ABOARD THE HUMAN MOTHER SHIP, PLANET EARTH
MS TIME: 23:22
DATE: 14/06/2020
LOCATION: CLASSIFIED SASI SECTOR
AXIMILI-ESGARROUTH-ISTHILL
My
friends call me Ax. It is a shorter version of my real name, my friends find my
real name long and difficult to pronounce.
The reason they find it so hard to say is because they use their mouths
to speak. A mouth is a very useful and dangerous thing to have, my experience
with edible human objects prove this. However, I must stop right here and
explain what is happening. You my find it easier to understand if I bring up the
information in points, it will certainly make the job of explaining easier for
me.
Point one; the humans have lost the war with the Yeerks and with it their
planet their home.
Point two; the animorphs -this includes me as I am an animorph- are
supposed to be dead to the entire galaxy, this includes my people, the Andalites,
as well as my adopted race, the humans and our sworn enemy the Yeerks. We are
not dead because -fortunately- the human government, a section of it called the Sasi
had kept us under deep freeze, a bit like bio-status. We have been kept for
twenty years, and then reawakened.
Point
three; we met up a while ago with Lynn, a boy who is a kin to an important human
military person called Asi. We have uncovered that the humans were arranging to
mass-produce a virus that will annihilate my species.
Point four; in proceeding to lead an effort to stop this vile scheme we had been
hijacked by a group of anti-government humans who call themselves SWAT. They
pushed our beliefs and with them we engaged into starting our task.
Unfortunately we had been stopped by the human military, they held us in a
transport and took away the SWAT personal into government custody. They had been
made prisoners.
Point five; Coincidently, Asi seemed to have been in the middle of a
queer mission and had stumbled on us, it was she that had stopped us from
starting our task. When the animorphs revealed our mission Asi had been skeptic.
We had been told that this was some prank delivered by Lynn who Asi claims to
have developed severe mental problems.
Point six; A few days later we received a message from the commander of
the SWAT team that had hijacked us -a human named M.D- informing us that what
Lynn had said was true. We managed to locate and sneak into the area of which
the virus was being made. We are currently engaged in a battle.
A battle that I hope we would win.
Behind you Cassie!
Marco!
"Ax!" Jake cried with half tiger half human features, "The
virus!"
I saw what he was hinting at. I watched the computer display featuring
the time left for the virus to be fully developed. There was only nineteen
percent remaining. My hearts raced as I attempted to break the code.
Hopeless, not enough time.
Ax! We're running out of time! They're sending back up in, I'm
sure military people with shredders aren't going to be as easy to knock
down. Marco.
I'm on it. I muttered.
VIRUS DEVELOPMENT IS COMPLETE.
I stared in disbelief at the display.
Cricket slid up to me, we managed to free him and Solo from military
custody; though they are still fugitives and fully devoted to SWAT and their
commander M.D.
Cricket has a Yeerk partner; he had formed some relationship that to SWAT
members did not seem too odd. I however do not approve of it. No Yeerk could be
trusted completely.
"Gather it up man, this is only a small quantity, they still haven't
mass produced." I couldn't tell if that had been Cricket or the Yeerk. But I
was having my doubts about my previous assessment; maybe it was possible to form
a relation between the two species. But I hardly think that the rest of the
human race will agree on this.
Computer, place all of the produced virus in a container.
The computer complied without any problems.
"No!" The Sasi scientists screamed angrily. "You wouldn't
get away with this."
I was almost angry enough to respond, experience had taught me to keep a
clear head when working so, for this reason, I ignored him.
People come on gather it up! Prince Jake yelled, Back up is
here!
"You heard the man." Cricket said, "I'll try to trip them up
okay?"
He didn't wait for my response. Just bolted to buy me time.
I grabbed the container, only it wasn't a container, it was a
gun/syringe thing, I supposed the scientists use that to store the virus and if
needed empty it in a container or vial.
Or possibly the Andalite prisoners.
I controlled my anger. I had been told that most of them had died on exposure to the virus. Only one is still alive and currently unexposed. An
Andalite Prince called Noroa-Distl-Atamol.
He had been freed and is currently fighting along side us.
I turned. Stopped. I was greeted with the sight
of ten human military personal all raising shredders at me, aimed at my head.
The animorphs stopped fighting.
Everything was suddenly quite.
"Give us the virus!" One of them demanded, "Or we'll shoot."
"Don't shoot!" Another said, a superior officer, "If you shoot
the virus by accident all the work is destroyed." The officer smiled a cold
smile at me. "Callaway! Bring him here!"
