CHAPTER 19

David

I let Al spend the day with his mother. I knew he would have liked to have me around, but I also figured they could use some time alone. I know she didn't get to see him at all when he was growing up, and I think he ended up with us only a couple of years after that. All things considered, Al could use some time with his mother as much as I could have used some with mine.

My mother. Was she alive? I had no idea. Until yesterday, I didn't even know my father was alive. Did my family somehow, by some miracle, survive the war, safe and sound? Even stranger, had they profited from it? I guess I could sort of see it. Yeah, it made some sense, now that I knew what to look for.

The Yeerks would have taken very good care of them, at least at first. They were leverage, something to use against me. But after a while, when I disappeared…who knew? I guess the Yeerks always kind of thought that I'd come back and make problems for them. Maybe start a resistance of my own or just try to take the secret public. If I tried something like that, my parents would pay the price. So the Yeerks would have kept them safe, until the very end.

And afterwards? That made sense, too. Honestly, it didn't shock me that my father was the head of Tri-I. It was a surprise, but stranger things have happened to me, and I could see how this one came to be. My father had a background in the covert intelligence business. He was some kind of spy for years and years. Even now, I'm not entirely sure what branch he worked for. He had the necessary skills and connections to get the basics of Tri-I together. And he certainly had the motivation.

The Yeerks took his freedom. They took his wife and his son. If there was ever a man who would devote his life to making sure no one else ever met the same fate, it would be him. I've probably said it before, but I'll never forget the last time I saw my father acting of his own free will. When our house was being invaded by monsters out of Lovecraft's nightmares, my father stood his ground to protect me. It's who he is, what he did. And so it really didn't surprise me to see that he had taken on the task of protecting the whole world.

What would happen if he knew about me? It was so hard to say. My father was always big on loyalty - probably just short of Guraff-level. The things I did, right after my family was taken…the way I acted…what I tried to do…could he ever forgive me for that? Could I ever atone for those sins? I was trying to. Maybe. I was trying to right now. But how much longer did I have left? And what would I do when I ran out of time?

I'd become human again. I knew that much. But where would I go? Would I stay with the Animorphs, advising them and trying to help them? Would I travel the galaxy, trying to help other Yeerk victims? Or maybe there was a new option, something I had never realized before. Maybe…maybe I could actually go home. With my father and mother. I'd go back to them, looking like the same 14 year old boy who was taken from them. It would almost be like nothing had ever happened. Me, my family…all safe. Just like before.

But things could never be the way they were. I was too different now. But…I was a better person now, I was sure of that. I don't put much stock in the usual labels we slap on people. Even now, I make some decisions that most people would call pretty cold - pretty evil, maybe. But I know that I'm a good person now. If I did go home, I'd be a son my parents could be proud of.

But I did have other things to do rather than muse about my family and my future. We had a job to do, and I needed to try and keep my mind on that. ((Hey, Al?)) I asked. ((I want to go out and take a look around. Maybe drop into the city and see what I can find out about this election and the candidates.))

((I will come with you,)) Al offered.

((Nah, that's alright. You and your mother could use the time together. I'll let you know what I find out when I get back.))

Enril didn't live too far from Illsev City, which was, conveniently, the place where the major governmental and scientific bodies met. That wasn't coincidence, though - being a scientist, it was natural that Enril lived nearby. I flew there in golden eagle morph. It would stand out a bit, but Andalites would just assume I was a tourist or something visiting the city - or maybe a reporter covering the election. Either way, I wasn't really going to get harassed.

I landed behind a small building and demorphed. Andalites still weren't big on towers. The tallest building in the city was only three stories high, and that was a starport. Everything else was pretty much at ground level. Andalites aren't big fans of heights. At least that meant less climbing for me.

Instead of sidewalks or streets, the space between buildings was grass, which was natural, knowing Andalites. Pretty much everyone was on foot - or hoof - but I did see a few oval-shaped vehicles hovering over the grass, no doubt transporting important people or tourists who weren't big on walking.

