Rachel
???? ????
"She's coming to, Captain." Marco said.
I fainted?! Eccch! What a stupid, girly thing to do! I stood up and found myself in jungle foliage. Jungle foliage that looked very . . . alien.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"A different timeline." Hunting answered. "A timeline where Leera was not lost, a visser was shunned, and a deadly weapon was found and used against the humans."
"What weapon?" Marco asked.
"The very same machine we used to get here." Hunting said. "Even though Visser Four's finding of the Matrix resulted in your . . . . our timeline, the altered timeline leaves the Time Matrix unfound."
He was speaking gibberish. Although, we were definitely on an alien planet. Not one I've been to. I had not been on any of the major planets: The Hork-Bajir home world, the Taxxon Home World, Leera, Korla-Mak, or the Naharan Home World. The Naharan Home World had some ridiculously long name that I couldn't remember, but nonetheless, I was never there. However, I have been on enough moons and planets to know when I am 'grazing on strange pastures' as the andalites say, so I knew we were not on Terra Firma. So how did we get here?
Hunting finished covering a white sphere with mud and leaves, camouflaging it amongst the trees.
"That was the thing that Hunting dug out of the mess hall." Marco whispered to me. "I heard Sumika call it the 'Time Matrix'."
"Captain Hunting had said something about that just now." I whispered back.
"What I said, my friends," Hunting said in a loud voice, making sure we realized he could hear us, "was that this was the machine that brought us here. It is the machine that a disgraced Yeerk Visser will use to alter our history."
"You mean like kill off the Royal Kennedy's?" I asked.
Hunting shook his head solemnly. "No. Our lives are the result of the Visser's meddling. We will kill him here, before he comes to Terra Firma, finds the Time Matrix, and screws up time."
"Wait, you mean to tell me that our history is wrong?" Marco asked.
"Not wrong," Hunting said. "Just different."
"Well, pardon me, Captain, but who the fuck are you to decide which history should be allowed to exist?!"
"Tell me something, Lieutenant. What if I told you by killing a single yeerk, and possibly his host, we could make it so that the Open War on Terra Firma doesn't happen. At least, not at our point in time."
Marco seemed to waver at that. "How can you be sure?"
"Because I lived it."
"What?"
"Somehow my mind is . . . . immune . . . . to changes in the time-space continuum. I'm living a life and then all of the sudden I'm living another life."
"Because someone changed it."
"Yes."
"With this machine?" I interjected pointing to the Time Matrix.
"Yes."
"Let me guess. The 'change' happened today. During the mission." Marco added.
"Again, yes."
"So now you're trying to reverse it." Marco said. "Well, in this 'correct' timeline, are the Yeerks there?"
"Yes, and the six original Animorphs still fight a guerilla war with them."
"All six?" Marco asked tentatively.
Tobias is alive in his timeline. And if we where in his timeline now, than . . . Tobias is alive right now!!!
"Tobias is alive right now!" I said.
"And he'll stay alive if you help me." Hunting said.
I looked at Marco. My comment on Tobias was less than sensitive. Since his return to the American Colonies, Marco has felt like he has been living in shadows. Jake's shadow on the battlefield. Tobias's shadow off the battlefield.
And now Captain Hunting wants to change it so that Tobias survives, and Marco and I never get together.
But if the Earth is not in open war, that was good, right?
"Is it better to still be fighting covertly?" Marco asked Captain Hunting, seemingly mirroring my thoughts. "When the war came out in the open, it gave us a fighting chance."
"Fighting chance? I still have all my memories of this timeline, Lieutenant. Believe me, the memories of violence and carnage dwarf my sniveling counterpart memories. Only a handful of human lives have been lost to the Yeerk Agression. How many in this timeline, one hundred thousand? Five hundred thousand? A million?"
"It's more than simple mathematics, Captain." Marco said staring at him, but with a split second glance to me.
"I'm sorry, Marco. But if it is any consolation the you in that timeline is very handsome and good with the ladies."
"Really?" Marco asked.
"Sure." Hunting said unconvincingly.
"Well. Let's do it."
"That's her line."
We walked through the jungle for a few minutes before Marco thought to ask "Do you know where we are going, Captain?"
"Truthfully, no. I don't even know what planet we're on. I just know that the Yeerk we're looking for is here."
"Do you know his name or designation? Do you know what host he's in?"
"No. Just that he used to be Visser Four."
