We were arranged in a loose circle, I was sitting on Asi's chair, the one behind her desk, Jake and Marco sat in front of me on two opposed chaired, Tobias was perched on the sill near the view port, Cassie stood near him gazing out at the stars. The Andalite stood at a side silent and Rachel had gone to use the bathroom.
"So what do we do about it?" I asked, "We can't just go to the Sasi and tell them what we know, they'd throw me in military prison for hacking into their files!"
"Yeah, well I knew that wouldn't work." Marco muttered.
Then what would? Tobias wondered.
We could warn the Andalite government, Ax said hesitantly, They will oppose them…
"Yeah, this way they'd think someone tipped them off," Marco said thoughtfully, "So what do we do? Get Ax to phone home? ET version?"
I shook my head, "No way can you transmit anything from the mother ship without it being intercepted, we'd have to go to the Andalite planet."
Ax stiffened slightly, And how will they know that it is Andalites that are in the fighter? If we got a human fighter then they might not be very friendly.
"Maybe not," I agreed, "So we get an Andalite fighter."
They all stared at me.
"And where do we get that?" Rachel said from the doorway, "Cool plan by the way."
"Good grief." Marco muttered.
I looked down at Asi's desk, nothing useful on it.
"How do you think they got all these Andalites?" Cassie said slowly, "They weren't just stranded in space…" She looked abashed, "I hope not."
"No, they'd probably shoot them down…" I trailed off, I looked away from Ax, "I think I know where the fighters are, I overheard a Masi talk about it."
"Sure." Jake said briskly, "Then we better get going."
"Uhuh, before they notice that we're up to something then it'll be way too late." Marco said.
"There's a problem." I said, "How am I going to take all of you in there, it wouldn't look too suspicious if I went alone but-"
"We morph." Marco said, "Something small, anything but fleas."
"Anything but flies, I got swatted once." Jake said.
"Uhuh, I was almost trapped as a flea," Marco. They all shuddered.
Marco once ate me, as a spider. Ax muttered.
Marco turned on Ax, "Hey, I lost control for a few seconds, that snake was a new morph!"
He poisoned me at the same time. He tried to perform the act of spitting but the snake's tongue was too thin.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry." Marco said,
"Come on, we haven't got time to waste."
I ended up carrying three cockroaches, two fleas, and some kind of
spider. I walked hurriedly out of the office and down a corridor; I reached the
inner drop shafts, stepped off a level and walked down a wider corridor.
I tired to look as if I belong there; it wasn't easy with every single Masi
or Asi walking past me giving me a look.
I passed three checkpoints and managed not to get my bugs detected. I
sneaked into the last area that proved to be quiet a challenge I wasn't
authorized to enter.
"Hey. Guys." I whispered, "I've got a problem."
What is it? Jake asked testily.
"I can't go in, they'd know for sure I'm up to something."
You need a distraction? Marco asked.
"How about you getting ahead of me, start a fighter and freak whoever
is in there and open the docking gates for me?"
Not a very good plan. Marco commented.
"Do you have anything up your sleeve?"
Not really. Not that I have sleeves.
"Then it will have to do."
How much are we on time? Ax
We have been in morph for thirty minutes.
Okay, we're leaving.
"Yeah, well don't forget me behind, I don't want to be stuck
here."
Don't worry, we wouldn't dream of leaving you behind.
I waited silently, crouched behind couple of big wooden boxes of god
knows what.
And then just when I really thought they were really going to go without me…
WRAAAAH! WRAAAAH! WRAAAAH!
The alarm!
Three Masi shoved out of the docking bay and bolted towards the
nearby checkpoint, "Something's going on there! A fighter just started up
and- HEY! YOU!"
"What do you think you're doing here?!"
The Masi spotted me, he wasn't very happy.
Lynn? How about coming out, like, I don't know, now?
"I'm in trouble." I yelped, but they couldn't hear me, I shot
towards the docking bay, the Masi who spotted me ran behind me.
He was fast. Faster than me, but I head a head start, I moved in to the
docking bay. "GUYS!" I screamed, "HELP!"
What? I heard Tobias say, Lynn where are you? What's taking
you so long?
"STOP IN THE NAME OF THE LAW!" The Masi bellowed.
