117Jorn: So… bit of background for this.

Authors Note: So we are all on the same page, this story begins with the hypothetical scenario within Alteranimorphs #1: The First Journey, where there is an extra Animorph member that attends the events of Books #1 and #11. Just made a few adjustments here and there and there we go. Now, you may not understand this story unless you've watched the "Critical Roll" series of D&D on Youtube & Twitch so I highly suggest checking them out.

Also, to clarify a few adjustments to the Animorphs canon: In this fic, I am changing it so the Animorphs in general were not children when they discovered the morphing cube in Middle School, and are more like in High School now, and are close to a 16-19 age group.

So without further delay… let's begin.

My name is Jaden.

I could give you my last name, but… I prefer it that we stay on a first-name basis for now. Trust is hard to come by these days, so the less critical info I leak out, the better.

Now I am certain that you know the story so far - the story of my friends, the Animorphs. A bunch of teenagers with a death wish as we face off against an entire invading force of brain-stealing slugs from across the galaxy, and how thanks to Elfangor we gained the ability to morph - to become virtually any living creature we can touch, and use their power to fight against them.

You know most of my friends - Jake, the fearless leader of our merry little band of misfits. Rachel, or 'Xena: Warrior Princess' as she is annoyingly called by Marco - the residential comedian and realist, Cassie our animal expert, Tobias the Hawk-boy, and Ax the Andalite. I was there when Elfangor gave us his gift - the ability to morph, and I was there through the thick of it.

Well… most of it.

Believe me, if the choice were mine I would've stayed with them through the thick of it - I was there since the beginning, all the way up to our little… safari in the Amazon with that Sairo Rip nonsense.

Then one day… my parents decided to move.

I mean, its not something I wanted, but it was something I knew was a possibility. My father was an officer in the U.S Military, so its no surprise that I have to move around a lot. But moving to another seaboard… its not something you want when in my shoes. Its not like I could walk up to my dad and say 'hey dad, aliens are invading and I'm part of the resistance. Can we stay here please?'.

Yeah that wouldn't end so well - not to mention I still wasn't sure if anyone in my family were controllers. I mean, I felt like if they were I'd know, but even Jake didn't realize his own brother was a lieutenant in the Yeerks forces. It'd be WAY too dangerous to tell them anything.

So… I said my goodbyes, we moved… and here we are, new home, thousands of miles from the world I used to know.

But I sure as hell wasn't being complacent.

Sure I was a long way away from the rest of the crew - but that didn't mean we were… disconnected. It's one of the pro's of having a race of robotic dogs as friends - they help send messages, and so many other things. The Chee were certain to make sure one of their own moved with me and my family to set things up… among other things.

The Chee Network, or 'Chee Net' as we've come to call it, is how all the Chee stayed connected to one another in one way, shape or form. Kinda like their own version of the Internet. A Chee relocated to a building close to where I live, and I just report to him when I want to give little reports and messages back to the rest of the gang at the frontlines.

I wasn't just sitting around being a good little boy, every free moment I had was being dedicated to finding new ways to fight the Yeerks. The newfound independence I've gotten has its pros as well as its cons. Namely I've been learning more survival skills from my dad - he's in the U.S Army Rangers, so I learned a lot from him on that. He also taught me how to hunt - usually with his compound bow. But I also picked up a few things from a few books he had like the Anarchist Cookbook.

Whenever I suggested using what was in the books to Jake and the others, they'd always get so defensive - especially Cassie. I care about them, but seriously we can't hope to fight the Yeerks unless we are willing to do whatever it takes to win. The only one who seemed to agree with me was Ax, but even he would relent to Jake's decision due to him being the superior.

Now though, I was on my own. So I had the liberty to do things the way I wanted to, whether or not Jake and the others like it.

Though then again, that sorta got me caught in my… current predicament, as I was floating in limbo or wherever the hell I was.

I remember what I was doing beforehand: I got a call from the group back home that Victor Trent - aka 'Visser Three' - was using his company EGS (associated with The Sharing), to conduct some weird new Z-Space experiments - they believed it was connected to them trying to find out how Morphing works on their own without needing a morphing cube - perhaps finding a way to 'counter' its effects, force the 'Andalite Bandits' to fight in their true forms, rather than the various lethal morphs of Earth.

If we were Andalites, that wouldn't be a problem. But of course we weren't Andalites.

Since the base the research was being done was outside of their reach, they asked if I would be able to do some of my magic to take care of it with some Chee help - thankfully I wasn't alone, since Tobias and Ax were able to tag along for the trip since they didn't have nearly as strict schedules as they did.

It was suppose to be a relatively simple mission - the Chee agent inside the facility would smuggle in the bombs I made inside for us along with some of my extra gear, we'd sneak in nice and quiet-like as bugs, find the machine, blow it up and make our grand escape. And at first, it seemed like it was going well…

...then Visser Three showed up.

That asshole has a habit of making things more complicated than they should be.

It came down to him facing off against us, as the countdown for the bombs was already underway. But I saw a chance to distract him, so Ax and Tobias could get away. It worked. I got him away from the gang, as I headed to where the Z-space machine was located at - as the bombs finally went off.

...that was when things got… weird.

I was expecting a big boom - that was for sure - but then the Z-space machine started acting up all weird, acting like some sort of wormhole or black hole - sucking things inside. Visser Three was far enough away that he was able to escape the madness in his big-ass bird morph. But me in my Hyena Morph? Not so lucky… I got sucked in… and now here I was.

