Chapter Three!
After I had visited Cassie's house and the Gardens, I had a few morphs, wolf, owl, horse, raccoon, falcon, mouse, dolphin, spitting cobra, white tiger, fly, cockroach, lion and hyena. Okay, maybe a little more than a few, but anyway. By the time I got home Robyn and Jack were back so after I got the 'Where were you, don't do that again, leave a note next time' speech, I decided to ask them a very important question.
"Why didn't you tell me that I'm adopted?"
"What are you talking about Arianna?"
"I found the adoption certificate in the photo album. Why didn't you tell me?"
"Arianna, we thought you would be happier not knowing. We thought it was the best thing to do." Robyn replied.
"Better for who?"
"Better for you, sweetheart." Jake answered.
"Okay, firstly don't 'sweetheart' me and secondly, don't you mean better for you two so you could go on pretending that you really are my parents?"
"Arianna, we're really really sorry, we made a mistake, and we should have told you."
"Apology not accepted, Robyn."
"What do we have to do for you to forgive us?" Jack asked.
"Well, there is something," I said with a smile "Firstly I want my curfew extended until 11 on school nights and whenever I feel like coming home on weekends. Secondly, I want a phone line in my room, phone and internet. Oh and thirdly, I want a sound proof shed built in the back corner of the yard, so that can be my room and I'll design it and decorate it."
They both looked at me in astonishment.
"Well, it's either that or I run away."
They both agreed quickly. I smiled and started to design my new room.
At about 6:30 that night I walked to Cassie's house and met everyone in the barn.
"Okay guys," Jake said when everyone had arrived "There's a Sharing meeting tonight and we are going to go and spy on it and see if we can come up with any useful information."
"Let's do it."
"For once Xena agreed to something that's not dangerous."
"You know how these things work out, Marco. We start out with something simple, then get into a fight and I end up saving your sorry ass."
(Score one for Rachel.) Tobias commented.
"Can we just get on with this?"
"Sounds good Jake. I have a maths exam tomorrow and I'm planning on studying." I said.
"Do we really have a maths exam tomorrow, Rhi?" Marco asked me "No one told me."
"Yeah well if you paid attention occasionally you might know these things."
"Everyone shut up and morph."
(Yes Prince Jake.)
We all morphed owl except Tobias who stayed hawk and took off.
(So what does the Sharing have to do with Yeerks?)
(It's all a front; they use it to get hosts. People join and end up getting infested.) Cassie explained.
(Okay, so who do we know that's a controller?)
(Well, for one there's Chapman, he's a high ranking controller, loads of media people so they can cover up anything that goes wrong. Just about anyone could be.)
(Tom is.) Jake added quietly.
(Tom as in your brother Tom?)
(Yeah, he has been for ages.)
(One more question, will they be able to hear us?)
(Not unless you direct your thought-speak to them. You choose who you want to talk to, you can talk to everyone, a group of people or just one person. Try it now.)
(Okay uncle Ax. It is okay that I call you that isn't it?) I asked in what I hoped was private thought-speak.
(Yes that is fine with me.)
(Ha ha I did it!)
(Arianna?)
(Yeah Tobias?)
(About this morning I didn't mean all that stuff I said. I was just worried that you were a controller.)
(That's okay big brother.) I said as we landed and demorphed.
"Okay, everyone go small and/or inconspicuous" Jake said.
"Oh big word for Jake." I said. "I'm so not going fly or roach, ill go mouse."
"Watch out for the instincts." Rachel warned.
"And watch out for your brother, he might decide he's hungry."
I ignored Marcos remark and started morphing. I shrunk, I've never exactly been tall but now everything looked like a sky scraper. I finished morphing and then the mouse brain kicked in and took over. Running, running, running. I regained control, decided to see if mice can walk backwards, feel over in the process, turned and ran back to the others.
(Sorry, mouse took over. Ha ha I'm Stuart Little!)
Everyone began to morph. Cassie and Jake to fly, Ax and Tobias to roach, Rachel to cat and Marco to snake.