It didn't have the usual buzz that a city on Earth might during an election of this scale. There were no giant posters, no people with signs, no one going door to door trying to get your vote. It was almost like there wasn't an election at all. But while it wasn't visible, I sure could hear it.

All of the Andalites walking around the city were talking, and not many were bothering to keep their discussions private. It took a few minutes for me to be able to sort through the confusing mental babbling, but eventually I could distinguish a few things. The Andalites weren't talking in any language I knew, but I could still pick up names when I heard them, and everyone seemed to be talking about the same four names.

Lirem Arrepoth Terrouss. Alloran-Semitur-Coras.

Caysath-Winwall-Esgarrouth. Jaham-Estalan-Forlan. Those were the names that people kept talking about. I didn't think Lirem had much of a chance, though. He had been the head of the Electorate for a long time, and people weren't happy with him anymore. Jaharim had been the head of the War Council, and they weren't happy with that either. Those two were taking a lot of blame for how long the war lasted, and no one wanted a repeat of that.

Alloran had a chance. But he wasn't charismatic or popular. He was a war criminal, and the taint of having been Esplin's host would never leave him. Caysath had probably the best chance, all things considered. No huge black marks on his record like the others had. If everyone was left to their own devices, he could probably pull it off.

The question was, would they be left to their own devices? No - not a chance. No one would just let this election go along at its own pace. The Yeerks had to have a finger in here somehow - probably the Pythagi as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Azmaveth or the Drode wanted to get in on the action. And Putin was interfering as well - through us. Whose side were we on, really? Was our job to help the election go fairly, or was it to make sure the outcome was favorable to us? I had no clue what our job even was here. I was just glad that deciding that kind of thing is what we leave up to our leaders.

CHAPTER 20

Jeanne

Erek's room looked like a room in any human hotel. I had no doubts that the Ssri'Kai had remodeled these guest quarters to suit him. Erek was the primary secretary for this mission, so he was given some of the best quarters. His room had a sitting area, a sleeping area, and a private bathroom. Another function of being the secretary - Erek knew all of the Yeerk secrets and plans.

"Guys, I really don't know where to begin with this one," Erek shook his head. "I couldn't send most of the information because over this much distance, I couldn't be sure who might intercept it. Our security is good, but there might be something between here and home that is even better. We've got serious problems, though."

"One step at a time," James advised. He looked at me. I knew what he wanted from me. What information would we need? General information first.

"How are Yeerk operations here progressing?" I asked.

"Not good on the legitimate front. The Yeerk diplomats here ran into sort of a wall with the Ssri'Kai. Basically, they want a major military move from the Ssri'Kai, but the Ssri'Kai aren't willing to grant it yet. They want to investigate the matter for themselves, and the Yeerks can't let them do that."

"Why not?" Melissa asked.

"And what military move do they want?" Ronnie added.

"Kind of a long story."

"Cliff notes version, please," James suggested.

"Alright. A long time ago, the Ssri'Kai were the dominant power in this area of space, and had an empire of sorts that stretched from the boundaries of their current territory all the way over to what was Pythagi space. The Ssri'Kai weren't rulers, though - they were more like guardians. They have no desire to dominate or command other races. That was my masters' doing."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"The Ssri'Kai were created by the Pemalites. The Pemalites were nonviolent, but there were some who believed that sometimes, violence was necessary. They saw strong races destroying peaceful ones. So some Pemalites decided to make a race that would put a stop to that. Strong, powerful warriors who would defend the weak against the strong. They would be the great defenders of the galaxy. So they designed the Ssri'Kai and left them to develop on their own.

