Thanks for the reviews everyone. They are encouraging and constructive criticism is welcome
Oh, yeah. I still don't own Animorphs, and I don't own the Stargate universe either. That's MGM's.
Cassie
After we got over the initial shock at hearing that Earth had spent time as part of some alien's empire thousands of years ago, Erek gave us some more detailed information about Ra.
"We don't know if it was something in his physiology, or something artificial, but Ra had extraordinary longevity," Erek was saying. "He ruled for thousands of years."
(Are you sure it was the same guy?) Tobias asked.
"Positive," Erek said. "What's more, his Jaffa were no slouches in the health and vitality department themselves. Healthcare and sanitation in Egypt then was not what it is today, but the Jaffa never got sick, and anything short of a fatal injury was healed within a couple of days or so."
"So now in addition to the Yeerks, we have immortal, fast healing aliens who think their gods to contend with," I said.
"Is there any way you can track these death gliders?" Jake asked. "Find out where they're coming from."
"I wish there was, but no." Erek said. "Even if we could, I don't know what could be done at this point. The death gliders have to be coming from space. A landed ship like Ra's would stick out a bit."
"So we're helpless?" Rachel said. "I don't like helpless."
"None of us do," I told her. "But at this point what can we do?"
A week later the six Animorphs were gathered in my barn. The incident with the death gliders had not been forgotten, but to us the Yeerks were the more immediate matter.
The Yeerks had seemed to put the glider incident behind them as well. Erek had told us the Yeerk higher-ups weren't mentioning the attack, and were going ahead with previously scheduled operations. According to Erek, this meant that the Yeerks either knew the gliders were no threat, or were terrified of them and didn't want to create a panic.
Erek had told us the Yeerks were planning to infest a U.S. Senator, who was the running mate for a presidential candidate, when he came through the town on a fundraising tour. They had an elaborate plan in place where the senator would be taken to local manufacturer that was making sizeable campaign contributions, actually a front for a manufacturer of dracon beams and Bug Fighter components, and infested from a portable Yeerk pool.
Our plan, too, was elaborate. It involved quietly infiltrating the Yeerk facility, acquiring human-Controllers who worked there, and then quietly leading the senator out.
As Marco was quick to point out, our elaborate plans generally collapse into bloody melees.
Now we were in my barn hashing out the last minute details. The operation would require us to go small; fly morphs were the order of the day. Ax had told us as long as we stayed away from the Yeerk production area, we probably didn't need to worry about Gleet Bio-Filters.
"How probably?" Marco had asked.
After we got inside, we would subdue some Controllers, acquire them, lock them up in a storage closet, and set out to rescue the senator.
Easy, right?
We would see.
The flight to the facility was uneventful. Erek had told us when the senator was due, so we departed so we would get to the company a few minutes before the senator did. In fact, we saw his motorcade on the way.
We were all in our pre-potential-battle roles as we flew toward the company. Marco was complaining and Rachel was complaining about his complaining. Tobias was keeping an eye on the skies. Ax was silent, only speaking when someone addressed him. On the way, I had a thought.
(What if death gliders show up again?)
Marco's and Rachel's bickering stopped dead. (Then that… would be bad,) Marco said hesitantly.
(Oh, brilliant insight, Marco,) Rachel said.
I glanced at Jake. He looked back at me. I know raptor expressions can't convey emotion, but I swear Jake looked worried. And the way he looked at me told me he wasn't worried about himself.
(If the glider's show up, I want you to bail,) he said. (I'll stay to keep an eye on them.)
(Jake, did you hear anything Erek said?) Marco asked. (We can't work with these guys!)
(No, but maybe we can use them. They seem to have a beef against the Yeerks.)
(It is more likely that the Yeerks simply pose a bigger obstacle to their conquest of Earth than the humans,) Ax said.
(We are not leaving you there if the gliders show up, Jake,) I said.