"Captain! You're leading us on a wild goose chase!" I shouted. "What are you looking for?"
"A sign. In both this timeline and ours, whenever I screw up, something comes along and help me out. I'm just lucky that way."
Captain Hunting's last sentence was immediately followed by a horrible screech.
Some alien animal had moved through the jungle trees and grabbed the Captain. The creature looked like a large scorpion, but with an elongated neck and head that it held aloft. The head seemed to have small pedipalps that extended out. The claws were very scorpion-like, but the tail seemed to be more of a large, bulbous thorax. It was a reddish brown color with pale green stripes.
And it was as big as a house.
Hunting had morphed into his large Hork-Bajir morph and started to fight the claw that grabbed him. Marco and I began morphing as fast as possible. I was morphing to Elephant. He was morphing to leopard. A huge shadow fell over us, but I didn't stop to look up. Marco was already slashing at the creature, carefully avoiding the claws, when I completed my morph and charged the creature.
It reflexively guarded itself with his one claw that wasn't holding Hunting and absorbed the impact. The creature grabbed me with the claw and tried to pick me up, but apparently I was too heavy. So it released me and began to pummel me with the claw that held Hunting, while Marco slashed at the other one.
This is getting us nowhere. Marco said.
That's when I noticed that the shadow that fell over us was actually a very, very large bird. It let out a shriek, and then as if the shriek were a call, two small beasts sprang out of the jungle foliage and attacked the creature.
I say small because this is in comparison to the scorpion creature. In actuality the two beasts were probably taller than my elephant morph.
One of the beasts looked just like Beast, from Beauty and the Beast. It was large, furry, canine-ish, with opposable thumbs on its front paws. It had reddish-brown fur and antlers that twisted to look like a Japanese kanji or whatever they're called.
The second beast was also hairy, but mostly reptilian. It stood upright at the same height as the red beast, but was covered in green scales that sprouted purple fur at the shoulders, arms (there were four of them), legs, tail, head, face, and . . . . well . . . let's just say its bathing suit area.
The purple-furred creature climbed up a tree, wrapped its tail around the trunk, and (this was in a blur of motion) kicked-off from the tree, flew toward the Scorpion Thing's arm that held Hunting, bit off said arm, and then rubber-banded back to the tree. I say 'rubber-banded' because that's exactly what happened. During all this, the purple-furred creature's tail was still wrapped around the tree. It seemed to be very elastic.
Meanwhile, the large red-furred beast was simply helping Marco bit and slash at the other claw. Hunting laid unconscious on the ground.
The Scorpion Thing seemed very lost at the sight of his lost claw when suddenly, it began to grow back. I charged the Scorpion Thing but was once again blocked by an unoccupied claw. I heard the familiar gallop of an Andalite coming from behind the Scorpion Thing and I instinctively moved to get a view.
This Andalite had purple fur, which was a moderate rarity. Kind of like lefties and righties among humans. This andalite was BIG. He was seriously huge. He was muscle upon muscle upon muscle of Andalite might. His huge tail blade made the scythe blades of the Reaper Morph-slayers look like kitchen knives. While most Andalites have weak arms. His right arm looked so powerful and buff, it looked like it could punch through steel.
Then, and only then did I notice his left arm. It was shorter, skinnier, and the hand that was supposed to have seven fingers had only seven nubs where fingers should be. I had once seen the exact same birth defect on a human. That's what this was, a birth defect.
However it wasn't his left arm that next grabbed my attention. It was his tail. With an almost lazy effortlessness, he swung his huge blade and severed the Scorpion thing's Thorax. The creature writhed in pain.
Onsor! Now! The huge Andalite shouted. That was when the huge bird in the sky came down and ripped off the head of the Scorpion thing.
Moshug! said a male andalite voice. The reddish beast held its head with noticeable, exhausted relief, so I assumed it was he who was talking. I forgot even without its thorax a gwuinaps can live for days.
You forget a great many things, Vossi. said a female andalite voice. From the purple creature's movements, I assumed that it was she. Like how gwuinapi travel in herds.
That's when four more Scorpion Things, or Gwuinapi showed up. The large bird, whose name might be Onsor, grabbed one in its huge talons and flew off with it. The Humongoid andalite with the birth defect fought one. The two morphed andalites each fought another. Marco continued to help the Red Beast, whose name might be Vossi. I decided to help the purple creature.
Need help? I asked the Purple creature.
