stone and decided he had better things to do.

He sat down next to Rachel. "You okay?"

Rachel nodded slowly. "There was nothing else to do," she sighed. "But… it isn't fair."

"It never is, Xena," Marco said. "It never is. It hasn't been fair since the Yeerks came. No, wait; make that since we started school."

Rachel flashed a weak smile. "How do you do that?"

"Do what? I haven't done anything! I promise!"

Rachel sighed. "That. You keep everyone's moods up through the worst."

Marco flinched. "Ooooh. You sound so serious that you're scaring me. Quit it!"

Then Larynia placed her hand on Marco's head. Dear, the stone.

Marco turned his head up to look at her with an innocent expression. "What stone?"

The one they are trying to lift, silly, Larynia said, tugging lightly at his hair. Help them lift it.

Marco stood up, not bothering to try any excuses against the strong-willed Andalite, (he had tried it a few times but only to learn that it didn't help) and promptly helped Jake and Tobias with the very heavy stone.

A few of the Chee would be of use right now, Ax commented.

Marco managed a nod.

Despite the three of them struggling to lift the stone, it barely moved. It was too heavy. And the cramped space in the cell didn't exactly help either. The stone slab was the floor of the cell; it ended about a finger's width from the doorstep. Which meant that those trying to lift it had to stand in the very narrow doorway.

Marco soon had a better idea. He began morphing his gorilla.

Move back, he said. And as Jake and Tobias stepped back, Marco finished the morph. He had to stand on the other side of the cell's doorway to have room for his massive shoulders. But the same shoulders and the arms attached to them made an easy job out of lifting the thick slab of stone that had been the floor.

Marco lifted it, and leaned it against the far wall.

There, he said. Everyone jump on down. Before the Yeerks arrive.

Rachel slipped past Marco and jumped down into the dark tunnel. There was a long pause before a THUD announced that she'd hit the ground.

"It's a long drop!" she called. "But I'm okay!" The faint sound of movement. "More or less. Come on down."

Jake dropped down the hole. He landed much more heavily than Rachel, moved out of the way, and called up that the next person could follow.

"I wonder how Jordan got up and down here," Rachel said. "She said she used this tunnel to save Sara."

Maybe she was smart and brought a ladder, Marco muttered. He was demorphing. His gorilla morph was too large to fit through the hole.

Tobias dropped down the hole and landed on all fours. "Ax and Larynia better morph," he called. "There's no way that your delicate Andalite legs can land here without breaking!"

Ax huffed, insulted. But it was obvious that Tobias was right. And the hole was too small to allow an Andalite to jump through. Both Ax and Larynia morphed to humans. Then Ax dropped down after the others.

Larynia's human morph looked a lot like Rachel. That wasn't surprising, because Rachel and both of her two sisters had all contributed some DNA to it. As well as Jake and Tobias, but the most striking feature was still the long, blonde hair that was an exact copy of Rachel's.

Marco watched with a certain degree of anxiousness as Larynia sat down on the edge, and swung herself into the hole. She wasn't used to her human morph yet. Still a bit clumsy - although he'd never actually tell her that. The drop seemed longer than usual. He was relieved when she yelled at him to hurry up.

If she yelled at him she had to be okay. It was when she didn't yell that he'd get worried.

Marco prepared to jump down.

Then the slab of stone caught his eye. It was still standing on that thin stretch of floor, leaning against the far wall of the cell. The door of the cell was wide open. (So were the other doors, but this door being open would stand out since it was broken and the cell was never used.)

There was no way he was able to do anything about it. Not if he wanted to follow the others into the tunnel.

But they might as well leave a sign saying "we went THIS way."

"Jake," Marco said. "We have a problem."



Michael woke when he felt someone kicking at him. Adriss opened his eyes and raised his arms to protect his face.

Get up! a voice snarled. Another Andalite hoof struck his shoulder.

Adriss made Michael jump to his feet. "S-s-sub-Visser!" he stuttered.

Yes, said the voice of the Andalite-Controller. The Yeerk's name was Terith, and he was known for his bad temper. Michael knew the host; she was a sad young female Andalite called Alanla. Why were you sleeping?

"I…" Adriss hesitated before she continued. Michael could feel her roaming through his memories. "I was knocked out."

And who, exactly, would dare knock out a Guard?

Michael smiled to himself. Adriss was in trouble big-time if she told the Sub-Visser. And even more if she didn't. "An Andalite tail-blade."

Terith brought his host's tail forwards and cut Michael across the forehead. Fool! You let an Andalite escape?!

"N-n-no, Sub-Visser!" Adriss wailed. She didn't dare bring her hand up to her bleeding forehead. She was shaking. Or, more correctly, Michael was shaking for her. "Th-the one I was escorting was shackled! There was another one! A-and two humans!"

Terith's stolen Andalite face took on a look of contempt. Fool. Who would have allowed another Andalite - and two humans, as you claim - in without shackles?

"I-I don't know!"

Where are they now?

"I don't know!"

Idiot! Incompetent fool! Therith was surrounded by Hork-Bajir. They seemed to be just as frightened by Terith's anger as by Visser One's anger.