Oh-shit. Tobias said. He must have heard the racket.
"Uh- which fighter?" I yelled.
"STOP or I'll SHOOT." He roared.
I saw the ramp of one of the fighters open. I ran towards it.
I glanced behind me and saw that he had grabbed his holstered shredder and aimed it at me.
I looked forward. Tripped.
TSSSAP!
Miss!
I staggered up to my feet; I saw the faces of Jake and Rachel in front of me.
Almost there.
TSSSSSSAP!
Not a miss, I got hit, fortunately he had it on stun.
I slumped towards the ground. Barely conscious that someone was dragging me…but in which direction…couldn't see…
I was unconscious. I didn't know for how long.
My eyes snapped open suddenly. I was lying on grass. My eyes stared at a sky. A hologram. I jerked up. I made it. I was in the fighter.
"Urgh." I groaned, my head felt as if someone had…well as if someone had stunned me, "How long was I out?" I asked Cassie.
"Five hours."
I stood up, "Man that was a stupid idea, what a lousy way to get shot."
I looked around, the Andalite was at the helm, Jake and Marco were staring at the weapon controls, and Rachel and Tobias were sitting in a corner.
I cast a look at an open window, "We made it to Z-space?"
Yes. Ax said.
"That's a relief," I said, "Did they try to chase you?"
"Nah," Marco said coming over to me, "We didn't waste time waiting. We were like so out of there."
I nodded.
I was looking at the star chart. The Andalite said, We are not very far from the Andalite home world.
"Yup, less than a week away."
Z-space is on our side this time. Ax said.
"Before it reconfigures." I agreed, I walked towards the controls, I realized I've flown this type of fighter once…where was it though? It was that videogame T-45. Cool game, great plot, and excellent graphics. Not to mention the terrific sound play.
We spent our time just joking around first, but after that no one was in the mood to do anything. Lucky we've managed to find ourselves things to eat, mainly Andalite stuff, Tobias morphed human to eat, it did not taste good, it was some green liquid, Ax said is was the relevance of liquefied grass, given to Andalites who were too injured to eat properly.
I took the helm and Ax went off to sleep, it was time to make the translation to normal space.
Brilliant stars filled my view, Tobias said, Beautiful isn't it?
"Yeah." I said. But then I frowned, "What's that?"
"What?" Marco said drawing closer. The rest were all asleep.
"Computer? Magnify." The area of space I was looking at was enlarged, the black dots I saw moving against black were now fighters, but they were far away.
They looked weird too.
They weren't very large, small actually; very small compared to the fighter we were in.
The fighters had two curved wings with serrated edges, what looked like blades sticking out like feathers and a diamond shaped cockpit.
"Who are they?" I said, something about them disturbed me, I punched up a hard burn and sped a distance away from them, but they didn't seem interested in us, they flew in an opposite direction, parallel to us.
"Ax!" Marco yelled, "Hey Ax!"
He arrived, he looked at Marco, then at Tobias then finally me, What? But he caught the screen.
He moved closer and focused his main eyes on it. Cassie, Jake and Rachel woke up and headed towards us.
"What's that?" Jake asked.
"I don't know, I was hoping maybe Ax knew." Marco replied, he looked at Ax hopefully.
I have never seen a fighter quite like this before, it's even lower in height than a Skrit Na raider.
"Whoever they are, they don't look friendly." I muttered, "Why have a fighter this small?"
"Maybe whoever's in it smaller." Marco said.
We shrugged it off.
I frowned, "Hey, aren't they heading towards us?"
Ax stepped up towards the console.
I am afraid so.
"Cool. I get the weapons station." Marco grinned.
"No, you got it last time." Jake said, "It's my turn."
"No way, you had your turn last time, remember-"
"Boys with their toys." Cassie teased.
"Both of you." I said, "Shut up, neither of you are going to take the weapons station. I am."
"Yeah right." Marco said, "Hey, Jake tell him he's joining us, not us joining him, I'm taking the weapons."
Please solve your argument hastily, the fighters are accelerating at a startling rate towards us, and I do need someone on the weapons station, Ax paused, turned a stalk eyes at both Jake and Marco, and I hope it does not happen to be either of you.
Jake and Marco started at each other, Marco said, "Okaaaay, he didn't like the way I drove that doesn't make me a lousy shot."
