Errr... I'm not sure how this will turn out... hope you like it though...
And buy the way, Jade's telling the story again...
"Are you insane?!!" Marco. Of course.
"Let's do it!" Rachel. Who else would go for crazy and dangerous?
"Jade, what are you?" Robert. From him... that was normal.
"Oh my... oh my..." Amanda. The worrier. My best friend too.
But it was Jake's comment that cut through them all.
"Are you sure you're not just some freaky mix between these two?" He asked, pointing from his cousin to his best friend. I shrugged and let out a small laugh.
We were in a sort of 'conference room'. Ithiell and Rtaia had made sure to recall all the Chanaibens and Andalites back to their ships, putting them on high alert. From what we heard... a couple got picked off when they were coming back. A few from each ship. Not good.
Ovatt and Kaylesse were all right, and Genge and Keera took the bridge while we all talked. I'd outlined a plan, and Jake, Ithiell and Robert all spotted problems with it. Marco wasn't saying anything. He was just sitting in his chair, leaning back on the wall with his arms folded. Ax and Lowri had come back, and had told us that all the Canask were safe, besides a few... and they also had some very interesting things to tell us.
"Apparently this race has been on the Canask world before, but something... they don't know what it was... something seemed to scare them off" Lowri had said as he and Ax stood side by side.
"And do these things have a name?" Jake had asked, leaning back against a wall, his arms folded.
(Yes. But males and females of this race have different names from one another. The males are called Tahjett, and the females Tahjinn)
I'd glanced over at Marco, waiting for the witty joke. None came.
But they also told us that these creatures can not stand extremely bright light. They live mostly in shadows, and there are very few that can actually tolerate a certain amount of light. Like the scientist Tah-whatver. What I couldn't believe is that they had genders. The lab Tar-thing didn't seem like it knew what genders even where...
And then Lowri had explained why. They are technically different species, kind of like different kinds of dogs. They only come together to create their own. Any longer and the male will eat the female (hence their cannibalistic urges). As well as a strange sort of role-reversal thing. The males carry the seeds of the future in their tentacles or whatever. I didn't want to really know that though. I'd just really had enough of it all.
So there was a way to tell them apart. We saw a female... a Tahjinn... in the lab. The males only had four large tentacles, the females had many.
Discussions raced on into the early morning, and all of us took a good solid hour away from each other before we returned to debate again.
We also had reports from the TailBlade that they'd located the two things inside an underground cave of some sorts and were waiting for instructions from their captain. It was a deliberate insult to Rtaia, but she either didn't pick it up or decided to ignore it. Ax went to talk to them one-on-one, and probably beat them down a step or two as well.
And then I'd launched my crazy new idea, and afterwards everyone started chattering away at once. It kind of gave me a headache. But it also meant they were all considering it.
Cassie hadn't really said anything. But I knew... she was probably blaming herself to an extent. I was still annoyed at her, and decided to just let her stew in her own juices for a while. Let her think about it. I guess Jake and the others had the same idea.
"You. Are. INSANE!!" Marco yelled, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me.
"Yeah, I am. I'm also ticked off that we lost so many people when it could have been prevented" I said, pulling his hands off my shoulders. I carefully avoided looking at Cassie, but they all knew what I meant.
"You could... but what about..." Amanda stuttered, indicating to my stitches.
"I say we do this all the way, and worry about the consequences later" Jake said. He looked straight at me, and I stared straight back. With us, this thing was a little more personal.
"Yep, no arguments there" Robert said, smiling at me.
"Left out again" Tobias muttered, sitting at the table with his head in his hands. I felt sorry for him. I also knew he'd be safe if he just followed the plan.
"Not quite, but it's either that or... uh..." I shrugged, not knowing what else to say to him. Thankfully, Rachel leaned down and hugged him from behind. He didn't seem to mind that.
"Five to a team. But... Jade... I can't..." Amanda looked hopelessly up at me.
"Mandy, you can do this. I trust you" I said, walking over and grabbing her shoulders gently. I looked into those eyes that were once so vacant I thought I'd never get my friend back. But she pulled through then, like she always did. She managed to help when others were helpless. I trusted her with my life. And Robert had helped me to show her and Ithiell what they needed to do. It all relied on her and Ithiell... as well as Robert and I. Rtaia had her part too, only it wasn't as vital as ours. She didn't know what needed to be done... but we did. Still, Amanda was afraid she'd mess up. But I believed in her. I knew when push came to shove... she could do it.
She stared back at me and nodded, biting her lip nervously.
"Okay. I'll do it. I'll go kick some butt" She said, and I smiled at her.
"You're all bloody crazy!!" Marco was yelling, paced around the room tugging at his hair every now and then.