"When the Ssri'Kai took to interstellar travel, they took on the role of the galaxy's protectors and police. When a stronger race decided to abuse a weaker one, the Ssri'Kai arrived to defend the weak and helpless. They were almost perfect defenders, though there was one odd aberration in their mentality. The Pemalites designed them with a love of nature, but this went to a bit of an extreme. The Ssri'Kai believe their homeworld, Ssri, to be the most beautiful planet in all the galaxy. And at one point, they exterminated three entire races because they refused to accept that. It makes me cry when I think about that, but aside form that dark chapter, they were great."

"Until…" James prompted.

Erek's eyes darkened. "Until the Kelbrid came. It's impossible to say where they came from. They just…appeared. They attacked Ssri'Kai space and the Ssri'Kai fought back. The war lasted for generations and generations. In the end, the Kelbrid were finally defeated in battle on Ssri itself, but when that happened, the Kelbrid had claimed about half of Ssri'Kai space. That's the part you now know as Kelbrid Space. The Ssri'Kai fortified their worlds and prepared to defend themselves, but not even the Kelbrid can fight forever."

There was something here, something we were missing. I very much missed Marco at that moment. He would have seen it instantly. What was it?

"See," Erek continued, "the Yeerks want the Ssri'Kai to take back their old territory. The overall Yeerk strategy is to draw the Allied forces into battle in that sector and have the Ssri'Kai handle it. Meanwhile, the Yeerks, Kelbrid, and Pythagi would conquer their own part of the galaxy. The problem is that if the Ssri'Kai find out that the Yeerks are working with the Kelbrid, all bets are off and they've got a huge new enemy to worry about."

"So we just have to expose the Yeerk-Kelbrid alliance," Melissa answered. "That shouldn't be too hard."

"Except that there are no Kelbrid within lightyears," Erek sighed. "Good luck with that. But there are even bigger problems. Much bigger. For starters, if any Ssri'Kai find out you're here, then Kelbrid or no Kelbrid, the Ssri'Kai would join with the Yeerks to destroy the humans. Ssri is holy to them, and for outsiders to set foot on it uninvited…it could mean death for your whole race if they find you here."

"How comforting," James sighed.

"There's more," Erek said. "Like I told you, it's really bad here. The Yeerks have gotten tired of the Ssri'Kai delaying. So they're going to try and infest the Ssri'Kai leaders. The Ssri'Kai-Controllers will agree to the Yeerk plan, form an alliance, and send out the armies. You have to stop them from being infested, whatever it takes."

"That should be doable," I nodded. Already, I was starting to get some vague ideas.

"There's even more," Erek warned us. "That's just part of the plan. The other part is to frame the Andalites."

"Say what? How?" Ronnie asked.

"The Yeerks got some Andalite technology from various traders. Mostly just Shredders and other small things. But they also have pieces of fighters and Dome ships. They're planning to attack a Ssri'Kai world and leave behind traces of the Andalites passing. When the Ssri'Kai think that they've been struck by Andalites…"

James said a word that was probably appropriate, given the circumstances. "Sounds like we're going to have to split up," he sighed. "Jeanne and Melissa…I thing we would be best off with you staying here. This is sort of your area, Jeanne, and Melissa, you're definitely quieter about things than Ronnie is. Ronnie and I will concentrate on stopping this Yeerk attack."

"There's one more thing," Erek added.

"This gets worse? How could it get worse?" Ronnie demanded.

"The Yeerk in charge here? It isn't just any Yeerk. This thing is so big that the Emperor himself is here to do the negotiations."

We all just stared at Erek in silence. We had never dealt with the Emperor before. Not knowingly, at least. "You're sure?" I asked.

He nodded slowly. "One hundred percent. Do you remember how at the start of this war, the Visser rewrote the Yeerk laws and redesigned their power structure?"

I nodded. "Yes, I do."

"Well, at the time, the Council of Thirteen didn't have any choice but to go along with it. But they weren't happy about it. Then a new Yeerk appeared on the scene. Quickly and quietly, the Council promoted him and appointed him as their leader. They want their power back. More specifically, they want the Visser to fail, or at least be overshadowed by and even more powerful Yeerk. So this new Emperor of theirs is supposed to be the one to bring the old hierarchy back on top."