Yes. She said very sardonically. I instantly liked her.
Our plan, which she explained very quickly, was for her to wrap the gwuinaps' claws with her stretchy tail and then pull them up high so I can bash the creature's midsection with my tusks. She was actually hoping the gwuinaps would then bite me so she could get a clear shot to bit off its head.
This may have worked if I suddenly didn't become aware of a fifth gwuinaps. I came out looking to charge me when something else popped out of the ground.
The first thing I noticed was the mixed skin color. Most of it was light blue, but then its head, arms, legs, and tail were a mix of green and purple. The second thing I noticed was that its head was a squid.
I am exaggerating, but it did looked like a squid. Basically, it was a green and purple ball with green and purple tentacles coming out of it everywhere. Up top. In front, in back all around the side. Even a few underneath the chin. I then noticed that two of these tentacles had eyes attached.
The next thing I saw was the new creature's hands. They were normal looking, albeit green and purple. Four fingers and a thumb. Completely normal looking except for the fact that they were at the end of its legs. When this new creature, who was about the size of a human or maybe more like a great dane standing up, came out of the ground, it had landed on its long tail. Its tail held its body up like a stand as his two hands continued to fire shredders at the new gwuinaps. It went down like a sack of bricks. Then, like a crack shot, shot the heads off of the gwuinaps Marco and I were fighting with the two morphed beasts. The humongous andalite with the birth defect had already vanquished his enemy. The large bird came down obviously having handled his opponent. While morphed and unmorphed andalite eyes glared at this creature for a minute, they quickly turned to Marco and me.
Who are you? said the large andalite.
I am Lt. Rachel Berenson of the Terra Firman Resistance. I said.
I am Lt. Marco McCabe of the Terra Firman Resistance. Marco replied. And that unconscious Hork-Bajir is our captain, David---,
HOLD YOUR TONGUE, MARCO! said the obviously not unconscious Hork-Bajir. The Large Andalite's stalk eyes turned to look at Hunting. His large Hork-Bajir form rose slowly from what I'm sure had to be a bitch of a headache.
My prince, I think these are--- the female Andalite began to say.
Quiet. the Large Andaltie hushed sternly, but gently.
Come, fellow Andalites. We have much business to discuss. the Large andalite said in a voice that seemed almost theatrical and overdone.
"Disa quad-greek ashta fol caan?" said the alien in a strange mix of euphoric vocalizations and cacophnic hisses. I was wondering where the sound was coming from.
Its head remained a movement of squishy tentacles. No eyes, except on stalks. No ears. No mouth. It had two arms which ended in large claws that looked suitable for digging. It must work since I saw this creature come out of the ground. It's two legs, which it now stood on, ended in hands, as I said before. It was then I noticed that what I thought was blue skin was actually clothing.
That's a Nahara! Marco said privately to me.
No, Sid. This is Andalite business. said the Large Andalite.
Sid? Marco said. Its name is Sid? How . . . . . normal sounding.
He knows we're humans. Captain Hunting said. If he says anything about Leera, just nod. Yes, we fought on Leera.
Captain, we never fought on--- Marco began to say.
Just do it, Lieutenant!
Stay in morph, humans. Follow us. The large andalite said privately to us.
We walked quietly to a large scoop as the large bird flew overhead. The two other andalites have since demorphed. The female Andalite was blue, very thin, very waif-like. Yet she seemed to posses this inner strength that shone from her eyes. Kind of like me, I guess.
The other Andalite was muscular. Not to the extent of Purple Leader but more defined and muscular than Ax or Visser Three. He was about as muscular as some of the more trained and, shall we say, less bright andalite soldiers.
When we got to the Scoop, the large bird landed on the ground. I noticed that the large bird had front paws covered in what seemed like an excessive amount of feathers. The bird kept them curled up to its body. He peered over the jungle trees, keeping watch, like Tobias used to do so long ago.
I am Warrior Vossi-Balitz-Asrukaw. said the blue male Andalite. And this is Aritsh Looyi-Agaren-Vudalo.
Funny, Vossi. said the blue female. I am not part of the Andalite military. I am scientist who has had to . . . improvise.
We have all had to improvise. said the purple leader.
And this is Prince Neuruw-Unsea-Digaren. Vossi said.
I am actually just an old Warrior. Neuruw said. But like I said. We've had to improvise.
Who's that? Hunting asked of the bird.
That is Warrior Onsor-Mikarum-Tesnal.