"Why, aren't you?" Robert said almost casually. Marco just looked at him, wild-eyed, then looked like he had no idea what to say. He punched a wall, paced some more, before going and sitting down, dropping his head on the table with a soft thud.
"In other words, yeah" Ithiell looked at Marco, before turning back to us.
"Think you can keep an eye on the time for us while we're in morph?" Jake asked Ithiell, looking at his best friend, then turned his eyes on Ithiell.
"Earth hours, right?"
"How many times do I have to say to you lunatics, they're not earth hours, they're everyone's hours!" Marco growled, his head still on the table.
"Not really..." he started to argue with Marco, then dropped it "I might be able to keep approximately the right time for you, but not exactly"
"Good, then that's all we'll really need"
"I don't see why we don't just go after them now, lead them..."
Rtaia cut Rachel off.
"Because the caves are dark, and those creatures will be able to use that against us. Not to mention the fact that the caves of the tunnel are too small for someone like you in grizzly bear morph to fight them. They also have the advantage of having extra limbs in which to..."
"We get it Rtaia. We get it!" I said a little exasperatedly.
"Then why not blow the damn things up with the ships lasers!" Rachel yelled, looking at each of us in turn, her eyes finally landing on Jake.
"Because we don't know what effect that'll have on the planet. We could inadvertently destroy the entire planet while we do" Ithiell told her. She just looked at him and glared.
"What's wrong Xena? Stakes too high for you this time?" Marco mocked, and I noticed he'd sat up and was looking at her.
"Oh that's it!" Rachel ran at him, fists raised, ready to beat him down. But to my surprise... to everyone's surprise... Robert blocked her, grabbing her wrist as she prepared to swing her fist at Marco.
"Hey wow, Rachel, calm down"
"You calm down! I've had all I can take of this... this..."
"He's a runt. Let it go" He let go of her wrist, and after a tense moment she stepped back a little, nodding.
"Okay, we go tonight, when they start to move. But we have got to be fast, before they get a chance to go after anyone else, got it?" Jake asked, looking at each of us. We got it. We definitely got it. Even Marco, who we all knew would go along with it anyway.
Then he looked at me. "Now all we need to worry about is you"
I shook my head, smiling.
"No, you don't" I watched as he nodded, a little darkly, seemed to accept what I said.
"Okay, meet back at..." he looked at Ithiell.
"We meet back at about four-thirty. Don't worry, I'll make sure we're all awake before then. I'll just get Genge to issue a yellow alert, all right"
"Sure. Sounds good to me" Jake said, smiling and yawning before he adjourned the meeting and we all started heading off. We all needed some sleep, and maybe something to eat. Maybe I could wash my hair or something...
Before I left though, I grabbed Robert's arm. He looked strangely at me, but stayed anyway.
"I just want to say... uh... thanks for defending Marco. It was..."
"I just didn't want those two in any worse shape than we all are now" He said casually, but he smiled down at me anyway. I returned the smile.
"And thanks for... you know, making me understand..."
"I didn't make you do anything Jade. I just told you the truth"
"Well, maybe I needed a good slap in the face. Thanks, and..."
"Thank me after I've saved your sorry butt tonight" He said, patting me on the shoulder before walking off too, and I watched him walk away.
Little did I know just how much those words would mean.
----------------------------------------------x----------------------------
That afternoon, we were all assembled near the open hatch. Ax, Lowri, Genge and Keera were with us. Keera and Genge, as always, were worried about their 'captain'. Lowri was worried about all of us, and Ax was coming with me. If it all came down to it, I knew I'd need him most of all. With Robert and Amanda's help, I had made sure Lowri knew what to do if we failed. He understood, and he would risk everyone just to pull it off. He didn't have a choice.
Before we headed off, the others needed to know if we could morph and shape-shift all right. They knew Jake would be fine, but... me, well, with the stitches... if I got caught off-guard, I might very well bleed to death.
Jake went first, morphing his tiger in record time. When he demorphed he was whole again. Ithiell had grabbed an instrument from the sickbay and checked him over. He checked out fine, for now.
"Your turn Jade" he said, and I nodded and gave myself some space, taking a deep breath before focusing my mind on a small animal. And the first thing I changed was my stomach. I focused hard, making sure the stitches disappeared into the form, hoping it worked. I opened my eyes and looked down to see it had. I know had this giant grey-blue patch of fur all around my waist and my stomach.
"All the way Jade. Since we're going to be doing that form anyway" Ithiell instructed, and I nodded, continuing to focus. My ears shifted to the top of my head and my eyes turned big and white. My legs turned spindly, and there was an itching in my mouth as my teeth changed to suit the eating style of this particular animal. I shrunk rapidly, and as my shape changed and my feet became little claws, I felt the skin flaps emerge from under my arm, connecting my torso and arm together. Little bones formed on them, and fur rippled across the rest of my body. Finally, I was a Chanaiben version of a small bat. A Chudnit.