"He sounds dangerous," I admitted. But there was incredible opportunity here. The Yeerk Emperor…..it was almost impossible to believe.

"One more thing you should know," Erek added. "This Emperor…I know his name. It's Esplin Nine-Four-Double-Six. The Lesser."

I knew what that meant. It meant that now, our enemy was the Visser's twin brother.

CHAPTER 21

James

This was a whole lot to deal with, but we could probably handle it. We just needed to stop and think about it. "Alright…objectives. What are they, exactly?"

"Prevent the infestation of the Ssri'Kai leaders and the invasion of the Ssri'Kai planet," Jeanne answered.

I nodded. "Alright…how can we get that done?"

"The Emperor isn't going to let just anyone have a host as important as a Ssri'Kai leader," Erek chimed in. "He's got some specially selected followers in a Yeerk pool somewhere around here. I don't know where, though."

"I thought the secretary knew everything," Ronnie commented.

Erek shrugged. "Not something like this. It's far too easy to see a Yeerk taking out one of these specially selected Yeerks for a chance to take his place. I don't know anything about them. They might be sitting in a pool in the Emperor's bathroom for all I know. Or they might be walking around. I don't even know if the Emperor told them who they are."

"So as far as we know, you could be one of them," Jeanne noted.

"Yeah, I guess. The Emperor does put a lot of responsibility on me."

"Alright then," I said. "Jeanne and Melissa. Mission one is to find out who and where these Yeerks are. If we take them out, we can really slow down the Emperor's plans here. Try to make it look like an accident, though - or at least non-Animorph activity."

Melissa nodded. "Will do."

"The Emperor will have a backup plan in the event that his chosen Yeerks meet with an untimely death," Jeanne noted. "In an emergency, he would likely go with any available Yeerk and worry about loyalty later. He would not abandon these plans because of one setback. We need to be prepared for whatever he might do next."

"What about the attack?" Melissa asked. "How can we stop that?"

"When are they going to attack?" Ronnie asked.

Erek shrugged again. "It's hard to say. They're waiting for someone to arrive to take command of the Yeerk military forces hidden nearby. The Emperor hasn't told us who yet, but it's some big time Yeerk general."

I looked at Jeanne as subtly as I could. She nodded slightly. She was thinking the same thing I was. We don't know of a whole lot of big Yeerk generals - not living ones at any rate. But I had the strong suspicion that we'd be running into Guraff again, and that made me more than a little nervous. Without Tobias to help us out, I didn't want to see what might happen if we got into it with Guraff.

Of course, there was no need to get Ronnie overly excited just yet. "We'll need to find out more about this general before we know what, exactly, we should be doing. In the mean time, maybe Ronnie and I can find other ways to delay things, or helpful information. Erek, where are the local Yeerk forces?"

"In orbit near a star that forms the left eye of the constellation the Ssri'Kai call Then'Sshrak. They've got a Pool ship, two Blade ships, and full swarms of Bug fighters. Any info you want will be in the Pool ship somewhere."

"Any chance you can help us with that?" I asked.

"Maybe. If I can patch into the mainframe remotely, I think I can access anything you need, provided there is nothing to disrupt the connection. But finding a secure router won't be too simple."

"Would the Pemalite ship work?" Melissa asked.

"Never mind, it'll be extremely simple."

"Without more information, we'll just have to wing it once we get there," I sighed. I didn't like the thought of that, but there wasn't much choice.

"I've uploaded the coordinates to the Pemalite ship, and to Jeanne's iHolo," Erek added.

"If we're leaving the ship here so Erek can communicate with us, how are we going to get to where the fleet is?" Ronnie pointed out.

"The Emperor likes to inspect his fleet," Erek answered. "You might be able to sneak aboard his transportation shuttle when he goes. He uses his own, personal ship. A cruiser-class Dart ship."