"Yes it does, if your driving is worse then my mother's piloting a fighter then you qualify as appalling." I muttered.
"I do not." Marco sounded like he was pouting, "Tell him Jake, Cassie?"
"Sorry, I'm picturing my father's tattered truck"
I laughed, "You couldn't drive a car?"
"It was my first time." Marco said in exasperation.
"You're not touching the weapons," I slid into the space. "That's the end of it."
I stared at the screen in front of me; I saw the squadron of fighter take a V-shape, like geese in flight. This was strange enough but then-
FWWWWOM!
Whoa! Ax yelped.
"No way!" I yelled.
The fighters were in front to us! In front us! They covered the long distance in effortless glides!
Get a clear shot of the engines! Ax said.
"What engines?!" I screamed as two of the fighters shot behind us, we had three in front, one of the fighters had a blue light blinked on the side, the light traveled the length of the wing then back, it was a deep electric blue. "Where the heck are the engines!?"
"Who cares? Just blow them off!" Rachel blurted.
"I can't do that, we don't know who they are!" I said, "Besides, they hadn't yet fired at us-"
TSSSAP!
"Arh!" I yelped. "Okay, okay that does it!"
I grabbed the controls and lined the cross-hairs at the cockpit of one of the advancing fighters, "Hold it steady Ax," I said, "I'm gonna get him."
I felt the warmth of the weapons then a hum-
TSSSSE-
WHOOOOM!
A sudden force hit our fighter and all of us were thrown to the ground.
"Hey!" I struggled to my feet, Ax scrambled up quickly. "I can't believe it! I Missed! That's not fair! I almost had him, if not for that stupid fighter that snuck up behind us-" I trailed off and lined the cross-hairs again, I aimed again.
"Haha, he's not even attempting to move, what is he dumb?" I sneered.
Maybe it's a last minute kind of thing. Tobias said.
"I don't think so." I pressed the control.
Nothing.
No hum, no warmth, no shredder fire.
Our main shredder is out. Ax commented in admirable calmness, And they're coming in slow.
"We're loosing?" Rachel said in disbelief, "What? This quickly? No way!"
TSAAAAAP!
They shot our main left engine! Ax yelled. We haven't got a prayer!
Then suddenly, the fighters left, disappeared, ran to Z-space.
"What?" I said stupidly, "Aren't they going to finish us off?"
It appears that we have bigger problem on our hands. Ax commented, his voice tight.
"What?"
But he didn't need to say anything, we saw it, we all did, a ship made a translation from Z-space to normal space.
A blade ship.
We were out, we had our left main engine shot, and no powerful weapons at all, in case you can't add up these problems, this makes us dead meat.
"What do we do?" I gasped, my throat felt as if it was being squeezed against my neck.
"Don't panic." Jake commanded.
"Well, that's going to be very easy, anything else O' fearless leader?" Marco whispered, like maybe whispering would keep us invisible. It didn't, the ship had seen us and was moving towards us.
"Stay cool."
"Are you trying to make a joke?" Marco said, "'cause if you are, it's not the time to practice."
We can morph something small. Tobias suggested.
"And they come here and see what?" Jake said, "Forget it, they'll catch us all."
Only if they had one Andalite to look at, Prince Jake I believe that if I stayed in Andalite form and the rest of you morphed small insects you will enter undetected. And may find a way out.
"You could get killed, at worst, made a controller." Jake said.
If I get killed I would buy you time. Ax replied.
"No, I don't think that's a good plan." Jake shook his head.
"We haven't got a choice." Marco pointed out, "What? You reckon it's safer if all of us stay like this?"
Jake bit his lip.
It's okay Jake, I'll stay with Ax. That way, in a fight, there would be two of us in morph, well, one in morph, but both capable of damage. Tobias offered.
"I say we do it," Rachel said, but she lacked enthusiasm, she looked at Tobias, he looked at her with fierce brown eyes.
"No." Jake shook his head again, "We don't know what we're up against."
"Which Visser's ship do you think it is?" Cassie wondered.
"I don't want to know." Marco muttered, "I'd have to look it up the Visser's directly, excuse me, but you're number?"
"What do I do?" I said, "I can't morph."
