Notes:
--Yay! Longer. :P
--Andalite fun…whee.
Chapter 4
Ankulei-Shloroun-Dristhfill
By Aura Kage
Earth loomed, a giant sphere colored blue and green – but mostly blue. Clouds swirled around in its atmosphere, and I could see a hint of one moon on the other side of the planet, silvery-pale-white.
The blue is water, veteran Captain-Prince Cosolran said, touching down on an informational pad on the ship, which was rapidly displaying the collected data of Earth. Most of the planet is water…as well as humans.
Most of the humans are water? one of his Andalite children said confusedly. Both of them were far younger than I was, yet Cosolran was a veteran. Before this time, I had thought that the reason for his early retirement was an event that had happened during his career that had forced him out of the military, but I hadn't been sure. Many things are kept secret from the Andalite public.
But in ofrey morph, I had accidentally overheard he and his wife thought-speaking aloud. It turned out that the Captain-Prince actually had Soola's disease…and they wanted to enjoy life while he was still in it.
It was saddening for me to learn that. It was even more saddening for me to learn through eavesdropping. But that was life.
Most of what humans are composed of is water, his mother corrected, smiling down at him and patting his head. The young Andalite blinked and looked back down at the planet with his main eyes, delicate hands pressed against the glass.
So then they are not solid? the other inquired for him, looking up at his father.
They are solid, Cosolran said, fingers tapping against the pad and pulling up the hologram of a human. The awkward, pitiful human, tail-less and weapon-less, only two eyes in front of their heads, and with hardly any hair to cover their body against the cold. I felt sorry for them all, only able to walk on two legs. Obviously, evolution had not been kind to them.
But then again, evolution was adapting to your surroundings to allow you survival, not necessarily turning into something that would be practical.
The young Andalite laughed. They don't have a tail! How can that be? They must be just struggling to walk upright all the time! How awful!
His parents laughed, and Cosolran replied. Humans have very good balance…or so they say. But we'll find out soon enough!
It was then that I realized my first problem – I had to acquire a human! Andalites of much respect were allowed to visit Earth, and surely volunteer humans are provided for their acquiring. I would have to sneak out of the ship as soon as it touched down on the ground and see if I could find a human to acquire.
Earth grew closer, enlarging until its image no longer was able to fit into the large frame of the mirror. Cosolran turned away, no doubt to the pilot's quarters – the ship had probably been in auto-pilot this whole time, as I hadn't seen anyone but this Andalite family on board.
I skittered back to the cargo hold quickly, feeling static build in my lengthy hair, just waiting for me to direct it. I had to demorph and morph quickly into something that could escape without notice, but also something able to defend itself. Who knew what kind of malicious creatures Earth had in store?
Quickly! The ship would land any minute, and when it did, then the cargo would be unloaded! My mind ran through the different DNA I had swimming in my blood, and in the end I chose to double-morph…both a surujuli and an ofrey. The ofrey was new, and I didn't know how he would react to the surujuli, but out of my only bug-morphs I felt I would feel the safest in those.
I demorphed, just to restart my time, and then morphed back into the surujuli, feeling exhausted from the energy it took to do so. It would be worse when I morphed again and fought down the nausea, but even more horrible than that if I was caught. Even now, I knew that Fradulan would be going frantic, wondering where his decol was.
I tried to hold the surujuli's size as I called up the appearance of the ofrey in my mind. Hair grew out in all directions, large spines erupting from my slick amphibian hide. I held on to my wings, begging they would hold me, and rid myself of the blade-forelegs in hopes that I would lose weight. My tail slurped back into my body, another effort to stay light, and my swimming-legs thinned into the retractile legs. I let the ofrey pinchers emerge from my face, but stopped the stun-stinger in favor of the acidic proboscis. My eyes grew dark, to where I had no sense of color at all – everything was in grays.
I was reminded of the cat, and cursed myself for my stupidity. Of course! I had an Earth morph! Why didn't I use it?
Ankulei…you are an idiot.
But I had morphed just in time. I felt the ground vibrate, and my wings powered up and lifted me up quite easily. They even beat against my fur, creating a slight static.
Try and attack me now, Earth creatures, I thought to myself with a smile.
The door to the cargo bay opened, and I flew out, buzzing past the humans that had opened it to unload.
"Oh my freaking god! What was that?!"
"What? What was what?"
"Didn't you see that…that thing?"
"Uh…no…"
"I can't believe you didn't see it! It was huge! It was, like, a huge bug with green eyes and all this hair!"
"Man, you've had too much caffeine. From now on, you're on decaf."
~
I flew on and on until I reached a small outcropping of forest, surveying Earth. It was largely green everywhere, with a labyrinth of flat gray stone laid out on the ground, which transport vehicles used to cross back and forth, spewing a large amount of polluted air. Again, I pitied the poor humans and their destructive creations. Did they move so slowly that they had to sacrifice clean air for speed?