A human marine advanced with Cricket, he shoved him forward, between them
and me.
"Get on your knees." The officer bellowed to Cricket. "Place your
hands on your head."
Cricket complied; he sat awkwardly with his arms over his head. Another
soldier stepped forwards, he carried a gun, he pressed the muzzle against
Cricket's skull.
"Give it to us or I'll shoot."
Trapped.
"Don't listen to them!" Cricket shouted, "They'll shot
anyway!"
"Andalite, do not tempt my patience. Give us the virus -and you shut
up."
The officer kicked Cricket hard. Cricket grunted in return but did nothing
more.
"Dump the virus for god's sake!" Solo yelled form somewhere.
Yes but where? If only I had a shredder, I would have destroyed it, I
could do nothing to it using my tail blade.
The military men were getting angrier.
Aximili do not allow the virus to fall in their hands! It was
Prince Noroa.
A human inched towards me, slowly but steadily.
What could I do? I couldn't hand it over. I couldn't just throw it
either, if I did there maybe a possibility of my exposure to the virus and
Prince Noroa, if the container broke, it will still allow the humans to take a
sample of it and recreate it.
Unacceptable.
"If we lose that virus your friend here will die." Commanded the
officer, Cricket looked at me with nervous eyes; I was familiar with his
feeling. The anxiousness, the fear.
What to do then?
I stared at Cricket. He was looking at the virus then at me, he tilted
his head slightly, and gave me a significant look. I looked at the container;
surely…there was a possibility that I could stop them from killing me and
destroying the virus.
The virus was in the container.
If it were in something else…
'In you' Cricket mouthed. If it were in me! That was what Cricket was
trying to say! The way out was for me to inject the virus in my blood stream.
No.
I felt a cold shiver run up my spine. I knew it was the only way out.
Cricket mouth 'do it'. The officer was unaware of his communication.
I pressed the muzzle of the gun-container against my arm. The superior
officer yelped, and then shouted an order.
Ax! Tobias yelled, No!
There was a sharp sting as I pressed the trigger and the virus was no
longer in the container but in me.
"Arrgh!" The superior officer snarled. He shoved past his marines and
walked towards me, "That was very stupid of you,
you see, now we need you. Andalite."
Standing five feet away from me and in front of Cricket the commanding
officer held the gun to Cricket's head, the other officer moved out of the
way.
"A very stupid move."
I saw the fear in Cricket's eyes. But he offered a shaky smile. A
victorious one. He mouthed; 'you got it Andalite. Take care. Tell the rest not
to be sorry.'
The next thing I saw was him slumping over, his head a complete mess. My
ears were ringing from the gun's explosion.
"CRICKET!" Solo screamed, "Noooooo!"
The commanding officer shoved Cricket's lifeless body away and started
to walk menacingly towards me.
Ax let's get out of here! Come on! I wasn't sure who said
that. Rachel? Marco? Tobias?
I was still staring at the human named Cricket. This was not the first
time I had seen death, but the first time I had witnessed a human, a free
human, kill another one in cold blood. There was no need to shoot him, why take
his life? No Andalite officer or marine would have done something like that.
Maybe he knew that Cricket was a partner with the enemy, most likely not.
Ax! This time it was Prince Jake. I turned and fled.
My hearts raced as I pushed myself out of the lab and into the corridors
and to the docking bays, we had a fighter waiting. Solo was at the helm. Prince
Noroa was there with Cassie, Jake, Tobias and Marco who were all in the fighter.
Rachel, were was she?
Behind me, she shoved me in and the hatch closed behind us.
Prince Noroa stole a glance at me, a nervous one. I didn't blame him.
"That was one stupid thing to do, Ax!" Rachel yelled as she demorphed,
"What were you thinking?"
I didn't answer her. Couldn't.
Prince Jake said, "What happened, happened. It was the only way we
could escape with the virus, and have Ax with us."
Yeah, we wouldn't have him with us for long. Maybe it was just
me, but the undertone of Tobias's neutral though speak held back anger.
Did they blame this on Prince Jake? Surely not, I was the one who decided
on that. I chose the virus over death.
Prince Jake is not to blame for this. I said, That was my
decision alone. No one forced me to do it.
But that was not true, Cricket had showed me the alternative to death.
Not a real alternative but a stalled death. Now that I thought about it clearly
I wished I had chosen a quick death. Like Cricket.
No. I did not want to die yet, but I didn't want to die sick either.