My eyes saw the world in grey and yellow, but I had echolocation like normal bats, that could usually fill in the picture I was seeing. And at night... oh man, at night it's like nothing you could ever imagine. Compared to the Chudnit, what tiger eyes see at night is nothing.
"Now reverse it"
I did, saving my stomach and stitches for last. Finally, I was back to my old self, and Ithiell came and checked me over.
"Well, you're both all right for now, but..."
"Yeah, ok. Let's go" Jake said tersely, since the sun was already starting to disappear behind the horizon, and if we weren't in the air by then...
I watched as the Animorphs morphed bats, then focused as I realised my group was already changing. Five ordinary brown earth bats and five funny looking Chanaiben Chudnits. I watched Amanda as she blinked, and all of a sudden her eyes were big and all white. Yeah, all white. Robert's ears were getting big and sliding to the top of his head as I shrunk, and Ithiell's nose was turning into the funny three slitted nose of the Chudnit. Finally, we were all small bats or bat-like creatures, all testing our little wings or trying out our echo-location.
(Marco? Which one are you?) I asked privately.
(Uh, the here) he replied, sticking a little clawed hand up and trying to wave it, but he lost his balance and fell over. I walked awkwardly over to him on my little Chudnit feet, trying to help him up using my little nose.
(I'm ok. Jeez, was that embarrassing) he said as he righted himself.
(Think bat) I said laughing a little as I nudged him with my nose. He turned his nose to mine and we touched noses.
(Uhh... sorry, I don't think you're my type. You're really pretty and all... oh heck, why lie? You're freakin' terrifying!) He fell backward this time, on purpose. Then he began to right himself again, laughing at his own joke.
(Oh very funny) I replied as I stepped back, nearly falling over myself. Bat bodies were seriously never meant to walk upright.
(Okay, everybody ready?) Jake asked. We were.
(All right then. MOVE OUT!)
We all took to the air, flapping madly to get above Lowri and the others.
(Okay, you know what to do) Ithiell said to Lowri as we all flew out in single file.
(Let's do it!) Rachel yelled, laughing giddily. I couldn't help but laugh with her.
(I wondered when you were gonna say that) Marco told her as I finally soared out into the darkening landscape, feeling free as a bat could ever feel. Especially in this place.
(How do we attempt to catch these creatures if they do not separate like we have predicted?) Ax asked.
(We take 'em both down at once, that's what) Robert answered for us. He was right too.
(One way or another, we're ending this nightmare tonight) Cassie said, startling all of us.
(Cassie?) I asked, letting out a small Chudnit chirp.
(Look, I know what I said was wrong before, ok? But now... if they've become a threat, we've..... we have to...) Cassie seemed to be having trouble saying it.
(It's all right Cassie, we know. And I'm sorry for...)
(No Amanda, don't be. Your instincts were right. Maybe I'm just a...)
(A tree-hugging lunatic?) Marco supplied.
(I don't know what I am anymore. I thought...)
(Cassie, you're one of us. All you need to know is that you're an absolute maniac like the rest of us, ok?) Robert said gently.
(What's us exactly? Do we have a name for the... what? Eleven of us?) Marco asked.
(Yeah. The Lunatics) Ithiell said, and we all managed a weak laugh. But the fact was... this was probably the most dangerous 'mission' we'd ever been on.
(Okay, I see them.... Jeez! They move fast!) Jake exclaimed as we caught site of them going in completely different directions. I'd also noticed something else....
(They're huge! They're like full-grown now or something! And they're... they're...)
(Oh my god! It's one of each!!)
(Oh crap!) I cried, watching as the Tahjinn moved off in a completely different direction from the Tahjett.
(My god, you're right! This might be harder than we thought...) Robert trailed off.
(Split up! Two teams! You know the drill!) Jake yelled.
(Got it! Splitting up!)
Robert, Ax, Rtaia, Rachel and I veered off after the Tahjinn, and the others went after the Tahjett.
(Jade, you're in charge now, ok? You know what to do) Jake called back, making sure everyone heard him. I guess he did it more for Rachel's benefit though.
(Yeah, ok) I replied as the sun finally vanished completely behind the horizon, and we all started to use our echo-location. The greys and yellows of the landscape turned a tainted blue, and as I fired off my clicks, I saw the world like it was day. And I saw the Tahjinn. Somehow... I knew it was the one from out of me. I knew it!
And I was going to make it pay dearly for all the pain it caused me and others... Kumatt and who knows how many others. It was going to pay. Oh yes, it was...
Next chappie; the fight gets ugly! AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!