Why doesn't he demorph? Marco asked.
He would. If he could.
I let it sink in.
Since it happened, Onsor doesn't speak too much. Vossi said.
He never spoke much anyway. Looyi said.
Why are we being required to stay in morph? You know we are humans. Hunting asked.
I didn't want Sid to see a morphing species other than Andalite. We've told him repeatedly that we will not recruit him and give him the morphing power. You may demorph now, if you choose.
It is a shame. After all he is the last free Nahara. Vossi said.
He is NOT the last, Vossi. Neuruw said. We have Mistress Anu.
As if on cue. A second Nahara, this one green and pink, walked in wearing a white outfit. "Gwall tri nor ishtaga?" she asked.
No, Mistress. Get your rest, the ship is due soon.
"What ship?" Hunting asked.
An Andalite ship has finally come for us. We care a precious cargo. Mistress Anu. Looyi said.
"What's so special about her? She's just one nahara." Marco said.
Not one. But One carrying many. Vossi explained.
"Huh?" Marco said.
But I understood. "She's pregnant?"
Soon, Anu will give birth to, I estimate, eight nahara cubs. Looyi said.
"Eight?!"
That is as many as Looyi can see with our primative equipment. There maybe as many as twelve or thirteen in there. Vossi said.
Looyi shot him a look.
Why are you humans here? You are, of course, the humans who were given the morphing power by Aristh Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthall, correct?
"Actually, it was . . . ." I began.
"Yes, that's correct." Hunting said.
So, why have you come to D'nakra Vilaspir Trispa Nee-druka Tseeeray Paz?
"Dinakra-what?" Marco asked.
The name of this planet. Ludicrously long, isn't it?
"We've come to assassinate Visser Four. The Yeerk who led the failed Campaign for the Seizure of Leera." Hunting explained.
Mmph. That yeerk is a lowly soldier now. There is talk that he may become Visser Twenty-one's temrash, but . . .
"He still needs to die. Before he comes to Terra Firma."
Why?
Hunting paused. "He has knowledge of a dangerous weapon and must be stopped."
While Hunting talked, Looyi came up to each of us with some sort of device. They're not controllers. No Yeerks. she said.
I guess our assistance with the local animal life wasn't enough to convince them.
So, you wish to assassinate this yeerk and then what?
"Once the yeerk is assassinated, we go home." Captain Hunting replied.
How?
"We have are ways."
Forgive me for saying so, but if you get captured, you could jeopardize us.
"We will not be captured. I guarantee you, none of us will be captured."
"Free or Dead!" I shouted as I thumped my chest.
Marco hung his head. "I really wish you wouldn't that."
Neuruw seemed to be listening far-off. Private thought-speech I figured out.
"Who are you talking to, Prince Neuruw?" Hunting said suddenly, always half-a-step quicker than me.
I have decided to help you. We will give you intelligence on the location of the Yeerk Bases. Once in their and in one of their personnel computers, you should have no problem with finding this yeerk. said the Prince, not answering Hunting's question. I'm afraid I will not be able to send you one of my soldiers, but we are . . . . expecting a call.
"Nipa gron ish caan?" said a voice.
Sid? Is that you? Vossi said idiotically.
Sid!! How did you get in here??
"Urp."
"What ship is he talking about?" Hunting asked.
"You understand their language?" I asked, shocked.
Translator Implant. Looyi realized.
Why didn't that show up on your cranial scanner? Neuruw asked tersely.
Because it's a piece of Naharan junk!! That's why! Looyi said suddenly very frustrated.
"Qua! Tan gore fo iba!" said Sid.
Onsor! Find him!
The large Creature with Violet-blue feathers flapped up for an aerial view, and came down for a fast, gentle, and precise capture. Onsor raked his huge talons behind some machinery and came up with Sid. Suddenly, another creature popped out of the ground. This looked like a bird with antlers. The creature rammed Onsor and he dropped Sid. As the bird creature fell from impact (Onsor was about four times bigger than this new creature), Sid landed gracefully. As Neuruw and Looyi aggressively approached him, Vossi stood between Sid and his cohorts.
Hold. Let's see what he has to say.
"Raka Andalites, nab ral chiftta. Raka ra-Andalites chiftta, dru?"
Look, Sid. We have laws. We've told you this, and even if we wanted to, we have no Escafil Device to enfuse you with the power.
Anoc asar. Nipa gron ish Andalite.