'...so… am I dead?' I thought to myself, as I looked at my arms. I was still in my casual clothes - blue jeans, a black T-shirt, shoes and socks… I figured out how to Morph clothes, unlike the rest of the gang. Sure they could do tight-fitting stuff, but i figured out the art of 'regular' clothing. I was actually inspired by Cassie's method of Morphing - only while she focuses on the 'elegant' transition of going from person-to-animal-and-back, I focused more on what I was wearing - so long as you could focus on your clothes while you Morph, they morph with you.

Getting a bit off track, but hey? I was in limbo - what the hell else was I going to do?

"If this is what being dead is like, being dead sucks…" He groaned.

"Not dead… but very far away indeed…"

The moment I I groaned. I did not like that asshole - sure he 'helps' us in his own way, but his whole 'cosmic balance' bullcrap really got on my nerves. What gives him the right to determine what's 'good' and what's 'bad'?

"Yes… what does give him that right, hm?"

And it was at that moment that I realized… that wasn't the Ellimist. Something about the voice was… different… louder… more… insertive. "...who is that?" I asked, vocally.

Suddenly, I was no longer in limbo - I found myself in a large, dark chamber. Illuminated by deep red lights above and below - I staggered a bit, as my feet finally found purchase on solid ground. And then I looked up.

And I saw him.

It was sitting on a throne, or it was part of the throne - it was hard to really make out, whatever it was. It looked biological, yet… mechanical at the same time. With large inhumane legs slack against the throne, but most importantly… was the eye. That single, glaring eye that stared back at me.

For a moment, I froze up - just seeing this… thing in front of me. It wasn't the Ellimist - that much I knew for certain. No this… this was something different. It had no mouth… and yet a loud voice reverberated within the room.

"Greeting, Jaden… you may call me… Crayak."

I regained my composure - standing firm as I stared back at the entity calling itself 'Crayak'. "...So… not the Ellimist, obviously…" I spoke up, "But… still someone probably with similar… abilities, huh?"

The entity seemed to chuckle - as the whole room shuddered as it did. "Yes… our powers are… comparable…" It spoke, "But unlike the Ellimist… I am far more willing to use my powers for a… greater good."

"Great good, huh?" I narrowed my eyes, "That could be considered a subjective term… but why am I here?"

"Because I saved you," Crayak said, its single eye moving slightly closer to me. "You would have been lost to eternity within Z-Space… but I took that brief moment in time to take you, before the Ellimist could intervene… so we could possibly make… a deal."

"I'm not a fan of working with God-like entities," I deadpanned, "I didn't like working with big E, why would you be any different?"

"Because I am blunt, just like you." It said, "I see the universe for what it truly is… Conflict. Everlasting conflict - a never-ending cycle of the survival of the fittest, where only the strongest will survive… the Ellimist would coddle the races of this galaxy, teaching them 'love' and 'kindness', but never showing them the harsh realities of conflict… and then they are caught woefully unprepared by those realities… just look at the Pemalites - destroyed by my Howlers."

That bit of info caused my head to perk a bit "Your Howlers?" I questioned. "You wiped out the Pemalites?"

"I simply created the Howlers, who follow my will." Crayak stated, "They taught the Pemalites - and those races who knew them - a lesson they've yet to forget… a lesson I believe you know all too well…"

"And what might that be?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"Peace is an illusion, a lie, a fabrication of those in power to keep control." Crayak continued, "Strength is the ultimate power in the universe - for without strength, you will be crushed by those greater than you… so you must learn to become stronger still. My Howlers are as strong as they can be, the strongest in the galaxy - if not the known universe… yet even they are not enough."

"Enough? Enough for what?"

"Something is coming," Crayak said, as he stood from his mechanical throne. "I can feel it… and so can the Ellimist, but he naively believes he and those he coddles can face this threat… but I know this danger more than he ever could. It is stronger than either of us combined… and it must be stopped."

"...then what do you need me for?" I shrugged, "I mean… you said strength is everything, if you and big E can't stop whatever this is... "

"Yes, you are… weak," Crayak said, as my brow twitched at the insult. "But… as I have learned through my own Howlers, weak creatures can become stronger overtime… and while my Howlers are strong… they lack in… individuality, the capability to… rationalize, as you Humans call it. I called you here… to give you a job offer… an offer to help save your universe from this… threat."

"How would that work?" I asked.

"There exists other realities, other realms beyond this one." Crayak informed, "Ones where the laws of reality work differently… in one reality, there exists… beings that may be able to stem the tide in our favor… you will go to this universe, and aquire the support of these entities… and perhaps with them, we may yet survive the coming storm."

My eyes were narrowed as I looked up at Crayak - this is why I hate entities like him or Ellimist, they 'say' there is a choice involved, but really this isn't much of a choice. If I said no, what? I'm dead - this asshole will probably send me right back into the vacuum of Z-Space and die. So it wasn't so much as me being 'offered' a job, and more like being conscripted, with the other choice being a firing squad.

"...fine, whatever." I shook my head, "If it helps Earth and my people, that's all I care about. This better not involve selling me contracts involving my soul or whatever."

The room shuddered again - as Crayak chuckled once more. "No… no need for that," He said, "I will be watching with… great interest…" And with that, he blinked… and there was nothing but blankness.