Jake looked at me startled, "Oh. Right."
"Uhuh, not that I mean to be rude," Marco turned to me, "But stay out of the way, okay?"
I shrugged like it was no big deal, "Sure."
"I don't like this plan." Jake grumbled.
"Yeah, well it's the only one we got, whether we like it or not." Marco reminded him. "Besides, what plan are you talking about?"
"Okay, okay, everyone? Battle morphs, come on, quick, quick-"
"Alright!" Rachel yelled, their was something fierce in her eyes.
BOOM!The floor shook underneath us.
"They got us," I said, edging as far as I could from the hatch, "We docked."
No one had started morphing, it was sudden, the hatch blew in.
And what bound in surprised me. I mean, I expected Hork-Bajir to rush in, Taxxons, human controllers not-
"What the-" Jake started to say when he got punched in the face.
The guy who punched him wasn't particularly huge, nor was he medium built, he was skinny, sort of, human.
He wore black leather trousers. Black leather jacket, which was open and showed that he wore nothing underneath. A chain dangled from his neck, his hair was shaved off completely, and his crooked nose was pierced, and on it was a hammered silver loop that matched the ones at right ear, three on his right ear.
He glared at us and raised a knife. I backed off, he leapt forward and grabbed Cassie, she shrieked but he held her against his chest, blade at her throat. "Nobody moves!"
"Cassie!" Jake moved forward. But stopped as Cassie's captor tightened his hold.
That was fine by me I wasn't going to budge. But I'll speak, besides, the other probably have no idea how to handle that…that thing.
"Hey, hey. Easy." I said, "We don't want anyone to get hurt, okay?"
He glared at me like maybe I had thrown an insult or something, the punk pointed with his knife at me, "Shut it, Asi kin."
I wasn't surprised that he knew me, or at least that I was a relative of Asi's.
"Look." I snapped, the guy whoever he was, turned round to glance out of the blown hatch, "Take me, and leave the girl okay?"
"Ashley! ASH!" He yelled ignoring me, "Come on! Call the others we're outta time, Visser one is gonna be here any second now!"
"That slime bag is still alive?" Rachel wondered.
"Visser one?" I yelped, "What are you people nuts? Okay I knew you people do pretty crazy things but-"
Another one of his gang members entered, dressed just like him, similarly, but his leather jacket was missing, he too had his skin pierced in a number of places, but this guy had hair, if you want to call the spiked black sticks on his head hair.
"Eh, Solo." He glanced at the guy who held Cassie, "You and the girl, along with him- " He marched to me and grabbed me by the shoulder. "Keep an eye on them."
"You got it M.D." Solo said, "But what happened."
"What happened? What happened? They know we're here, that's what happened,," M.D person yelled, "Now don't waste time, I'm to get Police, Cricket and-"
"What about Ashley?" Solo gasped, "Is she…?"
"I'm fine Solo." A girl entered the fighter and I tried not to stare at her too hard.
We heard yelling outside.
The boy, M.D, who was snapping out the orders cursed. "POLICE! GET IN HERE NOW!" He paused and looked at Solo, "Solo? Come on, man move it."
"Sure, Mad Dog." He turned and motioned at Marco, then pointed at the helm.
I dove in, "He can't pilot a ship. He's clueless, he'll ram us at the side of the blade ship, we'd be goners."
"Eh?" He said blankly.
"I'll drive." I said.
"No you wouldn't." Ashley girl strode forward and shoved me out of the way.
Yerrrow!
"Ahh!" I yelled in surprise, a blur of tan and black spots slammed me to the wall.
"Korax." Ashley said. She raised an arm in the air, the thing that skidded into me, a cheetah, reared up on its hind legs and touched Ashley's palm with its muzzle. "Where's Chita, boy?"
Chita, I assumed, and another cheetah entered the fighter, followed by another boy with brown hair and two girls that wouldn't stop moving.
"Lets go! Lets go!" Solo yelled, "Cricket? Close the hatch."
"Let's move it," M.D said, glaring at Solo, like maybe he crossed the line or something, "Close the hatch, people, people, sit down will you? You're crowding the area, Ashley, honey, your cats are great really, but please shut them away in that quarter, I wouldn't want them slashing into someone, Cricket? Get the helm. Lets move it People!"