"An Andalite Ship?" David repeated, well . . . translated. "They've come for you and the preggers nahara."
Now you see why we can't help you. Getting Mistress Anu off this planet and onto our colony is our top priority. Looyi explained.
We would have left on the ship that brought us, if it hadn't been for another local. Neuruw said, glaring at Sid.
"See raka nodis ak 'gwaqua' fue sak." Sid said, almost sheepishly. I noticed that when he talked, his tentacles seemed to vibrate. That's just weird.
My prince, Sid is only trying to reclaim his planet. It is only natural. Vossi pleaded.
I know, Warrior Vossi. Prince Neuruw said, but he's a kid.
Carga Nahara-tar!!! Sid said adamantly.
Barely.
"I know how that feels." Hunting said. "We are not much older if at all, than Sid here."
Don't encourage him! The Prince scolded.
"Nark. See nobaga tral orogta carga Carnay Anu tan Graga-huutu Andalite." Sid said. "See hoga faga tan guro Yeerk."
I don't know. Prince Neuruw wavered.
"Does he know the land well?" Hunting asked.
Asking if Naharans know the land is like asking Andalites if they know the grass. Vossi said. Besides, Sid has accompanied us on many missions.
Accompanied and Followed are two different concepts, Vossi. Looyi said.
"Bay seech cul." Sid said. He stood on his tail, hung his claws low and extend his legs and hands. "Webles see cul. Bay seech cul va see."
Neuruw signed and stared hard at Sid.
"Seipoc." Sid said.
"What's 'understood'?" Hunting asked, suspiciously.
That Sid will be leading to the Yeerk Base, while we await the ship.
"Nosee Qual-lo!" Sid shouted while lifting his claws and hands into the air.
"No he's stealing your line." Hunting said to me.
I guess Nosee Qual-lo means 'Let's do it!"
The Bird with antlers sidled up to Sid and gave a squeak. Nothing too strange, just a squeak.
"Uhhhhhh, Siv-a-see seip'lo, raka see-a-siv. Quarga van till'no pork bla?" Sid asked Hunting.
"I better morph."
Hunting morphed into his massive Hork-Bajir morph. Better?
"Carga mej." Sid said.
Now he understand me. Hunting explains to us.
"I guess you'll be playing translator, Captain?" Marco asked.
After Neuruw gave Hunting and Sid what they wanted to know, the Andalites and Anu bid us farewell.
Good luck, Humans. And Sid . . . . Prince Neuruw said, wishing us off. Sid turned a stalk eye toward him. Come back safe because we might come back for you.
We walked. According to David, the Bird with Antlers is a Luzzuch named Cobo. Marco prefers to still refer to him as "The ugliest damn ostrich I have ever seen."
Cobo's beak was shaped like a plow. In conjunction with the antlers, this makes Cobo's digging ability very effective. He doesn't fly all that well, though.
Hunting led us back to the Time Matrix and told Sid to concentrate on where the base is. We had a short, but heated debate on the logic of landing the Time Matrix in the middle of a Yeerk Base, but in the end Hunting won. He said he had a plan. I had to admit, whatever plan Hunting had, it had to have been better than Sid's plan to dig underneath the base. For of his experience following the Andalites, Sid doesn't seem to know about the possible Bio Gleet filters.
The Time Matrix landed us right where we wanted to be. Unfortunately, there were several Hork-Bajir in that room.
No Killing. David said, still in his Hork-Bajir morph. Killing even one of them could mess up the time stream.
Marco and I morphed Gorillas. Cobo and Sid actually fought well. How Cid taught Cobo to fight I'll never know. Marco and I knocked Hork-Bajir unconscious. Cid seemed to be doing the same.
Here's the thing. Sid was Jackie Chan. He was punching with his hands, bashing with his claws, whipping with his tail. He even used his head. Sid was a pretty awesome fighter.
As soon as the Hork-Bajir were all taking a hard nap, Hunting accessed one of the computers looking for a Yeerk who was once Visser Four. Sid and Cobo dragged the bodies into what Sid called a vertical pit. I think he meant closet.
Uh-oh. Hunting said, still in morph They detected a huge energy spike in his room and they're sending a small task force to investigate.
Huge energy spike? I asked.
Our ride. Marco figured out. Oh shit! We need to hide it! Where's Sid and Cobo?
That's when about twelve Hork-Bajir and a few Nahara came in all brandishing Dracon beams, and Sid had our only beam weapons.