I looked at Jeanne and raised an eyebrow. "The sort of ship we stole from the Yeerks to rescue the Iskoort," she explained. "I am surprised no one mentioned the name of that type of ship earlier."

"I can't keep them straight," I sighed.

"So what now? Do we just start looking right away?" Melissa asked.

"We should perform some reconnaissance first," Jeanne suggested. "It would help to know our way around this building in an emergency."

That sounded like a good idea, so we all started morphing. Flies wouldn't be noticed and we all had them. When they joined, we had been sure to get Ronnie and Melissa equipped with the basic morphs. Fly, cockroach, dolphin, bird of prey, battle morph, and a few others.

We were just finished morphing when Erek's door opened. Three Hork-bajir entered. They were the most heavily-armed Hork-bajir I've ever seen. In addition to the Dracon beam each had in his hand, they each had a second Dracon beam in a holster on their thighs, and a larger, tube-shaped Dracon weapon hung on their backs. Each one wore a black sash with gold trim.

The Hork-bajir were followed by a Controller we didn't recognize. At first glance it was humanoid, but after looking closer, that was very clearly not the case. There was something like leaves or spikes jutting out of the skull so that it resembled the sun like a child might draw it. It had two extremely long and narrow eyes and I couldn't see any pupils in them. There was no nose or mouth to speak of. Its flesh was grey and cracked.

It looked it was hunched over. I couldn't really see much of its body because it was wearing a red robe with gold trim. I could see the very ends of its arms - extremely thin and grey. The skin was cracked a bit, and it reminded me of a bird's leg. Its hand was circular or cylindrical, with far too many fingers. I couldn't see its legs or feet.

A Nak!)) Jeanne gasped. ((They were supposed to be extinct.))

((Nak?)) I asked.

((A creature from the Yeerk homeworld,)) she answered. ((According to what I was taught, most of them went extinct a long time ago. They're very special and perhaps the ideal host for Yeerks.))

((Why is that?)) Melissa asked.

((The Nak are somewhat plantlike. They absorb Kandrona rays like a plant absorbs sunlight and use them to feed its body. A Yeerk in a Nak host would not need to leave its body every three days to feed - they can do it in the host.))

((Effectively removing the Yeerk's biggest weakness,)) I shuddered. Not a pleasant thought. ((Are they strong?))

((I have no idea. I barely learned anything about them. Edriss thought they no longer existed.))

A new voice interrupted our conversation. It sounded almost like it was hissing. ((Emrush One-Six-Nine. May the Kandrona shine and strengthen you. You may rise.))

Erek had dropped to his knees as soon as the Hork-bajir entered. His forehead was pressed to the floor. Slowly, he got to his feet. "May the Kandrona shine and strengthen you, your highness."

((What news is there of my brother's activities?))

"His whereabouts remain unknown, your highness."

And what of the God General?))

"He also cannot be found. Our forces still receive regular communication from them, but it is impossible to say where the orders are coming from, geographically and astrologically speaking."

((Do they know of my appointment?))

"Very few do, your highness. It has not yet reached their ears, though I suspect that the Visser's advisor, your predecessor, already knows. He keeps in close contact with your peers on the Council without the Visser's knowledge."

((Salheer is no fool. We can trust him to reveal this when the time is right. He does not want to see my brother succeed in his gambits any more than I do.))
"Of course not, your Highness."

((And what of our allies on the Andalite world? Have they made any progress?))

I tensed up. I guess that answered the question of whether or not the Yeerks were involved in the Andalite election. But something about what he said bothered me. I couldn't figure out what.

"It would seem so, your Highness. Their primary agent is in a strong possession to take the election, and our allies believe that they can remove his primary rival extremely soon."

((Good. And do we have any more information on the identities of our allies?))

Erek shook his head. "I am afraid not, your highness." Now I realized what bothered me. Their allies. Not their agents. Someone was trying to steal the election on the Andalite world, but it wasn't the Yeerks.