No one stopped you from doing that.. Tobias muttered.
"How are you feeling Ax?" Cassie asked me, interrupting a starting
argument.
Her question startled me a bit, how was I feeling now that I had a killer
virus in me? Did she want to know how was I feeling mentally of physically, with
Cassie you could never be sure.
"Ax?" She prompted.
Fine. I muttered.
Q-H V-5 takes time to affect it's carrier. Prince Noroa
muttered.
"Is that what they call the virus?" Rachel asked.
Yes. It could- But he looked at me and stopped. I had a feeling
there was more to what he wanted to say but refrained from saying it as he
though it may panic me.
A commendable measure. As I was already bordering panic.
We have to go back to the home world. Prince Noroa said quietly.
"I'm on that." Solo sounded distant.
I heard whimpering in the corner of the fighter I turned a stalk eye and
to my surprise I saw the Sasi scientist that had angrily shouted at me.
Tobias said, I got Rachel to grab him along so…you know…if anyone
could find out how to kill the virus it would have been the person who worked on
making it.
The scientist was no longer angry, in fact he was now purely terrified.
But he spoke nothing to us.
Prince Jake took me to aside and talked to me, "Ax, are you okay?"
Yes.
"Are you sure? The others are getting a bit nervous."
I am fine Prince Jake, I paused, should I really tell him what
was bothering me? No. Jake shrugged and walked away.
Marco was watching Solo managing the human fighter, which he told us was
called a G-fighter model 45. After a while Prince Noroa took the helm, Solo sat
alone, withdrawn. I went to him.
"Hey there Andalite." He gave me a weak smile that didn't quite
work its way to his eyes. "I wouldn't have known if I would have had the
guts to do what you did." His voice was a bit bitter; he was implying
something.
Then I understood, he wasn't talking about the virus, he was talking
about his sacrificed friend.
Cricket told me what to do. I said slowly.
That made him turn around, "Excuse me?"
I wouldn't have known what to do. I paused, He told me to
tell you not to sorry about him.
"Oh." He looked stumped, "Sorry."
What For?
He shrugged, "I thought it was a mixture of Andalite ignorance and
arrogance that had you make that decision."
I laughed Maybe it was.
"Say, you people aren't so different from us." Solo looked at me
with new interest in his eyes, "I wonder why our governments draw a line
against each other."
I shrugged my shoulders, a human habit I picked up. Then Solo went off to
rest. I stood alone thinking.
I was going to be taken back to my home planet.
I didn't know what to expect from them, I didn't know if it was a
good idea or not. My conscience told me not to expect much at all.
For his part, Prince Noroa was not as arrogant as princes are known to
be, but I thought of it as a side effect, maybe he was still back there in the
human lab surrounded by death. I knew that he knew what kind of death I was
facing, and I knew he was a bit edgy.
Not of me, but of the humans.
Cassie took me by my arm and talked to me when most of the crew were
resting, I had just arisen from a light sleep and she had come over to me.
"You look tired."
Do I?
"Yes, and you're preoccupied." She said in a low whisper, she was
avoiding waking the others up. "And I don't think it has anything to do with
Q-H V-5. So what is it?"
I was not surprised that Cassie had noticed this, but I was yet again
amazed at her abilities.
I sighed, Well, we're going back to my home world.
"It's great isn't it?"
I think sometimes, you should access humans not with what they say, but
with what they don't say, and how they don't say it. Cassie is such an
example, and Marco at times is too.
Cassie have felt that this was the root of my problems, that going back
to the home world did not seem so great after all, by saying that it's great
she measures just how 'un-great' it was from my reaction to her words.
Marco and Cassie extensively use open-ended questions, a lot of
calculated humans do, that would be Marco's approach. However Cassie does it
in what Marco calls 'the shrink approach'.
I do not know how Cassie thinks she could shrink me, I think that by
shrink approach Marco does not mean 'shrink' literally.
I am worried about what they would say.
Cassie frowned, "Your superiors?"
No, I have long accepted their skepticism.
Finally Cassie understood, she nodded, "Your parents?"
I did not answer her, I didn't need to.
"I'm sure they'll understand."
At that moment Marco stirred, he sat up yawned, looked at the others who
were sleeping then went back to sleep.
After
a period of six hours I had felt nothing, I still didn't.
I wondered if I really did take the real virus. I walked towards the
crouching scientist, he cringed when he saw me approaching him.
"What?" He said.
How long does it take the virus to make it self physically
present?