"Gorillas?" said the Lead Hork-Bajir. "Earth vorgren!" he realized, speaking a language I recognized as Galard. He changed to English. "Ha Ha. Earth soldiers deserve an earth language. Do you feel closer to home? Ha Ha."
Very cute. Visser Fourteen, I presume Hunting said.
"Visser Three's andalite bandits. My my. What are you doing all the way here?"
"Visser," shouted one of the Nahara-controllers, "vak. Twoo vie? Krukala!!!"
"Inconceivable that that is what I think it is." Said another of the Nahara-controllers. This mix of English and Galard was getting annoying.
"Grab it!!" said Visser Fourteen.
No!!! We can't let him get the Time Matrix. Sid needs it.
What do you mean, 'Sid needs it'? Marco accused.
We tried to defend, but we were overwhelmed. The Visser's Hork-Bajir army were swarming the Matrix.
Nooooooo! Hunting yelled.
BOOM!!!!! The Time Matrix leapt from the swarm of Hork-Bajir and flew in free flight. That's when we found out why.
Cobo had launched the ball with his Beak! Sid and Cobo had tunneled underground and burst through the hard metal floor coming up right under the Time Matrix.
It was too cool for words.
"Catch it!" the Visser shouted idiotically.
But Sid was one step ahead. Mounted on Cobo like a knight on a horse, he commanded Cobo to leap toward the Time Matrix. Cobo jumped with his powerful luzzuch legs and touched his antlers against the Matrix. Sid also reached and grabbed it with his claws.
Sid and Cobo landed with the Time Matrix on a Rock ledge that jutted from the wall.
"Shoot them down!" cried Visser Fourteen.
THUNK! The sound of a great weight landing on the ceiling and then suddenly, light appeared and the stone ceiling with the metal reinforcements began to fall. Not only light, but shadow then fell into the room. The shadow of a large bird-like creature.
"Ah!!!" said a Nahara-controller. "Car Amultu!"
"Onsor!" Sid shouted.
Onsor? Marco asked. Why aren't you with the others?
I am the Amultu, now. Onsor said. Amultu is part of D'nakra Vilaspir Trispa Nee-druka Tseeeray Paz. I am part of D'nakra Vilaspir Trispa Nee-druka Tseeeray Paz.
Get Sid, Cobo, and the Sphere. Hunting commanded.
That looks like . . . . Onsor began.
Just do it!
Onsor grabbed the sphere in his beak. Cobo and Sid grabbed on to his feathers and together they flew off. Onsor got hit several times with Dracon Beams, but he was okay.
Great! Now the Andalites have the Time Matrix. Marco said.
Not for long. What's taking so long? Hunting said.
As if on cue, the doors to the entrance of the room opened revealing a single Gedd.
"Comstok Six-Zero-Nine?! What are you doing here?"
That's him!!! Hunting shouted. He flung with surprising strength from his captors and landed right in front of the Gedd. The Gedd whipped out a Dracon Beam, but Hunting took it and ran off with him.
Visser Fourteen took the opportunity to bring the attention back to us. "Get the Gorillas!"
I was a fool. Captain Hunting had left us. David had left me. Marco and I fought, but with David's proviso not to kill, we were not getting far.
Rachel, go on without me! Marco said. Find out what Hunting has planned.
No, I won't leave you.
If David is right, than we can postpone the war by at least a year. That is most important. Marco said.
No, they'll kill you. Or capture you.
If Hunting is right, it won't matter. Now I have three months seniority over you, and I say assist Captain Hunting! THAT'S AN ORDER LIEUTENANT! Marco ordered. Tobias will be alive again.
I love you, Marco.
I love you, too. Now Go! Marco said as we made a break for the door. I went out the door and Marco sealed himself and the Hork-Bajir in.
It didn't take long to find David. I heard the whimpering of a Gedd, and sure enough there David was with a Dracon Beam leveled at the Gedd.
David . . . .
He won't come out of the Gedd body. I can't kill the Gedd, I could cause a paradox. A paradox big enough could destroy the universe, just like Drode said I would. I can't do it!!!!
In three days the yeerk dies. We can keep the Gedd hostage until then.
That's in two days. Onsor or Sid could screw things up with the Time Matrix by then.
You can't make him leave his host.
David wavered, then lowered his beam. You're right. I can't force him, but I CAN persuade him.
David demorphed, got on his knees, and put down his Dracon Beam. "Take me" he said.