But who other than a Controller could successfully infiltrate the Andalite world? An Animorph, maybe. Who could it be?

CHAPTER 22

Al

I passed a day with my mother before David and I began our task. My mother was feeding, so David and I were planning in her Scoop. The less she knew about our mission, the better, for a number of reasons. She would feel guilty over interfering in the election, if it came to that. But worse, if she knew that Prince Tobias condoned such a thing - if he did condone it when he came - she might use that to try and have his title taken.

It is a rare thing, for a civilian to request that a military officer lose his rank, but it has happened before. If a civilian somehow discovered that an officer was unfit for his position, said civilian could petition the War Council to have that officer demoted. And I do not have many illusions about my mother. She is a kind enough woman, but she is no fan of my Prince. She would like nothing more than for me to remain here with her and become a scientist like she believes I was meant to. But that is not my path.

David had gathered some posters and such from the city. From what he told me there were not many - Andalties are not particularly excitable most of the time - but there were some informative ones that had proved useful for at least our basic intelligence gathering.

((Man, Al…you guys do not know how to run an election. These posters are just…how are these supposed to convince anyone to vote for anyone?))

((What is wrong with them?))

((They're too simple. All they are are pictures of the candidate, with a list of their good qualities.))

((What else would they be?))

((They should be inspiring, iconic…this is just a picture of Lirem in a field, telling us that he has experience and diplomatic ties to many races. That is not persuasive. Although…))

((What?)) I asked.

((I'm thinking…is this how Andalites always run their elections? All…plain and stuff?))

((As far as I know, yes.))

((Great. Then it should be pretty easy to spot who is getting outside aid, if anyone.))

((What do you mean?)) I pressed.

((So far, all the candidates are showing is their good qualities. But with human elections - American ones at any rate - it's only a matter of time before things get less honest. Secrets start getting dug up, lies get spread, all that good stuff. When these candidates start to get into that, I think we'll be able to tell who is getting some help from someone who really shouldn't be helping.))

((That sounds sensible. Though I find it unlikely that any of the candidates would accept aid from an outside source,)) I answered.

((Yeah? Maybe you're right. But considering some of the things Lirem and Jaharim have been up to in the past, there isn't a whole lot I wouldn't put past them. And I really don't know anything about this Caysath guy.))

((Captain-Prince Caysath was the Andalite in charge of the defense of the Hork-bajir planet,)) I explained. ((He fought with Prince Tobias in the opening battle of this war. He was also the commander of the fleet I was stationed with before I was transferred to Prince Tobias's command. He is a good man, and a trustworthy one. I think…))

((You think what?))

((Perhaps it would be best if Caysath were the one who win the election,)) I answered. ((He is a skilled commander, and one who knows how to differ to those whose expertise exceed his own, as he showed when he listened to Prince Tobias and Rachel. He is most likely the best choice.))

((Yeah, it was looking like things are in his favor. I don't know, though. I don't think he's ready for the sort of politics other races play. You're a peaceful people at heart, Al, but politics is still a war game and no one plays nice.))

((I like to think that my people have a bit more dignity than that.))

((Maybe all on their own, but not when other races are getting involved.))

((What should we do now?)) I asked. ((I do not like the idea of waiting for our enemies to reveal themselves. But I do not want to interfere more than we must. This is not something that we have any right to involve ourselves in if we do not need to.))

David nodded. ((I understand how you feel.)) I know David well enough to know that he intentionally did not say that he agreed with me. ((There's a debate tomorrow night. All four major candidates are going to be together, talking about 'the issues'. I think we definitely need to check it out.))

It certainly sounded like the best idea at the time.

CHAPTER 23

Melissa

I couldn't see much of the Emperor, but what I saw freaked me out. Those hands were pretty weird, not like anything I've ever seen before. And that face was pretty unnerving too. I also didn't like the idea that he didn't need to leave his host ever. It'd be a whole lot harder to catch him vulnerable some time.

