My name is Max, Max Tate. I can say it now, because the war is drawing to a close. It's the final battle. I'm standing on the bridge with the Blade Breakers and the Animorphs.
We couldn't find Tyson. Why? Because even though Jake and Kai expressly told him not to, he insisted on going on the suicide mission to capture the blade ship.
Rachel's losing, and badly. She's destroyed or knocked out all but the polar bear and Tom himself in Cobra morph. //Tobias! Help!// She gasped, losing blood and feeling Tom's venom.
I didn't want to look! I didn't want to look! But I had to, I had to watch the end! It was only right that I watch them, both of them in their last battle.
//I can't Rachel! I can't!// Tobias said desperately.
//No… eyes…// Rachel gasped.
//O..okay.// Tobias said faintly. //When I say so, grab left… NOW!//
Rachel caught Tom with superhuman reaction times. //NO! PLEASE! I BEG YOU!//
//Sorry Tom.// Rachel said calmly. She bit Tom.
There was a crack as Tom's neck broke. He died instantly. Rachel demorphed. "Good old bear…" She murmured, dazed.
The polar bear moved in on her. He had her cornered. //You fight well human.// He raised his paw to strike.
But the polar bear didn't notice the figure rising up from beneath a bulkhead. A shaggy, ten foot five, raging angry Kodiak bear. The Kodiak bear daintily tapped him on the shoulder. //So do you.// Tyson said calmly. I could picture him grinning in triumphant, unholy joy.
He punched the bear through they eyes, pickaxe claws unsheathed. His claws drove into his brain, killing the controller instantly.
Tyson demorphed and rushed to the helm. Rachel took up weapons. "Computer, Damage report!"
"Controls have taken fifty six percent damage." The computer said with almost infuriating grace.
"Right, Jake, I think I can get this crate out of here." Rachel told him. "It's all vocal right Visser?" She asked.
Visser One nodded his head. //Yes. Amazing things you humans do.// He told Jake. //I would never have expected…//
He stopped at the look on Jake's face. "Tobias, Kai, Kenny, go get them at whatever bay they come in from and bring them here. Tyson you'd better hope that I'm calm by then because if the yeerks don't kill you first I will myself!"
"Yes mother." Tyson said absently from his control panel. "Preparing to dock with the pool ship."
"Right." Jake said calmly. "I need to go with Toby and see to the yeerk prisoners, when we get back I want to see one yeerk in a box and a ticked off andilite officer on screen." He left.
Marco found a briefcase full of cookies. We ate the cookies and then, when Visser One left Alloran's body, we put him in the cookie/case.
All over the ship thoughtspeak reports were coming in. Tobias handled these.
//Lee here, deck one is clear.//
//Michael calling in, I think I've found the cargo bays. There was a brief scuffle but we're alright in here.//
//Tala here. We've got a situation in the infirmary. Bryan busted a wing, but I think we're okay.//
//This is Robert. We've finished in engineering and are proceeding to deck one to meet up with the Tigers as planned.//
//These are Ozuma and Kane. The pool is locked down, over!//
//Zeo here. We've met up with Lee and Robert. We're going ahead sweep the decks.//
//Kenny here. We've met up with Rachel and Tyson. We're bringing them to the bridge. What… what do we do with the… bodies from the ship?//
//Leave them for now Kenny. Get up here. We've got the bridge on lock down but we need help to keep it that way.//
Marco and Alloran were busy trying to convince the officer of the day that we were not controllers. That was when my mother came running in, breathless. "Michael says that the infirmary is clear…" She began. "And who's this?"
We introduced her to the officer of the day. //And you are?// He asked, miffed.
"My human friends call me Judy Tate. You know me as Judin Olarn Sorath." Mom said with a smirk.
That stopped him cold. //I'll get the captain.//
//JUDIN!!??// Alloran gasped.
"Alloran!" She cried, running to him and throwing her arms around him. The two of them did a little happy dance.
//JUDIN YOU MADE IT!// Alloran cried. //IT WAS YOU THE WHOLE TIME! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO THWARTED THEM IN NEW YORK!!!// He said accusingly.
"Of course, NYC is my town, no way I was gonna let it fall to a bunch of slugs!"
The captain's arrival on screen interrupted their happy reunion. His name was Asculan. //This had better not be a yeerk trick.// He said, annoyed.
Mom and Alloran conferred for a moment. Then Alloran stepped forward. //Captain, Visser One has surrendered. We will bring the pool ship to any point you name. We will deploy bugfighters and exactly five Earth minutes after we arrive, we will detonate them. After that we will allow you to board. Judy is currently remote deactivating the blade ship, which was captured by human guerillas approximately thirty Earth minutes ago.//
That was when Jake came in. "Where do we stand."
A short argument followed. We almost lost it until Marco said, feigning stupidity. "Hey Jake! Is it true that everybody on the Andilite home world can see us? Cool! Howard Stern rules everybody!"
We all facefaulted. The andilite turned several shades that I was sure weren't natural skin tones for his species. After another brief argument, which Jake won, a place and time was agreed upon. That was when the captain asked, staring at my mother with awe.
//And who is this human Judy?// He asked. //Is it true that she is THE Judin?//
"Yes." Mom said with a wane smile. "Captain Asculan, I am Judin Olarn Sorath. I have been trapped in human morph for fourteen years, following a fire at the human landmark known as Balkov Abbey. Through a series of serendipitous events I regained my power to morph. Having preserved my DNA in the morph preservation device in my damaged fighter, I gained a morph of my old andilite body, as it was five earth years after my fighter crashed on Earth."
//And your report Judin?//
"Upon recovering the escafil device remaining on Earth after the crash of Elfangor's fighter, the leader of the yeerk resistance on Earth, Jake Berenson expanded the resistance by bringing in teams from a game that I and three of my human friends created. The game is called Beyblades. Teams of fours and fives battle gyroscopic tops and try to knock the enemy from the ring. These teams knew each other and had already proved themselves. In doing so, and using additional morph cubes which he'd found in the ruins where I'd hid my fighter he expanded the resistance planet wide."
Captain Asculan was grave again. //And you had no part in this?//
"I vowed my services to Prince Jake. There was no way that I could question him." Mom said calmly. "Captain Asculan, I'd like to introduce you to my son, Max and my nephew Tobias son of Elfangor, who was trapped in morph, but who like me, regained the ability to morph into his old form."
I flushed several unnatural shades of my own. "Hello." I said shyly.
//Hi.// Tobias said, embarrassed.
"For the past year I have been teaching him the ways of the people. I would like, Asculan, permission to bring my nephew, my son and his team to the homeworld for a few months. I want him to meet his grandparents. His education would need to be complete. Nobody ever knows everything. I hope to keep going, to keep learning…"
//Now that is one condition, War Princess 'Berserker' Judin Olarn Sorath, that I can grant you.//
~OWARI~