He looked as if he might refuse to answer, he gave in to defeat but then
smiled coldly, "You'll find out, eh?"
I turned away and joined Prince Noroa at the helm. How long do we
have until we reach them? I asked.
Not long. Z-space's configuration is on our side for
now.
Yes, but how long?
Two more hours, we hadn't been very far from the home world when we
started off.
This startled me, I had thought that we would at least spend a day on
ship, I didn't know if that was good news or bad news.
The good news these days seem to become increasingly bad, I did not know
why I was so reluctant to coming back to the home world. Maybe with all the time
I spent on Earth I had finally stopped hoping that I would ever go back home,
that I would never run across Andalite ground, that I would never see my parents
again.
Prince Noroa identified himself to the main spaceport; they immediately
allowed us a pass once the formerly confirmed dead Prince Noroa-Distl-Atamol was
found to be alive.
We were taken to a room were an Andalite official stood tall, alongside
him was another Andalite and a total of six guards stood in the room.
The Andalite official identified himself as Cassador-Thiyl-Corass a
member of the high command, the other Andalite was someone named War Prince
Raheeb-Jaril-Pothun.
Prince Noroa proceeded in telling them our tale. They were all shocked
that the Aristh that had lived amongst humans was still alive and un-aged
and were also surprised that the morph capable humans were with him too.
The Andalite official grew exceedingly angry as he heard of the human
ploy against the Andalites. But Cassador fell silent when he was told of my
condition.
I wasn't concentrating much on what was happening, I was fretting
slightly, nervous. I felt like I was a bit restless. Where those signs of the
virus? I didn't know. Maybe they were signs of my mental state, it would
explain much.
Suddenly it was too much, just too much. I sagged halfway to the ground
before my legs grew strong enough again, Tobias shouted something and War Prince
Raheeb shouted another.
I was taken away with Prince Noroa, Tobias- who was adamant that he stays
along my side and Cassador followed as he talked to one of his officers. The
officer disappeared.
The next
hour was nothing but confusion, they isolated me completely from direct contact
and every Andalite I saw from then on either had a suit on, or was watching me
from behind an observation window.
I had no idea exactly how many times the doctor who supervised me asked
me general questions like my name and who I am and how much I remember from the
hours of first being exposed to the virus. I also had no idea how many times
they drew blood samples.
Tobias was still at my side; he talked to me from time to time and I'd
hear an officer raging something at the human scientist who made the virus.
Until now, he had told them nothing.
And suddenly in between the jumbled mayhem a thought speak voice I
recognized immediately.
Tobias said, I'll, er, leave for now, okay Ax?
I barely heard him. But he flapped away.
Aximili-kala.
I truly believed I was hallucinating I just stared. No, I was not talking
to my father was I? No this had to be a dream; I'll wake up in my scoop back
on Earth and hate myself for believing the dream to be reality.
But my long sought for dream was a reality. And strangely the emotions
that were surfacing were not the ones in my dreams, I had often fantasized that
I would be standing firm and tall explaining things rationally to my parents, I
never once thought that I'd be lying on my side, totally helpless and with the
life expectancy of around ninety six hours.
What's wrong? I heard my father say, Is he unresponsive?
What was wrong? Everything was wrong. Everything from the day I had
proudly stood on the bridge of the Galaxy Tree with Elfangor right back
to being sent to the dome.
I must have appeared in a daze. I snapped out of it, in an unsure thought
speak voice I asked, Father? Is that really you?
My disbelief must have reached him, because he turned to me, Yes,
that is me. Why do you sound so surprised?
His general thought speak tone reached my mind and calmed me, I
thought I'd never see you again. I thought that…
He looked at me from behind the suit he was forced to wear, as if he
might put aside my remark, but the truth touched him. Yes, me too. Was
all he said.
Me too? What about mother?
I asked him. He laughed, When you talked to me via the communication
on Earth and your mother heard about it she was worried out of her mind. His
laughter died out as he continued, After we were told that you were
dead…It was almost too much for Forlay, with Elfangor gone and then you.
He sighed.
So you know? I
almost dreaded the answer.
Did I know what? That Elfanogor was gone? That during all those years
we had thought you were dead you were alive? That what Aximili? He said in a
slightly embittered tone, That you were conflicted? That you had confused
your loyalties?
There it was.
I heard it. Disappointment. Right out of my father's mouth. No mind.
What was I saying? Andalites don't have mouths; I've spent too much time on
Earth, too much.