The emperor didn't have anything more to say to Erek, so he left with his guards. Erek relaxed slightly. "He always gives me the creeps. Rumor around the Pool has it that he used to eat other Yeerks for Kandrona when the Visser cut him off from the Pool. Scary guy."

((Scary guy going somewhere important,)) James added. ((I think we should follow him. What do you guys think?))

((He might take us somewhere of use,)) Jeanne agreed. ((I believe we should attempt to pursue him.))

((Sure thing,)) I agreed. Ronnie just grunted.

"You guys be careful. If he catches you, he'll probably do worse than infest you. He'll probably use your presence here to help get the Ssri'Kai on his side of the war and we can't have that."

((Yeah, that's the worst possible outcome of him catching us,)) Ronnie muttered.

We zipped under the door, following the Emperor and his Hork-bajir guards. It was kind of hard at first. Fly senses are weird. They have compound eyes, so it's like seeing a thousand pictures of something at once, each slightly different. And the colors are weird, too. I knew that the Emperor's robe was red, but to me it looked sort of purple, or maybe blue.

((Remember, flies are not native to this planet,)) Jeanne prompted. ((People will not simply overlook us. We just remain out of sight.))

We hugged the ceiling, keeping the Emperor in sight as much as we could. We followed him for longer than I would have liked to. He didn't do much. Mostly, he just walked around and visited some more subordinates. Unfortunately, they didn't talk about anything interesting. At last, though, after who knows how long, he finally decided to do something interesting.

The Emperor went into another room almost identical to the one where Erek lived. ((Is my ship prepared for departure?)) he asked the Human-Controller inside.

"Everything is ready," the Yeerk answered. "We can depart as soon as you enter."

((Good. These negotiations are taking far too long. At this rate, my brother will have lost the entire war before these talks are finished. We are going to inspect my army. It is nearly time for them to move.))

"Yes, Highness. We shall depart at once."

((Guess this is our cue,)) James said, sounding not very happy about it. ((I didn't think we'd be leaving so soon, but we can't let this chance slip away.))

((We will follow you to the hangar,)) Jeanne offered. It made sense to me, so I didn't argue. We all set out after the Emperor's blob again.

We must have been low on morph time by the time the Emperor reached his shuttle. It looked like the one we had stolen to go and rescue the Iskoort. Sharp, pointy, black - typical Yeerkish design, I think. I was a little surprised that the Emperor didn't have something big and nasty like a Blade ship, but I guess bringing one of those to a diplomatic meeting would have gone over poorly.

((I see a door opening,)) James commented. ((Ronnie, you ready?))

((Am I ready to fly into a hole the size of that thing's body? Yes, James, I think I can manage that.))

((Alright then. Jeanne, Melissa, I'm not sure when we'll be able to contact you again. Keep in touch with Al and David, and with the others if you can do it safely. We'll send our messages to the Pemalite ship when we can. Erek can pick them up remotely.))

((Alright,)) I said. ((What do we do in the mean time, with the Emperor gone?))

((We will keep an eye on the Ssri'Kai leadership,)) Jeanne answered. ((The Emperor might make his move when he is not even on the planet. That might be wisest. If that is the case, we must be prepared for the Yeerks to strike very soon.))

This really wasn't good at all. Two of us on the Andalite homeworld, light-years away. Tobias and Rachel almost completely unavailable. Jake, Marco, and Ax stuck with Tri-I. And now James and Ronnie rushing off with the Emperor to a part of space we knew nothing about while Jeanne and I were left to stop whatever the plan the Yeerks had going here. This was not going well at all.

And, in the great Animorphs tradition, things only got worse from there.

Chapter 24

Ronnie

((We'll have to find a place to demorph soon, we're running very low on time,)) James commented to me as we buzzed through the Dart ship.

((That won't be easy,)) I muttered. I'm no expert on Yeerk ships, but I know a few things. You get some exposure to those sorts of things living with Animorphs. The Dart ship was small. It had a bridge, a lounge/kitchen area, some small quarters for a very limited crew, and a small cargo bay for two even smaller transport shuttles. Not a whole lot of unoccupied space there. ((Any ideas?))