I demorphed in the forest and ate the grass thoughtfully, resting before I morphed again. The grass was coarse and more difficult to crush, but it provided me with nutrients, which was the important thing. I looked in vain for water, and decided that I would get water later instead.
I emerged from the forest with my clever whiskered visage and bright eyes, and walked around aimlessly, enjoying the sheer confidence and power of the cat. It did fear, yes. But there were so many other things to do. Sniff some grass. Scratch a tree. Examine with a strange, overwhelming interest in the flopping of a human's artificial hoof that was trailing something sinuous. I resisted the urge to chase after it, and focused on the next event at hand.
And realized, crestfallen, that there was no next event. Again, my failure to see ahead had taken advantage of me.
And I realized, stunned for a moment, that if I didn't know what to do, then I might be trapped on Earth forever. I could choose to show myself, of course, but that would prove that I had gone back against orders – that I had actually left the Andalite home world. My parents, Fradulan – they would be worrying. If I went back without accomplishing anything…
I pushed my mind away from the thought and tried to concentrate on what I needed to do. The cat's mind lifted a paw, and I began licking it, cleaning it from the dirt that had been trapped between my pawpads.
So Aximili was gone, into Kelbrid territory. The rescue party was gone as well. What I needed was a spacecraft able to travel in Z-space…
Oh, yes, Ankulei, the logical voice in my mind sneered. That will be easy, I'm sure. All you need to do is acquire a Z-space vessel, that's all! You should have thought this through more thoroughly before you agreed to the Ellimist, fool!
…that could come later, however. What I needed now was a human morph.
And that will be easy as well, I suppose? Are you just going to walk up to a human and tell them that you are an Andalite, and then ask them politely if you can acquire their DNA?
Well, it was an idea.
I crossed the street, checking to make sure I was not going to be crushed by the wheels of a transport vehicle like the poor creatures I had seen earlier by the road, and sat down on the smaller gray path that was evidently for pedestrians. And waited for a human to come by.
Luckily enough, I didn't have to wait long. A human couple walked right past me, and though one gave me an uneasy glance, they paid no attention to me.
"Wrooooaaawr!" I cried, trying to speak, then cursing myself for even trying. I knew that cats couldn't speak!
The humans, however, turned and looked at me, the one that had glanced at me earlier looking even more apprehensive.
Excuse me! I said instead, standing and walking towards them. I am sorry for bothering you.
"Uh…was that cat just talking?" the female said hesitantly. The translator chip in my head, placed there by Fradulan so that I would be able to understand the speech of others on one of our occasional trips to a different planet for a new morph, was quickly able to make sense of what they were saying. Humans communicated by using their mouthparts.
"It must be someone in morph," the other one said thoughtfully. He kneeled down by me and patted my head. "Aren't you?"
Yes! I said excitedly. Yes, I am!
"See," the male said pointedly, looking back at his partner, who was still hanging back. "I told you." He turned back to me and removed his hand from my head. "So, who are you? Cassie? Or are you one of those military Animorphs?"
Cassie? I echoed. I am not Cassie. I am an Andalite in morph, and I just recently arrived here.
Both humans looked around suddenly, scanning the skies. For my ship?
I was going to politely ask you if I could acquire your DNA so that I can obtain a human morph, I continued. May I?
"Uh…sure," the male said, shrugging and looking back at the female. "But you'll have to demorph first – Lisa's allergic to cats."
Of course. I demorphed, trying to make a show of it, so as not to scare the humans and to impress them as well. They didn't seem fearful of me, which was a pleasant surprise – certainly if I had been approached by a kafit bird that was actually another alien in morph, then I would be surprised and suspicious. But these humans acted as if they hadn't even been fazed by my sudden arrival. Their eyes widened as they saw me morph, the final transition being my two stalk eyes.
I lifted a hand to touch them, and they seemed to recoil from it. Their eyes ran over my deadly tail blade, and I moved it further into their view to assure them that I wasn't going to try a sneak attack.
Do not worry, I assured. You will only be momentarily drowsy as I acquire your DNA.
"Yeah, I know," the male said. "I've seen all the movies."
Movies? I echoed, touching his forehead with my finger. His mouth opened to speak back, but his eyes rolled around a bit as I acquired his DNA. I turned to the female, who still looked fearful of me, trying to keep concentration so I could meld their DNA together.
If you do not wish to give me your DNA, then you do not have to, I said pointedly. She shook her head and stepped forward.
"No, no…it's alright. I've…just never met an Andalite before," she said, smiling with her mouth and showing bright teeth, holding out her hand palm facing me. I pressed my hand against hers, and her eyes drooped as I acquired.
Thank you, I informed them just as the male was coming from his stupor. I appreciate the use of your DNA, and I will not abuse it.
It was a speech that I had said maybe hundreds of times before to other sentient species that I had acquired on different planets.