(Let's worry about this if the gliders even show up,) Rachel said. (We're here.)
We had arrived at a rather inconspicuous office building, part of a larger industrial compound dominated by a large factory. The complex was a little ways outside of town. It was surrounded by dense trees, and one lone road led to it. The sign of the office building read "Universal Manufacturers."
(Fitting,) I said.
(Cliché,) Marco retorted. (The Yeerks are so uncreative. I mean, come on, if they really wanted to throw us 'Andalite bandits' off, they would have named it 'Picture Frames, Inc.' or something.)
We landed among the trees outside the industrial complex and demorphed, since the Yeerks likely had surveillance in the immediate vicinity of the office and factory. We all morphed fly except for Tobias, who we got on to fly back to the office building.
Tobias informed us of an open window on the first floor of the building. (There's a guy working in there, but he has his back to the window.)
Tobias flew low over the building and we let go of his feathers. We initially tumbled a bit as tried to orient ourselves.
(Alright, there's the window,) Jake said. (Let's go.)
Getting inside was easy. Finding our way around was not. The interior of the building was a maze of hallways, offices, and cubicles.
The plan, vague like most of our plans, was to get to an unoccupied closet, bathroom, office, or something and wait for a person to walk by. Ax would knock him unconscious with his tail and someone would acquire him. The plan called for two people to be in human morph while the others stayed small in case things got ugly.
It seemed we had underestimated the health of the economy. All of the offices were occupied, and everything else was too small for us all to demorph in.
(This operation's already going bad,) Marco said.
(That's OK,) Rachel said. (We can improvise.)
(Oh, yeah, that makes me feel better. Rachel, when we improvise, people die.)
(Only if they get in our way.)
While Marco and Rachel were bickering, I heard voices coming from the front of the building.
"It's on honor for you to be here, Senator."
"Well, it's a pleasure."
(Shoot! Guys, the senator is here,) I said. (If we're going to improvise, we need to do it pretty quick!)
(Alright, we need to get him out of here now,) Jake said. (Tobias, can you here me?)
(Loud and clear. The senator just arrived. His entourage is coming through the front door.)
(Is the door still open?)
(Yep.)
(Good. We need a distraction).
A moment later I heard a "TSEEEEEEER" and then several frantic voices. People started leaving offices and rushing toward the front door, some muttering about "cursed Andalite bandits."
(Alright, this office is emptied out,) Jake said. (Everyone in and demorph, then get into battle morphs.)
We crowded into the office and demorphed. Before we could remorph, however, we heard a familiar sound. Suddenly we heard explosions coming from the direction of the manufacturing facility.
"Please don't tell me that's what I think it is," Marco said.
I ran to the window. "Death gliders! They're destroying the factory!"
(Jake,) we all heard Tobias. (You guys need to get here now. The Yeerks know time's up here and they're trying to forcefully infest the senator. They're tying him up now. I can't stop them.)
(Are you OK?)
(After the gliders showed up the Yeerks dropped all subtlety around the senator and took out their dracon beams. I bailed. A few singed feathers, but I'm OK.)
(Battle morphs,) Jake said. (Now.)
I concentrated on the wolf DNA inside of me. The first thing to come was the fur. Grey fur sprouted all over my body. Then the tail sprouted out of my backside as my face bulged outward to form the wolf's muzzle. I dropped down on all forms as the morph concluded. Around me, Jake was going tiger, Marco gorilla, and Rachel grizzly bear. Ax stayed in his Andalite body.
(Alright, everybody,) Jake said. (Move out.)
Our timing couldn't have been better. We barreled out of the office right in front of a group of seven people who were dragging a bound and gagged man- the senator- to the back of the building.
"Andalites!" the lead man hissed in fury. "This is not a good time!" An explosion from the factory punctuated his words.
(It never is, Yeerk,) Ax said, knocking the man unconscious with the blunt side of his tail blade.