(I haven't got you back for dive bombing me yet.) Marco said as we set off in the direction of the people.
(You wouldn't eat me.)
(No but I might bite you.)
(You wouldn't. now go away, your scaring the mouse.)
I watched Marco slither off and hide under a nearby table. I walked a bit further and did likewise. After hearing countless boring snatches of conversations, I heard something interesting.
"Visser, the cameras in The Gardens are up and running."
"Are they being monitored?"
"Around the clock Visser."
"When did this start?"
"Five o'clock this afternoon, Visser. Monitored from news room 10." The first voice said and they both left.
(Guys? I think I found something.)
(Yeah and find out something here too, so hang on a second.) Cassie said.
When Cassie finished listening we all retreated, demorphed and I told them what I heard.
"Luckily you went earlier, Arianna otherwise we'd all be in shit." Tobias said.
"What did you find out Cassie?" Rachel asked.
"Well, you know the new ride that's getting built, the cars stop in the middle of the ride, a wall opens, and the cars go down there and straight to the yeerk pool. So everyone that goes on the ride ends up a controller."
"Okay, firstly we're getting the cameras because there won't be as many controllers there and this is Arianna's first battle and she has no idea what she's up against. So Arianna, Marco and Tobias will attack the cameras, as lame as that sounds, the rest of us will mess up that news room. Then we'll move onto the ride and do what we can there. Marco, Arianna and Tobias, you can start without us if you want, we won't be too far behind. Tobias, you're in charge of that group. Let's go"
We all got wings and flew off. Tobias, Marco and I landed near the back door entrance, leading behind the exhibits where the cameras were and morphed. Tobias to polar bear, Marco to gorilla and I went tiger.
(Open the door Marco) Tobias ordered.
(Yes sir.) Marco replied, saluting and pulling the door off its hinges.
(First ones mine!) I yelled seeing the first camera.
I ran at the camera, jumped, wrapped my front paws around it and swung until it dropped. Marco waved at a camera before punching it in. we continued like this for a while before coming across a small group of Hork-Bajir, needless to say, they didn't last long.
(There's three passageways here guy, we're going to have to split up.) Tobias informed us. (If you come across something you can't handle, go back and follow someone else and we can go back later.)
I took of down the middle passage, Marco took the left and Tobias took the right. Soon I was facing three Hork-Bajir. I lunged at one and ripped out its throat and felt a pain across my back and bit back a scream, one of the other Hork-Bajir had sliced my back. I took down another Hork-Bajir and the remaining one ran at me, I jumped and it sliced my front paw and I ripped its throat out. This time I screamed, the pain was almost unbearable.
(You okay Rhi?)
(Yeah, I think I'll live just a few scratches)
I ran down the rest of the corridor on my three good legs and soon met up with Marco and Tobias.
(Come on, we've got to be almost done.) I said.
We continued at a walk and came across more Hork-Bajir and finished them off easily and soon came to the last camera.
(Big smiles, wave to the camera!)
We all smiled and waved at the camera before Tobias smashed it and we ran back out side.
(Okay guys, dimorph and remorph so we can get started on this ride.) Tobias said.
(Yes oh featherful leader.)
(Marco, shut up and get on with it.)
We finished remorphing and wandered around for a while until we found the ride.
(That would be it, the half finished one, with all the people, Hork-Bajir and overgrown centipede things.)
(Taxxons, Arianna, they're called Taxxons.) Tobias corrected.
(In the words of Rachel, Lets do it!) Marco yelled.
We ran towards the crowd and randomly attacked, trying not to kill the people, well too many of them. Soon we were joined by another tiger, a wolf, an elephant and good old uncle Ax. Rachel, the elephant, headed straight for the half built ride and trampled as much as she could while the rest of us tried not to get killed. After about an hour and a half of fighting we retreated.
(Good job everyone. Get wings and go home.) Jake said.
(Mission accomplished.) Marco added.
I got home and collapsed on my bed. So much for studying.