I began to morph into the form that their intertwined DNA had granted me. They watched wide-eyed, aware now, as parts of them became visible on me. My torso changed first; my blue fur lengthened and fell down to my shoulders, ears becoming smaller, the vision of my stalk eyes growing dark as they shriveled and sucked into my skull. I felt uneasy by the ability not to see in all directions, but the human neck was very flexible. The long hair brightened into a bright gold, and I felt more of me changing –
"Oh my god," the female said, shocked, quickly taking off her "jacket" – a type of artificial skin that I had learned about from Fradulan himself, to keep humans warm. She shoved it over my head, and for some reason the male started making strange loud stuttering noises.
"Waaat izz dis?" I asked, using the human jaws and tongue to communicate with them. It was difficult at first, but I quickly made sense of it. "Dis? This? Thuh. Thuh. Why duh-did you place this artificial skin on me? Mah…me."
"Stop morphing!" the female commanded fiercely. Shocked and surprised and a little angry, I complied, my Andalite body still un-morphed but my chest and shoulders and head now human.
"What is the problem? Puh. Raw. Buh-lem?" I asked, liking the sensation of words in my mouth.
"You so do not want to morph all the way," the female informed me while the male continued to make his hysteric noises. She looked around, saw the forest across the vehicle transport path, and took my hand. "Let's go over there."
She pulled at my hand with amazing strength, and I felt that my arms had been jarred from their positions on my body. Humans were so strong! And it didn't seem as if they had a problem walking at all – even walking quickly, as we did across the pathway. The male followed, snorting, and the female led be deep into the center of the forest.
"Okay, finish morphing here," she whispered, turning and narrowing her eyes at the male. "George, stop laughing! It isn't funny!"
"What is the puh-raw-buh-lem?" I repeated. "Why did you buh-ring me into a forest to continue my morph? Ph?"
"Well…" the female said uneasily, and the male's "laughing" started up anew. The female exhaled in exasperation. "Well, you weren't morphing clothing."
"Clothing? Kuh-loh-thing?" I echoed. "Is that the name for this-suh artificial skin-nuh?"
"Yeah, and you need it," the female said, smiling slightly and looking as if she would start laughing herself.
"But why-uh? It is not cold. I do not require extra skin," I informed her, beginning to take the jacket off.
"No!" she shouted, putting her hand on my arm to prevent me from doing removing the jacket. "No! Don't! Just…trust me on this. Please."
"But it is yours. Suh," I insisted. "You have given me your DNA. I do not wish to take your skin as well."
"It's…it's the law, all right?" she said, looking panicky. "Humans need to wear clo – artificial skin wherever they go."
"Why-uh?" I laughed. "That must be so uncomfortable! A-buhl. Uhn-com-for-tah –"
"It covers up…uh…parts of us that aren't supposed to be shown in public," she said hastily. "Now, wait here. You need some pants, so me and George will go get some for you. Please stay here and wait for us to come back."
"May I continue morphing now?" I asked irritably. "Ow?"
"Uh…yeah," the female said, shoving the male away from the forest. "Just make sure no one sees you."
I watched them go and finished morphing. Humans…so strange.
~
The one sun that Earth orbited was beginning to set. I had successfully acquired a human morph and human items of clothing. The latter had been totally ripped and torn when I had demorphed, but when I morphed back into the human I kept a tight clothe-item called a "leotard" that the female and male humans had thoughtfully given me. They informed me that I would only be able to morph skin-tight pieces of artificial skin before they left. Though they possessed no power to morph, evidently "movies" supplied them with information about morphing.
Now I had to find a Z-space vehicle.
Yes, Ankulei, I'm sure the next human technology market will have them in supply.
Or perhaps I should stay for a while and educate myself on humans…
Don't stall, fool! Any minute now Aximili could be getting into trouble! Coward!
I went over the facts again, walking on the "sidewalk" (as I learned it was called). Aximili went into space, into Kelbrid territory. So did a rescue party. Neither has returned. I wanted to help, somehow, which would require the possession of a Z-space ship. But even if I obtained one, I certainly couldn't go alone! That would be worse! I could be caught and sent home (if I wasn't killed first), and wherever I went Andalites would turn and point and stare and say –
"Hey, girl, put on something decent, will you?" a voice said behind me. I quickly turned and saw an adult human male standing before me, scowling down. Perhaps I had accidentally trod upon the area of his scoop.
"I am sorry. Ree," I apologized. "I did not know that this was the area of your scoop. Scuh-oo-puh."
"Scoop?" the human echoed. His scowl disappearance. "Hell, no! You must be an Andalite."
"How did you know?" I asked, surprised. He laughed.
"The movies," he said, grinning.
Again with the movies!
"Ah, yes," I said, nodding – a human gesture of acceptance or compliance. "I see. Yes, movies are very informative. In-for-mah-tiv-ah."
He laughed. "Yep, you're an Andalite alright. And obviously lost, too. The mall's down that way." He pointed back towards the direction of a very tall building. He patted my back and laughed again, heartily. Humans, apparently, found many things funny. "There're some other Andalites there, too. Go get yourself a cinnamon bun and have fun."
He walked away and I stared after him.
Well, it was a start. Perhaps this "cinnamon bun" would be the answer to my problems.