Michael didn't blame them. Although from what Alanla had told him, Terith was as scared of the Visser as anyone else.

I hope you get demoted, Michael said silently to his Yeerk.

Shut up, slave, Adriss hissed. This is your fault! You distracted me!

Michael laughed. If I remember correctly, Adriss, he said. You were the one that insisted we should have a conversation.

Shut up!

In fact, you were the one that neglected to keep both my eyes on the prisoner…

SHUT UP!

Terith turned away and began walking. The Hork-Bajir followed. You will accompany me down to the prisoner area, he snarled with Alanla's voice. Immediately. A prisoner has escaped from the high security cells. And Visser One will hear about your failures! I only hope he can associate that to the escaped prisoner…

Terith looked down at Michael's empty hands. "Sub-Visser… they stole my weapons. I'm unarmed."

Terith's stalk-eyes swiveled around. That, would be YOUR problem.



Marco rubbed his aching foot and looked upwards towards the open hole. The door was still open. The floor stone was still standing, tilted towards the inner wall of that cell. There had been no way to close it. It would have been possible… if there hadn't been a four meter drop between the tunnel floor and the cell above.

"Maybe they won't notice," Rachel said and shrugged. She had been alone in landing perfectly - without straining any feet or knees. Fortunately, there were no severe injuries.

"Yeah, and maybe Visser One will invite us for tea," Marco snapped. He shook the foot a bit and made sure it was working. He had landed a little on the side, which hadn't been such a great success. "This is like walking into a trap. One way out - that way -" he pointed upwards "and only if anyone figures out how to jump four meters straight up. The other end - a BioFilter to let nothing through."

"And we walked into it willingly," Tobias agreed. "Not the smartest thing to do."

"You had a better idea?" Rachel wondered in a dangerous tone. "This got us down under the floor. Where the Time Matrix is. And anyway, we didn't know this was such a long fall. Were you suggesting that the rest of you should have stayed up there? Left me alone?"

"Of course not," Tobias said hurriedly.

Marco stood up and tried leaning on his foot. Well; he could stand at least. Not that well, but it would have to do. He didn't have the time or the energy to worry about it.

"Come on," Jake sighed. "Let's move."

The group started walking along the tunnel, moving slowly. Ax and Larynia remained in human morph. The ground was uneven, and the roof was low. They had to walk bent, and crawl on all fours at some times.

"Amazing," Larynia said at one time, when they slithered along on their bellies, the roof pressing at their backs. "Human bodies are actually good for something."

"Did you ever doubt it?" Marco said, grinning where he crawled behind her. He reached forwards, found her foot and tugged at it.

"They look very weak," Larynia said, pulling her foot loose. The roof suddenly raised, and she could now use her elbows to move more quickly. "And clumsy."

Jake was in the lead. Where he was, the roof was high enough to stand. It had raised quickly. He felt along the walls and noticed that the tunnel had grown wider. It felt like the roof and walls had fallen - or something like that - and widened the cave. The dirt floor wasn't packed as tightly where he was standing.

It was dark. If the tunnel had fallen here once, it might fall again if they upset it. Jake thought it best if they got a pair of eyes that could see in the darkness. Or maybe sonar.

"Rachel, could you morph the bat?" he said.

Rachel nodded - a useless gesture when nobody could see anything - and began morphing.

"Ax and Larynia, you better demorph and remorph while we've got the space."

The two Andalites both replied "Yes, Prince Jake," and did as they were told. Marco chuckled briefly as Jake expressed his opinions on being called that.

They were all standing bunched together in the small cave when Rachel let out the first clicks of sonar.

It's a cave, she said. A few more clicks, that only she could hear. And I don't think you should take more than five steps forwards, Jake. There's something there… it's vague, but it's definitely too smooth to be a cave wall. I think it's the BioFilter.

Marco sighed. "So that's it. We're done for. All we can do is wait for the Yeerks."

No, Rachel said. There's the path going forwards, continuing on the other side of the BioFilter. That one's useless to us, but… there's another path as well. Along it. It doesn't look like it's been dug. It's a crack, maybe caused by the BioFilter. It goes left.

"For how far?"

How am I supposed to know?

Jake sighed. He felt with his hands along the left wall. Inched forwards until the wall disappeared to the left. "Is it wide enough to walk through?"

It's about a meter wide, Rachel said. to start with.

"It'll be dangerous business to walk along it," Ax commented. "With the BioFilter so close… it's very easy. One wrong step and…"

"Gee, that certainly helps everyone's good mood," Marco snapped. His foot was still troubling him. He would morph as soon as he got the order.

"We go for it," Jake said.

"We've got no choice," Tobias added.

They lined up and, with Jake still in the lead, entered the crack. They were very careful about keeping close to the wall. Rachel sat - clumsily - on Jake's shoulder, keeping an "eye" on how close the BioFilter was.

Marco limped along last, muttering to himself.