David, you're crazy!
"That's captain to you."
"Earth Vorgen!" said the Gedd. He grabbed David's head and put his ear to David's!
I was too stunned to do anything. Should I do anything? David had to have had a plan.
David struck! He smacked the Gedd away, but the Yeerk was already halfway into David's head. The other half hung out like a piece of cloth, but it began to squirm more of its awful body into David. I began to go to him.
"No." he managed to say, struggling with the yeerk inside. "Stay b-b-b-b-back."
Do you need help? I asked, pleading with him with gorilla eyes. I was never very good at the touchy-feely stuff. That was Cassie's department.
David stared at me. "I'mmmm ffffiiiiiineee."
David picked up the Dracon Beam, pointed it into his mouth, and fired.
"Did we make it right?" Jake asked upon realizing he was dead.
Cassie went to him, hugged him, and kissed him on the cheek. "No. We didn't make it right. But we put it back, Jake. Leave it at that. We put it all back."
I don't get it. Tobias said from the rafters. We were back in the barn. The last thing I remember is the Drode telling us he was putting things they we had changed them, but nothing is different.
We have memories of our past adventures for one, meaning the 'we' who went back in time is the same 'we' who now exist in this timeline.
"But Washington died. Trafalgar was screwed up. And nobody was where they were supposed to be on D-Day." I said.
"Someone must have changed things." Marco concluded.
"Do you think it was that rat thing that showed up before the Drode did?" I asked.
"I can't believe I was dead." Jake said.
"It's okay." Cassie said, still hugging him.
"Hey, where's David?" Marco asked.
"Why, do you need someone to hug?" I teased.
"I know a much prettier blond I'd like to hug." Marco said batting his eyes at me.
"Not in this lifetime, McCabe!"
David
7:00 PM
I was sitting on my thinking rock. The Stewing Stone, as I called it. For some reason I was in my Terry Stevens morph. I remembered then that I had been so upset about our fight this morning that I had been morphing in and out of my Terry Stevens form. When I wasn't an eagle or wolf, that is.
The memories of my other selves from various timelines were fading like a bad dream, but like bad dreams, certain images stayed.
The powerful and weighty feelings of a mighty leader.
The fear and weakness feelings of a lowly rat.
Oddly enough, I couldn't remember the location of the Time Matrix, but I remembered where I learned it and what else I learned from that.
Hedrick Chapman, the daughter of my current girlfriend, was the cause of it all! What a sniveling bastard. He sold out Tobias's mother Loren and all of Terra Firma for his own freedom. Or was it power? Even so. That younger version of him was a opportunistic, sniveling, asshole-coward.
And then I realized, like I used to be. Like maybe you still are!
The memory of what the Drode said. I would destroy the universe.
And the memory of blowing off my own head.
"Terry?"
Steph? No. It was Melissa.
"Have we been fighting all day?" I asked.
"Been a long, horrible day for you?" she asked.
"You have no idea."
"So, this is your Stewing Stone."
"Yeah. I've been sitting here so long, I think I got mildew on ass."
Melissa chuckled. Then she stopped very abruptly. "Don't get violent with again."
"Believe me, I won't." I said with self-pitying resignation.
"Something wrong?"
"I'm worried I may do something bad." I said.
"To me?"
"To everyone. I'm a dangerous person. A bad person."
Melissa put her arm around me. "You're not a bad person, Terry."
"What makes you so sure?"
"I don't care for bad people."
"You care for you father."
"My father is not a bad person!" Melissa said defiantly, removing her arm. "Look, I know I sometimes don't like how he ignores me and I hear he was some what of an asshole when he was young, but he loves me. More than I know. That makes him a good person."
She was right. I remember what young Hedrick Chapman did. Then I remembered his memory was erased of those events. Then I remembered what Rachel told me. Chapman became a controller to spare his daughter.
I was just like him. A sniveling coward. Until I feel in love with Cassie. I don't love her anymore, but having loved her, I am a better person.
"You're right. In loving you, he is a better person." I said. "Do you think I can ever be that way?"
"I think you already are." Melissa said. Then she kissed me. Very softly. Very sweetly.
I am not ready to say that I love her, but I do care for her deeply. She would be my saviour. My angel. Her father made a sacrifice for her. Maybe I should too.
Before I destroy the universe.
On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero.
"You ok, Terry?"
"You met me at very strange time in my life."