I had no answer to what he said. What had I been thinking? All those
years on Earth? Was loyalty to my adopted people more important than raising my
father's pride? Than staying loyal to my own people?
I realized that I was alone with my father, alone but with him and the
doctor who was too busy doing something to pay much attention.
Father, there are a lot of things that you do not know about, things
about Elfangor, things about me, I paused, slightly then continued, when
I was first marooned on Earth, I was much like the Aximili you had grown
accustomed to. But that is no longer me. I avoided father's eyes, I did
not want to see his expression, the pang of guilt and sadness that threatened to
engulf not just him but me too.
Fighting along side these humans, the people my people had signed off
for death had lead to unanswered questions, these questions led to questioning
what exactly was the Andalite morality.
Humans may have been primitive at the time I was with them, but they
were mentally, just as complex as Andaites, and at times I thought more. The
humans that you will meet, father? They are more than just allies, they have
grown to be my friends, and at times, my only family.
They welcomed me in opened arms, and they rarely directly questioned
my loyalty to them. They were there and fighting alongside me when members of
my own race have hid and ignored their duties -my thought speak voice shook
slightly - They have many a time laid down their lives for me, and so had I
in return. They fought a desperate fight, and I fought along side them.
The Andalites here may take me as a traitor of my actions, but I
solely believe that I was no traitor, it was the Andalites who I have
encountered had showed treasonous as well as criminal activities. And when I
came to understand my brother's past, the missing three years he had
spent…he spent them on Earth. Father, Elfangor was a hero, but there came a
time before mine when he ran from all the quarrels of our race. He spent his
time on Earth. And he… I trailed off, gathered enough strength to do what
I must, Tobias's right, He settled for three years father. And he had a
son, a human son.
Through out my speech my father had just started at me, I was afraid
he'd turn and walk away, and ignore what I was telling him, blaming it all on
the fact that right now I was not in a very stable condition.
But to my surprise he didn't. He must have caught my expression. Very
quietly he said, We know.
That startled me, You know?
We. He confirmed, The entire Andalite race.
Wha…How? I was amazed.
Your brother's hirac delest reached the home world, it was
in the electorate's decision to read it out to the public.
You know everything?
Everything. My father smiled, And Elfangor is still a hero,
and you Aximili had been a sort of legend to the people. Many approve of you yet
there are some that disapprove.
I said nothing to that.
We are very proud of you. Aximili. Your mother and I. He said,
Even though Elfangor's killer still lurks in the galaxy.
He is still alive? I wondered.
Yes. But that does not matter much to me anymore. It used to, but not
anymore.
I felt…calm. Relieved. My parents knew everything. I was not as alone
as I'd thought I'd be.
The boy is still alive? My father asked.
I smiled, Yes father. He is.
As your mother would say, at least part of Elfangor still exists.
That is an improvement on all improvements. I smiled again.
Your mother would be here sometime today, they assigned her on this
project whose aim was to keep Kafit bird levels on rise on the Eastern outcrops
of Nebenao.
Birds.
I had to tell him. It would make things easier for my nephew. It was
strange referring to Tobias by that title.
Father. Tobias. Elfangor's son is a human. But-
He turned all four eyes on me, But what?
He is a nothlit.
My father appeared to be alarmed.
He was trapped in a morph at the beginning of the war, he had
adjusted to his new life but at some point his morphing powers were restored, he
even has a morph of his own original human body. This was done by the Ellimist.
Then he could morph?
Yes. But he prefers to stay in his bird form; he…Tobias resents
more change to his life. It had taken him a very long while to adjust to his new
life and he feels that if he is to become another nothlit he would have a
hard time readjusting.
He had stayed as a nothlit during the war? Even though he
could have returned to his natural form? My father sounded amazed. This is
Elfangor's son.
I laughed a little at that, but I had often wondered about Tobias, and by
now understood that it wasn't exactly strength that helped him make this
decision. More truthfully it was the lack of it.
Ah well, his decision to remain nothlit angers one of my human
friends. Her name is Rachel. -My father looked at me,- She has a certain
amount of affection towards him.
I would like Elfangor's son to remain with us. He is, after all
family. My father said.
I did not reply to that. I wasn't quite sure of Tobias's intake on
this. But I hope I had done what my true shrom wants.
Are you feeling alright? My father looked concerned.
In some certain level? Yes. I muttered.
He left me alone then.
Only even though he left, I no longer felt so alone and lonely.
_________________
I worked very hard on this chapter, please review it, I want to know what you
think about it. You'll be happy to know that there's a lot more surprises coming
up.