The other Controllers raised their dracon beams. I was on the closest one before he could fire, biting his arm until the dracon beam dropped to the floor. I then tackled him, throwing him to the floor.
Rachel threw two Controllers against the wall. One slumped to the ground, unconscious, while the other one frantically groped around for his fallen dracon beam. One hand found the weapon, and Ax's blade promptly removed it.
The other three Controllers managed to get shots off. Tobias rocketed across the hall, raking one man's face and causing him to drop the weapon. The other two continued firing. One shot hit Rachel in the shoulder. She roared in pain and rage and threw a door at the Controller. That's right, she ripped an office door off its hinges and threw it at the Controller. The door hit him square in the chest with a loud crack, and the Controller went down.
Jake lunged at the remaining human-Controller, pinning him to the ground. Before he could do anything else, Marco, who had the human-Controller whom I had tackled in a headlock after the man had thrown me off of him, noticed something.
(Uh, guys, there's some Hork-Bajir coming right at us,) he said. (And they don't look happy.)
We all looked back down the hall to see three Hork-Bajir coming at us. Just then, the death gliders started firing on the office building.
(Marco! Grab the senator! We're getting out of here!) Jake said.
The bound and gagged senator cowered as Marco approached him. When the gorilla picked him up and slung him over the shoulder, he struggled against his restraints and yelled incoherently from behind the gag.
(Hey!) Marco said. (Chill! We're good guys!)
As we started running down the hall in the opposite direction of the Hork-Bajir and, hopefully, the death gliders, the senator seemed to relax. Either he realized we truly were saving him, or he had fainted. Either way he was staying still.
We exited the office building into chaos. People we're running everywhere in a panic on the lawn outside as three death gliders shot up the office building and the factory behind it. Amid the confusion of attacking aliens, who weren't Yeerks, anyway, no one paid us much heed.
No one except the Hork-Bajir from whom we had been fleeing, that is.
We had almost forgotten about them, and they tried to take us by surprise, but Ax was watching our rear with his stalk eyes.
(Hork-Bajir!)
We all turned to face the threat, but Jake issued an order. (Marco, get the senator out of here! Cassie and Tobias, go with him! The rest of us will hold off the Hork-Bajir.)
There wasn't any time to argue. Marco, Tobias, and I took off, Marco with the senator still slumped over his soldier. As we ran through the mass of panicking people, Controllers began to notice us. A lunge from me or a swipe by Tobias kept us going.
We had cleared the factory compound and were almost at the trees when there was an enormous explosion. We turned to look to see the office building going up in a huge fireball.
(No!) I cried. (Jake! Rachel! Ax! Can you hear me?)
I waited. No response.
(Come on guys!) Marco yelled.
(We're coming,) we heard a slightly exhausted sounding Jake. I could see a grizzly, a tiger, and an Andalite coming toward us across the lawn, their fur singed and smoking, attacking anyone who got in their way.
When they had caught us, Jake explained. (Ax noticed a glider coming right at us; we got out the way just as it fired. It must have hit something important.) He noticed the guy slung over Marco's shoulder. (You can put him down for a sec, man.)
Marco gently set the senator down. He stared at us wide-eyed as Ax removed his restraints.
"What in God's name is going on!" he blurted out as soon as his gag was removed. "Who are you? What are you? And who were they?" He looked back toward the burning factory complex, where the death gliders were lazily strafing people on the ground. Suddenly a new sound. Two more ships came into view from behind the clouds. These resembled the death gliders, except they were more angular, like a stealth aircraft, and had two vertical stabilizers on the rear. To our surprise, the new crafts engaged the death gliders, making short work of them not with energy weapons, but with missiles. After the three gliders were destroyed, the two craft sped off.
(Ooooooh-K,) Rachel said. (And who are they?)
The senator, meanwhile, was staring wide-eyed at the whole spectacle. When he finally spoke, it was one word.
"Goa'uld."