They followed the crack, edging along between it and the deadly BioFilter, for a full two hours. At a slight widening, they hoped for the best and sat down to rest. Ax and Larynia demorphed and remorphed again. Rachel demorphed, and Marco volunteered to morph the bat in her place. When he was done, Larynia lifted him up from the floor and handed him forwards until he reached Jake.

He sent out a burst of clicks and noticed - with a mental sigh - that the passage was still continuing deeper into the ground, without any changes.

This is getting seriously dull, he said.

"At least the Yeerks aren't on our tail," Tobias replied.

Always one advantage, Marco muttered. Very well. Coast's clear. Start walking.



Terith glared at the open cell. At the floor plate which stood open.

Fools, he spat spitefully - he had an image to keep up. This is too obvious.

"S-sub-Visser?" Michael said carefully. To Terith's annoyance, he had gotten his hands on a dracon and an electrical rod - the standard Guard weapons. "Maybe that is the point. Maybe it is just a… diversion."

No, Terith snapped. You are as much a fool as they! The prisoners - the ones that were freed - were the diversion.

"And a good one, too… Sub-Visser," Michael muttered. The 'Sub-Visser' was added at the last moment. "They kept us up for a long time."

Terith glared at him for interrupting. This is where they went. The door was left open because - look here - there was no way to close it again and then disappear down that hole. The floor - that stone slab - is too heavy to move easily. It could not be replaced from the tunnel. It must be a long drop.

He let his stalk-eyes peer into the darkness below. They went this way. I can feel it in my tail.

"Sub-Visser. Amazing that no-one noticed this before," Michael commented.

Guards - like yourself - are idiots. They seldom see further than the tips of their own noses.

Terith saw - with a certain amount of satisfaction - how Adriss let Michael's expression slip to hate and contempt - mixed with just a bit of fear - for just a moment. Someday - soon, hopefully - he would be able to give enough evidence to the Visser to be allowed to teach the Guards a lesson. The Guards were a bunch of self-obsessed fools.

"Should we follow them, Sub-Visser?"

This tunnel can only end up in two places, Terith said. Somewhere inside the base - where we will find them and infest them - or outside the base. Which means that the BioFilter will kill them all. Either way, we've still got the advantage.

"There is a third way," Michael objected. And added quickly; "Sub-Visser. If this tunnel goes deep enough, it will avoid the BioFilter."

The BioFilter reaches down fifty meters, Terith snapped.

"Maybe the tunnel goes that deep," Michael muttered, maybe hoping Terith didn't hear him.

Only one way to find out… Terith said. Before Adriss - in that slow, human head - had reacted, Terith had whipped his host's tail forwards and Michael fell down into the hole, screaming.

There was a long silence, and then a loud thump. Michael screamed louder.

Did it go deep enough? Terith asked kindly.

There was a moan and a sob from down in the tunnel. The sound of a person dragging himself along a dirt floor was heard.

Answer me! Terith snapped. He could hear Alanla accusing him in screams of being evil. The human host was her friend. He didn't care; he was used to it.

"Not… deep enough…" Michael whispered somewhere down in the dark. "Sub-Visser… my… my legs…"

Adriss was probably not so cocky right now, Terith thought happily. Her host was alone and badly wounded. Alanla screamed at him. Terith ignored her.

Morph, he said carelessly. Terith was jealous at Adriss's morphable host. Even though he himself would not accept anything less than an Andalite, morphable or not. And then find those prisoners! Hunt them!

"Sub-Visser, I…"

Defy me and you shall be left down there! ALONE!

Terith whipped both Alanla's stalk-eyes around and glared at the collection of Hork-Bajir. Alanla was weeping silently. She hated herself for being a host. For being used for Terith's "evil" purposes.

The Hork-Bajir straightened up. Terith's own Two Dozen and Five guard saluted.

How many of you useless fools can morph? Terith asked.

A few nodded and saluted again. Carefully. Not willingly; no. They did not want to risk Terith's anger, but they did not want to hunt those prisoners, either. They were useless. Cowards.

Terith made all Alanla's four eyes narrow. And glare at the Hork-Bajir. You morphables will accompany that idiot Guard in hunting the escapees. I KNOW that this is the only way out of the tunnel. It shall be guarded. So if you return without the prisoners… I will personally see that you are cut off from Kandrona.

That would make them follow orders. If nothing else. The morphables saluted again. Fear in their eyes. Fear was good, Terith thought. Alanla called him a monster.

Get into the hole and GET ME THOSE PRISONERS!!!

The Hork-Bajir morphables lined up and hurried to leap down into the hole, tripping over each other in their tries to hurry more. Terith counted them; seventeen. Seventeen dracon-equipped morphable Hork-Bajir and a lousy Guard. Should be enough.

Otherwise, Terith would have them starved.

And Visser One would have Terith starved.





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Author's note;

Okay. I've started to include things from the Yeerk view. Interesting. It helps me... explain... the trouble I'm about to get them into. ~*oh, I'm so evil*~

Next part will have a more exciting end. I had it planned for this one, but - as usual - I couldn't fit it in. I just "had to" add that "slight" thing inbetween and - oops - there was my chapter-length limit.

Review. Pleez? Next part coming up soon... hopefully.