((Not the bridge,)) James said quickly. ((Obviously. Lounge is out, and so are the crew quarters. I think our best bet is one of the transport shuttles. They're probably empty.))

((How do we get inside?)) I asked.

((Not sure, but we'll probably think of something,)) James admitted. ((I think they'd be this way.))

I followed James to the cargo bay at the back of the ship. It curved under the Dart ship and I think it also provided access to the mechanical stuff, like the engines. I don't know, I'm not an engineer. There were two transport ships in the cargo hold, basically just small rectangular ships that could carry maybe five human sized creatures. They were unguarded but locked down.

((This is the part where we think of something, isn't it?)) I asked.

((Something like that,)) James agreed. We were both silent for several moments. I could see a thousand images of the ship and none of them showed me a way in. After several full minutes of staring, James finally sighed and said, ((We might need a plan B.))

((We need to demorph. That's the important part. As long as we're out of sight, it should be fine,)) I thought. ((I say we just get into the engine bays and demorph there. I doubt anyone would be running around there to see us.))

((Fair enough,)) James agreed. ((Let me go first, though. I'll get into my lion costume quickly and cover you in case someone does come along.))

James buzzed off to one of the engine bays. I followed him. I couldn't see very well in the dull, red lights that illuminated the engine bay, but what I could see wasn't pretty. I've seen Cassie morph, and she can make it look beautiful, like some new form of art. James didn't have that talent. And nothing about a fly is beautiful to begin with.

Another couple of minutes later, James was in his lion morph. Since the engine bays were designed to accommodate Taxxons, he managed to fit easily enough. I demorphed and nodded to him. "Okay…now what?"

"This she'll be going to the Pool ship," James thought. "That's our goal. Any information there is to find, we can get there. We need to get into some place with access to their computer network and then get in touch with Erek. He will be able to hack it from there. We'll just have to keep an eye out while he does that. So in the mean time, we need to make sure no one finds us. Any ideas where to hide?"

I nodded towards the cargo hold. "We could try those transports again. If this ship is going right to the Pool ship, they wouldn't be using the transports."

"Yeah…Good idea. I just don't know how to get inside…"

"Ask nicely," I suggested.

James raised an eyebrow at me. "I didn't think you were much of a comedian."

"I wasn't joking. Yeerks used to make their doors out of Raminite, an organic metal. It's alive, in a sense. Not conscious, more like a plant than anything else. It can grow, change, and adapt. They'll build a certain section of a ship out of it to accommodate whatever they think they might need to bring inside. That way, they can use the same 'door' for a few troops as for a Kandrona generator. With the right…persuasion…we can get a door to open."

"How do you know so much about organic metals?" James asked me.

"Cassie and I did some research on them a while back, trying to figure out if they counted as animals or not. It isn't that hard to get one to open for you. That's part of the reason they've been phased out in newer craft. The Andalites really don't use them anymore, but I guess the Yeerks are slow learners. We'll need something that carries a charge."

After a few minutes of searching, James decided to just rip some cords out of the wall. That would do it. He pulled them over to the nearest transport ship. "Now what?"

"Just touch it to the ship until it starts to move," I answered. James gingerly poked at the ship a few times. I sighed and grabbed the cables from him. I jammed them against the side of the ship. Nothing. I tried the other side with the same result. In the end, I climbed on top of the ship and finally found a part that shivered when I electrocuted it.

I drew a small circle with the cables. Slowly, I spiraled it outwards, making it larger and larger. At first there wasn't much effect, but after a few moments, a small hole opened at the center of the spiral. I kept it up and the hole grew until at last I could fit through it. James dropped in first. I returned the cords and hoped the Yeerks didn't notice a sudden fluctuation in their power.

James leaned back in one of the seats. "Next stop: pool ship."